28th SEPTEMBER 2518

I was sleeping today in my ship (I have to still use it as Skeylan homes lack both showers and beds), when a message came through.  Its origin was a human source.

A ship from the Commonwealth had arrived as I had never returned back home with my report.  It was a rescue team.

So many thoughts passed through my mind.  I realised that, if I told them of the Skeylans, the Commonwealth would no doubt install an Enclave here.  I could see the future of this planet if I did that.  Individual humans are compassionate, merciful and kind.  But when you lump them together into an organisation, they become cold, cruel and violent.

No, I couldn’t do that.  So I thought of something, I told them that my ship’s engine had been damaged and so I’d been stranded.  They believed me and said they would be down as soon as possible.

While I waited, I went about sabotaging my ship’s engines to make my story convincing.  It was during this time that Junior came aboard because I hadn’t been to the village today.

I told him what was happening, I told him the Army of the Water Empire was coming and he couldn’t be seen.

I got a message they had spotted me and were landing.  Realising they would see Junior if he went outside, I told him to hide in my ship while my fellow humans came aboard.  I told the Commonwealth officials that this planet was a barren rock, with no useful purpose to the Commonwealth.

We came to the conclusion that they would repair my ship so we could leave together, my ship is quite an expensive piece of hardware after all.  They worked all day but said it wouldn’t be complete until another day of work so, as night fell, they retreated back to their ship and I smuggled Junior back to the village.

On the way, he told me he didn’t know that Watermen were telepathic.  I didn’t understand him but then I realised, I had just communicated with the other members of my species without using my hands and instead talking by sending sound waves back and forth to one another.  I’m sure it seemed to Junior that I was telepathic as he couldn’t hear sound waves.