A Smijj of Disaster — Erin Manning

Smijj, the leader of the Twenty Telmaj, is eager to get back to the fight against the Unified Government, especially after the terrible attack on Yylex, an artificial world that was one of Telmaja's allies. Right now, Smijj has another task: getting ready for the official palace event at which Prince Talien will introduce his royal great-nieces to the people of Telmaja. It seems like the wrong time to be learning palace etiquette and preparing to celebrate the return of Telmaja's two young princesses. When a chance to lead a mission to a place far from Telmaja arises, Smijj is glad to take on the job. But Smijj doesn't know that a sinister scientist has engineered a deadly plot that involves Telmaja itself; and Smijj can't guess that in his absence, his dearest friend will wind up in the gravest danger of all.