The rest of us walked across the wide red-violet ship and I looked at the late afternoon sun. Sighed. My last sunset here on Earth, but I was happy in Rainbow. I thought leaving my dangerous DS life would be the death of both of us, but it was a welcome respite. Poor Farley missed all the things he used to be able to do, like riding dorna at top speed across the Barrens. We rode slow, plodding caeln and he often fell asleep on 'em. But my husband needed the rest. I worried. He's still trembling, but held his head high and Konomai let him walk. I held his icy hand and rubbed it to warm it.

Even in Rainbow Unwell Colony, as safe as that life was, he died very soon after we got there. He hasn't had as many injuries, and he's 25, not 31 as he was when we married. In those memories of our future, no one in Rainbow was showing people their future! What's going on, that Farley saw his future, but then he didn't see what I saw? There were things I overheard in Rainbow that people couldn't explain to me, higher-tech-level stuff.

Then I saw that yard through the hull. Why does it look so familiar to me? Then, I realized, I saw that yard on the news! From the day Earth got First Contact. That's 3 years from now. Intergalactic War was fought in that yard, in minutes, and not a single blade of grass died!

That means we still have an intergalactic war going on! I felt sick. People I knew talked about that war and how many worlds starved—or were destroyed. That's how Farley signed so many treaties. They sent diplomats any place with a shipbuilding facility or large populations to beg men and ships. Thorde nearly starved! We had a lot of friends among the purple people.

We passed through quite a crowd. In the other future, it was one ship that came here by accident, and the diplomat on it was hurt. Somehow, he recovered enough to go make speeches, but he made a lot of mistakes and Earth—that's why they're here early. To fix Earth's future. But, that UN vote needs to be unanimous. They may be working on this for years. Thinking of that, I'm happy we're leaving!

But, I saw a couple of Council members from Ronsera and fumed.

They both waved down their trades. "What are you looking at, woman? You distracted me during an important trade!" One straightened his cobalt blue traders' robes. Council members have pins on those.

His screen was still up, with slaves in stasis.

Farley saw it, too. "I need a TS Inspector!"

"I have nothing to hide. I trade for slaves to give to healers in Rainbow Colonies Of Alb." A very toothy grin on that one. His dark curls looked odd to me with a face like a road map, but Elshars go dark, not gray.

A man in black robes bowed to Farley. "I am Andrisch, TS Inspector For Earth. You have concerns, Farleikon?" This one still had blond hair!

"Eae, I do. See my memories." They got the memory-sharing stare, and I joined in. I have telepathy now, and it's a lot stronger because of traits Pirad added to me. He tried to attack me with his. I easily blocked him.

Andrisch's Elshar eyes went black from medium blue! "Your trades are legal, but you sealed your fate." He looked across the ship.

Another man, in white robes that didn't look like a healer's, came running. Odd. I saw a lot of TS disputes and did a few and never saw a helper.

This man didn't hesitate, but waved and held a handful of leaves. Shoved 'em in this first man's throat!

The man simpered, then gasped and fell on the floor, stiff! He did the same to the other one.

White light vaporized both of them, leaving their clothes and blue traders' robes! A mother with small children struggled to keep them quiet. Kids on a DS ship?

Then, they inspected a lot of other traders' trades, and five more got vaporized. My knees shook!

Andrisch waved a cloud of terminals, all shapes and sizes, holos of ships, armies, mines and worlds—to me? "Ella Farnsworth, Diplomat-In-Aid Of Earth, I find in your favor. Do you see others whom I need to inspect?"

I carefully studied all the faces. One made me shudder. That student who participated in my Challenge at Sigan Mas. A simulated mission, but it was a brutal rape, and any simulated mission at Sigan Mas is always a recording of a real one.

This man was maybe Karl's age. He shivered as Andrisch waved to him. An Elshar is legally responsible for his trades from age 12. Andrisch glared at him. "Wave up your trades."

When he did, Andrisch grabbed his hands and looked them over. "How did you get these bruises? And, a cut on your palm. You killed someone recently. Show me."

The boy flinched. I didn't see the memories he shared, but Andrisch squeezed his hands until he paled! "Habis ha! You killed fifty men for your father and enjoyed it! As he got the judgment, so will you."

That man in white also stuffed leaves in his mouth, without a flinch. More terminals floated to me than I got from his father!

"Do you see others? I must find all that I can." Andrisch watched me. Young to be an inspector. Blond curls, not as rounded as Farley's. Most of 'em have black curls.

I kept looking, but was relieved when I didn't see anyone else.

Both men ported.

Berto, the DS Assignment Specialist who sent us on missions sometimes, came. Shocked to see blond hair on him! "Farnsworth, good work! It is hard to see this, but I have help for you to get your slaves to Alb. Will you permit me? I have a team working to provide fast transportation."

I bowed, then waved it. "Thank you, Berto!"

"Thank you on behalf of the Alb Council! Many of these slaves are from worlds of Alb, and their kings are grateful to have them back! You should hurry to your ship and seek healing."

Konomai looked sick. "I am their healer, Berto. I will care for them."

"Konomai, you cannot work as you have. Stop fighting your link. I must know all conditions of my men, and just because you became a healer, does not make you exempt."

Became a healer?

He sighed. "I have worries, Berto, and we begin our respite now. I will see my fa Kono."

Berto frowned at Farley and kept the black eyes. "My son, I am very pleased with your work. Never forget this. When our mission is over, I will live in Earth, Elshar Zheiea, which is a short walk from Esta Faho. If you have needs, please call on me."

"Thank you, Berto." His voice broke.

"Akras waits when you land. He also had to be released, and I think you can help him a lot. He has a brother whom Pirad woke in Esta Faho. His name is Padras."

Farley got teary. "Is Padras well?"

"Who is well after long stasis? I think he will ask for you, Far."

"I will go to him when he asks."

"Konomai, ask for help. Rainbow got a flood of Ishah healers, and also has clones of many skilled healers."

"I will."

Berto and a lady—she's wearing a wedding set—walked together to a group.

Farley looked at Konomai and opened his mouth, but Karl grabbed his arm. "They kill kids? Who was that man?" Karl had tears on his face!

My husband picked him up. "Quickly, let us go to the ship! Karl's friends are there, and he needs them! Karl, ba, nae think!"

Daddy ran with us. "He'll be all right—"

"None of us are all right after seeing Tommy get hit by that car!" Rose sobbed.

Mama put an arm around her. "Don't start, Rose, just keep walking—"

"Don't start?! We just saw 8 people killed without a trial, and one of them was a little boy!" she sobbed.

Berto came back over. "I'm sorry you're upset, but that boy was wearing traders' robes, and he earned those by passing a hard test. He became a trader for the Alliance Traders Service. We have rules that no one can kill another trader or steal from one. He broke those rules. The men who passed judgment on him are judges. Andrisch is a TS Inspector, and he used his telepathy to see the boy's memories. I am not happy to see someone that young die, but I saw his memories. He killed his mother and savaged her! That was not an innocent young boy who broke a rule. His father killed thousands of people, most on ships as large as this one, and he ported them into space. They died fast. But his father also used the same methods on his enemies. I do not want to upset you more, but most people in the Alliance would never hurt a child." He spoke English to her, without an accent.

She nodded, but didn't look at him. Rose has awful social anxiety.

Berto touched my arm and spoke Elshar to me. "Farnsworth, we have slavers on Earth who are from a higher tech level. You cannot tell her that! The Praefate said today that as on Elshar of old, we will now employ TS Eliminators to kill clones of notorious higher-level slavers and those who help them. That boy was one of Heden's bahies, trained by him to kill."

I gasped! Heden is the worst slaver, and his methods traumatize men.

Farley shook all over, and Konomai took him off his feet. "You must nae, if a TS Inspector—"

"He is gone, and think you I can nae hide us from traders? Let us go, quickly!" We all ran for a wallportal that showed Cevit Ion. And I yanked my sisters through it. Konomai's son Nomo carried 8-year-old Allison through.

A couple led us all the way through to an orange ship. I recognized Goes, 1st Prince Of MarKu, sitting with a group that included Earthans. Farley knows a lot of these people.

Brian and two friends ran over. "Karl! What's wrong?"

He sobbed. "You're not gonna make fun o' me for crying?" Like blond Jason, he worried his hair until it tangled, but his was a lot worse under his baseball cap.

Jason took his hand. "I've been in therapy for a long time. I used to get mad over stupid things. Well, I still do, but I'm working on it. Karl, you remind me of me sometimes. I used to tease my sisters and break their stuff, but look at this."

He waved up a prog that brings up a containment around a person's hands if they think about hitting or embarrassing touches. I looked at the code, and someone really skilled wrote it! We had this one in Rainbow and I used it, even though I never did that.

I waved mine up and set all the controls to the highest.

Karl frowned. "I'm not stupid! You don't need to show me." He rolled his light brown eyes.

"I'm not showing you. I'm running it." With a final wave, I did.

Karl's eyes got big. "But you never hit anybody! Or, cuss. You're Miss Perfect."

"I feel like it a lot, and I'm scared, one of these days, that I will! Now I don't have to worry about it." I smiled, and I did feel weight drop from my shoulders! I caught a lavender ribbon before it fell off a curl. Wrote a quick prog to put 'em back as I pulled on 'em.

Karl slid all of his all the way and waved.

Then, my sisters did the same thing, and both my parents! I couldn't believe it!

Daddy saw Karl staring at his. "I'm turning over a new leaf. They say you can't change your Enneagram Type, and I'm a Type 3, but I'm gonna try. Maybe I can at least stop being so critical of my family. We always wanted a large family, but I never thought about how hard I might need to work at healthy communication.

"We might've taught Tommy better if I'd paid for therapy sooner. Even as hard as he was to have at home, I loved him, and I didn't want him to die."

Farley took Daddy's hands. "Fa, will you share him with me, that I can love him also?"

"I don't think that's a good—"

"Ella, I'm learning that Zheien are better than us. Maybe my new son can teach us a kinder, higher way of living. How do I share memories?"