The Stars End Spaceport Sector of Rhydin...

"What are you gonna do?" the young woman asked her companion, who was obviously related by blood, as they both bore the same red hair, the same fair complexion, the same sprinkling of freckles across the nose. There was no mistaking the fact that they were kin, though they were often mistaken for sisters, rather than mother and daughter.

"What do you think I'm gonna do?" the other replied, zipping her jacket and slipping a comm unit into her pocket. They'd only just received news of an old enemy's arrival in port and she wasn't taking any chances.

"Take me with you," the younger one pleaded, as if reading her mother's mind.

Lydia frowned at her daughter. She'd already decided to take matters into her own hands, and she wasn't about to let anyone change her mind, not even those who loved her most. "No. I need you to take care of your siblings. Make sure they're safe."

"But, Mum..." her daughter argued, tears prickling at green eyes that were so like her mother's. "You can't fight them alone."

Lydia sighed and took her daughter by the shoulders. "Kayla, listen to me. I need you to take them to the pride. They'll be safe there. You're the only one who can do this."

Kayla opened her mouth to protest, but Lydia would hear none of it. "Don't worry. I'm not going to fight them alone."

"But who...?"

Lydia paused a moment, as if hesitant to reveal her plan, even to her own daughter. This was, after all, a matter of life and death for those whose lives she held dearest. It was better if Kayla didn't know. "A friend," she said simply. "A very old friend."