06:48 (Vancouver Time)
Friday, July 26, 2318
Regional District of Mount Waddington
Northern tip of Vancouver Island
North American West Coast
Earth
Sheraz, overwhelmed with happiness, slowly surveyed with his eyes the thick forest of coniferous trees surrounding him, Shanandar and Tina Forster, while sniffing the salt water smell from the ocean surrounding the tip of island he stood on. The air was fresh, at a very reasonable nineteen degrees Centigrade, with gray clouds overhead that made the Earth’s level of daylight bearable to his eyes without the need for sunglasses. The ocean, with waves crashing against the cliffs and beaches of the huge island, covered the horizon to the West and North, while a long forested coastline to the Northeast went on in the distance. The VEON SHOURIA now rested at the vertical on its landing legs in the center of a large concrete landing pad that was connected by a newly-built road to an equally new nearby residential and farming complex. Sheraz finally turned to face Tina, emotion clear on his face.
‘’Tina, I will never forget all that you did for our people. This land is truly beautiful: my people will love its new home.’’
‘’You can thank President D’Arcy for ceding this portion of Vancouver Island to your people, Sheraz. With those prefabricated housing units and hydroponic gardens now completed and ready for occupation, your people will now be able to come down from the KOSTROMA and get to discover their new home. My own crew will help your people prepare your crops and maintain the support installations during the coming two months. It was due for an extended vacation anyway after our long trip to Eris and back.’’
‘’And after that? Will we have the pleasure to see you and your crew again?’’
Tina smiled tenderly down at the Koorivar at those words: her ship’s crew and the Koorivars already awakened from cold sleep had forged a solid bond of friendship during their months together on the KOSTROMA.
‘’We certainly will, my friend. In three months, my ship will depart for a return trip to Eris, to bring a new crew and fresh supplies to our exploration base there. We will come back here afterwards for more vacation time. You will then be able to see again as well your compatriots that have elected to stay aboard the KOSTROMA.’’
Sheraz nodded slowly at that: over forty Koorivars, including Shanandar and his two children, had asked Tina for the permission to stay permanently aboard her ship as either crewmembers or as employees of the various commercial concessions on the Main Promenade Deck. Tina had promptly and happily accepted their request, thus making the KOSTROMA the first mixed Human/Alien crewed ship in the Solar System. Shanandar then jumped in on the conversation.
‘’What about those Hygieans who wanted to steal our anti-matter technology, Tina? Are we now safe from them?’’
‘’From the Hygieans, yes! Their leader that was responsible for ordering the plot against you has been stripped of all powers by her corporation’s board of directors and is now awaiting trial in front of the Spacers League High Court of Justice. As for the agents who were actually executing the plot, they will also be judged for attempted kidnapping, attempted murder and, in the case of that Libmann bastard, for first degree murder as well. There are still however plenty of mean people on this planet, especially in the Southern Federation, that are hostile to you and I and which you should stay leery of. Your people’s best bet is to never mention your anti-matter technology again, even if Shanya and Spirit still hold the blueprints to your interstellar drive.’’
‘’A judicious counsel indeed, my friend.’’ Said Sheraz, who then smiled to her. ‘’I heard that the good Major Koniev is now part of your crew…permanently.’’
Tina smiled as well: while Michel’s decision to stay on the KOSTROMA made good sense in view of how many Hygieans viewed him rather dimly for betraying the Vostok Group, his main motivation was to stay close to her, something that suited her just fine.
‘’I couldn’t let go such a good man, right?’’
‘’Of course, my friend!’’ Replied Sheraz, grinning. He then looked again at the ocean, gazing in the distance while thinking about his defunct birth planet. ‘’I wonder if our two other evacuation ships made it to habitable worlds with our other compatriots.’’
‘’One day, when we will be able to travel through the stars at faster-than-light speeds, we will go search for them, my friend. That I promise.’’ Replied Tina solemnly.