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  "Okay," Mike said looking the other way. "By the way, what is that tower over there?"

  "I do not know," Rokka said. "It was constructed by Brana's people and is connected to the shore. I show you," he said as he steered Mike toward an opening in the trees.

  The walk took only a few minutes and Mike found himself standing in front of a small compound surrounded by a four-meter high fence. Inside were two small buildings and a tower that appeared to be about 30 meters tall. Everything seemed quite ordinary except that on top of the tower was a platform with a glass dome. From the inside of the dome came a bluish light that seemed to be generating some sort of energy. Thick cables ran from the dome to one of the buildings in the compound. The second building had tracks running from it to the first building. As Mike surveyed the area he saw a small animal hanging from the fence. It was scorched and withered.

  "Do not touch the fence. It is electrified," Rokka said noticing Mike's reaction.

  The whole scene looked something out of a history book for Mike. Then the realization hit him. It was out of a history book. The old decrepit buildings and tall fences all fit things he had seen from the 21st century. He took more notice of the tower and the platform on top.

  "Looks like an old Tesla Coil emitter without the lightning," he said out loud.

  Rokka didn't know much about it. "It hums all the time. At night there is a faint blue glow from the glass top."

  The blue glow finally hit Mike finally when he remembered something from the 21st century. "Wait a minute. I know this. A long time ago the military used to set something like this up to electronically mask a battlefield area. It was a damper for electromagnetic emissions. This is why you can't pick up radio signals or send any out. Is there no way to get inside?"

  "We tried long ago, but there are some sort of devices to prevent tunneling and jumping over the fence. If you do, the guards come quickly by boat. It is not pleasant."

  Mike didn't want to be reminded. "Don't worry. I know their unpleasantness first hand."

  "Someday maybe we can get in, but for now, let's get some supper," Rokka said.

  Mike agreed. It was definitely why the communications were so completely cut off. That also explained the problem with their radios. The translators worked because it was only something for local, personal use, but the transpace field would also be dampened. As he recalled, a similar system was first used to try to make a starship disappear to an enemy. It was found to be extremely limited in that purpose, but here and now, it was very effective indeed.

  Mike nodded to Rokka and they both headed back toward the house. This problem would wait for another day.

  A hearty meal had been prepared for them. After cleaning up, they all sat down and ate in a very pleasant atmosphere. There was lots of talk about what they were doing, some personal experiences, and even some talk about Jo's music. At the end everyone sat back and relaxed. Mike was the first to offer the complements.

  "That was a great meal Shala. I really like the way you prepare the vegetables."

  Shala smiled and winked at Jo.

  "Thank you Mike, but Jo prepared the meal tonight."

  Mike was really surprised. He turned to look at Jo.

  "So you can cook."

  "Never underestimate the powers of a good woman. Right, Shala?"

  Shala smiled and nodded. "That is correct."

  "We keep eating this way and I will get fat as some of animals." Rokka said patting his belly.

  "Well, I was hungry all day. This really hit the spot," Mike said.

  "Spot?" Rokka asked with a questioning look.

  "Just an expression. I feel full now."

  "Ahhh," Rokka said in understanding.

  "Well then, since we have two days of rest we should prepare ourselves. Papa, we shall bathe," Shala said.

  Jo closed her eyes and smiled. "A bath would feel so good."

  "A good idea," Rokka said, getting up from the table. He went over to a closet and opened the door. After a moment he reentered the room dragging out a large, oblong metal tub. He positioned it in the middle of the floor.

  Jo stared at the tub with wide eyes. "You have got to be kidding," she said.

  Mike let out a laugh. "But you did say it would feel really good."

  She turned back to him. "But here? In that?"

  Shala was busy gathering the dishes. She glanced over her shoulder. "How else do you propose we bathe?" Then she set the dishes by the sink and reached under the cabinet to gather some towels and soap. She handed them to Rokka. "Here you go. You men get down to the lake and wash. Do not come back till we call."

  After shooing the men toward the door, she turned to Jo and rubbed her hands together in anticipation. "Now let's heat some water."

  As Mike was going out the door, he teased Jo. "Sure you don't want to come to the lake?"

  Shala gasped and looked sternly at Mike as Rokka giggled. She shook her finger at him in mock consternation. "Shame on you. You men get out. We have things to do."

  Rokka slapped Mike on the shoulder. "Come, Mike. We clean ourselves."

  The two men went to the lake at a place that had obviously been used for such purposes before. There were stone steps down to the water and a place where the clothes and towels could be hung. The reeds gave a measure of privacy. Mike quickly disrobed and walked to the edge. At this place, the bottom was naturally carved from rock, and from the bottom of the step it dropped down nearly three feet into the warm water. There was a wooden rail for him to hold onto as he stepped in. Farther out, it dropped further till Mike was up to his neck. A few moments later Rokka stepped to the edge of the water and dove in.

  It was then that Mike discovered he had a problem. Up until now, he thought these people were exactly like humans. But he was wrong. Their clothes, which he thought were just a fashion design, were cut that way for a purpose. Rokka's genitals were where Mike's belly button was. Worse, Rokka and Shala had both seen him totally naked while applying the bandages. They had to know he was not from their planet. With Jo bathing with Shala, she would be found out too. He was not sure what to do.

  Mike watched Rokka grab the soap and begin to wash. The cake of soap lathered at once and he scrubbed down thoroughly then dove back down in the water. If Rokka was ignoring the differences, Mike guessed he should too. He used his cake of soap to lather up and clean himself, careful to keep his back to Rokka. He finally lathered up his hair and dunked under to rinse it off. By this time he was up to his chest in the water and safe to turn around again. He saw Rokka with his eyes closed, soaking up the heat of the water.

  "I can't get over how warm this water is," Mike said.

  Rokka opened his eyes and looked over. "Comes from hot springs near here under the lake."

  "I could stay here all night."

  Rokka nodded his agreement. "One of my favorite places. It is one of few luxuries we have here." Rokka liked Mike and Jo. He and Shala had been so alone on the island. Even though Brana had sent them there to be a punishment, Mike and Jo's arrival had been a blessing instead - even if they were different. That difference had intrigued Rokka and Shala from the very day that they had found the two on the beach. Shala had told him to keep his doubts to himself. Their healing was more important. But now they were becoming friends. The two men were bathing together and there were obvious differences. He didn't want to offend Mike, but his curiosity was getting the best of him. He looked over at the young man.

  "Michael, may I ask a personal question? If you cannot answer I will understand."

  Uh Oh, Mike thought. He knew what was coming, but for some reason wasn't afraid. "Sure," he said.

  Rokka took a moment to phrase the question. "You do not come from this world, do you?"

  There it was – a direct question so simple on its face, but so difficult in the consequences the answer might cause. Mike decided to try and be evasive. "What makes you think that?

  Rokka gave him a ‘give me a break’ look. "Well, you speak of t
hings we have heard nothing of, you dress differently, Jo plays music we have not heard," he said, but then he gave Mike a hard look. "But when clothed there may be a doubt, when not, there are differences."

  Mike started turning red despite all his efforts. "Yes, I noticed."

  "Shala and I noticed while dressing your wounds. We were afraid her medicines would not help."

  Mike looked at the man. They had really saved him from a life of pain or possibly death. He could not lie to them. "I'm thankful they did," he said. Then after a pause, "To answer your question, no, we are not from here. I hope this does not frighten you"

  Rokka laid his head back in the water and looked skyward. So the rumors he had heard from one of his friends was true. He shook his head. “Not unless you are here to do us harm. But I think, you are too good to do that,” he said. He looked closely at Mike and smiled. "For many years I have suspected that there was life outside our own small world. Do you come from far away?"

  "Yes. From another small world we call Earth. It is very similar to here. Many people, animals, lakes like this and other similarities."

  "Do you miss it?"

  Mike chuckled. Now that the cat was out of the bag... "I have only been there a few times. Most of my life has been on a great ship visiting other worlds like yours. But, yes, I miss it."

  Rokka didn't know what to think. This opened whole new thoughts for him. His dreams were no longer just fantasies, but something that could be achieved. "In my dreams I have imagined what it would be like to travel to other worlds. To look for new life and new people. To go where no one from our world has been. I envy you. It is a great adventure."

  "It has its good points," Mike said. "But it is also a dangerous place. You never know what you will find, or what dangers you will get into. It's just a way of life I guess. It's the same there as it may be in some larger cities.

  Rokka nodded at the wisdom of this young man who was now his friend. "Very true. But it does stir the imagination," he said. This young man and the girl he so obviously cared for had now made an even greater change in their lives. That was something worth cherishing. "Thank you for telling me," he said looking at Mike. Then he asked, "I have one more question. If agreeable."

  "Please ask."

  “Are most of the people from your world like you and Jo?”

  Mike shrugged his shoulders. “I can only tell you of the people I have lived with. But, yes, we are all much the same. On occasion, there will be someone who causes suffering, but most are eager to be friendly and to help others. We also like to learn about how our universe works. We have been in space for over two centuries and we still learn more each day. That’s one of the reasons I am here today. Our ship came to watch what is happening on your world. You never know what we may discover,” Mike concluded.

  “So you have been watching us a long time?”

  Mike smiled. “No, we actually just got here. The last time one of our ships visited was one hundred years ago.”

  “Ahhh. So you came to see how far we had come,” Rokka said as he nodded his head. “Does it usually take that long between visits?”

  “No, but there has been a lot going on during that time. We also made some breakthroughs of our own that allow us to get here much quicker than before. Now that we are here, maybe you will be able to see us more often,” Mike said.

  “Having met you and Jo, I hope that will happen. Maybe someday I could visit your planet,” Rokka said with a twinkle.

  “That would be fun,” Mike said. “But we usually don’t interfere with any of the planets we visit. We observe and see how things are going, then leave quietly. You see, we are afraid of introducing things to other worlds before they have achieved them on their own. You never know how something as simple as allowing someone to see technology will change their future. We try to be very careful,” Mike said.

  Rokka thought a moment. “That makes much sense to me. Although I cannot imagine the technologies you possess, I can see how introducing them might cause problems.”

  “Imagine if someone had technology they would use over someone who does not possess it. Wars have been fought over such things,” Mike said.

  A questioning look came over Rokka’s face. “We have not had such things for many generations. I cannot imagine fighting for such things now,” he said. “Do your people have these wars?”

  Mike thought for a moment. Of course there had been some fighting, but he didn’t want Rokka to get the wrong opinion of what Earth was like. “Actually, there are times when we must act as a policeman to settle differences or to protect others. Sometimes when we meet other more aggressive species there can be conflict. But our goal is to peacefully move out into the universe, meet new worlds and spread friendship. Earth’s last war was over two hundred years ago. We called it our third world war.” Mike gave a forlorn chuckle. “It was a war over fundamental religious beliefs. Because our religion was so strong and personal, people started trying to push their version of religion on others. Some leaders craved the power they had over people using their religion. When vast numbers of people began following those leaders blindly, conflict arose. Most people just wanted to live their lives peacefully and practice their beliefs in their own way, but these leaders wanted to control those beliefs and the people who believed. Millions died before those violent factions were finally defeated. In the end, people came back to the realization that their beliefs were their own – something personal. It wasn’t anything about power and control, but something for each individual’s wellbeing. We have been at peace ever since.”

  Rokka shook his head. “It is hard to understand. We have known this all along. I am sorry things have been so difficult.”

  Mike knew it would be hard to explain. “In our travels, each civilization has matured and grown in different ways. That’s one of the things we have enjoyed along the way. To stand by and see others working through the same things you have, and achieve some of the same results, can be very exciting,” Mike said with a smile. “We were lucky. We got through our troubles and have learned because of them. Now we can go on to even bigger and better things,” he said.

  Rokka looked back at Mike. “Do you still have these strong beliefs?”

  Mike smiled. “A lot of people have lost their religion. Much of it because of that war, but in my case, I still believe. Very much so. What about you?”

  Rokka nodded. “We do. Our beliefs are very old. Something almost everyone has believed in since time began. Over the years, some have questioned these beliefs, but with all that has been going on lately, many people have returned. Do all people you come in contact with have some sort of religion as we do?”

  “Many places,” Mike said.

  Rokka was beginning to understand. If Mike felt this way, it was very special. "I can respect this. Thank you again Michael. I will keep your secrets. Now one more question. What is this thing you wear around your neck?"

  Mike had put on the remains of his elastic shirt collar and it held his translator/radio. He touched it with his fingers. “It is how you can understand me and I understand you. There is a device inside which translates what we say almost immediately. It also has a built in radio that would allow me to talk to the ship. Unfortunately, the tower keeps it from working right now,” he said.

  “I thought it might be a symbol of your beliefs,” Rokka said. “Since it is some of this technology you talked of, I will not ask questions,” he grinned.

  “Someday I hope I can show you many things. Please be patient. We were put together due to something we could not control, but now that we have met and shared some of our experiences, I am happy to call you a friend."

  Rokka smiled at this wise young man. He could tell there would be great things happening in this life, if he were allowed to live it. A flash caught his eye from the house. He motioned to Mike. "There is Mama's signal. We can go back now. Mama and I have to prepare ourselves for the days of our beliefs."

  Mike, at first, had not t
aken into account that Rokka and Shala might have their own religion. It was one more thing they might have in common. "What do you call what you believe in?"

  Rokka looked at the young man. "Long ago he told us his name. It is so holy we dare not speak it," he said pulling himself from the water and reaching for his towel.

  They both dried off and donned the clean clothes they had brought. By the time they reached the house, Mike could hear someone tuning a violin.

  "Ahhh. More music tonight," Rokka said happily.

  They both dropped their towels over the rail of the porch and walked to the music room. Shala was already seated in one corner with a book in her hand.

  "You play something tonight?" Rokka asked as he entered the room.

  "I thought so," Jo said as she continued tuning the instrument.

  Mike sat on the piano bench. He looked up at Jo as she began playing Liebestraum on her instrument. After bathing, Jo seemed to glow. Mike could not find one flaw. Even her hair seemed to be alive and vibrant. He watched as her fingers deftly maneuvered along the strings and positioned the bow to get the perfect notes. He still could not believe he was here, sharing the same space with her.

  In the middle of the first few phrases, he quietly turned around on the bench and lifted the cover from the piano keys. At the next phrase he began to play along with her. His tuning had been perfect. Mike's accompaniment was flawless, and except for the momentary lull when Jo realized he was playing with her, the blend of notes from her violin and his piano were woven into a blanket of rich sounds which would have made the composer proud. Shala and Rokka exchanged knowing glances as they played. As the final notes called an end to the music, they both shouted, as was their custom, in appreciation for the wonderful thing they had just experienced. They both stood and rushed to the two, patting them on the back and shoulders and in Shala's case giving hugs. Then Jo looked over at Mike.

  "That was beautiful," she said to him.

  "I have been playing since I was three. Besides," he said with a sly grin, “Never underestimate the abilities of a good man. What next?"