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"Little Ones"
Sendak was curled around his mate in their nest. He had failed to retrieve the lions and deliver them to his Emperor. Zarkon was so angry with him that he allowed the witch to experiment on him and his mate. Why she did this to them he didn't know. He and Haxus weren't any use to the Empire like this. They were mere kits!
Haxus snuggled into Sendak's embrace. They were still aboard their ship, cuddled up with each other in their nest. He didn't know where they were headed, and the sentries were programmed not to listen to them. Sendak looked at his little mate and purred to him. Haxus was still recognizable, but he wasn't. He didn't have either of his bionic replacements. He had his original eye and arm back.
Suddenly, the ship rocked. Sendak clutched onto his mate, who woke up with a whimper. Sendak gave little cheek licks to him, trying to calm him down, when there was the unmistakable sound of footsteps and fighting. Sendak was about to see who had boarded his ship, when both his head and Haxus's head exploded with pain. The witch was in their heads, erasing memories, leaving only their names and their connection to each other as mates.
When the pain subsided, Haxus looked up at Sendak and whimpered. Sendak purred to his mate, grooming him. Their door slid open, and the two kits cowered from the big stranger in dark armor.
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Antok was surprised to see two kits on one of the command ships of the Empire. He knelt down and held his arms out to the two kits. "Come here, kits. I'll get you out of here."
Hesitantly, the two kits exited the nest, and Antok scooped them up. They tensed up in his arms, so he hoisted them a tad higher, allowing their noses to be next to his scent glands. After a few tentative sniffs, the kits seemed to relax, but the way the fluffier one kept looking at the other kit was confusing. Antok carefully rearranged his hold on them, allowing the fluffier kit to hold onto his...what was their connection to each other? Antok took a couple of covert sniffs in their direction, and what he smelled was alarming. These two kits were mates! How could two kits have such a strong bond? He couldn't leave them here; the ship was rigged to explode. He had to take them with him. He gripped them tighter and ran back to the pod. He made it back to the pod and was making them comfortable when Kolivan entered.
He took one look at his mate and the two kits. "Where did you find kits, Antok?"
"They were on the ship, 'Van. There's something strange about them. They smell like mates," Antok whispered. He had walked over to Kolivan and nuzzled his neck before they walked into the cockpit and piloted the pod away from the ship.
"There could be a number of reasons why. They could be from a couple of old families that still betrothed kits or there was an accident on their home world and they are the last two survivors or it's a forced bond."
"It doesn't smell like it was forced."
As the two adults conversed, Haxus snuggled into his mate's fluffy coat. "Sen."
Sendak buried his face into the shorter fur. "Hax."
"Where are they taking us?"
"I don't know, but the big one seems to know we are mates."
Haxus and Sendak were tired as the ship flew them away from the command ship. Their eyes drooped until the two kits were asleep.
When Kolivan and Antok came into the aft section of the pod, they weren't surprised to see the kits sleeping. Antok pulled the pair into his arms, and Kolivan watched how careful his mate was with the kits. He knew Antok wanted to adopt the kits, to take care of them. Kolivan trailed a claw gently down the cheek of the fluffy kit, who purred in response to the small sign of affection. He couldn't believe how easily these kits wormed their way into their hearts. It wasn't a surprise that Kolivan and Antok wanted them as part of their pack, so they hoped the other two Blades of their pack were open to that idea.
Antok carried the kits to their nest, while Kolivan went to go search for Thace and Ulaz. He checked the medical bay first. It was the most likely place for, at least, Ulaz to be. He was the best doctor on the entire base, after all. Kolivan stepped into the medical bay and immediately spotted Ulaz checking the supplies and making a list of the ones he was out of or low on.
"Ulaz," Kolivan called out, hoping to not startle the pale Galra.
Ulaz was surprised to see Kolivan standing in his medical bay. "Kolivan? Is something wrong?"
"There is a development that requires the attention of you and your mate."
"Well, Thace is actually in the nest. He just returned from his long term mission at high command. He was almost found out but managed to escape with minor wounds. I was going to join him after finishing inventory."
"How long is the inventory going to take?"
"Only a couple of doboshes more. I will head to the nest once I am done."
Kolivan nodded and went to the nest. He wasn't surprised to see Antok curled around the sleeping kits. He was slightly surprised to see Thace laying on the other side of the kits. Kolivan entered the nest and sat down at the heads of the kits. He gently petted the headfur of the fluffy kit. It didn't take long for Ulaz to join them. His eyes widened when he saw the kits in the nest. He went over to his mate first though. He nuzzled Thace's head, purring to him.
"We found these two kits on our mission today. They were on board the command ship that we rigged to explode," Antok spoke softly as not to rouse the kits. "They smell like mates, but we're not sure as to the reason though. Kolivan and I want them to become part of our pack. We hope you two agree."
Ulaz gently nuzzled the head of the less fluffy kit, replying, "Of course they can be part of our pack."
Fin