Page 55 of Ava Stargazer

“I’m sorry,” the young one said, chastised, looking down. “It is ... habit.”

Vox spoke, his voice calm and steady, taking a tone of patience with the younger Vorbax. “A habit that needs to be broken, Quioh. Iryl rarely engages in meditation on the board at Elyheim. Our defense is our offense, and keeping our abilities quiet gives us an advantage. That should be your first lesson. Off of Xai, you use it purposely only. The longer we can keep what we can do hidden, the better we can use it defensively.”

Tiral followed up, speaking to all of them now. “To Ava you will speak only, unless she gives you permission to scan. This will teach you how to properly talk with others instead of falling back into the habits of Xai.”

All six nodded solemnly. “I’m sorry,” the one named Quioh said, still avoiding Ava’s gaze. “It happened before I could react.”

He looked up at Ava with the same earnest expression Lirell had.Oh, he still looks so sweet.It tugged at Ava’s heart, the innocent expression of a child trying their hardest. Maybe earnestness was a trait in most Vorbax youths. She walked up to him and gestured for his hand. He gave it to her, and she measured it against her own, ignoring his shocked expression as she touched him.

They matched perfectly in size, his not yet having gone through the final growth spurt. She squeezed it softly and met his amber eyes. “It’s alright. Just work hard to become strong, okay?”

Lirell pinged them for a check-in after ten cycles in space. Ava was waiting, grateful to get the call to come visit with him after painting so much with Sai.

Once the call connected, it was a contrast for Ava to see Lirell after being around the younger Vorbax over the trip, and she realized just how much more grown he was now.

His eyes also were more hardened and distant, more mature, which made Ava nostalgic, remembering when he had sat with her watching her dreams and expressing wonder.He is an adult now. A twisting in her gut happened looking at him, wishing she could have had more time to spend with him back when he was younger.I miss him.

Lirell had stayed at the Galactic Board, still training with Iryl, instead of joining them on the ship to Cipra. She felt a flush of pride for him as he answered the call calmly, without his usual enthusiasm.He’s assuming more and more roles outside of Xai.

“Iryl is not here,” Lirell said, stately. “I am monitoring the communications, but—”

“Where did he go?” Rhutg said, eyes narrowed on the feed. “This is poor timing. We are needing to firm up our plans for Cipra.”

Lirell glanced at Ava, and a bit of the uncertainty and naivety came back to his gaze. “To get Joy. He found her. He left at the same time as Vox’s shuttle back to Xai. But he’ll be back soon; the transaction had already been worked out digitally. Joy will come here to the Galactic Board with him before going back to Xai to settle.”

Oh. Oh!Ava’s smile grew large. She breathed in and tugged on her hair in excitement, pulling some strands out of her bun. “That’s great!”

Pyra walked up to the feed, his body flashing a bright blue. “He just left? In the middle of the peace talks? And we’re all the way out here?”

Ava ignored his comment, too excited to care.He went to get Joy.She had to stop herself from dancing on the balls of her feet.

Vox answered for Lirell, who looked taken aback at Pyra’s outburst. He sneered over at Pyra. “There never would be an opportune time for any of this, and it’s good to take advantage of the lull. Now we will have another one of the females safe.” He added in a gruffer tone, “The peace talks are just a farce anyways.”

Ava interjected, speaking through the heavy glare Rhutg was leveling at Pyra. “Do you know when he will be back?”

Lirell’s face relaxed looking back at Ava. “He is already on his way back. He messaged me last cycle.”

“Oh! He has her already?”

He nodded and smiled, looking excited as well. His demeanor lost its professionalism as his eyes sparkled. “Yes. I saw her, Ava. She looks like you. But she didn’t talk. She looked scared.”

“...Oh.” Ava’s voice fell, her mood abruptly sobering. She bit her bottom lip nervously.Very scared? I hope she was okay coming with Iryl.Her feet stopped dancing and she began to wring her hands instead. “Did she look like she was hurt?”

“No. It was only a very brief check-in. Iryl was navigating an asteroid field and sounded stressed. It appeared it was harder to get her out than he anticipated. He paid, but they didn’t want to let her go easily. I couldn’t get the full story.”

Vox leaned forward and said roughly, “Just as long as they are both safe.”

At that, Lirell nodded enthusiastically. “Yes. They both looked intact and whole.”

Zeed cleared his throat, slinking out of the shadows where he and Tiral had been observing the entire time. “The moment they get back in, can you have him message? There are some questions about the data he had, about Cipra. It feels like we are going there blind.”

Tiral walked forward to stand next to him, his stockier body a contrast to Zeed’s taller and more angular frame, and added, “I am happy though, that another is safe.”

Lirell’s tone became more formal again. “I will let him know that you wish to talk with him. He should be back soon, before you get to Cipra, but I don't think there is any more data. I’ve been trying to find whatever I can on the facility as well.” Through gritted teeth he added, “It’s weird. Cipra is mentioned in various places, but also looks scrubbed and redacted in others. There’s more information about the plants of Earth than about the Humans that inhabited the planet.”

Rhutg growled. “It isn’t weird at all. It means someone is covering it up.”

Despite how the call ended after Rhutg’s pronouncement, Ava still almost skipped out of navigation. The conditions Joy was found in hung in the back of her mind, but it was overshadowed by the fact she was in Iryl’s hands now. Regardless of what happened before, Joy was free. And Ava would get to meet her. She clenched her hands together.Soon.

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