Wally held a purple cylinder to Bess’ head, and relatives appeared with them! Healthy. Young!

“I want all of you, your entire tribe, to come with us. You must agree to live on Aryll.” Wtensau held his arms wide. He watched their faces.

“Can I export plants to Earth?” Her father smiled.

“Oh, yes! Once we have enough, I think you can.”

Bess’ family argued. They used phones to speak with other relatives in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea! But they all decided to move to Aryll.

In the middle of this, Opseh Wenh Set’s holo came up. Ryee had shock on his face. He expected a being with constantly-changing features that glowed in different colors. This man appeared Earthan, and wore a blue suit the color of DS uniforms. His silver hair, straight, had an unkempt appearance. Brown eyes locked with Ry’nao’s. “I must speak with my son, Greg.”

Deb looked scared and Greg looked ill! They were in Pirad’s Lab. Greg hugged Briahh. Opseh Wenh Cet is a powerful slaver! Ryee went cold as he pulled me behind him! I leaned against his back, trembling. Deb pulled the brothers against her and hummed.

Pirad came out. “I cannot allow this! What do you want?” His face clicked into a frozen scowl. One hand slashed across his green metallic robes, so hard, they swished.

Opseh Wenh Cet scowled at him and slashed a five-fingered hand across his front! “My people are now Earthan. We wish to come to Earth.” Silver hair laid askew on his head. The suit appeared wrinkled.

This shocked everyone! Ry’nao stood in front of him. “No. You cannot.”

The man looked scared. “We need someplace to go! C’tral is uninhabitable for us!”

“This is not my problem. You are in the Seventh Galaxy. There are other worlds—”

“Not that we can now live on! You have to provide a home for us!” Other people behind him shouted. A bluff. They are terrified of Opseh Wenh Cet! Many think of escape.

Ry’nao’s red skin paled.

Pirad waved, and a holo came up. “This is a world I cannot use. It is like Areon was. You may have it.”

“One world? We need 700.”

Ry’nao paled more. Ket stood nearby. He is his healer.

“There are seven inhabitable worlds in this system! You have technology to make use of them. Trade honestly and maybe the Alliance will accept trade from you.” Pirad’s frozen frown deepened on his face.

He wanted to argue more and Pirad cut the holo. Looked at King Wtensau. His face clicked into an exasperated look.

Wtensau laughed. “They made slaves of tens of thousands of worlds, when we were unable to stop them! Do not be fooled. He can terraform worlds, in days. We gave them enough ships to live on while they do this.” A display came up. “They have all the Ty’nirrhan foods we had. This would sustain seven times as many as they are, for that many years. We had no use for the plants to grow their food, so they also have them.”

Pirad brought up a display. “They thought to challenge us, but their weapons are now plants!” He folded his arms and clicked his mouth into a smug expression. Most weapons on our tech level are biological! He told Ry’nao that the pin dat shai did this. Every plant near them will watch them.

Ray came out. She and a very worried Ry’nao went into his room. He is still upset. Ket walked beside him with dark eyes. But Wally waddled to Ray and Asha before they entered.

King Wtensau showed Ryee all the ships that left Aryllan worlds. There is now an Aryllan colony on Elshar Zheiea, so some Aryllan relatives of those people are going there. Slaves freed and put on these ships will go to Rainbow Colonies. He wishes a Rainbow Colony on all Aryllan worlds!

My love smiled. “We created a world in Alb called Ponyll, which means, ‘new growth’ in Aryllan. Bisillipia agreed to supply plants of Aryll Prov. We have reports that all Aryllans known are changed. The Alliance had plans to change some of you, that are now unnecessary.”

He looked at King Wtensau. “My friend, you do too much. Please, go to rest. When we have the treaty ready for discussion, we will come for you.”

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Ry’nao came out and gave them rooms. King Wtensau just wanted one for the 45 Aryllans, with one giant bed.

Bess’ father asked for one room for all her family. But, their room was filled with plants! Perretau moved everyone to theirs. All the Aryllans looked exhausted.

Wally came to Suma and Neal. “Wally, they’ll give you a room—”

“I am your observer—well, guest. You are my hosts.” Wally tipped his hat.

Ry’nao gave her a frightened look.

Neal laughed. “Then, we shall be good hosts. Come. What do you want to do?”

They went in their room. Ryee’s worry for Suma and Neal rumbled on me. Imwa have powerful telepathy. By mistake, he could easily injure them, especially Suma!

Suma looked in Pirad’s lab and her mother was in stasis on a bed. Her sadness touched us. Pirad clicked his face into a frown.

Wally waved a flipper.

The woman became young. Pirad startled! And the table got wider. A man slept there by her! Suma gasped! Her father who died years ago!

Pirad ported to them. “Suma, you must not do this! I cannot hide us from Eriganh—”

“I can.” Wally blinked at him.

“Every time you do something, Eriganh tries to see where it comes from! Do you not fear Rentappenen?”

“No. He will use up his resources very soon. Hate is destroying his Cube from within. I do hope time itself does not come unraveled. His Cube affects time in our entire universe. I am beginning to think the upper levels will not intervene. Our attempts of late, they have been—not very pleasant.” He cocked his head.

“Not very pleasant! You need to stop! I cannot fix what you are doing!” His thin chest heaved! Pirad’s shoulders are half the width of my husband’s. He put a five-fingered hand on top of his head like an alert insect! Irdaktin looked surprised!

“Should we be so concerned with fixing? Rentappenen and Eriganh are destroying everything we worked so hard to create! We are beyond fixing, Pirad. I do hope our civilizations can survive them.” Wally cocked his head.

“With the power you have, you should be busy!” Pirad flicked a fivefingered hand at him.

“Busy? Doing what? I can’t do anything about Eriganh. Adia must defeat him. He is cheating, but I still think she will defeat him. And, Rentappenen. Ray has to defeat him. I cannot interfere. They can break the rules, but I must keep them.”

“You grew Adia’s son before Ryonne~ even knew she was pregnant—”

“And now, she will be undistracted. You did convince her you can keep him in stasis until her battle is over, yes?”

“And you think she will not be upset, that she cannot hold him or that she will not worry that he has awareness? An upper level might have to raise him because you gave him Gifts meant for W~Via!”

“An upper level? Who? The 5th is destroyed. The 4th is destroyed. And, the 3rd is in utter chaos!”

Pirad shivered. His three pupils split into three pairs! “And, the 2nd will not interfere?” Ry’nao went gray! Leaned on Ket. Ryee’s utter shock came to me, that Ry’nao would show weakness before these people! Surely he is dying!

“My dear Pirad, I am from the 5th level above the Test Of Levels! They sent me to investigate, because no one is better at observing than Imwa! I have self-control!”

Pirad clicked his face into frozen dismay! “If you are the best they can send, we are doomed!” He ported out.

Wally went with Suma and Neal to their room.

Ryee started to take Ry’nao’s arm, but Ket escorted him to his chamber.

Ryee and I both trembled. I do not think I was supposed to hear all that! The thought of our baby in stasis—but surely Pirad gave him an herb to stop his thoughts. I wept. My husband held me and his sorrow rumbled on me.

Wally hugged Suma and Neal and I thought, how would I feel to have an Imwa in our room?

The thought amused Ryee.

Suddenly, Wally looked up. Neal startled and held Suma away from them. But they all vanished!

Ryee led me to our room. “I must help write our treaty! Ne vah in my life expected I to see events of this day!” His orange eyes were past wide! “I fear for our friends!”

I felt at sames, but feared to speak of it. Ryee waved up screens of suggested trades. Some of these, his father researched, for his treaty 17 years past! Fa ported in to help.

But, Ishmarel, King Of Zheiea, asked for Ryee to come in the Diplomatic Link! He ported! Vanaras, 6th Galaxy Minister, allows him to speak through him, to comfort Alice, who feels unworthy. O, I know how this feels!

My husband left his account open so I could look over the quantities of items for trade with Esteerr. Fa worked with it. I rubbed the back of his dark curls, below his collar. It feels odd that he is younger now. I am happy he has health!

Occasionally, I slid a picture into this group or that, and each time, Fa smiled. He wrote provisions and suggested trades. I kept grouping things to be traded to Zbbat and Esteerrians, as if I knew these items and what values they had! Someone in my Collective is helping me.

I tried not to think about what I saw. Aryllans are now healed? Surprised diplomats are discovering they are free from Aryllan slavers. They are reporting this all over the Thirteen. Zbbat and Esteerrians are healing them and taking them to Alb in large numbers, to all of the Rainbow Colonies. I hear through my Diplomatic Link, that Ryee gave us to help us free Areon.

People are randomly destroying fields of slaver herbs. Slavers land ships of slaves at healer colonies. The Elshar Council is debating slavery. People are keeping Ih Esta busy! Even here on Earth, on our ship, Earthans come and report slavers to Andrisch, and he is busier than ever in his career! But now he is in the room of Aryllans settling centuries of trade disputes with his people. And, I am rude to listen, but I cannot stop.