Star Darlings; the Other 12

The Cruel Truth of Life

Nicholas stood on a small cliff before the shorelines of PiscesPueblo, admiring the Great Pulsar Reef. The glowing coral and fish made the sea around glow brighter than the stars if it was possible to make the sparkling sea any brighter. About 1000m away, the light of the Grand Quasar Reef, the sister reef of the Great Pulsar Reef, illuminated the horizon.

This would be a beautiful place to swim at night. He thought.

The others were still at the hotel, doing whatever they could. Nicholas decided to sneak out. No one ever noticed if he was there or not. No one cared. He was just another starless Starling to most. No one wanted him around, because he constantly breaks the spirit.

The horizon's perfect view was ruined by the giant Star-yacht coming towards them. Even from here, Nicholas could see the words: HMS Stardust on the ship's starboard and port. The yacht's sparkling lights made it easily detectable. This is their next ride. The next few trips they would spend on the yacht, it'd dock near the next attraction, where they would get off and drive the rest of the way there. Then they'd spend the night at the attraction, but return a day later to continue their way to Polar Peak. There, they'd go to the nearest town and spend 3 days while the HMS Stardust installed icebreakers and they'd sail till HydrusHarbor, near Starling Academy. Then a Star-Bus would take them back. Literally around Starland.

His thoughts were interrupted by a small and feeble bark. He looked down to see, on the beach, a small baby space lion pup. It was laid on its side by an adult space lion, purring softly.

Nicholas slid down from the small cliff and landed soundlessly. He approached the space lions, slow and careful like he would to any other creature with children. The adult did nothing. When he reached its side, he checked its breath.

She's dead. Nicholas said in horror. Death wasn't an uncommon thing for Nicholas; growing up in the north told him death needed to happen for survival. However, to see a dead mother with a cub was... sickening.

He looked at the cub. It was nuzzling its mother's side, not knowing of her sad fate. He looked at the adult again, trying to figure out what killed it. Its body was fine, with no wounds or scratches. Carefully, he pried open its mouth, gasping to find it was full of plastic.

She suffocated. Nicholas thought in horror.

He looked at the baby. "Oh you poor thing," he said, reaching a hand to touch his nuzzle. "I know what you feel to lose someone importantly."

It seemed to understand him, as he stopped nuzzling his mother and looked at her sadly. Then he let loose a sad roar, mourning her death.

He would survive out here for long. He thought. He's barely over the age of suckling milk, much less surviving in the cruel, unforgiving world he lives in. Nicholas thought sadly. Unless I could help.

He fished his Star-zap out of his pocket. He was about to call the SAS (Starland Animal Support) when he stopped.

They barely do anything. They say they'll take care of animals like this but in the end, they'll suffer an even worse fate than what they might in the wild; starved and beaten. He'd seen what they did before.

"Uh, kid?" A female voice asked behind him. "I suggest you move away from them; the big one might hurt you."

He turned to find a purple-coloured girl his age, wearing jeans and a t-shirt. Behind her was a group of people holding equipment "Who are you?"

She seemed startled at first, seeing as Nicholas wasn't the average Starling. "I'm Amelia, a rescue operator of-"

"Cut to the chase. Why are you here?"

"We got calls from a person who saw a person--which I assume is you--standing near an adult and baby space lion," Amelia said. "We're here to help."

"Help? A bit too late." Nicholas said. "The adult's dead, suffocated from plastic thrown into the sea."

Amelia gasped. "What about the baby?"

"He's still alive, but I know what the SAS people do and I don't-"

"I'm not from SAS." Amelia interrupted. "I'm from the new organization Seaworld, and we aim to do what the SAS didn't; saving marine creatures from extinction."

"Why haven't I heard of this?"

"We're quite new, but we already have rescued over 37 000 creatures and raised awareness on how much we've impacted the seas."

"Oh," Nicholas said, a look of embarrassment on his face. "Sorry. I didn't know."

"A lot don't," Amelia admitted. "Alright!" she called behind her. "Team! Get the baby! The adult's dead, unfortunately. Get him back to HQ, and be careful!"

They carefully walked towards the baby and picked him up. They carried him to a small truck where they placed him in a cushioned area, ensuring his safety.

"Will, I ever see him again?" Nicholas asked.

"As the one who technically found him, yes, you are welcomed to come and see him from time to time," Amelia said. "Here," she placed a card with a Star-zap number on it. "This is our number. Call us and schedule a time to meet him, and you can come to see him."

Nicholas smiled. "Thank you. Take good care of him, alright? I don't want him to end up like the ones rescued by SAS."

"That's why I joined Seaworld," Amelia said. "Well, I'll see you later..."

"Nicholas," Nicholas said. "Nicholas Maximoff."

"Alright," Amelia said. "I'll see you later, Nicholas." she walked back to the truck, where she got in and it drove away.

Nicholas stared at the mother of the baby space lion. He knelt down and in his native tongue said: "Don't worry; he's in good hands."

He rubbed her nuzzle, and walked away, knowing his little friend would be fine.

HI! This is my first author's note in a book! This chapter was specifically written to raise awareness about the decline of sea animals around the world. Not just sea lions too; fish, wild dolphins, belugas, polar bears, different kinds of whales, sharks... the list goes on. Lots of these creatures are endangered or threatened. Some even went extinct, like the Baiji, a Chinese freshwater dolphin that went extinct in 2007.

#savetheplanet #raiseawareness #wecandosomething!

Toodle doo, readers!