Smugglers Cove (Love2write and Silence)

"Not good." Killian muttered into the headset. "They're sick. Most of them don't enough energy to even get off the ship if we land anywhere. "We're gonna have to come straight back." He didn't like it. Going to the games was gonna be hell and whoever was on the dumps they were going to end up abandoning. "Whoever gave the numbers on the Chippequoti must have only counted the ones that they killed a few days ago. About 50 of them and they slaughtered them in the cages. We've got a lot more." This mining business was a tough one and he didn't know how much information you could get out of the mines since it looked like these 150 were locked up far below.

Stepping onto the ship behind the Chippequoti Killian nodded to them and started toward the captain's cabin. Taking a seat in the room with Timo and the others he sighed. "We can't go to the arena. Lets turn it around and get home as fast as we can."

He wanted so badly to go to the arena while they were moving and ready to do it. That leak and the information now out there had them set up. Maybe their advantage in the long run would be if the Nobles didn't know how man Chippequoti they had either. Getting onto the main system he called in. "This is Killian. We're going home. Set your target for the planet and we'll land there first. Operation 2 is cancelled for now." Lowering his head he sighed. It wasn't what he wanted. Still he had a responsibility to those that he saved. Heading into the main room he noticed that most of the Chippequoti had dull expressions to their eyes and they stared at him in a very uncomfortable manner.

Taking a large bottle of water he took a sip and passed it to one who sipped and passed it on. The ship remained quiet for the journey home and he returned awkward stares till the back of the ship came open and he saw the all too releived expression of Timo as they loaded out. They would have to find some way to make communication until they could see about repairing vocal cords for the people. For now Killian needed to know who was together and who would be single. "If you have a partner here find them and stand together on the left. Any single females in the middle and single males on the right."

At least half of them were single men and surprisingly the majority of those remaining were couples. There were very few single women and Killian nodded to that group. "I'll see to it you uh...Well you'll stay in homes with those that have space." It was more about willingness, but he was out of space for the most part. "Partners will be put in the refugee housing together and what remains the men will have."
 
Star alearted the colony as soon as Killian told her what was happening. With Frank's helps she got everyone rounded up. "Alright, listen up everyone. There are about 150 Chippequoti on their way here with Killian." A worried murmur ran through the crowd. "Killian says the majority of them are very sick and injured. We need to get food cooking, bed's made, and as many little shelters built as possible. In addition, everyone will be sharing their home with some chip's tonight and we expect everyone to be on their best behavior. Frank will be helping me organize beds and the like. Please be ready to have lots of guests in about 2 days. That's all."
The crowd dispersed hurrying off to prepare for their coming guests. Star looked to Frank and he looked up at her. "You ok?" He asked.
She nodded. "Little stressed, but its all good. I'm uh, gonna start cooking." She gestures with a thumb to the house and gets to work. Not that she got much done with people knocking on her door all day with stupid questions.

By the time Killian arrived with the fleet they were as ready as they could be. Doctor Wittick took 12 of the sickest Chips to his ship at the edge of the colony. The clinic took 10 more of the sickest chips. The rest were distributed among the homes, ships and little sheds that had been built. Star was immediately overwhelmed. There simply wasn't enough room or supplies for everyone. She did her best to manage the flow of chips with Killian and Frank, with a baby on her chest.

"There are so many. How did this happen?" Star asked Killian as she came to stand beside him.
 
One of the noblemen looked at the others gathered around the table. "Gentlemen its not a matter of saving the games. It is a matter of principal. The matter of the ruling class and their subjects. We can assume if it is the 'beast' running this operation that he would not be able to choose only 1 out of 3. How do you choose who should live and who should die? After all Kafus would know. He tamed the woman that tamed the beast. She wouldn't let him abandon so many. It gives us at least 2 if not 3 more days to prepare and then we'll strike the colony. We can end this war once and for all. For a price of 100 additional Chippequoti. A cheap price is it not?" Taking a bow the man smiled and accepted the applause of his comrades. Using what they knew of the woman and her beast was playing beautifully into their hands.

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Killian glanced at Star. "I don't know. Your information was faulty. They aren't in condition to fight. The only ones that might have been ready or able bodied were killed in those cells." It was like a moment of revelation. "Damn it!" Taking his gloves off he threw them on the ground. "Of course there was only 50. They flooded the mines after they killed the healthy ones and put all the sick Chippequoti in there. Be careful they might be contagious." He'd shared a bottle with them and that was a dandy. "Star the nobles weren't ready for us to attack. We need to get as many men together as possible and prepare to make the raid. For as many men as we take replace them with a Chippequoti and I'll take as many of them that are healthy enough to fight with. "

They didn't have enough supplies to feed them all or take care of them all. It was a move specifically made to cripple them and now their chance was to out maneuver the enemy. "All we can do is out maneuver them. We've still got that advantage. I need Witteck to make sure I've got at least 50 who can carry a gun to come with me and I'll take 100 of our own from the colony."

Grabbing one of the pads he started to scroll through the systems. There was no movement yet and that meant that he still had the advantage. The games were not far away and chances were the nobles would be preparing for a hit. They wanted to ambush them and if they thought that this delay would give them more than an extra day then they were wrong.
 
Kafus nodded and clapped at the nobleman's speak then stood himself. He'd been one of the main voices at this gathering since the Beast's release of the fighters, and their embarrassment at the games with all their ships being stolen right from beneath their noses. "The intel on the dump was good and we got there in time to intercept four ships before they could take off. We now have 15 hostages equipped with explosive collars. We'll be using them as shields. The tamer has a weak stomach when it comes to her own kin. We'll use that against them. I want it broadcasted on all networks that we have them...and any moves they make will result in their deaths. I don't expect it to stop them, but it will lower moral. In addition, when do make our final move, I want the Beast and his tamer captured alive if at all possible. They will be examples to the rest of the galaxy of the consequences of crossing Gillick Nobles."

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Star deflated as Killian figured out what the nobles were trying to do to them. They were trying to overwhelm them. Deplete their resources with the sick and wounded. She sighed put on a strong face and passed the message on to all the doctors on the colony. Need 50 able-bodied Chippequoti willing to fight for their freedom. Send me names of all who are willing. After the doctors had done basic examinations and wound treatment, she'd begin to get that flood of names. At least, she hoped it would be a flood.

It was hard to sleep knowing there were so many Chippequoti around and in their house as well. Star felt the instinctual need to sleep with Claire beside her. It was late and Killian still hadn't come to bed, trying to deal with everything that was going on. Come to bed, Killian. You need to be rested as well. She messaged him through her watch which she'd begun wearing the moment Killian went off after the Chips. Despite the number of chips they had, it was eerily quiet with their vocal cords cut out. Many of them were slowly suffocating to death because of the procedure and Wittick and the other doctors had been hard at work trying to save them. She couldn't believe the Gillicks would treat their own cousin race with such cruelty.
 
Names came in by the droves and the doctors had to try and limit which of their patients they passed the names on of. The Chippequoti whether they were too sick to fight or not had already wanted to take revenge. Killian stayed up trying to get the ships loaded with weapons and guns. He had 50 Chippequoti that were deemed well enough though some of them were still questionable in their health. Yet it seemed that the colony would rather not have that many of them living here so lowering the number to 100 provided some relief.

Men were rushing through the night to get ready. Coming into the house he stopped to make sure that the 2 Chippequoti women staying with them were not wandering the house. He couldn't do much at this point for Star, but he wanted to make sure that she was alright. Stepping into the room he leaned over her and planted his hands on her side of the bed. "We're leaving in about 2 hours. Need to get out before the nobles have a chance to mobilize and reinforce their arena." He doubted that they would fill it this time. If they did it would be with slaves and he knew that hitting the ground and trying to save them wouldn't do them any good. It would turn into another trap so he wouldn't take the bait. There was no gas, it was just bombs for this run. Something that he hadn't told Star yet. "Love you. I'll see you in a few days." With additional thrust on the bombing ships and some last minute modifications he was pretty sure they could shorten the 1 week trip to 3 days there and 3 days back. It would be light running and the rest of the ships would be left here.

Taking everything was a bad idea. "You have 4 operational ships." Giving Star a kiss he then moved his head down to kiss little Claire too. The daylight was barely starting to poke through the shades and he started off for the doorway. "I'll be wearing the watch." At least she could have some peace of mind. Loading into his ship he could feel his heart rate rise a little bit. This was it.

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They were only about a day away from the planet and Anna was scrolling through her pad when she came to the traffic flow. Her eyes widened. "Kato!" Almost screaming she tore the covers off the bed. "Oh my gosh....Oh help." She trust the signal through her pad as much as she would if it came from the ship. Grabbing the arm on the wheelchair she started to try and work her way into it from the bed. It didn't work very well one handed. "Kato this is serious." Sometimes he liked to delay and this wasn't the time.

Finally he came into the room and she showed him the flow charts. "Nobles are making an attack on the planet. They need to know. Get me to the communications room." Gritting her teeth she felt the jostle as she was placed into the chair and wheeled into the room. Picking up the microphone she dialed into one of the pads that Star had. "Please pick up."

Star was holding Claire on her shoulder when the call came in. She picked up the datapad and held it up. "Hey, Anna. How far away are you guys?"

"Only about 2 days out and only 1 day behind us is an entire fleet of nobles. You got all your ships there?" Anna couldn't help being a little worried. Maybe they had delayed a day or two with all the sick and they were battle ready now?

"Killian just left with 50 Chippequoti strong. Timo is flying one of the main ships too. Brave kid." Star shook her head. She was worried and it showed. Claire smacked her face and Star jerked her head away. "Ugh...say hi to Claire. She's eager to meet you."

Anna stared at the monitor and tried not to be worried. "Hey Claire..."Then she immediately returned to task. "You need to call him back. Nobles have nearly 70 ships headed your way. Kato and I should be there just in time to help pick up the pieces and prepare the ground for war."

"70 ships! That's not war...that's a massacre, Anna! We can't survive that!" Star exclaimed. "We barely have 20 ships in our fleet and only a quarter of those could even be considered war ships!" Her tone frightened Claire and the babe began to whimper.

"Then how many do you have to start an evacuation?" Anna stared at Kato for a moment and took a deep breath. "What else do you have to work with here?"

"We got four ships, well five if you include Dr. Wittick's." But we still have nearly 250 people still in the colony." Star went pale and sat up, laying Claire down in her crib. "I'll uh, I'll get as many people on the ships as possible and call Killian...but..." She didn't have to finish her sentence. Too many people were going to be left behind, most of them the very same Chippequoti that they had just saved.

"I'll be there 1 day ahead of the ships." Anna could feel her stomach sinking. "Call me back when you've talked with Killian and you have a plan."

"Plan...what plan? We should've never started this...its all my fault. I talked Killian into going after the arena...I talked to Sasha even though neither of us trusted her...god..." Star buried her face in her hand. So many people were going to die because of her.

Anna hung up the pad and sighed. Nodding to Kato she let him roll her out of the room again. She couldn't help feeling sick. What if for all her work that mole still got them all killed. Even if they took as many people on board as possible that meant that the nobles would begin to target any ships that left the planets. They would hunt them down because they could see it easily on a monitor.

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The watch buzzed and Killian noticed the severe stress indicator for Star. There was something wrong. Almost immediately his pad started to ring and he went to the comm room. "Hey what's wrong?"

"Killian..." Star took a breath barely holding it together. "The uh...the nobles are two days away from the planet with a fleet of 70 ships. Kato and Anna are coming to help with the evacuations...but you know as well as I we don't have nearly enough ships to get everyone safely away."

Dropping his head into his hands he took a deep breath. "Ok we can salvage this. I'm only 2 days out. You get some help from the Chips there. They know war. Have them help you fortify. Weaponize the ships remaining and use them as anti aircraft instead of trying to retreat. We both know they will target anything that looks civilian to lower moral. I'm going to bring my ships around and we'll be arriving almost the same time. Long as I can flank them it should take some of the fire power off the colony. Get Frank to help dig tunnels under the landing strip. It might be a good place to hide during the bombardment. Just hang tight can you do that?"

"Killian...there are 70 ships...70! No matter what we do anyone still on this planet is going to die. There is no trench or tunnel that can withstand a 70 gun salvo!" Star nearly yelled at him.

"They won't know you're there. It's empty landing pads." Raising his head he glared at her. "This is all we have. We work with it and out maneuver them. Your job is to hold on and my job is to engage them as soon as I'm in range."

It wasn't going to work...but he was right. It was all they had. "Alright. I'll get them to work." Star says with a shake of her head, resigning herself to their fate. "See you soon."

Nodding he waited till she turned her screen off and then he started cursing. They were doomed from the beginning. As soon as he took the bait to rescue the Chippequoti he was done for. Having those feelings and wanting to have morals was going to get them all killed now and he was done playing that game. Whatever they had to do to win he was going to do it. Dialing the one ship that he knew was almost all Chippequoti and heavily armed he spoke to the captain. "You proceed alone to the arena. Give em hell and crash into the damn site if you have to. Nobles have sent a dispatch of 70 ships for the planet and we'll met them there if the rest of us turn around."

The Chippequoti captain nodded. "We would be honored to die in memory of the people." It was what they called themselves though they were rather exclusive when it came to other parts about themselves especially the quality of blood.

Killian sent indication out to the rest of the ships. "We're turning around."
 
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Star stood at the table with Frank and 6 other Chippequoti leaders. She'd just finished relaying the situation and they all stared at her solemnly. It was a bad situation. They all knew it. One of the Chippequoti typed on the datapad and an electronic voice spoke in return. "Our people know how to prepare for sieges such as this. We will organize our people and get to work. We will require the assistance of the humans, but they are wary of us. Tell them to help and we'll be as ready as we can be in two days time."
Star nodded. "Frank and I will relay the message to them. Let's get to work." They nod and hurry out, but Frank lingers. "You ok?" He asked. She looked at him and broke down. Shaking her head and crying. He put his arms around her. "I know...I know. But...we still have a chance, however small. Don't give up yet."
Star nods. "I'm trying. For Claire and Lisa and everyone else. I'm trying...but...this...all this...its my fault for suggesting we up the ante and go after the arena. I never expected...this."
"This, is not your fault. The nobles were always going to attack. It just happened a little sooner than we expected." He pats her back then stands back and lifts her head. "Time to be strong, Star. We have a war to win."
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Star wandered around the colony watching in amazement as the Chippequoti put up defenses in record time. The homes they'd taken so long to build were the main attraction, and were being rigged to blow with proximity mines and the little red flags marked the locations of several land mines now dotting the settlement. The animals had been locked up to prevent premature detonations. Several clever items were being added to the houses to make it look like they were occupied while in reality the majority of the colonists, the children and injured and those unable to fight, would be hiding in a bomb shelter beneath the landing pad which the chippequoti were in the process of creating now. The ships that remained and been fitted with heavy artillery and had already been moved to the other side of the colony while a group of chippequoti had gone off in a shuttle towards one of the nearby volcano's with a special bomb. They planned to set it off in one of the volcanos and set off a chemical reaction that would cause smoke and ash to cover the sky. This portion of the planet would be uninhabitable for decades to come after this...but it would buy they time and covering from the ships that would try and target them from the sky.

It was good. It was better than Star had expected...but it wasn't going to be enough. She held Claire tightly, the happy babe blissfully unaware of the hell that was about to unfold around her. She tried to smile encouragingly at the colonists she passed but they all had the same hopeless look she did. Too many of them would die...she just prayed Lisa or Claire or Killian or Anna or Kato or Timo wouldn't be among them.
 
Killian got the message on his pad. The ship had gone down at the arena. He knew when he sent them that they would likely die. However at the cost of 20 men versus the moral of the nobles it would be worth it. One ship with Chippequoti was better than their pride. They had to win this battle and he was only one day off from the landing.

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Anna and Kato had to change course. It was too close and they were not going to make it as she'd been told that the planet was covered in elements of mutually assured destruction for anyone that tried to invade. Still she couldn't help being a little sick at the thought. "We'll just stop at one of the neighboring planets." Almost drooping in the wheel chair Anna took herself to the windows to watch the little planet fade from site. How would they ever make it? Even though Star had called her back with the idea of hiding underground it wasn't enough.

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Witteck reluctantly surrendered his ship at the last to be used for remote control guns. Hiding inside the bunker with many of the others he waited for the bombing to begin. Most of those in the front were the Chippeqouti with a few humans and each had plucked a red flag as they left that morning to be sure that there was no safety for their enemy or warning. It seemed that the Chips were far more anxious for this battle to come than the others. Crouched at the doorways they waited for their chance while a few sat in the corners with the pads to control the guns and one in the far back had the control for the volcano. No matter their attempts to try and give the humans greater courage the people seemed to wilt. Contrary to belief the Chippequoti were always few in number and though they had gained reputation for their brutality it was bred through their resourcefulness in battle.

The first shell hit the ground and everyone ducked instinctively. Those near the door only crowded closer to it and sat on their heels. One of them coughed a few times and did their best to cover it. A second shell hit. If at all possible they didn't want to blow the volcano up on the other end of the planet. It would make it far less friendly in climate as they had been told by Frank.

Finally the hovering above them indicated the ships landing. Sharp tings from the guns sounded as the soldiers that landed gave out clearing shots. Those first in line snuck into the trenches below the ships and crawled into the bays while they closed. It only took about 4 Chippequoti to take a ship from their figures. As the ships lifted off they began their over run and returned to the fleet to drop to the back and fire on the enemy. As the next round of ships landed and dropped more soldiers on the ground a few more Chippequoti crawled into the ships and this round took to mingling in the fleet and waited silently for a time. They had time while a few more ships were taken over. Only the first round which was occupied by those sickest were taking the enemy on from behind to start with.

As soldiers filed out of the ships and into the town the mines started to go off almost every couple of seconds and followed by screams. This was where it became far more dangerous. If the enemy discovered that their ships were being stolen right under their noses they would search the trenches. On the next round a few of the Chips started to usher the women and children into the ships.

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Killian arrived in his ship to see the colony was enveloped in fire. There was almost nothing left. Scrolling through his watch he was amazed to see that Star was still alive. Her blood pressure and heart rate were high, a little higher then they had been the last few days anyway. "Alright men we have them by the flank start firing." One section of the ships cut off and started toward his small fleet of barely 16. They were faced with 20 ships though it was hardly even considering the guns. "Ready men on your guns!" Pushing the joystick down the ship dived for the planet and barely skimmed the magnetic barrier causing a slight distortion. One of the ships made a collision with the barrier at an angle and it tore the ship in half.

On their return the little ship took a hit on the left wing. "Just keep firing everything we got." The 16 scattered and Killian brought his ship around for another run along the magnetic barrier. It prevented landings on the planet and if there was anyone on it that were his people yet he wanted to do what he could to protect them.

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A Chippequoti on the ship with Star pointed out on a small chart all of their own. They knew each other because it was a pre-determined formation. Some of them found that she followed their silent communication better than others. As the 16 other ships arrived he smiled approvingly and watched for a time until he began to type in on a pad for all ships to open fire. Having stolen nearly 20 ships from the enemy they could do significant damage from within the lines especially since already 5 ships were disabled or down.

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"Their firing on their own sir!" One of the crew yelled into his headset. Killian grinned. "That's my Chip fighters." He knew he could count on them for some kind of good. "We'll just keep going. Fire at will." Swinging low he brought the ship over the planet to fire on the men that had begun to invade the planet itself and a giant explosion from the volcano sounded. The result, an eruption that sent debris flying and ash clouds into the air. It was so thick coming off the planet that Killian couldn't see where they were headed.

He barely got the ship above the internal atmosphere of the planet and he was met by an enemy ship that hit the engines and disabled the ship. "Switching to guns he figured this was the last chance he was gonna get." The ship rumbled and shook with hit after hit before it began plummeting for the planet. Killian went back to the controls to do what he could to steer even with the loss of engines.

Pulling with all his might he tried to get the wings to tilt and at least get them away from the mountains.
 
Kato had put the ship on auto pilot and put a hand on Anna's shoulders. "We gave them a full two days warning. It was the best we could do. Now we just have to hope Killian's and Star's resilience see them safely out.
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Star crouched next to the Lisa, and arm around the terrified woman's shoulders as the shells began exploding above them. She wasn't feeling much better and wished Killian could be here to hold her. She looked down at Claire, sleeping in the pack on her stomach. Wittick had given her sleeping drops to put under Claire's tongue and so far it was working and keeping her quiet. The last thing they needed was a screaming baby giving off their location. The chippequoti were some the bravest people she'd ever known. They volunteered first to hijack the ships and attack the enemy within their own ranks. And continued to protect them as they got her, Lisa and the other women and children out on the next ships.

She paused as the ramp, looking back at where the other remained huddled and terrified, hoping they got off as well. The chippequoti waved at her to hurry and she followed the Chip into the ship, passing Claire off to Lisa so that she could help the Chippequoti salvage what they could of the situation. A round of bullets richoted off the inner wall of the ship and the people just entering the ship screamed and scattered deeper into the ship for safety. Star grabbed a gun and shot at the gillick foot soldiers attempting to get their ship back. One soldier had a gun that released powerful wave pulses of energy. With the help of the Chippequoti they took down the majority of the squad within a few seconds. Star stood from cover and a blast of energy sent her flying into the wall. The side of her head hit hard and dropped to the ground. One of the chips took out the last soldier as Lisa rushed to her side with Claire.

"Star!? Star you alright?" Lisa asked worriedly. Star blinked open her eyes, wincing at the throbbing in her head. "Yeah...fine." She winced and pushed to her feet.
"Your head is bleeding. You should get it bandaged."
Star reached a hand up. Her hair was already collecting the blood from the cut. "It's fine. I'll get a towel or something. Just, watch Claire for me, please." She patted Lisa on the shoulder and kissed Claire then hurried up to the navigation. The captain communicated to them through simple sign language and gestures that she easily followed and responded too. She grinned with him as Killian's ships came onto the scene. Maybe they were going to have a chance after all with the number of ships they'd already hijacked and now the fleet at their backs.

Watching the ships fight was almost like watching a movie. Part of her couldn't actually believe she was helping to direct ships for the best flanking positions and helping them avoid their own people. She kept a close eye on Killian's ship which had just entered the atmosphere. Something went wrong and the ship took a nose dive towards the surface. She gasped in horror as the signal coming from his ship disappeared. His watch still showed his vital signs, though elevated. He wasn't dead...not yet, but his ship was. "We have to go after him! Killian!" She demands of the Captain, pointing to the map of the planet.
 
The captain calmly acknowledged the frantic pointing from star and began to write on the pad. "When the battle is finished." They could not risk taking a ship out of the sky just at this time. They had barely taken the upper hand in the battle and many more ships began to plummet. A Chippequoti brushed past Star and nudged their way almost rudely between her and the captain to begin drawing on the board a loss of a ship. It was not a civilian ship, but still it was down and then they marked one more number that indicated those left with the Gillicks.

Taking a moment to write on the tab the Chippequoti smiled and handed it to Star. "5 enemy ships remaining. Two of the five are grounded." They didn't have long to win the battle and if everyone moved according to their emotion or wants it would potentially lose a battle even with so few left. He was in charge of this ship and no matter how angry the woman was or would become he wasn't going to change his plans to suit her purpose. First the battle and then they could go in search of her Killian.

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Mike found himself protected mainly by the bars of the ship. It had been a little rough landing and he didn't assume that any of the crew fared much better than himself on this landing. In fact he figured that he was in better shape than some of them. Grabbing a gun he started out into the main body of the ship. Most of the men had been thrown all around. He could hear some moaning and he checked the first gun station. "Hold on...I'll work my way over there." Picking his way through the debris he got to the gun and unstrapped the man before wrapping an arm around his shoulders and helping to pull him out of the seat. "You stay there and I'll be back. Need to check on a few others."

The old engineer picked his way to the next spot where he found a man that had been cut in half by the falling pieces and the cave in by the ship. Another was crushed under metal too heavy for a single man to lift. Each time that he told a man to hang on he only felt worse. As he got closer to the navigation and communications room he saw that it was mostly crushed and he almost winced at the thought of what he might find.

Killian was laying under a pile of stuff. Catching a glimpse of the watch Mike turned it to show the captain's vitals. Still breathing, pumping blood, and some warmth to his skin. Those were all good signs. "I've got you captain. Gonna get you back to that little wife of yours." Clearing some of the debris away he winced. There was a heavy support from the ship that was laying across his legs. No telling if it broke anything and a nasty gash to the captain's head too. Pausing he heard the sound of men boarding. They weren't speaking in a tongue that he recognized. Laying down where he was at he drew his gun and waited.

Walking into the room were 2 Gillicks and they were highly interested it seemed in obtaining Killian or his body. Whichever didn't seem to matter. For now he let them begin the work of getting the support beam of Killian's legs and while they were occupied Mike aimed the gun at the first one and shot it before aiming for the second and shooting it. The beam which had been only a few inches removed was dropped again and Mike called into his headset. "Anyone hear me?" Changing the frequency till he heard familiar voices from the colony he started again. "Anyone hear me?"

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Once the last 3 ships were shot out of the air the remaining ships that now belonged to the rebellion landed on the planet in safe locations. There was a total of 30 ships now in the fleet and those gained were much larger. As soon as a ship landed the Chippequoti set to throwing the bodies out and they ran with the humans to collect livestock and what they could from from the store house.

Most of the buildings there was nothing left. However, it was still better than not surviving.

The captain of the ship finally nodded to Star and agreed to find the ship that crashed. This watch that she wore was quite handy as they were able to navigate right to the spot where the ship crashed and then they could found a place nearby to land.

One of the men came yelled into his headset. "It's got only a few minutes till the whole thing blows."

Mike heard the call. "Get back here and help me. I've got the captain and he's unconscious. Need to drag him out. Got one man in the bay and one that one'll require two men too then a one man job for the one by the guns."

A flurry of men raced out to help. A mix of the Chippequoti and humans. With some help the engineer pulled Killian out of the wreck and helped flop him over the back of the Chippequoti that came. Together the two of them ran out of the ship. They were part way down the hillside when the ship blew up and it threw most of the men flying a couple of feet.

Mike scrambled over to where it threw the other Chip and Killian. He barely reached them and he started to sway on his feet and then collapsed.
 
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Timo jerked on the control's pulling the ship through a difficult maneuver to avoid the explosion of the ship they'd just destroyed. "Nice flying, Captain!" Curly called to Timo through the headset from his position at the main gun.j
"Thanks, Curly. How are those engines holding up, Matt?"
"Uh, their holding. Starting to steam a bit though."
"Keep them cool use the frio-cannisters."
"Oh, i thought those were fire extinguishers..."
Timo rolled his eyes. "They are very similar."
"Captain! Two ships on the aft, just out of reach of my gun."
"I see them." Timo spun the ship and the automated weapons targeted the ships along with Curly. Several explosions sounded along the hull of the Comet.
"Shields down to 40%." Duke called from his position at the computer. "Rerouting power from life support and other non-critical systems."
"I'd call life-support critical, wouldn't you!?" Curly scoffed.
"Not if we're killed cause we can't support the shields." Duke scoffed back.
"Concentrate people. One ship is down but that other one has a much heavier hull. Curly, I'm going to bring the ship along the side. Target their engines and anything else that looks vulnerable."

Timo maneuvered the Comet alongside the enemy ship, giving their gunner easy access to their systems. The Gillicks hadn't expected such a bold move and weren't prepared to fight so close in quarters with the Comet, especially as he expertly avoided the line of sight of their main gun. "Almost have it! Just a few more minutes, Captain."
"Hurry up, their powering up missles. At this range we'll..."
The ship almost seemed to screamed as they took a massive hit from several different sides. Timo lifted his head from console, wincing at the cut above his eye. "Matt, Duke, Curly? Everyone alright?"
"I'm good, Cap." Duke coughed. "But the ship is leaking fuel like no body's business. One spark and we're going to up like a firework."
"I'm alright. But the gun is busted." Curly replied. "There are several injured chips around. Two of them looked like they were killed."
"I'm not getting any response from Matt. Check on them while I try and get us clear." Timo pulled the controls but the ship was lagging. It was dying. Every warning light had begun to go off. And Duke's warning about the fuel hadn't changed. They'd have to abandon her if they wanted to live. "All hands, grab anyone who is injured and get to the escape pods. Go, go!"

Timo directed all remaining power to shields and steered the ship best he could towards the planet. The shield over the planet was designed to hold back things like ships and while there wasn't a guarantee the escape pods could get through...it was their only chance. "Captain, Matt's alright. I've got him. Most every escape pod is filled now and there are still at least 10 chippequoti left." Curly says.
"Get as many as you can inside then take the last space and go." Timo ordered. He launched a series of missiles at an attacking ship.
"But, Captain..." Curly hesitated.
"That's an order. Go!"
Timo watched the computer as one by one the 6 escape pods launched. Another hit rocked the ship, tearing off their right wing. The ship began to spiral, caught in the planet's gravitational pull. Timo grunted, pulling at the controls but to little avail. A firm hand grasped his shoulder and Curly dropped into a seat beside him. "CURLY! I told you to go!"
"I'm not leaving my Captain and best friend behind."
Timo gave him a look then grabbed his arm. "We're gonna hit the shield."
"I know. Best send a message while you can."
Timo opened a file on the computer and sent a pre-written message he'd already written, in case of a situation such as this one. "Hey, Captain."
Timo looked up at Curly.
"It's been a fun ride. See you on the other side, yeah?"
"Yeah. Thanks for always being there for me, bro." Timo grabbed his friend's hand and smiled as he watched the escape pods pierce the shield and hit the planet close to the colony. At least they'd survive and tell the tale of the Comet and her crew.
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Star watched from the window as yet another ship, one of their own, hit the shields in a flash of light and fire. How many had they lost to this damn war? She'd been angry with the Captain at first for not immediately taking them down but after she had calmed and stopped panicking she knew it was the right thing. They had to win this battle now, or no one would be left to save those still in the colony or crashing to the planet. She left the window, unable to watch another ship explode. A wave of dizziness hit her and she almost collapsed, her head pounding.

A fellow colonist caught her arm. "You alright? You look like your bleeding."
Star nodded, regaining her equilibrium. "Just a cut. Thanks for the catch." She looked up at the young colonist, recognizing him as Caleb, one of the colonists Timo had rescued. "Caleb, right? Your family ok?"
The young man looked down, tears smarting in his eyes. "They uh...got hit by a shell before they could get on the ship." He buried his head in his hands, weeping. Star's eyes smarted with tears for him and she wrapped her arms around him. "I'm sorry." She whispered. "We'll make them pay." Caleb simply nodded and she let him go, returning to the table where the Captain was helping organize the final push to end this siege once and for all.

Talk of family inspired her to look down at her watch again to check Killian's vital signs for the umpteenth time. They were low and slow. She guessed he was unconscious. She prayed that's all it was.

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The death toll was less that she had expected but included at least a third of the population including chippequoti. Over a hundred colonists had been killed in this siege. Men, women, children and Chips. Too many. Too many that she'd known and cared for. The amount of wounded was overwhelming as well. Only a handful of doctors for over 200 people. So many ships were calling for help for critically injured patients but the doctors were already overwhelmed as it was. How many more would die from their wounds because they didn't have the man-power to help? The majority of the ships landed on the planet to gather the remaining people and supplies while Star's ship raced after Killian and his ship. She'd never been so happy for the gps watch.

Star had to stay in the ship to feed Claire but as soon as Killian and Mike and the others were brought aboard, she passed Claire back off to Lisa and followed them to the medbay. Both men were unconscious, Killian looked in worse off shape but he always managed to bounce back with ease. Mike...she wasn't sure. The man was getting older. There weren't many external wounds she could see but they didn't have the equipment to check and make sure he wasn't bleeding internally.

Star did what she could for them, but now it was the waiting game as the fleet began its retreat from the volcanic planet, its sky covered in a dark layer of ash. They didn't know where they were going, or what they were going to do. All they knew was that they'd have to get as far from the nobles as their fuel would take them. "Please wake up, Killian." She whispered, grabbing his hand. "We need you right now...please wake up."

She looked down at her pocket as her datapad beeped. She pulled it out, finding a message from Timo.
Mama Star,
I know we didn't always see eye to eye, but I always loved and respected you. You saved my life when you pulled me off that planet, and gave me a chance to become the man I never could've otherwise. I have few regrets and I've enjoyed my life for the most part. Don't blame yourself for my death. I know you'll try, but don't. I don't blame you (wherever I am) and I hope you have a happy life. I know Killian will protect you too the death. Love you, Mama Star. Stay safe, and tell Claire all about Uncle Timo.
~Love, Timo
 
The Chippequoti captain waited till they were sure to have all the men from the ground and what livestock they could gather that remained. It seemed that one of them grew confused on the idea of livestock and brought an injured bear cub aboard. There wasn't time to argue and so long as the bear cub didn't cause problems then he wasn't going to worry about it. There were far worse problems at this point. One of them being the fact that they needed to land somewhere to get the people off the ships and it had to be moderate in temperature cause they were going to be outside in tents.

"Where is a comfortable planet to land soon?" Handing the pad to Star the captain waited patiently. The Chippequoti had all learned to wait for answers to any question if they chose to even try communicating.

"Uh." Star swiped at the tears in her eyes and tried to focus on the task at hand. "This one here is only sparsely inhabited. Its a forest planet, but I'm sure there are landing sites around. Its a good place to conceal a fleet of ship amidst the trees."

Anxiously the Chippequoti nodded to her. Pointing to the screen he tried to indicate that he wanted the coordinates.

Star went over to the Navigation computer and typed in the planet, pulling it up on screen then setting course for it and sending the coordinates to the other ships. "There. The autopilot should get us close. At full speed we could be there in 4 days, but..." She looked up at the captain. "Most of the ships are already low on the fuel. If we land there...there's no guarenttee we'll be able to leave again. We might want to make a detour and pass by this station for fuel. If we take the ships in one or two at a time, it shouldn't raise any eyebrows and we could get much needed supplies."

Nodding thoughtfully the captain agreed with her and gave her the pad again. As soon as the new set of directives was set including the order in which the ships should arrive he nodded to the wounded and took the pad from her to write on it. "We need more doctors."

"I know. There's one who will meet us at the planet. As for the others though...we could try hiring some black market doctors who don't mind going off station for a while for a chunk of credits. It'll cost us though. Even with the credits we've gotten along with the ships it'll be a tight squeeze to get the needed fuel and supplies and hire doctors." She rubbed her head. It was still pounding and she felt sick from the concussion and from Timo's death. "I uh...I could try contacting different human relief aid groups and see if I could get some doctors to volunteer, but we risk revealing our location if the wrong people hear me asking."

Taking the pad again he shook his head and wrote on it. "1 more doctor will be enough." Not that 1 would be enough Currently the situation demanded that, but 1 more doctor would have to be good enough and the rest of them would have to do as they could for the wounded in their ship.

Star nodded. "I'll send another message to Kato then. Let them know what's going on and where to meet us."

******************************************************************************************************************

Anna immediately called for Kato again when she had the datapad with some new coordinates. It sounded like the number of wounded were near catastrophic. If they weren't wounded they were sick and if none of those other things happened it was next to a miracle. Part of her was worried that despite all that and gaining more ships that the little rag tag group would not survive. 4 days and limited care from a doctor could easily spell disaster especially if any of them had head injuries.

The two of them raced ahead and fueled before they landed at the planet. She didn't want any patients to be left waiting and as long as she was in a wheelchair Anna could turn circles because she still only had one arm that for now. "What I really need is an electric wheel chair." Grinning a bit she looked at Kato and noticed he was still not looking at her much. "Such a stick in the mud as always. You just have to be right about everything." Being a little high strung it was near torture to be stuck in the chair and she was hating how he avoided her. "I'm sure a Chippequoti would be better company about now. Even Killian could bring himself to talk to those he detested." It was all cut short when she saw the first of the ships come in for landing. This was what they had been waiting for.

*************************************************************************************************************************

Killian woke sometime the next day. His head was hurting so bad. Barely opening his eyes a squint he quickly shut them again and then tried one more time. Then he drifted off to a half conscious sleep again. When he woke next he tried to sit up and a nearby Chippequoti pushed him back down, but not before blood started running from his nose and ears. It felt like he was going to drown in his own blood before they got it his nose to stop bleeding and the male shook his head at him. Killian was still squinting at everything and he gave a feeble nod.

A warm little hand wrapped into one of his and he made the wild assumption that it was Star. At least that was what he wanted to believe. Pulling one side of his mouth into a lopsided grin he closed his eyes and tried to get some rest. Whatever was going on he didn't know and it bothered him. There was a constant flow of blood and other stuff running in the back of his throat.

When they finally landed at the planet Killian laid as still as possible when they lifted him off the bed and carried him to the next spot. Witteck was doing his best to treat the Chippequoti with wounds and human doctors started to look over the humans. Witteck stopped to check on Claire to be sure she was alright. The baby had a slight cough and he listened to her lungs. "She sounds fine." Passing Killian he moved to the next Chip and then to the humans. He was treating what he could in a quick manner and anything more complex with the Chips he was leaving to the one Chippeqouti that was a doctor among his own people.

Witteck found Mike laying nearby and the man was in pretty bad shape. It was nothing shy of a miracle that he hadn't died on the trip. "You're looking pretty bad." Already infection had set in and the man was in horrible pain. The doctor gave him a good dose of medication and started to look over the injuries. The scan revealed shrapnel throughout his body. There was some in the abdominal cavity and if it pierced any organs the man would likely die of sepsis which appeared to have already set in. "I'll do what I can for you." Getting onto the pad he put Mike into the list of urgent need for surgery and human. They had a different list of urgent for the Chippequoti since not everything was the same.

After what felt like forever a doctor came over to Killian. The Chippequoti doctor peeled one of Killian's eyes open and she peered into it and then she shown a light up his nose and down his throat before she nodded a few times. Putting a hand over his face she gently move it to the side to look at his ear on one side and then repeated with the next. Grabbing her pad she put a mark on it and then tagged the bed. She knew who Star was and there wasn't time to write it all down so she let the woman see the mark that indicated urgent care. Nodding to Star she set off for the next patient. It was all they could do. Create a list of which patients were in the most need and then move onto the next. She only had 10 more patients to check before she would start surgeries.
 
It was torture, waiting. Waiting for the ships to get through the fuel line and continue onto the planet. Waiting for Killian to wake up, waiting for the blood to stop flowing so she could wash his face and continue to worry as his vitals continued to slowly drop. Waiting for the doctors to come through and check the wounded, marking them for surgery or just regular care. So much waiting but also so much work. Those who weren't too sick or injured to move Star had begun organizing into teams once they'd hit the planet. She hadn't even had time to give Anna and Kato more than a brief hello before the work began.

The ships were emptied and sterilized to begin the surgeries and treatments. Only the wounded and severely sick would be in the ships which meant everyone else would be sleeping outside. They'd bought tents and sleeping bags and other supplies for this very purpose. Star organized a chip and human to be in charge of passing out supplies. Everyone was forced to pair up. Couples remained together while the singles found a friend of the same gender to share a tent with. Children without parents were given to couples without children and these families were given the larger tents and larger portion of supplies.

The ships took up most of the clearings so most tents were pitched either beneath the ship wings or within the forest. Any one who could manage an axe or a machete were given one to begin clearing brush and cutting branches and trees for fire wood. Others were sent to map out the area they were in and check for clean water locations to set up water filters at. Hunters were given guns and sent out with the explorers to protect them and bring back game to supplement their rations. Anyone left was either helping set up camp or treating the wounded.

A doctor passed by and tapped Star on the shoulder. "Have you been looked at yet?"
Star looked at her with tired eyes. "No, but I'm fine. Just a cut and maybe a slight concussion. Claire has been coughing." She looked down at the whimpering babe in her pouch. The doctor checked her lungs and nodded. "Its probably just the change in atmosphere and oxygen levels. As you're probably feeling, they are much higher on this planet than the one we came from." Now that she mentioned it, the doctor was right. The air was much clearer and more easy to breath. "Thanks, Doc. How's Killian?" From the chart she was given to look at...it wasn't good. He was in immediate need of surgery. Star came to his side, stroking his cheek softly. "Just hold on, Killian. I need you. Just a little longer."
*************************************************************************
Star came to Anna's campfire late that night in desperate need of a friend. Killian was in surgery and there was nothing she could do but wait. "He's in surgery right now. I don't know if...if he's going to wake up the same or...of if what happened to me will happen to him." The thought terrified her more than anything else. She buried her face in one hand, holding Claire tightly with the other. She was completely exhausted, emotionally and physically.
"Oh Star." Reaching out with her one hand she squeezed Star's shoulder. "If it does you know what to do. You wouldn't remember, but he stuck around for months and spent nearly every penny he made to make sure you were taken care of. He was more gentle than most anyone I'd ever seen. I don't think even Kato would have stuck around like that. If you think that kind of devotion would disappear permanently you'd be crazy. Deep down you've got a hold of that Chip."
"I know...I know..." She sniffed. "I'm just not sure I could handle that right now. Timo he...he didn't make it. Mike is in really bad shape too. The entire colony is looking to me right now to keep them organized and calm...but I'm barely holding it together myself." Claire coughed again and whined, kicking her legs.
Anna nodded. "Then I'll help keep it organized." She lowered her gaze some. "I'm very sorry to hear about Timo and Mike. Just let me help you. I'm not good for anything else, but my brain still works."
Star nodded looking grateful. "You have no idea how much that would mean to me." She wiped her face and sighed, pulling Claire out of the pack to feed her. "How are things with you and Kato? Any change?"
"Oh I don't think so. Something about him thinking he doesn't know me anymore." Anna rolled her eyes. "I love him, but he is such a stick in the mud."
"Well, does he?" Star asked. "Does this whole thing between you two somehow tie into the fact that you knew about the secret gathering of operatives and our attack on the arena?"

"I was always myself with him." Anna glanced away briefly when Star mentioned the secret gatherings. "It might have something to do with his being upset. That and I'm a cripple now."
"What happened?"
Anna shook her head. "Got shot in the back with armor piercing rounds and one hit my shoulder. That's why I just turn in circles by myself right now, or I have to wait for someone to push me around." It was hard not to get depressed with being very dependent on others.
"Ok. But...what really happened. What were you doing that led you to get shot?"
"I was going to meet a contact. That was when I found out about the mole that was helping to set you guys up." Anna glanced at her arm that was still in a sling. "You would have had more time if I could have made it out of there without getting hurt."
"We wouldn't have made it out at all if you hadn't known to warn us." Star squeezed her hand. "Thankyou. Everyone who is alive, is alive because of you."
Anna smiled. "Well...I wish Kato could see me differently. All he sees is a liar and it might be true. I'm terribly good at it."
"Give him time. He loves you. He'll come around." Star yawns. She looked around. Anna's tent still hadn't been set up. Neither had hers now that the thought about it. She finishes feeding Claire and passes the babe to Anna. "If you hold her I'll set up the tents for us."
"I'll just stay with you tonight." Anna smirked. "Otherwise who knows how long it'll be till Kato helps me get into bed. I might as well roll out of my chair and hope I land comfy."
**********************************************************************************
Star pulled her blanket closer as the cold morning air nipped at her cheeks. She woke to Claire still coughing. A wheeze startled her and she was immediately fully awake, pressing an ear to Claire's chest. The babe was struggling to breath properly. She could hear it in the coughs and the slight wheeze. She lifted Claire up, and quietly exited the tent so as not to wake Anna.

It took her about 15 minutes to locate Witteck amidst all the tents and campfires. The tired doctor was sitting by one of the many campfires drinking a cup of coffee and trying to get ready for the next round of surgeries. Star felt horrible about interrupting what little time he had to himself. She nearly turned around but another series of coughs and struggled breaths from Claire made up her mind and she approached. "Good morning, Doctor. I...I am so sorry to bother you while you're resting...but...Claire has been coughing since we landed on the planet and she'd begun wheezing too. One of the nurses thought it just might be the excess oxygen and she's not used to it but...I don't know."
 
Witteck looked up tiredly from his coffee. The baby didn't sound good. He took a deep breath and set his coffee aside. Beckoning for the baby he took her in his arms and listened carefully for a moment. "She's got the same cough the rest of them got in the mines. It's contagious. Take her to the Chippequoti doctor. She has some of the cough drops she's been dispensing to those that are having trouble breathing." Sending her that way would also kill two birds with one stone with the exception that Witteck still needed to do the translation of what had gone one with the surgery early this morning.

"Here I'll go with you." Handing the baby back to Star he trailed behind her and motioned for the tablet when they reached the Chippequoti doctor. "She'll need some cough drops for the baby. It's half Chip."

The female tiredly took the baby and began to look it over while Witteck kindly took the pad to describe to Star what had gone on. It was much faster than trying to type things out and she was grateful for the help from Witteck when he had chance to help explain things to patients. A frown came to her face and she set the baby on her lap and began to look her over and listen to her lungs. The woman's violet eyes peered into the baby's for a long moment and she turned Claire over before giving the baby a good firm heel first slap in the back. A little spluttering sounded and Claire began to cry a little more clearly. Handing the baby back to Star she dug into her bag and handed the woman a small packet of cough drops.

Witteck paused to see what the woman was doing and his eyes widened slightly. There were times when he was shocked and amazed at how rough the people were with each other and yet it seemed to help. "Well uh...You give her a cough drop every 12 hours for her size." Glancing to woman doctor he made sure it was right and then he pulled the chart for Killian open. "This is a little different story. A combination of a few things. There was some internal swelling with the brain. Chippequoti apparently handle this differently. It was the reason for all the blood. They bleed and drain internally to manage the swelling. However, it only works for so long before it starts to get ahead of them especially if its bad. The doctor was able to get it under control and she stopped the bleeding. He has a few broken ribs and he got the cough too. Right now he's got a few things we're using. Cough drops every 3 hours because we can't afford for him to start coughing yet. She's also got a paste that we've been having the nurse apply to his chest about every 12 hours. It helps prevent seizures."

He still hadn't taken her into the ship. There were a few things in the notes that were marked for pre-visitation. "So to recap. We don't want him coughing for a few days. Claire is already sick with the same thing he's got. Just make sure you're not sick with something else before you come to see him and then uh....Last note is that he's restless and don't let that upset you." Witteck hadn't looked at the chart before and he glanced at the Chippequoti doctor who only nodded her approval.

Taking the pad from Witteck she wrote one more note on it and passed it back to the man to do the translation. "She says that you should be able to take him to your tent tomorrow. Too many are sick in the ships and she's afraid it will make him worse." Witteck sighed. "The ones with a partner are lucky. Most of them are doing better."

Witteck stepped into the ship with Star and he started to scroll through the side effects of the medication. Killian was asleep, but restless was certainly the right word. He was constantly turning in the bed and periodically holding his head. "Alright that's the anti seizure medication. If he does get a seizure it will be very minor and that stuff I guess just does that." Glancing at Star he shrugged.

One of the nurses saw Star standing at the bed and she came over to where they were. It was a purely Chip ward at this point and he was the only one with a human partner. Setting a hand on his shoulder she squeezed gently till Killian woke up. Momentarily all the moving stopped and he looked at Star. One of his eyes was bloodshot, but the other was clear. "Hey." Frowning a little he shifted again and breathed in. "We win the battle?" Nodding a little he frowned and started to go back to sleep. Taking a sharp breath he tried to force himself to stay awake, but he was so tired.

************************************************************************************************

Anna spent her morning sitting in the bed wondering where she would get some help and then she heard someone walking by. "Hey help me up please." Fortunately it was another woman and she could help her get to the bathroom as well. Once that was done Anna had the woman roll her around camp so she could start to arrange who was going to help cook and put together a little team of those that would help with camp maintenance and watch.

"No I want the watch over there and then we need a post of those on this side of camp that can respond to needs inside of the camp. Each post gets a pad for direct communication to a doctor. We'll need a Chip Section and a human section so we know which doctor to call." Taking a pad she began to program in the different sections for calls though there was already a template that made the job much easier. In her yellow skirt and flaming red and orange shirt she felt like she was on top the world regardless how pathetic she really was in the chair with a Chippequoti woman pushing her around.

*********************************************************************************************************

The next day Killian woke up in a tent. He didn't even know how he got here. Groaning a little he shifted in his bed again. Turning to see Star there he squinted his eyes just to make sure it was real. "I'm hungry how about you?" At this point he was allowed to have his shoulders lifted slightly and not much else. He also noticed the mounds of extra blankets and coats on either side of him. "Why is all that there? You afraid I'm gonna roll off and hit my head or something?"
 
Star held Claire close as she listened to Dr. Witteck explain what was going on with Killian. She was just relieved to hear that his chippequoti blood had essentially saved him from suffering the same brain injuries she had. She almost cried in relief as Killian looked at her in recognition, though one of his eyes was a nasty red-ish pink color. She avoided looking in that eye and just smiled lightly at him. "Yeah. We won. Mike is ok too." For now...sounds like that sepsis is pretty bad though. She ran a hand through Killian's hair. "It's ok. Go back to sleep. Anna and I are taking care of the camp." She kissed him softly on the lips and watched him till he fell back asleep. As much as she longed to stay and watch over him there was still so much to do. Claire coughed over her shoulder again and Star fed her a drop. "You're going to be ok, Claire." She says softly, stroking the 4 month's old back. "You're ok."

*********************************************************************************
Kato was taking a break at one of the fires. He sipped a cup of coffee while staring at the flames wearily. There were still so many in urgent need and so few of them to deal with the crisis. He looked up as Anna came into view calling out orders to people in her favorite yellow skirt and that ridiculous flaming blouse. A chippequoti was pushing her around, clearly having nothing else better to do.

His heart ached so badly as he watched her. He missed her. Despite everything...he missed her. In these last three weeks the pain of not speaking to her, or holding her or loving her had begun to hurt worse than the well-meaning betrayal itself. It had taken a while...but he'd forgiven her. He was still hurt by the fact she had been lying to him this whole time...but now that life was done. She would no longer be able to show herself as a noble or else risk her safety.

Kato sipped his coffee, still staring at her and the way she commanded the attention of those around her. Truly, she was no different than she had been before. If anything, perhaps that 2nd life had just been an enhancement of whom she truly was. He was standing up, before his mind could protest. Too often his mind took control, but with Anna, things had always been about his heart. With her...he was better. Without her, he was nothing...and the void was worse than anything else.

Kato approached Anna and asked the Chippequoti woman to give them a moment. He found himself kneeling before Anna and taking her hands, being gentle with the one hand in the sling. "I forgive you, Anna. I still love you...so much that this rift I've forced between us has hurt more than what you did. I want to give this...give us...a 2nd chance."
Watching the woman disappear almost was a lonely thing. If Kato didn't plan on pushing her somewhere or getting someone else to help she was going to be stuck here again. An eyebrow raised slightly when he said that he forgave her and Anna waited for him to finish and pulled on his hand firmly so that her wheelchair rolled forward. Kissing him gently on the lips she grinned. "I was hoping you would come to that conclusion."
Kato wrapped his arms gently around her, stroking her hair. "No more lies this time. Ever. You tell me...even if you're worried for my safety. That shouldn't be your concern anyway. Its my job to keep you safe."
Almost melting into his arms she nodded. "You just don't do anything stupid or I'll kill you myself."
Kato chuckled lightly. A nurse appeared at the edge of the ship and beckoned him. He sighed and pulled away, kissing her softly. "I have to go. There's still alot of work to be done. I'll make sure that chip woman comes back to help you though."
Sniffling a few times she blinked to keep the tears at bay. "Good. I hate turning circles waiting for someone to notice."
Kato stands, patted her head in that same loving manner he always did. A silent promise that he'd always take care of her. The chip woman returned as Kato went back to the ship and gave Anna a questioning look.
It was impossible not to grin at the Chip woman's expression. "I've always had the hots for that guy. Thank god he still likes me."
The chip smirked then knelt beside Anna and pointed to a chippequoti carrying a large pile of logs to one of the camp fires. She smiled at him longingly then touched her scarred throat with a sad expression.
Anna followed the woman's gaze approvingly. "Oh well there's more than one way to catch a fish." A smirk came to her face. "I'll bet a little combing your hair and...C'mon push me I'll get one of combs for you and get you all pretty. Take one of my scarves, throw it around his neck and see if he'll follow you."
The chip gives her a strange look. Apparently the suggestion was unusual but she followed Anna's prompting anyway.

*******************************************************************************
While Killian slept in her tent Star made her rounds on people she knew. Lisa and Frank were doing well as could be. Apparently Kato had finally broke his silence and was working things work out with Anna, and the various chippequoti Captains were doing well in keeping things calm and organized with her's and Anna's help. Her next stop was Mike.
Star thanked Kato as he led her to Mike and updated her on his status, which was rapidly declining. She sat beside the old man's bed, gripping his hand tightly. "Hey, Mike." She smiled softly as he looked over at her. "You comfortable? Can I get you anything?"
Sitting up in his bed the old man winced. No matter how much medicine they gave him it couldn't mask the pain or the fact that he was turning a sickly yellow color. "Ooh I think I'll be fine...." A weak smile came to his face. "You just tell me how the captain is doing. Gotta make sure my boy made it."
Star nods. "He's doing good. Some broken ribs...had some internal bleeding but that's been dealt with." Claire coughed on her chest. "He does have the bug that all the other chips seem to have though, so...I'm keeping a close eye on him." Star looks at him worriedly. "We've lost too many friends to this damned war already. You fight this and get better...hear me?"
"Doing my best." Mike closed his eyes momentarily and looked back at her. The rings under his eyes were dark from the inability to sleep over the last few days. "Don't you worry about me. Just get him over here to see me one of these days. Needed to tell him a few more things about taking care of a lady. I'd go see him, but they won't let me out of here."
Star nodded. She debated a moment about telling him about Timo but decided against him. He needed whatever strength and hope he could get. "I'll check on you again soon, Mike." She kissed his forehead and gave him one last look before leaving.
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Star was scared to set Claire down for fear she'd suffocated to death. As such the baby was currently napping in the baby pack on her chest when Killian woke up two days later in her tent. "Hey." She chuckled lightly, sitting on a stump by his side. "Yeah, sorry about all that, but...its to help keep you warm too. Don't want that fever coming back." She stroked his hair and kissed him again. Claire coughed several times, and began wheezing again. Star sat back and fed her another cough drop. "She's got the same cough you and the rest of the chip's have. Some sort of virus only chippequoti get." She sighed softly. Then she remembered he wanted food. "I'll be right back."

She hurried outside served up some stew from the kettle hanging over the fire. Star brought the stew back inside and had to wake Killian up again so he could eat. "Killian...Timo...he didn't make it. His crew said that their ship got pretty damaged. There weren't enough escape pods for everyone so he, Curly and few other chippequoti stayed behind on the ship so the others could escape before it was destroyed." Star took a deep breath wiping her eyes. "Mike's in pretty bad shape too. Kato isn't sure he's going to make it but they are doing everything they can. Still...as soon as your able...you might want to go see him...just in case."
 
Killian tried to sit up a little more and his head began to throb. "Ugh..." Reaching up he put a hand on the side of his head. It felt like somebody was pounding his head from the side. While Star was gone he sniffed a few times and pulled his shirt open. He had some weird smelling stuff on his chest. Didn't smell terrible, but it wasn't a good smell either. Rubbing at it he tried to wipe some off and instead it just smeared. Making a face he wiped it on his pant leg and tried to get comfortable again.

Everything seemed to be confusing still and he couldn't figure out why Star brought food. He was hungry though. Once more he tried to sit up and the blinding headache started again. A deep frown came over his face and he settled into the bed again. Taking a bite of food he barely swallowed it and Star started talking. Setting the food aside he decided to listen for now. Besides he couldn't focus on more than one thing anyway. Sinking a little further into the bed he nodded. Killian didn't even know what to say to her. Timo had been so important to Star. "He was a good kid. Did what a man would."

Squirming a little under the covers he winced. It felt like he needed to cough and he couldn't. His head was next to bursting and he just felt sick. Nothing was worse than feeling sick. Turning his head a little more suddenly than he intended he started to try and get himself up. "I gotta go see him now." Sitting up all the way he cringed and wiped a hand under his nose. A small trickle of blood started. "Help me up." Instead Star was pushing him back into the bed and he was frustrated with the current situation. Part way through the fight to get up he paused and looked at her. "I'm not even trying to get up just let me turn over." With a little less pressure he turned onto his side and sniffed a few times while wiping the blood away from his nose.

The doctor came into the tent and sighed. At least the bleeding wasn't severe. Witteck was the one to respond this time and he looked at Killian. "What were you doing when that nosebleed started?"

"I was trying to turn over." Mumbling from his place he started to close his eyes. "Just let me go to sleep."

Witteck glanced at Star and that wasn't the same story she had. It wasn't like the captain to lie like that and be so convincing sounding either. "I don't think the nosebleed is bad. It's pretty well stopped. Don't let him get up for another day or so. I want to try something." Waiting for a few moments he watched to be sure that Killian had fallen into another one of his restless sleeps and then he put a hand on his shoulder. "Good morning captain. You get anything to eat today?"

Being woke again Killian turned to his back and blinked a few times. His one eye was still red though a little less than it was a few days before. "Mmmm no."

"What did you eat last?"

Killian shrugged. "I don't know. Is it time to eat?"

Witteck looked at Star and grabbed the bowl. "Star got you something to eat here."

"Ok." Killian took the bowl and had a few bites though he was starting to wonder why the doctor was watching him. Part way through the bowl of food he got tired and gave it back to Witteck.

Again the doctor waited for a few minutes before he woke Killian up and asked him again if he'd had anything to eat and the captain still swore he didn't eat anything. Witteck nodded. "Alright, are you hungry?" At least Killian didn't say that he was hungry, but it was beginning to confirm a slight fear. Witteck glanced at Star after Killian fell asleep. "Sometimes memory loss is permanent and other times it is temporary. Right now he seems to be having short term memory loss. He at least remembers you and the baby, but he's not tracking anything current."
 
"Yeah, I noticed that." Star says worriedly. "Any idea how long he'll be like this?"
Witteck shook his head. "Maybe a few days, could be weeks, months, years, the rest of his life. There is no rhyme or reason to memory loss. It just has to run its course. Given past experiences I would say that he heals quickly."
Star nodded, looking back over at Kilian. They never could catch much of a break it seemed. It was always one battle to the next. "Thankyou, Wittick. I appreciate everything you've done for us. So does everyone else."
"I'll make sure to stop in for the next few days. Might pass a note to the Chippequoti doctor. She may have something that helps." The man smiled gently and started out the door.
Star sighed and sat back down next to Killian, holding his hand. "We'll get through this. We always do."

***********************************************************************************
Three Weeks Later
Claire was 5 months old today, she was coming up her 2nd year anniversary of becoming Killian's girlfriend, there had been a beautiful yet painful funeral for Mike, Timo and so many others which had been lost during and after the battle...and Killian couldn't even remember. It was hard, so hard having him only remember a few minutes at a time, asking the same questions over and over. She created an app for him that acted as his long term memory. Every time a day passed he could mark it. Every time he ate he could record it. Every time he had a question he could type it in and see if it had already been answered including "where is Star" which she updated from her own data-pad whenever she wasn't next to him. She'd also send him reminders on his watch to take his medicine, to walk around, to do the puzzles that Kato had given him to help his memory and other such things.

By this point the colonists had become experts at building homes and with the chippequoti's help the work went twice as fast. Si. Star and Killian's home were one of the first to be built. It was much smaller than the other one with only three bedrooms but it was almost more beautiful with the logs. Anna and Kato had nearly fully reunited and were sleeping together again in one bedroom while her and Killian were in the other. Now that Claire was older she had a hand-carved crib and her own room.

Star and Anna were in the process of creating a vegetable garden right outside their house. They sat on blankets, pulling weeds and preparing the soil so they could actually plant. Claire was sitting on a blanket playing with some wooden blocks an older man had carved for her with the names of Timo, Mike and a few others carved on them. Star's hair was pulled back in a braid, but the work had caused strands of it to fly about messily. "You thinking about staying? Or are you and Kato going back?" Star asked.
"If he wanted to stay...would you?" Star asked hopefully.
Scooting over on the blanket to pull a few more weeds she sighed. "Oh I might. Its kinda hard to run away these days. I've been working on squirming faster." Chuckling a bit she glanced at Star. "What would want us to stay for?"
"Its just nice, having people I know and trust around." Star shrugged, digging at some roots with a trowel. "Honestly, I think I'm just worried about living on my own with Killian in his condition. You and Kato have both been life-savers through this. It's totally selfish..." She dug at the root violently.
Anna smiled a little till Star said something about Killian. "Is he getting violent or something?" She couldn't imagine him doing that, but then again there were a lot of surprising things in life.
"No, no...nothing like that." She sighed and looked up Anna. "He still thinks he's in the middle of the siege. Every now and again he'll wake up straight out of a dead sleep ready to fight. Sometimes he still asks about Mike and Timo too...I don't have the heart to tell him anymore that they are gone." She picked at the roots, throwing them in pile. "I have him...but I don't, you know?"
Sighing a little she shrugged. "Well if he can get outside maybe it'll start sinking in that't not what's happening." Stopping for a moment she gazed into Star's eyes. "You know its meant a lot to me having you around too. I need someone to talk to and push me around while Kato does all his work. He gets so wrapped up in it sometimes that I don't feel like he's even home at night. Well...in the house anyway."
"Talk to him about it. I'm sure he'll listen." Star suggests.
Anna shook her head. "Tell him to forget about his patients overnight? He never could. I need to think of something to get his attention." Smirking she pulled her shoes and socks off and wiggled her toes. "Something like that."
Star gasped. "Oh my gosh! Your feet! When did you get feeling back!?"
"I don't really feel much. Barely wiggling my toes and nothing else." Anna sighed. "Its been over 6 weeks and that's it. Still I know it would drive him up the wall. He's such a nerd." Giggling some she wiggled her toes. "Who thought that could be exciting?"
"Well considering you couldn't even do that two months ago its amazing." Star smiled. "Kato is gonna go crazy trying to help you start walking again. I know he's been doing research any time he's not with you or the patients."
"Oh being helpful is he?" Anna pulled herself a little further along. Her whole back was about ready to light on fire and she paused where she was for a moment. "You wanna help me into the chair for a few?" As soon as Star began helping her up Anna changed her mind. "No I decided this is fine for now. I'll just lay on my side and pretend I'm sunbathing. You know he won't give up. I don't think I get an option of staying in the wheelchair."
"Why would you want to though? If he can get you up on your own two feet again..."
"Because I'm a chicken." Anna laughed a little. "I don't handle pain with grace. I sit here and crack semi bitter jokes or try to pretend it doesn't affect me. I'm afraid it will hurt to walk again. Maybe as much as it hurts at night or worse."
"Have you told Kato about it? Maybe there's something he can give you to help."
"I could and then I would be a drug addict." Looking at Star she shrugged. "I used to shoot up all the time. He's never asked about that. Probably guessed by the little scars." Pointing to the pin prick marks all along her arms she sighed. "Don't want to get hooked on stuff again."
Star sighed lightly. "You know, they do have more natural pain remedies. Things like heat balms and salves, anti-inflammatory injections. You really should talk to him...he might have some good ideas. Or maybe Wittick. He could help too." Star put an hand on Anna's arm. "The last thing that should be stopping you from walking again, is pain."
"It could be worth a try." Anna sat up again and resumed pulling weeds. "How soon till Claire starts crawling? You'd think she would be trying by now?"
"Actually the fact that she's able to sit up with the weight of her bones is an incredible feat. Chip babies take twice as long to start moving as human babies do because of how their bones grow. It could be another year before she takes her first steps."
"Oh." Anna looked at the baby. "So how long does it take for a full blooded Chip baby to walk?" She was slightly concerned now if her and Kato got pregnant and last night they didn't have any protection. Not that their baby would have much Chip. It was a matter of not being ready.
"Eh...like two and half to three years...something like that." Star shrugged. "I've had to do alot of research to figure out what's natural for a chip babe and what's natural for a human. Right now...Claire's chip blood seems to be the more dominant one. Aside from that cough she caught from the other chips, she's never been sick..once."
"Never being sick...That's a bonus." Anna smiled a little. "So she doesn't cry much?"
"Oh, no. She cries..." Star rolls her eyes with an exasperated sigh. "The same thing that keeps her from getting sick is also the same thing that causes her to go through horrible growing pains ever couple weeks. She'll probably be starting her next round pretty soon here then its near non-stop crying for almost two weeks."
"Oh good lord." The little woman stared at the baby. "And she's huge. Ugh..." She was nearly sweating just thinking about it. "I really hope the size and growing pains are limited if Kato ever gets me pregnant." Anna peered at Star for a moment and a shocked expression came over her face. "No no no...we are not pregnant and I'm not trying for it."
Star smirks. "Killian and I weren't trying either and I got pregnant after only the second time." She shrugs. "The probably will be as bad. Kato isn't even a full blood, he just has some attributes of it. You're baby would be like 1/4th chippequoti..if that. So there's probably nothing to worry about there."
"Oh that makes me feel better. Only the second time." Anna started to laugh a little. "Hopefully being a quarter means only half the crying or less. I don't think I could handle 1 week of crying on end. Shouldn't we be about done with this row?" Looking ahead of herself she sighed. "Or not."
Star wiped off her hands. "Meh, I'm kinda done for the day. C'mon. I'll help you back in your chair and we'll get dinner going."
"Sounds good and then I'll think of some way to break the good and the bad news to Kato."
**********************************************************
Kato came in late that night looking tired. He pulled off his shoes and dropped onto the bed beside Anna. "You're still up? I figured you'd be asleep by now."
Tensing slightly as Kato dropped onto the bed she couldn't help almost glaring at him. "Oh well um..." It was hard to think of how to say it without sound a bit snippy. "Do you know of anything that might help with some aches and pains? You know something that wouldn't have me strung out."
"Uh, yeah. There are few things we have here." Kato gave her a worried look. "What's wrong? Is your shoulder giving you trouble?
Anna forced herself to turn onto her side so she could look at him a little better. "No...It's my back. Always hurts and..." Sitting up in the bed she pushed the covers off her legs so she could pull her foot out into plain view. "You'd better turn on the light this is serious." Just to get him nervous for a moment she kept her voice very solemn and once the lights were on she wiggled her toes. "I can move them a tiny bit!"
Kato's eyes widened. "Anna! That's incredible! That means the nerves in your back are healing!" The wheels in his head were already churning. "If I got the right supplies I could start a series of anti-inflammation shots and bio-regenerative shots that would increase the speed of your body's natural healing process and the other shot in combination with some salves and vitamins would help keep the pain level down."
"You're such a nerd." Giggling a little bit she pushed her leg under the covers. "Just get back in bed with me and lets think about it in the morning. You look tired and I've got a few ideas of my own."
**********************************************************
Star guided Killian to the kitchen by the hand and sat him down, pulling a chocolate covered cake out of the oven. She put a candle on top and lit it. "Its the 2nd year anniversary of us becoming a couple." She says with a soft smile, holding his hand. "I love you, Killian and we're going to get through this." He wouldn't remember this conversation soon, but she still tried to talk to him like he would.
Sometimes it was difficult not to feel a little irritated. "I'm not crippled." Killian still got headaches from time to time and he hadn't found that he couldn't do anything in regards to climbing or walking. Taking the seat he raised his eyebrows a little bit when she mentioned the 2 year anniversary. "That long? Doesn't feel like it." Grinning a little he leaned over and kissed her. "Nothing seems long around you."
She smiled sadly at him, returning the kiss. That statement was painfully true. She leans back and cuts a slice for both of them. "Remember the first time I served you chocolate cake?" She asked.
Star laughed. "I loved that camera. I wish it had lasted longer. Poor Kato...he was so confused. He kept saying things like 'this shouldn't be happening...the machine must be faulty'."
It was good to see her laugh. Killian smirked. "Yeah I could feel every one of those drilled holes in my leg for months." Laughing a little bit more he gazed at the plate for what felt like a long time. "I like seeing you smile."
She gave him a curious look. "Have I not been smiling much?
Shifting a little he rubbed his head. Killian had gotten the idea that something wasn't right with him. Nobody let him out of their sight and they were always asking weird questions like this. "I don't think so." He felt uncomfortable answering cause he was afraid he would give the wrong one.

He'd noticed. That was interesting. "Sorry. Things have been...busy. I'll try and remember to smile more for you." She leaned forward and kissed him. She'd become far more touchy with him since the accident, even though his mind wouldn't remember, she knew his body would...to an extent. She sat back and gestured to the cake. "You going to eat that? Or shall I?" She teased.
Killian couldn't tell if he gave her the right answer or not. Picking at the cake he almost missed the kiss and nodded his head. "Yeah I'll eat some of it. Get a fork and help with the rest." Resting his head on the palm of one hand he sighed. "I want to do some kind of work. Don't want to sit here all day."
Star had been trying to think of things he could do that wouldn't be ruined or put him in danger by his memory resetting. "You help with the fishing in the lake nearby, or..." There weren't that many options with him in his condition. She empathized with his frustration.
"Or why don't I just make a list of things that the animals need. I could work with the livestock, plant, do farming or something." Killian was trying his best not to lose his temper, but the jobs were a bit limited and he knew that nobody was flying ships. It had something to do with the siege that was now over. "I need to talk with Mike."
Star took a breath and bit her lip. "Not right now, Killian. Its getting late. He's probably sleeping. Tomorrow, ok?" Even after three weeks is was still so hard not to get emotional when thinking about Mike and Timo.
"He's up all night anyway. Worst I could do is interrupt a session with a whore." Sighing he set the fork aside. "There's something wrong. This isn't how we talk. Are we separated or something?" Killian just had this nagging feeling and he hated it. Best way to get rid of it was to ask.
Star hid her face by staring down at the plate, and putting a hand on her head. He knew something was wrong, but he never remembered. He'd asked this same question so many times in the last week that it had become difficult to sit with him for long periods of time. "No. Everything is alright, Killian. I'm just a little tired."
Frowning some he got up and offered her a hand. "Then why don't you go lay down? I can take care of Claire. We'll just put the body strap on and I can take her with me on a walk."
Claire. She hadn't let him hold her when she or someone else wasn't there. Last time he'd been changing her and he'd walked out of the room for something, then forgot he was taking care of her and wandered out of the house. The babe was left to sit in her dirty diaper for nearly an hour before anyone realized what had happened.
Star grabbed his hand. "No, no. She's sleeping. Just, sit with me."

"Oh." Killian sat down next to Star and pulled up the little pad. "Can you just write in there what's wrong. I know there's something wrong and nobody will tell me."
Star put a hand on his face. "We do tell you sometimes, Killian. You just don't remember. And in a little bit, you'll forget again." Her lip quivered and tears sprang to her eyes.
"No..." Killian frowned. "I remember things just fine. I remember when we met and...and I remember when we got married. Don't get upset. It's still me and I haven't forgot you."
Star broke, sobbing bitterly despite her attempts to keep it together. It was so hard. She missed being able to have real conversations with him. She missed being able to rely on him for things. It was exhausting watching him constantly for fear that he'd hurt himself or get lost. They were stuck...completely stuck in their relationship with no guarantee that he would ever recover. She wanted her husband back. She needed him.
Not sure what else to do Killian held her in a hug. "Its ok." Looking around the room for something or anything at all he about wracked his brain for something he could say that would help. "Hey we'll get through whatever this is like we do everything else eh?"
She simply nodded. That was her catch phrase. Together. But unlike before...he was so far behind. Right now, they were anything but together.
 
Killian was tired of being in the house. Grabbing his pad he decided to take himself outside for a walk. He was an adult and perfectly capable of doing that. Once he was a ways from the house he stuffed the pad into one of the side pockets on his pants. It felt good to get outside and wander around. Taking a little turn he just followed the scent of the barn. The barn was fairly safe.

It was a little odd to see Killian wandering in this side of the town. Star had kept a fairly tight leash on him since the injury though Witteck knew this he wasn't going to turn Killian away from exploring. He doubted that Star could keep him in the house and contained to the smaller walks where she could see him forever. Walking over to Killian he grinned. "How are you?"

"I'm fine. Not so much a headache today."

That was an unusual comment. Witteck figured he could make note of it. Killian was remembering something. Even if it was physical for now. He would perhaps ask Star later on if she had been encountering any little statements that seemed to hint at some kind of memory returning. "Ah...I'm glad to hear it. So do you have any questions so far about your recovery?" Witteck could see that Killian was trying very hard to come up with some word and he knew if he waited long enough it would come. Finally he got the question. It was the same that he'd been asked every time so far. "What's wrong with you? Well now if you had that pad with I could write it in and then you'd have a link to a few little things. I got some exercises you can do at home instead of coming to see me."

Anything that made Killian feel a little more self reliant was nice. Getting a little confused he rubbed his head and tried to think of where he left the pad. "I uh..." Finally he started to pat himself down and he found the pad in the pant pocket. "Uh right there." Patiently he waited until after the doctor was done and then Witteck asked him one of those weird questions.

"How did you remember where you had the pad?" The doctor figured he might as well see if there was some kind of method that Killian was adopting.

Frowning a little Killian shrugged. "I always put things in my side pockets." It was the only other spot he could think of. Looking at the pad and the diagnosis written on it he scowled. Short term memory loss. "I'm gonna finish my walk." Grumbling he shoved the pad into his pant pocket again and wandered off toward the edge of town. He had no memory of going to the barn. Instead he found a cage with little bear in it. The poor animal was crying loudly and he didn't see why it couldn't be let out for a little bit. Grabbing a rope from the top of the cage of he opened the door and let the cub out.

Tying the rope to the bear he started to drag it around till the bear would actually walk with him instead of pull, jerk and bawl loudly. "Oh c'mon." Growling back at the little bear he drug it toward the water. "Fish is exactly what your kind enjoys." Within a few minutes the bear was playing and splashing in the water. After the bear had caught a few fish in the shallows and eaten them Killian grabbed the bear to put it back in the cage.

Before he got even a few feet from the cage the bawling was so loud and pitiful that he couldn't ignore it. "You lousy little shit." Wandering back over to the cage he let the bear out and it willingly slipped its head into the rope and followed him around. About time he thought he could trust the little critter while he checked on the buzzing in his pocket the bear decided to take off chasing after a bug of sorts.

Frank saw Star outside looking a little stressed and he shook his head. "He's fine. Went down toward the barns about 3 hours ago." It was probably time for another round of treatments or lunch. Who knew if Killian would remember.

Finally, several scratches later and a few new bruises Killian had managed to tackle the bear. "Stop." Getting to his knees he released the cub and held onto the leash with one hand. "Its time to eat." He was getting hungry and he figured it had to be that time of day. As he got closer to the cage with the bear it began bawling again and he remembered how well that went. On the way toward the main part of town he saw a pad flashing on the ground. Walking toward it he saw his name was flashing and a clock that was supposed to indicate something. Picking it up this time he held tighter to the bear. Star wanted him back at the house for something. Stuffing the pad into a pocket he started running for the house with the bear in tow.

By the time he reached the house Killian coughed a few times and he pushed the door open. "Star I'm home."

************************************************************

Anna was a little surprised and dismayed when over the next few weeks she began to gain some feeling to her legs. It was tingling and now it was aching. Of course rather than being sympathetic to the pains it only seemed to excite Kato. "Kato that hurts." Anna winced a little when he bent her legs. "My legs hurt when you do that? Doesn't that mean its bad for me?"

"No. The pain means your nerves are working properly and the muscles are responding." He replied. Kato seemed thrilled by the fact she was in pain.

"How many more times are you going to bend my leg?" Taking a deep breath she grunted with the effort it took for him to move her leg for her.

"We need to build the muscles back up in your legs. It won't take as long as it did with Star, however, unlike with her, your body seems to have forgotten where your legs are and how to control the muscle. That in itself will take some time as well." After another five minutes of leg movements and stretches he moved to the other side and began repeating the process. "Have the shots been helping?"

Tears started to come to Anna's eyes. "Ooh ow...." The next leg hadn't been moved at all and it was especially sore when he first grabbed it. "The shots help a little till you decide to turn into King Kong and rip my legs off." Grumbling a little she did her best not to whine even though it did hurt.

"I know...but trust me, its going to be worth it. After a few weeks of this you'll be able to stand and walk on your own."

"That feels like a really long time right now." Anna laid back and decided if she didn't watch him move her legs it might be less painful. Then a very naughty idea came to her mind. "You know I think I'll wear a short skirt next time we do this." She could feel him pause and she started to laugh.

Kato wasn't sure wether he should say yes he wanted that or stop distracting me. Eventually he opted to not respond, lest he embarrass himself, and returned to stretching her leg. He finally ends the stretches. He leaves the room and comes back later with hot blankets and wraps them around her legs, and begins to massage them gently. "We really should do this three times a day but, seeing how it hurts you so, we'll just do it morning and night....for now."

"Oooh." Anna tried to be playful as he wrapped her legs up. "I've got appointments with the best looking doctor in town and you're not the only one." Sitting up she pulled him closer for a kiss. "So there. Try to be a stick in the mud all you want, but its not gonna work."

"I'm not really that dull am I?" He frowns slightly.

A little smirk came to her face. "Oh you try, but you're getting better at being wild."

"I'm not even sure what being wild means." He shakes his head and sits beside her, putting an arm around her shoulders. "When you start walking again, do you want to go back? Or...do you want to stay here?"

Anna's eyes almost got a glint to them at the prospect. "What would we do if we went back? You know it would be tempting to go to the parties. What if they were only the parties you could come to?"

"You know I've never been one who cares about the noble life. If I can't help people...I am unfulfilled. But I can do that here...and I can do that there. Either way...together with you, I am happy."

"Then maybe we should stay here." Anna gently brushed her hand through his hair. "I have friends here and I doubt I would get shot the night you decide to propose to me this time."

"That would be better, yes." His eyes took on a hint of sadness. The pain of that still hadn't fully faded. Perhaps the only reason he had yet to propose. There was still that lingering doubt and fear...what if there was something else she'd kept hidden from him out of fear. He took a breath and his eyes refocused. "I'll get us some dinner." He stood from the bed.

Anna sighed. "You know if you keep on bottling it up it won't change what happened. I talk about it cause it is uncomfortable and it gets easier with practice. If I can admit that it happened then I can manage the fact that I don't look good in some of my dresses anymore. Some of those off the shoulder dresses kind of show off the scar and my skirts show off the bullet hole in my leg. I keep wearing what I like and I talk about it. I'm comfortable with me and you need to do what helps you come to terms with what happened."

"There is nothing to say. What happened, happened and I have no desire to be angry any longer." Kato replied softly. "It'll fade in time."

"Good then we're agreed. Help me get up and I'll chop the veggies for dinner." Anna held her hands out to him and wiggled her fingers impatiently.

Kato smiled lightly and lifted her up with ease, setting her in the wheelchair and pushing her towards the kitchen.
 
She was showering for 20 minutes. 20 minutes! Her eyes off Killian for that short amount of time and he'd already disappeared. "Killian!" She checked the gps on her watch, but it was hard to tell where he was within the 500 yards the gps put him. She sighed wanting to go after him, but knowing that restricting him was probably not going to help him regain his short term memory. She waited...and waited, and waited. By the three hour mark she was getting really concerned since his vital signs kept fluctuating. Star messaged him on the data pad and stood out on the porch, looking for any sign of him. Frank passed by mentioning the barn. She relaxed slightly. Yesterday he'd mentioned wanting to work with the animals. Maybe he was simply doing that. Eventually, she was going to have to start trusting him to take care of himself again.

She returned to the kitchen and smirked at Claire who stared at her and follwed her mother with her eyes as she passed. "What? Don't look at me like that. You just ate."
Claire burst into a series of laughter. "Ma, ba ba ba."
Star blinked and rushed to Claire's side. "Did you just say, Ma?"
Claire continued to babble and Star pouted. Just noises. But syllables at least. Better then the whining and coo'ing noises. She stood back up just in time to watch Killian come through the door. And right behind him...a bear cub!! Star screeched and gathered Claire in her arms. "KILLLIAN! WHY DO YOU HAVE A BEAR ON A LEASH!!! IN OUR HOME!????" She exclaimed. What was he thinking!?!?!?!?!
Killian jolted when she screamed at him. "I-I uh....I felt bad for it."
"Killian...its a bear! A bear! Why would you feel bad for it!? Its not like a dog...."
The little creature half frightened by the woman's yelling started to bawl and nudge at Killian's hand. Standing onto its hind legs the cub leaned heavily on him and bawled again. "Um..." Killian was trying to concentrate and he pushed on the cub's head to get it down. "That would be why?"
Star started to snicker. She couldn't help herself. She covered her mouth with a hand and began laughing so hard she was almost crying. "Oh my gosh...Killian. I think the bear thinks your its mother." She laughed again.
"Huh." Glancing down at the bear he nudged it away with his knee and the cub tumbled over and decided to come back and throw itself on his leg. Nearly losing his balance he grabbed for the door jam. "What were you calling about?" With the other hand he was trying to get the bear off himself again.
"Well you were gone for three hours...I was getting worried. And..its dinner time. But we are not eating with that thing in the house. Go put it back in its cage. You can play with it later."
"I uh..." Killian rubbed his head. "I don't know where I found it. Could probably tie the bear in the back yard."
Star looked none to pleased with the idea but she finally sighs. "Fine."
"Good." Fighting with the bear all the way to the backyard he tied it to the tree and the bear threw its head in the air and started to bawl. "Shut up." Killian muttered at the bear and then he noticed that Frank was outside and he didn't remember talking to him for a while so he started to walk over to Frank's garden.
Star had everything set at the dinner table. She could hear the bear bawling even from here. She rubbed her eyes and waited for Killian to come back. Only he didn't. She sighed and walked back outside looking for him. "Killian!?"
"Hey Frank." Leaning against the little fence he peered at the ground. "What you got sproutin?"
The other man grinned. "Onions.'
Killian was just getting ready to ask Frank if he and Lisa wanted to come over for dinner when he heard Star yelling for him. "Oh...Wife's calling." A funny grin came to the other man's face and Killian frowned slightly before he turned around to go back to the house. When got to the door he noticed that Star didn't quite look amused. "What?"
She sighed wearily and leaned against the door, looking tired. "Dinner." She gestured inside the house.
"Oh alright." Killian stepped into the house and he frowned slightly. There was a tremendous amount of noise coming from outside that had suddenly started and he peered out the door. "Right...I got a bear."
"Yes, you got a bear. Lord knows why...but you did." Star sits at the table. "Close the door...the bear will survive for a few minutes while we eat."
"Yeah yeah I know." Shutting the door he then wandered over to the kitchen sink and washed his hands an up his arms. He noticed several scratches and he had to think of how it happened then he chuckled a little. "I had to tackle that damn bear earlier. Decided he wanted to run after a bug."
Star looked up at him startled. "You...you did? When?"
Killian shrugged. "I don't know." Rubbing a little harder at the dirty spot on his arm he finally got the dirt out of the scratch.
Star couldn't help but smile. He'd remembered something that had happened earlier that day. Maybe several hours ago. Thank god...maybe he was improving! "Come eat, Killian and tell me about your day." Maybe he remembered other things.
Drying his hands off he sat down at the table and tried to think of anything else to say. "Um..." Shaking his head he sighed. "I uh...." Killian leaned over and he grabbed his pad out of his pocket. Maybe he logged something in the pad. There was a big X on the day that he was on and he clicked on it for any entries. The only thing that came up was the short term memory loss. Seeing the diagnosis brought a flood of feelings all over again. "Somebody wrote this for me." He knew he didn't do it.
Star looked over at him. "Oh. That was probably Dr. Wittick. He's been helping you."
"I know who Doctor Witteck is." Killian clenched his jaw. "I don't want my memory to be like this."
"You're getting better, Killian. You remembered the bear. You remember running after it. You're improving." Star encourages him.
"Still doesn't change the fact that I don't remember the doctor writing this on my pad or that I just talked with Frank or anything else. Its like for however long I've had this thing I don't remember stuff." Killian dropped his head into his hands. He was trying so hard not become angry or violent and he wanted to do something and he felt so worthless.
"I know, Killian. I know." She stroked his hair. "Well, you can't leave that bear tied up constantly. I guess you're just gonna have to train it not to eat the other animals or hurt anyone in the colony." She suggests then writes it on his datapad. Train the bear.
Letting out a long breath he pulled away from her hands. "I'm not a kid." Taking a bite of the food he barely chewed it and swallowed. "I won't leave the bear tied up. Somebody has to do something with it. Either I'll train it or shoot it." Star sat back but she continued to smile. He was remembering.
*****************************************************************
He knelt in the bed of flowers. Excited and eager for his bride to come forth. But when the door opened blood spilled forth like a flood and Anna's body tumbled to the ground. "NO! Anna! No!" He rushed to her side and scooped her up in his arms. "No, please. I was going to spend the rest of my life with you." He touched her face and it shifted to the face of another person. "No! No! Anna, I know you're under there. Come back! Anna!"

Kato's eyes shot open, sweat trickling down his face. He felt sick to his stomach. Maybe something he'd eaten. He sat up and a small hand came to rest on his back, making him aware of the sweat that had soaked even his clothes. "I'm fine. Go back to sleep." He got up and took a brief shower, trying to wash the dream away. It felt so vivid. The smell of the blood, the feel of her in his arms. He doubted he'd be able to go back to sleep after that, and got dressed. Maybe he'd just read...
Someone pounded the door. "Doctor Kato!" It sounded like Frank. Kato opened the door. The man looked panicked and he didn't have to say a word for Kato to assume what was going on. "Lisa, she collapsed and she won't wake up."
"Go back to her, I'll be right there." Frank sprinted off and Kato hurried back to his room to get his medical bag. "Lisa collapsed. I'm going to go check on her. Be back in a bit." He kissed Anna on the head, having a flashback of her lying in the ship...dying. It was almost enough to keep him from leaving her. He hesitated. A pregnant mother needed him. He had to go. She was safe here.

Kato rushed to Frank and Lisa's home, coming through the door. Lisa was conscious again, resting in Frank's arms. He knew from conversation around the colony that she was about 6 months pregnant but he'd never met her in person. "Hello, Lisa. I'm Kato. I helped Star through her pregnancy. Well, as much as I could."
"Hi." She replies weakly, her face pale.
"Has your water broken, are you feeling any cramps?" Kato asked as he checked her blood pressure.
"No, and no."
"What were you doing before you fainted?"
"We were arguing." Frank looked ashamed. "It...it got a little heated and then she just...fell."
Kato listened to her heart and pulled off the monitor off her arm. "Well your blood pressure is very low. That is normally what causes someone to faint. I want to take you back to the ship for further tests alright?"
They both nod and Frank lifts Lisa into his arms and follows him to the ship.
******************************************************
"Well, I have good news and less-than good news." Kato says after a long series of tests and scans that had lasted well into the wee hours of the morning. "The less than good is that you have gestational diabetes. Its a form of diabetes that only affects the mother during pregnancy due to low insulin levels. You've probably been experiencing symptons for a few weeks now and just didn't realize it. Extreme fatigue, excessively thirsty?"
Frank and Lisa looked at one another. "Yes."
"Well its pretty common with twins. Its nothing to be overly concerned about and easily treated."
"Wait...did you say twins?" Frank gawked.
Kato smiled and held up a scan on his datapad. "A boy and a girl. Congratulations."
 
Killian's head hurt a little bit when he woke up. That was becoming normal though. He was used to it hurting in the morning. Almost excitedly he nudged Star. "My head hurt yesterday!"

Star groaned and turned over. "That's nice Killian." She almost went back to sleep but the words echoed in her head. She blinked and turned back to him. "Yesterday. You remembered yesterday!?" She gripped his hand.

The little bit of excitement left as soon as she asked him about yesterday. "No I don't remember yesterday. I remember my head hurt." Grumbling he got out of the bed. "I'm gonna get something for the headache and go back to sleep now." Wandering through the living room and flicking the kitchen light on he got a little glass of water and two pills for the headache before wandering back to their room.

He may not have been excited about that little progress, but for her it was the light in the dark tunnel she'd been hoping desperately for. "We'll get through this." She whispered, smiling and laying back down.

Killian showed the little tablets to Star to be sure they were the right ones before he took them and laid back down in the bed. He could hear the bear had started bawling since it saw him turn the light on in the kitchen. "Its only..." Reaching for his pad he checked the time. "3am. My gosh." Groaning he buried his head in the pillow and started to doze off. The little bit of thumping on the door didn't even cause him to stir or the sound of the front door creaking open. It wasn't till Killian felt a sloppy wet tongue and thick fur start to brush against his arms that he moved. Moaning a little in his sleep he turned away from it and flopped an arm over star. Stretching its neck as far as it could the bear then peered at the man in the bed and blinked a few times before it began to try and climb into the bed with him.

"Ugh...Killian, your breath." Star groans, scooting away. A bear-like moan. Her eyes pop open. "Killan!" She squeaked. "Its in the house! The bear is right on top of you! IN OUR ROOM!" She leapt out of bed and grabbed her gun, preparing to shoot it.

The bear breathed heavily right over their faces and it tried to wiggle its way in between them. Killian grunted a little when he felt something pressing on his still somewhat sore ribs. "What?" Moving his hand it came into contact with something far hairier than Star. Hearing the panic in Star's voice he bolted upright to find himself facing a very happy looking cub. "Put the gun down! I don't care to get shot." Wrapping one arm around the cub he rolled with it to the edge of the bed and pushed it off onto the floor. "You stay there." Glancing back at Star he beckoned for her to come back to bed. "Not like tying him up outside helped and I'm too tired to take him outside."

"WE HAVE A BABY IN THE HOUSE! I'm not sleeping with that thing! It or me, hun." She crossed her arms, glaring.

Killian sat up in the bed. "Fine I'll take it outside." Getting out of the bed he grabbed the cub by the scruff of its neck and started to drag it outside with himself. He barely got it tied up and into the house when the door started to rattle and then the bear wandered back in. "No!" He was tired and his head only hurt more getting up and wandering around without taking a rest. "You stupid piece of shit." Grabbing the animal by the scruff of its neck he set it outside the door and left it there. This time Killian settled on the floor in front of the door to be sure he got some rest and the bear didn't sneak in again.

Star came out an hour later to find Killian sleeping on the floor just to keep the cub out. She sighed and shook her head, kneeling beside Killian and patting his arm. "Fine. It can come inside. But if tries getting on the bed again, I will shoot it."

The cub had managed to push the door open a crack and its nose was just inside snuffling Killian's hair while he slept. Killian looked up at Star with bleary eyes and nodded before he laid his head down and went back to sleep on the floor.

***************************************

After a short appointment with Killian outside the doctor went into the house to talk with Star. His nose wrinkled slightly. Something smelled terrible, like bear, and Killian. Unfortunately the man smelled an awful lot like the critter and he imagined it had something to do with the bath Killian was attempting to give the bawling animal. "I uh...Well I wanted to know if you've noticed any improvement since he has started taking on a few more regular tasks and daily activities."

"Actually yes. He's remembering more details from hours before and even from a day before, especially details that have been repeated frequently." Star replied. "Ugh....the house smells, lets go outside." She takes him to the porch.

Witteck smiled. "Good. It might start out slow and..." Stepping outside with her he took a deep breath. "Thank you. Now one other thing. He still seems to have all his past memory without problems?"

"As far as I can tell." Star nods. "Why?"

The man sighed. "Potentially some of these things that you're experiencing could be turned to long term memory. You might be able to find links. The brain was damaged some and he has to create new pathways to remember things. Is there a pattern to how he remembers things? Is it because he's doing something? Does he draw, write, or anything like that to remember?"

Star put a hand in her palm. "Well, its only been a few times so far and it seems random. He remembered I wasn't smiling as much as I used too, and face is something he constantly sees. He remembered chasing the bear around randomly a few hours after it happened. " She continued to think. "He also had a moment where he remembered talking to Frank and he remembered someone writing down that he had short term memory loss on his pad. It seems pretty random."

Witteck thought for a moment. "Repetition helps, it always has. It almost sounds like the memory is action based. I happened to ask him why he was giving the bear a bath and he could tell me that you said it stank and apparently it tried to get into bed with you this morning." Chuckling a little the man quickly regained his composure. "I imagine that would be a memorable moment regardless."

Star shudders. "I almost shot it." Then she smiles. "But if that bear helps him get his short term memory back then I will bare with the smell...no pun intended."

The man smiled. "Oh I think the bear helps some. It maybe just revealed that perhaps his key for memory at this time is going to be activity related. Experiment with it and see how it goes. Have a conversation just sitting and try one walking with him. Write down any differences. It could start healing that pathway in the brain and allow for a smoother transition in the future that will allow for less activity to retain memory."

Star smiled, 'Thanks Witteck. I will." The man nodded to her and started away from the house. There was plenty for him to check on and keep up with. At least it seemed that Star was able to see the light at the end of the tunnel even when the first glimmer seemed to come in the shape of a bear.

*******************************************************************************

Anna woke up in the room without Kato. Looking around she reached for her robe that hung on the edge of her wheelchair. "Oooh." Grumbling a little bit she struggled to get herself into the chair and toppled over instead. Laying on the floor for a few minutes she bit back the tears that had begun to well up. Her back hurt this morning and her legs.

Then as if her situation couldn't get more embarrassing the Chippequoti woman came in to help her off the floor. Anna tried to pull her robe shut and her scanty little nightie was pulled up past at least one butt cheek. "Oh this is lovely."

A small grin came to the other woman's face and Anna just shook her head. "So I take it he's gone this morning." She faintly remembered Kato waking up sweating in the night and she wondered if he was sick though now she was thinking he had been called out. Sometimes the night time all seemed to blend together. "Maybe we'll go see Star today after I get dressed." Looking up at the woman she noticed a fresh incision on her neck. "So you're hopefully getting your voice back?"

Nodding the woman smiled at her. Anna grinned back. "Well that's good. I need to get going to wreak havoc. Time to see what trouble there is today."
 
After Kato had sent Lisa and Frank back home to rest he gathered his bag and shuffled out of the ship and back to the house. He rubbed his eyes wearily pushed through the door. Anna wasn't home. Maybe she'd gone off with Sooni to visit friends. He collapsed on the bed and instantly fell asleep. The same dream happened again. Kato wondered why he was suddenly having these dreams. Then he realized it was probably because he'd been seriously considering proposing to her again...and all that fear and pain he'd been trying to bury was rising again to the surface. Maybe he was going to have to talk to her after all. Another desperate soul pounded on his door merely two hours later. Someone had cut their leg open with an axe and Wittick was in the middle of another surgery and the other doctor was unavailable. He rolled out of bed wearily and hurried off to help.

***********************************************
Star watched Killian finish scrubbing the bear down. By now her bathroom and been destroyed. Why he'd thought it would be a good idea to wash the bear in there, she wasn't sure. She stuck her tongue out at the bear as Killian passed by with it. "If you're going to make it a pet, you'll need to name it." Star remembered what Witteck had said about action possible helping him remember things better. "Get the bear outside then come back in and help me clean."
Water dripped from Killian's pant legs and shirt. He felt a little irritated with the cub wanting to play and he had been forced to get in with it to get the animal cleaned off. On the way out the door he heard Star and he grunted. "I'll call it Cin short for Cinnamon." The bear wandered around outside and peered into the windows crying occasionally at Killian when he came back into the house.
She had the broom, mop, rags and soap ready by the time he came back. Hopefully house cleaning counted as activity. "Did you know that Lisa is pregnant with twins?" Star asked sweeping the floors around their bedroom while Killian did the bathroom. While Star was busy with sweeping the floors Killian tried to scrub the bathroom down and collect all the clumps of hair out of the drain. "Lisa has twins?!" Crawling to the edge of the door with a clump of hair in one hand he frowned. "Are you serious?"
"Huh." Killian scooted back into the bathroom and finally got himself out of the tub, it looked and smelled clean. Then he had to move onto the rest of the bathroom where they had managed to splatter things with water. "I'm gonna train that dumb bear to sleep outside." A pound at the window sounded and he jumped up hitting his head on the towel bar. "Ow!" Holding the back of his head he frowned and peered out the window at the bear.
Star laughed. "Good, Cause I don't want to do this everyday. Maybe you should build it...Cin...a pen or little house of his own." She'd begun mopping the floors, trying to get the muddy bear prints off the floor while the blankets and sheets were in the washer in the ship. "Have you thought about how you're going to train it?" She asked
curiously. "Its not exactly like a dog where you can just tell it to sit and give it treats."
Getting back to work he listened to Star yelling from the bedroom. "Yeah you train them the same way. I'll just have to go fishing and get some extra fish for the bear to eat. Train him to stay so he doesn't try sleeping with me again."
"Since when did you learn to train bears?"
Killian smirked. "Since I decided to keep one I guess."
Star rolled her eyes. "I hope it works." Both the bear and the conversation...she hoped it worked.

A few hours later while she cooked lunch she observed Killian outside with Cin. He looked happier than he had in the last few weeks, finally having something to do. She brought a sandwich to him and sat beside him while the bear rolled in the dirt. "How's it going with, Cin?"
Taking the sandwich Killian lifted one leg off the ground temporarily from where he sat. "Just working on training it not jump me rando...." Scrambling off the ground he got himself just out of reach and pushed the little bear aside. "No!" With a tired grunt the little bear looked up at him and stretched its neck toward the sandwich. Killan tore a piece off and held it in his hand which he half expected the bear to try and eat with the food.
Star made a face as the massive tongue nearly swallowed Killian's hand. She shuddered slightly at at her sandwich as fast as possible to avoid the same thing happening to her. "Did I tell you what's going on with Lisa?" She asked hopefully.
At least the bear had been gentle though his hand was covered in slobber. Killian wiped it off on the side of his pants and he was about to take a bite when Star asked him a question. "Uh huh...." Taking a bite of food he chewed it and chewed till he noticed she actually wanted him to expound and then he swallowed. "She's having twins."
Star nearly jumped him. She squeeled and have him a strong kiss. "AHHH! Killian! That conversation was hours ago!!! You remembered it!!"
"Whoa!" Killian tried to get himself turned so she wouldn't side swipe him, but she still did and her kiss was a little harder than usual. "Ok, I'm starting to think I live with two bears now."
She punched his shoulder playfully, still grinning like a mad-woman. "You have no idea how great this is do you? Wittick thought that the key to you remembering things was simply activities. Here I've been keeping you cooped up all this time terrified you'd get lost or something would happen but...all you needed was more activity." She put a hand on the back of her head looking guilty.
Killian shrugged a little bit. "Well at least I don't remember that part."
"Yeah." She smiles at him softly. "I'm just glad you're improving." She chuckles. "Heh, I think I got a taste of how you felt when I lost all my memory."
Moving a little bit closer to Star Killian made sure that Cin was busy rolling around before he pulled Star into a kiss. "It didn't change how I felt about you."
"I don't know how you did it. Three weeks has been torture. You...you suffered for months! We weren't even a couple. How did you manage?"
"I had help and lots of it." Killian moved a little closer wrapped his arms around her. "Got frustrated a lot and kept on hoping."
She leaned against his chest, holding him. It finally felt like she had him back. "Thankyou for not giving up on me."
The moment was about to get ruined and Killian moved one arm out to stop the bear. "I could say the same. You've had more stuff to deal with than a stupid hit on the head."
"Yeah, it hasn't been easy. But...its been worth it." She smiled up at him, a sad light coming to her eyes. He still didn't know that Mike and Timo were gone. She was going to have to tell him all over again. But maybe...not right now. Star smirked as the bear whined for attention. She gave Killian a softer kiss on the cheek and stood. "I'll let you two get back to it. And Killian...you may want to shave when you get back to the house...you're starting to look like a bear yourself." She teased.
He hadn't even noticed the beard till Star said something. Killian hated having a beard. Usually he did his best to stay clean shaven and that mostly because of the games. No chance the shave there and it brought back bad memories. "Uh huh...I'll shave before bed tonight."
*********************************************************
Star had just finished changing Claire when a knock sounded at the door. "Anna! Just in time for some hotcocoa. Come on in." Sooni pushed the wheelchair over the threshold of the house and turned to leave. Star would let Anna decide if she wanted the Chip to stay around.
Anna beckoned for Sooni to come with her. "C'mon. You might as well join us and you can use my pad if you want to say something we'll wait for you." She hated to see the Chip woman excluded or treated like a servant. At this point Anna viewed her as more of a friend.
Sooni smiled softly and nodded, joining them at the table. When Star passed her the mug of hot brown liquid she smelled it curiously, wrinkiling her nose uncertainly. Star laughed. "Its good. Try it."
Sooni did, then smiled brightly in approval. Star smirked. "Told you." She looked over at Anna. "How's the walking going!? Details!"
"I'm not walking yet. He's just doing all that leg moving stuff and it hurts." Anna smirked. "I'm gonna put on a short skirt before he does the one tonight."
Star rolled her eyes. "Naughty woman..." Sooni nearly chocked on the hot-cocoa with a snorting laugh.
Giving a little shrug she grinned. "Its only cause the rest of you are jealous. Wish you had the guts to do what I do. "
"I get plenty of action on my own thankyou." Star raised her eyebrows at Anna. "But when you get pregnant, you'll be coming to me for advice and I'll be teasing you about where your guts got you." She snickers.
A tint of pink came to Anna's face. "You know that's not funny. I'm seriously trying to find a way to get some protection and all the weirdo's around here don't seem to know what it is. If I would have thought of it I might have brought that box with me from home."
Star looked over at Sooni as she typed on her datapad. She held it up. "Chippequoti have a much harder time getting pregnant than humans which is why 'protection' for us in nearly unheard of."
The red on Anna's cheeks grew. "I didn't mean you guys. I mean the planets for supply. They don't even know what it is. Fuel and trading is all they deal and apparently nobody around here asks for that stuff. Sooni I really didn't mean you." As her embarrassment grew so did the red on her face.
Star laughed. "Anna...you're turning red. I think that's the first I've seen you get so flustered."
"Well...I really don't want to get prego and I don't want to give up the fun either."
Star shrugs. "It's a tough situation I know. Thankyou, God I'm still nursing."
Sooni typed on the pad. "The woman. Our cycles are different from humans and there a much larger space of time in between fertility. It might have to do with the fact we live two to three times longer than humans. Why?"
"Ummm..." Anna stared at that question. It was a great big one that she didn't know the answer for. "I guess we age faster."
Sooni laughed hoarsely and typed again. "No. I mean, why did you ask? Or...were you just curious?"
Now that she understood the why she turned red again. "Oh well...I was hoping there was something from the transplant that would make Kato less likely to get me."
"Transplant?" Sooni typed again, confused.
"Kato was dying of a human disease that aged him way more rapidly than he should have." Anna got quiet for a minute. "He could barely row a boat. It was so pathetic and I heard about a doctor, Witteck that had studied Chippequoti his entire life so I contacted him and he agreed to do an experimental surgery. He took some bone marrow from Killian and replaced some of Kato's with it then gave Kato the synthesizing shots and it cured him."
Sooni's eyes widened. "That's possible?"
Star nodded. "Same for me too. Claire is a half-chip and she wouldn't have survived if I hadn't gotten the transplant that allowed me to produce the nutrients she needed."
Sooni typed again. "I have never heard of a half-chip. Our people regard bloodlines religiously." Her head drooped a bit and she typed again. "That is why I ended up not going to that man even after you made me pretty. My blood is too weak. I am only good as a slave."
Anna's eyes dropped to the pad and she read it a few times. "Does he think that or is it you being nervous? Why do the bloodlines matter so much?"
"Cause of their bones." Star replies. "The chips have this whole system where mates are put together based on the strength or weakness of their blood in order to sustain the viability of their bones. I don't know all the details but you can only have children with a mate in the class chosen for you."
Sooni typed. "Its a culture thing. All the chips feel that way, especially those with strong blood. Having children with a weak blooded female guarantees weaker children and thus a lower station."
It made Anna curious again. She was learning a great deal about them. "What about Killian? He doesn't feel like that. Is his blood weaker?"
"Killian didn't grow up with the chippequoti." Star replies. "Apparently he comes from a very strong blood line but since he grew up human he had no value for that. They certainly did everything in their power to force me away though when we visited."
Sooni smirked. "I imagine they did. A strong blood marrying down to the level of human is considered one of the greatest atrocities a chippequoti can commit."
"Does that mean that the Chippequoti here do not like him?" Anna was starting to get a little worried. Perhaps there would be a problem brewing if they all knew that Killian was a strong blood as they called it.
Sooni shrugs. "I like him. He saved our lives from those mines and gave us a chance to get revenge on the people who put us there and tortured us. But...since no one can talk, I am uncertain how the majority of them view him."
Anna nodded. "Well I imagine that puts a damper on things. Not being able to talk. You know this class thing isn't going to work very well since you're the only Chippeqouti around unless you all want to start mingling with humans." She still had some hope for Sooni and her man.
Sooni shrugged and typed again. "I am not certain what we'll do. Most are hesitant to form new bonds for fear of disrupting or damaging the blood line. Some of the weaker females might try and take advantage of the stronger bloods, but the males are going to be wary of that as well."
"Oh good grief." Anna sighed. "Its not like those guys have a choice. Believe me. They go long enough without the fun and they'll start looking."
Sooni smiled lightly. "Perhaps."
"Are they patient enough to last 7 years or more? That's how long it takes to get home." Anna had gathered that at some point though she was confused about how the Cryo chambers worked.
"I'm not certain we can go home. The bippens have decimated our planet and people." Sooni types out sadly. "We are nomads now...something that has not been for thousands of years. Perhaps, when we have rebuilt our population, we will destroy the bippens once and for all. Yet another reason for the importance of the bloodlines staying in tact."
Anna nodded. "And in the meantime you all grow old and nomad around looking for someone that tells you their bloodline is right. How do you know you'll find one in your class?"
"There are certain blood tests chippequoti doctors can perform. But it is far more complicated than simply finding one in our own class. If the blood is too weak, it must be paired with someone a little stronger to help build the blood back up. If the blood is too strong, they must pair with someone a little weaker to prevent a catastrophe of the bones. It was a process done by the Council of Elders. Without our elders, and our papers...we may have to resort to simply guessing the best pairings."
"Sounds pretty complicated." Anna had finally given up trying to talk Sooni out of their way of doing things. "That's pretty problematic I guess."
Star put a hand on Sooni's hand. "Claire is strong...and she's a half blood. The whole hierarchy of blood with your people, may very will be just a shame to keep people in a system of nobles and slaves. I would not be too concerned about it."
Sooni gave her a sympathetic look. "If that is what you think, then you do not understand our people very well at all. Thankyou anyway for your words and attempts to understand."
"Well then lets make the most of this we can." Anna couldn't help herself. "You might as well torture them by being as beautiful and tempting as you can. Make those boys wish they weren't so high class."
Sooni looked down with a shy smile and Star chuckled. "Look out Chippequoti...here comes Sooni."
*********************************************************
The entire day was non-stop needs. He couldn't even remember if he'd gotten around to eating. A cough had started deep in his chest and the doctor within him was warning him to try and get some rest before he succumbed to the cough some of the chippequoti had been fighting. He wasn't sure if it would affect him the same, being that he only had chip bone marrow but he didn't want to risk it. Still, there was so much to be done.

Kato found Anna inside eating with Sooni who hadn't left her side. When the chippequoti saw him she patted Anna's hand, winked and left the two alone. He gave Anna a kiss on the forehead and sat across from her at the table picking up a bread roll with soft sigh followed by a cough. "Your back still hurting? Oh, shoot." He dropped the roll with a sigh. "I never gave you your shot today or helped you with your exercises. I'm sorry. You must be in alot of pain. I'll go get the medicine for you." He stood again.
 
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