It was in the dawn of the following morning that Astra and his family were met with the troubled pacings of Aunt Caroline, who brought them concerning news. King Bovicus had declared a national emergency. All visitors, whether they were from nearby territories or even ambassadors of other Constellations, were to immediately evacuate from the capital at once.

  “They said it’s the Constellar Rain,” Caroline said, her normally bright face now shrouded in a hint of fear. “But that can’t be right… should still be another five years before it’s due.”

  Papa Henry and Mama Edith’s expression darkened. It was the first time Astra had ever seen them so scared, so anxious.

  “What kinda ill timin’ is this…” Edith groaned, rubbing her forehead. “With so many city folk around it’s like the whole place’s screamin’ for those things to come right on over.”

  Henry nodded grimly. “I still get the shivers when I think about the last time they descended. Luckily the Rain doesn’t get too close to us rural folk, but now—ack, gosh. The sooner we git outta here the better. Any mention of how long we have, Caroline?”

  “Not exactly,” she said. “Just that it’s supposed to happen sometime this or next week.”

  Caroline walked over to the room’s window and peeked through the blinds, watching the chaos of the outside as mobs of people trampled through the streets while shouting and hollering in a mad rush; one step out there and an unprepared man would find themselves squished in an instant. Poor Betsy the Chocobull had to hug the side of the house, lest she be swept away by the uproar.

  “Don’t mind those fools. The worst thing you can do during times like these is panic and run around like a headless razorchick.” Caroline turned back toward the family. “Usually the knights set up guard convoys near the outer gates. Bovine Farm’s an officially registered business, right? That should give you fellas some priority. Take your stuff, join them, and leave right away.”

  “Yer not gonna come with us?” Edith asked.

  “Nope, I have to help with the evacuation efforts. Can’t sit around when my home’s being attacked now, can I? Besides, us city slickers already have shelters set up underground. My hubby took the children there this morning so don’t worry one bit about us—we’ll be fine. Just take care of yourselves and Astra.”

  The family exchanged one last goodbye with Aunt Caroline, before packing up and then hurrying out the door. The sequence of events had happened too quickly for Astra to ask anything. What exactly was the Constellar Rain? He heard Lady Selene briefly mention it before, yet for everyone to be so rattled by it now… the boy couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed, and a bit frightened. But it was in moments like these that he knew he had to stay strong, just like his paw and momma.

  Their hands slightly shook as they grabbed Astra and carried him out. For as much as he loved and respected his parents, they too were human. There were some things even they couldn’t solve by themselves. Yet regardless of their own worries, they patted their boy’s head and reassured him that everything would be okay, that there was nothing to be fearful of.

  Soon, the family made it to their carriage and jumped right in. Ol’ Betsy didn’t waste a moment and took off running, plowing through the busy streets with a recklessness that would’ve ordinarily gotten them arrested if not for the circumstances. Astra had never seen his father apologize so much in his life, as innocent passerbys had to jump out of the way or else risk being taken down by a raging chocobull.

  “Hun, hun? Honey you’ve gotta slow down!” Edith cried, clinging to the carriage’s edge for dear life.

  “I’m tryin, darling!” Henry shouted back. “Betsy ain’t used to this kinda rush. She’s—oh Stars’ almighty. Stop, girl. Stop! We’re gonna crash!”

  The chocobull dug her hooves into the ground and dragged the family into a precarious slide, until they stopped right before they could slam into the city’s gate. A slack-jawed knight to the side had witnessed the whole spectacle and then approached them.

  “Please avoid causing any disturbances during this time,” they said. “The city’s exit is to the left. Calmly follow the procession outside.”

  Henry stumbled over himself as he got out of the cart. “Wait a minute, feller. I heard there’s a convoy we can join?”

  “If you’ve come from outside the central region, there is a guarded transport that will take a separate route leading to the periphery. However, availability is limited. You will have to wait for the next rotation if you cannot find a seat.”

  “What if I’m a business owner? Check it in that archive of yours: Henry of Bovine Farms.”

  The guard pulled out a thin mirror from their pocket and stared at it for a moment, before eventually putting it away and nodding.

  “Very well. Head this way.”

  Henry wiped his forehead and let out a sigh of relief. Then the family followed the guard away from the main busy area and out onto the grass outside, where a small gathering of knights and about a hundred-some people waited anxiously to leave.

  “Take extra care of these ones. They have a Starblessed as a guarantor,” the guard said, handing Astra and his parents over to the convoy’s leader.

  Astra’s father grimaced and shamefully lowered his head. It would appear that Aunt Caroline had lied. They weren’t given priority because of their business, but rather due to their personal connections. The family was lucky. Had they not known her, perhaps they would’ve ended up just like the rest, still struggling to find a safe way out.

  But right now Henry couldn’t afford to feel guilty. This way, he could at least ensure his wife and son’s safety. His pride, his ego, none of it mattered anymore. The only thing that did was getting back to the farm in one piece.

  The convoy leader nodded and directed the family toward the back, where large self-moving carriages like the ones Astra had seen on the way here were arranged in rows, only these ones were much, much bigger and could likely hold a whole barn’s worth of folks if need be. Children and the elderly were to stay in these vehicles while the able-bodied helped with the general transport. Animals like Betsy were stored in a specialized holding area.

  “Alrighty, behave yourself and stay here for a while, okay stardew?” Mama Edith said, giving her son a big hug as she urged him into one of the carts. “Don’t be too lonely, now. Your paw and I will be right outside.”

  “I’ll be gooder than a ripe crabapple on a vine!” Astra replied, putting on a brave face.

  With that, his mother left, and the boy was left to the company of a dozen other kids like him who were, admittedly, in a much more terrified state. They sobbed and curled up into little balls, snot sticking to their clothes, and they begged to see their parents whilst suffering bouts of hiccups.

  Seeing them like that, Astra felt a pang in his heart. He wanted to help them to the best of his ability, but he didn’t quite know what it was that other children his age liked, so he did the next best thing and loudly coughed into his fist. That seemed to draw their attention.

  “Ah-hem,” he said. “What do ya say to a chocobull blockin’ yer door?”

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  The crowd sat silent, uncomfortably so. Eventually, a tiny hand rose up from the back, and a little girl with a blonde ponytail spoke.

  “Um, what?” she asked.

  “Mooo-ve over.”

  …

  No words, no laughs, not a single sound left anyone’s lips. Astra felt his face turning bright red. He thought the joke was pretty good—it made paw chuckle! Though, maybe they’d already heard of it before, being closer to the cities and all. As far as Astra knew he and his family were the farthest out from the nation one could be before entering Capricorn territory. That meant he was even more rural than the other rural kids.

  Yesiree, in that room all eyes were on him. Some were incredulous. Others recoiled back as if tasting something better. In the end Astra didn’t quite get the reactions he wanted, but regardless no one was crying anymore! And to him that was a resounding success.

  Soon, the kids rubbed their tear-streaked faces and slowly nodded off, exhausted by the commotion they caused. No doubt by the next day they would return to a chipper mood. Astra nodded smugly to himself, and he sat down on an open cushion.

  To his side was the girl with the ponytail from before. Unlike the others, she was still wide awake—one of the rare few who remained composed—and she looked at Astra with a mischievous grin before poking his arm.

  “That was kinda lame, you know,” she said to him. “Like the jokes my dad would make.”

  Astra tilted his head, confused. “What’s wrong with that? I think my paw’s pretty cool.”

  “Really? Guess he’s one of the mature types. My dad can be really cringy sometimes. Like, he’ll rub his beard on my cheek and tease me when my dress gets dirty. And sometimes! Hear this, sometimes? He’ll even fart right in front of my face. Ugh.”

  “Sounds like you get along like two whistlepeas in a shell.”

  The girl laughed. “Well… maybe you’re right.” Then she extended her arm out for a friendly handshake. “I’m Emily. What’s your name?”

  “My paw and momma call me Astra. Nice to meet ya, miss.”

  “Nice to meet you, too. Glad to see there’s at least one kid here who isn’t a brat. Gosh, honestly! What’s there to even be scared about? Even if the Constellar Rain does come, the knights’ll protect us anyway.”

  Emily seemed like one of those smart, knowledgeable types, so the boy took the chance to learn more about just what exactly was causing all this fuss.

  “What’s that Constellar whatsit anyway?” he asked, to which Emily replied with a shocked gasp.

  “You don’t know!?” she almost shouted, before quickly remembering where she was and lowering her tone. “Geez, I figured you were from the country with all that paw and momma stuff, but you don’t even know about the Constellars? How rural are you…”

  Emily clicked her tongue, then tidied her dress and spoke again to Astra with a new snobbish air. “The Constellars are these big, scary monsters from space! No one knows where they come from or why exactly they want to wipe us out so much. We’ve been fighting since way, way before even the Constellations were born.”

  “How come they ain’t fightin’ them now?”

  “Silly, why do you think we never see them anymore? The Constellations are defending our galaxy right this moment, waging a war that never ends. But even they need to rest sometimes. My dad says that’s why the Constellar Rain happens every fifteen years. The Constellations take it easy for a bit, and then a few crafty little bugs sneak through their sight and come after us. That’s the Rain. A rain of hideous falling comets.”

  For a moment, Astra saw a crack in Emily’s cheerful demeanor. Despite all her bravado she was still a little girl, one who did her best to take her mind off the worst possible outcome, the chance that those falling comets would somehow reach them.

  Yet that small fear soon disappeared, and her face brightened as she spoke of a new topic. “But there’s nothing to fear. Those monsters don’t stand a chance against our king, the other nations, and… the heroes.”

  Suddenly, a chill ran down the boy’s spine, and he felt his face becoming oddly hot. That word… the word she spoke. The moment it left her lips, Astra experienced a rush of exhilaration not-so different to when he met Lady Selene, only it was a bit different this time. Back then, his heart raced from meeting a higher being, someone whose presence seemed as vast as the flowing space.

  But now, what he cradled in his bosom was uniquely his own, like the puzzle pieces of who he was, who he had always wanted to be, were finally starting to connect. Astra couldn’t stop himself. He eagerly leaned in and said, “Heroes?”

  Emily sensed his interest and grinned, her eyes shining with a fangirlish fervor. “You don’t know what a hero is, either?”

  “No.”

  “Well, you better prepare yourself! Once I start talking about them, you won’t be able to shut me up even if you tried.”

  The girl jumped from her seat and ran toward the vehicle’s window, before turning around and then pointing her finger straight up. “Listen up, Astra. Heroes… are those who shine blindingly bright. They can come from anywhere, be anyone. They’re the defenders of the people. They strive to protect all that is good and righteous. The Constellations are heroes, of course, and you could even call our king a hero too. But to me, a true hero is someone who brings us hope even in our darkest hour. A hero is someone who inspires others to dream an impossible dream.”

  Astra stayed still, starstruck, as Emily continued her enthralling tale. For so long the boy had stared at the sky and wished to reach out to them, to know how he could sparkle just as radiant; and for many years he never found the answer. Every time he came close to one, it ended up being not quite right, not the correct fit.

  Yet, all of that felt so, so distant to him now. The blood rushing through his veins, the pounding thump and thump of his chest—it demanded that he look and listen. It urged him on to a calling of his own.

  His quest to reach the unreachable stars.

  “I want to be a hero.” Astra spoke so naturally as if, all this time, that resolution was waiting to be let free. It was burrowed deep where he couldn’t yet see, unable to fully understand its weight, its vow, the journey it would lead him to. But now there was no longer any need to hide it. He was finally ready.

  Emily giggled and twirled around. “You’ve got a long way before you can call yourself that, Astra, but… it’s a good start. C’mere! I’ll tell you about my personal heroes, like Saintess Auroria from the Healers of Virgo—oh, or how about the fearsome usurper lioness, Empress Juno Capitolina Leo the Fourth? There’s so many of them out there. So many heroes who were just normal people like us. When I gush about them, it makes me think that maybe I can be just as great someday, too.”

  Astra and Emily had fun talking with each other all through the day and all through the night. It was from her that the boy had learned about so many people he wouldn’t ordinarily have. Stories of valor, fables and legends of those who, no matter the scars they suffered or the difficulties they faced, remained true to their creed and fought for the sake of a brighter morrow.

  So did the next week pass with the two practically inseparable from the other. Astra absorbed all her knowledge like a parched throat to water, and in return he told her about his own stories while on the farm. Sometimes she laughed at him, said that there was no way he could’ve done such ‘crazy and superhuman’ things, and the boy remembered feeling odd, for was it really that bizarre to other people? His parents never said anything about his adventures; thus, he simply waved off her disbelief as just being coddled like he once was.

  It was peaceful, those days of rambling and simple joys. Over time they forgot all about the threat of the Constellars, and the other children became much more open. Their spirited mood also spread to the adults. Everyone was less tense and were full of happy smiles. The memories made here, Astra knew he’d cherish them forever.

  And so, one moonlit eve, the boy woke up earlier than usual and yawned. The other kids were still asleep. It was nice having a bit of quiet for a change. The stars outside were particularly alluring this fine night, thus Astra tiptoed over to the window and laid his head on the edge, where a full view of the cosmos and the wider space beyond unfolded in all its majesty.

  It was a sight he had grown accustomed to, yet never was bored of. As he beheld the milky expanse, however, the boy noticed something a bit different than usual.

  One of the stars moved. Then another. And another.

  They flashed across the sky, leaving behind trails of colorful dust. This must’ve been one of those meteor showers Astra had heard so much about! Not wanting to hoard the show all to himself, he quickly darted to Emily and woke her up, shaking her so she wouldn’t miss another second.

  “Huh… whazzit?” she muttered, rubbing her eyes. The girl didn’t have another chance to speak before Astra whisked her away to the windowside.

  “Look! Up there!” Astra said, those lights reflecting in his twinkling eyes. He had expected Emily to share the same wonder, but when he turned to face her… he saw something odd.

  She didn’t smile. She didn’t move a finger. Instead, her gaze was transfixed to those rapidly-fleeting stars, and it was only then that it dawned on Astra where exactly their destination lay.

  Emily trembled, horrified, and fearfully backed away with a scream.

  “It’s… it’s coming. The Constellars. They’re heading straight toward us.”