“The Oracle knows more about aimb than anyone else, don't you think that's strange? All the troubles of the pilgrims are due to fanatical adherence to the word of the oracle.”  Tan said.

“It’s not true. Thanks to the oracle, the pilgrims are alive. When we get rid of the aimb, everything will change! The descendants of the pilgrims should be grateful to the oracle!”  Side got angry.

“Let's all calm down!” Tan intervened. “Otherwise it’ll come to a point where we’ll say stupid things to each other that we’ll regret later.”

“Give me the medallion and fly wherever you want!” Saeed said with irritation.

“What a medallion!” Tai was surprised.

“Don't pretend, I know you have the medallion. You may die, and without the medallion no one will be able to get into the vault on Ilitia.” – Saeed answered.

“You mentioned Ilitia as another storehouse of pilgrims. You have no idea what the medallion is for.” Tan was indignant and added “The medallion belongs to seven Nodian families and is passed down from father to son.” We won't give up the medallion!”

There was a pause, Saeed had nothing to say, only after a minute he said “Be reasonable and give me the medallion.”

“You didn’t know that we had the medallion, but the oracle knew! What happened that the oracle for the second time demands something that does not belong to him?” Asked Tai.

“Stop making things up. Your father was a member of the pilgrim council, this does not mean that you have any voting rights, and especially the medallion is not your property. You are good guys, but you shouldn't overestimate your importance to the pilgrims. If you don't give me the medallion, I will stop helping you. I have a lot of other important things to do.”  Saeed said.

“The Oracle, unlike the Pilgrim Council, knows that our father was a descendant of Gao. The Oracle didn't know we had a medallion until Tai encountered part of the aimba. You Saeed hastened to report the results of the research to the oracle.” Tan said.

Tai looked at his brother accusingly. Saeed, who was sitting in a chair, looked intently at the brothers, waiting for an explanation.

“Since the conversation has gone this far.” Tai began. “When our ancestor Nod lived in a star cloud, the Overlord ordered him to return to the galaxy. To establish the kingdom of Nodian in the third arm. Nod was old and could not withstand such a long journey; he begged the Оverlord to send his seven sons into the galaxy in his place. The eldest son Ling went first, he was given the throne, the foundation of the kingdom. The eldest son Ling went first and was given the throne, which marked the beginning of the kingdom. Second son Song, he was given a crown, he placed the crown on the one sitting on the throne, to the third son Yuun, he was given a scepter as a sign of power for those sitting on the throne. The fourth son of Soju was given the sphere of power, since by that time the Nodian empire had been formed. Fifth son Ning was given the robe for the emperor, the sixth son Amat delivered a shoulder title in the form of seven petals of the imperial tree. The seventh son Wong arrived from the star cloud last with a seal medallion confirming the right of the seven brothers ascending to the throne. This was done so that the seven houses would never be at enmity with each other and would not mix with other nations. The dynasty was maintained along the male line; clans were formed through the female line. Four centuries later, during a rebellion, Emperor Wong Gao's son survived. In the general turmoil, he was saved by his mother's relatives from the Lu clan. So the seventh house of the Wong continued to exist within the Lu clan for the last five hundred years. Only the elders of the houses knew about this, leaving the seal of the union in the medallion. Therefore, we are the rightful owners of the medallion by relationship and do not have the right to transfer the medallion to anyone. The oracle will never receive it, it was so under Emperor Wong Gao and it will be so now.

Saeed thought for a while, then said: “If I didn’t know part of this history of the Nodians and didn’t see the shoulder badge-title with my own eyes, I would consider it a fiction. Considering the political situation within the empire, I understand why the Wong house is hidden. In addition, this sector of the galaxy is a tasty morsel for many. Everyone is waiting for the Nodian empire to finally collapse. You have something that can change the situation for the better. Therefore, the existence of House Wong poses a threat to those who want the empire to collapse as quickly as possible. Why did none of the seven houses take the chance to regain power?”

“The Illites and Garnians left the empire after the rebellion. The remaining four dynastic houses began to pose a threat to the new political elite. You know well the history of the Nodian Empire, how many wars there were, many times the six houses and clans were under threat of destruction. The only one who managed to return the throne was the house of Ling. But the tragedy that occurred fifty years ago put an end to the existence of the Ling house. The reign of the Seven Dynasties ended a long time ago, I don’t think anything will change in the future. Now the empire is radically different from what it was during the reign of the seven dynasties. We do not claim power, we do not demand any privileges. We just keep family traditions. Only someone is annoyed by our existence. And this interest of the oracle in our family raises many questions.” Tai answered.

Saeed swore and nervously scratched his short-cropped beard. “The oracle is not interested in you, he is only interested in the medallion. I don't like this turn of events. I will leave our conversation in secret, I need to figure it out and find out why the oracle needed the medallion. The oracle told me to take the medallion from you when you die. I shouldn't have told you this, only out of respect for your father and because you risked your life to tell me the truth, so I'm warning you.”

“Among emergency responders the survival rate is fifty percent, so sooner or later it will happen. The parents also understood this, remained faithful to the oath, and died saving other people.” Tai answered calmly.

Saeed wanted to say something, but changed his mind, poured water from a jug into a glass and drank it in one gulp. The brothers got up from their chairs and were about to leave, at that moment an elderly man entered the room, and Saeed asked the brothers to stay. “Wait, I have one more thing for you, I want to introduce you to this wonderful man, thanks to whom we all have extra years of life, Sir Kir Lak”

“You're exaggerating, Side.” Kir was embarrassed.

“And this is my dear friend, the crew of the rescue tug, I told you about them.” Saeed continued.

The brothers shook hands with Kir Lak. They returned to their chairs, waiting to continue the conversation.

“Tai, Tan. I would like to ask you to help my friend if possible.” Saeed said and nodded approvingly to Kir so that he would tell his request.

“I need to find the missing ship.” Kir began. ”I am a former military man and I have my own team, which I sent a week ago to search for one missing person. The vessel with my crew was insured. I cannot officially contact the insurance company for a search for a number of reasons beyond my control. For my part, I am ready to pay for your work.”

Tan invited his brother to agree. But Tai was a little doubtful and decided to clarify some details. “I would like to be sure that we are talking about nothing illegal. You probably know that the charter of rescuers prohibits the search for contraband cargo and ships with contraband and weapons. And if you have an unofficial army unit, that means you also have unregistered weapons.”

“Tai, stop it.” Saeed intervened. “I wouldn’t turn to you for help, the matter here is connected with Count Atauda, and this already concerns the pilgrims. You probably don't know, Count Atauda is one of Reman's main followers. Your job is simply to find the ship, and if there is anything serious, let us know and we will deal with it on the spot. Well, if you can't help, then you probably know who can do it without asking any questions.”

“I would like to participate in the search for the ship with you, if you allow it, Tai.” Kir asked.

Tai did not willingly agree to help Kir Lak, he did not want to get involved with the military. When the brothers returned to the tugboat, they told Mei and Yuki about a small part-time job. Tan and May, on the other hand, were glad to have the opportunity to save up money, as they dreamed of leaving the service and returning to Ladaka. Yuki was against it because she wanted to quickly get new documents, and then she would be able to find a job away from space flights.