Becky's Gift

Stacy's Dilemma

An Elshar stepped out of a green swirl, and Stacy froze. His eyes turned black. Dropped to his knees! "Lady, I will not harm you or anyone! I am here to help!"

Her lips trembled, and she rubbed tears off. The brown skin on her face reddened a bit. Het waved and gave her a white cloth. "He is nae as the Elshars you remember, who threatened."

"But—that other Elshar—they found him guilty--"

"Lady, I hope to earn your trust." Keris Pon got in a Zheien bow with one leg behind, eyes on her. "I would not ever harm another person, unless he threatened my people. I represent artisans. Here is an example of my work, when I am not listening to the concerns of our people." He waved up a tapestry of Piedmont Park that had a duck and five ducklings. Every leaf on the trees was detailed, and the ducks were very realistic with cute poses, and sunlight gleamed on the lake. Dogwoods and wisteria bloomed. He put it in her lap.

"Oh, this is beautiful work! I wish I could make something beautiful. They didn't have any art courses in my Christian online school." She sighed.

"Lady, you and your children may have tutors, and you may study as many subjects as interest you."

She traced a duck, then tried to give it back.

"This is my gift to you, to welcome you to our colony—"

"But, this must be worth a lot! All this metallic thread, and it's big!"

He laughed, not a haughty laugh, but soft and pleasant. "Lady, all our materials are available to everyone who wishes to use them! All supplies are shared in a Zheien colony.

"We produce our threads from the output of our mines and farms! Most of these metallic threads are made from common metals that would go in a waste pile, in other colonies. We take waste rock and weeds to make pigments for our artworks!

"If it cannot be eaten or traded, scientists try to find uses for it, and our colony has an interesting variety of art forms. Poets write poems to describe beauty, and musicians sing or play instruments made from our waste materials. All that we produce can be traded, but we can also choose to give something to a friend.

"Het tells me you no longer wish to be married to a cruel man, is this correct?"

"Yes! I want a divorce! Jim beat us all, and made us eat spoiled food, and threatened to put us out on the street! I tried to leave him, but he always found us." She looked down and trembled.

"What is a divorce?" Keris Pon looked at the diplomat.

"It is a legal document ending a marriage, created by a lawyer in United States Of America, Earth, by local laws, by particular reasons legal in that place." Het had the serious blue eyes now.

Keras Pon nodded. "We are a Unified colony. All that is required, to end a marriage, is your wish nae to be married to this man. You are now unmarried."

Stacy looked up. "That's it? I don't have to go to court?"

"Pach ay! Here is your Alliance record, that shows things about you, if you wished to trade. You see it in your language, but I see it in Elshar, which I speak and read. What does it say?"

She looked scared. A holo of her rotated, like I saw in some video games I played with my friends. Her name was above it, and below it was the word UNMARRIED. A nod. "But, can he—if he comes here—"

"If he comes here, he will not leave his ship! I have authority to prevent him from all of Alb, this star system that includes 25 worlds! And, added a red mark to his record. If he attempts to trade, any who know it will not trade with him. A red mark, for any citizen of the Alliance, tells all around him that he is a danger to them. Anyone who tries to kill can be given a red mark. No world in the Alliance allows someone who is dangerous to threaten another."