Incoming!

In the distance coming from the horizon were vehicles, made evident by the dust clouds.

I dropped into the cockpit, and ordered a change of formation, and full stop.

Adria was the negotiator for our first contact with new people so she stood in front of my train, and the other two were either side of her in a Vee formation.

She held her hand up in a universally peaceful gesture.

The vehicles slowed to a halt, and the drivers piled out, and advanced on Adria, words were exchanged and Adria turned and laid her jacket on the ground, then put all her weapons on it, and went back to talking.

Several minutes later, Adria got me to join her, the leader whose name was Nizhoni, she had a pleasant figure, tanned lightly, was wearing a well made kimono style top, a dhoti, and sandals, she was a beauty, that looked like a middle eastern queen, that had fallen on hard times.

The visitors were surprised, but happy and negotiations continued, and we were invited to their town to continue negotiations, and we accepted.

We arrived at Sapphire town, and found a pleasant jewel of the desert, there was a spring that made this place the jewel of the desert, with sandstone buildings farms, and walls it was a pleasant place, and filled with women. The buildings were simple but pleasant, there were transparent farm towers, production and infrastructure all there taken care of rather efficiently. I could even see some type of peace keeping officer dressed in a bluish white with a silver trim, they held a metal spear, and there were a few of them dotted in this large village. There was a misunderstanding as these "officials" seemed to think I was a threat and Nizhoni had to correct them, it was rather hard to convince them that we actually came in peace when I had two of them lifted off the floor by the spears they were holding, and Tania had one as a shield, but she managed it and the guards stood down.

We sat down at a large meal and got strange looks from the other women, and I couldn't quite put my finger on why.

We found what they wanted as Nizhoni told us what they wanted in any trade: we require the use of your male, as our last male died a while ago, and we will require some of his seed to continue our community.

She was addressing Adria, and then it clicked, men were . . . lesser, in their society.

It seemed that because they had never had any contact with men, they didn't understand what men were.

Adria corrected her, but she didn't seem pleased, at the perceived deception, or the changing of their ways.