Of Hearts And Stars (Classic Editon) (The Cadet Starship Chronicles) (2 page)

He put his hand out and said “Okay. Stick with me. We're gonna go get my mom and head somewhere safe.”

“
Thanks!” the kid said and took Leoric's hand.

“
Don't sweat it. Now let's move and stay close to me. My house is right over there, but a bomb could hit at any second.”

These words would haunt Leoric for years to come, as if he had summoned catastrophically bad luck with his jinxing statement of coincidental misfortune.

They ran up the block, but just as they got there, the kid stopped to look up and Leoric lost grip of his hand. He turned around to shout to the kid to keep it moving but the earsplitting boom of a bomb blast cut him off. Leoric moved to shield the kid from any debris that might come flying at them, and when it was over he checked himself for any injuries. Miraculously, he hadn't been struck with any shrapnel or debris. The house next door to his had been completely wiped out and half of his had collapsed. At any second the rest could come crashing down and Leoric knew that he would need to act fast.

He turned to the kid and said “Okay. I'll be right back, so stay put. Got it?”

“
Okay...” the kid answered with a sadness and reluctance that went unnoticed by Leoric as he rushed into the ruins of his once happy home.

-
4
-

“
Mom...? Mom! Are you here? Holler if you hear me!” Leoric called out, but had to cover his face again as more smoke assailed his lungs. “God, I'm getting tired of all of this smoke.” he said in a muffled voice. As quickly and as carefully as possible he made his way to the living room and stopped cold. He had seen the damage from the outside, but the view from the inside was mortifying. To him it looked like someone picked up his entire living room and dashed it against a wall. Furniture was overturned, the floor was littered with the glass of family pictures and fragments of various knickknacks and mementos that had once sat on the mantle. Speaking of which, the fireplace laid in a crumpled heap by a yawning hole in the wall, and through it he could see the remains of his neighbor's house. He thought that if he looked at the rubble just a little closer, couldn't he see...? Leoric shook his head to clear away this thought. Death was all around him now and it was getting to be a bit too much for him. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, letting it exhale slowly. Just then he heard what sounded like a cough and whipped around to see where it came from. Then he saw her. His mother was pinned beneath a support beam, shards of a broken mirror scattered all around her. He wasted no time getting to her, vaulting over furniture and nearly crashing into a table along the way.

Leoric couldn't hide the fear in his voice and croaked “Oh mom. Oh no no. Mom no!”

A thought crept into his mind that he had been too late. Far too late.

Marceline Swift's voice was faint, but Leoric heard her words as if they were the only sound in the universe “Leo...I was going to come find you...but then I remembered how much you've grown. I knew you would come. You're just like your father.”

He stared at her smile, and how her smile formed two small dimples on her cheeks, as he brushed away a few strands of hair covering her gray eyes. He stared at everything about her so he can burn the image of his mother into his mind. She was pale and trembling but somewhere deep inside she still made Leoric feel safe. This woman had protected Leoric for so long that he couldn't believe his eyes. This is impossible he thought. His mother was dying. Leoric's eyes began to burn and he blinked them rapidly to clear the tears that began to obscure his vision.

It had been an odd quirk that was rare for him, but when
Leoric was distressed he repeated himself “We've gotta go, gotta go now mom. It's too dangerous here.”

He was becoming so overwhelmed with grief that he found it hard to keep himself together. So overwhelmed that he began to forget about the bombing, began to forget about anything else that might be going on. He choked a sob and felt ashamed. He didn't feel like his father at all. He really just felt slow and weak. Above all he felt stupid. What could he do now? What was he even thinking, trying to be a hero?

His palms were still sweaty as he placed his hands on the support beam and tried to lift it off her. The sneakers he wore skidded on the hardwood floor as he pulled desperately. It didn't even budge. Leoric grit his teeth and tried again only to have his feet slide even more. Growing frustrated with his inability to help his mother, he readjusted his stance and put full strength into this next pull. This time he did manage to lift it, but it wasn't enough and if he did try to move it he was certain he'd only drop it back onto his mother. Just as hope had died in his heart, the beam slowly started to move. He looked around and saw the kid he'd saved, struggling and straining to pull the beam away from Leoric's mother.

Ignoring the fact that the kid was actually helping, Leoric scolded him for being reckless “I told you to stay outside kid! It's too dangerous!”

The kid's face screwed up into what looked like a mixture of bravery and defiance “I'm Marvin! I'm helping!”

With Leoric lifting and Marvin pulling, they managed to drop the beam safely on the floor and free Marceline.

Leoric knelt back down by his mother's side “Okay mom. I know that it's not a good idea to move you, but we need to get out of the house now!”

With the beam gone, Marceline's voice had regained it's melodic quality. However it still remained dreadfully faint “Leo...I love you so much... and I always will.” she said.

“
I love you too mom.” Leoric said and went to change positions to lift her up, but she placed a hand on his forearm.

In a voice that sounded like the wind rustling the dead leaves of a tree, Marceline called his name.

“
Leo...”

Her eyes no longer could focus, and when Leo touched her hand it was ice cold.

Fear cascaded over his mind “Mom!?” he cried out.

“
Hug me.” she said.

Leoric did so was told without another word. He grabbed her by the shoulders and sat her up. She then looked at her son, her pride and joy. He had his father's jawline that made his smile seem so big and happy. He had her piercing eyes if only in size and shape, but not color, and when she looked into them she could see his strong spirit. She smiled to herself, amused, when she realized that he could use a haircut. All in all, she loved her beautiful, wonderful boy.

He wrapped his arms around her and Marceline Swift hugged her son for the last time. She then whispered into his ear “Take care of your father...”

“
Mom don't die...please don't die...” he whispered back.

“
I love you...”

Leoric buried his face in her shoulder and sobbed “I love you too.”

Then her hands dropped and the leaves rustled no more. Now his home had begun to collapse the rest of the way. Swift hadn't noticed when Marvin came to stand by his shoulder, but heard him when he spoke.

He hesitated, but reluctantly suggested “Hey... we should go.”

These were complete strangers to Marvin, but this older boy had stopped to save his life when he didn't have to. He didn't want to rush him at such a sad time, but the situation was getting worse by the second.

Leoric agreed with him. However he couldn't stand to leave his mother's body behind to be crushed or burned up by the fire that now began to spread throughout the house.

Leoric turned to Marvin with tears in his eyes.

“
Help me get her outside? Please?”

The two boys had a hard time moving Marceline's body through the wreckage of the living room. Marvin was smaller and struggled to keep his grip on her feet, yet they managed to make it out just before the house collapsed. They sat on the front curb for some time before a passing medevac spotted them. Marvin was sitting next to Leoric, who was sitting next to his mother's body with his tear stained face buried in his arms. A young paramedic approached them.

“
Is she still alive?” he asked them.

Marvin closed his eyes and shook his head. Leoric let out a low sob.

“
What are your names?” the paramedic knelt in front of them.

“
I'm Marvin McCalister IV” Marvin said.

“
Leoric Swift.” Leoric grunted.

“
Thank goodness Marvin! Your parents are safe and sound at the bomb shelter Marvin. I'll take you to them.” The paramedic turned to Leoric and did not speak at first “...And Leoric Swift.” he said “That must mean...” A look of unease spread across his face. His gaze went from the body to the house and back to the two boys “That's Marceline Swift. I'm so sorry. Your father contacted us when the bombing first began, but we couldn't get here in time. The entire city was under siege. I'm sorry for this too but-”

“
Orphanage.” Leoric cut him off before he could finish.

Stories like this have a way of spreading among children with parents in the military, so it was no surprise to him where he was going to live.

“
It's only until your father gets home.” the paramedic said.

Leoric and Marvin said their goodbyes when the second medevac arrived. Marvin got in the medevac that would take him to the shelter, but Leoric didn't enter his own at first. He watched solemnly as they placed his mother in a body bag and loaded her into the back. It had been the last time he would see her again.

-
5
-

Leoric kept to himself during the first week at the orphanage and spoke very little. The boys there seemed a bit rough, with an airport's share of baggage. Leoric already had his own to shoulder, so he decided to fly solo until his father came to pick him up. It had been a few hours since he arrived, and he was sitting in the lobby reading a mystery novel when his father called.

Ryan's loud and enthusiastic voice sent cheer brimming through the audio speakers “Leo! I've missed you so much!”

“
I've missed you too dad.” Leoric said, which was very true. Hearing his father's voice was a great relief that brought him so much happiness.

Some of the cheer in Ryan's voice gave way to concern, and if there was a video display or hologram for this transmitter, then Swift knew that his father's face would be full of worry.

“
How are you holding up?” Ryan asked.

Leoric really didn't feel okay. His mother was dead and only with him in memory. Plus he was stuck in this orphanage where he felt quite miserable and alone. Still he knew his father was on the battlefield and did not want to worry him any further. Since Leoric had never put much practice into lying, there was a subtle hollowness in his voice that Ryan's keen perception picked up on immediately “Yup yup! I'm fine dad!” he said.

That enthusiasm, that flair had surged back into his father's voice “Well I'm worried as all get out here! So I'm coming to bust you out of there! Asap! Even if I have to steal a ship and fly it there myself!”

“
Dad...”

“
Dead serious Leo! Zach knows a guy, who knows a guy, who knows a ninja ya know? I've got connections.” Ryan declared with the utmost confidence in his ninja connections.

Leoric laughed out loud and yelled “Dad!”

It was a relief too, because he thought that he would never find laughter again after the bombing.

“
Really? A ninja?” he asked his father incredulously.

“
A flippin' ninja! Zach is on the warpath too! Says he's gonna take down a rebel ship for each and every bomb dropped.”

Then some of the last words Leoric's mother spoke came back to him. Take care of your father.

The hollowness that had outlined his tone earlier had vanished “I'll be okay dad, just get here when you can.” he said, and meant it.

His father hadn't even gotten started yet, but it was a well known fact that sadness could not stand long against the likes of Ryan Swift.

“
They're calling in a replacement for me by the end of the week. Two weeks tops. I'll call you the second that I'm on my way.” Ryan said and paused for a moment “I love you son. I know how much all of this is hurting you, and I miss your mother too. Hang in there and be strong.”

“
I love you too dad. I'll be strong.”

-
6
-

One week had passed and by the second week Leoric was waiting by the phone everyday. Some of the other boys began to tease him for this, but he paid them no mind. There were others like him who were being taken home everyday. Soon there were less and less waiting, and eventually there was only Leoric. The caregivers had already processed him as a permanent resident by the beginning of week three, and by the end of it he no longer sat by the phone. Something was wrong. His father wasn't the type to just forget about him or allow himself to be too busy to even call. When a box came with a professional looking letter which contained carefully chosen words, words that explained the demise of his father, he wasn't surprised. He was devastated. He calmly folded the letter up and placed it back into the envelope. There wasn't anything he could do about this. There was nothing he could do about anything anymore. His life was over anyway. He set the box, which contained his father's personal belongings, in bottom of the wardrobe in the corner of his room and laid down. After a few seconds he curled into a ball and cried himself to sleep.