|
|
|
|
|
|
Amazon.com, 
Amazon.co.uk, 
Amazon.de or 
Amazon.ca
|
 Dealing With Life  (2 ratings)by Lin Y. Cawthra Page 1 of 3 Three years had passed since Nika Brandon Taschi first heard the
story "The Little Elf" and she was now five years old. They were
a happy five years in which Nika was loved and cherished by her
entire family. Nika's Captain Daddy, Captain Mark Eden Brandon
and her Commander Mommy, Commander Miri Isha Ponshii tried
to shelter their two young daughters from the realities of a very, very
harsh universe. They knew, of course, that eventually their daughters
would see the universe as it truly was but they wished to hold off that
time for as long as possible. Perhaps, it wasn't a very wise decision
on their part but that decision was based on love. They wished their
two daughters Nika and Shai, who was now three years old, to have
a happy, safe and innocent childhood. You really can't blame them
for that. It's too bad that more parents don't feel that way about their
children.
The family's ship, the Excalibur, had pulled into dock at the Cherryh Spaceport. After unloading their cargo, the family left their ship for a much anticipated shore leave. On shore leaves the various family members would shop for the basic necessities they needed for their journey to the next spaceport. The next spaceport might take months or even years to get to. Often they would window shop for all those items they wished they could buy but could never seem to afford, it was a way to pass the time. If they had any credits left after buying basic necessities, they could buy themselves something just for fun. This didn't happen often, as space freighter shippers didn't earn many credits. Unless they earned a bonus for making spaceport early, which was rare. But this time, they had gotten in two whole weeks ahead of schedule and the bonus was a large one. Even after you divided it into the percentages that each posted officer and crewmember was entitled to and then handed out the much, much smaller percentages for all the unposted officers and crewmembers, it was still a large bonus. Unposted officers and crewmembers were well trained and certified but due to the overcrowded ship, they had no regular post available to be assigned to. The unposted worked whenever there was an illness or an emergency that created a temporary post for them to fill. Only if a posted member of the family died, could an unposted stand a chance of getting a permanent position. The large bonus gave all of the family members more credits than any of them were used to. They were able to put credits in their children's accounts, so that they could also make purchases during this shore leave. That was truly a rare occurrence and therefore, a rare treat. It was a happy time! Nika and Shai had wandered off a little ways from their parents, who were busy registering them at the big counter in the hotel's lobby. Their parents, though quite a distance away, were within sight. Nika made sure of that, for she remembered her lessons of how unsafe it was to wander off out of sight of her parents. Nika made sure that Shai didn't wander off alone too, as she knew it was even more unsafe for little kids. Nika considered herself quite grown up now, well most of the time anyway. Sometimes, it was still nice to snuggle in a grownups' lap while stories were being read to her. Then she could pretend to still be a little kid like her sister Shai, it was alright then. Nika and Shai were looking at everything in the hotel lobby. They usually only got to go on day trips when they were in a port, as hotels were too expensive and were considered a luxury. This was the first time that either of them had ever been in a hotel and there was so much to see. The hotel lobby had pictures and statues and bunches and bunches of trees and flowers all over it. The lobby even had a small pool that their parents, on their way in, had said was called a water fountain. That water fountain was so beautiful the children could hardly take their eyes off it. Water was a scarcity on their ship and in all the spaceports they visited, so the sight of so much water flowing freely and wastefully like that was truly an awe inspiring sight to them. While the two children were standing there staring in awe at the beautiful water fountain, a man and woman happened to walk by them. The two children had just then decided to stick their little hands in the water and the woman loudly exclaimed to her companion, "How disgusting! Look at those dirty little aliens, they've contaminated the water. They've ruined a beautiful water fountain. How can this hotel allow such creatures to even set foot inside its doors? If the manager of this hotel doesn't do something about this, I'm never staying here again." At this point, the woman grabbed hold of Nika and Shai's hair, which really hurt and yanked them away from the water fountain. "You disgusting little aliens! You filthy little creatures! How dare you do that! Who let you out of your cages?" Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2001 Lin Y. Cawthra, sffworld.com. All rights reserved. No part of this may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the author. The author has submitted the work in accordance with and in agreement with the following Submission Guidelines. |
Copyright © 1999 - 2004 sffworld.com