Paul picked up his shirt to finish dressing and floated his shoes from the closet to the side of the chair he was sitting in. He then looked around the room and saw a scented candle on the dresser. As he looked at it, the candle burst into a flame so intense that it melted over half the candle instantly. Paul jumped from the chair and raced towards the dresser to be certain nothing had caught on fire. Computer spoke softly and said, “You’ll have more control with practice, but maybe we should find you a safer place to practice. Now let’s get started, it’s not long before you’re supposed to leave.”
Chapter 4
As Paul entered the parking garage to meet Bhlani and his wife, he was greeted by six people instead of the two he was expecting. Bhlani’s wife was a petite little thing and looked tiny beside Bhlani’s short but stocky body. With short blond hair and incredibly blue eyes, she looked almost cherubic in appearance. Bhlani introduced her as Elder Gronwitz. “I don’t believe you had a chance to meet her at your first night’s reception. Dalhia has been instrumental in Xhondar’s food import programs and was in a heated discussion with a few of the other Elders’ about potential sources of imported food stuffs. We hope you will play a part in that program in the near future. We’ll discuss it later.” Paul then turned to greet Master Gljarne and the stunning redhead with him. Dressed in a long silk looking gown with a mid-thigh slit up one side, she looked almost Chinese. With the exception of her red hair and green eyes, all her features were completely oriental. Gljarne noted Paul’s confused looks and spoke. “This is my wife Xhing Li. She was born during the Ming dynasty in China. Her father was from Xhondar I and her mother was Cantonese. You will see a good number of people on Xhondar with Oriental, Greek or European characteristics. That’s where many of the early Xhondarians ended up settling down when on Earth. Xhing Li has been a large contributor to the development of Jxansa Gha. She was involved in Kung Fu from her childhood. Almost all our current weapon techniques were developed by her, with their foundation in early Kung Fu styles along with two Indian fighting styles; Kalaripayattu, which is probably Earth’s oldest form of martial art and Thang-ta, a fighting system using swords and spears. You have done very well in learning Jxansa Gha, far better than I thought you would, and next week Xhing Li will start training you in advanced weapons skills.”
A real surprise for Paul was Zimuel and Master Tlase together as a couple. He was even more shocked when she was introduced as Zimuel’s wife. “Don’t you people believe in having the same last names when you marry?” Paul asked. “Zimuel smiled and replied, “Our wives had their last names for a few thousand years before they married us. It would be foolish to change the name they are known by. Xhondarian marriage contracts do not stipulate a name change. Our system seems to work. How many people do you know that have celebrated a 1000 year anniversary? Besides that, the divorce rate on Xhondar is under 10%.” Paul shook his head and asked, “Why didn’t you say anything earlier?” Zimuel looked at his wife and explained, “Since we have very long lives we also end up having very long marriages. We all, male and female alike, have our own identities apart from our mates. I did not introduce Master Tlase as my wife since her most important role, at least as far as you are concerned, is that of a Doctor. We are who we are, not because of whom we are married too, but because of our own individual qualities.” Paul nodded his agreement just as Bhlani yelled across the parking garage, “Let’s get going before we change our mind about who’s going to be our pilot for this trip.”
They ended up taking two separate transports for the short ride to the Spaceport. As they approached the Executive ship, Paul was at first alarmed at its size. The thing had to be at least as long as a football field and half as wide; standing close to five stories tall. It had a wide, low sitting fuselage, sort of shaped like a C-5A, except with stubby overhead stabilizer wings. There was nothing large enough to offer any kind of lift. The stubby wings extended backwards almost as far back as a tail-section might have been on a regular plane. Except, at that point there was a large almost square thruster section. The thing looked as if it would never get off the ground when compared to Paul’s experience with Earth aircraft and spaceships. Bhlani explained that it was a 12 passenger aircraft because it had small living quarters for 12 VIP’s. The ship also included a medical facility, work-out area, meeting rooms and a large enough freight capacity to supply 12 VIP’s and a crew of 20 with food and supplies for at least a 10 year voyage. He explained that the ship was originally designed to carry Ambassadors and other government officials on multi-planet tours. He then told Paul that the ship was over 600 years old but had been upgraded as new technology was introduced. After a brief tour of the beautifully appointed vessel, Paul was shown to the control room and seated in the pilot’s chair. Dalhia sat in the chair next to Paul as the others took seats in the remaining control room seats. Dalhia patted Paul’s shoulder and asked, “Well, are you ready?” Paul looked at her with a questioning look and she responded, “I helped design this ship, installed most of the upgrades, and have been training Xhondarian pilots for a few thousand years. Did you think you would be on your own? However, I am only here to monitor your performance, offer suggestions on ways to improve, to open the gateways to where we’re going so we don’t starve before we get there and to save our collective butts in case you screw-up; I learned that term from Tlase, she learned it on a trip to a place called Memphis. It seemed to fit our situation.” Paul laughed and replied, “Well I hope not, but I do appreciate the fact that there is an experienced pilot nearby to make sure I do this right.” Dalhia indicated the others behind her and interjected, “Anyone in this room could do the same, I just happen to be the one who taught them.”
Paul soon realized that the controls for this ship were exactly like the controls on the Speeder. He had been told that all Xhondarian ships maintained a standardized control cluster to make it easier to transition from one ship to another. He activated the anti-gravity reactor and the ship began to rise at a smooth and steady rate, soon reaching an altitude high enough to begin forward motion. Paul spoke into the headset, “Set course for Xhondar III” as he pushed the throttle forward. It amazed him that a ship this big responded almost exactly like his Speeder. Even though the ship was accelerating at 10g’s the compensators built into the ship made it feel like only one gee. As soon as they exited the gravitational pull of Xhondar I the gravity reactors kicked on to create a constant level 1-gravity. Dalhia explained that at this point we usually will only operate at sub-light speeds until we are completely free of any gravitational pull from Xhondar. However, we have no need to travel at light-speed or even FTL speeds since we are going to use a gateway to travel to Xhondar III. If you are travelling at light-speed or faster, it is easy to overshoot your desired position as you exit the gateway in the next solar system. Even though we have ways of slowing down while travelling at those high rates of speed, it can take a few hundred thousand miles to do it, at least in this craft.”
Dalhia checked the navigational instruments and verified the course set by the ship computer and then told Paul, “I am about to create a gateway of a sufficient size for this ship. I could have the computer do it, but my goal is to teach you how to do it yourself.” She reached into a shoulder bag she had been carrying and removed two headsets very much like the one he had been wearing to interface with Computer. Handing one to Paul and putting the other on her own head, she then reached over and pushed a button on the side of Paul’s headset and then did the same with her own. Paul was in total shock. He was suddenly thinking her thoughts and seeing through her eyes. He could even feel what she felt. Without even speaking, Dahlia communicated to Paul, “concentrate very carefully on what I am about to do. I will be forming a gateway just like Zimuel did when he brought you from Earth to Xhondar, except, it will be a considerably bigger one. What I must do is focus my thoughts on exactly where I want to go. If you don’t focus on the exact coordinates or at least visualize in your mind exactly where you wish t
o go, then the gateway could open up almost anyplace, like right in the middle of a star. I believe that would be considered a screw-up; we will avoid that if you don’t mind.”(Dalhia actually grinned for the first time that evening)
Paul could understand exactly what Dahlia was thinking as she pictured a location approximately 100,000 miles outside of Xhondar III’s orbit. He could actually visualize her memories of what the planet looked like from that vantage point and her desire to have the ship in that exact location instead of where it was. Suddenly there was a slight shimmer in front of the Executive ship and the stars surrounding them changed drastically from his previous surroundings and there was a large blue-green planet with four moons directly in front of them. Paul could sense exactly how Dalhia had created and opened the gateway; their minds were in such harmony, it was almost as if he had created the gateway by himself. Paul was feeling such a sudden rush of euphoria that he almost didn’t hear Dalhia say, “How about you land this thing, I’m getting pretty hungry. Here are the coordinates to our destination. You can either key them in, speak them to the ship computer, or simple tell the ship computer where you wish to go, it has navigated this system often enough to know exactly where we’re going.” She handed the coordinates to Paul who keyed them into the console to his left. The ship computer responded, “Estimated time to arrival is 1hour and 43 minutes.”
Paul relaxed for a short while to prepare himself for entering the atmosphere of a strange new world. As he was deep in his thoughts, he couldn’t help but realize that only a few short months ago he was running a paint line in Mississippi, living in a trailer in Alligator and looking and feeling all of his 65 years. A small tear began to form in the corner of his eye at his gratitude of just what God was doing in his life. Then for just a moment he was overwhelmed by the thought of how much he wished he could share his good fortune with his mother and the rest of his family and how much he missed them; wondering if he would ever see them again. He looked over and saw tears streaming down Dalhia’s face, and realized that she could feel everything he was feeling. Dalhia reached over and patted his hand and said, “Before you know it you’ll be able to be with them again.” Before Paul could ask her to explain, the ship computer announced, “Prepare for re-entry”
Paul pondered the idea that this isn’t re-entry, since he had never been here before. The executive ship was so automated that it really wasn’t near as much fun to fly as his Speeder. None the less, his heart was racing as the ship eased through the planets upper atmosphere. It took his breath away when they finally reached an altitude where he could make out land forms and bodies of water. What surprised him most was the fact that it was the oceans that were green and the trees and other vegetation that were various shades of blue. The ship traveled across a fairly small continent and had reached an altitude of 50,000 feet as it approached the mountains and the ocean on the other end of the continent. He could see something flying around the mountains as they descended toward the coast. Paul was amazed at the sight of large flying creatures with people on their backs flying all over the place. With a double-take he realized that they weren’t being flown by people but some sort of creature with olive-green skin, very large blue eyes and a head and face that resembled some sort of large rat or opossum. Their ears were very small slits in the side of their head. The creatures they were flying around on where at least 40 feet long, with a wing span of probably 100 feet; they were featherless yet still looked like giant cranes around the head and facial area.
Soon Paul realized that they had to be large since the things riding them were huge; they looked to be close to seven feet tall and full bodied. While the ship made its final approach the passengers on the crane-like things were waving to those on board. Zimuel informed Paul, “Slow down to almost a hover speed or the back-wash could disrupt their flight. What you see are the natives of this planet. We have been sharing the planet with the Crendornic for several thousand years. That is one of the languages you have been learning from Computer. Most of them speak Xhondarian, but it is easier for us to speak their language than it is for them to speak ours. I have no doubt you will find them very interesting citizens. We rule the planet together. We have advanced technology, but they have far superior strength and numbers than we do. They make up more than half of the planet population. Where we humans grow crops and manufacture foods in our cloning chambers, they live almost entirely on things living or growing in the sea.” As he said this, Paul saw one of the huge flying creatures dive toward the ocean surface and catch a very large fish. It immediately flew to the shore and dropped the fish into a pile along with others then returned to its fishing duties. Zimuel told Paul, “They have been fishing like this since long before we arrived. It’s actually more effective than the way we do it back on Xhondar I. I have never seen a Wohlyn miss. And that’s a good thing, since one of those fish will probably soon become our dinner.” There was a small space port on the outskirts of a city about the size of San Diego. It looked strange to see a harbor so large look so empty. Yet the shore was covered with Wohlyn and their Crendornic riders.
The seven of them were greeted by one human of normal size and one Crendornic that towered over everyone. They climbed into a ground vehicle, the first Paul had seen, other than his Triumph, since he left Earth. Bhlani explained, “We don’t use transports or hover-craft on Xhondar III, there are simply too many Wohlyn in the air.” The ground vehicle was obviously built to accommodate the larger size of the Crendornic’s. Paul had gotten so used to the downsizing of cars and trucks on Earth that the vehicle reminded him of the big old Hudsons and Packards of his early childhood, except bigger. He smiled as he thought of how you could put a five-man NBA team in this thing and all have plenty of leg room. As the vehicle made its way along the coast, Tlase informed Paul, “You better be hungry! The Crendornic’s haven’t figured out yet that we humans have smaller appetites to go along with our smaller bodies.” They soon entered the parking lot of a tall, round building with a clear conical roof, and clear walls. On the way to the table Paul was speechless while looking at the view of green-ocean and diving Wohlyn. Tlase was not wrong about the portions. The one Crendornic with them was introduced as Xi, the Crendornic Lieutenant Governor, and the Human was introduced as Dalhia’s younger brother and the Human Lieutenant Governor. Xi had already made arrangements for the meal so there was no menu, just lots of food. Paul’s appetite had increased considerably over the past few months of strenuous exercise and as his body developed into his full potential it seemed he could never get enough to eat, but even Paul was totally gorged by the time he was finished and had only eaten about half of the meal served. He had to admit to himself and to the others that this was some of the best food he had ever eaten. “One of these days I will invite all of you to eat one of Earth’s specialties, or at least the part of Earth where I am from, BBQ Pork, fried potatoes, baked beans, corn-on-the-cobb, and coleslaw.” He nodded toward Xi and added, “It’s a meal designed for a big appetite like yours.” They all looked at him as if he were insane when he said, “Do they have doggie-bags?” He then spent the next few minutes trying to explain what a dog was and how it was really people who ate the leftovers they took home. He could tell that they just didn’t grasp the concept.
Paul was the main topic of conversation for the evening. He was actually embarrassed at how the others were bragging about his progress and incredible grasp of everything he was being taught. Master Gljarne told everyone at the table, “Before long Paul may well be the best fighter on the planet; the boy loves to fight.” Bhlani added, “I have never seen anyone so determined to outdo himself and his instructor every time he enters the weight room.” Zimuel couldn’t help but interject, “I’ve already added a 50 pound back-pack to strengthen Paul and slow him down a little. I struggle to stay with him, so next week I add 50 more pounds” Paul looked at him as if to question his friend’s sanity. Xi was impressed at the ease with which Paul had conversed in the Crendornic language all eve
ning. Tlase actually introduced Paul as the future leader of Planet 1648. Paul couldn’t wait to get back and find out just what they were talking about. It seemed he was being presented as an equal to the two Lieutenant Governors. They showed no surprise to the announcement, Paul could tell that they knew before he ever arrived just who he was and what he was going to be doing.
The trip back to Xhondar I was uneventful. Paul soon realized that intergalactic flight was really pretty boring since the computer did most of the work, and after a while all the stars and surrounding planets began to look the same. The most exciting part of the entire trip was when Dalhia allowed Paul to make the gateway for their return. He started to sweat bullets, thinking, “What if I put them into some star?” He worried for nothing. His gateway actually put them a little closer to the outer atmosphere of Xhondar than he intended, but he was able to reverse the thrusters quick enough to prevent any major problems; like slamming into the surface of Xhondar. He manually landed and docked the executive starship so smoothly that the ship computer even told him he did a nice job. Dalhia looked at Paul with a grin and replied, “I’ve flown this thing for years and the ship computer has never complimented me.” Paul shrugged and whispered, “It’s because I know how to treat a lady,” only to receive a stiff elbow in his side.
After returning to the parking garage, the Elders gathered around Paul and Bhlani spoke on their behalf, “Paul you’ve performed far beyond our expectations. Not a one of us would have chosen you for this unique position, but not knowing it, you have proved us wrong. In the next few weeks Xhing Li will be working with you in advanced weapons, Dalhia will increase your flying time and you will be using an Xhondarian Class V Fighter. If you think a Speeder is fun, wait till you get ahold of a Class V Fighter. Elder Yadvega, along with Computer, will increase your language studies. By the time you leave here she intends for you to speak the majority of Earth languages like a native and at least 10 more alien languages you will no doubt encounter in your travels. Zimuel has been given the task of refining your use of The Power. All of the Elders are capable of using The Power. However, we all vary in our strengths and weaknesses. I may be exceptional at telekinetic powers and weak in controlling wind or fire, someone else may be the opposite. Zimuel has the best balance of all The Powers among the Elders. You’re just beginning, but for some reason he feels that you may surpass him before long. He claims it’s because you have such a vivid imagination and haven’t grasped the concept of can’t.” Paul shrugged his shoulders and replied, “For some reason I am more driven and motivated to succeed than I have ever been in my life. It’s as if God has laid upon my heart a sense of urgency for what He has planned for me and for once in my life I have no intentions of letting Him down. I still am not completely certain what I am going to be doing, but I do know that it will require every skill that I am learning and a few more that haven’t been invented yet. Don’t feel bad, I doubted my ability even more than the Elders and that’s because God keeps reminding me that it’s not about my abilities or your abilities, it’s about His abilities being used through me. I just need to be the best instrument available for the job. Failure is not an option. The entire human race is dependent upon the success of God’s plan, not on me.”
Verron: Birth of a Nation: Book One (Verron Series 1) Page 7
