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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ankh-Morpork Guard" data-source="post: 2091879" data-attributes="member: 10079">Chapter 170: Silent WelcomingsAn hour in hyperspace, and then Shadow brought the transport back to realspace. The blue of hyperspace gave way to a distant, binary star system. The light from the two small, blue stars bathed the cockpit even from the great distance they were from the stars. But that was all there was. Two stars and the blackness of space. Silently, Shadow waited, her eyes watching both the ship’s sensors and the endless black beyond the viewport.    It only took a few minutes of waiting before there was a shift in the distance. Watching anything revert back to realspace was always disorienting, as the object always seemed to stretch into place while at the same time appearing out of no where and into where it stopped. After Shadow’s eyes refocused from watching just such an occurrence, she couldn’t help the hint of a smile. Besides, no one was around to see so did it even matter it was there? Sitting there in space, occupying a huge amount of the former blackness that filled the viewport, was a ship similar to Loki. Similar enough to remind her of the ship, a painful reminder of a lost friend.    But this ship was much different. It was literally comparing a child to a parent, similar but still unique. And the ship would have dwarfed Loki. Though it held a shape close to Loki’s, the ship was larger than a Super Star Destroyer. The full ten kilometers of the Empress’ ship was hard to really comprehend without a form of reference, but Shadow knew how bit that Thor was. She could imagine a moon nearby, with Thor taking up a large amount of its surface.    A short, one word communication came through, and Shadow didn’t even respond to it. There was no response needed other than to follow the instructions. So she maneuvered the starship towards the gigantic ship, bringing the sublight drives online and watching the blackness slowly disappearing from the viewport in front of her. It was only a few more minutes before the ship set down within one of the large landing bays. The fact that they were allowed to set this metal ship down inside of the Empress’ flagship was something Shadow hadn’t expected.    Without looking out the viewport to the landing bay outside, Shadow powered down the ship’s systems and stepped back out of the cockpit. She found Akan sitting in the lounge, and wordlessly pulled him to his feet and led him to the ship’s exit. Tobias wandered after them, looking bored but not overly energetic for once. Instead, he just padded along after them, with Akan walking like a lifeless zombie behind a stiff, emotionless Shadow. It was really a wonderful way to present themselves for the first time.    The access ramp down, Shadow led the way to the soft, cream colour deck. The whole landing bay was the same cream colour, though not even all over. It seemed to flow like water. Standing halfway between the metal ship and the entrance to the landing bay was a large group of Alraxians. Twelve very large, very dangerous looking Alraxians flanked two others. The royal guards looked nervous as the Empress and Emperor approached the metal ship and the three who had walked off of it.    Immediately, Shadow fell to one knee, her face looking straight at the cream coloured deck. Tobias gave her a curious stare from behind, almost looking like he was considering the possibility of pouncing her while she wasn’t paying attention, though he did nothing. Akan just stood there, staring somewhat blankly at the Alraxians who now stood within arms reach of them.    “Marix...you do not have to kneel to me,” the Empress said in a soothing voice, her long limbs reaching down and pulling Shadow up to her feet with surprising strength. Mother and daughter then stood looking eye to eye with each other, and it was almost like looking into the past and the future. Shadow really did look like her mother...though her eyes were still aimed at the floor.    The Empress went on anyway, “You’ve grown.”    Shadow just nodded, keeping quiet with all of the guards around. All of whom were gripping their weapons more tightly than usual and looked ready to pounce at the slightest twitch. Shadow’s mother glanced over her shoulder to her mate, and both shared a slight grin, “Quiet as ever...” he nose twitched slightly, and the grin grew very slightly, “You do know that those morphsuits you’re wearing have a very noticeable smell to them...”    “We grew...” Shadow mumbled quietly, “...was all we had to fit...”    The Empress smiled and then without warning, embraced her daughter. Shadow stood there unmoving before her mother pulled back and motioned behind her, “Come. Clothes and perhaps a bath can be arranged immediately.”    And so they were lead off. The moment they were out of the landing bay they had been assaulted by other Alraxians who measured them, made a fuss about whatever it was they did and led them off. Shadow, Akan, and Tobias were given baths, though the jai finally found something to do and did all he could to splash everything and anything within range. Clothes had been dropped off, and they had soon been dressed in them, which Shadow still didn’t like, especially since they nearly put her in a dress. Flowing robes were settled on and then the helpers went to fixing her hair.    Akan had been easy to deal with, as his numb, zombie like state meant he didn’t put up the fight he usually would have to being treated like he couldn’t do anything himself. He was led from the bath to a small, well furnished room, though it had taken nearly three Alraxians to get him there...and they’d almost been carrying him. Once he was in the room, they disappeared off to do whatever else they did, having said something in Alraxian that Akan didn’t hear, though he wouldn’t have understood it even if he had. For a short time, he simply stood there in the center of the room, but eventually sank to the floor on a soft, grey-white rug.    The last however long it had been hadn’t seemed to register for him. Back and forth. Tended to, bathed, clothed, then almost carried and he’d said and done nothing. Lost in his own mind, Akan simply stared into space. He wondered why he’d even come to this place. A place that wasn’t his home...a place far away from wherever that home really was. Many times, he tried to reach through the link but every time was met with the same nothing. The same emptiness.    One of the Alraxians had returned a few minutes later, opening the door and letting a now clean Tobias into the room. It had been an effort to cheer Akan up, as these Alraxians weren’t stupid. One didn’t need the Force to see something was wrong. But Akan just sat there in the center of the room as Tobias did everything he could think of to get attention. After ten minutes, the little Alraxian had given up and was wailing. Quickly, the same attendant as before slipped into the room and whisked Tobias off, though she was outwardly surprised at the thickness of the air within the room. The sheer loneliness was almost tangible in the air, and the Force didn’t make it any better.    So after dropping off Tobias with the other children on the ship, the female attendant went off to do something about this. She went to find the boy’s father.</blockquote>

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