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CHAPTER ONE: THE SENSATIONALIST

“Well, our engagement is now public knowledge, and is being widely discussed throughout the United Planets,” said Ennis.

“How in the world…” said Dori, sitting down to breakfast. “You didn’t send out an announcement did you? I thought we were waiting to compose something together.”

“No, not my fault,” said Ennis. “Our engagement has been announced in The Sensationalist.”

“That tabloid gossip rag?” said Dori. “How much did they get wrong?”

“Surprisingly accurate,” said Ennis. “Well, I suppose it’s our own fault for going to Earth.”

“They surely can’t know every little thing that happens on Earth…” Dori objected.

“Oh, but they can,” said Ennis. “The Sensationalist is the property of a meta-human by the name of Flynt Brojj, who possesses super-senses. Well, he has the ability to enhance his senses. I understand he spends half his day peeping and listening in on celebrities around the Earth, and the other half of the day assigning out stories to his editors, who write them up in the most salacious ways possible. The magazine is a best-seller, not just on Earth, but on many Terran worlds in the Galaxy.”

“I’ve ignored the magazine most of my life,” said Dori. “I’m kind of offended to be a subject in its pages.”

“We might still ameliorate the damage a little,” said Ennis. “Is there anyone you want to inform personally, perhaps before the news gets to them another way?”

“I wonder,” said Dori, “could you take a half-day after Transformations today to go visit the staff at Iridium House?”

“Oh, I think that can be arranged,” said Ennis. “I’ll need to get down to the office early this morning to get is all set up with Bunny.”

“Thank you,” said Dori, and rewarded him with a kiss-- a reward that was becoming quite common these days.

CHAPTER TWO: IRIDIUM HOUSE

Reges Questar dropped them off just outside the gates of the mansion. It was about a quarter-mile stroll up the path through the grounds to the front door, and along the way they met the Xudarian gardener, Wonn Ez.
“Greetings, Ms. Dori,” said Wonn Ez. “We heard you would be returning to Iridium House soon.”

“Greetings to you, Wonn Ez,” said Ennis Jahnson. “It pleases me to see that you and your spouse are in good health. Are your children well-grown?”

Wonn Ez nodded his bird-like head. “Yes, thank you. I expect they will be taking names soon! All except my youngest, who is scarcely a fledgling.”

“How many brothers has she?” asked Ennis Jahnson?

“Two,” said Wonn Ez. “You know are customs, Ennis Jahnson? Do you speak Xudaran, as well?”

Ennis Jahnson laughed. “No, my human larynx is too poorly evolved to speak your language. But I do enjoy the songs of your people.”

“I would be honored to have you and Ms. Dori visit my family at our home this evening,” said Wonn Ez. “If such a thing is possible.”

“You live in the nearest Xudarian community?” asked Ennis Jahnson. “We will be there.”

“Yes, you will be eagerly expected,” said Wonn Ez. “There, you may hear a song of my people.”

Dori walked away puzzled. “Well, you certainly impressed my gardener,” she told Ennis. “Of course, I don’t know how, or why. You seemed to know a great deal about him and his family. Had you met before?”

“No, but I spent several months on Xudar, and am somewhat familiar with the culture and social conventions. I knew that Wonn Ez was married, for he had taken a name-- no Xudarian does so until marriage, and both spouses take the same name. As he was working in your gardens, I knew that both he and his wife were well, as no Xudarian husband would leave the bedside of a sick wife, for any reason. I knew he had children, and that they were well-grown, because he had lost all the feathers on his head, which begin to thin at the birth of the first child. And it is a peculiarity of the Xudarians that the cease having children as soon as a daughter is born, so I knew his youngest was almost certainly a girl, and her older siblings must be all boys. There must be few Earth-folk who understand even this simple facts about Xudarian culture, if this meager knowledge won us an invitation to his home. It is a great honor. They will expect us around midnight, the usual time for receiving guests. I assumed we would be free then?”

“And he knew your name was Ennis Jahnson,” said Dori, “Which probably means everyone at Iridium house has read the article in the Sensationalist.

* * *

They were met at the front door by Mrs. McIlhenny, Iridium House’s butler and majordomo.

“Mrs. McIlhenny, my fiance, Ennis Jahnson,” said Dori.

“The man who owns a planet?” said Mrs. McIlhenny. “Quite a catch, Dori Aandraison.”

“I also own two small moons,” said Ennis Jahnson. “Although one is artificial. But to tell the truth, I am only a humble franchisee of Polamar Hotels.”

“Yes, but twenty of them,” said Mrs. McIlhenny. “Don’t just stand there, Dori, come inside your own home-- yours, at least, for a little while longer.”

“I suppose that you have already been contacted by the Trust?” said Dori. “Are Irv’s parents moving back in?”

“Oh, no, dear,” said Mrs. McIlhenny. “Iridium House is going to your cousin Lesley and his family.”

“Oh…,” said Dori. “Have you heard from them recently? They were so kind to me when we first lived here… We somehow lost touch after Irv passed… It was as great a shock to them as to me, I suppose… Do you think it would insult their son’s memory if I, well, sent them a wedding invitation?”

“Oh, good luck finding them, my dear,” said Mrs. McIlhenny. “They picked up and abandoned Earth just after Niedrich came to power. No one’s seen them, really, for years. Every once in awhile there is a large cash withdrawal from the Interplanetary Bank or Ventura or some galactic backwater, but nobody really knows what they’re up to. There are rumors, of course. Some say they’re working for the ICC, or even the Dark Circle, but it’s all a great mystery.”

“Oh, well, you and all the staff will be coming to the wedding, won’t you?” Dori asked.

“If the Mistress of the House requires our presence, we are obligated to attend,” said Mrs. McIlhenny, giving Dori a wink. “Until you say ‘I do’, Iridium House is legally yours. Don’t let the Trust pressure you to sign off before then, and we will be there.”

“Thank you,” said Dori. “You will be staying on with the Lesley Polamars, then?”

“Oh, no, said Mrs. McIlhenny. “I’m ready to retire, and the arrival of a new family is the perfect opportunity. I told you I was training my replacement, my niece from Mars. Unless you or your cousin object, she will be taking over for me.” Mrs. McIlhenny reached into her apron pocket, and took out a small bell. Its ring was louder and more piercing than Dori and Ennis expected, but almost immediately a young woman stepped into the room. She was as young and slender as Mrs. McIlhenny was white-haired and stout.

“Pleased to meet you, Ms. Aandraison,” said the young woman.

“Dori, this is my niece, Miri McLeod,” said Mrs. McIlhenny. She is well-educated and well-trained, a gentlewoman’s gentlewoman, and she has some unusual talents particularly suited to the butling profession.”

“I had an accident with a 4th-dimensional projector my first year at University,” Miri McLeod explained. “I can walk through walls as easily as a Bgztlr, see through them, too. Well, around them, really. I am able to teleport short distances-- easily anywhere in Iridium House-- and I can maintain a personal gravity field, if I wish.”

“By which she means, she can walk up walls, or stand upside-down on the ceiling,” Mrs. McIlhenny interjected. “Not proper behavior in the presence of one’s employers, but terribly useful for cleanings and inspections.”

“You are used to being around meta-humans, are you not?” asked Miri McLeod. “I may not be so open about my abilities with the new owners, at least not at first.”

“From what I have heard of my cousin Lesley, you have nothing to worry about from him,” said Dori. “His wife, on the other hand, is said to be almost intolerably proper.”

“It is perfectly monstrous,' said Mrs. McIlhenny, 'the way people go about nowadays saying things against a person behind her back that are absolutely and entirely true.”

Dori laughed. “Mrs. McIlhenny, thank you for all you have done for me and Iridium House. I would like to have a word with the rest of the staff individually, without disrupting their routine too much.”

“Well, have some supper,” said Mrs. McIlhenny, “and you can speak to the Kitchen and the wait-staff. Would you like to order something special?”

“No, whatever is in the larder would be fine,” said Dori. “As long as it comes with dessert.”

* * *

If Mrs. McIlhenny was stout, Mrs. Brill, the cook, was positively Valkyric in proportion. Seven-foot-two, she had the muscular physique of a woman who prepared three meals each day for two or three dozen people, and the girth of one who tasted everthing before she served it.

“Your fiancée has an inefficient metabolism,” Mrs. Brill explained to Ennis. “She requires substantially more nourishment than average. I imagine it comes from living on an iceworld, and growing up generating a lot of extra heat. I suppose it take energy to maintain her continual rainbow aura as well. Make sure she gets at least three thousand calories a day, or I’m afraid she will waste away.”

This explained the disparity in the portions at dinner. Dori had nearly twice the food on her plate the Ennis was given. The Mrs. Brill’s two soux chefs also served as waitstaff. Small and somewhat exotic-looking, but still clearly human, they served efficiently, quickly, and quietly.

“I’m not even certain they speak Interlac,” Dori confided. The two nodded politely and silently when Dori informed them that they were invited, like the rest of the staff, to Jahnson’s Planet for the wedding.

* * *

Mrs. Banx, the housekeeper, was surrounded by a flock of robots varying sizes constantly coming and going. She used some sort of hand-held pad to dispatch the appropriate ‘bots throughout the estate to deal with regular and emergency cleaning.

“Have you set a date, dearie?” she asked.

“Well, no, not really,” said Dori.

“Well, give us plenty of time to RSVP,” said Mrs. Banx. “There is something that needs tending to every day at Iridium House; the staff will need to make arrangements. And we ought not to be gone too long. We all with you the best, though, Dori.”

They were interrupted by a young woman Dori did not know,

“Mrs. Banx… Oh, I’m sorry,” she stammered. “This is Ms. Aandraison, isn’t it?”

“I don’t think we’ve met,” Dori extended a hand.

“Ellyn McIlhenny, another of Kate’s nieces,” said Mrs. Banx. “Ms. McIlhenny, Ms. Aandraison. Ms. Aandraison, Ms. McilHenny.”

“I’m staying here while working on my M.D. at Ann Arbor,” Ellyn McIlhenny explained. “I think you gave my aunt your approval?”

“Oh, yes, I remember,” said Dori. “We had just never met, I don’t think? Don’t be shy. Mi casa es su casa, as they say in Latin.”







* * *

Mr. Robertson, whose only title was “Handyman”, and whose complete duties Dori could not entirely explain, was on vacation with his family, somewhere off-world. Dori and Ennis did leave him a personal holo, letting him know that he and his whole family would be invited to the wedding.

“Ennis, you’ve been awfully quiet,” Dori remarked.

“I admit to being a bit overwhelmed,” said Ennis. “How long has it been since you were last at Iridium House?”

“Oh, more than a Xolnaran year,” said Dori. “That would be two or three years, Earthtime.”

“And these people-- your staff-- have kept this house ready for your return, at any time, with or without notice?”

“Well, yes,” said Dori. “It’s my home. Well, not really mine; it technically belongs to the Polamar Trust. The staff are their employees, but Iridium House is assigned to me, as part of my stipend.”

“And how many of these private estates does the Trust own?” asked Ennis.

“I don’t know… there are around a thousand Polamar families, more or less, and each one has an estate assigned to them. Some are off-world. Some also live in one or the other of the hotels, or migrate between them, and they have staff assigned to those places, too.”

“But Iridium House is the staff’s home, too,” said Ennis. “Perhaps moreso even than yours: they are here every day, with their families as well. “

“Well, yes, that’s how it works,” said Dori. “I thought it was funny when I first moved in with Irv, having a dozen people to care for the four of us. His parents lived here then as well, although Iridium is so large we did not see much of one another without an appointment.”

“So the Trust employs… oh, twenty or thirty thousand people, to live in what is essentially their own home, keep it up, and entertain the occasional Polamar family member,” said Ennis.

“Oh, probably more that that. Iridium House has a comparatively small staff. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were fifty or sixty thousand staff and their families in all the estates scattered around the Galaxy.”

“But that’s the size of a small city!” Ennis exclaimed. “There are fairly large banks that don’t have a thousand employees.”

“Well, isn’t that what you are doing on Jahnson’s World?” asked Dori. “And what you intend to expand on on Jahnson’s Planet?”

“Yes, but I’m thinking my motives are philanthropic, and I own a whole sprocking planet! I cannot believe the Polamar Trust is housing all these families in luxury out of the goodness of their hearts. How much money do they have?”

Dori laughed. “The Polamar family is old. There have been far more genealogical lines that have left the family than there are today. And of course they have money. They have been hoteliers and restaurateurs for twelve centuries. Haven’t you ever seen Donovan Xocolatl on Mars?”

“No, I have to admit I haven’t,” said Ennis.

* * *

An hour before midnight, they left on foot for what Ennis described as the Xudaran ghetto. Dori was surprised to discover that this section of Metropolis lay only about five kilometers from Iridium House. The structure of the houses was entirely different from anything she had seen on Earth or in her travels. Hexagons played an important role in the architecture, and the streets weaved and meandered without seeming purpose. Alternating floors of the buildings were open or enclosed, and there were balconies and balustrades everywhere. Many of the inhabitants were entirely visible in the open air. Sky-bridges connected the structures, and as the town was built on a hilly area, it was possible to suddenly find oneself on one of these bridges, where a moment before the path was solid ground. The air was filled with the chirping, chittering and cheeping of birds, which Dori suspected were the Xudarans themselves.

Ennis stopped to speak with one elderly Xudaran sitting on a porch.

“We have an invitation to the home of Wonn Ez, but have foolishly forgotten to ask the way,” said Ennis.

The old Xudaran cawed a greeting-- or, perhaps, it was laughter-- and said, “His home is nearby; the Chorus will guide you.” Ennis nodded, as though this was the answer he had expected. Dori now realized that the birdsong was not entirely random. The background music became louder and more harmonious when they were on the right track, and more quiet and cacophonous as they missed their way, judging by Ennis’ changes of direction. She realized that their progress must be being closely watched by the entire Xudaran population. She felt an uneasiness at this monitoring of their private visit.

“Xudarans are far more communal than Terrans, and have a perhaps unfamiliar sense of privacy,” Ennis explained, perhaps sensing her unease. “Social bonds are extremely important to them, and familial affection transcends human experience. Widowhood is at best a very temporary condition; when one partner passes away, the other will not be far behind. It is now merely social custom, there is something biological, even psychic, in the bond between spouses. They take one name at marriage, and are, in a very real sense, nearly the same person. There were any number of Xudaran Green Lanterns: the old Guardians had tremendous respect for their race. But when one of the Xudaran Green Lanterns died, even thousands of parsecs away, his or her spouse immediately fell deathly ill, and very often had passed away before the news got back to Xudar. They are quite literally unable to live without each other.”

The background choir suddenly fell silent, and Ennis called out, “Wonn Ez?”

A Xudaran couple appeared from beneath the house before them. They were so alike in appearance, dress, and demeanor that Dori had difficulty at first distinguishing her gardener from his wife. “Ennis-Jahnson-and-Dori-Aandraison,” said Wonn Ez, as though the ten syllables were a single name. “You honor me and my family by accepting my invitation to our home. Please, come upstairs.”

They navigated a narrow winding staircase to the second floor. “Please, Wonn Ez, I am an ignorant sckrawk, but am curious to learn your ways in your home. Please excuse my rudeness, and correct my misbehaviour, as you would a little child.”

The two Xudarans gave a caw, which Dori was now sure was laughter. “We had heard you were a diplomat,” said one. “Very well, tonight you are our foster-children.”

Ennis gasped, and shot a meaningful look at Dori. This was important, she realized.

They were introduced to the two sons of Wonn Ez, well-grown, the very image of their parents, except that the area between their head-fins and pointed ears was covered with lush, multi-colored plumage. The greeted their guests warmly, and guided them to a table on the floor. Their was a Xudaran girl already seated there, a miniature of her brothers, yet somehow obviously feminine. If she had been human, Dori would have guessed her to be seven or eight years old. After they were all seated on the floor on low cushions, Wonn Ez-- the gardener, Dori was sure-- produced a silver bottle.

“This is Tranya,” said his wife. “I hope you relish it as much as we.”

It was hot and sweet and fruity, and must have had quite a high alcohol content, as Dori began to feel tipsy after only a few sips.

“You must realize,” said Ennis, “We do not wish to offend, but we cannot finish our cups. Human metabolism has a far lower tolerance for Tranya than the Xudarans.”

All five Xudarans made the same short, quiet caw Dori had heard before. “Then we must sing,” said Wonn Ez, and the five Xudarans began a complex, trilling, flute-like song. After a short time, Ennis joined in, taking a bass line more appropriate for human vocal chords, but still somehow blending in with the song. The family of Wonn Ez seemed to change the song to accommodate him.

“The Xudaran language is not Interlac, but includes Interlac as a subset,” Ennis explained to Dori. “Don’t be shy. Your song to them is a gift, whatever it may be.”

Dori had had Donovan Xocolatl on her mind earlier in the day, so she began the aria “My Hero, I Love You Only”. The Xudaran’s song changed again, a virtual orchestral accompaniment improvised in the little room.

“That is beautiful,” said Wonn Ez. “And a perfect sentiment for your anticipated happy time.”

“Ah, but you must know that we Humans do not truly understand Love,” said Ennis.

“I know that Ms. Dori survived the death of her husband, although it caused her much sorrow,” said Wonn Ez.

“And my first wife,” said Ennis, “Ceased to love me.”

The Xudaran girl stared at him wide-eyed, as though he had told her that the sky and the sea had changed places.

“And yet you still aspire to True Love, although it is, for the most part, unnatural to you,” said Wonn Ez. “That in itself is admirable.”

“We have an old saying,” said Ennis. “‘To truly love each other: not one couple in a century has that chance, no matter what the story books say.’ Sadly, that is the lot of humanity.”

Before they left, the Xudaran family embraced Dori and Ennis, and gave them a full bottle of Tranya with them. On the way out of the city, Dori heard “My Hero, I Love You Only” intermingled with the rest of the Xudaran city-song. It was being altered like an ultracomplex jazz improvisation, but the tune was still recognizable.

“You know, in the play, that song is meant ironically,” said Dori.

“Really?” said Ennis. “Well, the Xudarans are perfectly well acquainted with irony as well. You, for example, your speciesist neighbors object to your employing a member of a race with superior emotional intellect as your gardener. And you can say that they adopted you-- us-- as family for a night. That is no small honor in their culture.”

CHAPTER TWO-AND-A-HALF: BACKSTORY

Donovan Xocolatl on Mars is a book and operetta which tells the story of a Selenite mercenary who joins the Martian Colonies Civil War in the 28th century on the side of the Margaritiferines against the Schiaparelli.

When a freak sunspot storm forces a Margaritiferine retreat into Schiaparelli territory, Donovan seeks shelter in the boudoir of Lady Rachamael, the daughter of a Schiaparelli duke.

At first fearful, the Rachamael warms to her bedraggled, uninvited guest, especially after discovering that his bandoleros are filled not with auxiliary ammunition, but with foodstuffs, primarily chocolate. On the other hand, she is somewhat haughty when she discovers that it was Captain Spaulding, her fiancé, who set Donovan’s troops to rout.

Rachamael helps Donovan escape, a peace is ultimately declared (with very favorable terms to the Margaritiferines), and several months later, Rachamael is surprised to discover that Donovan Xocolatl has re-appeared, in the role of a representative of his family’s Lunar Hotels-- a peacetime investment opportunity in which both Captain Spaulding and Rachamael’s father are interested.

In the climactic scene, Rachamael threatens Donovan, promising to reveal to her father the details of their midnight encounter, and attempting to extort him into marrying her, intending to break her engagement with Captain Spaulding.

Donovan mocks her, telling her that she and Spaulding are a far better match. Rachamael presses the issue, noting that both her father and Spaulding are rich and powerful men who could ruin not just Donovan, but his whole family.

Donovan then recites a partial inventory of his father’s holdings, revealing that although Rachamael’s father is a Martian Duke, and Spaulding a decorated Martian war hero, the Selenite Xocolatl family could buy them and all their assets many times over.

Donovan, Spaulding, and the Duke come to a favorable agreement, the two Martians making an investment in the Lunar Hotels-- small, in Donovan’s accounting, vast in the eyes of Spaulding and the Duke.

Lady Rachamael marries Spaulding, and resigns herself to her fate as minor aristocracy in a Galaxy far larger than she had previously imagined.

Dori portrayed Lady Rachamael’s Lady-in-Waiting in a Xolanran High School production of the operetta.

(Based on “Arms and the Man” by Shaw, and “The Chocolate Soldier” by Strauss. “Donovan Xocolatl’ are Welsh and Aztec names, meaning together, ‘Dark Chocolate Warrior’.)

More information than you wanted to know.

CHAPTER THREE: KHUNDS

“Ennis,” said Dori, when the two were back in their apartments in the Schwarzwald Hotel on Jahnson’s World. “I have been thinking about who we ought to invite to our wedding.”

“So has it been decided that there is to be a wedding?” said Ennis. “I thought that that was still in the process of negotiation.”

“I am in favor of continued negotiation,” said Dori. “And things are looking promising. But I want to talk to you about… Well, let me start from the beginning.”

“It seems to me I have lived a number of lives,” Dori continued. “And one particularly intense period of my life was the Second Khundish Invasion of Xolnar. I believe my powers and emotions were at their most intense then, defending my Homeworld from the Khunds, rather than simply my inheritance from Kirt Niedrigh, as I did with the Subs.”

“There were a great many from the United Planets who aided us in our cause; many gave their lives in that war. In particular, Charles Taine and Luornu Durgo-Taine served as generals, coordinating the various battles all over Xolnar, planning and evaluating strategy, and serving themselves on the front lines. They are personal heroes to me. I hold them in tremendous esteem.”

“I know that when we were all much younger, they were your instructors at the Legion Academy. While you were only there a few months, I wonder if you think it would be inappropriate to invite them to our wedding? I mean, do we… you… know them well enough?”

“There is a tremendous bond between anyone who ever served in any incarnation of the Legion,” said Ennis. “And a great mutual respect. Remember that several of the so-called Substitutes served honorably as full-fledged Legionnaires. Why don’t you give them a call, and gauge their feelings about this?”

“Oh, I couldn’t,” said Dori. “I would be much too intimidated. Lydda and Rokk and Imra and Garth are one thing: I’ve known them socially for years. But the two Generals… do you suppose you could contact them for me?”

Ennis meditated for a few moments. “No, I think not,” he said at last. “If you are too daunted to call them, write them a formal letter of inquiry. I think you will be surprised at their response.”

“You’re going to make me do this myself, then?” asked Dori.

“It is for your own good, believe me,” said Ennis. He paused thoughtfully. “Although I never could understand the Khunds,” he continued, changing the subject. “Or what they would want with Xolnar, so much so that they would invade your world twice.”

“Oh, Khunds are easy to understand, if you look at it from a diplomatic perspective,” said Dori. “Easy to understand, but almost impossible to deal with. The thing is, they are free-market capitalists in the extreme. Social Darwinists, even. They make Ayn Rand look like Karl Marx. Each Khund is an island, entire of himself. All relations are looked at in terms of contracts-- in fact, they have about a hundred words for the various types of contracts: obligations of slave to master, master to slave, employer and employees, obligations between equals, family members, and on and on. The breaking of a contract or an oath is tantamount to attempted murder in their culture, and is punished as such. And reasonably so, as a Khund will not hesitate to murder to get gain, even the fellow Khund whose contract with him expired yesterday. There really is no “Khundish Empire”, although they like to characterize it as such. No one speaks for the Khunds as a whole; there are only isolated groups of Khunds, bound by individual contractual obligations, and in competition with every other group of Khunds in Space. And, of course, those alliances are always shifting. Glorith managed to put almost one entire Khundish planet under her control, only because of her tremendous power, and even then, there were insurgencies.”

“But why were the Khunds so interested in Xolnar?” Ennis asked.

“The pluridium mines. It’s a matter of their technology,” said Dori. “Pluridium is used in the United Planets as a nanoscopic ingredient alloys used in the hulls of star cruisers, and other construction which requires extreme tensile strength with low mass density. But Khundish technology has only advanced to the point where they are able to extract energy from matter-anti-matter annihilation. Of course, that’s a very violent reaction, and needs something to mediate it. The Khunds crystallize pluridium, and use these ‘pluridium crystals’ to mediate the energy production in their spaceships, and on the ground, as well. Of course, the crystals degrade and burn up quickly, so they need to be replaced frequently. Essentially, they consume pluridium as fuel, and and constantly looking for new sources.”

“That seems incredibly wasteful,” said Ennis. “I would think that providing the Khunds with United Planets technology would stabilize their society, and in the end be beneficial to the U.P.”

“This has been a project the U.P. Diplomatic Corps has been working on for decades,” said Dori. “But they have been unable to find a coalition of Khunds that have been willing or able to accept the technology. Of course, we want concessions, which are difficult enough to negotiate, but every other Khund knows that the first group to acquire this technology will have a significant advantage over all the rest, and… well, there are a number of Khundish assassins guilds.”

“You seem to understand the Khunds well,” said Ennis. “You are quite the diplomat.”

“Just because I understand them, doesn’t mean I don’t hate them,” said Dori.

CHAPTER FOUR: GIRL TALK

Ennis had gone down to his small office to work on the arrangements for the grand opening of Jahnson’s Planet. Dori sat in a comfortably stuffed recliner, her red aura singeing the upholstery. She needed to talk to someone.

When Judith Gideon saw the state Dori was in, she immediately gave her husband Xiphias full responsibility for their four children, and accompanied Dori back to her suite, just two doors down in the Schwarzwald Hotel.

“Dori, what in the world is wrong?” asked Judith Gideon. “I have never seen your red aura burning so bright. You don’t have to tell me you’re angry about something.”

“It’s so absurd,” said Dori through burning tears. “I was talking to Ennis about my experiences with the Khunds. I really hate them, by the way. I hate what they did to Xolnar. I blame them for the hardship so many people suffer on that world. I blame them for all the death and destruction in that pointless invasion. I blame them for my father’s death, although I know that is probably unrealistic. I can’t keep thinking about it, and its just making me angrier and angrier.”
“That’s not all, of course,” said Dori. “It’s just… it wasn’t this way with Irv. I was so happy with him, my aura disappeared. I literally could not feel anything else. Irveang was always so generous-- after all, he bought me a Castle in Spain as an engagement gift! And Ennis is generous, too-- he has his charities, and I know he honestly cares for his employees-- but he’s not generous with himself, you know? There is always something in reserve-- he’s so deliberate about everything. I’m afraid I’m making a terrible mistake. But I don’t know! And that’s just making me angry with myself. Oh, Judith, what am I going to do?”

“Do you love him?” said Judith.

“I think so,” said Dori. “I mean, not like I was in love with Irv, but… yes, in a different sort of way. Maybe I’m just older now.” The scarlet flames of her aura flickered with violet sparks.

“If Ennis Jahnson died tomorrow, would you wish you had married him yesterday?” Judith asked.

Dori opened her eyes in shock. “Don’t say that! Don’t even suggest it, not even as a joke!”

“I’m not joking,” said Judith. “That’s what made me decide to marry Xiphias. I couldn’t imagine my life without him, and I knew I would regret it if I didn’t marry him, and lost the chance. From what you tell me, you don’t age like normal people. Ordinary people, I mean. So someday, if you marry Ennis, he will be an old man, and you will still be a young woman. Would you be willing to give him up into the care of someone else?”

“No,” said Dori. “No, I would want to take care of him myself. Feed him, bathe him, change his… Oh, Judith, thank you, but you have to go!” Dori’s red aura flickered out, replaced by a rainbow cascade of pastels.

“Ennis, can I interrupt you?” she asked over the wallscreen.

“Certainly, Dori,” said Ennis. “What is it?”

“How soon after Jahnson’s Planet opens could you host our wedding there?”

“Realistically?” said Ennis. “About two weeks, assuming we don’t invite more than a thousand or two.”

“Then let’s set the date as a month from today,” said Dori. “Thirty-one days, whatever day that is. If… if you still want to,” she added.

Dori was afraid if Ennis smiled any more broadly, the top of his head would fall off. “As you wish,” was all he said.

“I’ll probably need to hire a secretary to keep me focused,” said Dori.

“If you don’t ask Doctor Bernardine Chandrasekhar to be your Matron-of-Honor, she will be terribly offended. And she has a dozen secretaries.”

“I love you, Ennis,” said Dori.

“And I love you, Dori Aandraison,” said Ennis, and went back to work.

CHAPTER FIVE: THE LETTER

To:
General Charles Foster Taine
General Lluornu Durgo-Taine
Barracks 3N-IV
Terran Colony 117
Wondil IX

From:
Dori Aandraison
Schwarzwald Hotel
Jahnson’s World

Dear Generals Taine:
I am sure you do not know me. Please forgive the presumption; I mean no disrespect. My name is Dori Aandraison. I am a native of Xolnar, and we have something a little in common: I was, briefly, a member of the Legion of Substitute Heroes. Also, I believe you know my fiancé, Ennis Jahnson, who trained at the Legion Academy when you were instructors there.
Although we have never met personally, I know you well by reputation. Your command of the troops on Xolnar, and the subsequent defeat of the Khunds during the Second Invasion are the stuff of legend. I served in the resistance on Xolnar at the time, and witnessed some of your strategy first-hand.
Ennis and I are to be married soon. The purpose of this letter is to inquire if it would be inappropriate for me to invite your family to attend the occasion. Formal invitations will be sent within the week; please let me know if I would not be overly presumptuous in sending one.

Sincerely,

Dori Aandraison

* * *

Dori was surprised when her wallscreen lit up almost immediately after sending the message.

“Dori, we know you perfectly well,” said Lluornu Durgo-Taine. “Don’t you remember? We spoke to your fiancé briefly a couple of years ago, while we were visiting Lightning Ring Farms for Christmas. Congratulations, by the way!”

“And please,” said Chuck Taine, moving into the background. “Don’t call us Generals. That was a field promotion; neither of us actually ever made it farther that Lieutenant Colonel.”

“How is Ennis?” asked Luornu. “We still remember all our Academy students fondly. He was the first to be specifically enrolled in the Academy by the Science Police.”

“Well, we’re very happy,” said Luornu. “We wanted to tell everyone the news ourselves. but that Brojj person has spoiled it for us, I guess.”

“Oh, neither of us would be interested in reading a gossip rag like the Sensationalist,” said Chuck, winking at his wife. “Tell us the news yourself!.”

“What? Oh… er… Guess what?” said Dori, “Ennis Jahnson and I are engaged to be married.”

Chuck wooped. “Congratulations!” said Luornu. “When is the big day?”

“Ummm… about a month,” said Dori. “So you would be interested in receiving an invitation?”

“Yes,” said Lluornu. “By all means, send us an invitation. We would move Heaven and Wondil IX to be there.”

“Really?” said Dori. “I was afraid it might be inappropriate for us to invite you to the wedding. It’s not like you are close family.”

“Dori!” said Chuck. “The Legion is family. All the Legions. You should invite us, and all the other retired Legionnaires and their families as well. The current Legion, too, and the Substitutes, and all the current and former members of the Legion Academy, if you have room.”

“Ennis owns a planet,” said Dori. “Two planets, by the time we’ll be married. And he’s used to entertaining as many as forty thousand tourists in his Forest Parks in a single day. I think we can manage.”

“Hmmm… we will probably need to leave the twins at home,” said Lluornu. “I’m sure Ennis would like to see them… but maybe your wedding day isn’t quite the time.”

Dori laughed. “Jahnson’s World more than a thousand employees,” she said. “Plus robots and Probes, and if we need more, there are services to hire them. I think we can accomodate your twins.”

“I don’t know,” said Lluornu. “The Lloyd and Aaron both have the power to both triplicate and bounce…”

“I’m sure we can handle them,” said Dori. “There are probably quite a few other Legion kids, of various ages? Maybe we should set up a children’s room in the hotel.”

“Please send us an invitation as soon as possible.,” said Luornu.

“We are looking forward to it,” said Chuck.

CHAPTER SIX: INVITATIONS

Bernardine Chandrasekhar, M.D., more commonly known as Bunny, was indeed enthusiastic about helping Dori prepare for the wedding.

The hardest part was putting together the guest list; Dori and Ennis spent two days making sure they did not leave anyone out. Ennis was in favor of inviting every employee of Jahnson’s World, but Bunny pointed out that to those less well-known to Dori and Ennis, it would seem like a required appearance from an employer. Finally they narrowed it down to the Hotel Managers, the Hospital Administrative Boards, and a few close personal acquaintances. Everyone else got a three-day holiday, as Jahnson’s Planet was to be shuttered. The robots and android Probes®, of course, would be required to serve at the reception, and Ennis even arranged to have additional staff ferryed in from off-world.

The invitations went out en masse twenty-two days before the wedding, and Bunny’s staff was occupied sorting through the RSVPs.

CHAPTER SEVEN: A DOCTOR’S APPOINTMENT

Bunny was appalled that Dori did not have a regular OB/GYN specialist, and had never really gone for regular medical checkups of any kind, since she had left the Ambassadorial Service. She was immediately referred to Doctor Foster, the staff OB/GYN at the Schwarzwald Forest Park Hospital.

Doctor Esther Foster was something over a hundred years old, with wrinkled-walnut skin and thinning pure white hair. She moved like a ballerina.

“You’re not Saturnian, are you?” asked Dori, as the Doctor went through the standard examination.

“No, but my husband is. A psychologist. A little over a decade ago, there was a big shake-up on Labyrinth, and both of us were let go. Jahnson’s World was just opening up, so we made the leap. Not quite as interesting as our former work, but it keeps us in succotash. Now, I suppose at some point you will be wanting to have children?”

“I think Ennis and I are past child-bearing age,” said Dori. “I’m older than I look.”

“I’d be some doctor if I couldn’t tell your age after a complete physical,” said Doctor Foster. “But you have the metagene-enhanced physiology of a woman half your age, and bound to stay that way, as far as I can see. Besides, age make no difference. All it takes is a couple of skin cells, rent an incubator for nine months, and -poof- anybody can have offspring. Honestly, Dori, I’d think that at your age you would know where babies come from.”

“Oh, er… I was thinking of the ordinary way,” said Dori. “The classic method.”

“Oh, is that how young people think of it now?” said Doctor Foster. “For five hundred years, humanity has gotten along perfectly well with in vitro fertilization, ectogenesis, and genetic optimization, then just about the time I graduated from Medical School, everyone wants to have these home-brewed, artisanal babies, like we are all on some backward Colonial World. Well, the old way seems much more democratic to me. Even heard of Jaquaan-Terran hybrids. And a lot less trouble, from start to finish. More predictable results. But these fads come and go. The pendulum will swing the other way again.”

The Doctor opened a drawer, and pulled out a box with two hyposprays in it. One was marked with a fuchsia-pink line, the other a pastel teal blue.

“This is Cure,” she said. “One dose will shut down the Vaccine nanites for about thirty-five days. I suggest when you are ready, you take it the same day of the month, every month. On the first, or your wedding anniversary, some day that’s easy to remember. One for you, one for Ennis. There are only three doses in each spray; Ennis’ andrologist is likely to give him another set. That should last you six months.”
“You will probably experience a little flash of euphoria with each dose; that is perfectly normal. There may also be a slight aphrodisiac effect. Also normal. But be prepared. Don’t take it more than once a month; Cure is a Schedule II drug, and can be highly addictive if abused. After half a year, come back to me, and I’ll dispense another prescription. Eighteen months on Cure, and regular exercise, and you ought to be expecting a little one with nearly 90% certainty.”

“Thank you,” said Dori. “We really hadn’t thought about it before now.”

“Well, think about it, and have a good, long talk about it,” said Doctor Foster. “You’re supposed to be getting married in a few weeks, and this ought to have been one of the topics of discussion from the beginning. Why is it you young people rush into things so? You have your whole life ahead of you. Take time to get it right.”

Dori considered herself appropriately chastised.

CHAPTER SEVEN-POINT-FIVE: IVY - MORE BACKSTORY

During a particularly low point in his life, Ral Benem spent several months on Rimbor. While there, he entered a relationship with Jan Jor, the erstwhile ‘False-Pretenses-Kid’, although he did not recognize her. She recognized him, however, and was thrilled to be in a relationship with a Legionnaire, albeit a Substitute.

Ral and Jan became heavily involved in the underground drug culture on Rimbor, sampling such pharmaceuticals as Norgine, Thiotimoline, Cure, and Dot.

Ral eventually left Rimbor, and returned to Mardru, where he spent some time in a clinic going through a variety of withdrawal experiences. Jan was pregnant, but did not let Ral know. He did not learn that Ivés “Ivy” Jor was his daughter until her entry into the Legion Academy, when automated genetic matching revealed the truth. Jo Nah and Kent Shakespeare had known from the beginning that Ivy was Jan Jor’s daughter, but were unaware of who her father was.

Ivés has a poor relationship with her mother, who is in and out of prison on charges ranging from drug-running to space-piracy. Her relationship with her father is hardly warmer, although she has taken the name Ivés Jor Benem. Her ‘real’ family, as far as she is concerned, is the extended family on Lightning Ring Farms.

What fun. I love Dori's staff. Great seeing Chuck and Lu. I am excited for the wedding.