He laughed, put down what he was working on and came over and kissed her long and hard. Then he finally pulled away and said, “Sit and I’ll cook.”
“I feel like I should do something to help,” she said, moving over to the table and sitting.
“Eggs, ham, hash browns, toast, and juice,” he said, smiling at her and making her want to just jump back up and kiss him again. “Not much to help with. But I could use your feedback on a few things.”
“That was really nice last night,” she said, staring at his broad shoulders and tight butt in the jeans.
“Nice doesn’t begin to describe it for me,” he said, smiling. “Thank you for taking the chance.”
She laughed. “I doubt I would have gotten much sleep there in my own bed alone with you so close.”
“I was feeling the same way when you came in,” he said, smiling over his shoulder at her as he worked on starting the hash browns in a small pan.
“So what can I give you feedback on?” she asked.
At that moment, before he had a chance to answer, Doc and Kalinda came in. Both of them looked like they had just gotten out of the shower and Kalinda was wearing the same clothes she had on yesterday.
“Good morning,” Fisher said to the new arrivals, indicating that they should sit at the table with Callie.
She smiled at both of them and then winked at Kalinda, who just smiled fondly back at her. Callie knew that feeling. She was feeling it right now herself.
“Sure I can’t help now?” Callie asked.
“Nope, just twice as much of a very simple breakfast is all. Thanks.”
“So are you starting to believe all this craziness?” Doc asked Callie as he and Kalinda sat at the table holding hands.
“Still in shock about a lot of it,” she said. “But another day or so and it will all just feel strange instead of completely impossible.”
“How did it go yesterday with the new drive equations?” Fisher asked.
Callie could see both Doc and Kalinda brighten up, as if their minds were returning to their bodies.
“We should have the speed of The Lady up so that we could be back in our home system in thirty seconds,” Doc said.
Callie watched as Kalinda nodded.
Fisher just shook his head in clear amazement.
“And The R-12,” Kalinda said, “should be able to cover the six hundred light year journey home in a few days once everything is upgraded and tested.”
“How long did it take you to get here?” Callie asked.
“Fourteen months,” Kalinda said. “And we barely made it in time.”
Callie watched as suddenly Fisher turned around, staring at Kalinda.
Callie stood and went over to him and took the spatula out of his hands and worked the eggs. She could tell he had suddenly gone into his own mind, thinking, and if she didn’t take over, the breakfast was going to burn.
He started to object, but instead she pushed him toward the table. “Sit, I got this.”
He nodded. Then as he sat down, he said, “Maybe using all four of you as a sounding board would be a good idea.”
“Fire away,” Doc said. “I’m not going anywhere until that wonderful-smelling breakfast is served.”
“Glad to help,” Kalinda said.
Callie nodded to Fisher that he should go on as she put the toast down and turned over the hash browns.
He started to say something, then just shook his head. “Never mind, the answer I’m looking for is obvious.”
He stood and came to help Callie finish with breakfast. Then when all four of them were sitting at the table and eating, Callie had to keep the conversation going.
“So what’s so obvious?”
Fisher looked at her and shrugged. “Everyone wonders how the Seeders could have done what they did and just left, moving on to another galaxy.”
“Is that the theory?” Callie asked and Fisher and Kalinda both nodded.
“They left cultures to fend for themselves?” she asked, clearly not understanding what he was saying.
“That’s what everyone believes on this ship, right?” Fisher asked Kalinda.
“That’s what we were taught in school,” she said, working on her ham.
“Not possible,” Callie said and Fisher smiled at her. “None of these human cultures could have come up in such exact ways and so close in development and technology without a vast amount of guidance. Especially through the really tough turning points.”
“Exactly,” Fisher said, smiling. “What’s obvious is that the Seeders, at least some of them, never left.”
Kalinda just shook her head, now the one having trouble believing the facts in front of her. Callie felt good that it just wasn’t her for a change.
“Then where are they?” Kalinda asked.
“Right here,” Fisher said, waving at the entire table. “We’re Seeders. Or we will be when we get a little more advanced.”
Kalinda shook her head. “That theory has been considered and discarded a number of times over the years.”
“No hard evidence, right?” Fisher asked.
She nodded.
Callie knew, without a doubt that the hard evidence was the simple fact that so many cultures had grown at the same pace, in exactly the same way.
Fisher looked at Kalinda who had stopped eating. “Think about it. Your culture has pretty much invented everything needed to be a seeder. And you built ships that held over two million humans on short notice.”
Again Kalinda nodded, a little more slowly.
Doc was keeping out of the conversation, which Callie thought to be very smart.
“From what I have read of the articles that Jenny gave me,” Fisher said, “looking for Seeders seems to have always been an outwardly directed hunt. But Callie and I have specialties that allow us to be able to see things where there isn’t supposed to be anything.”
Callie was honored that Fisher included her. What she was seeing didn’t seem to be hidden.
“So what evidence have we all missed for a thousand years of studying this?” Kalinda asked.
Callie was glad that Fisher just ignored the barbed question and went on calmly while eating. “Assume the Seeders are humans just like us. Any evidence would be human evidence.”
“We’ve thought of that,” she said. “I can give you some of the papers discounting those theories. We got them all in basic school.”
“Written by Seeders, of course,” Fisher said, smiling at her frown.
Then not giving her a chance to go on, he said, “Just look at the cultures. Now I know math, and I wouldn’t want to even try to calculate the chance that every culture on every Earth-like planet would become over centuries of war and fighting a democracy and a capitalism-based culture. Or that every planet would develop along the same exact lines and at the same basic speed.”
Fisher turned to Callie. “Doctor, in your expertise, could cultures of any animal species, separated by light years of distance, develop at exactly the same pace and way and genetic mutation?”
“Not a chance,” Callie said, smiling at Fisher. “Not without a lot of help. Vast amounts of help, actually.”
“So every culture we visited was directed and helped?” Doc asked. “That’s your theory?”
Fisher laughed. “It’s the only thing that explains anything I’ve seen in the last two years. And what I see on this big ship as well. The Seeders are still here and still helping and you’ve met them.”
Now it was Callie’s turn to be shocked.
Both Doc and Kalinda were flat staring at Fisher.
“And just how are you so certain of that?” Kalinda asked, clearly upset. Callie could tell that Fisher was challenging one of her hardest held beliefs.
“Because I’ve met one as well,” Fisher said.
Fisher glanced up at the ceiling and said just slightly louder, “Am I correct, Mr. Chairman?”
At that moment Benson shimmered into view. He pulled over a chair
and sat down at the head of the table.
“Smells wonderful,” he said.
“You hungry?” Fisher asked, clearly not surprised at all that Benson was sitting there with them.
Callie was shocked, but she managed to somehow just take a deep breath and watch Fisher.
“Nope, already had breakfast,” Benson said. “So what gave me away?” He was smiling and ignoring the completely shocked look on Kalinda’s face. Callie watched as Kalinda’s mouth was opening and closing and nothing was coming out. Callie knew that feeling well from the last few days.
“A couple of slips,” Fisher said. “You knew about me and Doc ahead of time.”
Benson laughed. “I had hoped you had missed that. Not sure what I was thinking on that.”
“And the look in your eyes when you looked at the planet below. It was a personal failure to you that you couldn’t save everyone.”
Benson nodded. Callie could see that Benson’s eyes filled with sadness. Fisher was right. Benson did take all that death down on her world personally.
“It was my failure. This area of the region is mine to watch and I just couldn’t mount a rescue operation fast enough, get the right people on advanced enough planets involved quick enough, get them here fast enough. At least we saved some of those poor souls.”
“The speed of the travel to where The R-12’s home world was another thing that gave you away. How long ahead did you know what was going to happen?” Fisher asked, his voice respectful.
Callie was impressed.
“A good three hundred years,” Benson said, his voice soft. “We had to push culture advance on a number of planets faster than we wanted to even save as many as we did.
Then he looked directly at Fisher and shook his head. “I knew from the moment you two started building your ship that you would be problems.”
Fisher laughed and Doc looked stunned.
“I think your secret is safe with the four of us,” Fisher said.
Everyone at the table nodded.
“But I’m betting the really big problem for you is Doc and Kalinda here, right?” Fisher asked, smiling at his best friend who was really looking puzzled.
Benson nodded. He turned to Doc and Kalinda. “You two are a rare combination and very advanced. This galaxy isn’t supposed to develop the kind of speed you two are working on for another two thousand years. It’s about then we’ll be needing help in the major part of Andromeda.”
And Benson turned to Callie and Fisher. “And you two worry me even more. We could really use you both, to be honest.”
“So you can use a little help a little earlier?” Fisher asked.
Callie was just flat stunned. Now she completely understood what Fisher was talking about. Benson was a member of the race of humans who started humans on all the different planets, including hers.
And now Fisher was saying that the main force of the Seeders had moved on to a completely different galaxy.
Benson laughed. “Seems like we’re going to get it even if we don’t need it, huh? But before then, we could use help here in the Milky Way if you four are up for the task. There are a lot of wars going on right now on the developing planets. And there’s only so many of us to go around who stayed behind to help here.”
“To make sure all the cultures develop to a peaceful way of life,” Callie asked, trying to imagine the vastness of that task.
Benson nodded.
“So if the four of us agree to help,” Fisher asked, “how long until you teach us that teleportation trick and the long-age secret?”
Callie was now completely lost again.
Benson just shook his head. “You don’t miss anything, do you?”
Then he addressed the entire table. “You all agree to become a Seeder and it might be a lot sooner than later.”
With that he smiled at Kalinda’s open mouth and stood.
He turned to Fisher and extended his hand. “I’ll let you explain what just happened,” he said. “But do it down in the lodge where no one can overhear you. I’ve got a war to try to stop about fifty light years from here. We can all talk tomorrow if you want.”
With that he vanished.
And the silence in the kitchen of The Lady was so thick, Callie figured she could cut it with a knife.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
FISHER LOOKED AROUND at the three people sitting over a mostly finished breakfast in the kitchen of The Lady. His three friends were shocked, to say the least.
Doc looked at him. “You want to explain to me what just happened?”
Fisher nodded. “I will, just not here.”
“Four to transport,” Fisher said, and pushed his button under his skin for the lodge.
All four of them ended up in front of the big desk in the main room. There was a bite to the air, since the sun hadn’t really hit the valley floor yet to warm up the place.
“I’ll get the fire going a little,” Callie said as Fisher indicated that Kalinda and Doc take a seat on the couches.
“This place is really amazing,” Kalinda said, looking around. “Really, really comfortable-feeling. I love the feel of the big logs.”
“That it is,” Callie said.
Fisher went over and sat in one of the big chairs, saying nothing until Callie had the fire coming back up and she had sat near him on a couch.
“What just happened,” Fisher said, “is that a Seeder asked us to become Seeders and help them with directing all the civilizations in this galaxy in their growth. And then maybe eventually go on and help them in Andromeda and beyond.”
Kalinda just shook her head. “As a child I learned that the Seeders were mythical advanced people who built entire civilizations and then left.”
“They are,” Fisher said.
“As with any garden that is planted,” Callie said, “it must be tended to grow the way the gardener wanted.”
“And they want us to join them, help them tend the garden of all these civilizations they have planted,” Kalinda said.
“That’s it in a nutshell,” Fisher said, nodding.
“And what do we get out of doing that?” Doc asked.
Fisher smiled at his friend. “Well, for starters, I’m betting that Benson is a few thousand years old at least.”
“You’re kidding me?” Doc said.
“We can ask him tomorrow,” Fisher said, smiling at his friend and then looking at Callie who clearly just realized that as well. “And he basically said that if we join the Seeders and help out, we’ll live a very long time as well.”
Now Doc only shook his head.
“Second,” Fisher said, “I’m guessing that he has the ability to transport over great distances without mechanical help. He seemed to hint as much.”
“Now that would be cool as well,” Doc said, nodding.
“So we can’t say anything about this. Remember? We can talk with Benson tomorrow.”
Doc shrugged and smiled at Kalinda. “You up for going and working on some engines?”
She smiled back and took his hand as they both stood. “I would love that, but first I want a tour of this wonderful lodge.”
Callie gladly gave them a tour and Fisher jumped back to The Lady to do the dishes. Twenty minutes later, Callie brought Doc and Kalinda back up from the surface and then after they left, she sat at the table and watched him finish up.
When he was done, he turned to her.
“What would you like to do today?” she asked, smiling at him.
He could tell that even though it was still early in the morning, she was already overwhelmed. He was as well, to be honest.
“How about we go back to the lodge and just curl up on a couch and do nothing until lunch?”
“Perfect,” she said. “Then what?”
“We come back up here, have lunch, and return to the couch.”
“Perfect,” she said, smiling. “And then what?”
“We come up here and have dinner and then return to the couch in front
of the fire with a bottle of wine and a promise of a featherbed.”
She smiled at him. “Have I ever told you how I like how you think?”
He moved over, helped her stand, kissing her long and hard, and then transported them to the lodge and the big couch in front of the fire.
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
OVER THE NEXT MONTH, as The Lady was having her engines upgraded and her shields worked on, Doc and Kalinda moved into the lodge with Fisher and Callie. Doc was going to end up being right. The Lady would be the fastest thing flying in any part of the galaxy.
All four of them had met with Benson on the second day and he had made his offer clear. He wanted all four of them to become Seeders and work together to help civilizations walk a moderately peaceful path toward the future. They had all agreed.
Callie loved the company and with Fisher doing a lot of the cooking in the lodge kitchen and them meeting all the time in the dining area, the lodge felt like it was actually alive.
A crew from The R-12 had cleared out all the bodies around or near the lodge, moving them to a respectful place down in the valley below. So as the fall days got shorter, Callie and Fisher had started taking walks along the road and on some of the trails.
Callie loved those walks through the crisp mountain air.
She actually had come to love this lodge a great deal, even though it was the most isolated place on a very injured planet. But with her ability to jump up into space to The R-12, and the other three around, she didn’t feel the isolation.
One evening, as The Lady’s engine and shield upgrades were nearing completion, Fisher seemed bothered and worried about something. Callie decided she would just wait and let him tell her.
They were walking along the roadway, both wearing coats against the crisp of the fall air. She could almost see her breath in the clear air.
“I’ve just assumed,” Fisher said, clearly working up the courage to ask the next question, “that you would want to come along on this crazy new world and be with me. But I never really asked. Are you sure you want to join me out there?”
Callie stopped and somehow managed not to laugh. She turned Fisher so she could look him directly in the eyes.
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