Someone titters. I smile in the face of their derision. I expected as much, but it was the best stalling I could manage on a moment’s notice. If making myself look like a bumbling idiot buys Shey the time she needs to seem prepared, then I’d do it a hundred times over.

“Right, yeah,” I say, bowing and stepping back. “Of course. Please excuse my terrible off-worlder manners.” Hopefully they don’t hear the edge of amusement to my voice, or the snort Drom lets out in response. Once I’m done, I glance sideways at Shey and say, more quietly, “That’s your cue, darling.”

Shey shoots me a grateful look and takes a deep breath before beginning to speak.

“Esteemed council members of Nibiru,” she says, “I know that there has been a long history of hurt between our planets. I come to you today hoping that we can begin to mend the divide between us. And I come asking for you to save my people.”

There’s no hint of her former hesitation now. The words pour out of her. She is both humble and regal, both plaintive and strong. She paints a picture of her home-world in disrepair, of innocent people in need, of her mother’s desire to help them. Then she builds up a new image: an image of a new age where the planets are allies rather than enemies, where they work together as a united humankind and forgive each other for past mistakes to move toward a better future.

Of course, her pretty words leave out the fact that it was President Leonis who originally brought this upon her people, and that the president was hell-bent on wiping out the entire population of Nibiru to get what she wanted. Still, even knowing that, I find myself inspired. Hopeful.

“In the past, we have too often let our differences come between us,” she says as her speech winds to a close. “When, in reality, I believe our differences should work to balance one another within the larger community of the system. I also believe that, if we work together, we have so much to teach one another. If we share our traditions and experiences, if we learn to help each other and find harmony between our peoples, both Gaia and Nibiru will be stronger for it. And together, we can pave a new path for our system’s future—one in which the planets come together, just as the many nations of Earth did when their world was threatened. Like them, I believe we can use our strengths to make up for one another’s weaknesses and become a unified whole.”