ACT 1

THE END

"The time has come!"

Every Dinaurian on the mother ship Cruiser XV was gathered now, around a large stage where King Dynal XVI was shouting to the audience. Every voice in the crowd was silent, every movement stilled. The only sign of activity in the chamber was Dynal himself as he gestured to his audience.

"After our multi-million year wait in stone sleep, we awake to the stars once again. But this time, we have hope!"

Hope. The single word somehow seemed to mean so much to so many people. Even those who had lived in despair for the last few years of their waking lives seemed to perk up at the mention of the word, spoken by the King they adored and trusted.

"Most of you remember the day that Guhnash descended upon our planet, taking away the lives we had known since our birth." The crowd went rigid. Dynal paused for a moment, recalling how the great destroyer beast had blocked out the sun as it started to feast upon the very planet they walked on. "We lost many loved ones that day to the Destroyer," Dynal continued, in a somber voice, "but many of us survived. We stand here now, proof that even the greatest calamity cannot be rid of us, that we will always persevere, that we will always live on." Dynal's voice was still lowered, but excitement shone in his eyes. He spread his arms wide and gestured to everyone around him, meeting the eyes of every individual before continuing. "We have suffered, homeless, for millions of years! Now, we will finally claim our new home world- Earth- and begin living new lives amongst others of our kind! With Project: Mother Planet, the first of our colonies should already be waiting for us on the surface of Earth." A few quiet murmurs coursed through the crowd as they watched Dynal, hopeful, waiting. Dynal brought his tone down to a more descriptive one. "Our first scouting team, led by a group of elite pilots, will depart shortly and will return with news on the planet's condition and evolutionary status. If all is well…" another pause, a grin tugging at the corners of the King's mouth, "…we will immediately begin the movement to our new life!"

The crowd erupted suddenly into a fierce cacophony of cheers and howls. Dynal couldn't resist- he was grinning madly now, along with his people, and he threw his arms wide, as if embracing everyone he saw. "WE ARE HOME!"

With the announcement officially over, the Dinaurians went to work, putting in as much effort as they could. The hope from the meeting flowed through their veins and supplied them all with a surplus of excitement and energy. King Dynal checked up on everyone's progress as he walked the corridors of the Cruiser, with two people trailing behind him. One of these people was a tall, gray-haired girl. She had deep yellow eyes, red horns, and a black mask-like marking over her face. The rest of her white body was covered mostly in gray and black markings. She walked with an air of pride as she followed Dynal, who just so happened to also be her father.

Dynal stopped walking for a moment as he turned and looked at his daughter. "Shire Temorali," he said, addressing her formally, "could you find Sekel and bring him to me? I need to talk to him about the scouting mission that he is to lead."

Shire nodded with a grin splitting her face. She thought of the pilot, with his silver, curly hair and his deep blue eyes. He was a Dinaurian of the Earth element, but that never had dampened his love for flying. He was very passionate about everything he did, although you wouldn't guess it at first. He was a quiet man who didn't say more than necessary, and so he often appeared nonchalant or even uncaring. But as Shire knew, personally, that wasn't the case.

Trying not to reveal her feelings to her father, Shire quickly turned away and walked off, starting her search for Sekel Lyrach. Her heart fluttered a little at the mere thought of seeing him again, but she quickly tried to stomp down on her feelings. You are a Dinaurian princess, she scolded herself silently, not some blushing shy schoolgirl. Come on, Shire, get your act together. Sure, he's your cute boyfriend, but people expect you to act like you're royalty, not some lovey-dovey little girl. Luckily for her, however, Shire soon caught sight of some of her friends nearby, trying to move what was apparently a very heavy box. With a quiet snicker to herself, she trotted over, and then surprised them with a firm clap on each of their backs. "Hey there, dorks!" Shire laughed. "It's nice to see you two finally doing your fair share of the work around here."

The two of them each whipped around and gave Shire a hard look, one that said, But we do work, unlike you! But it was all in good spirits, because a minute later they laughed happily.

These two Dinaurians were some of the few people Shire was really close friends with. The friendly-looking fluffy guy's name was Razor. He was a social and fun friend of Shire's, who really just liked enjoying himself and hanging out more than working or doing anything productive. If he was put to the test, however, he would always step up to the challenge, and prove himself as reliable as a person can be.

The grumpy-looking blue one with the indigo hair was Raptin Dinon. He was honestly a good man, but this Dinaurian was known for his bad temper and his arrogant and sometimes angry personality. He always values his own kind before any allegiances to specific people, which made him a very loyal member of Dynal's civilization. He could always be trusted as long as he believed that what he was doing would benefit the Dinaurian Empire in the long run.

Razor sighed suddenly, leaning back on a crate that was almost as tall as he was. "Hey, Shire, can you lend us a hand, you think?" At Shire's curious expression, he added, "We've been lifting these boxes ever since your father ended that announcement. I'm soooooo tired….but Raptin won't help me with this last one, which just so happens to be the heaviest one." He shot a quick glare at Raptin, who bristled.

"Hey, I am too helping! And it's not like you did that much work anyway, Razor. Most of the work that we did was accomplished because I did most of it."

"Girls, girls! Please stop quarrelling," Shire mocked in a slightly higher pitched voice, "I'm sure there's enough crate there for the two of you!"

Razor looked surprised for a moment before laughing his head off, and Raptin made a face that looked like a snarl. "It's not like you've done any work today, Shire," he growled, "so the least you could do is lend us a hand."

Shire punched his arm lightly and grinned. "Sure thing, Raptin," she agreed, beckoning the two of them towards the box. They each grabbed the bottom of it, then all at once in a grand team effort, lifted the box from its earlier position and stacked it on top of some others. Worn by the effort, Razor slumped to the ground in a heap, but with a smile still plastered to his face. Raptin didn't show his fatigue as much as Razor, but still sat down on the floor, cross-legged, opposite of Razor and Shire.

"That should be the last one," he mused.

Shire nodded. Then, she thought to ask her friends about Sekel, since that was her original mission anyways before Operation: Move Box for Lazy Friends. Just as she was about to open her mouth, another voice called out from further away.

"HEY, SHIRE!"

Shire turned around and saw exactly the man she was looking for, along with two of her other friends following close behind. She waved them over, and couldn't keep a smile from her face when she met Sekel's eyes. Those wonderful, deep blue eyes.

"I'm surprised to still see you here," Sekel greeted in a calm, smooth voice. He stopped right in front of her, and a smile crept onto his own face as well. She was just about to reply when one of the people behind him made himself apparent.

"Shouldn't we be elsewhere…?" A gold-haired Kiranian muttered, shooting a glare at Shire. His name was Kendel, and he was a distant cousin of Sekel's. He had just a bit of Dinaurian blood in him, and that was enough to let the Dinaurians allow him to live amongst them. This doesn't mean they were all cozy with him or anything though. The Empire barely tolerated his presence, and it was only because he didn't step out of line that they hadn't kicked him out into space yet. Due to being hated, Kendel had grown cold towards almost anyone he met, including Shire, but he hung around them all anyways. Shire supposed he was probably lonely, and her friends had the decency to not bash Kiranians…at least in front of him.

"K-Kendel…" a quiet voice spoke up from the other side of Sekel shyly, and Shire turned to see another of her friends casting everyone around her a worried look. "Kendel, there's still a little more time," she explained, looking down at the ground, her voice barely audible.

Shire smiled softly at the little girl. She wasn't that little though, really. Her name was Ari, and she was only a few years younger than Shire herself- Ari was still a teenager, but only barely. She's a quiet and timid girl, but she's really nice, and Shire always felt like a big sister around her. Ari hated all forms of violence, and when bullied by the occasional Dinaurian, Shire would always find them and teach them a lesson personally. Ari had started following Shire around some after a while, and now she grew acquainted with the rest of Shire's friends, too.

Sekel looked back as the two exchanged back and forth, then turned to Shire and gave a low chuckle. Shire looked up into his eyes and tilted her head at him curiously.

"Sure, I'm still here," she blinked. "But what about you? I thought you were going to pilot the scout ship to investigate Earth."

Sekel raised his hand to Shire's face and slowly stroked the side of her face. Shire melted into his touch immediately, and a smile tugged at the corners of her lips. His gaze was warm, Shire noted, but there was something else there too. Apprehension? Fear? She couldn't tell exactly.

"I just came to say goodbye." Sekel murmured, leaning his head against hers. Their noses brushed. "I'll try and return as soon as possible, though. Don't worry about it. If all goes well, I should be back within the day."

Sekel… Shire closed her eyes and focused on his breathing for a moment, trying to settle the nervousness fluttering in her chest. Sekel would be fine. He was a wonderful pilot, she assured herself, the best the Dinaurian Empire had to offer. Everything would be fine.

'Are you two quite done?" Shire shot a glare at Kendel, who had apparently ended his argument with Ari and was instead shooting daggers at her and his cousin. His look of contempt never faded, even as he turned and started walking off. "Cousin," he started, his voice dripping with acid. "In case you forgot, we have a planet to scout. We can't exactly do that without a pilot, can we?"

Sekel turned his head to watch as Kendel walked off, and then released a small sigh. "He's right, of course. I'm sure Dynal sent you to find me anyway, Shire. I should probably go now."

Shire forced a smile onto her face. "When you come back with news on Earth's condition, we'll have to celebrate a bit," she suggested, and felt a little better when he returned her smile.

"Yes," Sekel agreed, "let's do that. A little fun couldn't hurt around here." With a gentle kiss on the tip of Shire's nose, he backed away, turning to follow Kendel down the corridor to the flight station. Shire, Ari, Razor, and Raptin were left behind, watching.

"He's a good guy for you, Shire," Raptin commented with a sniff. Shire turned to look at him, then offered yet another smile.

But for some reason, the tightness in her chest hadn't seemed to go away. Everything was going to be okay…wasn't it?

/Disclaimer: I do not own Fossil Fighters or any of its characters.

Shire, Sekel, and Kendel belong to me.

Razor belongs to ass-pen on deviantArt.

Ari belongs to SONMEL on deviantArt./