In deep space, on the edge of Urusian territory, between Toshitto and Kesei…
"And here's the bridge, Granddad."
"Attention on deck! General on the bridge!"
The bridge crew of the Urusian Defence Force Ship Kashin all snapped to attention as Invader gently pushed his grandfather's hoverchair out of the turbolift tube and into the centre of the oval structure located on the underside of the kilometre-long battlewagon forward of amidships. "Oh, boys! Boys! Relax!" Traveller said with a laugh as he waved the bridge crew at ease. "Don't mind an old fool like me!" He reached up to his forehead. "Damn! Spent too much time in cryofreeze," he muttered to himself as the people around him relaxed and returned to their duties.
"We know that, Granddad," Invader said with an embarrassed smile and a sweat drop falling down his hair as he placed his grandfather's chair right next to the command chair in the middle of the bridge. "Number One, report!" he barked out.
The first officer, a young man with a patch over his left eye, turned and clicked his feet together in salute. "Boss, we're currently six light-years from the Toshitto outer marker. Tsumetaru bears at heading 318 mark 358 off the ship's bow…"
"Dear gods! What's the matter with you, son?!"
The first officer's voice halted as everyone stared at Traveller. "Er, General?"
"Granddad, what's wrong?" Invader asked.
A sigh. "I'm supposed to be the senile one here, son!" he said as he glared up at his grandson, and then he stared at the first officer. "Don't tell me they STILL teach that damned FICTION at the Naval Academy these days?!"
The first officer jolted. "Um, wh-what fiction, General…?"
"The planet's name is 'Kesei!' Not 'Tsumetaru!' Didn't you know that?!"
The whole crew looked surprised. "Um, General, that's what we've always called that planet," the sensory officer then stated. "Just like we call Jiyû and Magairu by the names our explorers gave them! Even if the bone-heads did claim them…!"
"Gods! Are you calling them THAT, too?!" Traveller moaned as he reached up to rub his forehead before he glared at the younger man. "Are you an Imperial, son?"
The sensory officer jolted, and then he rapidly shook his head. "NO, SIR! There's not a single Imperial aboard this ship, sir! The Boss wouldn't allow it!"
"Then behave as a proper officer in the Defence Force and show the respect to other races for their accomplishments!" Traveller snarled. "Yes, it was our people who first discovered those planets, but we didn't move to claim them as ours until way after the Noukiites sent their first colony ships to those worlds!" He sat back in his chair, a tired breath escaping him. "The Maidens themselves would be turning over in their graves if they ever heard this sort of nonsense from people like you! You should be all ashamed of yourselves!" He stared up at Invader. "Why don't you do something about these kids, son?! You're the captain of this ship! Act like one!"
Invader was trying to wave his grandfather down. "Now, now, Granddad…!"
"BOSS!"
"What?!" Invader snapped as he looked at the communications officer. "Report!"
"Signal just came in from a Noukiite star-battleship, coming from the direction of Tsu-…" She caught herself just in time. "Um, Kesei, sir! It's the flagship of the Lady Governor Tuongta. It was the governor herself! She wishes to lay alongside the Kashin and shuttle over with a guest of hers to speak to you and your wife. She also states that a priestess will be accompanying her."
The whole bridge crew blinked in surprise. "What the heck would the Rose Dragon be wanting to talk to the Boss for?!" the first officer demanded.
"Did the Lady Governor state who the priestess' name was?"
Eyes locked on Traveller. "Um, just a moment, General!" the communications officer said before she tapped controls to read the message, and then she blinked before she looked back at the aged warrior. "The Most Venerable Reverend Lady Techhukkak, sir."
Invader blinked. "She's the senior cleric of the Outmarches," he wondered aloud. "What the devil would someone like her be wanting to talk to us for?!"
"So what are you going to do about it?"
He jolted, and then he stared at Traveller. "Granddad…!"
A moan. "Son, you've got to be faster than this in a situation involving the governor of a Noukiite colony world — especially a frontier planet like Kesei! — and a senior cleric who probably has a seat on the Council of Sages in Ryekkyuk!" Before Invader could say a thing in response, Traveller looked over. "Now, young lady, you call over to the Lady Governor's ship. Out compliments to both her and the Most Venerable Reverend. Tell them we'll be more than pleased to receive them."
"Ah…y-yes, sir!" the young woman said before she turned back to her board to send the transmission. Retired though he technically was, Traveller Redet was still a full general in the Union Marines and commanded a ton of respect in all parts of the Defence Force. And the Kashin's crew had been more than willing to adhere to his request. Despite his growing senility, Traveller still seemed quite razor-sharp when it came to military matters. To believe the Boss' granddad is an honest-to-goodness Noukiophile…! she mused to herself as she made the call over.
Some minutes later, the Kashin was drifting at sub-light speed alongside Her Imperial Majesty's Starship Hichp'u-ikeng, a vessel of equal size to the Urusian capital ship but designed with the stunning sleek, catamaran-like grace one expected of the engineers and shipwrights of the Imperial Dominion. Solar-sail masts sprouted from the flanks, the weather deck and the keel to allow several square kilometres of energy-absorbent material to be spread out, thus allowing the ship to fly at thousands of times the speed of light, leaping from star system to star system in hours. Despite her looks, the Hichp'u-ikeng was a vessel that could easily take down a half-dozen ships her equal size; her hull bristled with energy and projectile weapons of all sorts, though (unlike the Urusian battlewagon she currently was alongside of) she didn't have an integral fighter wing able to launch from her hangar decks.
A shuttle quickly made its way into the main hangar deck of the Kashin, where a hastily-convened honour guard led by Invader was standing and waiting for their guests to arrive. Traveller was also there, currently accompanied by his daughter-in-law, the former Chim Seq (a distant relative of Rei's family) who was currently known by Urusian custom simply as "Mrs. Invader." As soon as the shuttle made its landing, the boarding hatch on the side opened and a single person stepped out.
Even if there were those among the landing party and the deck crew who really didn't care much about Noukiites, there was utterly not a dropped jaw of a pair of bugged out eyes at the sight of the stunning beauty that had stepped down from the shuttle. Even the elderly Traveller was quite impressed. "My! My! My! Did they impose a whole set of beauty standards on colonial governors these days?! That's a sight for this old soldier's eyes!" he cackled lecherously as the woman came up to him.
An amused smile from the very busty woman in the dark pink, silver-and-gold trimmed uniform that actually marked her as a chief-of-staff to a colonial governor. "The Lord Marshal Traveller is too kind to me," she said as she made the fist-in-palm salute to him as her twinkling green-brown eyes (behind reading glasses) fixed on him. "Heaven's most sincere blessings upon you, Lord Marshal, as well as your noble warlord son and the gallant crew of this fine warship. I am Seu-Na Yesu-Kya Hechnich'-Ekach, the Lady Governor Tuongta's chief-of-staff and heart-mate."
Traveller blinked. "'Seu-Na?'" A quick glance to her cheeks revealed the exploding flower tattoo of that sub-caste of the Ten Orders, which made him blink with surprise. "I didn't realise the Seup'uk had arisen again."
A nod as she gently shifted her hand through her knee-length black hair, tied off near the end by a silk tie. "We are small in number, but have returned en masse to serve our people as our long honoured ancestors tried to do three millennia ago in a much more tragic and fractious time of our race's history, Lord Marshal."
The elderly Urusian warrior nodded in return. "Yes, I noticed that. Your courtesy name is the same as a famous warrior who swore sword-sisterhood to the woman who helped form Hichp'u, though she sadly never saw the day it was founded." He then blinked as something came back to him. "Come to think of it, your governor's courtesy name is the same as your namesake's sword-sister. And the Most Venerable Reverend…"
Laughter echoed from behind the chief-of-staff. "It appears, T'yekp'it', that Lum's most honoured great-grandfather is quite knowledgeable in our history."
T'yekp'it' smiled as she gazed over her shoulder as two other people came up. One, a stunning woman in her mid-twenties, was a blue-eyed beauty with long, flowing pink-red hair that went past her hips, tied off in a high ponytail on the back of her head. She was dressed in the formal robes of a colonial governor, coloured rose pink to denote the actual world she ruled. A sheathed sword was hooked to the belt on her left hip. The other lady was a woman the same age, with purple eyes behind reading glasses and grey-black hair that went to mid-neck, combed back from her forehead. As she was of the Yekhu, the First of the Ten Orders, her caste tattoos under her eyes were a gold sun-like insignia encased with twin dragons to both sides. She was, as per her station, dressed in the cassock-like robes marking her as a senior cleric in the Noukiite native religion. In her hand was a simple staff as tall as she.
"Indeed, you're right, Hep'p'yech," T'yekp'it' mused before she made the proper introductions, falling into the traditional role as liaison between Noukiites and outworlders. "Beloved, dearest Reverend, may I present to you both the Lord Marshal Traveller Redet, his grandson the Warlord Invader Redet, granddaughter-in-law the Lady Chim Redet, and representatives of the crew of the battleship Kashin." She indicated each person in return as she named them, and then she turned to the Urusians to do the opposite introductions. "Honoured hosts, Her Excellency, the Lady Governor of the Planetary Province of Ke, the Sacred True Bone Lady Seu-Hech Yesu-Tuong Hechnich'-Tuongta; and the Most Venerable Reverend Lady Ye-Uk Yesu-Ip' Hechnich'-Techhukkak." She indicated her heart-mate and her companion before all three made deep bows, T'yekp'it' and Hep'p'yech making the fist-in-palm salute while the reverend beside the governor of Kesei raised her free hand to make a blessing to the Urusians. "In the name of Her Imperial Majesty, the Council of Sages and all the people of Noukiios and her colonies, we bid you Heaven's most sincere blessings. May the spirits of the Most Venerable Ladies Noa, Honii and Syl, who gladly sacrificed their lives to see your people free, bless you in all your future endeavours."
"Most courteous, Lady Ekach," Traveller said as he made the fist-in-palm salute and nodded his head. "Now, what does bring three such beautiful ladies our way?"
The Noukiites laughed, a deep guffaw from Hep'p'yech while T'yekp'it' and the priest covered their mouths politely. "I didn't realise that Lum's great-grandfather was such a flatterer," Hep'p'yech stated as she gazed on the priest. "What do you think, Aip'?"
"Well, that can certainly explain the way Lum loves to seduce her heart-mate," Aip' replied as she gazed amusedly at her beloved friend.
Silence.
"'HEART-MATE?!'"
That was everyone standing behind and around Traveller, of course.
"Dear gods, boy!" Traveller snapped as he stared at Invader, who — along with his wife and the rest of the crew — were all staring at the Noukiites with jaws on the deck and eyes bugged out of their skulls. "Did you have to shout so damned loud?! I don't think they heard you all the way back in Onishuto!"
"Please forgive them, Honoured Great-Grandfather," Aip' then said as she walked around T'yekp'it' to kneel before Traveller, she taking his hands in her free hand. "There are, in fact, several shocks we're about to deliver to your grandson and his wife. Would it be too hard to ask if we can relocate to a more private place so we can relay the joyous news in all its contents to you and your relatives?"
"Oh, that seems a good idea, my dear!" Traveller stated with a smile.
All the Urusians around him stared wide-eyed at the old general…
Minutes later…
"MY BABY'S A LESBIAN?!"
"MISTER GROOM DID WHAT?!"
The Noukiites tried not to sigh too much. "Captain, Madame, please calm yourselves," Aip' said as she waved a gaping Invader and a teary-eyed Chim down. "I realise this is quite a shock to you both. But please try to understand this: Lum was very scared of mentioning what she discovered about herself to you, especially given the other problems plaguing her life, especially from her so-called 'church.'"
Hearing that, Lum's parents winced. "Church?! What church?!" Traveller demanded.
A sigh. "Lord Marshal, you are aware of the Niphentaxians, are you not?" Hep'p'yech asked as she stared in barely-veiled amusement at Lum's great-grandfather.
A moan. "Dear gods, my lady! Of course I know about those lifeless fools! Why the devil the whole damned Universe was plagued by them, I'll NEVER understand!"
"But Granddad…!" Invader tried to cut in.
"Oh, be quiet, boy!" Traveller snapped. "So what about these idiots?!"
Aip' breathed out. "I'm afraid that ten years ago, they had a Great Awakening. And when they formed their new worldwide 'church,' they fixated on your very own great-granddaughter as their living goddess figure," she said.
Silence.
"Oh, by the Maidens, I don't BELIEVE that!" Traveller moaned. "HOW?!"
"Lum saved the life of the current head of the Church of Lum — not to mention the president of the Niphentaxian Union — when he was trapped in the Terrible Swamps not far from your grandson's home ten years ago," Hep'p'yech explained.
"But Granddad…!" Invader tried to cut in again.
"QUIET, son!" Traveller barked him down before he reached up to rub his forehead. "So how widespread is this 'Church of Lum,' anyway, Governor?"
"The whole planet and all the colonies," T'yekp'it' answered. "At least fifteen billion adherents. What is worse, Lord Marshal, is that their fanaticism utterly knows no bounds. They're already guilty of murdering five million innocent civilians in Lecashuto five years ago when the Mikado tried to have your family assassinated for their sheltering a dissident from that world, a free warrior named Nassur."
"The MIKADO?!" the aged general snarled. "Haven't they got rid of that idiot YET?!"
"They're working on it," Hep'p'yech answered with a smile.
A sigh of relief. "Thank the heavens for that!"
"But Grandfather…!" Chim cut in this time.
He waved her down. "Calm down, dear! Calm down!" Traveller said before he stared at the Noukiites. "So Lum took a promise oath with a girl from Earth, eh?" A cackle escaped him. "I trust the lass is a very pretty girl!"
"Oh, believe me, sir! You will like her very much!" Aip' promised.
"But, wait a minute…!" Invader moaned out.
"And this poor girl was actually born a boy?" Traveller then asked.
The Noukiites nodded. "That's correct, Lord Marshal," Aip' answered. "He was named Ataru Moroboshi at birth. But when he learned of your great-granddaughter desiring to swear the oath never to be broken only to those of her own gender, he learned of most powerful magic from a nearby land of his own, then used it to transform himself into a woman that took Lum's breath away. In doing so, she took the name 'Tariko Moroboshi.'"
Traveller blinked. "'Ataru?!' What type of idiots would name their child THAT?!"
Hep'p'yech squeezed her sheathed sword. "We're still trying to figure that one out."
"But Grandfather…!" Chim whined.
"Well, it's a damn good thing Lum persuaded the lad to get a sex-change and try the other side of the coin for the rest of his…" He then cackled. "Excuse me! Her life, I mean!" A nod. "Damned good thing, too! What type of parents would name their own child 'Ataru,' for Heaven's sake?!"
"Um, Granddad…!"
"Again, we're still wondering about that," Hep'p'yech breathed out.
"Don't hurt you brain doing that, dearie," Traveller advised.
"A good point, Lord Marshal."
"Grandfather…!"
Traveller then smiled. "Now, this promise oath. It WAS properly witnessed, right?!"
The Noukiites nodded. "Four free warriors — including three of our most famous bandit-slayers — were the witnesses," T'yekp'it' declared, and then she winked. "But believe it or not, Tip'heng is coming up. And Lum and Tariko have agreed to renew their oath at the temple at Suchap't'ach on the night of Tip'heng." She waved to Aip'. "The Reverend Techhukkak has agreed to properly officiate at that ceremony, of course!"
"Granddad…!"
"Grandfather…!"
A whoop escaped Traveller. "Oh, my! My! My! Now THAT will be a wedding night!"
"BUT OF COURSE!" the three Noukiites said with matching grins.
Delighted laughter filled the captain's lounge as Invader and his wife still try to stammer out something to say while we…
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