Chapter Text
Last Time Together:
She didn’t know that it would be the last time they would all be together. Kaitoia Men’dryn had been with her family that last week almost by accident. It was customary in Tandaren society for all the members of the immediate family to be present at the birth of a new child, ensuring that the proper bonds were established, and maintained throughout their lives. Kaitoia already felt close to her new baby brother, Sujan.
She hadn’t known just how much she would cherish the memories of those last five days.
Tandarens were a race of deeply-hued, blue humanoids with large heads. Their large brains had enabled them to grasp outlandish rules of mathematics, architecture and technology. Some Tandarens were even blessed with fantastic abilities. In Tandaren culture, these individuals, known as Gifteds, were regarded with the very highest respect.
Kaioita was one such Gifted. Already advanced in the disciplines telepathy and telekinesis, her abilities would only become stronger as she grew older. She had been engaged in rigorous training and study for nearly two years already, and would continue to be so for many more to come. Her mentor, Gargi, was a scientist aboard one of the many ships in orbit. It was hardly an unusual arrangement for many Gifted families. It was a small price to pay for the honor that it brought, and besides, it was quite easy to arrange transport from anywhere on Tandara, so that such separations were hardly an inconvenience for getting together.
This particular evening was Kaitoia’s last at home, and she was sitting in the living room with her father, Ciquala and her mother, Irees. “I don’t want to go.” Kaitoia was saying, “I wish I could just stay here and help you with Sujan.”
“If you want to stay a little longer, I’d be more than happy to put you’re on the 3am wake up call.” said Irees, with a smile, “I’ll be interested in seeing how long that enthusiasm holds after a few weeks of that.”
Kaitoia made a face. “Fine, fine. I’ll go, but I’ll expect constant updates. I want to know the second he starts crawling, his first words, everything.”
“Don’t worry.” said Ciquala, “We’re only ever a transmission away. It’ll be like you’ve never actually left.”
On the floor of the living room, Sujan, already sitting up (hardly unusual for a Tandaren child his age), was entirely unaware of what was being spoken by the bigger members of his family. He was engaged in far more important things, namely playing with two rather unexpected and strange animal companions.
The large, golden snake was lying patiently on the floor as Sujan climbed around and over her. Seren, Kaitoia’s Minion, was a member of the snake species known as the varesh, which inhabited the humid, wet rainforests of Tandara’s equatorial region, and possessed more than a few unusual abilities that helped them survive. Not only could they shrink or expand their body size in order to track down prey through the branches of tall trees, they also conducted electrical shocks produced within their bodies and enhanced through their golden scales. Though not strong enough to kill something like a Tandaren, they could still hurt, a lot.
There was no danger of Seren hurting Sujan, or anyone else for that matter. Indeed, the only people who would have needed to worry about falling victim to her wrath, was anyone who decided they wanted to hurt her mistress’ family.
The other animal engaged in playing with the infant was a fish, encased in a sphere of water, with huge eyes, and a puffed up, grey body sporadically spotted and striped with bright green. The yun species had mouths with large, somewhat menacing teeth. However, they were purely for the consumption of the tough sea grasses that consisted the majority of yun's diet in their watery habitats. In reality, the yun were patient and gentle with their charges, and Chota was no exception.
“I think you should consider adopting Chota permanently as Sujan’s Minion if he tests positive as a Gifted.” Kaitoia said.
“Are you saying that because you think Chota would be the best choice for Sujan, or because you have become so fond of him yourself in the last few days? Ciquala said.
“Why can’t it be both?” Kaitoia asked, “I mean, look at him. Who could resist that face?”
Ciquala turned a considering eye on Chota, as though weighing the possibilities with the utmost seriousness. “Now that you mention it, you do have a point. What do you think, my dear, should we take on Chota simply on the strength of his adorable nature?”
“We have been considering it.” said Irees, who tended to treat things with a bit of a more pragmatic approach than her husband. “We were chosen to foster Chota because it would get him used to having a child around. You know that Chota is rather young himself, and generally a pairing isn’t made until the Gifted and the Minion are capable of having some say in the matter for themselves.”
“We won’t know for certain that Sujan is Gifted for at least another few years.” said Ciquala, “But, in the meantime, I doubt that there will be any real trouble in keeping Chota for awhile.
By this point, Sujan had lost interest in Seren, and had started to bat around the water-filled sphere in which Chota was residing. Unlike any other aquatic fish put in such a situation, Chota actually seemed to enjoy the attention, rolling around in time with Sujuan’s pokes and prods. Now released from babysitting duty, Seren glided over to the sofa and curled up beside Kaitaia. “I will say this, he’s certainly quite inquisitive for his age. Though, he’s more hands on with his environment than you ever were, Mistress.”
“Why bother with the effort of physically lifting something when it’s so much easier to do it with my mind?” said Kaitoia.
“Honestly, I think it was more a challenge for your parents to ensure that your toys were put away securely, or you would simply have moved them over to your crib and played with them all night.” Seren reminded her.
Much like the respect which the Gifteds enjoyed in Tandaran society, Minions enjoyed the same cherished place within many households. Five different species had somehow evolved through countless eons with heightened intelligence and the ability to speak. Minions formed tight bonds with their chosen families, most especially with their specific charges. Seren had been with Kaitoia almost from the day she had been born, and aside from her parents, there were few who knew her so well.
“I can only imagine what sort of trouble Sujan will be getting up to, whether or not he’s Gifted.” said Ciquala, “Given the current situation with our sun, we Tandarens could very well be needing a few Gifteds in the next few decades.”
It was a sobering thought amidst the seemingly idyllic setting of their family sitting room. Only little Sujan was innocent of the times which he had been born into, times which signaled great change for the fate of Tandara, and it’s near neighboring planet, Nyra.
It had only been in the last ten years that scientists from both planets had come to the horrifying conclusion that the sun of their solar system was dying. The announcement had caused both species to take action. There was, after all, a great deal to be done. Keeping the general populace calm was not the only challenge which presented itself. A suitable planet needed to be found at once to begin the process of relocation, and orderly evacuation was being practiced on a regular schedule.
However, scientists like Ciquala had also been hard at work on another solution. They had been attempting to slow down the sun’s decline, and in a few days time, the first test of the device which they had made would be tested. No one was expecting to save the sun; but any effort to buy even a little extra time for the evacuation procedures would be welcome.
Kaitoia understood that one day she would be forced to leave her home planet alone with every other Tandaran. But, that day still seemed quite a long way off. She tried not to think about it, especially not when she had so much in her future to look into.
Sujan broke the thoughtful silence which Ciquala’s comment had inspired, when he threw Chota’s glass sphere against the far wall of the room, sending it spinning and bouncing across the floor. Sujan squealed with laughter and clapped happily at the unexpected show. Chota, after shaking some of the stars from his head, did a few back-flips inside his water sphere, evidently having enjoyed the ride as much as Sujan.
However, the display had also captured the attention of his parents, who both seemed to decide that it would be best to put their son to bed before his curiosity and exuberance made him stay up all night. “All right, I think it’s getting close to Sujan’s bedtime.” said Irees, as she got to her feet.
Sujan may have only been five days old, but he was intelligent enough to understand the concept of “bedtime”. Immediately, he started squalling. “Mom, he can’t go to bed yet.” said Kaitoia, as she scooped him up and began to carry him up to the large windows that overlooked the shadowed bushes and trees of the backyard. “He needs to see the hotarus. It’s the only way he can get to sleep.”
Both Irees and Cquala looked at each other and shared an indulgent smile. Clearly, the bond between brother and sister wasn’t going to listen to logic. Best to let them have their own way.
“Sujan, remember what happened last night?” said Kaitoia, as she pointed out the window, “The hotarus are going to appear and dance around in the backyard. Are you ready? Close your eyes.”
Sujan squeezed his eyes shut, his tiny face scrunching up in concentration. Kaitoia used her mental abilities to coax some of the brightly glowing insects from the leaves and foliage scattered around the backyard. The hotarus, dragon-fly like insects that were six inches across, started to emerge, and took to the air, flying around the yard and creating a vivid light show in their wake.
“All right, Sujan, open your eyes.”
Sujan opened his eyes, and immediately began burbling ang giggling with delight. He tried to reach out and follow the hotarus as they flashed purple, blue, yellow, and green. Holding out a hand, Kaitoia coaxed one of the insects onto her hand, and she it up to Sujan’s wonder-filled face. Sujan reached out and gently poked the hotaru curiously. In that moment, Kaitoia couldn’t help but wonder what her brother would grow up to be.
Would he be a scientist like her father, working on their new home planet to identify the problems which they would inevitably face, but coming up with new and ingenious solutions for them at the same time? Or would he be a healer like their mother, who spent her days amongst some of the very sickest patients on Tandara, always giving them a sense of hope and joy in the midst of their recovery? Perhaps, he would be something else entirely, something that none of them could have dreamed of. Whatever he did, she knew that he would be the best at it, and that she would be right there to watch him and encourage him every step of the way.
In a few minutes, Kaitoia allowed the hotarus to gently wink out. Her brother’s eyes had already started to droop, and he yawned hugely. Kaitoia moved away from the window and handed him back to Irees. “Sleep well, Sujan. I love you.” She kissed him on the forehead and Sujan finally closed his eyes, slipping into a peaceful sleep.
Irees went to put him to bed, as Ciquala came over to put his arm around his daughter. “Have your mother and I told you lately how proud we are of you?”
“Let’s see, since this morning, twice, I think.”
Irees came back into the room, as Ciquala laughed. “It doesn’t make it any less true. There will be a lot of changes coming in the next few years. But no matter what happens, you’ll always have us. We hope you know that.”
“Yes, of course I do.” said Kaitoia, beaming a smile as she hugged both her parents. She knew that she had never been happier in her life than she had been at this moment. With all her family together, what more could she possibly want?
She couldn’t have known that she wouldn’t be able to capture that feeling of pure and utter contentment for a very, very long time after this night. Indeed, no Tandaren or Nairian could have been prepared for the disaster which was about to break upon each and every one of them.
Kaitoia Men’dryn's entire life was about to be inexorably changed. In the years that followed, she would cherish the memories she had of her family, and the last time they had all been together.