Epilogue

Five Years later

Evalee

It was winter in our hemisphere of Zevus Mar.That lowered the daytime temperatures to about 80°.Since Lanimer and I had a day off, we decided to take the children and go for a ride on the horses.Our daughter Lyra was four, and our son Mikal was almost three.I rode our big black mare Astra with Mikal sitting in front of me on the saddle while Lyra rode with Lanimer.I think he had a smile on his face the whole time.

I’d never even heard of horses before Lanimer came into my life, but I watched them grow in their nurturing tanks with him until it was time for them to come out and stand on their own four legs.From the beginning, I saw them as beautiful, almost ethereal creatures.They were cute, funny, and sweet when they came out of their nurturing tanks, and it was easy to bond with them.I quickly grew to understand how Lanimer became enamored of them.

Lanimer and I worked at the clinic together for two and a half more years until I was well into my first pregnancy with Lyra.I had always planned to be a hands-on mother, so I stayed home to care for her after she was born.By then, Dr. Yaroman had hired another medic, and Lanimer was able to take some time off to help care for Lyra.I was glad because when Lyra was ten months old, I got pregnant with Mikal.

Both children look almost human but have pointed ears like mine.As far as we’re concerned, they’re beautiful.

Besides two children, we raised our four horses with the help of a specially programmed android.The foals had to be bottle-fed for the first four months because they were grown in nurturing tanks.

The children were delighted to ride the horses with us, walking the trails between the crop fields.We planned to put them down for a nap when we returned to the house so Lanimer and I could have some time for each other.Lanimer teased me by sending pictures directly into my mind of what he would like to do to me once the children were down for their naps.He had me squirming in the saddle.

The strife between our people had eased steadily after the Feds arrested Senator Dorn, and the public learned how his people had manipulated them.Both races made a concerted effort to learn about each other and to understand and appreciate our differences and similarities.

We did cultural exchanges, and Lanimer and I talked to different groups, sharing our experiences as a mixed couple.We discovered many more than we realized, but Lanimer was the only telepath, a fact we still did not share with many people. Our children show signs of empathic tendencies, but we’re not sure if they are telepathic yet. Lanimer will guide them through their dawning if they are.

I love Lanimer with all of my heart, and I always will.

Lanimer

By the time our children were born, the strife between humans and Trakellisans had almost become a thing of the past. While our settlements have not fully integrated, we co-exist peacefully. Humans were as outraged as the Trakellisans at how government officials manipulated us to mistrust each other. Zevus Mar was rich enough in Verlian crystals to support all of the mining operations. There was never a need to fight over them.

Evalee and I have done our best to promote understanding and friendship between our people. We’ve made a lot of new friends along the way. I still miss my family on Oltarin, but we exchange messages every week.

Bringing the horses to Zevus Mar was a good decision. They have acclimated well to the desert climate. Now, we have a herd of twelve with diverse genetics, so we can breed them when they are old enough. We will sell the current batch in the nurturing tanks. Once people found out we were breeding horses, they asked to buy some.

As a telepath, I quickly determined they were sincerely interested in the animals and agreed to grow them. My new horse, Braxen, is from the same line as Fandor, my horse on Oltarin. Their personalities are very similar. I still miss Fandor, but I know he is in good hands.

Zevus Mar is where I belong with Evalee. I think my parents would be proud of the man I’ve become, and they would have loved our children.

THE END