"You are going to show the children this as well. We must have them come to us, and we can tell them. They are fully grown now, they are not as you saw them last."

The children aboard the Pegasus were not yet aware of Qblh's presence, and Isis made the decision to keep his presence secret. She did not want to let her people know that Qblh had rescued her. Jim knew better than to interfere. "Stay here!" she commanded, I shall fetch the children. "My watcher shall monitor you, be good." She placed a crystal on a table to keep an eye on Jim. "I hope you don't mind, my love."

Of course Jim minded, but he wasn't going to initiate any mistrust at the moment. He had come in peace and intended to fullfill his mission even if he had to be diplomatic. He was most eager to see Ching again anyway. He also speculated as to how much like her mother Jan would appear. Isis and Aphrodite could still be mistaken as twins, just as John and Jim could be mistaken. These creatures once mature, aged very slowly.

Within minutes, he heard their arrival. Apparently she had not yet told the children he was there because he heard her mention to the children a surprise as she instructed them to await outside her bedchamber. Returning to Jim she smiled, "Are you ready to see how your son has grown?"

Isis dressed Jim to her taste and then took him by the hand to meet the children.

"Guess who brought Genie back to us?"

"Father!" They both exclaimed together and rushed to greet him. Jim blushed slightly and seated himself on the sofa with them flanking him. Isis sat across from him now, smiling and awaiting to witness the results of the reunion.

"Your Father is taking us back to Artemis and then shall be leaving again."

Predictably Xiang reacted. "Take me we with you Father."

"Sorry son, it's not yet the time." Isis smiled realizing that Jim would allow him to stow away as she had asked.

"But Father, I've waited all these years to experience Merkabah travel, I am well versed on the material. All I need now is practical experience. You and grandfather have the only working prototypes."

"You are supposed to build it yourself."

"Or make some other arrangement," he commented.

"What do you mean by that, son?"

"Never mind, Father. I apologize for being rude. I shall return to Artemis with mother as you have dictated."

"Your mother tells me that you were quite successful in China."

"That's not what we call it, but I suppose you mean the pleasant land of the yellow valley that mother gave us while we were marooned to sublight velocity."

"Marooned?"

"Yes, Shaltain shot us through the black hole fully knowing that there was no way back for us with our existing knowledge and technology. Mother has shown us the best she can offer, but we need you to get us back. I even have a programmed solution and all I need is a Merkabah unit to implement it. I know how to program Genie to displace us back, Father. Would you like to see my solution."

"I'm sure you do know the fundamentals but I could hardly imagine that you would be so lucky. I'll let you propose the solution to Genie and it can correct your mistakes for you. I'll grant you that."

"And if my solution is correct?"

Jim admired his son's enthusiasm and did not wish to discourage him. "We'll see." Jim could not really answer that question because there was no way for him to anticipate his response if his son's solution was valid. He was intrigued though by his son's confidence. His son was certain that he was correct.

"Ja..., Dragonlady, you are the spitting image of your mother. So how was it possible for you to maintain such a low profile? Genie thought that you were both brothers from the history records."

"It was easier to mask myself as a man, Father. My strength being easily greater than twenty men inspired my warriors to seek greater strength, because the barbarians admired greatly physical strength. To allow them to believe that a woman would have greater strength would have demoralized those that I had otherwise successfully inspired to be the greatest army of the greatest empire on Earth. Besides, no one would even think of attempting to gain my sexual favors as long as they thought I was a man. Yet at times, I would shed my disguse and entice certain powerful men to their doom and also to my political advantage. I conceded some of my gains to my brother only because mother insisted. He always would complain that I cheated only because I could do things that he couldn't. My part of the empire would have been at least ten times his portion if I hadn't given him my gains, but we were an equal partnership so I honored that principle."

"Don't apologize, Xuang, your father has zero territorial acquisitions to his record. Were it completely up to him, Venetia would deteriorate to anarchy."

Jim looked at Xuang and then Isis. She beamed with pride concernig her daughter's accomplishments. There could be no doubt that Xuang would be a formidable ruler.

"Your mother has advised me that we are to keep my presence here secret. Is that understood children?"

"Understood." Again they responded in unison. Xiang glared angrily at his sister for trying to upstage him.

"Don't be angry Xiang, your mother is equally annoying." Xiang's glare broke into embarrassment and then he laughed.

"I say we must overshoot our arrival point somewhat." Xiang challenged his father. "Would it be possible for me to review cosmological data while we undergo displacement. I have a list of requisitions from the Genie concerning experiments I wish to try."

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