----------------------------------------------------------- - The Ta’ainvel - – By Khan – ----------------------------------------------------------- 8. He sent one of the Warriors to tell the other Humans how their companion was doing, and then walked back to the Command Bridge sealing the door he had opened as he passed. He came into the now dimly lit command bridge and continued towards his command station. Not sitting in it, he faced the window and checked the status of the ship. After half an hour of checking reports and walking around in the command bridge to see to every command station he turned to b’Link. ”Commander. What do you have in mind when we exit the system?” he asked. ”You know what I have in mind Jante. We finally have the means to return to Arathur within one lifetime. No one knows how long it might take, but it will go fast.” She paused then continued, ”You know that is the only choice we have. Mars and Tellus are the only colonies this side of Arathur and I’m certainly not taking the Handrillian back to slavery beneath those na’Chetu.” ”I understand. I was hoping for that answer. Ayshala, you heard all of this?” ”Yes, Jante, I heard.” ”Then, commander, if you wouldn’t mind, I would like to go talk to some people.” ”Of course.” He nodded to her, walking past, and left the room again. Calling up a Warrior close to where the Humans were staying, he asked him to bring all of them to the Sanctum. ”Immediately sir.” The blown out hole where the elevator had been was now covered with a thick piece of metal and he walked past it towards the stairs at the end of the hall. When he reached the Sanctum he found the Humans already there, sitting near a small brook roughly twenty yards from the door. He walked over but before he could say anything, Anna walked forward. ”Before you say anything, we just want you to know that we have decided to stay. Wherever you go.” ”Let me just say this, then you can tell me if you want to stay or go back.” He paused, then quickly said ”We have decided to take this ship back, to go home to Arathur.” Marie stared, then said ”But didn’t that take two hundred fifty years? You will be long dead before you even get there.” ”No, Marie. I didn’t tell you all of the truth. We have known of these fanatics and their contacts with the Mars Colony for two years now and work to build an experimental engine begun not soon after that first discovery was made. The theoretics of it had been worked out over the last decades of the journey to Mars and we decided to use it as a last escape when the Mars Colony finally decided to subdue earth. The engines were ready two months ago and I was returning here to get ready for the attack, and to make ready to leave. The trip will be considerably shorter than a lifetime, perhaps even as little as a decade. Or less! We don’t know how effective this engine will be.” ”But why didn’t you use it two months ago, to leave immediately?” asked Anna. ”Because we felt at home on earth and vainly hoped that the Humans would accept us. But we were wrong. Now we return to Arathur.” Having piloted the ship for roughly ten years, Jante both heard and felt the change of speed through the artificial gravity of the ship, the Shift to normal space. ”The time to decide has come. We have entered normal space and are attaining orbit around Pluto at the moment, waiting for any other ships wanting to return to Arathur,” he said. Anna only looked at each of them and they nodded to her. ”We will stay,” she said finally. Jante sighed and stood. ”Warrior, bring me those things I asked for before,” he said into the communication device. Soon the door twenty yards behind him opened and a black-jacketed Ta’ainvel came towards him with two large bags in his hands. ”Right. If you are to be permanent members of the crew of the starship Handrillian, you need to look like it as well,” Jante said as he took the bags from the Warrior. He took out a dark blue bundle tied together with a segmented metal belt, much like his own. He threw it to Marie who caught it with a surprised expression on her face. Taking out more of the bundles he gave one to each of the Humans there, including a smaller one for Susanna. From the other bag he took eight pair of furry boots and handed them to the Humans. ”Michael, you once told me you were good with a rifle. How good are you with a handgun under stress?” ”Are you kidding me? I used to be a police before the wars,” Michael replied, and quickly caught the bundle with a black jacket and a sidearm in a holster that Jante threw to him. ”Warrior, this man will accompany you back to security headquarters and sign up as trainee.” He turned to Michael again, ”You might as well get into the life onboard immediately and be integrated with the crew as much as possible. That way you will have twenty thousand supporters with you when we arrive at Arathur. ”Anna, you used to be a nurse. Why don’t you join the crew in the hospital and take care of Charlotte? Later you can join the regular medical core of the Handrillian.” He handed her a grey jacket. ”Thomas, Marie, you both worked on your family’s farm back towards Duin. You can join the agricultural crew in the gardens.” To them he handed two orange jackets. ”Elisabeth. You have a child and that child needs to grow up with other children no matter what race.” He smiled, ”Would a place in a Handrillian day-care centre suit you?” ”Yes, it would thank you.” She smiled back at him as he handed her a purple jacket. ”Jonas, I never heard much of what you did before the wars.” ”Well, I was a fighter pilot actually,” Jonas replied. ”Warrior, could you please fetch a green jacket for Mr Moore.” ”Yes sir.” The Warrior darted off towards the door. ”You know, Jante, Charlotte is also a pretty good pilot. She flew a lot of different things over the years,” Jonas continued. ”Interesting. Warrior, two green jackets and another standard set of clothes with the injured Human woman’s measurements,” Jante shouted after the Warrior. He nodded before he darted through the door. ”And you Freddie,” he said to the boy, ”You can also handle a handgun I trust?” ”Yes Jante, of course.” He grinned, and Jante threw him the last bundle in the bags, a black jacket and a sidearm. ”Right. Jonas, you are with me. The rest of you wait here until someone comes to get you.” He smiled at them. ”Don’t worry. I only do this because you need to get on with a long life in space. I know how frustrating ’doing nothing’ can be. Remember, we are at red alert until we are well away from the Sol system.” With Jonas in tow he walked towards the Command Bridge again. ”You will find yourself very familiar with our routines I suspect. Right now I will take you to see the commander. Tell me, what duties did you have in the Air Force?” ”I flew as squadron leader in the 56th Fighter Brigade,” he replied. ”Alright, then you will quickly attain those duties again, as soon as you have settled into the way of life here.” He walked through the doors to the command bridge and saw the surface of Pluto slowly passing by in the upper half of the window. He also saw another starship a mile or so away currently aligning into orbit. ”Commander, this is Jonas Moore. He flew fighters on earth before the wars, and is going to join our own force. And come with us to Arathur.” ”I understand. Mr Moore, I hope you will enjoy the Ta’ainvel way of life, for it will be all that you experience for the rest of your time.” She smiled at him and then returned her eyes to one of the monitors next to her. Jante showed Jonas out again and deposited him into the care of one of the squadron leaders standing in the hallway outside.