Time to make an appearance out there, said Allen. They all stood up, grabbed their respective crystals and went outside, to a beautiful sunny morning. People were gathering near the fence line of the Crowley property and all down the beach. The noise was beginning to build, from honking horns, screaming kids and parents and barking dogs, etc. It was far different from the show on Balenn, where there was no crowd visible.

The ships were all anchored in symmetrical positions, forming a three pointed star, visible only from the air above. The aircraft carrier was closest to the beach and the center for most of the activities to follow. So that everyone would get a good view, the aircraft carrier flooded its port ballast tanks, to make the ship list towards the shore. This made the entire surface deck of the carrier, visible from shore. The angle was just enough so everyone could see, but not enough where everything that wasn’t anchored down would fall over or roll away. The ship's deck was painted in bright green and yellow colors, with the words "Welcome Ehesti" printed in brown, down the center. The rigging was all decorated with silver and reflective ornaments. Sailors dressed in solid colors, were positioned in various places throughout the ship, to give the impression of a border around the stage area. Their motion drew attention to what was inside their border, just as flashing neon borders around a painted sign, draws your attention to what is written inside.

The first number was a motorcycle act, with thirty colored bikes and all the riders in blue. They formed intricate designs with their machines. The leader of the cycle group, was a little concerned, because of the angle of the deck. If it was wet, they would surely slip off. It wasn't wet at all, so they performed their act flawlessly. Part of their act included all bikes, side by side, facing uphill. The bikes would slowly move forward to the top of the deck and let gravity pull them back. They did this in perfect unison, so that the effect was like rolling waves on the ocean. When each cyclist reached the top, he would turn his head sideways, to expose the white part of his hood. The effect was like braking whitecaps, on a stormy sea.

Dark clouds threatened the festivities. They were moving in very fast, from the west. Beenan could see the rain coming down, about two kilometers away. Here is a good chance to use your crystal. How do you mean, asked Kelly? If we concentrate on building a force field, five thousand meters high and five thousand meters square, with the ships and all of us in the center of it, it will keep the clouds away. Great idea, said Cliff. They all held on to their crystals and concentrated. How long do we need to concentrate, asked Cliff? It is up in place now, Bo replied. We will need to concentrate to take it down, but not to hold it there. Cliff and Kirby looked puzzled, because there was no visible sign of the force field. Kelly pointed to what looked like rising heat waves, out at sea. That is the force field, said Beem. A seagull flew right into it. It bounced him back, without ruffling a feather. He tried again and was tossed out again. He flew off in another direction. The wind and clouds approached rapidly. When they reached the barrier, it was as though there was a glass wall there. The clouds followed around the edge of the force field and continued on around behind them. It's working, said Kirby. We can control the weather; fantastic. The spectators couldn't believe their eyes.

The wind, which was blowing off the ocean at about fifteen kilometers per hour, subsided to a dead calm. They were in a huge glass cube, only it wasn't glass, but a pliable force field, similar to the material used in the construction of their life support sphere on Balenn. The cube covered all the spectators and the ships, including the entire Crowley Estate. Where the cube touched the ocean, waves pounded at it from the outside, while inside, the water was as calm as glass. The clouds approached rapidly. Every-one scrambled to get their umbrella ready, as well as plastic lean-tos, but they didn't need them. The rain bounced off the cube and ran down the sides of the force field. The sailors on the ship near the edge of the field could see the rain pounding on the ocean, just a few feet ahead of them, on the outside of the cube, while they enjoyed calm seas and short sleeve weather, on the inside. The unusual spectacle of the weather control cube, took the spectator's attention away from the motorcycle act, which was still going on. They were very well trained cyclists, but it was hard to compete with the Ehesti for attention. The motorcycle group was finished now and the leader went up to the microphone. I don't know how you do it, our Ehesti friends, but thanks for the nice weather. Everyone applauded and cheered. They were applauding both events at once, so they cheered twice as long as normal.

When the applause finally stopped, the music of the next event could be heard, gaining in amplitude. It was marching music that accompanied a precision marching group of twenty sailors. They were dressed in lime green uniforms and carried white rifles. Their shoes were white as well as their gloves and berets. As they marched to the music, they formed words with their white rifles.

They spelled out "Balenn, Earth, Friends". Again everyone applauded with vigor, as the marchers left the stage. Their cheers were again twofold. They were applauding the marchers and the message.

The next act was musical. It consisted of one hundred and fifty singers and an "all brass band". The spectators were more interested in watching the rain run down the sides of the force field. The force field was higher than the clouds, so it remained bright and sunny inside. The singers began to dance in a gliding fashion that looked unnatural. They were hooked on to cables that spanned the carrier deck. The cables supported their weight, so that it looked like they weren't touching the ground at times. It made a very peculiar sight from afar, where you couldn't see the cables. The dancers were able to simulate the flight of birds with their gliding moves. Their costumes were two sided, so that they looked like two different flyers, depending on which way they were heading. They combined, to appear as a group of seagulls. Their flying motion, combined with the tiny houses below them, gave the impression that they were a group of seagulls flying at a very high altitude. Their flight was ended quickly, by a commercial jet swooping in suddenly from behind them. The jet settled on the stage, surrounded by dead seagulls. Funeral music began playing and the message was clear. There was a very strong lobby going on in the United States to stop killing the birds with commercial and pleasure aircraft. Many thousands of birds die each year from encounters with our flying machines. The music changed to a lighter tempo, as the performers and dancers took a bow.

The musical number ended. The emcee came on and announced a ten minute break. The group went back inside the Crowley house. The noise of the crowd was getting irritating. Fortunately, the Crowley Estate had four meter high concrete walls all around it, keeping them quite private. The security people were all around again and one of them was inside, when they returned. He introduced himself as Jack. I know I am not supposed to be inside the building, he said humbly, but would you mind telling me where you were hiding yesterday? We combed every square inch of this place. I am responsible for your safety and I did not know what to think. I still don't. Thank God you are back today or they would have had my neck. He was talking to everyone at the same time and no one was sure if they should be the one to reply.

The group continued on inside, leaving Allen to deal with the security guard. Allen took him aside. We were gone on a visit to the planet Balenn, said Allen. Surely you have seen the newscasts by now, with our film? That is why I didn't worry too much, he said, but I still can't explain how you left without anyone seeing you. Is there a secret passage out of here? There might be, said Allen, but we did not use it. I will show you how we traveled. Allen was going to pull his crystal out of his pocket, but instead he put his hand inside his pocket and held it in there. He willed himself and Jack, on to the aircraft carrier. There, does that explain it, asked Allen? Jack couldn't believe his eyes. They were both standing right in the middle of the deck, where the show had just taken place. A group of sailors, on one of the upper decks spotted them. Hey, get out of there, one of them shouted. They need the deck to prepare for the next act. Allen looked up at the sailors and waved that he understood. He put his hand back on the crystal, before the security guard could wonder off.

Before we go back outside, said Allen, I have a quick question. You mentioned earlier that others can block our travels and that is why you built Region Six. Do these life forms deliberately stop us, just to be mean? Are they evil doers? Beenan replied, when you stop a bird in its travels to examine it and maybe tag it or even domesticate it for a pet, are you being mean? Are you evil doers? We do not know much about these life forms, said Beenan. Your experience on Main Storage, gave you as much information about them as we have. It is very hard to examine anything from a position of inferior control. You call the shots, when examining your bird. The bird does not have much say, one way or the other. This is the position we are in, like the bird. They don't mean any more harm though, than you would mean harm to the bird. The evil doing, as you call it, is a term relative to your own ideas of right and wrong. Very few entities set out to be evil doers. In the process of pursuing their own self interests, some people are considered evil. Being mean is a defensive attitude, generated by the emotion of fear.

The voice of the emcee could be heard in the background. That caught everyone’s attention and they all proceeded to their respective seats, on the hillside facing the ocean. Some of the ships had changed position, but other than that, nothing had changed. During the break one of the ships had tried to ram the force field and found that they passed right through it, with ease.

The sky had cleared up and the force field was hardly visible. Beenan suggested everyone hold their crystals and remove the weather barrier. The barrier disappeared and as it did, the wind picked up to about ten knots, from dead calm. It was getting on towards noon and the show was due to end at noon. The next section of the show was a parade of important people, taking turns to say their welcoming words to the Ehesti. The crowd applauded after each one. It was interesting at first, but it dragged on too long and the crowd began to get restless. The emcee announced the final act. It was a musical number saying "Welcome to our visitors from Balenn" etc. The dancers were dressed in costumes depicting various countries on the planet Earth. The music and song were obviously written hastily, because the quality of a well rehearsed original tune just wasn't there.

The emcee came back on to announce the end of the show and the start of the black fireworks. The carrier leveled itself, and the fireworks were shot off from there. These were newly invented fireworks, that could be seen on a bright sunny day, because they were light absorbing, when they exploded, instead of a bright flash, they produced a dark spot in the sky. The smaller explosions that followed and the Roman Candles, etc. all produced dark spots. The dark spots shot up and fell back to earth, just like real fireworks, in a shower of dark spots. The last fireworks to be let off produced a black spot with a color inside. It was like producing a background of black for each light, so it could be seen. When it was over, the carrier let out three blasts from its whistle, signaling farewell. The rest of the accompanying vessels tooted their horns. Each ship had two or three horns. Once the horns were tuned up, they played a perfect rendition of "0 Canada" and the "star Spangled Banner". There was even a percussion accompaniment, coming from amplified electronic drums, on one of the ships. When the music was over, each vessel jockeyed into position for their exit formation.

The public began to disperse and the vessels began to leave the harbor. On the way out, they played "Yankee Doodle Dandy" with their horns. Each ship was emitting smoke out of their funnels, in pulses. The ships had a different colored smoke and the bursts of smoke were supposed to coincide with the downbeat of the music. It looked good for a while, but the sound traveling slower than the perception of the smoke puffs from shore, caused quite a mix up. The smoke and noise subsided as the ships left the harbor.

How about we transpose on the carrier and thank them personally, suggested Cliff. Too late, replied Allen. They will be back to their normal run situation and everyone is back at work. I think Allen is right, said Bo. We don't want to land in the middle of a busy war ship. I guess I am kind of like a kid with a new toy, admitted Cliff. I want to play with my toy and show it off to everyone. You will get over it, said Kelly.

Lunch is served, hollered Kirby. The conversation stopped as everyone headed for the dining room. It was tomato soup and cucumber sandwiches. Kirby was not about to serve anything with meat or fish in it. The Ehesti sat down at the table as usual, but not to eat. Kirby had prepared the routine tray of goodies, for the Ehesti and they picked at it while everyone else ate. A silence fell over the dining room, while everyone dug in. The silence was interrupted by the crunching of cucumbers. Marie chuckled to herself, at the funny noises. She was going to make a comment, but Cliff spoke up. Too bad you guys did not choose human forms. You might enjoy eating like we do, said Kirby. He bit into his crunchy cucumber sandwich. We have done that many times, replied Beenan. Eating took up too much time for us. Ten percent of our time, was being used for eating. These forms are more suitable to our likes for now.

Why don't I take care of that myself, said Beenan. Surely you don't need all of us. The rest of you could go and enjoy the afternoon. If there is an interview, I should be there too, said Kelly. Us too, said Cliff, meaning himself and Kirby. Wait a minute, said Kirby. Are we all going to go back to our jobs even though we have the crystal power now? You know what will happen? Sooner or later our travels and adventures with the crystal, will become more important than our jobs. I think it is only fair that we hand in our resignations now and avoid all the fuss later. Everyone, where we work, knows we have the crystals and things won't be the same. It is just like winning a million dollar lottery and staying at work, when someone who really needs the job, could have it. No one expects you to stay at work, when you don't need to.

Speak for yourself, said Kelly. I am keeping my job. I like it. I might never use my crystal. Ha-ha, laughed Kirby. That is like saying you will never use your dishwasher, when you get one. What are we going to do this afternoon Bo looked at Beem? What are you, Sarah and Marie, planning, asked Beem? Are you going back to work too? Sarah looked at Marie. We were going to wait until this evening before we leave, said Bo, so why don't you and Marie let Beem and I show you some of the neat things you can do with your crystals. We will all meet back here at supper time. how about that? That sounds like a good compromise, said Allen. He was pleased that the Ehesti had not said no completely, to his request for one more interview. How about it Allen, asked Marie? Do you think it would be alright to go with them, or should we stay and take notes? I'll take all the notes and give you a copy, said Cliff. That's fine with me, Allen replied. You girls go and enjoy the rest of the day with Bo and Beem. They won't be here much longer.

The ground was still damp from yesterday's rain. How about Hawaii, suggested Beem? Marie's eyes lit up. I know a nice warm, quiet beach there, said Beem. There are steep cliffs, so no one get down. Why not, said Marie, trying to sound bolder. What do you think Sarah, asked Marie? As long as we have these crystals, I don't think it matters where we go. The crystals won't let us harm ourselves, so what have we got to loose? Isn't that right Beem? You are quite right, replied Beem. If you are all ready, let's depart. They all joined hands and they were gone.

They landed at a place where the sand was white and the temperature was plus twenty-five degrees Celsius. It was Hawaii alright, but not a place on the tourist map. The mountains were two kilometers high and they dropped right into the sea. They materialized on the only beach around. It was accessible by sea only and it would probably disappear at high tide, thought Sarah. There were yachts and small boats scattered in all directions, as they looked out to sea. Just a few miles away, there were thousands of people, holidaying in and around the commercial resorts on the islands. How did you find this place, asked Sarah? After spending a cold winter in your Canadian Rockies, about twenty years ago, I transposed out here, looking for a place to warm up, that was unpopulated. I found this spot and since then, I have used it as a place to transpose for a warm-up or to dry off sometimes too. It's not much bigger than the Crowley living room, said Marie, but there is plenty of room for us. Should we sit on the sand or what, asked Sarah?

How will you find the genuine victim, asked Bo? If you do cure some poor handicap, how will you avoid the publicity that comes with your super-natural feats. Are you ready for that? Publicity is the last thing I want, replied Sarah. Just spending these last few days with you Ehesti, has been a lesson in dealing with publicity. I don't think I could stand it, having everyone wanting something from me, whether it be an autograph, or a cure for their backache. If I have to give up my privacy, in exchange for these crystals, I don't think I'm too anxious to make the trade.

That is my point, said Bo. If we help indirectly, so it looks like we are not even involved, we can do the most good. When we decided to come down the mountain and mingle with all of you, we faked our capture so as not to make waves. If we had just waltzed into the government buildings and said "take us to your leader", we would have been locked up immediately. Having the Sasquatch Hunting Party out and looking for us, was perfect. If we had shown our powers proudly, when we were captured, none of this would have happened and the Old Sasquatch Legend would still prevail. By faking our capture, we were generating compassion also. People would say "don't hurt the poor Sasquatch". That compassion opened the psychic door that allowed us all up to the stage of friendliness that we now share.

If you apply this kind of forethought every time you use the crystal, things will go much smoother. I agree with you, replied Marie, but don't you think it is Cliff and Kirby you should be telling this to? Maybe we should go back. I like to listen to Beenan in his interviews. Marie was beginning to feel uneasy, being so far from home and so vulnerable. Even though she knew that she no longer had anything to fear, she still hadn't shaken loose that feeling of insecurity that had been with her all her life.

The full value of your gift will take time to digest, said Bo. Let's go back to Beenan and the rest. They held their crystals and blinked back to the Crowleys. Marie was relieved, that she was back on familiar ground. They headed for the den.

Click here for chapter 16