Author's Note: I do not own Storm Hawks, etc.

Chapter Seven – Our New Home

The skies seemed to gray as they flew closer toward this new and mysterious Terra. The air space of the city was filled with the noise and the movement of skimmers flying around to their various destinations. Stork circled the city looking for a place to land, he didn't want to attempt going through the traffic.

After a few minutes, he saw the dock and headed down. He saw the various ports to dock and was easy to find one allocated for skimmer docking due to the size as carriers and merchant ships had the larger ports for themselves. Once the heli-scooter was parked, he walked around the crowded streets trying to find out where he was.

This city seemed strange to him for he dreamt of many mechanical creations, but an entire Terra? That seemed impossible yet intriguing at the same time. Steela coughed and Stork thought nothing of it. She coughed a few more times and he moved her inside to check on her.

"Steela, are you okay?"

She looked up at him with an innocent look that made him smile. Stork felt better knowing that she wasn't coughing anymore. He moved back to the street and coughed himself, he wasn't used to the constant smoke in the air and the same could be said about Steela.

He brought the edge of the blanket to cover her mouth softly. He hoped this would stop her from coughing again. The first order of business was to obtain legal guardianship over Steela for it was only then could they live a normal life. He found the courthouse, thanks to the city signs pointing the way. There wasn't a long line of people as there were on Atmosia. In fact, it was the exact opposite, almost a ghost town except for the people behind the protective glass. He heard his own footsteps echo against the marble floor as he walked through the dividers and waited behind the yellow line at the end for a second.

"Come forward, please." The clerk spoke into his microphone.

Stork did such and stood close to the glass, "What service can we provide you here today?"

"Um…legal guardianship over an infant."

The clerk smiled, "Alright, you will have to interviewed by a judge, is that all right?"

Stork sweated slightly, he had hoped there was just paperwork like there has been, but this time was no different, "O…okay." He said nervously.

"All right then, head down the hallway, fourth door on your right."

Stork merely nodded as the previous encounter with this was at the forefront of his mind. Steela sniffled as she felt Stork's nervousness. He cradled her back and forth caringly in his arms.

"Shh…shhh…don't worry. Uncle Stork is here and this time, I am not going to let anyone take you away from me again." He said the last statement a little darkly.

After taking a deep breath for good luck, he walked through the doors and saw three people waiting there for him. Stork smiled at the stenographer who gave him a little nod, Stork didn't meet the eyes of the baliff being reminded of the last time once again. The judge was different though, he was younger as his black hair fell over his ears and his small goatee rested on his chin.

"Step up to the bench please."

Stork nodded and walked up to the bench.

"What is this case about?" The judge asked the baliff.

"Legal guardianship over an infant, your honor."

"Ah, let us proceed."

The kinder voice of this judge was making Stork hopeful, but he kept this under a lid as not to have them dashed if things turned out like before.

"What is your name, sir?"

"My name is Stork."

"Mr. Stork, tell us why you would be fit to care for this child?"

He took another deep breath before replying, "Because she is…my life. I've only had her for just under two weeks, but she is important to me. If you give me guardianship over her, I will do all in my power to keep her happy, safe, and cared for. I wished that her real mother and father were here, but unfortunately they are not."

"I was going to ask about that, now seems to be a prudent time. Where are her parents?"

"Her father is missing, he didn't leave by choice, but he hasn't returned. I promised her mother that I would care for her before she…she…"

The judge raised a hand, "That's okay. Have you yet applied for a job or a dwelling to live at?"

"Oh…um, no, your honor."

The judge gave him a long stare into his eyes before leaning back, "You seem to be a good person, Stork. Your passion for this child is nothing I ever seen before. If you promise to take care of her always, I can provide you with resources that will help you settle into a life here on Terra Tecnos, do you agree?"

"Yes…" He barely contained himself, "…um…I mean, yes, your honor."

"Very well…Baliff, get the papers for legal guardianship, please. What is the child's name?"

Stork broke out in a sweat, "Her name is Steela."

"Steela? An unusual name, I dare say."

"Yeah, but what can you do?"

The baliff returned with the papers and handed them to the judge, "Stork…" He spoke while he was signing his name, "…you are hereby granted legal guardianship over Steela by the order of Judge Marcus Leras."

Stork felt all his worry washed away from him in a wave of relief, "Oh…thank you, your honor."

"Just a moment, the baliff will give you some papers about where to go to find employment, residences, and daycare centers."

Stork couldn't feel any happier. It seemed that his new life on Terra Tecnos would be a good one at least for the moment.
A few days passed since that day in the courtroom, Stork had just finished breakfast and they were in a modest hotel room. But this was the day that they would choose a place to live…well, he would anyway. He was trying to get Steela to eat some of the baby food he bought, but she was being stubborn as her high-pitched screams cut through the room.

"Come on, Steela. We have to get going, we have a lot of places to see."

She shook her head. Even though this was frustrating, he did smile a little bit feeling Steela had inherited some of her mother's tenacity.

"Do you want me to eat some of it again? Look, it is tasty and more importantly, non-poisonous."

Steela was still refusing to eat, Stork was at his wit's end, but it was a baby he was dealing with. He took a cleansing breath and sat down in his chair.

"Why don't you want to eat?" He whimpered slightly.

He checked the clock and it was ten to ten. Their appointment with the home placement officer was exactly in ten minutes and they still had a few city blocks to travel before then.

Stork stood up and slammed his palms on the table making Steela stop and stared transfixed at the Merb towering over her. She felt her tummy rumbling.

He took another cleansing breath, "Steela! We have to get going, so you need to eat. But since you are being stubborn, we are going to be late. You are going to go hungry until lunchtime unless you give me an idea about why you are being stubborn!"

With the universe on cue, Steela threw up on Stork. He felt his face smeared with that horrible substance and let out a long sigh.

"Of course…" He gazed down at Steela who was reaching toward the baby food jar, "…it is all about reloading the cannon."

He scooted the jar toward her, "Here, have fun. I got to clean this off my face."

She clasped hold of the spoon as she clumsily got the food in her mouth. around it, and down her bib. When he entered the bathroom, he shuddered as he peeled the gunk off with a towel and turned on the water.

"I wonder if I'll get an allergic reaction from this."

After wiping Steela's face clean, they walked down through the streets and toward the first residence on their tour. The home placement officer introduced himself as Peter Selonus and took him through the first house before heading to the other four that were available. Stork wished for death with all the walking he did, Steela had it easy resting in the leather sling.

"Mr. Stork, here is the last house we have. Now before we walk inside, have you given any considerations to the other four…"

Stork counted down with his fingers, "The first was noisy, the second was damaged, the third was in a bad neighborhood, and the fourth was too close to old people."

Peter stood dumbfounded for a moment before shaking his head and clearing his throat, "Well yes, I hope you find this house most to your liking. Shall we step inside?"

Stork sighed and nodded. Peter unlocked the front door and opened it. The moment Stork stepped through the door, he felt a sense of elation that he hasn't felt since he had the Condor. This house was modestly big, the downstairs had a living room, dining room, a kitchen, and a small lounge. The upstairs had a bathroom, a master bedroom, and three smaller bedrooms.

"This house is one of the best the Terra has to offer. Nice neighborhood, a few blocks from a high school, and a very generous 800 gold coin rent."

"800 a month, that's it?"

Peter nodded his head, "Would you like to see the rest of the house?"

Stork took a deep breath as the magic feeling washed over him, "No, this is the one."

"Excellent, I will have the paperwork drawn up immediately. If you want, you can spend the night here."

"Really?"

Peter pulled the key out of his pocket and gave it to Stork, "Yeah, I am."

Stork rubbed the key in his fingers as a small part of himself refused to believe any of this was real.

"I will have the figures for you in the morning. If you need anything, just give me a call from the phone in the kitchen. Have a good night in your new home."

Peter closed the door and Stork was alone holding Steela in his arms as he almost danced across the floor twirling several times. The house was wonderful and felt at home for the first time since the Condor.

"It's unfurnished, but we can fix them with some time and money." Steela looked up at him with that innocent expression that made him smile, "Tomorrow, we got the figures and the payment dates. I search for a job and a daycare center for you. Steela, this is it. Our new home, the chance for a new life together."

Next chapter takes place a few months later. Stork feels in over his head dealing with everything in his life and elsewhere in Atmos, the long awaited birth of Tarek.