When The Heart Sings

Chapter 13

Serena's POV:

Nick had just given us our fake IDs. I had no idea how he managed to get them in just a few hours, but I didn't inquire. My first name was still Serena, although my last name had been changed to something I wasn't sure I could even pronounce.

Darien glanced at me, "Stay close to me, heart. The other two should be arriving soon. Most Tarulk are not that fond of humans."

His new nickname for me reminded me of that dream of the heart and the shield. The endearing term made my heart flutter. I nodded, although if Nick's first words were any indication, I suspected that this was another monumental understatement in the making. I was hoping to keep a low profile, but I suspected that it wasn't going to help any.

"If Tarulk don't like humans, why do they live in human towns like this? From what you say, there are places with just Tarulk."

Darien considered it for a moment, "There are numerous worlds with various races out there. It is possible to travel between the planets using waygates. Nick has one in the backyard, which is why so many Tarulk come here.

"Not many Tarulk are on Earth. They usually come to this planet looking for certain medicinal herbs that prevent and cure a condition similar to Alzheimers which is fairly common in elderly Tarulk. These plants will only grow here. That is why I originally came to this planet."

I nibbled my lip as I debated asking my next question. I had a feeling that it was a touchy subject. "Why do Tarulk not like humans?"

Darien sighed heavily, "Most races detest humans. Humans used to be aware of the waygates and were present on a number of planets a very long time ago. Humans tend to be very destructive, and you can see how much damage they have done to this planet. To make a very long story short, humans destroyed dozens of planets and rendered them uninhabitable."

Darien paused for a moment, "They also ended up destroying the planets of some other races. War broke out and eventually drew in four different races. Humans had spread to dozens of planets at this point. The war lasted centuries and claimed many lives. The races that had joined the war still hold grudges against the human race for those deaths and the destroyed planets."

I winced lightly. I could see why they were against humans when my race had destroyed so much. "How many planets are humans found on now?"

"One. Earth. There had been some settlement here before the war, but the humans who fled to Earth destroyed the main waygates to protect themselves. They had not been aware that there were other waygates on this planet. It was a very long time before the other races realized that any humans even still lived. It was decided that this would be the last planet humans would colonize. The two waygates that still exist on this planet are protected by Tarulk and, as far as we can tell, humans have lost all knowledge about the waygates."

I nodded in understanding. The thought of hundreds of planets and different races was something that would take some getting used to. I glanced out the window at the large garden, but I wasn't sure what this waygate thing looked like. They must have left the last two waygates intact just because they came here for the special medicinal herbs.

I was doubly glad that Darien wasn't planning on leaving Earth. I had a feeling that I would not be very welcome if I ventured onto any other planet. A remote mountaintop was much more appealing. Even just having Nick out of the house was a reprieve from the constant cold shoulder he had been giving me.

Nick had gone to pick the two Tarulk up in his car, although he wouldn't be gone too much longer. Darien gazed at his sketches showing the layout of the research center, many levels just showed a hallway since he had mostly been contained on the bottom two levels. I didn't really pay much attention to the drawings. Darien would never allow me near that place again. He had already made that very clear to Nick.