It was evening in the makeshift camp of the rescue team. The Taelons and Liam Kincaid were all present and accounted for, but there was no sign of Vorjak and the Jaridians. A team of Volunteers had been dispatched to the chamber to extract the Atavan energy from the pool and recover Ma'el's relic. Da'an was convinced that the two together were the key to the synthesis of core energy. Boone thought the Companion was quite probably right, since an initial analysis indicated that the pool now contained Taelon, Human, Kimera, and Jaridian DNA.

According to everything that could be pieced together, the volcanic explosion had interrupted the joining process and the Jaridians had quite probably perished, but not before giving their energies to the Taelons and contributing DNA to the Atavan pool. The combined energies of the regeneration chamber and the Jaridians had resulted in some very robust Taelons, energy wise. Da'an figured that even when the energy was redistributed among the brethren still in stasis, they would all have enough for a long and healthy life. The Taelons were no longer a dying race, and although their difficulties weren't all solved, they had hope and a future.

Da'an was dismayed on hearing that the ANA had fired on the Mothership, but Boone soon calmed his fears by relating how he had put the Mothership on Priority One status. The Mothership had saved herself and those on board by taking evasive action, and was presently in orbit around Venus, out of the range of Human nuclear weapons. And the Volunteers had Agent Sandoval safely under lock and key.

On this night, with the immediate dangers resolved, everyone in the camp was indulging in a reflective and thoughtful mood. Tomorrow, they would break camp, and, taking the remaining good shuttles, would return to the Mothership. Then would begin the difficult job of reestablishing Taelon/Human relationships, and, in time, Taelon/Human/Jaridian relationships. But for now, everyone in the camp wanted to think. And talk.

Renee Palmer and Liam Kincaid were taking a brief walk along the beach. The winter night air was cold, but to Liam it was a blessed relief from the heat and smoke of the volcano. They passed the time in silence, the clear night creating it's own words. Liam stopped, and looking up into the star lit sky, sighed.

"Who else do you think is out there?", Palmer wondered aloud.

"Many others. Many civilizations. Does that bother you, Renee?"

"It did, but not any more. I know that it's impossible to put the genie back in the bottle. We aren't alone, and we have to quit pretending we are."

"And...we have to quit thinking that 'alien' is 'evil'. Although, I think we've found, a little healthy skepticism doesn't hurt."

"Right. Liam, I'm glad it worked out for the Taelons, I really am. After I saw a glimpse of what could be, I wanted them to make it, and I'm glad it worked out. But most of all, I'm glad it worked out for you."

"Do you mean that? Alien heritage and all?"

'Yes, I do. And, I don't know, maybe I'm a sucker for happy endings; but I want to help build the dream, no matter what Hubble Urick and his xenophobes want."

Liam turned to look at her, and smiled, convinced of her sincerity. "I'm glad Renee, I really am. Because Humanity has a choice to make. We choose our destiny, but we also must face the consequences of that choice. We can choose to go forward as partners with the Taelons in a new future, or we can continue to attempt to stand alone. I don't think the last choice is the best one."

As they rounded a bend, they saw a lone, distant figure sitting on a rock outcropping. Liam stopped, an odd look crossing his face, as his gaze fell on the Taelon.

"Wait for me right here, Renee. I have to do something." With that he left her standing on the beach, and running to the rocks, climbed up to sit by Da'an.

Studying his Companion's face, Liam was struck by how peaceful Da'an looked. With his eyes closed, and his hands placed palm up on his crossed legs, he looked like the picture of spiritual serenity. Liam sighed slightly, and Da'an opened his eyes. With a graceful turn of his head, he gazed affectionately at his young protector.

"Sorry, Da'an. I didn't mean to interrupt your meditation, it's just..."

"Yes, Liam?"

"Well, it's Zo'or."

"I am sorry if he causes you discomfort, Liam. As soon as it is possible, we will transfer him to another host."

"No. No, it's not that. I mean, he hasn't been a problem at all. As a matter of fact, I'm discovering that Zo'or and I have a lot in common. And, well, he's very different, now, isn't he? He seems so simple, and so... young."

At Liam's words, Da'an dropped his head, his energy form blushing through his facade. In a quietly pained voice, he answered, "He is young, Liam. A youth who was forced to act the adult, in order to do that for which he lacked wisdom or experience. All of that has been stripped away by the shock he has endured. He has become, as you say, more simple. He is, now, what he was never really allowed to be."

"I'm sorry, Da'an."

Da'an raised his eyes and looked at his young protector, his expression almost wistful. Touching his spiritual child's cheek with his hand, he said, "Do not be sorry, Liam. It is, for Zo'or, a new beginning; and, perhaps, an opportunity for redemption. And so, what is your concern about my child?"

"Well....umm...he wants....he wants...his da'rhu'shee, And...", Liam was somewhat embarrassed to continue, but sensing that Da'an would really want to know, he went on. "And... the thing is, I guess....so do I."

Liam reached out his arms in a childlike invitation. Da'an smiled, blushing softly, and lifting Liam's hand, pressed their palms together. For the very first time, Da'rhu'shee shared a parent's affection and comfort with both of his children. Liam wrapped his arm around the Taelon's neck and held him close, curling up against him like a child settling in for a nap, as Da'rhu'shee softly stroked his hair.

"Hey, Kincaid, that's my Taelon you're holding. Go get your own", an amused voice interrupted.

"Aw, come on Boone, you haven't let Da'an out of your sight since we got back up here. Give me a break!", Liam teased, as he cuddled closer. "Besides, I don't need a Taelon. I've got my eye on a cool blonde."

"Oh ho....so that's it. Well, you'd better get going then, 'cause she looks like she's about to freeze out there."

Liam sat up and looked out across the beach, where Renee Palmer waited, briskly moving her arms to keep the circulation going. "Oops. Almost forgot. Good night, Boone." Leaning over, Liam gave Da'an an affectionate peck on the cheek. "Good night, Da'rhu'shee", he tenderly spoke. With a happy wave, Liam scrambled back down the rock face, and ran across the moonlit beach. Boone and Da'an watched him slip an arm around Renee Palmer's shoulder, as they made their way back to warmth of the camp.

"Well. Looks like the Kimera/Human connection is improving", Boone commented.

"Yes, I am glad. It would seem Ma'el's vision has expanded to include many others."

"Mind if I move in a little closer...it's pretty cold, you know."

Da'an smiled quietly in assent, as his Protector and mate wrapped his big arms around the Taelon and pulled him back against his chest. They sat there, watching the moon reflected on the ocean, relishing the peace of this moment.

"Da'an. I'm a little confused. I thought the ninth dimension was about a Taelon/Jaridian joining. Everything seemed to point to that. The need for both species to regenerate, the reference to Atavus. So how come, with all they did, Ma'el and Ha'gel missed the fact that the volcano would interrupt the joining?"

"They did not miss it. They counted on it."

"What do you mean?"

"It was never their intention to physically rejoin the Taelon and Jaridian into one species again. That would be counter productive to all that we have each attained in our seperate evolutionary journeys, and negates the essence of who we have become. It also does not fully address the need for some form of a finite core energy, which is, after all, the reason we were dying."

"Then what was their intention?"

"To save both species, and bring us into peace, rather than war. The Atavan pool now contains all of the elements necessary to synthesize core energy. This will keep both of our species from dying. But ultimately, if we are to benefit from this gift, we must cease the violence that separates us and determine to move forward together."

"But why all the talk about becoming 'Atavus'?"

"Your word 'atavus' means 'ancient ancestor'. But the Taelon word that Ma'el used has many levels of meaning. Examine it, William, and tell me what you find there."

"The Taelon word....", Boone thought through all he knew of Eunoia, "...can be translated, 'in the spirit of that which came before'. In this case, the spirit of unity."

"That is correct."

"So why didn't Ma'el just say so?"

"My parent was not only a scientist, but a mystic; a prophet. He was inclined to speak in symbols and riddles. It was always so. And so we Taelons have a true mission. To strive for peace with our brethren: Humankind and the Jaridians."

"I don't think the Jaridians see it quite that way."

"I did not say that there would not be difficulties, and perhaps even failures. But this must always be our goal. Ma'el shared with me that it is when we pass through the unknown that we discover truth. We have traversed the unknown, and now see the truth that lies before us."

"And what is that truth, my love?"

Da'an tilted his head and smiled; a slow gentle smile, but one full of the wisdom and understanding of the ages. "I believe that it is this: what determines our future is not whether we are the same, but whether we are able to become unified in our diversity.
Different yet the same. Separate but one."

"Like you and I. We are the example."

"So it would seem."

The Protector and his Companion sat in quiet contemplation, thinking of where they had come from, what they had been through, and the path that lay before them. The trials that earlier seemed destined to tear them apart, had proven to be the very force that would allow them to stay together, and they found themselves feeling grateful for all they had experienced and the promise of what was yet to come The two sat in long silence, the sound of the waves lapping the shore and the soft glow of the moon on the ocean lulling their spirits into peace. Tightening his embrace, William Boone snuggled down closer to his mate and whispered softly in his ear, "Are you content, my Companion?"

Da'an laid his head on his Protector's chest, and reaching back, gently stroked the human's face with his hand. He slowly blinked his eyes, cocked his head to the side, and with a mischievous, sidelong glance, murmured back to his mate, "As content as.....a...cow."

There was a stunned pause, then the sound of the protector's laughter rang among the cliffs, startling a few Taelons and Humans alike. Boone captured the Taelon's hand, and pressing a loving kiss into his palm, slipped his own into his mate's. As the human's fingers entwined his loved one's, he allowed his joy to mingle with Da'an's contentment, their minds joined in a supreme intimacy that could only be shared with his Taelon Companion. With the violet/blue of Da'an's essence merging into his own, Boone closed his eyes and breathed a deep sigh of sublime fulfillment. They would continue on for their people; building the bridges, fulfilling the dream. But tonight, in this moment in time, in this plane of existence, there was only the essence of two become one; a Human and a Taelon, Protector and Companion... Boone and Da'an.

The End