A/N: This is an idea I've had for years that I finally got the juice to write! Picture this as happening on the same planet as from Ties that Bind.
Birthday Bash 2023
Prompt 7
Sci Fi
Baron scowled at his reflection as he fixed his bowtie. "Is this really necessary?" he asked plaintively, even though the question made him feel like a pouting child as he scratched his feline ear out of nerves.
He'd rather be a child if it meant delaying this day a bit longer.
"I'm sorry, Keeper, but you know the responsibilities you bear," Nathaniel apologized in a way that didn't really sound like an apology. "In order to continue the line, a mate is necessary. Come now, surely there was one lady that is worth a second glance?"
"I assure you there isn't," Baron growled mutinously as he looked over his appearance, trying to find something wrong with his clothes or fur that could help delay even for another minute.
"Still, you must take a mate, and it would be ideal to pick one from either the Summer or Autumn families for a strong bond. You are at a disadvantage, you know."
Baron scowled before glaring at his advisor. "Are you going to bring that up again? It was a mistake, and I was a child!"
Nathaniel nodded his agreement without batting an eye. "Nevertheless, it was a costly mistake. Perhaps if we could devise a way to reclaim the Orb, it wouldn't be such a burden, but the one most likely to be able to do it is the one being we're lucky hasn't considered taking it yet."
That much was clear. If Thiris had taken his realm's Orb, he would have surely gloated about it by now in one of his public spectacles invading Baron's realm.
Thiris. Everything would be simpler if he had taken his mother's rejection with more dignity. Or any dignity, for that matter.
"You've delayed this day long enough, Keeper. Now go out there and do whatever you must to take a mate. I don't think anyone cares who at this point," Nathaniel griped almost under his breath but not bothering to keep it out of earshot as he pulled the young cat out of his personal chambers and to his doom. "If not for yourself, my lord, do it for all the cats that are waiting to get married after you don't pick the one they fancy."
Not for the first time, Baron wondered if there was something wrong with him, or if the trouble his parents had thanks to the Keeper of Winter made him overcautious. But every time a lady tried to flirt with him or give him a token of her affections, he couldn't help wondering what they would do if he wasn't the Keeper of Spring. Or perhaps hadn't taken so strongly after his father, who had also complained about having to sift through a shocking amount of social climbers to find his mother, who more than anything had only yearned for a nice quiet life with her beloved.
In any case, Baron couldn't help but feel an invisible wall between him and any woman that tried to get too close to him. It didn't help that whoever he chose would likely become a target for Thiris' wrath. It almost felt irresponsible to take a mate while the mad cat was still alive and stirring up trouble for his realm.
Unfortunately, Nathaniel had made a good point. There had been precious few weddings since Baron came of age due to how many girls were determined to hold out for a Keeper, since it would be a good sixteen years until the next one came of age. He owed his people the right to move on with their own lives, even if his own felt at a standstill.
Before he realized it, he was standing just outside the main doors to his castle. Nathaniel had stopped pulling him and made a warning motion to 'stay' before giving another hand signal to Nathan, who was positively beaming that the day had finally come.
The brown cat proudly marched to the middle of the doors to address the crowd with a voice that Baron had always found offensive on a personal level, but couldn't help admitting that at least everyone could hear him.
"Good people of Spring, excellent visitors of Summer and Autumn, I am proud to announce on this day, the twenty-fifth birthday of our Keeper, Baron will finally choose his bride!"
There was a great shout of joy from the people, making Baron wish that he could be sick all over the front steps to get out of this decision. He'd already met every single feline present, he knew that without peeking through the doors. But he honestly felt no attraction to any of them, and now this!
Baron heaved a long sad sigh, and slowly marched forward to his doom.
As expected, there wasn't a single stranger in the crowd, which was neatly divided into uneven thirds, the largest portion being of his own realm. At the front of each crowd, there stood maidens in neat rows, each one wearing their finest gown and smiling brightly at the young Keeper.
He knew what he needed to do. It had been drilled into him so many times by Nathaniel that he could probably do the task in his sleep. He couldn't help thinking that the task would be more enjoyable if he was sleepwalking as he made dignified steps toward the first row to begin his inspection.
With each face he scrutinized, his heart seemed to sink deeper into his chest. Honestly, it would have been a relief if he could feel something other than dread when it came to women. Just a tiny spark of something good, and he could force himself to settle.
… Nothing.
Why can't he feel anything?! Some of these women he'd known since childhood, and others during his yearly stay in Summer and Autumn, since it was currently impossible to keep the tradition of visiting Winter as well.
Baron frowned, knowing that he wasn't going to get out of choosing a bride this day. He held one finger to his chin as he tried to think of a third option that would satisfy the requirements and make everyone leave him alone over the matter.
He suddenly thought of the Orb. Should he do it? Would it be too cruel? He gave a guarded glance at the near mob of women, who were now ranging from panting like animals in heat or barely breathing, every eye on him like he was the main attraction at a glorious feast.
'It's worth it,' he decided, though he was certain that he'd pay for it later. He took the first step up the stairs to stand in the middle of it before turning to fully face the crowd. "I'm afraid that it really is a difficult decision. But as hard as I try, my heart is silent on the matter."
He could hear the beginning of a mutiny, so he held up his hand to signify that he wasn't done speaking. "However, it is hardly a secret that I must marry, even if I don't have a lady dear to me. Since I can't decide, perhaps I should make the selection one that even I can't escape from, but leaves anyone that feels worthy a fair chance?"'
Since that was more of a promise than any had gained since before he understood what weight words had, there was enthusiastic cheering.
Much to Baron's distress, that made the unhinged behavior of his candidates worsen until he actually felt afraid for his safety. He couldn't resist the urge to take two more steps up the stairs, but forced himself to stay since he didn't want to be chased through his own castle. He took in a long breath before walking down the one step he was currently on before turning and walking again as if it were level ground.
"Now, it's hardly a secret that the Keeper of Winter would like to erase Spring from existence. It's hardly a secret why he wants to do so. I am very lucky to be upheld by Summer and Autumn," he added while nodding at the two Keepers that were in attendance, even if they were looking a bit annoyed with his delay. "But even with the assistance, I am at an unfortunate disadvantage without my family's Orb."
The crowd turned dead silent. Thanks to multiple gossip chains, everyone knew that the Orb had been lost for years, even if the location was well known.
Although he knew it was an impossible task, it would at least buy him time until he felt a bit more ready to take a bride.
"I, Baron, Keeper of Spring, do hereby swear to marry the lady that returns my family's Orb to me."
The immediate result was chaos.
"You've gone too far this time, Baron!" Phoebus, the Keeper of Summer, screamed over the women that were now angrily voicing their protests, and Baron had to retreat a little bit more up the stairs to buy his soldiers enough time to come between him and his admirers.
He couldn't help a smile of relief that he'd already given the order for them to be close to the stairs, just in case.
"This is a low blow, even for you!" Duke, the Keeper of Autumn roared, though perhaps his outrage was because his sister was one of the many suitors that had been longing after him for years. "I will withdraw my support this day if you aren't married by sundown!"
"Same here!" Phoebus quickly agreed, his large, mismatched eyes rolling madly as girls tried to break through the barrier of soldiers keeping Baron safe. "There isn't a woman on this entire planet that can bring it back without losing her life!"
Baron opened his mouth to defend himself, but didn't get the chance.
Without warning, a large booming sound rippled through the air quicker and angrier than a tsunami, cutting off all the angry shouts with one blast.
Even as Baron leapt into the air with an angry yowl since he was already on edge, his eyes immediately latched onto something traveling through the air.
It was going so quickly that it was hard to get a good look at it, but as silly as it looked, it was for all the world a large white egg trailing smoke and fire as it flew past in an instant, heading for the forest far beyond his castle. After another second, a louder booming sound confirmed that whatever it was, it had violently made contact with the ground.
"What was that?!" he asked aloud, and far from the only one to do so.
"Was it an attack from Thiris?" one girl whimpered as she clung to another girl.
"I've never seen anything like it!"
The chatter was nearly becoming as loud as the boom, and despite the situation, Baron couldn't help but feel grateful for the timing.
"Soldiers!" he called, making the ones that had been whispering just like the crowd to stand to attention. "Follow me; we need to find out what that was, and isolate it if it's dangerous!"
"Oh, no you don't," Phoebus growled at him like he would at his own son. "You, sir-"
"-happen to be the Keeper of Spring," Baron interrupted hotly as he ran down the stairs. "As such, I hold the highest ranking in my own realm, and only a coward sends others where he wouldn't go. Guards!"
The soldiers immediately followed him at a dead run, although it was going to be a while until they reached the forest, never mind the landing spot.
It wasn't until near the edge of the woods that Baron realized that Duke had followed him with his own soldiers.
"Might… need backup!" he gasped.
Baron didn't see the point in reminding him of his threat. Instead, he waited for everyone to catch their breath before entering the forest, carefully staying together in pairs.
It was to his chagrin, however, that Duke insisted on sticking close to him.
"That wasn't amusing, Baron," the Autumn Keeper told him a bit tartly as they carefully managed the thick overgrowth of the forest.
"I wasn't trying to be funny, Duke. I was trying to be practical if I couldn't be romantic," Baron explained himself as he used his power to make a few of the larger branches and vines bend out of the way for him.
"How is it 'practical' to tell every eligible girl in three realms to literally kill herself for the chance to be with you?!" the darker Keeper demanded as he followed close by since he was better with manipulating air, but the accompanying sound would prove dangerous if they needed to hear something later.
"Can we argue about this after we find out what that thing is?" Baron asked tiredly. "I know your stance, and everyone else's. Let's just take care of business first."
"You can't run forever, you know. How many girls will need to die before you take back your oath?"
"Quite frankly, I'm not expecting a single one to die," Baron answered with complete honesty as he knelt to avoid one large leaf that was still covered with dew. "I'm expecting at least a majority of them to decide I'm not worth it after all, and marry other cats so that life can continue. Even if that cuts the numbers down, that will still be a blessing."
"Baron… why are you like this?" he moaned while following the cat. "I knew the one I wanted to marry before I learned how to use my powers. Phoebus fell in love when he was two years younger than you, and your father-"
"Had been harboring feelings for my mother since before he left on his mandatory training to each season, and only let her know when he returned to Spring to celebrate his coming of age. I'm well aware, thank you," Baron sighed tiredly as some of the plants holding themselves out of his way drooped with his mood. "It must be nice to know which one you're meant to spend the rest of your life with, and not worry if she's going to get assassinated because a deranged admirer of your mother's doesn't know when to quit."
That made Duke start with surprise. "I have to admit I didn't consider the possibility that your mate would be assassinated," he admitted worriedly. "It does sound like something Thiris would do. He certainly has enough blood on his hands from his own people alone."
"Precisely. It's unwise to take a mate before Thiris is permanently suppressed. I've brought this up before, but Nathaniel insists that the castle is secure. I don't care how secure it is; I'm not willing to risk someone else's life just to give me a child that will also become a target."
There. At least that had given Duke something to gnaw on other than Baron's ears.
The younger Keeper enjoyed the silence until he could feel the vegetation screaming in pain. "This way," he directed without hesitation, turning sharply to go deeper still into the forest.
By the time he saw broken treetops, he could hear the familiar call of one soldier that used to belong to Winter.
"Over here! We found the thing! I think someone came in it!"
Baron and Duke hurried to a small clearing, stunned by the amount of broken earth in a long thick line that was interrupted, as if the strange object had flipped once on impact before crashing into a tree.
"Don't step on the marks!" Renaldo barked at the other soldiers, nearly threatening them away from a space on the ground close to one side of the strange metal egg, one that had shattered glass everywhere. He looked up with relief. "There's footprints leading away from this thing, like a carriage!"
"Good work, Renaldo," Baron thanked him, coming closer to inspect the footprints himself in the freshly turned earth.
They were definitely unusual, with horizontal lines he had never seen on a sole before. They were slim, as though the owner was a woman or perhaps not fully grown. A bit curious, Baron looked through what was recognizably a shattered window.
There was a seat there, with freely hanging straps that were surely for securing someone against such a violent impact. One had an end broken off, like they had almost not been enough to keep them from finding a corpse somewhere in the vicinity.
"Now that we have tracks to follow, it shouldn't be too hard to find out who our visitor is. If we're lucky, it may be a friend," Baron announced before leading most of the men with him to follow the tracks.
Even in grassier parts, it wasn't hard to follow. Especially since Baron specifically tuned his senses toward the grass that had been stepped on recently, but in the same pattern as the footprints by the strange capsule.
It was a good while later that Baron stopped everyone cold enough to hear… something strange. It wasn't booming, and it didn't seem to be speaking. A voice was definitely audible, but nothing that seemed to mean speech.
Baron carefully moved a large leaf to the side to keep himself hidden… and gaped in complete astonishment.
There, walking by a small stream, was the strangest creature he had ever laid eyes on.
It was more or less shaped like a cat, but the clothing seemed to shine like metal in the sunlight filtering through the trees. He could see no ears on top of the head, and no tail from the usual place. He had to fight back a retch that there appeared to be a tail from the back of the head!
Baron let the leaf fall back into place with a shudder. At least the strange sound was coming from it so that there wasn't a second creature to worry about.
"… I think it's safe to say that thing has nothing to do with Thiris," Duke commented sickly, making the younger Keeper nod. "So what now?"
"… We don't know what it's doing here. I think it's best to take it into custody and decide later," Baron whispered back, forcing himself to stand straight and force a smile on his face, no matter how much he'd rather retch. 'If that thing is this grotesque from the back, I hate to see what the front looks like!'
Ah well. Such is the burden of leadership. He pulled the leaf aside more noisily to alert the creature that it was not alone.
It turned around to face them as it stopped making the strange sound, leading to an awkward moment where it… she gaped at the company while they gaped right back at her.
Well, he didn't really know if it was a female, but since it was more or less shaped like one, he decided not to worry about if whatever this thing was had the same genetic rules as his own kind.
The front was less horrifying than the back, but it was still a strange sight. Her hide was visible like Thiris, but much smoother. She had a nose like a little bird beak, and even her mouth was shaped strangely. Her large brown eyes were round instead of slanted, and she had two bits of hard-looking skin on the sides of her head that had many curves inside it like a seashell. Ears, perhaps? She had brown head fur surrounding the top half of her face, but it was hard to tell too much about it other than it was surprisingly smooth like a helmet.
Most peculiarly, over one ear she had a strange… earring? It was made of a metal wire that looped around one ear, but had a wire coming from it and bent toward her mouth without touching it.
Eventually she closed her mouth, smiled a bit nervously while raising her hands to her chest level. She began speaking, but this time there were clearly words that were more than a little nervous as she began stepping backward.
None of the words were understandable.
"Easy there," Baron told her, holding up his hands in a similar fashion. "We just need you to come with us. We mean no harm."
Two of the soldiers came forward for her. The strange woman gave them a panicked look and bolted like a scared rabbit in the other direction.
"Catch her!" Duke commanded, even as Baron and other soldiers began running after her.
This was no good. If Baron's gift were stronger or he hadn't lost the Orb, he'd be able to grow some vines to hold her in place, or perhaps wrap some branches around even one wrist to hold her still.
But the girl was fast! She was unable to get out of eyesight of him or the guards, but they certainly weren't catching her!
Baron panted, wishing that he hadn't been too eager to leave his own ceremony to wait for Toto.
Oh, right, Toto and his clan were off at Summer doing one of their own ceremonies. How could Baron forget all the teasing the crow managed to give him for being a married cat when next they met?
The strange alien led them on a wild chase. Duke once tried to aim his wind at her back to knock her down, but a root had tripped him at the wrong minute, blowing two soldiers into trees instead.
"Please stop! It's dangerous where you're going!" Baron tried to warn her, even though he feared that his language was as incomprehensible as hers was.
But it really was dangerous where she was headed. More than one cat had lost his life there.
Before long, they were out of the trees and at the edge of Widow's Cliff. The alien looked around frantically before running again, closer to the edge than was really safe.
"Please get away from there!" Baron ordered frantically, since the last thing he wanted to witness today was a death. He took after her in a dead run, praying that she'd understand at some point if he could just get close enough to tackle her to the ground for her own safety.
Alas. He had forgotten that this cliff had many thin, small sheets of rock that were surprisingly slick against each other as soon as someone stepped on them. Thanks to the leg that had slipped, he was falling down the side of the cliff.
The last thing he saw before he hit the water was the alien, who had quickly poked her head over the side to watch him die.
The water wasted no time wrapping him in a violent embrace, knocking the wind out of him as it seemed to drag him down, down, down.
'So this is the end,' he couldn't resist thinking as he tried to struggle. 'At least I didn't get forced into a loveless marriage to make everyone else happy.'
The little light that was filtering through to him became disturbed beyond what the waves were already manipulating. Baron looked up, and would have lost his breath at seeing the alien woman in the water as well if his lungs weren't already filling with water.
He couldn't read the look on her face as she moved her arms and legs in a way that quickly closed the distance between them. Even as he was drowning, she grabbed his hand and angled her body to start swimming to the surface like a fish!
Was she part fish?
She broke the surface first, gasping even as she yanked him behind her. Baron coughed and spat out the water, even as he started sinking again.
But the alien wasn't having any of it, taking in a deep breath before pushing him to the surface again, and grabbing both of his hands. She wrapped one arm around her neck and the other under her other arm, and forced him to lock his hands together after rising to the surface again, and he could feel her kicking to keep at the surface of the water, which encouraged him to do the same. She said something in her own tongue again, but it was a bit more businesslike than before. Then she began swimming for the closest shore.
Baron couldn't resist staring at her, even as he did his best to keep his head above the water without drowning her. She was actually swimming! He'd always believed that only fish could do that, and that one breed of bird found in Winter he'd wished to see in person as a child.
After what felt like an eternity, the strange woman stopped swimming and simply stood up, taking Baron with her closer to the water's edge. His legs were shaky, but he was able to make enough steps onto dry land before collapsing on the soft grass.
The alien knelt next to him, her face now worried. She asked something that sounded like a question.
"I-I'm all right," he assured her, stunned at the simple fact. He stared more carefully at her, surprised that she could so easily make the transition from running from him to saving his life.
There were precious few people that could do that.
"Baron!" Duke called as he rode a wind current down to them. "Are you all right?!" he demanded while rushing to Baron's other side as soon as his foot touched the soft grass.
"I am," he confirmed, though he couldn't' resist shivering at the air that had blown right past his fur and chilled him to the soggy core. 'Wait. How cold is she without very much fur?' He looked over worriedly, and indeed saw her shivering slightly but not looking worried about it.
She was busying herself with taking a firm hold of her head tail. Much to his horror, she began wringing it out like a rag!
"Stop that!" Duke choked, making her look up with surprise and confusion, but no pain.
No pain whatsoever.
Baron forced himself to rise to his feet, hoping that a different approach would yield better results. He pointed at her with one hand while using the other to hold the back of his head. "That doesn't seem to be a regular tail." He turned around to display his own, which wagged slightly to send little droplets in the air and emphasize his point.
The alien blinked once before laughing like she'd never heard a better joke! She shook her head cheerfully before reaching for the back of her head again and yanked off a strange black loop that she slipped onto one wrist. Her wet fur immediately fell around her face as a result, brushing against her shoulders to a surprising length.
"Ah, it's just head fur!" Duke laughed with relief, even as the alien also stood up and turned around while parting the long strands with gloves that matched her clothes so that they could see her very normal scalp for themselves. "I never thought I'd be so happy to see a plain, boring head!"
"I concur," Baron agreed with as much relief. Seeing the back of her with no tail was greatly preferable to that first impression. Deciding on the next step, he walked around her so that she could see him. "Baron," he stated while gesturing at himself.
She caught on immediately. "Haru," she responded while repeating the gesture to herself, though she still had a silly grin on her face from the misunderstanding.
At least it was a pleasant smile.
"Duke," Baron stated while pointing at the Autumn Keeper.
She nodded while looking back at him, though a bit of uncertainty was in her eyes now. At least she wasn't acting like she was going to run away again.
"Well, this is one way to make her stop running. So how do we convince her to come with us without getting scared again?" Duke mused.
Baron hummed a bit. "Do you remember enough Winter magic to make a sheet of ice on the water?" he asked while pointing at the lake he had been fished from.
Haru followed the gesture with her eyes, as if wondering if he was ordering her to go back in.
Duke, however, immediately understood. "It won't be the smoothest, but she should get the idea." Extending his hand to the water, he concentrated while keeping one hand on his own realm's Orb after pulling it out of its own pocket in his long black coat.
A good yard of the surface water froze solid as a result, making the alien jump with surprise.
"Steady," Baron told her gently while removing one soaked glove and kneeling next to the frozen water's edge. He pressed one bare thumb to the numbing surface and concentrated.
She gasped again as he showed her what his ancestral castle looked like, though the uneven ice distorted and rippled the image more than he would have liked. He lingered a bit over the gardens that were his pride and joy before moving his own memory to a guest chamber he thought she would like, and the sort of meals that were typical for his region.
"See?" Duke asked while gesturing at the image with both hands. "We're friends, we just want to take you somewhere safe until we all get answers."
Baron gestured to himself first, then Haru, and made a slower motion with one arm from her to another image of his castle, hoping she'd understand that he wanted to take her there.
She seemed to understand what he was offering, and looked up with a worried expression in the direction of the strange metal egg that had taken her here. Biting her lower lip nervously, she looked down to where the Keeper of Spring was still kneeling, and nodded while saying something that seemed compliant.
"Good, I think that did it," Duke sighed happily before turning to his young friend. "Come here so she can see."
Since he was still drenched to the bone, Baron was happy to peel his thumb off the ice and stand next to his fellow Keeper while keeping eye contact with Haru. "This is perfectly normal, don't worry," he tried to comfort her as Duke held one hand on his glowing red Orb and the other on Baron's shoulder.
Steam began billowing from his mussed dress clothes, and Baron couldn't help sighing in relief as Summer magic made quick work of the unwelcome moisture clinging to his fur.
Haru stared at him while saying something low and impressed, but strangely accented with a nervous laugh.
Once Baron was as dry as before, Duke took his hand off his friend's shoulder and slowly moved it to the alien, who eagerly stepped close enough for him to grip her shoulder the same way.
Within minutes she was dry and chattering a bit cheerfully while using her fingers to try combing her long head fur. Then she stopped, patted the ear that was now bare of the metal wire, and looked up at the cliff with a resigned sigh, though it was hard to tell if she lost it before or after jumping after Baron.
Duke looked around the lower woods with a frown. "If there's a safe way to the top again, we should probably try that instead of me carrying us on the wind."
"There is, and we should probably start heading toward the pass before the company feels forced to climb both ways on it to get back home." Hoping that some things were universal, he offered his arm to Haru and gestured with his head in the appropriate direction of the pass.
She looked at his arm a bit nervously, but nodded and linked arms instead of placing her hand on his arm.
Baron decided not to worry about the difference and simply led the way to the pass and started praying that he wasn't going to have to listen to Renaldo complaining about just walking the downward slope in time to start walking up it again.
"… I know what you're thinking, Baron," Duke informed the younger Keeper in a low warning tone, making both him and the alien woman look behind them with confusion.
"Renaldo is very good at complaining," the tabby defended himself a bit shamefully.
"What? No, not Renaldo, her." The black-furred Keeper gestured with his head at Haru.
Baron turned his head a little more in confusion. "You mean to say you don't want to know what she's doing here? I'm rather curious."
Duke took in a long breath and let it out again before answering. "Stop playing the imbecile. Keeper Phoebus wasn't lying the moment he said there wasn't there wasn't a woman on this entire planet that can bring your Orb back without losing her life. Now there's a grand total of one. No one will accept her, you know."
Baron suddenly started with the realization, turning to look at Haru with shock. She cringed at the look, and asked something that had the tone of 'did I do something bad?'
He patted her arm reassuringly, forcing himself to calm down at the same time. "Don't worry, Haru. You're perfectly fine, and we can talk about things hopefully later. Unless Duke thinks he can bridge the language barrier?" he asked his fellow Keeper with a smug look.
Duke bristled. "You know full well your family has the best luck when entering the mind outside of Thiris. We both know better than to bring that up in front of Phoebus."
"Not even worth a mention," Baron agreed, gently guiding Haru down the right path through the trees. "Oh, and congratulations."
"For what?" Duke couldn't resist asking as he stepped quickly in order to keep up.
"Now I'm thinking it."
xxXxx
A/N; So I'm going to go back to uploading once a month, because I noticed that I've been getting obsessed with getting enough one shots out to keep up, but not a lot of progress on the two stories I started… last year.
I'm going to try to be better now, because I think you'd like both stories if I'd actually finish them.