The Planet Thulea was, by no means, the center of civilisation in the Covenant. Not that it was filled with a barely evolving race or even devoid of intelligent life. On the contrary, Thulea has been a part of the Covenant for a long while. Long enough to be forgotten, as were the few hundred thousand of its inhabitants who called its fertile plains home.

Phaedra walked through the surface of Thulea. Not a single soul she met. Not that she expected to meet any. Thulea had one spaceport, three cities, a hundred towns and rest were all couples of isolated farmstead, agricultural zones, and ranches. With lush forests carpeting most of its surface and well-fed by millions of streams providing a natural irrigation to the planet, the Thuleans were a peculiar bunch, seeking comfort in a simple and self-sufficient life.

The Menkari girl continued trotting till her senses picked up the sound of children playing. Two children, sneaking around, in fact.

Phaedra approached them.

The boy pushed the girl behind, standing between her and Phaedra.

'Vyon, let's run and call mamas,' said the girl.

"You shouldn't be here. Leave." Vyon ignored the suggestion of his sister and faced Phaedra. "This is our place. Our forest and farm. You cannot be here. Go away."

Phaedra considered the children before them. It was hard to infer the age. Such was the case with half-Vajran children. But the Menkaran knew more, like the other genetic component being human. Half-Vajran and Half-human children.

"Are you not afraid of me?" asked Phaedra, in a vague attempt to make herself as non-threatening, at least, as possible for a sentinel.

"I am not talking to you. Now, go away." Vyon had a singular opinion of Phaedra, like many other things.

But his sister, took a more cautious path. With tiny steps, she reached to stand beside her brother. Her big eyes, with large iris in an alternating shade of deep purple and rich brown considered the torn cloak, the bare feet of Phaedra, her unkempt hair, and lack of any travel packs.

"Look at her, Vyon. I think she is hungry, and got no other clothes." She, then, turned her bubbly face covered with a frizzy thick black hair, toward Phaedra. "You can come to our place. Eat and have some new clothes, but then you must leave. You absolutely cannot stay."

"Yes, you can come, but you must be silent, or else you will scare away the herd," added Vyon. "The deer mommies come at this time to drink water, but you will scare them."

"You are ..." The girl struggled with a word too complicated for her age, and eventually settled the best explanation her young mind could provide. "Everything knows when you come close, and you scare them away. If you scare the deer mommies then the poor babies cannot drink milk. You will make the babies go hungry. So leave, soon."

"But the herd is still farther away. It would be a while before they come," said Phaedra. Her enhanced abilities already picked the trail of the herd. "Is that why you two are here? To silently watch the doe nurse the fawns?"

"It was Viveka's idea," said Vyon with the effort of someone caught red-handed.

"But, we have to see that the baby deers drink enough milk. Or else they will be hungry," countered Viveka.

Vyon shushed his sister and faced Phaedra, his silken black hair waving gracefully as he shot a cynical look at her with his dark honey coloured eyes. "Don't try anything. My mama was a Captain. She once went alone to save mommy from pirates, and she destroyed all the pirates, all alone. My mama is so strong, she will beat you up."

"Now, be nice to your aunt Phaedra." Astra came into view. "And do you go telling random strangers that I will beat them. That is not an appropriate behaviour. Besides, you two are explicitly forbidden to come here at this time."

With hands firmly planted on hips, Astra gave her children, the look of disapproval. The defiance with which Vyon and Viveka stared back at their mama, conveyed volumes to Phaedra. The disciplining part of parenting definitely did not fall on Astra.

After a few mocking moment of silence, Viveka eventually spoke. "Aunt? Whose sister is she? Your's or Mommy's?"

A heavy sigh of dismay fell from Astra. "Unfortunately, mine. Now, you two, run home. Your mother is getting agitated, and I hate to be near her when she is like that."

While the children ran ahead, Astra led Phaedra in silence, providing her sister the pace she needed.

After what passed as a sufficient time to Phaedra's judgement, she finally spoke. "So I have been meaning to ask you about something."

"Is it about Hallie?"

"I have fled farther and farther, visited the isolated and uninhabitable of planets. Rested even in abandoned spaceports. Ran across the surface of red giants. But I cannot rid myself of her memory," said Phaedra.

Astra could sense the struggle becoming very real in Phaedra. Not just in processing her emotion, but to articulate them. Long periods of isolation had robbed her of the basic ability to communicate.

"Do you fear hurting her unintentionally?" volunteered Astra.

"With all my heart," confessed Phaedra. "I am a Sentinel. A guardian. The Prime of the Menkarans. And I feel the raw fear every moment. Does it surprise you to hear that such a being is scared?"

For the briefest of second, Astra flirted with the idea of placing a calming hand on her sister's shoulder, but abandoned the plan. Instead, Astra gave a smile filled with assurance. "I get it. You are torn between your need to protect and not to let go of Hallie. You were sent to planet earth for a reason."

"To extract you."

"That is the physical reason of it, but there are profound truths behind the physicality," said Astra. "Let me state from my personal experience, when Aria accepted to leave earth with me, we sold my apartment, and with the credits bought this piece of land here. With a few agricultural bots that we bought with the left over credits, my own life was supposed to be simple. Rear a few animals, agriculture and spend as much time with my family."

"Even though I have tried to live in isolation, I heard what happened," said Phaedra.

"When we settled on Thulea, because of my history, the locals made me incharge of the planetary defences. I repaired the three orbital defense systems with my knowledge and contact from the Fleet, and they voted my unwilling self as the president of Thulea. That act pushed me to a seat in the Covenant Council. Seeing the prosperity of Thulea, soon nearby planets voted me, and now, against my will, I was made an Archon-Councillor in the Covenant."

"So, why not resign?"

"Aria would not allow." Astra gave a wry laugh. "Not that she enjoys the title of being the wife of an Archon-Councillor, but she had some valid points. After I took office, Thulea got one additional university and five more medical center. The space port got upgraded to dock one of the bigger ships to carry surplus from the planet. Aria pointed out all that. Without her presence, I would have been blind to my own potential."

Ahead of them, a two-storey cottage against the background of a stream meandering through a grassy meadow, stood. Astra led Phaedra further, while the shouts of eternal sibling rivalry wafted out.

"All I am saying is, you don't have to be two perfect individual to make the perfect couple. Often, it is two imperfect individuals who make the perfect couple. If she is the One, and she would bring out your positive abilities and suppress your darker."

Outside, Aria worked furiously on a transparent screen next to an agribot, running diagnostics and recalibrating it. Her eyes fell on her children and then darted towards the visitor, and recognition flowed into her.

"Phaedra," shouted Aria, then her eyes fell on her wife, and the shared mirth in them still very much fresh, she added. "I would like to welcome you to the official residence of Madam President of Thulea."

Viveka and Vyon, tried to slip by, hoping to use the distraction provided by the surprise visitor as a cover. But Aria momsense was sharp. She gave that patented mother's shaming look, and none of her children dared to stare back at her.

"Vyon ran ahead first." Viveka had no qualms about sacrificing her brother.

"Viveka. That's enough." Aria's tone sharpened. "While your brother might come as abrasive, rash and reckless, he doesn't run on his own, unless someone planted the idea in his head. You are the planner, every time."

The little girl bobbled her head, innocently, turning towards her mama, and when no intervention came, she mumbled with the effort of a cat coughing out a furball. "I only say things. It is not like opinions and ideas are a crime."

Aria and Astra stared at each other, for a very guarded moment, before Aria broke the contact. "She got too much of your Mother Vierna in her."

"I know. I will talk with my Ma Vierna regarding her involvement." Astra replied with a resigned sigh.

Incomprehensible, it might be to her younger-self, but raising their two children, Astra had grown to loath her Ma Vierna's meddling. She gave the children courage to disrespect authority, the knowledge to getaway breaking rules, and worse, taught them the dirtiest of jokes, the sort that would make even the filthiest of Ensign enlisted in the fleet, blush.

Astra had to tolerate Ma Vierna because Vyon loved his grandma. Then again, which boy his age wouldn't. During his last time with grandma, Vierna took him to a scrapyard for decommissioned spaceships and gifted him a plasma cutter meant to slice reinforced metal from the hull of spaceships. Aria almost had a heart attack when Vyon proudly displayed his gift to them.

Xiana, on the contrary, proved more forthcoming with the grandparenting skills, that is, on occasions, when she could avail herself from the shackling demands of her role. At that notion, Astra felt a tiny kernel of sorry for her mother. With the destruction of Roga Skarii's fleet, debris from the ships, containing advanced technology littered earth. Technology that were order of magnitude beyond human abilities. Technology earth should not have possessed yet.

While Vierna with her Phantom immunities and Astra discharged from the Fleet -- a consequence of activating augmentation bots to 100% rendering her physical body unable to cope with the demands of the fleet -- Xiana became liable to the questions from Covenant Council. It was unanimously decided to enact the Integrations Protocol. A special set of process to slowly ease isolated civilsations into interacting with aliens.

Xiana had her hands busy, a fact that Astra knew well. First there is the orbital city of Novalis, both a spaceport and an access point for those aliens seeking to visit earth as well as humans hoping to fly far beyond, to the space. With Xiana providing logistic support from the Covenant side and Travis as liasion from the human side, Novalis was projected as a model city for coexistence of multiple cultures.

Astra had on occasions volunteered to take Aria to live on Novalis, hoping that her wife would seek the closeness to her native planet, but Aria firmly refused, choosing Thulea over Earth.

Her family had issues with the fact that she kissed a female alien than the fact that she kissed an alien. Aria needed that distance. So with a short heartfelt emotional meeting with her sibling and Hallie, Aria left.

"Look what I caught," shouted Vyon, and proudly presented his new prize, a fish the size of his arm. "I call him Fishy."

"How did you manage to catch one that size?" asked Astra, but the hard squint from Aria made her retrace. "Vyon, let the fish back into the stream."

"Why?"

"Because we do not take more than what we need."

"Why?"

"Because, he belongs in the stream, where the fish has a role to play in the grand ecosystem, and we do not want to damage it."

"Why?" The dreaded word came again. Astra decided, without a shadow of doubt, that why should be the last word taught to children, and sadly, it is one of the first words they pick up.

"Well, Fishy needs to be with his mother and father and brothers and sisters in the stream. He will miss them."

"We can be his new family. Fishy can be with us."

Before Astra can fail any more, Aria intercepted. "Then, it is agreed, you will spend more time with Fishy because he will get lonely. No more skysurfing with friends for you. Or playgrounds because Fishy will get lonely. Also, you need to clean his tank, and Fishy needs special food, and we will detect it from your monthly allowance."

Suddenly, the prospect of Fishy being with his family felt very appropriate.

"I think Fishy should be with his family. They miss him too," said Vyon.

Satisfied with her own attempts, Aria turned to Phaedra. "So you are staying with us for a while? Or still holding to your self-imposed vows?"

"No," replied Phaedra. "I should get going soon."

"To earth? To Hallie?" asked Aria.

"That obvious?"

"Well, it is about time, I would say. That sexual tension between the two of you, one could cut with a knife," said Aria. "Tell her how you feel. Go."

"Wish it were that simple," replied Phaedra. "There is the presence of Ail'een Sh'ior and Hallie, two unique individuals at the same time, at the same planet, moving in overlapping circles. The notion does not sit well with me. Something about it, very ominous."

"Ominous?" asked Astra, breaking her silence.

"I am a Sentinel. A Prime. I sense events differently. Perceive differently and process differently. There should have been a human Sentinel. The guardian of Humans."

"That's a great news, right?" said Aria. "I mean, you will no longer be alone. A kindred spirit in earth. Someone who is the same as you."

"We are meant to be protectors of our own. As sentinels, even of the same species, cannot coexist. A sentinel cannot tolerate the presence of another. A confrontation is inevitable."

"You know Phaedra, when Astra asked me to go with her, I thought about everything else. About how my decisions would affect others. About the opinions of everyone else, except the one who mattered, and I was wrong. I think you are making the same mistake, worrying about every other thing, except how Hallie feels."

"So I should just ignore everything and directly go find Hallie?"

"Yes, and you should do fa...." Even before Aria could finish, Phaedra leapt out of the surface of Thulea. Controlling her dumbfounded expression, Aria finished. "And she left."

"Are you not curious how this would go?" asked Astra.

"Agreed, Phaedra is not the most communicative person in the universe, and Hallie is not going to make it any easier."

"And are you not curious, if you still have a brother or a sister on earth?"

Aria pulled Astra closer, feeling her warm pulse throb beneath her palms, and with mirthful lust Aria murmured. "Let us say, whether my sibling comes out or not, I will still accept them as they are. They have my support. But speaking of others, aren't you not missing Sidra?"

"Vlahari, She had grown so annoying, once I got rid of her, it felt liberating."

"So you just sentenced her to A.I. graveyard. That is, so cruel of you, Madam President."

"Love, I am not heartless," replied Astra with the same contorted mirth, further stroking the embers of lust in her wife. "Commissioned an Organic body for Sidra. She should be fully integrated and awakening soon, and Mother has decided to assign her as a cultural attachee to earth. So, tell me, that you are not curious now?"

"Let us say, what is about to transpire on earth is not our story to participate," said Aria, a lone thumb caressing the perfect contours of Astra's lips. "It is theirs. We can only stand as witness to the events."

Astra lips opened, ever so slowly, and teasingly, an unspoken invitation to Aria, to claim what her heart desired. To claim what was rightfully hers, and only hers. Then, the kiss came. A merging of souls, and more. The passion still burning bright even after years.

The kiss should have deepened. Led to more interesting things.

"You guys are disgusting," shouted Viveka with her uncanny ability to eavesdrop on her mothers. "There is tongues and saliva. Yuck. Gross."

Aria broke the kiss. "I think it is time we invest in our own VBrane World."

"Yes, My lady," said Astra with mirthful humour, of a ravishing corsair Captain. "Though, I question your ability to sustain my searing passion."

Peals of laughter spilled from Aria. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves."

"But Madam Wrede, I exist only to fulfil fantasies, whatever the cost," said Astra in the tone of Lust-fulfilling Goddess.

"Already getting into role, aren't we?" Aria hooked her fingers into the waistband of her wife, pulling her close.

"I will take good care of you, my precious crystal flower," said Astra.

Aria's mind was already ravaged with other thoughts. She loved it when their kinks aligned perfectly.