Kolyat Krios

She glanced down at her sleeping son, her incorporeal hand caressed his soft cheek-folds. She had been drawn to him by his memories. They called out to her as they had so many times before. For so many years she had watched and comforted her husband and son when their need for her pulled her from the spirit realm. Though souls, for their own safety as well as that of the mortals, were not allowed to leave, she could not ignore their cries. 

By her son’s murmurs, she knew he was reliving her death. She slipped into the bed with him, as she had when he was a child and softy stroked the top of his head and soft cheek until his memory faded and he drifted into sleep. “Sleep well, my son. I will always carry you in my heart,” she whispered as she faded from his side.

“Mother…” he said with a catch in his throat. Her scent brought him awake. His eyes opened and in a blink adjusted to the shadows of his room. Silence greeted him. He rubbed his head and rose to a seated position. It was not the first time his senses had played tricks on him. It occurred more often in his childhood then it did as a man and he feared one day he would no longer be able to scent her unless in his memories. To lose that last connection would be like facing her death all over again. He couldn’t bear it. “Don’t leave me…” he said softly into the pre-dawn light.

"The hardest thing in this world is to live in it."

"Out. For. A. Walk. Bitch."

"I owe you pain."

"I may be love’s bitch, but at least I’m man enough to admit it."

"Seize the moment, ‘cause tomorrow you might be dead."

"I’ve seen honest faces before. They’re usually attached to liars."

"Who’s not crazy? Look around."

"If the apocalypse comes, beep me."

"The Earth is doomed..."

"I love what you are, what you do, how you try..."

"I understand with perfect clarity exactly what you are. You’re a hell of a woman. You’re the one."

"My diary? You read my diary?!"

"We’re not friends. We never were."

"I’m the thing that monsters have nightmares about."

"Let me rest in peace!"

Reena glanced up to her mother as yet another message was received from her dearest friend. Excited eyes seemed to brighten as she read the messages over, head shooting up to question her mother once more. But she already knew the answer. Her smile always gave it away. 

[text]: I will be there for dinner. And I will bring the cube…see you soon.

After her message was sent, the small drell rushed to her room, grabbing all that she needed to spend the evening with Kolyat and his mother. She was more than excited, something her mother easily saw with how she rushed happily about the house, stuffing things into her bag before she finally landed at her mother’s feet. “Ready.” 

She couldn’t do anything but laugh at her sweet daughter, a hand reaching down to press to her small head. “Okay, let’s go.” 

[text]: On my way. 

Irikah smiled at the pair as they stepped into the house. There had been a slight knock and Reena’s giggle as they entered. They knew each other too well to be formal. Dessa always watched Kol for the night whenever her husband returned. She laughed softly as Kol grabbed Reena’s hand and they darted off to his room. Her gaze returned to Dessa and she waved her friend over as she sat two cups of steaming tea on the kitchen table. In the center was a caddy with honey, and gorbol berry juice in both powder and liquid form. Gorgols were the primary method used to sweeten just about everything. It was a plant that had been very rare on their homeworld, and found only around water sources on the arid planet. Prior to the hanar’s rescue of their people, the plant was considered a rare delicacy...a delicacy that clans would kill for or use as a form of currency. But here, the berry plant flourished. It was very sweet and took very little of the fruit to sweeten anything it was put into. Children ate the fruit like candy. Adults too, truth be told. “Please, sit with me awhile.” 

Irikah lowered herself onto a chair and picked up the small, decorated bottle of concentrated gorbol juice. She shook three drops into her tea and stirred it with a small tea wand. She placed the wand on the saucer and ran one blue finger around the rim of her steamy cup of tea. Outside of her husband, there were only two people she would speak of this to. Her younger, adopted cousin Syn and Dessa. 

She looked at her friend silently for a moment and then her gaze lowered back to the green tinged amber liquid. “The hanar approached me this morning, after Thane had departed. I...tried to get word to him, but I...I don’t think he received my message. He would have delayed his departure if he had.” At least she wanted to think he would have. “They have chosen Kol to uphold the compact.” Her voice grew soft and strained. “It is a great honor.”

She raised the cup to her lips and took a sip of the hot liquid. She needed the sting from the heat to keep her focused. “They will be escorting him tomorrow for training trials.” She could hear the children laughing and her heart squeezed painfully. Tonight may be the final time she ever heard that. They had wanted to have more children, but Thane’s work schedule kept him away often enough that he tended to miss her heat cycles. And drell women cycled once or twice a year. She, herself, cycled only once a year...and due to the stress of her job and his absence it was often delayed, so they were unable to plan around it. “They will be testing him the next week. If he passes the trials, he...will not be returning.” Parents never spoke of their child being chosen to uphold the compact until after the trials are completed. To avoid failure being attached to their child’s name in any way. All records regarding the trials are sealed permanently. The child ceases to exist record-wise if they pass, They go back to their lives as if nothing happened if they failed. Their absence explained as illness or vacation.

She glanced up as the door opened once more and a teal figure stepped into the house. She waved to the younger woman. “Over here, Syn. Please join us. I’ll get you some tea.” She rose from the table, heard Syn greet Dessa as she poured a third cup of tea. Syn inclined her head to her cousin and smiled at the other woman seated at the table. She squeezed her shoulder, before seating herself in the chair next to the woman. “Good to see you again, Dessa. The apprenticeship has been keeping me busy, glad I’ve finally gotten a break from it.” When her cousin commed her about Kol this morn, she took emergency leave to be there for her cousin. As Irikah returned with the tea, Syn shot her a meaningful glance regarding Dessa. She caught Irikah’s slight nod and knew the other woman had been told already.

That rushed goodbye and the kiss he left on her lips, though chaste and quick, surprised the golden child. She had to admit, she was far  from expecting that. Reena simply sat on her bed for a few long minutes, mind reeling to a life with him gone. She hoped with all her being that his mother would permit him to spend his final night with her.

Finally, she pulled pushed herself out of her bed, rushing to her own mother. Without a word, she simply wrapped her arms around her legs, hiding her face and the tears which threatened to escape her eyes. It hurt Reena to think that she had just seen Kolyat for the last time. 

“Reena…” Her mother’s voice was calm and sweet. She sighed as she reached down, pressing a gentle hand to the top of her head. “What troubles you?” Reena shook her head, nuzzling her nose further. “Kolyat might leave…” She whispered, tilting her head back to gaze up into her mother’s eyes. They were sad now, she knew better than anyone how much Kolyat meant to her. “I asked him to spend the night…but…” Reena trailed off, eyes lowering as her mother opened her omni-tool. A message was received. 

Looking down to her daughter, she offered a kind smile. “Here, my sweet girl.” She handed her the omni-tool, revealing the message that Kolyat had sent her. Eyes widened with wonderment as she read it carefully, a small smile shaping her lips, looking up to her mother with a widening smile. “May I, mother?” 

[ text ]: She said yes. 

His eyes danced with glee, though he fought to keep the smile from pulling painfully at his lips. He would have both his mother and his Reena and he was secretly tickled. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever see either of them again, but he did not wish to confess to missing his mother. The smile faltered upon his face. Someway....somehow, he would not let it end like this. He needed to protect her. 

His mother placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it gently. He looked up into her sunset colored eyes. Eyes that offered serene calmness. A port in the storm.  “Kol, you are welcome to invite Reena over for dinner, if her mother will allow her to do so.” She moved her blue hand to the top of his small head spine as softly stroked them for a moment. His smiled widened once more. His hand gripped the sofa cushion tightly, before rising to the holopad.

[Text] Come over whenever you can. Mother says you can come for dinner, if your mother is okay with it.

She giggled at his huff, turning her attention to him completely now. Whether he was or wasn’t in fact scared, Reena didn’t mind. All she wanted was for him to stay near her…

Shoulders tensed as he spoke of the Hanar, of the compact. No. No, they couldn’t take him. And tomorrow…so soon. Reena’s gaze darted about the room as if it could offer him an escape, some time traveling door which will allow them to rest peacefully at each other’s side for eternity. But of course, there was none. 

As his gaze found her’s, Reena released a breath she hadn’t even known she was holding. “Tomorrow…” she sighed, her voice quiet as her head lowered; in her lap, small golden fingers began to fidget. 

Then, suddenly, she turned to him, eyes wide and pleading. “Stay here. Tonight, stay here. Stay with me…mother won’t mind. I know…” Reena glanced down, to her fingers, for just a moment before she looked to Kolyat ( her dearest friend ) once more. “Please?” 

It wasn’t often this child showed such vulnerability; but she was desperate. Reena couldn’t even begin to think of the next few days without him. Kolyat has been at her side since she could remember…

   He watched her fingers twiddle and her sudden turning to him startled him briefly. He gave a slow, double lidded blink, before a smile slowly spread across his lips. It was hardly the first time they slept over at each other’s homes. But it could be the last. Most people the hanar take are never seen again. The only concern Kol had was the timing. If this was his last day to ever be seen, would his mother allow him to stay? He looked at her intently for a moment, surprised but pleased that she wanted to spend this time with him. He knew he wanted to spend it with her. He nodded. “I shall ask mother.” 

He started to scoot off the bed and froze. His gaze went back to her. There was a chance this was the last time he would see her if his mother didn’t allow him to come back over. Before he could change his mind, he flung his arms around her and held her tight for a moment. He pulled back enough to look into her eyes. He kissed her lips briefly, like his mother always did to him. He bumped her forehead with his own and backed away, scrambled off the bed. “I shall be back...if I can.” He cast her one last look and darted out the door. He yelled bye to Ree’s mother and slipped out of the house. Once outside he stopped and sucked in a deep breath, forcing the tears back. 

He walked the short distance to his house, giving him time to get himself under control. He slipped into the front door. The mournful drift of piano music led him to his mother. He could see the somber look in her eyes..a look she always hid from him, except for unguarded moments. She always took the day off from the hospital when his father left. He was pretty sure it was for his sake, rather than her own..

He slipped onto the bench beside her and began playing counterpoint. It was a piece she’d made up, there was no actual counterpoint written, but he followed her and played notes that amplified her own. 

After a couple of minutes, she stopped and hugged him. Her gaze, when she finally met his, was schooled but pleasant, all signs of misery erased. He explained that he wanted to stay over at Ree’s house tonight. 

The words hurt. She could not deny that Her son wanted to spend his last night with his friend rather than herself. But she refused to allow that hurt to show in her eyes. She tilted her son’s chin up. “Perhaps, we can reach a compromise? Why not invite Reena here? That way the both of us can spend some time with you?” 

To say the small drell was anything less than frightened would be an understatement. His sudden appearance and the shake of her bed startled the book out of her hands. Wide eyes turned to him, blinking as she listened. 

With a soft frown, she searched his every feature, her frown only deepening as she reached out to him, a small hand resting over his own. “Are you scared?” Reena questioned him, she wasn’t soft with the question– that wasn’t the kind of girl she was. She was concerned, yes– but not soft. 

“’Cause, its okay.” Lips split into a smile, her hand offering a gentle squeeze before pulling away to take the book he had earlier spooked out of her hands. She carefully placed it aside. “I heard school is fun. And you’ll have me.” Reena turned to him once more, her smile widening. 

He blinked and his brows furrowed. “I am not scared.” he said with a small huff, crossing his arms over his slender chest; his look slightly indignant. He didn’t know if he was actually frightened, but he was uncertain. Neither of which he would admit to in any case. In his father’s absence, he was the protector, which meant he had to be strong. 

“I hope you’re right,” he said in a strained voice. He watched as she set the book aside. “My mother told me something today,” he said quietly. He looked down at his hands, a biotic glow spread over his body as it began to thrum. “They know,” he said, still not looking at her, instead staring at the glow around him. The glow faded and he sighed. “The hanar have requested me to fulfill the compact. It is a great honor,” he said woodenly. He didn’t know that the hanar had been watching him since birth. The skills they were looking for tended to run in family lines. So they tended to harvest certain familial lines more heavily than others. All he knew is they were coming for him....tomorrow. 

“No,  you misunderstand, my son.” Thane was quick to reassure him, stroking his thumb along the ridges of the boy’s cheek. “I mean I hope it will not be a long journey. I do not wish to be apart from you more than I must.”

Kolyat slipped from his fingers, and Thane watched him go, looking mildly surprised at the facility with which his son turned himself to the piano. He had not known that Kolyat had taken up Irikah’s hobby of music.

The swirl of bright sound circles him. Her eyes are wide with the pulse of the music, long fingers rhythmic up and down on the keys…a river of emotion pouring from her body…

He remembered the first time he had watched Irikah play. It had been a long time ago, when they were first finding their feelings for each other. She had introduced him to so many things missing from the life of a young assassin. Art, and music, and love…and now Kolyat was following in her footsteps, pulling that beautiful music out of the air. He recognized the tune, vaguely; one she had played in her sadder moments…

And he realized how long it had been since he had been present to hear her play.

“That was excellent, Kolyat,” he said quietly, hoarsely. “You have your mother’s gift.”

He beamed a smile at his father’s praise. His eyes danced with excitement as his fingers moved over the final keys, the haunting melody fading to silence. He tilted his head, catching something in his father’s voice he hadn’t heard before. Or, perhaps, he had only been too young to hear the difference. Had he chosen the wrong song? His hands trembled in his lap as he risked a glance at his mother. Her smile was soft, her eyes filled with pride, but also with something he didn’t understand. Sadness? “Did I - Did I choose the wrong song?” His large eyes moved from his mother to his father and then lit up. He would make it right. Her returned to the keyboard, his fingers flying over the keys in an upbeat tempo. 

Irikah had not meant to spoil the moment for him. Indeed, she was proud of their son. She had been surprised, embarrassed at having been overheard and even more so at having her emotions laid bare. But she was ever proud of him. She hurried to his side and bent down, her lips lowering to the top of his head, between his tiny, developing head spines. “You played beautifully, my son. I am - we are so very proud of you.” 

He stilled...his fingers, frozen over the next keys, a smile so wide his white teeth all but glowed against the teal of his lips. His small chest puffed out and his shoulders straightened. His confidence and self-pride like a warmth within him.

Still bent over their son, Irikah turned her head and looked at her husband, her cheek folds still warm, but her eyes danced with pride for their son. With her throat slightly inflated, she released a brief cadence of notes that spoke of her love in a way no words ever could. She winked at Thane, rubbed the top of her son’s head and rose. She moved to sit beside Kolyat on the bench, bumping him teasingly with her hip to get him to give her more room. 

She caught her son’s eye and nodded. “On three.” With someone playing counterpoint, the music flowed smoother. Sassy, yet light and jaunty. It lightened her mood considerably. Despite what she would have to tell her husband later, the consequences, she could not yet fathom, her heart felt lighter for the playing.  Her hands lifted from the keys. “Take it,” she said with a nod, when the solo verse came up. She smiled as small, teal hands hummed across the keys and rose from the bench. She drew silently to her husband’s side and slipped her arms around his neck and held him tightly as if she feared he’d disappear again. She brushed her lips softly against his. “Gods, I missed you,” she whispered into his ear. Kolyat snickered. “Gross.” Irkah leaned her head against his shoulder and released a breath that ended in a light chuckle. She loosened her hold, her hands falling reluctantly to her side and turned to face her son. “Perhaps, it is you I should be kissing?” She held her arms out and slowly approached the boy, her lips making loud kissing noises...