"Our families have been warriors for generations. Not following in their footsteps would mean turning our backs on their legacy," Joule said stiffly.
"They're going to split us up and send us to different families," Ziva said, her eyes sad. The look in them slipped through Kira's defenses to prick at her conscience.
Both children stared at her. The boy defiantly—he'd pursue this even without Kira's help. Probably manage to get himself hurt too. Ziva's gaze was more trusting and innocent. She actually believed, down to the bottom of her little soul, Kira had the answers.
Kira rubbed her forehead and looked away, out the window of the shuttle. They'd left the ship and now approached the planet, its warm glow growing bigger with each second, blocking out the black of space.
"Who taught you the move I saw you practicing?" Kira asked.
Joule's face turned guilty. "No one. I watched the other oshota practicing and copied them. Fari tried to help, but he couldn’t do it either."
That would explain why he was using a technique way more advanced than his current skills.
"You know if you'd been successful, you'd probably have broken your shoulder and given yourself a concussion," Kira said.
His expression turned stubborn.
"We can help you," Ziva said. "I heard them talking. You know nothing about House politics. We can be your guides."
Kira snorted. "You're both children. I somehow doubt you're going to be of that much use."
Arrogance settled on Joule's face. "I might not look it, but I was the heir to our House, and Ziva would have become my first when she got old enough to protect me. Our parents started our education in House matters. Can you say the same? They're extremely difficult to navigate for outsiders, I'm told."
The kid had a point. Tuann five-year-olds probably had a better grasp of the inner workings of a Tuann House than Kira.
She considered their words. Their insight might prove useful. Given Kira knew what they wanted, she could account for their agenda where other Tuann might have hidden motivations for steering her wrong.
She sighed. "I can get you started on the basics and show you things more suited to your current skill level. That's all I'm going to promise right now."
Joule looked cautiously optimistic.
She pointed at him, sinking resolve into her voice. "Just to be clear. I'm not promising to stick around. As soon as I get them to give up their claim, I'm turning right around to head to O'Riley Station and getting my ship."
Kira ignored Amila’s stare drilling into the back of her head.
She knew her decision wasn't going to make her popular with Graydon or any of the people he'd set to watch her. She didn't care. She'd spent nearly thirty years establishing a life for herself. It might not be the greatest but it was hers. They could accept it or not. Their choice.
Joule didn't look at his companion as he held Kira's gaze. "We will accept those terms."
Kira studied him and shook her head slightly. He might say they accepted, but she could see he didn't really mean that. When it came time for her to leave, he'd try to change her mind.
Oh well, she'd done her best to make him understand the facts. At least he couldn’t claim she hadn't warned him.
"We're beginning our descent," Amila said quietly from behind her. "You should prepare yourselves."
Kira reached for the seat belt and fastened it around her.
"Kira, do mine too," Jin insisted.
"How do you expect me to do that? You don't have a body I can fasten the belt around." She made it clear how ridiculous she found his request.
He sank down until he was resting on the seat. "You can pull it across me. It'll work."
"I'm not doing that."
"Come on. I'd do it for you," he cajoled.
"Because I have a body it would fit around. Even if I did fasten it around you, the moment we rolled, you'd slip right out," she said.
Jin stared at her. "Kira!"
He was going to be stubborn about this. She knew it.
She growled and reached across him, grabbing the belt and fastening it. Finished, she sat back.
"You look ridiculous," she told him.
The belt clung to the lower third of his sphere, not even giving the illusion of safety. Turning on his gravity booster would lift him right out of the safety strap.
"I'll remember this the next time you need me to save your ass," Jin hissed.
She rolled her eyes, becoming aware of the way the children stared at the two of them with wide eyes.
She didn't say anything, knowing how odd they appeared. For all the processing power of his AI, Jin could be incredibly childish and prone to mood swings as severe as a prepubescent girl's.
Kira ignored them, staring out the window as the planet grew under them, blotting out the darkness of space. The shuttle gave the slightest of shimmies as it slipped into the atmosphere.
It was the easiest transition Kira had ever experienced. Of course, she was normally in a military drop ship, whose primary goal was getting its cargo to the ground as quickly and efficiently as possible. Most times that included staying in one piece, but not always.
They punched through the clouds, trailing ribbons of white behind them. The land spread out below them, an endless forest, mountains stabbing the sky in the distance, the faint sparkle of sun against water hinting at an ocean or lake.
This was it, the place of Kira's birth, if Graydon was to be believed. She might have family down there.
The connection she'd missed upon her first glimpse of Ta Da’an hit her. She wasn't crazy enough to say she was home, but the potential was there. A tantalizing possibility that refused to go away no matter how hard she tried to root it out.
Feelings welled up out of nowhere, a sense of welcome and homecoming, as if the planet itself was glad to have her back. There was a pleasant buzz all around her, as if the very air crackled with energy, licking along her nerves and reaching deep to the core of her.
She shifted as the sensation increased, moving from pleasant to slightly painful.
"What's wrong?" Jin asked.
"Nothing, I'm fine," Kira said.
That turned out to be a lie as the sensation deepened, turning sharp and stabbing. She groaned and bent forward. She would not throw up. She would not throw up. She hadn't done so on a drop, not even the first time. She refused to vomit now when she was set to meet her family. What a first impression that would create. She'd have ruined her reputation before she even really had one.
Cool hands touched her face. She knew without looking it was Amila.
"She's experiencing overload," she said to someone Kira couldn't see. "She needs to modulate the energy flow."
"What does that mean?" Jin asked from above her.
The energy Kira was coming to associate as the planet surged forward, a tidal wave of power. Impossible to resist or delay.
Kira whimpered as she crumpled forward.
"I was afraid of this," Graydon said in a grim voice.
"Afraid of what?" Jin shouted.
"We could have the pilot take us out," Amila suggested.
Kira fought to stay conscious as the sensations amplified. It felt like something was pouring into her, burning out her nerves as it filled her to bursting.