Ten stellar cycles ago…
Moon: Terronan
Planet: Terranova (Based on Kepler-22B)
Stellar System: Kepleris (based on Kepler-22)
Number of Stars: 1
Galaxy: Viridion Galaxy (Milky Way)
Star Type: G-type (yellow-orange)
Number of Planets: 8 (3 in the habitable zone)
On the rocky moon of Terranova, Valentina, who was around thirteen years old, stomped through the dark tunnels of the moon with a cracked glowing crystal in one hand and a beat up pickaxe strapped to her back. Her boots were just as beat up, if not worse. They scraped against the ground sending bits of glittering blue dust in every direction.
"Stupid map!" She growled before kicking a rock.
"When I find that wrinkled old fart who sold me this trash, I swear on every star in the sky I'm gonna blow his damn kneecaps off!"
She held the map up the glowing crystal only to see the supposed "secret shortcut" marked with a red arrow that she was following, now leading her into a dead-end.
She groaned before tossing it aside.
"Useless…"
As she did, she heard something else besides the crumpled up paper hitting the ground. It was crying…
Her head whipped around.
"...The hell?"
She cautiously made her way to where the sound was coming from, stepping past a wall of giant glowing blue crystals that stretched from floor to ceiling. On the other side of it, was an elf child with small upward-pointing ears poking through white-silver hair that twitched with each sob.
"A… kid? Here? But how?" She muttered to herself.
She stepped closer, her boots crunching on loose stone and crystals. The little girl looked up with teary, lavender eyes wide with fear.
Valentina crouched and watched her for a long moment before letting out a sigh and plopping down beside the glowing crystal.
"Yo brat, are you lost or just stupid?"
The girl blinked then hesitated for a short moment before replying.
"My name is… Rikona."
"Didn't ask, but okay." Valentina replied dryly.
Rikona's lip quivered.
"I was… with my mom and dad. We came here for a family trip. M-My dad said we could play a human game he saw in a movie called… hide and seek…"
Valentina's eyes narrowed slightly.
"He said I had to find them first. So I turned around, closed my eyes, and counted really loud just like the movie said…"
Rikona hugged her scrapped knees tighter.
"But when I looked for them… they were gone."
Her voice cracked and tears began to well in her eyes again.
"I—I can't find them… and I'm scared… can you help me, please?"
Valentina said nothing at first, just quietly processing it all as she looked at her.
"Why would parents bring their kid to the moon of another planet to play a stupid game like that? Wait… Did they actually leave her here purposely?"
But as Rikona broke into sobs again, a tear of her own began to form at the corner of her eye.
"Tch…" She sucked her teeth, turning her head to wipe it away discreetly.
She turned back then ruffled Rikona's hair.
"…Don't worry, runt. I won't leave you. I promise."
The two walked through the cave system for what felt like hours with Valentina carrying Rikona on her back.
"So… Why were you here all alone? Don't you have parents too?" Rikona mumbled in her ear, with her chin resting on her shoulder.
Valentina's expression hardened.
"Never met 'em, so I doubt they're losin' sleep over me." She said bluntly
Rikona tilted her head.
"Huh? How's that possible?"
Valentina sighed.
"About ten stellar cycles ago… the Accord showed up to my world Terranova. They claimed they were gonna 'peacefully acquire' it and its moons because of our mineral resources. Said they'd build infrastructure. Jobs. Prosperity."
Her fists clenched.
"Next thing we knew, half the cities were leveled. Anyone who resisted got wiped out. Most of the adults… taken. My parents included."
Rikona's ears drooped down and her face paled.
"I'm sorry… I didn't know…" She whispered.
"Don't be. It's not your fault." Valentina replied, brushing it off casually.
It went silent between them for a long moment before Rikona eventually spoke again.
"How… how did you survive without them? I mean… you're almost the same age as me aren't you?"
Valentina's pace slowed slightly.
"Me and the other orphans bounced around our planet going from shelters, mining camps, underground hideouts. But none of them were safe."
She paused, swallowing hard before continuing.
"Even after the attacks ended, the horrors weren't over. Even when we thought we were safe in the hands of elder elves of our own kind, we weren't. Some of them saw kids like us as an opportunity. Some were abused. Others sold off on the galactic black market. As workers. As slaves. Or worse…" She said as she gritted her teeth.
Rikona's breath hitched.
"That's why I built my own orphanage later. A place where kids like me could actually have a shot. A home. A family."
Rikona stared at the side of her face, eyes filled with awe and respect.
"Do you… think we'll find my parents?" She muttered out.
Valentina hesitated.
"…No."
The answer hit Rikona like a brick. She tucked her head against her shoulder, trembling and tearing up again.
"I don't know…" Valentina began.
"I don't know why any of this happens. But I do know one thing."
Her voice sharpened.
"I'm gonna find the kids they stole. Every single one of them. And whoever's behind it—be it the Accord or whatever other bastards are out there …I'm gonna make sure they feel every last bit of the pain they caused before I kill them."
A short silence followed only to be broken when Rikona began tapping her shoulder rapidly.
"Look! I think I see light!"
Valentina blinked as the rage left her body. In the distance she saw the light of an exit.
Her heart jumped.
"…Hold on."
She bolted forward, picking up speed with every step. As she ran, a smile crawled up her face.
"We're gonna get out of this, you hear me?! And when we do, we're gonna start over! A new life. A second chance."
The light grew brighter and brighter—
Until everything went white.
"…Valentina? …Valentina, wake up…"
Her eyes fluttered and the blinding light faded… replaced by the sight of Rikona's tear-streaked face through her suit's helmet.
"Valentina! You're alive!" Rikona blurted out, her voice cracking.
Valentina blinked.
"I guess so… but how? Aren't we… floating in space?"
Rikona nodded.
"Yeah but look—"
She turned her head slightly. Drifting upward with a jetpack strapped to his back was Kaito.
"Hang on! I've got you!" He shouted through the helmet comms.
Valentina's hazy vision narrowed in on him floating to her through her fogged up cracked visor.
"Round ear…? That idiot... actually came for us…" She thought to herself, barely conscious.
Kaito's gloves tugged hard on the wires looped around his waist, the same wires Zeek had been tangled in earlier. He looped around Rikona and the other clutching Valentina.
"Zeek! I got them! Reel us in!" He shouted through the comms system.
"On it!" Zeek's replied as he twisted a makeshift crank on the ship's side, slowly pulling the three of them back toward the loading bay.
The ship's ramp hissed open. As the trio drifted inside, the ship's AI system announced the pressure equalized and gravity slowly returned to normal. The moment Kaito's boots touched down, he fell back to the ground huffing and puffing, clutching both girls. Zeek scrambled over, sliding besides them.
"Val?! Valentina, are you—" Zeek called out, already prying open her helmet.
Her eyes were closed, and her breathing was shallow.
"She's alive… but barely." Kaito muttered between deep breaths.
Suddenly, the central holoprojector on the ship flickered to life above the metallic island at the center of the room. A projection of Astra's upper torso hovering in midair.
She spoke calmly, her tone almost amused.
"It seems you all find yourselves in an… unfortunate situation, my dear ascendants."
Kaito shot up to his feet despite his exhaustion, teeth clenched.
"You call that a situation?! We almost died! Valentina nearly suffocated out there! And you let them ambush us like that?!"
Astra's gaze didn't waver at his rage whatsoever.
"So what? In this universe, life comes and goes. Mortals live. Mortals die. You are no exception." She replied flatly.
Kaito's fists clenched so hard that the white bandages wrapped around his arms grew taut as veins bulged underneath them. Zeek stepped besides him looking at her projection.
"So what now? One of our engines is toast. We can't keep pace with anyone like this so how in the stars are we supposed to finish the exams? Are we gonna get support? A pass or something?!"
Astra remained unmoved. Beside her another projection came to life, a glowing 3D map of their location. The host planet, the moon, the finish line, and tiny green arrows symbolizing ships scattered in space.
"There are seven teams remaining, including yours. The red team was the first to cross the checkpoint… your crewmates, Nara and Finn." She began to explain as she glanced at Kaito, who didn't react whatsoever.
He examined the map silently as she continued.
"However, they drained nearly all of their fuel and burned out their engine's cooldown limit. Another team has now overtaken them and is en route to the location of the cosmic well where the final exam will take place. If the head guardian is defeated before you arrive…"
She paused.
"You all fail."
Rikona's shoulders tensed. She turned to the window and saw a third team of their initial starting group outside grabbing their pink flag and dashing back to their ship. Her heart sank as she looked down at Valentina who was still unconscious on the floor. Her voice quivered as she reached out, fingers gently rubbing the side of her broken helmet.
"I'm… I'm sorry…" She whispered, eyes glistening.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm always sorry…"
Tears streamed down her cheeks, dripping onto Valentina's chestplate.
"I was supposed to help you, but I couldn't because… I'm too weak. Too slow. Too stupid! I can't do anything right… I never could…" She cried out.
Zeek approached her slowly, trying to place a hand on her trembling shoulder.
"Ri… come on, don't say that."
She jerked away.
"NO! Don't lie to me!" She shouted, her voice cracking.
"I'm worthless! That's why my parents abandoned me. That's why I'm always the one being saved. I—I'm just a liability…"
Her sobs filled the room. Just as she began to break down again, a hand ruffled her hair.
"I sai—" She began to protest until she looked up.
When she did, her eyes widened. Kaito stood beside her, one hand resting on her head. But he wasn't looking at her. His eyes were locked on Astra's projection.
"Kaito…?" She whispered.
Without saying a word, he walked forward until he stood directly in front of Astra's floating projection.
"I want to make a deal." He said firmly.
Astra's expression flickered with a slight curiosity.
"A deal…? Ohh… and what might that be, Kaito the human?"
He pointed towards the others while still looking at her.
"If we reach the finish line and defeat the guardian, they pass too and get their licenses."
Zeek's jaw dropped. Rikona froze, her breath caught in her throat.
Astra's four eyes sparkled.
"Hmm… Very well. But I will only accept on two conditions. The second will only be stated if you manage to defeat the guardian."
"Name them." He replied without flinching.
"The first is if you fail to reach the finish line… or are unable to defeat the head guardian yourself… you will be banned from every star traveler license station in the known universe. You will never become a star traveler."
"What?! No!" Rikona shot up, voice panicked.
"That's ridiculous! That's not fair—Kaito, don't agree to that!"
But Kaito's eyes never left Astra.
"Deal." He said calmly.
Rikona's breath hitched. She turned to him, shaking her head.
"No… no way… he can't be serious…"
But when her eyes met his, she saw something that made her stop dead in her tracks.
Kaito… was smiling.