18. The Dance of Alisa

Bravo-Four-Zero was in luck. Metalunan civilization had achieved peace through the dual means of superior strength combined with supreme intellectual, and some might say spiritual, development. Millenniums past, Metalunans had discovered how to incorporation their technological advances into the very life and blood of living matter. Squorks, for instance, are half Squorks and half Metalunan mechanical innovation—a living machine if you will. The melding of life with machine took centuries to perfect. The result, at least with male Squorks, the most proficient small fighting craft in the known universe.

Female Squorks, however, have a very different nature from their male counterparts. Lacking the pure aggression of the males, the females contributed an agility and natural finesse that no amount of teaching or training could duplicate. They nurtured the young, taught them the art of dance (what came to be known by the males as maneuver), and instilled in them a loyalty and devotion to family that bordered on fanaticism.

Metalunans love the arts and quickly realized that female Squorks could perform ballets in the sky unequalled by any other living creature. Contest were held and only a select few were chosen for advanced training to perform for royal ceremonial events and visiting dignitaries. Bravo-Four-Zero was greeted with open arms. Not only was their ship repaired to standards greater than original specs, but the Hynerians were feted and entertained as if they were persons of high prestige.

After days of food, song and wine, the festivities culminated with The Dance of Alisa performed by the royal academy—all female squorks, of course. Performed in the skies above Metaluna, the performance surpassed anything anyone could remember seeing.