himself….only one-hundred-and-seventy-five, where
he was only two-hundred-and-three. In time the pain would pass, and he
would do his duty to his people, take new mates to continue their lines.
14 North had to. He was one of the few full-blooded Havens still left.
Unlike The Voice his wings were full and beautiful and he spent many
hours in the air tanks keeping his flying abilities sharp. The Surgeons
had long ago removed The Voice's undersized, useless wings.
15 The Voice was a strange mixture....he had Peepian skin and hair, but
two eyes, a pointed nose, and a rather Haven mouth. He had five fingers
and toes, but his voice was somewhat Hashon. There were many like him
in the ships, a mixture of all three races that did not bear a true
resemblance to any one of them, but had characteristics all their own.
16 "I think we'd better move on," suggested The Voice. "There's nothing
for us here. Maybe the next system will be more promising."
17 Though The Voice was Political Leader and North was Military Leader,
North very rarely objected to his wishes. "Line up for the next
system," he told Navigation, "as soon as you're ready, Helm, move out!"
18 They had travelled for several hours, preparing for their next leap.
The Voice had returned to the passenger pods taking care of his main
duties, when the alarm bells began to ring 'to battle stations. ' He
quickly hurried back to the command deck.
19 When he arrived, North informed him of what was going on, without
ever taking his eyes off his instruments. "We've got company....two
Godden warships, probably battleships, heavily laden with pods, as we
are. They just appeared on the far side of the system, and are closing
fast. They must've made an extremely long leap, as we detected no hyper
waves before they appeared."