Peter, Lyn, and Colin had spent a good two hours talking about their people's history, how they had been prisoners of another race years ago and how many of their people had been sent away, with their children, in an attempt to save their kind. Eventually, they had won their independence and rid themselves of the threat of extinction. Now, Peter, along with his associates, worked on finding and bringing the refuges home.
Max and the others had many questions now that there were actually people to answer them. They had asked everything from population to why their food finally tasted right without the aide of Tabasco sauce. Now there were really only a few things left to ask and it was silently agreed that Max would start. "How did we get here?"
"Spaceship, though we refer to them as light cruisers. They go at such high speeds that it only takes one week of Earth time to travel between here and there."
"Like traveling at warp speed?"
Lyn laughed a bit, "More like the slip-stream technology that was in Voyager. At the equivalent of warp 9, it would take a few hundred years."
Max nodded in understanding. "So we were asleep for a week?"
"Sort of. You were in stasis since you are not used to space travel. I was awake when I was brought back about a month ago and was sick for several days because of it."
Michael was interested in all of the information but really had one question that had to be answered. He had always wanted his answers and now that he had them, he could live in peace. "When are we going back?"
Lyn's jaw tightened and Colin put a hand over hers in a calming gesture. Peter simply smiled placatingly and replied, "That is an issue for another day, my children. I have other things that I must attend to now. Colin, please show Michael and Max to their quarters. Lyn, take Isabel to hers. You all have the freedom to roam as you please. You are not prisoners so feel free to make yourselves at home. If you need help with something, ask one of us. I'll see you in the morning."
"Well, at least the quarters are nice. I'm next door to the right if you ever need anything," Lyn said as she stepped through the door to the small cottage that was now Isabel's and illuminated the room. "You are skilled in your basic abilities so there shouldn't be anything in here that you cannot handle. The lights, music, kitchen, bath, pretty much everything can be operated at a thought."
Isabel nodded as she surveyed the living room. "Thanks."
Lyn smiled softly and turned back towards the door.
"Are we going to be able to go home?"
Lyn drew in a deep breath before facing Isabel again. Silver and brown locked and Lyn's heart went out to the blonde. "I don't know Isabel. If Peter has any say…no. But that didn't stop me last time and I'm not going to let it this time either." She absently spun the ring on her finger, "I have too much to keep me from staying here."
Isabel sensed a kindred spirit in Lyn. They seemed to be alike in many ways and they were both in the same predicament. "I have to go back to Alex. I can't live without him."
"I know." She looked thoughtful for a moment, "Isabel, I need you to understand that Peter doesn't want us to go back to Earth. He believes that we should all be together here on the homeworld. He wants to end space travel and exploration in order to 'preserve the quality of our race.' And I'm afraid that he might take any actions necessary to see this through."