"In darkness there are more stars than you can count, but in the day there is only one."

★☆★☆★☆★☆★

"Toby..." a voice whispers gently.

"Toby," The same voice calls, louder this time.

"Toby!"

The girl jolts upright, unintentionally catapulting herself out of her bed. She lands with an 'oof', her covers falling on top of her in a heap.

A soft chuckle echoes in the room, filling the girl with nostalgia before the blanket is lifted from her face. A woman inspects the child's state, a smile gracing her lips as she pulls her from the pile.

"What were you doing under there, my little knight?" She hums, tickling her daughter's belly.

"I fell out," the girl giggles, smacking her mother's hands in play.

"Did you now?" Her mother raises a brow, halting in her assault. "Well, since you're awake, would you like to see something amazing?"

She bounces up and down in excitement, 'like a little jackrabbit,' her mother thinks. The little girl grasps the woman's hand, trembling with anticipation.

"Calm down, little one," a chuckle slips from her lips as she guides the little Toby from her room.

"What is it, Mommy? What is it?" She skips along, oblivious to the blanket her mother picks off the couch.

"You'll see; it's a surprise."

"What kind of surprise?"

"A surprising one."

"Awwwh," Toby groans in annoyance, used to the woman's way of avoiding questions.

"Come now, it wasn't that bad," she smiles down at the girl.

"Yes it was."

Her mother opens the screen door, leading her out onto the porch before shutting it behind them. She switches on a flashlight, lighting their path across the lawn and into the fields of wheat. They follow a well-worn path, the grasses flattened and trampled into a winding trail towards a small clearing.

The little girl skips beside her older counterpart, innocent and sweet, thinking only of stars and science, her eyes containing hidden vast knowledge. Her free hand grasps her nightdress tightly in a fist, keeping it from dragging in the dirt.

At last, the wheat parts for the duo, allowing the woman enough room to lay the blanket on the ground. Her daughter watches in curiosity, the gears of her brain spinning wildly to figure what she's doing. After sorting their seating arrangements, her mother takes her seat and beckons the girl. Hesitantly, she plops down in the middle of the blanket and observes as the woman switches off the flashlight.

A gasp of wonder echoes in the field, the little girl captivated by a sight she has seen a great many times. Countless stars flicker in the night sky, like trapped fireflies, glowing in the girl's wide eyes.

"Do you see that there?" The woman points to a section of the sky. "That's Aquarius, my little knight. That's my favourite constellation."

"Wow," the girl's eyes sparkle with starlight, entranced by the beauty. "That one's my favourite."

"Orion?" Her mother asks, a smile on her lips.

"Yeah."

Silence comes between them, nothing needed to be said as they admire the stars above. Margret fidgets, playing with a metal ring on her finger, her thoughts straying to what lies in the future.

"Toby?"

"Hmm."

"There's something that I wish to give to you."

"Okay."

"This is my ring, I made it out of a chunk of meteorite," she slides it off her finger, showing it to her daughter before pulling a piece of string from her pocket and looping it into the ring. "It won't fit you yet, but you can wear it as a necklace until it does."

"Thank you, mommy!" The girl takes the homemade necklace from her mother's hands and pulls it over her head. "A piece of the galaxy!"

The woman chuckles, pulling Toby closer and sitting her on her lap. "Where do you think the aliens are in the galaxy, hmm?"

A moment passes, the little girl thinking deeply with a hand on her chin. "There!"

"Where?"

"There!" She whines in exasperation, pointing at the sky. Whispers begin to echo around her, though her mother appears oblivious.

"Between Orion's Belt?"

"Between the left and middle star," the longer the girl stares at it, the louder the voices get.

"̴̠͈̩̙̞̼̖̯̱̙̭̂̈̈́͐̀̇̐̔̏͠T̶̻̯͇̳̜̀̇̒͝o̷̪̪̗̣̯͕̟̤̙̖̘͌͆͌̓̽̊̿͐̌͝͝͝͠b̶̮̬̩̩̖̉̉y̵̢̞͚̻͎̗̝̞͕̱̦͍͓̓̌̂̈́̒̀͌̔̈́̿!̸̠͍͚͈̟̫̰̩͆̎̍͋̅"̴̬̙̿͐̈́̽͋͌̂̊̕̕͘͘

̸̧͈̘̜̠̫̱̓͊́̄̿̓

"Yeah?" Her mother chuckles softly.

"Uh huh," the child scrunches up her nose in confusion, straining her ears.

"̶̩̞̼̪̥̘̳̎̊̏̊̈́̔̕̚͜C̵̛͚͎͔̮͙̭͆̿̑̊̊̓̿͘o̷̤̣̻̖̽ͅm̴̪̘̩̰͎͇̜̜̣͌͋̇͠ḛ̶̡̗̻͚̝̣̒ ̴̨̧͓̮̗͕̳͕͊̚o̵̫̜͊͋͂̐̌̐ņ̷͉̥̻̯̬̫̽ͅ,̶̝̉̓ͅͅͅ ̶̦̲̖̽̒̂T̶̗͒͘͜͜ơ̷̗̤͆̀͝b̴̜̿̌̈́͗͗̆͂̓͝͝y̴͚͍̪̒̅͊͘!̸̪̘̳̙̹͓̖͎̒̅͂"̷̡̢̧̨̗̝̜̩̠̍͌͗͜

"Can you hear that?"

"̵̬̮͔̞̫͈̹̲̃̎̀S̸͔̏̈́̎̇̀̃̒̂̎̚͜t̸͗̅̃̈̔̍̎̉̀̆͜ȃ̴̰̞̘̟̰͕̻̙̱̍̏̓̒̆̓̋̚̚͜y̸̧̢̛̤̰͑̎̔̔̑͊̈́͐̚ ̵̢̛̤̭̭̾͌͋̎̀͛̕͠w̵̢̻̣̱̯͌́̃̈̈̉͠͝i̸̧̳͎͇͇̘͙̺̽͗̄̒͜ͅt̷̢̼̩̦̭̙͆̀h̵̬̲̹̙̊ ̵̨̘̼̰̻͎̺̻̭̋̏̐ͅứ̵̯̍̿͗̾̇͘͜ş̸̻͍̦̪̪̤̊ͅ!̵͙̹͚͕̞̪̂͒̓͗̾̔̂"̸̛̹̗̼̫͍̯͍͐͊̓́͋͗̈́̀͝

"Hear what?" The woman tilts her head.

"Those voices," she focuses on the point between the stars of Orion's Belt, failing to hear her mother.

"̶̩̮̳͒̆̋ͅL̴̛̮̗͎̈́͗̃̈́e̸̼̥̓̂̽̈̓̅t̴̰̦̼̤̭̻̣͇͕̉̑̏͂̂̆̓͘͝ͅ ̵̧̧̞̲̩̜̺̀̐̅̕͠͠m̵͉͉͛͗͊͗̄͘͝͝è̷̢̝̙̞̩͙̫̙̙́̽̍ ̶̡̞̦̜͚̲̋̑͂͋̽̐͝h̸̤̹̞͛̉̾͝e̶̢̧̻̱̙͔̠̒̀̆̅͜ḻ̶̢̛̗̗͈̗̺̋̃̅̒͒̓̈́̚͜p̷̨̝̜̬̹͍̎̃̿̕!̴̮͖̺̮̦͖́͜͝ͅ"̴̤̥̪̺̻̹͎̌͛̌͑͒͜

"̵̝͌̾̃͌͌͛͊̔Ȓ̷̡̬͍͖͇ͅa̵̛̯͓̗̯̖̯̱͍̣̽̀̇͒t̶̨͎͖̪̞͕͚̦̭̓̀̐͋̚c̸̥̯̗̖̺̜̱̖͆̑̾͐̈́̓̇h̵̦̥̞̐̄̔̋̑̍̃̕̚͝e̶̟͈̔̽̋̎̌̃̚t̶̢̛̩̟͎͙̥̪͙̰͎͐̊͆͐͒͊͛,̶͕̮̦̠͚̟̥̭̰̂͆͊̉̓͌͊́͝ ̶̢̳͖̲͉̓͑̓͋̀̓͝͝l̴̠̻͙̭̓́̑̉̀̔̄́̈̕e̵̡̳͉̞̰̣͔͒̾͒ţ̵̛͆̑̊͆͊̀̽͜ ̷̬̄̍̑͑t̷̙͐̀̑̋͌͘̚̚h̴͚̝̗̟̹̯̥͇͒ͅȩ̵͓̤͖̇m̵̢͓̋ ̶͖̮̘̖̒̀̇̀̀̂͝d̵̡̝̤͍͈͚͙̬͍̦̒̈́͌̒o̴̮̓̇͛̾̉̉̊̀͝ ̵̡̦̤̤͖̙́̾͜t̵̫͈͓̠͓̹͕͍͐̂̍̈́͛̆͠h̵̹̟͎̰̫͙̔ę̸̲͇̣̫̬͍̬̐́́ḯ̷̛̠̙̟͍ŗ̶̖̭̖̝̃̿̄͆̆̓̆͐̇͝ j̴̨̲̹̦̻̟̜͙͘ͅo̸̥̪̜͕͂̄̂̅̅́͗̕̚̕b̵̡̢̛̙̬̻̟̺̝́͂̇̍͒̀̔̚͠ͅͅ!̴̢̯̙̘̭̜̻̳̆̅"̵̵̨̢͉̥̻̣͍͔͉͇̥͙͕͔̩̼̰̇̊̑̂͋"̷̠̈́͝

"B̸̨̟̱͈͈͚̗͉̠̟̒̍ų̸̨̤̪̱̠̯̙͌͗͑͑́͑̚̚t̶̜̯̰͖̯̖͎̩͍̃̀͆͒͛̋͐͜ ̵̨̧͚̞͚͉̳̮͌́͂͗͗̓͑̀̕I̶̦̻̙̮̮̙͎̣͙͌̈́̽̿ ̵̢̧̺̳̖̝̥̖̭̗̄̒̆̋̌̀͆̕c̸̛̩̟͚̳̿͒̈a̷͕͖̯̠̜͉̳̞͘͜n̷̼̱̰͙̰̥͊̈́̔̂͜—!"

"Thą̵̡̡̗̖̲͉͔͗͗̍ͅt̸̤͊́̓̅̋̽̿͠ is an̸̡̨̡͙̮̳̹̮̙̠̈́̃ ̵̨̥̺̫̗͖̮͂̈́̓̈́̊͊̔o̶͕̓̐̍͌̔̿̓̆̕͠r̵̰̺͂͑̊̽̀́͝der!" A v̶͙̤̮̘̙̩̤͓̖̊̓̐͘͠ͅoice snaps, silencing another.

"She's conscious!"

"Keep her under! She's awake much too early!"

The voices merge together as the world spins, becoming unfocused and blurry. Figures in white rush around what appears to be a hospital room, and two tall people—what are they, statues?—stand nearby, one of them looking impatient and nervous, and the other expresses an aura of suppressed emotion. Others stand watch behind glass, their figures too undetailed to identify.

"W-what ha-p-p-pened," it's a miracle the girl is even heard at all.

"Shh, shh. Easy now," a man's silhouette comes close to her face, fiddling with something above her head. Her mind becomes muddled, and her eyelids droop, bringing her back to darkness. "That's it, go to sleep."

And just like that, her whole world goes blank.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★

"Hey, mom," Toby dumps her school bag on the workshop desk, abandoning it there as she continues her quest to reach her mother.

"Hello, dear, how was school?" Margret Williams doesn't look up from her computer, but her teenage daughter knows she's listening.

"School? School was terrible as usual," the mechanic groans, hoisting herself up on the table behind her. "Work was typical. Oh!" She snaps her fingers, as though just remembering something she'd forgotten. "I discovered an alien species today."

"Yeah? What're they called?" The woman smirks to herself, editing her research paper.

"They call themselves 'Cybertronians'," Toby does jazz hands and whispers the last word to make it seem 'magical'.

"Do they now?"

"Yup. And their planet was called 'Cybertron'," she hums, making herself comfortable on the table. "The group I met were part of a faction going by the name of 'Autobots' and they're in the middle of a civil war with the 'Decepticons'. They're on Earth to find a pair of glasses and offered to take me along but I declined."

"Why'd you do that, then?"

"Said I already had enough adventure as it is, that I had something to look forward to when I came home for the night," the young woman absently picks at her hands, eyeing the blueprints plastered to the sheet metal walls.

"You could've said yes, you know," Margret looks over her shoulder at her full grown daughter.

"I know."

"Did you at least give them a way to contact you?"

"I gave them the house address and my cell number," the younger woman slides her phone from her pocket, staring at it almost longingly as she runs her fingers over the details.

"What's the truth?"

"Hmm?"

"What's the real reason behind your declination?"

"I—" she looks at her feet, sighing deeply, "I'm scared, mom. They themselves didn't scare me, but their talk of war did."

"What could you lose?"

"Everything!" The youngster screams, tears falling down her cheeks. "I could lose you, dad, even my own limbs! I'm scared."

Her mother stands from her chair, abandoning her day's work, and pulls her into a hug. The woman hushes her crying child, tucking her head beneath her chin, and strokes her hair comfortingly.

"It's alright to fear, my little knight, but it's not okay to deny yourself what you need because you failed to see." Margret whispers, taking her daughter's hands in her own.

"I was too scared to listen, mom," she mutters, taking a shaky breath. "I ignored my own heart and ran away."

"Just breathe," the woman kisses Toby's forehead before taking a step back. "Now, what does your soul say to you?"

"To run."

"Where?"

"To them."

"Good, darling, that's good. That means it's your destiny," her mother smiles.

"That's so cheesy, mom," the girl groans in fake annoyance.

"Maybe, but it's true."

"So what should I do?"

"Go, take the truck," she tosses Toby a keychain. "They need you."

"I'm gonna miss this," the mechanic grins, gesturing to the workshop. "All of this."

"Me too," her mother admits, a tear rolling down her cheek. "But you're needed out there. They need you to fight. To fight for your life."

"I know," the young woman jumps off the table, hesitating for a moment before throwing her arms around the older woman, giving her one last hug. "I love you, mom. I love you so much."

"I love you too, my dear," she pulls her daughter off of her, pushing her towards the still open door. "Now go, you'll be late!"

"Bye, mom!" The young woman waves enthusiastically, sprinting out the workshop door. "I'll tell them about you!"

Her mother laughs, watching her disappear down the road. "Don't forget to thank Ratchet for me!"

"I won't!"

"Never forget how proud I am of you!"

★☆★☆★☆★☆★

Okay, I know you're probably confused.

Well, you're gonna stay that way until the next chapter!

Drag0nRider out!