They Are Welcome Here

by T.J.98

The Thimoids fled from their homes to escape extermination at the hands of the XT-489 Eliminators. They have been travelling from system to system since then, in a desperate attempt to find a new home before the last of their dwindling supplies were used up. Two refugees, the elderly Te'K er'Bik and the child Bi'V il'Tek, try to remain hopeful in these tragic times. One-Shot.

"Mr. er'Bik?"

"Bi'V, you can just call me Te'K."

"Oh ... sorry ..."

"So Bi'V, what did you want?"

"..."

"Do you want water, sweetie? We still have plenty of water."

"..."

"Food? I'm sorry, we don't have much. But dinner is only three hours away. If you eat slowly it will feel like more."

"... Mr. er'Bik ... uhh, sorry ..."

"You don't need to be sorry. Just tell me what's bothering you."

"I had a bad dream again."

"Oh ... well I have bad dreams too."

"It was about the XT-489s. In my dream, one of them snuck onto the ship and said he was going to kill me. Then one of the scary men ... In'D ki'Rav I think ... was with him and said he wanted to eat me after the XT was done."

"Well you don't need to worry about that. We're at least ten systems away from the XT-489s; they're not going to find us out here. And In'D ki'Rav won't bother you anymore either! See this blaster pistol?"

"... Yes?"

"Remember how when In'D ki'Rav tried attacking you I shot him dead with it?"

"Yes ..."

"Well there's still plenty of rounds in it. If anyone else tries eating you I'll blast him to bits! I made a promise to you that I'd keep you safe. You believe me, don't you?"

"I believe you meant it, but what if there's something you can't protect me from?"

"I still won't let anything hurt you, I promise."

"Hey Mr ... sorry ..."

"Don't be sorry. What else do you to know?"

"Why did the XT-489s attack us? We didn't do anything to hurt them, and we would have been their friends if they asked."

"They hate us for existing. The Galaxy is a big and beautiful place, but they don't want to share. They're just bullies."

"I hate them! They took mama from me. I want my mama back!"

"I hate them too. It's okay to be angry at them."

"... They won't follow us, will they?"

"I don't think so."

"..."

"..."

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"..."

"... Hey Te'k er'Bik? Do people really go to the Golden Nest when they die? My mama tells ... told me that's where good people go."

"I don't know if I'm really religious, but it may be that people go; now I'm not as sure about things relating to life and death as I was. But if there is a Golden Nest then I bet your mother is there; she sounds like she was a good person."

"What about Bu'S il'Tek? And Be'K il'Tek?"

"Yes, your sisters too."

"And your wife?"

"..."

"I'm sorry ..."

"Don't be sorry. Sure, my wife too. She wasn't very religious either, but if there is a Golden Nest then she'll be there too ... anyway, I believe that whether or not there's a Golden Nest people still live on. When a person dies, and you love them, then you remember them and try to live in a way that they'd like. You keep their memories alive, and in a way you carry part of them with you."

"Oh ..."

"But don't let me tell you what to believe. If you believe in a Golden Nest then there's nothing wrong with that."

"... What's your wife's name?"

"Oh ... her name is Al'D er'Bik."

"Was she pretty?"

"Yes, she was. She had the cutest antennas, and an outer shell like obsidian. And she had this sweet laugh; it could be snowing outside and her laugh would still make you feel warm."

"Would we have been friends if I got to know her?"

"Oh I'm sure. She'd have baked you honey cookies and given you her old toys."

"I think my mama would have liked her. You know my mama's the reason I survived ... when those XT's were coming for us she told me to hide under the pile of dead people. They didn't find me there."

"That's right, that's where I found you before we escaped. Your mama must have been clever."

"She was ... Did you and Al'D have any children?"

"... No. We tried for years, but it just didn't happen."

"Oh ... I'm sorry ..."

"It's not your fault. And it wasn't so bad; Al'D and I still had each other ..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"I thought that when I grew up I'd get married and have children ..."

"Why can't you? We'll find a new world to live on, and there are plenty of boys your age on this ship."

"But none of them would want me. The XT's ripped my left antenna out and cut one of my arms off. I'm so ugly-"

"DON'T EVER SAY THAT! Listen to me: You are not ugly! You are a beautiful little girl, and you still have a future ahead of you. Don't give up now."

"I'm a Monster! An ugly one-antenna monster!"

"No you're not! The only monsters are the XT-489s. They're the ones who caused all our problems ... but anyway, there's nothing wrong with you. And if not having an antenna bothers you so much I'll use some of the extra metal to make you a new one, and it will be shiny and pretty."

"I heard scientists back on Thimodurus knew how to regrow lost limbs."

" ... I remember reading about that in the news, yes ..."

"If we land on another planet will we be able to do that?"

"I think so, someday. And I don't want to hear any of this 'if' stuff, we're going to reach another planet."

"I heard one of the other children say that we're running out of food, and that we'll starve to death before we -"

"Don't think like that! You can't think like that. We are going to survive, but the only way we will is if we hold onto hope. We have to hope, and be tough, and be brave. If we don't, if we give up, then all the people the XT-489 murdered will have died for nothing. We have to live well for their sake."

"..."

"Listen, when we get to a new planet all this trouble will be behind us. We'll find a hill and dig a great big nest, all nice and cozy. And we'll bake honey cookies and nectar tea, and plant flowers in the windows. And we'll sing songs ... and have running races ... and ... and ... tell good stories ... and watch funny movies. There'll be school, and swimming holes, and all the other good things."

"... I want to sleep now."

"Okay, go to sleep ... I'll watch you, and tell you if anything happens. We're making one more jump, to another system."

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"Hey, wake up. Bi'V il'Tek, wake up! It's important!"

"What is it Te'K?"

"The others are saying we just made contact with aliens."

"Aliens?"

"Yes. While you were asleep, we opened communication with an alien Empire. They call themselves the UNE ... the 'Unified Nations of Earth' or something like that."

"What are the Earth Aliens like?"

"They're weird looking; they don't have antennas, or mouth tentacles, or an outer mantle, or anything."

"Ewww! They sound gross."

"They're not gross ... okay, they're kinda gross, but they're nice. Some of the other adults spoke to their leader, an Earther Female named 'Dolores Muwanga', and explained what happened. She said we can live on Earth with them now, and they'll give us all jobs and homes and food. They'll even have their doctors fix us up."

"They must be nice."

"See, I told you there's still hope."

"You're right, there is still hope. We can still have a tomorrow."