All That Glitters Ch. 35

A few minutes later, they were all ensconced in the conference room.

"First, a bit of good news for Hanalei Anar," Adm. Ramison began. "Wassim Andjuran has lost his appeals, he will be executed in three months time. What that means for you, my dear Hanalei, is that you are entitled to one tenth of his estate as you are the person who found the money trail for the Interplanetary Police Force and for Navy Intelligence, at great personal risk.

"The IPPF and Navy Intelligence have been busy over the past few months looking into all of Andjuran's finances, which were very extensive. We would not have found any of that, nor the evidence necessary to convict him without your efforts Hanalei.

"Wassim's estate is approximately five point six billion credits. One point five billion credits of that belongs to the Church of Andanii, and a further fifty-six million credits was taken by Andjuran from the estate of the late Ahmed Johal, which was meant for the upkeep of the Johal Compound. That has been detached and will go to the new administrator of the compound.

"That means, overall, that you will receive one tenth of Wassim's estate, which is now valued at 4.16 billion credits. In other words, you will receive a check from the exchequer for 416 million credits, plus property rights. Congratulations, Hanalei," Ramison finished.

Hanalei sat there with an absolutely shocked look on her face. She didn't know what to say. Fortunately Fayad asked a question for her.

"Do you know when she can expect to receive this check, sir? " he asked of Ramison. "And what is this about property rights?"

"How about right now?" Ramison said as he stood up. "Rolland?"

"Attention to orders," Lt. Mehrotra called out.

The eight people in the conference room stood, more or less at attention (three of them were not military and one was pregnant).

"Hanalei Anar, at great risk to yourself of life and limb, you were instrumental in finding evidence that directly led to the conviction of former Senator Wassim Andjuran, the discovery of the locations of his criminal fortune, the capture of a senior member of the Deneb Pirate Syndicate, and significantly adding to the disruption of activities of other criminal and pirate syndicates," Lt. Mehrotra continued.

"A grateful Union wishes to acknowledge your achievement. You have received the Presidential Silver Medal for Distinguished Service to the Terran Union. This medal shall be upgraded to the Presidential Gold Medal for Distinguished Service.

"By order of the President of the Union, Wilfred J. Holloway, you will surrender your silver medal in order to receive the gold medal. The gold medal shall be received from the hand of the President himself at a time of your choosing," Lt. Mehrotra ended.

"I do not have the medal with me, Admiral. It is in my home on Hotel Deck," Hanalei told them.

"That is alright, Hanalei, we need not take it immediately. You need to surrender it in order to receive the gold medal," Ramison reminded her.

"Now for the next item of business," Rolland Heist interjected. Lt. Mehrotra took something out of her valise and handed it to Adm. Heist.

"From a grateful people, Hanalei Anar, this envelope contains a check and also contains instructions on your properties, specifically, where they are and who your property managers are. Congratulations, Hanalei," Rolland said as he handed an envelope to Hanalei and shook her hand.

"I would strongly suggest that you speak to Liea Samson about investing your funds, young lady. She has been in your shoes and knows just how to do that," George said with a smile, as he to shook her hand.

Fiona gave her a hug. "I'll let Liea know that she needs to see you soonest, about financing. You can tell her yourself why you need her expertise," Fiona said with a giggle. "My first suggestion would be to invest in Aruna Labs, they are going to be doing very well for the next little while," she finished with a wink.

"We will speak with you later, Hanalei, but for now, I need to move over to Military Control and tell those there what is happening. I know that you are currently a little flummoxed but try to relax.

"One last thing, the Johal Compound was left to the Church of Andanii to administer so long as they allow for visitation from Denders Resort to the Temple of Andanii that Capt. Henadi Noor so beautifully restored. The church has shown that it cannot be trusted with the compound. As part of the settlement, we thought it would be best, if you would become the owner of the compound, with the caveat that you keep the temple open for worshippers.

"The Johal Compound where so many of your trials were inflicted on you, is now yours, poetic justice if you ask me, Hanalei," Ramison finished before he left the room.

Fayad gave Hanalei a hug and told her that he and Junelliya would talk to her in a bit as they had to go to the brief on the Military side. They left Hanalei alone in the conference room, clutching the envelope with the check and property instructions in it.

Military Control, Liramor-23, Piscium system

The conference room was full as Adm. Ramison rose to speak.

"I have just returned from speaking with the President of the Union. He has reviewed your options and has decided that the Union can no longer put off the attempt to rescue its citizens.

"There are a couple of things that he is worried about, the most notable of which is finding a means to quickly remove the slave collars from our citizens when they come forward to accept freedom. We cannot have our citizens indiscriminately killed during their attempt to flee their current situation.

"Another thing that he worries about are the non-citizen slaves who would seek asylum with us, specifically, what will we do with those who are not citizens but are freed by our people during the rescue of Union Citizens.

"That will become a political football and will rest with the President and the TGA to deal with after the rescue. Your job will be to get as many of OUR people out of slavery as possible. If those who are not citizens make a claim to citizenship with us in order to escape to freedom, then we have no choice but to believe them and grant them freedom, second guessing the people who claim Union citizenship will only slow the process down. That, comes directly from the President.

"The last thing that the President is worried about is getting into a protracted war against the Alliance of Free Planets. To that end, this will be a one-time raid against the Alliance with the expressed purpose of freeing as many of our people as possible.

"Once we have proof that the Alliance was knowingly holding Free Union Citizens as slaves, we will work through diplomatic, political, and judicial channels to free those who do not escape on this raid.

"To that end, if any of the rescuers are left behind, there will be little that the TGA will be able to do to get them out. Whatever happens, all of the rescuers must come out after the raid. Those that do not, will likely be executed by a vengeful Alliance Landstradt before we can bargain for their release.

"Are there any questions?" Ramison asked. There were a couple but they were readily answered.

"We do have an ace in the hole, Adm. Ramison," Fiona stated. "This is Luc Branchette. He is a savant with computers and has just figured out how to deactivate the slave collars in order to make it easier for us to remove them. None of our citizens will be allowed on a shuttle until they have had their collar removed as, if they leave the area without permission, their collar will explode, killing them instantly.

"Without M. Branchette's help, we would not be able to carry out such a large-scale raid on the Alliance, sir," Fiona finished.

"M. Branchette, if this raid is successful, it will be in large part because of what you have just accomplished, sir. There is no way that the Union can ever repay the dept it will owe you," Adm. Ramison stated formally.

"In three days time, the Senior Commanders Conference will commence at Navy HQ Terra, where all the Sector Commanders will be present. They will be ordered to give up half of their anti-pirate patrols for this raid. There are fifty-eight sectors that will be giving up roughly eighteen ships each, that should add up to around 1044 ships available for a raid against six planets.

"I know that 174 ships per planet isn't much but remember that we are going after heavy concentrations of our people, which will mean that we will be able to juggle the number of ships going against those planets with the larger concentration of Union citizens.

"As well, all new ships currently coming out of the Pallanders-4 Shipyard, in the Punarjanm System have been held in reserve until after this raid. That will add up to an additional 340 ships, mostly of the Valour Class, though there are currently sixty-four Whippet Class in that mix. You can factor those ships into the raid for the planets from which we can expect high resistance.

"I will return in two weeks' time. I want a viable operational plan for the raid when I do. Very well, people, you have your orders," Ramison finished.

Piscium Family Quarters, Hotel Deck, Liramor-23, Piscium system

Hanalei came back to her home still looking dazed. Harrelle Blandou, one of the experienced mothers from Teatime for Mothers, was watching baby Ikekia when Hanalei returned. She did not like the look on Hanalei's face. Even when she took the baby, Hanalei's expression was a little blank.

When Hanalei took the baby into the bathroom for a diaper change, Harrelle contacted the hospital.

"Liramor Hospital, Nurse Hend speaking," came the reply.

"Hend, this is Harrelle Blandou," she began. "I was watching baby Ikekia when Hanalei came home. Something has happened and I don't know what, but if you know any of her friends, it might be best if they came over right now. I will remain in the home until someone else gets here."

"Thank-you, Harrelle, I will pass this information along. There are many friends of the family here and I am sure we can get someone there quickly," Hend assured her.

And quick it was, as Dr. Heyya, Dr. Galt, and Vangeliya were outside in less time than it took Hanalei to change the babies diaper.

"Thank-you, Harrelle, we'll take it from here," Heyya said, giving the woman a hug.

When Hanalei came back into the room, it was to be confronted by the threesome.

"Alright, Hanalei," Dr. Galt began. "We know something serious has happened, but we do not know what. Out with it!" she snapped, knowing Hanalei well and knowing how to talk to her in this situation.

Hanalei barked a laugh and pointed to the envelope on the table. "Open it," she ordered.

With a little trepidation, Heyya unsealed the envelope, pulled out the contents, and promptly dropped it on the table.

"Is that real?" Vangeliya asked.

"Oh, yes. Very real," Hanalei responded. "Andjuran lost his appeal. He will be executed in three months time. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy if you ask me.

"Because I found the information to convict him and the trail to his money, I am entitled to ten percent of his fortune, which adds up to the sum of the check. Also, there are some properties, including the Johal Compound. I'm now a property owner of what, only the Gods know." Hanalei finished.

Just then, the comms unit chimed. "Open," Hanalei said to the unit, only to see the face of Zallene Falta, her mother-in-law.

"Hama? (mother-in-law)" Hanalei inquired, a little shocked to see her on screen.

"Good-day to you Zoga (daughter-in-law), and is that my Hafid (grand-child) you are holding?" Zallene asked with a suddenly huge smile.

"Hama, where are you? Are you on the platform? Hanalei asked.

"Of course not, Zoga, I am on Anuura," Zallene replied. "We were told that we could now use the internet to communicate between planets, so I decided to see if I could contact my family. So where is my daughter and my Zog?"

"OH! The communications symposium came through!" Vangeliya said. "That means we can call people anywhere!"

"Fayad and Junelliya are currently working, Hama. But I will let them know you called and we will return the call later today. What time is it where you are now?" Hanalei asked.

"It is mid-day here, I am expecting your Ham back for lunch at any moment, hopefully while we still have this link open. It is expensive, so I can only call briefly," Zallene informed her.

"No worries, Hama. Please redirect the call to me, I will pay for it," Hanalei told her.

"You have a job?" Zallene asked, knowing that the baby was just under two months old. "Isn't it a little too soon to be working, Zoga?"

Hanalei giggled. "I have several jobs actually, Hama. None of them are taxing of me physically, and Ikekia loves being with me when I work."

"It is so good to see the baby like this, Hanalei. It makes my heart proud for you and your family," Zallene stated.

"I know it is expensive, but when can we expect to see you on vacation?" she asked.

"Oh, Hama," Hanalei laughed. "We will get some free time when Junelliya has her baby and we will see if we can arrange to come home for a few weeks. No promises, but we will definitely try. Between the three of us, I am sure we will be able to afford a trip to Anuura."

The three women in the room giggled at that.

"And who are these lovely ladies with you, Zoga?" Zallene asked.

"Hama, this is Dr. Heyya, the doctor who helped bring Ikekia into the universe," Hanalei began. "With her is Dr. Galt, Liramor-23's resident psychiatrist, and Vangeliya, a good friend of Junelliya and a friend of the family.

Just then the door opened and Fayad and Junelliya came in.

"Oh, we have an e-mail from Mama!" Junelliya exclaimed.

"Not an e-mail, daughter, I am contacting you direct, the ICS having just been installed on Anuura," Zallene told her.

"Can we afford that?" came a new voice, causing Zallene to turn to her right.

"Well, I had not intended for it to go this long, however, Hanalei has said we can keep it open and they will pay for this call," Zallene explained to her husband Penat Harlen.

"I came home for lunch, but I will gratefully starve today in order to talk to my daughter and her family," Penat Harlen said, with a wink to the camera.

"Oh, hush, you starve? It would take years for your body to eat itself to death," Zallen scolded.

"Mama! Is that any way to talk to your husband?" Junelliya asked as the others in her home giggled at the interplay. Penat was by no means fat, or even large. He was a very fit man.

"Where are my sisters?" Junelliya asked.

"Their husbands are home, and we have not seen them for four days now and will likely not see them for another ten," her father told her with another bold wink. "Maybe there will be some more grand-children in the near future."

"Penat! Such scandalous talk." Zallen scolded her husband again.

"What, do you think that Junelliya is not aware of what happens when a husband comes home from working away? Really, wife," Penat scolded in return, now getting outright laughter from those in the Piscium's home.

"What are these things flying in your home, Junelliya," Zallen asked, suddenly worried by what she saw.

"These are Scherm's Cats, Mama," Junelliya explained. "They are very intelligent, and they love children." Juneya landed on Junelliya's shoulder and warbled at the image on the monitor.

"This is my personal friend, Juneya," she explained to her mother, while Juneya rubbed herself against her ear and rumbled her purr. "She will not harm friends of the family, as my good friends here can attest.

"They make the best guardians for children on Hollander's World where they originate. We bonded with them when we were there on business recently and brought them back with us. It has been a delight to have them with us," Junelliya told her mother.

"As long as you trust your pets, Junelliya, then I will trust them as well. You are looking good, daughter. How much longer?" Zallen asked, already knowing the answer.

"Just a little over three weeks now, Mama, then the new child will be here. I hope we can get time away to bring the children home to Anuura for a little while," Junelliya said.

The door chimed and Fayad answered it to find two Byandi nervously standing at the door.

"Please excuse our intrusion," said one of them. I am Gressa, and this is Meela, we work at the Byandi Embassy. I am a clerk and Meela is of our medical staff.

"Nolra said it would be alright if we asked to see the little human," the Gressa stated.

"It is a pleasure to greet you, Gressa, and especially you, Meela. Have you met Dr. Heyya from our hospital?" Hanalei asked as she showed them the baby.

Dr. Heyya and Dr. Galt got to know Meela and determined she was a Senior Nurse in the Byandi system.

The door chimed again. This time Adm. Ramison, Adm. Heist, Cmdre. Marsh, their respective aides, Raymond, and Liea were at the door.

Hanalei flicked the image to the larger screen in the living room as it was getting crowded in front of the comms unit, as Junelliya introduced everyone to her parents, who were shocked to see that their daughter's family associated with such luminaries as the Chief of the Navy and the Chief of Naval Intelligence.

"It would be nice to bring the children to the Grand Temple for the naming ceremony," Zallen said her eyes wide open at the sight of two topless females. They may be alien, as shown by the blue skin, but they still had their breasts exposed!

"I'm sorry, Mama, but our Godparents are not accredited for Union Space. As such, the naming ceremony will be conducted here," Junelliya stated emphatically.

"Godparents, daughter? What are you not telling me?" Zallen demanded, suddenly getting very testy.

"Mama, the children will have Imperial Godparents, the Kumar-Pair of the Pod-Drran. I helped to save the Kumaraie's life and she wanted to bring the family into her fold. We compromised by asking them to become the Godparents to the children.

"The children will be de facto members of the Royal Household of the Pod-Drran by becoming the Goddaughters of the Imperial couple, Mama," Junelliya stated. "This is a significant honour, Mama, one that I cannot refuse due to circumstances."

"What are the Podran, daughter?" her father asked.

Hanalei called up the fact sheet of the Interspecies list on her comp and flicked it toward the comm station, which beeped it's acceptance. Junelliya's parent's eyes suddenly got very large as they read the information as it appeared on their comms unit.

"Eleven species?" Penat exclaimed. "Why have we not been informed of this, Junelliya?"

"The interspecies community is still in the process of gaining accreditation to the Union, Ham," Fayad explained. "This should happen soon, however, with the pace of things moving through the Senate, how soon that will be is objective."

"Once that happens, the citizens of the Union will be appraised of the existence of the Interspecies Community," Fiona finished for him, with a smile. "It is good to see that the new ICS is being used for useful purposes. I can think of nothing more fitting than family calls."

"It is good to see you again, Ms. Marsh, Mr. Clark, and Ms. Samson. That our children are still counted amongst your friends is a blessing from Andanii," Penat said, giving a small bow.

"That they associate with such luminaries as you, Adm. Ramison and you Adm. Heist, is a little worrying though," Zallen stated, with a smile, getting a laugh from those in the room.

"It is time to end this call, which is costing you a lot of credits, Zoga," Zallen stated. "Ten credits the minute they are charging! Outrageous. But to be able to see our children and Hafid like this is worth that expense.

"We will call you next time, Hama," Hanalei told her. "I need to speak with my parents as well. Do not worry about the cost, Hama, we can afford a few calls of this nature."