Starkitten - The Beginning

She crept quietly through the house, silent. No more than a shadow. She was K'Ralla El'E'Sharre, affectionately known as 'the Starkitten.' Heir to the First Seat of the Council of Nine, the ruling body of the StarCat people. And she was running away from home.

Only 25 cycles, she was a mere child by the long lived StarCat people. Tired of book learning and hearing about the wonderous adventures that the other Explorers of the Dimensions, she decided it was time for her to see these wonders herself. After all, as an heir to the Council, she needed a wide varity of experiences to show her what was right and what was wrong. Besides, life had become DULL.

Knowing all the ins and outs of the grand house, she quietly phased through a `safe' part of the wall, quickly reaching the other side. A quick mental scan told her that she was alone. She padded silently toward the gate, toward the path to Dimension Vortex - the vortex within that will help her travel through the protections her world had around them.

The StarCats are a highly advanced, intelligent race of felines. Sometimes known as the "Cat Kitsune of the Stars" because of their three tails and amazing abilities of telepathy and phasing (dimension travel). Occassionally, a StarCat was born with telekinesis or the ability to shapeshift, but this was rare. They are an extremely private race, sheltering their home world with an artificial Dimension Vortex that hides their home from the dimensions. Like all felines, the StarCats are very curious. They send out explorers to travel the dimensions and report back their findings. Certain races are marked for communication or watching, either for future communication or for a possible future threat.

K'Ralla reached the Vortex Gate. The one or two StarCats she had seen had not seen her. She was too good to be caught, too excited to make a mistake. She watched the technicians padding around, ensuring the stability of the Vortex. She knew they would be continuing their rounds and she would have her chance to use the Gate and begin her Great Adventure!

There! They continued on in their rounds. The Gate was empty. In a flash, she was there and programming the Vortex. (Ok, so some of that book learning was useful.) She chose a medium sized world with a wide variety of species living on it. "This will be a good start and I can go many places from there!" Then, quietly, she stepped through the gate, phasing through 1000 dimensions at once, spinning towards her destination and her new life.

Back at the grand house, Puurrla El'E'Sharre woke up Skrat El'E'Sharre. "She's gone." She told her husband and leader with a small, sad smile.

"Oh, so soon? I thought we had at least another mid-cycle with her." He looked sad, but proud. "She's a bit younger than I when I left."

"We almost missed it. She was very quick."

"That's our daughter."

"I will miss her. A lot."

"I know, Puurrla. I know. But, this is how it must be. If an Heir does not have the experiences of the Dimensions, they will not be an effective leader. They need it and so do our people."

"What if she gets hurt or ..."

"Shush now." He pulled her to him in a tight embrace. "She is the Starkitten. She will be fine. She'll come back when she is ready, with all the experiences, both good and bad, that will make her a fine leader some day." He looked at the holo of his daughter, her laughing blue eyes, pretty white fur and the blue stone in her ear that marked her rank among the StarCat people. "I will miss my wildcat daughter. But, this is how things are supposed to be."

Puurrla nodded with tears in her eyes, intoning, "Our child has taken the Path of the Stars. And Cycle is continued, as it must be."

"And the Cycle is continued, as it must be." Skart whispered softly, holding his wife close to him.

Puurrla and Skrat sat there for a long time, watching the stars and wondering about the adventures that awaited their only daughter.