Chapter 12 - Deoblo 12

  Angela did not want to teleport down to Janet’s house, because she would need to take some of the Misenall drug, and she did not intend to take it until after this child was born. Ronnie kissed Angela’s cheek and said he would be back in a few hours with their guests. The computer spoke and told Ronnie that it was going to try to get Angela to sit in her recliner, read, and rest for a couple hours if it could manage to sweet talk her into listening. Angela said, “Computer, right now you do not need to speak any kind words or sweet talk me. I am very tired, and will take your advice and nap for an hour or so right after Ronnie leaves.”

  As Ronnie teleported down to Janet’s house, Angela walked into her bedroom and sat down in her recliner. She picked up her book to read, but soon decided she was too sleepy to read. She covered herself in a blanket, asked the computer to dim the lights just a little, and quickly fell asleep.

  She was certain she had only slept for a few minutes, but she woke to Ronnie kissing her on the forehead. She reached up to him, kissed him hard on the lips and said, “Hello husband, I was just dreaming about you. I believe I need a little of your attention tonight, if you would be so kind. My dreams seem to have turned very romantic, today.”

  Ronnie said, “Our guests are here when you get up and around.” Angela quickly got up, brushed her teeth and headed out to see the girls. When Angela walked into the kitchen, Ronnie was serving three cups of steaming hot chocolate. Ronnie looked at his wife and asked if she and baby would like a chocolate fix? Angela thought about that for a moment, then decided the baby in her belly would love a little chocolate, as long as it was not too hot. Ronnie prepared her a cup while Angela hugged on Janet and the girls.

  Frederica was sitting real close to Angela and her arm was against Angela’s side. Suddenly, Angela’s belly wiggled a little, and Frederica said, “I think I just got kicked in the arm.” Angela said, “I am sorry my baby is being naughty, if something puts a little pressure on her, she seems to kick at the pressure.” Frederica, said, “Angela, could I touch your stomach and see if the baby will kick me again?” Angela quickly agreed, and the baby kicked again as Frederica gently pushed with her fingers. Frederica said, “I am sorry to disturb you, little darling, I will leave you alone so you can sleep.”

  Angela began giggling at the way Frederica talked to the unborn child; it reminded her of the way her own mother spoke to her sometimes when she was very young. As they sat and talked, Angela asked Ronnie where the girls would sleep while they were here, and Ronnie said, “Maybe you girls should create a couple more rooms in The Empress. I know the computer would love to help the four of you, and if you need any assistance, just yell.” Angela smiled, stood up, and asked the girls if they would like to create their own rooms. They quickly stood up and followed Angela into the ready room.

  Angela sat down in the pilot’s chair, Janet in the copilot’s seat, and the two girls pulled up chairs behind them. As Angela talked to the computer and had a floor plan displayed of The Empress, she said that she would start by duplicating the dimensions of her own room and bathroom. Then she created the entrance doors from the hallways. She placed two beds in the first room and one bed in the second room, then a monitor in each. Dressers for their belongings, and then had the girls tell her how to arrange the beds, reclining chairs, dressers, and all the other girl things they needed. Frederica said, “Since we have went this far, can we add a second bathroom to our room?” Angela quickly drew in a second bathroom, and added a bathing tub for Frederica, instead of the shower. With the drawings complete, Monica said, “Now that you have drawn the area, who builds the rooms?”

  Angela explained that the computer would do the actual construction because he could build the rooms and furnish them, in just seconds. Monica just laughed, but Frederica knew how these things worked, and asked her sister to join her in the hallway and watch the construction. Angela spoke to the computer, asked if she had properly drawn the rooms, and if he could construct the rooms as drawn. The computer assured Angela that everything met protocol and it would reconfigure The Empress as soon and the paper work was complete. Angela saw a screen come up asking for her password to be typed. Angela leaned over the keyboard to hide her keystrokes and entered the proper password. The computer announced that construction would commence in thirty seconds.

  The girls opened the door from the kitchen, just as the hallway extended in length by seven meters and the two new bedroom doors appeared. Angela clapped her hands and giggled; creating rooms like this was something she really enjoyed. Angela waited for the computer to tell her the construction was complete, and then she walked to the first door and opened it. When she stepped inside, she walked over and checked out the bathroom, ran water in the sink to see if it worked, then sat down in the recliner and just smiled. Frederica walked to the next door, opened it, stepped inside and the girls heard her laughing. When everyone walked into the girl’s room to see what had tickled Frederica, they realized she was holding a rather large, Teddy Bear. When they looked around, there was another bear on Monica’s bed, only a slightly different color. Monica ran to the bed, picked up her bear and said, “Thank you computer, I love this bear. It was nice of you to help us feel welcome.”

  The computer quickly charmed Monica with his welcome speech and the sound of her favorite song that began to play in the speakers beside her bed. Frederica asked her mother if she could take a hot bath. Just as the words left her mouth, they all heard the water begin running in the tub in her private bath. When she stepped into the bathroom, the computer explained that it had provided a variety of bath oils and soaps for her bathing pleasure. Frederica tested the water temperature with her finger and began removing her clothing.

  Angela reminded Frederica that there was one easily embarrassed male on this vessel, and to try to not shock her uncle too badly with their nudity, and then shut the door from the hallway into the girl’s room. Angela had no more than shut the door when there was knock on the door. Frederica smiled, moved her now naked body into the bathroom and shut the door. Angela said, “Who is it that knocks on the door to this feminine chamber of dreams?” The response on the other side of the door was quick and to the point. “It is I, the master of this vessel that you damsels have locked out. I protest this treatment and the insult to my ownership of all that resides within this vessel.” Angela opened the door, stepped into the hallway, kissed Ronnie on the lips, and said, “No males allowed,” stepped back into the bedroom and shut the door, leaving Ronnie standing in the hallway.

  Janet and Monica were now laughing. Janet sat down in the recliner with tears of laughter running down her face. Monica walked to the door, opened it just a little and said, “There are sometimes naked women in this area so be very careful to always knock.” Then opened the door, took her uncle’s hand and escorted him into the room. She quickly showed him the Teddy Bears they had received from the computer. Angela smiled and winked at Ronnie. The computer had already told Ronnie that the girl’s rooms were complete, that Angela had privately requested Teddy Bears for the girls and that Frederica was naked and about to take a bath. Ronnie had asked the computer to keep a careful watch over Angela and their guests while they visited, so they were all safe, and that he, being the only male did not embarrass a skimpily clad female aboard his vessel.

  Ronnie explained to the guests that The Empress would shortly be traveling to a place called the Open Market to pick up some supplies for a customer they would be visiting in a couple days. Ronnie said, “When we get to the Open Market, I would like everyone to come to the ready room, if you would. The Open Market is one of the objects in the cosmos that is very spectacular and a must see on your first voyage. When we shop at the Open Market, I have ordered up some food for supper tonight. We will be doing a one-day layover in a resting area near the Open Market and then I would like to take you all to another universe, and show you a planet that you will never forget. We will visit the depths of the pl
anet’s oceans and look at the sea life while standing inside a glass room.”

  Janet asked Angela if she had ever seen these places. Angela explained that she had seen the Open Market, and Ronnie was right, you have to see it to believe it. However, the planet with a glass room below the ocean she had not seen. Then Angela asked Ronnie if they would need to teleport down to the planet. Ronnie said, “No, I do not want you taking the Misenall medicine until after the baby is born, so I arranged for a travel membrane to join with us and take us on a sightseeing adventure for the day.” Angela put her head on Ronnie’s shoulder, kissed his neck and whispered to him, “Thank you my husband for thinking of our baby’s and my safety. I love you.”

  Then Frederica opened the door a tiny bit and looked out of the bathroom. Ronnie quickly said he had some work to do, and closed the door as he stepped into the hallway. Frederica came into the room and asked what the name of the planet was that Ronnie was taking them to visit. Angela said she was not sure, but she could ask the computer all those questions any time she wished. Angela then spoke to the computer, “Computer, have I properly introduced you to Frederica, Monica and Janet?” The computer spoke an answer to Angela’s question, “Angela, I require no formal introductions, but I would like our female guests to be comfortable asking questions of me whenever they wish, and to feel free to request my services whenever they need assistance while here on The Empress.” Angela spoke again to the computer, “Computer, Frederica just asked me the name of the planet that Ronnie said we would be visiting, could you give us some information about the planet and its entities.”

  The computer began its narrative: “Good afternoon ladies, the planet Ronnie spoke of is located in a very distant universe, known as Universe Number Three or simply G2. The Galaxy’s name is Tooken, and the planet’s name is Deoblo 12. The entity that lives there are the Swims’, named thus because they live under the surface of the oceans. They are a very wonderful entity and you will all enjoy being in their presence. They also have an incredibly high level of technology, which will certainly amaze you. The Swims’ created the sea life viewing Ronnie was speaking of by designing a travel membrane that can become transparent like a pane of glass, just as I create a viewing port for humans to observe what is outside of this vessel. The swims’ transport their visitors down to the oceans floor, and then they change the membrane’s configuration from opaque to transparent so you are literally standing inside a bubble under the ocean. Ronnie says it is a very incredible thing to see and you will all be very excited.”

  Then the computer spoke to Angela and informed her that they were arriving at the Open Market. Angela hustled the girls off to the ready room and then seated them; Frederica in the copilot’s seat, Monica in a temporary seat between the front seats, then Janet and Angela sat down behind the three. Angela spoke to the computer and requested as much viewing area as the computer could manage, and the entire control console area and ready room became transparent to the outside. Ronnie then heard the sound that made him smile. The sound came from four females, all taking a deep breath at the exact same time; a sound he knew meant they were all speechless, and unable to express verbally the sensations they felt and saw as they sat with the cosmos all around them. Ronnie pointed ahead to the rapidly approaching object that was increasing in size quickly at their present speed. Then The Empress began to slow and to maneuver itself towards the tunnel opening of the Open Market. The girls could see five or more other travel membranes moving in ahead and behind them as the navigation computers of the Open Market staged them into single file.

  Ronnie figured that Frederica would never stop asking questions, but realized her eyes were moving from side to side, as she took in every tiny bit of information she could. Ronnie quietly spoke to the computer and a holographic display appeared in the center of what Angela called the windshield area, but up high so it did not interfere with their view of the Open Market. That also made the girls gasp with amazement, and then the computer displayed a complete list of all the goods they were purchasing on this trip to the Open Market in green letters. About half way down the list was the words, two each, six-pound geese, unfrozen. Monica said she knew what supper was going to be, and Ronnie said he hoped she approved. All four girls at once said, “Yes.”

  Then Ronnie heard Angela speak to the unborn child in her belly and said, “My love, you will be eating well tonight, you are having goose, mashed potatoes and vegetables.” Ronnie said, “Oops, forgot the vegetables.” Monica said, “Green beans, please,” and the listing changed to read, “One each sixteen ounce bag green beans, frozen.” Frederica giggled and said, “Computer, could we also have lima beans tonight,” and the lima beans appeared on the screen. Ronnie reached over to Frederica and said, I hate lima beans, “Computer, would you also add some peas to the list,” and they appeared on the screen. Frederica said, “I hate peas,” but Ronnie quickly explained that he, Angela and their unborn Daughter loved them.

  Ronnie did not let on even a little about the word he had just spoken, but Angela caught it instantly, put her hand on Ronnie’s shoulder and said, “Ronnie, you sometimes ask too many questions of the computer.” The computer spoke to Angela, “Angela, I am sorry but Ronnie used the override password and forced me to tell.” Janet could stand it no longer and said, “I think there is a secret being discussed here or maybe the secret has already been told. But I think this new baby is going to be a girl.” Frederica looked at Angela and said, “Angela, Jill Marie will be a wonderful name for your daughter. Uncle Ronnie’s Mother’s name, I believe.”

  Angela suddenly lost all expression on her face; she just looked at Frederica, trying to remember if she had ever spoken that name to the computer, to Ronnie, to anyone, ever. She knew she had not, so how did Frederica just tell her that the name she had chosen was the name of Ronnie’s Mother. Angela could not contain her emotions any longer and spoke directly to Frederica, and said, “Frederica, I need to understand why you called this child in my belly, Jill Marie.” Frederica turned and looked Angela directly in the eyes as she said, “Angela, when we get done with the Open Market, could you and I go to your room and talk for a few minutes about that very subject?”

  Angela realized she had spoken rather harshly to Frederica and reached out and touched Frederica on the shoulder and said, “Yes, that would be good, and I did not mean to speak so harshly to you, but you surprised me with your words.” Frederica smiled at Angela, then put her hand on top of Angela’s and squeezed gently. The girls were mesmerized at the vastness of this system, except for Frederica. As The Empress traveled through the tunnel of the Open Market, the only human voice was Frederica’s; discussing with the computer, about matter and antimatter, and how the Open Market performed the conversion process right down to the molecular level.

  Ronnie listened carefully to Frederica, then realized this girl had an incredible mind, a mind capable at this young age to be able to comprehend concepts he had used in the writing of his dissertation. Ronnie looked to Frederica and began asking her to help solve a problem he was having with a quantum mechanics principle. Frederica listened and soon was discussing the answer to the problem with him. Ronnie smiled as Frederica came to the proper conclusion to the fictitious problem he had proposed to her. He was actually flabbergasted at her ability to arrive at the conclusion to his question so easily. Ronnie began questioning Frederica about what she wanted to do when she graduated from college, and on what subject she would write her dissertation. She quickly said she would like to propose a new method of teleportation that she had reasoned would be safer than the present system and cause less inner ear disturbance and motion sickness.

  When they had passed through the Open Market, then settled into the holding area, Angela pulled Frederica to her room and slowly worked the conversation around to how Frederica was reading her mind. Frederica, looked Angela in the eyes and said, “Angela, I have been reading minds for five or six years now, but only some minds. Some minds are like
an open book to me, others are completely closed, and then there are minds like yours, which I can only read certain things, like the sex of your unborn child, and the name you have picked out for the child. Then there is Uncle Ronnie, I can see every technical thought that travels though his mind, but if I try to read any deeper into his mind, I cannot.” Angela decided to drop the discussion with Frederica, since she did not believe anyone could read minds; but she certainly did not understand how Frederica found out about her unborn child’s proposed name. Angela convinced herself that Frederica probably already knew that Ronnie’s Mother’s name was Jill Marie, so that did not bother her.

  The following morning, the girls conspired to create another room in The Empress; this room needed to be pink, and they would name it, the nursery. The girls spent a complete day in that room, working the poor computer to death, changing this, changing that, moving the bed, moving the bathroom, moving cameras and monitors so Angela could see the crib on her travel watch with the push of a button. Ronnie had heard the computer explaining shades of pink to the girls three or four times, but what the girls wanted in room colors and what they explained to the computer seemed to differ most of the time. Ronnie heard Angela reprimanding the computer for being slow to process her request for a color change, but said nothing to her, realizing that the computer would deal with her in its own way.

  The computer discussed its housekeeping responsibilities to Angela, and that its processor time required shared time with other duties, but was quickly called a whine ass, by Angela. Ronnie decided he was glad the computer was taking the heat and not him, at least for today. When Monica said, “The computer has feelings too,” she was quickly shushed by Frederica who said, “Computers have no feelings, they are just machines,” but soon after found herself sitting on the floor instead of the chair she had tried to sit on. It seemed the chair had simply just moved, somehow. Ronnie spoke to the computer and said, “Computer, do not be spiteful with these women. We men simply do not understand their ways.” The computer said, “Easy for you to say as you hide in the ready room, allowing me to face the She Devils, alone.”

  The following morning, Ronnie arranged the private tour of the planet, Deoblo 12. The planet had six scientists from planet Earth permanently stationed there, so it was easy for Ronnie to work with them for this tour. They gave tours all the time when an entity scheduled them, so they were very used to having guests, and they made a nice income from the Galax they charged for food and lodging from their guests.

  When Ronnie placed The Empress in a stable orbit around the planet, the two humans that Ronnie had befriended a few months ago discussed the arrangements to move their guests from The Empress to their travel membrane; they said that they would physically couple their travel membrane with The Empress. This meant that their travel membrane would move up close to The Empress and the joining walls would touch, then open, and allow the humans aboard The Empress to walk directly into the Swims’ travel membrane, without the need to teleport. Once everyone from The Empress had transferred to the Swims’ vessel, the hosts began explaining about the planet, it residents, it environment, it oceans, and the many wonders this planet had to offer.

  The travel membranes the Swims’ live and travel inside are capable of flight in space or can be swam to the depths of the deepest oceans. Because of the high ammonia content of the atmosphere, the swims’ never leave the travel membranes at anytime except to swim below the ocean’s surface. Swims’ can also breathe the ocean’s water like a fish for short periods. They simply open their mouths, take in the water and push it out a small vent in the side of their necks. The process is very similar to the way fish breathe on the planet Earth, with their gills. When the Swims’ take in a mouthful of water and push it thru their neck gills, a flap in their throat closes to insure the water does not enter their lungs, or they would drown just like any earthling.

  The Swims’ raise fish and sea creatures like codfish, mussels, sea trout, lobsters, snails and oysters in huge tanks made of clear dimensional membrane. The material is the same material as the travel membranes, except the Swims’ have altered the bond coefficient of the eleventh-dimension string energy so the membrane looks transparent instead of the traditional opaque consistency.

  They also raise sea plants like kelp, sea anemones, and phytoplankton. When the phytoplankton blooms just below the surface of the planets oceans, the water, when viewed from high above the planet, takes on the beautiful colors of the species of phytoplankton that is presently in bloom. The colors can range from red to yellow and to brilliant greens. They change the entire color of the oceans, and are the most spectacular thing you could ever imagine; especially from an ocean so vast, that it covers most of the planet. Some days when you look up from one of the membranes floating in the deep waters of the oceans, you can see the phytoplankton blooms actually changing the watercolor all around you as the light shines down thru the water.

  The Swims engineers and scientists escorted their human guests from The Empress into a control room that was about six meters square and filled with scientific instruments. In one corner was a travel computer setup that looked very similar to the one aboard The Empress. Once they were all inside and the doors had closed, the Swims’ began explaining that they had configured this new membrane to allow for easy exploration of the oceans, but most importantly the ocean floor. The geologists had discovered minerals and metals that were vital to the planet, buried deep within the floor of the oceans.

  One of the Swims’ scientists explained that they had been able to explore the oceans depths down to around 83 fathoms for centuries, but below that, they could not maintain a stable membrane wall and would get high-pressure leaks that were very dangerous. They had now been able to correct the problem by a very simple method. They had found that they could form one membrane around them in shallow waters, and then inside of this they would create a second membrane. It was kind of like blowing up one balloon inside of another to get double strength. Then they discovered that they could actually bond the two layers together by mixing a third crystal frequency into the travel computer. Once they found the correct frequency and the programming to maintain the triple frequencies, they were able to travel down to the very bottom of the oceans, at least the deepest they had found so far. This very deep area of their oceans was at 800 fathoms.

  One of the scientists asked the Earthlings if they remembered the transparent membranes that contained the aquatic creatures and plants when the first arrived on the planet. They explained that the deep ocean observatory used that same technology in order for them to observe the oceans while standing inside the comforts of a transparent travel membrane. As the scientists maneuvered the membrane down to the depths of the oceans, they finally let it settle down on a flat sandy area of the ocean floor. When they looked at the depth gauge on the travel computer console, it read 634 fathoms. As they were standing there talking to each other, the scientists switched the membrane from opaque to transparent. There was an audible gasp as the earthlings realized they were standing inside a fish bowl now sitting on the bottom of the ocean. Not only could they see the ocean and its creatures around them, but the ocean creatures could also see them. One large fish that looked to Ronnie like a shark swam up to the membrane and bumped its nose on the wall. Everyone jumped a little, and then there was a laugh as they all realized they were perfectly safe inside this wonderful deep ocean observatory.

  This new environment was very strange, but they had the most incredible view of the ocean and the aquatic life, and found themselves turning in circles trying to get a panoramic view of their surroundings. This ocean contained every color of fish one could imagine, all swimming within centimeters of your face; lobsters walking on the bottom of the ocean floor, a huge sea turtle that almost sat on top of the transparent membrane, and the porpoise were the best. They swam all around the membrane and looked in as if they wanted to come in and play.

  The Swim commander turned on the exte
rior hydrophones and you could hear the porpoise, whales and walrus singing their love songs all around you. The sounds had a mesmerizing effect on the humans inside the membrane, even the Swims’ were in total amazement; and they had been down here many times before today.

  The commander started talking to the others and began preparing them to travel back to the Swims’ headquarters as the day was getting late. They had been down here for over two hours and it was time to go back. No one wanted to go anywhere, and they all felt like two-year-old children; children who did not want to return back to the classroom after recess. This was the second time Ronnie had visited this habitat, and he was just as humbled the second time as he was the first. Frederica had finally run out of questions for the Swims scientists, and had quit talking. One of the scientists walked over to her and asked where she was planning to attend college. Frederica said she did not know yet, that she was a little young to think too much about it just yet. The scientist looked her in the eyes and asked if she would like to attend the college here on Deoblo 12. Frederica was instantly excited again, and the scientist said he would give Janet a business card with a radio frequency on it and would write a written recommendation when she was prepared to begin higher education. Frederica was now beaming and almost in tears with excitement.

  When the Swims’ transferred Ronnie and the girls back into The Empress, Frederica walked up to Ronnie, put her arms around his waist and hugged hard. Then she stepped back and began crying. Ronnie kneeled down in front of her and asked the reason for the tears. Frederica simply wrapped her arms around her uncle’s neck and hugged him again. Ronnie felt her warm tears on his neck, so he just held her close until she was ready to talk about it. When she stepped back and her mother handed her a towel to wipe her eyes, she looked Ronnie in the eyes and said, “Being here on The Empress and learning all this wonderful stuff has been wonderful. When I get out of school, I would like to either live on a vessel like The Empress, or live with the Swims.” As the last word came out of her mouth, she began crying again. Ronnie pulled her close and told her that she had only seen a tiny fragment of the wonders of the cosmos, and she would be amazed every day if she dedicated her life to the sciences. Frederica released her grip on Ronnie, wiped her eyes, hugged everyone in the room including her little sister and then headed off to her room.

  As she put her hand on the door handle to her room, Frederica stopped, turned back around and returned to the ready room. When she sat down on a chair, Angela put her hand on Frederica’s and said, “Thank you for spending this week with us here on The Empress; I have enjoyed your company very much.” Frederica leaned over and hugged Angela, then said she had one more request while here on The Empress if she could. She looked at Ronnie and said, “Would it be possible to take The Empress to the beginning of time?” Ronnie thought about the question for a moment, and then said, “No,” but we could travel to the end of time; then move forward one second farther.”

  Ronnie did not say any more, but he could see Frederica’s mind spinning a mile a minute and then she said, “I would settle for that, if it’s the best you can do with this old tub.” Suddenly Ronnie and Frederica were both laughing and Angela, Janet and Monica sat looking at each other, wondering what they had missed. Monica said, “Why did Ronnie tell Frederica, no, to her question and why are they laughing so?” When Ronnie could speak, he asked Frederica to join him in the copilot’s seat and they would see if they could work out how to get to the beginning of time. Ronnie began asking the computer questions about how they could accomplish Frederica’s request and the computer began calculating a flight plan. A couple minutes later, the computer said it had calculated the coordinates for the travel computer and that they could accomplish the trip in either direction they wished to travel. The trip would be shorter if they traveled forward in time to the Earth year 60,122 AD. Frederica asked if the prophecy had spelled out the exact moment for the ending of time. Ronnie said he did not know, but she could ask the computer if she wished. Frederica thought about her question carefully before speaking, then said, “Computer, in the prophecy that predicted the end of all time, the year was called out as 60,122 AD, but was the exact moment of the demise ever stated, or even known.” The computer told Frederica that the exact time had long ago been determined and it could tell her down to the nanosecond if she wished. Frederica said, “Computer give me the date and time, down to an Earth second if you would.” The computer began, “It was the Earth year of 60,122 AD, the third month, the eighth day, sixteenth hour, twelfth minute, and the twenty-first second.”

  Now that the computer had calculated the coordinates, and had placed them into memory, Ronnie contacted the IFTT to prepare a flight plan. The director of operations at the IFTT asked Ronnie to hold for a moment while he consulted with one of the astrophysicists on the safety of The Empress and its crew. The request instantly through up a flag for Ronnie and he began wondering what the problem was. While he waited, he asked the computer if there were any known problems attempting to travel to the end of time. The computer explained that the trip to the end of time was of no concern, but sometimes returning, once you passed time zero, could cause a temporal shift that could destroy a vessel. When the IFTT astrophysicist contacted Ronnie, he said the same thing as the computer and recommended that Ronnie not attempt the maneuvers with The Empress. He explained to Ronnie that destruction of his vessel and crew could easily take place if he attempted to travel beyond the beginning of time using The Empress; only a specially designed travel membrane and travel computer should attempt the time jump. Ronnie made an instant decision and asked the IFTT to cancel his flight plan, as he would not endanger The Empress or his crew. Ronnie thanked the IFTT for their information and then cleared the channel. As Ronnie and Frederica discussed the cancellation of their adventure, Frederica said that even though they had to cancel the flight, she had learned a lot and it was fun planning the trip. Ronnie smiled and said they would try another adventure the next time she came aboard The Empress.

  As they ate supper and discussed the upcoming birth of the new baby, they also planned what they would do tomorrow. They finally decided that they would sleep in late and then prepare a wonderful breakfast. Ronnie planned to cook pancakes, bacon and fried eggs for his hungry crew. When they finished with breakfast, they would travel back to the planet Quantum. They would then visit an intergalactic theatre, where they showed movies on a huge screen, which floated in the outer orbits of the planet. The Empress would simple hover and maintain a stable orbit around the slowly turning movie screen while they watched the movie. The space theatre was showing an old movie made on the planet Earth many centuries ago about a space traveler named Buck Rogers.

  When Angela got out of bed in the morning, she discovered that Ronnie and the girls were already up and dressed. When she asked why they had let her sleep so late, Janet said that she probably needed the extra rest since they had kept her very busy all week. Angela hugged each of the girls, then walked over to her husband and kissed him hard on the lips. When she stepped back, Frederica asked them to stop with all the kissing, it was making her feel all funny inside. Ronnie patted her on the shoulder as he walked past her and said, “It makes me fell all funny inside to, but I don’t want her to stop.” Janet hugged her brother as she began locating pans to help Ronnie cook, and whispered, “I think you and Angela need some time alone.” Ronnie hugged his sister and told her that they would get all the time they needed together, later this week. Ronnie pulled Janet close to him and said, “Sister, it was nice having you and the girls here this last week. I miss the company of friends and family and I am certain that Angela gets very lonesome sometimes and needs friends and family around her, especially now since she does not teleport off The Empress with me anymore.” Janet asked Ronnie if Angela could come to her house after the baby was born and she could spend a week or maybe two healing after the delivery. Just as Janet finished asking Ronnie the question, Angela stepped into the kitchen and wa
ited for Ronnie to answer Janet’s question. Ronnie said that would be nice, and Angela just might enjoy the time with the girls. Angela smiled, cuddled up to Ronnie and said, “Janet, I would like to spend some time with you but I would also like to spend two or three days here with just me, Ronnie, and our child, bonding; then I would love to come spend some time with you and the girls. I could certainly use your knowledge of taking care of a tiny newborn child.” Janet walked over to Angela, hugged her and said, “Then it’s a date, whenever you are ready to come visit us, you just let me know and your room will be waiting for you and your family.”