Welcome Home

With the use of nuclear energy, everyone was able to get off the planet safely. However, Moonbeam and Goldie were still lagging behind a bit - giving everyone else the chance to get everything ready for quite the celebration.

“Are you sure that they’ll both like this?” Sunfish asked as he put up some streamers.

Tally looked up from his book. “Huh? Oh, yeah, totally. They’ll totally love it, I think. I don’t know, could you add more stitching patterns to it? I think that’d look cool.”

And so, everyone ran around trying to figure out the best things to do with themselves. Tally had some sort of paw in helping out, but eventually, Sunfish pulled him aside to ask a question.

“... Hey, Tally?” Sunfish asked.

“Yeah? Why’d you pull me off to the side?”

“... Did you fill up our tanks all the way?”

Tally paused. “... You know, I kept thinking that I forgot something…”

Sunfish groaned before returning to the rest of the party setup.

Aldebaran was talking to Crow once again.

“So you don’t know where the others are?” Aldebaran asked.

“I only saw where one went.”

“Ah. I think I know which you mean… How are your wings?”

Crow’s frown deepened. “I believe we have a party to help set up.”

Soleil, in the meantime, was allowing Sunfish to stand on his shoulders to put decorations up on the wall.

“How did you get this tall for a Spacecat, anyway?” Sunfish asked.

“Eggs,” Soleil stated.

“... Eggs? Is that it?”

“Lots of eggs.”

Well, that settled that. Maybe. Nobody really knew what to make of it, honestly.

Eventually, once most of the decor was set up, everyone took a break at the middle of the floor.

“... You know, we’re throwing a party for Goldie and Moonbeam, but no one threw a party for us,” Sunfish remarked.

“We aren’t from Port Borealis originally,” Soleil pointed out. “Many of them don’t know us.”

“We are wanderers as part of The Foundation,” Crow confirmed. “I suppose Aldebaran will be joining us.”

“Only if I am allowed to,” Aldebaran nodded. “Of course, I am sure my skills will be of use to your organization.”

Crow hummed to himself some, but he didn’t talk further on the topic.

“So… we just go back to The Foundation after the party, right?” Sunfish asked.

“That is the plan,” Soleil said. “The specific base is the one on Planet 12-E-17, also known as Funky Town.”

“It is not called Funky Town,” Sunfish frowned.

“That is what Clef’s reports said.”

“You trust Clef’s reports?”

“Lively bunch,” Aldebaran joked, looking to Crow, who did not return the look.

Tally walked back into the room, stopping when he saw the group. “... You’re talking about going back to The Foundation? I’ve considered heading back myself sometime… if only for a visit, of course.”

“Why did you start working at Port Borealis, anyway, Tally?” Sunfish asked, sitting up.

“Oh, well, I got an invitation to join. The Foundation put me on leave until I’m done here, but I don’t really see me leaving any time soon. I don’t know why they wanted me specifically, but it all worked out in the end, I suppose.”

Port Borealis was nice, of course - it had plants, and walkways, and plenty of things to do around it. Spacecats, Sodacats, Guppymanders, and now Cirrocanius roamed the halls, talking and interacting constantly. It was perfect, all things considered.

It would, ultimately, be hard to leave this place. The Foundation was a darker place, full of strange creatures and plenty of harsh environments (and people, at that). There were mostly Spacecats, but gradually, it seemed that more would join… like Aldebaran and Sunfish, for instance.

And The Foundation had paws in Port Borealis, in the form of Tally, of course. It seemed that every major port had at least one member there, and this one was absolutely no exception. For all that Tally did, for all that he messed up, he was still considered a valuable asset and a brilliant mind.

It was just a shame that he read that damn book one day.

“How much longer until Moonbeam and Goldie get here?” Sunfish asked, yawning.

“They were due about an hour ago,” Soleil said.

“They might have crashed again,” Crow stated.

“Don’t say that! It wasn’t my fault this time!” Tally gasped.

What was the truth behind Moonbeam and Goldie’s absence to their own welcome home party? Well, the answer was simple.

Traffic was hell in these parts nowadays.