Daniel:

I am uprooted once again. Any hopes I had about me being able to go back to Earth and see my family is gone now. And the fact is staring me in the face. I am looking at a death certificate. With my name on it, and my citizenship status of the Cosmos placed as ended.

Running a hand through my hair, I look at Constantine. He looks just as worried, about this development. At least, we have each other.

“It could have been worse,” I murmur, as he turns to look at me. “We could have actually died.”

“I will never see my mother and father again,” Constantine says, as he buries his face in his hands. “Or Beth and Noah.”

I wince at that. Those two children were practically babysat by Tine every chance he got. More than once, he brought Sara along. For him to not see how their relationship grows from puppy love, to something more, must be like a punch to his gut.

“They will be safer, if there is no target on their backs,” I tell him. Then, I smile. “We still have Sara and Samantha. We can enroll Sara in a Dru’dru school, and give Samantha to kindergarten, when she grows up enough.”

“It would have been nice, if they grew up on Ursula 590. My parents will miss us. I can’t imagine how my mother is taking the news right now. I wonder if she is demanding our bodies be returned,” Constantine says.

“You know, as well as I, that Tony’s lie was accepted by everyone. That the mana acid damaged the crystal to such an extent, that it cracked, with us still inside,” it doesn’t sit well with me that we have to lie for our survival. I mean, we have all the rights in the world to live in the Cosmos.

“Let us go see the children,” Constantine tells me. We both get up, and make it out of the suite. There, down the hall, is the room that Sara shares with her sister. The young Naga girl didn’t want to be separated from the baby. Especially now, that our lives are in danger.

I knock on the door of the girls’ room, and Sara opens it soon after. Samantha is on the bed, with a hologram of an Illity over her. The snake does tricks in the air, and Samantha giggles from time to time.

“How are you both?” Constantine asks, as we get in.

“Samantha slept like the dead, up to an hour ago. I was worried about her,” Sara says. Constantine goes, and lays a hand over the baby’s forehead.

“She seems to be fine,” he says after a while.

“Dad, when are we going home?” Sara asks, and I waver. How am I going to tell her about what happened? So far, we kept it very hush-hush around her, and Samantha.

“Olradus 600 is gone,” I say, as Sara’s eyes widen. “Even Olradus 601 is gone as well. The only thing that remained of the improvements that Tim and Nate made last year, is the sun.”

“But who would do such a thing?” Sara asks. I can see from the corner of my eyes that Samantha is now staring at us, and ignoring the hologram. I really need to be careful with how I say what I want to tell them. The last thing I want, is for the two to have nightmares.

“We believe it a weapon’s smuggler,” I tell them, being vague on purpose. I don’t want for Sara to play a hero. She is only thirteen. “One who will be caught soon.”

“Does this criminal know where we are now, dad? And, where are we, even?” I look at Constantine, who decides to take over.

“We are on a bright new planet. Wei named it Phoenix 1. And no, we don’t believe that the Gorgon knows where we are,” Constantine says. Sara breathes out a sigh of relief. Samantha begins to kick up her legs. I go to her, and scoop her up.

“You will be fine,” I tell the baby. “You will both grow up with many Dru’dru, and incubi and succubi. You won’t lack friends.”

Samantha blows me a raspberry, and closes her eyes. I stand from the bed, and go around it, to place her in the crib. Soon, she is giving out little content huffs. I run a hand through her red hair, and look at Sara.

“You will be enrolled in the school from tomorrow,” I tell my eldest daughter. “Together with Tom.”

“Good, I was beginning to get bored, just being cooped up in a room. Dad, can we do something today? Like, maybe go on a walk?” Sara asks. I look at Constantine.

“The weather is pleasant outside,” he says, after looking out of the window. “We will just need to talk someone into looking after Samantha.”

“I think that, if we bring her to Wei’s office, she can share little Daniel’s crib. I know for a fact that Tim and Nate are working through some troubles, so, I don’t want to pile more responsibilities on them.”

I take out Samantha from the crib, yet, she does not wake. Instead, her little fist clutches at the collar of my shirt. I kiss the crown of her head, and then walk pass Constantine, and out of the door.

I wait for the two outside, while they pack a bag for the outing. It doesn’t take them, even five minutes, for Sara to come out with a backpack on her back.

“Did you take a sweater; in case it rains? An umbrella?” I know for a fact that the weather outside is linked to both Rodger’s and Wei’s emotions. They take happiness potions to keep the weather pleasant. Yet, the ones they do bottle, are blue. Hopefully, taking care of an additional baby will brighten them up.

“It won’t rain, Dany. Wei is happy we are all alive,” Constantine says. I want to argue with him that the soldiers who were sent to protect Olradus 600 did die, but don’t want to do so in front of Sara. She is an impersonate girl, who scares just as easily as any other child.

I nod, giving up any thoughts of arguing. If it rains, we can probably just find shelter somewhere. I just hope that things settle down, soon. On the way to Wei’s office, I see Tom with Alex in his arms.

“Tom, out on a walk?” I ask him. He looks ready to cry, then.

“Dad and papa are getting a divorce. I heard them through the door. I need to speak with Master Wei, for him to make divorces illegal!” Tom clutches at his brother all the harder. I look him straight in the eyes, and then turn to Sara.

“Go with Tommy, Sara. Take Samantha. Your uncle Wei will look after you. We will have a day out some other day,” Sara nods, and accepts Samantha in her arms. She kisses her sister on the head, and then the two children go in the direction of the floor above us.

“We will talk to them, right?” Constantine says.

“I must. Before my cousin splits his family in two,” we head towards Tim and Nate’s rooms. All the while, I hope we corner at least one of them, to speak some sense in them.