The Arci-te female was naked, seemingly immodest, not that she had anything no other female didn't have except the total lack of body hair.

"Got that'un when shot grazed me. Hurt like nothin' else," she said. Her accent was improving thanks to a language program in Kela's database computer. She had leared the moderna, the Authority's language from watching broadcasts in it.

Kela frowned. "Who shot you?"

Eladia shook her head. "Can't say. Never saw 'em."

Kela looked down. "Must you go around naked like that?"

She giggled. "What's the matter, Kela? Do I look strange to you?"

"No, you seem to have no modesty."

"You really know nothin' of my people, do ya? If it bothers ya, I will always stay clothed." She went to her area in the sleeping area of the ovoid biotech ship.

Kela wondered if there were any others like her. She was very smart and foolishly brave, having even wrestled and killed an Asikiwa. She had deep scratch scars on her left shoulder from it.

She liked her a lot, despite only having known her for 3 days.

The ship's bio-computer beeped. Kela hurried to the pilot station and saw that they were within the Sakina system.

They had traveled over 2300 light-years into the Commonwealth with no sign of communication or traffic. Kela was apprehensive. It was wildly rumored that the Commonwealth no longer existed.

She brought the ship out of hyperspace and was struck with the awesome beauty of Sakina, a large blue and white world with green forests and lots of mountains.

She was shocked to see the ruins of an ACDF warcruiser in orbit, serving as a space station.

It was too busy to visit and Eladia did tell her to go to the surface, to a town called Revera, on the southern edge of a river valley braced by mountain ranges.

Before she enetered the atmosphere, the comm system beeped. Kela answered it to see a really fascinating biofilm screen resolve into a picture of a Laneran female with red hair.

"Identify yourself and the nature of your visit, please," she said in the language of the modern Commonwealth, neoarcta.

Luckily, Kela knew it from school. "My name is Kela, I an a free citizen of Si Ela. I happened upon an Arci-te female who convinced me to bring her home."

The female nodded. "Thank you. Did she say where she was from?"

"Revera, she said."

"Yes, you are welcome there. It is one of our most modern cities. I assume you've come seeking help for your group, Free Ela?"

Kela was shocked. No-one knew any member of Free Ela, it was a jealously guarded secret. "How did you know who I was?"

She laughed. "People believe that the Commonwealth is dead. I assure you that it is not. You are listed as Kela Enkeren of Otisa Valley in the east of Si Ela. You were identified for security purposes when you crossed the Commonwealth border. Were you an enemy, you would not have made it very far in."

Kela was bewildered. Nobody knew her clan name. Not even Free Ela. "Um," she didn't know what to say.

"You are welcome, Kela, please follow standard landing protocols." The channel ended and the female faded away.

Kela was utterly shocked. Were they on Si Ela? She proceeded to fly to Revela.

********************************************************

The city was like nothing she had ever seen. It looked unchanged by time. Glittering towers wih premodern houses in pristine condition. Vast ribbons of groundcar roads threaded throughout it.

She landed in a fairly modern spaceport and went back to find Eladia in a beautiful white sweater and dark pants. "That's beautiful."

Eladia chuckled. "Robots made it. Ya got a sweater?"

Kela nodded. "I have three from Karea."

"Excellent, you'll need one of 'em, it gets awful cold out there."

Kela went to put one on, the grey one, which was the warmest. She returned as Eladia opened the side door and icy cold air rushed in.

Eladia giggled. "Told ya. C'mon. I've got to visit the clinic first, won't take long."

Kela nodded and followed her out.

They walked out of the spaceport and to a clinic right next to it. Eladia was taken back at once after displaying her ID, written in old Arctarian, the language of the old Commonwealth.

Kela waited until a nurse came to her.

"You are part Cristalian?," she asked.

Kela frowned. "My mother was. Why?"

The nurse handed her a textdisc. "Please read that and consider registering with the Commonwealth minisry of Health." She returned to wherever she worked.

Kela frowned. What was that about? She pulled out her sifter computer and loaded it up, starting to read about a rare event.

Only 1 in 117 Laneran/Cristalian sexual encounters bore viable children. And 40% of those were where the Cristalian was female.

Of Kela's kind, they were so rare, even the endangered Arci-te vastly outnumbered them.

No wonder they knew who she was. Kela was Laneran in her appearance but Cristalian in physiology. It wasn't always an excellent blend. She got very sick and every monthly cycle was agony.

She had it stopped medically when she was 34. It hurt worse than getting shot, she knew that from experience.

The textdisc didn't mince any detail. She would live for a very long time, far longer than she would if she was all Laneran, but also pay dearly for it. Heart trouble, estrogen trouble, possibly brain trouble, even.

The Commonwealth was working on a cure for this for its 51 Laneran/Cristalian females. No male survived childhood for some reason.

She went to the nurse's desk. "Yes, um, how do I register?"

The nurse took her back to a station. "I will examine you and submit it to a Healh Ministry doctor next door. He will want to interview you because you will be granted Commonwealth citizenship for registering."

Kela frowned, troubled. "But I am a citizen of he Authority...."

The nurse interuppted her. "You are a rebel against it and you claim it's citizenship?"

Kela almost denied that but remembered what she did on Kalea. "Um, I guess..you are right. But I live on Si Ela."

The nurse smiled. "You live on an ice world in its outer system. Don't fool yourself, Kela. The only way to free your world would involve intervention by a major power like us or the Altiki or even the Teshin."

Kela scoffed at that. She spent 11 years in a Teshin prison for hacking crimes. "Not likely. I won't give up on my fellows."

"Nobody is asking you to. This is guaranteeing your future, if you live to see it." She began to run a sensor of some type all over Kela.

Kela wondered how Alida or the others would see this.

The nurse took her right hand suddenly and carefully jammed a needle into it, making Kela gasp in pain and suprise. A clear tube attached to it began to fill up with her blood. "Sorry, dear. Most are resistant to this."

Kela scoffed. "I'll bet. It hurts."

The needle was withdrawn and the nurse passed a dermal regenerator over her hand. It no longer hurt.

"Okay. You may go see the doctor now. Just go through that door," she said, pointing to a door next to the exit.

Kela nodded and went through it, into a cold office with several kinds of machines she did not recognize.

A tall Cristalian male doctor smiled at her from behind a massive desk. "Hello, Kela. You have a typical cross body. I have already processed you. You were taught in school by Ilani Enkeaa, who is actually an employee of the State Ministry of the Commonwealth."

Kela was shocked. Ms. Ilani was very dear to her, beheaded by the Authority a couple of years after Kela graduated her school. "But she was killed."

The doctor nodded. "Yes. It hasn't been forgotten by her fellows. Here," he handed her a flat black plastic panel. "Place both hands flat on that."

Kela put it on the desk and did.

The doctor worked on a small computer and she saw that he was taking her handprints. He turned to her. "Okay. You may remove them." He stood up and went to her.

She was nervous, he was much taller than her.

"Relax, I need your identifying characteristics for your entry into the system." He shined a tiny light into each eye, no doubt mapping her retinas.

She blinked the light away when he returned to his desk.

"Kela? go stand before that screen over there and smile if you want. This picture will go on your ID and file."

Kela did and smiled. She always did for ID pictures. It had made the Teshin angry a long time ago.

If her picture was being taken, she saw no flash, no clicking of a camera. All here was the whirring of some kind of printer and a loud snap, followed by another.

Two white cards came out of his desk.

Kela was astonished to see her holography image on one, encased in indestructible polymers. They were warm to the touch.

"The one with your picture is your ID, the other is your health card. Keep them with you at all times and you will be able to get services and help from any Commonwelath facility."

Kela nodded. "Okay."

The doctor frowned. "You are a Commonwealth citizen now. You will be required to live here some day. You will want to when you reach a certain age."

She frowned. "I cannot stay on Si Ela?"

He shook his head. "Not always. Nurse Eklen gave you a textdisc?"

She nodded. "Yes, I didn't read all of it."

"Well read all of it and will know why you cannot always stay on Si Ela. Your friend is ready, best go. Have a good life, Kela."

She smiled. "Thank you." She left the office to see Eladia more radiantly beautiful than she had been. She gasped. "Eladia?"

Eladia smiled sweetly. "Yes?"

"You are.."

"Typical for my kind. Most of us are actors and models. I promised my help and you have it. Let's go see about things for Free Ela."

Kela smiled. "Thank you. Are you joining Free Ela?"

They left the clinic and hailed a groundcar taxi, getting in.

"No, I am staying with you. I hope to always."

Kela blushed. "Why?"

"Something in my regeneration education program about you. I won't share so don't ask."

Kela noticed that she spoke clearly just then. "Huh? You can talk now?"

Eladia nodded. "Yup. Didn't know neoarcta. Do now. Just relax. You are going to like this."

They went towards a heavily industrial part of Revera, hidden in mountain shadow.

********************************************************

Eladia smiled as they entered a factory, largely empty except for a large shack that covered and underground entrance. "This is the Underground Armoury, created during the Sieki War. It sells weapons from all over this and other galaxies. Smart armor, computers, just name it."

Kela shook her head. "But, Eladia, I have no money. How can I possibly pay for anything?"

Eladia gave her a debit card written in old Arctarian. "This is the residual from the Refugee Fund, over 93,000 credits. It was my brother's."

She really frowned. "But, doesn't he need it?"

The Arci-te sadly shook her head. "No, he was killed in the fire that destroyed Tiat Si. He would have got more if he had not been. He willed it to me and I never needed it. My fund amounts are in the millions, even now."

Kela didn't like the thought of using this but Free Ela needed things. "I see."

They were made to submit to an eyescan and were led by a uniformed security man downstairs.

Below was a huge warehouse stuffed with rows and rows of tall, encaged racks of shiny display cases.

Kela was drawn to the computer section and was astonished to find an E340 hacker, the gold standard amongst her profession. It was only 400 credits.

She swiped the debit card through a reader on the cage door and it slid open, the E340 sliding out. She picked it up, excitedly checking it. It was in pristine condition.

Kela turned to tell Eladia but she had disappeared. Where did she go? Kela shook her head and continued to look for other great finds.

She was shocked to find a working and intact Teshin eyecoms for only 30 credits apeice. What wealth of information was on the yellow monocle-like lens computer? She got one of them too.

Very recent, days old maps of the galaxy, political analysis, even maps of Authority activity were available. She got some to feed into her ship's bio-computer, which was information starved thanks to Authority need-to-know policies.

A further browsing of this section turned up all kinds of literature on Sikoran made biotech ships. It seemed they they were sold to the Authority and anyone else who had the money, a cool 1 billion Authority bills for just one like the one Kela now owned. She got as much information about protecting and maintaining it as she could.

Kela left he computer section and found herself in he ship-mounted weapons section. Most of it as antiquated beam weapons but ultradeadly Ib and some Altiki weapons were also available. She was about to get one when Eladia touched her on the shoulder.

"Uh uh, dear. You want weapons that will hurt the Authority," she said.

Kela looked at her to see that she pulled a cart covered in boxes. "I know these will. We use the all the time."

Eladia shook her head. "Yes, pop a hole in a ship's hull, get away. I'm talking about obliteration. You have to have this if you want to be sure."

Kela scoffed. "Like I'm going to find such a weapon."

Eladia sweetly smiled. "I found one, actually 3, they're being integrated into our ship's systems by a Sikoran tech as we speak. Do you not think the Authority will try to retake thier expensive ship?"

Kela was shocked. "But..but, I can't pay.."

Eladia shook her head again. "You don't have to. They are. The ship was stripped of these systems by the Authority. They were so angry, they offered to replace them for free and to enhance its security features, strip out all Authority crap from it."

"Then I won't be able to fly it..."

"No, you will be suprised to see how it should be. Got what you need?"

Distracted by all this, Kela blankly looked at her. "Huh? Oh, yes." She held her prizes protectively.

Eladia chuckled. "Let's go."

They began walking to the stairs.

"Eladia? What did you get?," Kela asked.

Eladia smiled. "Clothing and gear for us. Personal weapons. The things for Free Ela will be provided by the ACDF-CSC in exchange for base rights in the Si Ela system."

Kela was bewildered. She couldn't believe this. "But wasn't it destroyed with Kesdar?"

Eladia scoffed. "Kesdar wasn't destroyed, nor was Mrellkis. Kara Ti and Tiat Si were destroyed. Just try to fly untowards into Colony 3 space now. You wouldn't make very few kilometers into it. People like me can't go back, trauma. But they say that Tiat Si is being rebuilt, possibly has been already."

Kela was shocked by all this. Why didn't anyone know? She followed Eladia upstairs and helped load everything into the still waiting taxi.

They then returned to the spaceport.

********************************************************

The ship looked no different except it had a healthier sheen to its greenish-grey skin, which now had criss crossing subtle lines in it like a really big mesh.

Kela was told that it was a cloaking system. The ship was otherwise unchanged on the outside.

Inside was much different. It had gracefully arcing lines and an organic feel to everything. Its walls were now a light green color, darkening as it went to the dark grey floor.

Areas that had not been partitioned before were now. There were two sleeping rooms, a new kitchen/eating area, a cargo room and an expansive bathing room. he Authority made sanitary recepticle was gone, replaced by something Kela did not know how to use. It would be embarrassing to ask.

Eladia told her that it was a system used on mixed crewed ships that had Arci-te members. She explained that all her peoples' body functions were sticky and needed special sanitary needs.

She showed how to configure it for Kela's use, which after proogramming, required only the push of a button.

The kitchen had food serving areas and the cooking system was a fascinating one that apparently flash cooked things, yet could be used to bake and simmer too.

Kela learned how to cook from her mother and a lot from Alida, who had been some kind of chef in the E 11 Galaxy before she became a rebel.

The thought of the bird-like Averie female made her worry. She had been away for too long.

Eladia had got them all kinds of clothes and gear, carefully arranging it in closets.

Kela went to her as she was doing this. "Eladia, can we go back now?"

Eladia nodded. "Sure, but we have to make a stop along the way."

She frowned. "What for?"

"Food and personal supplies. Medicines, that sort of thing. We can go to the Ethela Market on Amiris. They have everything you can imagine there."

"Amiris?"

"A Commonwealth world, it has a huge ACDF base. We have been granted shopping access, a rare treat. Make you a list and I will help you find it all."

Kela was intrigued by this. Surely no market could be that huge. "All right. I'll go get ready to fly." She went to the pilot area, shocked to see that all the instrumentation literally glowed from within the console's material.

It was all in neoarcta. The displays glowed green, blue, yellow and red in varying shades of color, indicating that they were fully capable of all shades and colors.

She liked it becoause it was easy to understand and he ship did a lot of work for her, even communicating in neoarcta. Something it didn't do before.

Her seat had seemingly not changed but was now molded to her body exactly, even sensing and soothing sore parts, like her back and legs after the ordeal on Kalea.

Her controls were different, variable sensing and holoparticle in assembly.

She liked it immensely and engaged the engines, which had been replaced and now showed no sign of operation, not even vibrating the ship.

The ship effortlessly lifted into the air and she flew it smoothly back into space.

The ship had some kind of variable ceramic based shell armor that deployed all over it as it entered space. This was largely controlled by the ship itself as it detected dangers to its skin.

Why didn't it have this before? It made her concerned about flying it in before but it was fine so she didregarded it as she reached for the hyperspeed controls after entering Amiris' location data from the new maps. Her hand closed on empty air, they were gone.

Kela looked around and noticed a message from the ship:

Use the feet pedals.

She looked down at her feet and was suprised to find two pedals down there.

The ship used an animation to show her how to use it. She followed its directions and the ship shot ino hyperspace, bound for Amiris.

This would take some getting used to.

� 6 March 2004 Gregory Thompson