Wolf said goodnight to the last of the Marines who’d arrived at midnight.  He was going to enjoy talking to Gunnie again after all these years.  For the first time since this whole crazy thing started, he began to think that they might just pull it off.  He stood under the stars near the cook tent and watched them twinkling in the night sky.  With very little distraction from the lights of civilization, they glowed in all their glory; seemingly so close he could reach up and touch them.

 He realized that if all went as planned, he just might be able to do that.  Shaking his head, he lifted the flap and went in.  His eyes immediately found Marag sitting at one of the tables, cradling a cup of something steaming between her hands and talking to Ruth and Joe.  He detoured to the coffee maker and poured a cup before joining them.

 “Settled in?”  Ruth looked as fresh as she had in the Arctic.

 “Yeah.  Turns out I knew Gunnie from my service days.  Odd to think after all these years we might be serving together again.”  He blew on the coffee before taking a sip.

 “There will be all kinds of adjustments to make in the coming days.”  Ruth’s eye stared into a future that only she could see.  “We won’t be able to keep the governments of the world at arm’s length much longer.  Half of what Terana and I have been going over are the differences in our cultures.”

 “There are more similarities than differences.”  Joe’s calm voice startled them.

 Wolf looked at the small man who’d come out of the shell of alcoholism to reveal an intriguing personality.  He didn’t speak often but when he did, his analysis was usually direct and to the point.  His early training had proven invaluable with some of the new people being drawn into their cause.  The mix of bikers and military had already set a few tremors through their growing community.

 “Are your computer friends enjoying the Ikiiri technology?”  Ruth pinned him with her silver eye.

 “They may never sleep again.  A couple of them have fallen in love with the Ikiiri communications technician.”  Wolf grinned.  “There seems to be something in their scent that attracts techno-geeks.  I’ve noticed it myself.”

 “It’s that scent of leather and musk.  To balance it out, there’s something in human female pheromones that calm them.  Both of those reactions need to be part of the incoming briefing we give to everyone.”  Ruth took a sip of tea and nibbled on a cracker.

 “I hope that’s not dinner.”  Wolf pointed to the plate with half a dozen crackers and several carrot sticks.

 “Just a snack to tide me over to breakfast.  That reminds me, Marag, how are the supplies holding up?”

 “We’re going to have to go shopping sooner than later.  The Ikiiri eat more than any three humans.”

 “Understood.  Terana is going to have one of their shuttles bring down supplies for her people.  But they still want to taste our food so whatever order you have planned, I think I’d double it.  Now that Seth’s unit has arrived, we’ll have some perimeter security so I don’t have to maintain so much on my own.”

 “Is there anything we can do to help?”  Wolf hated that so much fell on her shoulders.

 “You’re doing it already.  Have any of you thought ahead to what happens after these initial negotiations?”  Ruth’s eye swept the table.

 “I will stay with you.”  Joe said calmly, taking another sip of his tea.  “You’re going to need someone to take care of the necessities of living.  I always rather fancied myself as a ladies maid.”

 Ruth laughed out loud for the first time since Wolf had known her.  “Joe, that can’t be the height of your ambition.”

 “It was ambition that led me to the bottle and having crawled out of that hell hole into the light of day, I won’t go back there.  You’re already neglecting yourself in favor of others and that will only get worse as our push into outer space continues.  You’re going to need me and I need to be useful.”  Joe looked at her calmly and she pressed her hand over his.

 “There will be danger, Joe.  Not everyone will react so well to the upcoming changes.”

 “I know.  But here is where I want to be and the good thing is you won’t have to pay me a cent.”

 “Damn.  Payroll, I knew there was something I was forgetting.  Remind me to offer the Ikiiri translator to the highest bidder tomorrow.  That little gem should take care of feeding, housing and paying our expanding community for the foreseeable future.”  Ruth took another sip, her eye on the tan canvas wall of the cook tent.

 Marag’s hand gripped Wolf’s and he finally let himself look his fill at the beautiful woman who stirred his heart in a way no one ever had.  She was tired and the blue smudges beneath her eyes accented that fact but she was smiling at him and he let himself enjoy the feeling of being part of a pair.

 “I’m in this for the long haul.  There is no way that I can leave at this point.  My curiosity is too engaged and I need to be a part of the planning.”  She said simply to Ruth but her eyes were on Wolf’s face.

 He returned a squeeze to her hand.  “Me too.  The military will want to take this over and I don’t want that to happen.  This is a human leap into the future not only a military one.  I know how they think but I can also see the civilian side they may not take into account.”

 “Agreed.  We need committed individuals who can speak for all the constituencies of Earth.  And there are many factions.  Father Adam, if he will stay with us would be an important link to the organized religions of the world.”  Ruth nibbled another cracker.

 “He’s pretty anti-Ruth at the moment.”  Marag said hesitantly.

 She broke into a grin.  “Yes, it’s it wonderful?  He thinks I’m either crazy or the anti-Christ.  He will keep a close watch on me and object when he feels I’m going too far.  You can’t know how valuable I find that endearing little trait.  He’s my Doubting Thomas and he will keep me humble.  This kind of power is intoxicating and I need someone who will keep me grounded.”

 Wolf snorted this coffee and had to have Marag pound on his back.  “Are you nuts, Ruth?  He could be dangerous.”

 “No, he’s not a fanatic, just a man who believes whole heartedly in his God and the religion he belongs to.  He’s not the one I have to worry about.  It’s much more likely to be a true believer who I disappoint at some point in point who will decide to kill me.”  Ruth nodded serenely to them.

 Wolf held on to Marag’s hand tightly.  “How do we guard against that, Ruth?”

 “We don’t.  I’ve already cheated Death once and he’ll want his just dues soon.  It’s why I want us to go ahead quickly.  I need to get the ball rolling in a certain direction and be so far down the path that not even my death can deflect it.”  Ruth stretched and stood up.  “Don’t worry about me, children.  I’m a tough old bird and I promise not to go looking for my fate.  Good night, I need some sleep if I’m going to address the world tomorrow.”

 Joe got up and followed her with a wave to the two of them left at the table.  Wolf couldn’t quite believe what he’d just heard.  Her voice hadn’t even been resigned just as matter-of-fact as a comment on the weather.  “How can she accept that as . . . as . . . as normal?”

 Marag sighed.  “For the last six months, she’s known inside her secret heart that she was born to fulfill some ancient prophecy and then die.  Her grieving of the loss of a ‘normal’ life took place long ago.  Now, I think she’s afraid to hope so she’s merely readying her mind to accept the inevitable sooner rather than later.”

 “I couldn’t do that.”  Wolf shook his head and swirled the dregs of his coffee.

 “I think you’re in the middle of the same process.”  Marag squeezed his hand, bringing his eyes up to hers.  “A year ago you were told you had a year to live but she changed that when she healed you.  But you haven’t completely accepted that you’re not going to die.  It’s why you’ve been holding back from me.  I want to be a part of your future.  What do you want?”

 Wolf closed his eyes and hung on to her hand.  What do I want?  Not to die.  But now the cancer won’t take me prematurely.  I have a future.  Then why am I still afraid?

 “I knew the future and came to terms with it but now I don’t know what’s going to happen.”  He realized out loud.

 “Exactly.  Not knowing the future is scary, very scary.  But most of us live our lives as if we did know it.  Our little routines go on day by day, rarely changing at all and we accept that they will.”

 “But Ruth just changed that for herself and the rest of us.  By asking a question and accepting the answer.  Salt.  Who would have believed something so common would turn out to be our ticket to the stars?”  Wolf was still processing his feelings.

 “Walk me to my tent, Simon.  Morning is going to come all too soon.”  Marag rose, still holding onto his hand.

 Wolf looked at their clasped hands and knew this was one of those turning points in his life as important as the doctor’s visit that told him he was terminal.  Smiling, he rose and walked with her into the night.

*********

 “A black out on communication with the alien ship is still in effect.  The White House announced this morning that word had been received from the woman known as Ruth.  Negotiations are proceeding between the aliens and Earth.  Questions have been asked on the floor of Congress about the validity of trade talks between the . . . Ikiiri and Earth when nothing is known of the chief negotiator.”

 Snap, crackle, pop.

 “The Prime Minister came before Parliament this morning to read to them the text of his conversation with the chief negotiator for Earth.  Her name is Ruth and little is known about her qualifications or even how she came to be our link to the aliens.”

 Hiss, crackle, piercing wail.

 “A reporter for the Chicago Tribune broke the story of Ruth’s background to the world today.  Her full name is Ruth Evans and she was born and raised in Illinois.  It seems she’s an escaped mental patient who after surviving a terrorist attack told her doctors that aliens were coming to Earth.  Even after extensive drug therapy for her schizophrenia, she insisted that she remembered three previous lives in which aliens invaded our world and she fought them.”  The radio announcer appeared to be having a hard time believing what he was reading.  “Of course, how crazy could she be when aliens did come to Earth?”

 Another channel crackled into life.

 “The President announced today that Ruth would be addressing the United Nations this afternoon in a live broadcast from their New York headquarters.  He said that like her previous appearance on the world’s TV screens, the Ikiiri would simultaneously show her in real time across all time zones.  In other news of the day, violence broke out again in Turkey, Uganda and Chile . ."

 Another spin of the dial.

 “A winter storm struck the East Coast again, dumping another foot of snow on states still reeling from the blizzard a week ago.  Power that had just been restored is out again and shelters are maxed to their limits from Florida to Maine.  This weather pattern began the day after the aliens came to Earth and scientists are speculating on whether or not there may be a correlation.”

 Wolf shook his head and left the communications tent for Ruth’s.  They’d taken to calling it command central and he nodded to the Marine on duty outside the entrance.  After their talk in the cook tent a few days before, he’d made sure that Seth knew what Ruth had foreseen. The Marine Colonel had assigned a guard for both Ruth and the Ikiiri Queen.  He told them it was just a precaution and Ruth had nodded, accepting it for the excuse it was.

 He joined the group around the table.  Smiling at Marag, he waited while Ruth listened to the head computer technician, Jamie McGee.  He hadn’t had a chance to talk with the group since they’d arrived.  They had dived into the Ikiiri computers and not surfaced once.

 “Basically, they’re organically grown units programmed directly from the Ikiiri brain.  Theoretically, we could do the same if we had access to their memory banks.  But better yet, if we could begin to grow our own, they would be 100% human/computer based.”  Jamie licked his lips and tugged at an ear.  “Frankly, that scares the hell out of me.  God knows what would happen if some of the alphabet agencies got a hold of this.”

 Wolf hid a smile, remembering a time when he too had been paranoid about the FBI, CIA, NSA and their even more secret cousins.  But from what he’d seen in the past month, Ruth would prove to be smarter than any of them.  She tapped her pen against the table, her eye unfocused between Jamie and Marag.

 “Agreed.  Queen Terana has suggested that the seed crystal for the Moon Base computers be grown from my memories.  At the moment, I have four lives available for the programming and that may come in handy.  But that fact needs to be kept to our group.  Half the world thinks I’m crazy as a loon and the other half would just prefer me to go away.”

 “What does that make us?”  Marag smiled down at Ruth.

 “The only sane people left on the planet.”  Ruth chuckled and ticked another item off her list.  “Marag, what about supplies?  Did White Sands come through for us?”

 “Yes.  We had a convoy arrive this morning about the same time the Apaches showed up.”

 “The Mescalero tribe?  Warriors or leaders?”  Ruth wrote a new note on her expanding list.

 “Tribal elders requesting a meeting.”  Seth answered.  “They are looking for jobs.”

 “Do they realize the work will be off planet?”

 “Yes.  They want to know if the entire tribe could go.  Men, women and children.”

 “Interesting.  I’ll meet with them after the UN speech.”  She was back to tapping her pen in quick little staccato clicks.  “How about the locals?  What reaction to our being here has there been?”

 Wolf answered since he’d been the last one to go into town.  “They’re excited but wary.  They’ve been the butt of jokes for years now and are taking the stories with an extra big pinch of salt.  So far, nobody’s called the press and announced our presence.  I think they enjoy thumbing their nose at the people who have ridiculed them all this time.”

 She chuckled.  “Good.  We’ll try and do something nice for them before we move out.”

 The tension in the room zoomed to new heights.  Wolf exchanged a quick look with Seth and got a brief nod to confirm his suspicions.  They were really going to do it.  They were going to leave Earth and move to the Moon.  His stomach lurched and he casually gripped his hands behind his back.  He hadn’t realized they were so close to moving.

 “Queen Terana’s sons have been working overtime and they’ve hollowed out the first half of the base we need.  Peter’s been doing a great job directing them in what we’ll need for work and living space.  And Seth’s engineers are making sure that once the dome is up, there won’t be any air leaks.  The Ikiiri mining equipment beats anything we’ve got.”  Ruth watched them all fidget, a ghost of a smile on her face.

 “What about taking up furniture and all the things we take for granted?”  Sam was rubbing circles into his temples again and his eyes were smudged with fatigue.

 Wolf missed her answer while taking in the state of the group.  They were all on edge and half of them looked like they hadn’t been sleeping.  Watching Ruth watch them, he made a bet with himself that she had already factored in down time for all of them.  Part of the problem was they were trying to do the work of a thousand with less than a hundred.  Some of the world’s hysteria had subsided when the mother ship moved to the Moon.  But there was still an edge of panic that would blossom into full-scale riots if something weren’t done soon to refocus people’s attention.

 “Oops, time for my speech.  How do I look?”  Ruth took a deep breath and Marag brushed some dust off of her black t-shirt.

 “You look fine.  Break a leg, honey.”  She patted Ruth’s shoulder and they moved with her to the alien ship.

 All activity in the camp slowly died away as everyone clustered around the radios wherever they could be found.  Queen Terana welcomed them aboard her ship and Trisston stood proudly by her.  Wolf had grown fond of the young Ikiiri especially after they learned that he was the Queen’s youngest and much loved.  His approximate age in Earth years was seven and he was as curious as any human boy of that age was even though he was bigger than any of them.

 He found himself leaning against a wall in the control room, Marag nestled in front of him with his arms around her and her hands over his.  Taking a deep breath, he filled his senses with her scent while hugging her close.  They’d been sharing a tent for a week even though they hadn’t made love yet.  They were in no hurry and there was too much to do.  Neither wanted their first time to be rushed so they took their time while sharing warm kisses whenever they were alone.

 But the time was coming when they would need . . . more.

 He was looking forward to that moment.

 Glancing at his watch, he noted it was almost time for Ruth’s speech to begin.  Joe handed her a comb and she laughed as she ran it through her short, spiky white hair.  Making some comment that brought a smile to his lips, she gave it back to him.  Stretching all over like a cat after a nap, she went to stand in front of the port that would connect her to every piece of communication equipment the world had.

 “Greetings, my friends.  I’m sorry to have been out of touch with most of you for the last week but as you might expect, we’ve been a little busy.  Major Hamilton is currently on the Moon, helping with the construction of a Moon Base where the Earth Patrol will have its headquarters for the foreseeable future.  Queen Terana of the Ikiiri has graciously provided the mining equipment to hollow out a base deep within the Moon since she won’t be using it for the mining she originally intended it for.”

 Pausing for a moment, Ruth looked directly into the port and into the eyes of the world.  “I promised you a future but we’re going to need your help to create it.  The major governments of the world have agreed to the terms Queen Terana and I hammered out between us.  The Ikiiri need certain minerals that we have in great abundance and we need their technology.  At the moment, that trade includes the construction of a Moon Base; the training of our pilots in modified space craft; a stabilized worm hole outside Mars orbit; and the technology needed to help us begin to build our own space vehicles.”

 “Not a bad trade, I believe.  But who will help us build this new future?  The men and women of Earth who have always wanted to travel, see the universe and build the future for their children.  The technology is new, nothing like we have ever seen before.  So whether or not you’re proficient or all thumbs, if you want to help then we need you to volunteer for one year’s work on Moon Base.  We have a page on the Internet at . . . moonbase.org.  It holds an application that you can fill out.  You don’t have to speak English because the form will be translated into every language on Earth.”

 “That’s another little gift from the Ikiiri, a universal translator.  Something the world has needed for a long time.  We put the technology out for the highest bidder and I’m pleased to announce that Sprint will begin manufacturing them within the next month.  I’m wearing one of them right now.”  Ruth touched the green pulsing gem at her throat.  “I look forward to an Earth where we can all speak to each other and understand each other.  We may still not agree but we will at least know why now.  Much divides our people, one from another but we have a chance now to build something together.  That’s a future for our children and their children that will endure when we are dust.  Together we can do this.”

 “It will take sweat and long hours under less than comfortable conditions in the beginning.  But the rewards are great and the future bright as we explore our solar system and beyond.  Work with me towards this goal and we will grow into the people that I know we can be.  Thank you for listening.  I hope to hear from you soon.”

 Ruth stepped back and the port faded into an opaque screen.  “Well, we’ll see if that works.  Now, I need to speak to the tribal elders and see if we can come to a meeting of the minds.  Joe, if you’ll come with me I’d appreciate it.  Seth, put Sam to bed before he falls asleep on his feet.  Queen Terana has set aside two of the rooms on this ship for our use.  Wolf, see that Marag uses the other room.  Someone else will be cooking tonight.  Right, let’s get this show on the road.  Sister, would you like to accompany me?”

 “Yesss.  What is a tribal elder?  Isss it like a clan sssissster?”  Terana modified her normal stride to Ruth’s pace as they left the ship.

 Seth tried to contain his laughter while Sam blushed bright red.  Wolf could feel Marag shaking with silent chuckles within his arms and he was hard pressed to limit himself to a smile.  Once again Ruth had thought two steps ahead and prepared a treat for them, the privacy they so sorely needed.  An orange Ikiiri named Sorat showed them to the suite of rooms.  He demonstrated for them the sonic shower and toilet the rooms shared before leaving them in peace.

 Before the outer door closed, Sam was leaning against Seth and chortling into his shoulder.  Marag explored both rooms before choosing the one on the left.

 “Okay, big guy, I believe I need a little help with my . . . nap.”  Her voice dropped into a growl with the last word and Wolf felt it resonate all the way down to his groin.

 “Yes, dear.”  He said meekly and crossed the room with down cast eyes.

 Seth held a laughing Sam up while trying to contain his own laughter at Wolf’s meekness.  He heard them until the door slid shut behind him and it was as abrupt a silence as if they’d disappeared.  He pressed the panel by the door and when it slid open, he heard them again.

 “Um, the sound proofing is impressive.  Why don’t you guys take the first shower and let us know when you’re done?”  Wolf suggested and let the door slide shut again.

 “Good thinking.  Look, it’s a robe or something.  It smells of the Ikiiri.”  Marag explored the room like the cat he’d compared her to earlier, touching and sniffing everything in the room.

 Wolf touched the strip of material she held out to him and he sniffed it, running it along his cheek.  It felt like micro thin leather, soft and supple with that musky scent he’d come to associate with the Ikiiri.  “I wonder if it’s a towel or something.  Do we even know how the sonics work?”

 “Nope.  That’s why I told Seth to take the first one.  The way water will be rationed on the Moon, we’d better get used to sonics.  I wonder how it works with hair since the Ikiiri don’t have any?”  Marag loosened the scarf that held back her hair and Wolf watched it cascade over her shoulders in a mass of red curls.

 “Trisston is fascinated by your hair but then so am I.”  Wolf reached out a hand to gently curl a lock around his finger.

 “I know.  But you’re the only one who gets to play with it.”  She came closer and leaned against his chest.

 They kissed gently, tenderly, knowing that there would be an interruption any moment.  Wolf deepened the kiss, enjoying the little purr she growled deep in her throat.  Marag’s hand moved over his chest beneath his t-shirt and he shivered at the gentle scratch of her nails.

 The knock startled them apart and she answered.  Seth had another length of material wrapped around him.  “Well . . . it’s different.  I think we’re going to miss water showers . . . a lot.  Have fun, kids.”

 “You too, Seth.”  Marag stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek.  “Take care of each other.”

 “Always, love.  You too.”  Seth shared a smile between the two of them and Wolf got the message. Mess with Marag and die.

 Wolf nodded and brought the towel with him as Marag towed him into the shower.  This was going to be fun.

**********************
End of chapter twenty