We are... pleased to meet you, Commanderexcuse me, CaptainTakahashi, plenipotentiary representative of the Terran Empire, Birch said, extending her hand to shake Ayakas. She paid no attention to the marine guard contingent standing like statues, weapons in handalbeit politely pointed toward the groundand rendered anonymous by their unmarked SLEEK suits. I am Birch, and through me you may speak to Oak, Crabapple, Mangrove, and Cypress as well.

Thank you for seeing us on such short notice, Lady Birch, and the others as well, Ayaka said, taking Birchs hand and politely shaking it. Her other hand signaled the rest of the diplomats, then she broke the environment seal on her SLEEK suit and removed her helmet, followed by the three remaining diplomats. These are my colleagues: George Stefanopolous, an expert in contractual and treaty law

Pleasure, Lady Birch, George said with a slight bow of his head.

Dr. Leigh Ayers-MacDougall, a xenobotanist expert and the scientific advisor of the delegation, Ayaka continued.

Im thrilled to finally meet you, Lady Birch! Leigh chirped in a friendly, excited tone. May I ask

Therell be time for that later, Dr. Ayers-MacDougall, Ayaka interjected. And this is Boris Rustakovya, our xenodiplomacy advisor.

Boris waved at Birch and said, Im excited to meet you, Lady Birch, and look forward to discovering more about you and this delightful planet of yours! And warm greetings to the others present as wellLords and Ladies Oak, Crabapple, Mangrove, and Cypress. He gave Birch a brilliant smile, turning his craggy face from broody to boyishly charming in an instant.

And I believe youve met Warrant Officer Lee Joon-ho, our delegations awakener, Ayaka finished.

Joon-ho smiled and waved at Birch. You look magnificent, Birch. Its nice to finally put a face to the, err... tree, I suppose. The meadow was a bit hard to get used to and I could never really tell if I was talking to myself, you see, because we

Alright, Joon-ho, you can catch up with Lady Birch later, Ayaka said, shooting him a Look with a capital L. Right now, we need to attend to business.

Birch returned his smile with her head once again tilted, this time toward her other shoulder. Of course, Joon-ho, and thank you for your compliment. She turned back to Ayaka and continued, I know you must have many questions, since Joon-ho was too busy answering ours to ask any of his. Please allow me to bring us to a more comfortable setting.... I know Joon-ho complained about our hospitality many times during the time he spent with us in what he called the timeless meadow

She waved her hand and meters-thick roots sprang up from the soil, racing into the sky and twining together, weaving themselves into thick walls and finally arranging themselves into what looked like a daimyos castle straight out of the Japanese Sengoku period.

The marines, when they saw the roots break ground, began shouldering their pulse rifles, but Ayaka shook her head at Major Petrovich and gestured for the security to stand down. She perceived no threat from the roots, and her instincts had told her that Birch was being honest and forthcoming. Or perhaps it was Laifu, mostly dormant within her, giving her that sixth sense and empathic abilities.

(Ed note: The Sengoku Period ran from the 1460s to 1610s in Japan and was characterized by daimyos and samurai. It actually wasnt a very pleasant period to live in, as the caste system was incredibly strict and samurai werent nearly as decent or as honorable as theyve been depicted in Western-

targeted media.)

Thank you for the hospitality, Lady Birch, Ayaka said as she checked that all of her links with the Proxima were still connected and properly functioning. Will this... castle... interfere with our communications with the ships in orbit? It would be a shame if such a beautiful castle were to be on the receiving end of a planetkiller bombardment, after all.

It will not, Captain Takahashi, Birch replied in no uncertain terms.

Then we accept your hospitality, Ayaka said with a smile, as though there wasnt the threat of immediate planetary destruction hanging over the head of the treefolk and their soon-to-be-born children.

And you are absolutely correct, we do have many questions for you. Warrant Officer Lees debriefing was... not as hopeful as wed have liked, shall we say.

Whats a debriefing? Birch asked, her head practically turning a full hundred and eighty degrees upside down.

(Ed note: Again, still not fond of multiple ed notes per chapter, but picture the kodama ( or ) from the classic Studio Ghibli film Princess Mononoke. They were the little critters in the trees with the three holes as faces; heres a picture (safe link, I promise): https://tinyurl.com/miyazakikodama )

A debriefing is when someone is brought before a panel of interested parties and questioned about a specific period of time or operation, Ayaka answered. Its much like how the five of you interacted with Warrant Officer Lee in the timeless meadow.

Birch stilled, then lowered her head and cutely pressed her index fingertips together. We owe you an apology for that, Captain Takahashi. It was never our intention to harm any of your individual beings.... We thought you were much like us, and only Joon-ho was a sapient being and the rest of you were as disposable to him as our leaves are to us. We had no concept of individuality before that, nor could we ever have imagined that beings different from us existed.

Those reasons dont and arent meant to excuse our reprehensible actions that cost you the lives of seven individual beings. If you would like to memorialize them, you can tell us about them at your convenience. We... remember. We may not have conceived of individual life like that before, but we never forget anything that passes, she said with obvious grief in her voice. It was apparent that the treefolk had never come into contact with death before.

Ayaka blinked away the moisture from her eyes before it could form tears and said, Thank you for that, Lady Birch. Your offer is... most appreciated.