All the Stars Between Us

Faye

"You realize I have a duty." She looked almost regretful, beneath her rigid exterior.

Thalia's eyes were steely. "Then so be it." She drew her sword, and bowed to Akaeria.

Akaeria drew a long dagger, its hilt studded with a smooth hematite gem that matched the colour of her eyes perfectly. She bowed to Thalia. "Will you fight for Thalia and her honour?" she glanced between the couple.

Thalia cupped Nyx's cheek. "You don't have to do this, love." She looked at Nyx pleadingly. "You could stay in the armory, nothing will touch you there. You'll be safe."

Nyx put her hand over Thalia's, leaning into her touch. "I know I could, but can you honestly see me hiding in the closet while all the action's happening?"

Thalia smiled sadly. "I understand."

Nyx looked at Akaeria. "I will." She drew her bow, and Thalia looked away, pain in her eyes.

"Then let us do battle," spoke Akaeria, fire in her voice.

Nyx made the first move, shooting a soldier in the shoulder, and he went down like a ton of bricks. After that, all was chaos. Nyx was forced further and further into the ship, her arrows regenerating slower due to her growing exhaustion. She had almost taken out half the group when she heard a faint call from a nearby passageway.

"Please let me go. I just want to go home," A small voice called from the passageway.

Nyx ventured in, her battle forgotten. The passageway was largely unlit, aside from a faint glow being emitted from the small gap underneath a nearby door. It was locked when Nyx tried the handle, so she picked it with one of her arrows and burst in. She did a complete double take when she saw what was inside.

A little girl of about seven years old was strapped down onto a table, wires hooked up to her huge headset, data still running through multiple holographic screens all over the walls. She ran over to the girl immediately, fumbling with the straps in her haste to untie them. Once she had gotten them off, she took the headset off gently.

She wrapped an arm around the girl's shoulders, and helped her sit up. The girl had soft, curly candy-floss pink hair cut in a bob, but it was currently lank and sweaty from going many weeks unwashed. Her wide eyes were baby blue, gentle and emotive, and framed by dark lashes.

She had a smattering of freckles along her nose and cheeks, little pink lips, and a doll-like face. She was a little chubby, which only served to make her look cuter. Her nails, however, were dirty, bitten, broken, and bloody.

"Hey," said Nyx gently, not wanting to scare her. "Can you tell me your name?"

The girl glanced, up at her, frightened of Nyx from under her lashes, trying to judge whether she was a danger or not. She must've decided she was friendly, because she spoke softly. "My name's Faye." She had a little bit of a lisp, which made her sound adorable.

"Well, Faye, you look like you need a hug." She looked down at the little girl and tried to imagine how she must feel. "Do you want a hug, because I give really good hugs, all warm and fuzzy. One time I melted a snowman when I was trying to hug it."

Faye giggled. "You're funny," she said, and jumped onto Nyx's lap, throwing her arms around her neck. "I like it!"

Nyx chuckled and hugged her back. "Do you want to stay here for a little while, or do you want to come with me, we could just go and have some hot chocolate and watch a movie if you want? It's really cold in here!"