"And just what do you think you were doing?" she asked me after she made me get back in bed. "Didn't I tell you to stay in bed?"

"I'm sorry," I said. "It's just that Dania wanted to teach me to teleport, and I…I just wanted to help a little."

"Did you say Dania?" she asked. "When did Dania talk to you?"

"Just a little earlier," I said. "She wanted me to go visit her mother for her, and she ended up coming down to Earth herself."

"Dania's on Earth?" she asked. "Is she at her mother's house?"

"Yes," I said. "That's where I was. Didn't Derek tell you?"

"No, he didn't," she said. "He just told me that you were gone."

"Oh," I said. "Well, I was helping Dania."

"You still shouldn't have been out of bed Sera," she said. "You're still recovering from your ordeal."

"I'm sorry," I said. "I won't do it again."

"Do you think Dania might be able to visit here before she leaves?" she asked. "I really would like to see her again, and it might be good for Derek to meet an adult Aikin."

"I could ask her," I suggested. "That is, if you want me to."

"Oh, could you please?" she said.

"Sure," I said. "Just a minute."

I sent out my mind again and found Dania, still at her mother's house. She seemed surprised to hear from me again so soon. I explained to her that Niava wanted her to stop by before she left, and she readily agreed. She said she would come in about an hour, and then she said good-bye.

"She said she'll come by in about an hour," I told Niava. "She's going to teleport into this room."

"Thank you Sera," she said. "But until then you need to rest. And this time you are not to leave bed for any reason whatsoever. Got it?"

"Yes," I said.

"Then I will be back with Derek in an hour," she said, and she left the room.

I was alone again, so I let my mind wander again. I soon found Derek, and he seemed upset. Of course, as soon as he felt my presence he got all cold and arrogant, but for that split second before he realized I was there I sensed something strange.

"Just what do you think you're doing, spying on me?" he asked me angrily. "I don't want to talk to anyone who could refuse to help her people."

"Oh shut up," I replied. "I didn't ask to be Aikin. I didn't ask for these abilities, and now you expect me to be all eager to help when you and your kind have just screwed up my life. Did you ever think that maybe I was happy before all this happened?"

"I know very well that you were not happy," he said. "I can feel it even now. You may not realize it, but you are broadcasting very strongly certain feelings, and one of them is relief that you are finally among people who are like you. You've known all your life that you were different, and now you've found others who are the same."

"I was still happy," I said. "Sure I wasn't in Paradise or anything, but I was content. This is too much change. I'm just not sure I want my life to be changing like this."

"But you have no choice," he said. "You are Aikin, and you cannot deny that. The only ones of our kind who can turn an Aikin to human are very old, and they will never change you. You are too important to us, just as I am."

"And you're full of yourself," I said hotly. "I don't care what you think about me. I just want to live a normal life!"

"Are you so sure of that?" he asked me suddenly. "Or did you ever stop to think that maybe it's just going so fast, and you're confused? But deep down inside you like the way you are, and you don't want to change?"

"How dare you say that?" I screamed. "I know how I feel, and I don't want this! Got it?"

"If you say so," he said. "But at least give it a try before giving it up. I do know that if you do convince someone to turn you human, no Aikin would ever turn you back even if you begged them. So think hard before you do something irreversible."

"Just go to hell," I said. "And leave me alone."

He then disappeared from what I could sense, and I found myself alone. I realized that our little conversation had taken almost all of the hour somehow. It was then that I felt the mind reaching out for me.

"Who are you?" I asked it.

"I don't believe it!" it, well actually I knew then that it was a he, said. "There's an Aikin on Earth! That has to be it! Who are you and how did you get down there?"

"That's what I asked you," I said. "And I'm not going to answer you until you answer me."

"Okay," he said. "My name's Mnian. Now, who are you, and how did you get down on Earth?"

"I'm Sera," I said. "And I live here."

"How can you live on Earth?" he asked. "We all left seventeen years ago. That was two years before I was born, but they all tell me that."

"They left me down here," I said.

"But why?" he asked me. "Why did they leave you down there? Did they forget you?"

"No," I said. "They left me on purpose. And now they expect me to help them."

"You're gonna help us?" he asked. "Cool."

"I never said I would help," I said. "I'm not sure if I want to. Anyway, there's always the other person they left. I'm not the only one."

"They left someone else?" he asked excitedly. "Just wait till I tell Mom and Dad about this! They'll flip!"

Just then, Derek and Niava entered the room. I realized that I was going to be late for the coming of Dania, so I cut the conversation short.

"Hey sorry, I have to go," I said. "It was nice talking to you."

"Any time," he said. "I just can't believe they left you down on Earth when they knew you'd probably be killed."

"Well, I'm still alive, aren't I?" I replied. "Bye."

"Bye," he said.

"Sera, are you okay?" Niava asked me. "You look strange."

"I'm fine," I said. "Should I see if Dania's ready to come?"

"Yes, please," she said.

I quickly found Dania and told her that we were ready for her. She said good-bye to her mother and then told me that she was coming. I watched as she slowly appeared in my room next to my bed. She gave me a curious look when she saw Derek.

"Niava!" Dania said once she was all there. "It's been so long."

"I know," Niava said. "But you haven't changed a bit."

"And you have," Dania said. "You look wonderful though. How are you?"

"I'm fine," Niava said. "Oh, by the way, may I introduce Derek?"

"So, this is Derek," Dania said. "Hello Derek, I'm Dania in case you haven't guessed that by now."

"Hi," he said.

"I wanted Derek to meet you," Niava said. "You are the only Aikin he's met besides Sera. And himself of course."

"You know Derek," Dania said. "You look a lot like your father. Well, except for the hair, but otherwise…yeah, you look just like him."

"My father?" Derek asked. "What do you mean?"

"The man who fathered you Derek," Dania said. "He's up there with the rest of us, waiting for you and Sera to help us get started."

"You know my father?" he asked eagerly. "My real father?"

"Yeah, sure," she said. "I met him a while ago because I was assigned to be one of the ones to work with you and Sera. I know your whole family."

"I have a family up there?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "And so does Sera, though hers is a little smaller."

"A family…" I thought to myself. "I just lost Mother and Father, and now she says I have a family up in space. I can't believe it."

"Sera, you okay?" Dania asked.

"Oh sure," I said, jerking back to reality. "I was just thinking."

"Okay, fine, just wanted to make sure you were okay," she said.

"Dania, could you tell me about my family up there?" Derek asked. "I really would like to know about them."

"Yes Dania do tell us," Niava said. "No one ever told me who his parents were. I suppose I know them, don't I?"

"Probably," Dania said. "Though they are a little older than we are."

"Please?" Derek asked.

"Sure Derek," Dania said. "First, your father's name is Kiranu and he's an official of some sort. Your mother is called Jaardi, and she does research. You have two brothers and a sister. First is Wesryk, he's 20. Then is Unisi, she's 18. And then is Mnian. He was born after you, he's 15."

"Did you say Mnian?" I asked suddenly.

"Yeah," Dania said. "Why?"

"Well," I said. "While I was waiting I felt someone watching me, and I started talking to him. He was really surprised to find Aikin on Earth, and he said his name was Mnian."

"It probably was him," Dania said. "He would be one to be checking out Earth in his free time. He's very impetuous and he loves to break the rules."

"What about Sera's family?" Niava asked. "You said you know them as well."

"Yes I do," Dania said. "Her parents are Gheric and Xainos. And they have no other children. Sera was Xainos's first, and she was also her only. That's why their giving up Sera was so hard for them. They both knew Sera would be the only one, yet they still did it."

I thought about what Dania had said. At first I thought it might just be a ploy to get me to commit to what they wanted, but then I realized that Dania was telling the truth. I then decided that I wanted to visit the other Aikin before I could decide to help or not.

"I don't suppose there's a way that I could meet them?" I asked. "I just want to know who they are, and what they're like. I think I need to know this before I can decide to help or not."

"I don't know about that," Dania said. "Either they would have to come down here, or you would have to go up there. I'll talk to them about that later, okay?"

"Thank you," I said. "I wouldn't expect any more than that. I know how much of a risk it must be."

"Now, I wish I could stay longer," Dania said. "But I'm sure I'll be missed very soon if I don't get back. I will get back to you on that Sera. I'm sorry I couldn't be here longer. It's been so nice to see you again Niava. Say hi to Cary for me."

"Good bye Dania," Niava said. "I will miss you."

"And I you," Dania said. "But now I must go."

With that, she disappeared. Niava just stood there, with tears in her eyes. Finally, after a few moments, she wiped her eyes and started moving again.

"Poor Xainos," she said. "She used to care for Vinara and I when we were young. Well, so did the others too. I can see the resemblances now. You do look like your father Derek. But now, I have work to do. I will see you later."

She left the room, leaving Derek and me alone in the room together. He just looked at me strangely. After a few minutes of him staring, I started to feel uncomfortable.

"I thought that I would be alone forever," I said. "Well, after Mother and Father cast me out. But now I find out that I have real parents. Parents like me. It's hard to believe. But then, how would you know what I'm feeling? You've known your whole life what you are and all of that."

"I know what you're feeling," Derek said. "Yeah, I've known about this my whole life, but I never knew who my real parents were. I knew that Mother wasn't my real mother, but I never knew who was. Since when does that make what I feel different?"

"At least you have someone right now who cares for you," I said. "Even if she isn't your real mother, at least you have a mother. I don't. The only woman I ever knew of as mother cast me out of her house just a few days ago."

"So?" he said. "Mother took you in. She's treating you like you were her daughter. And what do you do? You just act selfish. You say that you're too afraid to help your own kind. And you expect someone to care for you?"

"I am scared," I said. "I'm terrified. There, I said it. Are you happy? You got me to say that I'm scared."

"So what?" he said. "Do you really think that if you don't get involved in the Aikin cause that you'll have a better chance of hiding it? You cannot survive without using your abilities, and the minute you do they will find out. So why not help us while you're at it?"

I heard someone chuckling from behind me, but when I turned around I saw no one. I saw that Derek had heard it too. He looked just as confused as I felt.

"Did you hear that too?" I asked.

"Yeah," he said. "But there's no one there."

"Ah, but that's where you're wrong," a voice said from beside me. We watched as an Aikin man appeared in front of us. He was tall for an Aikin. His hair was a rich auburn, long, and held back by a simple tie. His eyes were bright blue, and they sparkled. He was wearing clothing that was worn and patched many times, but looked very comfortable. "You see," he said. "I'm right here."

"Where did you come from?" Derek asked. "And what are you doing here?"

"I was just wandering past," the man said. "And I happened upon a young couple having an argument, so I decided to help them make up."

"A couple?" I asked incredulously. "Me and him? I don't think so."

"Oh, but I do," the man said. "You see, I have a very special talent of seeing the relationships between people. You two are definitely a couple, even though you don't see yourselves as such."

"You still haven't told us where you came from," Derek said.

"Oh," the man said. "I just turned my invisible off. It's really very easy. I thought all our kind knew how to do that."

"Not us," Derek said.

"Want me to teach you?" the man asked. "It's not hard, and I could teach you right now."

"Sure," I said. "If you want to."

"Okay, here's how it goes…" he said. "You just bend the light rays around you like this so that they just go around you. Then it looks like there's nothing there. If you're really quiet, physically and mentally, then no one knows you're there."

He demonstrated what he was talking about, and Derek and I watched him appear to vanish. He was still talking to us, so we knew he was there. Then I looked more closely, and I saw that the bending light made a very tiny distortion, but it was hardly noticeable. Then he reappeared.

"Cool," Derek said. "That might come in handy someday."

"Now," the man said. "I wonder if you two might tell me what two young Aikin are doing down here on Earth. Or are you the two who were left here?"

"We're those two," Derek said. "Though she doesn't seem to want to help."

"I can't blame her," the man said. "Forgive me for listening in, but it seems like she's very new to the idea of being Aikin. I'm sure it must be very frightening for her. I remember how my sisters felt when they went human. Any change in a person's life can be very frightening, even when done intentionally. This young woman, on the other hand, did not choose this change, and that is when it is most frightening."

"You mean, you understand?" I asked. "You actually agree with me?"

"Yes," the man said. "You see, I too know what it is like to be cast out by my loved ones."

"You do?" I asked.

"Yes," he said. "I have always had an insatiable urge to wander. I had it even before I reached the age of adulthood among the Aikin. And because I could not obey my mother and stay there until I was old enough, my mother saw me as bad. She turned my little sisters against me, but then I later befriended them again. To this day I don't think my mother has forgiven me for leaving her."

"Oh, that must be awful," I said.

"It's not that bad," he said. "I enjoy wandering, and I have seen some of the most extraordinary things. I just wish I could have seen my sisters again before the purging seventeen years ago. You see, they both went human, and thus they died in the purging."

"Not all the Aikin who went human died in the purging," Derek said.

"What?" the man asked, startled.

"I know of at least two who survived the purging," Derek said. "Though one died in a fire fourteen years ago. The woman who raised me is the one who lived."

Just then, Niava knocked on the door. The man suddenly disappeared, and Niava came in. She had a strange expression on her face.

"I thought I heard you two talking to someone…" she said. "But I don't see anyone here."

Just as suddenly as he had disappeared, the man reappeared. He had a joyous look on his face. When Niava saw him, she gasped.

"Jhered!" Niava exclaimed. "Is that really you?"

"Niava!" the man, Jhered, exclaimed. "I thought you had died in the purging."

"No," she said. "Vinara and I weren't killed because we went human in secret. Though she died in a lab fire fourteen years ago. Anyway, what are you doing here?"

"I was just wandering by Earth to see what was going on when I saw these two reluctant loves quarreling," he said. "I just wanted to help them."

"Reluctant loves?" she asked. "Are you still seeing relationships between people?"

"Yes, of course I am," he said.

"Um, excuse me," Derek said. "But do you two know each other?"

"Oh, Derek I'm so sorry," Niava said. "Derek, Sera, I would like to introduce you to my older brother, the wanderer Jhered. Jhered, this is Derek, my adopted son. And this is Sera, the girl that Vinara adopted."

"Brother?" Derek asked. "Why do all these relatives of people keep popping up today?"

"Yes, my brother," Niava said. "And I think it's because there are now two functional Aikin on Earth, and not just one. You two are attracting attention Derek."

"At least we're not attracting the attention of humans," he said. "That would be a problem."

"Yes it would," Niava said. "Now, Jhered. What's the real reason for you being here?"

"Honest Niv," he said. "I really was just passing by. I happened to see these two, and I decided that they needed a little push from yours truly."

"Then what are you doing on Earth?" she asked. "If the humans were to find you, they'd kill you in an instant. Don't you know how dangerous it is?"

"If it's so dangerous, then why are these two love birds down here?" he asked. "They should be up with the others, where it's safe."

"These two are the only Aikin left on the planet, not counting you" she said. "They've been here since they were babies."

"So?" he asked. "That doesn't make it any safer."

"If you hadn't noticed, they're with me," she said. "I will keep them safe until they can watch out for themselves."

"And if you were to be discovered?" he asked. "If I do remember correctly, you and Vinara had gold eyes, and eye color doesn't change with the transformation, even if gold is not a human eye color. Are those contacts?"

"Yes, I have contacts," she said. "And they won't find me out unless I were to get hurt, and I won't."

"Are you sure about that?" he asked.

"Of course I'm sure," she said.

"Would you please stop talking about us as if we weren't here?" Derek asked suddenly. "It's bad enough that you are arguing, but you're arguing about us, and you aren't even considering the possibility that we actually have some common sense!"

I cheered inside when he said that. Before he had seemed like a stuck up asshole, but then he started to seem more decent. Then, all of a sudden, he looked over at me and smiled.

"You know," he said. "Sera has been bringing up some pretty good points. What would the off-planet Aikin do if we were to decide not to help them? No one ever did ask me if I wanted to help. I've just been told over and over again since I was little that I was the only hope for the Aikin because Sera was lost. Did anyone ever ask me? No. Well, maybe I agree with Sera. Maybe I don't want to do it."

"Derek, what are you saying?" Niava spluttered. "What's come over you?"

"Nothing Mother," he said. "I just realized that I can actually think for myself. I am a free and independent being, and I can make my own decisions. And now, I'm making one. I'm with Sera on this. If you guys want me to help, convince me."

"And Sera?" Niava asked me. "What are you saying now?"

"I haven't made up my mind yet," I said. "I guess you could say I'm in the same position as Derek. If you want me, you have to show me some good reasons to help. Convince me."

"You know," Derek told me mentally. "We are going to be in huge trouble for this."

"All I've been hearing for the last day is that it's my choice," I replied. "So, why not test it? If it's truly my choice, then they'll start trying to convince me, and you. Otherwise, you're right. We'll be in big trouble."

"I cannot believe this!" Niava said. "I've been spending most of my life working toward this, and now you two could ruin it all!"

"We're people too Niava," I said. "And we have feelings, just like you. I don't like being pushed and ordered around any more than the next person. I like to make my own decisions, and I know that this is a decision that I have to make for myself. I'm not going to walk into this blindly. I want to know what I'm going to get myself into before I get stuck in it and have to deal with the consequences. Try to imagine yourself in my shoes. What would you do?"

"Certainly not what you are doing," she said flatly. "I do have some loyalty to my kind."

"But if you had loyalty to your kind you would have killed Derek and me long ago," I said. "Or did you forget, you're human."

"Now Mother," Derek said. "We are going to go somewhere else. I know you have the best intentions, but we want to hear what the off-planet Aikin have to say alone. Goodbye Mother."

"Where are we going?" I asked Derek.

"I know this place," he said. "I used to go there when I was really little and I wanted to be alone. No one ever goes there because you have to go out in the Waste to get to it. It's not far, it's just not very fun getting there. At least, it wasn't back then. I can teleport now, so it will be simple."

"Shall we go?" I asked, holding out my hand to him. He took my hand squeezed it gently.

"Let's go," he said. "Just let me do the work. I know where I'm going."

I let my mind go blank as I waited for him to teleport us. Then, I felt his mind working. Suddenly, we were there. There was a huge cavern. All the walls were covered with crystal, and a single window in the top of the cavern let light in to make the walls glitter. The whole effect was breathtaking.

"Oh Derek," I gasped. "This place is beautiful!"

"I know," he said. "I used to come here all the time, and just daydream. I would pretend that I was a true Aikin, up there in space, and that I could just go away whenever I wanted to. I used to dream that I could just fly away from everyone and everything, and just float there forever. I would spend hours in here, and Mom would get so worried about me. She would always think that I had been discovered and killed, but I always came home safe."

"It must have been nice, growing up knowing exactly what you are," I said wistfully. "I always used to get confused. I would see one image in the mirror, but then everyone else would see something completely different. And then, there was this boy that I knew ever so long ago. He saw the real me, the Aikin me. He would tell people, and then his mother took him away because she said that I made him lie. I never knew why only I could see the real me, but I always thought about it. At least you knew why it happened."

You have a point," he said. "But you also had it easy. I'm sure your mother didn't hang over your shoulder all the time, trying to keep you safe. The only time I was ever alone was when I snuck out here. Mom was always afraid that some government people would come and discover me, then take me away. I almost hated my mother until the off-planet Aikin started training me. Then she let up a little."

"That's gotta suck," I said. "But still, you weren't thrown out of your home by the only people you've ever known as parents."

"Ah, so this is where you two are hiding," I heard Jhered's voice say from the air next to me. Then, he appeared. "You two have caused quite a ruckus within the homeless shelter. Niava is frantic. You shouldn't have gone like that."

"Oh Jhered please don't tell her where we are!" Derek said. "This is the only place that she doesn't know about, and I'd like to keep it that way."

"I wasn't planning on telling her," Jhered said. "In fact, I think you two are doing the right thing. I've been away for a while, but from what I've heard, they aren't being very fair with you two. I think it would do them good to have to convince you to help them. It would help them get a game plan together, instead of just hopes and dreams. Would it be okay for me to tell her that you two are all right though?"

"Of course," Derek said. "And thanks for the support."

"Any time," Jhered said. "Oh, and one more thing. How are you going to get in contact with the off-planet Aikin now? Do you want me to tell someone where you are?"

"Anyone you could tell that would do any good would be someone who would tell Mom," Derek said. "Unless you know someone we can trust?"

"I know just the guy," Jhered said. "In fact, I believe he's related to you."

"Who?" Derek asked.

"Well, he's kinda young, but he's perfect for this," Jhered said. "His name's Mnian, and I think he's your younger brother by blood. He's not anyone powerful in the scheme of things, but he can be trusted. Also, he would love to do this. He loves anything that will make him feel like he has power over the high people."

"Fine then," Derek said. "I like that idea. Go ahead and tell him."

"Sure thing," Jhered said. "And now I've got to be going. Farewell you two. Oh, and remember, I do see relationships, and you two were meant for each other."

Then he disappeared again, not invisible, but teleported away. When I took my eyes away from the spot where he had been, I found Derek staring at me.

"Do you believe what he says?" he asked me. "About...us?"

"I don't know," I said. "I mean, we just met each other a few days ago. I barely even know you."

"Same here," he said. "But we can make that different."

It was a few days before we were contacted by Mnian. Every minute of those days was spent in us getting to know each other. By the time the Aikin felt ready to talk to us again, Derek and I knew each other rather well, and though at the time I wouldn't admit it, I was starting to like him, a lot. He turned out to be a wonderful person. He was smart, and very funny, and I was starting to believe that maybe Jhered had been telling the truth about us.

Then, one day, we both felt a questing mind, looking for us. A slight glance, not enough to reveal us, or anything like that, showed us that it was Mnian, and we both opened up and greeted him.

"Hey, I found you!" he cried silently. "Cool! I remember you!" That last comment he directed at me.

"Hello again," I said. "How are you doing?"

"I'm just fine," he said. "And all of the adults are going crazy here because I'm the only one you'll talk to! This is great!"

"I'm glad you're having fun," I said. "Why are you contacting us?"

"They want to talk to you," he said.

"Where?" I asked.

"They want you to go back to the shelter," he said. "And then they'll tell you where they want to talk."

"Don't they get it?" I asked. "We're not coming back until we're convinced. If they want us to come back, they have to prove to us that what they want us to do is worthwhile."

"That's what I told them," he said. "But they wouldn't listen to me. I'll tell them again. Well, thanks anyway, bye."

"Wait!" Derek thought suddenly.

"Yeah?" Mnian said.

"They told me that you're really my brother…" Derek said. "Did you know that?"

"Yeah," Mnian said. "Jhered told me. When he told me I remembered that Uni and Wes used to tell me about how Mom and Dad had another brother before me, but how he was gone. I thought that you were dead or something."

"Uni and Wes?" Derek asked.

"Older sister and brother," Mnian said. "Unisi's 18 and Wesryk's 20. They can be really mean sometimes, but I can't picture life without them."

"I've never known what it's like to have a brother or sister," Derek said. "It's always just been Mom, Dad and me."

"You mean Niava, right?" Mnian asked.

"Yeah," Derek said. "She's the only mom I've ever known."