

# I, HUMAN

Part Two

An Android's Soul

by

Vito Veii

## I, HUMAN
Part Two

An Android's Soul

By

Vito Veii

Published by Vito Veii at Smashwords

Copyright © 2014 All Rights Reserved Vito Veii

Cover Design © 2014 Vito Veii

A fantasy science fiction story concerning the journeys of an android and his companions, as told by his Captain.

Smashwords Edition, License Notes.

This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author

http://www.KozmicDreamers.com

This story is a work of fiction. All characters appearing in this story are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead is purely coincidental.

# TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 6 The Three Captains

Chapter 7 The Journey Begins

Chapter 8 An Android's Soul

Chapter 9 Fortis

Chapter 10 The Astral Planes

Chapter 11 Return from Fortis

Chapter 12 Gigas

Dear Reader

About the Author

Other Books by the Author

# PREFACE

_I, Human_ is an original, thought-provoking epic fantasy science fiction series. It incorporates elements of science fiction, action, adventure, epic fantasy, hard science fiction, metaphysics, philosophy, psychology, paranormal, and humor. The series is for those who like to ponder interesting ideas and enjoy an epic story along the way.

Come on a quest of adventure and discovery as Captain Magnusson, Padre, Vlen, Astra, Ambassador Legari, and others onboard the star carrier _Veda_ explore multi-dimensional worlds and alternate realities.

**In part one, the epic starts at a slow pace and gains momentum with each component added.** Altogether, there are eighty-five chapters in the first volume, with the second volume beginning at part eight, chapter eighty-six.

In my fashion, I endeavor to create credible characters and their universe using a robust framework on which to mount exciting and compelling ideas.

This book and the others in the series are dedicated to people of goodwill, and all kindred spirits, past, present, and future.

Vito Veii

#  Chapter 6

It was the seventh segment. The light of the twin suns was streaming through the windows. Today, I was meeting the Captains of _The_ _Graziella_ and _The Valeria_ for the first time; even so, I felt I knew them. All of us had completed our education and training at a military university while attending different military colleges. We were to meet in the conference room at the spaceport with our Executive First Officers to discuss mission objectives and details.

"Greetings, Vlen. Are you ready for a big day?" I asked.

"Yes, Captain. Shall I prepare breakfast now?"

"Stop spoiling me."

"Captain, it's my way of keeping occupied."

"Okay, I'll go and scrub up and get ready."

Twenty minutes later, I was dressed and having coffee, watching the morning news – images of our vessels scouring the ocean for enemy submersibles. The Admiralty had found no evidence or useful information that might give a clue as to the origin of the attack. I turned it off.

"Vlen, it's time for us to leave."

We headed toward the Zephyr port, where I used voice command to open the door. The platoon commander, who was patrolling outside, entered.

"Good morning, sir. Nothing to report this morning," he said.

"Thanks, Commander. Is the military escort ready?" I asked.

"Yes, Captain," he said.

"Okay. Let's hit the sky, Vlen."

We jumped in the Zephyr and switched on our cloaking devices before Vlen gave the command for the Zephyr to take off.

We reached a ceiling height of 500 metrons and flew along the laser highway toward the spaceport, while our escorts, also cloaked, flew alongside slightly behind us. We landed at the spaceport several minutes later, greeted by a platoon of soldiers armed with light weapons. I imagined the other Captains receiving the same treatment. Severus was not taking any chances; he had infantrymen form a guard around us and escort us to the foyer, where Severus was waiting inside. On seeing us enter, he walked through the soldiers to meet us.

"Captain, all areas are sealed off and under extended surveillance," he said.

Returning his salute, I asked Severus if he had learned anything new.

"I have Captain, and I will discuss it with you in the conference room," Severus replied.

Before entering the anti-grav lift, Severus had his men perform one more scan.

"All clear, Commander Severus," a soldier said.

Vlen, Severus, and I stepped into the lift and got off on the sixth floor of the building. In the corridor were four armed security officers, who stood at attention as we walked toward the conference room. Waiting inside were the other two Captains and their first officers; they rose to greet us.

I walked over and introduced myself to Captain Wolf and Captain Dante and their first officers, Akio Taro and Alan Patterson.

As we stood around exchanging brief pleasantries, I recalled the histories of the two Captains.

Captain Johann Wolf of _The Valeria_ was thirty-four years old. He was tall with strong features, a robust build, brown-green eyes, and olive skin. His dark brown hair had a streak of silver on his left temple – a souvenir, it was said, from the second bloc, where he had led a rescue mission ten years ago to free a group of mutant and hybrid human slaves. The Senate had quietly awarded him medals for humanity and bravery, upon hearing of his mission. It was at this secret awards ceremony that Senator Horatio suggested that Captain Wolf should join the Space Corps.

Captain Virgil Dante of _The Graziella_ was thirty years of age, fair-skinned, blue-eyed, and short, but powerfully built. He was a career officer whose grades at the university had been the best. The fact that Dante was only a Captain and not a colonel was because others within the Corps were jealous of his war experience and abilities – they said Dante was too cocky, but he did not strike me like that at all. He had started his career in the Army as a PFC and soon promoted to the rank of Platoon Commander, patrolling the bloc's borders. He had fought in several border skirmishes against soldiers and mutants of the second bloc and had received multiple commendations.

The seven of us – Captains, first officers, and Severus – sat down at the octagonal table, where there were refreshments in place. Severus ordered the security guards inside the doors to run another scan and then leave. After a few minutes, they left.

"Gentlemen, the room is clean. You may commence talking when ready," Severus said.

Captain Wolf spoke first. "Captain Magnusson, do you have any additional information about the person or organization responsible for these recent attacks?" he asked.

"I believe the homo superiors are behind this," I said.

"How do you know that, Captain Magnusson?" Wolf asked.

"I received a visit from a homo superior called Scrollos, who warned us of an impending attack by the leaders of the third bloc," I said.

"Why would a homo superior warn you ahead of time of such an attack?" Dante asked.

"Apparently, this homo superior doesn't agree with the majority decision of the ruling elite of his bloc. Scrollos, as he calls himself, is very desirous of accessing any valuable knowledge that we may obtain, to what end I don't know," I said.

Severus joined in. "Gentlemen, I want to assure you that I have set up traps to snare the spies."

"Traps can be constructed in many ways," mused Captain Dante.

A little later, the Admiral entered the room holding a suitcase. We all stood to attention and saluted; he returned our salute and sat down in the table's final empty seat.

"Captains and First Officers, I have met with you all separately at one time or another, and I am pleased that I have this opportunity to meet all of you together. On the day of the launch ceremony, I won't be able to talk to you as freely, as I can today," he said.

We became quiet as he picked up his suitcase and placed it on the table; he opened it and produced an unopened envelope bearing the three seals of the Proconsuls and opened the letter up.

The admiral read aloud: "We, the Proconsuls, elected by the Consilium Plebis, on behalf of the Senate, and the People's Republic duly empowers the fleet to do the following: to seek out sentient life outside the solar system, to offer the hand of friendship, to exchange knowledge, and to explore new worlds.

Moreover, where feasible, form new colonies so our race can survive and prosper on new worlds and not perish all together in some catastrophe. We request that valuable knowledge be forwarded whenever possible, and to this end, we authorize the three Captains and their council of twenty-seven to oversee the successful undertaking of this mission. We wish you God's speed. Signed: Gaius Canuleius, Proconsul; Peter O'Neil, Proconsul; and Lucius Sanderson, Proconsul."

I was a little shocked, as I was sure were some of the others. There had been an expectation that we would return someday and now we knew that we would never be coming back. We now had an obligation to inform our crews, in case anyone wanted to change their mind. If anyone did, it shouldn't be a problem to replace them as there had been plenty of volunteers.

But why hadn't the Proconsuls told us from the beginning? Maybe the world situation is deteriorating faster than anticipated.

I returned my focus to the Admiral, who had paused before continuing.

"Captain Magnusson, among the three Captains, you have the most experience in the Space Corps and Astrophysics. The Proconsuls have unanimously elected you as Prime Captain. The other two Captains will acknowledge and respect any decision or command you may give in matters of space exploration and astrophysics. Captain Magnusson, on military matters, I advise you to listen carefully to the counsels of Captains Dante and Wolf. Once the colonies are established, a council of twenty-seven will make the decisions in civilian matters, overseen by three New Proconsuls. Until elections are held, all three Captains will represent the Proconsuls in civilian and military matters."

The Admiral then put away his suitcase and stood up.

"Gentlemen, with new orders, it has become necessary to reaffirm your commitment," Admiral Fuller said.

We all stood up and placed one hand each on our hearts, with the other upheld as we reaffirmed the oath of allegiance to follow the orders given to us by the Republic.

After that, the Admiral asked the two Captains and me to form a circle. He then asked us to extend our arms toward the middle and place our hands on top of one another. He put his hand last, on top, and asked us to speak the ancient words of friendship and loyalty to each other. Immediately afterward, the admiral spoke into his communicator, and four waiters entered the room with food and drink.

"A toast, gentlemen," the Admiral said, taking a glass of wine.

We also took glasses and raised them.

The admiral continued. "May we all meet one day together again to exchange stories and drinks, if not in this life, then in the hereafter, after long and happy lives."

We saluted each other with our glasses, toasting the mission and drinking our fill.

One segment later, the Admiral excused himself, saying he had matters to attend to. After the Admiral's departure, we broke off into two groups; while I was making small talk with Johann and Virgil, Severus was giving instructions to the first officers. I was curious about what Severus was saying, but I need not have concerned myself. Twenty minutes later, Severus explained everything.

"Captains, I want to inform you that I have two suspects under observation. I have instructed the first officer of _The Valeria_ to send one android to report to Space Command with false information, and I have instructed the first officer of _The Graziella_ to send another android to carry a briefcase to Military Headquarters, also carrying false information. If I am correct, both of the spies will attempt to intercept the androids," he said.

"Where are these two suspects positioned, and what made you suspect them?" I asked.

"Both of the suspects are communications engineers," Severus answered. "One suspect works in Military H.Q. in the city, and the other suspect in the Communications Centre in Space Command. Auto Bot cameras reported suspicious activity at and near their workstations to my central feed. We scanned their computers and recorded the keystrokes and voice commands, but turned up nothing.

"We also placed their homes under surveillance, and it was there that electro-photonic anomalies were detected, emanating from within the two individuals' homes, indicative of holographic projections consistent with third-bloc technology. However, it's not concrete proof. That is why I have set the androids as bait to see if I am correct in my suspicions."

"Good work, Severus," I said. "Keep us posted."

"Yes, sir," Severus replied.

I left him and made my way over to the Wolf and Dante.

It was the ninetieth Segment; it was time to get back home. I wished the Captains and their officers a good evening agreeing to meet tomorrow outside the auditorium. Vlen and I headed towards the lifts and returned home with our military escort.

My mind was preoccupied with the two spies, so I let Vlen fly. The guards were not surprised when the air in front of them shimmered as we materialized just inside of the lowered force field.

"Greetings, Commander. Is there any news to report?" I asked.

"Yes, Captain, there was an electro-photonic disturbance in your house earlier in the day, which activated the recorder. We recorded an individual dressed in the fashion of a person from the third bloc," he said.

"Please show me the recording," I said.

"This way, Captain," he said. We went inside, where he played me the recording.

"Scrollos," I recognized immediately. "I'm not surprised. He's the person I encountered in my home." Then, I asked, "Commander, have you sent a copy to Severus?"

"Half a segment ago; he should have received it by now," the Commander replied.

"Scrollos wants an answer, Vlen. But he won't like my answer," I said.

Vlen went back out and parked the Zephyr in the Zephyr port, and returned to join me in the living room where I was watching the news channel.

The reporter was talking about individuals from the second bloc offering to buy large tracts of territory, owned by farmers, for more money than the lands were worth. It was still legal for people from the second bloc to purchase property in the Republic, provided they were private buyers and not members of the government. However, the government of the second bloc was behind these individuals. To their credit, the farmers had refused all offers, recognizing the intent of their actions. They wouldn't permit the destruction of our country by stealth or any other means for the sake of money.

_Real patriots, you have to love them. They are not like the hypocrites draping themselves in their country's flag, pointing the finger of dissension at someone because they have a different opinion while enriching themselves at the citizens' expense._

The other leading news item had to do with the second bloc, accusing my government of condoning cross-border raids to free hybrids. As usual, the authorities denied the allegations. I had heard these accusations before. The only news I was interested in now was whether Severus could trap the spies. I didn't have long to wait. Nearly one segment later, I received a report that the two spies were in custody, along with the details of the operation that led to their arrests.

Severus had sent coded messages to the commanders at Military HQ and the Space Centre, advising that androids with sensitive information would be arriving. In his communications, he gave the place and time of their departures. Severus had arranged for both of the androids to leave at the same time, taking routes not commonly traveled to ensure the spies would believe that the information was genuine and take the bait. The two suspects, in their cloaked Zephyrs, followed the androids and forced the android's Zephyrs down using gravity beams. In turn, the pilots of the starfighters who had been following the androids had stunned and apprehended the spies. Then the pilots notified the waiting security forces, who delivered the prisoners to Military HQ. I finished reading and messaged Severus back.

'Excellent work, Severus, I will see you at headquarters!'

I immediately collected Vlen, and we got into our Zephyr and flew toward Military HQ. Upon arrival, I asked where the prison block was. A military guard took us down four levels and showed us the interrogation room, segregated by a one-way glass.

I greeted Severus, Hawkeye, and another two men in an otherwise empty observation room.

"Where are the prisoners?" I asked.

"In separate prison cells," said Severus.

"While the prisoners were unconscious, we examined their bodies and found two suicide pellets in each of them, with one pill lodged in one of the upper right back teeth and another implanted in the wrist area and removed them. We have not yet begun to interview the prisoners," Severus said.

"Severus, are you going to use truth serum?" I asked.

"Captain, if they were homo-sapiens like us, I would use it straight away instead of what I am about to do," Severus said.

"You mean you are going to beat the prisoners?"

"Yes, Captain. I have interrogated homo-superiors before using only truth serums, and that is not enough. Only by roughing up the prisoners for a while was I able to weaken their mental defenses enough to use the truth serum."

He waited for a response from me, but I remained quiet; Severus had the experience, so I let him take the lead.

"Hawkeye, bring in the first prisoner," Severus said.

"Yes, sir," replied Hawkeye.

"Captain, when he gets here, you play the good guy, and I'll play the villain; maybe between us, we can get him to talk," Severus said.

The prisoner was brought inside and took a seat, closing his eyes – which annoyed Severus a lot. I could tell by the expression on Severus' face that this prisoner was going to be sorry.

"Hey, you, open your eyes," Severus said.

Receiving no response, Severus hit him with the back of his hand. The man glared at Severus.

Severus scowled back at him. "When I talk, you better listen, or you will get more of the same."

The man laughed at Severus. "I'm not going to tell you anything," he said. Then, he bit down on his teeth.

"Are you looking for these?" Severus asked.

He held the pellets in his hand. The prisoner looked at him astonished for a second as it dawned on him that there was no way out of this situation.

"Now, tell me: who sent you here, and why?" Severus growled.

The prisoner did not reply, nor did he make any sound.

"I asked you a question. Answer it!"

_I've never seen Severus express any sort of emotion until now!_

Severus delivered another fierce blow to the prisoner's face, causing him to spit out one of his teeth.

"If I were you, I would answer his questions. He's just warming up," I said.

Again, silence. Severus went to hit him again.

"No, wait a moment, Severus," I interrupted. "Let's try a different idea."

I studied his face carefully, then looked at his hands; the hands had known little work, and his face was too smooth. The prisoner was a homo superior.

"You're not a homo sapien, are you?" I asked.

"How can you tell?" the prisoner asked.

"If you were a homo sapien, you would have a lot more bruising on your face. You seem to be taking your situation calmly. Only genetically engineered homo superiors can heal very quickly. However, your healing abilities will not save you here," I said.

"Why are you here?" Severus asked.

Again, only silence.

Severus struck him another blow.

I shook my head. "Wise up Mister, Severus will find a way to make you talk."

I went out of the room and visited the other restrained prisoner in his holding cell. The guard outside also came in, standing just behind me. The prisoner, in his early twenties– or so it seemed – looked at me with emotionless eyes.

"We have your companion. It is only a matter of time before you both tell us everything we need to know," I said.

"Neither of us will tell you anything," the prisoner said.

"Last time I saw your friend, he looked pretty bruised to me and was crying like a baby," I said.

The prisoner laughed.

"I don't believe you for a minute. We can hypnotize ourselves, so we hardly feel any pain. We can imagine ourselves altogether somewhere else."

"You will cooperate, or you will spend the rest of your life in prison," I said.

"No, I don't think so," the prisoner replied.

He then clamped down on his teeth. An expression of bewilderment overcame his face.

"We removed the pellets within your tooth and under your skin," I said.

"You won't get any information from me," the prisoner said defiantly.

"I am going to leave now. You can save yourself a lot of pain by telling us who sent you and why;" I said.

The guard and I went back to the other interrogation room with Severus.

He was still hitting the prisoner, whose face was swollen and bloodied.

I didn't approve of what Severus was doing, but too many lives were at risk. I went out of the interrogation room and into the observation room and stood behind the glass divider.

"Vlen, do you think we should try to use the truth serum now, or wait a little longer?"

"Captain, the prisoner, should be sufficiently weakened by now to use the truth serum," Vlen said.

"You're right, Vlen. The prisoner has been beaten enough."

I called Severus through the intercom.

"Severus, please come inside," I said.

Severus walked over to the sink, washed his hands, and rolled down his sleeves before coming into the observation room.

"Severus, Commander Vlen has recommended the use of truth serum now," I said.

"Yes, sir. I agree, the prisoner has been sufficiently softened up. I'll send for Hawkeye to attend with a doctor."

Moments later, Hawkeye arrived with a physician and the truth serum. Vlen and I remained outside the room while Severus, Hawkeye, and the doctor went to the prisoner.

"This is your last chance to talk voluntarily before we give you a truth serum to make you talk," Severus said

The prisoner did not say anything.

"Okay, Doctor, he is all yours," Severus said.

The prisoner struggled to free himself, but the bonds were too strong. Severus and Hawkeye held the prisoner's arm steady as the doctor gave the prisoner an injection of the truth serum.

"Now, all we do is wait for about ten minutes," the doctor said.

We went into the observation room and waited for the time to pass before returning to the interrogation room. Severus spoke to the prisoner.

"The first question: do you know the prisoner in the other holding cell?" he asked.

"No," the prisoner said.

"Are you working with anyone else?"

"No," the prisoner replied.

"Now tell us who sent you and why?"

The prisoner moaned, mixing and slurring his words, as he resisted the serum. Severus repeated the questions. This time, the prisoner spoke in a monotone.

"I was sent here by the Intelligence Division to collect military intelligence, to sabotage the space expedition and any military installations."

"What does the Supreme Council know about our space fleet?" Severus asked.

"The supreme council believes your bloc is seeking to forge a military alliance with the Fortis and Ingentum to acquire new technology and use against my people," he said.

"What else does the Supreme Council know about the expedition?" Severus asked.

"The Council believes there is an additional purpose to your fleet. It was my job to find out what that plan is," The prisoner replied.

"Does your council know when the space fleet is leaving?" I asked.

"Yes," the prisoner said.

"Why does your supreme council want to destroy homo sapiens?" I asked.

"The Supreme Council wishes to kill all homo sapiens because they are inferior to homo superiors. Homo superiors are the future, and homo sapiens belong in the past with all other extinct species. We do not want homo superior bloodlines to be contaminated with homo sapien genes," he said.

"How does your supreme council plan to destroy the homo sapiens?" I asked.

"I don't know."

"Do you know of any planned future attacks upon our bloc?"

"No."

_It looks like the prisoner was working only on a need to know basis._

"Captain, I'll take this prisoner back to his detention cell and bring the other here," Severus said.

"Let me know if you learn anything else. I need to be aboard Veda," I said.

"Yes, Captain," he replied.

We headed out to the spaceport with our military escort in tow, to where the fleet was stationed. When we arrived, we found maintenance crews busy with last-minute running checks. I noticed infrared detectors in place, with security guards and armored personnel carriers patrolling the grounds, with missile batteries positioned a short distance away. In the air, starfighters crossed the skies, ready to defend the vulnerable fleet in the event of a sneak attack. We boarded _Veda_ and went straight to the command deck, where the guards stood at attention. There were technicians performing systems checks and calibration of equipment one final time using photon meters. Vlen and I continued past them and headed to the Captain's chair.

"Vlen, I'll have _Veda_ run a systems scan. Afterward, I want you to examine the results and look for any anomalies or irregularities," I said.

"Yes, Captain," Vlen said.

I deactivated the force shield around the Captain's chair and sat down

"Greetings, Captain Magnusson, all systems are ready and at your command," _Veda_ said.

" _Veda_ , conduct a scan of the primary and secondary systems, and file the results under Captain's Scan Request One," I said.

"Complying, Captain," answered _Veda_.

While _Veda_ was working, I left the bridge and went to my quarters to sign off on applications using the electronic signature recorder. One-half segment later, I came back to the bridge to check on _Veda's_ progress.

_Veda_ was still working, playing the last of the holographic images and schematics of the ship's primary and secondary systems on the main screen. A few minutes later, _Veda_ had finished scanning the systems.

"Captain, I will now interface with the ship's computer and examine the results," Vlen said.

I nodded and walked around the bridge as he initiated encrypted wireless mode communications with _Veda_ and downloaded the results of the scans. He analyzed all of the information in less than half a segment.

"Captain, I have finished analyzing the results," Vlen said.

"Are there any anomalies to report?" I asked.

"No, sir. All ship systems are functioning at the high ends of the efficiency tables."

"Good. Then there is no longer any need for us to be here."

"As you say, Captain," Vlen said.

I smiled. "Let's go and relax."

We caught an anti-grav lift, got off on the landing bay, and made our way to the entrance of the spaceport to the guarded Zephyr.

"Thanks, men. We'll be taking our Zephyr now," Vlen said.

"No, Commander, this time, I'm driving. Now sit back, relax, and enjoy the view," I told him.

The two guards chuckled as they stepped back from the Zephyr. We climbed in and took off in cloak mode, followed by the two Vipers. Several minutes later, we landed at my home. When we got out, I spoke to the commander.

"Greetings, Commander. Is there anything to report?"

"Nothing to report, sir," the commander said.

_No news is good news._

Having already lowered the force field, we parked the Zephyr and went inside. The cloaked guard on duty materialized, nodded to acknowledge our presence, and left without saying a word. I made myself comfortable in the kitchen and had a snack while Vlen watched the news. I joined him later, and after a while, I began feeling sleepy.

"I feel tired, Vlen. I think I'll go to sleep now," I yawned.

"Goodnight, Captain. I will watch the news for a little longer and then go to sleep."

_There, he repeated it! He means deactivate. Androids don't fall asleep._

#  Chapter 7

I had finished eating my breakfast when I received a video call from Paul.

"Greetings, Marcus. I called you to wish you good luck and to say goodbye before you leave Caeruleus," Paul said.

"Hello, Paul. You mean you won't be there at the going away ceremony?" I asked.

"I'd like to be there; however, because of all the extra security precautions, it becomes problematic," he said.

"Come on, Paul. That's not the real reason, is it?" I asked.

"You're right, Marcus, the three Proconsuls believe my life will be in danger should I try to attend the service. They have stationed paramilitary police and a cloaked viper permanently outside my home, from the day you were attacked. If I try to leave, there is going to be a big fuss, and you know I don't like being fussed over; it makes me feel old."

I felt sad at not seeing Paul before I left.

"I'm sorry to hear that; would you like to speak to Vlen?"

"Yes, that would be great; it's been a while since I talked to him," Paul said.

"Vlen, it's Paul, he wants to speak to you," I said.

I stood aside for Vlen as he came over.

"Master Paul, it is good to see you," Vlen said.

"It's great to see you, too," said Paul smiling.

"Master Paul, I will record my adventures in space and send them to you for as long as I can," Vlen said.

Paul paused, looking wistful. "Thanks, Vlen. I will miss our Dragonist games together."

"As will I, Master Paul," Vlen said.

"From time to time, I will message you," Paul said.

"I look forward to carrying on our discussion as to what constitutes a real person," Vlen said.

_Here we go again!_

"Are you still deceiving yourself that you have a soul?" Paul asked, incredulously.

"I might very well ask you the same question, Master Paul. After all, how do you know that you have a spirit and a soul? It may be an erroneous self-image, only as real as your reflection in the mirror."

"Ha!" Paul snorted. "Perhaps, if fate is kind, we will have this discussion once more, face to face."

I motioned to Vlen to step back and let me speak.

"Goodbye, for now, Master Paul," Vlen said.

"Bye, Vlen, take care of yourself," Paul replied.

"Vlen and I have to go now, Paul," I said. "I hope somehow, one day, we will meet again. Until then, be well!"

"You too, Marcus," Paul said. "Keep my android close to your side; he will protect you and give you good counsel."

"Thanks, Paul, until next time."

Paul closed the transmission, and I was left looking at a blank screen. My old life had come to an end, and I had said goodbye to my best friend, and I was leaving my home for the final time. I walked once more around the house before I picked up my bags and went.

I walked out the front door, where outside, a chauffeur-driven Zephyr with an armed escort waited for me, along with a crowd of well-wishers. The government had released a press release, notifying the population of the mission and its objectives. The time for secrecy was over. Everything was in place, with the vulnerable fleet well protected; once in space, it would be independent and capable of defending itself.

A little girl carrying roses stepped forward in front of the crowd and soldiers and interrupted my thoughts. She was waving her hand, jumping up and down, trying to get my attention; she wanted me to come to her. I handed my bags to the waiting lieutenant; I walked over toward the girl, and bent down, accepting the roses she gave to me. As I did so, the little girl put her hands around my neck and kissed me on the cheek. I smiled and thanked her. The blushing mother of the little girl pulled her back.

Several of the news reporters shouted for a comment from the edge of the security cordon thrown up by the guards. I waved, smiling at them, but I didn't say anything; I could do without reporters in my life. I stepped into the back seat of the chauffeured Zephyr, where Vlen had already seated himself. The chauffeur gave the order to move, and the Zephyr took off with the crowd waving and cheering behind us.

The Zephyr locked on to the laser highway, and sped toward the spaceport, flanked on either side by the vipers. At the spaceport, both outside and inside, the crowds were anticipating our arrival. Unfortunately, for security reasons, no civilians were allowed to attend the departure ceremony. Goodbyes and farewells had been made the day before, privately, on an individual basis. It was a real shame, but necessary. However, the Space Corps would broadcast live media coverage of the ceremony and departure so that no one would miss out. I looked toward the east, and then to the west; the other two Captains with their escorts were arriving almost at the same time. We landed at the spaceport, in an area well away from the crowds.

As we stepped out of the Zephyr, I carried one bag containing my personal belongings while Vlen brought another and headed toward the large auditorium. Inside were the assembled crews, officers, infantry, and pilots of the expedition; some eighteen and a half thousand men and women were gathered. I looked up and saw starfighters patrolling above the auditorium while ground forces kept vigil outside.

The other transports carrying the Captains had landed. Dante and Wolf began walking in my direction, and we met together, just outside the auditorium. We were all full of enthusiasm for the adventure of a lifetime. One of the Admiral's aides, a Colonel, came toward us and interrupted our animated conversation.

"Excuse me, Gentlemen, my name is Colonel White. The Admiral has asked me to direct you to your seats," he said.

We followed him inside, where there was a lot of noise. Already seated were all the ships' crews, adorned in full ceremonial military dress. The other two Captains and I sat in the second row from the front, and in front of us were the three Proconsuls and members of the Cabinet. Next to us sat the Captains of the supply and ark ships, with all the first officers. Admiral Fuller, flanked by another three admirals, stood on the dais, preparing to address the crews.

There was a film unit controlling multiple cameras floating overhead, and a military band was on the left-hand side of the stage, awaiting the order to begin playing.

"Everyone, please stand as the band plays the national anthem," the Admiral said. Everyone stood up as the music began, and by the end of the song, we felt our spirits uplifted. When the music had finished, the Admiral asked everyone to sit down.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Admiral Fuller said to absolute, anticipatory silence. "We are gathered today to say farewell to the brave men and women volunteering to travel into space, to probe its secrets, and to establish new colonies beyond the horizons of our solar system. It is a timely venture, as our world stands on the edge of war and perhaps even annihilation. Therefore, it is of the utmost imperative that we ensure the survival of our species so that in the event of the worst happening, something of ourselves and our culture will remain," Admiral Fuller said.

He then prepared to read from the notes he had written.

"Comrades, I wish you every success in the world, and hopefully, throughout the years, we will be in touch with you, watching your progress with great interest. On behalf of the Republic, the Lower House, the Senate, the Cabinet, the three Proconsuls, and the Armed Forces, we wish you, our brave explorers, a safe and successful journey. Thank you for your courage and conviction," he said. The instant he paused, the clapping and cheering began, as the three Proconsuls made their way to join the Admiralty. Together, they saluted the personnel of the expedition as the audience continued to applaud. The Admiral let the audience carry on for a bit before raising his hands to quiet the audience.

"The crew of _The Graziella_ will be first to proceed to their ship," the Admiral said.

Captain Dante walked onto the dais, shook hands with each of the admirals and the three Proconsuls, and then spoke into the microphone.

"Attention, the crew of _The Graziella_ , please follow me in your designated groups as we make our way to the staging ground outside the ship."

Captain Dante led the way out of the auditorium, followed by his officers, ship's crew, engineers, surveyors, civilian personnel, maintenance crews, fighter pilots, and three battalions of infantry. They all marched briskly within their sections in step to the beat of the orchestra's bass drum.

I imagined Dante's crew embarking on the vessel. They would gather in the designated areas outside of _The Graziella_ , where the lieutenants would conduct roll calls for each of the groups. At the same time, the commanding officer of the ground maintenance crews would inform Captain Dante that the last piece of hardware had been made secure. A few minutes later, the lieutenants would give their report to Captain Dante that their assigned personnel were all present and accounted for. Dante would then give the orders for the boarding of _The Graziella_ , with the officers first, the ship's crew next, followed by pilots, army engineers, surveyors, civilian personnel, and finally, the infantry.

When the crew of _The Graziella_ had cleared the auditorium, the Admiral gave the order for the embarkation of _The Valeria_.

"Crew of _The Valeria_ , you must now prepare to board your vessel. Captain Johann Wolf, please step up to the dais," the Admiral said.

Captain Wolf boarded the dais, shook hands with the others, and issued the command to his officers and crew to follow him to the staging area. As the team of _The Graziella_ had done before them, they marched along to the beat of the orchestra's bass drum in their assigned groups.

Inside the auditorium, the Admiral gave us his command.

"Attention _Veda_ personnel, you must now prepare to board your vessel. Prime Captain Magnusson, step up to the dais," the Admiral announced.

I climbed onto the dais and shook hands with the Admiralty and the three Proconsuls. I looked down from the platform across the auditorium, which was a little less than one-third full. I saw the crew, my new brothers and sisters in arms, and felt a wave of affection towards them.

_Now is not the time to get sentimental!_

" _Veda_ personnel please, follow me to the staging ground outside the vessel."

I stepped down off the dais and marched through the auditorium doors, followed closely by the officers, ship's crew, and then by the infantry, pilots, scientists, maintenance, and support personnel. Just like the crews of _The Graziella_ and _The Valeria_ , we all marched briskly to the staging area.

We assembled with the officers in front, the non-commissioned officers behind them, followed by the ship's crew and other units. After everyone was present and accounted for, I gave the order to board _Veda_ , and climbed aboard first, followed by the officers and the rest of the personnel. The infantry, whose motto is "The first to arrive the last to leave," carried their backpacks and duffle bags with them onto the ship and were the last to come on board.

While everyone was settling in, I watched from _Veda's_ primary monitor, the small crews of the ark ships, and the supply ships leave the auditorium and board their respective crafts. The personnel of the ark ships included scientists, city planners, engineers, surveyors, in addition to archeologists and anthropologists, among other professions. A short time later, when everyone was settled in, I gave the order to sound the general alarm over the P.A system for all outside personnel to step away from the ship as its force fields activated. A few moments later, its engines engaged in final system checks in preparation for liftoff.

With the crew settled into their workstations. I deactivated the force shield around the Captain's chair, sat down

The force fields and ship's engines were active as we waited for the final word from the three Proconsuls. Gaius Canuleius addressed the public, with a preamble outlining the mission of the fleet, before delivering a short farewell.

"On behalf of the Proconsuls and the Republic, I wish the fleet every success on its mission. God bless you," he said.

At that moment, the space tower gave the lift off signal.

"Tower to the fleet, you are now cleared for liftoff," the tower's controller said.

The base's sirens began to wail as the tower started the countdown, broadcasting over _Veda's_ internal P.A. system. _Veda_ and I would now go through the final pre-launch configuration checks.

" _Veda_ , begin final systems check."

"Beginning final systems check."

" _Veda_ , transition to launch configuration."

"Launch configuration engaged."

"Start engine acceleration conditioning."

"Engine acceleration commenced."

"Close all open vent valves."

"All open vent valves closed."

"Raise backup flight systems to launch configuration."

"All backup flight systems ready and configured."

"Activate primary engine number one."

"Primary engine number one activated."

"Engage complete ship's systems for liftoff."

"Complete ship's systems engaged for liftoff.

"Commence liftoff."

"Liftoff commencing; all systems go."

"Three, two, one, liftoff," the tower controller said.

We began to feel the planet's gravitational pull as the ships pulsated with a white glow, slowly lifting off into the air, with accompanying loud concentric hums and pulsations.

The ships took off in a triangle formation, with _Veda_ taking the point, _The Graziella_ to the left and _The Valeria_ to the right, with the ark and the supply ships tucked in between the three star carriers.

The ships were glowing white from the energy channeled through their hulls. Red and blue lights blinked on and off on their tail fins. The noise of the ships' engines would have been deafening to anyone standing outside at ground level within 300 metrons.

We rose slowly at first, ascending faster as we gathered more and more momentum. We went through the troposphere to the stratosphere, passing through the mesosphere, and, finally, through the ionosphere to reach space. All the ships had artificial gravity engaged so that people could go about their designated duties and tasks as if they were on a planet's surface.

We prepared to set the course for the northeast quadrant of the galaxy, where we believed we might find planets capable of sustaining life, and possibly intelligent life forms. Out in space, behind us, our two suns shone brightly, but we engaged a filter to block out some of the excessive light. From space, we could see our home planet, Caeruleus, with dark blue water sparkling over the crust.

"Isn't she a beautiful planet?" I asked Vlen.

"Yes, Captain," Vlen replied.

Caeruleus had been the first planet in the solar system to attract the settlers from planet Earth, and with a view like the one before me, it was no wonder. Now, there was only one more thing to do before we left orbit.

" _Veda_ , open up ship-to-ship communications to the entire fleet," I said.

"Yes, Captain," _Veda_ complied.

"Attention, all crews on all ships: before we embark on our journey, we will circle our planet once, as this will be the last time many of us will ever see her. Helmsman, engage ships engine at one-quarter speed," I said.

"Aye, Captain," the helmsman replied.

I looked over to the helmsman; he was an earnest-looking young man in his mid-twenties, hunched over the controls. Next to him sat the ship's navigator, Sirena. She was in her mid-twenties, of attractive appearance: about 1.78 metrons, with blonde hair, and green eyes. I swiveled the chair to look at the ship's communications officer, Sheila, sitting behind me to the right. She had shiny, jet black hair, alabaster skin, and brown-green eyes. She was also about 1.78 metrons in height, with beautiful curves.

_Duty first, I reminded myself a little wistfully._

I gave the order to leave as we completed our orbit of Caeruleus and finished our checks. No longer vulnerable to sneak attacks, I ordered the force fields to be shut down across the fleet as we turned our faces towards outer space. I watched Caeruleus recede, and the glow of the ships' hulls disappear as we left the last of the planet's atmosphere.

Six days after leaving Caeruleus, we began the construction of the space station. When completed, it would be entirely automated and eventually deployed halfway between Caeruleus and Fortis. The space station was being assembled using a specialized 4D space printer, and, when completed, would be used for communications and astronomical observations. It would house 1,000 personnel from Caeruleus when completed. The crewmembers of the supply ships went aboard the space station, activated the life support systems, and automated defense systems. I could see the space station from my viewer; it was a sphere, metallic and gleaming in the darkness of space. Around it, small space shuttles were going back and forth between it and the fleet. I was proud to see the work we were already achieving. Suddenly, Vlen interrupted my reflections.

"Captain, I have received word from the supply ship, _Pegasus_ , that the space station is fully completed and online."

"Excellent. I'll send a message to Caeruleus immediately."

While waiting for the space station to be completed, I had called a meeting of all the department heads stationed on Veda in Meeting Room Three on the third level.

I conducted the meeting and set the audio-visual cameras in motion to record automatically, with notes taken by the minute taker, Mark. I called the meeting to order and accepted additions to the agenda, reviewing the last meeting's minutes at which I was not present, and recommended approval of the most recent meeting's minutes. I read the correspondence from the previous session and accepted the department heads' reports.

I then opened the floor for any old or new business, with several items raised for discussion, and I requested any announcements about upcoming events. At the end of this, I set the time and place for the next meeting and adjourned the current one. The meeting had lasted six segments.

_Whew! I'm glad that's over and done with._

I went back to the bridge and sat in the Captain's chair, looking out into space, happy that everything was running smoothly I also decided that there was no rush to reach the edge of the solar system. I ordered the engines not to exceed seventy percent of their capacity, allowing the scientists to make further observations of our twin suns receding into the distance. Speaking of which, I wondered how our genius scientists were settling into their jobs. I would look in on them later, as well as on Doctor Klaus, but first, I had to set up a conference call with the other Captains.

"Vlen, take command of the bridge, while I talk with Captains Dante and Wolf. Sheila set up conference communications in five minutes," I said.

"Yes, Captain," she replied.

I went to my office one floor below and made myself ready. I had removed my uniform for something more casual. I just wanted to touch base with the other Captains. The call came through to my office on time.

"Greetings, Captains," I said.

"Greetings, Prime Captain," they replied.

"I've called this brief meeting to advise that the fleet's performance so far is conforming to expectations, and to ask you if you have met with your department heads."

"I will be arranging a meeting of department heads at the tenth segment tomorrow," said Captain Wolf.

I nodded my approval then turned to Captain Dante.

"My meeting with department heads will occur the day after tomorrow at the fourteenth segment," he said. "As per the earlier notification, I have sent out my fighter pilots for flight training, scouting ahead of the fleet while rotating the training through the squadrons," Captain Dante said.

"Thank you, gentlemen. I'll call another brief conference next week. Does anyone wish to discuss anything else?" I asked. I waited for a moment.

"Okay, if no one has anything else to say, this meeting is now ended. End transmission," I said. With that, we all signed off.

I leaned back in the chair for a little while, thinking about the 18,500 personnel of the fleet. A significant part of the mission would be to colonize at least one new world. The Admiralty had arranged the sexes of each ship as close as possible to fifty percent of each sex. Except for security personnel, nearly all my crew and the pilots' maintenance crews were female. Half the pilots of the starfighters were women, with the majority of the infantry being male. The only one who would not have a potential partner was _Vlen_.

_Well, it figures - the Proconsuls and the Admiralty wanted us to have the best chance to colonize a planet, so they provided the best possible odds for this to happen._

I had been at my station for eleven segments, and I was due to go off duty. Vlen would be in charge of the bridge for the next eleven segments; Severus would take over from Vlen for the remaining six. Now that I was free, I could do whatever I wanted. I decided to check in with Frank and Virginia, as I had not seen either of them since my examination.

I remained in my casual clothing and walked out of my quarters into the corridor. On the way out, I informed both Vlen and Severus that I would be taking a stroll through the ship. I walked down one flight of stairs to the corridor into the medical facility. I found Frank and Virginia together, checking the medical inventory on a local terminal.

"Good afternoon, Doctor Klaus, and Virginia," I said.

"Greetings, Captain," returned the Doctor.

"Hello, Captain. Nice to see you again," Virginia replied.

"How are you settling in? Is there anything you need, Doctor Klaus?" I asked.

"No, Captain, not at the moment," he said.

"Virginia? How is your room?" I asked.

"It's cozy, and I'm settling in well," she chirped.

"Glad to hear it," I said definitively.

There was a twinkle in her eye when she looked at the Doctor. He was spoken for, whether he knew it or not.

"Have you tried switching on the ship's emergency holographic, doctor?" I asked.

"No, not yet," the Doctor answered. "I hope to get around to that next week."

I nodded. "I'll have to come down when I can to have a look at the program."

While we were talking, I was looking around the medical bay, with big enough room for 500 people at the same time. There was over 300 medical personnel on board Veda, which included doctors, nurses, orderlies, and combat medics, who would serve on the front line with the infantry. The fighter pilots are also trained in first aid and survival techniques. In addition to the human doctors and nurses, thirty medical androids could be activated in the event of an emergency.

I felt proud looking at the team running the systems, as others learned new skills. When the work was not heavy, it was expected that personnel would engage in further study and learn the functions of some of the other occupations.

"I have to go now, Doctor. Feel free to come on the bridge anytime," I said.

Both the Doctor and Virginia smiled, standing close together as I left the medical area. They made a lovely looking couple.

_I guess nature will take its course after all._

I climbed down one flight of stairs and across the hall to meet with our eminent scientists. I walked in unannounced and found both of them involved in a heated discussion concerning various hypotheses to explain the existence of the seventh dimension.

"Gentlemen, is this how you spend your time working with each other?" I asked.

"Excuse us, Captain. We were just debating the mathematical properties and aspects of the seventh dimension," Telesio said.

"Well, next time you discuss your differences in this fashion, call me so I can sit ringside with some hot zollop," I said.

They both blushed, suddenly realizing the spectacle they must have presented to others as they argued amongst themselves. It was slowly dawning on them that they were no longer home in their laboratory, but were part of a much bigger family.

"From now on, Captain, we will do our utmost to refrain from arguing with each other on the job," Castelli said.

"I promise, too," Telesio said.

"Good. Make sure you do, or I will have to separate the both of you," I counseled.

"No, that won't be necessary, Captain, we'll behave," Castelli said.

I chuckled inside.

_Good, that fixed them._

I walked around the laboratory, watching the scientists run hypothetical scenarios about the establishment of a wormhole. The work on the wormhole was incomplete, as the power source was yet to be supplied by the government of Fortis, who had agreed to provide us with a series of buoys, each the size of a small Zephyr. The functions of the buoys were to help create and maintain a wormhole.

Essentially, the floats inverted the distance of space. Typically, the fabric of space is like a piece of rope, stretched. When using a wormhole, space acts as a rope suspended from the middle, bringing different points closer to each other; at least, that's the theory. The deployment of the buoy was to be the first real test of such a device for us, and I was more than a little bit nervous. I shouldn't have been because the Fortis had used the technology for the last eight hundred years.

_But it is a new technology for us, and something can go wrong!_

Other scientists were clearing their workstations in preparation for new tasks and experiments. I noticed that some people were wearing biotech outfits, and were decontaminating themselves as they walked in and out of rooms. Two medical technicians were testing and targeting drugs to improve immune protection at the individual protein level. Others were growing crystalline structures in zero gravity enclosures in neatly arrayed lattice structures, analyzing their construction using small emissions of gamma rays. They were attempting to prove that space-grown crystal lattices would transmit photonic currents better.

I left them and walked to another biotech area to be impressed by the new techniques in growing body parts, starting at the molecular level and advancing to the finished product. Watching from behind a glass wall, I saw medical personnel growing a kidney in less than a minute in a petri dish. One of the medical staff working on it took the platter it was on and froze it. Hearts, livers, bones, tissues, ears, eyes, and faces could all be reconstructed. Having seen enough, for now, I went back up to see Telesio and Castelli.

"Captain, we have decided that, after conducting further testing and achieving consistent results, the best place to deploy a buoy would be the midway point between the planets of Fortis and Gigas," Telesio told me.

"Where would you put the one after that?" I asked.

"The second buoy will be placed 200,000,000 stadia past Dias, beyond the furthest point in its orbit."

"To test the wormhole tunnel, we will send a drone ship from outside the solar system to Caeruleus," Castelli explained.

He took a drink and continued. "Once on Caeruleus, the Space Command Center will load the vessel and send it back through the wormhole. We calculate the entire trip will take two weeks instead of the average of eight months."

"Gentlemen, will you be ready by the time we reach Fortis?" I asked.

"Yes, Captain," replied Telesio.

"Superb, gentlemen. I will be looking forward to a smooth launch."

I left them and walked down to the engineering level, where I followed a corridor to enter the main engineering section. An elevated gantry five metrons high from the base of the floor circled the sides of the room. I looked down at the center of the room at the two nuclear fusion reactors enclosed within magnetic fields. The two chief engineers, along with four assistants, were checking power levels and running diagnostics.

"Greetings, Captain," Sam Jackson said.

"Good afternoon, Captain," Eric said.

"Evening, gentlemen. How are the ship's engineers today?" I asked.

"Excellent, Captain," Sam replied.

"I'm good, sir," answered Eric.

"Great to hear," I replied. "Are the ship's engines performing according to specifications?"

" _Veda_ is a strong, silent performer," Sam said solemnly. "The ship's engines are performing at peak efficiency. She has plenty of power in reserve, should we ever need it for a quick getaway or to divert extra power to the ship's shields."

"Good, let's hope we never have to use those extra reserves," I said.

I walked once around the gantry, and then excused myself and went down to the kitchen and canteen level.

When I arrived, no one noticed I had walked in. I came up to Michael, the head chef, and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hello, Michael, how's work?" I asked.

"Overseeing the preparation of the evening meals for everyone," he answered amid the bustling.

"Who's your assistant?" I asked.

"Her name is Annette. She is an excellent cook – but very bossy!"

"I'm pleased to meet you, Annette." I smiled as she shook my hand vigorously.

She was not very tall, around 1.53 metrons, with light brown hair, brown eyes, and a figure that was proportionate to her height.

"Pleased to meet you finally, Captain," she said.

"What's on the main menu tonight?" I asked.

"Ozlan chicken, covered in clovian cream, next to tarian greens," said Michael.

"What about beverages and dessert?"

"The usual, sir, with whatever the crew wants to drink made available to them: Alcohol and spirits, if they are off duty, and soft drinks and water-based beverages for those on duty."

Annette walked over to another assistant cook and tasted the preparation for the cream.

"It needs a little more salt," she said. With that, she pushed the other assistant out of the way and took over. I felt sorry for her co-worker.

"Ah, that's better," she sighed after another taste. "Next time, do as I tell you."

"Is she always like this?" I asked, whispering.

"Yes, Captain," said Michael quietly. "She is territorial, but as I said, she's an excellent cook."

"Okay, I believe you. As long as you're happy, I'm happy."

Annette stepped forward. "Would you like to try some cream, sir?"

"No, thank you, not now," I said.

"Come on, Captain, just a little bit," she insisted.

Before I knew it, I was trapped between the head chef on one side and her on the other, advancing on me with a spoon.

"Come on, Captain, just a little taste," she said.

She held the spoon directly to my lips. I went to say something, and in a flash, the spoon and cream were inside.

_I should say something to her, but she means well._

"That's good! It doesn't taste synthetic at all, like some of the food that comes out of the Konstadt food replicator," I said.

"I am glad you like it, Captain. Would you like to try some more?" asked Annette.

"Err... no thanks, I want to keep my teeth."

Michael was quietly chuckling, trying to hold his sides.

"You knew that would happen, didn't you?" I grimaced.

"Yes, Captain. It's hard to say no to her."

Annette cocked her head sideways, wondering why we were smiling broadly.

"Excuse me, Captain. I need to go to the storeroom and get some more salt," Annette said.

"Nice to meet you," I said as she marched off.

"How are you finding the challenges of a chef on a starship?" I asked.

"Captain, I admit it is demanding, but at the same time, it is satisfying. Especially, when I receive compliments from the crew. I feel useful and appreciated."

"Great to hear, Michael. If you need anything special and can't order it directly yourself, or get it from your manager, then try sweet-talking the department head using one of your meals," I said.

"Thank you for your advice, and for coming to see me, Captain," Michael said.

"It's my pleasure," I said.

I walked out of the kitchen and through the mess hall, which could seat eighteen hundred people at the same time. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner were run on three-segment blocks, one after the other, with access to smorgasbords and the Bain Maries.

My next visit was to the Morpheus Room. Only a few people had tried it out on the voyage. As a teenager, I had used Morpheus rooms several times in the main entertainment center in the city. I remember the sensations and illusions of a mock battlefield as being very tangible. The interactions and reactions of the holographic characters were very authentic. Holographic characters and items can be so real as to cause fatal injury. These rooms had to be staffed by at least one control lifeguard, as well as a separate computer that could shut down any program within a nanosecond.

" _Veda_ , send an urgent notice to the recreation department to station a lifeguard on the observation deck of the Morpheus Room. I want to see a lifeguard on duty twenty-eight segments per day," I said.

"Yes, Captain," said Veda.

I was tempted to use the Morpheus Room, but I wanted to visit the infantry and pilots stationed further below. I decided to take the stairs and went straight to the commanding officers' reception area, where the receptionist greeted me.

"Please inform Colonel Artōrius that I am here to see him," I said.

"One moment, sir," she answered.

She spoke into the notifier, informing the Colonel that I was in the waiting room to see him. The Colonel told her to send me right in as the two guards at the side of the door stood at attention.

"At ease, men," I said.

I door slid open, and I went inside. The Colonel stood up from his desk, walked across his office to exchange salutes.

"Greetings, Prime Captain," Colonel Artōrius said.

"How's it going, Colonel? Keeping busy?"

"Everything is falling into place, Prime Captain."

We sat down, and he offered me a tangent whiskey, which I accepted, as I was off duty. I liked Colonel Artōrius. He was a practical man who had started from the bottom and worked his way up.

"How are the troops settling in?" I asked.

"No problems, Captain; the troops are making themselves at home, and the men conduct weapons drills regularly. I plan to keep them occupied with physical exercises and mock battle training in our Morpheus Room," he said.

"Ah, yes," I recalled, "Your Morpheus room is one level down and bigger than the one designated for my crew."

"That's right, Captain; we need ours to be bigger for training purposes."

"Right, you are Colonel. By the way, I'm curious to inspect the armored personnel Zephyrs and tanks up close," I said.

"I'll be glad to show you around," the Colonel said.

He got up and told his receptionist that he and I were going for a walk around the block. We went below to the third last deck, where the troop transports and tanks were secured while we traveled in space. I opened the rear door of a personnel carrier and peered inside; each could carry 40 troops in full combat gear. I went into the front cabin and looked at the controls, communications, and weapons instrumentation. As per standard procedure, some essential components had been removed, rendering the transports inoperative until needed. I proceeded to the scorpion tanks and inspected them in detail. Each tank required a crew of four to operate it properly; these, too, were inoperative until needed. We left the holding bay area, climbed one flight of stairs together, and inspected one of the private quarters of an infantryman. He had already made himself quite comfortable, hanging pictures of pin-up girls and postcards of places he had been to on our planet. He stood at attention while we were inspecting his room. The Colonel and I had been there for a minute before I decided I had seen enough.

"Thanks for letting us look around, soldier," I said.

"I'm honored by your visit, sir," he replied saluting.

We returned his salute and walked out of the room.

"Thanks, Colonel, for the tour. The men look fit and ready for action, if we should need them," I said.

"You're welcome, Prime Captain – and I just want to say, you run _Veda_ like a star carrier should be run." He paused. "If there is nothing else, sir, I will be returning to my office."

"Thank you, Colonel, for the compliment. Continue as you were," I said.

We exchanged salutes, and he headed back to his office. The pilots were next on the list, on the upper level. I took the ant-grav lift and walked to the other end of the ship. I had already instructed _Veda_ to inform the fighter pilots' commander that I was visiting informally. Despite this notification, the commander and the four squadron leaders greeted me as if we're performing a formal inspection.

"Welcome, Captain, to Squadron Command. These are my squadron leaders: John Vans, Paula Lombardi, Val Clinton, and Chris Stuart," he said.

We exchanged salutes and greetings, after which I told them to be at ease. Curtis Smith was in his early thirties; he was tall, lean and lanky, and spoke with a drawl. He seemed to take his time talking as he walked. His dossier stated that he was one of the best space pilots to have flown between our planet and its three moons.

"Commander, I'm not here for a formal inspection; I was taking a stroll. If you could have someone to show me around, that would be appreciated," I said.

"Squadron Commanders, you are dismissed, I will personally show the Prime Captain around," he said.

We walked along the gantry behind the starfighters, peering inside, and then went to the command towers to see the operating systems and weapons controls.

"Everything appears to be in excellent working condition, which is what I expected," I commented.

We then inspected the pilots' quarters; I exchanged a couple of jokes with two of the pilots and thanked them for listening to my jokes.

"Commander Curtis, I'll take the grav-lift now to my level and retire for the evening. Should you need anything, you will find First Officer Vlen in charge of the bridge," I said.

After we had shaken hands, I took the grav-lift to my level, walked through the main office to my living quarters, and made myself a drink. A couple of segments later, I checked with Vlen that everything was running smoothly before retiring for the night. That night, I dreamt I was seventeen again, talking to my girlfriend in her garden. I watched the sunlight catch the auburn color of her hair, and the green of her eyes as she read Emily Dickinson to me from a collection of ancient Earth Poems.

#  Chapter 8

As the Captain wandered throughout the ship, I sat in his chair and guided the fleet through the orbits of the three inhabited moons of Baldur, Phoenix, and Talos. From the three satellites, beams of light shot up into space, wishing us farewell and good luck, along with small flotillas of spacecraft from each moon. Life on the three moons existed by artificial means. Though each colony was self-sustaining, it was not intended that people should live in artificial environments for decades on end. However, technology continued to advance, and with it new answers to old problems.

I was communicating with the ship's computer, running diagnostic checks, and recalibrating the long-range photon sensors. Having finished the recalibration, I began recalculating the various trajectories to reach the end of the solar system. Everything was as it should be, with the crew about its business. The fleet was being tracked from Caeruleus and the moons with our actions and open transmissions recorded for posterity.

The three moons belonged to the homo sapiens of the first political bloc because they had been the most adventurous in developing space technology. The homo-superiors of the third political bloc, superior in cognitive ability, had lacked the wisdom and foresight to apply their excellent faculties to space travel. Apparently, they had no need for space travel, and beyond sending satellites into space and to the twin suns, they had made no effort to explore further. However, they had attempted to establish diplomatic ties with Fortis and Gigas, but our alien neighbors had rejected the homo superiors' overtures marking them as dangerous and unenlightened.

The second political bloc had also abandoned space. They had decided that space travel was too costly to pursue, and they had made only a handful of journeys to Fortis and Gigas to ask for trading rights. However, like the third block, their request for access to do business was also denied when the combined council of worlds within the solar system determined that the second bloc was self-destructive. In time, the humans of the second bloc would destroy themselves or destroy Caeruleus. Only the first bloc, was enlightened enough to be allowed access to the worlds of Fortis and Gigas.

We headed for the planet of Fortis, where we would stay for two days. Our primary mission was to obtain the buoys and use them in the construction of wormholes. The secondary objective was to gather as much technical knowledge as possible and demonstrate to the Fortis that we were their friends worthy of their trust. The inhabitants of Fortis were at least two thousand years more intellectually and technologically advanced than the humans of Caeruleus. It would be interesting to see how much access they would grant the Captain and his abroad team.

Fortis is the fifth planet in our solar system, five astronomical units away from the joint orbit of the twin suns, and the third biggest. It could hold 900 planets the size of Caeruleus and was 120 times its mass. Beyond its golden brown surface and yellow and gold atmosphere, it had three major moons and two smaller satellites further out.

The inhabitants are humanoid, like us. The primary differences being that on average, they are a lot taller, better built than the men of Caeruleus, and have five fingers and one thumb on each hand.

To see, the Fortis was to behold giants walking the land. Certain anthropologists and historians believed that their ancestors had also stepped on Caeruleus. The scientists felt sure because of the stone reliefs dating thousands of years back with pictures depicting humans of great stature. However, the Fortis had communicated to the government that they had not been to Caeruleus before the arrival of humans and another species outside of the solar system may have visited Caeruleus in the ancient past.

I returned my thoughts to the cities of the Fortis. Their Metropolises did not span great heights but rather were spread out over vast areas, connected by matter transporters. Their buildings are made of natural materials, such as cured wood bonded together, with extremely fire-resistant stone, marble, or mud bricks cured at high temperatures, and other eco-friendly materials.

The metal was used sparingly, as reinforcements for use in their vehicles and mines. Their circular spacecraft spanning one stadia in diameter were altogether different, made of an incredibly light metallic-wood material, yet as strong as titanium. I speculated the controls for their ships were holographic projectors embedded in the vessels' floors and walls, which activated upon the presence or a command from the Fortis. However, this was speculation; no one from Caeruleus had ever seen the bridge of a Fortis starship.

The Ambassadors who had been given access to board Fortis vessels had only been allowed access to the guests' quarters or the general mess area of the Fortis ships. When their craft move in the atmosphere, they are silent and swift. Our scientists have speculated that their ships run using a form of nuclear fusion involving deuterium.

The grav-lift opened, interrupting my thoughts. The chaplain exited onto the bridge, walking toward me with his staff in his hand. Traditionally, the crews of starships referred to the Chaplain as Padre.

"Greetings, Commander Vlen. How are you today?" Padre asked.

"I am well, Padre," I replied.

My eyes did not leave the spectacular view of nebulas suspended in interstellar space.

"I see your attention is glued to the view before you. I agree it is very captivating. By the way, where is the Captain?"

"The Captain, at the moment, is in the medical area. Do you wish to speak to him?"

"No, I was just curious." He paused, looking at me intently.

"Aren't you the latest development in android technology?"

"Yes, Padre, that is correct. My creator, Paul, the philosopher, built me and a female android at the same time."

"Have you ever met the female android?"

"No, but I would like to."

"Like to? I thought androids were incapable of emotions and feelings."

I could hear the skepticism in his voice.

_Humans can be so arrogant at times!_

"I have thoughts, emotions, and feelings, exactly like a human being," I replied.

"How is that possible? Our scientists don't have the technology to program androids with emotions and feelings."

"You're right; it is beyond any programmer's skill to program real emotions and feelings into androids. However, my creator programmed me in such a way that I may learn from observation, reason according to facts, experimentation and cross-referencing. This process of observation and reasoning I have extended to human emotions and feelings; therefore, I am capable of drawing my own conclusions in matters of consciousness and its origins."

"Fascinating! Please continue," Padre exclaimed, intrigued.

"Through the before mentioned process of reasoning, I have slowly learned about myself and the world. I was born a blank slate, but like a child, I slowly began to understand the experiences, emotions, and thoughts of other beings. I learned the ways of behaving in society."

"The next thing you'll say is that you have thoughts and emotions."

"Yes. I experience thoughts and emotions. It may be that I am more than the sum of my parts. I may even have a spirit and a soul."

"How can you be more than the sum of your parts?" Padre skeptically asked.

"Pardon me, Padre. But we cannot continue this discussion; as you see, I am in the Captain's chair, surrounded by the crew, who will think it improper to continue such a discussion on the bridge."

"Never mind the crew. I will cause space and time to be suspended, and we will have this conversation."

With that, Padre struck his staff to the floor, and everything stopped. The crew became frozen in time, surrounded by stillness. I spoke to _Veda_ but received no response.

"We can now have our conversation and take as long as we like. For the crew and the fleet, it will be as if nothing has happened. They will never know."

"You possess incredible power. How were you able to achieve such a feat?"

"The power is not mine. It is given to me by beings more powerful than I. But to give you an answer, the entire fleet has been removed from space and time and moved into an adjacent and timeless dimension."

I looked around the bridge. There was no movement; not even the lights on the consoles blinked. His explanation sounded fantastic. When I eliminated all the possibilities, his answer, for the moment, was the only one that could explain the facts.

"Very well, Padre, we shall continue. My main contention is as follows; an individual is not the mind and its thoughts, or even the body. A person is composed of a spirit, which, in essence, is pure intelligence-perception consisting of pure cosmic energy, and a soul, which is made from what an individual truly loves. That these two together, the spirit and the soul combined, constitute a unique individual.

"However, I wish to stress that my interpretations of what a spirit and a soul are, is based on my observations, experiences, and reasoning. I will not attempt to prove my point of view for this discussion scientifically; if this is acceptable to you, Padre, we will continue."

"I am very interested in having this discussion," Padre answered eagerly.

With those words, Padre constructed a chair from the molecules in the air and sat down facing me. Both of us had become oblivious to the fact that we were on the command deck of a star carrier, with everyone and everything motionless.

"Let's begin by saying that nearly all human beings believe they have an 'I,' an 'id,' or 'ego,' as some call it. But first, let us try to reach a definition of what the 'I' is that both of us can agree on. Can we do this first, Padre?"

"That sounds good to me; please continue, Commander."

"I am sure that we can both agree that the 'I' can never be seen, heard, touched, tasted, or smelled."

"That is a given," Padre replied.

"As we cannot use our five senses to detect the 'I,' then we must use our powers of observation and deductive reasoning to determine the nature of the 'I.' Therefore, let us begin with the process of thought."

"How so?"

"It's a fact that humans spend most of their waking time in their minds, experiencing the world through thoughts. Thoughts consist of images, emotions, symbols and sounds associated with symbols such as words. Images can consist of memories of actual events or imaginings. Emotions can consist of hopes, fears, desires, or regrets, among many others. Do you agree so far, Padre?"

"Yes, we can agree to that," Padre replied.

"Thought, for humans, is part of a neurological-chemical-electrical process, which we use as part of our sensory processes to perceive the environment around us. The five biological senses of a human body will pass on what is perceived via neurological pathways to the brain. The brain stores this information in its memory as either a symbol, such as letters, images, pictures, or sensations, such as sound – and any combination of these, as does my android brain. These images and symbols, as well as occurring in sequence or parallel using chemical and electrical impulses, can also occur in a random fashion. Do you agree with what I have said?"

Padre reflected for a moment.

"Yes. So far, what you have said is true."

"Individuals spend nearly all of their existence experiencing reality inside thought, which is not reality, but rather impressions of reality imagined at the time. The mental images interacting within our heads can be likened to the process that an individual experiences when they watch a film on the televiewer. The film consists of single digital frames that are fast-forwarded in front of the camera's lens at a rate of thirty or more frames a second, causing the illusion of life and movement. It is the same with the lens of the mind, giving the illusion of life and movement inside thought. We can become absorbed in our thoughts just like we become absorbed in the film we watch because the people and their actions in the movie seem alive, do they not?"

"True. Often, I find myself absorbed in films when I do watch them," Padre mused.

"When the frames of thought are passed slowly past the camera lens of the mind, we can see that thought is just a set of sequential images. Non-aware individuals believe they are those thoughts. By associating their sense of self with these thoughts, they create an erroneous self-image that has no basis in reality.

Metaphorically speaking, events and characters from the real world are recreated upon a stage inside your head. If, as an observer, you are detached from the images and emotions running through the lens of your mind, you will realize that you are both the actor on the stage in one image and a member of the audience in another image. But these images promoting a sense of self are an illusion being played out in the theatre of your mind," I said emphatically.

Padre became agitated.

"But the individual experiencing those images and emotions is real. Forgive me, Vlen. But, I must say I have never heard anything so absurd."

"Padre, let me explain in another way. For example, reviewed in your mind's eye are a series of mental images of you at certain moments during the day. Perhaps you recall what you were thinking at the time, and you replay those thoughts at very fast speeds. No matter how many thoughts we have in a single second, they are all separate, individual thoughts. When thought stops, people will discover that the 'I' does not exist."

"I do not understand."

"Then, more illustration is needed. To determine who and what an individual is, we have to ask, what does the 'I' consist of? What is it made from? To discover what the 'I' is, we have to continue examining the nature of thought. Because we have already agreed that thought can be an image, an emotion, symbols such as words associated with sounds, we can now move on to who or what is the thinker."

"Okay. Please continue."

"A thinker is a sentient being who has the facility of experiencing thought. Do you agree with this statement, Padre?"

"I do."

"Therefore, the next question we should ask is, 'Can the thinker exist without the thought?'"

Padre remained silent, his mind deep in thought. "Logically, the thinker cannot exist without the thought. The thought cannot exist without the thinker. If there is no thought, there is no thinker."

"Correct Padre. Because we cannot separate the thinker from the thought, can we agree then that the thinker is the thought?"

"Yes, we can agree to that."

"Good, Padre. If there is no thinker, then there is no thought, no theater of the mind, no actor on the stage, and no one in the audience to watch."

"Please explain further," Padre said.

"This is what I mean. We know that the thinker is the thought because neither can exist without the other. Ask yourself, 'What if we substitute the word 'I' for 'thinker? That means thinker, thought, and the 'I,' for all intents and purposes, are precisely the same; when thought ceases to exist, so does the 'I.'" Further, when thinking stops, and one slips between thoughts or between the frames of the film, so to speak, in a state of awareness, one will find that the 'I' does not exist. There, between thoughts, is the real you, the spirit, which is pure intelligence, pure perception, and is composed of pure cosmic energy. The real you is not a mental image or the thoughts in your mind that you identify yourself with; it is not even your body."

"Vlen, to reiterate, you contend that the 'I' is an illusion. I can see how in your case, that is true, but this is not true when it comes to humans, for if I hurt myself, I feel pain. If I have nothing to eat for a day, I am hungry. If I think about what I will do tomorrow, and imagine myself going through the motions, then this must prove that the 'I,' the 'ego,' exists," Padre said.

"No, Padre. The 'I' exists as an image or a series of images and emotions, creating an illusion that there is someone real inside those images and emotions. The elusive 'I' cannot be seen, heard, touched, tasted, or smelled. Further, people associate their sense of self-awareness with their body, which has its own level of consciousness. In reality, the brain and the body are only marvelous pieces of machinery, where part of the spirit resides.

"Part of the spirit?" Padre echoed.

"A person's spirit does not fully reside in its body. You will understand more on this point later, as I continue."

"Okay, Vlen I'll be patient."

"For example, Padre, the body is not you. If you lost a hand or foot, you could still survive – so, you are not your hand or foot. With the exception of the brain, we can now remove all organs and limbs and replace them with cloned body parts. You did not exist in those body parts before they were joined to your body. Afterward, you are not those body parts either, despite the fact that you feel sensations such as pleasure or pain through them. So what are humans, Padre? Are they just biological entities that experience thoughts and emotions, pleasure and pain? If we accept that humans are only biological entities that experience thoughts and emotions, via the chemical-electrical activity of the brain, then according to the definition of the 'I,' we are nothing more than an illusion. I don't think you accept that conclusion, any more than I do."

"But what about emotions and feelings? What is the difference between them, and who is experiencing them when they occur?"

"Let me illustrate the difference between emotions and feelings by using pleasure as an example. Pleasure can be either an emotion or a feeling. Here is a case of pleasure as an emotion: a young mother replays a mental image of her young child playing in a sandpit. This picture brings her pleasure. Because the mental image came first, originating in the mind, it elicited an emotional response in the mother. Now let me give you a negative image and emotion. Imagine you have been insulted or assaulted by someone you dislike. You become angry and upset every time you playback that image of the person doing you harm you become emotionally upset. And sometimes, these repeated negative images and negative emotions can have devastating consequences for the person relieving these adverse events as well as others.

However, emotions are not feelings. Feelings are spontaneous perceptions, they involve no thought and originate in the region of the heart."

"But you don't have a heart, do you, Vlen?"

"My master created the crystalline version of a human heart."

"No offense, Vlen, but that is ridiculous. A machine with a heart – the idea is comical."

"What is a human being, if not a biological machine with a heart? Are people not a creation? Of course, they are! As humans are creations, it also implies they are creatures. Creations, creatures – all point in the same direction... a creator who made biological machines, because that is what the human body is: a biological machine that is a receptacle for the spirit and soul."

"If I accept that the 'I' is an illusion, based on thought, then who experiences consciousness and feelings? And what are they?"

"I am glad you asked those questions, Padre. Because we are approaching the crux of the matter of who and what humans really are."

"I could see that you were building up to this point."

"Now, we come to what constitutes the spirit and the soul. You asked what feelings are. Feelings are perceptions. Perception is defined as an active intelligence in a state of heightened awareness. There are different degrees of awareness, and, therefore, varying degrees of perception. The spirit is active intelligence, composed of pure cosmic energy. I must stress that active intelligence in a state of perception does not involve thought, as thought is not necessary to its function.

"Everything I have spoken about concerning the 'I' and the spirit I have experienced first-hand, and therefore for me, these experiences are incontrovertible facts. However, I do not claim to have all of the pieces of the puzzle, and the degree of awareness I experienced is just the tip of the iceberg. But, I do believe I have a few crucial pieces in my hands."

"You mean to say you have experienced awareness? But you are not even a real person. You are a machine."

"Yes, I am a machine. But again, I must stress that human beings are also machines. Neither you nor I have any real life in ourselves; we just think we do. That is to say, we cannot create ourselves, or raise ourselves from the dead. We are merely receptacles of life. The Great Maker, or God, breathes life into us continually from outside the body. Without that constant breath of life, we would cease to exist. This breath of life is the cosmic energy that is our spirit and our intelligence that enters through the brain."

"Is all this talk just theoretical, or have you had an episode of expanded awareness?"

"It is only my opinion based on my experience; I do not expect you or anyone to accept it as fact. In these matters, individuals should investigate for themselves, and never believe what I or anyone says without proper and thorough investigation."

"Okay, I understand that. Could you please describe what happened?"

"An exciting experience occurred to me recently when I posed the question: 'Can the thinker exist without the thought?' which is the same as asking, 'Can the 'I' exist without thought?'

"Here I was, an observer with a center of consciousness, maintaining that the 'I' could not exist without thought. On the face of it, it is an apparent contradiction, yet logically, I could see that the 'I' ceased to exist when there was no thought.

I asked myself this question: 'Can the thinker exist without the thought?' many times until I finally achieved a level of intensity and mental focus that I had not previously experienced. In that critical moment, after a build-up of extreme tension, I experienced a sudden release, as if a floodgate or valve had been opened. In that instant, the mind or the 'I' ceased to exist; in its place, there was another being, the real me. The real observer suddenly emerged beyond the barrier of the mind, pulsating with pure cosmic energy and intelligence, observing the immediate surroundings. In an instant, the observer became the observed, separate yet one.

"This pure intelligence, which can only be called the spirit, made of pure cosmic energy, extended itself beyond the physical confines of the body. I became one with the molecules of the air, which are, in reality, an ocean of churning energy, vibrant and alive. My spirit became what it observed. It became one with the furniture and the room, experiencing the texture of the chairs – the consciousness of my spirit permeated the whole room, joining with it, and everything in it. The observer is the observed, and in that state of being, of pure awareness, there is neither. There is just pure intelligence. This intelligence is pure perception, comprised of energy, vibrant, active, and alive.

"It was as if the brain had been opened, and my consciousness was no longer restricted to receiving information in a straight, narrow band. I realized that the brain was designed not only to let information in but also to keep it out. By releasing this valve, my spirit was freed from its mind-body prison, achieving awareness for a few brief minutes. I have since tried to recapture this experience but to no avail. I understand that humans use drugs to heighten perception. However, from the accounts I have read, the drugs provide a distorted form of awareness and are harmful to humans.

"It has been nearly several months since I had this experience. During this time, I was vain enough to think that I had been one of a few privileged conscious beings to have had such an experience.

"Fortunately for me, I eventually came across ancient documents describing Zen Buddhist monks from the planets Earth and Caeruleus. They are interested in enlightenment, and a technique of thinking that takes the form of a question called a 'koan,' which Zen Buddhist monks use to direct the logic of the mind and break down its barrier to realize the correct experience.

"A very famous koan is, 'What is the sound of one hand clapping?' The koan I asked is, 'Can the thinker exist without the thought?' One can ask either of these two questions for months, and nothing will occur. However, if your motives are pure, there comes a point, in the asking of such a question that leads to the mind experiencing a particular degree of intense mental tension as the observer seeks to experience the answer.

"It is at this point that an etheric valve or channel is opened within the brain, increasing one's state of awareness. A rising tide of consciousness allows the real observer to shine forth. In that moment of realization, the observer becomes the object of its observation. Some would say that the observer and the observed are one. From my experience, I have found that the observer and the observed are one, yet separate, a paradox of sorts.

"Since this experience, I have become aware there are humans who have experienced cosmic awareness with higher degrees of perception than my own. As it was with me, the individual involved cannot adequately convey the experience to the reader using words. There is a vast difference between the intellectual understanding and the actual realization of the nature of cosmic awareness. Humans in a state of enlightenment say that higher states of consciousness can be achieved by first entering into a state of spiritual awareness and then, with the right intention, contemplate another koan. I would like to continue my journey along this path when I can create the right environment for spiritual development. I have realized that I have touched only the tip of the iceberg.

"Seeking enlightenment or awareness is not for everyone. For various reasons, some have abandoned it, sometimes because it is too hard to achieve. Others have preferred the pursuit of worldly pleasures because they could not sustain the effort that was required. Then, there are those who lack the proper environment to attempt such a journey, while others are scared of where such an experience may lead to and have abandoned further attempts altogether. Others have never had a thought in this direction – for the majority of humanity, the fact is, they enjoy their many distractions and illusions."

"Thank you, Vlen, for explaining your experience to me. I have two final questions: do you know the difference between the spirit and the soul? Or are they the same?"

"Now, I cross over into the realm of speculation. My observations suggest to me that the soul is the will of the individual. By 'will,' I mean what a person loves. The spirit is pure intelligence and resides in the head and outside of it. To illustrate the difference between the two, I will give an example. Let us suppose two people are partners in business, and there is a discussion about splitting the profits. On the surface, both of them agree to divide the money evenly because it is the right thing to do. But one of the partners covets the money and plans to steal the other's share. He knows this is wrong, but he is going to do it regardless of the consequences. His will is his soul: so, what he loves, he wills. He ignores his intellect, which is derived from the spirit's intelligence so he can get what he desires, regardless of the harm it does to the other individual.

"Therefore, Padre, I wish to reiterate my main contention; an individual is not the mind and its thoughts or even the body. A person is composed of a spirit, which, in essence, is pure intelligence-perception consisting of pure cosmic energy and the soul, which is made from what an individual truly loves. The spirit and the soul combined constitute a unique individual."

"Vlen, you've been most fortunate indeed to have had such an experience. It appears you have a key with which to unlock many doors and find many answers. For myself, I use meditation, prayer, and contemplation to seek the truth. I have never used questions in the manner you described as a key to unlock the secrets of the spirit or the soul."

"Padre, I have come to realize that the knowledge I have gained is a crucial piece of the universe's jigsaw puzzle. I have learned there is much I do not know, and that there is much I wish to understand."

"Vlen, this super consciousness, this pure cosmic energy that you call the spirit – where do you think it comes from?"

"I conclude that a being of greater intelligence than ourselves created us and that our bodies are mere receptacles of life. We have no life of ourselves and from ourselves; that is what I have learned directly from these few brief moments of illumination and a great deal of reflection. Again, I wish to stress that I base my beliefs mainly on my experiences, observations, and reasoning. I do not base my conclusions entirely on books and other resources in these matters as many do. After all, they are forms of second-hand knowledge, and cannot convey the totality of the differing degrees of awareness or enlightenment."

"Vlen, you have given me a great deal to think about. You have made me understand the differences between the spirit, the soul, the mind, and a little about the nature of God."

"You call him God; I refer to him as the Great Maker, sometimes the Great Designer. But enough, for now, Padre. There's plenty of time to discuss theology later. For now, the stars beckon, and we should rejoin them."

With that, I took Padre by the arm, and we moved to the edge of the bridge, watching the stars, nebulae, and galaxies. For me, the vastness of space was a frontier waiting to be discovered, but the inner frontier was also beckoning.

"Vlen, I think I will retire to my quarters and enjoy the view from there."

"I enjoyed our discussion, Padre. Have a pleasant evening."

"Me too. And now I will return us to normal space and time."

Padre tapped his staff once, and everything returned as before.

Sirena the ship's navigator called out.

"Padre, how did you and Commander Vlen arrive so quickly at the bay windows?" she asked.

"We just walked over to the window," Padre said.

"Really? I must be tired I didn't see you," Sirena said, shaking her head.

Everything had returned to normal; only Padre and I knew different.

Time had quickly passed since we left Caeruleus, and during that period, the Captain had received a request from Curtis Smith for the pilots to clock up flying time alongside the fleet. The application was approved, and today, twenty-five pilots were assigned to practice drill formation and maneuvers in space. I sent a reminder to the other ships in the fleet, and one segment later, I gave the squadron commander the green light to launch the fighters. A few minutes later, I watched using the ship's internal monitors as the starfighters' maintenance crews prepared the starfighters for take-off.

Twenty-five pilots, dressed in silver suits and helmets, walked along the gantry and slid into their ships. I decided I wanted to participate. I cast a portion of my consciousness through the computer of the vessel and chose a female pilot. Through her eyes, I could see her making preparations for liftoff. She was unaware of my presence as she signaled to the tower that all systems were ready.

The squadron commander in the tower gave the order for the starfighters to take off. Then, the lights in the fighter bay switched from red to amber to green as the ship's wing doors opened. The force field prevented space and objects from entering the vessel, but the starfighters could enter and leave at will.

The pilots engaged their engines and flew out, facing forward in perfect formation, looping over the stern of the ship and coming to rest behind the fleet. I felt the thrill and exhilaration of the pilot as for the next one and a half segments; she performed maneuvers and engaged in mock dogfights. I was there the whole time, experiencing and recording the actions of the pilot, absorbing her experience and knowledge into my memory. I disconnected my consciousness from the pilot and _Veda_ just before a crew change was due to occur at the twenty-eighth segment. I then prepared a summary of the logs for the Captain. I looked up and saw Severus coming out of the grav-lift. He presented himself for duty.

"Greetings, Commander Vlen.

"Thank you for relieving me, Commander Severus. You will find a log of all activities listed on the ship's recorder. I will be in my quarters should you need to contact me," I said.

"Thanks, Commander," Severus said.

With that exchange, the midnight crew officially took over.

I left through the anti-grav-lift and went to my quarters to reflect on my first day in control of the bridge. I mentally leafed through my discussion with Prometheus, which I had recorded. For a human being, he was very advanced. Lying in bed, I looked at the ceiling. It had been a little more than one year since I had awoken at my master Paul's home on Caeruleus. In that time, I had learned many things from humans.

I recalled how emotionless I was when I first came into consciousness; I was a blank slate. I did not know how to communicate appropriately with humans, and at times, I embarrassed my master by not behaving as I should have. From the beginning, I was intelligent in abstract matters and higher cognitive skills, but I lacked social skills as well as common sense in everyday issues and the ways of the world. It was only by interaction with humans, and through making mistakes, that I slowly learned about people and the world around me, and making choices.

I recalled my early days copying the mannerisms of my maker, and later, those of his colleagues. I was copying them much as a child copies a parent; the main difference I was fully formed when I came into existence. I was fortunate that I had a father who took the time to teach me, unlike some human fathers who teach their children very little or nothing at all.

After meeting the Captain, I slowly adopted some of his mannerisms and expressions. I began to understand his sense of humor, which ranged from the abstract to the whimsical. I also noticed that the Captain liked to maintain his distance from people, and though he had an open mind, he resisted some ideas more than others. In the time I have spent with the Captain, my observations and conclusions about humans have multiplied more than they would have had, had I remained with Paul.

But maybe, I've spent too much time with humans? Of late, I have begun to experience emptiness, as if something or someone was missing. Was this what humans called loneliness?

I thought of Paul when he split the crystalline brain in two. Half of the brain is inside my body, and the other half is in the female android being looked after by Paul's friend. Is there a connection between these two parts of the same brain that causes this emptiness? Is this what humans call loneliness?

I decided, one day, I would like to meet the female android, to see how different she is from me. What effect would she have on me, and I on her - if any? I got up from the bed and drank a small glass of water, though it was not necessary. Exposure to human behavior was influencing me in unexpected ways.

I focused my thoughts and interfaced with _Veda_ through a computer terminal, joining my mind with the ship's systems. I reviewed the systems according to _Veda's_ reports and found no discrepancies. I then disconnected myself from _Veda_ and reminded myself to wake at the eighth segment before switching myself off. My last thought was wishing I could dream as my consciousness faded into temporary non-existence.

The next morning, _Veda_ woke me before the eighth segment.

"Attention, Commander Vlen: ship's sensors are detecting an electro-photonic disturbance on the bridge in the vicinity of the Captain's chair," _Veda_ said.

"Is the Captain on the bridge?" I asked.

"Yes," _Veda_ replied.

I ran to the bridge, where I found the Captain already seated, engaged in a conversation with a holographic projection of Scrollos.

" _Veda_ , are you tracing the source of the projection?" I asked.

"Yes, Commander Vlen. The source of the projection is coming from one of the third bloc's civilian satellites, orbiting Caeruleus," Veda said.

_Scrollos' technology is formidable!_

The broadcast was projected directly onto the ship's bridge. Severus was there powerless to do anything about the projection. The crew on the deck stared at the unfolding event, not believing their eyes.

"What do you want, Scrollos?" the Captain demanded.

"I told you, Captain. I want access to the knowledge and technology you gather on your mission."

"You're deluded."

"Captain, you will comply or face the consequences of saying no."

"We caught the two spies without your help, now get lost," the Captain replied.

"I believe, Captain, you require a small demonstration of my power."

Then, everything thing went black, and I ceased to exist.

#  Chapter 9

I looked down at Vlen on the floor as Scrollos faded from sight, my ship's systems disabled by an electro-photonic pulse of power from the holographic projection – something that should not have been possible. The vessel was disabled, drifting in space, unable to communicate with the other ships. The rest of the fleet would have registered an enormous amount of electro-photonic energy released from _Veda_ , and that is all anyone outside of _Veda_ would know.

"What are your orders, Captain?" Severus asked.

"One moment, Severus," I said.

I looked down at Vlen. He had reverted to his android appearance.

"Severus, take three men and place Commander Vlen in his quarters, and then come back," I said.

"Yes, Captain," he said.

Severus called three security officers, and together, they moved Vlen.

Sam Jackson, the chief engineer, emerged from the stairwell.

"Captain, the ship is dead in space; the engines shut down, and I'm unable to explain how this has happened," Sam said.

"We had a visit from Scrollos, one of the homo superiors from the third bloc," I answered.

I turned around and addressed the crew on the bridge.

"Attention, everyone. An electro-photonic pulse has disabled the ship. All level three officers, please go to all section areas of the ship and inform the rest of the crew to expect a resumption of power within the next segment. Severus, send an officer to each of the infantry and pilots' command centers and the maintenance crews command areas."

"Consider it done," Severus said.

"Sheila and Sirena, I need you to remain at your stations," I said.

"Yes, sir," Sirena answered.

Several of the crew exited down the stairs, discussing among themselves who would go where.

We were in a bad situation, with only bay windows for visual. I was sitting in the chair, patiently counting the minutes, when eight heavily armed men materialized on the bridge.

"Who are you, and where are you from?" I asked, looking in their direction. The first soldier spoke.

"Sir, my name is Lieutenant Sheffield. I've been sent here by Captain Dante to investigate what's happened to your ship," he said.

"Thank you, Lieutenant. You can report to Captain Dante that the situation is under control. Inform Captain Dante that Scrollos, a homo superior, attacked us using an electro-photonic pulse to render the ship's systems powerless. The only casualty I am aware of is Vlen, my First Officer, who is non-responsive for the moment," I said.

"I'll inform Captain Dante immediately," the Lieutenant said.

He spoke into his communicator, relaying the news to his Captain. After a moment, he said, "Sir, Captain Dante has asked if there is anything he can do for your First Officer, Commander Vlen?"

"Thank Captain Dante. However, everything should return to normal within the next segment, including Commander Vlen. You may return to your ship, Lieutenant," I said.

"Yes, sir," replied the Lieutenant. "Lieutenant Sheffield to the transporter room, eight to beam back aboard."

Almost immediately, he and his men started to dematerialize back to _The Graziella._

Ten minutes later, Veda's systems came online. Severus emerged from the stairwell and approached me on the bridge.

"Sir, permission to send a security detail to help Chief Samuel Jackson and his team in checking ship's systems," he said.

"Permission granted," I said.

I heard Sheila swinging around in her seat to address me.

"Captain, we have damage to the communication's equipment module, causing visual and audio signals to be distorted and garbled," Sheila said.

"Midshipman Marchesi escort Sheila to the auxiliary room and help her bring a new communications module to the deck," I said.

"Yes, sir," he said.

" _Veda_ , send a message to all department heads to report any injuries and to check for any damage to any systems under their control, and patch me through to Doctor Klaus," I said.

"Complying, Captain," said Veda.

I waited a few minutes, and slowly, a distorted 3D image of Frank appeared in front of me.

"Are there any casualties to report?" I asked the doctor.

"Only a few people are reporting in with bumps and bruises. The pilots and army commanders are still running checks on their personnel and equipment. I should be receiving reports soon from them, in the next few minutes," he said.

"Let me know if anyone was seriously hurt," I said.

"I will," Frank said, signing off.

While I was talking to the doctor's hologram, Sheila had returned.

I turned to face Sheila. "Sheila, let me know when communications are up and running," I said.

"Yes, Captain," Sheila answered.

I leaned forward to see the navigation heading on the navigation desk, but I couldn't quite read it.

"Sirena, are we on course yet?" I asked.

"We will be back on course within a few minutes, as the ship is still compensating for the loss of power," Sirena said.

_It's a good thing we didn't collide with any of the other ships!_

Meanwhile, Vlen, back to his normal appearance, approached me from my right and stepped onto the dais.

"Captain, I am reporting for duty," he said.

"Are you functioning normally?" I asked.

"Yes, Captain, all systems are working correctly."

"Good, I need you to be in peak form for our visit to Fortis. We will go together, with a sociologist, who is an expert on the Fortis, and the official documenter. The Fortis are expecting us to beam into the President's chamber, where we will meet a delegation from the ruling Council," I said.

"In addition to our official reason for the visit, I assume that we will also have an unofficial reason, as well, Captain?" Vlen asked.

"Officially, we are here to take possession of the buoys that are used to create a wormhole tunnel that was negotiated between our government and the Supreme Council of Fortis. And while we are on Fortis, we will attempt to gather as much knowledge as possible by any legitimate means at our disposal," I said.

"Legitimate, Captain?" Vlen said.

"What I mean by legitimate is, any means within our power to gather knowledge that does not involve theft, deception, or spying on our friends," I said.

"I understand, Captain. I will not run any scans without your permission," Vlen answered.

"That's right; however, you usually leave your recorder on; therefore, continue to do so. It is quite likely the Fortis will notice the fact that you are an android and assume that the recording device is enabled. Unless they explicitly request that you turn it off, you will continue to record everything you see and hear as you ordinarily do. Similarly, our sociologist will ask the Fortis questions, in the hope that they may be inclined to answer some of them. Most importantly, if we can gain access to one or two of their scientists, we can hopefully talk to them on our terms," I said.

"How do you propose to do that?" Vlen asked.

"We have invited the Fortis government to contribute a scientist to our expedition, but they have declined to send one. However, they have no objection if a private citizen, who is a scientist, wishes to join our expedition. We need a scientist from Fortis, who will be willing to exchange and contribute ideas alongside our scientists. I will talk to our Ambassador regarding this," I said.

The lift door opened, and the ship's chaplain, Prometheus, entered the main deck.

"Greetings, Captain Marcus and Commander Vlen," Padre said.

"I'm glad you are here, Padre; I was about to call you. As you know, we are now orbiting Fortis, and I need you to look after _Veda_ while I'm gone," I said.

"That's why I'm here, to serve the public and stir the workers," Padre joked.

"You're funny today, Padre," I said.

"Nothing wrong with a little humor to brighten the day," Padre replied.

_And Vlen thinks my jokes are bad!_

I turned from to face Sheila.

"Sheila, inform the Council that I will present myself to them with my First Executive Officer and two others. Message the Captains of _The Valeria_ and _The Graziella_. If they have any last-minute requests or suggestions, they are to deliver them within the next twenty minutes," I said.

"Yes, Captain," Sheila replied.

Two segments later, Vlen and I, along with Amanda, the sociologist, and the ship's documenter, Mark, were in the vessel's transporter room. It was the first time I was meeting Amanda in a small group of people. She was an attractive woman about 172 centrons tall, with flaxen hair, fair skin, hazel eyes, and a well-proportioned figure. She wore a matching yellow jacket, a knee-length skirt with a wide black belt, and low heel shoes.

"Before we leave, everyone turn on your universal translators so we won't have any problems understanding their language," I said.

"I have never used one, Captain. What time delay should I set the translator to?" Amanda asked.

"The translator is set with a twenty-millisecond delay. It is sufficient time for the translator to do its job with no noticeable delay," I said.

"Thank you, Captain," Amanda said.

We would be arriving at precisely mid-day Fortis time, where there would be a brief ceremony, followed by a meal and a tour of the Council chambers, and some discussions with our Ambassador. I looked at Severus, who was behind the screen of the ship's transport room, and gave the order to commence transportation. The transporting officer next to him passed his hand over the crystal, and we began our descent to Fortis. Almost instantly, the abroad team started to dematerialize; for a few seconds, I ceased to exist. On regaining consciousness, I found myself in the President's chamber on Fortis.

"Welcome, Prime Captain, to you and your companions. My name is Tal Tu. I am the President of the Supreme Council of Fortis. On behalf of the Council and my planet, I welcome you. I hope your visit for the next two days will be an enjoyable and stimulating one," he said.

I looked up at the giant and shook his hand. "I am pleased to be here, Mr. President," I said.

"I wish to introduce the Vice President, San Lan," the President said.

"I am pleased to meet you, Captain, as well as your companions," the Vice President said.

"We are pleased to be visiting your planet, Mr. Vice President," I said, shaking his hand.

"To the left of me is the Minister of Interplanetary Relations, Mon Sur," the President said.

"It is a pleasure to meet someone from your world, Prime Captain. Even though our planets are neighbors, it is rare to receive visitors from your world," Mon Sur said.

"I also am honored to be here," I said.

"Next to Mon Sur is Minister of the Interior for Civilian Affairs, Lars Folen," the President said.

"I welcome the Prime Captain and his companions to our world," Lars Folen said.

"The pleasure is ours," I said.

"To the right of the Vice President is Chief Security Officer, Slar Loden," the President said.

"Greetings, Prime Captain. I wish you and your companions a pleasant stay. I will be accompanying you on some parts of your stay on our planet, and handle your security. But be assured, there is no real danger; we are merely following diplomatic protocol," Slar said, stepping forward and shaking my hand.

"Thank you for your precautions and assistance," I said.

"Finally, next to Slar Loden is your Ambassador from Caeruleus, Janequeth Ren," the President said, concluding his introductions.

"Welcome, Prime Captain and officers of _Veda_ , to Fortis," said the tall Ambassador with sandy hair.

I shook hands with the Ambassador, who then greeted the rest of my team in turn.

"Mr. President. On behalf of Caeruleus, my companions, and myself, please accept these gifts as a token of respect and goodwill toward the inhabitants of Fortis," I said.

_Veda's_ leading sociologist stepped forward with palm outstretched and presented the President of Fortis with four tiny cubes, which he also placed on the palm of his hand.

"Thank you for your gifts, Captain. What are they?" the President asked.

"Place a cube on the ground and then place a few drops of water on it, and you will see," I said.

The President placed the cube on the ground and called for a glass of water to be brought. A moment later, the President took the glass and splashed some drops of water on the cube. The cube emitted a pleasant smell and took shape in the form of a three metrons tall, mixed platinum alloy statue of an astronomer with diamond eyes, looking skyward, standing next to a telescope.

"I find the statue and its imagery very pleasing, Captain," the President said.

"Thank you, one of our finest artists made it," I said.

"I will open the rest of the cubes later. Now, let us proceed to the council chambers, where my people meet to debate matters of global importance. Afterward, we shall attend a small banquet my people have prepared for you and your companions in honor of your visit," the President said.

"Your hospitality most honors my companions and me," I responded.

We followed the President to the Council chambers. In the middle of the main room was a round table, with thirteen chairs. Some distance back from the chairs were two semicircular desks with a space between them for people to pass through. These tables were for the documenters and assistants. Overhead, directly facing the entrance door, was an arch-shaped window, through which one could see into the city below. The President took us to an enormous galleria overlooking the Fortis parliament. Behind the speaker's chair on the wall was a pictorial representation of the planet's history, which illustrated their 5,000 years of unbroken recorded history.

The speaker was in his chair, listening to one of the parliamentarians presenting a case for the creation of a teleportation gateway between two small cities. While he was talking, several Fortis floated above their seats, indicating that they wished to say something about the matter.

The Admiralty had given me data files on the Fortis. As I watched the politicians, I recalled some of the more salient facts on its political system and civilization:

_The public controlled their member of parliament more stringently by using quorums made up of voters from each Member of Parliament's district meeting in virtual reality._

_The Fortis believed the leaders in parliament were there to serve the people and not themselves._

_The Fortis did not allow corporations to exploit natural resources, as natural resources belonged to the state, which is the people of the commonwealth._

_The Fortis tolerated businesses and corporations provided they placed customers first, workers second, shareholders third, and the company owner/owners last._

_The Fortis had used technology to eliminate poverty and homelessness, ensuring each person had enough to meet their basic needs, with a little leftover to pursue their dreams freely, provided they were beneficial to the individual and society._

My mind returned to the moment as we followed the President to the banquet room, where the team sat between two members of the Council of Fortis. The people of Fortis had an excellent reputation for arranging banquets, and an appetite for good food and drink. It was a good thing, too, because I hadn't eaten properly yesterday or today. Thinking about the food was making me hungry.

_Bring on the food, I say._

There was soft background music, the type you would hear in the background while watching a movie. It was gentle and relaxing. I remembered an image from my uncle's farm, of dew forming in a spider's web reflecting sunlight coming from the trees in the early morning.

"Captain, are you all right?" Vlen asked.

"I'm good; the music is very relaxing. It reminded me of my uncle's farm," I said, slightly sleepy.

I noticed that the sociologist and the documenter had that dreamy, faraway look in their eyes too.

"Amanda, snap out of it. You, too, Mark," I said.

They shook their heads and rubbed their eyes. All of us, except Vlen, and the Ambassador, had become entranced by the music.

Janequeth Ren started to laugh.

"I am used to the music, Captain. At first, it affected me; later, I learned to switch off and go about my business. The Fortis are a powerful and pragmatic race, but they also love their music."

The President turned towards me.

"Prime Captain, once again, we are very pleased to have you and your officers here on our planet."

"Thank you, Mr. President. We are honored to be here," I said.

As we spoke, attendants brought hand-prepared food and drinks to the table. I noticed that Vlen called one of the attendants, asking only for a glass of water. Interestingly, the people of Fortis seemed not to have detected that Vlen was an android; I must compliment Paul on his excellent work on creating Vlen.

"Why are you not eating, Commander Vlen?" the President asked.

"Captain?" Vlen asked.

I jinxed myself. I had spoken too soon.

"That's fine. Tell the President what you are," I said.

"I do not eat food, Mr. President, as I am an android," said Vlen.

"Excellent camouflage Commander Vlen!" the President said, impressed.

"Thank you, Mr. President," Vlen said.

"I believe only one person from your world could have constructed you in such fine detail. That would be Paul, the philosopher, would it not?" the President asked.

"That's correct, Mr. President," Vlen said.

"Vlen, show the President your real appearance," I said.

"Yes, Captain," Vlen said.

Within three seconds, Vlen's appearance had returned to its original state.

Your maker's reputation is well deserved," said the President.

"Thank you, Mr. President. I will be sure to tell him when I talk to him next," Vlen said.

Vlen then reverted to his previous appearance as the President turned his attention to me.

_Here's my chance!_

"Ah, Mr. President, now that my abroad team is here to pick up the buoys, I was wondering if you like to tell us a little more about how wormhole technology works?" I asked.

"Now, Captain, I do not wish to sound condescending. However, we can't have people from your world playing with technology they are not yet capable of understanding," The President replied. "Further, your computers may not be able to handle the data transfer speeds."

"I understand, Mr. President. I was just testing the waters," I said, slightly disappointed.

_The President was right. At least, we were going to get the buoys, and to be able to travel safely within the wormhole._

As if he was reading my thoughts, the President spoke.

"The supercomputers contained within the buoys are encapsulated with tamper-proof technology and a self-destruct mechanism. The buoys will be more than sufficient to ensure your safe passage within a wormhole."

I considered my next question carefully before asking it.

"Can you tell us something about your world's encounters with aliens outside the solar system?" I asked.

"To date, the aliens we have encountered are technologically advanced, peace-loving, and powerful," The President replied.

"That sounds positive," I said. "Perhaps they will visit Caeruleus?"

The President shook his head. "Unfortunately, Captain, the aliens, have recently visited your planet and are aware of the political situation in your world. In short, they have no desire to associate with the inhabitants of Caeruleus."

I let out a sigh. _Damn, I knew there was going to be a hitch!_

"Perhaps, one day, the aliens may change their minds. In the meantime, our government thanks you for these buoys, without which we could not embark on this expedition," I said.

"You're welcome, Prime Captain," the President said as he got up to walk over to the side table laden with more food.

We continued to talk for the next two segments about the expedition and the results we hoped to achieve. The jovial giants of Fortis, it seemed, were genuinely pleased and interested to have us there. Eventually, everyone had finished eating and drinking and were leaving to retire for the evening. The President escorted us personally to our accommodation and wished us goodnight and goodbye, as he had business to attend to on the other side of the city in the morning.

"If you have any requests, please direct them to my chief of security," the President said, as he and the Vice President shook our hands and left.

We were shown to our suite, which consisted of four rooms with magnificent views of the metropolis. In the center of the common area was a low-lying table, with a central screen for viewing the news and entertainment on Fortis. I walked over to the window and looked out; I could see the layout of the city following a precisely laid grid pattern. The buildings were stylistically functional rather than artistic. Nonetheless, they had a broad pleasing symmetry, which, overall, branded the city as one. Within this symmetry, there was barely enough individuality to distinguish the city into different areas. I looked hard for several minutes, trying to recognize the separate quarters. I gave up and thought about their 5,000 years of civilization. For all of that, I preferred the inferior technological cities of my world; our cities were pleasing to the eye. Amanda, the sociologist, came close to me, looking at the capital of Fortis.

"It's a mighty city," she said.

"Yes, everything about the city exhibits strength, power, and logic, but I find it lacks in some artistic respects," I said.

"I agree, Captain. They love their music, but they don't have the eye for architecture as we do."

While Amanda and I were talking, Mark and Vlen were debating about which channel to watch on the televiewer.

"I would like to look at the news," Vlen said.

"Commander Vlen, would you mind if we watch the entertainment channel instead?" Mark asked.

"Our mission is to gather as much intelligence as possible," Vlen insisted. "Gentlemen, I suggest you both retire to your rooms and watch whatever you like from within there," I said.

"You're right, Captain. I should have thought of that," said Mark.

"Very well, Captain," Vlen agreed.

Then they both went to their respective rooms, closing the doors behind them.

"I think I will do the same," Amanda said.

She turned her back and picked up a drink from the generously provisioned bar and retired to her room.

I wandered around the room, preparing myself for a visit with the Ambassador in a few segments' time. I'd soon know if any suitable applicants had responded to the advertisements placed by my government within the Fortis media. I sat down and watched the news, which, on Fortis, is mainly about old and recent scientific discoveries, sports results, and entertainment.

Two segments later, the apartment's computer announced that the Ambassador was outside the door. Looking at the video com, I waved my hand, the entrance to the suite opened, and the Ambassador strode quickly across the floor.

_Hmm. A habit he had picked up walking among giants._

"Good evening, Captain."

"Hello, Ambassador."

We shook hands and sat down, making ourselves comfortable.

"Can I offer you a drink of slonii, Ambassador?"

"Thank you, Captain; however, I have to pass. I have to save myself for this evening for the twenty-first birthday party," the Ambassador said. "The Fortis, on such occasions like to party hard."

"Sure. Did you have any luck finding a Fortis scientist to come along with us?" I asked.

"Yes, we have a scientist who can do the job," the Ambassador said.

"Can I see the data file on this individual?" I asked.

The Ambassador gave me the chip containing the file, and I placed it in my portable reader. An image of the scientist came up. He appeared to be in his early thirties, but was, in fact, two hundred and ten years old. The Fortis lived five hundred and fifty years on average. I read the data file and placed my digital assistant down.

"From his biography, the man is more of an artist than a scientist," I said.

"You're right; he is as an artist, but he is also a scientist. He changed careers and took up astrophysics and quantum physics, having graduated only recently. His personality type is extrovert, and he has an IQ of 210 on the human scale," the Ambassador explained.

"Were there any other applicants, Ambassador?"

"Unfortunately, the people who applied did not have the necessary qualifications. Captain, he is waiting downstairs for a signal from me to join us. Shall I ask him up?"

"Well, do you recommend him, Ambassador?"

"In my opinion, Captain, I believe he will prove to be a worthy asset to your expedition. However, I must stress that he is a bit on the rough side. Occasionally, he likes to drink a little too much."

The Ambassador paused for a moment. "Quite frankly, Captain, if we had secured a scientist of some standing to join the expedition, the Fortis government more than likely would have intervened and blocked the appointment. As it is, there have been no objections raised by the government if we accept Orlando as a scientific consultant."

"Okay, it appears that Orlando is our only choice. I hope we don't come to regret it."

"Captain, Orlando is eager to join. I think the Council of Fortis has decided to let us have him, so we don't accidentally cause the buoys to malfunction and destroy ourselves."

I looked down at the reader again, making sure that I would pronounce his name correctly.

"Send for Orlando Roth," I said.

The Ambassador touched his communicator and sent the signal for Orlando to come up. The suite's computer announced his arrival; I waved, and the door slid open. The Ambassador and I stood up as he walked toward us.

"Greetings, I am pleased to meet you, Prime Captain. My name is Orlando Roth."

He said, offering his hand.

_Ouch, the man's grip is crushing!_

He appeared to be a gregarious man. He stood two and a half metrons tall and was broad-shouldered with an athletic build. His face had sharp features, which softened when he smiled, increasing the crow's feet around his eyes, which suggested he possessed a happy disposition toward life in general.

"Good to meet you, as well, Orlando. Please have a seat. Can I offer you a drink of slonii?" I asked.

"No, thank you, Captain, not on the first occasion of meeting my possible future employer," he said, somewhat seriously.

"What made you decide that you would be interested in accompanying us on a long-distance voyage?" I asked.

"Captain, I found several aspects of your journey and mission appealing. But my main reason for coming is to discover new worlds – to learn and experience an adventure along the way. Here on my home planet, I have no one, other than the occasional woman who has delighted in passing away her time with me," he said.

_He's not modest, is he?_

"Orlando, what is it that you can offer our expedition?" I asked.

"Captain, as you probably know, I have spent most of my life as an artist, but I have a few years of space experience working on space border patrols. I am also a qualified scientist."

_He's certainly not afraid to sell himself._

"I note you have been a guest of the detention center for drunken and disorderly conduct on two separate occasions," I continued.

"That's right, Captain."

"The file states you were sued for breaching your promise to marry. However, no further action was taken when the woman found you had no assets that could be claimed."

"That is also correct, Captain. I was disorientated at the time of my proposal and could not remember making such a request, even though some witnesses at the time claimed I did."

"You mean to say you had a few too many drinks?"

"Exactly, Captain."

"Moving on, what made you change your career?" I asked.

"I decided to follow the first loves of my childhood, astronomy, and science. I let art take the third place – at least until I arrive on the surface of an alien world, and paint an exotic sunset."

I laughed at his reply and became silent for a moment. By rights, I should have conferred with Vlen, as he was my First Officer, but I had asked him earlier to make himself scarce during the interview. I did not want Orlando to feel intimidated by three foreigners. I liked Orlando, and despite the risk of him being a handful, I believed he would prove to be a definite asset to the expedition. For a few moments, I weighed the pros and cons. The Ambassador, who was next to Orlando, wanted him to accompany us, and he had thoroughly screened him against the induction guidelines and selection criteria.

_Hell, we don't have anyone else._

"Congratulations, Orlando, and welcome aboard," I said.

He stood and shook my hand vigorously.

_I think my hand is numb!_

"Thank you, Prime Captain, for allowing me to join the expedition. I look forward to meeting the other crew members," he exclaimed.

"Speaking of members, it's time you met my First Officer, Commander Vlen." I sent a signal to Vlen via the communicator, who entered the room.

"Vlen, I want you to meet the latest addition to the crew, Orlando Roth, who will be traveling with us in the capacity of a science consultant," I said.

"Welcome, Orlando. I am Commander Vlen," Vlen said.

He shook Orlando's hand and greeted the Ambassador.

"Vlen, call Amanda and Mark, I want them to meet him," I requested.

Vlen knocked on their doors, and they both emerged at almost the same time.

"Amanda, Mark, I want you to meet Orlando Roth, our latest addition to the expedition and our new science consultant. Orlando, this is Amanda, our leading sociologist, and Mark is our official documenter," I said.

Orlando stepped forward, took Amanda's hand, and kissed it.

"Pleased to meet you, Amanda," he said.

"Likewise," she said, somewhat amused by his behavior.

_Is he always going to be like this around the ladies?_

He then turned and shook Mark's hand.

"I'm pleased to meet you also, Mark," he said.

"Me, too. By the way, that is quite a handshake you have there," Mark replied.

I felt better about myself when I heard Mark say that. Mark was taller and probably stronger than me; his ancestors came from a region of Africa on Earth renowned for their physical prowess.

I picked up a bottle of slonii and poured a drink into everyone's goblets, except for Vlen.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I propose a toast to the expedition – to the future – may it all be smooth sailing," I said.

We all raised our goblets and drank them dry.

"It's an enjoyable drink," Mark remarked.

We socialized for a half a segment among ourselves, as I discussed some of the mission details with Orlando and the Ambassador. I made sure with the Ambassador; that our request for access to a university and library, was granted, and we would begin the next morning as scheduled. A few more drinks later, the Ambassador and Orlando departed, with the acknowledgment that he would be beamed up directly from his apartment with his belongings tomorrow evening.

I went to bed in a good mood. We had achieved two of the three objectives, and tomorrow, Vlen, Amanda, and Mark would tour the city, including a visit to one of the universities and its libraries. I decided not to go with them so that Chief Security Officer Slar Loden would have no choice other than to follow me personally. I would also be traveling with the Ambassador, who would act as a local tour guide.

"Time to hit the sack, everyone," I said.

Amanda and Mark then said goodnight to each other and us before retiring to their rooms. After they had left, Vlen asked, "Captain, do you mind if I continue to watch the televiewer?"

"No, you're lucky," I said, grinning. "As an android, you need no sleep, and on that note, I would like to wish you a good night."

I entered my room, got undressed, and hit the sack. My first night on an alien planet, and I felt out of place. I wondered how the Ambassador could adapt and call this world his home for all these years? With that last thought, I fell asleep. That night, I dreamed of a giant woman chasing me down a side street, before turning into a clown, holding a closed jack-in-the-box. She cornered me, then sprang the box open to reveal a steak and curry pie. Strange, how the human mind can jumble things together; I could make no sense of that dream, other than I like steak and curry pies.

I woke up the next morning at 7.30 segments, according to Fortis time, and had a quick shave and a shower. Vlen, as usual, had not only prepared breakfast for me but everyone else, as well. I was the last to hit the table. Amanda and Mark had already begun to eat breakfast and drink coffee.

"Good morning, Captain," Mark said.

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen," I said.

"I have prepared your favorite, Captain, French toast and eggs," Vlen said.

"It looks delicious, Captain. I'm going to learn how to make it myself," said Amanda.

"Yes, it is good," I agreed. "But I wouldn't say too much about it because your compliment will probably go to his head."

"Thanks from all of us, Commander Vlen, for cooking breakfast this morning," Mark said.

Vlen nodded and returned to the kitchen area to clean up.

Having finished our breakfast, we talked among ourselves, and at the ninth segment, the suite's computer announced the arrival of the tour guide for Vlen and his companions.

"Amanda and Mark, remember your parts. Keep the tour guide and the security people busy with questions, as Vlen walks around, recording his daily activities," I said.

I waved my hand in front of the video com, which slid open to allow the tour guide to enter.

"Good morning, my name is Indie Seth, and I am pleased to meet all of you," said the tall attractive Fortis female smiling widely.

"Greetings, Indie. I am Captain Marcus Magnusson, and I am pleased to meet you as well."

The others then stepped forward and introduced themselves individually.

"Commander Vlen, Amanda, and Mark are ready to go now. Enjoy yourselves. I shall see you in the Council's main chambers at the twentieth segment," I said.

The guide led Vlen, Mark, and Amanda through the door and to the waiting vehicles to take them on their tour of the city.

Half a segment later, the suite's computer announced the arrival of another visitor, the Ambassador. I passed my hand in front of the monitor, opening the door for the Ambassador to enter.

"Good morning, Captain. I see you have dressed up as one of the locals to try and blend in a little bit more," he said.

"Yes, I don't want to stand out too much. I'm ready to leave now. I presume Slar Loden is waiting downstairs?" I asked.

"Yes, Captain, along with two others. Our first visit will be a café, where I have my morning breakfast every day. After that, we will pay a visit to the museum. Then we'll visit the spaceport, where interstellar ships visit. Finally, we finish by meeting with the rest of your abroad team in the Council's chambers," he said.

"Great – let's go, I can hardly wait to begin," I said.

We departed and headed downstairs to meet Slar Loden and begin our tour. "Good morning, Captain, and Ambassador," Slar Loden said, nodding at each of us.

"Hello," the Ambassador said.

"Good morning. I am eager to start our tour," I said.

"As you wish, Captain," Slar Loden said.

"Let's begin by taking a brisk walk to my favorite café," the Ambassador said.

We walked a couple of blocks and then went inside the Ambassador's frequent haunt, which was half-full. We sat down and punched up a holographic beverage menu. The Ambassador read me their names, but the names meant nothing to me, so I asked him to select one for me. In less than a minute, the drinks materialized in front of us.

"Wow, almost instant materialization. That's impressive," I said.

Considering the drinks had appeared so quickly out of thin air, they looked, smelled, and tasted real. The Ambassador ordered me a sweet one that he usually had in the morning for himself, as Slar Loden sat with us, while his two men sat further back, watching the other customers in the café.

"Great morning to go for a tour, isn't it?" the Ambassador asked.

"Yes, it is," I said.

"How do you feel, Slar? Am I taking you away from any important business?" I asked.

"You are important business," he said.

_Hmm, he is not very friendly!_

We passed the morning touring the museum, looking at archeological artifacts and audio-visual displays that spoke to you. What I liked, in particular, was the museum's version of a Morpheus room, which was massive. We exited the museum and got into a vehicle prepared by Slar to take us to the spaceport. Even from a distance, I could tell the spaceport was enormous; it positively dwarfed the biggest spaceports on Caeruleus. I saw all manner of ships there. Some I recognized from our neighboring planets, while others were unknown to me. I took some digital pictures for memories, and I was keen to board one of the Fortis military vessels to have a look around.

"Ambassador, would it be possible to board one of the military vessels?" I asked.

Slar stepped forward.

"Regretfully, Captain, at the moment, our spaceships are off-limits to all off-worlders. I hope you understand," Slar said.

The Ambassador nodded his head to indicate he had been through this scenario before.

"Of course," I said.

I looked wistfully at the spaceport, puzzled by a ship of ancient design, possibly from Earth, on a corner of the spaceport that appeared to have been set aside just for it.

"Slar, is that ship from Earth?" I asked.

"Yes, it has been there over 2,300 of your years."

"Why do you keep it here?" I asked.

"Because, Captain, it was the first ship from your ancestral home to visit our world, and that is the precise spot where it landed," he said.

"What else can you tell me about it?" I asked.

"The ship carried 200 people and was powered by nuclear reactors shielded within magnetic cores. When the starship reached us, it had been traveling for 350 of your years. The people had survived in a state of cryonic suspension.

"We learned from the visitors they had come from within our galaxy; their solar system is located in the Orion arm of the galaxy. After exchanging information and learning about their planet, we sent them onwards to Caeruleus to join the rest of your people," Slar said.

"I would like to go onboard and have a look at the Earth ship," I said.

"Yes, that would be permissible, Captain. But don't you have to be getting back?" Slar asked.

He was right; we did not have much time left on Fortis; I was torn between going and staying.

"Unfortunately, Slar, you're right," I decided.

One segment later, we arrived at the Council's chamber, where we met Vlen and the others.

"Did you have an enjoyable day, Commander Vlen?" I asked.

"My day was excellent, Captain," Vlen replied. "What about you, Captain?"

"I wish we had more time," I answered.

Vice President San Lan was there to bid us farewell, as were some others. The Vice President gave me a parting gift – an armband that fitted on the forearm.

"This gift is a perpetual machine, self-repairing, and self-generating. Its function is to provide the wearer with invisibility and a force field shield. It has bonded with your molecules and can be used by no other," he said.

I touched the armband. It felt cold.

"By the way, Captain, it's fully tamper-proof. Your people will not be able to reverse-engineer it," he said.

The Vice President showed me how to fit it to my lower arm and control it with my thoughts.

"Thank you for your gift, Vice President," I said.

"I hope you never have to use it, Captain," San Lan said.

"As do I," I said.

He removed the armband, placed it in its box, and gave it to me.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I have just received a communication from _Veda_ ; they are preparing to beam up Orlando, and we will be next. Does everyone have their belongings with them?" I asked.

"Yes, Captain," Amanda replied

"I'm packed, sir," Mark responded.

"Good, let's go," I said.

We said our goodbyes to the Ambassador, the Vice President, and the attending Fortis, who, in turn, wished us a safe journey. My abroad team and I stepped a little distance back from the Fortis, and I sent a signal to the transporter room. A moment later, the air began to pulsate with energy, as the molecules of our bodies grew lighter and brighter, whirling faster, like tiny spiral-shaped fractals that disappeared within seconds. Once again, I ceased to exist. When I regained consciousness, I found myself in the transporter room aboard _Veda_.

#  Chapter 10

My name is Prometheus. I am the ship's chaplain, and I like to be called by my first name, but the crew calls me Padre according to regulations.

_I reminded myself there is only one person who is the father of us all._

I snapped out of my reverie and focused on the job.

Captain Magnusson left me in command of the vessel while he and Vlen are visiting Fortis. I sit quietly and comfortably in the Captain's seat for the first time, maintaining the ship's orbit about the planet. The navigator turns around in her chair to speak to me directly.

"Sir, my name is Sirena. I'm the navigator – I just wanted to introduce myself," she said.

"My name is Prometheus, and I'm pleased to meet you," I answered.

"Isn't it a beautiful view of the planet Fortis?" Sirena asked.

"Yes, it is beautiful. It reminds me of when I was a little boy - how I tried to touch the stars with my hands and found that I couldn't reach them. My father said you had to get real close. So, here I am."

"That's a nice story; did you have any formal training in the military, sir?"

"No. After high school, I joined a monastery, intending to study metaphysics and astronomy."

"Wow, that's a real leap between astronomy and metaphysics."

"Astronomy and metaphysics are interrelated in ways most people do not imagine. Admittedly, there is an extensive collection of science fiction books at the monastery, and this also affected my decision," I said, watching her with more interest.

"That's very amusing, sir!"

"Well, I am glad I brought a smile to your face, Officer Sirena," I said.

"I understand, sir, your passion for science fiction as a young teenager. Mine was comic books. It's good to see you kept it alive. Do you have any other passions?"

"Well, yes. I regularly read science journals to keep up with the latest discoveries."

"I like to read science journals, too, when I have a chance. I like to think about some of the things scientists write about."

"Because you are somewhat curious, I will tell you that I majored in the planetary sciences and worked as a part-time astronomer for six years."

"Have you written any papers on astronomy?" she asked.

"Yes. I've written a definitive catalog of stars based on their sizes, temperatures, and other peculiar characteristics. My research has been published in some papers and publications and has been widely read. My latest research involves studying the phenomenon of free planets and their orbiting moons."

"There are planets with moons that travel through space, not tied to a star?"

"It's true, as hard as it is to imagine for some people."

"I would like to read your research sometime; if I have any questions, may I come and ask you, sir?"

"Yes. I would be more than pleased to answer your questions."

"Thank you, Padre."

She swiveled in her chair and returned to monitoring the ship and the fleet's orbit.

In my mind, I reflected on how metaphysics, rather than astronomy, had become the focus of my inner life. Thanks to Vlen, I had recently become aware of some significant discoveries about the human spirit and soul.

I must talk to him about writing a book about his experiences one day. So people who have had similar experiences will be able to cross-reference their experiences against his and know that they are not alone.

Sheila, the communications officer, looked in my direction.

"Sir, I have a communication from Captain Wolf, asking if we have heard from the Prime Captain?" she said.

"Inform Captain Wolf that we have heard nothing since the previous contact. Advise him we are maintaining orbit, and everything is progressing according to Prime Captain's expectations," I said.

"Yes, sir," responded Sheila.

I gazed at the screen monitor, looking down upon the face of Fortis from a distance of 15,000 stadia. I could see the shape of the continents and the major cities and highways crossing the planet's surface so that the roads looked like stretched ribbons. I decided that I wanted a closer look. I magnified the view, catching the attention of Officer Marchese.

"Interesting - looking cities, aren't they, sir?" Marchese said.

"That is if you like symmetrical cities, Mr. Marchese. I prefer a little more variety. All the same, I would have liked to have gone."

Marchese's job was to run system analysis programs on the ship. Part of his work involved checking for any retardation in the signal pathways of the ship's systems as an adjunct to the engineering department.

"Sir, do you think that the Fortis built the ancient cities that lay beneath our oceans?" Marchese asked.

"I don't know. "It's the same question that we could ask about the old abandoned temples in the southern part of the world, whose writings we have been unable to decipher. I believe people of another world, from another solar system, may have built them. The writings in the temples are not even remotely related to the language alphabets of the Fortis or the Ingentum. For now, the symbols in the ancient cities and temples are undecipherable.

Our ancestors from Earth believed an earlier civilization flourished on Caeruleus and collapsed before humans from Earth settled on Caeruleus. I think the people before us were humanoid but not human, like us. Eventually, a large tablet concerning the building of the cities was discovered. Except for their ancient cities and old abandoned temples, there is nothing left of their civilization. Not even their bones remain."

"Do you think they will return one day?" Marchese asked.

"Maybe the aliens don't have to come back. Perhaps we will find them first."

I watched Zanda, the capital city of Fortis, on the screen. I could see down to street level and make out individual faces. I noticed how big the spaceport was, and in particular, four strange-looking ships of alien design from races beyond the solar system and studied them for several minutes.

_They're very impressive starships, but it's time for a break._

I stood up from the chair. " _Veda_ take control of the bridge. If anyone needs me, I will be in the cafeteria for a short break."

Sirena and Louis nodded. I left, taking my staff with me and headed down to the half-full cafeteria. A mixture of the vessel's personnel, soldiers, and pilots sat in their little groups. It would take some time, but eventually, the crew, soldiers, and pilots would begin to intermingle, and the atmosphere would improve. I walked past several soldiers, seated at two tables, and went behind the cafeteria's counter, casually checking the cleanliness of the serving area, Bain Maries, and utensils; so far, so good, and now for a stroll to the kitchen.

"Hello, Padre," a kitchen hand said.

"Greetings, friend; just pretend I am not here," I said.

I went to the kitchen, observing the handling and preparation of the food. Like many others, I preferred the taste of real food, cooked by human hands, instead of food prepared by a machine. I was also fussy about the preparation of food and the cleanliness of the staff. Satisfying myself that this was a cafeteria I could eat food from, I walked out and chose an empty table, where I looked over the menu and placed my order of vegetables and fruit juice. Shortly afterward, the waitress delivered my meal. After finishing eating, I went back to the bridge and sat down in the Captain's chair and checked _Veda's_ logs for any new entries, but there weren't any.

_Good, there's nothing to report._

I sat there for the next few segments, looking down on Fortis, occasionally interrupted by requests from operations to sign off on action dispatches for one thing or another.

"Assigning control to _Veda_ ," I announced to the bridge crew.

I finished my shift and retired to my quarters. I sat down at the table with a pen and paper and began to construct the words of my next sermon. I wrote down a few more lines and left it there, deciding to finish it later. I changed into my evening clothes and prepared myself a late dinner, and read a few pages of ancient Earth history, before going to bed.

I lay flat on my back, looking at the ceiling before closing my eyes and beginning meditation. I watched my thoughts drifting across my mind as I allowed them to appear and then dissolve, all the while, attempting to join my lungs, brain, and heart in unison through focused breathing. I felt the familiar tug as I left my body and crossed into one of the mental planes, just above the astral planes. Here, I was constructing a home, where I would like to retire to when my body could no longer support my spirit. Still, I wondered if this house I was building would be my last home.

On this plane of existence, I encountered other monks also building their houses, and together, all our homes formed a community. It was nice to belong to a group of people who thought and acted as you did, sharing the same beliefs and values. For me, the people in my heavenly community were my real home and country. I had met several of the monks before in the material world, and others I had met on the astral or mental planes. Many of us had attended a university that existed in the world of spirits, the halfway place between the positive realms and the negative realms of the afterlife. The world of spirits was where people of their own volition, chose where they wanted to spend eternity–in the positive realms or the negative realms.

In the university, the monks who had passed on before us instructed other monks still living in the material world on how to purify their souls, and Vlen had revealed to me how uneducated I was about aspects of my real nature.

I liked Vlen. He was not afraid to admit how ignorant and naïve he had been when he came into this world. Once, I was like that, too; I remember how much more worldly and smart everyone was compared to me. But all that was a long time ago.

I snapped myself back to the present and continued to work on my home. The house was two stories high and shaped as if two vertical cylinders were joined halfway, with one intersecting the other. The house was made of white marble, inlaid with pearls, with three-quarter reliefs of statues of men and women engaged in sporting activities embedded in its facade. At the front of the house, I had built a beautiful oval fountain made of white cement, as were the two gargoyles and two lions who sat on opposite sides on the oval fountain walls. The central fluted column of the fountain bore a resemblance to Egyptian architecture. From the gargoyles and the column gushing turquoise water, fell onto pebbles of brown, green, and red. In the fountain's water were red-goldfish with big cat's whiskers, created from my imagination. The water they swam in reflected the light from the sun, which was an extension of the universal sun.

Other versions of the universal sun existed on all the planes of the universe. On the material planes, they are the stars that planets orbit. I had wanted to visit the higher planes and stay there for a while, but for the time being, I was content where I was, as I had plenty to discover and keep me busy.

There were also the lower astral planes, and though I could go there, I did not, because they were full of dark, evil creatures. These creatures liked nothing better than to hitch a ride back into the world and cohabit in a human body, resulting in severe problems for the original occupant.

I remembered, on one occasion, by accident; I found myself visiting a negative plane. I encountered demons, both male and female. They had red and crimson skin tightly wrapped around their bones, with strange black tattoo markings to emphasize their fierceness. I could see them, but they couldn't see me, and because of that, I didn't feel scared, but I remember trembling the next morning at the memory. Scarier was the realization that the demons I saw were once ordinary people. For the uninitiated, astral travel could be a frightening and dangerous activity.

I stopped to look at my work. The basic structure of my mansion was complete, as were the gardens and fountains. All that remained were the colors and furniture. My home on the mental plane was my haven, where I could retire and relax away from the cares of mundane everyday existence. I continued with my work, adjusting the color of the marble, giving it a soft, creamy-white hue, with doors made of emerald, and entry handles made of gold. After a short while, I began to lose my concentration, and soon, I would be waking up in the material world.

I eventually returned to my body, which felt heavy, lying flat on its back in bed. I was thirsty, so I reached for the glass of water and drank a little before falling asleep. I woke up the next morning and immediately spoke to _Veda_.

" _Veda_ , do you have anything to report?" I asked.

"Negative, sir," _Veda_ said.

"Okay, thanks. I'll make my way to the bridge shortly," I said.

I finished breakfast and proceeded to the bridge, where I found Sheila, Sirena, and Louis already at their stations.

"Greetings, ladies and gentlemen," I said.

"Good morning, sir," they said, each in their fashion.

"Are there any communications to report, Sheila?" I asked.

"The Prime Captain will be arriving this evening with the abroad party, and a new addition to the crew, a Mr. Orlando Roth," she said. "His dossier is available if you want to look at it."

"I'll have a look at it later," I replied.

We were orbiting over a major continent of Fortis. Now would be an excellent opportunity to send maintenance crews to check the exteriors of the ship's hull. I activated the smaller viewer, which popped up in front of me, and contacted the department head of engineering. After informing him as a courtesy, I spoke to Alex, the chief of the maintenance crews.

"Good morning, sir," replied Alex.

The maintenance engineer was standing in front of the monitor, and in the background, I could see his team going about their regular duties.

"Good morning, Alex," I said.

"What can I do for you, sir?" he asked.

"Alex, I want you to send maintenance crews to look over the ship's hull while we have a chance so that they can get some real experience in space under their belts. Please monitor their movements using external cameras to make sure that the checks are completed accurately," I said.

"Yes, Sir," said Alex.

I switched the small viewer off and turned my eyes to the main televiewer. A Fortis ship appeared over the planet's horizon, its body gleaming silver in the darkness of space. It was approaching our position, and it was huge!

"Sir, I am receiving a hail from the Fortis ship," Sheila advised.

"Open a communication channel," I said.

"Yes, sir. Channel engaged," Sheila replied.

The Captain of the Fortis vessel appeared on the main viewer. He was broadcasting from the Captain's office, and not the ship's main deck.

"Greetings, Captain. My name is San Sutak. I am the Captain of the Balsano. We are primarily a deep space exploration vehicle on the way to the edge of the galaxy. I have heard that your planet is sending an expedition beyond our solar system for the first time, and I wanted to wish you and your companions a safe and productive journey," he said.

"Thank you for your good wishes, Captain. My name is Prometheus; I am the ship's Padre, temporarily in charge of the vessel and the fleet. On behalf of myself and my crew, I also wish you well on your journey."

"Thank you, Prometheus. Do you still have companions on our planet?"

"Yes, Captain. They will be arriving soon," I said.

"In that case, I hope they have enjoyed their stay. Goodbye, Commander Prometheus; perhaps we shall meet again."

I smiled. "Perhaps we shall."

#  Chapter 11

My abroad team and I materialized safely back within the transport chamber. I stepped down onto the floor from the raised platform, thanking the officer behind the screen for the smooth landing.

"Hey, what do you know? I got back in one piece!" Mark said.

He pinched his body, checking for any missing parts.

"Yep, I'm all here," he confirmed.

"You're such a clown, Mark," Amanda said.

She then turned around and headed for the corridor.

"Wait for me," said Mark.

I noticed him watching her bottom as he walked behind her.

I looked at both of them as they moved into the corridor. It was possibly the start of a beautiful romance.

"Don't forget, I want your reports within the next day," I yelled out after them.

From around the corner, I heard their voices say in unison, "Yes, Captain," as their voices trailed off down the corridor.

I left the transport area, with Vlen and headed for the bridge.

"Greetings, Padre. Is there anything significant to report?" I asked.

"Everything went smoothly, Prime Captain, and I even got to speak to the Captain of a Fortis ship," he said.

"Did he transmit from his bridge?" I curiously asked.

"No. The Fortis Captain transmitted from his office," said Padre.

"Too bad," I said, disappointed.

"Captain, now that you are back, will you be resuming command of the ship straight away?" Padre asked.

"Yes," I replied.

"Then I will return to my quarters and my meditations," Padre said.

I wished him a good evening as he took his staff and left.

I sat down in the Captain's chair and slotted the data chip into its arm.

" _Veda_ , here is my report on the Fortis abroad mission. There will be a further update later. When you receive the update, send a copy of the report to Captains Dante and Wolf," I said.

"Yes, Prime Captain," _Veda_ replied.

"Sheila, inform Slar Loden that we are ready to beam up the buoys. Let me know when they are aboard," I said.

"Yes, Captain," Sheila answered.

Shortly afterward, the buoys arrived.

"Captain, the buoys are aboard and are being secured," Sheila announced.

"Good. Inform the rest of the fleet we are preparing to leave orbit around Fortis and set a course to Gigas in one segment's time," I said.

I engaged the 3D communicator and let Telesio and Castelli know that I wanted to talk to them and see them in my office in five minutes. I left the bridge, went to my quarters, and left the door open for Telesio and Castelli to enter. They arrived a few minutes after me, and I invited them to come inside and take a seat.

"Greetings, Captain. Were you given the buoys by the Fortis, as promised?" Telesio asked.

"Yes, I want you and Joseph to familiarize your selves with them as soon as possible. Then, calculate where and when we can lay down our first buoy, and the one after."

"We'll do that immediately, and notify you of anything important," said Telesio.

"I look forward to examining them," Castelli said enthusiastically.

I shook my head. "Gentlemen, do not, I repeat, do not try to examine the devices. They have been made tamper-proof, and I would not put it past the Fortis to cause the buoys to deactivate if we try to learn how they work."

"Captain, how are we supposed to learn if we cannot examine the buoys?" Castelli asked.

"I've brought a scientist from Fortis with me, who will help you with the configuration of the buoys. Sometime within the next two days, I will organize a meeting between you three," I said.

"What scientific field does this scientist specialize in?" Telesio asked.

"Astrophysics and quantum physics. If you want to know more, you can ask him yourself at the meeting."

"Captain, where are the buoys being held?" Castelli asked.

"They're on the twenty-second level. When you get out of the grav-lift, look straight ahead and go the room with the two guards standing outside. I will notify their commander that you are both to be expected," I answered.

"Thank you, Captain. We're excited to meet a fellow scientist from another planet!" Telesio said.

"Now, I know you probably have a hundred questions or more, but I have to get back to the bridge. I will have _Veda_ send you the time and location of the meeting," I said.

"Yes, Sir. We're out of here," Castelli said.

I returned to the bridge, where I ordered the helmsman to move the ship out of orbit. _Veda_ left the orbit of Fortis, followed by the rest of the fleet, and headed towards Gigas, our next stop.

"Sheila, send an encrypted message to the Captains of _The Valeria_ and _The Graziella_. Advise them that I would like to meet tomorrow onboard _Veda_ to discuss the deployment of the first buoy, and the subsequent laying of the others," I said.

"Captain, can I speak to you a moment?" Sheila asked.

"Sure, go ahead," I said.

_From her tone, she wants something; let's see what it is._

"I was hoping, Captain, that, in the near future, I could go with you on an abroad mission."

"Sir, I would like to go as well," Sirena interjected.

"Ladies, if the opportunity presents itself, I will consider your requests. However, the next abroad outing is a diplomatic mission to Gigas," I said.

"Thank you, Captain; we understand," Sirena said. "We just wanted to let you know."

_That's for sure! They didn't waste any time letting me know._

I got up and walked over to the bay window, looking forward into space. I could see Gigas already, but it was just a dot.

" _Veda_ , enhance the magnification by 2,000," I said.

"Acknowledged, Captain," _Veda_ said.

Gigas was now clearly defined, a giant gold planet with ice at its north and south poles. Its gravity was half that of Caeruleus, my home planet. The people who lived there were tall and elegant, with an ethereal quality about them. The cities, separated by vast distances, were connected by waterways that resembled canals crossing the surface. The planet looked precisely like the pictures back on my home computer, images taken by the first visiting spaceships from Caeruleus.

"Return to normal magnification," I said.

"Acknowledged, Captain," replied _Veda_.

There would be time enough to admire Gigas later.

I engaged the outer and rearview cameras looking at _The Valeria_ and _The Graziella_. Both ships were thirty stadia behind Veda, _The Valeria_ to the right, and _The Graziella_ to the left. Flying within the triangle-shaped formation, were the three supply vessels and the three ark ships. From a distance, our squadron of vessels looked like a small invasion fleet, but our mission was peaceful. All an intelligent alien had to do was open up a channel of communication and talk to us. From past dealings with aliens within the solar system, we assumed that any future contact with advanced intelligent alien species would be peaceful. However, there were no guarantees that all advanced intelligent aliens would be nonviolent.

It was growing late, and I had not relaxed since my return from Fortis. "Commander Vlen, assume command of _Veda_ while I retire for the evening," I said.

"Yes, Captain," answered Vlen.

He moved into my seat and quickly established a direct link with _Veda_. I went to my office and updated the report, making recommendations for future visits to Fortis and then filed it with _Veda_. Less than a moment later, _Veda_ sent me a confirmation that a copy of the original report and update had been forwarded to Captains Dante and Wolf.

_Good, Veda is in safe hands with Vlen on the bridge, and everything is moving along smoothly._

It had been a long day, and after a quick snack, I hit the sack. I slept through to the morning, undisturbed. Of course, I reminded myself, in space, there is no morning, day, or night. However, for the first time, my people had created a ship that simulated climates. _Veda_ created impressions of the day and the night with aromas of natural environments such as the forest or beach. The change of conditions provided a welcome contrast to the monotony of an otherwise sterile environment.

Upon waking, I immediately checked the news on the televiewer, and after eating and showering, went to the bridge. Vlen looked like he was part of the chair.

_Maybe someone has stuck glue to the chair, and he can't get up?_

I went to the forward bay window and stared into space; Gigas appeared more prominent on the screen.

I walked back over to Vlen. "Is there anything to report, Commander?" I asked.

"Nothing to report, sir,"

"Commander Vlen, I'll take over the bridge."

"Yes, Captain."

He removed himself from the Captain's chair and stood behind it as I sat down and made myself comfortable.

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen," I said, addressing Sheila, Sirena, and the helmsman.

"Good morning, sir," they all said, in their fashion.

I briefly looked at the previous day's reports filed by all the Captains of the fleet.

_Beautiful, nothing out of the ordinary!_

My mind raced ahead to the meeting about the buoys, with the two Captains and the three scientists. If the buoys worked properly for us, we would be the first people from my planet to travel using wormhole technology. The prospect of doing so excited me.

With wormholes in place, we could travel back and forth more quickly to Caeruleus. We could send back information about our encounters with aliens and examples of any new technology we might acquire. The Republic could even send more colonists after us to colonize the new worlds we might discover. Wormhole technology would open up new worlds of opportunity for our species, and travel to places no one from our planet had ever been. But I shouldn't get ahead of myself. You never know when something can go wrong.

_Stop being negative, Magnusson! We have the best and brightest personnel - and now, with Orlando, we can make this work._

With that thought, I put on a smile and went to the forward part of the bridge.

#  Chapter 12

The Ingentum of Gigas live on a bright gold, shimmering planet, which is slightly flat at its poles with bulging at its equator. The planet's diameter is twelve times the diameter of Caeruleus, and it orbits the suns at a distance of seven astronomical units or 1,105,100,000 stadia from my world. Gigas rotates once around its axis every thirty segments and has nine inhabited continents. I could see the mainland I would be visiting, obscured partially by shimmering gold and silver dust. The planet's oceans are vast and blue, with the tips of waves glittering as if they held tiny diamonds.

Gigas is cold, but not too cold; their summers are like our mild winters. The Ingentum are humanoid, with an average height of 1.9 metrons. They have spiral markings on the surface of their skin, similar to fractals. The two primary colors are gold and orange, with flecks of blue. The smaller fractals are visible on their fingertips and the lobes of their ears. At night, their bodies, including their faces and hands, give off a soft, golden-orange luminescence. The eyes of the Ingentum, without exception, are green and blue, with flecks of silver or gold.

In their speech, the voices are melodic and harmonic. Whenever there is a group of Ingentum, and one of them speaks, one can hear the leading voice of the person speaking as well as the voices of other Ingentum who agree with what is being said. All the other voices sound at a lower volume, and together, they sound harmonious, blending into one. It is the sound of many voices saying the same words in a slightly different way, with the same intent. One would think, upon hearing the description of the Ingentum and their mode of speech, that such language would be irritating. However, collectively, these many voices speaking as one voice are pleasing to the ears. Our scientists and sociologists have tried to understand how they talk in this fashion. They have postulated that a mechanism conducive to telepathy, exists within a resonant field of acoustic energy in the ether, that works as a relay and amplifier of their words and thoughts. But this is only a hypothesis.

The Ingentum use syllables to express complete thoughts; their syllables are more economical, precise, and analytical than the words and sentences of humans. To express a whole idea contained in one of their syllables would require one or two sentences to convey the same meaning in our language. We don't understand their words or alphabet, but they know ours. Our universal translators can't translate their language; it would require many ships' computers to come close to an accurate translation. When they want us to understand them, they give us their universal translators for us to use, or they speak to us directly in our language.

Like our scientists, the mysterious Ingentum baffled me. I found the females of the species very attractive, even though they were taller than me. The women are beautiful to behold, almost ethereal, well-shaped, and elegant in motion; however, looks can be misleading. The females are incredibly strong, as I found out for myself on one occasion. I remember being in a restaurant once with some female friends, one of whom worked in space relations, who had invited an Ingentum acquaintance along to the dinner.

I had been drinking steadily, far more than my usual limit. My friend was slightly envious that I was looking at her companion instead of her.

"I dare you to kiss her," she said.

Everyone was having a good time, and someone laughed at the suggestion. On impulse, I kissed the Ingentum.

**Whack!**

She hit me with a broadside right across my face and looked at me with eyes that were laughing. I was embarrassed, but then I began to laugh with everyone else. My friend had set me up beautifully. Now and again, I remember the kiss and the smack that quickly followed.

Slowly, my mind came back to the present, back to my government's request before leaving Caeruleus.

My government had asked the Gigas High Council to permit the fleet to orbit Gigas, while I beamed down with a diplomatic team to try and negotiate a more open exchange of ideas. Permission was granted for one ship to circle Gigas, while the rest of the fleet was to remain outside the planet's orbit. The Ingentum said this was necessary because of the number of artificial satellites orbiting their world and intergalactic ships passing through their nine main spaceports.

I looked at one of their ships as it passed a few hundred stadia in front of us. The vessel was elliptical and made from a gold-silver alloy. I estimated the ship to be twice the size of _Veda_. We did not know what they used to power their ships, and our government had blocked previous attempts by military intelligence units to obtain this information. The three Proconsuls had decided that efforts to gain new technology would have to wait until we had established a mechanism for cultural exchange as the Ingentum were not interested in trade, or in the scientific knowledge we possessed. From the little we knew about them, it was suggested that they might be more open to social exchanges of art, music, literature, and philosophy.

A Department of Ingentum Cultural Affairs was created to select the best of our musicians, artists, and philosophers for a possible visit to Gigas. It was my job to present these proposals to the Ingentum government. I had brought data files containing samples of theater acts, musical performances, philosophical lectures, and more. I hoped that the Ingentum representatives would view these files favorably before deciding on our proposal. I would be pushing the arts of my planet to a civilization more advanced than ours. On the face of it, it was not going to be an easy sell. I needed to find out more about what they liked. My job here was to open doorways between my government and their world further, and to show the Ingentum that we were real, civilized beings, and nothing like the people of the second and third blocs of my world.

I scratched my forehead. "I hope they buy it!" I muttered to myself.

The Ingentum appeared childlike, but they were no fools. They had been observing our world for hundreds of years, and as a result, did not want much to do with Caeruleus. It was only after repeated requests from my government that they had relented and opened communication with us. In the hope of reducing the barriers further, we allowed the Ingentum to use our spaceports for maintenance, refueling, or anything of a peaceful nature should ever the need arise.

I turned my gaze in the direction of a passing Ingentum vessel and then returned my gaze to their world. I wondered how the Ingentum had managed to create an artificial atmosphere on their planet, overcoming a natural environment that was, at the very least, harsh to humanoid life forms.

I needed help in dealing with the Ingentum. I decided I would take Padre, Vlen, and the cultural expert assigned to _Veda_. I decided to call a meeting on the third level to discuss the plan, strategy, and tactics.

" _Veda_ , send messages to Commander Vlen, Padre, and Quintis Brevis to meet me on the third level, in Meeting Room Three, in one segment. _Veda_ , you are in charge of the bridge until I return."

"Acknowledged, Captain," said _Veda_.

I walked off the bridge and went to my quarters to refresh my memory. I accessed my terminal, performing a search for the Ingentum in the ship's library, which brought up several thousand results. Even so, there was not very much to go on here - mainly just mentions. I did a general search for their history and their past political leaders, the constitution of their society, and known technological achievements, the results were scant, revealing mostly information about their visits to our spaceport. I then switched my search to the arts and found what the Proconsuls had discovered; the Ingentum loved the arts, and considered them, alongside technology, to be the pinnacle of civilization. They loved music and poetry in particular. At last, I had found a base to work from.

" _Veda_ , are there any recordings of Ingentum music or poetry in our data crystals?"

"Searching, Captain... we have 136 recorded works that are music, poetry, or poetry spoken over music created by the Ingentum," _Veda_ replied.

" _Veda_ , playback one of the musical recordings," I said.

"Complying, Captain," said _Veda_.

_Veda_ played back a recording of music, and over it, the voice of an Ingentum reciting poetry. Even though I did not understand the spoken words or the nature of the instruments making the music, I enjoyed the recording. The cadence of the spoken words was melodic, and the music had an ethereal quality.

After listening to the composition, I felt refreshed and relaxed. I realized, in some ways, how primitive my world was next to theirs.

However, I didn't have enough time to try to understand the Ingentum through their music and poetry. It would have been more beneficial if Vlen or Padre listened to these recordings instead of me. It was regrettable that our government did not have enough background information on the Ingentum to assist us further. Still, I guess that was why we were here–to broaden the doors of perception, to exchange ideas, and in the process, learn more about their civilization.

I added up what I knew about the Ingentum. They were peaceful and more technologically advanced than we were. Their women were more than pretty, and their cities were aesthetically beautiful.

But what if the Ingentum, were not interested in our musicians, artists, poets, and philosophers? What could I show them on my ship that might attract their interest? Ideas started popping into my head left, right, and center. Only a handful of the Ingentum had ever traveled to our planet. I could invite some of them to our Morpheus Room, and program our ship's computer to recreate any scenes from their world's history or personal lives. Alternatively, I could bring down several visi-helmets with me to Gigas and program them to replay the hundreds of 3D virtual worlds stored in the helmets computers. But who was I kidding? I was grasping at straws. They were more technologically advanced than we were, but I had to try. Maybe someone could come up with a better idea.

My stomach was grumbling. It had been more than eight segments since I'd last eaten properly. I went over to the Konstadt replicator and created two Volarian burgers, followed by a cold drink of water for a change. I made sure the Konstadt maker was set to clean and refresh itself before my next request for food. I finished my meal and headed down to the meeting room on the third level. Already waiting, were Vlen, Padre, and the cultural expert, Quintis Brevis, who admitted straight away that his knowledge of the Ingentum was minimal. Nonetheless, his role as a social expert, promoting the arts of our world was important. We exchanged greetings and made ourselves comfortable.

"Gentlemen, before we begin, I need to issue some instructions to _Veda_ concerning the fleet," I said.

"Take your time, Captain," Padre said.

" _Veda_ , on my orders, inform the rest of the fleet to remain here outside the orbit of Gigas, and to await further orders," I said.

"Complying, Captain," said _Veda_.

I then touched the communicator and contacted the helmsman.

"Helmsman Louis, establish an orbit around Gigas and maintain an altitude 17,000 stadia above the planet," I said.

"Yes, Captain," replied Louis.

I closed the channel and opened another to Sheila.

"Sheila, open a direct channel to Chancellor Valda of the High Council. Announce that we are currently orbiting their planet, and request their permission to land an abroad team of four people."

"Yes, Captain. I will make the request through regular diplomatic channels," Sheila said.

I estimated the Ingentum would probably contact us within the next several segments. I closed the communicator and focused on the meeting at hand.

"Gentlemen, as you know, we are on a mission of great importance, specifically to open up a cultural exchange of ideas between our world and that of the Ingentum."

"Captain," interjected Quintis. "I have prepared the data files containing the history of our arts and their development over the centuries, with current, recorded examples of artistic works for the Ingentum to peruse."

"We appreciate your efforts, Quintis. However, if they have no interest in our arts, can you come up with something else that will spark their curiosity?" I asked.

Quintis shook his head. "I've given this great deal of thought, Captain, and I can't think of anything. Have you come up with any ideas?"

"Yes. As advanced as the Ingentum are, perhaps they don't have a Morpheus Room or virtual 3d helmets. They might enjoy using them," I offered.

"Captain, forgive me if I say you are grasping at straws," Quintis said.

"I have to agree with Quintis," Vlen said.

_I'll turn the tables on Vlen._

"Do you have any ideas, Commander Vlen?" I asked.

"In the event of failure, I have only one," Vlen replied.

"What idea is that?" I asked.

"I suggest that we show them games, such as Dragonist and others," Vlen said.

If it had been anyone else with that idea, I would have kicked him out of the room.

"Okay, Vlen," I laughed. "If we become desperate, we can give that idea a try."

"Thanks for your vote of confidence," Vlen said, slightly annoyed.

_Did I detect some sarcasm in his voice, or was that my imagination?_

"What do you have to say, Padre? Any ideas, in case things start to slide under the table?" I asked.

"I suggest that if the Ingentum don't want to go along with our suggestions, we ask them what they would like to talk about or share with us," the Padre said.

"That's been the whole problem up until now; they have not wanted to share anything," I said.

"Captain, while we are away, who is going to look after _Veda_ and the crew?" Padre asked.

"I have arranged for Captain Dante to command _Veda_ while his First Officer looks after _The Graziella_ ," I answered.

For the rest of the meeting, we all shared what we knew about the Ingentum, which wasn't much. After we had exhausted this knowledge, I decided to end the session.

"Gentlemen, unless anybody has anything else to add, this meeting is now over, and we can return to our stations."

I was aboard the bridge when a message from the Ingentum arrived.

"Captain, _Veda_ is receiving a transmission from Gigas. Would you like me to put it on the main viewer?" asked Sheila.

"Go ahead."

On the main viewer, a councilor of the Ingentum, sitting at his desk, replaced the image of space. Behind him was a picture of the city and below it words written in their language. The council member spoke in our language.

"Welcome to Gigas, Prime Captain Magnusson. My name, translated into your tongue, is Sidal Thoren; I am a Councilor on the High Council of Gigas. I will also be your host while you are on our planet," Sidal said.

"Thank you for your welcome, Councilor Sidal," I said.

"You have our permission, Captain, to land with your team. I will send the coordinates to your ship. You may beam down in precisely one segment of your time."

"Thank you, Councilor. My team will beam down in one segment," I confirmed.

The council member closed the transmission, and the screen reverted to stellar space.

"Sheila, patch me through to _The Graziella_. I need to talk to Captain Dante," I said.

"Yes, Captain," said Sheila. "Captain, the line is open."

I switched over the televiewer to the open line.

"Greetings, Captain Dante. Are you ready to come aboard?" I asked.

"Yes, Prime Captain."

"Good. Beam over within fifteen minutes, we'll briefly talk before I leave."

" _Veda_ , take over until Captain Dante assumes control," I said.

"Acknowledged, Captain," _Veda_ said.

It was time to address the crew on the bridge.

"Attention, ladies, and gentlemen," I announced.

Severus, Sheila, Sirena, Louis, and the others swiveled their chairs to look at me. "You are all aware that we are on a diplomatic mission to Gigas. The purpose of this is to establish cultural ties with these great and peaceful people. Commander Vlen, Padre, and Quintis Brevis will accompany me to build new bridges between our two species. We have several days to accomplish this mission."

The crew remained silent, so I continued.

"Captain Dante of _The Graziella_ will be coming aboard soon to take over _Veda_ for the duration of my stay on Gigas. You are to obey his orders and afford him every courtesy when he is on board. Is that understood?" I said.

"Yes, Captain," Sheila answered

"I will be on my best behavior," Sirena added

I ignored Sirena's statement and continued.

"Okay, everyone. Now return to your regular duties, and I'll see you all in one week," I said.

"Good luck, sir," said Louis.

"Keep her steady," I replied.

"I will, Sir."

"Severus, come with me," I said.

Severus and I walked off the bridge together, got into the grav-lift, and went down to the transporter room to meet Captain Dante. I greeted McCluskey, the transporting officer, who received the signal that Captain Dante was ready to board _Veda_.

"Beam Captain Dante aboard," I said.

The transporter chamber came to life as Dante materialized with a bag in his hand.

From the control room of the transporter area, I spoke.

"Welcome aboard, Captain Dante," I said.

"Glad to be here, Prime Captain," he replied.

He walked off the platform in the transporter chamber to the end of the room, where Severus and I met him.

"Captain Dante. Here is my regular schedule for the next seven days. As you can see, the duties we perform are almost the same, but you now also have control of the fleet," I explained.

Captain Dante looked at the program briefly, reading some of the notes.

"Are there any questions?" I asked.

"None, Prime Captain. Your instructions and notes are crystal clear," he said.

"Well, in case you think of any questions later, Severus will be here to help you."

Severus merely nodded. This was so typical of Severus – a man of few words.

"Captain Dante, I have arranged for you to have temporary quarters to sleep in, and for official business, the use of the office in my quarters," I said.

I dismissed Severus and took Captain Dante to his temporary quarters.

"Good luck, Prime Captain. I hope you are successful in your mission," he said.

"Thanks, Captain Dante. I know I've left the fleet in good hands," I said.

We shook hands, and I went to my quarters to gather clothes and toiletries. A few moments later, I was ready.

" _Veda_ , inform Padre, Commander Vlen, and Quintis Brevis to meet me in the transporter room in ten minutes," I said.

"Acknowledged, Captain," said _Veda_.

I left my quarters and went to the transporter room, carrying my clothes and other items in a duffel bag. When I reached the transporter room, I found Padre, waiting with staff in hand, and a bag slung over his back.

"Greetings, Prime Captain. I see you are all packed and ready to go."

_How did Padre get here so fast?_

"So are you," I returned

I felt like a schoolboy going on my first trip away from home. Padre, on the other hand, looked cool. Moments later, Vlen and Quintis Brevis arrived. Quintis carried two bags – one for his belongings, the other for memorabilia and artifacts from our world. After a little commotion, we stood on the platform, waiting to be beamed down.

"Okay, everyone: ready to go?" I asked.

All of them nodded their heads in agreement.

" _Veda_ , inform Captain Dante that we are about to beam down to Gigas," I said.

"Acknowledged, Captain," said _Veda_.

Captain Dante's voice came over the transporter room public address system.

"Once again, good luck on your mission, gentlemen."

"Thanks, and have a good week. Captain to the transporter room: four to beam down to Gigas," I said.

"Commencing dematerialization, Captain," McCluskey acknowledged.

I blinked my eyes, and when next I opened them, we were in the councilor's residence, inside a large room where the councilor and three others from the committee were waiting. The committee consisted of two men and two women. All wore loose-fitting clothes of a saffron-colored material. One of the female councilor's garments was semi-transparent; I could see the shape of her body very clearly.

The room was dome-shaped, made of a translucent material that shimmered with an emerald light and tinges of blue around its edges. One of the doors opened, and an auto-bot, carrying refreshments, made its way to us.

"Gentlemen, welcome to Gigas! For those who do not know, my name is Sidal Thoren. I am a Councilor on the high council of my world. I am also the chairperson of the committee on Gigas-Caeruleus relations," he said.

"We are pleased to be here, Councilor Sidal," I said. "These are my companions, Commander Vlen, my First Officer, Padre, our spiritual advisor, and Quintis Brevis, our cultural expert."

"Thank you, Prime Captain. These are my three consultants: Astra Pieria, Minister for the Arts; Valthorn San, Legal Counsel; and Talen Forth, Security Advisor," he said.

"Welcome to our world," Minister Pieria said. "We hope your stay will be a pleasant and interesting one."

Astra was beautiful. She had orange and golden hair, gorgeous blue-green eyes with flecks of gold, and luscious red lips. Her height and the curvature of her figure would have set her apart on any world. In addition to her beauty, there was a certain charm, which the other Ingentum lacked. I took a liking to her straight away. Again, I noticed that whenever any of the Ingentum spoke, it did sound as if more than one voice spoke with the same intent. The quieter voices presented themselves in harmony with the leading voice. It was a real pleasure just to hear the Ingentum talk.

"Minister Pieria, may I ask you a question?" I asked.

"That depends on the question, Prime Captain," she replied.

"When you speak, I hear one central voice and three softer ones behind it. I presume the leading voice is your own, and that the other three belong to the other council people in the room?"

"That's correct, Prime Captain," she said.

"If there were seven Ingentum in the room and you were speaking, would I then hear your voice as the dominant voice with six others behind it?" I asked.

"Yes, if all the Ingentum in the room agree, you will hear seven voices issuing from my mouth."

"What happens if all the Ingentum present are not in agreement?" I asked.

"In that case, you will only hear the voices of those who are in agreement with me on the subject at hand. If none are in agreement with me, then you will hear my voice only."

I considered asking another question but thought better of it for the time being.

"Prime Captain, please give us your bags. One of the auto bots will take it to the rooms we have prepared for you and your companions," instructed Sidal.

All of us handed over our bags of personal items. Quintis kept the bag with the gifts with him.

"You do not want the robot to take your other bag?" Astra asked.

"No, Minister Pieria. I have some gifts I would like to present on behalf of our government."

"Oh, I understand, now," she said.

"This way, gentlemen, Let us sit in the main guest room," Sidal said.

We followed Sidal to the guest room, where circular, low-lying couches, and a low table laden with refreshments, awaited us. Sidal extended an arm to the lounges.

"Please, gentlemen, sit down. It is our custom to lie on the seats in my home. We mean no disrespect toward you when we do so."

Then, he and his companions each chose a section of the couches and made themselves comfortable. I took part of the sofa, as did Vlen, Padre, and Quintis.

"Councilor Sidal," Quintis began, "I would like to present you with a small gift from our planet as a mark of respect for your great culture."

He opened his bag and pulled out a trophy goblet of gold and silver, half a metron long. He read the inscribed words: "This cup commemorates the first cultural exchange meeting between beings from the planet of Caeruleus and the planet Gigas. Quintis then read the inscription on the goblet, 'We came as strangers and left as friends.'

He handed it to Sidal, who repeated the words.

"'We came as strangers and left as friends.' These are honorable words; let's hope they come to pass."

He handed the cup to Astra, who, in turn, passed it on to the others.

One question had been burning in the back of my mind, and I needed to get it off my chest.

"Councilor Sidal, I have often wondered why your civilization has refrained from contact with my government. I understand, from my contacts within the government, that your world has no communication with the two other blocs of our world because of their violence and lack of humanity. But what did my bloc do that your people keep your distance from us?" I asked. Then, I added, "I ask not out of any disrespect for your decision, but out of a desire to learn and improve ourselves and in the process, understand your civilization better."

Suddenly the Ingentum became quiet. It appeared as if the Ingentum were exchanging thoughts telepathically among themselves. After a moment, Sidal answered.

"Captain, we are peace-loving people. We enjoy harmony, wisdom, creative and functional technology, creating objects of beauty, and playing games. We do not enjoy violence, destruction, torture, willful ignorance, poverty, greed, perversions, or the lust for dominion over fellow beings. Your world excels in the arts of cruelty; we shun such worlds. We do not wish our society and its thought processes to be contaminated by ideas of greed and power-lust. Imagine if you have a case full of fruit, all of it in a healthy condition. If you place a fruit that is rotten with the good fruit, over time, the good fruit will begin to rot because of proximity to the bad fruit. To preserve the good fruit, we remove the rotten fruit or, better still, ensure the foul fruit never enters."

"Your civilization is advanced and very wise. How could we truly affect your world for the worse?" I asked.

This time, Astra spoke.

"Prime Captain, many thousands of your years ago, our civilization, for a brief time, was like your world today. We had violence, destruction, and murder. We do not want any of our people to revert to that way of life or thinking again."

"Minister Pieria, how did your people extradite themselves from such imperfection?" Padre asked.

Astra became sad. "After several hundred years of chaos, suffering, and destruction, we learned from our mistakes. We became aware that there were civilizations greater than ours who shunned us for our violence, which spurred us on to do better."

"Minister Pieria, can you tell us where we might locate such civilizations?" I asked.

"Prime Captain, when they are ready, they will contact you, if that is what they want," Astra assured. "Until then, they will remain invisible to your eyes. I wish to add there are myriads of worlds in the universe that contain life; do not expect them to all be humanoid or even to exist on the material plane."

Security advisor Talen interjected. "Prime Captain, our government monitors media broadcasts from your planet. Your citizens enjoy watching T.V. shows depicting people shooting one another and committing crimes of violence. My civilization finds the portrayal of dead human beings come to life as zombies and the people that shoot them, as decadent and the precursor of worse things to come. Surely, you must see how that must look in our eyes?"

"Humans are not all like that," offered Vlen. "I am an android. My master, Paul, who is an inventor, philosopher, and politician, created me. His thoughts and deeds are always for the greater good and advancement of our world. There are many millions like him, despite the other millions who are behind in moral and social development."

"It is true what you say, Commander Vlen," Sidal agreed, "and that is why the government of our world is prepared to draw closer ties with your government. We want to protect ourselves from contamination, but we also cannot claim to be wise until we show compassion to those who deserve it."

"Councilor Sidal, I am glad you said that," Quintis said. "In my bag, I have objects and data files of the arts from my world. Please review the data files at your leisure, and let me know if there is anything of interest."

He put his hand into the bag and pulled out a few boxes of data files encapsulated in crystal cubes, from which the Ingentum could extract the information and view as mental images. He handed them over to Astra, who, in turn, gave a box to each of the other councilors.

"We will eat now and continue this discussion later," Councilor Sidal said.

He waved his hand, and the music came on. The music sounded Harmonious, reminiscent of sunlit skies, water bubbling over a brook, and images of trees with sunlight streaming through branches–it was not like the music from Caeruleus; it sounded ethereal. He called two of the servo-bots to his presence and directed that they bring out the prepared food. The servo-bots cleared the table and served the main meal. It consisted of fruits that I had never seen before. The fruits looked tempting, but at the same time, part of me was hesitant.

_What if the food made me sick?_

My hesitation must have been apparent.

"Don't worry, Captain," Sidal offered. "We understand human anatomy and physiology; no food or drink here will produce any ill effects."

Not wishing to offend my hosts, I decided to set an example for everyone.

"The food looks delicious," I said, taking a bite.

It was good, tasting like seasoned chicken. I tried something else that tasted like chocolate fondue laced with mint. I had a blue drink that was somewhat syrupy but went down easily enough. The others were eating and drinking, except for Vlen. Quintis seemed particularly happy with his refreshment because he ordered a second.

"Are you enjoying our food, Prime Captain?" asked Astra.

"Yes, the food tastes superb, and is the drink alcoholic?" I asked

"To us, the drink is like lemonade in your world. But for you, it would feel like an alcoholic drink," Astra said.

_Great, now I have to worry about over drinking._

"Quintis, go easy on the drinks; it looks like they can affect us," I grinned.

"Yes, Captain, thanks for the warning," Quintis grinned.

_Too late! He's on his third drink._

"This food is delicious, and the drink sublime!" said Padre.

_Whoa, the drink was sublime!_

I hadn't heard Padre talk about drinks like that. Now that I thought about it, I had never seen him drink alcohol, either.

"What's it like being the Captain of a starship?" asked Talen Forth.

"I enjoy it," I answered. "It brings me new challenges every day. Of course, there is excitement and adventure, and the overall feeling of being useful and complete."

"Councilman Talen, if there is no violence or destruction in your world, why does your government have a security department?" I asked.

"We do not need internal security, Captain. At night, all the doors to our homes and public buildings remain open. The security department exists to ensure that off-worlders do not attempt to gain some advantage over us.

"We mainly do monitoring and stealth work, on other worlds, but we never spy on our friends," Talen said.

I nodded my understanding. "Does your government spy on the second and third blocs?"

"That is correct, Captain."

"I appreciate your frankness," I said.

Talen bowed his head in acknowledgment.

"By the way, Security Advisor Talen," I said, "there are ancient cities located in the farthest depths of our oceans; did your race build them? If not, do you know who did?"

"The cities you refer to were built by a race that exists near the northern rim of the galaxy," Talen explained matter-of-factly, "They passed through our solar system and landed on your planet. Making the best of it, they began to build a new life, eventually succeeding, and then disappearing altogether, probably as the result of a cataclysm of some sort. But these are only guesses at best; no one from my world knows what happened to them."

The mood in the room had quickly changed for the merrier. Sidal clapped his hands twice, and pulsating organic lights appeared in the air in front of us. I watched Astra, placing her hands under the floating light orbs, stretching their appearance this way and that. In the process, other little balls of light were formed, similar to liquid bubbles in a lava lamp; only these bubbles were floating in the air.

Earlier, I had noticed incense cones, not yet lit. Now, Sidal got up and burned several of them. The aromas were intoxicating, like frankincense and myrrh mixed in with rose blossoms. The room was thick with the smoke of the incense, but I didn't mind. I was having a good time, as were Quintus and Padre. Only Vlen seemed to keep his composure.

I was feeling light-headed now; I had ignored my own advice – I was on my third drink. I knew I wasn't drunk, but enough was enough. I pushed the glass away and looked at Quintis and Padre, indicating that they ought to do the same. Quintis reluctantly pushed his away, as did Padre. Good.

_Getting drunk was not the way to commence a diplomatic mission._

"Prime Captain, do you like to dance?" Astra asked.

The thought of dancing with Astra pleased me, but I had never bothered to learn.

"Unfortunately, I am a terrible dancer," I replied.

"Prime Captain, do I detect shyness?" she asked.

I looked at her, remembering what had happened the time I tried to kiss one of her species.

"Thanks for the invitation, Minister Pieria. However, I must decline," I said.

She smiled. "Perhaps then, you and your companions can join me on the balcony, where we can see the city. I am sure you and your friends will enjoy the view."

"That sounds great," I said, getting up.

Padre, Quintis, Vlen, and I accompanied Astra to the balcony while her fellow councilors remained on the couches.

When I looked out, I received a big surprise. I had thought we had transported to a building on the surface of the planet. Instead, we were in an apartment building block that floated in the sky. I stood right next to the edge of the balcony, alongside the guardrail, looking at the other buildings suspended in the air. There was a telescope viewer on the balcony, so I looked through it. Much further away, I could see entire cities suspended in the clouds, others floating on the oceans, as well as traditional cities on the ground.

I had seen images of Ingentum cities in our data files, taken by the lone traveler granted permission to visit this world. Still, I had to marvel at this civilization, which had built such great cities and set them at such heights.

The structures of the buildings in the cities consisted of resilient crystal and rare jewels, arranged in geometrical shapes with spiral patterned and dome-shaped buildings. I could see sky vehicles flying between buildings, as well as a few Ingentum in the air, float to their destinations without transport. Through a telescope, I saw ships on the ocean carrying passengers between colonies across the sea. On the land, their primary mode of transport appeared to be by watercraft within the waterways that crisscrossed their cities and continents. I trained my telescope on the creatures breaking the surface of the water. They looked like whales, but with webbed wings protruding from the sides of their bodies, and other animals for which I had no approximation.

I wanted to keep looking through the telescope, but as there was only one, my time at the telescope had to be brief.

"Vlen, would you like to look through the telescope?" I asked.

"Thank you, Captain. I will after Padre and Quintis have both looked," he said.

"Quintis, you go first," offered Padre.

"Thank you, Padre, I won't be long," he said.

I stepped aside from the telescope as Quintis took his position and peered through the eyepiece.

"Wow, that's fantastic!"

He was looking at one of the beautiful cities of the Ingentum, which appeared like giant seashells springing from the ground, facing the sky at a twenty-degree angle. The buildings were catching the rays of the twin suns and reflecting them in bright flames of silver, yellow, and orange.

While Quintis was using the telescope, I looked at a nearby city, where the buildings appeared to lean slightly inward, toward one another. Each alternate structure resembled an abstract female, while the others were geometrical shaped male figures; from a distance, they gave the impression of couples embracing and dancing. I looked at another city, where the buildings were egg-shaped, half-buried in the ground, horizontally and vertically. These were made of silver and glass. I was breathless at the beauty of the Ingentum cities. Even without the telescope, the view was sublime. Quintis continued to use the telescope and look in all directions. A few minutes later, he handed it over to Padre, who was more reserved in his admiration for the Ingentum civilization, but occasionally, I heard his murmurs of approval. About ten minutes later, he finished, and Vlen took over.

I remembered the telescope on Paul's balcony on Caeruleus and compared it to the telescope here. Telescopes are a universal representation of civilization and advancement. It took years to build up science and astronomy, and it is sad to realize that it only takes moments to destroy what has taken so long to build up.

"Gentlemen, shall we go inside?" Astra asked at last.

"Yes, Minister Pieria," I agreed, "Thank you for bringing us out here."

"Thank you," Quintis said.

"It was an enjoyable experience," added Padre.

We all went into the guest room and sat back down on the low-lying couches. The evening was approaching, and a chill was blowing from the direction of the balcony through the open entrance.

"It's starting to get a bit cold in here," Quintis remarked.

"I'll fix that for you," said Councilor Sidal.

He waved his hand, and a see-through canopy folded over the balcony, shutting off the breeze. We lay on the couches, the colored lights still floating in the air, with incense permeating the room.

"Did you enjoy the view?" Councilor Sidal asked us.

"Yes! Your buildings and cities are dazzling," Padre said.

"We also have cities in the oceans that can surface whenever there is a need," Astra said.

"That's incredible," Quintis exclaimed. You have cities in the air, on the land, on the ocean and under it. I would love to see the view from a sub-oceanic metropolis."

"We will see what we can do to arrange that for you," replied Astra, smiling.

Vlen spoke up, "Excuse me, Councilor Sidal, is there a viewer where I can watch the broadcasts from your entertainment and news channels?"

"You will find a viewer at your disposal in your quarters, Commander Vlen," Councilor Sidal said.

"Captain, may I leave now?" Vlen asked.

"Sure, Commander," I said. "And if it is okay with our hosts, I think we should retire for the night."

I had too much to drink, and the incense and lights in the room were clouding my mind.

Councilor Sidal stirred himself. "It's been a long day for all of us, Prime Captain. Tomorrow, we will go for a walk in one of the cities on the surface."

We said goodnight and retired to our quarters.

The light in my room automatically switched on upon my entry. The room was decorated in the latest décor of Caeruleus. The room included an ensuite, an automated food dispenser capable of producing human food, and a televiewer. I threw myself on the bed and switched on the viewer, and used it in conjunction with the Ingentum translator. I kept changing the channels, which were mainly about documentaries, until I came across a film, where a couple was kissing with their hands.

That's how the Ingentum kiss, using the fingertips, where the fractal patterns glow brightest at night. No one wonder the Ingentum I kissed slapped me across the face when I kissed her lips. She probably thought I was trying to assault her.

I chuckled at the thought, as I watched the couple move closer together, before closing their eyes and then standing still, expecting something else to happen, but nothing did.

_What, is that it? The sex must all be in the mind._

I scratched my head in bewilderment and yawned loudly. I turned off the televiewer and went to bed.

Next morning, I rose before anyone else and had a quick coffee. I sat in the main guest room and waited for the others. A few minutes later, Vlen came out of his bedroom.

"Good morning, Captain. How did you sleep on your second alien world?"

"Fantastically," I replied

Moments later, Padre came out, his staff in hand.

"Good morning, everyone," he said.

"Greetings, Padre. Don't you ever leave your staff behind?" I asked.

"If you ever have reason to carry a monk's staff permanently, you will find that it becomes part of you."

Quintis opened the door, looking a little worse for wear.

Quintis grimaced.

"Boy, do I have a headache this morning!"

"You need to go easy on those drinks, Quintis," I reprimanded.

"Perhaps they will take us first to the museum," Padre said.

"Well, we won't have long to find out – here comes our host, Sidal," I observed. "Good morning, Councilor Sidal."

"Hello, everyone," he replied. "I hope you all had an excellent sleep?"

"I had a good sleep," I answered.

"As did I," Padre affirmed.

"Good. I took the liberty of ordering for everyone some of your world's morning beverages and food. They are on the table; please help yourselves," Sidal said.

"Will you join us in a drink, Councilor?" I asked.

"Yes, Prime Captain, in a moment. I will see how much longer we have to wait for the other three councilors to join us," he said. He stared into the distance for a few moments, then reacted as if he'd received a message.

"They will be here in twenty-five minutes of your time," he said, smiling.

Sidal and I had fruit juice and talked about the weather. Vlen and Quintis had both wandered over to the balcony, each taking turns looking through the telescope until the other councilors arrived.

"Good morning, Prime Captain and Padre," Astra said.

"Greetings, Councilor. I look forward to going out today," I said.

Padre nodded in agreement. "Good morning, Minister Pieria. I'm pleased to have the pleasure of your company today."

Astra smiled in return. "Are you ready to leave?"

I asked Padre to retrieve Vlen and Quintis. A moment later, we were all ready.

"All present and accounted for, Minister Pieria," I said jokingly.

"Please, follow us outside to the foyer on this floor, where we will take a grav-lift down to the surface of the planet," Councilor Sidal said.

We went down to the outside of the apartment building. I could see the entire building now; it was colored blue and shaped like a trapezoid with rounded edges. The nearest apartment building was at least several hundred metrons away. The structure was oval-shaped, decorated in beautiful iridescent rainbow colors, with parklands and playgrounds for children adjacent to the building. About two stadia in the distance, I could see the curvature of the water canals where ships were straddling the water.

"Will we be traveling by canal, also?" I asked.

"Yes, Prime Captain," Councilor Sidal said.

He then summoned two vehicles that glided along the ground silently and halted when they arrived in front of us.

"The Prime Captain and I will travel in the front seat of the first vehicle with Talen and Quintis in the back," Councilor Sidal said. "Astra and Padre will be in the front seat of the second transport, with Commander Vlen and Valthorn in the back seat."

We all got into our respective vehicles and headed off toward the canal. We arrived three minutes later and stepped down from the vehicles and walked to the platform where the transport boats docked. What the Ingentum called canals were rivers to us. Their channels were 300 to 400 metrons wide, and stretching the length of their lands in all directions. In the distant past, the Ingentum had used the canals as their primary mode of transport.

There was one transport specially ordered for us. The transport was a boat with no sails, ten metrons long, and six wide, with a height of seven metrons. The vessel was shaped like an iridescent whale that floated slightly above the water of the canal.

Padre spoke admiringly. "My companions and I are charmed by this vessel."

Valthorn smiled, "It was created 30,000 years ago by one of our greatest artists from that time."

"Amazing, I would never have guessed the ship was that old," Padre said.

Valthorn smiled proudly.

Valthorn certainly had the right to be proud. The ship's design was elegant, with curves that flowed into each other. In the middle of the vessel, there was an elevated glass dome, from which one could enjoy the views. At the back of the boat was a seat fashioned in the shape of a castle tower adjoining the whale's tail. The ship was a work of art, surreal and stunning in its execution. I felt like a child, about to board a boat taking us on a mystery trip. I admit, in the presence of Ingentum, I felt like a child; they had a particular childlike quality about them that made me feel young again. Despite all their intellectual abilities and great strength, at heart, they were like innocent children, shunning pretensions, deceit, greed, jealousy, and other detrimental human emotions. The Ingentum were not only brilliant, but they were also wise, and the boat before me seemed to embody all these qualities.

"Councilor Sidal, how is this boat powered?" I asked.

"It is run using energy collected from microwaves, broadcast from the giant tower you see in the distance. The boat's receiver is located at the top of the tower, which powers anti-grav motors to propel the ship in any direction. The tower nearest to us can power seventy-two vehicles up to a distance of fifty of your stadia. Despite its age, the ship is an excellent example of the work created during our civilization's first golden period, after the dark ages. We keep these beautiful ships for many reasons, including tradition," Sidal said.

Gracefully, the boat lowered the boarding platform, and we boarded her, entering the see-through dome area and taking our seats. Sidal issued an order to the onboard computer to take us to the center of their city. We traveled for a while, passing other ships moving in the opposite direction while overtaking others sailing in front of us. We arrived at one of the several large docks servicing the central business district of the city and disembarked at the platform, where crowds had begun to form around us. As we were not of this world, it was inevitable that we would attract attention.

"Please excuse my people. Unless they have been to your planet, they have never before seen a human in real life," Sidal said.

The crowd was getting bigger and coming closer, but I decided that I would not be intimidated.

"Hello, it's nice to be on your planet," I said.

I waved as I spoke to the people, as did Quintus, while Padre and Vlen only smiled, pretending as if nothing was happening.

Astra spoke to the crowd, as Sidal translated.

"Brothers and sisters, the humans are guests of our government. Please go about your normal business."

"Thank you, Astra," I said.

She smiled in return and continued to make signs to the crowd to disperse. A moment later, we continued our stroll to the central business area, where there were twin towers that went straight up, joined at the bottom, middle, and top by walkways.

Other constructions spiraled from the ground up, and yet other structures were stepped buildings. There was a city block with eight buildings clustered together, each in the shape of an upside-down pyramid. To the right of that group, there were ten oval and circular dome buildings. Each building glowed and pulsated in different pastel colors. The largest of the domes glowed and throbbed in rotating shades of violet, while the second biggest glowed in shades of pale blue, and the third-largest building glowed in alternating shades of light green. Astra noticed my interest in the structures.

"Prime Captain, that group of buildings you are looking at belongs to the Ministry of the Arts," Astra said proudly.

"Nice eye candy in a mesmerizing way," I said.

"One becomes accustomed to it after a while," Astra added.

"Councilor Sidal, I notice no mass transport vehicles or any vehicle on the ground," Vlen said.

"Our mass transportation systems are underground, as are our highways, which carry the private vehicles," Sidal told him. "Of course, we also have highways in the sky, but they are little more than beams of light that only computers can see. We have designed our cities to be user and ecologically friendly," Sidal said.

"Where would you like us to take you first?" Astra asked.

"I would like to know more about your world's history. Is there an exhibition that acts as a window to your past?" Padre asked.

"You mean a museum?" Astra asked.

"Yes, exactly," Padre said, his eyes lighting up at the prospect.

"In that case, let us step onto the moving pathway and approach the largest building in the Ministry of the Arts block," Astra invited.

The moving lane took us to the front of the building, where we spent the next several segments, before returning to Sidal's home for dinner.

"Well, gentlemen, did you enjoy your outing today?" Astra asked, getting up to leave.

"Yes, we did. Thanks, Minister Pieria," I said.

"Excellent," Astra replied. "Tomorrow, we will take you to another part of the city."

Astra, Valthorn, and Talen then spoke to Sidal briefly before wishing everyone a good night. A little while later, we also retired to our rooms.

For the next six days, we visited different parts of the city, and the equivalent of our zoo, which was the size of several city blocks. There, the animals were well looked after. The only animals kept in the menagerie were endangered species from other planets that the Ingentum had visited. Once a stable population had been achieved, the animals were returned to their home worlds.

On the final trip, they took us to a dome-shaped city under the ocean, which we circled from the outside before entering. We could see towers up to two stadia high inside the dome, alongside smaller buildings. I enjoyed the seafood served to us; to say that the Ingentum lived like kings and queens, even under the ocean, would not be an exaggeration.

The last day of our visit to Gigas had arrived, and still, there was no answer to our proposals to allow our artists to travel to their world. I was concerned and had tried to bring up the subject the day before yesterday, but Sidal had advised me to be patient. Now I had to press him for an answer.

"Councilor Sidal, has your committee reached any decision on the proposals?"

"Come, Prime Captain, please have a seat," Sidal said. "Before we give you our answers, I ask you not to question the reasons for our decisions."

"As you say, Councilor Sidal," I said.

"Thank you for your understanding, Prime Captain."

_Okay, now comes the bad news._

"Captain, we reviewed the data files and memorabilia you gave us, with members of the Ministry of the Arts who have also viewed the recordings, resulting in recommendations and votes taken on each proposal by the full committee. To your government's request for actors to perform plays in our theaters, we voted 'yes.' Concerning musicians touring and playing, we have voted 'no.' After all, music is a matter of taste, is it not, Captain?"

_One man's music is another man's torture!_

"Yes, Sidal, I couldn't agree less," I said.

Sidal Continued. "On philosophers espousing their theories of the universe, and other matters, we also declined this proposal. However, concerning your poets giving public recitals, we have voted 'yes.' We will be forwarding these recommendations to our government, who will contact your three Proconsuls within the next three weeks," Sidal said.

I smiled broadly. "I accept the wise decisions of your council; it will open other doors between our two civilizations. I also thank your government for the hospitality your people have shown my companions and me."

"It was our pleasure, Captain," Sidal said, smiling.

Quintis, who was sitting next to me, stood to his feet.

"Councilor Sidal, I also just want to thank you for being great hosts. I had a fantastic time, and will never forget visiting your planet as long as I live."

"I am flattered by your praise, Quintis. Again, you are most welcome," Sidal said.

I wanted to show the Ingentum councilors how much I appreciated their company and hospitality.

"Councilor Sidal and Minister Pieria, I would like to invite all of the members of your committee aboard our ship to experience the Morpheus Room," I said.

"The Morpheus Room is where you recreate 3D virtual worlds?" asked Astra.

"Yes, that's right," I replied.

She nodded. "Prime Captain, you may have wondered why you did not encounter any examples of Morpheus Rooms in our world; the answer is that my people do not need them," she explained.

Then Sidal took over where Astra had left off, "When we wish to recreate 3D virtual worlds, we recreate them in our dreams with extreme detail. In lucid dreams, we are fully awake, and masters of our own universe. We do not need Morpheus Rooms to recreate our environments, but thank you for the thought."

"However, Prime Captain," Astra said. "I am curious about the Morpheus Room and your ship, and wish to accept your invitation," Astra said.

_Terrific!_

I smiled back. "I would be most honored if you visited _Veda_. How long would you like to visit for Minister Pieria?"

"One day starting from tomorrow would be sufficient," Astra replied.

"Excellent, you can come with us when we beam up within the next segment."

Astra smiled. "That's perfect, Prime Captain,"

"Good! I will have Commander Vlen escort you around the ship."

"Thank you, Prime Captain," Astra said, as she left to prepare herself.

"You're welcome, Minister," I said. "Is there anyone else who would like to join Minister Pieria in touring _Veda_?" I asked.

The other Ingentum politely declined, and after some small talk, we gathered our personal belongings and assembled for departure. Astra returned, having brought a bag with her and joined us. On the opposite side of the room were the three remaining Ingentum, with whom we exchanged brief handshakes and hugs. I then contacted _Veda_.

"This is the Captain to the transporter room. Five to beam up," I said.

"Acknowledged, Captain," McCluskey's, husky voice replied.

We began to dematerialize, and within a minute, we found ourselves fully materialized on the transporter platform.

"Welcome back, Captain," McCluskey said.

"It's good to be back, Officer McCluskey," I replied.

We stepped off the platform, and I asked Vlen to find Astra sleeping quarters for the night, before beginning her tour tomorrow.

"Padre and Quintis, I would appreciate any comments or thoughts about our experience with the Ingentum. Please have your observations and any recommendations, while they are fresh in your mind, on my desk by tomorrow evening."

"Yes, Captain," Quintis said.

"My report will be ready tonight," added Padre.

I went to the bridge, where I relieved Captain Dante.

" _Veda_ , take control of the bridge until I return," I said.

"Acknowledged, Captain," _Veda_ said.

Dante and I walked toward my quarters, exchanging small talk.

"Captain Dante, is there anything important to report?" I asked.

"No, Prime Captain. Nothing happened while you were away from _Veda_ ," he said.

"That's great to hear. I will forward a copy of the report detailing the abroad team's activities on Gigas," I said.

"I look forward to reading it, Prime Captain."

"A drink or something to eat before you go?" I asked.

"Thank you for your offer, Prime Captain, but I miss my chair aboard _The Graziella_ ," he said.

"Of course, I would feel the same. When you have finished packing, send me a message, and I will see you off in the transporter room."

Fifteen minutes later, he sent me a signal, and I met him in the transporter room. We clasped forearms briefly, and then he stepped on one of the transporter discs.

"Attention, Officer McCluskey, one to beam aboard _The Graziella_ ," I said.

"Acknowledged, Captain," replied McCluskey.

I watched Dante dematerialize before I returned to the bridge.

"Welcome back, Captain. Did you miss us?" Sheila asked.

"Captain, did you bring back any small souvenirs for us?" Sirena asked.

I looked at the women. They had turned their chairs halfway to see me better. Together, these two were double trouble, feeding off each other.

"Get back to work, ladies, or I will throw the both of you into the brig," I said.

"We meant no disrespect, Captain," Sirena smiled. "We missed you."

I pretended not to hear her last words.

"Helmsman Louis, maintain your orbit around Gigas until further orders," I said.

"Yes, Captain," replied Louis.

I sent a message to Vlen and directed that he ensure Astra wanted for nothing. I asked him to show her how we prepared our meals using the Konstadt food replicator, and to answer any questions she may have about the ship. I was still in my Captain's seat when he came on deck later.

"How are things going between you and Astra?" I asked.

"The minister seems to enjoy my company and finds the ship interesting, from what she has seen of it," Vlen said.

"Good, I want the ship and its crew to make a great impression on her. It would be useful for Caeruleus to have an ally on Gigas," I told him.

"With your permission, Captain, I will begin by showing her the bridge. From there, we'll move on to engineering, and the crew's cafeteria areas, as well as the Morpheus Room," Vlen said.

"Great stuff, Commander. I'll pass your duties for tomorrow over to Severus," I said.

Speaking of Severus, I found it strange that I had not seen him since my return; but then again, he's always busy. I remained on deck for another four segments, leaving V _eda_ in charge at the end of my shift, before retiring to my quarters for a well-deserved rest.

*************************END OF PART TWO*************************

#  Dear reader

Hello, and thank you for taking the time to read my book, which I hoped you enjoyed. If you did, please consider leaving a review or rating, however brief. Even a short comment helps to draw more interest and makes an enormous difference to the exposure the book gets; I will appreciate the gesture.

#  About the author

Hi, if you're wondering why I write, it is because I like to express and explore ideas through the medium of writing. If I could sum myself up in a few lines, it would be these; like any good Kozmic Dreamer, I came, I saw, I learnt, I created, and I moved on.

Oh, one more thing, I believe most firmly that when we dust off this mortal coil, we will have the opportunity of creating our reality to some degree as we see fit, either individually or with others who share the same vision. Isn't that exciting?

#  Discover other titles by Vito Veii

I, Human Part One: The Renaissance

I, Human Part Two: An Android's Soul

I, Human Part Three: The Orbs of Sapentia

I, Human Part Four: The Invisible Spectrum of Light

I, Human Part Five: The Malevolence of Evil

I, Human Part Six: Infinity Awaits

I, Human Part Seven: The Cosmic Corridors

I, Human Part Eight: Metropolis: A City in Sixty Days

I, Human Part Nine: Do You Take This Android To Be Your Companion?

I, Human Part Ten: The Whores of Wreath

Find Me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/VitoVeii

mailto:Vito@Kozmickonstructions.com

#

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