Front Matter

The Alien that changed the world

Part 3

Otsiron’s Final Adventure

A novel

By Risto Stefov

The Alien that changed the world Part 3 Otsiron’s Final Adventure

A Novel

FICTION - ADVENTURE

* * *

August 12, 2020

* * *

Back to Ostikon

The shuttle looked familiar but then I remembered what Delche had said; they all looked alike. It was piloted by two women a little older than me. One came to the back, opened the hatch, grabbed my hand, pulled me in and closed the hatch. I dropped my bag on the floor. She escorted me to the cockpit, sat me down on the third seat and she took her seat behind the controls. The other looked at me, smiled and went on piloting the ship. I assumed she was the captain. They looked at each other and the captain punched the autopilot.

It took us twenty-seven minutes to get to the mother ship. I expected it to be a science vessel but it wasn’t. It was a cargo ship.

On the way to the mother ship I felt very anxious. My bravery and clear mind, whatever little I had left in me, had evaporated and my stomach was filled with butterflies. The women didn’t say a word to me or to each other. I too kept silent.

After we boarded the cargo ship we stayed inside the docked shuttle for almost two days. During that time no one said anything. I didn’t know where we were going and how long it was going to take. I spent almost all of my time resting on the metal bench inside the little cage that looked like a prison cell. I used my bag as a cushion.

History was repeating. Except this time it was much more painful. The two women, who wouldn’t speak to me or in front of me, whispered to one another when I wasn’t there. Unlike the last time when I was drugged, this time I was conscious. They regularly gave me food and water. The food consisted of the familiar dry blocks and the water came in plastic bags.

A person could escape from prison, a person could run away from a place but one couldn’t escape the torment of their own mind. Not knowing what was going to happen was bothering me a lot. If they wanted to kill me why not kill me here and now. Why torment me? But then I remembered what we did to political prisoners on earth. We tormented them. We put them through a show trial. We found them guilty of misconduct. And finally we sent them to prison to

rehabilitate them, or executed them to remove the defiance and disobedience out of them.

Why should an alien society behave any differently? After all I had interfered in their affairs and turned their world upside down. There was no question about that. There was no question that my interference had caused a major disruption. More than that… It shifted the balance of power from something that was stable and time tested for centuries and turned it into something untested and volatile. Who or what gave me the right to interfere?

It was time for me to pay… pay for my meddling…

After the second day, we left the cargo ship and flew in the shuttle for about half a day and then rendezvoused with a larger ship which, if I were to guess, was a galaxy trader ship. It wasn’t a battle cruiser. Before leaving the shuttle the women placed a hood over my head and I was escorted to a cabin blindfolded. I guess they either didn’t want the crew to see me or me to see the crew.

I spent about seven days confined to my cabin. The only people I saw were the two women from the shuttle. They brought me food and water.

To pass the time and keep sane, I spent my entire time thinking about the things I had done on earth and the good times I had had with my friends. But once in a while, especially when I was relaxed, my mind drifted and became filled with dark thoughts. I kept thinking what I had done, the sins I had committed and the price I was going to pay.

By the tenth day I was back on the same shuttle with the two women and, as I found out later, heading for Ostikon.

When we reached the planet we entered the atmosphere in a down spiral. Ostikon looked as beautiful as I remembered it.

As we were approaching the surface I could see a number of people standing on one side of the landing pad. The moment the door opened Ostikon’s familiar aroma of flowers and ripe fruit hit my

nostrils. The air was thick, hot and humid, unwelcome to my system, just like I remembered it.

After I stepped out from the shuttle the hatch closed and the shuttle flew off. Two beautifully dressed young ladies, no more than twenty years old, dressed in the familiar uniform Airam had designed for us, with the Macedonian colours, approached and stopped in front of me. One handed me a package. It was a uniform.

The other spoke softly and clearly words that sounded familiar but I didn’t know what they meant. I then remembered not what the words meant but how Vos used to say them to me so that I could learn their language. And I always used to answer with the word “Otsiron”, which meant “Great friend” in their language.

I said, “Otsiron.”

They smiled, looked at each other and then looked at me.

The one standing to my left extended her hand and in Macedonian said, “Welcome to Ostikon, my name is Velika, I am your communication’s officer. Nice to meet you, Sir.”

I took her hand, shook it and said, “Nice to meet you too Velika.”

The other one also extended her hand and in Macedonian said, “Welcome back Sir, my name is Dafina. I am your navigation officer, we were sent here by Asora to escort you to headquarters.”

I shook her hand too and said, “Nice to meet you Dafina and what’s with the Macedonian names.”

“Many young people here, especially those in the service, have taken Macedonian aliases. These two names were given to us by your friend and former navigator Delche.”

“Ah, so you know Delche? How is he doing?”

“Everyone knows Delche, he is doing fine.”

The girls took the lead and I followed. Just as we stepped down into a tube station the other people who were at the landing pad with us left. A car looking like a glass jar was waiting for us in the tube.

The girls sat on the seat facing forward and I sat on the one facing backwards.

Moments after we disappeared into the tube tunnels we reappeared in what looked like a large mall. The girls took me to a hair salon. It was managed by five women and there were no customers when we arrived.

The girls asked me to take a shower and pointed me to a booth. I took off the sweat-ridden, stinky military clothes I had worn for the past ten days, had a shower and before I had a chance to change into the new uniform, the women threw me a towel and sat me on one of the chairs. They gave me a haircut and shave and sent me back to take another shower. I guess they figured I wasn’t clean enough.

After I dried myself I put on the new uniform. In the meantime the women washed and dried my old clothes, placed them in a bag and gave them to the girls.

One of the women adjusted my pants, shirt and jacket so they fit well and then combed my hair. There was a lot of chatter in the salon. The women looked happy with their work.

When I got back to the girls I got my medallion out of my bag and hung it around my neck. Both girls touched it and smiled.

“Since you’re my navigator and communications officer I assume we’ll be flying the ship again?” I asked.

“We can’t tell you anything before you’re briefed.”

“Did Vieria hand pick you for the job? And why girls?”

They looked at each other. Their smiles faded and the other one said, “Sorry, we can’t tell you anything before you’re briefed.”

“Vieria is still commander of the military, right?” I asked but got no reply.

It was a forty-five minute ride in silence where my own officers, whom I was expected to trust with my life, would tell me nothing. I wasn’t happy about that.

Just as we stepped out of the tube car I asked, “Am I your captain and superior officer?”

“Yes Sir you are,” they both confirmed.

“Then I order you to answer my questions truthfully or I will dismiss you right now and you will never serve with me!”

“VELIKA!” I yelled.” May I call you Vel?”

“Yes Sir? You can call me Vel!”

“Vel! Where are we going?”

“Asora and the war council have organized a military parade to welcome you back. It’s supposed to be a surprise. That’s all I know I swear to Mother Nature, Sir.”

“Thank you. Now both of you place your hands on my medallion and swear to me that you will always answer all my questions truthfully and you will obey all my orders without hesitation or question.”

They both placed their hands on the Macedonian star at the same time and said, “Yes Sir!”

“Yes Sir what?” I snapped.

“Yes Sir, we will always answer all your questions truthfully and we will obey all your orders without hesitation or question.”

“Thank you. And may I call you Daf?”

“Please do Sir…”

We took an elevator up to a balcony high on a hill from where we could view the entire valley.

I couldn’t believe what I saw. There were over a dozen groupings, little rectangles fifty long by twenty wide, of young ladies wearing white boots, white skirts and white uniforms with the Macedonian colours in perfect formation marching down the valley in perfect step. The band was playing familiar earth marches similar to those the Macedonian military played.

“Who are all these women?” I asked.

“They are your soldiers, your army, Sir,” replied Vel.

What she said made no sense but I decided not to question her. At the moment I was more interested in watching the parade.

“I want to go closer and have a better look,” I said.

They looked at each other with a worried look on their faces and hesitated.

Before they had a chance to reply I jumped off the balcony and went down the hill. They followed me. When I got within a few steps of the parade grounds I stopped and admired the perfect formations. Every single girl looked at us as they marched in unison and smiled as they passed us by. Each wore a red beret with a golden Macedonian sun pinned to it on the front side of their foreheads. They each carried a rifle in their hands. They all had short hair.

The looks, the smiles, the vibration of their steps in unison, the marching songs, the way they carried their weapons… gave me an unbelievable feeling. I had goose bumps all over my body, my hair stood up and my throat constricted. I could feel tears running down my cheeks. It took me a minute or two to compose myself.

When the last column had marched by us I asked the girls why they had gone through such an effort to welcome me and why only women and no men?”

“Well, Sir, you know we are at war. All the men have been sent to the front already and you were summoned here to lead the women. These are your battalions which you will lead to bring us victory. Victory is close at hand!” said Vel.

This bit of news was devastating to me. Had I caused this? Of course I had!

After I recovered from the shock and was able to speak, I asked, “Who are we at war with?”

“Well, Sir, we’re not directly at war with anyone. We’re helping an ally fight a war,” replied Vel.

“Why?”

“Well, Sir, after you left our government signed an agreement with the galaxy traders to help each other in case one was attacked and they, unfortunately, were attacked and we are obligated by this agreement to help them.”

“Who’s attacking the galaxy traders?”

“That, I don’t know, Sir.”

“Who does?”

“Perhaps the war council, we are expected to be with them in less than an hour.”

“How do you know we’re winning the war and that victory is at hand?”

“Well, Sir, we get reports from the galaxy trader outpost closest to us.”

“Have any of the fighters returned?”

“No Sir.”

At this point I became angry, very angry. I knew it wasn’t my business to interfere but I couldn’t help it. What they were doing here was a familiar and personal theme for me. This is exactly what the Greek communists were telling the Macedonian people in Greece during the Greek Civil War. Sacrifice a few more Macedonians and victory will be ours. In the end, we not only lost several generations of young men and women, including children as young as fourteen years old, who fought and died in the mountains, but we also lost our homes and ancestral lands. And when we lost the war which we were assured we would win, we became permanent refugees roaming the world. I was angry all right.

We went back to the balcony and down the elevator. We again boarded a tube car and left the station. The girls were silent.

About fifteen minutes after we left the last station we arrived at another station and stopped. This was a well-decorated station with a lot of posters with writing high up on the walls. There were also portraits, I assume, of famous people. Among the many there was a portrait of Vos, Vieria, Asora and Anelia which surprised me. Anelia was the princess who had caused me all my troubles. What in God’s name was her portrait doing up there side by side with Vos and Vieria. And where were King Velion and Anelia’s sisters?

I looked on the other wall, on the opposite side, and there was a portrait of my ship with me, Delche and Ori standing beside it. The girls watched me looking at the posters emotionless.

As soon as I looked down they began to walk away and I followed. They led me through a corridor guarded by young women. No one asked me for identification or searched me.

From there we entered a wide lobby and were escorted by an armed female guard towards a large door that was closed. Two armed guards, both women, stood on each side of the large door. When we

came close they opened it and we walked inside a big room that looked like a conference room.

I went inside first and was followed by Vel, Daf and the armed guard who had escorted us.

Everyone sitting around a long table stood up when we entered. No one said a word.

I only recognized Asora in the room. She was sitting on my left, closest to the head of the table. A large man dressed in black was sitting at the head of the table. There were more women than men in the room.

The large man said something and everyone sat down. I didn’t sit.

Asora looked tired and burned out. She said something and Vel translated.

“First please allow me to welcome you back. We’re sorry to have dragged you back here from your home world but, it seems, once again we need your help. As you probably know we are at war and we need you and your ship to lead our troops to our final victory. As the leader of this world and as your friend, please consider my offer,” she said and sat down.

“May I ask you some questions?” I asked.

“Please do,” Asora said. “That’s why we are assembled here today.”

“Everywhere I look I see women but no men. Where are the men?”

“Well, they are fighting at the warfront. We sent almost every man we could spare but with a little more effort and with your help, we will win this war.”

“Where is this war taking place and how long has it been going on?”

“On the far side of the traders’ galaxy. It started almost one year ago. Just two days ago we sent two million well-trained young men.

Before that we sent one million of our most capable fighters. And now we are preparing to send two million more well-trained young women and we want you to lead them to victory.”

“Who is fighting in this war and why are you involved?”

“The galaxy traders are fighting against an alien race. We are involved because we are obligated by an agreement we made with the galaxy traders to defend each other in case of outside attacks.”

“Why is this war being fought? What are they fighting over?”

“That, I don’t know for sure but this is the galaxy trader’s ambassador, perhaps he can tell you more,” she said and pointed at the large man.

“You mean you’re prepared to sacrifice your entire young male population and your young female population, generations of it, in a foreign war and you know nothing about it?”

“We are doing this because we know we’re going to win and all of our soldiers will come back. We have assurances from our allies.”

“What happens if you lose this war?”

“We are pretty sure we will win it.”

“My dear lady, an entire galaxy of hundreds of planets with billions of people and far more sophisticated weapons and technology could not drive the aliens out. What make you think that your soldiers can?”

“Well, that’s why you are here… to help us… to advise us.”

“How many galaxy trader soldiers are involved in this war?”

She looked at the ambassador, he said something.

“Ten million!”

“You mean to tell me a galaxy of hundreds of planets can only raise ten million soldiers and your planet, as an ally, has to raise five million? And that’s for now and how many more later? What if they ask for more, will you commit to more? How many more will you commit to? Until every young man and woman from your three planets is engaged? What kind of an agreement is this?”

There was silence in the room.

“No! I’m not here to sacrifice your entire youth on an adventure,” I said. “If you want me to end this war I will end it on my terms. Now I want you to immediately recall the ships with soldiers en route. Bring them back if you want me to help you.”

“With due respect, Sir…” piped up the ambassador.

I interrupted him and said, “This, Sir, is an internal matter that does not involve you. I don’t even know why you’re here.”

A young lady sitting beside Asora, whose face was hidden all this time, jumped up and yelled, “No! The troops can’t be recalled. They are committed to the war effort and must engage the enemy!” She then pointed at me and said, “You, Sir, are out of order, this is a decision for the war council.”

I recognized the face. It was Princess Anelia, one of King Velion’s daughters; the woman who had kidnapped me from my planet five years ago and brought me to Ostikon.

“With due respect Princess Anelia, it was this council that summoned me here and is asking for my help. I’m trying to help. My first priority is to protect your people. I can’t possibly commit to something I don’t understand. I need to know everything about this war before I commit to anything.”

“I am the Minister of Defense and commander of all the troops and I decide what happens, not you,” she snapped at me.

Everyone stood there frozen. No one wanted to say or do anything.

“Who appointed you Minister of Defense and commander of the troops?” I asked.

“This council appointed me unanimously.”

“So, you’re acting under the authority of this council then, is that correct?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“In that case you don’t need me. You can lead the troops into battle yourself.”

“But I need the ship,” she replied.

I took the medallion off my neck and tossed it at her and said, “Here, you can have it!”

The medallion hit the table hard and bounced off. The ambassador caught it and said, “We can’t do anything without the ship,” and came over and handed the medallion back to me.

I raised my arms up and said nothing.

Moments later I asked, “Who’s in charge of the war council?”

Asora looked at me surprised because I knew the answer to that question and wondered why I would even ask.

She said, “I am.”

“Then as leader of the war council you will have to decide what you want to do next.”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you want Anelia to lead the troops into battle or do you want me?”

“You, of course, that’s why you’re here.”

“Then, I expect this council to give me full authority to act on its behalf legally.”

“I believe this council can do that. What are your terms?”

“Like I said I want the war council to vote to recall the troops, put me in charge of all the troops, give me a chance to investigate the war situation and analyze what is required to bring you victory, if that’s even possible, and to report my finding directly to Asora, the war council leader. I’m also asking to be appointed member of the war council.”

Asora looked around at everyone and asked, “Are there any questions?”

“Does that mean I have to give up my command? asked Anelia. But I’ll still be Minister of Defense? Right?”

“We’ll put it to a vote,” replied Asora.

One by one they all put their hands up except for Anelia and granted me everything I’d asked for. They also voted to remove Anelia as commander of the troops. She retained the position of Minister of Defense.

Now that I was a member of the war council I asked the ambassador to leave the boardroom and wait outside.

I asked Asora to sit at the head of the table. I then took her seat and sat beside Anelia. I turned to Asora and, in front of everyone, said, “What have you done?”

She slumped forward and put her hands over her face.

“And you!” I said, pointing at everyone else. “You were elected to protect your people. You were given this position, this privilege to sit on this council to serve the people, not to send them to the slaughterhouse.”

No one said a word. They stood there stunned.

“Asora,” I yelled, “get on your communicator and issue an order to have your fighters, your children, returned to you immediately. Take a vote if you have to.”

She did and, with the exception of Anelia, it was unanimous.

After she made the call she said, “It will take three to four days before they’re back.”

I asked Asora to dismiss the meeting but have everyone remain in the boardroom and work out a plan to get out of the agreement with the galaxy traders with minimum impact.

I then asked Asora, Vel and Daf to go into Asora’s office with me.

The four of us sat around a small table. Asora offered us a drink.

“It’s still illegal on this planet but I just keep a bottle or two for my guests,” she said.

Both girls said no to a drink but I insisted they have some, just a little.

It was rakia; Delche’s rakia.

To my surprise Asora poured herself half a shot and gulped it down. She realized what she had done and apologized.

She smiled and said, “I’m sorry. What a hypocrite I am… Unfortunately I need it to calm my nerves.”

I grabbed the bottle and poured the girls a bit and myself and Asora a full shot. We clinked our glasses. Delche had already taught the girls how to toast and sip the rakia and not gulp it down.

I toasted, “To old times,” with Asora and, “to better times,” with the girls.

Asora said, “Delche never taught me anything about how to toast or how to drink it. He doesn’t even know I drink. Airam brings me a bottle or two from time to time.”

I asked Asora how Airam was doing. She said she would have been lost a long time ago without her. She had been her pillar in these trying times.

“So, what happened, what went wrong?” I asked.

“Well, I never wanted any of this but, you know… I was never good at politics. I tried my best but I just couldn’t convince anyone to stay out of the war. After Vieria and Velion were assassinated I had no support from anyone. The galaxy traders bought their way into everything, including my cabinet, and I became the rag that was used to wipe everything clean. They used my good name to convince the entire planet to join the war effort. And here we are.”

“You mean to tell me Vieria is dead? Who did this?”

“We don’t know for sure, but if you ask me Anelia’s behind it. She rose to power after Vieria and Velion were assassinated. Anyone who disagreed with her or disagreed with joining the war effort met with bad luck. Including her sisters whom she exiled and said it was for their protection.”

“Can your prove any of this?”

“We have her accomplices imprisoned but they won’t talk.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“I just want to say that I’m happy and very relieved that you’re here. If there’s anyone who can pull us out of this mess it’s you.”

“Before we go back to the boardroom, I want to ask you for a favour.”

“Anything, name it.”

“I would like to visit my friends, could you arrange that for me?”

“Yes, I can do that for you. I can have one of my assistants track them down for you and have you flown to them or you can fly your own ship.”

“Thank you,” I said and smiled at her. I wanted to ask her many more questions but she looked very tired.

There was a lot of yelling and arguing in the boardroom but they all went silent the moment Asora opened the door.

I looked very serious when I took my seat. All eyes were on me.

“So, ladies and gentlemen, what have you decided?” I asked.

There was silence.

“Well, speak up,” I said.

Vel said, “Begging your pardon Sir, but they’re afraid of you. They’re scared shitless of you so be more specific as to what you want from them.”

“Does anyone have any ideas on how to break this agreement you signed with the galaxy traders without suffering severe consequences?”

Still silence.

“Was anyone here bribed by the galaxy traders to sign the agreement?”

Still silence.

I asked Vel to go outside and bring the ambassador back inside.

She escorted him back and sat him on the opposite side of the table.

After he sat down I said, “We have unanimously agreed to pull out of our contract with the galaxy traders and we have recalled our troops. We’re abandoning your war. It’s your war not ours.”

“You can’t do that,” he yelled. “We’ll take legal action...”

“Go ahead, but before you do that, go and inform your superiors that our troops are disengaging from the war and are coming back.”

He looked at each member of the council angrily and said, “You bastards, you took my money and now you’ve screwed me!” He then looked at me and said, “Yes, they took my money to vote to honour the agreement and I hope they rot in hell for it. Bastards…”

“It’s best that you go back to your office now Sir, your work here is done,” I said and asked the guard to escort him out.

Asora dismissed the meeting and told everyone to be available on short notice for more meetings.

It was getting late in the day so I asked Asora what other plans she had for me. She said she had none.

“So, what happens to us now?” I asked. “I have these beautiful girls in my arms and nowhere to go.”

“I’m so sorry,” she said. “I forgot to tell you about your accommodations. We have three hotel rooms booked for you right here in this complex where you can spend as much time as you want. They have Macedonian style food and drinks prepared just for you in the restaurant. I’ll take you there myself.”

Minutes later we were in the hotel lobby and were greeted in Macedonian by an old man named Nagol who said he was a friend of Delche. He was the hotel owner.

After Asora left he took us to our rooms and waited outside. When we came out he took us to a lounge and ordered food and drinks. One of those drinks was a bottle of Macedonian wine from Macedonia.

“How is that even possible?” I asked.

“Anything is possible if you have money,” he said.

“It would be sacrilege to open this bottle. You should keep it as a souvenir,” I said.

“Delche was right about you,” he said.

“Well, what did he say about me?”

“I know you Macedonians despise flattery so I’m not going to say anything.”

I didn’t say anything either.

He then turned to the girls and said in Macedonian, “How did you beautiful girls get mixed up with him?”

They looked at each other and Vel said, “When Delche came to the academy to interview people for this mission we volunteered. He said that we might be going into combat and get killed but that didn’t stop us. Daf and I are old friends and schoolmates. We studied in the academy together; we both took the same class to learn Macedonian as an elective. I studied communications, she studied navigation. We were a perfect match for the mission. In addition to learning about him from the mediums, we also studied Otsiron at the academy. We watched every video made of him including the documentaries made by Ruzha. When Delche found out about this he selected us.”

“So, Nagol, tell us more about yourself. How did you learn Macedonian and how do you know Delche?” I asked.

“Well, it’s a long story...”

“We have all night, please tell us, we’re all interested to know,” Vel said.

Both Daf and I shook our heads in agreement.

“Well, let me begin by saying I was Delche’s teacher. I was one of those teachers who taught alien languages. I have a gift. Well, I had a gift when I was young. I was able to learn languages fast. I’ve never been to Macedonia but when I found out Delche, one of my students, had been I went to see him and had long discussions with him. This was before you arrived the first time. I wanted to meet you when you were here but your stay was brief. I got in touch with Delche after you left and he told me a lot of things about you. He couldn’t stop talking about you. He was very sad to see you go. The man loves you and misses you a lot. You should go and see him the first chance you get.”

“I will go and see him. I want to see all my friends. Asora promised me she would find them for me and let me know where they are.”

“I can also help you with that. I was a friend and schoolmate of Vieria. She often came here to unload and seek my advice so she told me things about them. We used to spend hours and hours talking. I miss her visits. She too was fond of you. She made every effort to get you home safely and keep you alive. There was a lot going on in those days. She managed to improve things here but then we got involved in this damn war.”

“I was really surprised to hear that Vieria had been assassinated. Who would want to do such a thing?” I asked.

“Well, she did her best to eradicate the rats but she couldn’t destroy their secret societies. There was a core of them still active even after Asora won the election. The rats needed to eliminate you so they made every effort to get rid of you, even on your own planet but, it seems, they failed. When that didn’t work they began to look for a chink in Asora’s armour and they found it but they had to work from the inside. For that they approached the rebellious Anelia and promised to make her a powerful queen if she deposed Asora’s government. One day Anelia showed up and wanted to join Asora’s party. She promised Asora that as an insider she could attract more support for her party including support from the royalists, the bourgeoisie and the rich youth. I don’t know exactly how Asora felt

about this, but from what Vieria told me she figured it was better to have her as an ally than as an enemy. Vieria advised Asora to take her but keep her at bay. But it didn’t take Anelia long before she became active in the party. Then, when the war started and no one was prepared to make the difficult decisions, she began to publicly criticize the war council claiming it was unfit to make decisions. Here is where they made a mistake. Instead of throwing her out, the war council appointed her Minister of Defense in Asora’s government in order to shut her up. At that time Vieria was commander of the military and, as promised, had begun preparations to raise and train an army, the army that Voskot wanted to defend the planets. When the war started Vieria was on a collision course with Anelia over how to use the military. Vieria, of course, was against sending her forces to a foreign war. That was not the purpose of creating the army. Anelia insisted the forces be sent to war to fulfill the planet’s obligations to the galaxy traders. Then, one day, Vieria disappeared. Velion wanted to launch an investigation and he too disappeared. Anelia began to cry foul and moved her sisters away under the guise of saving them from the assassins who had murdered her father and aunt,” concluded Nagol, raised his arms up and paused for a moment.

He then said, “Even a child could see the connection here but no one it seems had any evidence to prove that Anelia was involved. After that Anelia forced her way up the government ladder and all those who opposed her somehow met with bad luck. When people began to see what was happening they didn’t dare question Anelia or her motives. Then, I guess when she found out she was fighting a losing war, she knew she would be in trouble, so she asked for you. With you leading our forces it would be a win-win situation for her. If you lost the war she would blame you, if you won she would take the credit.”

“I don’t understand, why did she think that by entering the war her situation would improve?”

“Well, believe it or not, it did. Committing to the war propelled her from nobody to the most powerful position in Asora’s government. Besides that she received support from the secret societies here on our planet as well as money from the galaxy traders. Both the rats

and the galaxy traders promised her money, power and glory if our planet joined the war.”

“Tell me about this war. What do you know about it?” I asked.

“Actually nothing... The only thing we know about it is what the galaxy traders tell us and that’s not much. Every day they tell us they are winning yet they keep asking for more and more troops. At the same time Anelia’s propaganda machine has blinded our people and they all want to go and fight. Opposition to the war, however little there was, has been silenced and, to me at least, the people on this planet seem to have gone mad.”

“I’ve seen this before on earth with my people, they too became suicidal and intoxicated with fervour and then they were destroyed and driven out of their homes and lands. In your case, by engaging the enemy you have committed your planet to war and if this enemy is as powerful as I think it is, your planet and people are doomed. By engaging them you have given them the right to attack you legally and they will until they destroy you. That’s what I would do, that’s what has always been done in the history of warfare. If they defeat the mighty galaxy traders, you have no chance. And me being here gives them the right to attack earth, my home planet. War is a dirty and messy business. I hope Anelia and those who support her know that.”

“I hope so too, we’ve lived in peace for over a millennium and have forgotten about the perils of war. We’ve even forgotten why we buried ourselves underground. You remind me of the discussions I had with Voskot before he was assassinated. He was fearful of wars and spoke very passionately about them. Ironically, just as we started building on the surface again we are faced with another war. Just as we began to see progress we are faced with destruction. Is history repeating itself?”

“I guess it is. History will repeat itself if people become blind to the dangers that surround them and put their personal ambitions and interests ahead of those of the people. And, it seems to me, that’s what’s happening here.”

“So, what do you think we should do?”

“The first thing we need to do is pull our forces out before they’re decimated. The next thing we need to do is find out all we can about this war. We can’t trust anyone who doesn’t have this planet’s interest. That would be like trusting a person who is drowning not to pull you down under water. I think the galaxy traders are rapidly losing this war. That’s why they came here asking for help. Jumping in to help them is like jumping in to save a person drowning, they will pull you down with them,” I said and paused.

I then looked at the Vel, Daf and Nagol and said, “After the planet’s forces return to this planet we’ll have to put a pause on the war until we find out everything we can about it. And, if the galaxy traders are winning like they say they are, we’ll push for peace and I’m certain we can negotiate one. But if the galaxy traders are wrong then we have to prepare for an attack if peace can’t be negotiated. It’s as simple as that. In the meantime it would be wise for your planet to form a coalition with the other planets in this galaxy to show unity. And with unity comes strength. That’s what I think.”

“I’m on good terms with Asora and a few people on her war council. I’ll schedule a private meeting with them here but first you should go and see your friends. It’s getting late and I think we should retire for the night. I will, however, be here tomorrow morning and you’re all invited for breakfast. We’ll talk again tomorrow and I’ll bring you up to date with what’s been happening with your friends. Good night and see you in the morning,” said old man Nagol and left.

After we said goodnight the girls and I left the lounge and went to our rooms.

Early the next morning there was a knock on my door. It was a man my age. He said something but I didn’t understand the language. I knocked on Vel’s door and she answered without opening the door. The man said something to her and left.

Moments later both Vel and Daf came out. Vel said Nagol had summoned us for breakfast and had news for us.

“What news?” I asked.

“The man didn’t say,” she replied.

I found it funny going up to the lobby instead of down. Because the hotel was underground we had to take the elevator up to get to the lobby. I must have laughed out loud because Vel asked me what was so funny. When I told her she gave me a weird look.

I said, “On earth the buildings stand above ground and here they stand below ground.”

She didn’t see anything funny about it.

When we arrived Nagol was sitting side by side with the man who had come up to get us. Nagol welcomed us and asked us to sit down. The moment we sat down the man disappeared for a moment and came back with a couple of platters in his hands. One had pancakes and the other had fried eggs. As soon as the man put the platters down on the table he gave us each a plate, knife and fork.

“I’ve seen these at Delche’s restaurant,” said Daf and grabbed a knife and fork.

“These are foods the people on earth eat,” said Nagol. “I learned this from Delche.”

I told them what they were called in Macedonian and the three of them laughed. They had never heard such words before.

“How do we eat them?” Vel asked. Vel had never seen these foods and had never seen a plate, fork or a knife.

“Perhaps Otsi can show us how?” said Nagol.

“Why did you call him Otsi?” asked Vel.

“That’s what his friends call him,” Nagol replied.

I showed the girls how to hold the fork and knife and how to use them. I told them they had a choice of eating fried eggs or pancakes but they insisted they wanted to try both so I recommended they start with the eggs first. I put a couple of eggs on their plates and showed them how to eat them. After making faces they began to enjoy the eggs, the buttery flavour, the texture and the taste…

After I ate my eggs I showed them how to scoop a pancake and put syrup on it made of condensed fruit juice, which was a little tart for me but the girls didn’t know what syrup tasted like and enjoyed the pancakes. Nagol didn’t have any because he said his old system couldn’t handle the richness of this kind of food.

I looked at him with disappointment.

“I enjoyed watching you eat, especially the young ladies, and that was enough enjoyment for me. And yes, I can’t drink either but I do have some of Delche’s finest on hand,” he said.

“Thank you for the food and perhaps later in the afternoon the girls and I will try some of Delche’s finest.”

He laughed and said, “It’s so nice to finally meet you in person…”

We all turned and looked at him.

“You must be wondering what the news is all about… Right?” he asked.

After a short pause he smiled and said, “I have a surprise for you.”

I smiled while looking curious.

“I’ve made contact with your friends and they’re coming here tomorrow evening. I was trying to get them here this evening but a couple of them couldn’t make it. I also spoke to Asora and asked her to give you some time so that we could get to know each other better.”

“That’s fantastic,” I said. “Thank you very much.”

“I did it more for me than for you,” he said. “I’ve heard so much about your friends but, outside of Delche, Asora and Airam, I haven’t met any of them.”

Vel and Daf looked at each other and then looked at me. I looked at Nagol.

He said, “My dears, you are also invited and you know something, you’re part and parcel of this team and you go where he goes, and don’t forget that.”

They didn’t understand what “part and parcel” meant so Nagol had to explain it in their language.

“If we have the time, I was wondering if you could tell me a bit about what happened here after I left, especially to my friends. What are they doing now? I doubt that I’ll have time to spend with each one individually.”

“That I will do, I’ll tell you everything I know about them. We have time but you should go and see your friends individually anyway.”

“There’s also the matter of my ship. I’d like to take it out of storage and bring it here as soon as possible, just in case something develops.”

“You’re right about that, I can have my driver fly you and the girls there and you can fly yourselves back. But first let me call Asora and get her permission because the facilities in Apserpon are now heavily guarded,” he said and walked away.

Minutes later Nagol came back and gave us the nod.

“There’s one more thing,” I said and I pulled my medallion from inside my shirt.

When Nagol saw the medallion his eyed opened wide. “Is that the key to the ship?” he asked.

“Yes, but it’s encased in epoxy and I need to get it out.”

“I can help you with that. I’ll take you to a jeweler, he’s a friend of mine, and he can cut it open without damaging it. Why don’t we go and do that now.”

About five minutes later we were there and were introduced to the old jeweler. Nagol spoke to him in their language. The man extended his hand. I gave him the medallion and told Nagol to tell him to be careful with the badge imbedded inside it.

When he took it he began to walk away to the back. I followed. Nagol looked at me and was about to say something. I interrupted and said, “I’m sorry but I can’t let the badge go out of my sight.”

The jeweler must have realized what I said and waved us all to the back. It took him several minutes to take measurements and program his laser cutter. The cutting itself took seconds before the medallion was split in two and the badge was exposed. After the man removed the badge he handed it to me and asked Nagol if I wanted the medallion put back together.

“If it’s possible, why not,” I said.

Seconds later the man handed me the medallion and I handed it to Nagol.

He looked at me, slightly confused.

“This is for you, a gift from me. There’s no one in the universe who would appreciate the medallion more than you.”

The man was shocked and didn’t know what to say.

“I need one more favour, I need a chain to hold the badge around my neck.”

Nagol spoke to the man and he pulled out a chain that could withstand a hard tug.

After I placed the chain around my neck I removed the piece of paper with the codes written on it from the back of the badge and put it in my pocket.

Before we left Nagol tried to pay the man but he refused his money.

Minutes later we were back in the hotel lounge. Nagol waved at the man who had served us earlier and said something to him. The girls looked at each other and stood up.