Night City Aliens: The Wandering Planet

Ch 19: End of and Empire, Part 1

My earliest memory would probably be... on the Ba'als Thunder. It was an old galactic cruiser, and my dad was overseeing its decommissioning. He was a high-ranking, military engineer and was allowed to bring me and my mom on the ship's last passage.

---

A tiny girl stood on the cruiser's observation deck, standing on her tiptoes to watch the ocean of stars. She was still too young to fully grasp the vastness of the void before her, but the sight always filled her with wonder. What would it be like to reach out and grab one of those little lights in the distance?

"Rana," a woman spoke, snapping the little girl out of her daydreaming.

The girl turned to see a tall woman with light green skin and long, white hair much like her own. Looking up to meet her gaze, Rana held out her hands to be picked up by the motherly figure.

"What do we say?" the woman pleasantly asked.

"Please, pick me up, Mommy," Rana said. "I want to watch the stars."

"Alright, sweetie." The woman picked up Rana, both arms under the girl's bottom as to provide a stable seat. "You're getting too big for this," she panted.

"Woooow," Rana gasped in amazement. "There's so many!" Her wide eyes twinkled in the star field's glow, drawing a small giggle from her mother.

"The Bajor Cluster is always beautiful to see up close," the woman said as she looked out the ship's window. She turned back to the girl. "Just like my little Rana." She nuzzled her head against her daughter's making the little girl smile. Together, they watched the stars float on by, daughter cradled in her mother's arms.

The peaceful moment was cut short by the mother starting to gag. She quickly put Rana down and covered her mouth.

"Mommy?" Rana asked with a tinge of fear. Her mother fell into a coughing fit but was able to get it under control after a minute.

"It's alright, sweetie," the mother reassured. She wiped off her mouth and smiled at her daughter. "Mommy is ok."

Rana nodded at her mother but couldn't stop staring at the drop of emerald blood on the woman's chin.

---

Mom suffered from a rare, lung condition her entire life. It could normally be controlled with medication, but...

Pregnancy took a lot out of her. After I was born, her health started to deteriorate. She died less than a year after the tour.

---

Rana was kneeling on the temple floor with a hundred others, her father directly to her left. She had never been to a funeral. She didn't fully understand why all the people had gathered in the stone hall. She didn't understand why she had to wear a white robe, or why she had to follow along with the ceremony. Rana just knew her mother was gone, and she missed her very much.

After the ceremony, all the adults had gathered outside under the dark red sky. Rana looked up in hopes to see a few stars, but it was always cloudy on Narjahim. Star gazing was a rarity on the surface. She gave up and decided to follow her father around, as he was the only familiar face in the crowd.

"Daddy, can we go home?" she asked, tugging on the sleave of his robe.

"Not now, Rana," he said. "Why don't you go play with the other children?" He pointed over to a group of kids playing schoolyard games at the far end of the field, before turning back to his conversation.

Rana walked off pouting. Daddy never seemed to want her around, always saying that she needed to go play with the other children. But the other children always ended up bullying her for her tiny stature, so she would run off to Mommy instead. But Mommy was gone now, so she followed his suggestion.