Content Warning: Mentions of abuse. Also, I figured I would put a general warning as well. As I have plotted out where this story is going, I have realized this story is gonna get dark. Like, really dark. I will put up individual warnings as they are needed, but I figured I would warn everyone.
The three Blights followed Eda, as the humans with weapons fell in line behind them. Emira had to admit one of them was pretty cute, a young woman with brown hair. As they passed by a window, Amity gasped. Running up to it, she gazed out upon a sight she had only seen in her dreams. A field of stars lay out before them, like a back lit canopy with holes punched in it. Amity could feel her tears, and for the first time in her life they weren't tears of sadness or humiliation. They were tears of joy. Emira and Edric placed their arms around Amity, and the three Blight siblings stayed that way for a few minutes. They knew of Amity's love for human "sci-fi", and she had pestered them enough to read them with her when she was young that they too had slowly become fans of the genre themselves. Eda watched the three siblings, taking note of the red marks that were slowly starting to bruise on Amity's cheeks. Her fist clenches.
"Hey, uh, you can stay here as long as you want. If you want of course," Eda spoke, turning away from the three siblings.
Amity's eyes filled with joy, looking at Edric and Emira, "D-did you hear that guys? She said we can stay! This is just like my dreams. Maybe I'll even get to pilot a mecha or star fighter or something!"
Ed and Em looked at each other. They had long known about what Odalia did to their little sister in the basement. The horrible things Amity had endured. They had tried their hardest to protect her, but every time they tried, Odalia was two steps ahead. Maybe...maybe being an entire dimension away was the only way to save their beloved little sister.
"Let's just see what this place has to offer before we go running off on some big, grand star trek, ok? Besides, we don't even really know these people!" Emira said, squeezing Amity's hand.
Eda smiled, "I can fix that! As I said, my name's Eda, the three lovely people here with us are Viney, Jerbo, and Barcus," She indicated the cute girl with the brown hair, a taller boy with brown hair and a long face, and a dog-like creature with brown fur, his gun attached to a special harness he wore, "and-"
"MOM!" A voice shouted down the hallway. A young girl with tanned skin, wearing a green jacket and a red beret ran up to Eda and gave her a big hug.
"Hey Kiddo! I thought you were still out on that recon mission. Did something happen? Is everyone ok?" Eda asked, her motherly worry overtaking the joy at seeing her daughter.
"No, mom, everything went fine. We just finished early and decided to come back home. Boscha really wanted to hit a few Imperial fueling stations along the way, but I talked her out of it. We don't need to make too big of a scene before we're ready. So, who're these cuties?" The girl asked, her eyes taking in the three Blight siblings.
Amity's face turned a bright red, as she turned her head down to stare at the floor, hoping no one had seen her signature Blight tomato face. Eda laughed, "Oh, these three are the Blights. Emira, Edric, and the younger one is Amity. Blights, this is my daughter, Luz Noceda-Clawthorne. These three are witches-"
"WITCHES!? OH MY GODS, FOR REAL!?" Luz ran up to Amity, smiling at her. "So, what kind of spells can you do? Ooh, you have to meet my friend Gus, he would love to-"
"Ahem," Eda cleared her throat, "Luz, they just got here, and I am trying to get them eased in, ok?"
"Oh, sure Mom," Luz smiled, before she looked closely at Amity, frowning, "Hey, who hit you?"
There it was. Eda sighed. She loved her daughter, loved how open she was, but sometimes discretion truly was the better part of valor. Amity looked away, but this girl just kept looking at her, even reaching out a hand to slowly touch the bruises on her face. Amity wanted to tell her to stop. She wanted to tell her to get away. She wanted...she wanted...Amity sunk to her knees sobbing. "M-my mother. My mother hit me."
Edric and Emira kneeled down with Amity, followed closely by Luz, who gave Amity a huge hug, "Tranquilo, está bien. Siento haber sacado el tema. I'm so sorry, Amity."
Eda had a sinking suspicion that was the case, but hearing the confirmation made her rage grow exponentially. What kind of mother would strike their own child? Her and Camila had never once resorted to any kind of corporal punishment on any of their children, they didn't believe in it. It honestly made her sick and made her decision about whether the Blights were going back an easy one. Eda ruffled Amity's hair, smiling down at her, "Hey, Kiddo. I'm sorry you had to live with that. Your siblings are old enough to make their own decisions, but I sure as hell ain't sending a kid back to be abused. When you're ready to go, we'll go meet some more of the family. I'm sure everyone will be happy to meet you. Luz, my little light, I think it might be best for you to grab your mami and let her know about the Blights, ok? Give her love from me, ok?"
Luz nodded, giving Amity one more big squeeze, before heading off down the hallway. Viney, Jerbo, and Barcus looked rather uncomfortable, but they also seemed understanding, each having their own traumatic story that had led them to become part of Eda's crew. Amity merely cried, her siblings holding her tightly, knowing they also would never send Amity back to their mother to be abused. After a good 10 minutes of sobbing, Amity was finally empty, merely holding on to her siblings for dear life. Another 5 minutes after that she finally stood, Edric and Emira still holding her hands.
"I-I'm ready to continue, Eda," Amity spoke, her voice hoarse. Eda nodded, as she began to lead the group the same direction Luz had ran off in. Amity had never broken down like that before, never. Yet that girl, Luz, had broken down her walls with just one question, one touch. Amity touched her cheek where Luz had touched and felt her face going red again. The group moved through the halls, passing more and more of the crew. Something began to stick out to Emira, so she decided to speak up.
"Hey, uh, Eda? Why are all the people on this ship mostly older teens and young adults? I don't think I have seen anyone, aside from you of course, to be older than 20. What gives?"
Eda's already pale face went almost sheet white, "I don't really like telling my family's personal stories, so I'll just give you the overview. The galaxy is currently under the grip of a theocratic despot named Belos. His family, the Wittebanes, have ruled the Empire for hundreds of years. They view anything that isn't 'normal', as sinful and evil, and of course they decided what 'normal' is. Aliens, men who like men, women who like women, people who color outside the lines, think outside the box, all 'abnormal' according to those bastards. Most of these kids have lost their parents because of that very reason, either being sent to re-education camps or just straight up killed in cold blood. Some escaped horrible situations, like it seems you might be stuck in. In the end, I just sort of started acquiring more and more kids through my adventures of sticking it to Belos, forming this ragtag band of miscreants. We became a family that we chose, not one we were born into. It's why I won't send you back if you don't want. We weirdos have to stick together, you know?"
Emira, so strong Emira, Emira who had long ago thought she had locked away all emotion, felt a tear fall down her face. She tried to keep it in, keep it hidden, keep it locked away, like she had for so many years, but then she felt a second tear, and a third, before her eyes became a river of tears. Edric looked away, fingers playing with the stone that adorned the center of his shirt. Amity held Emira, as her own tears came back, threatening to break down again. Eda merely walked forward and held them, saying nothing. She didn't need too. She had seen enough children with trauma to know that sometimes a good hug, and a freedom to cry, could do wonders. Viney, Jerbo, and Barcus also moved forward, and joined the hug. They knew what it was like to be hurt by those who you were supposed to trust. That were supposed to protect you, love you unconditionally. They stayed like that until Emira took a deep, shaky breath. She gazed up into the eyes of these strangers, who had never met her before, but when she was in distress they had stepped up. A family, huh?
"We're staying," Emira spoke softly, gripping her two sibling's other hands. Amity nodded, still unable to stop her own crying. Edric looked like he was about to cry as well, but managed to keep it in. Who knew what the future had in store, but she was damn sure it was better than continuing to live life as Odalia Blight's "precious daughter". Emira laughed harshly at that. She remembered the first time she brought a girl home for, uh, 'an extra special' tutoring lesson. Her mother had walked in right as they were in the middle of making out, Emira's hands down her "friend's" dress. Odalia threw the girl out and spent over an hour lecturing Emira about "propriety" and that she already had a suitor in place for Emira to marry. His family owned the biggest crystal ball factory on the Isles, and Odalia wanted a piece. Never mind that Emira had never, not once, been interested in guys. Her mother didn't care about her preferences, just her own ambition. Emira looked at Viney. Her mother wasn't here NOW...
"Hey, Viney was it? Are you seeing anyone?" Emira asked, her usual smirk back on her face.
Viney blushed, "Uh, n-not at the moment. W-why?"
"Just wanted to know if I had a shot. Looks like I got my answer," Emira chuckled.
Viney looked like she was about to blow steam out of her ears before Eda stepped in, "Ok, kids, now is not the time for a love connection. Do that on your own time Ensign," she looked at Viney, who saluted. "Right now, we are trying to get these three acclimated. So long as we don't have any more interruptions-"
"MOOOOOM! LUZ SAYS SHE HAS ORDERS FROM YOU AND SHE WON'T MAKE ME SNACKS!" A young boy came running up to Eda. He wore a black and red hoodie, with black shorts. His hair was black and spiky, and he wore some kind of hat that looked like a skull. The back of his hoodie had the name King on it. His most striking feature were his eyes, which had yellow sclera and a purplish iris.
Eda looked down at her youngest, sighing deeply, "King sweety, do you see I am in the middle of something? Your sister DOES have orders from me to find your Mami. Maybe if you help her, she'll make you snacks quicker?"
King huffed, "I guess, but next time make sure she makes me snacks BEFORE you send her on a mission, ok?"
Eda smiled, ruffling her son's hair, "Go find your Mami, you little demon. I love you."
King looked at the newcomers, then mumbled something. Eda gave him "The Look" and he spoke up louder, "I love you too Mom."
Eda smiled as he ran off, "That was King, mine and Camila's youngest. We found him in some forgotten space station all alone with some crazed AI security program. He's a brat, but what 8-year-old isn't? Ah, but he's really a sweet kid once you get to know him. Anyway, let's go everyone. We're almost at the mess hall, and we can introduce you proper. Lunch will be starting soon, so everyone should be there."
Amity's stomach gurgled. She forgot her mother hadn't allowed her to eat more than a few pieces of bread for dinner the last few nights, and lunch sounded fantastic. Maybe she would get to see that Luz girl again?
Author's Note: Chapter 2 is done! I really like this story. Like, maybe even more than Light of the Gods. Mecha/Sci-fi is one of my favorite genres, and I am so excited to take you all on an awesome ride. As I said above, this story will get dark, but trust that the light at the end of the tunnel is there. Enjoy, and stick around! See ya guys.