Lee set out on foot in the direction Leoben had pointed. He should have gotten actual directions. Past the dunes were the struggling beginnings of a forest. Right now it was not much more than a few young trees trying desperately to survive, to make their way on a decimated poisoned planet. He could relate more than a little. If the whole place hadn't of been such a disappointment Lee might have been impressed with their tenacity, as it stood they just made him a little sad.
Beyond the grove were meadows and hills. He thought this planet must have been absolutely beautiful before it was killed by war. It showed him tiny glimpses of how nice it once had been, he wished they had gotten there thousands of years earlier. The quiet of this place was alarming. After spending years on various ships one becomes accustomed to the constant noise, even if it is just a whirring. Here there was no such noise. No birds, no creatures, only plant life and tiny microorganisms, and they weren't talking.
He smelled the fire before he saw it. Tillium burns hot and bright, but it also stinks to high heaven. Lee was suddenly worried that one of the raptors had somehow gone down without anyone noticing. He saw the smoke rising from behind a small rise in the land. Running towards it he felt soldier mode start to kick in. He regretted leaving behind his radio, but was sure someone by now knew that a ship was down.
Once he reached the crest he could see that no one had crashed, it was just a massive bonfire. He saw her sitting near it. She hugged her knees to her chest and just stared aimlessly into the fire. Her expression was hard to read, sadness, confusion, anger; it was all running together now.
Gods she was beautiful. Not by any traditional beauty standards. Gods knew Lee had been with far more beautiful women, but they were hollow, vapid, weak and often stupid. His pretty-boy looks seemed to attract just their type. Then there was Kara. When Zak introduced them he actually felt his breath hitch in his throat. This was the Starbuck, the only pilot who beat him in flight scores, and she was remarkable. She was the kind of woman that got under your skin and you hoped she'd never leave. She cleaned up well too, but was at her prettiest when she didn't care. Long ago she crawled under Lee's skin, and no matter how many times he tried to claw her out, she stayed. Thoughts of her accompanied his dreams so many times he would wake up blushing, his wife beside him sleeping soundly, having no idea.
The last time the two of them found themselves alone, at night, on a new planet it had ended badly for his heart. He still couldn't deny that was one of the best nights of his life. He considered staying where he was, and just keeping an eye on her from afar. She just seemed off, and somehow almost forlorn.
Kara had looked and seemed off since she reappeared in that viper. Lee wasn't quite sure to make of her. He knew that this quest to find Earth had taken its toll on her. Still there was just something different that he couldn't quite put his finger on.
He headed down the small hill towards her. This was a move he would probably regret, because she would probably bite his head off for bothering her. There was also something about her that prevented him from just being a spectator in her life.
Dear Reader(s): Do you like this? Am I on target? I promise this will start to pick up in the next chapter. I am laying ground work, establishing a universe. You know what I really love? REVIEWS!!! Help a writer out!! I'm rusty I need your encouragement!