Sylvie sat next to Ajax on the hovering subway train. The conversation happening between the takeover squad was, as ordered, spoken in a language that drove her completely nuts. The warmth from the many bodies piled in the train did not help the heat she already felt, wearing the helmet; and she was sweating in uncomfortable places. She did not know how much more she could take. To her relief, their stop came, and Sylvie squeezed her way out of the crowded doors to freedom.

    Desperately she wanted to take off her helmet, but she knew that she would be dead if she would. Ajax stretched and stood beside her. She saw the rest of their men standing near a bench that was surprisingly left alone by the crowds. They headed down the roads and the crowd thinned until there was just them left on the road. They came to a small village, where people of all species rushed around. She saw a sign that read, 'Drunken Hummers' and hoped Ajax was not up for a drink. She had already been to two space bars and she planned on keeping it that way.

    "I'm going in to find some more information about where the royal runaways might be. You stay here, and stay spread out so no one can detect anything strange. Cut off my com," Ajax commanded, then disappeared into the bar.

    "You've got to be kidding me," Sylvie mumbled, seeing that he had entered the exact place she wanted to avoid.

    "What was that Miss?" one of the fighters asked through the com-link.

    "Nothing," Sylvie sighed and leaned against a wall.

    She searched the crowds for any sign of trouble or attention that needed to be avoided when her eyes rested on a lost little boy, probably no older than seven, crying in an ally. He looked like a human, but his pointed ears and good looks alerted Sylvie that he was a umaros. Still, she felt pity for the child and weaved her way over to him, asking, "What is wrong?"

    "Miss, what are you doing?" another member of the squad asked through the coms.

    "I'm taking care of a lost kid right now, I'll be right back," she told him.

    "Miss, whatever you do, do not remove your helmet."

    A frightened look crossed the boy's face and he scooted back in the dirt.

    He must be afraid of the helmet, Sylvie thought. She glanced around and saw that no one was watching, then removed the mask part of the helmet, saying, "See, I'm a hu-I mean, living being too," she stammered.

    He rubbed his eyes then squeaked, "I lost my mother."

    "Do you know which direction she went?"

    He pointed to the right.

    "Okay, I will be putting my mask on again. Hold my hand," she told him gently while holding her hand out and flipping the mask back on with the other.

    "Okay," he said with a quiver in his voice.

    Sylvie led him through the crowds until she saw a distressed umaros woman, crying out, "Elly, where are you?!"

    "I'm here Mother!" the little boy called back and he let go of Sylvie's hand and ran up to his mother. She wrapped him in her arms and began to lead him away when the innocent child told his mother, too loudly that, "That's a human."

    The mother's face turned from relieved, to full of hatred in a blink of the eye and she shouted out, "Guard, there's a human among us!"

    Sylvie, who was watching this from a distance, took this as her cue to turn around and mom-walk away, afraid that running might give her away. It did not help that the enthusiastic young boy was pointing at her as she pushed her way through the mob, which was staring at the mother and son. The crowd kept whispering to her, "Run, we'll try to stop them." This confused Sylvie even more as she continued pushing upstream in the crowd.

    She heard men shouting orders at the hoard to move aside and let them through. Sylvie made it to the end of the crowd and tried to keep her calm as guards came marching up in front of her. As they came closer and closer, her nerves got the better of her and she sprinted for the nearest ally. She heard footsteps behind her and stupidly tripped over a strand of rope which tethered some sort of beast of burden.

    Meanwhile, Ajax walked out of the bar without any information and seeing that Sylvie was nowhere in sight, he asked a member of the squad, "Where's Sylvie?"

    "She was helping some lost child, she said she would be right back but-"

    The fighter was interrupted by Sylvie, who yelled breathlessly through the coms, "Guys! My cover has been blown! Guards are after me!"

    "Damn it Sylvie! Hold on, I'll see if I can cover for you-"

    But Sylvie interrupted Ajax, saying, "That'll just blow your cover as well. Cut my com, if I'm caught, take back the planet."

    Ajax closed his eyes then sighed, "Be careful Sylv."

    "Don't worry, that's my job," Sylvie replied shortly, before her communication was cut off.

    "Captain, what should we do?" a squad member asked.

    "We're going to take back the planet, that's our only chance to save Sylvie," Ajax told them. "First, let's leave this village before we also get caught."