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The cold breeze didn't interfere with Favuxo's concentration, since he didn't have a physical form as he looked up into Cadopek's dark night sky. He was concentrating on something so small and distant as to be almost invisible. He was too far away from it for any of its features to be distinguishable, though his distance was his own choice.
Favuxo knew almost everything about the universe which shone down from the sky above him. After the experience he'd accumulated in his nearly ten billion years of life, and with telepathic access to all of the combined knowledge of his species, he could give a detailed description of each of the star systems. Due to his vast knowledge, it had been an enormous number of years since he'd last spent time gazing upward. He considered it inexcusably wasteful to stare into something he already knew.
The point of light in the sky on which Favuxo had locked his gaze at that moment was the one that he knew the least about, since it had existed for only fifty years. The brilliant sparkle was the reflection of sunlight off of a space station. With a thought, Favuxo placed himself inside the station. As usual, he chose to be an observer rather than generate a physical form for himself.
The favuxian examined his new surroundings carefully, cataloging the locations of items in his mind even though he knew the basic details of the station from the experiences of other members of his species. He noted the table and chairs in what was apparently a meeting room. He noted the smooth finish of the curved walls, indicative of extravagance in cadopeken culture. Looking out a window to his left he noted a cadopeken space ship, approximately three hundred meters in length. This was what he intended to examine all along, though he'd busied himself with observing other items first. He'd chosen to make this visit because he knew the ship was about to begin a one hundred and fifty year journey, with the destination of that journey being the planet Earth.
Distracted and disturbed, Favuxo's gaze slid slowly away from the spacecraft and out towards the void of deep space. His mind retracted into itself while he looked out into the infinite expanse. He thought that perhaps, if he looked far enough out, he might more clearly see himself reflected.
A large crowd had gathered in the room behind Favuxo, bringing him out of his meditation. A single cadopeken sat down at a table in front of the crowd. Favuxo recognized the cadopeken as Rezoaniel, the world government's leader. Rezoaniel touched a key on a small pad in front of him, which produced a low buzzing sound to inform the crowd that he was about to speak. Along with the hundreds of cadopekens around him, Favuxo listened intently.
"I am here at this great occasion to make a promise," Rezoaniel began, his voice indicating a guarded enthusiasm. "Almost everyone agrees that this mission will be the greatest accomplishment of Cadopek to date. For that reason, we've gone over every detail of the voyage countless times. I am here today to promise the people of Cadopek that if there is intelligent life on the planet, as evidence suggests, then we will discover it." He paused briefly to suggest a slight change in subject. "As you're all aware, this crew is making a great sacrifice in order to make this long journey for us. Although they will not age significantly, because of their near-light speed, everything they know will be three hundred years past upon their return. Few of their loved ones will be alive." Rezoaniel looked up from the data pad that he had been reading, and surveyed the crowd. His last comment had drawn many curious expressions.
"I can tell that many of you have noticed that I said that few of us will remain alive," he continued, "rather than none of us. It is my pleasure to take this momentous occasion and add to it another dimension. Earlier today, I received the final report confirming that the so-called 'miracle fluid' is entirely safe, and will be released to the public immediately." These words brought about an anxious stirring and a noticeable rise in the noise level of the cavernous room. "Upon hearing the news," Rezoaniel resumed, "I was as excited as you now are. Immediately I ordered that eight hundred units of the fluid be placed on my shuttle so that I might bring it here with me. It is my pleasure to present this quantity to our mission leader."
Several cadopekens emerged from the back of the room and placed a large box on the table. Another, who Favuxo assumed to be the mission leader, came forward to claim the box. "I am honored to accept this gift on behalf of the crew," he said. "However, we will not need nearly this much."
Rezoaniel's face formed an amused expression that one could best describe as a smile. "You are to save this until you reach the destination planet, and then you are to give what you do not need for yourselves to the alien species on behalf of Cadopek. We hope that this gift will help our first contact with these life forms, which are undoubtedly very different from ourselves, go more smoothly. One should never hesitate to make a gesture of good will when first contacting strange creatures." Rezoaniel paused for a moment, and then concluded his speech. "May the future be a place where all intelligent creatures share their technology and their medicine in peaceful cooperation." From the crowd came sounds roughly equivalent to applause.
Consulting the favuxian collective consciousness, Favuxo learned that the "miracle fluid" would enable any living being to change into a cloud of living and thinking energy. Although the transformed beings could maintain their energy state for periods of only a day or two, and would still require food and water, most experts expected the invention to more than double the cadopeken life span. It would greatly reduce the stress on both the body and the mind.
As it viewed the momentous occasion taking place high above the surface of Cadopek, Favuxo's mind was in a state of severe stress. Although Favuxo was trying desperately to concentrate on the proceedings, he found his mind wandering again and again to another gathering -- the meeting of the favuxian species that was about to take place in an uninhabited area of the planet. His fellow favuxians were to finalize preparations for his Inabilin.
At the appointed time, Favuxo placed himself at the location the Elder had chosen as the meeting place. Loud, indistinguishable murmuring filled the room. Hundreds of favuxians, all in cadopeken forms, moved slowly about in the confining space attempting not to bump into one another. When the Elder spoke, all sound and movement ceased at once.
"This final pre Inabilin meeting now begins." The Elder paused for a brief moment, surveying the room with one of his eyes. "We are here, of course, because Favuxo has chosen to become a cadopeken. First, we must complete preparations for the ceremony. Has the committee chosen a city?"
A favuxian somewhere deep in the crowd spoke: "Yes, Elder. Favuxo will live his mortal life in Denocal."
"Excellent. Has the information collection machine been activated?"
"Yes Elder," a different favuxian responded. "It has been set to record the next century and a half. We are therefore prepared to obey the regulation, by staying away from Cadopek until Favuxo has concluded his voyage."
The Elder's central eye raised itself up and swiveled about three hundred and sixty degrees, as though the Elder believed that an object in the room might remind him of something that he had forgotten. "Very well. I will proceed with the formalities. Favuxo, do you formally agree that the preparation for your Inabilin has been adequate so that the favuxian species will be able to perform it properly for you?"
"Yes." Nothing more than that single word was expected, and Favuxo had nothing else to provide.
The Elder nodded slightly in approval. "Do you also formally reaffirm your commitment to the contract that you, like every other favuxian, agreed to shortly after creation -- stating that you will undergo the Inabilin at the conclusion of the ten billionth year of your life, be transformed by it into a mortal, live a normal mortal life span, and then become dead?"
Favuxo paused, the uneasiness he'd been feeling before now growing within him. He opened his mouth for a moment as though he were about to speak, then closed it. Finally he opened it again and gave the only response he knew how to give: "Yes."
A disturbed expression came over the Elder's face as he watched Favuxo. For a few moments, three of his eyes bored into Favuxo's, but then they abruptly turned away and the Elder spoke in another direction. "Fringend, you are the one assigned to watch over Favuxo until the Inabilin." Fringend gave a small nod to acknowledge his responsibility. The Elder turned back towards Favuxo. "Finally, before concluding this meeting and allowing us to all get back to our separate tasks, I ask Favuxo to share with us any thoughts he may have about this great occasion."
"It has occurred to me," he began, "that someone from a lower species might see this meeting as preparation for my funeral ceremony. It speaks highly of our way of life and our commitment to order that we can accept death as the meaningful and positive thing that it is. Even here we let no signs of chaos intrude." The uneasiness within him seeped out through his words, though he intended them to please the Elder.
Tension rose in the room, invisibly and imperceptibly. Only the Elder and Favuxo knew what was behind the words. "Quite true," the Elder responded. "your words are wise. This gathering is now concluded. All of us will meet here once more, one hundred and fifty years from now, when Favuxo will see the Inabilin transform him into a mortal... into a cadopeken. Meanwhile Favuxo will make his voyage, briefly visiting every planet on which he has spent a significant length of time. As we all know so well, one must give life a final inspection before departing, in order to reassure one's self that one has lived life to the fullest."