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  Elexander came closer and patted Mamba on the head. “I, too, feel at home here. Perhaps we’ll make Nico-1 our permanent home one day. I’d love to see our child growing and playing right alongside Mamba’s calves.”

  At those words, Mamba nudged closer to Elexander’s right leg. It was as if she approved of what had been said.

  “Oh, Elexander, I’d love to settle here permanently,” Juna gushed as she reached beyond Mamba to plant a kiss on her husband’s cheek. Though they both would miss their parents and friends, the fact that safe travel between the two planets was now possible made that less of a problem for them.

  “Then that’s most certainly what we’ll do,” Elexander replied, relishing his wife’s affection. “To be quite honest, I wish we could settle here now. Especially since we’ve grown so close to each other and even closer to God here. Yet with all the obligations we have back on Earth and with the baby coming, I don’t see how we could stay.”

  Elexander walked around Mamba and drew his wife into his arms. One of his large hands caressed her still flat belly. He looked forward to seeing her abdomen expand with his child.

  “I understand and I am ready to face what is before us,” Juna said, revealing the courage that her husband had always loved about her.

  This is the best helpmate any man could ever ask for. Elexander smiled.

  He also deemed his wife a genuine trooper in every sense of the word. Not only had she accompanied him on a mission filled with risks and uncertainties, she hadn’t complained one bit, not even about female things. Elexander thought for sure Juna would complain about the cutting of her long black locks. However, when it came time for her hair to be trimmed for the mission, she hadn’t winced or shed one tear in the barber’s chair.

  Faced with doing that again for the return mission, despite the fact that her hair had only just gotten long again, Juna had taken the scissors to her own head and trimmed the thick locks until they were ear length. She understood how difficult it was to take care of long hair in space and thus had done what was necessary.

  “You look ready to face the future. I am ready, as well,” Elexander replied, pushing past the feelings of foreboding he’d had ever since they received orders to return to Earth. There was something about going back that just didn’t set right with him. Yet they were bound by their obligations to H-NASA and the rest of the people on their home planet.

  “But first, let us enjoy this particular moment more fully,” Elexander added huskily, determined to make the most of the present.

  Then pushing all negative feelings aside, the enamored scientist whisked his radiant wife away to their favorite spot in the whole garden. Elexander intended to make their last day on Nico-1 a day to remember for years to come.

  As if she understood the significance of this moment, Mamba exited the garden to allow the humans more privacy. She would return to her own mate for a different kind of bonding.

  ~~~ >< ~~~

  After watching the Mannings take off in their compact tri-colored spacecraft, the animal they called Mamba turned to her long-horned mate with glistening eyes. She had understood everything Elexander and Juna said since the first month they arrived on Hekima (HEH-kee-MAH), the real name of this planet.

  All the Hekimans understood Earth English by now since it only took them roughly thirty days to learn any new language they were exposed to. And Mamba, or rather Tuhfa (too-FAH) as she was called by her own people, had made sure of that exposure by speaking it often in their meeting places.

  “I am sad to see our Earth friends leaving. They were very kind to us,” Tuhfa said in her native tongue.

  The gray male buck called Sudi (soo-Dee) inched closer to her on the grassy hill. “Yes, they were kind.” He offered her the comfort of his forequarter as he brushed it ever so softly up against hers. “Perhaps they will return again one day as promised. They seemed honorable enough to do so.”

  Tuhfa shook her head remorsefully and settled down upon all fours. A tear fell out of her right eye and lodged in the thick fur underneath. “Sadly, the ones called Elexander and Juna will not be able to keep that promise, no matter how honorable they are. They will never return to Hekima, but their seed will. One day he will even bring his wife with him. They will also conceive their first child here.”

  Settling down on all fours as well, Sudi looked at his intuitive mate with wonder. Like countless others, he deemed Tuhfa as one of the wise among their people. Many listened to her and heeded her advice. Surely, the humans would have, too, if only she’d presented them with what she knew.

  “If you knew this, Tuhfa, why did you not tell them?” Sudi asked, addressing the issues upon his heart. “They spoke so joyfully about returning. I am sure if they knew ahead of time what lies before them, they would do what they could to remove the barriers that stand between them and us.”

  “For one, our laws dictate that we do not risk exposure of our true nature to those who are not ready,” Tuhfa replied.

  “Elexander and Juna seemed most ready to me,” the white-rumped male persisted, ready to break even that law in order to help out their good friends.

  “Perhaps they were, but the others to whom they communicate with are not. In fact, based on a conversation that I overheard our Earth friends discussing concerning a talking donkey[i] in their holy book, I gathered that their species as a whole is not ready for talking animals just yet. But their son will be and he will be told our planet’s true name and the true nature of our species,” Tuhfa said, speaking assuredly about things that just seemed to come to her at times. Things that kept her included in all high-council meetings for the wisdom she possessed.

  “Though I find comfort in that last part, still…”

  “No stills, dear mate,” Tuhfa interrupted gently. “The fates of Elexander and Juna are in the hands of the Creator.[ii] Besides, telling them what I know would not have changed their destinies. It would have only prolonged the inevitable but for a few years and with widespread devastation for several planets. However, I have great peace that our Earth friends are both ready for the next phase in the circle of life.”

  “So Elexander and Juna will eventually find tranquility then?” Sudi inquired, needing reassurance about their friends. Despite the fact that he had not been as close to them as his mate, he had still been very fond of the kind Earth couple. The fact that they’d assisted Tuhfa through a difficult birth a few months ago endeared the male buck to them forever. Sudi wished only good to come to them.

  “Yes, they will eventually find the purest tranquility of all. But a time of pain and suffering will precede that tranquility.” Tuhfa allowed more tears to fall from her eyes. Soon the fur around her face and neck would be soaked through and through.

  Not wanting her Earth friends to suffer at all, yet knowing that it was not in her power to stop it, Tuhfa could at least take comfort in the fact that the Mannings’ time of pain and suffering was made that much shorter by her not telling them what she knew. She also took comfort in the fact that one of her very own children would grow up with the Earth couple’s child. Together their offspring would fulfill their destinies and change the futures of not just two planets, but several others in the process.

  ________________________________________

  [i] Numbers 22:21-28

  [ii] Ecclesiastes 9:1

  Chapter 2

  2168 – May

  With barely enough light to see, Elexander sat at the controls, trying once again to reverse the latest damage to the ship’s computer. A month upon leaving Nico-1, the mainframe on the ship started to go haywire. Some type of computer virus had attacked it, causing all kinds of things to go terribly wrong. The navigation barely worked some days and they’d had to rig the system in order to maintain the most important functions such as life support systems and fuel tracking.

  Though Elexander had traced the virus’s origin to the last satellite transmission they received from Earth, it had been hard for him
to believe that someone at H-NASA had deliberately sabotaged their return home. Yet all the evidence was there. How else could a rare Earth computer virus have gotten on board a perfectly healthy mainframe all the way in another galaxy?

  Based on the above data, the Mannings deduced that whoever was responsible for this calamity was masterful in computer programming. That person had not only made the virus adaptable, he’d made sure that it stayed well-hidden in the system until exactly one month from their Nico-1 departure. In short, their enemy had wanted to make sure that the Mannings were well into space before the trouble started. Too far away from Nico-1 to return without proper navigation. Too far away from M31’s exit point to be thrust close enough for them to receive help from Earth.

  The Mannings had their theories about who their enemy was and how that person may have slipped past Dr. Badru Karson, whom they still trusted. Nevertheless, Elexander advocated that they could not allow themselves to waste precious time thinking about it. Nor could they waste time on bitter thoughts.

  Right now the most prevalent thing to do was to find another habitable planet nearby, land on it long enough to permanently fix this computer problem and then get back to Nico-1. That had to be their top priority.

  Trying to get back to Earth was becoming less of an option with each passing day. After this act of treason, the Mannings did not trust the ship to get them back to their home planet safely. Nor did they trust the people at the command center anymore.

  “What’s the latest on Planet X?” Elexander asked his wife, who was busy working at her own computer station.

  Despite the fact that she was six months pregnant and had been battling morning sickness for three of those months, Juna had been actively by her husband’s side day and night. She was trying to do her part to help them out of this very serious situation to the point that Elexander often had to make her go back to bed at times, even when it was his turn to sleep. It pained him to see dark circles forming under her beautiful eyes.

  Fortunately, Juna’s efforts had paid off. She’d found a southeastern planet that they named X for the time being, which looked to be habitable. They could only pray that it was, because once they landed, they were stuck there until they fixed the ship.

  “The atmosphere looks thicker than ours and the dirt looks more brown than green, but my gut tells me that it’s the most habitable planet we’re going to find around here. Especially with the amount of fuel that we still have.” Juna stated the facts with more bravado than she felt right now.

  Though she was usually very optimistic, the last three months had chipped away at her courage bit by bit. These days Juna found herself wrestling with fear on a regular basis. She was scared for herself, for her husband, and most of all for their baby. Yet because of their child, she would fight through her fears and do her best to deliver him or her healthy and strong on whatever planet they landed on.

  For her child, Juna would also extend forgiveness by faith towards the person that betrayed them. A person that she now wished she’d never met.

  Seeing how brave his wife was still trying to be after months of uncertainty and with even more uncertainty before them, Elexander summoned a reassuring smile. “I’ve always trusted your gut before, so Planet X is where we’ll land. In the meantime, I want you to go to the mid-deck and try to get some rest.”

  Juna adamantly shook her head. “No, I’m staying right where I belong - by your side, Elexander.” Her jaw was set in a stubborn line as she said that.

  Elexander had never loved her more than at this moment. Juna had looked the same way when the director at the space center mentioned that she could refuse this mission if she wanted to and allow another astronaut to take her place. Not only did she insist on accompanying her husband to Nico-1 as planned, Juna argued that the astronaut they’d chosen to replace her needed to stay on Earth with his pregnant wife, who was prone to miscarriages. That alternative astronaut had been Badru, the Mannings’ dearest friend and most trusted colleague.

  Elexander nodded his consent of his wife’s words with a huge loving grin. “In case I haven’t told you in the last hour, I love you very much.” He reached over and patted her round belly, before adding, “You and our baby.”

  Juna smiled wide, as well, and felt tons better inside. “We love you, too, Elexander.” Then she watched as her husband proceeded to chart a course for Planet X. Their hope was to get close enough so that their landing could be assisted by the downward pull of the planet’s gravity.

  ~~~ >< ~~~

  Everything was going fine until the Mannings actually got into the lower realms of the planet’s atmosphere. That’s when they discovered why so much brown could be seen from space.

  Planet X was a mountainous planet. There were very few level plains. Only deep valleys and a few smooth mountain tops offered any significant clearings for landing. Yet if the Mannings landed on the mountains, how would they descend it? Especially with a pregnant woman on board.

  Elexander knew that his only choice was to land the shuttle in a valley. But which one? There were so many and they were all surrounded by ferocious looking rock formations. With dread, he realized that having a safe landing on this planet might prove to be next to impossible.

  With time rapidly running out for any kind of landing, Elexander followed his own gut this time and picked the third valley on the left. Yet he had to circle the mountain closest to it one more time in order to do what needed to be done concerning his wife and child.

  “Get to the mid-deck, Juna!” Elexander ordered, speaking sharply to her for the first time in his life. His right hand swiftly pressed a button that would release a lone satellite pod destined for Earth’s coordinates. That pod contained some very important information that needed to make it back to Earth even if they didn’t. Elexander would just have to trust God that the pod made it into the right hands once it landed.

  Juna looked at her husband with wide eyes. Yes, she was shocked by his sharp tone, but she was more shocked by the expression on his face. There was no fear, no anxiety, only a quiet resolution upon his features.

  Then it hit her! Like their risen Lord, Elexander was preparing to give his life for theirs, even if it meant sure death for him.[i]

  Like Elexander, Juna knew that they might not survive this landing. The best chance for any of them was in the mid-deck, yet someone had to stay upfront and land the shuttle. Elexander had obviously already decided that that someone would be him.

  “No!” Juna suddenly wailed. “I want to be with you, baby. Please don’t make me leave you.” Please don’t leave me, her heart lamented, grieving her husband already as more realization sunk in.

  “Juna, please,” Elexander said more softly, anguish accenting his every word. “Do it for our baby. He must live.”

  He? Juna mused, noting how Elexander had identified the gender of their child with such certainty. It was as if his ebony eyes had suddenly developed x-ray vision, enabling him to clearly see into her womb.

  Deciding to obey her husband for the sake of their child, Juna reluctantly unbuckled herself from her seat and quickly thrust her face towards his left cheek. “I’ll love you forever, Elexander,” she whispered, before planting the briefest of kisses upon his face. She knew that time was of the essence. She had to get to the mid-deck. Quickly!

  “All my love forever, as well!” Elexander shouted over his shoulder, not daring to look away from the controls for one second, even though he desperately wanted to gaze upon his wife at least one more time before the inevitable occurred. Yet every second counted now. However, Elexander did use whatever time he had left to pray. There was always time for that.

  Soaring quickly, despite the fact that she was perturbing the microgravity environment around her, Juna barely made it to the mid-deck before she felt the shuttle slam down upon the ground and immediately go into a skid. Maintaining a fetal position in order to protect the child in her womb, she closed her eyes and fervently prayed as her wh
ole life changed forever.

  ~~~ >< ~~~

  “Oh my! Did you see that?” Noam asked her husband, pausing from their afternoon stroll in the valley.

  “Yes, I did,” Ezra replied. He’d seen the foreign aircraft shoot from around the mountain and crash several feet up ahead just like his wife had. “Come, sweetness. Let us go see if we can be of assistance to our visitors. I had a feeling that today’s walk would be an eventful one,” he added, pressing a button on his wrist bracelet and typing in coordinates for ten kilometers straight ahead.

  ________________________________________

  [i] Ephesians 5:25

  Chapter 3

  Juna regained consciousness to the smell of burning metal, the crackling of small fires to her left and right, and to the sight of a violet-skinned little person standing over her. This barely 4’ft tall person had to be female based on all the curves upon her small frame.

  Another little person, this one definitely male and more maroon in color, was standing over Elexander. They were both speaking a strange language to the Mannings. A language that sounded a lot like Earth’s Hebrew, though certain parts of the vernacular were very different.

  So glad to see that her husband was still alive, even if his breathing was more rapid than usual, Juna tried to speak to him. However, she, too, found that she could barely catch her breath.

  “Elex…” Juna panted out, trying to get his attention as sharp pains began to shoot through her lower abdomen.

  At the sound of his wife’s voice, Elexander forced his bloodied face to the side. His head felt so heavy and he didn’t dare try to use up his energy reserves by speaking. Yet his eyes poured out love for her. Elexander also silently willed his wife to remain quiet, as well, for her and their child’s own good due to the unfamiliar climate they were in.

  Even though the air was undoubtedly some of the cleanest the Mannings had inhaled since Nico-1, the fact that they’d been thrust into this environment without adequate acclimatization made their breathing accelerate in order to properly oxygenate their bodies. Couple that with their severe injuries from the crash and the Mannings were both in dire physical situations. Worse, it appeared that Juna was now going into premature labor.