Once Upon a December

[Zephyranthes]

December 20th, 788 A.S.

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The tiny freighter climbed and climbed out of the tinted atmosphere of Planet JiangXi. Snow flurried through the air as the engines blew a gale of heat past the ship to propel it further and further into the stratosphere. In time, the shuttle broke free of the confines of the atmosphere, vaulting into the great white expanse of the Omega-52 system. Aboard the craft was a small family of Arabic-appearing Coalitioners. The father, a man who possessed a weathered countenance and eyes that told a thousand tragedies, gripped the controls of the shuttle with steely determination. The mother, a woman named with sparkling hazel eyes and long blonde curls that exuded youth, cradled a small baby boy near her bosom, rocking it to sleep as the shuttle continued its ascent. And in a small corner, a small girl played with a straw doll that was as ragged as the clothes she wore. Her hair and eyes were just like her mother's, and within the small dark confines of the spaceship, she seemed to act like a nightlight in the depressing bleakness within. Every time she smiled, a glow seemed to fill the small room that caused even the two concerned adults to relax.

The family had decided to flee JiangXi for a number of reasons. The tiny babe clutching at the mother's breasts was one of the first and foremost reasons. He embodied a violation of the population control policies imposed on certain Coalition territories. This initially caused the family's flight to Planet JiangXi, where they lived a quiet existence in an arid region that experienced sandstorm and snowstorm alike. But soon a life in those parts proved difficult with two children to care for, and the parents desired a better life for their two angels. Though the Ministry of Truth was fairly effective at keeping almost all knowledge of the outside world secure from the populace at large, Abdul al-Rashid, the father, discovered a small shuttle with the coordinates for a jump hole leading outside of Omega-52. His wife Sara helped to prepare their children, their eldest daughter Faridah and their infant son Ramesses, for the journey. Soon, they were ready for the voyage.

The shuttle neared the jump hole, only to find an arsenal of weapons platforms surrounding it. Strikecraft and boarding vessels soon began to move in on the shuttle, their black silhouettes recalling ancient images of avenging furies. A missile impacted one of the starboard thrusters, sending the shuttle into a spin as it phased through the hole. The warp, terrifying to those who had never experienced it, elicited cries of fear and panic from the children. Abdul abandoned the controls to comfort Faridah, and Sara continued to console Ramesses in her arms, quieting the infant's weeping. Eventually, the warp gave way to a brand new system, one far less bleak and inhospitable compared to the family's home. Tears of sadness gave way to tears of joy as the taste of freedom materialized on the tongues of each person aboard the craft.

This hope was short-lived. The Coalition ships soon closed in on the shuttle, and a small boarding party prepared to bring the fugitive family to justice. Abdul and Sara gazed at each other, realizing that this was the end of their lives. Sara calmly walked over to a small cargo crate and lined it with an assortment of blankets and a small letter. In the distance, a small Zoner freighter passed by the ordeal, keeping a safe distance as it observed the proceedings. Sara spied it from the canopy and smiled sadly as she laid Ramesses down into the crate, stroking his soft scalp. Fighting tears, she whispered a lullaby that had been used to put her to sleep years ago by her own mother.

"On the wind
Cross the sea
Hear this song and remember

"Soon you'll be
Home with me
Once upon a december"

Ramesses slowly closed his eyes and yawned, grabbing hold of his mother's finger tenderly. Sara leaned down and gave a soft kiss on the child's forehead, and then worked with Abdul to secure the crate and its precious cargo. Fairdah looked on, saddened by the entire affair. Even as a small child, she still knew the sorrow of parting with her own baby brother so soon after he had come to this world. She held onto her mother's leg as all three went to the cargo bay to say their last goodbyes to the youngest member of the al-Rashid family. After some minutes, the small bay was sealed shut, and with one button press, vented into space. The tiny crate, too small to be of notice to the Coalition interdictors, passed gently through space. Faridah peered at the Zoner freighter in the distance, hoping in her heart that it would come closer. Fortune smiled this once, for the freighter tractored in the crate, and after a brief moment, sped away towards the glistening planet in the distance.

She smiled past tears as Coalition marines stormed the shuttle, accosting her parents and slamming them to the ground. Her brother was safe and, perhaps one day, he would come back for the rest of his family too.