To The Stars

by KarsKars

Summary:

Krolia is fleeing Earth to protect the Blue Lion and her son but now she finds herself on a cross-universe road trip with a toddler.

Excerpt:
Her communications with the Empire fleet had gone surprisingly well, so well that she was nervous they were aware of her deception. Commander Prorok had seemed to accept her word as gospel, but he wasn’t very bright after all. Still it had come as a massive relief when she saw the fleet turn and head back the way they came, dozens of fighter pods being recalled to dock. She was one of them, Prorok insisted that she dock and give a more detailed report. If she complied, they would be stuck on this ship for an indeterminate amount of time, something that made her incredibly nervous. But on the other hand, to turn down a direct order would make her seem suspicious and it could bring her testimony about Earth into question.

Chapter 1: Commander Prorok

Notes:

EDIT: Made some adjustments to spelling and grammar. Nothing plot related. :)

The thing about space is that it’s huge – or as Kolt would have said it’s ‘spacious’. So when Krolia found herself in a small fighter pod, alone in the vastness of space (save for the little kit snuggled warmly in her lap), she knew she was in for a long journey.

Her communications with the Empire fleet had gone surprisingly well, so well that she was nervous they were aware of her deception. Commander Prorok had seemed to accept her word as gospel, but he wasn’t very bright after all. Still it had come as a massive relief when she saw the fleet turn and head back the way they came, dozens of fighter pods being recalled to dock. She was one of them, Prorok insisted that she dock and give a more detailed report. If she complied, they would be stuck on this ship for an indeterminate amount of time, something that made her incredibly nervous. But on the other hand, to turn down a direct order would make her seem suspicious and it could bring her testimony about Earth into question.

In the end she decided it was in everyone’s best interest if she docked her pod. At least then she could eat, restock, refuel, and clean up. Half-breeds were not warmly welcomed by the Empire and as much as she hated to use that term, she knew that’s what Keith was. A half-breed, an impurity to be seen as ‘less than’ by all pure Galra; it made her sick, the Empire made her sick.

Krolia held her kit in her arms, desperately trying to think of a way to hid him for his own safety, when his little eyes fluttered open. She smiled down at him and he gave a wide yawn before smacking his little lips and blinking owlishly around the cockpit of the tiny pod.

“Mommy?” Was all he said but she knew what he meant. He was confused, waking up to a strange location with strange smells and the lingering salt of her tears in the air. “Daddy?” His little voice asked and he began searching over her shoulder. Her heart broke, fresh tears pricking at her eyes.

“No Keith, no Daddy.” She struggled to keep her voice steady; holding back the hitch in her throat as she softly spoke to him. Her hand moved up to pet his hair and he looked back to her.

“Why?

“Because Daddy had to stay on Earth.”

“Why?”

“Because that is Daddy’s home.”

“Why?”

“Because Daddy is Human, and Humans live on Earth.”

“Why?” Ok she wasn’t going to get anywhere with this. Rolling her eyes she looked at him and his tiny little smirk, he looked so much like his father in that moment.

“You know what? Someday, when we come back, you can ask him yourself.” That seemed to satisfy his curiosity; smiling widely he climbed up the chest plate of her armour and gave her neck a little lick before nuzzling in. Purring away he clutched tightly to the unforgiving armour, there wasn’t much for his small hands to clasp but he somehow found a way.

The docking bay came into view and she realized she had been holding her breath. Guiding the pod inside the hangar, Krolia landed it safely and wrapped Keith in her arms, placing the purple kitty over him to hide his more alien features. When the pod opened there were only sentries to greet her. A welcome stroke of luck.

“Take me to the guest quarters; I require freshening up before I am granted a presence with Commander Prorok.” Krolia knew how to play these games, she knew he would listen to the sentry’s recording of her request and his arrogance would be tickled by her apparent desire to present herself well for him. It also made her sick.

Accepting her request the sentry marched her to a small room on one of the lower levels. Inside she found a single bed, a small desk, and a bathroom attached through a sliding door that was shared between hers and another room. She lay Keith on the bed and pulled the heavy blankets over his head, hiding him once again.

“Keith? Mommy will be back soon. You stay quiet, ok?” He nodded under the blankets and she placed her armour in a sterilization chamber before quickly taking a shower, staying true to her request of freshening up. Changing back into her now clean armour she left another light kiss in his hair and he squirmed, wriggling his way further into the blankets.

The door shut behind her and she followed the sentry down the hall of the ship. In the back of her mind she hoped no one went into her room to inspect it, she hoped Keith would stay quiet, she hoped he would stay put, but most importantly, she hoped he’d stay safe! The sentry rounded a corner and held the elevator for her.

The doors opened again to reveal the main bridge of the ship. Standing at the Captain’s seat was Prorok, his second in command directly beside him, and a crew of communication technicians seated at various consoles. She took note of how some techs shot her nervous glances and Krolia took great pride in knowing her reputation preceded her. Maintaining her stoic disposition, of which she was known for, she approached the Commander and gave a solute.

“Vrepit Sa, Commander Prorok.”

“Vrepit Sa, Krolia.” He gave her a quick once over before deciding something to himself. “You look well. Your pod was from my fleet, care to explain?”

She suspected he already had the details, that this was a test of her loyalties; he was seeing if she would tell the truth. “I crashed on a desert planet in system X-9-Y and became stranded for four deca-phoebs. Three scouts arrived not long ago, one crashed while the other two made safe landings. The two remaining scouts did not take my findings as truth and insisted on searching the hostile terrain for themselves. A creature on the planet killed one; the other was buried under the collapse of a cave. I managed to escape in the pod that had the most fuel in its reserve so that I may deliver my report.”

She was met with a long moment of silence before he spoke. “Your retelling of events checks out. We did indeed send three pods to into that system, one of which had begun a transmission before blowing up. A crash landing would certainly explain that. Tell me, was the planet inhabited by anything other than the mindless ‘creatures’ you mentioned?”

Another test, she could feel it. “Yes, Commander. The planet is inhabited by a furless bipedal race. They are incredibly primitive, barely possessing the technology to travel off their own planet.”

“Could they be a threat?” Again, she knew what he really wanted, she knew the attitude that most pure Galra carried regarding other species and it made her sick to speak of Kolt’s people this way.

She scoffed, “Perhaps in another 10,000 deca-phoebs they could throw a rock or two at us.” This garnered the desired response. Prorok burst out laughing and threw his arm around her shoulder.

“Oh Krolia your reputation does precede you. As lovely and quick witted as ever. Come; join me for dinner and I will return you to Central Command.”

“With all due respect Commander, I do not intend to return to Central Command just yet. I was sent on a mission of great importance over 4 deca-phoebs ago and I wish to take a pod so that I may return to commander Ranveig’s fleet and deliver my report.”

“You’re loyalty to your Commander will be rewarded. I will call Ranveig and let him know of your impending arrival. In the interim, you cannot leave on such a long journey without adequate rest and nutrition. Join me.”

“Commander, I appreciate the offer and will gladly accept for perhaps tomorrow night, however I request food be brought to my room so that I may eat and rest after my turbulent exit from the 3-8B system.”

He starred at her a moment before slumping his shoulders and letting out a huff of defeat. “Very well, it would cruel of me to deny such a reasonable request. I will have food sent to your chambers and you will be left to your privacy for the evening.”

“Vrepit Sa, Commander.”

“Vrepit Sa.”

---

The door to her empty room slid shut behind her and for a moment she felt a panic settle in. Where was Keith? Her heart rate skyrocketed and her breathing came in quick shallow spurts. “Keith?” KEITH?” She whisper yelled to the room, tearing the blankets off the bed.

“Mommy?” His small voice rolled waves of relief through her and she let out a sigh of pure bliss as the sight of familiar black hair poked up from behind the desk.

“Oh thank the Ancients!! Keith what were you doing back there? Don’t hide from Mommy!” Pulling him into her arms she laid a series of kisses to the top of his head.

“I wasn’t hidin’ from you mommy. I was hidin’ from the scary man.” And with those two words she felt her heart clench all over again.

“What scary man?” Krolia spoke in a soft but stern tone, implying the importance of the situation without scaring her little kit any further.

“The scary shiny man. He had blankets and that o’r there. Whassit fer mommy?” Keith pointed in the direction of a previously empty corner, where she noticed a small wheeled cart now stood. It would have been delivered by a sentry, which meant that Keith’s hiding spot was more than adequate; certainly better than hers had been when she first landed on Earth.

She smiled down at her little boy. If it had been an actually soldier they would have picked up on his scent and known he was there, but it had been a sentry; yet another stroke of unbelievable luck. It seemed his father’s sentiment had been correct, and as he used to say: “Keith was born with a big o’ horseshoe up his butt” - though she still didn’t fully know what that meant, she understood it to mean he was lucky. Oh sure, he got himself into more trouble than you’d think a 3 year old possibly could, and that’s saying something. But he always seemed to come out just fine, sometimes a little worse for wear but never any lasting damage.

His little eyes shone faintly in the dim room as he waited for her to answer him. “It is where they will put our dinner when it comes, which will be soon. Keith? Mommy needs to you go back to her hiding place ok? Go back there and stay low until Mommy calls you out. Can you do that for me?”

He nodded his head, black hair falling over his eyes in the process, and smiled brightly up at her. “Yes Mommy. I can do that fer you. Ya’ll gunna make me hide when the scary man comes back?”

“Yes Keith. I need you to hide every time the scary man comes. Can you promise me you will?”

“Yessum.” He called over his shoulder, already half tucked behind the desk.

---

Dinner came via sentry and she was bombarded by questions. “What’s that? Is it good? Can I try it? What’s that? What about that? And that? Will I like that? Will you eat it first? What’s that?” Sometimes a three year old is not the best travel companion she thought to herself as she tucked him in. Hopefully she could convince Prorok to let them leave tomorrow, but she highly doubted it. Yawning Krolia pulled out her communicator, setting it to contact Ulaz who she knew had been stationed near this region. She let her device attempt a connection for nearly 5 minutes dobashes before giving up.

Sighing heavily she leaned back in the desk chair. There was a whole part of her brain that she now needed to re train. Her time on Earth had her adapting to their language, their time measurements, their culture and she now needed to bring herself out of situational retirement and right back into espionage. Both her own, and her sons, safety depended on her ability to charm and deceive Prorok. Luckily Keith wasn’t the only one born wearing horseshoes. Was that how it went? Did it matter? She mentally face-palmed and chastised herself for letting little Earth references distract her. But she wouldn’t forget them, they were a part of Keith and she would hold onto them so that when he was old enough she could teach him some of his father’s culture. It would be useful for when they eventually make it back to see him. And they would make it back. She wouldn’t let anything stand in her way of reuniting with her mate. But she also understood that he had been right, Keith was safer with the Blades than he would be if the Earth’s Galaxy Garrison found him. It was more a matter of actually getting him to the Blades that was dangerous. Traveling through Empire territory with her Marmora blade on her hip, and a half-breed kit in tow, was a risk. But she would risk everything to get him to safety.

---

Dinner with Prorok had been an ordeal; it was tiresome trying not to vomit each time his arm wrapped around her shoulder. Under different circumstances she would have told him off but it wasn’t just her she had to lookout for, so she smiled along and pretended not to be utterly repulsed. The hardest part of the whole evening was trying to secure some food to bring back to Keith. One of the servers had exchanged an ‘I’m sorry you have to deal with this’ look with her and she had replied with an exaggerated eye-roll. A trust had started to form between them, the trust of those suffering the same hand, and Krolia decided to take a chance. She asked the girl if she could get a meat pie to take back to her room as she didn’t have much of an appetite during dinner. The girl had given a knowing smile and nodded quickly.

After the dinner was complete Krolia looked around but couldn’t find the young girl anywhere. With a slightly disheartened feeling she made her way out of the Commander’s dining hall and heard a faintly whispered call for attention. The girl from earlier handed her a small package with a meat pie, some berry puree, and 3 hydration pouches before disappearing back into the kitchens.

Smiling Krolia and watched Keith devour the meat pie. He had desperately tried to get his chubby little hands on the puree but she’d put her foot down; dinner first, then dessert. Begrudgingly he complied and within tics his entire dinner (puree included) was gone. The one good thing to come out of her dinner with Prorok was that she had managed to convince the buffoon to give her a transport pod instead of a fighter pod. This meant more space for supplies and a second personnel area where she could let Keith play without him getting in her way while she manned the controls. It also meant they were less likely to be targeted by rebels or be hailed by a passing fleet.

The next morning she made her way down to the pod she would be taking, watching the sentries load it will fuel and supplies. Keith remained in their room, she hadn’t handed it over yet; having insisted on one final shower and armour cleaning before departure. The best time to leave would be noon; most of the soldiers took lunch at that time, leaving the ship to be manned primarily by sentries. This meant she was substantially less likely to run into anyone with her kit in her arms if she left at time.

Satisfied with the provisions provided, Krolia headed for the bridge to formally thank Commander Prorok for his generosity. Pleasantries create allies, and allies could be useful in the future. He seemed to take her gratitude with great pride, and she internally rolled her eyes before heading back to her room.

This time Krolia pulled a heavily protesting Keith into the shower with her, scrubbing every last inch of the squirming boy’s body before finally letting him go. The brown, green, and white striped Earth onesie was hanging in the sterilization chamber, looking odd next to her armour. His naked bum scurried around the room and he giggled, slipping through her hands each time she made a move to grab him, clearly enjoying his perceived freedom. If they weren’t on a time limit she would have humored him a little longer, but as it was, they really needed to move.

---

Krolia walked the halls with purpose. She made it to her pod in record time and, without stopping, strolled inside to hide Keith in the second personnel area. She passed him his purple kitty and closed the door on his objections, resolving to snuggle him with an apology later.

After giving the pod a quick once over, she stepped out to address the sentry on guard. “The transport pod’s previsions are adequate enough to take me as far as the Datian system where I can refuel at the SpaceMall. Please pass along my continued gratitude to Commander Prorok.” The sentry delivered her message and signaled the approval for departure. “Vrepit Sa.” She saluted before stepping back into the pod and seating herself in the pilot’s chair in the cockpit. Initiating the launch sequence Krolia prepared to leave the fleet behind and begin her journey into open space. This would be the longest and most arduous part of the trip, and she would be making it with a toddler. Stars have mercy on her sanity!

Chapter 2: Space Mall

Summary:

She had only been to this particular mall on a few occasions but remembered the general layout. There were several spots she was looking forward to stopping at, but first and foremost was 'Terra'.

~Bang Bang~

Krolia groaned, rubbing her index and middle fingers in a circular motion against the temples on either side of her head.

~Bang Bang~

6 quintants. It had been a total of 6 quintants since they had left Prorok’s fleet and she was already in dire need of a way station – if only to restock their supply of painkillers. But she knew they couldn’t afford a time delay, so she pressed on.

Their transport pod was still too close to Empire territory to risk connecting with Kolivan directly, but she had tried Ulaz a few more times. Krolia sent out a number of messages to various communicators but nothing went through. Keith was in the secondary personnel room, or ‘toy room’ as it had been dubbed. He was playing with his purple kitty and some empty containers from the rations they had already consumed. It wasn’t much, but he was an imaginative little guy. There was an internal communications system in the pod that allowed for video chats. When Keith was in the toy room the video feed was turned on so she could monitor him. It was actually a really effective system.

Currently, or at least the last time she checked, he had one of the boxes riding the kitty and was flying it around the room as if it were a spaceship. Vaguely it reminded her of the Blue Lion, which reminded her of Kolt, which made her sad.

She picked up her communicator and tapped his connection, sending him a quick message to say they were still ok and headed for the Blades and that she loved him. His steady dot was still located inside the Blue Lion’s cave which meant either those Garrison people had killed him and left him there, or he had hidden the communicator in the cave. She desperately hoped for the latter.

~Bang Bang~

Looking up at the screen she saw Keith once again banging on the doors trying to get out. Taking her connection off ‘mute’ she called to him over the video message, startling him slightly. “Keith, that’s enough. Sit down and play with your toys.”

“Mommy I’m bored. Can I come sit with you? Pleeeeeeeaaaaaase?” His long drawn out plea wasn’t enough to convince her, she had fallen for it several times on that first day. Not again. She did not need a repeat of last time.

Keith had been quietly playing in the cockpit, and in retrospect that should have been suspicious in and of itself, but she had merely gushed internally about what a good boy he was. She had been wrong, she had been so incredibly wrong. After a strange alarm started sounding she turned to find him pulling out wires in the emergency backup console. Panic set in and she lunged from her seat, forgetting to set the autopilot, and yanked him away from the wires. His immediate cries were drowned out by the much louder proximity and stability alerts, which were sounding at the steady approach of a nearby asteroid and their uncontrolled spiralling. Krolia had scooped up her troublesome kit in one hand, grabbed the controls with the other, and plunged herself into the pilot’s seat to avoid disaster. After the ‘incident’ there was no way that little terror was allowed back inside the cockpit for at least 20 deca-phoebs!

~Bang Bang~ “Mommmmyy!!!!”

“No Keith. You were a bad boy the last time Mommy let you out.”

“I’ll be a good boy! Promise! Please Mommy? Please?”

“No Keith. Play with your kitty and your other toys.”

“They ain’t toys.” He said with a huff, crossing his arms defiantly over his chest and turning his lip in a pout as he kicked one of the boxes. It was adorable; it was also very naughty! Though she did have to admit that he was right, they weren’t toys, and while he had been incredibly good the past few quintants, he did need actual toys. The base they were headed to, The Blade of Marmora’s main head quarters, was not designed for children and certainly wouldn’t have any toys for him to play with.

Most kits born to the Blades were raised on external bases that had an entire sub level dedicated to their needs. Families would be assigned a residence on those levels, which boasted special rooms for classes, special play areas, special medical ward, etc. Very rarely did a kit end up on the main base, especially one as young as Keith. But that was where they were headed, which meant they would need to make a stop.

“Keith? How about we make a deal. Mommy needs to stop at the SpaceMall to refuel and restock our supplies. If you’re good, really good, then I will take you inside the mall to buy some new toys. Would you like that?”

The excited squeal was all the confirmation she needed, peering at the screen she watched as he bounced on his feet and clapped hands, a broad smile splitting his face. “Yessum!!!”

“Are you going to be good?”

“Yessum!”

“Ok, 2 more quintants and we will be there. Go play with Kitty.” He immediately ran back to the middle of the room where he had left Kitty, plopping down on his butt and continuing his imaginary game from earlier. Krolia smiled at the screen, he may be naughty sometimes but he was genuinely a sweet little boy.

~Bang Bang~ “Mommy?”

“Ughhh” she groaned, rubbing her temples again. The peace had lasted all of 3 vargas.

---

Krolia carefully landed their pod in the mall’s massive hangar. Exiting, she was greeted by an Unilu attendant who spoke to her in Common. “Restock and Refuel?” his voice had a slight waver to it and she realized that was likely due to her being in full Empire armour.

“Yes.” Keeping her answer short, she carried Keith in her arms, mostly hidden from sight, and walked right past him. She had only been to this particular mall on a few occasions but remembered the general layout. There were several spots she was looking forward to stopping at, but first and foremost was 'Terra'.

She strode with purpose to the Earth store, waving off the greeting from the incredibly resigned sounded alien behind the counter. In the back were the baby supplies and she made a beeline straight for the onesies, choosing an adorable array of blue, green, brown, grey, red, and purple. Some had patterns, some had prints, but her favourite was the white onesie with soft green trimming and a mix of lime green, soft green, and forest green dinosaurs. Keith’s favourite was red with black trim and little lions all over it, he also grabbed a purple and black striped set – carrying both throughout the store in his little arms.

They had a selection of diapers, diaper creams, and diaper wipes but Keith was already potty trained. He had been since he started walking at just over 6 months old; it was average timing for Galra, but fast for Humans. She instead bought him a few pairs of underwear, and a few stuffed Earth animals, as well as a doll that looked like an exaggerated caricature of a Human with large eyes and a too large head compared to the tiny body. He loved it though, holding it tightly and talking to it as if the doll could understand him. He had decided to hold its hand and drag it around the store, giving the doll a tour of all the stuff he could find (which meant anything on the bottom two shelves), while also dragging his two favourite onesies in the other arm. She gushed after him and grabbed a few toys as well and a workbook collection and a set called ‘fun with phonics’ which she hoped would teach him how to read and write in his father’s language.

After paying for the toys, clothes, and learning supplies they headed for the washroom. She quickly changed him into his purple and black onesie, adding a purple knit hat she had found and popping him into a stroller while covering the whole thing with a blanket to keep out any prying eyes. Their next stop was a clothing store designed for Galra where she bought herself some clothes and also a few more outfits for Keith.

Krolia made a quick stop at the washrooms again, letting Keith get out of the stroller to pee and giving herself the chance to change out of her armour for the first time in well over a movement. It felt good to be out of that awful armour. Shoppers had been casting wary looks her way; a well-ranked Galra Officer in full military armour wasn’t commonly seen waltzing around the mall with a stroller after all.

After finishing up in the washrooms, they finally made their way to the food court. A number of options stood out to her but she didn’t want to risk upsetting Keith’s stomach. They’d already had an incident with projectile vomit in the pod after he’d eaten one of the rations that did not agree with his Human side. So Krolia stuck with what she knew he could eat, Vrepit Sal’s.

Sal was a decent enough guy, he was typically much friendlier to Galra customers than others but his food was predominantly Galran cuisine any ways. The cook was a kindly old man, Sal senior, and he had a real passion for food, giving Vrepit Sal’s a reputation in the mall as one of the best joints for meat and the best by far for Galran cuisine. She walked up and placed her order – two meat pies, a srava shake, and a box of gymmin juice. Sal peered over the counter, smiling at the covered stroller and tossed a cup of berry puree on her tray with a wink. She smiled back, giving her thanks in their native Galran.

Taking the tray and resting it atop the stroller, she pushed both to a small circular booth and pulled Keith out to plop him down beside her. Krolia put the tray in front of her and passed over his food and juice box while being sure to hide the puree. Once again the little monster inhaled his meat pie, and she couldn’t blame him, Sal Sr. sure knew how to make a wicked meat pie; she savoured every bite. When their meals were complete, and the puree was cleaned off his face and hands as well as the table, she got up to bring the tray to the collection area. In the split second that it took for her to stand from her seat and pickup the tray, Keith had already crawled under the table and was running back to Sal’s yelling something about berries. In full protective-mother mode, Krolia dashed after him, snapping her fingers and whisper yelling his name but the little bugger was fast.

He weaved between the legs of the other shoppers and banged his little fist against the front of Sal’s counter. She rushed to get to him, knocking the other shoppers out of her way and nearly tripping over a woman with tentacle legs.

“Oh, hey there little guy.” She could hear Sal speak to him in Common. “Are you lost?”

“More please!” And that was Galran. She hadn’t heard Keith speak Galran before. She spoke to him in Galran back on Earth but he only ever replied in English. Sal paused, staring curiously down at him for a moment. “Pleeeeeeese!!!” Keith whined, bouncing lightly on his feet.

“Huh, where’d you learn Galran little guy?”

“From my Mommy.” And instantly he turned to point at her. Sal’s eyes shot wide, and looked between her and Keith several times before the light clicked on and realization set in.

“Half-breed.” He voiced his thoughts with a nod and looked back to Keith, who was now tugging on Sal’s food-stained apron and letting out a string of “please please please” with each tug. A pair of wrinkly purple hands reached over the counter and scooped him up, sitting the small boy down on the edge where his feet dangled. Keith kicked his legs, giggling as they swung freely, and Sal Sr. passed him a spoon and another cup of puree.

Still stuck in the mob of shoppers, she almost pulled her knife on the couple that was blocking her way. Her son wasn’t in any danger, but she needed to get him out of sight before some less accepting Galra shoppers spotted them. By the time she approached the counter Keith was retelling the story of his puking in their pod, giggling as he animatedly described the scene. Both Sal’s stifled their laughter listening to him go on and on about the colour and consistency of the vomit in question. Though the story was gross, his command of the Galran language was substantially better than anyone expected and she was filled with an odd combination of embarrassment and pride.

Finally reaching the booth, she reached for Keith and chastised him in Galran. “Ok, that’s enough now. No more disgusting talk from you mister!” She pulled him off the counter and sat him on her hip. “Thank you for humouring him.”

“He’s a darling.” Sal Sr. replied from behind the grill and Sal Jr. simply smiled at her, ruffling Keith’s hair in the process.

They walked back to the stroller and their shopping bags, Keith giggling under his breath the whole way. “Ok, what’s so funny?” She asked him, switching back to English in an effort to avoid being over heard.

“Nothin’.” Her very guilty boy replied with a blush. It was at that moment she noticed the cups of puree, one in each hand.

“KEITH! Did you take those?”

“No ma’am.” He said with a shake of his head. “Mr. Sal gave ‘em to me.” Krolia rolled her eyes and looked over her shoulder. Holding up one of the cups, she gave a questioning look to Sal Sr. who smiled broadly and nodded. Great. More berry puree she will probably have to clean out of his hair later. She turned back to find him already trying to open the small container.

“Oh no you don’t mister. You’ve already had two. That’s enough for today.” Confiscating the cups, she packed him back into the stroller with his new doll and pulled the blanket over. “We have a couple more stops before we leave.”

That afternoon they hit ‘The Slice Capades’ to replace her throwing knives that were left behind on Earth. ‘We Meat Again’ butcher shop for some fresh meat to eat on their journey. And ‘The Good Knight' for some softer pillows and blankets to snuggle in. By the time they made it back to the food court for dinner, she had a very sleepy boy on her hands.

Stopping at Vrepit Sal’s once again Krolia ordered another incredible meat pie for herself and a noodle bowl for Keith, which turned out to be mostly meat with only a few noodles; it was Galran cuisine after all. They ate their food much more slowly before packing up, Keith waiving good-bye to Sal and Sal Sr. over her shoulder. She stopped at the washroom one last time and changed back into her armour, placing Keith in her arms and burying him under shopping bags.

After returning to the hangar, she paid the Unilu attendant for the fuel and supplies, loaded their purchases into the cargo hold, and lay Keith down to sleep. Moving back to the cockpit she slid into the pilot’s chair and guided their pod back out into open space. The Blades had taught her to remain constantly vigilant, so Krolia ran a quick scan of the pod for any trackers or other tech that shouldn’t be there. Finding only one tracker, she deactivated it via her console, set the pod to autopilot, and moved to the cargo hold. Fishing it out of the supply crate she then tossed it out the airlock and headed back to the cockpit.

The rendezvous point, where she was to meet up with their Blade of Marmora escort, was still another movement away but she wasn’t too concerned. An exhausted Krolia programmed the coordinates into the autopilot and headed for bed.

Chapter 3: The Blade of Marmora

Summary:

“It’s been a long time since a kit this young has been on base. Kolvian know about this?” He tried to sound threatening but the effect was lost with the quirk of his lip as he dragged her troublesome kit along the ground. Keith had slid down the length of his tail, now holding on solely by the tip as Antok slowly moved him back and forth along on the hangar floor.

“No, I have not had a chance to speak with him as of yet.” She watched for another moment before ending their game. “Keith, that’s enough now. Leave Antok’s tail alone.”

The Quintants had begun to blur together, each one no different than the last. They would wake up, eat some of the rations, do some stretches, then she would place Keith in the toy room with his new toys while she went to man the helm in the cockpit. With the pod on autopilot over night they wouldn’t cover much distance and she would need to be in the pilot’s seat to make up for it. The autopilot moved at a substantially slower speed given its reaction time being much slower than a live pilot. But it was still better than stopping for the night.

Keith had started to get restless, asking to go outside and wanting to run around. He had so much energy that he would just run the perimeter of the toy room for vargas at a time. It wasn’t enough though, he really did need to get out of their pod and run his little heart out.

It was their last day though, any dobash now they would be coming into range of their escort and she was anxious to be done with flying. Pushing their transport pod as hard as she could, they rocketed across space faster than was necessary. Faster than what would be considered safe. But Krolia trusted her instincts and her own ability as a pilot, she knew what she could handle, and she knew she was more than capable of controlling this speed. So she pressed on.

“Transport Pod 7859 - Identify yourself.” The ‘official sounding’ voice came over the coms.

“Transport Pod 7859 – This is Warrant Officer Krolia, of Commander Ranveig’s fleet.” Incase of any listening ears she would stick to her official Empire identifications, the Blade escort would know who she is. Better safe than sorry.

There was a long pause before the voice came back. “Identity approved. Welcome Krolia. You are cleared for landing.” With that the voice cut out.

She guided the pod to the surface of the way station, landing with ease in a too large hangar. These stations were designed for refueling fleets, exchanging supplies, transporting prisoners, and any other use the Empire required of them. The larger ones had druid’s on them, no one knew what they did there; it was all very hush hush. But this was a small, backwater station; one that they had managed to plant a Blade on. Said agent was now running the command of the station’s docking, which allowed the Blade of Marmora to use this station safely. Being able to give false credentials and have them be accepted without question was infinitely beneficial to their cause. It allowed the Blade’s to make longer trips into this region, allowed them to infiltrate Empire ships more easily, and allowed them access to the Empire’s quintessence supplies.

Krolia’s ship docked safely and two sentries came to shepherd her to the other ship. These sentries were being controlled by their operative on this station, meaning she was able to entrust them with the task of packing up and transporting Keith’s belongings. Leaving anything she had not purchased at the SpaceMall behind, she took her kit in her arms and carried him to the Blade ship.

“Krolia.” Their escort climbed out of the ship and came to greet her, both of them dressed in full Empire armour. “Your journey was without complications I presu - ” He paused mid sentence, glancing down at the tiny bundle in her arms that was currently attempting to bury himself as close to her as possible. “- uh, what’s that?”

“THAT is my son.” She may have said it a little more aggressively than intended, but she wasn’t taking it back now. She would double down if pressed.

For his part the Blade merely blinked at her, stunned, before mentally regrouping. “Kolivan did not inform me that we would transporting a kit or else I would have prepared the ship.”

“Yes, well, I have not been able to contact Kolivan since my departure from Earth. This will certainly come as a surprise to him as well.”

“And we all know how he just loves surprises.” The Blade scoffed then straightened his back at her low warning growl. “Right, ok – uh – I’m Tebbit, I’ll be escorting you back to the main base. The sentries have finished inspecting all of your belongings for bugs or trackers, but we should probably grab a bite to eat before we head out.”

At his words Keith perked up, peering out from the safety of her arms to assess the man before them. And as she did the same she noted that ‘man’ might be a little too generous. Clearly he was young, perhaps just passed kit-hood himself, and it made her nervous to experience his piloting skills. Krolia resolved to potentially take over the controls once they reached the base, she would let him prove his worth and if his abilities came up wanting then she would guide them through the path to the base herself.

“Hi.” Came a small voice, taking both herself and Tebbit by surprise.

“Hey there buddy. My name’s Tebbit, what’s yours?” Keith didn’t immediately say anything, opting instead to stare the station building down with intense scrutiny, furrowing his little brow. The Blade uncomfortably turned to Krolia. “Does he not speak Galran?”

“He does, he’s just being shy for some reason.”

“Well, maybe we should move inside the station and grab something to eat from the cafeteria before we head out. Sound like a plan little man?”

“No.” Keith was firm, adamant in his objection to the proposed plan. “It’s scary in there.”

“It’s not scary in the station. There’s food, and juice boxes, and cool chairs that bounce. Do you like to bounce?” Tebbit asked, clearly well trained with handling children – well, most children. He was about to meet his match.

“Yes. But I don’t wanna go in there.”

“Why not?”

“Cause it’s scary!”

“Keith, honey, why do you think the station is scary? You were just fine on Commander Prorok’s ship.” She cut in, breaking up their disagreement.

“Because it makes my tummy feel funny and it’s cold in there.”

“How can you tell if it’s cold if we don’t go inside?” Tebbit was trying to use logic with her son, that wasn’t going to get him anywhere she thought. Keith, a 3 year old, and incredibly stubborn 3 year old, could not be swayed with logic. Perhaps cups of berry puree, but certainly not logic.

“I can tell. My tummy can tell. Please mommy, I don’t want to go in there. I don’t like it.” He had tears brimming in his little eyes and she couldn’t understand why, but she knew she wouldn’t force him to do anything that had him this upset.

“Ok Keith, you don’t have to go inside.”

“You neither! Mommy you and Tebbit stay here too, ok?” He wasn’t asking, he was begging. His eyes pleading for her to stay with him, for both of them to stay with him, and not go where he was certain there was danger. The young Blade was clearly about to dismiss his request when the private Marmora line buzzed with a message.

“It’s Ryvik, he said a druid just showed up at the station. We gotta get out of here immediately!” They both glanced down at Keith who buried himself deeper in her arms before they moved for the pod, dismissing the sentries in the process.

Once inside, Tebbit took the helm and initiated the launch sequence while Krolia took her scared kit into the back and sat with him, holding him tightly and rocking back and forth while purring to him. The further away from the base they got, the calmer Keith became. Krolia thought on this as he slept beside her, curled up against her leg and purring softly.

Back on Earth she and Kolt had brought him along to the Blue Lion’s cave while they worked on repairing the fighter pod. He had wandered off and gotten himself lost in the process. They had panicked, as any parent would if their toddler was lost in a cave, and went off in search of him only to find the little bugger sound asleep, curled up against Blue’s barrier. When they questioned him about it he had said ‘the big blue kitty took him back’. She hadn’t thought much of it at the time, thinking he had merely followed the glow of her luminescent barrier, but now she was seeing the memory in a different light.

He had been fine on Prorok’s ship, and he had been fine at the SpaceMall, so it seemed his fear had nothing to do with the Empire. It also appeared to have nothing to do with meeting new Galra seeing as he had been so friendly to Sal and Sal Sr., which could only mean one thing; it was something about that station in particular that had him spooked. Going over the events of the day she realized with a start that it wasn’t until the end that Keith had become uncomfortable. He had been fine when they first arrived, fine while she talked to Tebbit, and fine until he looked at the station building. She had felt him shiver, though it hadn’t registered at the time. There were no druids in Prorok’s fleet, that much she knew for certain, and there hadn’t been any druids at the mall either.

She looked down at her sleeping kit. Keith possessing a sensitivity to quintessence would certainly explain the strange behaviour happening more than once. Immediately she wondered if the druid had been able to sense him as well - unlikely, she thought since they weren’t being followed. This was something that she would need to look into further; perhaps with the resources of the Blade of Marmora she could test her theory. And if it proved correct, she would be certain to keep her little kit as far away from those poisonous creatures as possible. The very idea of Keith being corrupted in that way, turned into one of them, made her sick.

Running her claws lightly through his hair, she watched him sleep, his eyelids fluttering with whatever dream he was currently enjoying. Krolia smiled at him, laid a soft kiss to his pale forehead, and got up to join Tebbit in the cockpit.

---

They approached the path to the main base and a prompt appeared on their screens, the robot voice requesting verification. Both she and Tebbit provided their Blade ID’s and Tebbit provided their ship ID.

“Permission Granted. Welcome Back, Tebbit. Welcome Back, Krolia.”

They flew through the treacherous pass with only a few close calls, the last of which prompted her to take over the pilot’s seat. Arriving at the main hangar, she guided the ship into a soft landing and killed the engines.

Tebbit exited immediately, but she went for Keith who had woken up and was calling for her. This time she chose not to carry him rather, she held his little hand and the two walked out of the ship together.

“- you’ve never landed a ship that smoothly! I was very impressed.”

“Um sir? Krolia may have taken over halfway through the pass, she did the landing.”

“I see. That certainly makes sense. Krolia is one of our best pilots and she -” The other Blade paused and stared at her. With his mask up it was impossible to read his expression, though she assumed it was either open-mouthed shock or brows furrowed in confusion. “Why do you have a kit with you?” so confusion then.

“Because he is my son.” As if on queue, Keith excitedly waved with his free hand.

Their welcoming committee lowered his hood and let the mask dissolve, but she already knew who it was. Few people had Antok’s stature and, combined with his tail, it was a distinct give away. He stared at Keith for a long while before adjusting his gaze to hers, none of them breaking the tension, until she felt the tiny hand slip from her own.

Looking down beside her she searched frantically for Keith, her concern drawing the attention of the other two Blades present. She scanned the hangar, looking for him in the shadows and against the walls but saw nothing. The panic started to grow, how was he this slippery?!

A sudden yelp of surprise from Antok had them all looking down at his long tail. The small kit was giggling as he held tightly, small arms wrapped fully around the swinging appendage. With his mask retracted, she could see the array of emotions that crossed his features, one after another as the massive Blade processed the sudden turn of events. Keith continued giggling away with each twitch of Antok’s prehensile tail.

“It’s been a long time since a kit this young has been on base. Kolvian know about this?” He tried to sound threatening but the effect was lost with the quirk of his lip as he dragged her troublesome kit along the ground. Keith had slid down the length of his tail, now holding on solely by the tip as Antok slowly moved him back and forth along on the hangar floor.

“No, I have not had a chance to speak with him as of yet.” She watched for another moment before ending their game. “Keith, that’s enough now. Leave Antok’s tail alone.”

He whined, a typical kit sound, but one she had not yet heard him make. “But Tok’s tail is fun Mommy.” He complained, refusing to let go. Tebbit smirked, letting out a stifled ‘Tok? ' through his hand. Antok seemed to melt, the hulking beast of a man dropping to meet the toddler at eye level.

“Listen to Krolia, kit.”

“Her name is Mommy.” Keith scolded the adult male, speaking with the most matter-of-fact tone she had ever heard and it took all of her resolve not to snicker. The much younger male beside her didn’t fair as well, doubling over in a fit of cackling laughter, which earned him a swift swat to the back of the head from the older’s aforementioned tail. Keith giggled.

“You like that?” Antok probed, something devious hiding in his tone. Keith nodded enthusiastically and *wack* Tebbit took another blow to the back of the head, Keith doubling over in a fit of uncontrolled laughter. His tiny giggles echoed in the large, mostly empty hangar, and the more Tebbit protested the harder Keith laughed when Antok swatted him.

After a solid 5 dobashes the Blade of Marmora’s second in command finally ceased his attack, a broad smile spread across his face. He hoisted Keith onto his shoulders and proceeded to exit the hangar.

“Krolia -”

“MOMMY” Keith interrupted, but the large Galra simply ignored him.

“- follow me to Kolivan’s office. You have quite the budding little sadist here.”

She hummed her agreement. “Yes, Keith can also be quite, ‘slippery’ when he desires.”

“A fine Blade he will make!” Antok’s voice bellowed as they stepped out of the hangar into the hall. Keith was laughing and waving down at her from his perch, proud of his new height advantage and excitedly greeting each Blade as they passed. Most didn’t notice him, too involved in their conversations, tablets, or destination to register the unexpected kit atop Antok’s shoulders. But those that did would stop in their tracks and stare up at the tiny boy for a moment before dissolving into whispers.

---

Kolivan’s office overlooked the primary training deck and the main floor cafeteria as well as the visitor entrance; not that they got many visitors. She waited on the landing with Keith, Tebbit and Antok having entered first to deliver their reports. It was taking longer than expected, which meant they were either discussing the arrival of Keith on base, or the arrival of a Druid on the way station - or both. Faintly Krolia thought she heard the mention of Ryvik, but she couldn’t be certain. After almost another varga, Tebbit stepped out.

“Our Leader will see you now.” He addressed her, attempting to keep his voice as void of emotion as possible, something that was hard for young Blades. She gave a curt nod in reply, slipping past him into the office with Keith in tow.

“Krolia.” His tone was passive and as unyielding as ever, though she could hear a slight clipped edge to it. She had been a Blade for a long time, and thus knew Kolivan better than almost anyone – save perhaps Antok.

“Leader.” She again replied with a curt nod. Her tiny little shadow hid himself behind one of her legs, clutching tightly to the armour, and making himself as small as possible.

“I see the reports of your – additional personnel, are indeed accurate. The kit’s home world is Terra?”

“Yes, Leader.” Krolia maintained the composed, stoic demeanor expected of a Blade of her rank and caliber.

“And he – it is a he correct?”

“Yes, Leader.” She may have felt the corner of her lips twitch slightly.

“And he is yours?”

“Yes, Leader.” There was a long pause in which Kolivan’s intensely scrutinizing gaze was cast over herself and Keith.

“Kit. Come forward.” His detached tone had not changed and she knew Keith would be scared of him, but she also knew this was a test and she was not to intervene. “Kit.” Kolivan had more patience than anyone she had ever met; he would make them wait as long as it took for Keith to step forward. And he would judge the boy accordingly.

The silence persisted, Kolivan not calling for him again but making very clear that their meeting would not proceed until his order was followed. Slowly, after a total of 2 very long dobashes, Keith stepped forward from his hiding place behind her.

“Kit, what is your name?” Keith blinked and stared at him in silence, and she was almost afraid they had reached another stand off when she heard his little voice.

“Keith.”

“Do you know why you are here Keith?”

“Because the bad men tried to hurt my mommy and daddy.”

“And who are these ‘bad men’?” Keith shrugged, he didn’t know who the Garrison was, he didn’t know who the Empire was, he only knew they had been in danger. “What did these ‘bad men’ look like?”

“Like me.” He voice was so small. “And daddy.” Her heart ached in her chest.

“Do you know what they wanted?”

“Mommy.” That answer surprised Kolivan. He clearly had been expecting Keith to mention the Blue Lion and for the first time in deca-phoebs she saw his reserve crack, a flicker of emotion, however brief, crossed behind his eyes.

“Antok, take the young kit to the medical ward for a checkup. Krolia, stay here, our conversation is not finished.” She gave another curt nod and watched as her scared little boy was led out of room. Before the door closed she caught Antok lifting him back onto his broad shoulders and Keith gave a squeal of excitement. He was clearly nervous about having been separated from his mother, but seemed relatively comfortable with Antok. She still worried though.

“Your report of your findings on Terra.” She nodded at the command and gave a brief, yet detailed, analysis of Earth and her experiences. Describing Humans, their technological advancements, their lack of external contact, and their inability to leave their own system as well more general information pertaining to the planet itself. She described the overall landscape and climate, the confirmed existence and location of the Blue Lion, and her departure. She also went into details about Prorok’s fleet, her dealings with his Command, and the druid at the way station. Lastly, she described the series of events that lead to the birth of the first Human/Galra halfling (give or take a few of the more explicit details). After she had finished her full report they stood in silence, Kolivan taking his time to process the information.

“Your assignment with Commander Ranveig has not concluded. Since your cover is secure, you are expected to return to his fleet.” This she had been expecting, dreading, but expecting. The knowledge that she would leave Keith, for the first time in his life, was a difficult pill to swallow. Sure, she had been planning on saying good-bye and returning to the Blades, but that would have been different; she would have been leaving him on Earth with his father. This meant leaving him on base, alone, with no one but the other Blades to raise him.

“Can you complete your mission, or are you emotionally compromised?” The implications of that simple question were well known. If she chose to remain here, to raise Keith herself on the base, she would no longer be cleared for active duty. She would become a trainer of new recruits, something she highly qualified for but found no passion in. Krolia was a field agent, her skills in espionage were legendary amongst the Blade and it had taken deca-phoebs to earn her current rank and position within Commander Ranveig’s fleet. To throw that all way meant giving up one of their most important posts, something that would hurt their cause greatly. No, she needed to finish her mission, see it through to the end or until she was compromised. Either way, it meant missing this time with her son.

Krolia looked up at Kolivan, knowing what she needed to do but not being able to bring herself to say the words. She would miss him, she would think of him every day, but ultimately she was doing this for him. One day, when he completed his own trials and became a Blade, the field would be safer with the Intel she would be able to secure from this placement.

She shook her head slightly. “I am not compromised. I will continue my mission. How much time do I have?”

“Time enough to say good-bye. I will grant one quintant, be prepared for departure this time tomorrow.” Krolia gave another curt nod of acknowledgment. “You are dismissed.”

“Thank you, Leader.” She turned to leave but his voice, softer now than before, pulled her back.

“Krolia, I know how hard this will be for you but we cannot risk losing your placement in the Empire. Like your brother, your positions are too valuable to jeopardize. I am sorry it has to be this way.” She smiled at him; this was an exchange that only a handful of Blades would ever experience, a side of Kolivan few were permitted to see.

“I know my duty, I swore an oath when I became a Blade, an oath I intend to keep. Watch out for him Kolivan. Please.”

“We have one other kit on base currently. Another young Halfling like Keith.” His use of the term Halfling instead of half-breed made her smile, she knew her son’s life would be far better here than it ever could be in the Empire. “He’s a few deca-phoebs older, approximately age 5, but I am sure Keith and Regris will get along just fine.”

She smiled at him once again before taking her leave. Krolia was determined to spend every moment she had left at base with her son. He wouldn’t understand, he was far too young, but she hoped that one day he could forgive her.

Notes:

The next installment (Amongst The Stars) will be coming out later this week.

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 2 of Star Child