Chapter 24

Tommy and his group had made millions of square metres of hull plate to keep his wives on the moon and under the dome. He claimed that Simna had not like weightless conditions before being born. At five and a half months though she seemed to thrive in this environment. She developed her PK early and used it to propel her everywhere she wanted to go. Domma, Amanda, Elizabeth and Lauren were always close. The little Gossna boy felt right at home with the girls. His parents though thought he was learning bad manners and habits but in turn were too polite to let us see this openly.

Tom's family had been building more ribs. Sometimes we had to help because of their great size and complexity. These seemed to stay in the dome too until the children were born. The increase in population also meant that somebody had to stay and watch the children. Herminia came to me with her idea for a partial solution.

"Captain, my grandmother is very good with children. We talk every other day and she has subtly told me that she is disillusioned with her current life. I thank you very much for what you have done for her but now she finds that there is nobody that she can relate to. The young men of sixty take her money thinking she is senile. It is hard to find boys of fifty that will give her what she needs. She found that her sex life had blossomed even more than it did when she was thirty but the men cannot stay up with her."

I explained, "I wanted your grandmother safe. This way she would be happy and much more healthy. A Human of her age has a very short life expectancy."

"It is her eightieth birthday is in a week. Tom and Margaret feel that Damita would not want to join us. I think she will and she will do it gladly. She loves her life in Spain but she will stay with us if given the chance. Let's have a short break and go to her birthday party and see what the rest of us can find."

"What does Tom think of this?"

"He's not against it. He does feel that if he goes then Damita will want to follow even if she eventually wants to return to Spain. This is not just a family decision where a vote would be held but it is a decision effecting the crew. We are leaving the decision up to you."

"Well I think we should go. Your former husband has not made a fuss about Alita. His phone calls have come further apart. I can't see him trying to contest the agreement even if he has not been able to see his daughter."

Herminia said, "He looks like he is going to marry Maria Hernandez and doesn't need any complications."

In the next six days we took most of what we had made and placed it in orbit. Some units were put in place and now the computer guided machines would have to do our work even if they took much longer to do it. Odava and Ichom would carry on in our absence.

We landed outside Madrid to allow us to arrive at our destination without turning too many heads. To do this we boarded a train for the short ride to Toledo. Arrangements had been made at the local hotel and we were to occupy a complete floor but one old couple refused to move. We had the money and I liked the added security we would have. One couple would not be too dangerous to us.

Diapers had to be fabricated to allow the children to blend in with the others. It was a forgone conclusion that the children had to be compared and fussed over. With fourteen children and all of the women pregnant with others it would look like an invasion. Tom was the only one that stayed away but eventually he would meet Damita if she was found acceptable.

Damita was phoned and she was ready to meet us. We pulled up in a long line of taxis. Herminia went to meet her grandmother carrying a child she had talked about in her arms and another one in her womb. Alita was now fourteen but was the same way and very proud of it. The dates had to be fudged for the conception so that the child's birth could correspond to normal Human gestation figures. Tom was listed as the father of Herminia while the father of Alita was not mentioned. It was now understood that it was Alita's business and no others.

Damita sat in her usual chair and she talked to everyone present. She was startled with the apparent youth of the group. Herminia looked at least ten years younger than when she left and her body was very lean and fit. Alita looked to have matured and actually looked older. Her stare and self-assurance was usually seen in only those that knew very much about life.

The social structure of our group was not understood with just two males and fourteen women. Damita had talked to everyone present on the phone at one time or another but had never seen us. The offer of a computer with a camera didn't work well or the old woman would have been able to talk and see at the same time.

Along with Damita were three of her relatives. They didn't understand much of what was going on but could see that Damita was happy. We all made our assumptions of Damita's long term goals but it was still not clear enough to risk the exposure.

Alita and Marina convinced the three aged women to show them the facilities so they could change their children. This got the women out of the room long enough for Herminia to ask her some pertinent questions.

"Grandmother, we have heard of a job in Portugal. The pay is average but they are providing room and board. I believe two children are involved. You are acting much younger than you were. Would you like to work away from here?"

The woman now thought of the implications of moving away and it was much easier now to assess all the values she used to make her feel 'at home'. This looked promising but it still was not clear.

Tom was the one most concerned and he asked us from a park not far from the house, "Dig deeper Herminia."

Damita said, "I like it around here but it's nice to see someplace new for a change. Up until about a year ago I wanted things to be the same. This way I would not have to bother to change for anybody. Now I find that I have changed and I don't fit in."

Herminia said, "I was asking because our children need somebody to look after them. This one here is a perfect baby. She doesn't cry but she can get into trouble. This happens mostly when she and Alita's child are together."

Damita liked this idea much more. Herminia continued, "There is even a man we know that thinks you are a special kind of lady. You may even have a man friend if that is what you want."

Tom interrupted from the park, "Captain, six people are trying to get into our rooms. I am going to investigate."

"If it were common thieves there would not be so many. There's a good chance we have been spotted."

I said to our group, "Our visit may be cut short. I want all the children and mothers except Herminia and Alita to get ready to leave. I am calling the boats to prepare for a quick evacuation."

On our private band I said, "Sandra and Megan. Look for signs of surveillance."

"Yes Captain."

To Pat'uch I said, "Monitor all radio communications from this area. We may have been spotted."

"Yes Captain."

Damita was unaware of our heightened attitude and said, "I'm an old woman dear. What would I need a man for? They have caused me enough grief in my life. I have no wish to get involved at my age. Men are nothing but trouble."

We did find that Damita was much more interested in male companionship than she let on. Her voice said though, "I like the idea of looking after my family. Your children are the most beautiful I have seen and the most manageable."

Alita came back with Marina with freshly changed children but now didn't seem to be quite as relaxed. The boats were all above the house now. They could leave the house invisibly and enter a boat with very little difficulty.

Odava had been monitoring us and asked, "Is there anything you want us to do Captain?"

I knew that Ichom avoided trouble but this may be looked on as something to break some of the monotony even if the Gossna liked life to remain stable. "Patrol over the city and look for a military operation against us."

"Yes Captain."

Herminia said to me, "She wants to come Sir. Things have changed for her especially because of her improved health. The things that tied her here before are not as restrictive. She would stay with us with very little need to meet with other members of our family. The telephone is still available to her along with the internet."

I did my own assessment and had to agree with Herminia. Tom I know would welcome her into his family. I also thought it better to allow him to present the offer.

To Tom I spoke, "It looks like Damita has changed her attitude about leaving. Our original premise has changed too. She would still be with family. If you and your wives want to invite Damita into your group you have my permission."

"Thank you Captain. I came up through the hotel staff entrance and ran up the steps. There has been a very quiet bulletin put out about your wives. They were spotted and followed. Helicopters brought this group directly from Madrid. They are just at the stage where they are going to gather information clandestinely."

I said, "I don't want them taking our property. The items are too good for Earth manufacture. If you confront them they will fight. I don't want them to find out your abilities."

"I will get the hotel staff to run them off."

Tom interfaced with Borin and made a telephone call to the desk and used the name he was currently using. "Hello, I need to reserve seven tables in the restaurant. I am sorry but we will be arriving in ten minutes. The situation just came up."

"Have no fear. Your tables will be waiting."

Tom then opened a door to an empty room and called the desk. Using the voice of an old man that was a current guest, "There are some thieves on the fifth floor breaking into rooms. I think there are six of them. Don't you people screen strangers coming into the hotel? My wife and I are concerned."

"We will do everything necessary sir. They are probably lost or drunk. We will take the appropriate actions."

The manager rode the elevator with all the able bodied workers he could find. The pass key was used after a knock. Eventually two men were found. Credentials were offered but now the agents knew that a guest had seen them. The staff were threatened with prosecution if they mentioned anything about this incident.

"The people renting these rooms," the manager said, "just reserved tables in the dining room. They will be here any minute."

The man in charge did some quick thinking and said to his men, "Put everything back the way we found it. We'll get a chance later."

The rooms were quickly evacuated with the agents trying to hide their activities.

When the floor was vacant Tom entered the first room. Odava was asked to help and he brought Borin close to the building. An open window was used to throw the suitcases into the ship with an assist by the tractors. Each of the rooms were similarly vacated. The only things left were some small transmitters that would record all words spoken. One of the pieces of luggage had a similar unit now but was safely in the ship and behind a shield.

Tom told me, "The rooms are clean. The agents didn't know where we went but will find out when they question the taxi drivers."

"You should make an appearance over here and ask Damita if she wants to join us."

"I'll be right there."

Odava took Tom aboard and they moved the short distance to Damita's home. A tractor had to lower his invisible body to the ground. He met and kissed Margaret in the kitchen. She said, "It looks like we are wanted people now."

"Yes it is but I want you more." He bent over and kissed his first wife passionately knowing what it was doing to her. Leaving her in the kitchen Tom walked into the front room and stood beside Herminia.

Herminia smiled up at her husband then turned to her grandmother. "This is my husband Tom. Tom this energetic woman is my grandmother. Her name means 'Little Princess'."

Tom moved close. Damita didn't know what to do. When Tom got very close she knew why Herminia had this man. When Tom took her hands in his she was very sorry that she was not sixty years younger.

Tom said, "Herminia speaks very highly of you. Would you consider coming to live with us? You could look after the children and we will look after you. Many more young people will be around to talk to. They sometimes need a bit of guidance. We really need your help?"

Damita had not even got a chance to say hello. He was now asking her to leave all that she loved and had built over a very long lifetime. Even at eighty years of age the woman felt very drawn to this man. She thought it would be best to say no for she knew that she would cause complications in this marriage.

She looked up to the young man and tried to read the thoughts behind the words but she could not see any deceit or even subterfuge. She would love to stay with this man for the remainder of her life but the old feeling for solidarity and family held her back. He was giving her permission to move in with a large portion of her family. Herminia, Alita and their children perhaps needed her more but her great grandchildren needed her too though they did seem to be getting along well enough.

Tom offered his two hands and Damita looked at them and finally made up her mind. She took them. Instead of releasing them the man pulled her to her feet and then embraced her as she had never been hugged before. She felt the need in the man and an even deeper need within herself to be with this family.

Herminia could feel the need to belong in her grandmother and the feeling of family was strong in the direction Damita now wanted to go. She put her child down on the large chair and hugged both her husband and her grandmother.

She said, "You will not regret this Grandmother. This will be the first day of a very exciting and rewarding life."

Damita looked at the three old women and saw that they were not disapproving but they were not urging her to do this either. They too liked to have everything stable.

When the three parted, Damita and Herminia had shining eyes. Herminia said, "We were going to stay at the hotel for a few days but there has been some complications."

Damita was now worried for she saw the family leaving. "You can sleep here. We can find room somewhere."

"Grandmother, you have to come with us. Now that we have you we don't want you to go. I am afraid some government people will be soon watching this house and then question each of the family. They will be polite at first but they will be very insistent. If you truly want to come with us then you will have to leave today."

The three women and Damita were shocked at hearing this. All sorts of ideas went through their minds. Damita said, "But my clothes, my plants, my garden, all my pictures. What about them?" She was now thinking less about the legal repercussions as she was about the actual moving.

"We will give you a garden that you will simply love. Tom is very rich and there is only a need for the clothes that you wear. The pictures and all the mementoes that you have collected will go with us."

"Why is the government after you? Did you commit a crime?" This aspect was finally being examined.

Herminia got Damita to sit then said, "No Grandmother, it was for doing something good." When Damita didn't understand Herminia continued, "There has been no mention of it in the public news but some terrorists tried to take over a Russian reactor to make it send radioactive poisons over the Earth. Our extended family stopped this. Some were seen on surveillance cameras."

"Russia sent the pictures to other security agencies for help. They will try to pick up Sandra and Megan for questioning. If they were captured and after many months they would get turned over to the Russians for similar questioning. We do not want our freedom curtailed or any of us subjected to this harassment. Since they were seen with us then we will all be watched now. Somebody had found us at the Madrid train station. We will never be left alone again."

Damita looked at Sandra and Megan to see what these beautiful young girls could have done to thwart terrorists. They were so polite she doubted that they would do anything or could do anything to stop some desperate men.

She asked, "How could those young girls do anything to anger some terrorists?" In the back of her mind the possibility of overhearing a plan and then telling the police came as a possibility.

Sandra said, "We have a computer that monitors radio traffic. All the major countries have similar units. Most listen to telephone calls and listen for special words like assassinate, smuggle, murder, heroin, cocaine, Prime Minister or President. If those words are detected then the call is sent to people to assess. Actions can then be taken to prevent a crime. We found talk about the terrorist act but were able to get there before the army arrived."

"What did you do?"

Herminia said for Sandra, "We only watched. Sandra, Megan and Leif went into the reactor buildings and subdued the terrorists. They then went to the Administration building. There they were forced to kill some of the attackers. Marina here can tell you more for she was there when her father was killed by the terrorists."

"What?" She was upset with death but being killed was another thing.

Marina got up and handed her child to Megan. She walked up to Damita and held her hands. "The Chechens came in and killed many of the workers to make the rest do as they were told. I was visiting my father. He was an important person in the running of the plant. When the gunshots were heard he hid me in a closet. The Chechens came into the room and demanded to be allowed to have the important password into the computer."

"They hurt a great many people before they finally killed my father." Marina started to break down and Damita pulled her into her lap. It took a while but Marina started again, "Leif came into the room and started to stun the Chechens in the back of the room first. One of the enemy saw some strange things happen and started to shoot because there was some talk about invisible people. Leif threw an ashtray and killed him before bullets could hit the area I was hiding in."

"Sandra and Megan had let themselves be captured and when they saw that things were going wrong they began to fight with a type of karate. In less than a minute they had knocked unconscious or killed everybody around them. They all saved me from the Chechens. If you heard anything about the Chechens it is true except they are even more viscous than reported. They wanted to kill all of Moscow and all the cities south of it."

"They fought armed men and won?" The old woman said.

"They did more than that. They went out and fought the Chechens that had rocket launchers, missile batteries and machine guns so the Russians would be safer. Russian troops had already been killed in an ambush and many more were killed later as they tried to free the nuclear facility."

Damita and the three old women just sat with their mouths open. They seemed to believe what was said but could not picture this happening in their minds.

Damita said, "They did a wonderful thing. Why are they being chased?"

"They used a special weapon that stunned the enemy without killing them. They also had a good computer to monitor communications. The governments want to find out exactly what we know. To do this they will spy on us then demand answers. When none come, we will be kidnapped and forced to talk under drugs or torture."

"They can't do that. You can call the police."

"The people doing this will be the Spanish security service. Only when they are done will they turn us over to the Russians. They have much power and the police will even help if they are asked to do so."

"You have to hide. You have to go now."

"They will not knock on the door for a day or so but they will come."

"Call your nephew. He can drive you to a safe place."

"We have a very safe place that they cannot find. We actually came here to celebrate your birthday and to ask you if you want to join us."

Damita looked at Herminia then at Alita to see the truth of the matter. The two just nodded their heads to confirm the statement. Marina got up and wiped a tear away and asked, "Are you still going to join us? We need you but I think Tom and Herminia need you the most."

After a short pause to think she said, "I will go with you."

After that Damita went through her belongings and the old women along with both Herminia and Alita packaged up what she should take. Some twenty year old shoes and even older dresses had to be left behind.

Pat'uch and Borin had been keeping us appraised of all the important communications. Herminia, Damita, Alita, and two children left for a farm in a taxi. Before they left Herminia insisted that Damita have a small glass of water with a sedative in it.

The personal belonging went with Tom. He was just two minutes ahead of the security perimeter being set up. The rest of us took to the boats. The old women were hugged and told that we had left or at least all but Margaret. She ran from the house by the back door and into the boat waiting for her.

Tom just carried Damita's property and got the taxi stop in a quiet rural area and unloaded the suitcases and bags. The driver was perplexed but accepted his pay with a tip. In seconds the cargo would be loaded into a boat.

Herminia did the same thing when her turn came. The driver didn't like to leave the women and babies at the side of the road but did as he was asked. The old woman was getting very sleepy but didn't seem to worry. She was hearing voices telling her how safe she was for the last five minutes.

When she finally fell asleep, a boat barely ten metres long became visible right beside them. Damita was carried inside and in a few more minutes she was in her new bed in her new home.

Damita in the coming weeks was treated with the med units and even went into the tank. She came out much younger but still a Human. She could think much clearer now and decided to join Tom's family. She turned out to be a very responsive woman and in one more week was undergoing the first step into joining us.

Phone calls came to us all the time. Some were for Damita. Her voice was altered but she gave truthful answers to the many questions. Very little was learned by the security people even though they listen to every sound coming from the receiver.

The relatives were all questioned then questioned again but it was obvious that they knew little or nothing. Sometimes the Russians were even in the room when the questioning was going on. Probes were always close by and we knew that some of the information went right back to Vladimir Bogdanov.

One cycle after joining us, Damita was now not only one of us but she was now a young looking woman with a young woman's appetite. The information that she was now pregnant did nothing to lessen the way she needed to have sex with her husband and even her wives.

The babysitter problem never went away but only got worse. Most times the women close to term stayed in a gravitational field while the others helped us assemble the ship. As time went on the groups rotated.

As a half way measure a large gym was constructed with its own variable gravitational field. This kept the family closer together. Portable gravitational units were made and stationed at the various joints so that everybody could work at assembling for this was our present bottleneck. A good five percent of the hull was on the moon's surface ready to be attached.

This work felt satisfying to all of us but to me and my family it was even better somehow. This had to do with a sense of community and a love that was shared by all. Our population though didn't allow us to work as fast as we should and two years after Damita had come to us we returned to Earth once more

Instead of families we went as individuals. The Gossna and four of the most expectant mothers stayed to watch the eighty six children. We all looked older now and had different features. It was a foregone conclusion that we were still searched for.

The other families had six wives apiece and all of them jokingly wanted me to do my share. They vowed to look especially for me. My own studies were to nominally end in four years but I could see it lasting much longer with more obligations. The time taken could be much shorter if I could study more. I spent a great deal of my time with all the children. I felt very proud to be their father for they were so inquisitive. They would be the first real generation of our people and I had to make sure they grew up in the right way. This meant a lot of love and especially with the discipline to learn.

Some of the children already wanted to help me in my research and as a large unit they did assist. They saw things differently than I did and this made me rethink many of the things I had learned by rote. I thought them very intelligent for three year-olds. It was now six years since coming to this system and it didn't seem to feel boring in the least for I now had my own family to keep me very occupied.

Not all this time was spent building for we had gone to all the local planets to access the scattered portions found of the destroyed ship. Some were found on Pluto and Mercury but the largest planets hid their secrets even when we made a hardened probe to deal with their different environments. We were very lucky to find a damaged engine buried deep in Saturn. We analysed this unit after a difficult time of extracting it. We found it similar to our own but had some interesting differences too.

I did some reverse engineering and deduced that our engines were at least as efficient though they worked on some slightly different principles. These different principles encouraged me to do more research because there may be a way of blending the engines to make them even more efficient.

Mars gave us a wrecked accumulator and a fair number of hull fragments. Nothing was worth keeping but we took the pieces anyway to keep future generations of Humans from getting any foolish ideas.

Surrounding systems were searched too as was the Oort cloud and any asteroid field we came across. We had to assume that the vast majority had been intercepted by stellar bodies up to hundreds of light years away. we were actually in the centre of this cluster. We plotted the probable point of where the ship exploded but found nothing. I counted myself very lucky to find Zolanda even if she did leave us later. She had her own programming as we all did and we had to be true to it.

This time we concentrated on South America for our search for new family members. I had to chuckle though that Tommy now had two additional wives after only a month of searching. Both came from Colombia. He had to go back to the moon with Consti to get the two new recruits settled in. One was a woman of forty eight and the other was only thirty one. The rest of his family continued the search.

The first new wife's name was Ginessa. She was a widow of thirty one and was very happy to find interested in her. She had a limp caused by a poorly healed left leg. The break had happened twelve years previously and made her look odd and caused her to reject humanity for the way they treated her.

The next wife Bella was even older at forty eight but she came readily after feeling Tommy's aura. She was separated from her husband and her children had grown up.

Tom found another wife too in Oaxaca Mexico. She was only twelve and he avoided going close. Margaret managed to follow the child in a crowd and get a tiny crystal implanted so her location could be found later.

Tommy went back to Colombia to continue his own search while I did Brazil. When he got to Bogotá different groups tried to rob him five times. Usually they saw him as an easy target. The youngsters he treated better than the older ones. A large felon leading a gang had thoughts of raping Tommy and killing him later. This one died quickly in front of his two friends. Tommy laterally pulled his body apart. The other two accomplices became his devoted guides but not by choice. People would actually come to see him knowing what he had done. The police were not part of this group.

Sandra and Megan had problems as did all the other women from very forward men. South America seemed to encourage dominant men. Most of them looked elsewhere after talking to any of the women. The ones that didn't were physically encouraged to. Margaret had to show one group bent on raping her, the error of their ways. The leader was brutal and killed quite often for the pleasure of it. Margaret had jumped in the air and kicked the man under the chin so hard that the head had disappeared in a haze of red mist and small fragments.

She had her own protectors now just as her son had. They were told to do this or face the same fate as their former leader. This did help and she taught them the benefits of following a strong but kind woman. It kept the nastier folk at bay. She did find another wife for Tom and she was only twenty four. She had been forced into prostitution at a young age. Margaret had bought her from the pimp for a hundred dollars and his life. He liked the deal immensely after her protectors talked of their former leader.