Jen (age 18) stood gazing out the wide viewport of the space station lounge. Nearby, Liya (age 17) sat playing with little Aurora, who was now 8 months old and babbling happily.
Kaganji (age 29) was in the lab running diagnostics on the station's systems. As a scientist, he was responsible for maintaining their outpost.
In the recreation room, Jax (age 21) and Raven (age 28) were competing at holovid games. Jax whooped loudly as his spacecraft destroyed Raven's on the screen.
Yuna (age 16) lounged nearby, eyes closed as she wirelessly interfaced with the station's networks. As a hacker, keeping their systems secure was her domain.
On the training deck, Vinü and Cüla (both age 25) were sparring with flaming blades, their swift warrior forms dancing gracefully. The twins kept their combat skills honed as the group's fighters.
Their little family was finally reunited after enduring so much trauma. Now they looked after each other and this sanctuary amidst the stars.
Jen turned as Liya approached, Aurora toddling alongside holding her toy bunny. "Time to start prepping dinner," Liya said. "Want to help feed your little helper?"
Jen scooped up Aurora, who squealed happily. "Come on munchkin, let's get you some mushy cubes." Ever since being reunited, Jen treasured every precious moment with his daughter.
After dinner, they gathered for recreation in the lounge. But Aurora seemed bored with her usual toys, gazing out the viewport intently. Then suddenly, the points of light shifted - the stars were moving!
"Uh, is the station rotating?" Jax asked nervously. But Yuna checked the gyro readouts - they hadn't moved. Somehow Aurora was telekinetically shifting the stars around from inside!
Kaganji hurried to check the exterior cameras. Indeed the entire stellar field was rotating in a whirlpool pattern with the station at the center. Aurora was casually altering the fabric of space!
Jen gently took Aurora's hand to get her attention. "Sweetie, let's keep the pretty stars how they normally are, okay?"
Aurora clapped happily as the stars returned to their normal positions. Though only a baby, her telekinetic powers were quickly growing beyond anything the group had encountered before. Containing her playful impulses would require constant vigilance.
Later that night, Jax approached Raven with a mischievous grin. "What do you say we head planet side tonight for a bit of fun? I know of some lively clubs where we can let loose and enjoy life's earthly delights."
Raven raised an eyebrow. As a former soldier, he was unaccustomed to pursuits of leisure. But perhaps unwinding his disciplined side would be beneficial, as Master Kaganji often advised.
"Very well, I will accompany you and sample these flavors of hedonism," Raven rumbled.
Jax laughed and clapped his back. "Atta boy! Trust me, we'll show you a good time."
After docking at the capital starport, Jax led Raven through pulsing neon streets to a towering nightclub. The thunderous music and undulating crowds seemed to invigorate Jax, while Raven observed it all with detached fascination.
A group of local youths out celebrating soon swept them both onto the dance floor, their enthusiasm infectious. Raven moved awkwardly, unfamiliar with letting rhythm guide his motions. But seeing his normally stoic friend attempt to gyrated brought a smile to Jax's face. Raven deserved to experience life's pleasures after so long on dutiful guard.
As the night wore on, they explored the various delights of the club. Jax was drawn to a lounge where patrons gathered smoking elaborate water pipes and conversing in low, relaxed tones. The herbal concoctions brought a soothing warmth to his limbs and colorful patterns swirled at the edge of his vision.
"This is called Reeza, my friend," Jax told Raven, breathing out curling vapors. "It softens the hardness of reality most pleasantly."
Raven sampled the pipe carefully, large frame sinking deeper into the plush couch as the plant's effects took hold. A small grin crossed his face. "I begin to see the appeal. A glimpse beyond day-to-day rigors."
Jax smiled and cleared the next round of pipes. He was glad to share these little escapes with his steadfast ally. Even warriors needed to remove their armor occasionally.
After a night of libations and camaraderie, they returned to the space station just as dawn gilded its hull silver-blue. Jax whistled cheerfully as he piloted them home, feeling more carefree than he had in ages. Their spirits had needed this.
Meanwhile, Kaganji was passing the time indulging in his favorite cerebral pastime - four-dimensional chess against a custom AI opponent. Though pawns still skirmished across 3D space, the fourth dimension of time introduced radically new strategies.
Pieces flashed into and out of being as the AI exploited chronodynamic tactics. But Kaganji keenly navigated the ever-shifting board, employing feints and recursive gambits across past, present and future.
This style of chess required foreseeing endless butterfly effects and timelines. After endless games, Kaganji had developed an innate mastery over space-time movements. Though physically stationary, his mind danced nimbly through realities like a Cosmic dervish.
But the true delight was not in winning but exercising his cognitive gifts to their utmost within the game's formal constraints. Kaganji's spirit flourished best when engaging intellect and imagination.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
The next morning, Kaganji smiled seeing Jax and Raven looking slightly groggy in the lounge. "So how was your 'research expedition' into hedonic aesthetics?" he asked, eyes twinkling knowingly.
Jax grinned. "A highly informative survey of local customs. We plan to publish a full ethnographic report soon."
Raven said nothing, but a new air of calm surrounded the large man. The lines of perpetual alertness on his brow had softened somewhat.
Kaganji chuckled. "Well I am glad to see you both returned safely from said 'research'. We must do it again soon."
Jax laughed. "Too right my friend! I'll bring the theoretical materials."
Just then, a sudden crash emanated from the kitchen as pots and pans clattered to the floor. They rushed in to find little Aurora hovering cross-legged giggling - she had telekinetically dumped everything from the cabinets!
Liya swept in to scoop up the wayward child. "Sweetie, we've talked about this," she admonished gently. "Inside powers need to stay inside."
But Aurora just giggled, eyes flashing with playful Cosmic energies. As her gifts grew, keeping her innocent mischief in check would require constant mindfulness from them all.
Later, as Aurora napped, the group gathered in the lounge to relax. Kaganji produced a soothing herbal tea from his garden that eased nerves and opened the mind's eye. Soon they were all feeling rather ponderous.
"Do you think other versions of ourselves exist on alternate Earths?" Liya wondered aloud.
Jax stared at the stained glass mural on the ceiling as if seeing beyond it. "Could be...infinity holds endless possibility."
"I bet I'm super badass on those other Earths," Yuna mused. "Probably leader of a group of technomancer rebels fighting the man."
Vinü shook her head amusedly at Yuna's bravado, golden hair shimmering. Though twins, her personality was much more centered and thoughtful.
Raven said little, his naturally taciturn nature deepened by the tea's effects. But he seemed at peace listening to the friendly speculation and laughter around him.
Kaganji smiled, heart warmed at this found family fate had brought together. He could ask for no greater joy than seeing those he cared for safe and thriving after enduring so much hardship side-by-side.
The tea eventually wore off, leaving them all feeling mellow and connected. As they dispersed back to their various tasks and recreations around the station, Kaganji made a mental note to procure more of that excellent leaf.
Just then, Aurora came toddling out of her nap room, Mr. Snuffles in tow. As she raised a hand, the toy bunny suddenly transformed into a real breathing bunny! Thankfully it seemed harmless, if confused by its new state of being.
Jen swept Aurora up with an incredulous laugh. "Oh no you don't, little missy! No more transforming toys today."
Aurora pouted briefly, but her attention was soon captivated by the wall terminals flickering wildly as Yuna hacked into the station's core systems just for sport.
"Let's go visit uncle Kaganji in the lab," Jen suggested quickly, carrying the reality-bending tyke away before she could rewrite any more physical laws. Never a dull day with Aurora around!
Two months later the day after Aurora had her first birthday…
The day after Aurora's first birthday started like any other aboard the space station. Jen was helping Liya clean up decorations from the small party they had held the night before. Kaganji was running diagnostics on the station's navigation system. Yuna lounged in the recreation room, casually hacking into a government database just to stay sharp.
Aurora woke up cheerful as ever, her toy bunny Mr. Snuffles grasped in her tiny hands. She toddled out to the lounge area where the others were relaxing after finishing their tasks.
"Well hello birthday girl!" Jax said playfully. "Did you have fun at your party yesterday?"
Aurora grinned and raised her free hand. Suddenly, to everyone's shock, the entire crew began rapidly shrinking, their bodies morphing into plastic and cloth. Within seconds, they had been transformed into doll-sized versions of themselves.
Aurora clapped her hands gleefully at her handiwork. She picked up doll Jax and made him swoop around.
"Whoa kiddo, very funny, you got us," the doll said in Jax's voice. "But how about turning us back now?"
Aurora just giggled and plopped doll Jax down so she could collect the others. Jen tried to get her attention from where he was trapped as a tiny doll on the floor.
"Sweetie, listen, you need to focus and picture us our normal size again. Can you try that?"
But Aurora was already distracted, zooming doll versions of them around with her telekinesis. She had no real comprehension yet of her reality-warping abilities. The crew realized with sinking dread they were stuck this way for now.
Being two feet tall and made of plastic posed some unique challenges. Merely climbing up onto chairs and consoles became arduous. Operating the equipment was nearly impossible without fingers. Their mobility was extremely limited.
Aurora soon grew bored playing with her new dolls and wandered off to explore the station, no longer paying attention to her shrunken caretakers. Without anyone to watch her, the baby began squeezing into all sorts of dangerous places her curiosity led her.
"We've got to keep eyes on her before she gets hurt!" Liya said in a high-pitched doll voice. The group made their way awkwardly to the security monitoring room, climbing up the chair to access the camera controls. On the screens, they watched nervously as Aurora crawled through air ducts and maintenance tubes.
"She's going to end up in an engine intake at this rate!" Jax said. "If we could just get up to the bridge, we could trigger station-wide alerts..."
But even getting to the bridge door as living dolls seemed impossible. They were forced to watch helplessly as Aurora scampered unsupervised through hazardous sections of the station. At one point she began playing with exposed power conduits, heedless of the danger. Jen covered his plastic eyes, unable to look.
After over an hour of anxiety-inducing misadventures, Aurora finally seemed to get lonely wandering by herself. Coming to the lounge area, her face lit up with an idea. Concentrating, she produced a duplicate of herself in a flash of light! Now two Auroras crawled and walked around giggling up a storm.
After a while the Auroras grew hungry and, joining hands, teleported away directly from the station without warning. The crew watched worried from the monitors as the toddlers materialized down on a busy city street. Passersby gawked as the babies crawled straight into an ice cream Parlor.
Through the shop's security cameras, the crew watched Aurora and her duplicate eagerly devouring sundaes and playing, their powers causing minor chaos. Apparently, Aurora had mastered precise teleportation now too. The owner tried confronting the infants, but they just blinked innocently with ice cream covered faces. He was helpless to stop them.
After quite literally eating their fill, the Auroras teleported to a toy store and a candy shop before finally popping back aboard the station, sleepy and satisfied. They crawled onto a cushion together and soon dozed off.
As Aurora's breathing slowed in slumber, her crewmates felt the doll spell lifting. In moments they had returned to normal size and mobility, collapsing in relief. Their ordeal was over, amazingly without any serious harm done. Aurora's abilities were clearly growing faster than they could adapt safeguards for. This incident only heightened their concerns for the future.
But for now, they tucked a sleeping Aurora gently into her crib, Mr. Snuffles nestled under her arm. Gazing down at the peaceful child, Jen stroked her hair softly. "Never a dull day with you around, is there little one?" he murmured.
Leaving Aurora to her dreams, the group retreated to debrief and begin planning their next steps. The challenges raised by her gifts would require their utmost creativity.