Send In the Clones
							by Naia Zifu

			   Chapter Two: Aliens

	"You took them to the _T'sentrati Museum?_  Oh boy.  How'd _that_
go?" Kaeisuan asked, holding his year-old daughter, Dhan, on his lap, the 
child trying her best to pull his long blue hair.
	That my son had married a human and had those half-breed children
didn't bother me much anymore.  Initially I had been opposed to their union, 
but with time I actually began to _like_ Tracey.  I realised she was really
very kind and sincere, and had genuine feelings for Kaeisuan.  I knew she 
could make him happy, and that was all that mattered.  And I couldn't 
dislike those children of theirs if I tried.  Though they were only half-
T'sentrati, they were wholly adorable.  Before I knew it I'd become the 
doting grandmother I'd sworn I would never be.     
	"I told them they didn't have to go if they weren't ready," I 
explained.  "But they insisted.  They were perfectly fine until the end..."
	"Yeah... the _bones_..."
	"They were understandably upset.  I mean, that was the moment it 
finally sunk in that they weren't who they thought they were.  But once they 
got over the initial anger and began to accept the truth, it seemed maybe a 
visit to the museum might have been the best possible thing for them," I 
reasoned.  "Now they've chosen to find names of their own, and decide what 
they want to do with their lives..."
	"So, have they picked out their new names yet?"
	"They've decided upon 'Grex Kassai' and 'Quoia Zol'," I answered, 
stifling a laugh.
	"Yeah, they _would_ have to choose names like that, wouldn't they?"
	"Excuse me, my T'sentrati's still a little shaky," Tracey 
interrupted.  "What's so funny about those names?" 
	"They aren't 'real' T'sentrati names, Tracey," Quelt'san explained 
in his imperfect English.  " 'Grex Kassai' is 'all-consuming fire', and 
'Quoia Zol' is 'supreme goddess'.  Probably the names were meant to imply 
they're somehow better than we are."
	"Can you believe the _nerve?_" I exclaimed, giving in to laughter.
"I tried to talk them into using real T'sentrati names but of course they 
wouldn't hear of it."
	"They're _entitled,_ Naia," Quelt'san teased.  "They _are_ clones of 
the great Khyron and Azonia..."
	Without looking up from her colouring page, Verran wondered, "What's 
a 'clone?' "
	"I know, Verran," volunteered her older brother Zak.  "I learned all
about it in school.  Clones are like those dinosaurs that live in the 
jungle.  It means somebody made them in a lab."
	"Somebody made _people_ in a lab?"  Verran was incredulous.
	Kaeisuan reminded her, "Grammum and Granda are clones."
	"They _are?_  But I thought they was just aliens..."
	Tracey scolded, "Verran, that's not a nice thing to say about your 
grandparents."
	"It's okay, Tracey," Quelt'san said calmly.  "We _are_ aliens."
	Zak asked excitedly, "Am I a alien?" 	
	"_Who said you're an alien?_" Tracey demanded. 
	"Well, I got blue skin, don't I?" he indicated his own azure-
complexioned face.  "People don't got blue skin.  Just aliens do."
	"No, Zak, you aren't exactly an 'alien'," Kaeisuan told him.  
"Neither am I.  You and I were born out of our mommies' bellies here on 
Earth.  Grammum and Granda are aliens 'cause they came from outer space.  
I'm T'sentrati 'cause my parents are, but technically I'm not an alien since 
I was born on Earth."
	Tracey added, "And you know I'm a human being, so you and your
sisters are only half-T'sentrati. Don't worry, Zak.  You're not an alien."
	"I wish I was," he lamented.  "That'd be really neat.  Granda, 
what's it feel like to be a alien?"
	"Well, I wasn't an 'alien' until I came to Earth," Quelt'san replied 
with a mischievous grin.  "To me, you Earth people are the 'aliens.' "
	I nudged him in the ribs with an elbow.  "Stop it, Quelt'san.  
You're going to confuse him."  Then to Zak I tried to explain, " 'Alien' 
just means 'foreign'.  The same way we're aliens here because we aren't from
Earth, Earth people are alien to us because they are." _Hmmm... not such a 
good explanation..._  "Understand?"
	"I guess so," Zak said, still sounding uncertain.  "Does that mean I
_am_ a alien, sort of?"
	I glared at Quelt'san, who smiled fiendishly.  "See what you've 
done?"  Having never been good at explanations, I gave up and agreed, 
"Okay, Zak, you can be an alien, but only to other aliens like Granda and 
me, okay?"
	"Okay," he agreed at last.  "I guess that'll have to do..."
	Verran asked, "How come you were made in a lab instead of born like 
we were?"
	"To make us cheap and expendable," Quelt'san replied frankly.  "The 
Masters made us specially to fight wars for them."
	"War?" repeated Verran.  "Oh, that's not good."
	"No, it isn't," he conceded, "but it was what we lived for."  He 
sighed wistfully.  "Sometimes I really miss combat..."
	"Fighting ferociously to the death," I intoned, "triumphing over 
insurmountable odds, living only for the thrill of battle, free to simply 
throw one's life away
	"For the greater glory of the T'sentrati people," we said 
together, clasping hands and gazing lovingly into one another's eyes.
	Tracey observed, "It almost sounds to me as if you _like_ fighting 
in wars or something..."
	In an almost apologetic tone, Quelt'san admitted, "Yes, I admit, I 
do enjoy combat.  That is the T'sentrati way."  The children looked up with 
saucer eyes, and I watched with delight as he squirmed uncomfortably in his 
seat.  "But I learned to resist the urges.  I still enjoy combat, but I 
don't feel as much that I have to fight anymore."
	"You think shooting people is _fun?_" Verran was distraught.
	"Er, no, not 'fun', really..." he replied.  "I don't know the words 
to explain it...  Not 'fun', just...  Well, we were programmed to like to 
fight, Verran.  I know it's not nice, but it's just the way we are."
	"That's so sad."
	"Not really," Quelt'san answered with an indifferent shrug.
	"Well, then, I'm glad I'm not a real T'sentrati," the little girl 
opined.
	I was about to take exception to that, but Kaeisuan quickly changed 
the subject.  "Um, you know, you've been telling us about those clones for 
over a week now, Mom.  When do we finally get to meet them?"	
	Hesitantly, I replied, "Soon, Kaeisuan.  I just want to be sure it's 
safe first..."
	"You think they might be dangerous?"
	"I don't know, really.  They seem nice enough so far, but..."
	"Have they given you some reason to think they might not be what 
they seem?"
	"I just have kind of an uneasy feeling about those two," I replied.  
"And until I know for sure, I'm not going to take any chances with my 
family's safety."



©1996-1998 Naia Zifu, all rights reserved.  Written originally in script
form, changed to narrative a bit later.  My apologies for all the material
left out in the switch to first-person narrative.  Illegal T'sentrati words 
were removed when the change to narrative occurred, but replaced for
electronic use.  Robotech and all borrowed ideas (and basis for the clones'
characters) are trademarked by Harmony Gold.  Again I am not trying to
infringe on any trademarks or copyrights, or profit from anyone else's
ideas.