Yuma Robotics HQ, Central Dome, New Astarte, Planet Yuma, Coronado
after midnight, 3-4 Aug. 824 A.S.
Being exhausted, Erik's mind wasn't paying full attention to what was happening either. Still, at the end of his statements, Doreen was visibly shaken - it was impossible for him not to notice it. His smile faded, he left out a sigh and realised she had a look he himself knew well. He didn't know any details, but it was there... the look of an exile, someone who went through hell to escape alive... it was a look Erik, like all Crayterians, had at least once. For him, the first exodus - from Crayter - was hard... but not as hard as the one from Tau 44, when the Gallic invasion began. Him and his siblings nearly died when fleeing Borneo, with only chance and the skill of trained fighter pilots as protection from the enemy armada. To be face to face with a force that was (and is) ready to reap both you and all you hold dear was one of the most terrifying and illuminating moments of his life.
He could only stutter and say "M-My apologies, Doreen. I... brought up something i shouldn't have." His mouth gasped as he stopped himself from saying more. He wanted to ask her what the scars meant, but it was clearly not the right moment. In his mind, such a moment might not even exist. It rarely does.
He walked around the room, closing a few monitors, then went to the door and opened it slowly, waiting for Doreen to come as well.
In Erik's office, at the top of the tower, the children would be waiting, already asleep. Each of them was curled at one end of the sofa from the office, while toys and holopads would be scattered all around the room's floor. A tiring, amusing and blissful sight would be waiting for Erik and Doreen when they'd arrive here.
