Alex found Chet first.
"I took care of the last group. They won't be bothering anyone anymore," Alex said.
"What do we do now?" Chet said.
"I have a discussion with Father Doren, and if he'll see reason, we take the dimensional core back with us. Did you find your date? How is she?" Alex said.
"Yeah, she's fine. She seems more excited by the whole thing than anything. She saw me zipping around," Chet said.
"Good. I'm glad you found someone you can connect with. A day ago, I would've thought this was a crazy idea, but maybe ask her if she wants to come with," Alex said. "I'm going to find Amirilia. Meet me at the house when you're ready."
"Ok," Chet said, and he sped off.
Alex found Amirilia in the middle of the town square.
"Is everyone alright?" Alex said.
"Yes. I healed everyone," Amirilia said. "Who are those people and why do they look so, different?"
"They're aliens. They're from another planet. And they've come to take over ours. Those are the bad people I told you about," Alex said.
"Oh. When you said 'bad people' I thought you meant people who looked like you. Not, aliens," Amirilia said.
"I know they look different, but they're still people," Alex said.
"I know. It's just shocking. That's all. I didn't know people could be blue," she laughed.
"Up until a few days ago, I didn't either," Alex said. "I think your father and I have something to discuss. Come on." Alex put out his hand.
Amirilia took it in hers. "Yes. I quite think you do."
When they got back to Amirilia's house, her father was standing outside.
"I heard the news," he said. "Come inside."
———————————————————
Amirilia's father paced back and forth in the living room.
"Aliens. From another planet?" Doren said.
"Yes," Alex said.
"And you say they'll keep coming for the orb?" Doren said.
"Yes," Alex said.
"And they'll leave us alone if you take the orb with you?" Doren said.
"Yes," Alex said.
"Would you stop just saying 'yes'?" Doren said.
"Yes," Alex said. "If you stop just asking me yes or no questions."
Doren sat down on the couch. "I'm sorry. This is a lot to process for me."
"It's a lot to process for anybody," Alex said. "If an alien hadn't killed me, I might not believe it myself. If someone had just told me about it. No way. Not real."
"Wait, killed you as in you died?" Doren said.
"That's usually what happens when you're killed, yes," Alex said.
"How are you alive now?" Doren said.
"Gods. Literal gods brought me back to life. Not out of charity, but to fight in the war for humanity's survival," Alex said.
"The gods are real? And you just accepted that?" Doren said. "Here's your life back, son. Now go fight in a war for us and potentially die again."
"I think the gods are as real as we've made them. So many people believed in them for so long that we made them real. That emotional energy has to go somewhere, and for us, it created the gods." Alex said.
"Now as far as recruitment. Yeah, that's basically how it went. I know you died once, but this time do you want to die for a cause? Yep. Pretty much."
"You're a stronger man than I, then. I would've said no," Doren said.
"I don't think it was about strength. I think it was about reasons not to. I didn't have any. You have many reasons not to. You have a wife, a kid, hell, you have an entire community to nurture and uphold," Alex said.
"About that. I know I said no before, but I think you should take the orb. It brings people light and joy here, but it's not worth risking lives over. And when I said it was important to this community, I was mostly talking about myself," Doren said.
"I need it. It's important to me. It gets people to come into the spiritual center. It gets people to pray. It gets people to donate to the poor. But I shouldn't put my needs before the lives of others."
"I'm glad we're seeing eye to eye, Father," Alex said, putting his hand out.
Doren shook it and said, "Please just call me Doren. I don't know why people call me that. I never asked them to. I just let them do it now because it makes people happy. But between you and me, I'm just Doren."
"Well, Just Doren, I think there's another discussion that needs to be had, but it's not between you and me," Alex said.
Amirilia stepped into the room. "Daddy, there's something I want to ask you."
———————————————————
"Absolutely, not! I forbid it. You will stay here with your mother and father in this quiet little town where it's safe. In this town where nothing happens ever, and it's boring. Oh my god, it's boring." Doren said this as if realizing it for the first time.
"Yes, it's boring, dad, but that's only part of why I want to leave," Amirilia said.
"What's the other part?" Doren said.
"I'm pregnant," Amirilia said.
"What? How? How is that even possible? You just met Alex today! How can you already know?" Doren said.
"It's a joke." Amirilia laughed cheerfully. "Alex said it might make you laugh."
"Oh, wow. Thank goodness. You almost gave me a heart attack," Doren said. "That's probably the first time I've ever heard you tell a joke." Doren laughed.
"See, it worked! You laughed!" Amirilia said. "But I'm also leaving because I want to do good out in the world, or worlds. I want to heal people. I want to save lives. Alex taught me how to heal, and he says there will be lots of people that need healing back where he comes from," Amirilia said.
"You taught her how to heal the sick? How?" Doren said, taking a sip of coffee.
"Not heal the sick. Heal the wounded. I haven't figured out how to heal the sick myself yet. But I'll teach it to her when I do," Alex said. "And yes, I did. Your daughter has a gift. Similar to mine, but different."
"From the orb?" Doren said.
"Yes, from the orb," Alex said.
"Then maybe she should go. It almost sounds like she has a calling," Doren said.
"Like you have a calling, Daddy! Doing all the spiritual stuff and helping people," Amirilia said.
"You have a point," Doren said. "Marigold! Come in here. There's something your daughter needs to talk to you about."
Marigold came into the room and looked at Amirilia expectantly.
"I'm pregnant!" Amirilia said.
"Oh, stop it," Marigold said, grinning. "I know you're not pregnant. I heard you from the other room. So, you're leaving us now, are you? Going out into the big wide world?"
"I want to," Amirilia said, twirling her hair around her finger. "If that's ok with you."
"Of course it's ok with me, sweetheart! I've been waiting for you to get out of this dusty old town," Marigold said. "Besides, I can see the future. If you leave, you're going to save a lot of people."
"Oh, thank you, mother, thank you!" Amirilia hugged her mother.
"It's alright, child. I have faith that you'll be fine. More than fine, even. Alex has a lot to teach you that will keep you very safe and bring you right back to me." Marigold hugged her daughter back just as hard as her daughter was hugging her.
"The spiritual center is unlocked, as always. You know where I keep it," Doren said.
"Yes, Daddy. I'd say I'll write, but I don't think they have mail where I'm going," Amirilia said.
"I have a solution for that! Alex said. He pulled the quantum communicator out of his dimensional pocket. "This can establish one-way communication from anywhere in the multiverse. So you won't be able to hear them, but they'll be able to hear you."
"Watch. I'm going to go into the corner and whisper into it, and you should still be able to hear me." Alex walked into the corner and used technopathy to make the communicator do what he wanted. Technopathy was a godsend for him. He didn't know what all these dials and buttons did.
Alex started whispering, and a voice echoed through the room. "Duke. I am your father."
"I don't get it," Amirilia said. "But it works! Yay! Now let's go see if we can find Chet."
Alex and Amirilia walked out of the door. They waved to her parents and headed off into the night.