Lindka waved at him, then turned to smile at the other two, switching her language to Valicara. "Welcome to my garden. It's so good to see you again, Kofi. How have your travels been?"

He grinned at her. "Wonderful. You look as beautiful as ever, Lindka. You know, it's never too late to go on an adventure with me." His tone was playful, almost flirty as he winked at her. "It got lonely out there."

She giggled. "I'm sure it did. It seems you have this sweet girl too keep you company though." She nodded at Rocki.

I don't think anyone has called me that besides my grandparents. It sounds weird coming from someone who looks to be about my age. I think I should just settle on the fact that aliens are weird to me.

"Rocki? No, I don't think she enjoys my company very much. I had to practically drag her away with me." Kofi bumped her arm with his elbow teasingly.

"You did kidnap me," Rocki muttered behind her mask, taking a half-step away. She turned her speaking translator Valicara to fit in with the other two.

Lindka raised her eyebrows and glanced at him expectantly. He cleared his throat. "I mean... technically, yes. But it wasn't out of any sort of malice, so does it really count?" He grinned. "She's a savioress, Lindka. I brought her here because we were hoping now that we have one perhaps something changed—maybe there is something you can tell us about how to end the war?"

Lindka's breath caught as she looked at Rocki. "Truly? Oh!" She picked up Rocki's hands to squeeze them. "I thought I would never be able to see you again. It's almost time for me to move again and I didn't know if the valicara or sariun would be able to find me. It's not safe for me to visit them, but I was tempted to do so if it meant I would get to meet you and your sister. Where is your sister?"

Rocki tried not to feel too uncomfortable with her hands in Lindka's, but she couldn't help feel awkward as she stole one of her hands back to lower her mask. "The sariun have her. They grabbed her when Kofi grabbed me, and we couldn't get to her."

Her face dropped solemnly, but her eyes drifted distantly somewhere over Rocki's shoulder. "Oh... one savioress on each side..."

Kofi waited for a long moment to speak. "Any visions?"

She blinked and smiled at him. "I'm afraid not, just lost in thought. But I can see if I can dredge up something for the two of you." She drifted over to a spot in her garden and sat on the ground, patting the dirt in front of her invitingly.

The ground here is softer. I wonder if that's natural or if she did something to it. Rocki followed Kofi's lead and sat in front of the seer.

"Let's talk about your parents," Lindka said to her. "Maybe that will put my abilities into the right mood. What do you know about them?"

She shrugged. "I don't know anything about my biological parents other than one is valicara and one is sariun. Aley and I were adopted when we were babies, so we don't remember anything."

Lindka nodded slowly. "I see. Well, I didn't know them very well, but I saw many visions about them. Your father, Malinkshi'Juriosh'Lorennep, was a valicara through and through. He loved medicine—always trying better ways to heal people and fixing them up. Mal was scientific and straight-forward. Nothing was more important to him than his discoveries. Your mother, however, was a fire-hearted sariun. Her name was FyneVeeaKrea. She was passionate about her family, her species, and her animals. She was always avoiding weapon training by being in the forests with her pets because she sought the peace of the wild rather than the war of her people.

"They met where the wood ends and the desert begins. Mal was about to enter sariun territory to find plants for his next venture and Krea was out playing with her daekee—a big four-legged creature that one can ride if tamed.

"They saw each other at the same moment, but neither moved to try and hurt the other. They just... stared, not sure what to make of another species so near. Your mother, ever the bold one, spoke first, asking what he was doing so far from home. He told her about his plans; he wanted to find plants to make a poultice that would close wounds quicker.

"'You're not much of a valicara, are you?" she said. "Going out alone with little chance of survival if you're caught isn't very... scientific of you.'

"'And not killing me on sight isn't very sariun of you,' he responded.

"She smiled and invited him to pet her daekee. That was how she could always tell if she would like someone. If the daekee was pleased, then she was pleased. If not, she wouldn't even try to make friends with the person. The prophecy was on his side, because when he reached towards the creature, it rubbed its nose against his chest like a cuddle. It was instantly in love, and, although Krea probably didn't realize it yet, so was she.

"Mal was a tougher one. He had been raised to process emotions differently. Everything was seen from a scientific standpoint with him, especially as an adult. At first, he didn't want to interact with her at all simply because they could never be friends since they were from different sides of the war. But, Krea convinced him to return the next day so she could show him another plant she thought he would like.

"Before they knew it, they were seeing each other as often as they could without compromising their secret. Friendship turned into love, which turned into courtship, which turned into a secret marriage. They ran away to a remote part of Kliktal, where they lived for the next two years, having both you and your sister while they were there.

"I came to them one day despite the danger and informed them that their children were the two savioresses to end the war, but they were about to be discovered. I could see no future for them... their fate was to die. The valicara and sariun would have killed the two of you as well—they didn't understand the prophecy like they do now, so I took the both of you away. I gave the two of you to a trusted friend who was gifted with enchantments so I could truly say that I didn't know where you were if anyone asked.

"Now that the hundred years are over, I will be glad to see the valicara and sariun war come to an end, although I fear what it will mean for one of them." Lindka heaved a sigh, looking away.

Rocki sat silently, processing the story. A tiny smile curved her lips. "I think... my father and I would have gotten along."

Lindka nodded. "I think you would have as well."

"But I don't understand," she said. "What are Aley and I going to do to end this war? We're just two sisters against two entire species on a planet we didn't even know existed. We know nothing of wars and prophecies. How am I supposed to get Aley back? I can't finish a war by myself." She felt a sharp tug on her heart—longing for home. The warm Hawaiian days and weekly family visits. Her house. Her comfort zone. All of which had been left far behind on Earth.

Her head spun a little, so she put the oxygen mask up to her face and took several long, deep breaths. It helped a bit, but not as much as she had been hoping.

"I'm afraid I don't even know the answer to that," said Lindka. "I'm just as frustrated as you are. Ever since the valicara and sariun came to me I've wished I could have done something more. But my gift doesn't work like that. I can only tell you what my visions bring to me. I can't force myself to see the future, although sometimes I can nudge a vision to come to me."

"Please, try," Rocki said, blue eyes pleading. "I need to know how to get Aley back."

Lindka smiled a little, closing her eyes. Her ears twitched backwards, making the tassels ripple. Her face and body relaxed as they all sat in silence.

If I had been at home, I would never have believed this, Rocki thought. Fortune tellers don't really exist on Earth—they're just scams. But if aliens and other planets exist, why shouldn't seers?

"A sword," said Lindka suddenly, eyes still closed. "I see a sword. You are on one side and Aley is on the other, facing the flat of the blade. It's spinning, slowly, so now you're looking at the other side. When you look into it, you see Aley's reflection instead of your own. You look up and meet Aley's eyes. The sword cracks... pieces of it are slowly breaking away until the sword finally disappears." She opened her eyes. "That's the end of it. Does it mean anything to you?"

Rocki shook her head. "I thought you would know."

"Sometimes the answers come to me, but most of the time it's up to the person the vision was about." She grabbed a chunk of her knee-length hair and brushed through it with her hands. "I wish I could be of more help."

Rocki was beginning to feel light-headed. I'm stressing out. I need to calm down. Just breath. "Thank you anyway. I'm sure once I get Aley back we'll be able to figure it out." I just wish I knew how to get Aley back. She's probably the most well-guarded thing in sariun territory. I don't know what to do.

Kofi touched her leg. "You look pale. Put your mask back on." She did, taking in long deep breaths. "We'll get your sister back, don't worry." He directed his question to the seer. "Was there any indication of who would win the war?"

Lindka shook her head. "No. I didn't—"

The air tank exploded.