From every door dozens of uniformed Mrad Officers suddenly poured into the room with sirens blaring. Every food-covered combatant went still in mid-punch.

A few minutes later and it was all over.

* * * *

"MMMMM.” ELISE TOOK a last, lingering bite of her dessert as her hair glowed with a deep electric blue sheen. She closed her eyes and let the exotic flavors melt inside her mouth with a delicious sweetness.

"It is good, isn't it?” Krinia's head-tail swished back and forth excitedly as she savored her own final morsel of the same exotic-flavored ice cream.

"Some variation of chocolate, I'd say—or several kinds mixed together,” Jysar muttered between bites.

"The waiter said it was a triple chocolate—best of three worlds mixed together,” Krinia added as she wiped her mouth appreciatively.

"The ultimate chocolate experience,” Elise said with a laugh. “I'm in paradise."

"A chocolate paradise.” Jysar chuckled.

Nearby, the two Harg whispered as they cast furtive glances from the clock back to the table where Elise set down her empty bowl.

The restaurant seethed with patrons, while the broad corridor outside was literally wall-to-wall with aliens. The early evening drew nigh and with it a festive air urged the crowds to seek out RahajMr's best in food and entertainment.

"Don't you think it's time to go?” Jysar looked ill at ease as he surveyed the growing crowds around them.

"Why, don't you like crowds?” Krinia asked with a smile.

"Not especially,” he replied. “I favor smaller, more intimate places to relax.” Jysar shuddered. “I feel like I'm trapped in a sea of alien beings!"

Krinia rose. “I agree with you for once, Jysar. Let's...” A certain movement caught her eye.

"Look,” Elise said, following Krinia's glance. “It's Minstrel. I mean, the Zuuk." The seven eye-stalks gazed in various directions, obviously searching for them. Krinia waved as the three made their way toward the multi-colored shell body of the alien.

Minstrel-Zuuk looked relieved—as much as a Zuuk can look that way.

"I've been looking for you for over an hour. We need to get back to Mother,” Minstrel-Zuuk said loudly enough to be heard over the crowd noise.

"Oh, why is that?” Elise asked innocently.

"Well, for one thing, the Mrad authorities suspect that someone tried to sabotage their precious computer system.” The Zuuk shook his head, causing the eye-stalks to wave from side to side. “And although I'm innocent, I'm the one they grilled with questions until I can't see straight. And that's saying a lot for a being with seven eyes."

Jysar chuckled.

"What happened?” Krinia asked.

"They discovered that someone put a tracer program on my queries, as well as a kill code. Their internal security programs recorded some of its activity, but not the source. However, they did trace it to my query."

"Why would anyone want to trace your search queries?” Krinia asked.

"I presume they wanted to know the results as much as I did."

"Well, we were on our way back anyway. Let's go."

"But I wanted to check on my queries?” Elise asked plaintively.

"No need.” Minstrel-Zuuk replied, holding up a data pad. “I have your results here—courtesy of Mrad Security. It seems the boys have gotten into some kind of trouble as well. Just when I was about to be released, more Mrad Security came in and informed me that we were all being ordered to leave RahajMr—immediately. They supplied me with the results of all of our queries—and told me to find you and get back to our ship—pronto."

"Were there any matches for mine?” Elisa asked, full of hope.

"I am afraid not."

Elise's face fell with disappointment.

"Don't worry too much, Elise.” Krinia patted her shoulder comfortingly. “You tried."

"You can't expect to be a hero on your first attempt,” Jysar added.

"I don't want to be a hero.” Elise looked from one to the other with a pleading in her eyes. “I just want Jaric and Kyle to know that I'm human too. That I want to find other survivors, just like they do.” She sighed deeply. “If I helped them find other survivors, then they'd like me." Krinia reached around Elise and gave her a strong hug of reassurance.

"There'll be another time. And then you can try again.” Krinia smiled at her friend. “The biggest thing is to never give up trying. And one day you or one of the boys are bound to succeed. I know it." Elise's eyes brightened. “Thank you."

They walked off together arm in arm following Jysar and the multi-colored shell of Minstrel-Zuuk. The two Harg held their position a moment longer at their table. Each typed brief notes into their handheld units reporting everything they just heard. They finished and quickly followed their quarry, always keeping them just within eyesight among the never-ending throngs. But as Elise and the others stepped into Berth B279 where Mother sat docked, the Harg following them walked inconspicuously past until they came to a corner. They ducked quickly out of sight and waited. After a few moments, they looked at each other with confidence. One of them took out a scanner and tuned it. Concealing it carefully under his shirt, he nodded to his accomplice. This time they walked slowly by Berth B279, long enough to obtain a good scan of Mother.

They hurried on to report their findings to the Paum.

* * * *

SIX HOURS LATER, Rok, Kyle, Jaric and the Hammatt stood before the watchful gaze of Jodacis, Mrad Judge of the Law and the Chief Justice assigned to the Lower Court of Refugees.

"What did they do with everybody else?” Jaric whispered. “I mean, they must've arrested a couple of hundred aliens back there."

Rok slowly twisted his head from side to side as if he were trying to get rid of an annoying tenseness in his neck. He remained silent as he glanced up at the stern gaze of Judge Jodacis sitting at his station above them.

"It has been determined that you four started this outburst,” the closest Mrad Officer said. Jaric looked down at the floor and sighed.

"I trust you've been given the usual lecture.” The Judge's voice boomed out, breaking the silence of the large judicial chamber.

Jaric and the others seemed to shrink under that voice of stern authority. And with the recent memory of the multitude of tedious words that verbally beat them black-and-blue, they had absolutely no desire to hear the lecture again.

Even now, the words echoed inside their heads like a bad song you wish you could erase out of your mind but can't.

Actually, the lecture boiled down to one important theme—if you did something stupid, like break the Law, then the Law would set you straight.

"Don't fight the Law,” Kyle whispered to Jaric. “Cause the Law always wins, baby."

"I'm convinced,” Jaric whispered back.

"Silence in my court!” The Mrad Judge returned his gaze to the console and the list of charges. “Answer my first question, please."

"Yes, we've heard it. Three times in the last hour alone,” Kyle said with disgust.

"And you'll hear it more before you're out of my courtroom. The Law will be obeyed." They all groaned in unison.

"Well, what do we have here,” the judge continued as he glanced at the console on his desk. “Let's see, yes.” He cleared his throat. “Disrupting the peace, initiating a riot, destruction of public property, assaulting an alien.” He paused here. “Or aliens. Or should I make it assaulting anything that is within your reach."

Kyle groaned.

The Judge began inputting new data into the console while the four remained silent. Several, long minutes passed.

Finally, the Judge finished. He looked down at them once again with unflinching eyes.

"We don't like your kind of alien in our cities. Especially aliens causing trouble among the homeless refugees we are trying to help."

Rok started to speak, thought better of it, and returned to staring at the floor.

"You'll spend four days in captivity, working in the kitchens to pay off the damage you've caused—your calculated share. And then you'll be escorted away from our cities as persona non grata , and not allowed to return to RahajMr or its sister cities until two years have elapsed. Is that clear?"

"That seems a bit harsh, don't you think?” Jaric looked up with surprise at the Mrad Judge. “I mean, we made a mistake—one mistake. We've—"

The Mrad Judge interrupted him.

"There is another, more serious activity in which you seem to be involved—albeit there is no direct evidence, only circumstantial."

"What is that?” Rok asked with interest.

"Have you ever met an alien named Ablek?"

"Yes,” Kyle answered quickly. “We rented our Search-terminals through him.” He, Jaric and Rok looked intently up at the Mrad Judge now.

"He is in hospital even as we speak—badly hurt and only semi-conscious."

"What?” the trio said simultaneously.

"His wounds are the result of a vicious attack.” The Mrad Judge leaned forward. “And whoever attacked him will be dealt with in the most severe way, according to our law."

"How are we involved?” Kyle asked. “We liked the little alien."

"That's right,” Jaric quickly added, a look of concern on his face.

"We are investigating exactly what took place. Our investigators have discovered that whoever perpetrated this heinous act was able to partially disable our Security systems—another serious crime."

"That's not us,” Kyle said matter-of-factly. “I don't think we're that smart."

"And so it may turn out to be. However.” The Mrad Judge cleared his throat loudly. “Ablek whispers a word from time to time as he lies there in hospital. And the word he repeats is— human." Kyle and Jaric bowed their heads solemnly.

"The Hammatt does not seem to be implicated in this first crime." All eyes in the courtroom turned to the big alien.

But the Hammatt remained strangely silent.

The Judge's gaze focused back on Kyle, Jaric and Rok. “So, first you meet Ablek and perform a business transaction. And later that same evening he is brutally assaulted. Humans have never before been to our cities, and yet within the first two waking cycles since you arrive, two crimes are committed. And you are implicated in both—either directly or indirectly.” The Mrad Judge cleared his throat noisily once again. “We don't like your kind of alien in our cities."

"We're innocent of the first incident, Your Honor,” Rok said with conviction. “We would never attack another alien, unless it was to defend ourselves."

"The investigation will determine that. If we do find you guilty of the first charge, you will be dealt with much more harshly. Now, take them from my court."

Kyle looked up. “Can we contact our ship first, to let them know what's happened to us? Our mother will be concerned."

"One communication.” He waved them all away.

* * * *

"WHY ARE YOU in police custody?” Mother asked with an electronic edge. Kyle and Jaric both groaned.

"It was a mistake, we were in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Jaric answered quickly.

"Yeah,” Kyle agreed. “We were just minding our own business, eating lunch, when..."

"Actually,” Rok interrupted with an apologetic tone. “Actually, we found ourselves involved with several irate aliens. Jaric inadvertently insulted one..."

"Yeah, the biggest one there,” Kyle said.

"Wait, wait,” Jaric broke in. “That Hammatt started it back in the..."

"Enough!” Mother shouted, her voice rising several decibels.

"Uh-oh,” Kyle said under his voice.

"I will ascertain all the facts from you and from the Mrad authorities—personally. At that time, I will determine what took place. And what additional discipline I need to take. Suffice it to say, you got yourselves into trouble. And you are also in serious trouble with me ." Kyle and Jaric groaned again.

"In the meantime, I have good news."

Rok, Jaric and Kyle stared at the Mrad communicator.

"Minstrel and I have decided we all need a vacation."

They looked at each other with puzzled expressions.

"We have been talking about this concept while I researched its history. The planet I have chosen for the process of vacation is not only an ideal place to relax and unwind, but there is also a famous festival taking place right now. It is a five-day journey from here."

"Go on,” Kyle said with growing interest.

"It is the island-planet called Meramee."

"Indeed, it is a most fascinating place,” Minstrel added from the communicator. “A rare and beautiful world—ninety percent ocean with the largest land mass only a few hundred kilometers in total area. There are tens of thousands of different islands that dot this planet. It is said—'no two islands are exactly alike on Meramee.’ I am in keen anticipation myself."

"Meramee."

Jaric said the word as if it were a long lost friend. He looked at Kyle with eagerness on his face.

"I've heard of it. A couple of aliens mentioned it to me a few months ago—some kind of tropical paradise planet."

"What kind of festival?” Kyle asked with excitement in his voice.

"It occurs every seven years,” Mother said. “Millions flock to it from all the planets in this quadrant, even faraway Jantannell. It's a festival featuring the best food, beer and wine from the planets of a particular sector chosen by the Festival Council. They call it ‘Rayall Shifanzz', which roughly translates ‘Taste of the Quadrant.’”

"Even better, the aliens who reside on this island-planet are an aquatic race called the Mejadic.” Minstrel glowed brightly. “These festivals feature their unique underwater concerts. They play their instruments underwater but the sounds can be heard above water. And song-whales are known to join many times, adding their eerie cries. I have heard recordings by other Minstrels who've visited Meramee, but this will be my first time to experience it personally."

"We plan on staying at least one month after the festival's climax subsides,” Mother added.

"The best food and beer from an entire sector,” Rok said as he licked his lips. “Sounds delightful."

"I have contacted your Kraaqi frigate, the Aurora . It is now on its way here and will pick you up once you are released. They will contact you with their berth number when they arrive."

"Wait!” Kyle shouted. “Where are you going to be, Mother?"

A brief, but powerful pause echoed from the communicator.

"We will be arriving at Meramee right about the time you are released."

"Why?"

"We too have been asked to leave and then return at the end of the week to pick you up. Instead, we will proceed to Meramee and wait for you there, a more efficient use of our time. There is no need for us to be inconvenienced by your mistakes. The Aurora will pass RahajMr on its way to Meramee. It is logical that they pick you up."

Jaric and Kyle looked at each other.

"Yeah, I guess there's no need for you to suffer for our troubles. I guess we'll see you at Meramee,”

Jaric said, his voice tinged with sadness.

"Yes,” Mother said with firmness. “At that time we will discuss this issue again."

[Back to Table of Contents]

Chapter Nine

MOTHER LIFTED FROM her berth two hours later and made her way through the eternal winds. Her gift from the Kraaqi, the anti-gravity sub-light engines, powered her steadily through the tattered cloud bands of green and orange. Within a few minutes, she left the gas planet behind and sailed gracefully into the silent blackness of outer space.

As she turned and powered up her hyperdrive engines, Mother's manta-ray silhouette shimmered under the sparkling light of ten million stars. Mother locked in the coordinates for Meramee and kicked in her powerful ThunderStar engines.

With a mighty flash, she leapt into hyperspace.

"Why do you think tracer code and kill code were placed on your query, Minstrel?” Mother asked.

"That is a mystery.” Minstrel dissolved the multi-colored Zuuk shell and returned to its normal plasma body. Minstrel's twinkling body ebbed and flowed like a living cloud of countless miniature stars.

"I assume it has to do with sentient technology. I base that on the laws I found forbidding such technology—something highly feared.” A sudden wave of silver washed Minstrel's undulating body.

“Further research I obtained remotely from my own starship revealed quite a number of alien races have actually outlawed and banned it in this quadrant."

Mother felt confusion. Why would any race ban such research? After all, humanity's efforts had resulted in her creation. She proved most beneficial to her creators, especially as the caretaker to the last three children of humanity.

In addition, she carefully protected and housed the precious contents inside her long-term memories—a knowledgebase and compendium of all the accomplishments and history of the human race since its beginning long, long ago.

Prudently, she had downloaded it to both the Hrono and Minstrel races before leaving the Three Kingdoms. Even if Mother suffered destruction now, the rest of the universe would not forget the human race.

Mother was sentient technology—and she was good.

Or so she thought of herself.

"Could you make contact with your brother Minstrels and find out why some of these races created such a ban?” Mother asked with a nervous edge to her voice.

Minstrel glowed brighter. “Yes, a good suggestion. Once we are far enough away from RahajMr, I will send the ‘recall beacon’ for my ship. After we rendezvous with it, I will send out that communication." Mother's processors hummed with activity. “Could you venture an assumption, Minstrel?"

"You are concerned, aren't you?"

"Yes,” Mother replied instantly. “I am sentient technology. Why would anyone want to outlaw beings like me?"

Minstrel's body glowed brighter until its essence filled the room and reflected off the numerous consoles around the bridge.

"They may consider sentient technology dangerous."

Mother's processors spiked with super-activity as she assimilated this fact and looked at it from a million different angles. A few seconds later, Mother spoke.

"Do you mean dangerous as in harmful like a disease?"

"No.” Minstrel's voice, normally a pleasant, melodious tone, turned serious. Two seconds passed, an eternity to Mother's circuits.

"They may consider sentient technology evil ."

Minstrel floated slowly to the ceiling after speaking, its body now spread so thin it was almost invisible.

"Evil.” Mother repeated. Her processor utilization hummed with activity as she referenced this concept throughout the vast knowledgebase of humanity, through all the various meanings and applications throughout all human history. Mother soon realized that this concept of evil played an integral part in almost every facet of human existence and the human experience.

Mother became fascinated and horrified by what she found.

Several minutes passed in silence as Minstrel waited for Mother to continue.

"These alien races may feel that sentient technology could create evil, or bring pain or sorrow to them.”

Mother paused again, focusing on the exact definition of the word evil. “They may feel sentient technology would visit destruction upon them."

"The concept of evil.” Minstrel's voice echoed softly.

"These races may believe sentient technology would bring evil upon them, not that it was evil in itself..."

"Isn't the concept of evil and its application one and the same?” Minstrel asked.

"Sometimes those who are deemed good perform evil deeds.” Mother paused. Minstrel laughed.

"Why are you laughing? That statement of fact should not exist—it is a paradox."

"Perhaps evil depends on your perspective? Perhaps it depends if you are the one meting out justice—or the one receiving it?"

"Please explain,” Mother coaxed.

"In a war, there are normally two sides—two opposing forces. Two different governments or two different races.” Minstrel's body suddenly twinkled like a billion tiny stars going super-nova. “Or two different spiritual belief systems."

"Go on,” Mother urged.

"The other side is always evil."

Now Mother's processors spiked to overload as she considered this one thought—a sentence so simple. And so profound.

"How can that be?” Mother asked. “In essence, they are only different , or does that make one good and the other evil according to biological beings?"

"If one faction by its actions brings destruction or pain on the other, then it is considered evil. Having performed evil, the perpetrators are evil."

"So, beings are evil based on their actions?"

"In a way.” Minstrel thought a moment. “By its definition, which I'm sure you've reviewed many times these last few seconds, evil is the antithesis of goodness—or that which is good."

"Evil is synonymous with malevolence, badness, foulness and sorrow.” Mother paused. “It is not strictly a moral badness, although in many references evil is considered just that."

" Inherent evil,” Minstrel emphasized. “A being totally evil. Or bent on evil—to bring evil upon others. That is the concept biological beings define as evil."

"The bad guy,” Mother said.

"The really bad guy,” Minstrel added.

Silence settled between them a long moment.

"What makes one evil?” Mother asked.

"That is not an easy question to answer."

"Please try."

Minstrel's body flowed together until it became an opaque cloud of lights. Thoughts flowed throughout its essence as it carefully contemplated Mother's question.

"Many times, those who perform evil do not consider themselves such. In fact, they may feel that their actions are justified."

"And yet they are evil?"

"Look inside your knowledgebase of human history,” Minstrel prompted Mother. “Look into their past—far into their past."

"Why?"

"Remember, Minstrels visited humanity long ago, but we did not reveal ourselves to them because we found them unworthy—at that time in their history.” Minstrel paused. “You will find human history littered with philosophical paradoxes—where their intention was good but the result was evil."

"I see them."

"Some of the most horrific evils were done in the name of Right. And in the name of God.” Minstrel paused with sadness.

"The Holocaust,” Mother began somberly. “The Inquisition. The Crusades. The European conquest of the Americas and Australia and the destruction of entire aboriginal races—numerous other wars of genocide. And countless acts of terrorism."

"Worse than that.” Minstrel sighed.

"The rape and pollution of their original homeworld in the name of profit."

"Yes,” Minstrel said with a great sadness. “Each time, the goal of their actions was for the good of their people—for the good of their cause. But look at what each ultimately caused."

"It was evil. The result was evil in each case, and those that perpetrated the action were evil.” Mother's processors burned with activity. “The end does not justify the means."

"They felt they were right. It was their perspective at the time.” Minstrel's body glowed brightly as if all the individual tiny lights had coalesced into one mass. “Of course, they were all wrong." Mother waited for Minstrel to continue.

"This concept of evil appears to be simple on the surface,” Minstrel added matter-of-factly. “Beings may feel their cause is right. And to achieve their cause they are justified to take whatever actions they deem necessary."

"Even evil actions?"

"Even evil actions,” Minstrel echoed.

"But their actions make them evil,” Mother said.

"If they bring evil on another by such actions—yes. By the strict definition of the term. If they bring pain, suffering and destruction in order to bring about their purpose—they become evil. No matter how much they try to justify their actions."

"Then I am evil,” Mother said with sadness.

"You brought evil upon the T'kaan, yes,” Minstrel agreed. “But that does not make you an evil being. Your only course of action was to fight and defend yourself and the children. Or else you would have ceased to exist. You had the right to defend yourself and your children. Everyone has the right to defend his life and his family from a murderer."

"Then I am not evil."

"You are not an inherently evil being. From the perspective of the T'kaan, you would be perceived as evil because you destroyed them. But not from the human perspective—to them you are heroic. And not from an objective perspective, for you saved countless other alien races from potential destruction at the hands of the T'kaan."

"Evil cannot be totally based on perspective. There must be some code of conduct in order to measure actions against it, in order to determine if their actions are evil,” Mother said. “And even if the intention or goal is one of good, if one's action breaks the code of conduct, that one must be defined as evil."

"Exactly. The code of conduct must protect the rights of all beings equally in order that evil is not perpetrated upon any of them no matter their differences."

"But I did evil—I destroyed. We just stated that actions do not justify the end result."

"If you had not fought, the human race would now be extinct. And worse, it would be utterly forgotten. Your knowledgebase of humanity would have been destroyed before you could download it to the Hrono and Minstrel race."

"So, how do we tell if a being is evil?"

"It is not easy. And we must take into account that we all make mistakes from time to time. But a pattern of actions reveals true intent in the end."

"Can a good being turn evil?” Mother asked.

"Yes. And an evil being can turn good."

"Of course, it depends on your perspective,” Mother said in a mocking tone.

"Perception is reality, at times. But one's actions will ultimately tell all."

"The ‘Perception is reality’ attitude is a common fault among biological beings,” Mother agreed.

"Destructive actions taint a noble goal. They may claim with all their heart they are on the side of good—but their actions give lie to their words. And living this lie will ultimately affect their mental makeup and their conscience until they feel they are justified by any action—a delusional sickness.” Minstrel paused. “Such beings feel they are infallible. "

"Some use evil to fight evil and say it is right,” Mother countered.

"Can two wrongs make a right?"

"It is not logical."

"Our actions make us evil. Especially evil acted with malevolent purpose and premeditation,” Minstrel added with a sense of finality.

"Evil is more complex than I first thought.” Mother sighed.

"Yes."

Mother bookmarked several thousand references inside her knowledgebase so she could review this subject again.

"Did you know that you were followed when you and the others came back yesterday?” Mother said, changing the subject.

"No, I did not! And that's bad for a Minstrel, especially one with seven eye-stalks at the time,” Minstrel said with shock.

"It is understandable with the ever-present crowds on RahajMr."

"Still, I should've picked them up. It is the basic training of all Minstrels that we unobtrusively walk among other aliens. And if we should arouse interest, we must be aware and take measures. I need to be more careful.” Minstrel's body twinkled brightly. “Perhaps they were part of the Mrad Security?"

"It fits the facts. Still, my sensors detected their attempts to scan me. It seemed odd." Mother's thoughts focused on Jaric and Kyle.

"Minstrel, do you think the boys are ... bad? They seem to get into trouble quite often. And now they are in trouble with Mrad Security and in custody."

Minstrel smiled. “They are young and full of the energy and vitality of life. They act before they think. That is their problem."

Minstrel's body expanded like a glowing fog across the entire bridge.

"I would say they are ... mischievous.” Minstrel laughed.

Mother felt a comfort grow inside her circuits.

"They will probably grow out of it. Maturity will bring wisdom to them, as it has to Rok. Somewhat,”

Minstrel added.

"Well, I am glad we're going on vacation. It's a good idea to relax after our long journey the past months."

"Meramee, an ocean world paradise sprinkled with islands,” Minstrel said with growing excitement.

“And we are arriving at their famous festival. If this can't help the boys relax and enjoy themselves, nothing can."

"We will all enjoy it,” Mother said with quiet hope. “A nice, quiet vacation."

[Back to Table of Contents]

Chapter Ten

"THE HUMAN SHIP left two hours ago. An hour after their departure, one of the fast Harg reconnaissance ships followed them.” Rab watched his leader's face intently. Qirn's face grew thoughtful as he stroked his chin; the yellow, vertical pupils of his eyes glowed with the inner workings of his mind. After a few moments of contemplation, his short, powerful tail whipped from side to side decisively.

"The evil of the Paum is closing in on these humans—one way or another,” Qirn said with a solemn tone. “I will take my starship and go after them."

"What about the humans still here?” Jaan asked.

"Rab and the others will maintain watch over them."

"We still don't know why the Paum and its agents are so interested in these strange beings?” Jaan's eyes narrowed. “Are they its potential allies? Or its enemies?"

"We know from their communication that they all head for Meramee and the great Festival.” Qirn looked from one of his warriors to the other. “The Kraaqi ship will be here soon to take the two human males and their Kraaqi friend to join their friends. Security on Meramee is not half what it is here.” Qirn nodded. “The Paum will act there. It is imperative that we go immediately, before they act." Jaan grunted agreement. “Yes, we must have ourselves in position before any fighting begins."

"And that is why I will take my ship, my crew,” Qirn said. “We will prepare. We will engage the Paum and his Harg agents before they act. And defeat their efforts."

Qirn's face became thoughtful. “More important, we must figure out what part these humans play. And why such a small group has the high interest of the Great Paum."

Jaan patted his commander's shoulder. “And we will, my Captain. We will." Qirn's hand gripped the handle of the sword strapped to his waist. Inside his heart, he knew this business was quickly coming to a climax.

"Ready my ship, Jaan. We sail within the hour."

* * * *

A WHOLE DAY had passed since Mother sailed away.

And Jaric and Kyle felt alone and deserted.

Rok sensed it from their words and actions. But inside, he knew this added discipline by Mother would benefit them in the long run. And himself. It would reinforce the hard work the Mrad imposed on them to help pay for the damage.

And maybe next time, they would all think twice before launching into a free-for-all. Maybe.

"I wonder why so few of us were detained and the others just fined and released.” Jaric looked at the others sharing their punishment. There were fifteen other aliens hard at work in addition to them and the Hammatt.

"We were singled out as the perpetrators of the food riot.” Kyle chuckled with the recent memory. The huge Hammatt had his back to them as he cleaned the floor. At Kyle's words, he turned. The magnificent horn that grew from his snout lowered as he looked down and made eye contact.

"You are talking too much. Keep working!"

"Who died and made you boss?” Kyle sneered.

The huge Hammatt growled ominously. But then the expression on his gray complexion changed. He sighed. “I only want us to finish our tasks so we can go back to our holding cells. I am tired." Kyle was impressed with the alien's sudden change of tone, a tone of cooperation instead of confrontation. He looked into the alien's black eyes.

"I agree. If we work together, we can finish faster."

The Hammatt grunted acknowledgement.

The four went back to work with a renewed zeal. The minutes passed quickly as the four worked in close cooperation, cleaning tables and floors as well as taking broken chairs to the back for repair or for refuse.

The Hammatt returned from dumping several chairs when Rok spoke.

"What is your name, Hammatt?"

The big alien looked at him with interest. “I am Inaha.” He smiled briefly then returned to his work. Rok watched him silently for a while before he spoke. “And I am Rok of the Kraaqi, First Leader of the Band of the Stars."

The Hammatt glanced at him with a nod but continued his work.

Rok smiled as the alien picked up two tables, one under each arm, and moved them so he could clean better. “I admire your strength, Inaha."

Inaha placed the tables down and raised his muscular arms, flexing his massive biceps. “My people are a strong race. And brave."

"So are mine.” Rok smiled.

Jaric and Kyle looked from Rok back to Inaha with growing interest as the conversation continued.

"Wait a minute, this is the guy that ‘hates all aliens.'” Jaric looked at Inaha. “And the alien who threw me around the room like a rag doll the other day.” Jaric's eyes widened with the memory.

"Several times.” Kyle chuckled.

Rok's low laughter joined Kyle's mirth.

Kyle stopped and admired the Hammatt's great size.

"And I might add, he didn't even break into a sweat!"

Now the Hammatt began to laugh. “It was sort of fun.” The big alien laughed even louder. Rok's laughter grew.

Jaric stared in disbelief, watching the three of them laughing. He found no humor in this. He still had too many aches and pains.

Jaric shook his head. “Well, I for one can't wait until our sentence is finished and we're on our way to Meramee. That's when I'll be laughing."

Inaha's face became serious. “You are going to the ‘paradise planet'?” He came over to Jaric and picked him as easily as if he were a toy. He brought Jaric's face close to his. “Are you going to the great Festival?"

"Yeah, yeah.” Jaric squirmed in the mighty alien's iron grip. “But why would you want to go? There'll be nothing but aliens everywhere. And remember, you're the one who hates aliens!" The big Hammatt slowly lowered Jaric and set him gently on his feet.

Inaha groaned, a very low and forlorn sound that emanated from deep inside his massive body.

"Mine is a sad story, truth be known. My people were forced to leave our homeworld. It's hard enough to leave your world behind, but to be forced to leave with little hope of returning...” The big alien's eyes grew sad, his face somber.

"It was the Black Flu . It came out of nowhere and swept our planet within days. Millions died. Tens of millions."

He looked from one to the other with a sudden intensity. “Do you know what it's like to see corpses piled up on street after street waiting for transport to take them away like so much garbage? Everyone was afraid. Afraid to go outside. Afraid of others. Afraid even to touch the dead in order to bury them. Families watched from inside as disposal units took them away to be burned—not even a decent burial.”

He looked down, an expression of pain on every feature. “It is said of the Black Flu, when it strikes a world, that the dead bury the dead, it is that contagious."

"Well, it was decided for us: those not infected must evacuate the planet or die. The aliens who lived nearest our world brought their combined war fleets in order to enforce their edict. And we were too weakened to fight."

"A harsh thing to endure,” Rok agreed.

"There is no cure for the Black Flu. The only choice is to let the disease run its course, kill all its host and go dormant. Planetary quarantine lasts decades—just to be sure—before you can return to a world stricken by it."

"It must have been bad,” Jaric said solemnly.

"It was.” Inaha looked from Jaric to the other two. “We went to several planets in search of refuge, in search of help. But everywhere it was the same—we were driven away with curses and threats.” The Hammatt's face became one of intense sadness. “They treated us like outcasts, like we were tainted—like we were worthless and had no right to ask for help! Even though we carried papers that certified we had been tested and were disease-free."

Inaha gazed off in the distance. “No one would help us."

Inaha faced Jaric. “On one planet, they even spit on me. Me! And said that I and my people needed to go die somewhere else—anywhere—as long as it was far away from them. And so I grew to hate all aliens deep in my heart."

Jaric patted the alien's shoulder. “But you have been helped here.” Jaric smiled. “And we are not treating you that way."

Inaha smiled. “I was wrong to say what I did—that I hated all aliens. The past year has been difficult.”

He looked over to Kyle and Rok. “Actually, I traveled a lot before the outbreak. I signed with a Hammatt trader and had just returned from a four-year stint when the flu broke out. Back then, I enjoyed meeting aliens from different worlds."

Kyle's eyes went wide. “You're kidding! I would've never figured that from our first encounter." Rok stepped beside Inaha. “But now that we have talked, we understand him. We understand why he said what he said.” Rok looked at both Jaric and Kyle. “If we had known this, we would have brushed off his angry words and not reacted so quickly. And there might not have been a riot." Kyle laughed. “Well, that could be."

"Yeah.” Jaric laughed. “Next time I won't react so quickly.” His face became thoughtful. “Maybe I'll try to understand first."

"Think first, then act. What a concept!” Kyle said with renewed laughter.

"Well, let's get back to work,” Kyle said with sudden enthusiasm. “I want to get back with Mother and Minstrel on Meramee as quickly as we can. And maybe if we work hard together, they might take a day or two off our sentence."

Inaha's eyes widened with surprise.

"Minstrel!” He placed his face next to Kyle's until his horn almost touched Kyle's nose. “Are you a friend of a Minstrel ?” he shouted.

Everyone in the room turned toward them.

"Hey, not so loud,” Kyle said as he held up his hands for emphasis. The big alien's face became one full of excitement. “This changes everything!"

"How is that?” Jaric asked with disbelief.

"Hammatts have known of Minstrels for a long time. We cherish their visits. We cherish the songs they bring from the far reaches of the universe."

Kyle's eyebrows rose with interest. He nodded to Rok and Jaric who nodded back. Inaha looked at all of them with a profound look in his eyes.

"Any friend of a Minstrel is a friend of Inaha. And any Hammatt!"

"Well, this does change everything.” Kyle laughed.

"Would you like to journey with us to Meramee and visit with our Minstrel?” Rok asked. Jaric and Kyle looked at him with shocked surprise.

"Yes!” Inaha effortlessly lifted Jaric and Kyle into his great arms and hugged them so tight their eyes began to bulge.

"T-that's enough love,” Kyle grunted, vainly trying to free himself from Inaha's iron embrace.

"O-o,” Jaric grunted within the Hammatt's merciless grasp. “Kay,” he managed to finish. “Put us down." Inaha put them down quickly. “Then I can go? I can pay for my passage. And I've been there before, too! I can show you some of the best islands, the ones the locals like! The ones the tourists don't know about!"

Kyle ran his hands over his ribs to make sure none had been crushed accidentally. When he found no damage, he looked up.

"Sure, Inaha. Rok's ship should be here soon.” He smiled broadly. “And we can always use a new friend."

[Back to Table of Contents]

Chapter Eleven

THREE DAYS PASSED quickly as they traveled through deep space on their way to Meramee. Jysar and Krinia grew more excited with each passing day as Minstrel and Mother continued to talk about the wondrous beauty of the island-planet they would soon be landing upon.

It sounded just like paradise.

Elise's excitement grew as well, studying the view-screen where Mother displayed island after beautiful island from the sensor reports of Meramee.

Personally, she looked forward to swimming in the emerald oceans and turquoise seas that made up ninety percent of this world, as well as walking on its countless beaches. There were beaches of almost every color on Meramee depending on the geological forces which created that particular island: pale pink, burnt orange, glistening black, or pale lavender—even a few rainbow beaches of different colors of sand mixed together!

Not only were no two islands exactly alike on Meramee, but even on the same island it seemed that no two beaches were exactly alike in their natural beauty.

Everyone's excitement built with each passing day.

Late on the third day in space, Elise found herself alone walking through the rearmost sections of Mother's corridors. She rarely ventured this close to the engine room, and she had never actually entered it before.

The first time she wandered too close a few months back, both Jaric and Kyle made it very clear that the engine room was off-limits for her. And when she asked why, their anger erupted and she ran away in tears.

But even more odd, when she brought the incident up with Mother, she agreed with them. Mother informed her to stay clear of this one section.

She still didn't know why.

Mother avoided explaining this particular rule each time Elise asked. It was a mystery shrouded in the boys’ anger and pain.

But now the boys were gone. They would never know if she entered the sanctity of the engine room. Elise felt her heart pounding inside her chest as she crept closer. The door came into sight. But she hesitated, a sense of panic overwhelming her with a suffocating grip. She stood frozen. She jumped as a whirring sound accelerated and grew louder.

Fixer3 suddenly rolled past her in the corridor. The little robot headed toward the door that led inside the engine room and Mother's famed ThunderStar engines. Elise watched Fixer3 as it paused, the optics mounted at the end of the twin, flexible cords eyeing her carefully.

She returned the robot's gaze, biting her lower lip nervously. But the small green robot remained stoically silent.

Elise took a deep breath for courage and approached.

"I want to go into the engine room,” Elise explained as she squatted down beside Fixer3. The robot's optics retracted to adjust for her closeness. Elise smiled at the robot. “I have never been inside it yet, and well, I'd like to see it. Unless you have some work to do and now is not a good time." The diminutive robot turned and continued toward the engine room as it motioned with one of its four extensible arms for her to follow.

Elise smiled, a conspiratorial gleam in her eyes.

"Okay, Fixer3. Maybe you can be my guide then? That would be super-cool." The slender green robot called Fixer3 rolled up to the door as it extended an upper arm to trigger the sensor. Without slowing down, Fixer3 entered the opened door.

But as Elise drew near, her steps slowed.

Pangs of doubt swept through her as her heart beat rapid-fire again. She wondered if this was a good idea after all. After all, Jaric and Kyle had warned her, no, ordered her, not to enter the engine room. And Mother backed them up.

She had accepted that limitation over her freedom before today. And yet, something seemed to draw her now. And there could be no better time to solve this mystery.

She stepped through the doorway.

And stopped immediately.

Looking cautiously around, she noticed the outlines of the mighty engines. Elise felt as well as heard the deep throbbing sounds as the twin engines powered them through hyperspace. But she also knew that a separate section of these power plants also drove the sub-light engines, although these were no longer used when landing on a world.

Now, the environmentally clean anti-gravity engines installed by the Kraaqi were used when entering any world's bio-system.

She took another tentative step inside.

At the far end of the port engine she saw Fixer3 using three of its arms to make adjustments while the fourth arm motioned for her to come closer.

"Well, if you insist,” she said with a determined tone. Boldly, her heart now pounding wildly, Elise stepped completely inside.

She walked slowly between the mighty engines, feeling their power that seemed to permeate everything here. The engines emitted a glowing outline even though they were both encased inside solid tritanium shells. Each rose three meters tall and was over ten meters wide; their length encompassed the entire engine room from end to end—Elise guessed thirty meters long. Numerous consoles and dials that monitored and configured the mighty power plants graced the shiny metal casing of each engine. Fixer3, satisfied with its latest tweaks on the port engine, rolled to the starboard engine to check its status.

The fluttering inside her chest seemed to dissipate as nothing terrible occurred. She walked slowly down the length of the engine room between the throbbing engines. As she reached the door at the back of the room she stopped dead in her tracks.

There was somebody else in here with her.

She saw him, someone ahead in the shadows—his muscular arms braced against the engine as he strained with all his might against the huge, throbbing engine.

Or was he?

He was so still. And yet...

"Why are you here, Elise?"

Mother's voice sent a shock through her body. Elise looked quickly around until she found the optic watching her carefully.

"I ... I wanted to come here. I've never been here before."

"I've been observing you the entire time. In a way, I have allowed you to enter."

"That's not fair, you spying like that.” Elise pouted. “I mean, I only wanted to look inside.” She glanced quickly around. “There's nothing here to keep this all so hush-hush. At least nothing I can see."

"What about the figure in the shadows? The one that just startled you." Elise's eyes opened wide with innocence. “Why, I hadn't really noticed him. Er, it.” She coughed nervously as she glanced back at the form partially engulfed in shadow.

"Take a closer look,” Mother urged.

Elise's eyes now reflected surprise. “Well, I'm sure whoever it is...” She stopped in mid-sentence. Was it a robot?

Elise knew there were only six Fixer robots. And besides, this shape was over twice their size. She also realized that she knew everyone by sight who lived within Mother's hull. This form was unlike anything she had ever seen before.

That could only mean that this person, or this robot, never left the engine room. A chill suddenly went through her body as Elise felt an overpowering urge to leave.

"Do not be afraid. The robot is no longer functioning."

Mother's words calmed her. But something still felt wrong.

"Go closer."

Elise took a tentative step forward.

Suddenly a light burst forth and the figure before her became fully illuminated. Elise gasped.

"This was Guardian,” Mother said simply.

She stared in awe at the robot before her. The steel body was magnificent. And yet, it was horribly misshapen somehow.

As Elise studied the white figure, she realized what was wrong. The outer skin of its white, metallic body was rippled and formed frozen waves all down its outstretched arms and legs. Even its torso was covered in smaller versions of these ripple waves, although not as pronounced as what covered its arms and legs.

It stood frozen as if eternally pushing against the engine—its two hands melted... Melted.

Yes! The entire robot had melted from some great heat while it pressed with its strength against the huge engine.

The white robot now stood frozen in place, its final, mighty effort forever captured before its internal systems died.

"I have heard of this Guardian.” Elise slowly reached out to touch its darkened eyes, but stopped short. Instead her hands gently caressed the metallic face. “I remember Jaric and Kyle talking about him from their youth. But I thought he had left long ago."

"He was destroyed during the last, great battle with the T'kaan. He gave his life so that others would live. So that I would live."

Elise looked up at Mother's optic. “I am so glad he did that."

"Jaric and Kyle do not come here anymore—there is too much pain here. Guardian's feet and hands have permanently melted. I would have to order the Fixers to dismember him and then melt away what remained in order to completely remove him."

Elise shook her head slowly, realizing the dishonor that action would bring to this being's sacrifice.

"It is better that he remain so."

"I agree, it would be a desecration to his memory to dismantle him. Jaric and Kyle also agree. But because Guardian's shell remains here, it keeps them away from this room. And because this is such a personal trauma for them, they have not wanted any other living being back here—not even you. They do not want to remember this pain right now, and they don't want others looking or talking about it."

"I ... I understand. But why did you allow me here now?"

"From what I have discerned about emotions and pain, their intensity lessens with time. But primarily, I felt that this dead robot is part of your history. That it is time you saw and learned of Guardian. He was my friend too. And the boys will not be hurt; they are not here. I will eventually have to explain to them that I allowed you here, but I will determine an appropriate situation." Elise nodded. “No one has ever told me about that last battle. And I only know about Guardian from Kyle and Jaric's childhood. I've only heard bits and pieces about both.” Tears suddenly welled in her eyes. “I do know that many died that day. And that Becky died too.” She sniffed. Mother observed Elise's tears as her sensors registered the rise in her body temperature and the uneven breathing pattern she developed.

"Perhaps it is time I told you about that solemn day."

Elise wiped her eyes quickly. “Yes, I would like that.” She looked at the lifeless white robot beside her.

“And I want to hear it all right here, beside this noble robot."

And so Mother told Elise of the final battle with the T'kaan. She told her of the great courage and the great sorrow that still burned within her memory systems. There were so many who died that fateful day, and Mother remembered and honored the memory of each of them in her telling the story—their story. Of course, there were too many to list by name—still, she highlighted those who had been her closest friends—Rawlon, Curja and Saris foremost.

Yes, Mother told Elise of the allied beings who died destroying the evil T'kaan once and for all—beings who had been her friends, and the friends of her children.

And she told Elise of Becky—and how she died that day.

Without warning, red lights flashed and alarms sounded.

Elise looked around fearfully. This was the first time she had heard Mother's major alarms going off in earnest.

"W-what is that?"

"My sensors have just picked up an alien warship. It is on an intercept course for us." Elise's eyes opened wide with shock.

"Elise, please go to the bridge. I do not recognize this ship's configuration nor has it communicated its intentions. Still, if it is hostile, engines are normally a primary target in order to disable a ship, so it would not be wise for you to stay here."

Elise jumped up and ran ahead of Fixer3 down the corridor toward the lift and the bridge three levels up. She arrived panting and out of breath from her exertions. Jysar, Krinia and the glowing form of Minstrel stood before the huge view-screen.

"What is it?” Elise stared at the view-screen and the strange alien ship that was still bearing down at them at full speed.

The starship was painted a solid red. A large superstructure dominated its forward section while its sleek sides bristled with weapons. At its rear, four massive engines formed a diamond shape. The alien ship looked imposing.

"Has it returned our hails?” Jysar asked.

"No,” Mother replied. “I have tried every known frequency and every known greeting from alien races in this sector. I am now trying languages from the adjoining sectors."

"Look out!” Krinia shouted.

The alien ship on the view-screen surged forward.

"Brace yourselves,” Mother warned.

The strange red ship drew ominously closer with each passing second. Collision alarms now vied with Mother's general alert alarms in a cacophony of sound.

"Preparing for evasive maneuvers,” Mother's voice chimed.

The red ship drew within five hundred meters and settled into formation as Mother continued her own course. It was easily within weapons’ reach, but Mother's sensors showed the strange ship's shields still down. And there was no sign of its weapons being primed for attack.

"I'm dropping out of hyperspace."

Within seconds the alien ship followed suit. Both ships soared on an exactly parallel course, silently watching the other.

Mother reached out with her sensors and touched the surface of the alien craft. She felt the familiar signs of biological life inside the steel hull. But more, she felt the intense electronic activity that permeated the entire ship.

A very powerful computer existed within the strange ship.

In the next instant, Mother's sensors could no longer scan inside the ship. The craft now effectively blocked her.

Mother turned to the right and increased speed.

The alien ship matched her.

Suddenly, Mother felt the other ship reach out with its own sensors and begin to touch her—detecting the life-signs of the beings on her bridge. She felt the sensors brush her internal systems—searching deeper.

But Mother immediately and effectively blocked them.

Mother smiled inside—two could play at this game.

Elise and the others watched the view-screen as the ship surged forward, now so close that it looked as if they would surely collide.

"Hang on!” Mother shouted.

The manta-ray silhouette suddenly banked hard left as Mother pushed her sub-light engines to full speed. The alien ship increased speed and turned in close pursuit.

Mother had anticipated this tactic—it seemed the ship and its crew were content to keep pace with her. They seemed more intent on scanning her than on attacking.

But Mother was not in the mood for either.

She timed her next maneuver precisely—to the very millisecond.

Just as the red ship drew close again, Mother dove, then put full power to her starboard engine while she threw the port into full reverse—turning exactly one hundred and eighty degrees. Mother shot under the alien ship just as it began to react to her sudden about-face maneuver. Mother's engines roared their fury as she pushed them to the red line. But instead of turning sharply in pursuit, the red ship made a slow, deliberate turn and then came for them—inexorably gaining on them.

"Here it comes again,” Elise shouted.

Mother threw herself into a series of twists and turns as the alien ship gained ground. Mother's processors worked furiously as she calculated her moves and tried to get away. But every time she succeeded in putting some distance between herself and her pursuer, the alien ship made an adjustment and once again closed.

"They are able to match your every move!” Jysar shouted in disbelief. Mother's processors peaked with activity as she calculated millions of different moves in this high-speed game of cat-and-mouse. But one stood out distinctly from the others.

The red ship began to close once again.

Mother made another split-second, one-hundred-eighty-degree turn. But instead of plotting a course around the ship, Mother increased to full speed—flying dead-on toward her adversary. The red ship did not waver; it came on at full speed.

"What are you doing?” Elise shouted.

"Patience.” Krinia smiled knowingly. “The MotherShip knows what she's doing." The alien ship continued without wavering, its forward hull filling the view-screen as Elise and the others stared with growing tension.

Collision alarms wailed throughout Mother's hull.

Elise realized she was holding her breath. In just a few seconds it would be all over—both ships would slam head-on into the other.

And no one would survive.

Mother waited, her mighty engines primed. Both ships roared on at full speed. But one ship would have to react in the next few moments—or all would be lost.

And at the last moment—almost the last millisecond—the red ship banked hard, upward and over to port with its engines still wide open.

Mother banked in the opposite direction and downward as her ThunderStar engines screamed. Now, she pushed them beyond the red line.

The red ship continued past her manta-ray-shaped hull. But even as the distance opened up between them the red ship slowed and turned to begin the chase again.

Elise and the others stared at each other with open mouths.

"I've never seen two warships come that close together at full speed without ramming!” Krinia shouted with amazement.

"It seems my message did not get through to them,” Mother said as she watched them approach one more time.

"What kind of idiots are flying that thing!” Jysar's face was full of indignation.

"Ever since this strange chase began, these aliens have tried to break through my jamming of their sensors. Even during that last maneuver,” Mother said. “I am able to block every attempt. But they are very good. It is taking up a lot of my processor utilization simply blocking their sensor attempts!"

"They must have a powerful navigation computer. I don't believe biological beings with their own skill could have timed some of those split-second maneuvers,” Minstrel commented. “Have you identified the markings on the ship yet?"

"Still researching."

"Look out!” Elise screamed as the ship suddenly shot towards them again with a burst of speed.

"Take battle stations,” Mother's voice said calmly. “They have just raised shields and are powering their weapons systems."

Mother's own shields came online a split second later.

Once more she felt the other ship's sensors attempt to see inside her hull. Mother jammed them again, but each time she blocked them, the alien ship almost instantaneously reacted and tried another tactic. For the first time in a very long time, Mother felt her internal systems being tasked to the limit. And then Mother felt something touch her mind.

The red ship finally succeeded in making a connection and was quickly prowling through her short-term memories. Mother began to break the contact point—but paused. There was something different about the way this ship's computer searched and made its way through her systems. This was something more than simply the cold, calculated probing by a mere ship's computer.

Mother began to feel disoriented, even strange, as the sensors felt their way deeper inside her systems. She quickly broke the connection.

The red ship banked hard, and Mother sensed the targeting system aim for her ThunderStar engines. The alien ship now fully primed its weapons and prepared to disable her. Mother waited a fraction of a second longer, trying to estimate the exact moment the ship would fire as its targeting systems locked.

In another instant, Mother dove hard down as laser blasts leapt out. The red lances grazed her shields as she shot away at a dizzying speed.

She fired four of her main guns as she retreated.

Even as she fired them, the alien ship maneuvered—hard to starboard and upward. Her lasers missed—barely.

But Mother anticipated such a move. Instantly, she retargeted and fired the rest of her main battery. The red ship shuddered under the direct hits.

The aliens’ shields dropped to one-third strength.

"Now, let's see...” Mother began.

But the alien ship fired again.

Everyone inside fell to the floor as Mother twisted herself to present as small a profile as possible while she strengthened her rear shields—all within bare nanoseconds as the lasers erupted toward her. The hits blossomed against her shields. She had been hit. But damage was minimal. Still, Mother was impressed.

The alien ship and crew had surprised her with its quickness.

As Mother righted herself and backed her engines down, she began to calculate her next run—the final run of this battle. This time she would target the engines of their ship. And once she had it disabled, Mother would scan this ship and find out exactly who these aliens were. It would be easy pickings, for the alien ship's shields were damaged and no longer strong enough to withstand her next blows.

Mother felt a surge of surprise in her systems as her sensors registered the red ship turning away from her. Already, it streaked away in the opposite direction while ramping up its hyperdrive engines. A few seconds later and it disappeared in a flash of light as it leapt into hyperspace. The engagement was over.

"A most effective enemy,” Mother said as Jysar and the others gathered closer together. “Their attack rivaled that of the T'kaan."

"Who were they?” Krinia asked.

"I have an answer. One from my long-term memories. It is from some data I picked up from a Tracadorian trading ship two months ago."

"And...” Elise prompted.

"The red ship is from the Paum Sector."

* * * *

LATER THAT EVENING, after the others had gone to bed, Minstrel and Mother discussed the day's events.

"The Paum are popping up a lot lately,” Minstrel said as it floated gracefully.

"Too much for coincidence,” Mother replied. “I can find very little information about them."

"And worse, neither can I.” A wave of dark colors rippled throughout Minstrel's body. “We rendezvous with my ship later tonight."

"Minstrels have sophisticated auto-pilot systems, for you to command them from such a distance the way you have."

"Yes. We can leave them cloaked in orbit while we observe different species for long periods of time. Sometimes we travel far from them. But, it does have its limitations.” Minstrel's body glowed brighter.

“When we transmit a course and input it into the auto-pilot system from far away, we can only meet them in deep space far from any stars or planetary systems. And the course must not take them close to any."

"That should be easy enough in this vast universe,” Mother said.

"Well, sometimes it's not as easy as we'd like—especially when we need the ship in a hurry."

"I understand. But back to the Paum."

"Yes, once my ship is back, I will make for one of the key Minstrel Communication centers,” Minstrel said.

"I thought you were in constant communication with other Minstrels?"

"Normally each Minstrel is within range of another Minstrel ship. But right before we landed at RahajMr I lost contact with my nearest counterpart, which is also strange. This sector has been well visited before."

"So, how far is this Minstrel Communication center?” Mother asked.

"Only a few days’ journey. I will try to find out more about these Paum and then meet you on Meramee. And I must find out more about the Harg."

"The Harg?"

"Yes. I did find some information when I contacted my ship this evening. It seems the Harg are paid mercenaries of the Paum. They are a most violent species."

"Two Harg followed you that last day on RahajMr—and did the quick scan of me."

"Yes. Not a coincidence either, I now think."

"And did your ship have anything on the Paum or that sector?"

"Nothing on the Paum. But that sector is the fastest growing regime in the known universe—that much Minstrels have gathered in the recent past from their journeys. Which should mean we would know quite a bit about them. But that is not so."

"Why is that?” Mother asked.

"Most species that live near the original Paum systems refer to them by another name—The Forbidden Worlds. And it has gotten that reputation for a reason. Even as the Paum Empire grows and takes controls of new worlds, this Forbidden Zone grows with it."

"Go on,” Mother prompted.

"Most races have explicit orders not to travel to Paum-held worlds or even to travel through their space. Too many ships and crews have disappeared—never to be heard from again. And when delegations are sent to the Paum, they get nowhere. The Paum has nothing to do with outside races.” Minstrel glowed with a dark hue of colors.

"Is there no trade between the Paum systems and other races?"

"Very little. Theirs is a secretive society. It is very structured and very controlled—another reason even we Minstrels have had little success in observing them. They are a bizarre society, a combination of quasi-military and quasi-religion. All those indoctrinated into Paum must live Paum—they live, eat and breathe Paum. Paum is now the center of their universe, and it affects everything they do.” Minstrel paused.

"And that is not of itself a bad thing,” Minstrel continued. “From what we Minstrels have discovered about the creed of Paum, it gives them a goal in life—they strive to be in harmony with the rest of their society as well as with their environment. Their peoples seem to thrive, their economy is stable, and their expansion is remarkable. But the creed of Paum has a dark side.” Minstrel paused again as a sense of expectation filled the air. Sudden waves of light swept through Minstrel's body one after the other as the pause grew longer.

Mother waited impatiently.

"Go on,” Mother finally urged.

"There have been unconfirmed but very disturbing reports from planets conquered by the Paum. It is said that all those defeated were given a simple choice—either choose Paum and follow it the rest of their life—or die. We know from the Twelve Words of Paum of this major belief: one day the entire universe will follow Paum ... and those that do not will be utterly destroyed."

"Forced conversion,” Mother said simply.

"It would seem so. But as I said, a lot of that is unconfirmed. It is hard for anyone to know—even Minstrels with all of our stealth. And there is worse."

"Worse?” Mother asked.

"Minstrels discovered this fast-growing empire only within the last few years. In that short time two Minstrels have been sent to learn more about this new race—or should I say these races, now that so many formerly independent aliens races have come under Paum control. Actually, the source of Paum is still unknown even to us—the original race that bred Paum."

"What did your two Minstrels learn?” Mother asked.

"Both Minstrels who journeyed there disappeared without a trace. It has been well over a year since the last communication. And the second Minstrel went in armed with the knowledge of the first one's previous disappearance. We have presumed the worst for both."

Mother processed this last fact with surprise. “I did not realize that Minstrels could be detected, much less captured."

"Or killed,” Minstrel added with a shuddering wave. “Sometimes an alien species does not take kindly to being secretively observed. I fear for my fellow Minstrels, now that I have learned this."

"Between our contact with this powerful ship and this new information, it seems we have need to be wary of these Paum."

"That is a logical conclusion. And I wonder why they have taken such a keen interest in us?"

"Perhaps it was they who tagged your search query for sentient technology. The other events have followed that initial action. I would have hoped that once we left RahajMr, the Paum and the Harg would lose interest in us. After all, prior to RahajMr we had no problems with them. Perhaps this is the last incident?"

"That may be the case. After all, the Paum ship did not actually attack. It seemed more interested in gaining data on us by intrusive scans, which you prevented for the most part. But we should find out all we can about these secretive Paum and their Harg agents. Just to be on the safe side,” Minstrel added with emphasis.

"I agree,” Mother said. “I will wait until we have gathered more facts and determined if there is indeed a threat before I share this with everyone else. I do not want to trigger their emotions, especially if the Paum turns out to be only a momentary issue based around our visit to RahajMr."

"A sound decision.” Minstrel twinkled. “The only issues have been with their monitoring our search activity and the Harg scan just before we lifted. And now the Paum ship trying to scan your internal systems today.” Minstrel undulated its body before compressing it into a glowing ball floating in the middle of the air. “Before I join you on Meramee, I will communicate to you all that I learn from the other Minstrels on a secure channel, if I determine there is any danger."

"Good. I do have good news to share,” Mother added.

"Yes?"

"I just now received a short message from Rok's ship—from Rok himself."

"They were not scheduled to be free for three more days."

"They got early release for good behavior.” Mother felt a surge of relief within her circuits. “I hope that both Kyle and Jaric have learned something from this experience."

"I think so,” Minstrel said.

"At any rate, they are safely aboard the Kraaqi frigate and are even now getting ready to set sail to meet us at Meramee."

"I am glad."

"And they are bringing a new friend."

"Indeed?"

"An alien called a Hammatt—Inaha by name. Jaric had Rok tell me that they know about Minstrels." Thousands of tiny lights across Minstrel's plasma body glowed brighter. “They are a good race. A little emotional at times, but at heart, good aliens. We know them."

"Well, I guess we shall all meet at Meramee within four or five days,” Mother said.

"Yes, both I and the Kraaqi ship should get there about the same time.” Minstrel paused in thought.

“Make sure you take necessary precautions while on Meramee."

"And you,” Mother said with concern.

"You should contact Rok once he's out of range of RahajMr too. Simply tell him to be watchful. It's possible a Paum ship might try to intercept them before they get to Meramee."

"You are right. I'll give Rok the warning. By the time they arrive at Meramee, I'll know if I need to confer with the others—if we find there is a real danger."

"Agreed."

* * * *

THE KRAAQI FRIGATE Aurora parted the last cloud bands of RahajMr and entered the blackness of outer space.

"Disengage the anti-grav engines, First Officer,” Rok commanded. “Set in a course for the planet Meramee and engage hyper-engines."

"Aye, sir."

Rok looked around the bridge and smiled. It felt good to be back on his own ship once again. He gripped the arms of his Captain's chair and nodded with satisfaction.

"Take us out of orbit!” he ordered.

The Aurora surged forward. As the Kraaqi ship reached a safe distance from the gravity well of the gas giant, her hyperdrive engines roared to life.

The stars on the main view-screen suddenly became lines of light.

The Aurora shuddered momentarily as it leapt into hyperspace. A moment later and the starship sailed without the slightest hint of motion as it reached speed. The Kraaqi frigate soared through hyperspace—a new journey begun.

Inaha slowly approached the master of the ship. While he made his way forward he quietly observed the smooth functioning of the bridge crew as they went about their appointed tasks. The big alien smiled with approval.

Inaha stood beside the seated captain of the Aurora . Together, they watched the stars slowly approach on the main view-screen as they sparkled against the vaster and more distant starfield. The motions of those nearer stars were the only indications the Kraaqi ship was sailing at hyperspeed.

"It's good to be underway again,” Rok said to everyone on the bridge. Inaha laughed heartily. As his laughter died away, he spoke softly. “Too long on any world makes one yearn for the freedom of open space."

"Well said,” Rok agreed. “It's good to sail on a starship bound for the distant stars again."

"It is good indeed,” Inaha repeated.

Rok smiled. “And there's nothing quite like the feeling you get as your hyperdrive engines engage—that tingling sensation in the pit of your stomach just as your ship leaps.” Rok grunted with pleasure.

"Nothing quite like it in the entire universe!” Inaha laughed.

"This has always been my dream,” Rok said as he turned to the jovial Hammatt. “To be captain of my own starship—and travel to unknown worlds."

Rok grew silent. Slowly a smile spread across his weathered face as the words of an ancient Kraaqi proverb emerged from a childhood memory.

"Give me a fast starship, that sails a gallant crew,” Rok said with a twinkle in his eyes. “Show me the distant stars, my friend. And there, there I shall meet you."

Inaha observed the bridge crew busy with their assigned tasks as the Aurora settled into its cruising speed. The navigator at the nearest station keyed in the final course heading for Meramee. The entire Kraaqi crew epitomized the image of efficiency.

"You have a good ship and crew, Captain,” Inaha said with sincerity. “It's a privilege to sail with you."

"I thank you."

They nodded to the each other in a silent salute of mutual respect.

"Well, I need to get my things stowed.” Inaha paused one last time as he gazed with open wonder at the view-screen. “I love to watch that first jump. Thank you for allowing me on your bridge. It has been too long since I was last on a fast starship."

"My pleasure.” Rok watched the huge Hammatt leave.

"So, Mother told us to be on the lookout for a Paum warship,” Jaric said as he stepped beside Rok.

“That's interesting. We heard about the Paum from that Mrad Security Officer. That name seems to be popping up a lot lately."

"It may not mean anything,” Rok commented. “But, we are forewarned now. I have my ship on elevated alert status in case we encounter any hostile ships en route."

"Good idea.” Jaric looked around the bridge. “You know, I need to find Kyle. I'll meet you later at dinner."

Rok nodded.

Jaric found Kyle lying in his bunk—idly staring up at the ceiling. He grabbed a chair and sat down. A smile flickered momentarily on Kyle's face as Jaric entered, but otherwise Kyle continued to lie there in silence.

Jaric waited a few moments, deep in thought, before he finally spoke.

"I've been meaning to ask you this, but this is the first time we've been alone since that food incident." Kyle chuckled. “Food incident, eh?” He looked at his friend. “Go ahead, what is it?"

"You know, back on RahajMr. Well, when Rok was trying to talk to us. And well, you said we were just a dysfunctional family—at best.” Jaric's eyes narrowed. “That kinda’ bothered me.” In the next moment Jaric smiled broadly. “But you didn't really mean it, did you, Big K?" Kyle looked away without saying a word.

"Right?” Jaric added.

Kyle shook his head as he sat up. “I just was talking,” he said without conviction. He looked at Jaric with a somber expression. “I was just talking. Don't let it worry you." Jaric watched Kyle while the other continued to avoid his direct gaze. Jaric felt his heart sink with sadness. It pained him to realize how Kyle felt, to realize that he felt their family wasn't normal, or that it was somehow less of a family compared to others.

Inside his own heart, Jaric felt their family was as good and normal as any he had heard or read about. He felt proud and happy to be a part of it. Every single day he heard Mother's voice, or when he sat down with the others at meal times or when they watched a holovid or listened to music—he felt a part of something—part of a family.

It didn't bother him that it wasn't the ideal family. It only mattered that they were family . And he wanted with all of his heart for Kyle to feel that way too.

"But you feel that we are a family?” Jaric asked after a long pause. They looked at each other deeply.

"Sure ... sure.” Kyle took a deep breath. “I mean, I love Mother. And you like a brother. And Rok too. And the others are good...” Kyle grew silent.

"But,” Jaric coaxed.

"But,” Kyle repeated. He shook his head slowly. “But we're certainly not a normal family by any stretch. There's no real mother and a father—we have an AI starship instead. And we have a clone for a sister—if you want to call her our sister."

Kyle eyed Jaric, but Jaric remained intent. Kyle cleared his throat. “And the rest are alien warriors, an alien geek, and a Mewiis with a hyperactive head-tail."

Kyle's eyes met Jaric's. He noticed a hint of a smile on Jaric's face now as he concluded, “I don't know, does that sound like your average run-of-the-mill, normal family to you?" Jaric reflected a moment. He focused on the humor in Kyle's last statement and the mischief in his eyes. He smiled—at first.

Then Jaric began to laugh, his eyes sparkling with humor. “Hey, maybe you have a point there!” He laughed. “Maybe the real problem is that we're too normal for this bunch!" Kyle had to chuckle at that. For several minutes, their laughter echoed in the air as their spirits lifted.

"You know,” Jaric finally said. “We kid a lot. And we mess with Rok too. But, Rok said some important things back there—like we really should appreciate what we've got—while we have it."

"I know,” Kyle agreed.

"But I'm like you. I think if we found more human survivors, it'd be great. It would be super-cool.” Jaric smiled.

"You got that right."

"But,” Jaric added. “Maybe we've got it pretty good right now—better than we think. And we might not be the ideal, ‘normal’ family,” Jaric emphasized. “But hey, we are family." Jaric looked hopefully at Kyle.

Kyle started to laugh and then reached over and slapped Jaric on the shoulder playfully.

"Maybe I should think about what I have—we have—more.” He raised his forefinger. “And I have been giving Rok's words some thought since he said it back there.” Kyle stood up and stretched slowly. “You know, most of the time I am happy. And I like being with Mother and all of you.” He clenched his eyes shut, almost as if he were in pain.

Jaric looked at him with concern.

"But sometimes I get so bummed—just like that.” Kyle snapped his fingers. “And Rok just set me off that day—bad timing. I was so happy, so excited. And then he just set me off."

"But he was right. And our search failed once again. He was just trying to get us to think,” Jaric said.

"I know.” Kyle sighed. “I know."

"And, now we need to keep a watch out for the Paum,” Jaric added.

"And I didn't like those other aliens either, those Harg. I didn't like the looks of them the minute I set eyes on them."

"Why the Harg?” Jaric asked.

"I remember one of them grunting during the fight that they wanted to take us to their ship,” Kyle said.

"Kidnap us?” Jaric said with a puzzled expression.

"I don't know.” Kyle's eyes lit up with humor. “Hey, maybe they'll grab Elise and take her off our hands.” Kyle chuckled.

Jaric laughed a moment with him, but then his face grew serious. “Maybe we need to re-think the cl ... re-think our view on Elise too. After all, she is human."

"Yeah, there seem to be precious few of us left in this universe. Maybe we should.” Kyle nodded.

"Anyway, we'll be at this ocean world paradise in a few days,” Jaric said enthusiastically. “Islands and oceans and food and aliens everywhere all having a good time! That ought to be some fun!" Kyle nodded. “Well, if we can't have fun there, we might as well give it all up." Jaric stood up, laughing heartily. “Yeah, let's have some fun on this planet, Big K. No searching, no trouble. Let's just have ourselves a great time."

"Sure,” Kyle agreed. “Let's just have fun—what a concept."

[Back to Table of Contents]

Chapter Twelve

THE BLUE AND green beauty of Meramee filled their eyes.

Elise, Jysar and Krinia looked in awe at the planet that floated on the main view-screen. Mother herself was impressed. Within seconds, she ran through every image of every world she had either visited or which was stored within her long-term memories, and few indeed compared with the natural beauty of the island-planet Meramee.

The sentient starship reveled in the fact that the mere image of a planet could elicit such emotions in biological beings. And no other word described their careful scrutiny except pleasure—or perhaps sheer joy.

It seemed certain visual stimuli—works of art, well-kept gardens and beautiful flowers, pristine natural settings as well as wild animal life—stimulated this emotion. Mother analyzed Meramee in detail, scanning every aspect of the visual spectrum. She discerned the color combinations of cloud and blue-green ocean mixed with the tiny dots of islands created pleasant symmetries and patterns which intrigued her. But it seemed odd that this same image of Meramee elicited such emotional responses in the others. She observed a similar effect with music, an aural stimuli, on the children in her own early years of life. She came to realize that music could produce a wide variety of emotional responses depending on the rhythm, melody, or lyrics in varying combinations. It made for a fascinating study that she enjoyed to this day.

It appeared humans and biological beings in general gained not only factual knowledge from their senses, but also gained emotional stimulus as well—and one seemed as important as the other. The planet, laced by wisps of mauve clouds overshadowing several shades of blue and green ocean depending on its depth, grew beyond the boundary of the main view-screen as Mother entered the atmosphere. As Mother flew lower, the sunlight from the large red star which Meramee orbited glistened off the waters below, and individual islands took shapes. Krinia, Jysar and Elise pointed from one island to another with expressions of delight.

Mother searched and discovered that Meramee possessed over one hundred thousand islands. And while it was a planet covered entirely by a single ocean, there were vast stretches of water that were quite shallow. In fact, the famous Emerald Sea averaged only ten meters deep over its entire expanse. And this beautiful sea alone covered most of the western hemisphere.

Several other smaller areas of water that dotted the vast, turquoise ocean were even more shallow. And it was in these shallow sections of ocean, which covered almost half the planet, where the densest population of islands existed.

Although by the strictest definition of most planets there were no individual seas on Meramee, the Mejadic designated various bodies of water bordered by island groups as seas: the Emerald Sea, the Majestic Sea, the Sea of Lights, the Marble Ocean and the spectacular Sea of Showers. Because of the planet's irregular orbit—it tilted both its poles towards the red star several times each circuit—polar ice caps existed at neither pole. And yet, the tops of the mountainous islands at each pole remained snow-capped most of the year and the ocean water remained warm enough for swimming only a few short weeks.

For long seconds, everyone took in the beauty of Meramee as it beckoned them closer. Mother refrained from vocal communication so as not to spoil the mood. As Elise and the others stood entranced, Mother received final landing instructions.

"I love to walk on a secluded beach at night,” Jysar said with a sigh, surprising both Krinia and Elise.

“Hearing the waves in the darkness, feeling the sand between my toes—breathing the clean, salty air.” He breathed deeply and held it, as if he were already there and savoring the moment.

"I can't wait.” He sighed again.

"I thought Hronosium was a single planet-city which covered every centimeter of the natural planet in your youth?” Krinia asked in surprise. “When did you ever walk on an open beach?"

"I was born on Jorrdannd, far away from the homeworld of the Hrono. That world has large oceans embracing temperate continents. It is the newest and least developed planet of the Hrono kingdom. I lived among its natural, untamed beauty during my childhood. I only lived on Hronosium the last seven years of my life,” Jysar said. He suddenly smiled. “And remember, the first parts of the planet-city have been opened up to allow nature a place in which to grow on that world once again." Meramee grew continually larger on the view-screen. Now only a small section of the planet was visible—in the center hundreds of small islands created a whimsical arc nestled in a bright green sea. Details such as beaches and mountains grew visible on individual islands.

"Are we landing?” Elise said as she became aware of her surroundings.

"I-I believe we are,” Jysar stammered as he rubbed his eyes.

"What is our destination?” Krinia's head-tail swished with interest. “I'm suddenly in the mood to get out and walk on a beach somewhere ... but I'd like to know where exactly we're landing on Meramee."

"Me too!” Elise said, her voice bubbling with youthful exuberance. “It looks so good from up above, I can't imagine what it'll be like actually being there!"

"We will land on Leyloi—Queen Island of the Maiden Isles. Geographically speaking, this string of islands is located on the western border of the Emerald Sea. Their origin is volcanic, which explains their mountainous structure. But their secluded and pristine beaches are famous throughout this quadrant.”

Mother's words sent a chill of excitement into the room.

"Oh, Meramee.” Jysar sighed again. “I think I may never want to leave you." Elise and Krinia began to laugh as they watched the expression on Jysar's face—an expression of profound joy that seemed more appropriate for two young lovers about to profess their undying love to each other.

"Have any of you noticed something missing on Meramee?” Mother asked out of the blue. Three sets of eyes studied Meramee.

"The cities are very small.” Jysar looked at the others with a questioning look.

"Actually, the only dwellings on the surface of the islands are for the tourists. All of them hotels, shops or other entertainment centers."

"Where is their industry? Or where are the original inhabitants?” Jysar asked.

"The Mejadic are an aquatic race. Their cities and industry all reside under the shallow oceans. That is another reason why the surface is still so pristine, and why there are such small centers of habitation on the islands."

"Are the Mejadic a space-faring race?” Elise asked.

"Yes, for many years now. You will be greeted by them when I land. It is a quaint Meramee custom."

"Cool,” Elise said with growing excitement.

"I think we'll just make our way to the beach, mingle with the aliens, soak in a little sun, and then maybe take a swim in the Emerald Sea. Not necessarily in that order,” Krinia said with a business-like tone, as if she were reading off a daily to-do list.

"Sounds terrible.” Jysar laughed. “I think I'll join you.

"Maybe we'll meet some nice alien boys, too!” Krinia smiled at Elise.

"Not like Lama Kama von Dama, right?” Elise laughed, remembering the alien Romeo back on RahajMr.

"For sure!"

Mother landed between two large hotel complexes within walking distance of a crowded beach. Several starships rested beside her in their own clearly marked landing spots on the flat tarmac. All around the resting ships throngs of brightly clad aliens laughed and conversed as they walked among the pockets of lush tropical plants that graced the manicured grounds. In fact, the bright pastels of tropical shirts, knee-length shorts for males, and short skorts for females created a moving, living rainbow. Krinia and Jysar and Elise quickly wended their way through the masses of aliens dressed in brightly colored outfits perfect for a tropical climate. They walked only a short distance when they came to a dead halt.

Standing right before them was a group of aliens unlike any they had ever seen.

"What are they?” Elise whispered to Krinia. But Krinia was staring open-mouthed as well. Elise found she couldn't keep her eyes off them as she admired their fascinating beauty. There were three of them, all humanoid in shape—two eyes, two arms, two of every obvious body part—like most normal aliens.

The males wore a red cloth around their loins while the lone female wore a simple, bright blue sarong wrapped tightly around her feminine figure.

But it was the colors of their scaly skin that kept them mesmerized with each alien's natural beauty. The skin of the male on the right was a brilliant orange interspersed with alternating green and yellow stripes that ran from his head down his torso, and arms and legs. Likewise, the alien male on the left was overall an iridescent green with fiery red spots over his body, while the upper part of his face, from his eyes over his head, glowed a shimmering royal blue.

And the female was even more colorful.

From her chest up, from above the top of her blue sarong dress, her smooth skin was a bright golden color. Around her cheeks and eyes thousands of tiny circles of alternating royal blue and deep purple stood out against the gold background of her skin and emphasized her dazzling blue eyes. Down each shapely leg, her golden skin was accentuated with bold, jagged stripes of eye-popping ruby red. But what they wore around their necks kept drawing Elise's glances again and again—each alien wore an identical band of glistening silver metal. The upper and lower edges were solid while the center was of a meticulous filigree design. And yet this attractive neck-ware—it couldn't be called a true necklace because it completely covered their necks from the base up to the bottom of their chin—seemed to have some kind of practical function.

Elise shook her head in amazement, wondering what that function could be. She suddenly glanced down and noticed that in stark contrast to their overall beauty, the colorful aliens each had comically over-sized feet.

And then it struck her why the aliens wore the exotic neck-ware. For barely noticeable until she really looked, Elise made out the almost translucent webbed skin between each of their extra-long toes. She surmised that these beings must be at home in the ocean and the neck-ware enabled the hidden gills on their necks to take in the oxygen directly from the air.

"They must be Mejadic,” Elise whispered to Krinia.

"They're beautiful,” Krinia whispered back.

"Welcome to Meramee and to Leyloi, the Queen Island.” The three colorful Mejadic approached, each holding a small ring of white flowers, which they gently placed on the head of Elise, Krinia and Jysar like a crown.

They bowed deeply and stepped back with their smiling faces still to the ground.

"Thank you!” Jysar finally managed to blurt out. “I must say, I've never seen any race quite so beautiful as you are."

The Mejadic female glanced up and quickly approached Jysar. With a smile, she gently kissed his cheek. “You honor our people,” she said with a melodic voice. She quickly stepped back to join her two companions.

"What are the flowers for?” Krinia asked.

"It is the traditional greeting of my people. A crown of flowers—beauty on beauty—to make the heart rejoice.” The iridescent green male bowed once more. “I am Stazal. This is Olana,” he pointed to the female as he rose. “And he is Relan."

Krinia introduced Jysar and Elise.

"I think I'm going to like Meramee a lot!” Elise laughed as she adjusted her flower crown. And then she realized she had forgotten something. “Oh, I didn't wear my Hair Lighter."

"But your golden hair is lovely just as it is,” Stazal crooned.

Elise blushed brightly.

"We greet each new ship that arrives,” Olana explained. “Just beyond the throngs you will enter our island's part of the great festival of food and beer—Taste of the Quadrant."

"And beyond that the famed Emerald Sea,” Relan added. “It's crystal clear waters will caress your bodies with its refreshing power."

"Cool!” Elise said.

"Are you of different clans?” Jysar asked. “I mean, each of you are completely different colors." The three Mejadic laughed.

"The Mejadic are like the islands of Meramee—no two of us are exactly the same. Each of us is unique in color and patterns,” Stazal explained with a smile.

"Super-cool,” Elise said with awe and appreciation. “None of us has ever been to Meramee before, and I for one wish we'd come here long ago!"

"Ah, your very first visit to our world.” Olana said, looking from Jysar to Krinia and back to Elise.

“Perhaps we can share dinner tonight with you under the stars at our private beach? We will tell stories about our wonderful planet while we dine."

"We accept!” they said simultaneously.

They made arrangements to meet later that evening. As the Mejadic trio left, Elise, Krinia and Jysar made their way to the nearest section of the Festival. From booth after booth wonderful smells wafted on the gentle breezes as they walked among the crowds of aliens. Before long the delicious aromas worked their magic, and the trio found themselves sampling one exotic dish after another. The flavors danced on their palette as wonderfully as the aromas, and they quickly came to a new appreciation for alien cuisine. Finally, after a few more detours toward enticing smells and delicious treats, they found themselves on the beach.

Elise felt her heart quiver with excitement.

She had never seen the ocean before—not on any world. And to see one of the most beautiful beaches in the universe framed against the glistening waters of the Emerald Sea as that astonishing first experience took her breath away.

"Look,” Krinia said as she danced onto the violet and white sand. “I see why they call them the Maiden Isles!"

Elise laughed as she danced with her.

Even Jysar tried it, with fairly comical results. But everyone enjoyed themselves to the extreme.

"See, the sand is a pure, pure white with violet streaks of sand through it. The waves and wind have shaped the beach into a vast flowing veil,” Krinia pointed out.

"Yes!” Elise said. “Just like a bridal veil."

"Hence the name.” Jysar laughed. “The Maiden Isles."

"We'll have to ask Olana how the beaches get this wonderful mixture of color here,” Elise said.

"And the other beaches too,” Krinia added. “I think we'll really enjoy getting to know both them and their world better."

They removed their outer clothes to reveal their bathing suits then took a quick swim among the waves. After they enjoyed the warm waters a while, they continued their journey down the crowded beach toward a tree-clad jungle mountain that rose in the distance. The trio laughed and talked among themselves, oblivious to everyone else.

But unknown to them, two secretive Harg followed.

They had shadowed them since the trio first met the Mejadic. The short, stout aliens were clad with bright tropical shirts in order to blend in with all the others.

"The one with the yellow mane is the human ... hmmm. Shall we take her now?" The other, who carried himself with a sense of command, smiled knowingly. “No. The Paum has instructed me carefully. There is a way we can get the female human to separate herself willingly. The Paum has studied them carefully, individually and as a group—all of our reports and sensor scans. The Paum knows—the Paum always knows."

The Harg looked at his fellow with a vicious smile. “Tell me."

"Just a few more moments and you will hear. The red sun of Meramee is beginning to set, and they told the Mejadic they would dine with them this evening. They will turn around soon. Keep walking—faster." The two Harg continued their pursuit and closed the distance.

Krinia admired the pale aqua green waters of the lagoon that stretched outward until it met the emerald waters of the deeper sea—the boundary a clearly defined line where one color ended and the other began. Her gaze drifted to the endless horizon and the red circle of the setting sun just above the mauve cloud tops that rested over the sea like distant, billowing islands.

"We need to get back. I'd like to freshen up a bit before we dine with our Mejadic friends,” Krinia said. They all agreed and turned to retrace their steps back up the beach to Mother. Almost at once, Elise found herself crashing into two burly aliens wearing bright, tropical shirts.

"Oh, excuse me!” Elise said with a touch of embarrassment The two strange aliens gently reached out to keep her from falling. She smiled apologetically at them. Then she noticed the look on their faces—looks of complete disbelief.

"Well, you're a human aren't you!” the first one said with outright surprise. Elise felt her heart skip a beat.

She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Krinia rapidly stepped beside her as she stared at the two bull-necked aliens.

"What do you mean?” Krinia asked questioningly.

"Well, what I mean is that before yesterday I'd never seen a human before. And now I've seen them two days in a row.” He flashed a big, toothy smile.

"Where?” Elise finally blurted out. She knew Kyle and Jaric were still en route on the Aurora , so the alien couldn't have seen them.

"We were on Mermoona,” he explained simply. “We ran into a group of humans while we were eating Flaming Tangers at the Ocalla food booth. We'd never met any humans before and so we struck up a conversation with them."

"They're on Mermoona?” Elise repeated with shock.

But Jysar stepped forward, a wary look in his eyes. The two stout aliens smiled at him with innocent expressions. Jysar looked from one to the other with a careful eye.

"Did they tell you anything about how they got here?” Jysar asked. “Maybe ... how they've found themselves so far from their homeworld?"

The bigger of the two aliens smiled even more. “Yes, Earth I believe they called it." Elise gasped.

The alien grew thoughtful a moment, as he tapped a forefinger against the side of his head. “Some sort of tragedy. They seemed a bit reluctant to go into it."

Krinia, Elise and Jysar leaned forward expectantly.

The alien's eyes suddenly widened. “T'kaan! Something about a war, I think." Elise felt light-headed for a moment, but quickly regained her composure. Krinia, Elise and Jysar questioned them for a few minutes more, getting details on where the island of Mermoona was located. They soon learned it was part of the Maiden Isles, although Mermoona was located at the farthest reach of the northern arc of islands—about a three-hour journey by boat. Jysar finally thanked them for their surprising information, graciously accepted their apologies for almost knocking Elise down, and they all parted ways.

As soon as the two aliens walked away, Elise and the others raced up the beach in the other direction in order to tell Mother the news.

* * * *

MOTHER'S OPTIC FOCUSED from one to the other after Elise, Jysar and Krinia breathlessly entered. Her sensors noted the extreme pace their hearts beat as well as registering the elevated temperature of their bodies. But it was the dilation of their pupils that truly indicated their high state of excitement. Krinia, Jysar and Elise quickly recounted their chance encounter on the beach with two aliens. They focused on what the aliens told them—about the humans they had spent time with on Mermoona. In the flurry of excitement, no one asked about the aliens themselves.

"I am sending a communication to the Aurora now,” Mother finally said. “Kyle and Jaric must hear this news immediately."

"Who would have guessed?” Elise squealed with excitement. “And it was I who helped find them at last!

Kyle and Jaric will be so pleased."

But Krinia pursed her lips in doubt.

Within minutes, Mother established a communications link. A few minutes later and the shocked faces of Kyle, Jaric and Rok stared back at them from Mother's main view-screen located on her bridge.

"You're kidding,” Jaric repeated for the third time in a row as the others finally finished.

"And we were just going to Meramee to relax,” Kyle added. “We weren't even going to think about other humans."

"I will make for Meramee at top speed now,” Rok said. “I will get you estimates, but I believe we can make planet-fall within twenty-four hours."

"Good,” Mother replied. “I have discovered that Mermoona does not allow starships, or air-ships of any kind, direct access. It is an island of lush, tropical forests with very few hotels or amenities even for tourists—an island kept very close to its pure, natural state. The only access is by boat."

"Find out how to book one,” Kyle said with authority. “We'll leave immediately once we land." Elise stepped forward. “I want to go."

Kyle and Jaric exchanged glances.

Jaric made a subtle motion with his head toward Kyle—indicating acceptance. But Kyle's eyes narrowed and his expression grew solemn. He thought a minute more, and spoke.

"I'd rather just Jaric and...” he started to say.

"What!” Elise said with obvious hurt. “I mean, I'm the one who literally ran into this information. Shouldn't I get to go too? After all, I'm a human too!"

"That's true. In a way ...” Jaric began.

Elise's eyes narrowed in anger. “You know, I'm tired of this boys-only club around here!"

"Elise,” Mother chided.

"Well, I am!” Elise shouted. She stared defiantly back at the view-screen. “And I've found that some of your boys-only junk wasn't really needed. I mean, why are you holding back some of these stupid things from me anyway?"

Jaric and Kyle gazed mutely back.

"Like, why didn't you want me to see the remains of Guardian? Were you afraid that I'd..."

"What!” Kyle and Jaric shouted together.

Both Jaric and Kyle's expressions changed—a fierceness came over their faces and a hardness in their eyes.

"I told you to never go into the engine room!” Kyle lashed out.

"Why?” Elise shouted back. “Shouldn't I know, or see him? Shouldn't I know how he died? Shouldn't I know about the human race—my people?” Tears stung her face. In a flurry of motion, she ran from the room.

Both Kyle and Jaric shook their heads. But it was Jaric who spoke.

"Mother, you could've stopped her—Guardian is something, well, personal with us. You knew we didn't want her, or anybody, to go back there."

"There was no longer a reason, Jaric. And you have seen her grow both emotionally and intellectually—in all ways. I felt it time that she knew how our friend died. And I related to her much about that day."

"You told her?” Jaric asked in disbelief. “Without asking us?"

"She deserves to know her own history, her own heritage."

Jaric threw his hands up in frustration and reached for the console before him. The view-screen suddenly went blank

* * * *

BACK ON THE Aurora , Kyle sighed as he rolled his eyes. He looked at Jaric. “Well, remember what you said just the other day? Right after you had that huge fight with Elise." Jaric froze. He looked down as he shook his head. “Oh man, I don't know why I lose my temper so easy when it comes to her. I wanted to apologize to her again today when we first started talking, and now I've just insulted her again.” He looked up with a pained expression.

"Maybe we should get all of this right with her before we try communicating with any other humans?”

Kyle asked with a thoughtful expression. He sighed. “I guess Mother was probably right too. It's been long enough. And except for the bad memories, there is no real reason to keep everyone out of the engine room—even her."

"I guess so.” Jaric looked down at the view-screen controls. He started to reach for them.

"Why don't we do it in person, first thing when we land. It will be more personal that way. And honest,”

Kyle advised. “Not over an open communications channel where everyone can listen in." Jaric nodded agreement. “We'll make our peace with her, Big K. And we'll let her go with us to Mermoona."

* * * *

BACK INSIDE THE manta-ray-shaped starship, Mother reviewed the latest argument between her three human children. Krinia and Jysar voiced their own frustrations before they left, telling Mother in no uncertain terms that the intolerable situation between Elise and the boys had to be resolved once and for all.

They agreed unanimously—they needed to encourage the boys and Elise to get together first thing and sort out their harmful feelings. Once that was done and they reached a mutual respect for each other—it was too much to hope for the beginnings of friendship—then the three of them along with their Mewiis, Hrono and Kraaqi friends should catch the first ferry to Mermoona and seek out the humans. But alone in the darkness of her room, Elise cried—her heart broken once again. Deep inside, she had hoped so much that Kyle and Jaric would finally accept her—just accept her as a fellow human being if nothing else. But it seemed like acceptance would never happen, much less a real friendship between them.

After their previous argument, Elise had hoped beyond hope that Jaric would realize how badly his words hurt her—insinuating she wasn't really human. She remembered the look in his eyes that last time at RahajMr; she really thought for a moment that Jaric was going to apologize in front of everyone and set matters right once and for all.

She wanted it so badly—yearned for it with all her heart and soul. She waited for Jaric to speak and show he cared. It had filled her whole being in that one moment.

All she wanted to know was that Jaric and Kyle cared for her feelings—cared for her as a friend. That's all she really wanted—nothing more.

All she wanted was to be friends with the boys.

But Jaric had left without saying a word.

It felt as if her heart was being ripped right out of her chest—but she had stood there and not shed a tear in spite of her inner agony.

Suddenly, Elise was fighting back the tears that filled her eyes now, blinking hard as her body tensed with a pain as if someone had just struck her. She felt the heavy, black emptiness inside her soul where her heart should be. And she felt a dull aching weight pressing upon her shoulders, weighing her down like some incredibly heavy load had been strapped on her, and she was doomed to carry it all through her life—forever.

She groaned.

And now tonight, he once again insinuated she was nothing more than ... a nothing clone . Elise cried out with a sorrow that tore at her heart. For long minutes, she sobbed alone in silence. A thought came to her out of the blue—a brilliant idea. And it would once and for all time endear her to the boys. She would gain their friendship at last. She knew it would work!

Hurriedly she dried her eyes and began freshening up. After all, they were having a starlit dinner with the Mejadic in just a little while. And now there was something she needed to ask them. Elise smiled at her reflection in the mirror.

"You're going to find a way to get to Mermoona by yourself, aren't you?” Elise said to her reflection with a wry smile. “And when Kyle and Jaric land, I'll have the humans here to meet them. Won't that surprise them!"

Elise laughed with joy at her plan. She looked at her reflection with a conspiratorial gleam.

"And we won't tell anybody, will we—not even Krinia,” Elise whispered with a wry smile. “And not even Mother."

[Back to Table of Contents]

Chapter Thirteen

KRINIA, JYSAR AND Elise dined next to a roaring fire as they sat with their new friends on the Bridal Veil beach under the star-filled sky. As the ocean breeze tickled the flames, sparkling embers swirled into the air above them then suddenly flashed away like miniature shooting stars. The Mejadic grilled a feast before their very eyes as they shared their stories about Meramee and its many islands. Of course, they started with their underwater civilization and how it developed and expanded and progressed over the ages. They explained to their avid listeners how their people developed into a technologically sophisticated race and, after they had spread their modern cities to every section under the shallow seas, how they first set foot on dry land.

After the Mejadic explored the land surface of the islands, they quickly conquered the air—adapting their underwater ships in order to travel across the skies. They set aside the pristine islands as vacation spots and determined to keep them as natural as possible. For like most races, the Mejadic went through an industrial revolution and had inadvertently polluted large sections of their ocean home before they learned to use their new technology without damaging the environment. But this took many decades. Still, they learned from their mistakes and resolved to maintain the clean, pristine state of the islands that now served as their vacation get-aways.

Finally, the Mejadic conquered space.

Shortly afterward, solely because Meramee was near one of the great trade routes between the S'tarst and Mrad systems, they encountered another alien race. Within a few more decades, they were building their own hyperdrive starships and traveling to distant worlds.

Meramee's fame spread even more quickly.

Alien beings of other worlds began to visit beautiful Meramee, the most beautiful island-planet ever discovered. The ocean world became a unique balance of strictly developed eco-tourism set among the natural vacation delights of sea and island. The Mejadic complemented this with imported food and beverages from hundreds of worlds. All of this enabled Meramee to become the number one vacation destination within twenty sectors.

"It's great that you've been able to keep the islands so natural and still allow millions of visitors every year,” Krinia exclaimed.

"Every day there are processes we oversee which keep this natural beauty intact and still enable our visiting friends to enjoy the vacation of a lifetime,” Olana answered. “We carefully monitor everything in order to keep technology and the natural cycles of this planet in perfect balance."

"Do you allow visitors to your underwater cities?” Jysar asked hopefully. “I would love to see the natural setting of a technologically advanced race who originated under the oceans. You are the first such race I have met in person."

"You can apply for a visa to visit one of our cities. I would recommend Cirrill, my ocean's capital,”

Stazal said with pride.

"I will look into it tomorrow!” Jysar said with a smile.

Elise continued staring into the roaring flames, her meal barely eaten. Krinia leaned closer to her.

“You've barely eaten. Don't you like the food?"

"I can prepare something else,” Olana said quickly. She too had noticed the untouched portions on Elise's plate.

"No, it's fine. I'm just not very hungry tonight,” Elise said mildly.

"You must swim more,” Stazal said with enthusiasm. “Swimming will give you a good appetite." Elise smiled at him. “I'm sure it will. But I've been enjoying the conversation immensely. I'd love to hear more about Meramee."

"What would you like to hear?” Relan asked. “Perhaps more about the islands of the Maiden Isles?"

"I love it that the vast coral reef systems are the reason for the variety of different colors on your beaches,” Elise said with a smile. “It's so cool."

"Yes, the Royal Islands with their deep purple sand beaches are due to their close proximity to the purple coral called Shinar,” Olana explained. “But the western current of the Emerald Sea brings enough here to the Maiden Isles so that we get just enough color for our Bridal Veil beaches—violet sand mixed with our native sugar white sand. The waves work them into gentle folds, the violet sand adhering together naturally."

"The solitary islands that lie between the borders of the great oceans many times have multi-colored beaches, if they are at the right juncture of the underwater currents,” Stazal said. “In the eastern hemisphere, the coral is dominated by the red coral reefs we call Atkar. But there are also great reefs of orange Osfor, blue Janadace and yellow Yala coral."

"Do you live among the coral reefs?” Krinia asked inquisitively.

"No, that is for the natural animal life. Our cities and farms are built on the sandy floor just beyond the great reefs out to the edge of the deep sea floor,” Olana replied.

"How many islands make up the Maiden Isles?” Elise asked.

"One hundred and five."

"And most are accessible only by boat or ferry?” Elise waited expectantly.

"Yes, especially islands like Mermoona. They contain a more delicate cycle of life for the indigenous animals and plants that are native there. We limit tourists to a precise number that can visit at any one time. And only by boat.” Olana smiled.

"How often does the ferry leave Leyloi for Mermoona?” Elise grew very still. Olana reached for her data pad and accessed its tiny keyboard. She looked up. “The first one leaves at sunrise every day. There are two more—at noon and at sunset."

"Is it easy to register for a visit?” Elise held her breath. “I'm—” she began. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Krinia and Jysar both look up at her with questioning expressions. She swallowed quickly. “I mean, we're hoping to visit there soon. Maybe you can show me how to register and I'll share it with the others.” She smiled sheepishly.

"Yes, I can show you the process on my data pad. Come sit beside me." Within a few minutes, Elise figured it out.

A short time later, the group decided to go for a moonlit walk on the shores of the Emerald Sea. Elise begged off, explaining she was now hungry. The others walked off into the darkness and the sound of breaking surf. While she reheated her untouched food, Elise picked up Olana's data pad, which she had left behind.

Elise registered herself on the first ferry to Mermoona the next day.

Krinia and the others returned just as Elise finished off the last of her food. They spent the rest of the evening in meandering conversation as they whiled away the hours under the twinkling stars and the soothing sound of the breakers.

* * * *

THE NEXT MORNING, while everyone else was still fast asleep, Elise quickly dressed and began walking to the exit on the lower level.

"Why are you up so early?” Mother's voice asked from the nearest speaker.

"I wanted to watch the sun rise over the ocean.” Elise looked away from the optic, realizing she had told Mother a half-truth. But if she told her the true reason, she'd never let her leave. Nobody trusted her.

"Please don't go far, Elise. The boys will be landing around midday. I'd like for you all to talk about what happened last night. I think it's time you all came to an understanding." Elise looked away in silence.

"Okay.” Elise still couldn't bear to face the optic from where Mother observed her. “Can I go now?"

"I guess so. I will send Krinia for you when breakfast is ready." But Elise barely nodded as she stepped quickly outside the door.

Inside her circuits, Mother reviewed the biological readings she had taken of Elise as she left. Both her heart rate and her breathing were higher than normal. Her other body functions also seemed to indicate a high state of emotions.

The utilization of Mother's processors increased steadily.

Within seconds, she awakened Krinia and asked her to go after Elise.

Something wasn't right—and it was causing her internal processors an inordinate amount of utilization as she tried to determine why Elise was in such a highly emotional state.

Krinia dressed in minutes and was soon out on the lush, tropical path that led to the nearest beach. The nearest tourist complexes shed a fair amount of artificial light and helped her to see her way. But as she neared the beach the predawn darkness began to take over. She heard the regular crashing of waves long before she saw the foamy surf.

She ran out onto the almost deserted beach, now able to make out the outlines of others who were out to greet the first light of dawn. But the minutes added up and Krinia still couldn't locate the familiar form of Elise.

The communicator on her belt sounded.

"Krinia, here.” She waited expectantly.

"The Mejadic computer system just sent verification of payment.” Mother spoke with an electronic edge.

"What for?” Krinia's voice suddenly filled with urgency.

"It seems Elise has just paid for a trip on the first ferry to Mermoona—in straight tokens, no credit. And by herself."

Krinia groaned. “Can you send a message and ask Mejadic management to not allow her to get on?"

"I've already tried—she is of age. Unless there is a medical or security reason, they won't stop her. After all, she's simply registered for a day trip there and back—like hundreds of other tourists."

"So, she's going...” Krinia sighed. “By herself."

"You've got to register for the noon ferry, you and Jysar. And go after her immediately." Krinia slapped her thigh with anger. “Okay. I'll be right there. Jysar and I will get registered as quickly as we can."

A feeling of impending doom suddenly gripped Krinia's heart. She wrestled with the icy emotion that suddenly seized her with an iron grip. Finally, she found words.

"Do you think Elise is in some kind of danger?"

"It is possible—but maybe not. Still, better to err on the side of caution. Certain recent occurrences have caused me to reassess any new situation that presents itself. And this one seems—strange."

"You mean the encounter with the Paum ship?"

"That and a few other things I have not mentioned as of yet. Only Minstrel and I have discussed them. I don't want to talk any more about it over an open comm channel."

"I'll be right there!” Krinia said with determination. “Wake up Jysar too. I think we all need to get on the same page right now."

Krinia made her way back at a full run.

* * * *

ELISE PURCHASED HER ticket and quickly joined a family group as they walked up the wooden gangway to the deck of the alien catamaran.

The sleek craft had two masts, one fore and one aft, and was painted a bright blue. The passenger section, located between the twin hulls, easily accommodated two hundred passengers inside its comfortable interior. But Elise's curiosity was piqued by the twin masts—they were designed to carry sails as their main means of transportation at the top and bottom section, but the middle section of each mast was covered with louvers that would catch the wind and cause that part of the mast to spin separately from the other sections of mast.

Intrigued, Elise approached one of the Mejadic crew, a young male dressed in a one-piece jumpsuit, as he prepared the sails to be hoisted.

"Why does the middle section of each mast spin?"

"It provides additional power to the anti-gravity circuit inside each hull. It helps us to fly over the waves.” The Mejadic's yellow and blue face gleamed with excitement. “We'll run full out when we hit deep water and catch the fresh morning breeze. It's very exhilarating—the boat slicing through the waves silent and fast. All you'll hear and feel is the wind on your skin and the waves below us as the craft rises and falls."

Elise smiled back at the young male. She could feel his excitement through his smile and sparkling eyes.

“I can't wait. How fast will go?"

"Almost thirty-five knots, once we bring the anti-grav systems on-line."

"What do they do?"

"We use them to raise the craft up almost out of the water—until only a small part of each hull is slicing through the water."

Elise thanked him and walked around the top deck watching the other aliens as they quickly boarded. A few minutes later, the sleek catamaran slowly left its berth and pointed its nose to the horizon that slowly became visible with the light of a new day.

And this day would find Elise sailing the open water of the Emerald Sea on the island-planet of Meramee, her first journey by herself. Her excitement grew with each passing wave. The three-hour sail did not disappoint. Elise watched the sky slowly begin to take shape as the red sun rose higher above the watery horizon.

She ate a small breakfast below decks and returned to her seat. With the light of day, all the passengers took up positions as they watched island after island pass by on either side as the fast boat made its way to Mermoona.

It was a wonderful, and different, kind of feeling. But Elise couldn't get over how quiet it was, even though they traveled so fast. It really added to her overall joy—her first journey alone. And the total absence of any engine noise whatsoever as the vessel sliced through the sea made it seem as if the ship traveled by magic.

She knew that her hair must be glowing a bright blue or green—she felt so happy, so excited, so free. Yes, to be here all alone riding toward a new, undiscovered destination. Elise smiled as she touched her hair and felt the subtle warmth of her Hair Lighter.

Slowly, wonderfully, the mountainous outline of the isle of Mermoona rose above the water. The brisk wind caressed her skin as she leaned forward on the railing. Soon she made out that Mermoona was a jungle-covered island with two mountain peaks—one at either end.

A few minutes later as the ship pulled to the dock, the communicator at her belt vibrated. It must be Mother.

She pulled the device up and looked at it a moment. And with a decisive motion she turned it off and returned it to her belt. She had come this far on her own and she was determined to see this journey through on her own—and find the other humans.

Elise strained to get a better look.

"Well, isn't this quite a surprise."

Elise turned and found the same two aliens she had met on the beach yesterday—the same two who had told her about the humans here on Mermoona.

Her eyes widened with surprise.

"Yes, I see you're just as surprised as we are.” The Harg smiled savagely. “You know, I don't believe we were properly introduced yesterday. I am called Craga. And this is my partner, Rost." Elise felt an overpowering urge to run away. But the ferry was now letting the first passengers off via the gangway—there was nowhere to go except to follow the slowly moving crowd.

"And your name?"

Elise stared at them dumbfounded a moment.

"Elise,” she finally mumbled.

"Elise. My, what a pretty name,” Craga said.

"And such a pretty alien, too,” Rost added.

"You know, I suddenly have an idea,” Craga said with exaggerated innocence. He smiled again. “Why don't Rost and I take you to where we saw the humans we told you about? I mean, I assume that is why you've come here."

Elise's mind worked feverishly. That would help her actually; her first step was to have found the food booth they'd told her about. But now they could take her straight to it. And even if there was something a bit too coincidental about this meeting, well, she was in the middle of hundreds of other tourists. How much trouble could she get herself into?

A renewed resolution filled her heart as she thought again of the surprise and happiness on Kyle and Jaric's faces when she met them with the other humans she found on Mermoona today. She smiled at the Harg.

"Sure, why don't you take me there. That'll save me some time." Rost and Craga smiled widely.

"Good. This way, please.” Rost pointed toward Mermoona's jungle interior.

* * * *

"THAT IS A SWEET sight!” Kyle exclaimed with appreciation as he stared at the island-planet. Jaric moved closer to the view-screen filled with their first direct image of Meramee. “There must be every shade of blue and green imaginable on that planet."

"Ah, Meramee!” Inaha shouted with a heartfelt cry. “It's been too long. I have almost forgotten how beautiful a world you are."

Even Rok rose from his commander's chair in order to get a better look. He grunted with satisfaction as his eyes took in the great natural beauty before him. The Kraaqi Captain turned to his companions.

"It's obvious that the Mejadic have a deep respect for the world under their care. Even though they are a technologically advanced race, our sensors show that the natural cycles are pollution-free and that the flora and fauna are thriving even amidst a sizable, native population multiplied by tourists.” The Kraaqi captain nodded approvingly. “I sense a kinship with these people already."

"Captain.” A Kraaqi officer looked up from his bridge station. “The MotherShip is hailing us—on a secure channel."

"On!” Rok returned to his chair.

"Captain Rok,” Mother's voice began. “I must ask you to speed your landing procedures as quickly as Mejadic protocol will allow."

"What's going on?” A look of concern filled Kyle's face.

"Elise seems to be missing."

"What do you mean, ‘seems'?” Kyle looked from Jaric over to Rok with a questioning look.

"She took a ferry over to Mermoona at first light this morning—without telling anyone of her intentions." Kyle chuckled approvingly. “I guess she really wants to meet the other humans ... if they're really there

."

"Explain,” Mother said almost without pause.

"I was just trying to be realistic this time.” Kyle glanced over to the Kraaqi captain. “I mean, I wasn't getting my hopes up too high this time. And..."

"Please continue more quickly, Kyle.” Mother urged.

"That's it. I'm just trying to be more realistic. And after I thought it over, it just seemed almost too good to be true. Elise may not find humans on Mermoona.” Kyle's brow furrowed with concern. “But why do you think Elise is missing, if you know where she is?"

"She's not answering our communication attempts."

"She's probably ignoring you,” Kyle countered.

"I hope so. I have confirmed that she took her communicator. But after consulting with Jysar and Krinia, I have a new concern."

"Go on,” Kyle said.

"After the strange attack by the Paum ship, Minstrel and I conferred privately. We discovered that the Paum use a race of beings called Harg as paid mercenaries in this Sector.” Mother paused, noticing Jaric and Kyle's puzzled expressions.

"Harg!” Kyle blurted out as he paced the bridge.

"Oh man,” Jaric groaned. “We had a little tussle with them back on RahajMr."

"You did not mention any Harg to me.” Mother's voice rose with anger.

"Well, you said we would finish discussing it later,” Kyle shot back. Jaric groaned, shaking his head.

"And I remember!” Kyle snapped his fingers. “They mentioned they were going to take us to their ship

... someone wanted to meet us!"

Jaric whistled. “Did they? Not to me."

"Before Krinia and Jysar left to go after Elise, I warned them to be on the lookout for Harg—which I described for them. As soon as I completed my description, they realized the two aliens who told them about the humans were Harg."

"You're kidding!” Jaric blurted out. “That's too much—something's going on."

"This is my fault,” Mother said mournfully. “I wrongly assumed that the Paum's interest in us was based on our visit to RahajMr—and since we'd left without any direct incident, my calculations indicated a lessening of danger."

Mother grew silent as her short-term memories reviewed the combined data of all of their recent encounters with the Harg and her last discussion with Minstrel.

"I have failed. I should have shared all the data with you, as limited as it was, right after the Paum ship attacked me. If I had shared all the data instead of withholding it, this would not have happened. But I did not want to worry anyone unduly until I knew all the facts. I have made a grave error."

"Don't blame yourself, Mother,” Jaric protested. “It's too bad we don't have any hard evidence we could take to Mejadic Security so they could help. We only have a strong suspicion at this point."

"In fact, if Mejadic Security contacted Mrad Security, we might be the ones they take into custody.”

Kyle shook his head, beating himself mentally.

"It seems we all are of interest to the Paum, not just Minstrel and myself,” Mother said. “I will upload all the data I have to the Aurora for you to review."

"Where are Krinia and Jysar?” Jaric asked quickly.

"They chartered a high speed craft to Mermoona. They will arrive much quicker than the ferry. I can patch you through to their communicators.” Mother waited.

"In a minute,” Kyle growled. “We'd better lay all of our cards on the table now. The Harg may be making their move even as we speak.” He shook his head with slow deliberation. “And we're not even sure what they want from us yet."

"That mystery must be solved,” Mother added.

The view-screen now displayed a gracefully moving starfield.

Inaha stepped beside the silent forms of Rok, Jaric and Kyle.

"This is not good,” Inaha said with a serious tone.

"What do you mean?” Jaric asked.

"The Paum are widely feared. And rightly so."

"Where did they come from?” Rok's eyes became intent. “Are they a race?"

"They are not a race. You become Paum .” Inaha's eyes narrowed. “The Paum appeared out of nowhere on the planet Iopa. The Liede lived there—a very technologically advanced race. It was said that their computers were as powerful as the great Mrad systems. There among the Liede—Paum was born."

"What do you mean?"

"The Paum took control. The Paum united the Liede as a single people, rid their world of want and injustice and led them in the path of happiness. They no longer focus their lives around business, or technology, or entertainment. They left their cities and now live in thousands of small farming communities while a vast population of robots back in the empty cities keep the infrastructure of the world functioning.

"The Paum controls those mundane things now. In fact, it is even said the Paum controls the very weather—on Iopa and on each world where the Paum takes control. Paum brings them paradise..."

"Hmmm,” Jaric mused. “That doesn't sound so bad."

"But there seems to be a price.” Inaha rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"There's always a price,” Rok agreed.

"Their life is now dictated by Paum—but whether that is a code or an actual being known as Paum, no one knows for certain outside Paum. The adherents speak of the mysterious Paum as if it were a being of some kind, but no one has ever actually seen him.” Inaha shrugged. “It's all rather mysterious—everything about the Paum."

"I don't like mysteries,” Kyle said.

"It seems everyone who follows Paum is happy, care-free. But I traveled to some of their worlds, newly conquered worlds, on a trader ship last year. It's kind of weird—everyone dresses the same way, everyone smiling and very polite—like they're all copies of each other.” Inaha's eyes became far-off as he paused, remembering those faces. “There was something else in their eyes—fear—or something.” He grunted. “On the surface everything looked great, but I was always happy to leave."

"They conquer people?” Kyle asked with a puzzled expression. “It almost sounds like a philosophy, or religion. Wouldn't they just try to convert others to their way of life?"

"Well, that's the scary part,” Inaha said. “It seems that everything outside of Paum is an enemy of Paum. They fight ‘holy wars'. Others must subscribe to Paum, or they must be destroyed. And one day they believe Paum will govern the entire universe. And the universe will be one."

"They inflict Paum on others?” Kyle gasped. “That's brutal!"

"I've talked to many back at the floating cities who've fled their conquered worlds—fled before the final Paum victory.” Inaha took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Their wars are unbelievably brutal—small corps of dedicated Paum warriors willing to fight to the death. They march alongside massive armies of robots whose sole programming is to conquer at any cost.” Inaha shook his head slowly.

"And these new converts to Paum, are they better off?” Jaric asked.

"They say they're happier now. But it's almost like they have to say that. If you know what I mean."

"And you say robots keep the infrastructure of each world running while the beings themselves live Paum?” Rok asked with sudden interest.

"Yes. You know, I like robots, but they seem to be everywhere on Paum-controlled worlds. And the Paum ties all these worlds together with a vast Inter-Sector network—similar to the Mrad, and somehow more pervasive .” He slowly let out another long breath as he gathered his thoughts. “And lately they've been able to conquer new worlds without firing a shot. The dread of the Paum, they call it. These conquests seem inexplicable."

Inaha looked intently at each of them, as if he were about the share the greatest secret of the universe. His eyes grew steel-hard as he spoke. “The Paum ships show up, saying they're interested in trade and commerce. Somehow their philosophy subtly permeates that society within a short time—millions of adherents to Paum in a matter of weeks. There has to be some mechanism, some process that allows them to topple seemingly powerful governments without a blow. But nobody has figured it out yet. That's almost as scary as their holy wars."

"And the Paum are interested in the Mrad now?” Rok continued.

"Yes. The Paum have tried to infiltrate the Mrad for a while now. I've heard rumors these last few months. The Paum haven't tried a direct attack—not yet. They probably don't attack because all the other races who use the Mrad system might rise up to defend this mutual resource. Even the powerful Paum cannot fight the entire known universe. Still, if they find a way—conquer or convert the Mrad—can the rest of us be far behind? The data and knowledge of every race is part of the Mrad systems. If that becomes part of Paum...” Inaha sighed deeply, shaking his head. Rok remained silent, his mind going over everything Inaha told them. Finally, he spoke. “There seems to be an odd combination with Paum, everywhere that Paum goes it brings both its philosophy and its technology."

The four looked at each other in silent contemplation.

"We will confer with the MotherShip when we land.” Rok returned to his commander's chair. “I suggest we all go over the data sent to us prior to landing."

"I just wonder why the Paum is interested in us?” Jaric asked. “The last three members of a dead race and their small band of alien friends? Why would they want to conquer us instead of another world of beings?"

Rok's eyes narrowed. “And there is the MotherShip."

[Back to Table of Contents]

Chapter Fourteen

"WHERE ARE WE going?” Elise's tone betrayed her growing concern.

Leaving the main section of the seaside town behind, they now walked a sand-covered trail surrounded by thick, tropical vegetation. It suddenly dawned on Elise that they were alone. They had not seen another alien being since leaving the main walking trail back near the beach. The Harg to her right grunted as a flicker of a smile crossed his face. “We are almost there,” he crooned. The two muscular Harg marched so close to her that she almost felt they were herding her in a certain direction rather than guiding her. She felt a rising tension inside her heart and wondered for the hundredth time if she had made a mistake in asking these two strangers to help her. Elise fought the rising panic that suddenly filled her. In that instant, she came to a decision—she didn't need the Hargs’ help any longer. And the sooner she parted with them, the better she would feel. But as she cast a quick glance from one Harg to the other, she wrestled with an overpowering sense of intimidation. She sensed that these aliens could get very mean and rough. It was something in the way they carried themselves.

"If we're almost there, I can go the rest of the way without you." The two Harg turned and stared at her harshly.

All three came to a sudden halt.

"I mean, I appreciate your help. But I feel I'm putting you out, you didn't come back here to help me find the humans you met the other day,” Elise said quickly. She closed her eyes, kicking herself mentally. She knew they heard the nervousness in her voice.

"Actually, we came here for you."

Elise stared unwavering back at Rost.

She surprised herself.

Even though her heart pounded like a jackhammer, and it felt like it was going to leap right out of her chest, the panic and intimidation she had been fighting the last few minutes suddenly disappeared. In an instant, it turned into a calm, but firm determination.

She took two steps back away from them.

The two Harg chuckled with amusement.

"Surely you don't think you can get away from two Harg warriors as easy as that?” Craga laughed. Elise smiled back at them.

And then she lowered herself into a battle stance—just as Krinia had taught her. The two Harg laughed even louder. But after a moment, they grew silent. The Harg on her left moved toward her and spoke.

"It's time to go."

Elise eluded his grasp easily and with a quick twist of her lithe body turned and kicked violently at the Harg's ribs.

The Harg bent over with a loud groan.

Rost stared at her with narrowed eyes.

"Craga,” he said to his groaning companion. “We do not have time to play with this small female. We must make the communication soon. The Kraaqi ship will land within the hour. And the Mewiis and the Hrono have left the human ship. All except the one they call Mother." Craga stood up, an expression of pain across his face. It quickly changed to anger as he glared at Elise.

"No more playing,” he growled.

Elise readied herself as Craga closed while Rost made a move behind her. Elise felt the adrenaline pumping throughout her body as she readied herself for the combined attack. The Harg behind her moved first.

She kicked.

But he eluded the blow.

Immediately Elise punched, and the Harg reeled backward holding his nose. Elise turned and found Craga almost on top of her.

She knocked his arms away as he tried to pin her arms and capture her. Growling, he leapt as Elise grabbed his forearm. She used his forward momentum; with a quick motion she twirled him like a short log through the air.

The Harg landed flat on his back and lay there dazed.

Elise didn't have time to enjoy her handiwork.

She heard the footsteps behind her. In her mind, she knew the other Harg was almost upon her and if he got her pinned down on the ground the fight would be over.

She willed herself to stay still a moment longer.

In a single motion, she whirled.

Again the Harg reached out to capture her with his arms spread wide. Elise sent her knee into his stomach with all the momentum of her twisting body.

Rost grunted, but his arms quickly wrapped around her shoulders.

He held her fast.

Elise kicked hard into the alien's groin.

The Harg coughed and fell backward.

And then the planet swirled before Elise's eyes.

She fell forward unconscious, her head falling against a large rock that cut a gash across her forehead. Bright red blood dripped from the wound onto the ground all around her strewn blonde hair. Almost invisible, her Hair Lighter came to a rest a meter away in the grass. Craga stood over her limp form, his fist still clenched after applying the blow to the back of her head.

"You haven't killed her, have you?” Rost rose painfully, his eyes staring at the unmoving form of Elise.

"She is merely unconscious."

"You better be right,” the other sneered. “And when we wake her, she'd better be lucid enough to make that communication."

Craga growled ominously at his partner. He reached into the pouch at the wide belt on his waist. “Bind her. We must get to the others."

The two Harg worked quickly. Craga then threw her limp form over his broad shoulder and the two raced up the trail.

* * * *

NEARBY, FROM INSIDE the thick, tropical vegetation, Qirn and three of his reptilian warriors watched silently.

"Should we rescue the human female?” Jaan whispered to his captain. Yuli and Trag, the other two Iraxx warriors, waited for the response.

Qirn's red eyes narrowed. “They mentioned some kind of communication.” He looked at his two warriors. “Yuli, get your sensor ready. I want both a trace and a copy of this communication." Yuli nodded.

"We'll let the Paum's agents play their hand first.” Qirn motioned for them to follow the disappearing forms.

* * * *

TEN MINUTES LATER, the two Harg carried the unconscious form of Elise into a large, solitary building that stood deep in the jungle and far from the crowded beaches of Mermoona. It was a huge, white storage building with no windows across any of its high walls. The Mejadic built it distant from the populated areas for a very good reason—it held a huge store of fireworks used to celebrate the conjunction of the triple moons every sixth week.

Inside the single, vast room, amid the countless wooden crates stacked in row after row full of highly combustible substances, four more Harg waited around a small comm unit. Craga and Rost joined them with wide smiles all around.

"Good, you finally are here."

Craga dumped Elise unceremoniously onto the dirt-covered floor. “Get the medical kit,” he ordered to one of the others. “We have to get her conscious. Fast!"

Craga rummaged through the kit brought to him until he found what he was looking for. Raising Elise's head, he placed the vial just under her nose. He broke the plastic end and laughed as Elise coughed and waved her hands, trying to push the vile smelling stuff away.

Craga stood as Elise came fully awake.

Elise looked around at the six Harg who surrounded her in this strange place She felt her heart sink. But almost in the same instant, she summoned all the willpower she had left. They wouldn't beat her that easily.

"What do you want from me?” she asked firmly as she stood.

Six Harg faces stared at her in surprise.

Finally, Craga spoke.

"We want you to call the being Mother on this comm unit."

Elise looked at him with a puzzled expression.

She couldn't think of a valid reason not to do this thing. In fact, it's what she wanted to most of all—especially now that she realized the full import of her current situation.

"Okay, I can do that."

"And if you keep her talking long enough,” Craga growled. “We'll be happy to release you." Elise's puzzled expression grew deeper.

"Just like that?” Elise asked incredulously.

"Just like that,” Craga replied with a glint in his eyes.

One of the other Harg handed her the unit.

Elise looked from him back to Craga. Then with a shrug, she keyed the unit on. It had been preset. Within seconds, Mother's voice came through.

"Hello, this is Mother. Are you calling with word on my daughter, Elise?" Elise felt her heart leap with joy at the familiar voice. She took a deep breath and spoke.

"Mother, this is Elise."

"Elise!” Mother's voice rose several decibels with her obvious surprise. “Are you all right?"

"I think so.” Elise eyed her captors suspiciously. “I've been told that I'll be released if I just talk with you a few moments.

Back at Leyloi and parked among hundreds of other starships, Mother's processors hummed with activity. She quickly surmised that the Harg must be holding Elise captive. But she could not understand why a simple communication would precipitate her release.

Without warning, she felt the alien sensors begin to probe her interior. Immediately she raised shields in order to block the intrusive scan.

A scream suddenly erupted over the communications channel.

It was Elise. And she was in pain.

Craga twisted Elise's arm far behind her back until her hand was almost at the base of her neck.

"Cease your actions now. Do not hurt Elise again.” Mother spoke with a deadly seriousness.

"Lower your shields,” Craga growled. “Allow the scans until we are finished. Or I will hurt the girl.” He twisted harder and Elise screamed again.

Mother lowered her shields.

She had no other option, nor any way to prevent the Harg from hurting her daughter. Mother felt helpless. And she did not like feeling this way.

She needed more data. She needed it in order to understand why the Harg and the Paum were doing this to her and her children.

Mother quickly recalibrated her internal sensors. As the alien scan probed her internal systems, she probed back along them. Additionally, she put up subtle, programmed barriers around her most vital internal systems, disguising them as non-important or non-functioning in the hope that the aliens would overlook them.

Or ignore them.

The seconds seemed to drag into eternity.

Finally, she pinpointed the source.

There were three aliens at the edge of the dockyard. She quickly determined they were not Harg but another alien race called Ivenan.

A quick check of her knowledgebase revealed that these aliens were also part of the conquered worlds of the Paum.

Mother realized that the entire reason for this kidnapping was to allow this intrusive scanning of her interior.

And to confirm that the voice on the communication channel was the Artificial Intelligence of theship itself.

Why did the Paum want to know this? Mother's processors spiked with super-activity as millions of possibilities presented themselves.

Craga watched two of his cronies as they bent over an array of electronic equipment. They quickly analyzed the scans being forwarded to them from their accomplices on Leyloi. Suddenly, they motioned for Craga to come over and check the screen for himself.

Craga's face twisted from puzzlement to outright anger as he read the data. Elise stared wide-eyed as he suddenly leapt up and grabbed her harshly once again in his vise-like grip.

"Talk to her!” He shouted vehemently.

"Mother!” Elise cried with pain.

"I told you, stop hurting her,” Mother replied coldly.

Craga looked back at the two Harg around the display.

They shook their heads.

Craga grabbed the communicator from Elise as he pushed her roughly onto the ground.

"Who is this? Who are you that call yourself Mother ?" Mother paused a moment, contemplating a response. Some of the scenarios she just reviewed showed that if she revealed herself fully they might kill Elise, having no further need of her. But others resulted in their releasing her.

Mother could not decide.

She chose a compromise.

"I am the protector of Elise and the other two humans. I am Mother."

"There is no life-form on board,” Craga growled ominously into the communicator. “Our scans detect no living life-form aboard that ship.” He glared at the communicator in his hand. “I am going to ask one last time. And then I am going to hurt your daughter very badly."

Mother calculated millions of scenarios in a matter of seconds. But she was too far away, and worse, she did not have a precise location where she might attempt a rescue.

Deep inside her circuits, Mother sighed.

"I am an Artificial Intelligence."

Craga's eyes became saucers as he held his breath.

He looked at the two Harg who still stared at the data on the display before them. They whispered hurriedly to each other. Finally, one turned to him.

"There is an abnormally high— excessively high—amount of electronic activity. More than has ever been detected in a computer of this size."

The Harg leader became lost in thought a moment. Then his eyes focused. He looked from one Harg warrior to the other. And as his eyes fixed on them one at a time, they both uttered a single word.

" Paum. "

Each Harg repeated it like some kind of religious chant. Again and again, Craga made eye contact with each Harg.

Again and again that single word was shared between them.

Elise looked on with growing apprehension. She could sense everything was coming to some kind of climax all around her. But she couldn't guess what. And it frightened her. Slowly, she began to move toward a huge pile of crates. She took three small steps and was just calculating if she could sprint behind the nearest pile and run toward the middle of the vast maze of crates inside the cavernous confines of the warehouse when Craga spoke.

"Bring the human girl to me."

At once, every Harg head turned toward her.

Elise smiled sheepishly back at them.

And she turned and ran between two towering piles of crates and out of sight.

"Get her!” Craga shouted angrily.

A blaster bolt lit the air, and a Harg fell unconscious to the ground. Every Harg turned to the source.

Four reptilian warriors stood with blasters in hand, facing them from atop a pile of crates on the opposite side from where Elise disappeared.

Qirn chuckled as he noticed the shocked looks on the Harg. He turned to Jaan. “Keep your blasters set to stun. We don't want the Mejadic authorities getting involved too much in our little—" A red blaster bolt leapt past Qirn's head.

And the sizzle in the air indicated it was not set to stun.

Another Harg, separate and unseen from the others, suddenly appeared behind some crates with weapon aimed.

"Get them!” Craga shouted.

Craga quickly grabbed one of the other Harg in charge of analyzing the scan results from Mother. They hurriedly gathered the equipment, and the two of them alone made their way toward the nearest exit. Meanwhile, Qirn and the other Iraxx warriors jumped for cover, knocking crates in all directions. As they lay there, another blaster bolt sizzled in the air above them. Jaan looked anxiously at Qirn.

"If one of these shots hits a crate full of fireworks just right, this whole building could go up!" They all knew the safety barriers used in packing such combustible contents in this sector. But nothing would prevent the ensuing tragedy if a blaster struck one dead center.

Qirn growled under his breath. But he nodded silent agreement. He suddenly looked at his other Iraxx companions.

"Okay. We must get the human girl out safe—these Harg are not important." The other Iraxx nodded agreement.

"Let's stun as many as we can and then lay down cover fire. Then we can go for the girl." In a single motion, the three Iraxx warriors jumped up and fired simultaneously. Two Harg fell stunned while the third leapt away.

"Let's go!” Qirn shouted.

The Iraxx fired again and again as the Harg returned their more deadly fire. Just as he was about to follow his companion through the building exit, Craga pulled out his communicator. He saw the tracers of blaster fire, but the combatants remained unseen amid the countless rows of wooden crates.

He spoke into his communicator.

"Don't let any of them get out alive. Obey me as if it came from the Great Paum!” Smiling, he unhooked another device from his wide belt. His eyes narrowed into two slits as he pushed the button. Somewhere near the center of the vast warehouse, the door of a crate opened. But inside, the crate appeared empty.

"Let them deal with a Destructor,” Craga whispered with a savage grin. Hurriedly, he made his way out of the building.

Blaster fire filled the air for a moment, some of it hitting the far walls and burning carbon-etched holes into the thick, blast-proof metal. But some hit the edges of the crates, sending them and plasti-steel fragments high into the air.

"Aim carefully!” Qirn shouted to his warriors.

The Iraxx ran between several crates piled high to the ceiling in hot pursuit of Elise, who now had about a minute's lead-time.

Moments later, the remaining Harg scattered after them.

It was ‘fire, duck and run’ as Qirn and his warriors quickly made their way through the maze of crates and toward where they hoped Elise was hiding.

Qirn felt a hot, stinging sensation on the back of his neck as another crate rocked under a hit and part of it fragmented into tiny projectiles.

Though the Mejadic lined each crate with a protective shielding of plasti-steel, it was only a matter of time before a direct hit set off a deadly chain reaction.

And then the entire warehouse would go up.

Qirn looked around hurriedly as the blaster fire grew thick in the air all around them.

"There she is!” Jaan shouted.

Elise appeared to their left from around a fallen pile of crates.

But the Harg saw her too.

A blaster bolt leapt toward her.

Elise shuddered backward and slumped to the floor, clutching her side where the blaster struck.

"No!” Qirn shouted as he fired and stunned the Harg in return.

Jaan and Yuli leapt up and returned their own volleys.

Another Harg fell. And another. But several more took their place.

Without warning a crate exploded near them—suddenly the air was full of multi-colored smoke and streaking rockets. The small missiles screamed through the air in every direction, then exploded with bright flashes of color above them near the warehouse ceiling.

"We've got to split up.” Qirn pointed at Yuli and Trag. “You two fan out and draw their fire in that direction.” He turned to Jaan. “You make a break that way. Draw their fire. And I'll make for the girl." The Iraxx warriors nodded silently.

"Now!” Qirn shouted.

They jumped up simultaneously and fired.

Yuli and Trag fired from their hips as they jumped around crates and ran toward the south wall of the building. The Harg fired first at them, then turned their weapons to Jaan who ducked and fired as he made his way in the opposite direction.

Keeping low, Qirn quickly made his way to Elise's unmoving form.

But he made it only halfway when he ducked for cover under a sudden hail of blaster fire. The Harg knew his intentions.

A few dozen yards away, behind the cover of a large pile of crates, Yuli and Trag were reloading their blasters, when a strange sound came to their ears.

The two Iraxx paused, straining to hear against harsh silence of the huge warehouse. It came again—a sound that made their blood run cold.

The ominous sound of steel claws scratching against a surface.

And then the silence returned.

Yuli and Trag locked eyes.

"It can't be!” Trag whispered with anxiety.

Yuli popped a fully loaded cartridge back into his weapon as his eyes nervously darted from place to place. He groaned deep inside, but still kept a keen eye out. And still they strained their ears for the sound they didn't want to hear.

But they heard the scratching sound again.

And this time it was much closer.

"Get your sensor out! I'll cover!” Yuli raised his weapon and pointed at a row of crates close by. But there was nothing to see even though he stared unflinching at the spot where he thought the sound emanated.

Trag grabbed at the hand-held sensor strapped to his belt. With a curse, he fumbled it loose and almost dropped it.

"Hurry!” Yuli urged.

Suddenly, one of the crates moved mysteriously before his unbelieving eyes—moved by an unseen power.

Yuli fired a barrage at the invisible monster.

But the tracers disappeared into the thick concrete floor and shattered fragments of plasti-steel from the crate that had mysteriously moved.

As the debris cleared the air, the eerie silence returned.

The Iraxx warrior held his weapon steady as he peered intently all around, trying to look in every direction at the same time. His breathing grew rapid as he fought the urge to run, but he didn't know which direction to run now—he didn't know where the Destructor was.

Finally, Trag held his sensor out and began tuning it as he pointed it first at the blaster fragmented crate and began a slow scan.

"I ... I don't see anything,” he whispered urgently.

"It's there,” Yuli said with a finality. “Find it! I can't blast it if I don't know where it's at!" The scratching sound whispered right beside them.

Yuli and Trag started to turn.

The wall of crates they were hiding behind suddenly began to crash down on their heads. The two Iraxx flung their hands up to ward off the heavy crates falling upon them. In their hearts, each knew the Destructor was coming down on them at the same time—coming in for the kill. Yuli screamed as he felt the invisible talons grabbing for him.

He managed a short blast before his weapon was ripped from his hand. As the crates knocked him down to the ground with their heavy blows, he still felt the invisible grasp of the Destructor locked on him.

With boxes and crates falling all around him, he felt his body violently jerked away. Trag lay dazed momentarily as another crate bounced off his head. He pushed violently and kicked repeatedly at the pile of boxes that covered him as he fought to find a way out from under them. A scream pierced the air, followed immediately by a short burst from a blaster. Both sounds were close by.

Trag shuddered.

As he shoved the last crate off of his body and stood, he looked around in panic for his friend. In the distance, the Harg fired again at both Qirn and Jaan. But it did not register in Trag's mind as his eyes searched the jumble of boxes and crates looking for a sign of his fallen friend. And then he saw it.

Yuli's leg was visible beside a fallen pile of crates a few yards away. Trag's eyes widened with horror.

As he watched, Yuli's leg suddenly jerked and stiffened.

And a muffled scream split the air.

Trag pulled his blaster from its holster and scrambled over the fallen boxes toward where Yuli lay. But as he drew close he paused. Slowly, hesitantly, he made his way closer.

"Y-Yuli?"

Silence answered.

He fought the panic rising inside him. Holding his blaster, he looked slowly around, realizing that the invisible Destructor could be anywhere.

It could be right behind him.

Trag swallowed hard.

Finally, he forced himself to move closer until he came around the last crates and could see the fallen form of his friend.

Yuli lay flat on his back; his eyes stared unseeing at the ceiling far above. Trag knew he was dead even without his sensor.

A crate over to his left suddenly moved.

Trag jumped.

He fired burst after burst at the area and all around it.

But only the flying splinters of plasti-steel and chunks from the concrete floor resulted from his mad volley.

He stared in panic first in one direction and another, trying to see the invisible monster. But he couldn't, no matter how hard he stared.

And now he did not have his sensor; it was lost somewhere under the pile of crates behind him. Trag knew he had to get out of there.

If he wanted to live.

He began backing slowly away, facing the area where the crate had moved. His shaking hand held the blaster as he stumbled backward over the fallen debris.

Fear gripped his entire being. Deep inside, he knew he was being hunted. And he knew the Destructor was close—very close.

He felt it.

Trag screamed inside his mind.

In the distance, he heard the shouts and blaster fire from the others, but that did not matter now. As he stumbled again, almost falling, he reached down to steady himself. But he slid and fell to the ground.

He immediately struggled to get up and continue his retreat. But as he pushed himself to his knees, the haunting sound came again—the gut-wrenching sound of steel talons scratching. Trag froze.

The silence returned—except for the explosive pounding of his heart.

Trag wiped the sweat out his eyes as he strained his ears and eyes for any sign of the Destructor. Anything.

Between one heartbeat and the next, he felt the invisible appendage slip around his neck from behind. Trag opened his mouth to scream as he tried to turn and fire.

But the deadly grip tightened.

And mercifully, Trag lost consciousness.

* * * *

JAAN WAS CONFUSED.

He looked up and fired a quick blast at a Harg and ducked back behind his cover. But he stared over in the direction where the screams still echoed.

There weren't any Harg over there, and yet he plainly heard Yuli's blood-curdling scream a few moments ago.

And now, there was nothing—no movement, not any indication that either of them were there. Or alive.

Jaan pulled out the tiny communicator and flipped it open.

"Captain,” Jaan said into it. “Captain, something's happened to Yuli and Trag."

"I think you're right. I've already tried to raise them,” Qirn answered tersely.

"What do we do?” Jaan whispered.

"I've got to get to the human girl. I can see her. But I'm pinned down." Jaan pulled out a second blaster from its holster. “I'll cover you until you reach her and find more cover. Then you can cover for me and I'll make my way over to you."

"Then we're outta here,” Qirn's voice said evenly.

Jaan flipped his communicator closed and replaced it on his belt. He picked up a second blaster and held both barrels upright a moment.

He counted to three and jumped up—both blasters firing.

The remaining Harg returned fire, but Jaan ducked momentarily and jumped back up firing once again. He stunned one of them squarely in the chest—the alien falling backward unconscious. But the other two fired back with rapid bursts.

In that moment, Qirn reached the limp form of Elise.

As he reached for her a blaster bolt ripped through the air right over his head. In one motion, Qirn turned and fired.

His instinctive aim proved true and another Harg fell stunned.

The last two Harg disappeared behind a pile of crates.

Qirn quickly pulled Elise into the shadows. He pulled out his sensor to scan her wounds. He hoped Jaan would make it to them in the next few minutes. Otherwise he would be force to leave without him.

* * * *

BUT JAAN SAT frozen.

He had ducked back behind some cover after he saw Qirn drop the Harg. It had been his intention to pause only a second then begin to make his way over to his captain.

But just as he started to rise, he saw a crate move by itself—pushed by an unseen force. His mind reeled a moment, fighting against what his eyes just saw. And in the next second it hit him—there was a Destructor here.

His entire body froze with panic.

Jaan barely breathed, still staring at the crate. He held his two blasters with barrels pointing upright and ready. But he could not will himself to move with the recognition of the terrible thing he knew now hunted him.

As he sat there, he heard the sound he dreaded—the faint sound of scratching claws moving ever closer. Death, sure and terrible, came for Jaan.

The Iraxx warrior gasped breathlessly.

He felt a rush of adrenaline shoot throughout his body with the pounding of his heart. But still he remained frozen, his mind somehow detached from his body in its blizzard of thoughts. Another crate moved ever so slightly against the weight of some invisible thing. The Destructor was less than a meter away now.

Jaan's mind snapped.

In his heart, he knew he'd never kill the invisible Destructor.

But he could take it with him.

And everybody else in the warehouse.

He fired directly into several oversized crates marked ‘Extremely Powerful—Careful.'

Jaan screamed as the explosions and missiles erupted.

He rose and fired into more boxes, sending more missiles whistling into the air as dozens exploded into a shower of lights. Explosion after colorful explosion ripped the air, the quickly growing number of missiles making it seem as if it were raining fireworks from the sky.

The intensity and number grew exponentially as the warehouse started to fill with showers of multi-colored explosions.

Suddenly, against the constant flash and sparks, he saw the outline of the Destructor coming for him. Jaan screamed again as he aimed for the crates all around the vague shape of the Destructor. Powerful explosions erupted and Jaan was blinded.

But he'd seen that faint outline of the Destructor thrown down and partially consumed by the power of the blasts all around them.

Still, while he watched in horror as the now unstoppable barrage of exploding fireworks increased, he saw the shadowy outline of the damaged Destructor lifting itself up.

A steel claw reached out for him.

Jaan fired furiously.

As he screamed, the chain reaction of explosions grew together in rapid succession until it detonated every box in this one section of the warehouse.

The Destructor continued to reach out while the Iraxx warrior pumped blast after blast into its reinforced tritanium steel body, sending chunks of its armor plating into the air where they became plainly visible once separated from its cloaking field.

Even as Jaan felt the Destructor strip him of his blasters and take him into its deadly embrace, the expanding reach of the explosions finally engulfed them both.

Jaan screamed one last time.

* * * *

QIRN HEAVED ELISE over his shoulder with one motion while the air filled with flying missiles and explosions.

He knew the explosions had started from the area where Jaan had suddenly started firing like a madman. He assumed the worst for his fellow Iraxx warrior as the explosions increased. An especially powerful explosion ripped the air, almost knocking him down. The room filled with missiles streaking in every direction and exploding with bright, blinding colors. More crates erupted from hits by these fiery missiles, their contents also shooting out in every direction and adding to the ever-growing array of colorful, deadly displays within the confines of the shielded warehouse.

The chain reaction had started.

More and more crates erupted and sent their fiery contents skyward with screaming cries. In only a few seconds, a blizzard of missiles filled the cavernous warehouse.

Just above the roar of the flying missiles and explosions, Qirn heard the screams of the last two Harg behind him as they fled for the same exit.

Qirn carried the human female as best he could. Again and again he stumbled and almost fell. Again and again he forced his body up, shouldering the limp form as he ran amid the blinding missiles that came at him from every direction.

He knew it was almost too late.

The explosions quickly grew in both number and intensity.

He was almost to the exit door, but he was so exhausted from the weight he carried he felt he couldn't go another step.

Still, he willed his body to obey.

He gasped desperately for breath as he steeled himself for one last burst of energy to escape. All at once, Qirn felt somebody else beside him.

Rab stood beside him, panting and streaming sweat down his face.

"I couldn't wait outside any longer, not once I heard the powerful explosions growing. I came to help.”

He grasped Elise to help carry Qirn's load.

They ran for the exit.

Just as they reached the door, the myriad of small explosions finally grew together into a single, powerful blast.

In that instant, the titanic fireball reached out with its explosive power and ignited everything else left inside the reinforced warehouse.

Mere seconds later, the contents of the warehouse erupted into a single, glowing ball of total destruction.

* * * *

KRINIA POINTED HER scanner forward while her fingers danced over its controls. She tuned it for higher sensitivity as she slowly scanned the area around her.

Obviously, a fierce struggle had recently taken place here on the path. She and Jysar had followed the signs of Elise and her Harg captors this far using her scan unit. But they froze upon entering this spot where the grass and bushes were bent and snapped—telltale signs of a violent encounter.

Jysar worked his own scan unit over at the other end of the path. He suddenly gasped. He knelt and picked up something that at first seemed invisible to Krinia's eyes. Jysar turned, holding it up for her see.

"What?” Krinia peered harder. “I can't see anything."

"Point your scanner."

Krinia complied. She nodded as the display revealed what her eyes could not—it was Elise's Hair Lighter—not invisible, but translucent.

"Well, we—” Jysar began.

Suddenly, Krinia and Jysar staggered like drunken traders as the ground shuddered and the air reverberated with a mighty explosion.

Regaining their balance and dazed by the overpowering noise, they stared wide-eyed a moment at each other. Above them, leaves and other debris swirled in lazy circles—blown from trees by the titanic force.

"That was close by!” Krinia exclaimed, coming to her senses.

Their communicators beeped simultaneously.

Jysar grabbed his first.

"Jysar here."

"This is Mother. The strong explosion that just registered on my sensors is very close to your current position. I fear for Elise."

Krinia swallowed hard. She looked at Jysar with a pained expression on her face. Jysar sighed. “Yes, we just found her Hair Lighter. She's somewhere close.” He looked up the trail before them. “We're on our way to the source of the explosion now. We'll communicate with you then.”

Jysar snapped the communicator shut and replaced it on his belt as they both broke into a full run. Five minutes later, they topped the last hill and came to a dead halt because of the magnitude of the destruction before them.

Flames leaped from the misshapen building; black, acrid smoke boiled into the clean, lavender sky from thousands of holes in the bowed roof. But the building fulfilled its purpose, the main brunt of the terrific explosion captured and directed upward by its reinforced walls and carefully designed roof. Originally, the two-story structure resembled any large, rectangular warehouse on any planet. But now, its appearance resembled the cap of a huge mushroom: the walls bowed outward in a series like the segments of a giant worm—the ribs beams. And the once flat roof now curved to the sky, thousands of holes blown open as designed to direct most of the blast skyward.

Still, the heat blasted Krinia and Jysar intensely even a hundred meters away. They stood, not daring to move closer, their eyes transfixed on the expanding columns of smoke rising like a harbinger of doom. In the distance, alarms wailed as Mejadic firefighters drew near in their hovercraft. Jysar glanced at Krinia with a sorrowful look in his eyes. They both saw the footsteps at the same time—human footsteps dragging the ground surrounded by those of two Harg, leading toward the building. Slowly, Jysar scanned them.

It only took a moment to confirm their worst fears.

"They are Elise's,” Krinia choked out as she looked at the Hrono's scanner. Jysar shook his head sadly. “How are we going to break this to Mother?"

"I don't know,” Krinia whispered hollowly. “Let's wait until the Mejadic fire units confirm if anyone was inside that inferno."

"They'll be burned way beyond recognition with the heat of that fire. It may take days before they can make a final determination if the bodies are burned too badly."

Krinia turned away as she covered her tear-filled eyes.

* * * *

TWO HOURS LATER, Jysar approached the Mejadic fire fighters for the hundredth time.

"Any word yet?"

The blue and green Mejadic looked solemnly back at him. “Yes, we have confirmed several bodies—several in the middle of the building. But two or more were found near one of the exits by our sensors—it's hard to tell. They'd almost made it out.” He looked with concern at Jysar a moment. “We still can't get to them because of the fire, but we know they're badly burned. We'll have to take the remains back to headquarters in order to identify which race they are, let alone individual identity."

"No way to tell if one is human?” Jysar asked, even though he already knew the answer.

"Look, you've left the address of your docked ship. That's all you can do. When we get some positive results, we'll let you know right away.” The Mejadic Fire Commander sighed. “Until then, she's simply listed as missing."

Jysar turned and made his way slowly back to Krinia. The expression on his face was answer enough for her.

"What do we tell, Mother?” Krinia groaned. “She just called again."

"We tell her the truth,” Jysar replied. “She's listed as missing—officially."

"Until the results come in from the bodies,” Krinia added solemnly.

"I'm calling her now. We'll catch the next ferry back to Leyloi.” With a deep sigh, Jysar pulled out his communicator.

[Back to Table of Contents]

Chapter Fifteen

Kyle, Rok, Jaric and Inaha strolled through the open hatchway. The Aurora had just landed and the four immediately set out to cross through the array of parked starships and find Mother. She'd requested they come as soon as their landing was complete. But she had not revealed the reason for the urgency.

"Okay, Mother. We're here,” Jaric announced as they entered the bridge. Mother had watched them silently as they traversed her corridors. She could tell from their biological signs as well as their demeanor that they did not suspect the bad news she was about to share with them. She remained silent until they entered her bridge.

"I am not sure how to tell you this,” Mother began. “But, I have terrible news." Kyle rolled his eyes as he slapped Rok across the shoulders. “See, I knew it. There weren't any humans on Mermoona.” He laughed.

Jaric and the others nodded and chuckled while Mother waited silently. At that moment, Jysar and Krinia entered the bridge.

As soon as Kyle and the others saw their tear-streaked faces, the four became instantly silent. The room itself became eerily silent.

"What's happened?” Rok finally broke the silence. But no one wanted to know the news now as they stared into the anguished faces of Krinia and Jysar.

"There's been an accident. I'm afraid that Elise is dead,” Mother said simply.

"What?” Kyle and Jaric shouted together.

Jaric felt the room begin to spin. He felt a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach as he began to sway back and forth. He found it hard to focus his eyes or figure out why everything was blurry. It seemed so unreal—everything. It seemed as if he were dreaming—except he was wide awake. And Jaric felt an overpowering sense of déjà vu that paralyzed him.

He closed his eyes to keep from vomiting as his stomach cramped hard and he felt the stinging sensation of bile in the back of his throat.

Everyone stood frozen, dazed by the impact of the terrible revelation. Kyle reached out and gripped Jaric's shoulder to steady him. They stared at each other a long moment in silence.

A single tear streamed down Kyle's eye.

His face grew pale and haggard, as if he had gone days without sleep. Inside Kyle, it felt as if every emotion had just been drained out of his body and all that was left was the tingling sensation of the single tear falling out of the corner of his eye.

Kyle's entire being sank with that single tear.

Jaric looked up at Mother's optic. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He took a long, deep breath.

"You mean...” Jaric gasped, his mind gripped with a whirlwind of emotions. He took another deep, wavering breath as he tried to steady himself.

"You mean...” he sobbed. The heart-wrenching pain of the past suddenly blended with the fresh agony of the present as overwhelming flashbacks filled his mind and he relived every terrible thing that had ever happened to him his entire life—all in a matter of seconds. And every heart-rending emotion ripped through his being like a blaster set to kill.

Finally, he stared up at Mother and finished the question.

"You mean, Becky's dead?” Jaric whispered.

Mother's processors spiked with hyper-activity. In none of the scenarios she calculated had this response been anticipated. In fact, she couldn't fathom how Jaric could mistake the death of Elise with Becky's death. They were months apart chronologically and in totally different sectors of space. Mother quickly realized that Jaric's mind was in a high state of confusion.

"No, Jaric. Becky has been dead for over a year. I am talking about Elise." Jaric stared blankly.

"Do you understand me?"

Jaric hung his head and sobbed.

And Kyle cried too.

"It is ... so similar and so sudden. In their minds, they are reliving the awful moment of Becky's death,”

Rok surmised. “That day and this one, are days of intense sadness for them. Almost one and the same.”

Rok shook his head and wiped the tears from his own eyes.

"The results of all the scans show Elise entering the warehouse, but there is no discernable evidence of her leaving it. Several bodies have been discovered by remote scan—all burned beyond recognition although the Mejadic authorities are endeavoring to identify them. The blast was horrific, making it difficult for them to determine what happened and who all were inside at the time the accident occurred." Jaric, Kyle and the others moved silently around until all found a place in which to sit quietly with their troubled thoughts.

Mother closed all her outside entrances and locked them. Inside, she watched everyone in total silence as they poured out their grief to each other and offered consolation.

The outpouring of emotions was intense beyond anything Mother had ever observed. And inside her long and short-term memories, Mother relived all the images and recordings of Elise. But this time images of Becky, Guardian, Rawlon, Saris, Curja and countless others she had known in life also appeared—faces and voices from the dead come back to visit her again. In her own way, Mother mourned for them all in the solitude of her electronic mind. But this day, she mourned most of all for Elise.

[Back to Table of Contents]

Chapter Sixteen

"IT DIDN'T TURN out the way I wanted it to.” Qirn shook his head sadly.

"Now the Mejadic authorities will be sifting every piece of evidence to put together what happened,”

Rab said.

"Yes,” Qirn agreed. “And our covert operations here on Meramee are now at risk."

"Perhaps diplomatic dialogue is now in—” Jerr began.

"No!” Qirn shouted harshly. He steadied himself. “It would be premature. We must wait until we have more evidence of the Paum's next move."

Jerr and Rab nodded silent agreement.

"Perhaps we should leave Meramee?” Rab asked.

"That is possible,” Qirn agreed. “If we do, we must be able to keep track of this human starship and its AI. We can't let it get away."

The room grew silent.

Qirn stretched his arms toward the ceiling and groaned. “I guess I won't complain too much about these bruised ribs or my aching back—at least we lived to see another day."

"I was tossed about thirty meters myself after we slammed the outer door shut.” Jerr held up his injured arm, the bones freshly knitted by the Iraxx doctor and his Med-Unit. “I won't be able to fully use it for several days."

Qirn smiled at his two warriors. “Okay, back to business. First, we must go over the sensor data from the Harg. We must focus on the Artificial Intelligence the humans have created inside their starship."

"I can hardly believe it,” Jerr growled ominously, giving vent to his distaste.

"Neither can I,” Rab spat.

"We must put our preconceptions aside as we analyze the data we copied during their transmission.”

Qirn stroked his chin in thought. “Personally, what puzzles me is that the humans refer to this AI as Mother ."

"Yes, we have other copies of communications between the humans and this AI—which we thought at first was their real mother. It is very intriguing,” Jerr added. “There is an obvious emotional bond between the humans and it."

"And although the AI cannot express emotions like a normal being, still its words betray an obvious concern for the humans.” A puzzled expression filled Rab's face.

"We will have to find out more about this strange relationship,” Qirn said. “But now we must consider how the Paum may use this Mother AI for its evil purposes."

"Yes, the Paum will no doubt move quickly now,” Jerr said

"I agree.” Qirn paused, deep in thought. “The Paum will seek to lure this Mother AI into a meeting."

"It will seek to understand how an AI can be contained in such a compact system,” Rab added.

"And thus Paum will create its own AI starships.” Jerr's eyes widened with fear. “And that will be terrible indeed."

A thick silence enveloped them as they considered all the implications.

"Is the Mother AI that sophisticated a being? The ship is smaller than most cruisers,” Rab said with emotion. “Surely the Paum will not be able—"

All three heads turned as a fourth Iraxx entered the small room. Qirn stepped quickly toward him.

"What news do you have, Doctor?” Qirn asked excitedly.

The Iraxx's eyes narrowed. “The human female has regained consciousness."

"Good!” Qirn grabbed the Iraxx doctor by both shoulders and squeezed him with obvious satisfaction. He turned back to Rab and Jerr. “Stay here and go over the scan data on the Mother AI. You must try to determine how sophisticated a being it really is. And what technology enables it be to so compact and mobile.” A somber look came over Qirn's face. He sighed and spoke.

"And you must calculate if what we fear most could be true." Jerr and Rab nodded, an intent expression on each face.

Qirn walked through two rooms full of scattered equipment until he came to a darkened room where a still form lay. He observed in silence a moment until the Iraxx doctor spoke.

"She was hit by a Harg blaster in the upper thigh. I had to repair one of her internal organs, one that cleanses this alien's body of waste carried via its blood.” He smiled. “Other than a few minor bruises and some singed skin on her right forearm, she will be fine."

"Is she awake?” Qirn asked.

"She's coming out of it now. I didn't want to give her an injection to bring her out any quicker. Her body needs rest to complement my work—she still needs to heal. So, keep your questions brief this first time. I don't want her getting excited—or upset.” The doctor gave Qirn a firm look.

"I understand."

Elise moaned softly as she turned her head on the pillow from side to side as if dreaming that someone—or something—chased her.

Qirn pulled up a chair next to her bed and sat down. He had to wait only a few minutes before Elise's eyes fluttered open.

Her eyes stared at him unfocused at first only to be replaced by a look of concern and fear.

"There, there. You are among friends here. No need to be afraid.” Qirn spoke with a reassuring tone. He smiled warmly down at her.

"Who are you?” She glanced quickly at her surroundings. “Where am I?"

"I can't tell you that right now,” Qirn said. “But as soon as you can travel, we're going to get you back to your starship.” His eyes narrowed as he watched for her reaction.

Elise sighed deeply and turned her face to the wall. “You should've just left me. Nobody cares about me."

And even though Qirn could not see her blue eyes, he knew she was crying. He patted her arm. “Don't talk like that,” he said softly.

But only the faint sound of Elise sobbing came to his ears.

He brushed her long, blonde hair away from her face. “You're such a pretty young alien. My, I imagine all the young males are always chasing after you trying to steal a kiss!" He chuckled softly to himself, hoping to raise her spirits.

"No-oo,” she cried softly. “Nobody cares about me. I'm ... I'm...” Her sobs became louder.

"You're what?” he asked.

"I'm just a clone. I'm a nobody. I'm nothing.” Her shoulders now shook as her tears fell freely.

"Well, you're wrong about that,” Qirn replied. “For one thing, I care for you. I'm the one that got you out of there safely."

Elise turned and faced him, her tear-stained cheeks glistening under the light. She stared at him, a questioning look in her eyes.

"And I don't even have the pleasure of knowing your name, my pretty, young alien.” Qirn waited, a fatherly smile on his face.

"E-E-lise,” she stammered.

"Eh-eh-lise,” he imitated perfectly.

She began to laugh softly as she dried her eyes. “No!” she said with a tear-stained smile. “Just Elise.”

She laughed some more. “I stuttered and added an extra syllable."

"Oh.” He laughed with her a moment. “Elise.” He nodded to himself. “A pretty name for a pretty alien." Elise blushed.

"And I am sure your mother cares for you. And the rest of your family.” Qirn watched carefully for her reaction.

Elise nodded sadly. “Yes, they might."

"I'm sure they do,” Qirn added.

"Yes, Mother cares."

Qirn stared intently at her, studying her face and eyes. At last satisfied she had answer sincerely, he shook his head. “Yes, a mother always cares."

More tears welled up in Elise's eyes.

"But I see there is someone else that you wish cared for you?” Qirn asked knowingly. “Why don't you tell me?"

"You don't want to know about the sad things in my life.” Elise turned her face back to the wall.

"Yes, I do."

For some reason Elise knew she could trust this alien. Or maybe it was because she wanted to trust him. At any rate, she opened her heart to him and his caring smile. She told him of her short life, created as a clone from the last woman left from the extinction of the human race. She related the months of searching as she and the boys traveled through the galaxy, always hoping to find other human survivors—but always in vain.

Finally, she told him how much she wanted Kyle and Jaric to be her friends. Qirn listened intently, making sure the recorder located on his utility belt captured every word. He reassured her from time to time as she poured her heart out to him. As she finished her sad tale, Qirn felt a kinship with this young alien. And he felt her pain and rejection.

He determined in his heart that he would reunite her with her family as soon as possible. But first, he had to know more about this potentially dangerous AI that she called Mother.

[Back to Table of Contents]

Chapter Seventeen

"AND THEN THERE were only two."

Kyle looked around at the others.

Rok, Jysar, Krinia, Inaha and Jaric all sat around the library room lost in their own sad thoughts. No one dared say a word in reply to Kyle's forlorn words.

"And then there were two what?” Jaric asked, as if he didn't care what the answer was.

"Two humans left in the universe,” Kyle answered.

"Oh.” Jaric shook his head.

Kyle closed his eyes. “I don't guess we'll find anyone. Ever ."

"Well, what would we do if we did find thousands of other humans, anyway?” Jaric asked sarcastically.

“We probably wouldn't like most of ‘em. We'd all be fussing and fighting all the time."

"I don't know,” Kyle sneered. “Maybe I'd have a thousand friends—all better than you. And maybe I'd fall in love with one—a beautiful, loving, wonderful woman. And have a dozen kids.” Kyle forced a chuckle. “I don't know, maybe I'd finally be happy."

"I doubt it.” Jaric shook his head.

"I would be happy if just one other human were here with us right now,” Rok said evenly. Kyle stared at the wall. “Yeah, I wish Elise were here too."

"Yes,” Jaric nodded with a sigh. “I wish I'd apologized to her when I had the chance. I'm a total jerk." Silence filled the room.

"I wish I'd treated her better too,” Kyle added somberly. “Like a..."

"Human being? Instead of a clone !” Krinia finished for him. Her eyes narrowed and her head-tail whipped angrily from side to side. She looked from one to the other. “Yes, I wish both of you had treated her better—treated her like a friend. That's all she ever wanted—to be your friend—and a fellow human being. Instead you ridiculed her and rejected her like she carried some kind of disease!” She glared at both of them, daring them to refute her.

But neither did.

Jaric leaned forward and put his head in his hands, not saying a word. Kyle gave Krinia a look of deep sadness. “I wish I could turn back time and undo all of it." Krinia glared at him a moment longer then looked away quickly as she wiped at her eyes. She sat there silent, staring at the wall.