I knew Djerod was from another dimension, but I never realized how incredibly humongous it was!
I asked Corvus about the alien pet idea, and he went with me to ask Djerod for more information. Djerod was most amused by that. He contacted someone from his home dimension, and then Atri, the guard, came and escorted us through a portal. I thought Djerod might just go and get something for me, but instead wer were going to pick something up! We came out in Djerod's home dimension onboard a GIANT SPACESHIP. There were over a thousand people living on it! We came out on the command deck of the ship, and there was a view of the stars, way better than even pictures from the Hubble Space Telescope. What's more, there were dozens of other spaceships out there! It was a fleet!
The person we had come to see was Djerod's cousin. She told me to address her as Lady Admiral; she had a really long name. She seemed really interested in me, which was nice. She asked about my horns and admired my wings and wanted to know if I could do any magic, but of course, I can't. I'm not a great mage like Corvus. He summoned up some darkness as a demonstration.
I got to go on a tour of the ship and I saw so many strange aliens! Her ship was the biggest in the fleet, as it was the flagship. There were giant bays full of fighters, soldiers marching around, recreational facilities for everyone, and a bunch of "mess halls" which are basically stripped-down dining rooms with lots of tables. We sat down to eat in her "personal mess," which was full of the highest ranking officers of her military. There were admirals and captains, all sorts of different people, all very orderly and strict, except for one guy. He was sitting at the Lady Admiral's own table, and he was a bit, well, silly. Apparently his name was General Fourdr, and he was the best strategist in the military. He kept making passes at females and telling jokes, though. He didn't seem like a military type at all! When I asked later, the Lady Admiral told me the General's silly exteroir housed an incredible intellect, and that he acted like a buffoon all the time because he didn't like people treating him differently because he was smart. I guess I can kind of understand that, but I wouldn't want to act like a buffoon.
There was one place in the ship I liked more than any other. The place had a giant hospital area, including a genetics department! They coudl do all sorts of things there, like cloning and regrowing limbs and genetic engineering. They had the most advanced tools for it ever! I gave them a little sample of my tissue for study. The Lady Admiral said it wouldn't be used for cloning, but that there might be secrets that could benefit aliens and people hidden in the genes. She knew a lot about it herself, and she told me she comes from a species that has used genetic engineering for centuries. She explained how it made them faster and smarter, but at a cost, and that there were long-term dangers to messing with genetic codes. In other words, science is great, but don't try to play god. I told her I was only interested in finding out what genes were what and learnign how the universe works.
Then it was finally time to go pick up the pet. The Lady Admiral said there was something special on her homeplanet. We went from her flagship to a smaller ship, of which Atri was captain, and then we went to Shia Rhea, where she and Djerod are from.
It was really, really strange. We had to take a shuttle down to the planet's surface. It was chilly and misty and there were giant, giant trees, only leafless. It was a beautiful place, but too cold for my tastes. We went to her old house, which was covered in vines, and met a man there, whom I was told should be addressed just as "Min'n." He'd been raising a special creature for Em, called an ysalamir. This creature created an anti-magic field! Neither Corvus nor I could do any magic or flying around the creature.
Min'n said he wanted to deliver this pet himself, so we took him back with us. We decided to stop in Gaia a bit before heading home, as the Lady Admiral wanted to see the place. While we were there, we found a baby called Corvus. The baby had something to do with the consterllation. Corvus said Em would like that. He negotiated a trade with the girl who was trying to find the baby a home. She would get a feien bloom.
Finally, it was time to go home. The Lady Admiral went back to her ship and told me I was welcome to visit any time. I hope I get to go again! That was the most amazing trip ever!
