**************************Chapter 6****************************************

The next two weeks passed quickly. Marcel and I adjusted to our elevated status. Lucas left for Earth, but not without leaving me a message by breaking into our room and destroying most of my things. Kahlan and Shannon talked about how many credits they had saved up and what they were planning on buying. Though rangers are all volunteers, they did receive a small salary. Even the trainees got a small amount of credits every month. Some of what they wanted seemed down right strange to me. After all, why would someone who can fly need a dozen pairs of shoes?

The time came and a White Star arrived. It was one of the new, sleeker designs. They were faster, more streamlined, and more powerful than the original design. My father had mentioned to my mother, who had passed it on to the Worker cast, how he didn't like haven't the bridge on that little extension above the main body of the White Stars. They had thought for a moment and proceeded to build him a ship without this, and other so called flaws. They were a deeper colour than the first ships, and could be manned by a single pilot. The computer could even could track the health of the entire crew.

There were even a few human style bunks, for which Kahlen was very grateful. She had never been comfortable sleeping in Minbari beds. Marcel said he didn't mind, and since I had seen him sleep with his back bent over a chair when he decided he did not feel like moving, I tended to believe him.

When we got to the landing pad, we learned that the ship was going to be at our disposal for a while. The Worker cast had refitted quarters to fit our needs, something for which Marcel was very grateful. Though he could, and occasionally did, sleep anywhere and in any position, he preferred a flat, stiff surface.

We made our way directly to the bridge. We didn't pass any one going through the corridors and this struck me as odd. I mentioned my feelings to the others, and they agreed. Kahlen suggested she scan for the crew, but I stopped her. Odds were, a few of the crew would be teeps.

I still can't say who was more shocked when we got to the bridge. Me, my three friends, or the person sitting in the center chair.

I knew I was out of it. I couldn't think of anything to say. This was one of the last people I had expected to see. I would have thought my parents might have come.

"Well, David? You just gonna stand there, or are you going to come give your Uncle Mike a hug?"

I nearly squealed. "Uncle Mike? What are you doing here? You look great!" And he did. He still looked like he had for as long as I remember. He was sporting a smallish grey moustache and a thin layering of short grey hair was growing on his head. He was wearing a suit much like the one my father had worn the last time I had seen him. Only his shirt was a soft brown whose material looked to be a match for the shirts I had in my bag. We had worn our uniforms today, deciding to change into civilian clothes on route.

He squeezed me hard, nearly cracking my ribs. "Thanks. I do my best." he said, grinning widely. "As for why I'm here, well that ones hard to say. Why are any of us here? Is it a cosmic joke, destiny or what? Is there a meaning to life, or is it just an evolutionary quirk? Now, I don't know the answers to any of these. Maybe your father does. He did spend a lot of time talking with that Lorien guy. You know, that guy, Lorien, he claimed to be the first intelligent being in the galaxy. Now, I've seen a lot and been through a lot. The Dilgar War, the Earth-Minbari War, the Shadow war and a half a dozen others. I've seen a lot of weird things in my life, but I have trouble accepting that I've been in the presence of God."

I laughed at the stunned expressions on the face of my friends. I knew that if I let him, Uncle Mike would go on for hours with his one person discussion. I interrupted him, knowing that it was the only way I would be able to say any for the entire trip if I didn't. "Uncle Mike, you know what I meant. Why did you come here, now?"

"Why else? I was in the neighbourhood and you parents asked me to stop by on the way there. They wanted to come themselves, but they got caught up with some last minute details before they could leave."

"So Aunt Lise let you go gallivanting across the galaxy alone?" I asked.

"Not exactly," he said, pushing a button on the chair's armrest. "Lise? You awake?"

A sleepy voice replied through the intercom. "I am now, Micheal. What is it?"

"The package is aboard. Why don't you get dressed and come on up to the bridge."

There was pause on the other end of the line. "Give me five minutes." There was a beep as the line closed down from her end.

"Aunt Lise is here too?" I asked. "But who's watching Mary?"

"Actually, she's along for the ride."

"What? She's here too? Who isn't here?" I groaned. "Are Uncle Stephen and Aunt Susan coming too?"

"No. Just us." His grin took on a less forbidding caste. "Your parents thought having us along would be a great way to catch up. It's been so long since we've been together that wasn't a galactic emergency or had a vacation. I haven't taken any time off in the last ten years. Your mom convinced me to come, and then convinced Lise to come and to bring Mary. Sort of a family reunion, as it were."

I started to interrupt to introduce my friends, but the door chimed open and a slim figure ran forward and through its arms around my shoulders. I was nearly knocked over by the sheer exuberance of the greeting.

"DAVID!!" screamed the voice that I barely recognized.

"Hey, Mary! It's been a while, hasn't it?" It had been more than two years since we had last seen each other. "How you been?"

"I've been great! I won a couple of tennis tournaments this year. I've been ranked as high as 13th on Mars, and 39th in system." Her smile widened, and I realized for the first time how beautiful she was.

"That's great news! I guess I had better forget about that challenge I made." I said with a grin. "It wouldn't do for me to be bested by a girl."

"Mary, don't you think it would be a good idea to let go of David so that he can introduce his friends?" Aunt Lise said as she gestured to where my friends were patiently standing.

Mary turned and saw them. Her eyes seemed to bulge in her head. "WOW! Who's the big guy, Dave? I've never seen anyone that big before."

Laughing, I made the introductions. "Well, Mary. The big one is Marcel. I don't know if he has a last name." I looked at Marcel, my face puzzled. He shrugged and I continued. "The red head is Kahlen O'Reilly, telepath and telekinetic extra ordinaire. The person standing next to her is Shannon of the Clan Hinnon. Also known as Shannon Hinnonson." I saw the brief look of confusion cross Uncle Mike's face at the human style last name. "Shannon has spent her entire life living among humans. Her parents took a human style name when they moved to the colony."

"Kahlen, Marcel, Shannon. I want you to meet Micheal and Lise Garibaldi and their daughter Mary."

Kahlen looked puzzled. "Are you the same Garibaldi's as in Edgars-Garibaldi industries?"

I looked at her quizzically.

"Hey, I'm from another dimension, remember? I had to spend a lot of time studying this one before I decided to stick around. It wasn't hard to learn about one of the biggest companies in existence."

"Hey, thanks for the complement." Uncle Mike said. "I've done my best. Look, it's a pleasure to meet you all, but we have to be out of this space in a few minutes. We can talk more on the way, okay?"

They nodded and relaxed a little. Uncle Mike slipped back into the chair and activated the holo projection. A three dimensional display of the surrounding area of the ship flickered into view a few feet from the chair. Kahlen and Mary gasped in surprise. Neither had ever seen a White Star from the inside and knew next to nothing about the technology. Kahlen's world was, in most ways, not as advanced as ours but in others, far ahead of us. And though Mary had grown up surrounded by hi-tech gadgets, there was a large difference between Minbari/Vorlon projections and the holos used by most humans.

The screen showed the hustle of the port as everyone scrambled into shuttles and flyers to go on their separate ways. Soon, there would be very few people remaining at the small base over the now extended two week break.

Watching the takeoff of the ships around us was breathtaking. The sight of the engines lighting and pushing the ships up into the atmosphere was one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen. I never got tired of it.

"So how are things going for you, David?" Aunt Lise asked after we had lifted off and jumped into hyperspace.

"Pretty good. Marcel and I were excused from the combat classes." I explained everything that had happened over the last few weeks. "I'm still having trouble with the biology courses. I just don't find them interesting."

"What about you? How are the three of you finding the training?" she asked my friends.

Shannon became lost in thought, while Marcel frowned and Kahlen grinned.

"I'm behind in most of the science and tech courses." Kahlen replied. "Where I'm from, the tech is nowhere near as advanced and complex as it is here. We don't have organic technology or biotech. We just recently really started with cybernetics. At least, that's what most people know."

"And where are you from?" Mary asked. If I didn't know better, I would have sworn that there was a note of jealousy in her voice.

"Earth. 2017." She grinned at the expression on Mary's face. "Not your Earth. I'm from a different dimension. I don't know how I got here, or why I came, but I'm stuck here and the Rangers are my life now."

"2017? Wow! You must have had a hard time getting used to aliens, right?"

Kahlen shrugged, her red hair falling around her shoulders. "Not really. Earth, the Earth I was born on, had quite a lot of aliens on it. The hard part was the lack of people like me. Sure, there are telepaths, but they're nowhere near as strong as even the weakest telepath I had met at home."

"What about you, Shannon?" Aunt Lise asked. "How do you find the training? Did you have any problems adjusting?"

Shannon shook her head. "No. I have lived among humans and aliens my entire life. I was raised as a human by my parents. The only problem I've had was getting used to Davdan."

"Davdan?" Uncle Mike asked from the chair.

"That would be me." I explained. "When I signed up I used that name. I didn't want people treating me like I was . . . I don't know. Different, I guess."

"So you took parts of you first name and last name and put them together to get a more Minbari name." he said.

I laughed. "Sort of. When I was young and first learning how to talk, I couldn't quite make out my name. I could sound out 'Dave' alright, but I couldn't get 'Sheridan'. I also slurred them together and it came out Davidan. It shortened to Davdan as I got older. Only a few people called me it, and it always felt more like my name than 'David Sheridan'."

"That explain's why I wasn't able to find your room like I had originally planned." he stated. "I was checking the records for David Sheridan, who technically wasn't enrolled."

"What about you, Marcel? What's your story?" Mary asked, turning back to my huge friend who had been largely ignored so far.

"Nothing much to tell. Born in a tube, raised by computers and aliens, didn't see a human until two years ago. Genetically engineered to be the pinnacle of human physical prowess." His shoulders moved up in what was close to a shrug. "Have a few doctorates and can fight a little. Not much else, really."

It was one of the longest speeches I've ever heard from him. I guessed he must like the members of my extended family.

"Yeah. John told me about that. A Ranger ship landed on the island where you lived right?"

"Yes, sir. I had been taught by the computers and knew both English and a touch of Minbari. Enough to introduce my self, ask them who they were and to demand that they leave my island before I lost my temper. When they tried to talk to me I knew what they were asking. I just didn't have the answers." His face flickered into life briefly. "I still don't know why I was born, or who set up my birth matrix."

"That's horrible!" stated Mary, her mother quick to echo the statement. Marcel made that little shrug again.

"I'll find them one day, " he said. "And I will get my answers. One way, or another." His eyes held an odd gleam. For a moment, I pitied the people who had created him. Just for a moment. Then I recalled how lonely his life must have been, even with those aliens for company. They were no where near as advanced as his computers were. And they had no tolerance for weakness.

"Enough of this. We have long trip to make, and I'm sure you want to get a look at the ship. Mary, why don't you show Kahlen and Shannon their rooms. Lise, you take David and Marcel. There are a few things I need to do here. We can meet up in the mess hall and go on the tour from there."

We split up, Mary taking the girls out the door and down one corridor while Aunt Lise pulled me and Marcel in the other direction.

"Why are the quarters separated?" Marcel asked. "The four of us share a small room at the training facility." I echoed the question.

Aunt Lise looked almost embarrassed for a moment. "We uh, didn't want Mary to know about how integrated the Rangers are in sleeping arrangements. We also didn't know how, uh, CLOSE you were with the girls, so we decided that for now, it would be best for all your rooms to be a little distance from each other. But you can rearrange things however you want." she hurried to add.

I couldn't believe it. They thought that we were . . . CLOSE. I almost laughed. "Don't worry, Aunt Lise. We aren't that kind of friends."

She looked relieved. "I didn't think so. But from what I can tell, the girls seem to be very nice people. And you can't deny, David, that they are attractive."

Now I did laugh. "Sure. Now. You should see them in the morning. Kahlen's hair tends to become charged during the night and sticks up all over the place when she gets up. It takes her 40 minutes to get back in place."

She smiled. "Somehow, I think she could make even that look attractive. She's the kind of natural beauty that doesn't need to dress up to look amazing. And makes every other woman in a room instantly jealous of her."

"No, she doesn't have to dress up. In fact, now that you mention it, she does look better with no clothes on. Don't you agree, Marce?"

"Absolutely. No one I've ever seen, in my short time away from home, comes even close to Kahlen naked."

Aunt Lise was blushing again. "I thought you weren't. . . that kind of friends."

Marcel grinned. I think it was the first time I had ever seen him do that. "We're not. But when you have two women and two men sharing the same washroom and shower, not to mention having to occasionally help each other undress and dress after a hard day's work, you do tend to see a few things." I couldn't believe it. Marcel was being positively social. *He must really feel comfortable with Mike and Lise.*

"I see." Aunt Lise was still clearly embarrassed, although she was doing a pretty decent job of hiding it. "Ah, here are your quarters, David." she said pointing at a door on her left. "Marcel's are across the hall. You can lock the doors if you want privacy. You'll have to change the codes. But you know how to do that right?" We nodded and she continued. "The mess hall is down one floor and is the only room on the ship without doors. Just take the turbolift at the end of this hall. Turn right at the first intersection you come to. You can't miss it."

She started to move down the hall. "You two stow your gear. Get cleaned up, change out of your uniforms. Meet us there in, say, 20 minutes?" We agreed and she smiled. "Good. Well. I'll see you in twenty minutes then." She gave me a kiss on the cheek. I was surprised to find that she had to get on her tiptoes to do so. "It's good to see you again, David. You don't know how much Mary's been looking forward to it." She shook Marcel's hand. "I look forward to getting to know you, Marcel."

"And I look forward to getting to know all of David's family." he answered, an actual, honest to god smile on his face.

When she was gone, I turned to him. "Well, now I've seen everything."

He looked at me quizzically. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"I've seen you smile and I've seen you grin. I've never seen you do that before."

"Sure you have." he said. "Remember when Mareni and I had that fight, -"

"That wasn't a smile. That, my friend was a sneer." I shot back. I placed my palm on the doorpad, which then scanned it. Marcel did the same with his room.

"Oh. Well what about the time I hit Traveri so hard, he had to have several teeth replaced."

"That was more of a grimace. You sliced your hand open punching through the 5 inches of plexiglass that were in the way."

"Oh. Well, maybe you're right. So what?"

"Nothing. It's just that I've never seen you this talkative and emotional." Before he could reply, I slipped into my room and closed the door.

"I'm not being emotional." I heard him say as the door closed with a soft thud.