Epilogue
Nearly two weeks later…
She wanted to pull her hair out. Someone had decided she was to take charge of this crazy program and it was utter chaos. These women, mostly with a few men and some children thrown in, couldn’t be told their true destination. There was a list she’d come up with of those she knew wanted anywhere but here. Those would go first.
Heaven help her when those more discerning of their destinations went and found out they’d ended up on an alien planet. She‘d figured out some questions that she told them were meant to discover how adaptable and adventurous they were. Several had clearly lied.
- Do you wish you could go into outer space?
- Would you befriend a dragon?
- Do you believe in recycling, reducing, and reusing even if it makes things a bit more work?
- Are you alright with giving your loyalty to royalty?
- Do you believe in a traditional household?
Those were just a few of the types of questions asked and you could tell the desperation to be chosen by those that answered all yeses. She was tempted to exclude them, but the numbers she needed required including them all.
It wasn’t all bad. The families she had found had teachers and scientists. The two groups they needed most after doctors. There were three doctors, all single and only one a male. Those would be needed on the colonies that the dragons were starting. There was a fourth, but her health was questionable and until she was fully healed, she would stay where the best of care was.
This Torr who was said to be emperor had also asked for security and surveillance experts, soldiers, cooks, and farmers who used no machinery. Surprisingly, those had presented no problem and she’d even gotten extras. So what if a few were convicts? That fulfilled the agreement with the government that was happy to reduce the population especially when prisoners and the ill, as well as orphans were taken too.
She was surprised they’d been willing to take the unwanted among Earth’s people. But they had given her requirements and she’d stuck to them faithfully. The orphans were the only ones taken freely with no question. From what she’d seen these kids would have it so much better.
There was a knock on her door. “Come in.”
It was Ranger. He was a hottie but his heart was tied up already. That was fine and they were friends. “How is your day going?” Ranger asked.
“Could be better. Half of these women lie to get on the list. If I don’t take them, our numbers will be off.”
“A little won’t matter.” He assured.
“Way off. They are unhappy with their lives and think anything would be better. Some of them don’t realize that everything will change. Most are leaving behind a decent job, friends, family, an average life, yes. But it’s one they are used to. Some of these women will be terribly unhappy. You should never expect a mate to fix everything in your life you don’t like.”
“Sometimes they do. These males will do anything for them if they are the right one.” Ranger explained.
“I guess I don’t really understand your world or the way you live.”
“All your sisters and your mother found males they are wonderfully happy with.”
“All of them are strong women who were probably working their lives out to be happy, mate or not.” She suggested.
“There is some truth in that. All your family is strong, I can’t deny it. But they were also able to compromise so strong males could live with them and be happy too.”
She held up her hands. “I give up! The males they found might not be the average guys either though. I’m glad I’m going with this first group because I’ll worry for them. While we used the best systems on Earth to match them up, they don’t know the truth about the guys they are paired with. Alright, they don’t all know the truth. Some were paired with human males hired to work the mines. Those are getting exactly what they think if you ignore the alien planet.”
“You are the most stubborn in a family of stubborn women, aren’t you?”
“I’ve always thought so.” She giggled. “But logic will change my mind. I desperately want this program to be successful. It would be a boon for both our kinds.”
“It won’t be long. Just what, a week? The ship just arrived and I suggest you bring the most you are allowed from Earth. Your mom and sisters will love you if you bring Cajun spices, coffee, black licorice and especially chocolate. They’ve found replacement for most other items.” She saw he was reading off a list.
“They put you up to this?” She asked.
“Of course. Tomi is my queen. It never pays to disappoint royalty.” Ranger grinned at her and she smiled back.
“What is my allowance?”
“To take to Draconis? Four trunks.”
“I’ll be right on it.” She replied. There were already two trunks packed with Cajun spices and licorice. The other two would be for chocolate and coffee.
A week later, she was on a huge ship waiting to greet people as they were brought up in groups. The number of people taken to Draconis would be three hundred. Two other ships were going to different colonies taking a hundred people each. Janus was the largest colony and well established.
Coroga was slightly smaller and more like the Wild West. Those chosen for this colony were made of sturdier stuff and expressed a desire to live a less settled life. More males were going here. This colony would be a hard place to raise a family until it was better established. Wild animals lived in the woods that could eat a small child or even a woman whole without trouble. It was a good place for the hardened criminals that they had taken. She’d been surprised by how many females that had included. No children were in this group, it was too dangerous at this point.
There was someone on each of those ships doing the job she was doing here and she was glad it wasn’t her. This task was hard enough since she wasn’t a psychiatrist like the one on the Coroga ship was or a doctor paired up with a psychologist like the Janus ship had. People were arriving now and she observed them. Most were awestruck as they looked out of the windows at the Earth below. It was a sight most, including her, had never thought to see.
A few were unsettled, not knowing what to believe and only a handful looked pissed or terrified. One woman had a meltdown and she nodded to the guards who moved in and sedated her before helping her out of the bay.
“Some of you may recognize me from your entrance interview. I’m here to help you adjust to your new opportunity. There are also three counselors that will assist with any problems or questions. You were selected over large numbers of other applicants because you said you always wanted to go to space and your other answers showed you were open minded to unknown species. My sincere hope is you didn’t lie because this is a one way trip. You will each be given a book to read that will give you information on the planet Draconis. Each room also has a computer that can be used to research jobs of all kinds.
If Draconis turns out not to be a fit for you, there are six other colonies available to choose from. These may be on a planet, moon, or asteroid. There are already humans on Draconis and their group is well established. The other colonies are getting their first group now or will soon in the future. Once you take the time to read your book, I will be available for questions. You will be escorted to your rooms and your escorts will explain where everything is. Thank you for coming.”
She walked away going to her own room to crash. This was so much harder than she’d expected. At least half the people looked like they felt misled. Testing and interviews had tried to weed out those who would have a hard time adjusting. The children had all looked at it as an amazing adventure. They had been brought up last night and settled in well.
Meeting with them had been a pleasure. Those kids had all been through a lot and looked forward to something better. They were willing to take a chance to get away from a life that hadn’t treated them well.
It would be a good idea to keep them away from the adults. Some of those people would stir them up just for the fun of it. She needed to keep a list of those to watch. So far the families all seemed stable and accepting of their future. Admittedly, it was easier to accept when you weren’t alone.
Tomi, her sister, had mentioned several families and even some singles would be going to a newly built fish factory. Apartments had been built and housing, medical, and schooling were all included as benefits. Schooling included higher learning for the workers and their families. Pay was average for the planet which was much better than Earth partly because they would pay no taxes.
No taxes was because the crown owned mines and businesses that saw to those things taxes were normally paid in for. The dragons didn’t know how good they had it. Taxes were the bane of most American’s existence. There was a knock on the door.
“Come in.”
“Hello. My name is Marsheel. I’m a Captain in the military and I’ve been assigned to you as an escort and for protection.”
“It’s nice to meet you. I noticed a few people who were unhappy to be here. Hopefully they’ll settle but if not I’ll be happy to have you around. How long will the trip take?”
“It used to take nearly three weeks, but we’ve had some amazing advances over the last couple of years. With those, I’d guess a little over a week if nothing goes wrong.”
“I’ve looked at the map and I know where Draconis is, that’s truly amazing. We’ll have a tough job ahead of us. I want to be in the dining area as the different groups go through to help deal with questions.”
“I thought you did a great job of pointing out if they don’t like where they are, it’s their own fault. You still sounded sympathetic and helpful.” Marsheel praised.
“Thanks for that, but it won’t get us far. They’ll blame me personally if they’re unhappy.”
“How can they?”
“Don’t you have dissidents, rebels, and rogues?”
“We have a few.” He admitted reluctantly.
“There are always those who blame others for their situation.”
He nodded, turned, and left. She was ready for her nap. These people had come right after lunch and she had at least two hours for a nap if she wasn’t interrupted. The nap went well and she got up feeling recharged. It was energy she knew she’d need. Barely ready for supper and someone knocked on the door.
“Come in.”
It was Marsheel. “I should have asked, but I thought you’d want to get there early.”
“You are absolutely right. If I watch them coming in, I can get a feel for them. If you see anything that looks unsettling, let me know.” She asked.
“I will do so. Are you ready?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be.”
“Is this one of your Earth sayings?”
“It is.”
He held the door open and she walked through. Hopefully things would go better than her fears suggested they might. Once they arrived at the dining room she and Marsheel sat at the largest table. Once people began arriving, they were escorted to assigned seats. She would have different people sitting at her table for each meal. Her thought was she would get to know everyone at least a little bit before they arrived.
The overwhelming feeling of this task made her wish her mom was here. This would be child’s play for her. There was nothing her mom couldn’t handle. Damn! The job had turned her into a little girl crying for her mom. She needed to pull up her big girl pants and do what had to be done. With most of the first group here, she needed to get on things now.
“I want to welcome you all to your first meal onboard ship. These are Earth dishes, but made with the ingredients available from Draconis.” She had agonized over whether to tell them that before or after they’d eaten. To establish trusts, she told them first. Otherwise they might have felt tricked.
Several people took tentative bites, others just moved the food around on their plates. At least the kids had eaten well or so she’d been told. After a pause, everyone realized this was it. Eat or starve. There would be no more Earth food and they had better adjust. Now they began to eat and those close to her started to ask questions.
“How are the men there?” A shy young girl ask.
“I don’t have personal experience, but those humans that found true mates are the happiest women I’ve ever seen.” She admitted.
“Maybe they are just deceiving you?” Another woman suggested.
“One is my mother. These males don’t mind older women. Three are my sisters. One of my sisters had a young daughter and you couldn’t tell she’s not his by the way he treats her. I’ll admit we have had limited matings because we’ve not had large numbers of people from Earth relocate, but things look good. You’ll have a choice and you can refuse any offers. No one will force you to do anything.”
“How long until we have to take a job?” An older woman asked.
“What do you like to do?”
“I was a cook at a restaurant.”
“They’ll offer you several jobs. There are vacancies at the castle among other places.”
“You didn’t answer her question.” A pretty blonde asked.
“Unless you just don’t want to work or mate, you’ll be given a good amount of time. If you test the waters by dating some of the singles, you could get six months before it becomes a problem. Three months if you just want to work, but they will find you options. You won’t have to search for them.” Most of the people at her table look relieved.
“What if I’d rather mate than find a job?” A young man asked.
“You know they are old fashioned. It’s unlikely you’d find a female that would do that unless it’s one from Earth. You’d need a professional that has a high paying job.”
“Doesn’t that describe you?” He asked.
“I have a plan that doesn’t fit with mating.”
“You would be against a dad staying home with the babies?” He asked.
“Not at all. But running a home is harder work that taking a job is.”
The guy finally shut up. Now everyone was nearly done with their food and dessert was served. This meant the first meal with the first group was over. Five more groups were ahead. Heaven help her, this was tiring.
Things seemed to go better as time went on. She only sat with a couple groups each night now. That was more than enough. Draconis was closer every day and her family was there waiting for her. Nothing meant more to her than them. It wasn’t long before the announcement was made. They would arrive tomorrow.
Was it only six days? It had seemed so much longer. They had been shuttled down last, the emperor had people meeting all incoming Earthers, the term the dragons used to describe people from Earth. It had finally been the turn of the staff and she was bubbling with excitement. She‘d missed her family so much, it made her wish she’d relocated with them. Nothing had gone right since they’d left.
Stepping off the shuttle, someone called her name. Looking up, she saw everyone waiting for her. A male, tall and attractive stepped in front of her family and she almost said something rude, but she noticed everyone had stepped back. Was this the emperor that ran the planet and beyond? Thank God she’d kept her mouth shut. He grinned like he’d realized what she’d been about to do.
Was that even possible? He walked right up to her and held out his hand. She gave him hers and a buzz ran through her. The male lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed it. Wow! Now she was practically a puddle on the ground.
“I’m so pleased to finally meet you. Your family has told me a lot about you. I’m Torr.”
“I’m pleased to meet you too. Once I have a little time to rest and catch up with my family, we have a lot to discuss about the program and how to make it better.” She was so happy she managed to talk and sound understandable.
“I have a suite of rooms assigned to you at Erak’s castle for now. That way we’ll be able to meet easily.”
She recognized an order. “Of course.” She replied but it was the last thing she wanted to do.
Now she moved to her family where she was enveloped in a group hug. Eventually she would get to speak to them all alone, but for now Torr was in charge. Poor male thought things would stay that way. Soon he would see how a female could run the world.