Chapter 1

 Leelu raced through the Dakorian jungle, the branches of alien trees slapping against her skin. There was a faint rumbling coming from behind her. She did not look back, for she knew what it was. She ran for what seemed like forever, until she came to a end in the forest, and burst out into open land, the small village known as Spaarti. She ran through the center of town, screaming.
 "Nah maye! Vendous fraiet kien! Nah maye!" The villagers gave her a tired look. They were used to her wild imagination. But the light emitting from the dense jungle changed their thoughts. It was a red glow, and a giant craft leveled above the trees. The village people ran into their homes, and Leelu was left alone in the abandoned streets. Suddenly, another craft, much smaller than the first, swooped over head, and Leelu was sucked up into the newly arrived ship. She didn't know where she was, all she knew, was that she was scared. The ship raced off the planet, and cleared the first set of air rings surrounding it, as there was a giant mushroom cloud explosion, at the direct spot where the village had been. The dust went for what seemed like hundreds of miles, but soon the planet, and the cloud was a distant speck. There was a whoosh, and two figures stepped into the transportation dock. Leelu froze, ready to defend herself. One of the figures stepped forward, revealing his long blonde hair, and blue eyes.
 "It's all right, we're here to save you." He said. Leelu understood little communication (English), and nodded. She followed the two men, the other shorter with long blonde hair and chocolate brown eyes, out of the transportation dock.

 "Is it her?" The young man at the starship pilot's console asked. The one with the blue eyes shrugged.
 "I don't know. She seems to speak comm, but I don't really know if it's her." He answered. The pilot sighed. Then turned to Leelu.
 "Do you know what I'm saying?" He asked. Leelu gave a confused look, and nodded.
 "Small. Comm no." She said. The two taller and obviously older ones turned to the shorter one.
 "Talk to her." The medium one said. The younger one gave them a odd look.
 "Why? I have no idea what she speaks! It could be some native language that no one's ever heard before." He said.
 "So? Ask her what she speaks." The older one told him. Leelu had come to the decision that they were related, and probably brothers. They didn't look very old, the eldest only about 18. The short one turned to her.
 "What is your name?" He asked. Leelu gave him another confused look.
 "Name?" He repeated. She shook her head. He sighed, then pointed to himself.
 "My name, is Zac." He said, and pointed to the medium one. "His name, is Taylor." Then to the tallest. "His name, is Ike." Leelu thought she understood, and pointed to herself.
 "Zactaylorike." She said. Zac surpressed a smirk. Then shook his head.
 "No. Me Zac, he Taylor, and he Ike. You? Name?" He asked. She pointed at Zac.
 "Zac?" She asked. He nodded, smiling a little bit.
 "Yes. I am Zac." He said. She pointed to herself.
 "Leelu Maryiash No-hynirat." She said. Zac raised his eyebrow.
 "Leelu?" He asked. She thought for a moment, then nodded, and pointed to herself.
 "Leelu." She said. Zac nodded, and pointed to a star readout of the system they had just been in.
 "Was that your planet?" He asked. Leelu didn't seem to hear him. She pointed to the system.
 "Dakora." She said.
 "Dakora? Name?" He asked. She nodded.
 "Dakora." She repeated. Zac nodded, and turned to Ike.
 "Ike, run a check on some planet called Dakora, see if you can get a common language used there." He said. Ike nodded.
 "Allrighty." Taylor left the room.
 "Where's he think he's going?" Zac asked. Ike shrugged.
 "Who knows." He answered. Zac turned back to the system chart. Leelu was reading over the stars and planets. She seemed to know how to read a star chart. She pointed at a planet next to hers.
 "Insearti." She said.
 "Insearti? Are you from there? Or Dakora?" He asked. She shook her head.
 "Dakora. Insearti, no. Bad, haait." She said. Ike whirled around.
 "What did she say?" He demanded. Zac shrugged.
 "Insearti?" He said.
 "Haait. Bad." She said. Ike's eyes grew wide.
 "What?" Zac asked.
 "Haait, I heard that once, when we were very young, I don't even think you were born yet. A man came to visit father, and he spoke of the Haait. I think it means...evil ones, or devil or something." He said. Zac raised a eyebrow.
 "Evil ones? Insearti has evil ones?" He said.
 "Haait." Leelu said. "Bad." Zac shrugged.
 "This is going to take a long time." He muttered.

Chapter 2

 Taylor Hanson sat in the rec room of their ship, The Albertane. He was puzzled by the girl, she didn't seem to be the right one. His sense was telling him that she was important, but that she was not the one they were looking for. Taylor, Ike, and Zac all had what was called Gift. It allowed certain people who had Gift to do remarkable things. The three Hanson boys had the ability of music, but they each possessed their own special talents. Taylor's was supposedly the strongest of all. Zac's was the gift of interpretation and speech, he could understand almost any language, and had a gift with animals and young children, Ike's was the gift of mechanics, he could fly anything anywhere, and could take a object apart and make something new out of it.   Taylor's was special, he could feel people, and what their emotions were. He also had the ability to move things, and plant idea's into people's heads, although he didn't brag too much about that one.
 Each of the boys was remarkably good looking, long, blonde hair, clear skin, Ike had mysterious hazel eyes, while Zac's where chocolately brown and caring. Taylor's were a baby blue crystal, and seemed to penetrate the soul. The rest of their family was stationed on Chimaera, where they ruled high court. Their parents, High Lady Diana and High Lord Walker, had four other children apart from Ike, Tay and Zac, but the three eldest were not interested in staying in one spot, they chose to explore the galaxy, and find the secrets of the Ancient People's and how they lived before the Great War. The Great War destroyed nearly all the worlds and races of the galaxy, and there are nearly no records of it's existence. It was long ago, almost 50 years, and only a few remaining humans, or pink fleshlings as some other races called them, who had seen the Great War were alive. The Hanson's had ruled many worlds during the time of the Great War, and before as well, but all those worlds were lost, so each empire and family was trying to regain it's status. Taylor and his brothers were out looking for the last surviving member of the D'aacord family. The sons of the Hanson family and the daughters of the D'aacord family were to marry, and vice versa. The three brothers didn't exactly like the idea of marrying someone they didn't even know, so they had planned to kill her if they didn't find her to their liking. Taylor was the one most likely to marry the girl, since Ike was already engaged to a smuggler from the Barrier Worlds, much to his parent's disapproval. Zac didn't seem to care all that much about who he married. The younger children weren't of age to understand yet.
 Taylor didn't want to marry the D'aacord survivor, he wanted to find the right girl, and he very much doubted that the last surviving D'aacord child was her. He absentmindedly fiddled with his Blavrer, (think gun that shoots lasers), and wished that for once, he could be normal. There was a whoosh, and Ike stepped into the rec room.
 "What's up?" He asked. Taylor shrugged. The brothers all had a sixth sense about each other.
 "I don't know. I don't think this is the right girl." He said. Ike nodded.
 "I did a background check on Dakora, that's where Leelu's from, and Insearti. I found something very interesting, but I didn't want to show it to Zac yet." He said, and handed Taylor a readout. Taylor skimmed through the article, and his eyes went wide.
 "Oh by the Gods." He said. Ike nodded.
 "Gift. It originated on Insearti." He said. Taylor nodded, and read on.
 "It was a world, that was officially ruled by the Hanson Empire, but for some reason, our family chose to leave it alone, and let all the wildlife be." He said. Ike nodded.
 "I also took the liberty off checking up on population control of Insearti." He said, and handed Taylor the readout on that. Taylor read it over.
 "So? There's nothing unusual about this." He said. Ike shook his head.
 "For someone so strong with Gift, you can be so dense sometimes, Tay. Look. It says uninhabited for over 100 years. Isn't that a little bit odd?" He asked. Taylor shrugged.
 "I don't think so. Maybe it's got awful land or some sort of predator on it." He said. Ike shook his head.
 "No, there's something there. And Leelu said that Insearti mean Haait. And Haait means evil one or devil or something." He said. Taylor nodded.
 "Well, I think it's worth checking out, don't you?" He asked. Ike shook his head.
 "No way, Taylor. We don't know a thing about this planet. And we have to find the D'aacord girl." He said. Taylor didn't answer. He just stared at one of the landscape pictures the computer had read out.
 "Oh my God." He breathed.

Chapter 3

 It had been a few hours since the boys had first picked up Leelu, and thanks to Zac, she was learning Comm very quickly. Zac had tried to get Leelu to talk about what happened on Dakora, but she avoided the subject. He had searched through his old files and documents, and had found a language similar to that of Leelu's dialect, but it wasn't exactly the same. He wanted to know what had happened on Dakora. He pressed for answers.
 "Dakora. What happened there? Was it under attack?" He asked. She raised a eyebrow.
 "Dakora. No speak. All gone." She answered. Zac rubbed his eyes. She was very stubborn.
 "Leelu, listen. What happened on Dakora? I need to know, we come from a powerful, Miiada," He said 'powerful' in her native tongue, "family, and we can help you." She shook her head.
 "Nahti rahh'tim everwin t'tonaghirho." She answered, rather quickly. Zac searched his texts for any possible translation.
 "You cannot disgrace, no, shame your planet? Is that bad?" He asked.
 "Bad, no talk of Dakora now, gone." She answered. Zac slammed his fist on the table.
 "I need to know dammit! Tell me!" He yelled. Leelu's eyes flashed, and her muscle's flexed.
 "Angry. Pain. not ready, spee'ardhali." She said. He checked spee'ardhali.
 "Afraid? I'm not afraid. It's not bad, don't worry, I'm sorry I got so angry, I just really need to know, understanding you is my job. My rooart." He explained. Zac doubted very much that she understood what he was saying, but it appeared that she could comprehend more what he said  than she could communicate with.
 "Rooart, not important now. Do what heart feels." She said. Zac nodded.
 "You're right." He murmured.
 "What of the haait?" He asked. Leelu looked around nervously.
 "Haait ones with power, strong. Haait come to hurt Dakora, from Insearti. No safe. Safe never. Have strong thought. Move with this." She said, and pointed to her head. Zac felt a twinge at the bottom of his stomach.
 "Move with their head?" He asked. Leelu nodded.
 "Mai." She answered. Zac had now come to recognize mai as yes, or agreement.
 "That sounds like Gift, but why would anyone with Gift want to harm someone?" He asked out loud not expecting an answer.
 "Because." A voice said from behind him. "Insearti or whatever is where Gift originated from." Zac turned around to face his brother Taylor, the surprise on his face obvious.
 "What are you talking about? That's impossible. Gift didn't originate from anywhere." He said. Taylor shook his head.
 "No, that's not true. You know the symbol, that those with the Gift bear?" He asked, and pulled down Zac's shirt collar to reveal the scar/birthmark shaped like a moon with a arrow through it on his neck. Zac jerked away. He was very sensitive about his mark.
 "Yeah. So?" He asked. He was jealous that it was visible, unlike Taylor's and Ike's. Because of this, Zac chose to wear high-necked shirts. Taylor's was on the back of his left shoulder, and Ike's was on his stomach, near his bellybutton.
 "Well, look at this printout." Taylor showed the picture to Zac. Zac couldn't believe his eyes. There was a mountain behind a old, old village, and the mountain's peak was shaped like the crescent moon with the arrow through it. There was also the same shape on most of the old ruins. It was faded and dull, but it was still there. There was also a old language printed beside the image. It looked vaguely familiar.
 "Leelu." He said, and turned to look at their guest. Leelu was staring out the cockpit window. She turned around. Her eyes fluttered to Taylor for a moment. Zac was not surprised. Almost all girls, and women, of practically every race couldn't help but look at him, it had something to do with his Gift, and looks, obviously.
 "Can you read this?" Zac asked. "Nah whisti?" Taylor was mildly impressed at his brother's use of Leelu's language, but it didn't amaze him greatly. It was, after all, Zac's Gift. Leelu looked at the printout for a moment, and then, realizing what it was, tossed it back at him.
 "No! Bad, look, mountain evil. Haait." She said. Zac shook his head, and Taylor put a hand on his shoulder.
 "Sano luna scarr." He told him, using the Hanson Empire dialect. Leelu gave them a confused look.
 "Speak what you?" She demanded. Taylor smiled softly.
 "This is Insearti. It's not bad, it's where Gift originated from." He said. Leelu shook her head.
 "Power come pain. Haait bad. Evil. Pain for people Dakora. Where get this you?" She demanded again. Taylor cocked a eyebrow.
 "Pretty persistent, 'aint she?" He said. Zac nodded.
 "Very." He muttered, and looked at Leelu. "Readout from comp. Insearti. Please, Leelu, what do the ruins say?" He asked, and showed her the paper once more. She looked wearily at Taylor, but took the paper. She seemed to trust Zac, but didn't have much faith in Taylor. Zac suspected he saw past his charming smile. She read the printout, and shook her head.
 "No right. Power blessing gift of say." Zac struggled to understand her broken comm, it wasn't how she normally communicated.
 "What? Is this too hard for you?" He asked. She shook her head.
 "Mai. Hard, tell but not good. Read power come, Haait happy, but then go bad is something." She said. Taylor nodded.
 "And?" He pressed. Leelu sighed.
 "No know. Too gone." She said. Zac's shoulder's slumped.
 "So, the power came, and it was a gift, a blessing, and the Haait was happy, but then something went wrong?" He interpreted. Leelu nodded.
 "Mai." She answered. Taylor looked out the window.
 "This doesn't make any sense, I mean, if Gift originated from Insearti, and there are the markings of the luna scar, and it's bad? Why would people with Gift want to harm Leelu's world? Were they at war? Was the machine that destroyed most of Dakora from the same beings that gave the Haait Gift? Who gave them Gift? By the Gods, I am so very, very confused." He said, and slumped into his chair.
 "Worry you lot. Why? Past, pain, forever gone." Leelu said. Taylor shrugged.
 "Whatever." He muttered. Leelu glared at him, and turned around to look out the other side of the cockpit window. The bright lights of hyperspace put her in a trance, and she was quiet.
 Zac stood up, and left the cockpit in search of Ike, possibly the only sane person left on The Albertane.

Chapter 4

 The Albertane jumped out of lightspeed, and pulled into the docking bay of Chimeara.
Ike felt the familiar sense he always got when home again among his people. The boys had stopped their search for the D'aacord girl for now, and were more interested in uncovering the truth about Gift, and Insearti. Leelu was amazed at the sight of a space loading station. The boy's parents were in a counsel meeting, and could not greet them upon their arrival, but they had sent the family's trusted friend and advisor, who also happened to be the boy's personal manager, Sabec. The Hanson's and Leelu stepped off The Albertane and into the arms of Jessica Hanson.
 "Jessie! Gosh, you've gotten bigger!" Ike exclaimed, and gave his sister a big bear hug. Jessica was now 11, and couldn't wait to join her parents in the high class monarchy of the Hanson Empire. Leelu shifted uncomfortably. Jessica noticed her, and smiled.
 "Oh, Gods, is this the D'aacord?" She squealed. Ike looked at the floor, and Zac pretended to be interested in a few Lotuson's wobbling past their dock. That left Taylor to explain.
 "Well, we sort of rescued her from being blown up along with her planet, so she's just along for the ride. She speaks a spaced out language, and her name's Leelu." He said in comm, then switched to Hanson Empire dialect.
 "Femme specks dye Insearti mas luna scarr pressie." He said. Jessie's eyes widened at the  news of the origin of Gift. She nodded.
 "Luna scarr pressie sang Insearti?" She asked. Taylor nodded. Leelu knew that they were talking about Insearti, and she wanted in.
 "Talk you what? Tell of lang." She said. Jessie smiled softly.
 "I'm Jessica. Nice to meet you Leelu." She said, and held out her hand. Leelu just looked at her, and sniffed. She turned to Zac.
 "Who she be?" She demanded. Zac smiled.
 "Jessie is my sister, my blood, she is very nice, shake her hand." He demonstrated with Ike. "Name." He said. Leelu nodded, and smiled weakly while she shook her hand.
 "Be me Leelu Maryiash No-hynirat." She said. Jessie smiled.
 "The pleasure is mine."

 "Leelu is stationed in her room, and she seems to be settling in well." Sabec informed Ike. He nodded, and shook his head.
 "I can't believe we brought her here." He muttered.
 "Ah, do High Lady Diana and High Lord Walker know of her presence yet?" Sabec asked in his refined comm. Ike shook his head.
 "Not yet. They expected us to bring back a D'aacord princess, not a orphaned native." He said, and chuckled to himself. "Mother'll probably think she's some sort of Space escort that Taylor picked up in a galactic bar." Sabec smiled lightly.
 "And how is Taylor?" He questioned. Ike shrugged.
 "Same as always. He's getting stronger in Gift, and I don't know what to make of it, I mean, it's like he knows everything that's going on. And Leelu's very weary of him." He said. Sabec shrugged.
 "Sometimes offworlders can tell things about people that we cannot detect." He said, and excused himself to leave. Ike shrugged. He sat alone for a moment, until he could not stand to sit still for a moment longer. He picked up his cator (phone) and punched in Marieh's ship number. It displayed what planet she was located on. Tabb. One of the outer rim worlds. Ike dialed, and waited. Soon Diina, Marieh's first mate, of the Criddean species, face filled the screen.
 "Hey, Ike. What's up?" She asked. He smiled. Diina's voice sounded like a choir singing.
 "Nothing really, Diina. I'm back on Chimaera now." He said. Diina nodded.
 "Lucky you. I haven't been home for four years." She answered, almost wistfully. Ike knew that Diina was wanted on her home world for assassination, so she couldn't return to Criddea without facing charges, and possibly the death penalty.
 "I assume you want to talk to Marieh?" She asked. Ike nodded.
 "If she's available, yeah." He said. Diina chuckled.
 "Ike, babe, for you she'd fly to the core of Sol." She said, and put the cator on hold. Ike smiled to himself. He hoped Diina was right, he was going to marry Marieh, after all. Marieh's beautiful face filled the screen, and he smiled.
 "Hey beautiful." He said. She smiled, her red hair glistening.
 "Hi Ike. Are you back on Chimaera?" She asked. He nodded.
 "Yeah, I just got back from watching some planet explode." He said. Marieh's delicate features fell to a frown.
 "That's awful. Who did it? The Kretti Empire?" She asked. Ike shook his head.
 "We don't know. We rescued this girl, Leelu, from the planet, Dakora, and she seems to know some history on Gift, but she doesn't speak comm." He said. Marieh sighed.
 "That must be tough." She murmured. Ike nodded.
 "Um, you didn't find the D'aacord girl, did you?" She asked quietly. Ike shook is head.
 "Marieh, love, you don't have to worry about that. I have explained to my parents that I am my own person, and that I am going to marry the woman I love, and that woman, Marieh, is you." He said. Marieh smiled.
 "Oh, Isaac, I love you. But what if-"
 "I have everything under control. Taylor is going to marry the D'aacord girl, if we find her. And if he doesn't like her, then we'll have to get rid of her." He interrupted. Marieh nodded. Her family came from the working class, and she was never assigned to marry any specific person, but her family was all dead  now, destroyed by the Kretti Empire. She had a deep hate for the Kretti, and vowed to one day get revenge on the ones that destroyed the only life she had ever known. Isaac had often wondered how she had gotten through life up until now. Marieh also had no remorse for the death of others, unless it is the innocent.
 "Well, I don't know when I'll be able to see you again, I think I'm coming to Vora in a few days." Marieh said. Ike smiled.
 "I should be here still by then, I can drop by and see you." He said. There was a tugging feeling at the back of his mind, but he couldn't remember what it was. He shrugged it off. Something about Vora....
 "Are you sure? I mean, isn't Taylor, um, wanted there?" Marieh asked nervously. Ike raised his eyebrow.
 "Wanted? By their empire?" He asked. Marieh shook her head, and her face turned red. Ike knew that when they had first met her, she was interested in Taylor, but he didn't want her. Ike always felt odd when Marieh, Taylor and him were in the same room together
 "Um, I mean, don't the Voraan's see Taylor, as a sort of godly, ah, sex symbol?" She asked. It then dawned on Ike, the Voraan's loved Taylor! He burst out laughing.
 "Oh my gods, yes! I completely forgot. They were all following him last time and everything, he got several courtship's, but he was all blown away by it. He was only 13 then. I remember that, it was funny." He said. Marieh nodded, smiling a bit.
 "He's 16 now, he might be able to appreciate it a bit more!" She said. Ike smiled, and nodded. He heard a noise come from behind Marieh, and she turned around nervously, he couldn't see what it was.
 "Oh, Ike, I have to go now, I'll see you on Vora, okay?" She said, rather hurriedly. Ike nodded.
 "Okay, is everything alright?" He asked. She nodded, and gave him a weak smile.
 "Just some unsatisfied customers." She said. There were shouts in the background.
 "I'll send some reinforcements there if you want, it sounds pretty bad." He said. Marieh shook her head. She could barely be heard over the noise emitting from the background.
 "No! I'll be okay! I'll see you on Vora-" She said. There were several shouts, and then the cator went out. Ike sat there, frozen in his seat. He could have swore that before she logged out, she said one final thing.
 "They won't get here in time anyway..."

Chapter 5

 "You what?" High Lady Diana of the Hanson's Dynasty Empire screamed. Taylor cringed back. Zac tried to hide behind his brother.
 "We brought back a girl, and her planet was destroyed, and she knows a lot about the planet that Gift originated from, Insearti, and she says Gift is a evil power or something, and-"
 "That's enough! I don't want to hear anymore! She is probably a spy, and is filling your head full of space junk! There is no planet Insearti, all people there died out long ago, and Gift isn't a evil power, why that's a ridiculously absurd suggestion." She said, her face red with anger. But Taylor looked into her feelings, and saw something different there, he saw shame.
 "Why are you reacting like this? What's on Insearti that you are so ashamed of?" He asked quietly. She gave him a surprised look.
 "Taylor, don't talk nonsense. Did you find the D'aacord girl?" She asked, changing the subject. Taylor's face grew hard.
 "No. But it doesn't matter, because Ike isn't going to marry her, and neither am I." He said. She shook her head, forcing out a strained laugh.
 "Don't be silly, Taylor. When she is found, you will marry her, simple as that. It's the way things have been done for thousands of centuries." She said. Taylor shook his head. He was tired of all the ways and customs of the Ancient Peoples.
 "No, mother, you listen. There are no official documents on where Gift originated from, and who was the one to find it. According to Leelu, the people of Insearti received the Gift, and they used it, but then they wanted more, so they tried to kill her people, on the planet of Dakora, but that her people managed to defend it or something, but that the people of Insearti came back, they were the Haait, and they destroyed Dakora. There is a mountain on Insearti with the Luna Scarr." He said, switching to Hanson Dynasty dialect. "And the Luna Scarr is everywhere, on all the ruins, and there are words, words that Leelu can read if we get a better copy, please, mother, why are you being like this? Why are you ashamed of our history?" Diana raged with fury at her son's accusation, reached out with Gift, and threw him up against the wall. He dropped, but his fall was not hard. Diana did not want to hurt her son. Zac's eyes went wide. He had never seen Gift, let alone his own mother, do anything like that. He knew that Taylor could move things, but he never suspected Diana could. Taylor shook his head and stood up.
 "How dare you question our heritage! We are the original bearers of Gift! And it runs stronger in our family than any other. We had to start somewhere. The Haait that this girl speaks of, it is not what she thinks it is. Maybe on Dakora, but on Insearti, it meant power. I have no idea what that is now, don't you understand? We are the last surviving members of Insearti! Our family did not originate on Chimaera, our Ancient People's  found this planet, and created that illusion. We are from Insearti. We are these Haait your little friend Leelu speaks of. But we are no evil, I can assure you that." She said, and turned to leave. Taylor stood still, his mouth partly open. Zac couldn't believe his ears.
 "So, our ancestors tried to destroy Dakora? Leelu's planet?" Zac said, barely believing those words could ever come from his mouth. Diana shook her head.
 "I doubt that was the Ancient People's. What could they ever see in Dakora? It was a little nameless planet at the time, and not worth the trouble." She answered. Her face was tired.
 "Doing that to me drained you, didn't it mother?" Taylor asked plainly. Diana slowly looked up.
 "I really wish you wouldn't look that deep into my soul, Taylor dear, it isn't right. You're doing it a lot lately." She answered. avoiding his question.
 "The fatigue is obvious on your face. But it did, correct?" He said. She sighed and nodded.
 "I used to be able to do that, but not any more. The Ancient People's all had that ability, but it was lost after The Great War. That's why it is important that you marry the D'aacord girl, the D'aacord Empire was also very strong in Gift." She said. Taylor shook his head.
 "I will not marry her, mother. I swear it. I will wed whom I wish, when I wish. I do not marry who you want me to. And neither will Ike. Or Zac, and probably Jessica as well. I don't know about Avery, Mack and Zoe, it is their decision as well when the time comes." He said. Diana shook her head, she wanted to teach him a lesson again, but she was too tired, and the thought of what Taylor could do to her if he got angry scared her.
 "Why are you so against the ways of the Ancient People's?" She asked quietly. Taylor looked right into her eyes, his baby blue's matching her ice ones.
 "All my life, I have been taught how important it is to keep the ways of the Ancient People's, their customs and beliefs, but, times are different now. People are breaking through. And I predict, that pretty soon, all of the Dynasties and Empire's will perish as well. People, and aliens, alike want the freedom to choose their futures, and there is no one, not you, not father, not me, and even Gift itself that can change that. I am not entirely sure that the Ancient People's were as good as everyone makes them out to be, so therefore, I don't want to follow in their footsteps and make the same mistakes they did. They had a Great War, by the Gods, do you want that to happen to us? And to have all your sons and daughters lost to the fighting tyrants of Dynasties and Empires that are already fading anyway? I sincerely hope not." Taylor said, and left. Diana stood there, her eyes following the son that she always knew would change history, out the door. They flickered to Zac.
 "You want to add something too?" She mused. Zac shrugged.
 "I think Leelu's very nice. You should meet her." He said, and left. Diana stood in the room by herself, partly pleased with her sons' knowledge and power, and partly disappointed at their disrespect for the Family. She sighed, and sat down. There was serious thinking to be thought. Something had to be done about Leelu, Ike, Zac and most importantly, Taylor.

Chapter 6

 "Taylor, I don't think we should do this." Zac warned his older brother. Taylor shrugged him off.
 "Zac, we have to know! They won't know we're gone until it's too late. I for one, do not want to have a war started, okay? Haven't you ever heard the saying, history repeats itself? Well, I have a bad feeling that it's going to repeat itself, and soon." Taylor answered his brother. Zac continued to whine.
 "But, Tay, mom and dad'll get mad. And what about Ike? He'll want to come along too, ya know." Zac said. Taylor shook his head.
 "He has enough to worry about with Marieh. He seemed really stressed out, and I sensed something about her being in some sort of danger." Taylor said. Zac nodded. He knew that Marieh had loved Taylor, but Taylor had been to busy to really care about her. Ike was there for her, so Marieh realized that she truly loved Isaac. But Zac could see that Marieh still had lingering feelings for Taylor. Tay, as usual, was oblivious to it all. Zac silently promised himself that he would never let a girl, or a woman, come between his passion for language and his heart.
 The two brother's boarded The Albertane and got into their seats. Taylor, who wasn't used to piloting the ship, was hesitant to get into the pilot's chair. Zac noticed his discomfort.
 "Tay, I can fly if you don't want to." He said. Tay shook his head.
 "You're too young to fly. What if we get stopped? Mum and dad will have a fit that I let you fly." He said, and slid into the seat. Zac shrugged, and got into his navigator's chair. Taylor revved the engine, and prepared to take off.

 Taylor was in the back sleeping, and Zac enjoyed the quiet. It wasn't very often that there wasn't any sound, with a busy palace packed with seven kids, and god knows how many servants and officers. Sometimes, Zac was very thankful for having a quiet, softspoken brother like Taylor. He took out his languages book, and started to practice Leelu's dialect. It was very unusual, but non the less, not unlearnable. He began to read. He was intently absorbed in the language, when there was a repetitive beeping coming from the ships console. Zac leaned over to the systems readout, and nearly blew a casket.
 "Shit! Taylor! Wake up! We have three, no wait, four Kretti Battle Destroyers coming into our system. Shit! Taylor, dammit! WAKE UP!!" Zac screamed. There was a noise from the back quarters, and a very groggy and half asleep Taylor walked into the cockpit.
 "What the flip are you screaming about Zac? I was sleeping." Taylor whined. Zac grabbed Taylor's shoulder, and shoved him to the cockpit window.
 "That, Taylor, is what I was screaming about." He snarled. Taylor's face went white, and he was suddenly wide awake.

Chapter 7

 "Captain Pieet, we are approaching what appears to be a lone starship. Should we send out boarding orders?" Lieutenant Vlh'hgit growled. The Kretti were a reptile like species, and destroyed other ships, and their passengers when ever they came across other travelers.
 "What is the ship's christening?" The captain asked slowly. Lieutenant Vlh'hgit hesitated for a moment.
 "Ah, The Albertane, sir." He answered. The captain's rhythmic breathing was momentarily wavered, but it soon regained it's constant rasp.
 "Well, fortunate for us. Do you suppose it's the three Hanson Dynasty princes?" He said. Vlh'hgit's face didn't change it's cold expression, although he was choosing his words carefully. He knew of the bounty for the three princes, but, they had a amazing power, Gift, it was called, and it was said that they were very dangerous.
 "Possibly. Should we just confiscate their cargo?" Vlh'hgit asked. The captain didn't answer for a moment.
 "No. Board them. They could prove quiet useful in trade for worlds with the Hanson Empire. I suspect High Lord Walker will pay quiet highly for his three treasured sons back." He said. Vlh'hgit nodded, and turned stiffly around. He did not agree with the captain's decision, but it was his job to carry out the orders.

 "Can we pull into light space?" Zac asked. Taylor slammed the board in frustration, his face red with stress.
 "No way. They'll lock onto us within seconds, and rip us apart. Dammit, I wish Ike was here." He cursed.
 "Well, he's not. So what do we do? We could hide in the airlock compartments." Zac suggested. Taylor nodded, but he had other ideas.
 "I could try to manipulate their thoughts, and make them think that there's no one aboard, then when they aren't paying attention, de-thrust into light space." He suggested. Zac shook his head.
 "No, that's too risky. They'll probably track us in, and then board us. How will we get away when we're in their docks?" Zac said. Taylor nodded, and slumped into his chair in defeat.
 "This is the stupidest thing I have ever done." He muttered. Zac nodded. He was still trying to calculate a way out of this, but he knew it was useless.
 "You can say that again." He said. They both knew of the high bounty on their heads in the Kretti Empire, but they also knew that the Kretti feared Gift, and those who possessed it.
 "Zac, why don't we just scare them?" Taylor suggested. Zac raised a eyebrow.
 "How?"
 "Well, we could put on some light show, or make part of the crew sick, or, you could talk to them in their native tongue." Taylor said. Zac nodded.
 "You could re-rout the pistons in the ship, into your bloodstream, and then burst it out. There's also the shields we can use so they can't touch us!" Zac said, getting excited. Taylor shook his head.
 "I don't know about the shields, remember mom said that they were very dangerous?" He said. Zac dismissed it with a wave of his hand.
 "With the two of us, it should be a snap." He said, and gave his brother a lopsided grin.
Taylor shrugged. They didn't have many other options.
 "Sure. Why not?"

Chapter 8

 "This way." The Kretti officer growled. Taylor and Zac followed, the stupid Kretti soldiers hadn't even bothered to bind their hands, even though it didn't matter, since they could get out of them easily. Taylor silently laughed at their dense heads. They were led into a main room. There was a lord's chair at the end. The door whooshed shut behind them, and they were left alone. Zac opened his mouth to speak, but there was a resistance in his mind.
 Don't. There's someone here. The voice told him. Zac's eyes went wide, and he looked at Taylor. Taylor stared straight ahead.
 Act like nothing's going on. Just think what you want to say, and then direct it to me. It told him. Zac closed his eyes, and envisioned his words going into Taylor's head, through his brain.
 Taylor? Zac asked. There was a moment's hesitation for Zac,  there was no immediate answer.
 Yes it's me. Don't worry. Taylor finally answered, still staring straight ahead.
 What do I do? Zac asked.
 Look straight ahead, and try to look in control of the whole situation. Taylor told him. Zac turned and looked straight ahead, a stony expression plastered to his face. The two brothers stood there for a good ten minutes like that, until the lord's chair at the end of the long room slowly spun around.
 "So, you are as they say. Interesting." The dinosaur like creature seated in the chair hissed. Taylor didn't answer, Zac took that as a sign, and he didn't speak a word.
 "I would've thought you'd've said something by now." It pressed. Taylor still said nothing. The creature appeared to sigh.
 "Oh well, it's not my problem. The real question is, what do I do with you now?" The creature's face took a almost thoughtful look upon it.
 "You could kill us." Taylor said evenly. The Kretti's eyes flickered to the boy.
 "Yes. I could. But what would I gain from that? You have siblings." He (Zac assumed it was male) said, and narrowed it's beady eyes. "Which two are you? The eldest?"
 "Ike's 18-" Zac started, No! Taylor's voice screamed in his head. He almost put his hands to his ears, it hurt so much. The Kretti's mouth turned up in a sneer, revealing a jagged set of pearly white daggers.
 "Is that so? Well, I have heard, that one of the three eldest sons is amazingly strong in what you call Gift. Is that so?" It rasped. Taylor's eyes were cold, and Zac knew he was furious with him.
 I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry...Zac thought.
 It's too late for sorry now, Zac. Taylor thought back, it seemed angry and betrayed.
 "You don't have to answer if you wish not to, I know that one of you is that son, and I will find out who." It said. The Kretti stood up, and walked over to a window. Taylor noted that it walked upright on it's two hind haunches. Much like a Velociraptor from the ancient and destroyed world of Earth. Taylor's thought's momentarily drifted to the world where human's once reigned, but it was now lost, destroyed in a war centuries ago. Taylor himself was human, and he had often wondered if life could re-grow on the now desolate world. His mind snapped back to the present when he heard the Kretti's voice pierce the air.
 "...The one who is truly strong in the Gift will not come forward without some...persuasion. So in that case, I will kill one of you, unless the Gifted one comes forth." It was saying. Taylor felt his heartbeat falter. Kill Zac? Never.
 "What if you choose the incorrect one?" Taylor suggested. "After all, we are both equally strong in Gift." The Kretti's expression did not change, and remained pokerfaced.
 "That is a lie. Which one of you is stronger?" It asked. Taylor did not answer.
 "We are equal." Zac said. Taylor nodded.
 "It is Ard that is the one truly blessed with Gift." He said.
 What? Zac thought. What are you doing? There were no specific words, but Taylor's thought were reassuring.
 "Ard? Who is he?" The Kretti asked, obviously interested.
 "My older brother, after Isaac. He is 17." Taylor continued. "He is the strongest in Gift in our family." The Kretti went back to his lord's chair, and sat down.
 "And what good does that do me?" The creature asked.  Taylor's lip curved up in a little half smile.
 "We have no love of Ard." He said.

Chapter 9

 "So, they just left?" Isaac Hanson asked. He still could not accept the fact that his own two brother's had left without him.
 "That's what the logs say. They had a discussion with your mother, and then they took The Albertane and left." Sabec said. Ike shook his head. And punched the wall, leaving a nice circular hole. Sabec rolled his eyes.
 "Isaac, I wouldn't suggest doing that again. It's making a mess of your hand." He advised. Ike looked down at his hand, and winced. It was covered in blood.
 "Whatever. Look, when was the last time anyone heard anything from them?" He asked. Sabec checked the little comp he carried around with him.
 "Not since they left, 18 hours ago." He said, surprised at the time they had been gone.
 "Yeah? Well, shit, Chris. They could be dead on some alien planet right now for all I know. Has anyone tried to contact them?" Ike asked. Sabec checked his little comp once more.
 "No. Would you like me to try?" He asked. Ike nodded.
 "Yeah, thanks Chris." He muttered. Sabec entered the key codes, and his brow furrowed.
 "According to my comp, their ship is enclosed within a cruiser of some sort, and there is no one aboard." He said. Ike's face drained of all colour.
 "Cruiser? You mean, they've been taken in?" He breathed. "And they're not on The Albertane?"
 "Yes, it would appear so, sir." Sabec said.
 "Well freakin' find out what half ass cruiser they're docked at, and tell them to get the hell out of there!" Ike screamed, and turned to leave his room.
 "Ah, Isaac, that might be a problem." Sabec said quietly. Ike stopped and turned around, already halfway through the door.
 "Why?" He asked, not sure if he really wanted to hear the answer.
 "Because, they are aboard a Kretti Destroyer." He said slowly.
 "Shit." Ike muttered, and ran out of the room.

 "So, you mean to tell me that my two sons are being held captive aboard a Kretti Destroyer?" High Lady Diana repeated what Ike had told her. He nodded.
 "Yes. I don't know why they left-"
 "I know why." Diana interrupted her son. "They left to go to Insearti or something extravagant like that." She said. Leelu, who had followed Ike into the great hall when he had passed her room, gasped.
 "No. Zac no go to Insearti. Haait. Bad." She said. Lady Diana sighed.
 "Yes, we know Leelu. But, there's nothing we can do about it." She returned her gaze to Ike. "If someone here hadn't been busy fraternizing with a little smuggler, Taylor and Zac would probably be safe at home." Ike's face turned red.
 "For your information, mother, Marieh is the woman I intend to marry, and there's absolutely nothing you can do about it." Isaac said stiffly. Diana sighed heavily.
 "Isaac, I don't think this is the proper time and place to discuss this-"
 "No, mother, you listen. Does everything have to be properwith you? Can't we just be normal people for once? I mean seriously, you and dad, where is he anyway?" Ike said, and looked around the room. Diana clenched her teeth.
 "He's away, on business to Varden." She said softly. Ike scoffed.
 "So what else is new? You and dad, you're always telling us what's best, when you're never here! You automatically disapprove of Leelu, and she's just a friend. Marieh is a wonderful person, and I'm sure that if you just got to know her-"
 "Isaac! Mother! Gods, for once, would you just listen to yourselves? I mean, it's awful! They way you two bicker, you'd never know that Taylor and Zac have been taken aboard by our sworn enemies, the Kretti. This is really sad. Isaac, you should respect everything that mother and father have done for you, and mother, you're going to have to face it that Isaac is a grown man, and he can make is own decisions. Taylor wants to know the past, and I suggest you explain it to him. Zac's already lost in his own little world of words and language, I don't know what's wrong with this family! We are the Hanson Dynasty Empire, you would think that we could get along better than this!" Jessica Hanson interrupted. Isaac looked at the floor. Diana bit her lower lip.
 "Jessie, dear, you are right. Now is not the time for this mindless bickering. Isaac, we will continue this conversation later. Right now we have matters to discuss with the Kretti." She said, and turned to Sabec. "Chris, I want you to contact Walker, and inform him of the situation, see that he arrives here as soon as possible." Sabec nodded.
 "Already done, your highness." He said, and turned and a sharp heel, and almost raced out of the room. Diana then turned to her second oldest daughter, Avery.
 "Avie, can you take Mackie to the nursery and see that he and Zoe are well cared for? I am trusting you to do this." She said, and smiled. "I know I can count on you." She added. Avery smiled a grin that went from ear to ear, and nodded. She grabbed Mackenzie's hand, and they toddled out of the room. That left Diana, Isaac, and a few crewmen. Diana signaled the receiver to send in a transmission to the Kretti Empire.
 "Here goes nothing. Gift be here." She muttered.
 
 Chapters 10-18