FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Chapter 5. So That's What It Means

Sarah headed back to the living room where her odyssey began the night before. A creature of habit, she sought the familiar comfort of the couch. She thought to herself that it had been about a full day since she had last seen the fox and wolf and they may be waiting for her, if their perception of time was similar to hers. As she lay down on the couch and got comfortable she thought briefly about all the personal trials and blows to her esteem she'd felt recently in her life and at work, particularly earlier that day. It made her feel a slight incentive to try something new and meet new people, even if they were from a different world. Sarah almost felt enthusiastic, yet remained cautious, as she closed her eyes.

Instantly she found herself back in the same room as Ajagi and the fox, though facing away from the window. The wolf and fox were busy with things on a work table and didn't notice her presence. Sarah noticed that once again she was standing there wearing nothing but knew there was very little she could do about it. While the two canids were busy she took a moment to survey the room. Along part of one of the shorter walls was a large computerized unit of some sort with a control panel that looked similar to human engineering, but far more advanced. There were a few tables folded out from the other walls, some with various devices on them, the larger center table the fox and Ajagi were using, and a smaller table with what she assumed were chairs around it. The floor was made of square panels, all lightly textured and light brown in color; the walls were patterns of green, gray, and darker brown; and the ceiling was light blue except for white glowing squares that lit the room. Turning her head to the window behind her she saw the nebula she had seen before was in a different position as if the ship was facing another direction. Aside from the two talking between each other, the room was silent. Even the large electronic unit was silent despite being heavily active.

"Hello again," Sarah said to get their attention. Ajagi and the fox both quickly turned their ears toward her, followed in short time by their heads to see who was speaking. When they saw her they turned around entirely, mouths slightly open and lips drawn back in a smile of pleasant surprise. She didn't feel the fear or anxiety of her previous visit, but her feeling of not knowing what to do prevented her from moving.

"Hello Sarah," said the fox.

Ajagi quickly added, "It is good to see you again, Sarah."

"I see you've been practicing my name," she responded.

Ajagi and the fox stopped for a moment, looking puzzled, and then Ajagi asked, "You are able to see the sounds we speak?"

Sarah replied, "No, it's just an expression. I mean, I hear you've been practicing my name."

The fox smiled again. "I understand now. Your manner of speaking is quite different from ours. Yes, we both spoke your name until we could make it sound the way you did when you spoke it during your last visit. I have increased the temperature in the room for your return. Are you more comfortable?"

Realizing what he was referring to and feeling conspicuous, Sarah covered herself with her hands and arms again and replied, "Yes, thank you, but it's not the temperature."

Ajagi thought for a moment. "We have brought a protective cover for you. It is the closest to the size and shape of your body that we could find. Would you please retrieve it?" he said, turning to the fox. The fox opened a storage door on the wall, pulled out a suit the same color as they were wearing, and slowly approached Sarah.

As he got closer he reached to hand it to her and said, "I hope you do not find it as uncomfortable as we all do. It is necessary for the place and situation we are in." Sarah took the suit as he continued to speak. "In the event we are attacked it will help protect you from pieces of debris that may be harmful. Our indications show we are safe but attack could happen at any time with no warning."

The suit was a light material, but strong and durable, unlike anything she'd ever felt before. As she unfolded it and shook it out she noticed a hole in the back. Sticking her hand through it Sarah said, "It looks like it's torn."

The fox replied, "It is not damaged. That is for your tail to pass through so you may be more comfortable. Without that opening my tail would be quite uncomfortable in this tight covering." He reached behind him and pulled his thick orange bushy tail out in front of him as a visual reference.

Sarah twisted her lower body around to show she had no tail growing from her tailbone. "I don't think that'll be a problem," she said with a smile.

The fox raised his eyebrows as he began to understand the mistake. Ajagi smiled and said, "We had forgotten your species does not have tails."

As Sarah stepped into the leggings of the suit she said, "That's quite alright. I appreciate the thought, anyway." When she pulled the suit up to her shoulders and stuck her hands through the cuffs, she looked at the front flap of the suit. There was no closure that she could see, but when she brought the two sides close to each other the flaps drew together with a magnetic attraction and fastened securely. Sarah pulled them apart and let them close again but she couldn't figure out if it was magnets or some other device the creatures had developed. There were no footings past the ankle cuffs so she had to remain barefoot.

The fox extended an open hand toward Sarah and extended his other toward the table, looking at the table and then her. "Please, come and sit with us. There is a great deal for us to discuss. We will answer your questions as completely as we can to help eliminate your fears." As she slowly moved past him toward the table Ajagi also walked over to it, stopping next to a seat. The fox followed behind Sarah, stopping at a seat between hers and Ajagi's around the circular table. She looked carefully at the chair and then back at them, then slowly started to sit down. As she sat they did the same. Each one's tail glided through openings in the back of their seats as if they'd sat like that countless times before.

The seat felt comfortable to her, and Sarah began the conversation. "Now then, who are you? Your name is Ajagi, right?" she asked, motioning to the wolf.

"Yes," Ajagi replied.

Sarah looked at the fox and asked, "What is your name again?"

The fox spoke the same thing he had before, a string of syllables she knew she couldn't pronounce. The fox added, "That is my name from birth. To make it easier for everybody, my usual name is Storm."

"Storm," Sarah repeated. "Ok, those are your names, but who or what are you?" Ajagi and Storm had slight difficulty interpreting her phrase, "Ok," but understood the question. Ajagi responded to her question first.

"We are from our home planet, Arfurah. Everybody on these vehicles has a home there."

Sarah couldn't withhold her laugh. "ArFURah? Now that is funny!"

Ajagi and Storm looked at her with complete confusion on their faces. Sarah's laugh quickly subsided. "It's because the word 'fur' is in its name and...you're covered in fur...um...sorry," she said as her voice trailed off. "No offense."

Ajagi said, "We are not upset by words. We are not offended. We understand there are differences in our languages and that misunderstandings do not mean there is disrespect intended."

Storm added, "If we say anything that offends or you do not understand, please forgive us."

Sarah quickly replied, "Yes, of course. I'll understand and won't be bothered. You both seem to be very friendly." She thought a moment and turned the questions toward herself. "You said before I am still in my home. How am I also here? How do I see, hear, and feel everything as if I am actually here? I'm wearing this suit on someone's body," she said, pointing to her garment. "How did I get here? And how do you understand what I'm saying as I understand what you're saying? We couldn't possibly speak the same language if we're from different planets."

Storm looked to the wolf as Ajagi responded to her mass of questions. Ajagi pointed to the computer unit along the far wall. "That system was developed a very long time ago. It searches for the life energy of living beings everywhere in the universe. For each one it finds it takes measurements of that energy to determine the type of intelligence of that being. Some planets have only beings of very simple intelligence. They know only survival. Other planets have beings with greater intelligence but they have not advanced to a level of knowledge that can help us. Planets such as yours have many beings capable of great intelligence. On your planet, your species has that capability.

"When the system finds a species of being who has that potential for intelligence, it establishes a connection to each creature to take further readings of the intelligence and knowledge of that creature. When one is found with the intelligence and knowledge that will be most helpful to us, it establishes a stronger connection to the life energy of that being. When that happens it allows us to bring that energy, the consciousness, here to us."

Sarah thought about what Ajagi was describing. "That would explain the flashes I saw in my eyes. They started out dim and then got brighter."

Ajagi continued, "Yes. Creatures who are receiving a connection can experience changes to their senses. For your species the connection and transfer requires the use of the parts of your brain that process vision. When you close your eyes it alters your brain processes because the information it is receiving from the senses has changed. The area of vision is no longer needed and is free to be used for other things. When that change in your brain occurs, the transfer of your consciousness can be made immediately. It was required for your eyes to be closed to make the connection to you. The dim flashes you saw were the transfer system finding you. The brighter flashes you saw were the system establishing the connection and reading information about your intelligence, knowledge, character, and physical makeup. We can study that information to determine what a being knows and choose whether it is somebody we want to contact.

"The life energy is spread throughout the universe. It is collected most strongly within living beings. It does not follow the same patterns of other types of energy and can move anywhere in the universe instantly. That is how you found yourself here so quickly after you closed your eyes."

Sarah felt overwhelmed by the information and felt a need to add something to the conversation. "Makes sense, I guess," she said incredulously, glancing at Storm with a nod before looking back at Ajagi. "How do you know where to look for life?"

Ajagi continued, "We do not know where to look. Your galaxy is so distant, we do not know if it is still there as we see it because the light has taken so long to reach us."

Sarah was astonished. "I'm not just on a space ship with creatures from another planet, but I'm in another galaxy? Holy crap..."

Ajagi and Storm were again confused by Sarah's use of words. Storm took over the answering of her questions.

"To give you a physical presence, the transfer system requires a body of some type with a system of its own to support the consciousness and life energy. We used the data of your physical makeup that the transfer system collected to construct a body for you that looks and behaves as close to your natural body as is possible."

Sarah could not believe what she was hearing. She held her hands up in front of her face, touched her body through her suit, and then touched her face while she said, "This isn't real? This body is a fake?"

Storm replied, "Yes. The body you see yourself in is synthetic, made to look exactly as you know yourself to be. The data of your physical makeup also included your knowledge of yourself. It is made of mechanical and synthetic living material to duplicate your physical form as closely as is possible. The chemistry is made to be compatible with the conditions on our planet as it may be different from your planet."

Sarah was overwhelmed by the information. "That would explain why I wasn't wearing anything when I got here...Oh, man..."she said with a light gasp as the realization of what she had gotten herself into was beginning to settle into her mind. She began to feel fearful again as she ran her fingers through her hair, touched her face, and patted down various extremities. She pinched the back of her hand and felt the light familiar pain. "You guys are good. It works," she said facetiously as a way to help calm her anxiety.

Ajagi began speaking again. "Your body was constructed with synthetic neurons through every part so you can have senses similar to those of your natural body. You should notice very few differences between this body and your natural body."

Sarah then touched her face again and realized she was wearing no glasses. "Hey, I can see clearly," she said. "I'm not wearing glasses."

Ajagi replied, "When the body was constructed it was made very precisely. Your eyes in this body work properly without any form of external correction."

Storm spoke up again. "Brainwaves are very similar among intelligent life forms throughout the universe because they are driven by the life energy. The synthetic brain in your body detects the brainwaves created by your life energy to determine what you are thinking when you speak. It understands the meaning and adapts the words to our language, and that is the sound your mouth makes as you speak so we understand you. It also knows the language we speak. When we speak it translates our words into the correct brain wave patterns to give you the same meaning and allows you to see and hear our words as if spoken in your language, as well as hearing yourself speak your own language. It is not a perfect system. That is why you see our mouths move in a way similar to yours for each word, but not precisely. There are also sometimes errors in translation. Some words do not have a correct translation so you will hear them exactly as spoken, and names of people usually pass through directly."

Ajagi chimed in with his input on the matter. "The translation system was developed to transfer the meaning of what is spoken between the two sides. It will adapt as well. As you place meaning on words that were translated inaccurately, you will begin to hear them at future times in a more understandable way."

"This is absolutely incredible," Sarah said, lightly shaking her head. "So far your translation system works very well, and this body...feels very much like my own." She thought silently for a few moments more. "My body...what happens to my body, my real body back home. If my life energy is here..."

Ajagi quickly spoke to allay her worries. "Your body back home is safe. The transfer system connects with your whole life energy but transfers only the higher energy. The lower energy remains in your body to drive your living functions and collect information from your senses, just as a simple life form does. All life forms have this energy. Your higher energy is your consciousness, your thoughts, your knowledge, and everything about who you are as a person. When you close your eyes, your senses receive less information and change the way your brain functions, especially in the vision region. When your brain functions change you are receptive to alternative sensory information and we are able to connect and transfer that higher energy. We transfer only your consciousness which contains everything about who you are."

Sarah began to think poetically. "I guess it's true. The eyes are the windows to the soul."

Chapter 6. Cast and Crew

Sarah was a bit shaken by all the things she'd learned and leaned back away from the table, putting her forehead down into her hands. "I don't believe this," she said quietly.

"We apologize if what we say and what we have done to bring you here is troubling to you," Storm said softly. "When we first brought you here we told you we mean no harm and that is true. If you choose to return home you may open your eyes at any time and we will understand."

Sarah looked up at him. "No, it's...it's that this all seems impossible, that I am in a space ship in another galaxy talking to beings from another planet who need me to complete some great mission. It's just like something from a science fiction story. As you may expect I'm a little overwhelmed at this point."

Storm kept eye contact with her. "We do understand. There have been many others who could not accept their circumstances and chose to return home. Our war is not theirs to fight and we respect their decision."

"There have been others?" Sarah asked. "From my planet?"

"Yes," said Ajagi. "This war has been going on for a very long time. When the invaders create a new weapon or a new strategy, we are usually able to adapt and overcome it. Other times we need help, so we contact the most intelligent beings we can find. Several have come from your planet over many hundreds of generations."

Sarah thought momentarily, figuring that meant thousands of years. "That would explain how figures of beings like you have shown up in our ancient art forms, even in more recent centuries as artists became more talented. But there haven't been any stories of people being brought here for missions like this. Who have you contacted from my planet?"

Ajagi replied, "Every being from your planet who was transferred here to help with our war, and accepted the task, has shown an interest to use the strategy or weapon he learned about here to start his own war and gain power. Our people can not allow anything from our war to begin a war somewhere else, or cause suffering to other beings. Before they transferred back the transfer system was adjusted to prevent knowledge and memories formed here from being transferred back with them. If images similar to us have appeared in your world, it seems the transfer system was not set correctly."

"The pictures have always been harmless," Sarah said. "There isn't anything in them that will start a war or make a weapon."

"That is acceptable," said Storm. "You asked who we contacted from your planet. The last transfer was before I was born, and Ajagi has never met any beings from your planet. This is not our only transfer system."

"The last transfer from your planet was many years ago, if I understand your perception of time correctly," said Ajagi. "Neither of us knows the identity of people from your planet we have gained help from in the past. Also, because each one showed an interest in using our methods and weapons of war for personal gain and power, no record was retained after the connection was ended so that individual could not be intentionally contacted again."

"I apologize for that," Sarah said. "Our civilization has had the shame of war throughout its history." As Sarah absorbed the things she was hearing she kept coming up with more questions for the furry pair. "So, what do you do? Here, on this ship I mean."

The two took in the meaning of her question. "You must mean this transport vehicle," Storm said. "I am the lead weapons officer for this fleet, and for this vehicle. I have the unhappy task of directing how weapons are used and developing new weapons." Storm sighed. "If it was not for the important duty of defending our people, I would never make any weapons."

"And I am the chief research scientist for the fleet, and medical officer for this vehicle," said Ajagi. "I study all areas of mathematics, science, and physics to assist in developing the systems we need for things such as this vehicle, and developing new weapon systems if it is required for a project Storm is creating. Also, if our crew gets injured, it is my task to help them heal."

"There are others on this ship?" Sarah asked.

"Yes, there are 358 others. Would you like to meet them?" Storm asked with a smile.

Feeling more at ease with these two yet still nervous about the situation, Sarah smiled and said, "Sure." She could hardly believe she said that, and couldn't imagine who else she may see. While she was feeling trusting of her two new friends, she kept in the back of her mind the thought that if she felt in danger she only had to open her eyes back home.

Ajagi and Storm stood up from the table. Sarah looked up at them, unsure of what to do and not knowing if she should even move. At that moment Storm reached out to her with his open hand, looking down toward her with a smile and soft eyes. "I promise you they are wonderful people," he said. Sarah couldn't turn down such a gentlemanly invitation, so she put her hand in his and stood up to follow them.

Ajagi got to the door first and slid it open by hand. Sarah was a little surprised that it didn't automatically open like so many science fiction shows she'd watched in the past. He stepped through first and Storm held the door as she passed through. After exiting, the door slid closed behind them as if pulled by a small weight on a roller. As they walked the empty hallway Sarah noticed the color pattern of the floor, walls, and ceiling continued in the halls. She also noticed how gracefully the two were walking on their canine-like feet, each standing a few inches taller than her five foot nine.

After a short distance they arrived at a large double door. "This is one of the rooms for dining and relaxation," Ajagi said. "There should be some of the crew in here while the others attend to their tasks."

When he slid the doors open Sarah's ears were met with the sounds of numerous conversations while her eyes were met with the sight of numerous furry faces. Seated in various locations around the room, at tables or on the floor, were many different creatures. Just like Ajagi and Storm, their bodies were shaped similar to a human, but their heads were shaped like large cats, canids, equines, and various other familiar earthly animals. Each one was wearing a protective suit as her friends were, each suit tailored for that creature's body shape. While she could recognize the species each one resembled, she could not tell who was which gender. She still didn't even know if they had the same genders as Earth creatures.

Sarah's stood there open-mouthed as she looked around the room. The far wall was lined with huge windows, floor to ceiling, showing off the beauty of outer space.

"My friends, this is Sarah," Ajagi said aloud in his deep voice. Everybody in the room looked toward them and replied, "Hello, Sarah!" in welcoming fashion. All Sarah could do was give an uneasy smile and nervously say, "Hello," with a partial wave of the hand. She felt like somebody terrified of public speaking who was stepping up to a podium before a crowd. Being unable to step forward by her own will, Ajagi and Storm placed a hand gently behind her back to direct her into the friendly room. The other occupants resumed their own quiet conversations, and the three found a comfortable place to sit on the padded floor by one of the large windows.

"Would you like anything to drink, Sarah? Or some food?" asked Storm. Sarah kept her eyes on the rest of the room guests and said yes without paying much attention to the question. As she looked around the room Ajagi said reassuringly, "I know it is a lot for you to accept but we would not have brought you here if it was not of such great importance. You look as different to us as we look to you. We just accept those differences in a different way."

Sarah's eyes lingered on the other room occupants for another moment and then looked back at Ajagi. "You are all very different, but you all look like...like animals from my planet. You have bodies like mine but your heads, and your feet...your fur...your tails, they are all just like those of animals I've seen where I come from."

Storm returned with the refreshments; he brought three bowl-like containers with water and a fourth bowl with unusual looking large berries. Sarah looked down at what he had brought and was curious. "What am I supposed to do with this?" she asked. "You said this body is synthetic."

"It is synthetic, but it is made to imitate your real body as closely as possible," Ajagi said. "You can eat and drink with it, and it will metabolize what you consume to gain energy from it. The senses should work properly for you to taste and smell what you eat. You also have an advantage over our bodies. If food is not available, you can gain energy from an electric magnet charging module. That method requires more time and you must remain near it to gather energy."

Storm and Ajagi picked up their bowls of water, tipping them up to sip from the rim. Sarah felt thirsty but didn't know if the feeling was from her synthetic body or the one she left back home. She picked up her bowl and gave it a sniff to reassure herself that it was water. When it smelled fine to her, she took a small sip. It was water, clean and good, but not very cold. She took a larger sip, set the bowl down, and felt more at ease.

"What were you saying about things you have seen on your planet, Sarah?" Storm asked.

"Oh, that," Sarah replied. "It's just that you and Ajagi, and all these people here in the room...you all look like animals I've seen on my planet but your bodies are shaped like mine. With your face, ears, fur, and tail, you look like an animal we call a 'fox.' And Ajagi, you look like an animal we call a 'wolf.'" She turned toward the others in the room, who were occasionally looking at her and would smile if they made eye contact with her. "Over there I see a cougar, there's a horse...no, two horses. A raccoon...a tiger, a dingo I think..." She stopped naming animal species and paused for a moment when the tiger and dingo started softly licking at each other's faces. She turned back to her friends. "I don't understand it. This is supposed to be another galaxy and you all are supposed to be from another planet. How are you so much alike with creatures from my home?"

Ajagi and Storm were both eating large berries at the time she asked and had to swallow before speaking. "Our people have thought about that question for a very long time because others from your planet have asked the same question when they transferred here in the past. The only explanation we can conclude is that some advanced species of people carried species like us to different planets around the universe a very long time ago, perhaps to distribute the variety of life or protect it from extinction. On different planets with different environments and circumstances, we developed different bodies and brains from those creatures that were placed on your planet. We do not know why our bodies would be so like yours. Of course, that is all just a very large hypothesis."

"Or it could all be purely by chance," Sarah said. She took another sip of water and glanced back toward the other crew members. "So...why are those two licking each other?" she asked, motioning toward the tiger and dingo.

"Love. They perform their duties during the same time period but they are in different areas. They have been apart all day," said Storm.

Sarah turned back to them. "They've missed each other...You all feel the same emotions as people on my planet do? Love, anger, fear, sadness, hate, happiness?"

"Yes, of course," said Storm. "We are able to feel all of those. We rarely feel anger. Hate...I know it is possible, but I have never felt it and I do not know anyone who has. Our people are very uncomfortable with that emotion and do not allow it to enter our minds."

"This is fascinating," said Sarah. "I hope you don't mind all the questions I ask. Nobody from my planet has ever been able to meet with beings from another world like this, or learn about them...well, except for the ones you brought here in the past."

Storm replied, "It is quite acceptable. We do not have as many questions because our people have met beings from your planet in the past and have learned much. We just have not studied all the records," he said, motioning toward Ajagi and himself. "If we have time we will likely ask you more questions about yourself and your home, to satisfy our own curiosity."

Sarah nodded. "Yes, that'll be fine." She looked back to the tiger and dingo creatures who were then licking at each others' muzzles and mouths. "Cute...they make a sweet couple. It's nice they don't have to hide." Sarah looked around the lounge as Ajagi and Storm tried to understand when she meant about hiding. She noticed that wherever there were seats at tables, all the seats had holes in the back for tails to pass comfortably through. She could tell by their occupants that they were there for the comfort of those creatures who could not easily sit on the floor, plus whoever else wanted to sit in one. She occasionally heard what sounded like laughter coming from the conversations in the room, reaffirming the emotion of happiness these creatures felt. She then looked to the color style of the ceiling, walls, and floor.

"Why is everything painted like that," asked Sarah.

"Painted?" asked Ajagi.

"The color of the surfaces in all your rooms. The floor is brown, the ceiling is blue, and the walls are green and dark colors," replied Sarah.

Ajagi and Storm looked around the room to the surfaces she mentioned. "That is to remind us of our home," Storm said. "Our world has a sky that is blue and white, so the ceiling is blue with white lights. The walls look like the plants and trees that provide us with so much food. The floor is the ground we walk on. The ground and trees are where many of our people live."

Ajagi interjected. "We love our world and long to return there. What you see is there to help us think of home so we may feel we are still there."

Sarah looked at Ajagi. "Where is your home world? And where are we now? Why are you here instead of home?"

"Our planet is the fourth in order of those that travel around the center star. There are twelve planets and we are not far beyond the orbit of the last. We are stationed here to watch for the invaders so we may stop them before they approach our home planet."

"This small fleet is one of many around our star system. We all are guarding our home," Storm said.

Sarah looked out the window behind them at the other stars, galaxies, and the nebula in view. "It's all so beautiful. On my home planet we don't have many things so close to see like this. I've only seen things like these in pictures from telescopes and observatories." She thought they may be unfamiliar with her terms and clarified what she said. "A telescope lets us look at things that are very far away to see them closely, and observatories have very large telescopes."

Ajagi replied, "Yes, we have such devices as well. We have studied all that we can see through them."

Sarah looked back out the window and said, "I may have even seen a picture of your galaxy, who knows...you've probably looked at mine..." She paused and thought for a moment, then looked at them. "Hey, which one out there is my galaxy?"

Ajagi answered, "I do not know. I will look at the information on the transfer system to determine where it found your life energy."

Sarah smiled and said, "I hope we can find it. I'd love to see it." She looked back out the window, gazing at the dark beauty of space. "You said you're in a fleet. Where are the other ships?" she asked.

"They can be viewed from the other side of this vehicle," Storm said. "We are on one end of a line of vehicles." Sarah knew what he meant when he spoke but wondered why they said vehicle instead of ship.

As Sarah looked out the window she didn't see the door slide open and a raccoon creature enter. He was greeted by several friends sitting nearby, and one of the horse creatures stood up from one of the seats to meet him more personally.

"Nanida is here," Storm said, looking toward the raccoon and motioning for him to come over. "He will want to meet you, Sarah."

Sarah swiveled her head around and looked up to see the raccoon and horse arrive at their little group. The raccoon was about as tall as her friends but the horse creature was easily another foot taller. Ajagi and Storm got up to greet each of them with hugs, and share licks to the muzzles. After their warm greeting the two sat back down where they'd been.

"Nanida, 'Kiri, please meet our friend Sarah. She has arrived here through the transfer system to help us," Ajagi said. "Sarah, please meet our captain Nanida and his mate Antakiri."

Sarah was briefly surprised as she was suddenly so close to creatures that looked like animals from earth, standing upright.

"It is wonderful to meet you, Sarah," Nanida said, sitting down on the padded floor to join them.

"Yes, it is wonderful to meet you," Antakiri said. "Thank you for helping us with our mission." The horse creature also lowered himself to join them, first sitting on his knees and then, awkwardly because of his long legs, sitting on the floor. Sarah noticed his sitting motion and remembered he was one of the creatures using a seat at a table.

"It's lovely to meet you both as well," Sarah said, looking each one in the eyes as she spoke. She didn't know what else to say and struggled to think of something. "You have a very nice ship, captain."

"Thank you for the compliment. You may speak my name Nanida," the raccoon said with a smile. "'Captain' is only the name of my task here. It is not who I am."

"Alright...Nanida," Sarah replied. "In my world, the captain of a ship is always called captain and they get very upset if a crew member calls him by name."

Antakiri said, "We are all the same people we were before we traveled out here on this vehicle. We are all equal to each other. Each of us only performs different duties."

Sarah thought for a moment about what they had said. "That sounds very nice. Everybody is friends and can talk to each other like friends," she said with a smile. "It's interesting that you have the same words for rank that we use in my world, such as captain and first mate."

"Remember, we are speaking different languages," Ajagi commented. "We speak different words that have the same meaning. You hear translations of words we speak."

"Oh, right," Sarah replied, followed by another sip of her water.

Storm took a bite from another large berry and spoke up. "I was thinking about a question you asked earlier, Sarah. You asked about emotions we feel and one of those you spoke of was hate. That is a very strong feeling but it is very rare. The emotions we feel that are most close to hate are how we feel about this war, about creating a weapon we must use to kill other beings, about being so far from our home. We do not want to kill other living beings but we must or we will be killed. We do not want to fight a war. We want to be home, not here. For these things we feel very great anger, great regret, and even greater sadness, because they are all a result of this war."

The other three nodded in agreement. "We all want to go home, to be with those we love," Antakiri said. "Being with each other here makes it easier to bear. Home is in each of us, to share with the rest."

Sarah nodded and looked around the room, noticing pictures of forests, grass lands, lakes, and rivers. "Are those pictures of your home planet on the walls?"

Her four conversation companions looked toward the walls. "Yes," Ajagi said. "Those display units show us places we know and love. Those also make it easier to bear."

Sarah kept looking at the pictures and said, "It looks beautiful...reminds me of my home, at least the parts outside the city anyway."

Storm held the bowl of berries and small fruits out to Nanida and Antakiri, and each took one small piece. "Thank you for sharing," Nanida said, "It is well into our rest time and we were about to go to the garden to gather our meal." He and Antakiri held out their hands toward Sarah. "It has been delightful to meet you, Sarah," said Nanida, smiling.

"Yes it has. We thank you once again for providing your help," said Antakiri, also with a friendly smile.

Sarah reached out without hesitation to take each of their hands in hers. "It's been wonderful to meet you both as well," she said with a sweet smile to meet theirs.

Nanida stood and provided a hand to help Antakiri up from the floor, and both gave a nuzzle of goodbye to Ajagi and Storm before they left. Sarah had been observing how closely familiar everybody's greetings were with each other. "You all are very friendly with each other. Do all your people greet each other with licks and nuzzles and such?" she asked.

"Yes," Storm said. "Some greetings are different by a small measure, but each one is out of friendship and love."

"In my world only couples in love share such close greetings." Sarah thought for a moment. "That must be what you meant about the 'proper greeting' you wanted to give me when we first met. I apologize for not wanting to get too close, but I was so afraid at the time. If I'd have known then how friendly you all are, I'd have greeted you with hugs."

"That is quite alright," Ajagi said. "We did not want to frighten you so we kept our distance."

"I appreciate your thoughtfulness," Sarah said with a smile as she reached out her hands to them. Ajagi and Storm both smiled and placed a furry hand in each of hers, which she squeezed gently.

A few moments after they released each others' hands, Storm held the bowl of berries out to Sarah. "You have not eaten anything. Would you like to have some of these?"

Sarah peered at the unusual berries and declined. "No, thank you. I ate just before I came here. You two can have them."

"I understand," Storm said. "I hope you will try them some day. These are acceptable but I do not enjoy them as much as those we have at home. The garden keepers can only do so much with the resources they have, and we appreciate what they do."

Sarah tilted her head slightly in curiosity. "I heard Nanida mention that. You have a garden here?"

"Yes," replied Ajagi. "Travel vehicles this large and larger have garden areas where we grow our food. We are very far from our star so we must use artificial lights and recaptured water for the plants to grow. You must remember, Sarah, you ate a meal with your body at home. This body you have here must also receive energy to keep working properly. It is far more efficient for it to eat food than to refresh its energy by other means such as the charging module. Also, it needs molecules from food to repair damage and replace lost hair."

"Alright, I'll remember that," said Sarah. "I hope you can show me the garden sometime."

Ajagi, always thinking analytically, reminded Sarah, "You have been here with us for a good amount of time. You must always remember to take care of your natural body as well as this one you have here. Do you require anything back at your home to care for your natural body?"

Sarah thought about his question for a moment and replied, "I should be alright for a while. I'll need to get some sleep tonight, before too long, but I'm good for now. Should we get down to business and talk about what this plan of yours is before I have to go?"

Ajagi replied, "The research room we were using earlier will be the best place to discuss it." He and Storm then finished off the remaining fruit from the bowl and drank the last of their water, then the three got up from their place next to the window.