A NEW Beginning - Book 1

Chapter 8 - Day 1 - Pidge

Keith and I sat in front of the big screen in my workroom, waiting for the connection.

"Pidge! Keith!" we heard a second before we got an image.

"Hunk!" I squealed.
"Hunk, man, how are you?" asked Keith.
"I'm great! How's everyone down there?" he asked back.
"We're great!" we both reply.
"How's Shay?" asks Keith

"And Dwayne?" I add, excitedly.

"They're both doing great!" he laughed, "and we've got a surprise for you!" he said, reaching off screen.
He slowly pulled a young Balmeran boy on to his lap, as Shay came and stood behind them, "Tell Uncle Keith and Aunty Pidge our surprise!" Hunk urged the boy.
"We're coming to visit!" he squealed, bouncing up and down, "We're coming for a party!"
"That's so great!" I say loudly, "I can't wait to see you all!"

*****

I remember the day Dwayne came into our lives as clear as if it was yesterday. And I was proud to say I had a hand in naming him, and everyone else was quite ignorant about my private little joke.

It was not long after we had returned to Earth, and we had beings coming from all over the Universe. Earth had become the center of the Universal Alliance, and we had set up a hub to help people reconnect with their friends and family, beings from their home planet, species, or anyone they wanted to connect with.

The Atlas was currently grounded, undergoing maintenance, and being restocked, before they headed off on further diplomatic missions. Hunk, Shay, and the rest of the crew were stationed at the Garrison. I spent as much time with them as I could, because I knew they would soon be leaving me, and I would be stuck on Earth, all alone.

One day, we were all in the kitchen, where Hunk was working on his menu, when we began to hear some kind of loud noise coming from the dining hall. We went out to investigate, and we found Rax, yelling loudly at some guards to let him through.

"I must see my sister!" he was insisting, "Let me past!"
All of a sudden, dad came rushing in from the hallway, making the guards stand at attention.
"Let him through!" he told the guards, placing his hands on Rax's back, and guiding him through the crowd that had gathered.
As Rax got closer, we saw that he was cradling something in his arms.

"What is it brother?" asked Shay.

Rax could do nothing but shake his head, and hold his bundle tighter. He looked utterly exhausted, and in a state of shock. The fight with the guards seeming to have taken the last of his energy. Dad guided him to the closest table, sat him down, and turned to Shay.

"There was an accident," he explained. "Rax was escorting a transport ship full of Balmerans who were being taken from a Galra work camp, to the safety of Altea, when they were attacked by a fleet of space pirates. Their ship was destroyed. A coalition fleet in the area managed to reach them, but it was too late. Rax and this child were the only survivors."

"Child!" cried Shay, turning to her brother, who had seemingly fell asleep sitting up in his chair.

We peeked over his shoulder, carefully lifting the blanket, to find a sleeping child, clinging to Rax like he was the last thing the poor child had.

Just then, a man in coalition clothing came up behind us. "The child has done nothing but sleep, scream, and cling to Rax." he explained, "Rax has managed to calm him down, but the child will not speak, and we have had difficulty getting him to eat, or do anything other than stare blankly into space. It has been hard on the both of them, and it has taken its emotional toll on Rax. He's a good man, we should all be proud of him!" he slapped Rax on the back, making him wake with a start.

"Thank you, Smith. We will go to my office, and you can give me a full report."dad said, and they both turned and walked away.

Rax looked up at Shay, his eyes going a brighter yellow, and he started making a low keening sound. Shay and Hunk wrapped their arms around Rax and the child, and they stayed that way for a long time, until Rax had calmed down. Shay helped him up, and together, with the child still clinging to him, they walked to the infirmary.

Shay, Hunk and I spent a lot of time over the next two weeks visiting the child. It turns out he was about 3 years old. He began talking and eating more, and interacted well with us all, but he couldn't remember much about where he came from, or who he was, including his name.

One day we were sitting around the room, playing with him, and keeping him company, while we tried to come up with a name for him. Shay and Rax had suggested some traditional Balmeran names, and Hunk was throwing in some weird names, I swear he made up. Suddenly inspiration hit. I was well versed in my Earth history, and the kid was basically a rock, right?

"How about Dwayne?" I ask, playing cars with him on the floor, the rest of the group gave no real reaction. "What do you think, kid are you a Dwayne?" the kid looked up to me, his eyes getting brighter.

"Dwayne!" has said, a big smile on his face.

After that, even though Hunk, Shay and Rax tried a number of different names, the kid would only answer to Dwayne.

About 4 weeks after he arrived, it was deemed he was well enough to travel, and Dad had found a tribe of Balmerans who were willing to take him in. He boarded the Atlas with Hunk and Shay, and the rest of the crew, on their next diplomatic mission.

About a month later, I was on a call to Hunk, when he told me the good news. He and Shay had got engaged, and had decided to adopt the boy. He had adapted well to life on the Atlas, and they had fallen in love with him, and they were ready to become a little family. We were all so excited for them all.

The next time they came back to Earth, they had a small wedding ceremony, and officially adopted Dwayne in the brand new Universal Court of Law, which had been developed with ambassadors from throughout the universe.

They both had a big decision to make, and it took a lot of discussions, and working with the Garrison, and the Atlas, for them to be allowed to travel as a family with a child. It was one thing travelling with a child to return him to his family, it was another to have children living on board full time. They were instrumental in the development of a small child care program and school on board, allowing for other families to travel together.

*****

"So I guess we'll be seeing you in two weeks then?" Keith asked.
"You sure will, buddy!" Hunk laughed, "Dwayne can't wait to see everyone, he won't stop talking about seeing Ban again."
"Yeah, and Bandor and the girls are up and practically running around now, so he'll be able to play with them." I add.
"I really can't wait to see you guys, get everyone together again! It's going to be so great!"
"Yeah..." Keith agreed, uncomfortably. He wasn't happy that EVERYONE was going to be there. Hunk either didn't notice, or chose to ignore it, being the peacekeeper he is.

We talked for a while longer, filling each other in on our lives, making plans for while Hunk was on Earth, talking about good old times.

"Sorry guys, I gotta go, we've got incoming from Altea and Daibazaal, so we've got a big feast tonight, lots to be done."
"Okay Hunk, Pidge needs sleep anyway," Keith says, "Say hi to Krolia and everyone for me." he waves, and walks out, leaving me to say goodbye.
"I miss you, Gremlin..." he says, the sadness coming into his eyes.
"Me too," I frown, "but only two more weeks."

"I'm counting down the days!"
"See you soon, Hunk..." I started waving.
"Not soon enough! Love you Pidgey!"
"Love you too!"

I waved goodbye, one last time, and then the screen went black.