Chapter 5

Reminisces Part Two

Lekilis lay back in his seat aboard the transport vessel with Elryn napping peacefully, her head rested on his shoulder her long, alluring auburn-blonde hair down over her shoulder.

The commissioned naval-officer had been steering the vessel undisturbed for over four hilra. He noticed the navigational console indicating he'd finally entered the outskirts of Furling territory.

Al'vik activated the craftboard communicator and spoke into it with great enthusiasm and consideration. "Ladyelves and Gentlelfmen, we did it! After your long hard years of captivity you've now re-entered Furling-controlled space. As you can see, it still stands strongly, despite the intended Erri aggression, to welcome you. Please tolerate the re-entry procedure briefly as you are all anxious to resume when, as the Immigration Administration and other various have promised they will expedite your repatriation process."

The party set their view on what was the very-welcome sight of the Furling Ship-Stationing-Boarding-and-Deployed Tacticals (SSBDT) Station. It was responsible for protecting the Furling Unified Republic's Northern Border they were now flying through, along with the Furling Stellar-Interstellar-Galactic-Naval Service (SIGNS) station right next door to it.

The inbound-communications-alert alarm aboard the sounded, waking up the rescuers who had fallen asleep after the.

"Unidentified star-vessel, please enter your designated security code into the transmissions log." The vessel's helsmelf activated the shipboard announcer. "Sirs and Ma'am, would whichever one of you who is awake and located closest to the bridge please come forth to enter your authorization code."

"I'll do it" Lekilis announced to his fellow military officers who'd carried out the rescue mission.

He began the trek forwards to the bridge, moving pas the seat-rows in which the hundreds of seated rescues acknowledged him with an appreciative smile or a warm pat on the shoulder. At the bridge, he hurriedly but correctly input the letter-number combination aiae, [ ].

"Code acknowledged, please pull in position to dock on the Main Hangar Bay. " the security officer instructed them.

The main station's huge Main Defense Gun Turret and also-large Secondary Defense Gun Turrets stayed silent. Its tractor beam automatically activated on a low-power setting to help the vessel enter the docking bay.

The navigation officer steered the and opened up the two hatch doors which led to the outside of the vessel. Streams of eager escapees of the Erri surveillance station flooded out, although still in a safe, orderly fashion.

The party of rescued elfmen and elfwomen savored the gray metal walls of the station they'd just entered, the first enclose non-vessel, non-craft structure in Furling territory since years.

The last of the station's many security-purpose entry-doors opened. Rounding the corner, the rescuees saw the first Furling elves they would see after entering the Furling Unified Republic's space-territory. Greeting them immediately were five Internal Surveillance-And Criminality Thwartation Organization (ISCTO), the country's national law-enforcement authority, which was equivalent in importance and function to Earth's United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). These high-ranking agents were all clad in their official uniforms, as opposed to being clad in their choice of formal apparel with a magnetized name-tag indicating their rank and position. They had along with them a complement of 100 ISCTO Basic-Agents also clad in their official uniforms and carrying the ISCTO standard-issue two-handed Under-Contraption Guns . The Furling escapees, after having had to deal with the likes of their hated Erri captors daily for thousands of Triangulum Galaxy days , looked apparently extremely unhappy to see none other than the ISCTO agent in charge of the medium-level firepower wielding entry-level agents.

Surrounding the five ISCTO high-rankers and their 400 ISCTO subordinate agents were several unarmored noncommissioned and commissioned officers clad in the mostly darker-dark-blue shade that comprised most of the Battle Dress Uniform color, with some small sections of gray and some small sections of black. These officers included one general-level officer, one Boardery-Captain, two Boardery-Lieutenants and eight Boardery-Sergeants. With them was an approximate company-sized group of 200 BoarderElf Enlistees. The officers had their hands clasped in front of them or behind them. Each SSBDT enlistee was holding a Standard Military-Class Combat Rifle. The SSBDT officers and enlistees were eyeing their ISCTO counterparts very vigilantly and with visible concern, as if they expected them to be the ones causing any trouble which might occur very soon. Boardery Half-Rank General Iliphas Tasis scrutinized the movement of Agent Tazys too, as if aware he might very well be up to no good. The rescues were actually glad to see him, as he was a famous genuine Furling Republic military hero.

Casting a glance to the side at Tazys and after being sure he'd stay still at his spot, Tasis spoke his first words to the rescued after they'd "Welcome back to Furling space, my friends and fellow citizens. As someone who has fought the Erri among the other Furling enemies, I'm extremely gratified to find you've survived their clutches with I know that as you've just returned to, you'll immediately want to. We've contacted your nexts-of kin to inform them of your much-rejoiced-over return, who are currently travelling at the fastest rate safely possible to arrive and reunite with you. In the meantime, we've assigned you the most comfortable temporary quarters which you should feel free to make the most of. The Housing Staff have prepared you each a.

That lead elfman of the ISCTO group, Assistant Deputy Director-ranked Terik Tazys was sauntering forwards confidently intending to greet them as if he were very happy to find out they'd arrived and boarded. This nationally-despised elfman, despite being their fellow national, served only his own extremely selfish interests and acted according to those ulterior motives. The enemies of the Furling Republic for all intents and purposes should be very happy that they had this power-hungry villain effectively fighting their enemy nation from within for them. He didn't intend to weaken the nation as his primary goal, but he didn't care if he did so in the process. For he cared only about pursuing his aims at any cost he would risk, including the ruin of his country. Extremely ironically, Mr. Tazys was second-in-charge of his agency's Treasonous Activities Division. None of the new arrivals doubted his presence onboard this station wasn't for any noble purpose, but that it was rather for the every opposite type of purpose.

He walked towards them without any fear or hesitation, with the disguised facial expression of someone who was happy to see the safe return of the just-boarded group of rescuers and rescuees. Following behind him were the lower-ranking directors who were his closes lackeys at the office. Deep down though, he really was extremely happy, not for that reason, but rather because he'd managed to be here to catch Lekilis and company in the act of committing a possibly disciplinable action, and hoped to take action first before the usual authorities handled the matter. He halted directly at the front of the group where Lekilis, Hacathra, Al'vik, and Eliphon stood.

In the meantime, Military Medics of the SSBDTs scurried up to the rescuees, assessing their health conditions.

He opened his sometimes silver-tongued mouth addressed his longtime arch nemesis Lekilis. His father[ ] Tazys also considered Tran'duil Aelerothi his arch-nemesis. In short, the extended Tazys family considered the Aelerothi family and other like-minded families, such as the Aravansels to be their arch-nemeses. "Ah, Tertiary- General Lekilis Aelerothi. How wonderful to see you once more. I believe, for some unspoken reason, we haven't seen each other's faces for quite some time now. I noticed you'd been missing ever since this morning. We at the Treasonous Activities Division were extremely concerned that you'd put yourself and, more importantly our nation, in harm's way."

Lekilis Aelerothi smiled calmly in response, knowing the double-meaning Terik implied. "Assisting Director Terik Tazys, I agree it's indeed been some time now, thank goodness, but I can comfortably and without qualm tell you I purposely arranged that so. May I inquire what you and your associates have been doing and intend to do here, and why you felt it your duty to, as you say, monitor my whereabouts daily and allegedly look out for my safety?"

Terik Tazys smiled deviously. "Ah, very well, we like to proceed right to the point. Well, I decided to keep watch over you and every other loose end who works for our government, who possesses the capacity for miring our republic in all types of unneeded trouble. I'm very glad my associates are so competent that." He smiled triumphantly. "I can't hope to win you over to my cause any time during your life after knowing of this effort you just pulled off."

"Absolutely, Tazys. And so therefore….?

"Well, I'm disgusted your activities before, and even after, your father was rightfully dismissed from his position as Supreme Warfare Officer. They're detrimental to my well-being and that of my friends and family and the rest of the citizenship of Furliya. Your glory-seeking warmongering during an intended time of peace is simply abhorrent and undermines the stability of our great republic. I'll be dealing with you most unpleasantly today, later during your incarceration, and then soon afterwards at your trial."

Lekilis raised a single eyebrow ever so slowly. "I see. Very humorously, I think the exact same way about your activities before and after the wrongful pressure to resign, which out of his unjustified guilt and for the good of the country, my father capitulated to. I should indicate beforehand that while I'm not intimidated by your presence, the fact that you're presence here is an outrage. I should warn you that although your handling of your ISCTO section lets you influence arrests and trials of a national level, you can't actually arrest me. Despite you innermost wishes, due process actually does still exist in our republic. At least it does for no and that's what's important in order for your perpetually villainous scheming to ultimately fail You overestimate the chances of succeeding with your diabolical plans."

Terik reacted with his characteristic unrepentance. "I only do what I've done for my entire life in the cause of benefiting my people and my country. Well, thankfully, this is the beginning of the dramatic changing of such ways. Your beloved military's prestige has allowed you to escape my corrective hands in the past. But now, you'll no longer be able to act above our laws without facing severe punitive measures."

"As if you really believe in the law, Terik."

The rescues all laughed contemptuously in response to the ridiculousness of Terik's claim and the correctness of Lekilis's claim.

Terik just laughed with them in complete sarcaism. "Laugh now while you can. It's wise to do so. For soon, you won't be able to."

"Is that a threat you just made, Tazys?" another rescue leader retorted defiantly.

"No. Only a very true statement."

"I'm afraid it's rather not." The courageous rescue rebutted.

Next, he turned to Hacathra Revven. "You do realize that you've sided with the future loser in this contest of wills and wiles that can result in only one winner-me, don't you? I offer you at this moment an opportunity to leave the eventually losing side and join the winning side.

"Young elfman, you're extremely naïve to think I'll sell out my ideology anytime during or. Even if you try to kidnap my children, I'll go along with it in the beginning but will get them back to safety and then I'll bring you to justice soon afterwards."

"Very well. Foolish old middle-aged woman And, Quarternary-General Tas'cil, will you avoid the foolishness your doomed colleague and trun your allegiance to me, if you want to at all in the coming

"No. My allegiance is to my superior officer, if you need a seemingly-simple answer."

"Well, let's see if your other half is more sensible than you are. Erri Concerns Deputy Director Aleia."

"No. As someone who , I find your methods dangerously close to what the Erri Empire does. As regarding what you do for your agency and what I do for my agency, we're most certainly not kindred spirits. I spend my working days gathering valuable pieces of information regarding our enemies and using civilian methods to both undermine their normal workings and undermine their attempts to undermine us."

Clusters of ISCTO agents rushed forward and pointed their LC guns at the four generals. Iliphas looked extremnely disgusted at Terik Tazys' behavior, but for some unknown reason did nothing except for continuing to while keeping his hand right on the handle-area of his Standard Special Operations Issue Medium Length and firepower pistol. He frowned, waiting to see what Terik and his cohorts further planned to do.

He then turned to face Elryn, with an intense lusting gaze. "High Daughter, I'm extremely gratified and relieved to see you've returned from captivity inside the despicable nation of Erriya. Had I known you were still alive, I would've planned and supervised the rescue mission personally to bring you back home."

Elryn frowned and pulled back a step from him. "Please refrain from using that title. I care not for you attempting to use honorifics to flatter me." The daughter of the High-Consul declared fervently.

"Very well then. Elryn. As I was going to continue with-"

"Don't use my first name either. We're not on friendly enough relations by a longshot for you to do so. Ms. Aravansel will do just fine." She corrected him coldly.

"Very well then. That situation is only temporary though." He asserted overconfidently.

"It's most certainly not." She retorted mater-of-factly.

"Dispute that now if you like. As I was saying, I've always liked you, Miss Aravansel. You're an extraordinary beauty. Your personality and ideology have many defects, but I believe I can still save you from succumbing to their ill effects." Terik Tazys smiled lecherously as he intrusively ran his palm along the right side of her gorgeous bangs of hair, causing her to gasp in shocked apprehension, and then he slid the back of his left hand along her right cheek.

"Whoaa….what do you think you're doing and why do you think you have the right to do it?" Elryn criticized as she jerked her head back and put up her right hand between them to warn him to back off in no uncertain terms.

Tazys showed a fake expression of remorse. I'm sorry to startle you, Elryn."

"That should be Ms. Aravansel to you, once again Tazys."

Terik sighed a highly-frustrated sounding sigh. "Elryn, I can understand that as a captive inside the Erri Empire having to interact with those despicable elfmen all day, you now naturally question anyone's motives for interacting with you. Especially so when they act too forwards for your taste. But rest assured, I have only honorable intentions towards you. You needn't fear me doing you any harm at all."

The despised elfman took steps once again right towards her. On impulse, Elryn backed off step by step as Terik continued to move forward step by step. Terik sped up very much, overtaking Elryn very quickly. He gripped her shoulders as she struggled against his grasp.

"Elryn, please—stop resisting my attempts to help." He affectionately caressed her bare shoulders and then moved his hands much further down to her lower back and then lower down to her waist to continue caressing. Terik finally moved his hands right up below her breast area, caressing it ever more tenderly.

"No!" Elryn hollered as she pushed him away furiously. She followed up this action by slapping him soundly across the cheek. "What do you not understand about a no, you lecherous, boundaryless, exploitative son of a killer-she-dog?"

Tazy's cronies and his henchmen looked completely shocked and lowered their guard for fraction of a second, allowing Lekilis and his associates to seize the gun-hand of their ISCTO guards and incapacitate them with a single flashing strike from their special-operationrs training. Lekilis rushed forward nearer to where Elryn and Terik were. Al'vik and Hacathra followed closely behind. The ISCTO Basic-Agent blocking his way attempted to use their stun-sticks on him, but Lekilis blocked, elbowed him in a vulnerable spot, and snatched the stun-stick out of his grip. Al'vik narrowly dodged and then neck-chopped two ISCTO agents attempting to stun him in the chest. Hacathra side-stepped and punched a Basic in the shoulder, causing him to drop to his knee in pain. She bashed him over the head with a fist-pounding and snatched his stick away. Leikilis ducked in an instant to avoid a Tazys crony swinging his stick at the side of his head, responding by swinging his confiscated stick upwards to contact the elfman's chin, causing him to drop horizontally onto the floor. He grabbed Terik by the collar and swung him around to face him.

"When an elfwoman says no, she means precisely tor effuse you, you do the right thing by respecting her refusal." He admonsihed Tazys.

'Oh, attempting to instruct me regarding how to woo an elfwoman, are you, Aelerothi, and accosting me in the process?" he wrenched himself free of Lekilis's grasp and backed up briefly, drawing his gun in an instant and attempting to point it at Lekilis's face to threaten him. Lekilis stepped in his slash to the side, reaching out to grab the gun's barrel, which he then used to heft it towards

The captain ducked and pulled the gunbarrel forwards,

The SSBDTs had now subdued the ISCTO agents, now

"Iliphas Tazys, what is the meaning of this?" Terik hissed the outraged-sounding query to Iliphas .

"You're familiar enough with the law, after all? I am within the rights of our Fundamental Laws Engrainment stipulations I believe I would know much better than you, General Tasis." He replied condescendingly.

Iliphas crossed his arms determinedly. "Are you jesting? I also am a Certified Legal Advocate, and I'm certain that I, on the other hand, am acting within the limits of the Fundamental Laws. It's you who aren't. Perhaps you missed every single session during your days at the Legal Studies College covering the basics concerning the power of ISCTO relative to the other governmental sectors. It's not a secret-police organization, I feel compelled to remind you. You do realize we're not living in a nation such as the Erri [allegedly] Eternal Absolute Empire and therefore having to face the evil actions of their Domestic Subversion Monitorance and Suppression Organization (DSMSO) frequently. And allow me to pre-emptively tell you, that if you attempt to carry out any of your illegal actions here today you'll be doing so on the condition of my dead body. I don't plan to perish anytime before the final thwarting of your scheme for national domination, so you won't be living oput this hypothetical scenario. "

Agent Tazys's face changed that instant into an infuriated one that would have drawn much laughter normally. *I can arrange to cause that event to happen if you really insist.* he interior-monologued to himself. "When my father is the High Consul and I'm the Deputy High-Consul, you can be sure I'll reward your less-than-complete-cooperation according to your just desserts."

Iliphas only snickered coldly, completely unphased by the threat. "Really, you claim. I'll actually become concerned at that time if and when you ever do succeed at usurping power for assuredly no good ends. As far as I'm concerned, the republic still has much time before such a vile event occurs. During this precious time interval, the patriotic elfmen and elfwomen of Furliya who still optimistically struggle to prevent your type of direction for our republic. Their efforts at this moment will buy enough time for the country's leadership and non-governmental citizens to realize the follow of continue to go along. "

Terik Tazys made a mental note to request another personnel-expansion to the notoriously vicious Treasonous Activities Division. He absolutely couldn't afford now, of all times, for the opposition to succeed at halting the pace of his plans. Therefore he had to quadruple his efforts if he was to succeed with his ruthlessly evil plan for self-aggrandizement any time soon or if at all.

"You are a fool, acting on behalf of the traitor to his country, Lekilis Aelerothi."

Iliphas looked completely unmoved. "Whatever you think about, I wish to emphasize right now that I'm simply following the current laws by handling the situation this way. You, on the other hand, wish to bypass the current laws to. I restrained myself earlier fairly well, more than I needed to, during all your earlier lawbreaking. Now you seek to go yet further. I should warn you I will reserve the right to send a plasma bolt or more into you if you make that absolutely necessary. So please act more lawfully for the duration of your visit onboard my station. the won't have to act to rectify any unlawful behavior."