Chapter 28

Even with materials more readily at my disposal, amassing the machines required to completely restore all of the resources that the Vermin pillaged from the various planets still took another five years to complete. Since I continued making strides, the Char never wavered again in their support of my research.

The final piece of the puzzle came from the Vermin, though it was not their intention to provide it. When their defeat became imminent, they chose to use the self-destruct mechanism built into their ships. This was an option of last resort, designed to prevent enemies from gaining access to their technology.

What they failed to take into account was their fleet’s proximity to their main vessel. When the self-destruct mechanism was universally activated the protective shields were immediately disengaged. This left the mother ship vulnerable. When the smaller ships began to explode, their bursts ripped the main vessel in half.

The final explosion, which was designed to completely destroy the main computer system, instead sent that part of the ship hurtling away from the blast. The system did incur some major damage but, eventually, the Consensus was able to salvage most of its data. After discovering how the Vermin managed to strip away a planet’s natural resources so efficiently, I was able to reverse the procedure and “beam” it back in place using similar technology. With virtually unlimited materials at my disposal, I could even arrange a planet’s mineral content to be higher than it was before the Vermin attacked.

I didn’t have a say in deciding which planet we would attempt to restore first, but I have no doubt it was chosen with me in mind. After several years of trying, Sionna finally ended up pregnant and delivered the first human–Nat-a-geerian mixed offspring. Our son Gribbled was adorable, and, even at only six months old, all indications were he would turn out to be one smart fella.

Because they wanted to keep it a surprise, we had to minimize the number of workers we allowed on Nat-a-gee and swear them to secrecy. It took a little over a year to raise crops, reassemble buildings and make Nat-a-gee inhabitable again.

During that time, I worked on improving my design and occasionally threw in some ideas of my own on how we should go about revealing to that world, and thus everyone in the galaxy, what we’d been doing. When it was finally time for the grand unveiling of the new and improved Nat-a-gee, we came up with a cover story of how, because of limited resources, we were going to have to move a large number of the Nat-a-geeian’s to a new location. Certainly, this caused quite a stir, but the Consensus was adamant, having been secretly advised as to what we were really doing.

We gathered the majority of the Nat-a-gee currently living on different worlds into large vessels, and embarked for our destination.

In addition to all the Nat-a-gee refugees, I insisted that my entire crew of companions, as well as my parents and my dad’s companions, be present on this journey. I couldn’t explain to them why they all had to be there, and several of them complained that we should have left one or two behind with the children, instead of forcing the kids to take such a long voyage. I ended up telling them that this had something to do with my work and that they all needed to be there to support me. That shut them up a bit.

When we started getting closer to Nat-a-geerian space, many people, Sionna included, became emotional, not wanting to be faced yet again with viewing the devastation that their planet was reduced to after the Vermin attacked. I did what I could to comfort her while trying desperately to hold back the smile that was threatening to make an appearance on my face.

Stunned gasps were heard throughout the ship as we suddenly changed course and descended onto the planet’s surface. Rich vegetation and tall buildings replaced the sweltering mass of dry nothingness that was left over after the Vermin had attacked.

The Char had decided to do a marching parade and wanted it to end at the main hall where I was to cut the ribbon, officially opening up Nat-a-gee for immediate repopulation. I had a different idea and convinced them to take a more meaningful approach.

We started the parade with my entire crew, along with representatives of the Char, in the front float, followed by everyone else. Instead of stopping at the main hall, we drove right past it and eventually ended up at the site the oldest living Nat-a-geerian’s former home. When I explained what I wanted to do, the Char were all for it and secretly corresponded with her family until they compiled enough pictures and video to completely restore her house to match exactly as it stood before the Vermin attack. The entire day to that point had been a very joyous occasion, but that single instance of her cutting the ribbon surrounding her new home is the one memory I will cherish for all eternity.