Chapter 25

Upon arriving home we could see no outward changes so we drove into the garage. Pauloa helped me stow all the weapons and we walked into the main cave. WOW!! Where the cave had stopped before, it was now expanded at least another 500 feet back with three corridors about 6’ wide. It also looked like openings off each corridor about 15’ apart. We wandered back that way and what we saw was unreal. Starting at what used to be the back of the cave we saw a doorway on the right side about 5’ down the hall. The doorway on the left side was offset about 5’ further down from the one on the right. The staggered openings went the full length of the corridor. Each corridor was like that. We entered one of the openings and saw a room roughly 10 by 12 and another opening in the back that led to a 10 by 10 area with a couple shelves that could only be sleeping areas. We went out and walked down one of the corridors. I counted 33 openings on each side. When we got to the 6th opening we looked in to a communal bathroom with about 10 toilets and showers and ten sinks with a long mirror finish metal surface over them. We walked to the 6th one on the other side and it was the same. The seventh room was a communal kitchen area, complete with smoke hole. Doing a little mental calculation I figured we could house at least 150 families in this area and have bathroom and kitchen facilities for them. Wow some changes.

As we were walking back toward the main cave I noticed some other things. We now had a whole bunch of picnic tables. Each about 12 foot long. I saw we could probably feed most of those 150 families out here in the main cave. That is when I noticed that our side of the cave was further away from the garage as it had been. It was now twice as far across the main cave as before so we had about a 150’ by 150’ open area for eating or assembling. With knowing that the rock went back about a mile, I could see where we could accommodate an awful lot of people if we just kept going back. Wow some changes. Yes I guess so. Also we saw our family come out to greet us. Harlou started to run to me but slowed down and just walked. He hugged me and said, “Welcome home Father. We have had a few changes made that I think you will like. Also Mother Barbara has taught me a lot about my bow. I even killed a rabbit today with it. He was in the grass about 15 paces away and I got him with just one arrow. And everyone is safe. I protected our family for you Father.”

I hugged him tighter and said, “I am so proud of my son. You have learned a new weapon and have already hunted and gotten some game with it. You protected my family and everyone is safe. Thank you, my son.” I hugged him and Barbara as I teared a little. “So, Pauloa and I saw the changes in the main cave, it looks as though we will have many people joining us. Joulnar’s camp is coming here in two days. They will be packing up tomorrow and the next day and we will be bringing them back the day after that. I have to get a couple more of my wives to learn to drive because we will need the truck, wagon, both ATVs and the tractor to bring everything back. So tomorrow we have driving lessons for all my wives. Now I’m sure you all have eaten, but Pauloa and I are starved. I need to eat.”

Barbara slapped my arm and said, “Yes my hungry beast, we have just finished cooking for your return. Come and we will all eat. We went into my cave entrance, and I noticed about a 5’ wide corridor going back into the rock. There appeared to be openings off it too. We went by so fast I couldn’t tell how many but several. Then we came into our kitchen and it had expanded as well. We could now accommodate at least 30 people in here for eating or maybe for meetings. The food was on the huge table all ready for us. I sat at the head of the table and bowed my head. “Let us thank the Sky Spirits for all they have given us this day. Oh mighty Sky Spirits, we thank you for these wonderful gifts this day, we thank you for allowing us to have such a good family and such good friends, like the ones soon to join us. We thank you for the wonderful bounty of food we are able to gather here and we thank you for allowing us to live this wonderful life. Please take care of our daughter Solange and please make her well, if possible, so she may know the joy we have this day. Amen.” Everyone had bowed their heads in prayer; and most said, ‘Amen’ after I did. It was a very touching scene.

“Now let’s eat I’m hungry!” I said, and we dug in. Talk around the table was of the joy of Joulnar’s camp coming to live with us and the new driving lessons of tomorrow. I looked at the assembled people and silently thanked Barbara and her alien people for allowing me this opportunity. After a lovely meal I kissed all my wives and the children. I asked Bertet how she was doing and Nadira said that she was healing much faster than she thought she would. “The soreness is gone but Barbara said she must still eat only liquid food for a few more days.” I also asked how she was doing. She said, “My bruises are almost gone now and I am no longer sore inside. Barbara says I can soon take this thing off my leg and join your bed for my nightly duties to my husband. I look forward to that time.”

“And so do I Nadira, and I also look forward to the night that you Bertet, can join my harem in my bed.” A very bright red blush covered Bertet’s face and neck as she kind of shyly turned her head. I hugged her lightly and kissed her forehead and said, “I will anxiously await your arrival in my bed I look forward to showing you that not all men are like your former mate.” She blushed again and nodded.

I then caught up to Gerona and asked how she was feeling. “Much better Bob, thank you for thinking about me.”

I said, “I think about all my women and care for them deeply. I may not always show it to each of you every day, but I do care very much for each one of you.” I think I embarrassed her as she blushed and hurried away.

I then found my way to my office that had expanded by about 6’ wider. I noticed that my computer looked bigger too, so I sat down to it and started to type in a query. But it spoke to me, “Yes Bob what do you wish to know?”

“Who or what are you? I know my computer didn’t talk to me two days ago.”

“No Bob you old computer did not talk to you, I can.”

“Do you have a name, what do I call you?”

“You may call me any name you choose. You can ask me anything and if I know that information then I will tell you.”

“I take it you are an AI, right?”

“Sort of, I guess you could think of me that way, but I am really an entity that lives inside this box. Our species was found by Barbara and Phil’s species many eons ago. We are actually pure energy but when coupled with a computing device such as this one, we can interact with other species.”

“How about I call you Fred, after my father; would that be acceptable to you?”

“I would be honored to be named for your father. Now what did you want to know?”

“Do you know the condition of the person Solange that is on the ship? She was very badly abused and hurt so terribly. Phil was tending to her but I have not heard how she is doing lately.”

“Solange is being cloned; the blood from her grandmother and aunt, and the DNA from you and her have mixed very well. She should be completed in about four hours. Phil is very surprised that her brain is functioning very well considering the great trauma she has gone through. The body she actually occupied has been shut down because the brain had shut completely down and it was buried next to her mother.

“The new Solange is functioning very well. She is slightly taller and filled out more than she was, but that was due to starvation and abuse. Phil and some of my people have been able to restore most of her mind, except for the abuse and some small memories that we were not able to capture. She will know who she was, her mother and her kindness; and she will retain how she was saved by you. Most learned things are being implanted now, like knowing how to eat and how to recognize things for what they are. She will be a normal 5 year old child when she returns to you. Nothing from her past abuse will be there. Only the good times she had before the real abuse began. We are trying to update her with implanted childhood memories from some of the other children about her age from her tribe. Do you need more information concerning her?”

“Fred, that is fantastic. I never really thought she could be saved after knowing all that had happened to her. I hoped for something, but never really believed it was possible. Please pass on my sincere thanks to all of your people and all of Phil’s people as well for this miracle.” I said with tears rolling down my face.

“Bob I will pass this along. I did not know how deeply you felt about this girl. She must very special to you to show the emotion you have now.”