Colony

They were now outdoors. Behind them was the Station, a large block-shaped tower scraping into the sky, draped in an armoured skin of clear and lustrous alloys, centrally located within the premises. A trekable distance ahead was the Academy, several stories shorter than the looming Station but identical in its plain and lustrous polygonal appearance. Above them, the sky seemed to shimmer and sway in an almost liquid motion from the refraction of the Jacobsfield dome that shielded the premises from external threats. They walked over the crunch of sand underfoot on a field littered with the corroded remains of perished vehicles. After a short walk, the dwarf of a rectangle became fully gargantuan in view as they stood before the Academy gates, where they received salutes from two bulky, diligent-looking guards. “Captain! Commander!” “At ease,” said Ludin. The larger, furry guard gestured with a nod to the second man, who quickly went indoors. At the push of a button, the gates opened into the Academy’s yard. It was just after closing time, judging from the children running out with gleaming, educated faces. Amongst the approaching sea of excited prepubescents, Tina spotted little Lily dashing towards them. “Look.” Tina nudged Ludin’s side. “Here she comes.” “Mommy!” the girl cried as she dashed towards them, her backpack slung over one shoulder, bouncing against her waist with every step. The six-year-old girl reached for her mother and leapt into her arms. “Lily!” Tina received her daughter in her arms, transferring the child’s momentum into a swing, then transitioning into a nose tickle before finally delivering the girl into Ludin’s arms. “Daddy!” cried Lily with a refreshed burst of excitement. “Lina!” Ludin the father called. “My little soldier.” “Princess,” Tina corrected. “Soldier!” Ludin returned. “Soldier!” Lily agreed, pulling on the straps of Ludin’s jacket. Tina was smiling. “I see you’re still on that soldier trail. You haven’t given up?” “Never! I’ll be a soldier!” The Commander’s daughter declared it with all the conviction of a tiny general, all three of her golden eyes flaring up like bright little suns, in exactitude with her father’s.“I’m going to be a soldier.” “You heard the little lady,” added Ludin, clutching the girl with one arm to his side. “You’ll change your mind soon enough,” said Tina. “Never! I’ll be a soldier!” Tina caressed Lina’s cheeks. “And why do you want to be a soldier?” “Well…” The girl was thinking, fingering her crimson curls. “Well, I want to be like a soldier because… because I want to be just like you and Daddy.” Both parents looked at each other and smiled. “Is that so?” Ludin asked. “Then I guess you could be just like your mother, then.” His smile was luminous. “Like Mommy? What do you mean, Daddy? Princess or Soldier?” She stroked her chin. “Queen and Soldier,” answered Ludin. “A Queen and Soldier,” echoed Lily, amazed. “Sounds nice, doesn’t it?” Ludin asked. Lina’s mouth was wide. She nodded. “Well…” entered a smiley Tina. “If you’re going to be a Queen, it means you’ll need a king.” Lina’s eyes became golden slits. “But I have Daddy. He’s King, right?” “No,” Tina smiled. “Daddy’s MY King. You’ll need to find yours.” She tickled the child. Lina was astonished. “What do you mean, Mummy?” “What do you mean, Mummy?” Ludin added. “I’m her King and she’s my little prince—I mean, soldier.” “Well, your little princess will be a strong queen one day, and she’ll need a strong king by her side.” Ludin pressed his hands beneath the pits of Lina’s arms and hefted her into the sky. “You don’t need another King, do you?” Lina fell into his arms and wrapped her little arms around his neck, resting her chin on his shoulder. “Daddy’s my King.” Ludin turned a triumphant gaze towards Tina. “You heard the Little Lady. Daddy’s… her… king. Period.” He ended with a sassy snap of his fingers before sticking out his tongue. Lina tried to imitate him, but no sound was coming from her puny fingers. Tina was unfazed. Hers was a look of certainty and foresight. “Only time will tell.” She smiled. Ludin placed Lina back on the ground. “So tell me, my little soldier princess. What did you learn today?” “Well,” the little girl started, “Mrs Vastaniya taught us how to greet in Vatu.” She raised three fingers. “M’qisa means hello.” One finger dropped. “M’nali means goodbye.” The second finger went down. “And uhm…” She held on to the third finger. “Uhmmm… Oh! Mvi Sava means how are you?” “Mvi Sava, my little Soldier princess.” “Savi Kima, Daddy!” “And that means?” “I am well.” “That’s my girl.” Lina giggled. “Daddy,” the girl went on, “Did you know we had sooooooooooo many languages before the humans came to our planet?” “Yes, Princess. The humans. They destroyed them all when they came. This filthy language we speak, unfortunately, belongs to them.” Tina’s eye went to work. She glimpsed rage bubbling within Ludin’s soul. “They took everything from us.” He bent down and scooped a fistful of sand. “Our freedom, our lives, our very identities.” He curled his palm into a ball and drained the sand. “They stripped us of everything. They made us slaves. Working us to death in their micronium mines.” He clenched his empty fist, and inside him was a tempest of fury. “But…” Tina interjected. “Our people are strong. Those two-eyed aliens can try to erase our history, our heritage, but they cannot. Our people are strong. We’ve fought back, Lina. With our hands and with our brains.” She patted Lina on the head. “We took back land and freedom and bits and pieces of our heritage. Out of the soooooooooooooo many languages our people once spoke, three of them survived. And our re-historians continue to recover more.” Intrigue glittered in Tina’s eyes, and Ludin’s fury had subsided. “We just recovered another language.” She pinched Lina’s cheeks. “It’ll be taught to you in school.” “Really?” “Yes.” This time, the voice was Ludin’s. “Soon we’ll rid ourselves of this filthy human tongue and speak just the way our ancestors did.” Mother and Father walked with their red-haired, golden-eyed daughter between them, each offering a hand for the child to cling to. They walked all the way to Qikdak’s infirmary. What ensued was a confrontation with an angry Ludin. He slammed Qikdak against the wall, questioning why Tina’s eyedrops were not delivered on time. Tina was convinced that a child’s presence was the only thing that prevented Qikdak from losing a tooth or two. Ludin revealed that it was only a joke. The terrified look in Qikdak’s jade crystal eyes meant he did not believe him, or at least did not find it amusing in the least. Ludin let Qikdak off with a stiff pat on the shoulder and said, “Next time, get her eyedrops ready on time.” Poor Qikdak trembled like a stalled sonium engine. From then, it was back home to Captain Tina’s quarters. Tina immediately undressed Lina and bathed her while Ludin made food. They ate, and the child was soon fast asleep. Tina and Ludin stood over her, watching her peaceful breaths, before Viska’s robotic voice broke the silence. She announced Ezna at the door. At that point, Ludin had already lost the jacket. “Let her in,” Tina commanded. Viska obeyed. The door slid open. Ezna stood at the room’s center, clutching her device to her chest. “Captain, Commander. Pardon my intrusion.” “What’s the matter, Ezna?” “Actually, it’s the commander I wish to speak to.” “Okay,” Ludin, the commander, spoke. “The chiefs have assembled at the vault as per your instructions.” Tina shifted her gaze to her husband. “The Battle Chiefs? Assembled? What for?” Ludin rose from the bed, leaving a deep imprint. “Why else would my battle chiefs be gathered?” He smiled. “To discuss battle, of course.” “I am one of your chiefs as well. But I received no such summons.” “I was left to believe these battle meetings no longer interested you, seeing as you’ve been absent for most of them recently.” Tina’s red eye was laser-focused on Ludin. She seemed almost enraged. “That was because I believed I needed to be more present in my daughter’s life.” Ludin stopped for a while, searching for the safest possible reply. “And you’ve been doing a beautiful job.” He reached for her shoulders. “So,” he went on, “why do you suddenly wish to return to your duties as captain?” A flush of red crept up her cheeks. She averted her gaze. “I remembered our promise.” Ludin flashed a smile. “That promise?” “I’m meant to protect you.” Ezna coughed. Ludin was less than a step from laughter. “Tina,” he called, pulling her close. “I told you back then, and I’ll say it again. I will protect you.” Ezna fingered her device. “No!” Tina argued. “We promised to protect each other.” Ludin paused for a moment. “Fair enough,” he submitted. “I watch your back. You watch mine. Deal?” “I’d still rather do the protecting, but I guess it’s a deal.” Ezna whistled. “In that case,” said Ludin, “let us be on our way.”

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