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News had traveled fast, and word that the war had ended had already reached to the survivors of the conflict.

Nishant stood on the bridge of Hyourasky Casa watching the Huli star grow brighter in the screen.

"Welcome home, soldiers of the UDAS," the pine marten, Tang greeted them through the radio transmission. "We've heard of your victories and it is my pleasure to be the first to welcome you all home."

"Thank you Tang Fa," replied Lead General Vale. He stood at the head of the bridge. Even though the ship was still flying, most of the officers were standing behind him, watching their home come into view. "We brought some friends with us."

There was a light-hearted chuckle on the other side. "Yes, we can see."

In front of Hyourasky Casa, they could only see the star and the dark silhouettes of some of their larger planets. Beside the ship, covering the flank of the destroyer was the flagship Drach'n Fury. But behind them floated the dozens of warships that belonged to the UDAS; Each one wearing battle scars, but flying smoothly and calmly toward the Huli star.

Each ship drifted by slowly, but following them were the thousands of warships that belonged to all the alien races that had fought alongside the UDAS: The sleek designs of the Guardian ships, the animalistic designs of the Beast race, and the many other designs of the other alien races that they had found and fought along side with.

They all followed the UDAS ships toward the star, each of them victorious warriors in the conflict that for some, had lasted tens of thousands of years.

"Welcome friends of the Caniderans," Tang announced across all the ships, echoing through the Guardian armada and those others that have joined them. "We welcome you to our home, with our sincere gratitude for you help in this war. We understand that many of you have suffered greatly during this conflict but thanks to all of you, we have emerged victorious. Us Caniderans owe you a great debt, and we extend our paws in friendship and offer our assistance in rebuilding your own home worlds."

Nishant knew that Tang knew many of the aliens probably didn't even understand her but with the proper translating systems, they'd understand the meaning of her words. Only the Guardians and Stealths had proven to know the language of the Caniderans, but the Stealths have been absent since the battle had ended.

"It is us that must thank you, race of Caniderans," the accented voice of the Guardian Leader replied.

"We fought together in our time of need," Tang quickly replied. "Come, celebrate and enjoy our genuine gratitude and hospitality. I look forward toward our continued alliance in the future so that we can all secure ourselves against any threat."

The Guardian did not reply, knowing that they'd have plenty of time to talk after everyone settles in.

Nishant watched Canidera come into view, just a small silhouette against the star's bright rays of light. That little planet had been the beacon of hope throughout this entire war, which the Caniderans had held onto dearly in hopes of it surviving. Even the alien races saw that it's suffering was a way for it to recover, and that gave them all hope of one day reclaiming their own world.

Now this world would be celebrated upon, rebuilt and made stronger than it ever was. Alliances would be made easily with many of the races, which will secure peace throughout the galaxy against any additional threat.

Nishant could not help but to feel hopeful for the future too. The only thing that still bothered him was the two active Perfected Infection Creepers on the adjacent ship, Drach'n Fury.

"Lead General Auberon Vale," Tang's voice returned. "We are sending a program to dock your ships in our shipyards, the P.A.W. station or to orbit around one of our planets. I humbly request that you join us on the planet at the base Sanctuary."

"Of course, Tang Fa," he replied.

"Bring Nishant Gerbo with you, and follow the assigned coordinates," she continued. "I wish to personally welcome you all home."

"We will meet you at Sanctuary then," Lead General Vale complied.

No more words were exchanged but the attitude of the crew lit up like a flare the closer they got to home. The officers of Hyourasky Casa had difficulties containing their excitement as they cheered, cried and hugged one another.

"Shuttles have been arranged for everyone," Lead General Vale tried to speak over their cheers. Nishant remained his composure, which allowed him to see that even the General was having difficulties containing his excitement. There was a large grin spread across his muzzle as he spoke, "The war is over. Let us begin rebuilding and remembering those that we have lost in this conflict."

The war had caused a great deal of suffering, and the relief that it was finally over had caused for some to cheer, and others to break down crying. Their fellow officers comforted them, but so many have lost their families and loved ones.

Nishant remained numb to the situation. He had sacrificed his body to this mutation to help win the war. The mutation wasn't terrible, but he no longer felt as if he could continue with a normal life that he had wanted.

"Let's go, Nishant Gerbo," Lead General Vale said to him, before walking toward the exit of the bridge. The program that would direct the ship into docking had been uploaded and officially took of controls of the ship.

"Yes sir," he replied and followed the red fox off the bridge. It was not only the officers who were becoming excited as the rest of the crew that were in the corridors had their PawPads out and were watching a local news report, Canidera draw closer, or listening to Tang's recent broadcast.

Those local news reports showed the vast amount of ships entering the system, and the reporters even had a higher pitched voice as they struggled to contain their excitement. Another report showed the large amount of civilians eagerly waiting for the return of the ships as well.

Entering the hangar, shuttles were being prepared but at a slow pace for the same reason why everyone was excited.

Seeing the wide spread celebrating cause Nishant to smile a bit. It was slowly dawning on him, and overwhelming his overcautious sense, that they had ended the war. What he had set out to accomplish is done. Regardless of what the future held in store, for now he could relax.

"Welcome heroes," the pilot of the shuttle General Vale and Nishant boarded greeted them. The pilot was the captain of the single fighter squadron, who would be personally flying them.

"Thank you, Captain Kaden," the red fox replied. "Take us home."

"It will be my pleasure," she replied merrily. The otter pilot closed the back hatch and warmed up the engines.

There was a slight wait until Captain Kaden inched the ship out of the hangar, but once they were out, she rocketed toward Canidera. Nishant couldn't see outside but the glow from the cockpit grew brighter and he knew it was the reflection of the sunlight on Canidera's atmosphere. He also could feel the vibrations that the space around Canidera was a bit crowded, and the occasional shadow proved that there were dozens of other ships heading for the surface.

Entering the atmosphere came with the usual turbulence, but once they were within the first layers, Nishant could then hear the large buzz of the engines of dozens of shuttles. The closer they drew to the surface, the slower the shuttle flew and the quieter the buzz went. Another buzz overcame it though as the sound of hundreds, or thousands, gathered below and cheering grew louder. It even soon overwhelmed the sound of the shuttle engines.

The shuttle settled, and the engines died down. Lead General Vale manually opened the hatch, which allowed the cheers to grow in volume. Nishant followed him out and was temporally blinded by the bright sunlight.

Once his vision adjusted, he saw that they had landed on some platform outside the wall of the fortress Sanctuary. One other ship landed nearby, with a third coming down last, between the two. The pine marten Tang waited on a higher platform.

When the third ship landed, Auberon Vale walked up next to the hatch with Nishant. The second ship that had landed had carried many different aliens that waited on the opposite side of the ship while they waited for the third to open.

When it did, the occupants walked outside, one's bright fur standing out against the rest of them.

Out walked Yukiomaru Alexander, the short arctic fox kit who had been infected by the enemy but remained loyal to the Caniderans and eventually defeated the Creepers.

The arctic fox kit wore a neutral expression but some of his surprise and confusion was seen as he looked around at everyone who had come out to welcome him home. The pine marten that walked out behind him place a gentle paw on his shoulder, which visibly soothed the arctic fox as he turned to smile at Jun Fa.

Nishant Gerbo, his body mutated with a red scaly infection that sprouted non-functional wings from his back, stood next to many others. Auberon Vale stood in his uniform, his auburn fur neatly combed and providing a clean contrast with his white fur pattern that covered in underbelly. White fur had even grown around his muzzle a bit, a sign of his aging.

Yelena Cassander, the meerkat smiled proudly down at Yukiomaru Alexander. She was wearing her uniform as well, having commanded Drach'n Fury for the past week. Jun Fa stood next to her in casual clothes, with one paw resting gently on the arctic fox's shoulder and he too wore a big smile.

Yukiomaru Alexander returned his gaze forward to greet Tang Fa who was slowly approaching him. Dressed in his admiral's uniform, Yukiomaru Alexander stood in front of the rest. His golden eyes betrayed that he had not expected the welcome, and that he was overwhelmed with relief by it. His eyes were blinking frequently as they glossed over.

Out from the ship also stepped out the tall red alien, Velsh'nark, who had recently gone over to Drach'n Fury to talk with Euno. He was still wearing his armor that did not efficiently cover his whole body, but in case of a breach in atmosphere, it would deploy to protect him. His expression remained neutral as always.

The other aliens included the green and pink female Guardian that was the commander of their entire force. The only difference between the female body and the male body of the Guardians was the thinner build, the colors, and the longer feathers but otherwise there were no distinguishable differences.

The far shorter alien that stood on four legs of the Beast race was the leader of them. It was still strange for Nishant to see a four-legged creature be such an intelligent being, to have evolved to the point of expanding beyond the limits of their original planet's atmosphere.

A fourth ship that had landed on an adjacent platform had unloaded four young wolves, who were also invited onto the platform. Nishant recognized the light armored wolves as the Wolcott pack. Alex, the leader led them toward the platform, flanked by Kaitlin and A.J. with Yuri coming up last.

There were others that Nishant did not recognize, including a pale blue otter, a mongoose in a commander's uniform and some strange winged alien.

Tang had approached them, with Calvin Redding standing next to her. Behind them also stood the salamanders Oliver and Olivia Theta.

"Welcome home," Tang greeted them. The crowd that had gathered died down, allowing for her amplified voice to be heard across the landscape and facilities. "I personally wish to thank you all for everything you have done. Without each and everyone one of you, this war would have ended with disastrous consequences. Lead General Auberon Vale, you have kept our fleets together and allowed them to survive. Your return from the Black Line battle had guaranteed the safety of our planets. Your unwavering innovation to protect us all has left us in your eternal debt."

"Velsh'nark," she continued, pronouncing the name of the alien almost flawlessly. "When we had found you on that comet, you were near death. You cooperation with a completely strange alien race has led for us to meet your wonderful race and form a great alliance that the strongest force in the galaxy feared. Guardian Leader, whose name I fail to pronounce..." That elicited a light chuckle from many. "Your dedication to helping us save our planet gave our military the motivation to continue and fight along side your soldiers. You have our eternal gratitude, and our thanks. We welcome your race to our home at any time if you ever need it."

"Thank you, leader," replied the female Guardian with a light-hearted tone.

"Nishant Gerbo," she addressed the mutated alien. "You discovery of the Creeper's origin had shed light on many mysterious. Your sacrifice of your body to protect us has not gone unnoticed. I ask if you will allow me to personally help you find a way to restore your body to its original state."

"It would be an honor," Nishant replied. He hadn't really thought about restoring his body. He doubt if it was even possible, and had long ago decided that he would help monitor the Creepers from overstepping any boundaries.

"Alex Wolcott," Tang continued after smiling friendly at Nishant the Mutated. "Kaitlin Wolcott. Aaron Wolcott and Yuri Wolcott. We all are very sorry about your loss. Mary was a great soldier, and she will be dearly missed. It burdens all of us that her life was sacrificed for us."

The wolves looked away, with tears forming in their eyes. They had tried not to think about the pain that loosing one of their pack mates, that they grew up with, struggled with, laughed with, was now gone.

"The success of your pack will not be forgotten. Mary Wolcott will be remembered and honored for everything she has done. All five of you had saved many other aliens races, and allowed them to join us in our combined fight against the Creepers. I personally apologize for the loss of a great soldier, Mary Wolcott."

"Thank... you," Alex replied, his voice heavy. Tears were in his eyes along with the rest of the pack. They had loved Mary Wolcott and to lose her was devastating. Tang's eyes were glazed as well, and silence followed for several seconds afterwards.

"We have lost many lives, all of whom did not deserve the fate they had suffered. We will make them proud, and rebuild our world to ensure that no force out there ever threatens us again!" She pointed up at the sky, emphasizing her point of how much was still unknown about the galaxy, and beyond its boundaries. "We know many sacrifices have been made, and not just by us." She turned toward the other aliens, the Beasts and the two others that Nishant did not recognize. "You all have had lost your home worlds to the enemy but we thank you for joining us in our fight. To show our gratitude, we wish offer our help rebuilding your home world. You are welcome here any time any of your citizens wish to visit or stay."

They gave a curt node or some other similar gesture saying that they understood. They were wearing some sort of device on their ears so Tang's words were translated.

"And Admiral Yukiomaru Alexander," she said after a moments pause, walking up to the little arctic fox. The golden eyes stared back at Tang's, unsure of what to expect. "Victory over the Creepers is all thanks to you." She spoke slowly, and softly, as she stared Yukiomaru in the eyes. "We cannot owe you enough in a thousand lifetimes. You discovered this threat before it was too close to our borders. You defeated Aggressor that had been a significant threat to every sentient race for fifty thousand years. Rescuing you, you were unwavering in your determination to fight the Creepers. You hold many victories, and you have ended the war. You saved us all."

Tang took a step back and gave a long sweeping bow to the arctic fox.

Nishant had been skeptical of Yukiomaru sensed he smelled the infection on him, but hearing Tang he was reminded that this was still the little arctic fox that he served back on Drach'n Fury. This little fox had fought relentlessly, suffered greatly and shouldered all the responsibility. Nishant was infected by the opposite infection of Yukiomaru, but they were still the same race and he could not deny Yukiomaru's accomplishments. Now, he could smile at the arctic fox, proud of Yukiomaru.

Yukiomaru stared blankly, his eyes tearing up for the first time that Nishant had ever seen.

With respect, Lead General Vale copied Tang Fa and gave a sweeping bow to Yukiomaru Alexander. Nishant followed his example along with the other Caniderans, while the aliens showed their own sign of respect. Like a tidal wave, the silent civilians that had gathered also showed their respect with a similar bow.

Moments of silence passed before Tang spoke up again. "Please, accept my invitation for all you to relax for a few days here at Sanctuary. We are still rebuilding but we have adequate rooms for you."

"It's our honor," Lead General Vale accepted. The alien races agreed as well, and Tang gestured for them to follow. Nishant started to follow but he noticed that Yukiomaru lingered behind. He was speaking softly to Jun, and his eyes were still teary. Nishant stared at them for a moment, watching them talk quietly to one another before they started to follow.

With them following, Nishant did not concern himself and followed the Lead General. He only noted that Yukiomaru and Jun were following at a distance for whatever reason.