Living in Hala was much better than the situation the princess of Alveron had back in Knowhere. As a political guest of the planet, she was provided with anything she needed, she was treated with respect and allowed to roam as she pleased. There were restrictions to her roaming of course, but the pros outweighed the cons.

As a princess, she was content. She had a comfortable room, with clothes that were fitted for her and means to entertain herself.

But as a warrior, she was restless. The training rooms were for those who required them and in the eyes of others, she as a political guest and a princess had no need for them. She did her usual exercises in her room or when she found a quiet spot outside the four walls, but training by herself and having someone who could challenge her were two different things.

When they first met in Knowhere, Elbereth had mentioned it to the leader of the unit —Yon-Rogg—that she wanted to fight, and was told it would be arranged. However, weeks after that and there were still no words from Yon-Rogg or his promise.

Fortunately, it didn't take longer than a month before she was contacted by Yon-Rogg, who told her she has been allowed to work in his unit and under his supervision. And that's how she became part of the StarForce.

°.✩┈┈∘*┈☾✯☽┈*∘┈┈✩.°

Vers was confident in her powers and the training she had before joining the StarForce.

But she was sometimes too confident in them. A few days before the unit's mission to Knowhere she ended up breaking her ribs and was told that under no circumstance was she allowed to go on the mission. So she never had the chance to meet Alveron's remaining royalty.

She had certainly heard of her, she was a favorite topic among the Kree citizens and the news of her home planet had reached far and wide. There was hardly any intelligent life with the knowledge of outer space who hadn't heard of the fate that befell Alveron and the Dumonts family.

Yon-Rogg was also very interested in her. He had talked about her and how it would be very beneficial to have a Dumont on his team.

Lately, he had nothing to do but to run around Hala convincing Supreme Intelligence to let her join his unit. They weren't against it, just hesitant. This wasn't an everyday thing and Elbereth held a position of power beyond any of them. She was the last of her bloodline and the future Queen of one of the most formidable planets and kingdoms in the galaxy. If she was harmed —or worse— on a mission, they would have to answer not only to Alveron, but to the rest of the Galaxy.

Many planets relied on Alveron for protection, stability, and its power to prevent wars.

But they finally gave Yon-Rogg the green light, under the conditions that she would not be allowed on their more dangerous missions —no matter how useful she could be— and that she would not be sent in alone, or put in a situation where she could be harmed.

It wasn't giving her a lot of ground, and it would most likely irritate the princess to be constricted to this extent, but it was better than not being allowed to fight at all.

So that's how Vers finally meet the Queen of Alveron.

The first time they met was when Yon-Rogg was training with Vers when Elbereth entered the training room. Facing away from the floor, and all her focus on Yon-Rogg, Vers didn't notice Elbereth until she was slammed to the floor and accidentally looked up.

The woman standing above her looked more like how she thought a goddess would look like. Long wavy brown hair, big brown eyes shining with mirth and amusement. She was obviously a warrior, muscles showing themselves even under the training clothes. her expression was amused but it wasn't rude or in a way that would make Vers' short temper to act up and demand for a fight.

Yon-Rogg offered her a hand and helped her up before turning to their third party and nodding his head respectfully, "It's good to finally see you here."

Returning the nod, Elbereth looked around with excitement, "I've been pent up in my room with limited access to training equipment or partners, I'm more than happy to be here."

Yon-Rogg chuckled and mentioned towards Vers, "This is Vers, one of the members of my unit."

Elbereth smiled and offered her a handshake, "Nice to meet you, I'm Elbereth Dumont."

Smiling, Vers shook her hand before the name registered with her. She's been told by Yon-Rogg and the rest of the StarForce how the princess wasn't big on formalities, but it still felt strange to not bow or show her respect to royalty.

The revelation sent her into a frenzy, causing her to throw a panicked look towards her mentor before doing an awkward bow while still shaking her hand, "Your Majesty."

When she looked up she was met with a kind smile, "Please, there's no need for that. And Elbereth is just fine."

And that was the beginning of their friendship. Vers offered to give Elbereth a tour of the grounds and in the remaining Dumont offered her knowledge on the universe.

Late at night, after hours of training, they would find themselves outside, looking at the sky and the many stars and galaxies, lying side by side. Elbereth would point out the constellations, stars, and the galaxies she knew to Vers who listened carefully, mesmerized by the world around them.

Soon their outdoor nights lead them to one of their rooms, where they would talk for hours and hours.

"You know," Elbereth began one night, "My brothers would force themselves into my room and then talk my ear off about something. I would always complain but it was nice."

Vers turned her head to look at the princess lying down on the bed next to her, "You never know how much something means to you until you lose it."

Elbereth stared at the ceiling uncaring of the tears, "Yes, I didn't like them calling me Ellie, it didn't seem fit for a warrior or a princess. Now...I just miss it. Them. Everything."

That night Vers held Elbereth tightly and comforted her. It was also the first time she called the fierce warrior Ellie.

After that, the two were nearly inseparable. sleepless nights were no longer lonely, the nightmares weren't fended off by themselves and their hearts were lighter.

Vers considered knocking on Ellie's door after a dream filled with glimpses of memory, but knowing that the princess had been up until an hour ago chatting with her made her change her mind and she found herself waking up Yon-Rogg.

"Do you know what time it is?" He asked with a sigh, not happy about being woke up at an early hour.

Vers shrugged innocently, "Can't sleep."

"There are tabs for that,"

"Yeah, but then I'd be sleeping."

Understanding downed on Yon-Rogg, "Dreams again?"

Vers gave a small nod and Yon-Rogg did the same, "Why didn't you go to Elbereth."

Vers shifted and shrugged, "She just went to sleep," She then looked at her commander with a smirk, "Wanna fight?"

The next thing Vers knew was her face becoming acquainted with the floor.

"I slipped."

Yon-Rogg looked at her with disbelief, "Right, you slipped as a result of me punching you in the face."

Vers waved his statement off, "I was already slipping when you happened to punch me in the face. The two events are not related."

Her mentor grinned, clearly amused, "Tell me about this dream."

Vers went to punch him but he dodged them. They did their usual dance, dodging, kicking, and punching with the occasional jump-kicks.

"Anything new?" Yo-Rogg asked in the middle of dodging.

"No."

°.✩┈┈∘*┈☾✯☽┈*∘┈┈✩.°

Elbereth knew today was a big day for both Vers and herself.

Today was the day that the Supreme Intelligence would give both of them permission for a mission.

She was told that only one of them needed to be talked to, and Elbereth decided Vers should be the one. This maybe had to do with the fact that Supreme Intelligence took the form of the one you admired most and the remaining Dumont had no desire to look upon one of her family members' faces without it being them.

When Yon-Rogg and Vers headed out, Elbereth made her way to her room.

She knew if they were allowed on this mission then there wouldn't be a quiet moment where she could relax until the mission was complete. And besides, it was important for both brain and body to be prepared for a fight. If she could relax and enjoy the moment then her mind wouldn't be a problem in the coming mission, filling her with thoughts and doubts.

So she sat on the floor with her legs crossed and laid her hand palm down on her knees and took a deep breath. Emptying her head from all thoughts.

The meditation was something she did with her mother, after exhausting days she would lead her only daughter to the balcony overlooking Alveron.

"You have to take better care of yourself," she remembered her mother scolding her, "There's no use to a well-cared body if the mind is damaged."

"But—"

"No buts, you can expect to win a battle when your mind is falling apart and stopping you from focusing. A healthy mind and a healthy body, that's what you're training for."

After that, it was easy to follow her mother and meditate.

"Ellie," a voice called out making her lose her consideration. Wiping out her dagger, she lounged at the source until she had them on their back and her dagger at their throat.

"Ellie."

Blinking, she found herself looking down at Vers' grinning face, "Already starting the mission?"

Elbereth smiled and removed her dagger, "So they accepted?"

"They did," Vers shoved her off, making both of them lay side by side on the floor.

"Who did you see?" Elbereth asked quietly while looking at her closest friend.

Vers took a deep breath, "I don't know, I— it's frustrating."

The princess of Alveron interlocked their pinkies together, "They'll come back to you."

"Do I want them to?"

"Perhaps, that's a bridge you have to cross later," Elbereth got up and offered a helping hand to Vers, "Come, I want to go watch the stars tonight."

Chuckling, Vers accepted the help and together they left.

°.✩┈┈∘*┈☾✯☽┈*∘┈┈✩.°

HI!
I know I'm late but I've been writing this for 3 days.
BUT IM SO EXCITED TO GO FURTHER IN THE STORY AKKAAq

Hope y'all liked this. UwU

Love ya, stay safe!
❤️