Work Text:
Eva Stratt was a patient woman. She had waited all that time to send the Hail Mary into space, and she had waited all this time to receive the Beetles sent back to Earth from the Hail Mary.
What she hadn’t expected, however, were the crude additions welded and/or taped onto the shells of the Beetles. Welding additions made sense in her head, but the tape? She’d excuse it because, well, none of the crew are here and the Beetles are. Something in her twists at that thought but she quickly dismisses it in favour of plugging in all of the data stored on one of the Beetle’s (this one has been marked with the name Ringo) into a different data centre, pulling up the files on a computer.
The screen is bombarded with different file names, such as READ ME FIRST and WATCH ME FIRST, followed by a bunch of miscellaneous logs and videos written and filmed by who she assumes is none other than Ryland Grace. She’d figured either Li-Jie or Ilyukhina would’ve taken to directing any of the logs to send back, but perhaps Grace would’ve been the best person to choose to write about Astrophage. Either way, they have answers, and she needs them.
With a little too much hesitancy for a situation this dire, she clicks open the file labeled READ ME FIRST.
[DOCUMENT LAST VIEWED IN 2038]
This is Dr. Ryland Grace of the Hail Mary.
I am going to assume that the first person reading this is Eva Stratt. If not, I suggest you figure out a way to contact her for me to show her these logs, but if Eva Stratt is no longer available due to one reason or another, I suppose it doesn’t matter.
First of all, the solution to the Astrophage problem (aka the Petrova Line business) has successfully been found and I’ve taken to implementing the solution inside of the Beetles that have, hopefully, returned to Earth by now. Inside of each Beetle is an organism I’ve dubbed Taumoeba-82.5 which you CANNOT EXPOSE TO EARTH ATMOSPHERE WHATSOEVER. The Astrophage have a natural predator and this is it. I’ve selectively bred them to withstand Earth’s atmosphere because they die to nitrogen but I just want to be thorough. They seek out Astrophage like their life depends on it (because it kind of does) so I’d say just send them out to Venus and let them do their thing.
There’s a breeding guide to make more, too, so make as much as you want and send them off. They do their job relatively quickly (trust me, I know this firsthand).
Second of all, sentient alien life is totally 100% real. I am not joking. The entire reason I even found the solution to the Astrophage issue was because I had an alien with me working to solve the problem on his planet, because it was also overridden by Astrophage. In the audio and written logs (also probably the video logs) you’ll note everything I was able to document in the amount of time I had with him. Eridians (I named them that because they live on the planet Erid and I was the one to make first contact so the name is final. It’s Eridians.) have oddly similar but different culture makeups and whatnot so everything written should be thorough enough to understand. There should also be a set of MIDI files that go over their language because it’s very musical.
So. That’s really all I need to go over for this introduction, I guess. Unfortunately I can’t head back to Earth with the amount of fuel I’ve got left, so … This is the last time I’m ever going to try and contact home. From the bottom of my heart, I hope this works.
Ryland Grace,
signing off.
Stratt breathes out an unnecessarily tense breath. The solution has been found and can be implemented practically immediately—the worst part of this is over. Earth gets to live for years to come. Ryland Grace might be an eccentric man, even in space, so the entire alien concept… it isn’t exactly foreign, considering Astrophage (and Taumoeba-82.5, by extension) is itself an alien, but she wouldn’t put it above the man to hallucinate sentient aliens if he ever came under hysteria. Perhaps his crew members had an influence, perhaps not.
Having finished scanning through the contents of the first written file, she clicks off of it and opens the video log, titled WATCH ME FIRST. The first screen shows Ryland Grace, alone, sitting contemplatively in front of the camera, elbows resting on his knees. Stratt is quick to notice the seemingly extensive damage done to his left arm, as well as the subtle scarring that trails up the left side of his face.
He’s alive, and that’s enough for Stratt, so she clicks play.
[VIDEO LOG - WATCH ME FIRST]
(Ryland Grace breathing unevenly for a moment before taking in a deep breath, exhaling with his eyes closed.)
“Hello. This is Dr. Ryland Grace of the Hail Mary. I could sit here and drone on about everything I’ve seen and done while on this journey, but I think I’d like to first come out and say that I am the last remaining crew member alive. Both the mission leader, Li-Jie, and the engineer, Ilyukhina, um, unfortunately passed away en route to Tau Ceti. Something during the…” (He swallows, seemingly unsure, and gestures to the Hail Mary itself.) “Something during the coma process went wrong. The robot just stopped taking care of them.”
(Ryland Grace folds his hands together and sits up straighter, eyes not focused on the camera in front of him but rather something to his right, off-screen.)
“If this message is received then I can only assume you’ve seen the document I’ve written about Taumoeba. If not, open the thing I’ve written called ‘read me first’. The solution to the Astrophage population has been found because it’s got a predator, and I’m sending that organism off to Earth. The document has the basic information you’ll need to read to understand Taumoeba and what it does, as well as how to implement it, so…”
(He swallows again, blinking rapidly. He reaches a hand up to adjust his glasses, which have tilted to the left minutely. He nods.)
“So, Earth should… hopefully be saved. By the time you get the Beetles, that is. Not quite sure how long it’s been exactly but I do believe I’m within the expected time range. I’d say I’d like a response but … this far out, I don’t expect one.” (He laughs under his breath, eyebrows knit together. He scrubs his face with both hands, leaning over himself. He mumbles something under his breath.)
“I could’ve come back along with the Beetles, If I wanted. Rocky had more than enough fuel for the both of us, but, um, I… I’m being given a pretty difficult choice right now, and even though I’ve already decided what I’m doing, it feels off. I think I’m just scared.”
(He blinks rapidly again, most likely fighting off tears. He takes in a shuddering breath.)
“I’m scared, but I’m not going home. Uh, assume I’m… Assume I’m dead, when you get this. If you get this.”
(A minute or so of silence, in which Ryland Grace seems to contemplate intensely.)
“… This is Dr. Ryland Grace of the Hail Mary, signing off.”
(He stands up and wipes his face with both hands once more, then picks up the camera and stops recording.)
Eva Stratt is a patient woman. She’s immensely grateful that the solution to the Petrova line has been found, but the knowledge that Ryland Grace had done all of this work alone (if the whole alien being a hallucination born of hysteria idea is true) is troubling. He was smart enough to do all of this work regardless, and he’s confident in its capability to solve the Astrophage population, so who is she to argue?
Wordlessly, she clicks off of the video file and scrolls through the seemingly endless amount of files that were shoved onto Ringo. Files about Eridians, files about Taumoeba, files about the Hail Mary, files about the work process, everything. Everything is neatly titled and listed. Ryland Grace is thorough. (She had known that previously, though.)
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
Ryland Grace is thorough. Perhaps more than he needs to be. The amount of miscellaneous video logs are immense. He’s long since covered his list of basics. What else would he have to say?
Turns out: it’s nothing.
Eva Stratt, as she has since come to learn, finds that Ryland just has a pretty bad habit of not turning the camera off. This isn’t much of an issue, it’s got a rechargeable feature that saps from whatever energy source the Hail Mary extends to it, but the sheer amount of absolutely nothing that it records is only annoying at most.
From what she can gather, he seems to spend a lot of his time either in the cockpit or beyond it, for whatever reason. The EVA suit, maybe, might be his object of attention. Stratt only vaguely notes the fact that Ryland, at this point in the timeline, is unscarred. Not a mishap from the nanny-bot, then.
She skips ahead to a different video (the rest of the previous one was nothing important) and is met with Ryland Grace staring intently into the camera, positioned above his work station in the lab. He’s got both of his hands flat on the table, an intense look in his eyes.
[VIDEO LOG - ALIEN!!!!!!!]
“So, uh, I met an alien. And,” (he motions vaguely) “we’re learning to communicate.” (He takes a seat at the lab table, letting the chair spin to face him away from the camera only slightly.) “You know, enough to order at restaurants. We have about 250 words. My atmosphere would kill him, and his me, but I like to keep a wall up in my relationships anyways.”
(Ryland Grace makes a so-so motion, attempting to mime a wall between him and someone else.)
“He’s a mechanic, I think. He uses a metal form of xenon. He can make anything, hold on.”
(He reaches for something not in frame, then returns and holds up some kind of foreign obelisk in front of the camera, gesturing to it.)
“Look at this. I’m calling it Xenonite. And if I can’t understand what he’s saying, which is most of the time, he puts on a little puppet show for me and my tiny brain. And you know what? I don’t mind it.”
(He nods to himself, making a face, as his glasses slip further down his nose.)
“He’s kind of growing on me. At least he’s not growing in me, y’know? Which was a concern for a little while.” (His expression changes from a hardened one to a sympathetic one.) “His species is dealing with the same problem too, so… Maybe we can help each other.”
(Ryland stands up and grabs the camera, turning it off.)
Stratt blinks at the computer screen, unsure of what to make of that. The item he had picked up and shown to the camera definitely wasn’t something implemented onto the Hail Mary organically, but she wouldn’t put it above the man to fabricate the item himself. She does, however, feel obligated to believe him until further notice.
She makes a face at the title of the next video log, dismisses it, and then clicks play.
[VIDEO LOG - I DONT EVEN KNOW WHAT TO CALL THIS - FIRST CONTACT??]
(The camera seems to have been pointed into the control room, past the cockpit, then refocuses back into the laboratory, pointed in the direction of the dormitory.)
“So, we watch each other sleep. Eridians don’t sleep like a human does. They seem legitimately paralyzed. If danger comes, he can’t wake up. It’s a survival norm. Someone has to keep you safe.”
(He ends his train of thought there, then disappears off-screen back in the direction of the airlock after seemingly having his attention caught. He returns a moment later, carrying a crude structure of what seems to be two laptops taped together (Stratt is incredibly confused at that).)
“He’s, uh, doing something to the Hail Mary right now so I have to keep the airlock closed until he says I can open it again.” (He sets both laptops (?) down on a nearby surface, then walks off-screen again.) “Shouldn’t take too long, but, I’ve got the centrifuge going, so I’m not too sure how long it’ll take? I don’t know.”
(Ryland walks further away, down into the dormitory hall, and is not seen for at least several minutes. There is a noise from beyond the room and Grace peeks his head through the doorway, then jogs past the camera back into the control room.)
Several noises are heard, a few of which Stratt can recognize as coming from the airlock. She’s completely baffled, at this point, as to why Ryland would blindly put his trust into an alien creature. She has, also at this point, come to believe him entirely.
(The Hail Mary chimes out a notification noise of ‘movement detected’.)
“Hi, Grace.” (The new voice seems to be originating from a type of text-to-speech program, coming from the laptops taped together. It picks up on the audio and assigns the noises to words.)
“You’re… in a ball.”
“So Rocky no die in Grace atmosphere. I come up.”
“Oh—you’re—you’re coming up?” (Ryland Grace sounds vaguely worried.)
(The Hail Mary chimes out a new notification noise of ‘foreign body detected’. Several noises of some kind of object clunking against the ground are heard, growing closer.)
“Grace and Rocky big science. How to kill Astrophage together.”
“Okay—”
“I keep going this way? … This room boring.”
“Rocky!”
(Several more noises, growing louder in volume, are heard. A string of loud ‘no’s’ are heard from Ryland.)
“What this up here, question? Amaze amaze amaze! Rocky want to see human technology.”
“No, no! Rocky, uh, no, uh—”
(More clunking noises are heard, presumably from the alien in its ‘ball’ moving from space to space.)
“Dirty, dirty, dirty, dirty, dirty, why room so messy, question?”
(The camera picks up on a shape rolling along the ground, housing some kind of geometrical creature within. The container shape is, itself, geometrical in nature. The creature inside moves forward, over piles of other things.)
“Well, I wasn’t expecting company, was I?” (He sounds exasperated.)
(The camera then picks up on Ryland Grace rushing past.)
Stratt is beyond words.
“This room for garbage, ohh, statement.”
“No, Rock, no—”
“Dirty dirty dirty.”
“Here, here, this is the lab. This is, uh, where the science happens.”
“What this? What this?”
“That’s the evap— Woah!”
(More clunking noises and the sound of things falling over can be heard. It can be inferred that the alien, Rocky, is butting into spaces that it should not be in.)
“What this?”
“Uh, that’s my disco ball. It makes me happy, y’know.” (Ryland sounds similar to that of a kicked puppy.)
“Rocky will build workshop here. Will need much room for Rocky and much less for Grace.”
“What is happening here?”
“We go Petrova line, we collect Astrophage, we study it, we go home, we save Earth!”
“When you say ‘we’, uh, where?”
“I see Grace.”
(Ryland makes a startled noise, followed by a seemingly agitated noise. (Stratt, despite never even encountering this alien, feels as though she can understand his agitation. She wishes she could, at least.))
“Rocky, Rock, stay.”
“Rocky new to ball.”
“Rocky, see, my hand is up. We can’t just show up in a spaceball unannounced and move into someone else’s spaceship, right? There has to be boundaries.” (The alien repeats the word ‘boundaries’.)
“We have one mission.” (The alien repeats the word ‘mission’.)
“But we’re two distinct individuals.” (The alien repeats the word ‘individuals’.)
“Both working on our distinct, individual parts of that mission.” (The alien repeats the word ‘mission’.)
“Separately.” (The alien repeats the word ‘separately’.)
“Okay.”
(There is a short period of silence, of which subtle noises of the aliens ‘spaceball’ being rocked back and forth, seemingly in thought. After the moment passes, more clunking noises and a panicked Ryland can be heard.)
“Where my bedroom?”
“Buh—Bedroom?! For what?”
(The video is cut off for convenience purposes. Most likely, Ryland himself went back to edit the length of the log.)
Stratt is… lost. Utterly lost. Sentient aliens are truly a thing and, of all of the people to make first contact, it’s Ryland Grace. Quickly coming to terms with that concept, she is also immediately thankful that the man has experience with rowdy lifeforms (see: children in a classroom) because his patience tolerance must be through the roof.
Stratt also feels a restless guilt twist in her gut because this must be the first kind of interaction he’s had with anyone beside himself for a while. At least a month or so, going off the idea he awoke from his nanny-bot induced coma on time.
With her head held in her hands, she pushes the computer away from her for a moment of clarity. She moves to do the first thing she should’ve done when receiving the answer to the Earth’s problem, which is calling the people she needs to call to tell them everything will be fine. She has the solution, even if the man behind the work isn’t here to see it.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
Eva Stratt, even after contacting everyone and setting things up, still has plenty of time left to herself to study the data stored in the Beetle. That’s what she’s been doing for the past hour or so. Grace’s videos do not get any less entertaining.
She’s skipped over the lesser attention drawing ones for now, which isn’t to say that she hasn’t watched them, she has, but something in her gets excited when a new video log appears with a title almost as nonsensical as the contents of the video. So far, she has noted that:
- Ryland Grace spends a lot of his time with the Eridian (it is to be expected - the alien has moved in to live on the Hail Mary alongside Grace (Stratt is unsure as to why, on god’s ice covered Earth, he would allow this at all))
- Over time, he and this alien seem to get impossibly close (intimate?)
- The longer they spend time together, the more habits they pick up from the other. Ryland repeats words the way an Eridian would to emphasize a point, and the Eridian moves in the way that a human does, as in motioning with its arms.
- The more that Ryland records, the more vocal he becomes. This makes sense, as Stratt has since learned, because Eridians utilize echolocation to move and perceive things. Ryland Grace is adapting, in a way, to the way his companion sees.
Recently, the videos that she’s been analyzing have gotten more scientific in nature but definitely not any less casual, to put it. Stratt has been cross referencing Grace’s included Eridian biology document with the discussions he and the creature have. He seems to record these conversations to use them later as notes. Smart.
Sometimes, the videos turn from important conversations into debates or just straight up careless banter. Grace and this alien are comfortable with one another.
Sometimes, the videos end up being one of them sleeping while the other watches over. Stratt makes note that whenever it is the Eridians turn to watch, it is almost never multitasking. Ryland Grace, when he watches over, always makes sure to keep himself busy while never leaving the aliens' side.
Sometimes, the videos pick up on the eerie way that Ryland stills during the middle of a conversation, only to go right back to it, less energetic than before. Most of the time this happens while he is questioning how a thing Stratt is sure he knows works, and he magically gets the appropriate answer. After that happens an absurd amount of times, she comes to the conclusion that the amnesia-inducing drug she’d had him injected with is allowing him to recover memories, one at a time.
She’s unsure how to feel about that revelation, to say the least. What has he yet not remembered? How many memories will he never get back because he’s forgotten?
Closing a tab of minimal importance, she opens the next video log in the list. She’s met with the Eridian in front of the camera on its side of the barrier in the Hail Mary. She clicks play.
[VIDEO LOG - FIRST MISSION OF GENERAL IMPORTANCE PROBABLY]
(The Eridian taps its claws against the wall of the Xenonite barrier, then the floor of the Hail Mary. It shifts for a moment.)
“Grace go on mission. Important but dangerous. Grace go out of ship to collect Astrophage for science.”
“Uh, yeah, hold on.” (Grace adjusts the camera to face him, sitting next to the Eridian on his side of the barrier.) “This is, y’know, a pretty important step, so I figured I should catalogue what I’m gonna do.”
“Rocky explain to device!” (It taps its claws against the floor of the Hail Mary harsher this time.)
“I know, I know! I wanna talk about it with you.”
“Grace risk life. Important important important.” (Grace nods along to its words, looking stoic.)
“Right, okay, so… I’m going to set up the collectors on the outside of the Hail Mary and bring the Astrophage gunk back inside. Tau Ceti has a Petrova line but it isn’t dimming, so I’m hoping that whatever is collected will tell us why there isn’t an influx of energy coming from where it’s headed, yeah?”
(The Eridian considers this and tilts its carapace (Stratt has learned that the words used to describe its anatomy are bug-like in essence) to ‘face’ Grace, pressing itself closer to the Xenonite barrier between it and Grace.)
“Grace be safe. Grace be careful, statement.”
“I’m going to be so careful. The EVA suit still kinda freaks me out, man. Lack of, like, anything out there.” (He drags a hand down his face, knocking his glasses off kilter. He makes no move to adjust them.)
(The Eridian chitters and makes a musical noise that the laptops have no translation for. Grace tilts his head.)
“What was that? New word.”
“Not important. Grace get ready. Time go.”
(Grace laughs under his breath and stands up, grabbing the camera with him.)
“Time go.”
(The camera stops recording.)
Stratt finds it almost amusing that the two have become this close in the amount of time that's passed. Barely a month, she estimates, or maybe a week or so beyond that. Codependency, her mind supplies, is the word that seems to fit this best.
It makes the most sense. In a previous video log, Grace explained that Rocky was the last living thing on his own ship. Not only were they in similar situations prior to meeting, but now that they can inhabit the same space, it seems like the only thing they want to do is be right up in eachothers personal bubble.
Yearning for contact, in a way. It all makes sense. Way too much sense.
The next line up of videos are all declining in importance. Mindless rambles, conversations recorded to be later turned into notes, things like that. Despite most of the complete nothing that is recorded, bits and pieces of personal things come up.
Eva Stratt learns that Rocky has a mate. Ryland Grace does not (that was information she already knew). Eridians live for an absurd amount of time, but the way their planet rotates explains the nuances of it all. They use base six, not ten. Rocky cares deeply for his mate and seems to care just as much for Grace. Grace reciprocates this amount of affection.
Grace tries his best to explain Earth customs to Rocky, and Rocky to him, but instead of adapting to their own cultural methods, they seem to meld habits together in favour of getting personal. Grace will periodically hug the spaceball that Rocky resides in and Rocky will press closer.
Stratt finds it a little too intimate.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
[VIDEO LOG - PROBABLY THE BEST NEWS IVE HEARD SO FAR]
(The video log begins with Grace hastily setting up the camera to face him and a portion of the Xenonite barrier behind him. He’s sitting in the laboratory section of the Hail Mary, a rather large grin on his face.)
“The planet Adrian has, it’s, this is so important! Adrian has life, real real life and that life is a natural predator to Astrophage! It’s got clouds of Astrophage in its atmosphere and all of those tasty little cells get eaten practically immediately once it arrives and then it doesn’t go back to the star!”
(Grace motions wildly, pointing eccentrically to something that rests out of frame.)
“That’s why the levels of Astrophage don’t increase whatsoever! It can’t increase because it’s getting eaten! This is huge!”
(Several loud chittering noises are heard from behind Grace. The laptop does not translate the words. Rocky scuttles in behind Grace, moving excitedly.)
“Grace brave. Good good good, smart Grace smart smart smart!”
“We’re smart, you mean. This is so good! We just need to figure out how to get that predator. We’re saving both of our homes, Rock!”
(Grace gets up and moves to the Xenonite barrier, crouching down and spreading his arms in a mock hug. Rocky immediately moves forward and presses his carapace against the barrier, drawing a content sigh out of Grace. Looking closely, his eyes seem watery behind his glasses.)
“Home.”
(The video has seemingly been cut due to the length that it ran beyond this point.)
Stratt is smiling to herself when the video ends.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
[VIDEO LOG - IS IT STILL CALLED FISHING IF THERES NO WATER INVOLVED ???]
(The video begins with the camera being positioned properly to sit in front of Rocky, with Ryland Grace in the background once he backs away. He motions for the alien to begin speaking.)
“Hello Earth! Plan is like fishing. We get very close to Adrian atmosphere and lower collector into clouds with chain. Then Grace go on hull to reel it in. If ship not at precise angle and speed, we die! Example!”
(Rocky is holding a replica of the Hail Mary made out of Xenonite in his claws. He mimes flying it at an angle, then makes it teeter, and pretends to have it explode dramatically.)
“Hey, I’ve been practicing, haven’t I?”
(There’s an intentional splice in the video, to which it cuts to both Rocky and Grace in frame. The laboratory is half in the background.)
“Rocky has built predator collector, Rocky chain spooled and ready, Grace pilot training, not as good. What think, Earth?”
(A moment of silence passes, in which Rocky seems to wait for an answer.)
“Hello?”
“They can’t hear you, pal.”
“What, question?”
“We’re not actually talking to Earth, Earth’s too far away. You know, we just record these messages and we tell ‘em what we’ve learned, and then when we’re done, we’ll send them all back in a probe.”
“Why not tell them yourself when you return home, question?”
(Grace moves around the room, in a way that Stratt can only view as him trying to distract himself.)
“Yeah, uh, this is a one-way ticket for me, pal.”
“What?”
“We had enough Astrophage to get here, but not enough to get back.”
(He continues to keep himself busy, pointedly not looking at Rocky.)
“What happens to Grace, question?”
“Oh, I—I got enough food here to last me at least a couple years. Maybe a couple more if I stretch it out?”
“...So, Grace die, question?”
“Yeah, once—uh, once we’re done I’m… I’m gonna die.” (Grace swallows thickly, attempting not to cry.)
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
(At this point, Grace has moved closer to Rocky, though is still attempting to avoid direct eye-contact (Eridians have no eyes?).)
“It slipped my mind.”
“No. Grace say Grace go home.”
(Grace shrugs and motions with his hands, failing to speak.)
“Listen,”
“No.”
“Listen—”
“No.”
(Grace moves to be right in front of Rocky, crouched down. He braces a hand against the Xenonite ball, to which Rocky responds wordlessly with a stomp of his hand against the Xenonite beneath him.)
“Listen. I got to meet you. I got to do all this– all this amazing stuff. I’m good. I’ve made peace with it.”
“What mean? What mean, ‘make peace’?”
“It, uh, means… I know I’m not going home, I know why, and it’s okay.”
(Grace offers a thumbs up to Rocky.)
“Thumbs up?”
“No.”
“Tiny thumbs up?”
“No.”
(Grace sighs and drops his hand.)
“We got stars to save, okay?”
(A moment of silence passes, in which Grace and Rocky seem to be at an impasse.)
“Grace?”
“Yeah?”
“You are…” (Rocky makes a musical trilling noise that the laptops do not translate.) “Need word.”
(Grace stands up fully and backs away from Rocky, seemingly toward where the laptops are sitting.)
“Uh, wuh–w–what—what word do you need?”
“To risk self to help another.”
“Uh, dumb.”
(Typing can be heard, followed by the sound of Grace walking further away from Rocky and the laptops. Rocky shifts the Xenonite ball forward a minute amount.)
“Grace. How much Astrophage you need, question?”
(Grace is silent for a moment.)
“Two million kilograms.”
(Rocky seems to calculate something, motioning with his claws. He stops after a moment and taps the Xenonite barrier in a way that Stratt can only describe as wistfully.)
“I can give. I go home six years slower.”
(Grace makes a noise off-screen.)
“It’s too much.”
“Rocky watch crew die. Could not fix.” (Rocking motions toward Grace, seemingly pointing.) “Grace say Grace will die. Rocky fix. Grace go home.”
(Grace can be seen walking back into frame, crouching back down to Rocky’s level. He wipes at his face with both hands and can be seen crying.)
“...Okay.”
“I thought you made peace, question?”
(Grace laughs wetly and lets out a noise of distress.) “I didn’t mean any of that. That’s just something you say.”
(He sniffles and wipes at his face again, moving closer to the Xenonite barrier of the ball.)
“Thank you. Get—Get over here.”
(He presses himself against the ball, hugging it, and, much to Stratts surprise, presses a kiss to the top of the Xenonite panels. Rocky reciprocates the hug and presses himself as close to Grace as possible, but falters.)
“...What was that, question?”
“A kiss.”
“Oh. What that, question?”
“A kiss is—it’s, y’know, a way to show someone you love ‘em.” (He sniffles.) “And I love you.”
“Okay. …Rocky can’t do that.”
“That’s fine.” (He’s laughing.)
(Rocky presses up against the Xenonite again and tilts his carapace.)
“Rocky love Grace.”
(Grace makes a noise similar to a coo of adoration, pressing the side of his face over the spot where he kissed.)
“Rocky think Grace liquids gross but Rocky still love Grace. Leaky leaky space blob.”
“Whatever that means.”
(The rest of the video plays out with a lot less happening. Stratt assumes Grace simply forgot it was recording, included it with the rest of the video log files, and moved on. She pauses the video for him.)
There’s a loud silence that follows. When Stratt absentmindedly moves to wipe her eyes, her fingers come back wet.
Of course Grace still wasn’t okay with dying in space. Of course the alien he’s living with would try to do something. Distantly, in the back of her mind, she wonders if he remembered her forcing him to be on the Hail Mary at this point. Selfishly, she hopes he hasn’t.
It all makes sense, now. The very first video she watched. He’d said he was making a difficult decision and was choosing not to come home. Something truly terrible must’ve happened for him to abandon that idea.
Also, he’s still unscarred. Stratt is worried that because of that terrible something that happened, he didn’t come back.
He could’ve been here.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
[VIDEO LOG - #127 UNNAMED]
(The video starts with the camera lying on the ground, pointed at the sleeping form of Rocky. He’s on his respective side of the Xenonite barrier. Grace can be heard behind the camera, sniffling.)
“I’m not sure what to do. I–I’ve done everything I can think of. Uh, I made him a heat lamp.”
(Grace picks the camera up and positions it further back so that the lens can focus on him in the frame sitting next to Rocky.)
“He told me to, um, y’know. Save Earth. Save Erid.”
(He shifts to look at the camera. Stratt can finally see the initial damage done to him by whatever it is that happened. His entire left arm is bandaged and held close to his chest. He has several once-white-now-red bandages on his face, and his left eye seems to struggle with being held open.)
“We got the, uh, Astrophage predator from Adrien’s surface. I’m calling it Taumoeba. Like… Tau Ceti amoeba. Taumoeba. Real unique, I know, but it works.”
(He turns to rest his head against the Xenonite barrier, looking at Rocky instead of the camera.)
“I’m sure when you wake up you’ll tell me it’s an awful name but I’d argue there’s a kind of elegance to it. In it’s simplicity.”
(Grace picks the camera up and angles it away from him and toward the laboratory hallway, pointing at something not in frame. He easily could’ve gotten up and shown the camera, but he’s hesitant to leave Rocky’s side.)
“I did a test, on the Taumoeba, at like… I put it into different atmospheric values and everytime I introduced it to nitrogen it just…” (He blows a raspberry.) “It died. So. I should probably figure out a way to make it not die ‘cause I need it to fix everything ‘nd survive in Venus’ atmosphere. I’ll get to that eventually.”
(He motions with his hand again, hissing in pain, then repositions the camera to face him and Rocky. He’s leaning against the Xenonite barrier heavier.)
“Think I’m gonna take a nap first. Then I can work on the whole… the whole nitrogen issue.”
(Grace makes a wet noise and sniffles, reaching up to his face with his good hand to remove his glasses. He wipes his eyes and his nose.)
(Grace sets the camera down. The rest of the video plays out with the two of them sleeping side by side.)
Stratt’s expression hardens. She quickly analyzes the rest of that video, but it’s just them sleeping next to each other. This video was next in the timeline, which means something very obviously happened with the ‘fishing’ mission.
She’s unsure as to why she’s actively stressing over this man. These videos were taken years ago and he’s clearly fine in them. Alive, at least. It hurts to think like that, but it’s true.
She wipes at her eyes again (when had they gotten damp with tears?) and moves on to the next video, titled something much more interesting.
[VIDEO LOG - TAUMOEBA BREEDING ISNT THAT BORING IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT]
(The camera is being held up close to a microscope. The slide shows Astrophage being eaten by Taumoeba.)
“Okay, so, me and Rocky figured out how to breed the Taumoeba to withstand nitrogen. This is Taumoeba strain 82.5, so, Taumoeba 82.5. That’s our new name. Because that’s… how much nitrogen it can survive.”
(Grace pulls the camera back and rotates it, setting it down on the laboratory table. He sits down. Rocky rests behind him on his side of the Xenonite barrier.)
“We’re two pretty cool dudes who’ve got their own strain of nitrogen-resistant Taumoeba. Really, the only thing we’ve gotta do now is breed enough to survive the trip, dump half of this on Earth and Erid, and we’re all good!”
(Grace does a show of jazz hands and nods his head triumphantly, to which Rocky responds with his own jazz hands, tapping his claws against the Xenonite barrier.)
“What do now, Grace, question?”
(Grace swivels around in his chair to face Rocky. He pauses dramatically.)
“We party.”
Grace’s definition of a party is a very loose one. There are only two people involved, so it’s obvious that the ‘party’ would be laid back. And by that, Stratt means that it really just consists of Grace drinking the vodka provided for Ilyukhina. Rocky can’t drink, so he watches as Grace gradually comes to fumble over his words and (eventually) his steps.
Grace was lightweight, even when he was on Earth. He couldn’t handle much.
The video log continues to play, documenting the various ways in which Grace and Rocky celebrate their ever so important findings. They talk, they watch movies, they listen to music (much to Rocky’s chagrin), and they laugh at each other.
It’s so very domestic in a way that Stratt desperately wants to understand. What hasn’t been recorded? What do they do when the camera isn’t on, and science isn’t involved? She supposes she’ll never have a good answer for that, no matter how much she tries to find one.
(Grace and Rocky haven’t been seen by the camera for upwards of an hour and 40 minutes. The camera, however, still picks up on their dialogue as they talk several rooms away.)
“What’d’you wanna do, when you, yaknow, get back home?”
(Rocky can be heard tapping at the Xenonite barrier of his spaceball.)
“Want to see mate, Adrian. Long long long time away.”
“Yeah, s’fair. I can’t imagine spending… what was’it? Like 40 years? Like 40 years away from Earth. I’m… m’lucky that I’ve only felt… the few months I’ve been awake. Can’t imagine it.”
“What Grace want to do when return to Earth, question?”
“What I want to do? Uh, I don’t… Probably get back to teaching. ‘M a teacher first, right? Space ‘s cool and all but not for me. Not any more that it’s been.”
“Grace just teach?”
“I mean, yeah. Not much else for me out there.”
(Rocky makes a trilling noise that the laptops do not translate. Grace seems to understand it’s a general noise of confusion.)
“I don’t have, uh, any, like… family. Teaching was all there was for me. ‘S all I had. Will have, I guess.”
“Grace save Earth, is important, question?”
“Oh, I guess, yeah. That’s probably important. Meetings. They’re gonna have me flown off to some remote place. Hasn’t been the first time that’s happened.”
“No understand.”
“I was jus’taken from place to place. Happened a lot. Didn’t really want to, but, y’know, wasn’t given a choice.”
(A lapse of seemingly comfortable silence passes.)
“Grace not alone.”
“What?”
“Grace not alone. Grace have Rocky.”
“That’s, I… I—I mean, I…”
(Grace can be heard sniffling.)
“Yeah, I guess I do have you, huh?”
“Yes. Good good good. Grace dumb.”
“What? Oh, c’mon.”
“Rocky not lie. Grace dumb. Grace more dumb than usual.”
“It’s ‘cause I’m… I shouldn’t have t’be smart right now! This is a celebration ‘cause we saved the universe!”
“Right.”
“Don’t be bossy. I haven’t allowed myself to relax this entire time.”
“Rocky not bossy. Rocky observe. Grace is dumb.”
(Weak laughter can be heard coming from Grace, followed by the noise of him falling over. Rocky, in his spaceball, crowds him as he lies on the floor.)
“Space, space, Rock! You’re gonna crush me!”
“Is okay? Grace okay?”
“Rocky, ‘m fine, it’s—”
“Grace hurt? Grace—”
“—nothing, it’s nothing, man. You’re bein’ dramatic.”
(Grace gets back up and walks into view of the camera, unfortunately still recording. His shirt is disheveled and he’s abandoned his shoes sometime prior. Rocky follows him as he walks back into the laboratory. The Eridian is wearing some sort of important attire that tinkles and chimes with soft noises as he walks.)
“Grace tired. Grace stupid when no sleep. More stupid when celebrate and tired.”
“Are you trying to rally me to bed?”
“No understand. Grace sleep. Important work later.”
“I guess.”
(The two walk past the laboratory toward the dormitory. The sound of Grace falling into bed can be heard, followed by a weak trill of exclamation from Rocky.)
“Careful careful careful. Grace stupid.”
“Oh, shut up. I’m being as careful as I need to be.”
“Rude rude rude. Rocky watch Grace sleep.”
“Mmhhmmm. Yeah. ‘S nice. I love you.”
“Rocky love Grace. Sleep.”
“Mmmh.”
(Silence follows, occasionally broken by the noise of Rocky chittering periodically. Not all of the words are translated, but the words that are caught are… Stratt can only refer to the words as ‘loving’. It’s the way someone would refer to their partner. Rocky says things along the lines of ‘dumb dumb dumb’ and ‘stupid stupid stupid’ coupled by compliments that Grace will never hear.)
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
[VIDEO LOG - #234]
(The camera is set up in front of a contemplative looking Grace, though he’s stubbornly avoiding looking directly into the camera. He scoffs and turns his head, eyebrows furrowed worriedly.)
“It’s smart. I hate it. But it’s smart.”
(He drags a hand down his face and removes his glasses, putting his head in his hands.)
“I hate you. It’s… Fuck. You’re smart.”
(If Stratt listens closely, she’s sure she’ll be able to hear him sniffle quietly. Something feels off.)
“I got too invested in the whole mission to even think about sabotaging it. If I was even lucky enough to remember earlier. I can’t bring myself to do anything about it now.”
(He takes in a shuddering breath and puts his glasses back on, brushing his hair out of his face. It’s grown a considerable amount and he hasn’t bothered to cut it.)
“No, actually, I don’t think I hate you. I’m just mad. So, so unfathomably mad. You’ll allow me to be mad at you, won’t you? You’ll give me at least that?”
(a complete minute of silence passes with Grace staring into the lens of the camera. Tears fall down his cheeks as he struggles to be quiet. He glances behind him, toward the dormitory, then back at the camera.)
“I guess it really doesn’t matter. I’m coming home regardless. Oh, but boy, when I come back, I’m going to be so stern with you.” (Stratt can’t find it in herself to take this threat serious. He isn’t here.)
(Grace sighs and crosses his arms defiantly. He swivels in his chair and lets his head fall back, staring up at the ceiling.)
“Me and Rocky are headed back to his ship. We’ve got a couple days left to go. I think I’m just recording this to vent out my anger without him being awake to hear it. I’ll see you soon enough anyways. I can’t be mad forever.”
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
[VIDEO LOG - WORDS ARENT ENOUGH]
(The video starts with Grace holding the camera to face him. His eyes are red.)
“I said goodbye. We went our very, very separate ways. It’ll take me… 5-ish years to come back. I can stretch out my remaining food supply to last that long. Maybe I’ll even have some left over, when I get there.”
(He places the camera down on the floor of the dormitory, facing his mattress on the ground of the Hail Mary. The Xenonite barriers are still up. He takes a seat on his mattress.)
“I was feeling weird about going back into a coma for the trip back so I think I’m just not going to. Maybe I’ll change my mind a couple months in. Maybe I won’t. I’ve got content to last me a while, here,” (he reaches out of frame and pulls a laptop into his lap.) “You were pretty dang thorough. Gave me a lot to go through! I think that warrants a ‘thank you.’ So, here you go.”
(He bows his head and places his hand on his chest, smiling faintly.)
“Thank you, Eva Stratt, for your never ending supply of pirated movies and services.”
(He takes a short moment to scroll through something he has pulled up on the laptop and his mood dims. The expression that crosses his face disappears just as fast as it came.)
“It might seem a little, y’know, obsessive of me, but I’ve been keeping an eye on Rocky as he goes. The Petrova scanner picks up on the flashes that his ship emits. I’ve been watching him get further away. It’s melodramatic of me, sure, but I’m attached.”
(Grace continues to scroll through something on his laptop mindlessly.)
“I think he’s the closest thing I’ve ever had to a—a partner, I guess. I’ve never had a friend outside of work. Someone that wasn’t a student who liked talking to me after class. Isn’t that sad?”
(He laughs and shakes his head, pushing the laptop out of his lap.)
“It’s super quiet. If the loneliness doesn’t drive me crazy then the quietness will. Months of noise turned into… well, a lot less noise, that’s for sure.”
(He falls backwards onto his mattress, folding his arms behind his head. He sighs and stares at nothing in particular.)
“I got so used to him watching me sleep that it feels so wrong when he can’t be here to do that. I’m just… I’m lonely. Right now, I’m lonely. And, because no one is here to tell me to stop, I’m going to use the camera as a makeshift Rocky. You’re Rocky now, okay?”
(He reaches for the camera and pats the top of it, smiling lovingly. Afterwards he rotates to lie on his side, facing the Xenonite barrier, and pulls his blanket on top of himself.)
“Night, Rocky.”
(The rest of the video is several hours long. It’s just him sleeping. Stratt is unsure why he included this video with everything else. To pretend he was talking to someone else, maybe? She doesn’t know. She pauses the video regardless.)
A lot of the videos after that are just him sleeping. He pretends the camera is Rocky. He talks to it like it’s the Eridian, sometimes, and gets awfully heartfelt with it. Stratt is unsure as to why it makes her sad.
Sometimes he uses the camera to talk about the Petrova light being left by Rocky’s ship (Stratt remembers it being named Blip-A). Sometimes he cries and thrashes in bed like a toddler would. Most of the time he’s silent. Months of nonsensical humming and singing and whistling turns into hours of nothing, even quieter than before.
The list of videos continues like this for a while. Stratt doesn’t understand.
What made him change his mind? Why isn’t he here?
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
[VIDEO LOG - SORRY]
(The camera is held close to Grace’s face. He’s wearing the EVA suit minus the helmet. He flips the camera to face the laboratory.)
“There’s a leak. There’s a leak in the Taumoeba containers. It’s the—it’s the Xenonite itself, the bastards learned how to hide in the Xenonite. My fuel, it’s, oh my God, it’s the Xenonite.”
(Grace haphazardly puts the camera down on a table but it stubbornly floats off of it.)
“It got into my Astrophage but I was able to stop it. Just… a container in a container. It learned to hide in the walls—it—it hid away in the Xenonite. I had to flush the entire Hail Mary with nitrogen.”
(He puts his head in his hands, shaking. All of him is shaking, actually.)
“Rocky’s ship is built of Xenonite, all of it, everything. He’ll be looking for a leak and he won’t be able to find it because it’s the ship itself. He probably doesn’t have any fuel and he’s probably stranded and if his life-support system hasn’t failed by now then he’s going to… to die a really, really slow death.”
(He hiccups, wiping at his face. He knocks his glasses off and lets them drift away from himself.)
“I can’t do both. It’s… Jesus, it’s either I go home or save Rocky. I can’t do both. I’ve got the logs and everything and I’m pretty extensive with it all, I think.”
(He picks the camera back up and holds it close to his face. He’s crying.)
“I guess I never get to hear you say ‘I told you so’ even though you were righ—”
(The video is cut short. This is the last video included, and if Stratt is right, his last message to her should be the first video she ever watched.)
So that’s the decision he made.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
Eva Stratt has been very patient for almost her entire life. She rose the ranks as slowly as possible and then remained at, what she personally believes is, the top. Some may argue about it but she ignores the comments (incredibly easy to do). Someone in her position would never be able to handle it the way she does.
The Earth is thriving. The sun is bright. Grace wasn’t lying when he said that Taumoeba works quickly.
There’s a statue of him beside the old science building that blew up (it was rebuilt fairly quickly) and almost always a fresh set of flowers set atop its pedestal. There’s a miniature version of that statue sitting on Stratt’s desk. The quote beneath him might make zero sense to anyone else, but it’s a nice reminder.
Grace Rocky Save Stars
Few people have come to her to ask if that’s the quote she wants memorized. His full name is Ryland Grace, isn’t it? Are we sure we should only have his last name? Is Rocky an addition or a nickname? Isn’t there anything he’s said that’s more… important?
Well, she’s in charge, and they aren’t, so what she says goes. That’s how it’s worked and that’s how it’ll continue to work.
Every so often she’ll catch herself staring up at the sky through her office window, curtains pushed to the side carelessly. It was a little difficult at first but she’ll say she’s gotten pretty good at identifying Tau Ceti amongst the countless other stars that dot the sky.
It takes her barely a minute to locate (approximately) where Erid is. She smiles despite herself. Despite the countless thoughts swirling in her head, despite the countless things she should’ve said, despite the countless thoughts that remind her she never got to say goodbye the right way.
It’s all too melancholic. She’s proud, at least, of what’s happened. The world suffered and may continue to suffer for years to come, but it’s on the right path. She’s taken several wrong turns to get to this point but it doesn’t matter. Not in the long run.
Grace’s students will continue to learn and live and thrive in the future he’s oh so graciously left behind for them. A few of them have emailed her, spoken to her in person. She tells them he was a great man. She isn’t lying.
And isn’t that a funny thought?
Ryland Grace. The saving grace of the world.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
There’s a restless knocking on my door that draws me out of spiraling thoughts. “What?” I call, praying to whatever god that’s out there the knocking will stop. It does, but only for 15 or so seconds. Then it’s right back to the insistent tap-tap-tapping that makes me threaten to pull my hair out.
I drag myself out of my chair and force myself to be in no hurry to get to the door. Whoever is on the other side wants me to be there within that moment so, as petty as it may seem, I want to draw it out. For fun.
The windows I pass bathe me in the most pleasant warm light I’ve ever had the fortune of being in. I sigh, content, and reach the door. My cane rests against the wall next to the door and I grab it, reaching for the door knob.
I pull the door open just as Rocky is about to go back to knocking on the door. He’s standing there in his Xenonite suit, practically vibrating with excitement. I shake my head, a lopsided smile already working its way onto my face.
“You take forever to answer the door! Rude rude rude. Do not keep me waiting next time.”
“Who are you to tell me what to do?”
“Don’t you like it when I do that?”
I cough awkwardly, shaking my head. “Right, uh, what’s up? You seem in a hurry.” I tilt my head down at Rocky, shutting the door behind me as I step out of my house. Rocky chitters up at me and stamps his claws against the walkway.
“Wonderful news! Great! Good good good!” I huff out a laugh as he leads me down the path from my house to the beach. The sand and rocks crunch nicely beneath my shoes as we walk.
“Eridian scientists have great news. Really really good. You will like, statement.”
“Well, you’re being awfully secretive, so I’m not too sure if I can believe you here. Is it about my biodome?”
“No, no. Not about your biodome. This is better.”
Better than my biodome? Something I can’t do on my own, then. If the scientists are involved, maybe it’s…
“Is this about the Hail Mary?”
“What? No, no, not that. Grace is dumb. Can’t figure it out.”
“You aren’t telling me!”
Rocky twinkles out a string of melodies that sound, on its own, like music to my ears. He’s laughing.
“Okay, sorry sorry. It is about your star.”
I feel my blood freeze, then gradually melt. He’s excited. This is good news—I’ve got no reason to doubt him. When have I ever doubted Rocky?
“It’s… Are you sure? My star? Sol?”
Rocky twirls and stamps his claws into the sand. We’ve walked further down the beach now, waves lapping at our feet. (I am so glad Adrian finally figured out a way to get it warmer. It was too hot and then it was too cold… a whole lot of back and forth.)
“Yes! Good good good news! Sol is bright! Eridian scientists are not wrong. Earth is less one solid colour now. We think. They want to talk to you personally about it to confirm news.”
I let out a breath I had no idea I was even holding in. I bet I’ve been keeping that in for years. My eyes water, but before anything can spill, I wipe the tears away. Rocky hums at me, scuttling closer. He knocks his carapace against my legs, and even through the Xenonite suit he’s got on I can feel his body warmth. It sends a nice shiver up along my body.
“And you’re sure? It’s Sol?”
“Yes, yes! I asked several times to confirm. It is Sol. Your star is bright and your planet is as alive as ever. All is well.”
He presses himself against my leg again. I lean down and pat my hand against the top of his Xenonite suit, sitting down. The sand beneath me shifts. I sniffle pathetically.
“So leaky.”
“You’ve known me long enough to know this is just me, Rock. Crying is one of the things I can do perfectly.”
“You do many things perfectly. I can name them all.”
“Yeah, I’m sure you can. Most of those things are all embarrassing, aren’t they?”
“You can say that. Maybe embarrassing to you. Endearing to me. Very very very endearing.”
“Aww. So cheesy.”
“Has nothing to do with cheese.”
“You know what I mean.”
I pat the top of his Xenonite suit again, watching as the waves inch closer to my shoes. The sand dampens with the constant rise and fall of the water.
“What now?”
“What do you mean?”
“I… I’ve come all this way. I’m not going back to Earth, I’ll tell you that much.” Rocky chimes a pleased noise at that. “Takes too long. I’d be too sad leaving, I think.”
“Yess,” he practically purrs, forcing his way onto my lap partially. “Never leave. Let me be selfish.”
I roll my eyes. “You’ve been plenty selfish.”
“Is not enough!”
“Sure, sure. When do you think those scientists are going to want to speak to me?”
He takes this into consideration. Even though he seems to be thinking this over, he works his way further over my legs, spreading himself over my lap. I make no move to push him off. Not that I even could, honestly, because his weight paired with the gravity on Erid makes it essentially impossible. Not that I’d even want to push him off, anyway.
“Could be a day. Maybe two. Scientists want to make sure they are right. They are, but doubtful. Do not worry.”
“I wasn’t worrying.”
“Rocky knows. Rocky also knows how Grace is. You will get leaky again.”
I laugh, tilting my head back. He isn’t wrong. He knows me well.
“Y’know, since you’re here, d’you wanna spend some time with me?”
“That was in my plans. I did not come here just to deliver good news. Want to spend time with Grace.”
“You gonna let me get up for that?”
“We can spend time on the beach. Is nice.”
I make a so-so noise from the back of my throat, raising an eyebrow. “I don’t know. Maybe spending time inside would be better.” Yes, it’d be better, obviously. It would also be better for my back. And my ache-y limbs.
Rocky tilts his carapace this way and that, rumbling a noise deep within him. He stretches out, and for a moment I think he’s gonna keep me here on the beach, but he stands up moments after. “Okay. Rocky sees.”
“What does that mean?”
“Rocky knows what you are…” He pauses, tracing something in the air with a claw. “Know what you are insinuating.”
I choke. “That’s not what I—”
“Is joke!”
“Oh, man. One of these days I will die because of that.”
Rocky chitters at me again as I stand, grabbing my cane. He knocks himself against my legs twice before making his way back up the walkway to my house, pausing momentarily to let me catch up. Even if he’s in a Xenonite suit that hinders his walking speed, he’s still faster than me. I need to work on that.
When I reach my front door, I open it and let him through first, then close it behind me. My cane taps against the ground as I follow Rocky into my living room. He plants himself on the couch, waiting for me to take a seat next to him.
“You wanna watch anything?” I ask, taking my seat. The moment I’m comfortable, Rocky crowds his way into my space and gets as close as physically possible. I’m sure if he could get around wearing the Xenonite suit, he’d sit on my shoulders and never leave.
“Hmm. Grace can pick.”
“You sure? If you let me pick, I'm gonna make you watch something stupid.”
“No musical.”
“There we go. I think I’m in a documentary mood, anyway. You got a preference?”
Rocky whistles a short song, stretching himself over myself. So touchy.
“More ocean life. So interesting.”
I nod, connecting my laptop to the larger screen set up against the wall. Me and Rocky have watched plenty of documentaries in our free time (I’m lucky Stratt was so insistent on including any of these at all) and we’ve barely made a dent in the amount here. I scroll through the top listed ones randomly, selecting one with an eye-catching cover.
Rocky sets up his own watching device as I do so, pointed straight at the big screen. Eridian technology… I need to ask more about that in the future.
I lean back against the couch, letting my body melt against the cushions and pillows. I try my hardest to bring Rocky closer to my chest subtly and fail, but he seems to catch the memo, because he shuffles closer anyway.
He really does know me. Better than I know myself nowadays, it seems.
I find myself smiling.