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  "Can I sleep with you tonight? As a wolf? I just, I need to know you're here." He didn't look at her as he asked and she moved before she even thought.

  McKenna pulled him into her arms tight. "Absolutely. Sleeping close enough I can touch you sounds good."'

  If she had her way, she'd never let him go.

  Chapter 3 – Unreal Normalcy

  While our missing officers are still recovering from their ordeal, more and more shifters appear in the news. And not for good reasons. In California alone there are reports of over fifteen people turning into animals and going mad. While this isn't even a fraction of all shifters it is worrisome, especially as numbers are climbing across the globe. More and more people are being found in animal form and they seem unable to comprehend anything or shift back. ~KWAK News

  JD smiled at them and headed to use the bathroom. Twenty minutes later McKenna was splayed out on her bed in her human form with Charley curled up behind her. Exhaustion batted at her, but the dark links in her mind were like a sore tooth, and she couldn't quit poking at them. Missing Charley and the twins had hurt, but this, this was different. Having three of them, plus the twins, being out of reach created an almost physical level of dissonance in her mind.

  ~Kenna, you still awake?~ JD's voice tickled at the edge of her mind.

  ~Yeah.~

  ~Can I come in there? It sounds stupid, but I can't sleep out here in this form. It's too empty.~

  Her mental laugh had a tinge of bitterness to it. ~I understand. I miss them. Come on in, but I don't think my bed is big enough for the three of us.~

  ~That's fine. Sleeping on the floor will work. I just can't handle the emptiness.~

  She nodded, understanding completely. A minute later he walked in, a couple blankets in his hands, and created a nest on the floor near her bed. He flopped down, and just having him there helped. She fell asleep, one hand on Charley's back, the other hanging off the bed, barely brushing JD's hair.

  McKenna stepped off small metal step into a large area that had row upon row of beings in warrior form watching her. A voice rang out, "Attention, Commander on deck!"

  Ah shit, another dream. Wefor?

  But her thought didn't get an answer. She mentally found the links, and they were all there, but their color felt off. It took her a moment to figure out why. She felt herself turning and surveying the assembled group of beings looking at her in what she recognized as 'at attention' stance. She'd watched enough movies to identify it, even on non-human bodies. Her body moved to attention to as she poked at her links. Generally, they were green to her perception, meaning there and she could talk to the that person. Gray meant they were out of reach, and she couldn't communicate. Blue was when she had muted them from the general conversation, though she rarely did that anymore, usually she'd just open only the channel to the person she wanted. But now they were all orange to her view, and it had a bad taste and feel in her mind.

  Dammit, I need those links back.

  Her attention was forcibly pulled from the links as the body's eyes landed on four familiar figures standing off to the side a bit and all at attention.

  Guys! Thank goodness. Why can't I talk to you? Wefor? JD? Perc? Toni?

  "Commander, your troops have lined up for your review. Your personally selected squad has been assembled. If you have any issues with any of your team, please file your requested changes."

  Kids, where are the kids?

  Everything felt real. The cold metallic air in the hangar, the sounds of hundreds of people breathing and rustling slightly. The background noise of machines and computers that she couldn't place. She could feel what she wore hanging on her body registering as both odd and familiar at the same time.

  Where are the kids?

  Their links were also orange, and the body would not turn its head so she could scan more carefully as her friends and family got closer. She started to panic as the others braced for their inspection.

  Guys? Can you hear me?

  Frantic worry ate at her control. They'd just gotten everyone back. She couldn't lose them now. McKenna clawed at the mental links trying to make them turn green. She could see her pack, her family in front of her, why couldn't she talk to them?

  She pushed and stretched the links. Information she didn't really understand flashed through her head. Connection options, satellite links, overrides, trans-sub-harmonics alignment. Desperate, she wrenched and twisted and a sharp pain raced through her mind. She screamed mentally even though the body she rode didn't even flinch. The scream was joined by screams from the rest of her links, reverberating in her mind.

  McKenna jerked upright, the scream choking in the back of her throat. She felt movement as Charlie sat up too, rubbing his head, wincing.

  "What was that?" JD's voice came from the floor as he also appeared in her line of sight, rubbing his head.

  ~McKenna? JD?~ Cass's voice echoed in the mindscape, confused, with echoes of pain included.

  ~Guys? What was that?~ This time Perc's voice joined the mixture and McKenna sensed Toni and the kids filter in as well.

  ~Toni? How can we be talking? You're too far away. And Perc, you're way too far. What is going on?~ McKenna asked. Her heart leapt then settled down as all the lights were a steady constant green. She could feel their health, still too skinny and less robust than she would like, but they were alive and there.

  [Interesting. That manipulation of the links had not been found to be a possible option.] Wefor's voice had an odd confused tone.

  ~What do you mean? What happened? Did I do that?~

  [Yes. You forced the trans-harmonics logic to tap into both the cellular and satellite bandwidths. Normally these communications bounce off the Elentrin ship to be able to communicate while on the planet. You rerouted them to alternate channels. Interesting.]

  ~What does that mean? Why can I talk to them now they're so far away?~

  [In essence you are hijacking the bandwidths that satellite and cellular phones use. You can talk to them anywhere on the globe if there is any type of network available for the trans-harmonics to hijack.]

  She felt more than heard the sigh of relief that drifted through the mindscape, but Cass vocalized it.

  ~I'm glad. I was having issues with all of you so far away. My sister is still here, but it wasn't the same as you. Now I can feel you again and I feel better with that.~

  ~Agreed. And now there isn't a limit on me talking to my children.~ The fierce joy in her voice tasted of golden honey.

  McKenna lay back down, pulling Charley in human form into her arms, and with the links vibrant in her mind she fell asleep easily, no dreams waiting for her this time.

  JD joined McKenna in the kitchen the next morning, and she pushed the cup of coffee at him. She showered, but only pulled her hair back into a ponytail. A quick frittata was in the oven cooking, mostly leftovers thrown into the eggs.

  "Feels odd to be home," her voice low. Charley still slept, and she didn't want to wake him up.

  He nodded and picked up the cup. "Yeah." He drank some, eyes closed then looked at her. "I guess we need to deal with the elephant now."

  "Don't wanna." McKenna muttered into her coffee cup. She felt Perc wake up and the twins. Toni and Cass were still asleep. The amount of information the links now shared would have terrified her a month ago. But now it simply made her feel better having an awareness of them.

  "Ddiscuss in an hour or so when everyone is awake?"

  "Sounds good to me. I'm going to go call insurance and deal with that." His phone had been left here, under a pile of clothes.

  McKenna snorted. "At some point we need to pull that story out of the kids."

  "Yeah, but really in the scheme of things, my house isn't that big of a deal. It'll be dealt with."

  "Yeah. Impending alien invasion does put things in perspective."

  "Or getting kidnapped, poisoned, drug dealers, forced assassination," he replied dryly. "Compared to that, the house is just an annoyance
."

  McKenna grinned at him and threw some biscuits in the oven. She felt Charley stir and poured a glass of juice. It and the biscuits waited for Charley by the time he wandered out.

  The morning went by with strange normalcy. McKenna and JD had two weeks leave from the department as did Toni. Having her work for the same organization helped. Perc, of course, was retired, but Cass had to be back to work Monday. Every instinct McKenna had grumbled at that, but at least now distance wasn't an issue.

  JD got the wheels of insurance moving and ran over to his place to survey the damage and get a few things. When he got back, he reported the kitchen and most of the living room were a total loss, but the rest of the house was fine. Insurance adjusters had already been there and cops had been patrolling regularly to make sure no one decided to loot it. He tossed some of his clothes in the wash and overall didn't seem too worried about it.

  He'll talk if he wants.

  An odd glimmer in her mind caught her attention, and she realized there was a link between JD and Cass.

  Huh. Go, JD. Cass will be good for you.

  Closing her eyes, she paid more attention and saw a triangle of links between the kids. It was like watching light pulse back and forth. She couldn't hear what they said, really didn't want to, but she could tell they were communicating.

  With that, she focused on laundry and finding something to eat that she could stand. They still all needed to gain weight but had almost started hating food.

  Fried chicken. That sounds good.

  The only problem, she'd never made fried chicken before. McKenna shrugged, pulled out chicken to start thawing and looked up a recipe on the web.

  ~So we need to get together and talk, or do it this way since McKenna ripped open the links.~ Perc's voice filtered into the mind space.

  ~And do we include the kids?~ Toni asked.

  McKenna paused in her research efforts. "~I think we should. The fact that they're being pulled into the dreams as it is, means we can't exclude them. And personally, after the last week, I'd rather have them with me than not.~

  ~Agreed. I have a ton of stuff to do today. Laundry and hugging children. How about we just talk and research?~

  ~Works for me. I'm trying to find clothes that will fit for work tomorrow and convince Helena that I'm okay to be left alone.~ Cass's voice was filled with amused love.

  ~Ditto. My parents are offering to move out here, but I think we're fine and at this point I think I'd rather not have them at my ground zero.~ Perc's rumble remind her of a cat's purr, and McKenna grinned.

  ~So let's start brainstorming, but plan on meeting here next weekend regardless?~ McKenna asked. While she waited for a response she found a decent-looking recipe.

  ~Deal,~ JD agreed. ~And I've been thinking about it. First, I think you, McKenna, should call SETI and give them the translation. That might get someone's notice. And then we need to call Homeland. They have a local office in Sacramento so if nothing else, maybe with Perc and me for bodyguards, we can get someone to talk to us.~

  The mindspace filled with an aura of thought as she went about getting things ready. She could hear JD in the kitchen and feel the others, their moods, their overall well-being, but nothing else, not enough to make her uncomfortable.

  ~I can do that. I'll let you know what the result is.~

  A chorus of agreement, and everyone kind of faded. She could feel the distance, but their lights were as strong as if they had been in the same room.

  All her ingredients were there, but she frowned. "JD?"

  "Yeah?"

  "I want mashed potatoes. Those actually sound good. Feel like running to the store while I deal with SETI?"

  "Sure. I needed to run by the house and take a few more pictures anyhow. Charley?" He raised his voice a bit. "Want to come with me?"

  Charley walked into the kitchen, looking at McKenna. "You okay with that?"

  She looked at him and smiled. "Yes, but up to you. All I'm going to do is call boring people and try to convince them I'm not insane."

  "Good luck with that. I'm pretty sure we are." JD grinned at her, and she mimicked throwing something at them. She turned back to her preparations as she avoided the next step.

  Chapter 4 - Best Laid Plans

  So far SETI says it has received over three thousand entries of people taking a stab at decoding the odd message from the stars. SETI says they are going through the entries as fast as they can, but right now they figure it will take them three weeks to finish going through what they have, and that doesn't even address the new entries coming in everyday. The big question remains - could this be a message from another species, or just a reflection of all the chatter we put out into space? ~ TNN Science News

  When she couldn't avoid anymore, McKenna grabbed her phone and went over to the computer again. But no matter what, she couldn't find a phone number for SETI. Grumbling, she instead clicked on the form that popped up when she pulled up the site.

  Did You Translate the Message? Enter your transcription here now.

  ~This is a waste of time. I don't even get to talk to anyone,~ she sent out, frustrated.

  [Do they have a full transcription to listen to?]

  McKenna clicked around on the website until she found it.

  ~Yes, here.~

  She pushed play, and the strange distorted sounds came out of the computer speakers. While Wefor listened to the message, McKenna could feel the others existing, doing things. Nothing specific but it helped with the pain of being alone.

  ~Wefor?~ She kept the message private just between her and the AI that lived in her mind.

  [Yes?]

  ~Why is being alone causing me anxiety? I've never had that issue before. And I suspect the others are agitated as well by being alone.

  [There are reasons. Explanations can be provided. Are you ready to provide the translation?]

  ~Yes~, that she made public and began to type as Wefor spoke.

  [This is a message between two of the three ships headed this way. It looks like their signal hit a radiation wave and went wide instead of narrow allowing it to filter to this planet. Message begins: in three point four liad the ships will be in orbit above the third planet. Signals have been intercepted that imply their technology may be more advanced than expected. Harvesting areas are ready for new Kaylid. If the numbers are higher than expected we can take the best leaving those not as suitable. Expect full loads and low resistance. No records of any other widespread interaction from other species. They should be - Message cuts off at that point.]

  McKenna tried to lay it all out in the form. She provided her contact information and hit submit.

  A cheery message thanking her for her submission appeared, and she sighed.

  ~Step one done. Next, I'll see if I can set up a meeting for the three of us at Homeland Security. Perc - how early can you be here?~

  A brief pause then his mental voice came across. ~Eight work?~

  ~Perfect. I'll try to make it about ten or eleven. Traffic can suck that time of day.~

  An amused sense of agreement and she reopened the private channel.

  ~So talk, Wefor. Why the need to be with these people? Have them here?~

  [Kaylid are designed to be social and work in groups. It is coded into their very nature. With your being a commander it is worse. You are expected to be surrounded by your command team at all times. You work and live together. This isolated nature humans follow is not normal for Kaylid. In many ways all of you would share the same living space, even the children would be here in a more communal situation.]

  McKenna blinked and realized her mouth had gone dry. She got up to get water as she processed the information. ~Do they share sexual partners? It is open bedmates?~ That idea freaked her out. She kinda liked Perc. But Toni and JD were just friends. She'd never been interested in women. Didn't have an issue, just no attraction for her.

  [Not unless their culture supports it. Normally there is some pairing off. For Kaylid kept awa
ke for long periods, sexual partners keep them happier and more stable. Though normally all Kaylid are sterilized upon retrieval, both male and female. Children are distracting and normally are not allowed.]

  The information both made her feel better and freaked her out at the same time.

  ~Kenna? You okay?~ Perc's voice on a private channel startled her. She double-checked the conversation with Wefor had been private.

  ~Sure. Why?~

  ~You felt upset? No that isn't the right word. Worried? Stressed?~ His voice and the uncertainty in it made her smile a bit.

  ~Nah, just found out some stuff from Wefor. Doesn't really apply, but reinforces that we really don't want them to gather us.~

  ~Okay. If you're sure. I'll see you in the morning.~

  ~Yep.~ Drinking more water, she set the chicken in to marinate in the buttermilk then went back to the computer. Next task, talking to Homeland.

  That number at least she found easily. She dialed it and got a phone tree and an automated message that told her the office would be open again at 7:30 Monday morning. It rattled off the general stuff that she should hang up and dial 911 if it was an emergency.

  She sighed and hung up.

  ~Guys? We'll just have to drive down and see what we can convince them of. I'm not about to leave a message. Warning though, it's in the same building as the Sacramento Police department and the capital. There's the possibility of getting a lot of attention.~

  ~Meh, if anything, half of them would be on our side. So not going to worry about it. I heard the message Wefor translated. How long is a liad?~ JD asked, and she could feel Charley paying attention to the conversation.

  [A liad is nine earth days approximately. They are closer than calculated. They must have found a new Drakyn planet and are planning an invasion.]

  The information sat in the mindscape like a lead weight, pulling at all of them but not able to be moved.

  ~Okay, then Monday we shall go see what we can do. Maybe we'll get lucky?~ JD's voice had false cheer in it.

  ~Sounds good to me. You almost home? Need those potatoes.~