Read Guardian Stone 1: Stone Genesis for Free Online

merely regrouped at Tau Ceti and then moved on when we had sufficient stations, we would have been long gone. Knowing that we had left billions of people on five worlds to deal with the fate we were escaping was too much to bear. We would have been a damaged people. We at least had to make an effort. The notion that we could do little or nothing for the peoples in harms way pushed us down a path that is now reaching culmination."
    "We want to become a source for protection of those people. But we had to have someone that could pull the trigger and yet not be so different in their belief structures that we were not compatible. We had several candidates but Earth was the most promising and is next on the Glarin's path. We were worried about your planet and still are to a point but then we saw the creation of your democracies and your rapid development, we became entranced with your potential. We realized that your people had many of the attributes we were looking for and wondered if we might be your conscience in a combined effort. You are also at an age where this plan might just work. We decided to take a chance and see if this horror could be halted."
    "We have had many individual candidates in the past 20 years and you were among the most promising. We will let you know who the others were because they are good people who do not quite have your strengths but have a contribution to make."
    "We have been stifling some of your talents and have been surreptitiously training you how to use them. We have been guiding you in a sense but have not touched your free will and will not. Some of these talents have not been fully activated but you will have full access to all your talents very soon. Barana will explain that when the time comes. Her judgment in such instances has been precise and accurate. We have provided protection for you at times, most notably at the Kajaki event. The guidance provided there and your actions assured us that you were indeed the person we have been seeking. Your Grandfather had told me years ago that you were the one we were seeking but we were not sure. Now we believe his view and most notably, so does Barana."
    "Now that you have committed to do this, I must tell you that my people have decided that this is where we will draw the line even if it results in our demise. It is also time to transfer this Station and all the other stations built, to your command. I will stay on as a figurehead leader for as long as you need me and because you have much to do in recruiting the manpower to operate this tool we have placed at your disposal. You will be governed by our constitution that has been established here. Some of the strictures in our constitution forbid the transfer of any station and certain levels of its technology to any planetary-based government or society. There is much we can contribute to the success of this effort in addition to the hardware and our people. Now we have to start bringing that together. Thank you Hank for giving us a reason to hope."
    "That is an amazing history. I will do my best to not let you down."
    "That is precisely the kind of response that tells me that this partnership will work. Your people have an interesting saying that goes 'Power corrupts and absolute power, absolutely corrupts.' Your family, Barana and I will be your moral and ethical compass to help you avoid that problem. Also Barana has the authority and power to relieve you if you stray into misuse of that power and trust. I do not see that happening but it is a check and balance. Please do keep me informed, there are many things we can do to assist. You have had good experience and results in the past from your ability to build effective teams. Good luck and as your people say, Godspeed. There is much wisdom in your people."
    Hank interjected, "Your point earlier about meeting as equals makes sense on several levels. The idea of a total transfer of power looks too much like a military dictatorship. I have no