Little Cherine Book 08 - BPost053

We should not have been listening, but their voices were raised and with our keen hearing, we could not help it. Robbie quickly joined them at their table.

Previous: Book 08 - Post 052

5421

“Good evening. Is this a private party or may I join you? I need to ask you a question if I may.”

The Prime Minister was badly shaken, but he politely stood up and asked Robbie to join them. We all wondered how he would give the prime minister an out without hurting Laki. He surprised us by playing it straight. He gripped the shoulder of Laki.

“Unfortunately for both of you I have hearing that is far better than any Normal has and I overheard your discussion. Laki, I was touched by your defence of my Cherinians and myself and I am lucky to have a friend like you. I’m curious about the reason given by your Prime Minister, would you mind if he explains his thoughts to me?” Laki shrugged and then nodded his agreement.

“You will think me foolish, daring to dream dreams bigger than I am.”

“Can any dream be bigger than ours, daring to plan for a universe of friends and love between hundreds of species? The bigger your dream, the happier it will make me.”

“I will do as Laki asked of me. If I tell you my reasons, you will not hold it against my people or our world?”

“I promise.”

“I feel your power has made you arrogant. I know your offer to surrender and pay penalties for declaring war on us was not based on fact, that you thought that once peace had been brought to our world we would be grateful for all you did and want you as our friend - as has happened. You cannot be a true friend, to us, or anyone else, if you remain arrogant. I felt a little humility might bring your feet back to the ground so that you recall that for people to be friends, their respect for each other must be mutual. We have had decades of experiencing that one sided kind of friendship. The Americans claim to be our friends, but we have to obey their every wish because they have all the power. I was hoping for something better from you.”

“You have touched upon a fear of mine. Give me a moment please.” Aganthi took him his cigarettes and he lit up. “Lynda love, may I speak to you please?” She went to him and he pulled out a chair for her. “My love, could you find us another reality where Earth is ready to have a war as devastating as theirs could have been?”

“That should be easy Robert, all I have to do is look for a reality close to theirs.”

“Take your time love, we must give Prime Minister Kavallieratos a few days to prepare himself.”

“Prepare for what!?”

“I am stepping aside for this trip and you will assume the position of acting leader of all Cherinians. We will go to an Earth that is about to have an atomic war and it will be your job to prevent the war happening. I will be under orders from you, so you will have all the backing and power I have. I want to see how you will handle it without arrogance, in the hope that I can learn from you. Please remember that the same restraints I acted under will apply to you. You are not allowed to kill or be the cause of death of anyone.”

All they managed to do was stutter in protest as he walked back to us, his eyes not able to hide his amusement.

“So, my little cub, did I handle it well?”

Cherine laughed. “You know he will not dare to try.”

“Maybe I will learn from that too?”

Everyone conspired to make him realise that Robbie had been in earnest and that he really will have the full support of Robbie, Freddie and all the aliens. He was so terrified that he could not sleep that night.

We went to the taverna for a late morning breakfast as we were hungry and toast would not be enough. Robbie barely had time to sip at his coffee when Kavallieratos arrived with Bruce and Lakis in tow. Some of us left the table so that they could sit.

5422

“Mr Teller, I have come to apologise…”

“Do you need more time? It would not be a problem.”

“I meant, I came to apologise for…”

“I’m so sorry, that was rude of me, would you gentlemen like some coffee?”

“No thank you.” He glanced at Bruce but he was keeping a straight face. He spoke quickly to prevent Robbie from interrupting him. “I apologise for calling you arrogant…”

“But why? I am.” Robbie took pity on him. “Are you afraid of mishandling it and causing a world war? I was. Have you come up with any kind of plan?”

“I tried to, but all I ended up with is what you did.”

“I had help, why don’t you let me appoint Samantha as you assistant, she is bound to come up with something clever just to make me look silly.” He grinned. “Actually, she would not, since I was acting according to her plans. Oh, I nearly forgot, she has come up with a new plan of action. Would you consider it arrogant to kidnap and keep all the leaders as she suggested?”

“Whatever I do it would be seen as arrogant.”

“Have you realised that if Lynda finds us an alternate Earth recently evolved from yours, it is likely to have your alternate as leader also? Do you think you would like him?”

He pulled a face. “I don’t think so.”

“I think he would like you. You have shown yourself to be a man of courage and ideals. Do you see now that Lakis was not being an enemy as you may have thought? He was quicker to see that I had no choice if I wanted to save your world and that anyone who has to make a decision that affects others has to also be, or seem to be, arrogant to a degree. I know that he has been a supporter of yours and your party because he believes in you, but he felt you were doing the wrong thing and made melodramatic threats so as to force you to think clearly.”

They do not have a United Nations organisation, but they told us of a fledgling organisation made up of idealists that is struggling to become acknowledged by their world. The initials of the organisation almost persuade me we are wrong and there is a Robert in this world. World United Nations (WUN). Symbolically it was felt all countries should join and then their own non-aggression pacts, treaties and so on there and then be signed under the auspices of WUN and then they would authorise WUN to sign on their behalf a treaty with us.

Since we cannot monitor their thoughts, we sensitised ourselves to their emoting, for we are worried about them creating the equivalent of a United Nations. Robbie asked both all the Hetties and Eddies to careful design their Charter so that it can never try to take over the world, even if their equivalent of a Rothchild and Soros try to make it happen. I do not see it happening, because they are to have many Cherinians of their own, but it is a good idea to do whatever can be done so that it starts as it is meant to continue.

France suggested and it was accepted by the others that all non-local Cherinians be declared honorary citizens of their world. Talk about going overboard! Imagine if they all decided to come! The real reason of course was not us, they want their Wirm partners to enjoy equal status and have protection of the law on their side.

I think it is important I mention something Robbie did, for we will be doing it at every reality we know or come to know. He decided to be open, even though we have sensed some of them are either under the influence of the Cabal, or willingly are part of their organisation and explained to them the dangers of allowing their equivalent of our United Nations organisation acquire too much power over their governments and society in general and asked that they add a clause to the Charter, forbidding the United Nations from forming or supporting a global government, or voting for itself such powers. He explained how important it is for Mankind to remain a diverse society, so that we can continue learning from each other, with the United Nations only existing so as to help foster peace and open dialogue between all nations. He told them of the Cabal which has tried to take over our Earth, and so many of our alternate Earths, many of them using their United Nations to try and enforce a global government on us.

5423

“Every government must contribute to the expenses of your United Nations, for those who do not, cannot have the same rights - and it is important that they do. The expenses will grow if you try to give the organisation more duties and rights than it should have, so, the moment any one country balks at paying for additional expenses, I suggest those ideas be scrapped for a few years, giving the government time and help so that the matter is dealt with in a fair manner.”

We had a long meeting to decide how to find a Robert, Cherine and some family for them. Up to now we have an Andrea, Socrati and Alki. We’ve also identified Britta and Claudia (we hope she has the same gift for translation). There is a Wendy and Theresa (but she is with adopted parents and happy - it feels wrong, but we understand and agree with our Theresa, for the happiness of her alternate makes her feel sad, for it means she can never become a part of her Teller family. Robbie assured her that she can, as her Robert knows our Theresa and is bound to woo her once she is of a legal age. He suggested she then shares memories with her, which will help her become more like the Theresa she is. Eddie and Hettie (because of the long time they have lived it seems they are in most of the alternate realities), Nicko and his parents (but no Dominique), Maria-Elena and her parents, and Lynda. I asked the Sparklers to check for Samuel King, but he was not found. There are several others we found, who are close to us, but we agreed it is up to the family to choose whom to link.

All the Cherines, Roberts and their families who were with took part in our meeting. So did all the Alkis and Marians. Shiyra made the suggestion that became the favourite.

“I think this world has learnt to respect our Samantha. The family should have a Samantha, but she must not split again. Why don’t we ask the Robert, Cherine and family from the reality where Natalie was given a Samantha to give birth to?”

When we announced where we are going and why, it was amazing to see how the government leaders reacted. They seem to be thawing far more than I would have believed possible and after being reassured they will still return home within minutes of our departure, they became just as animated and eager as everyone else. We agreed with the Wirms that only those linked will stay, on condition they do not leave Freddie and betray us by wishing themselves to that Earth. The older ones promised to ensure the young ones do not get carried away. The only problem is Iona. Allan really wants to bring her with. She is so excited at coming to another Earth and she is such a darling, that none of us can refuse her, especially Robbie. He created a box out of void energy that looks like a big handbag from the outside, but is clear as glass from the inside. She promised to stay in it when we are out in public.

5424

I’ve seen this version of myself, but not spent much time with her and I was curious, so this time I am determined to spend time with her and share memories. I hope she has a good sense of humour and endures the jokes about me with a smile.

Chapter Two Hundred Thirty One

Our Normal guests feel most comfortable with the ‘bodiless’ Cherine and they see her as a heroine who travelled to the stars as a Normal. They asked her about the propulsion methods used and tried to pump all her companions for information about their technology. Once Robbie casually mentioned we will be supplying them with anti gravity engines and other scientific marvels, they then kept her company because they like her - they don’t even scowl when she gets a bit cheeky!

Robbie is taking his time so as to show the view as we travel. The scientists claim they have enough marvels to examine and theorise about for the next hundred years and rarely look at the screens - until something new catches their attention and then they forget and plead for the opportunity to study the anomaly.

Vincent arrived ahead of us so that Robert has time to prepare for his guests. We could imagine him panicking when he hears he should expect over six hundred guests and that a number of them are presidents and prime ministers of another reality. Vincent is also supposed to check the leaders of Robert’s reality, just in case the same person(s) hold the positions in both realities. Since Vincent did not intend returning and he did not, we assumed he did not need to warn us and returned directly to his ‘adopted’ family.

We are planning on arriving at a ‘dead’ reality, whichever is closest to them, as most of us can jump across a small number of realities without the help of Robbie as the void, but then something happened and we are still trying to understand what caused it.

As Freddie entered a reality, only to pass through it, suddenly Freddie was struck a blow and sent spinning - I mean physically. The reflexes of all long-time Cherinians have sharpened, but we had not imagined by how much. Before the spin could cause any damage to the interior, Robbie connected with Freddie and both of them concentrated on neutralising (dampening) the effects of the spin. They forced gravity to remain as it normally is, so that nothing was torn apart or out of the ground and even the Normals remained seated or standing, without them feeling the effect of the mad spin. Within a tenth of a second, us girls lent a helping hand (mentally) and with no delay we could sense, so did all the rest of our Cherinians.

The Unation ships had no problem in controlling themselves so that they stay exactly where they are meant to be and they instantly used their scientific tools to help the other spaceships, but within a second or two they were being controlled by their own crew, using their Cherinian gifts.

I think we were all a little bug-eyed as we stared at the screens, for entire galaxies were passing before our eyes and disappearing within a second - but what was frightening was that we had no control over where we are going. An eternity later (about a minute) we realised that Freddie has not slowed down, which means we were not just knocked into a spin; something is maintaining the speed of the spin, though the rate has steadied.

Robbie called to all of us and as he made the effort, we all joined our minds to his, trying to combine whatever gifts we have with his. Freddie crossed over into the void and Robbie instantly felt he and Freddie can now control the spin and we slowed down gradually, until we stopped.

There was a stunned moment of silence and then we were inundated by a verbal and mental babble as everyone questioned each other, trying to find some kind of answer that makes sense. What was amazing was the feeling of relief…not because we’d regained control, but because no Wirm or Sparkler had been injured.

“Roberto,” a shaken Alki pleaded, “don’t even think of returning to normal space until we know what did that to us.”

5425

We heard Freddie mumble, “One moment please,” so we remained silent, waiting for him. “I have shared with our scientists and the officers of the spaceships and they agree that what I think happened might be the correct answer - even though nothing like it exists anywhere, that we know of.” He considered his thoughts for a few more moments and then told us, “I think it was a pulsar - but the usual beam of radiation seems to be different from anything we have ever found in any reality. It seems to be super concentrated or strong; it is so powerful that it acted like a laser, pushing at us. We are shielded from the radiation, but, if we had used any kind of matter outside our outer shield, I think it would have instantly been vaporised, exploding us within the instant we cut across or landed within the beam. As it is, I cannot sense anything outside, so some damage must have occurred.”

“Solomon,” Robbie asked, “can you check whether any energy is crossing into the void? Don’t go into normal space, just check how it is affecting the void.”

Solomon returned with a look of wonder in his eyes. “We better move from here Robert, large amounts of energy are battering at the outer shield of Freddie. We must find a quieter area where we can repair the damage to the exterior. We have lost nearly twenty percent of the outer layer.”

Robbie instantly went to the void, made his choice and Freddie shot off to a calmer area. Robbie gave first priority to repairing the outer shield, plus those areas used for our screens. Freddie, at the same time, healed his network of ‘nerves’ which make it possible for him to see, sense and hear the outside. Cherine asked Syrina and isi to float the body of Robbie into our private room inside the taverna (the one we usually use for jumping to the taverna when there are many guests and they are over-excited, milling around, making unexpected moves). We liked her idea and I guess we’ll do it whenever any of us are going to be out of body for more than minutes.

With the Sparklers helping, it only took Robbie four days to heal Freddie. He did it sensibly this time, taking time off to exercise his body, be with us, eat and sleep.

The politicians had initially been afraid, but had calmed down when they saw that nobody else seemed worried. Then they heard of the damage to the outer shield and worried, but mostly they do not know whether they should worry, so it did not last long, since everyone treated what is happening in a blasé manner, hardly even discussing the matter - apart from the scientists asking themselves countless questions about the pulsar and trying to evolve theories of how the beam was so super concentrated. They theorise that the beam can only be emitted within a set range of strength - and this one is definitely far outside the range.

Robbie was sitting back after having over-eaten, as Maria had made for him arnaki psito (roast lamb) basted in genuine olive oil (from our own trees)with fresh lemon juice, freshly ground black pepper and rigani (origanum). He was staring with pleasure at a soup plate filled with loukoumades soaking in a honey syrup and sprinkled with cinnamon and crushed walnut.

The Unation admiral (I don’t mention names or species, as they tend to change often and none of them spend much time with us in an effort to become our friends - I don’t know why) teleported from their ship overhead and Robbie politely lifted the soup plate and placed it in a tiny stasis field so that the loukoumades do not soften and grow cold. He came to his feet.

“Admiral, you spend too much time in your ship; it is good to see you visiting us.”

from our sight, Vincent arrived. He obviously felt disorientated, as none of us were in danger and then he grabbed Robbie. “Become the void, the Unation spaceship has been damaged.”

5426

It suddenly made sense and I called to the scientists still with us, “Please check if you can find any tiny black holes close to the neutron star.” I guess they had also thought of the possibility, for they were already dashing back to their telescopes and computers.

I hoped Robbie heard me so that he arrives there prepared. I am amazed that Vincent did not return for us when we were in danger, but did for the Unation crew. Does it mean that as Robbie changes, becoming a protector for all, it is helping Vincent grow also, or is Vincent growing because of himself? I hope it is mainly the second alternative.

We’ll have the details later, but I was basically right; the neutron star (pulsar) has been affected by a number of tiny black holes. As they approach, they affect the star so that it has stopped revolving and the beam clears only a small corridor. Within the beam-corridor, the beam itself was affected by the surrounding spikes of gravity and the Unation spaceship, much later, in their time, brought to us some amazing photographs of the beam, showing small curves where it is affected by the baby black holes.

As soon as they arrived, Robbie asked, “The time I come from, have I since then visited your people? In that case, I must caution you and request that you ask your people not to mention anything that belongs to our future.”

Vincent had wanted to instantly return, but Robbie was fascinated by the sight of countless spaceships, platforms, factories and…farms surrounding the planet. The farms surprised Robbie, for they have food machines and even manufacture them for distributing to other non-Unation species

Robbie was there as a void body, for his physical body was with us, but Vincent was there in his own body and to Solomon it made no difference, he recreates his body each time he needs it, so Robbie was the only one who could not eat, drink or smoke. When Solomon understood what was piquing Robbie, he offered to create him a body, but Robbie only thanked him, not wanting to have to destroy the body when he is ready to return to us - in that, he is a bit old-fashioned, we no longer find it distressing, as we all used to, years ago.

The admiral had quickly recovered from his injuries and he explained to Robbie, “The farms are a sign of decadence, not of necessity. Despite sending material assistance to other solar systems and realities for more than four hundred thousand years, thanks to our becoming Cherinians, we are wealthy - in energy and baser matter. It became fashionable for the very wealthy to offer dinners of organically grown foods to selected guests and slowly more and more people wanted to emulate them. The government would not allow land to be used for large scale farming and that pushed up the prices until it became profitable for investors to create farms in space.” The admiral sent a smile. “Of course, it did not take long for the very wealthy to corner the market on what can be grown on-planet, so those who can provide them have grown wealthy and the rest of our populations are now worrying about finding a way to buy planetary foods. For those who like to consider such matters, it has provided some amusement.”

Robbie grinned. “This sounds like the kind of humour that would appeal to the Anadir and Sparklers - as it lasts for thousands of years.” Even Solomon chuckled.

Before the space-yacht arrived for taking Robbie to visit the governments, he mentioned to the admiral, “I have been worrying about the pulsar and the black holes. If we leave matters to nature, I guess the black holes will be drawn to each other and to the neutron star. How will that affect the surrounding space? If we move the black holes apart, would we be responsible for them causing even greater damage later on? I know that we call it a dead reality, but it is not and even should it truly be void of all life, surely some of us will want to colonise some of the solar systems someday in the future? This is an opportunity for us to experiment…at least, to consider and make decisions without directly affecting any lifeforms. Can you speak to your scientists?”

5427

Vincent caught Robbie by surprise, when he asked, “If dead realities are to be colonised, by us or other species, Robert, given the choice, why would they colonise them far in the future, when they could expand the time they have available by returning to the past? Either they have agreed not to use any in our time, which I do not believe that all will respect, or there is a reason they cannot. But, if I am right, it does present us with another possibility. What if those of the future came to the same conclusion you did and wanting to solve the problem in their own universe and time, they have returned to experiment in the reality of the pulsar? If so, it means it is their experiment. If we interfere, I assume they will not be…grateful?”

A scientist, who was already receiving instructions from the admiral, cut in, “If we carefully examine the positions of the black holes, we should be capable of calculating the chances of them having been placed there artificially - if we think it is likely, then it might be worth returning in time to check who placed them and with what technology, otherwise, we should consider ourselves free to experiment.”

The admiral and two senior officers, not the captain, he had to remain on board since the admiral would be gone, accompanied Robbie, Vincent and Solomon, to the palace of the world leaders. Did what I said sound odd? What I said is partly because of Robbie and his beliefs and the compromise they reached so as not to deny their own instincts (yup, it seems all politicians have the instinct of needing to show off). Within the Unation, we are told, since we have not been back to visit all their worlds, where the planet is split into more than one nation, none of the government leaders have palaces, just houses equivalent to what a wealthy person would have. That is the ‘Robbie’ part of the equation. However, as they do have visitors from other parts of the Unation, from other realities and species, each planet has one very imposing palace, with each of the leaders having ‘apartments’ within it, for welcoming visitors in a grand style - grand enough to make their populations feel proud. I was amused to learn that there is a pecking order as to which apartment is given to which government, some of them supposedly more ‘fashionable’ or prestigious. I said it will take a million years for everyone to stop thinking that way, but Hettie said it is more likely we’ll need more than a billion years. I concede the argument to her.

There was a little bit of pomp and the cameras unobtrusively broadcast the performance to the populace. What they did not show, but it was something that made sense, was that not one of the politicians touched Robbie, though they did touch Vincent and Solomon. It is a good idea, for in our time, most people try to grin and bear it when they have to shake his hand while he is present as void energies. They only pretended, some even kissing his cheek, but all done with a minimum amount of space between their skin and Robbie, so that the public cannot see they are not touching. I’ll let Robbie write from here on.

Vincent, once again, surprised me. “You called for me?”

One of the leaders had been appointed to discuss it, for he nodded in agreement, “We knew the ship would be returning with you on board, so we sent a feeling of our desperate need through the Sparkler World.”

I shook my head. “You are saying that because you knew that we are coming, you sent a message for us to come?”

“We knew that you - and Vincent - are coming, but we also knew that for it to happen as it will happen, we had to send the emotive message to him.”

Vincent nodded, “And so I came, I’ll worry about the how and why later, since you have an emergency. How can I help?”

“We have lost a planet.”

“Of which species?”

“The Stifalla. They are of three sexes and when addressing them, each sex has a different title. The females are named Ifae. The males as Oofi. You are not likely to be dealing with either sex, as it is the Rief who are the dominant sex. They control and coordinate, making all decisions. Without them, their species would not exist, for the male and female irritate each other and if they fight, it can often be to the death. They are intelligent but too emotional to think clearly, unless it is with regard to their children - the only times when the two sexes do not need the Rief to make decisions for them.”

I nodded. “We’ve met a few Stifalla threesomes, but nobody had explained to us.”

5428

“It was not felt it is necessary, for the Rief had not decided it is, and we knew you are not likely to be meeting any of their children away from their planet.” I gave them a suspicious look, was that a dig? Nah, they are too nice to do anything like that.

“Vincent, our State ship was returning their ruling family from the Unation Capital planet, but as they arrived and while focussing their navigational equipment on the planet, it disappeared. All our officers are aware that soon as something happens which may require the assistance of Robert or yourself, they must immediately look away and depart. Unfortunately the officers forgot to instruct the navigational computer to stop watching that part of their surrounds, so we know the planet has been gone for one and a half Terran days. In total it has been fourteen Terran days since it disappeared…but we are hoping you can return it to the second after the computer stopped monitoring, as the absence of the planet is having an effect on the solar system.”

I asked, “Are you saying that there are no Stifalla living on any satellite moon, asteroids or platforms in orbit?”

“Our officers did attempt to warn them not to watch the space where their planet should be, but there was no response. It therefore is a possibility that they are also gone.”

I know they asked for Vincent, but I would prefer he does whatever is necessary as the void while I try to find what has happened to the planet. I asked the Sparklers to bring my body from Freddie. I explained to the politicians and they nodded, obviously pleased that I had done as they had expected of me. I pretended I did not sense their emoting.

Vincent looked worried. “If I am the void, it is bound to limit your abilities if the planet has been stolen.”

I thought of my loves. “Vincent, we must copy each others memories, up to this minute, and you must do your best to continue surviving so as to help my loves have their Robert, should anything happen to me.”

He nodded, but then asked, “And you ask for my memories…why? You cannot create another Vincent.”

I laughed. “Of course I can. A body from my DNA, which is what you already have, a small part of my soul, which again is what you have, with your memories and personality painted in. Vincent, you may not be the all-powerful protector you are now, but we will have our friend and my brother.” It is not often Vincent becomes emotional and he tried to control himself, but I think everyone sensed him - I think so, because our hosts showed by their emoting and their eyes as they stared at me that they were deeply pleased with what I had just said.

My loves, if these memories are what you are getting of me, painted into a tiny part of my soul, so that it cannot become self-aware unless you help it, then keep in mind that with my personality and memories, it is also made of the love I feel for you.

Since I did not have Sam with me, for coming up with an original plan, I did as I have done at other times - I jumped back in time and projecting as a Rief. The weakness in my plan was that I did not have a family and I have never seen a Rief without at least the two spouses. I did not think it would matter, since I would be arriving about ten minutes before the planet vanished.

I had to arrive in space, place my body in stasis so as to visit the planet as a soul, choose a quiet spot for jumping to, get back my body and jump. It all went well until I arrived on planet.

What we would call a game park warden, was hiding in a shelter, hoping to catch some criminals who have been killing some of the animals. He, she or it, saw me arrive out of nowhere and thinking I must be one of the animal killers, he shot me - luckily with a stun gun. I dropped unconscious and within seconds I was struggling to breathe, for my healer concentrated on repairing the damage caused by the stun - my appearance might have been of a local, but my body under it all is Terran and the stun gun was set far too high for me.

Under the mistaken assumption that I am an alien poacher, the sympathy for the obvious agony of my Terran body was at an all time low and so no help was attempted and by the time my healer returned me to consciousness, the planet had departed from its solar system - though nobody on planet realised it. As a matter of fact, it took me more than twenty minutes to work it out, even though I knew it is about to disappear. I was being stupid because I was angry with the officer who insisted on immobilising me and taking me to their head office to be held for trial and all my attempts to explain were being ignored.

5429

Since over eighty four percent of the population are Cherinians, I just had to be arrested by one of the few non-Cherinians - but then, they deliberately trained and appointed non-Cherinians, since it was felt that empathy is not an advantage for that kind of work. As an aside, the penalty of a Cherinian using a gift or power to resist arrest or get away, once declared as having been arrested, is extremely severe. The person who does is blocked for life, including their healer, so that they age and die and have to wait to be born again to return as free Cherinians - the punishment is worse for a Stifalla, as the other two, plus any small children, often do not survive the loss of a loved one, as they can keenly sense their misery and pains - which does not sound very Cherinian of them! That such a sentence has never been carried out is no excuse for having the laws and I will have to decide whether I mention how I feel about it.

As with us, almost all their electronic communication systems use satellites. The fact that there were no disruptions, meant that their satellites are in place and working and, since inter-planet communications take much longer for the message to go to and fro, nobody realised that they are no longer in their reality. I knew what had happened, so I was able to deduct the truth, but nobody would listen to me.

The officer reported that I had tried to use my Cherinian powers to convince it to let me go, so I was placed in a cell and nobody spoke to me for the rest of that day and night. The food they brought me was food eaten by their species and would be poisonous for me, plus it did not smell nice, so I was not tempted to use my healer to convert it into something nourishing. The best way to deal with my problem was to sleep, so of course I only slept two hours and could not sleep again as I felt wide awake.

There was little point in my suggesting they ask the Stifalla family I have met to identify me, since they are not born yet. No Cherinian was willing to communicate with me, even though their entire planet was abuzz about the alien who was caught poaching their animals.

Many species have chosen to appoint one of their Cherinian families as the equivalent of our Teller family. With this species, whichever of the three is thought of as being their Cherine, is accepted as actually being the leader of their Cherinians - it does mess with their instincts, as their Cherine is not the Rief part of their family (it is what we would think of as the male). My request to meet their ‘Teller’ family was ignored.

Luckily the office who arrested me returned to the field and the person responsible for watching over me was less belligerent. It realised I am not eating and worked out the reason. I was asked what my species is, so that they can try to find a food machine with meals programmed for my species. When I replied that I am a Terran, it too became angry with me for lying (since it is impossible for Terran Cherinians to return this far in their past without being in Freddie).

Nobody thought to mention that I have been placed in a special cell for blocking Cherinians and I wasted a lot of my energy trying to leave my body so as to go to the void. When I asked, then they told me. I did not panic, for I saw my death as the solution for me to go to the void.

I have a new sense of empathy for those who have died of thirst and starvation - but add difficulty in breathing and it turns into a stunning nightmare. I also have less empathy than ever before for people who are small-minded and think their truth must apply to everyone. I have had to fight myself, since arriving in Freddie, so as not to return to the planet and block all their Cherinians, including their so-called ‘Teller’ family.

I was breathing my last gasping breaths, when visitors arrived so as to examine me. They were not of the Stifalla species. There were two Roos, one Sprakil and one Tirsoon. They were all Cherinians, so I had to be removed from the cell for them to check on me with their healers - for establishing of what species I am. As soon as they did, there was pandemonium and the Roos grabbed hold of me, with their mental powers, and jumped me to their embassy. I guess the rest stayed behind to calm the situation, or else, to shout at them for imprisoning and starving Robert Teller. I am still angry and wish I could have been present to sense that stupid officer who originally arrested me!

I proved that I am only human, for it took four days for me to regain an interest in saving everyone. Luckily I did meet a few nice people during this time, a few of them even being Stifalla, so it helped me regain my customary disposition and I began to worry at the problem.

5430

When I had arrived it had been daytime and I did not get to see the stars until I had recovered my mood, but once I did and someone showed me sky charts to compare the stars with, I could see we were not in the same galactic area. It confused me, for everyone insisted that their solar system is their original system, with everything, including the sun, in place and of the exact size, brightness etc. The problem was that their sun was still back where it should be, in their reality - so, I wondered, is this their home reality, or have they maybe have been moved to a distant future, for instance, or what if this is an alternate of their home galaxy, with the local sun being in a different part of the galaxy. I needed a way to test which possibility it is.

Since those who are my hosts worry at the slightest sign of my not feeling well, I explained, “I need to go to the void, but it should not be necessary for you to provide any healing as I will not be gone for long.”

I had no problem and became the void. I do not know why, but my first success since arriving here filled me with enthusiasm and suddenly it once more felt good to be alive. Then I tried to think of ways to solve the current problem.

Using my powers as the void, I examined all the solar system in almost minute detail, but no secret lifeforms could be found - so the planet was not kidnapped by an alien species. Outside the system I could ‘see’ a disturbance in the natural energies of space around the system (however chaotic, it feels normal, but when something is not chaotic, then it feels like a disturbance and I need to understand why). I watched it for a while, wondering what is it that feels wrong about what I’m seeing.

Suddenly it struck me that with the planet and surroundings arriving here, the waves of disturbed energy should be flowing outwards, away from us, but it was doing the opposite - as if they imploded into existence here. It did not make sense, but I’m quite happy to leave that kind of puzzle to the scientists - or our Samantha if she is with me.

Politely they enquired about my wellbeing and once I had reassured them, they told me, “The astronomers have studied our current sky and they state that about eighty eight percent of the spirals and stars, with over ninety seven percent of the galaxies, are in the right positions. There are some missing, but nothing exists that should not. Does it not suggest that we have moved to an alternate reality?”

I could not help but be amused; here I had just done some super stuff, becoming the void so as to arrive at the same conclusions as they did by using their computers to check tiny dots on a star chart. I hope that life never stops reminding me that I am not that special - well, in a sense I am, for it is very special for me to be loved by such wonderful girls and friends.

They were both afraid and a bit in the dumps, so I tried a little of my brand of humour. “Isn’t it wonderful! An entire planet teleported without it causing any earthquakes or volcano eruptions! If we can learn how to do it, think, we could travel the cosmos without having to sacrifice the comforts of home.”

“The problem is, Robert, how do we get back?”

“Getting back is not the problem, that we can do whenever we are ready. First we must learn how and why this happened.”

It was not difficult for them to understand why I felt that way, though they did wonder how I have grown, if returning an entire planet and surrounds is not a problem. I did not enlighten them, I felt that they will pass my comment on to the locals and they deserve to worry as to whether I will be in the mood to help them. As I was thinking my moody and still angry thoughts, but careful not to let anyone sense me, I suddenly grinned and my mood changed. I realised that now the Stifalla Normals will be known as the species who almost succeeded in killing Robert Teller while he was trying to save them. I wonder how many will envy them.

“The planet moved here because of some act of nature, or by the deliberate design of some form of intelligence. We need to know which and the why, or else it could be dangerous if it causes a reaction - which could possibly be more violent.”

Ambassador Enize, the Sprakil, spoke, more to himself, I think, “I too have wondered why this planet was wanted in this reality.”

Next [Book 08] - Post 054

I hope you enjoy reading this story of fantasy, adventure and love - and should some of it be true for our reality, I hope you will love our Cherine.

Αλέξανδρος Ζήνον Ευσταθίου

(Alexander Zenon Eustace)

^{10th February, 2020}

• posted: 10th February, 2020
  
  
  
  
  

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