Andor, Councilor Waldo's house, the same day (counted as day 234 in the year 15636 after the invention of zero by Andoreans)
"And has the council decided?" Ambassador Zozo asked anxiously as Waldo entered the sitting room were Zozo had been waiting for news.
Waldo surveyed the room critically. Within only one afternoon and despite two ever-cleaning household robots Zozo had managed to turn the room into a mess.
Waldo re-arranged the cushions on the wooden bank into the geometric pattern they belonged and sat down, dignified.
"No.
They are still discussing. They need more data."
"Waldo!" Zozo jumped up, knocking over the mathematical puzzle on the presentation pedestal next to him. The silver balls rolled out of the small labyrinth onto the floor.
"We need this alliance with the humans. The Queen is rebuilding her army. And if she doesn't attack, the Si'ar will or the Traash or the Felitides or the …."
Zozo stopped himself, apparently not wanting to think of everyone who could attack them.
"We can help feed them and they can help us defend ourselves. Why is it so hard to see for everyone that we all will benefit from this alliance?!"
Waldo picked up the puzzle Zozo had knocked over. Andoreans were scientists, not warriors. Despite the fact that their language was still spoken all over the galaxy, their empire had lost power a long time ago. They needed military allies and humans were the only ones who needed Andor's and Kirwin's help in return desperately enough.
"Waldo, how can you be arranging balls on a platter when we may be taking our last free breaths before psychocrystallization?" Zozo emphasized his words by a jumping up and down in front of Waldo.
Waldo put down the puzzle. Desperate times called for desperate measures. He was glad he was not in this alone.
"Zozo, how well can you pilot a shuttle?"
Some experiments involving high voltage shocks and high-speed ballistic objects later, Goose felt somewhat better. Dodging bullets and energy blasts gave him something to focus on and no one gut hurt that way. Well, the scientists looked a little bit scared when he stepped into that high voltage field but it was actually one of the environments he felt safest in since it automatically provided the energy he needed for his bio defenses.
He concluded it was also safe to collect his boots and blasters now.
Everything was quiet at the dolphin's pool. He was about to leave unannounced when Ikarus emerged from the water.
"Hello, Goose. How are you?"
"I'm feeling better, Ikarus, thanks. Where's Winter?"
"She's not talking to me because I talked to the human psychic."
"How so?" Goose usually tried to stay out of the dolphins' domestic squabbles but it would have been callous not to ask.
"She thinks I betrayed you."
Goose was stupefied at that show of support. Needless support.
"I needed to leave anyway."
"She scared Goose. You shouldn't have communicated with her," Winter piped in, emerging from the part that the dolphin's referred to as their living room.
He did not know whether to be touched or annoyed by Winter's maternal care. If someone got the impression that contact with him disturbed the dolphins, he would have seen the last of his friends. And certainly he did not want them to be perturbed because of him.
"You were rude, Winter. She was very friendly and you just ignored her. You even splashed them."
"You what?" Goose could not help but grin at the mental image of three dripping wet scientists.
"It was half as bad. She deflected most of it anyway with her shield. Besides, you just like her because she could translate your made-up words," Winter squeaked, clearly still offended.
"They are our words, Winter, and if you would have come up to the surface she could have translated yours as well."
Goose felt like he was in the middle of a firefight with no way to discern where the blasts were coming from. It was not a pleasant feeling.
"Winter, Ikarus, stop it. Don't fight because of me. I wasn't in the mood for talking but I wasn't scared of her. You don't need to defend me."
Now that he thought of it he could simply have used full mind shielding to get through the introductions even if it gave him a headache afterwards.
"You're our friend, Goose. You're like iik-ii-iik – a dolphin on legs and when your world turns upside down and is shaken like a bottle we want to help you," Ikarus said.
Goose was speechless at the dolphins' concern.
He was not sure whether he liked the improved translator, though.
"I'm your friend, too, but don't annoy anyone because of me. It's not – a good thing. I was being impolite and you shouldn't copy me."
"Are you mad with me, Goose?" Winter asked, downcast.
"No, I'm not, Winter."
"I'm sorry I was rude."
"It's okay, Winter."
After that the dolphins launched into private conversation and Goose assumed it was ok for him to leave, when Winter called him back.
"Goose, can you tell Ranger Niko I'm sorry I ignored her and I would like to talk to her if she comes back?"
Goose nodded. He could not believe he was on a mission to apologize. Supertroopers considered it a weakness. But the last Supertrooper he had seen had been busy blowing up railway bridges on heavily traveled lines and that was not a path he ever wanted to follow. Nor would he allow anyone else to follow it.
He hoped Darkstar was safe.
Beta Mountain, quarters of the Fox family
Eliza Fox sat down with her husband at the kitchen table after the children had scattered to enjoy the evening, which meant computer games for Zach junior or in Jessie's case, taking apart the computer.
"So what did Commander Walsh want to talk about with you?" she asked.
Zachary Fox took a deep breath. No use beating around the bush. He knew she would not like it and she would not like him stalling either.
"He offered me the command of a deep space exploration mission."
The sword that had been hanging over their heads had suddenly fallen.
Eliza did not say anything to the news. Her voice would not co-operate. Her eyes darted around the kitchen as though to find a spot to fix on. The silence lasted for minutes.
Finally she asked:
"How long would you be gone?"
"It's hard to tell. The travel time is six months one way."
"So it will be at least a year. Probably longer." The truth hurt as she said it but there was no use avoiding it. "And the travel time is warranted?"
"We've received alien transmissions, yes."
Eliza looked out of the window. It was all black but she knew she would see the stars if she turned off the light. The stars her husband wanted to travel to.
For the last years he had turned down commands that would have meant leaving Earth because she could not stand life in space or on the outer colonies. He had never reproached her for it but Eliza had hated herself for her weakness.
And now was the time when she needed to give.
"So they are close to making first contact."
It seemed unreal that she would hear the news at her kitchen table. Discussing aliens while she needed to grade papers.
"When I married you I knew that we wouldn't stay on Earth. I never forgot even as you came back mission after mission. I really tried to make a home on New Delhi station.
I just never thought that you would leave without me."
"Eliza…"
"Are they friendly?" If she asked questions, got details, maybe it would be more bearable. Maybe she would not burst into tears right now.
"The ones whose messages we have received are interested in an alliance."
"The ones whose messages … So there are more?"
"Yes, plenty."
"Oh. So we had better make an alliance with the ones who are friendly. Make sure we don't fall further behind in space exploration?" Sarcasm took over. Her last defense.
"Eliza…"
"I know you need to go, Zach, but I need to be alone now." She closed the door as gently as she could and went on a walk through the corridors in a quiet part of the mountain. She did not notice where she went nor did she care. All that mattered was that no one saw her tears.
Later at night, when they were lying in bed together, he tried to tell her more, that it was a safe mission, they already knew the language, the aliens seemed peaceful, they might even get the science for faster interstellar travel…
She tried to believe it and yet she could not shake the cold feeling that because of contact with these aliens she and her husband would be separated for a dreadfully long time.