Children of the Future

The lump in his throat burned like a rock of hot coal; the ache deep in his chest threatened to rip out through his rib cage. Hardest yet to control were the tears collecting in the corner of his eyes. Though stinging, he would never allow them to fall. Han Solo was a man on the edge. A quick glance across to his wife stilled him, gave him all the reassurance he needed. Within her, he saw a woman poised to fight back. Slight red blotches marring her flawless skin were the only remaining evidence of her previously unconstrained tears.

If he was to be completely honest - and when it came to his wife, he usually was - she looked cold, hard. The politician's facade had reappeared to take control of the situation. Usually when that side of Leia appeared it meant run! 'Run to the Falcon!' Or if she had sought you out, 'run away from the Falcon!' However, on the rare occasions when that 'look' was not directed at him, like now for instance, he was pleased to see it. It showed him and anyone else concerned that she was ready to fight, her emotions neatly packed away. This amazing woman left him in awe. To all outward appearances she was calm and in control. Only Han could decipher the incongruent emotions reflected in her eyes.

He knew that in that very moment she was hurting more than Alderaan, more than Bespin, more than Endor. Combined. He hadn't needed any hokey religion to tell him this; he knew because he felt the same way. Any parent would.

"No."

There was barely any sound enforcing the word, but Leia was sure she had been understood. The expression of her adversary confirmed her suspicion.

"No way!" Han growled with slightly more conviction than Leia had managed.

Having found herself and Han in this impossible situation, Leia took a small amount of comfort in knowing that they would face this latest threat together. As a united front. Although on second thought, 'threat' was maybe the wrong choice of word; certainly a word she would have never associated with her twin brother. But right now, Luke was yet again upsetting the hard-earned balance of their family life.

"Look, Luke, we've been here before and the last time we trusted you, let you take our children and place them in hiding. Don't get me wrong, their safety is paramount for both of us. But we lost too much last time. They lost too much. Han and I have made our decision and it is our decision! Wherever they go, we go."

"I don't think you understand," Luke attempted to reason before being cut off by Han.

"What's there to understand? You come up here telling us there's some 'Forcey evil' out there and the twins and Anakin need to be protected. Great, couldn't agree with ya more! Shipping them off...kest-knows-where again is not an option! We can, and we will protect our children ourselves. Like every other family in the galaxy."

"But you're not like every other family in the galaxy!" Luke reiterated.

Leia conceded to that point. No matter what they would like to believe, they would probably never have a normal family life. Placing a gentle hand on Han's arm to still the rebuttal that was evidently coming judging by the defiance that overtook his features, she nodded for Luke to continue.

"Please. Both of you just listen to me. If you hear me out and still decide that they should stay with you I will respect your decision and do everything I can in helping you protect them."

"Fine, but I'm warning you now. You start spouting a load of Force crap, I'm gonna have to..."

Han was silenced by a pointed look from Leia.

"Okay, I need you both to understand that this isn't just a whim. I've had visions. Dark visions. When they first started, it seemed as if there was no hope. Each time, Jaina, Jacen and Anakin would be lost to darkness. I started to look into ways of hiding them in the Force. If this 'being' couldn't find them it would give us a chance to fight them off.

"The visions I was shown started to reflect my research. Ysalamiri seemed the safest bet, yet a vision proved me wrong. Ysalamiri will hide the Force presence of an individual but cannot hide that person in their entirety. There will always be a lead to follow. Stripping the children of their Force powers was another idea but I was immediately shown the danger in leaving them vulnerable. Every idea was met with resistance from the Force. Except for one."

Leia suspected that any retort Han wanted to offer died on his lips. How could you argue on the merits of the Force when it regarded your own children's safety? Han's gruff voice disturbed the tension-filled silence.

"Look, Kid, I will take them wherever you say to keep them safe but I am not leaving them. All children need their parents, regardless of their lineage."

"I'm afraid it's not that simple, but you will be there to take care of them...from a certain point of view..."

In any other situation Leia would have laughed at Luke's fumbling attempts to explain himself. It was as if he'd transformed back to the naive farm boy fresh from Tatooine. Wait, did he just say what I think he did?

"It's just that it won't be you two sitting in front of me, it will be you two from 4ABY. The best way to hide the twins and Anakin will be to hide them in time."

Han lay awake contemplating the dim light that shone underneath the bedroom door and crept towards the bed. The hallway light was left on every night now after one of Jacen's late night toilet trips ended in a collision with Jaina's dollhouse and a quick trip to the closest Med Centre. A large portion of drama and seven stitches later, it was a unanimous decision to always leave the light on at night. At least until the children were older. Unbidden, the faces of his three little angels popped into his mind; each one a perfect mix of himself and Leia. Well, what he considered to be a perfect mix. He was almost sure that Leia would argue that there were a few too many of his traits in their children.

The pair had spent a while just watching the children sleep after Luke had left; just watching the three innocent beings lost in their dreams. They could imagine, if only for a brief period, that everything was right in the galaxy and the biggest worry they would have to face come the morning would be finding activities to keep them occupied. If only the illusion would last.

Leia's hand moved from its resting place on Han's stomach and travelled up to tangle itself in the sparse hair coating his chest. To Han, her voice seemed unspeakably tiny, lost in the dark room. "Han...We made the right decision, didn't we?"

Knowing what she needed from him, he put on his best sabacc face and answered. "Yes."

He pulled her close, her head coming to rest over his heart. The rapid beating was his tell.

Letting sleep wash over them, both Solos found themselves replaying their earlier conversation with Luke.

"Time travel? Kid, if this is some practical joke that Wes is putting you up to, I'd quit right now before I get really mad!"

Han was fuming. Did the kid really expect him to fall for this one? And to bring his children into this was going too far. Even Han Solo had boundaries. Although thinking about it, a prank of this magnitude was glaringly out of character for Luke Skywalker.

Out the corner of his eye Han noticed that Leia seemed to be remaining pretty calm, although the colour had drained from her face. Can she sense something I can't? Han thought dejectedly. Before he could start on another tirade about hokey religions, Leia spoke.

"Luke, what do you mean, send the children back to the year we defeated the Empire? Even if that was possible, how would that be any safer for them?"

Han couldn't help but be impressed with Leia's somewhat calmer attitude. Still, he was waging a war in his head as to whether he should take this seriously and concentrate or whether to slip away and call Lando to share what Luke was trying to pull! Luke's apparent sincerity made the decision for him.

"I know this sounds ridiculous, especially to you, Han. I've done a lot of research and I wouldn't even suggest it if I didn't think it necessary."

Luke took a long pause, collected his thoughts and came back with his distinct Jedi Master voice. Han unintentionally found himself hanging on his every word. Despite the circumstances, he was interested in spite of himself.

"Time travel is not impossible, but neither is it a simple concept. In essence we are doing it right now. During this conversation we are moving through time at a constant rate of 24 hours in a day every day. We are moving forward in what we regard to be the natural progression of time. Our pasts have been forged yet our future is unknown to our present self. The Force holds time in balance. Therefore only a Force user can manipulate time."

"Huh, shoulda known," Han sneered.

"But, let's say for argument's sake that time travel is, as you say, possible and we send our children back in time. What's to say that one of them won't accidently set the Falcon on fire and kill either of us? They could end up changing time so that they were never born in the first place," Leia reflected.

"That won't happen. What you are referring to is what the old Jedi called a Paradox. As I said before, the Force holds time in balance. This means that significant events cannot be changed. Try thinking of time not as a distance but a series of small events that link to a significant outcome. For example, when I first met Threepio and Artoo I took Artoo's restraining bolt off. This led him to leave in search of Old Ben Kenobi. This led to me and Threepio going out to find him. Which then lead to us getting attacked by Sand People and Old Ben coming to rescue me. In meeting Ben I learnt about the Force, which was a significant event. How I ended up there was not. I could go back in time now and put the restraining bolt back on Artoo before he left, yet the Force would bring balance by creating another series of minor events that would lead me and the droids away from the homestead and toward Ben Kenobi."

"So I couldn't change...?" whispered Leia.

Luke, evidently sensing where this was heading, swiftly switched from teaching Jedi Master to compassionate brother. "No, Alderaan is a significant event, therefore a fixed point in time. Even if you were to try and go back to warn at least one person, you'd certainly encounter strong opposition in the Force. History cannot be changed, only the future is in motion," Luke soothed.

"Now you're just contradicting yourself. How can the future be in motion if events are fixed in time?" Han pointed out, becoming increasingly uneasy with the plausibility of what Luke was saying.

"Okay, as far as I understand, a decision being made for the first time is completely free will. You could choose to do the right thing or the wrong thing and events would lead on from there. That choice would then link with other events and so on to create the future. If you were to decide in the future that it was a bad decision you could not go back and change it. By then it has become too interwoven with other events. If it were possible and everyone could do this there would be no conceivable concept of time and reality would likely be shattered."

Voice dripping with sarcasm, Han replied, "Well that makes sense!"

Han reclined in his seat, feeling an overwhelming urge to head for the whiskey. Maybe even the really good stuff; the situation certainly called for it. No, what the situation really called for was a clear head. This had gone further than the bitter battle of wills over what was safest for his children. Han couldn't sense the Force; had no desire to do so. But that fact that Luke was obviously sensing something he felt warranted an intervention this drastic gave him pause for thought.

"Why 4ABY? Of all the years and time periods they could be 'hypothetically' sent to, why then?" Leia mused.

"Actually, my thinking on that was pretty simple. I knew that after the last separation you both vowed never again to leave your children in the care of someone else while you were both fully capable of doing so yourselves. It seems to make sense to send them back to you a few weeks after the battle of Endor. You were both happy, in love and most importantly had a sizable break away from the Alliance. As I recall it's the only break either of you have ever spent together that wasn't your honeymoon! This way the twins and Anakin get the benefits of being in your care as well as being safely hidden from the dark entity I can feel is coming."

A wistful smile graced the faces of the Solos as memories of the time in question resurfaced. They were quickly dashed with the mention of this mysterious dark presence. Leia was the first to snap her attention back to the present.

"In theory what you are saying makes sense. But I can't help but feel that you are missing a few glaringly obvious problems! For starters, during that time our relationship was in its infancy. We were of course madly in love but that didn't mean it would be the appropriate atmosphere for looking after children, or that we were capable of doing so. Also, how do we explain it to the children and how will our past selves cope with knowing we have children later on?"

"Leia, slow down. I've been putting a lot of thought into this and am almost completely sure that I have covered every eventuality. Look, it's getting late so I'm going to outline my plan, perhaps once you see the simplicity of it, you will find it easier to comprehend."

The Solos shared a glance which conveyed a million thoughts and fears. Nothing needed to be said for them to know that they were on the same page.

"Okay Kid, you better make this a good sales pitch because I'm personally still preferring the idea of taking my princess and my kids to some secluded planet and hiding out till whatever has you spooked blows over."

Han would never admit it but he completely trusted Luke's judgement and his Force sense was rarely off target. So when Luke was spooked, Han found himself uncharacteristically spooked too. A standard hour later and every eventuality covered, Luke had given the couple a few minutes of privacy to make their decision.

"What are you thinking?" Leia inquired of Han as soon as the door had shut behind Luke.

"I hate to say it, sweetheart, but it does make sense. I'd hate to think that our own selfish desire to keep them with us all the time would end up putting them in danger in the long run."

"I feel the same. What he said about us remembering what happened and its influence on our future made sense as well. Are we agreed then?"

"Yes."

"Okay Solos, first one out of bed and to the breakfast table wins. Any pushing or shoving will result in immediate disqualification!"

Han tried to keep the levity in his usual morning wakeup call, but today it sounded flat to his ears. How could he sound enthusiastic about rushing his children out of bed on the day they would go? Since he and his wife had made the decision he had been furiously trying to think of ways around it, but no matter how hard he tried he could not think of anything as effective as this would be. His contemplation was cut off by the emergence of Anakin.

"Daddy! I'm winning, I'm winning!"

"Yes you are, champ. Let's wait until your brother and sister get here and I will reveal your amazing prize!"

"Daaaaad! I get to choose breakfast don't I? It's the same prize every morning!"

Leia entered the room looking deceptively cheery. Han knew she was having as much trouble with this as him. They had made a firm decision to not let their children see how upsetting this was for them. After all, the children would likely have a whale of a time. It was undoubtedly harder to be the ones staying behind to fight Force-knows-what. First she kissed Anakin's forehead and then graced Han's cheek with her lips.

"He has you there, darling. I don't think you've thought up a new winner's prize for at least three weeks."

"Well, I've heard no complaints!"

Han smiled as his two older children ambled into the room, obviously having given up on the race when it became apparent that Anakin had already won. They were speaking to one another in hushed tones. Coming to stand in front of his younger brother, Jacen pulled up his hood of his night gown, put on a vacant expression and waved his hand in front of Anakin's face.

"You want pancakes for breakfast. These aren't the cereals you're looking for."

All three children and their mother burst into fits of laughter. Han couldn't help but join them. This was how life should be, a carefree breakfast with his family. At this moment he couldn't think of anything more perfect. Sobering quickly, he protested.

"And how do you know that his prize is going to be choosing breakfast, huh? I may have a real treat for you today!"

"So, is there a real treat, Daddy?" Anakin asked with some measure of scepticism.

"Yes, of course."

Han grinned and started toward where Anakin was seated. Anakin, knowing that look well, started to giggle whilst trying to escape from his seat.

"No Daddy, not the sloppy kiss monster!"

Han scooped up his son and bestowed wet kisses on his face and conveniently exposed stomach, relishing in the uncontrollable squeals of delight from his youngest son. Only when he heard his wife's admonishment did he stop.

"Han, stop! He's going to wet himself if you carry on!"

"Alright, I'm assuming everyone wants pancakes for breakfast?" Han asked as he placed a still-giggling Anakin back in his seat.

Receiving confirmation he headed towards the kitchen, nodding for Leia to join him as he passed. Once out of ear shot of his children Han confided in Leia. "I can't do it. I don't want them to go. It's not right, they should be with us!"

Stepping towards Han and reaching up to place a gentle hand on his cheek, Leia spoke softly. "Han, we've talked about this. I don't like it either; they have spent too much time away from us already. But I think we have to trust that our decision is the right one."

"I know it's the right decision. I just don't like it. I know it's selfish but I need them too," Han pouted.

"It's not selfish, sweetie. It's normal for a parent to need their children just as much as their children need them. I feel the same."

"Okay, let's go back in there and explain to them. If anything I think they will be excited. This will be an adventure for them."

Two hours later, with bags packed, the three Solo children were all ready and excited. Luke had advised on travelling light and only taking the essentials. Leia had disregarded his advice completely and had made sure her children had everything they could need. Not that she didn't trust her past self to provide for them. That in itself was a sentence she would never have previously contemplated. However, she reasoned that it was just good sense. She watched Luke talking through the basics of time travel with her children who she could tell were pretending to listen. They all wore the same look that Han did when he was bored.

"Okay, it's really important that you understand this bit," Luke's tone commanded the wavering attention of the Solo children.

"Once you step into the portal, all three of you have to think about the place you are going. Think of your parents and think of Endor. The Force will take care of the rest; you will arrive nearby either one of your parents. It will be like gravity pulling the portal towards your mom and dad. Also, you have to remember that no one, especially your parents, will know who you are. Don't be upset if they find it hard to understand."

"We know all this, Uncle Luke," whined Jacen in an uncanny likeness to his father, Leia thought.

"I'm sure you guys will have lots of fun explaining it to us," Leia added to hide her misgivings about how the past her and Han would react to this revelation. Although she had to remember what Luke had said, even if it wasn't easy to believe.

Luke locked eyes with Leia when he spoke. "I'll give you guys a moment while I go call up the portal in the other room."

Leia forced a smile in thanks. Not trusting her voice she was relieved when Han spoke up first.

"You all understand what Uncle Luke was saying?"

With three nods as confirmation, Han carried on. "Now, you do as you're told when you get there. The past, erm...us will still be in charge. Stay out of trouble and always stick together. No wandering off, Anakin."

Leia summoned up as much strength as she could manage to get through her next words, "Now come and give us a hug before you go."

Jaina jumped into her mother's arms while her two brothers pounced on Han. Holding Jaina close to her, she whispered, "Be safe my baby girl, I love you"

Letting her go in exchange for her two sons, Leia offered similar sentiments to them. Hugs and kisses were exchanged all around before the Solos ventured into the next room to find Luke. Upon entering their usually bright sitting room, Leia was taken aback by how dark it was. Immediately her eyes were drawn to a swirling, dark green mist in the centre of the room. Luke sat crossed legged in front of the spectacle with his eyes closed. Anakin grabbed for his father's hand in a bid for reassurance. The twins, however, seemed fascinated by it.

"Cool, Uncle Luke, is that the portal thing we go through?" Jacen asked as he edged closer. Jaina, not wanting to be outdone by her twin, went one step further.

Luke opened his eyes and stood. "Yes it is but I can't hold it open for long periods so have you guys got all your stuff?"

Han and Leia helped them with their backpacks as Luke gave some final instructions.

"Coming home will be easier in a sense as I'll be able to direct the portal to your Force signatures so you won't have to control it once you re-enter. It will lead you straight home. As we don't know when you are coming home it will be a bit of a surprise for you. When you see the portal you don't have to rush. Take your time to collect all your things up and if you miss it, don't panic. I can easily send another one. Whatever you do, do not bring anyone or anything that doesn't belong in this time back through the portal!"

Final goodbyes were exchanged as Jacen, Jaina, and a somewhat unsure Anakin came to stand in front of the portal. Hand in hand the young Solos faced the green mist.

Luke's gentle voice guided them. "When you are ready step into the mist; the rest of this room will disappear around you. When that happens you all have to think of is Endor and picture your parents in your mind."

"Not Hoth? I thought it was Hoth?" Asked a confused Jacen.

"No, Force no! Endor is where you are heading, ok?" Corrected Luke.

"Oh, okay."

Leia stood encircled in her husband's arms as she watched the children that they had created together step into a mist and disappear. Knowing what would happen did not make it any easier to experience. The mist slowly dissipated leaving the room in its normal, bright state. Unbidden, a single tear rolled down her cheek before being lovingly swiped away by Han's caress.

His deep voice rumbled through her chest as he addressed her brother. "Right, Luke, I want to know where I can find this dark threat of yours so we can take it down and have our children back where they belong."

Standing in between her brothers in a time portal, Jaina Solo decided she would take charge, "Right, Uncle Luke said we need to think of Hoth."

"No, he said Endor," Jacen cut her off quickly remembering his earlier mistake.

"No, he said Hoth NOT Endor!"

"Anakin, do you know where we're going?" Asked Jacen who was rapidly starting to doubt his own memory.

"Yes, to the forest of woks!" Declared Anakin proudly.

"It's Ewoks, Ani, and we know that but which planet is it? Endor or Hoth?" Jacen tried to keep the impatience out of his voice.

"Hoth!"

"Okay, as I was saying we need to think of Hoth and picture Mom and Dad." Jaina confirmed.

As the green, swirling mist cleared, the three Solo children each stood with a rucksack almost as big as themselves in a brilliant white corridor. One side was lined with closed, numbered doors whilst wires crudely attached to the walls decorated the other side.

Unbeknown to them, they actually stood outside of their future mother's quarters. Neon lights spaced out along the ceiling cast an eerie glow over the young Solos. While anyone who might walk through the passage at that moment might not have found it so bright, someone who had just left the dark green atmosphere of a time portal evidently did. Jaina was the first to find her voice in the form of a high-pitched squeal.

"It's freezing! Why is it so bright?"

Flinching slightly, she surveyed the corridor, which appeared annoyingly empty. Suddenly remembering her promise to her dad before departure she turned to her brothers. "Jace, Ani. Are you both ok?"

"I will be once we get inside. Or are we already inside? This isn't what Uncle Luke said it would look like, is it?" mused Jacen.

"Where are all the trees and Woks, Jace?" Murmured a shivering Anakin.

"EEEEE-woks! Not Woks! It's too bright I can't see anything but a white glare!"

Jaina started rummaging in her bag. "Tadar! This is much better. I'm glad mum decided to ignore Uncle Luke's pleas to pack lightly! Find your sunglasses, and get a jacket each too!"

A few moments later all three stood side by side in slightly more appropriate attire and were arguing which way to start walking. So lost in their disagreement not one of them noticed the orange clad pilot walking towards them.

Sometimes High Command really had no idea, he mused, ambling back to his quarters. Once the commander gets back I am never setting foot in one of those meetings again! In fact I'm never going anywhere near High Command again. Well General Rieekan has his head screwed on, and if Solo is to be believed then The Princess is alright too. Although if Solo is to be believed, then The Princess is also madly in love with him! Everyone else however... He was stopped short in his musings by the most peculiar sight he had ever seen.

Three small children wearing matching jackets and sunglasses where engaging in a heated argument amongst themselves. Rubbing at his eyes and wondering how many hours he had been in that meeting for this much mental unbalance to occur did not erase the sight in front of him. Reluctantly pulling out his comlink he punched in the code for high command.

With a small degree of relief, General Rieekan answered. "Rieekan here."

"It's Wedge Antilles, sir."

"Ahh Wedge, something you wish to add to the meeting?"

"Not exactly sir, there seems to be a bit of an issue in the North Passage. Well, three small issues to be specific."

"Perhaps you need to rethink your definition of specific; you're not exactly painting an illuminating picture for me."

"Sorry, sir. Well, I'm currently looking at three children, I'd say between the ages of five and ten. One female, two males. All three are wearing sunglasses, sir."

"Okay Wedge, assuming you're not winding me up here, I'd like you to escort the children to the Med Centre. Room 2B is vacant. Try not to attract too much attention while you do it. It's most likely someone's misguided attempt at keeping their family close by."

"Sir."

The two men regarded the sight in front of them. Two boys and one girl sat huddled on a med bunk wrapped in a large, grey blanket. They appeared to be in high spirits, not confused or scared.

The young girl still in a pair of sunglasses spoke first. "Excuse me, could you please tell us what year it is right now and what planet this is?"

Rieekan had to smile; this girls mannerisms and how she spoke seemed oddly familiar to him. "It is 2ABY, young lady and we are currently on Hoth. My name is Carlist Rieekan, and this here is my friend Wedge Antilles. Would you mind telling us your names?"

"Oh, we know who you both are. I'm Jaina."

"I'm Jacen and he's Anakin."

The older boy nodded to the younger whose attention was focused on a life support machine on the other side of the spacious room. They know who we are, interesting. Now for the fun part, thought Rieekan to himself sardonically.

"Nice to meet you Jaina. Jacen. Anakin. Now can you tell me what your surnames are?"

"Solo!" They replied in unison.

Rieekan felt his jaw drop to the floor. A look across to Antilles showed him in much the same state of shock. Deciding it was better to confirm what they were probably both thinking he dared himself to ask. "You kids wouldn't happen to know a Han Solo, would you?"

"Yes, he's my daddy!" Proudly spoke the boy who had declared himself Jacen.

Well, he's certainly kept that one quiet. Although I've personally never asked about family and he's under no obligation to tell me. However bringing children into this environment is reckless and certainly in violation of several regulations. Which is typical of Solo anyway. Right, I need to find him now.

"It was nice talking to you kids and I'm sure I'll see you quite soon. I have an errand to run but I'm going to leave you in the capable hands of Wedge here."

"You are sir?"

Carlist had seen Wedge preparing to fly suicide runs with much less fear than he was displaying now.

"Yes. You can play a game with them."

"But, I...I don't know any games!"

"Don't worry, Mr. Wedge, we can teach you some games!" Anakin chimed.

"Perfect, Anakin, I'm sure you will have a wonderful time. If you'll excuse me."

With that, Rieekan walked out into the corridor, sighed and unclipped his commlink.

"Solo, here."

"Han, its Carlist. I need you to come to the med centre right away."

"Why? Is something wrong with Chewie? Is it the kid or the Princess?"

Han's slightly panicked tone didn't confuse him in the slightest. When you received a call to go straight to a med centre it was generally considered precedent to worry about loved ones. But why was Solo's first thought for his friends and not his children? Please tell me he knows about these children or there is another Han Solo roaming this base.

"Don't worry, nobody is hurt. I have something of yours here that you need to explain!"

Princess Leia shut her office door and paused. She had officially done all the work she had been assigned in the last meeting. Asking for more would only get her lectured on taking some time to herself. She didn't particularly enjoy most aspects of her work here but it was a whole lot better than just sitting around thinking, remembering. Remembering hurt too much.

I need a distraction, she thought to herself. I wonder what Han's up to. She wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he always provided the perfect distraction. On a good night they would maybe have a meal and a friendly game of Sabacc. More often than not Luke and Chewie would join them. That always made for a good night. Usually they would engage in a bit of banter that would quickly turn sour and she would march off to her room to brood about how frustrating he was. Either way, it provided an effective distraction.

Walking past a group of pilots, she couldn't help but overhear part of their conversation.

"...so I go take a closer look and I see none other than Wedge Antilles walking not one, not two, but three children towards the med centre..."

Well this could be interesting, she thought as she started for the direction in question. What sort of irresponsible parent would bring children to a military base in the middle of a war?