Page 1 of Kian

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KINSLEY

Kinsley Agate dropped from the rickety spacecraft, landing hard on her feet.

The ground was frozen solid, but covered with a pale green lichen that reminded her a little of the moss that grew on the trees back home. But that was the end of the resemblance. The landscape around her looked more like the moment in a fairy tale where a wicked witch casts a spell and the land freezes over in front of the heroine’s eyes.

She knew the moon of Sigg-3 was just tundra, frozen over due to its natural climate. But the place was already awakening Kinsley’s wild imagination.

And besides, as a preschool teacher, fairytales had been her day-to-day tools, up until recently.

A large shadow on the ground made her look up and she barely contained a gasp when she spotted a huge island, with a cone-shaped granite root, drifting through the air up ahead.

Maybe there was a little more here than just a normal tundra after all.

The floating chunk of land was massive enough to cast a shadow over the land that made it look like a storm was approaching, though of course, rain would never come to the arid tundra.

Kinsley stared at it, wondering if it would be possible to get up there. And if she could get up there, she wondered how much of Sigg-3 she might be able to see.

But this wasn’t the time to let her curiosity run wild. It was time to meet her daughter.

Working as a preschool teacher had always been her dream, and she loved her job. But ever since the doctors told her she couldn’t have children of her own, there was pain as well as joy in spending time with her tiny charges.

After all, she never got more than a year or two with them before it was time for them to move on.

On her Terra, a regular job as a preschool teacher was considered the height of good fortune. It wasn’t just the steady paycheck allowing her a roof over her head and a full belly, something many Terrans struggled to find. It was also a sign of hard work and accomplishment in her studies.

But she would have given it up in a heartbeat to have a husband and children of her own.

So, when she saw the advertisements to apply for the Alien Adoption Agency, she knew she had to try her luck.

Her cousins begged her to reconsider. Who would give up an honored position to raise a child alone on a dangerous frontier moon?

But for Kinsley, there had been no choice. She would do anything to be a mom, and the cost to adopt a Terran child was beyond what she could pay, even with her steady job.

When she got the letter from the agency stating that she had been chosen, she hugged it to her chest and probably terrified the courier with her delighted screams.

And now, after a whirlwind of paperwork and training, she was finally here.

She got her feet moving in the direction of the ship that had arrived before hers, noticing right away how much sleeker and more elegant it was than the unlikely little craft she and her fellow adoptive moms had flown in on.

Though she had immensely enjoyed the wild ride, including the drop at the end that sent thrills down her spine like the very best amusement park shuttle, she was glad her new daughter had been given more peaceful accommodations for her journey.

Kinsley hoped the little one would share her adventurous spirit as she grew. But right now, it was best for the baby’s life to be as calm as possible. Early childhood development studies confirmed that avoiding overstimulation was best for very young babies.

I’m going to be the mom of a very young baby…

The thought made her feel like she had been pumped full of helium and was about to float away with joy.

She hurried to the side of the big ship instead, delirious with anticipation.

And there she was.

Some kind of warrior stood waiting for her, but Kinsley’s eyes went straight to the tiny, chubby face of the sweet little bundle held in the man’s arms.

“Hello,” Kinsley breathed, floating up to them and holding out her own arms.

And for the first time, they were filled with the tiny, warm weight of her daughter.

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