15:51 24/09/2587 –(8734/754/23/76)

Gabriel sat on the boat, keeping his eyes on the ocean. Gabriel was spending two weeks on the Nedol archipelago, a collection of thirty-four islands located in the far northern latitudes. He had rented a small cabin on a mountainside, alone, far from anyone else.

Minagerad had a nearly insignificant tilt, just five degrees. Even so close to the poles, the weather was mild, only dipping below zero Celcius for a few scant weeks in the middle of what passed for winter on this planet.

He and five other tourists were watching for a pod of Evol Bashtor, known colloquially as sea serpents. Native to the planet Paani, known for having over eighty per cent of its surface covered in ocean.

It was a human colony discovered just one year before first contact in 2315, back when humanity’s F.T.L. travel was in its infancy and travelling a light year in eleven months and twenty-five days was a triumph.

Paani also proved that humans could live on paradise worlds without devasting the local biosphere. With, it must be admitted, difficulty.

It was a dream of many humans to travel to Paani and see a sea serpent, one of those rare aliens that resembled so accurately a creature from myth. While it had teeth, these were used in intraspecific combat. The Evol Bashtor was mostly a gulp feeder similar to a humpback whale, occasionally supplementing its diet with shellfish analogues.

“Keep an eye on those ripples to the east!” The tour guide shouted, pointing to a patch of frothing water.

“They blow bubbles to scare their prey into tightly knit groups!” They added as a spray of seafoam washed over the deck. The other tourists screamed as the cold water washed over them; Gabriel hardly reacted at all.

The rough water was why he had selected this trip; it meant fewer people would be on board. That meant fewer interactions with people. Gabriel had quickly fallen into his old habits; he was also reconsidering his regular trip to Yursu, he would still do them, of course, but he would scale them down considerably.

“Not the healthiest approach,” Gabriel thought with Erilur’s voice. Yet Gabriel's habits were much like wearing an old threadbare coat, it did not keep you dry and failed at holding out the cold, yet it was comfortable.

Gabriel noticed many small splashes on the water and watched intently. The water frothed as more and more fish were forced together and near the surface. Finally, a large mouth emerged from the water, scooping up the trapped fish, then another and another. All in all, nine sea serpents showed themselves.

Their sheer vastness was remarkable, long, serpentine—a faded grey, with white speckles running along their flanks and undersides. Gabriel smiled, and the rest of the passengers cheered, hooped and hollered with joy. Even the tour guide, who had seen the site hundreds of times, let out a cry of joy.

***

Gabriel marched up the hill toward his cabin; as he did so, the sun setting on the horizon; despite it only being 60 hours, Gabriel could only think how much more magical it would be with half a foot of snow blanketing the land.

Then again, if that were the case, his trek would be rather tricky, and lower gravity or not, the steep hill was a challenge. A few other people were making the climb, most of them in a tram system, and those few who were willing to walk were wrapped up warm in thick coats, scarves and hats. Gabriel checked his P.D.A.; it was eleven degrees Celcius, with a wind chill of 5mph.

Gabriel was unsure when he would need to start adding more layers. If he recalled what was written in the little booklet he had received with the suit, it was rated to -25 Celcius, though that might just have been the suit itself and not the flesh sack that sat inside it.

Wiping his feet before stepping onto the deck, Gabriel took a moment to sit and catch his breath. Gabriel looked directly ahead and saw Illohu, unobscured by any clouds, though its colours were distorted by Minagerad’s atmosphere. What appeared to be a large orange band running around the gas giants equator was actually red. Then again, colour only exists in the mind, so Gabriel supposed it could be orange.

It was still eerie to have that vast object suspended in the sky. Now that he thought about it, the eclipse must be long and dark. Best to relax for the rest of the day; he would be mountaineering tomorrow, and he needed his strength.

Though perhaps mountaineering was a bit much, there would be no risky climbs, more like a steep walk, tiring but nothing overly dangerous. Not that Gabriel was against doing a more intense assent, but after what had happened in the forest, he was keen never to be more than a day away from a bathroom again.

Gabriel still burned with embarrassment whenever he thought about it. It had taken hours to get rid of the smell.

He slapped his cheeks, trying to bury the memory, not easy as the suit absorbed much of the impact. It was all in the past, and he would take it as wisdom.

Looking back once more at the gas giant, he supposed Yursu also orbited a gas giant too. He wondered how Nish and Pista were doing; Nish was probably back at work, analysing clay tablets and whatnot, while Pista would have returned to school months ago.

He wondered if they thought about him, taking out his P.D.A and scrolling through the numerous pictures he had taken. To his regret, there were very few from the beginning of his holiday, including the first week when he began exploring with his friends.

Looking at a photo of the five of them outside this charming little café they had found in a village called Uklo, that café had the best, not chocolate milk he’d ever had; Gabriel wondered if he could keep this up. A large part of him wanted to cut the whole thing short and retreat back home.

He did not hate it here; it was just bland without the other four, and staying on Minagerad reminded him of that. Gabriel leaned back into his seat and sighed. Oh, who was he kidding? Leaving his holiday earlier required a level of adventurousness that Gabriel did not possess. No, he knew what he would do, stick it out to the end, no matter how apathetic he was; it was what he had always done ever since Jariel had passed.

Gabriel sighed again and retreated into the cabin; much like the penthouse, it had a sealed environment and a decontamination bay. He had just closed the door when his P.D.A got a ping.

His mood improved almost instantly; it would not be Erilur, she too had taken to sending physical letters, and he had just sent one to her. This one was sent by a dedicated courier, one that went to the effort to dress in period clothes. Gabriel felt he was making good use of his financial windfall.

That left Nish or Risoti. It could be spam, of course, but he felt it was good to be optimistic.

That proved a mistake, as the message was not from anyone he cared about or even some rando. It was from Howard Smith.

Even after all this time, that man could still ruin his day.

Delete.

07:37 13/10/2587 –(8734/761/32/20)

Gabriel felt he needed wisdom, and as common knowledge held, age was usually a good signifier. Therefore Gabriel was heading to speak to the oldest person he knew.

The Learning Centre was as busy as ever; he snaked his way through the crowd with only one goal. He was heading directly for Jyuporin annexe, where only the most delicate species were housed.

The annexe's lighting was dim; Gabriel had not realised how much the last time he was here, Pista having been a distraction back then.

It did not take Gabriel long to find what he was looking for. The Dreamer was located in their tank, just where Gabriel had left them.

Gabriel stood before the tank and waited for several minutes. Gabriel looked closely and saw twenty-nine dark spots running along its edges. These were the dreamer's eyes, so Gabriel knew they could see him. Though, considering how simple their eyes were, Gabriel doubted they knew it was him.

Most likely, all the dreamer knew was that another tourist had come to gawk at them. Their body was still producing faint lights, even though the translater showed that they were staying nothing, or at least nothing intelligible, the organic equivalent of static.

Gabriel felt a little silly coming here, and now that he was, he found it difficult to think of anything to say. After a couple of minutes, he decided that a greeting was always an excellent way to start “hello.”

The Dreamer said nothing in response; its bioluminescence continued at the same languid pace.

“It's me… the shatterer,” Gabriel added, realising context would help the alien.

“Hello,” the Dreamer replied after a pause.

After the greeting, the Dreamer said nothing, which was a problem as Gabriel had been counting on the Dreamer leading the beginning of the conversation. Then Gabriel remembered that the Dreamers had no desires and, therefore, no desire for answers, so why would they ever bother to ask questions?

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“Do you recall our previous conversation?” Gabriel inquired.

“Yes,” The Dreamer answered.

“You told me that the only thing you ever did was think, but why bother thinking if you never get bored if you have no interest in thinking?” Gabriel asked.

The Dreamer took nearly five minutes to reply as they parsed the words and flashed their bioluminescence in response.

“I can… do… nothing else,” they stated

Gabriel believed he understood what the Dreamer meant; they did not think because of any desire to do so but because their brain was always on, always at work.

“My friends have returned to their homes, so it's just me now,” Gabriel stated.

“I… understand,” The dreamer responded, and as Gabriel listened to the slow, monotone voice, he realised that it was flawless; rather than being a limitation of technology, the translator was perfectly showing how little the Dreamer cared.

“What’s it like? To not care about anything, not even your own existence? I could smash that tank and leave to be ravaged by all the diseases of this world, and you would not feel a thing,” Gabriel asked, not that he had any intention of doing that.

“I can… not say… I have.. no… contrast,” the Dreamer replied, utterly unfazed by what Gabriel had suggested.

At this point, Gabriel expected the Dreamer to ask what it was like to care about yourself to value your own life, but then he remembered that the Dreamer had no curiosity, so it did not care.

Then again, something did not add up. “Why did you ask if I was a shatterer when we first met? Why answer my questions if you don’t care enough to answer?” inquired Gabriel.

“I…. do not…. Know…. I simply…. Flow with… the current,” The Dreamer replied after the lengthiest pause to date.

“This was a mistake,” thought Gabriel; the dreamer had no wisdom, or at the very least, had none that would be of use to Gabriel or any other species in the galaxy. They were too alien, their minds too different for either side to comprehend the other; Gabriel supposed that even the names Dreamer and Shatterer had been something a human suggested. How could a Dreamer know about destruction any other way?

“Thank you for your time Dreamer, but I must be going now,” Gabriel said, disappointed that there was no point in even asking his questions.

“Farewell Gabriel… Perhaps the… currents… will… bring… us close… once again,” The Dreamer replied before turning back to its own incomprehensible thoughts.

***

Gabriel wandered back to his penthouse; he had hoped to have been in a more stable place after his talk with the Dreamer, but now he felt even more lost. The only other person he had a moderate connection with was Shupp, but even if she had been working today, he would most likely have kept his feelings to himself.

He was regressing fast and did not have the enthusiasm or wherewithal to stop it. Getting back into the lift and Gabriel watched the city and its people scurry below with mild interest. As he got off on his floor, he was frozen dead in his tracks.

Standing in front of him was someone in a suit that looked much like his, though if the mouth port and delicate patterns on the outer material were anything to go by, it cost much more than his. They were also wearing other fabrics over the suit so that the whole thing looked like a genuine outfit, unlike the utilitarian piece of equipment Gabriel was in.

He was so taken aback by the appearance of another person on his floor that it took him a few seconds to realise what they were. They were human; there was another human on Minagerad.

Gabriel just stared, and the other human stared right back, or at least Gabriel supposed that was what they were doing; he could not see their eyes. “Is this what it was like for the ladies?” thought Gabriel, finally understanding how annoying it must have been.

“See anything you like, sailor?” asked the woman, and by their voice, she was most likely a woman. Her body shape was also a good indicator, but he had not wanted to assume. Gabriel could not place her accent; that being said, Gabriel was terrible with accents, always had been, but he knew enough to tell she was definitely not a native speaker of any European language.

“My apologies,” Gabriel said, giving a little bow, he was not entirely sure why he did the last bit, but it seemed the right thing to do at the time. “I did not expect to see another human, least of all, outside my own penthouse,” he added.

“Well, on the politeness front, no one can fault you,” the woman replied with a faint chuckle.

“Did you just move in?” asked Gabriel.

“I believe names would be a better place to start,” the woman stated.

“Oh, umm, yes, I’m Gabriel,” he said, offering his hand.

“I know, you’re quite famous around these parts,” the woman said, taking Gabriel's hand and shaking it, “Hetwa, lovely to meet you in person; never met a real-life hero before.”

“Back to your previous question, no, I did not just arrive; I’ve been living here for the past fifteen years,” Hetwa explained, letting go of Gabriel.

“Fifteen years!” Gabriel said, astounded. That would certainly explain the effort Hetwa put into her suit.

“I like it here; things move at a glacial pace,” Hetwa explained. “Or rather it did, until you set foot here, barely even been here a week, and you were wrestling monsters, rescuing children, and sweeping single mothers off their feet,” she added.

Gabriel groaned, and Hetwa chuckled. “How the hell do you know that?” Gabriel asked before hastily adding, “not that….” Gabriel just sighed. Was there any point in denying how he felt at this point, he still wasn’t entirely convinced that Nish felt the same way, but he undoubtedly hoped.

“You and your friends were very loud when they passed by my door,” Hetwa explained. “And when you get to my age, you find yourself getting more and more nosy.”

Now that she mentioned it, Hetwa’s voice was making that faint crackling and huskiness that most elderly did.

“Do you want a biskuit? They’re freshly baked,” Hetwa asked, gesturing to her penthouse.

“No, thank you, I’m fine,” Gabriel said, attempting to walk past her, but Hetwa blocked his path.

“I don’t think you are; I think something’s bothering you,” Hetwa countered. “Come inside, have a biskuit, give it a little think and then tell me if you want to talk or not; if you don’t, I’ll wave you goodbye.”

Gabriel could hear Erilur on his shoulder saying, “do it; it’ll be good for you.” He wondered what Erilur was up to now; he knew she was on Xorko with Risoti. Then he realised what the Ponut’Kild was most likely doing and said, “filthy woman.”

“Excuse you!” Hetwa exclaimed.

No, that had nothing to do with you. I was thinking about a friend,” Gabriel said, embarrassed that he had spoken that part aloud. “I would love a biskuit,” Gabriel said, recalling Erilur’s advice about letting people in.

Hetwa led Gabriel into her penthouse, and Gabriel asked, “weren’t you going somewhere? We can do this later if you would prefer.”

“No, I was just going to get a few essentials, milk and the like,” Hetwa replied as she removed her mask. Her suit must be modular, even more expensive than he first thought.

Hetwa had a deep complexion with more than a few wrinkles. Her hair was greying but was still primarily black; she must be at least one hundred and fifty years old. Her eyes were deep brown, and when she looked at Gabriel, he could not help but feel she was analysing him; it was eerily similar to how Erilur had viewed him.

“Are you a psychologist?” Gabriel asked, squinting ever so slightly.

Hetwa had not expected that question, and it took her a few moments to respond. “No, I was a water treatment engineer; I’ve since retired,” Hetwa replied.

Gabriel supposed Hetwa just had a high level of emotional intelligence.

“Aren’t you going to take your suit off?” asked Hetwa as she pulled a tray of biscuits from the kitchen counter and placed them on a table. “Have as many as you like,” Hetwa said as Gabriel undid the seals and unzipped the upper portion of his suit.

Gabriel tied the arms of his suit around his waist; it was not as easy as it sounded, the material his suit was made from was not as flexible as the more advanced suits. Gabriel picked up a cookie and took a bite, it was good, delicious, and they were cookies made from ingredients native to, though not necessarily from, Earth.

The sugar and chocolate did make him feel better, but now he felt a little uncomfortable sitting in a strange woman’s apartment. “Why did you invite me in here?” asked Gabriel, placing his half-eaten cookie on the table.

“Curiosity, for one, I’ve seen you about, even if you never noticed me,” Hetwa explained. “I can’t deny I’ve missed interacting with my own kind,” she added.

Gabriel felt he could understand that; he looked at Hetwa's face, her body language, and he just instinctively knew what she was feeling. It was relaxing after having to spend so much effort gauging other people. It was funny Gabriel had always thought of himself as being rather bad at all that.

“You seemed upset for another, and I wanted to know if I could do anything to help,” Hetwa said, taking one of the biskuits she had baked, a yellow item with cream on top; it did look good.

“Upset might be a strong word,” Gabriel replied as he resumed eating his cookie. “More like confused, don’t know what to do,” he added.

“And what is causing this?” asked Hetwa, resting her head on the palm of her hands.

Gabriel tapped his fingers on the table; he had been willing to ask the Dreamer, whom he had only met once before, in a public place no less, so he realised that this was no different. Plus, he was desperate.

“It’s about Nish,” Gabriel said; Hetwa knew about him, so he assumed that she did not need an explanation of who Nish was.

“Ah, the Tufanda mother,” Hetwa said knowingly, confirming Gabriel’s suspicion and her own. “A man pining for a woman, a tale as old as humanity itself.”

Gabriel sighed, and Hetwa added, “I’m not judging you, most humans have a desire to pair bond, and I can only imagine how hard it must be to want to be with someone from a different planet.”

“The problem isn’t ability; I can visit Yursu; my little adventure left me with more than enough money,” Gabriel explained.

“The problem is…?” Hetwa asked.

“The problem is there’s no point; Tufanda don’t pair bond, they don’t feel romantic love, so there is no reason to try,” Gabriel said.

“Really, I went on holiday to a lovely little world called Furyolhgop, and I met a Tufanda couple, very much in love,” Hetwa said, recalling that pleasant holiday. “From what I recall, it’s very rare, rarer than any other orientation in Tufanda but certainly there.”

“I don’t deny that, but that cannot be the case with Nish; she has never felt the need to pair bond,” Gabriel replied. “She did not even care about the man who knocked her up, leaving her and Pista to take care of themselves,” he added, finishing his cookie and picking up another biscuit.

“Really,” Hetwa said, scratching her head; that was some good evidence on Gabriel’s part.

“Nish did come up with a good name for the deadbeat, however, so it wasn’t a total loss,” said Gabriel. With a smile, Gabriel leaned in and said, “she named him the sperm donor.”

Hetwa raised her eyebrows, which was evidence against Gabriel's conclusion. Hetwa had never been in a romantic or sexual relationship, and she had never had the desire to. She had, however, known many who had, and amongst them had been people with sexual but not romantic attraction. Not one of those people had ever been as bothered as Nish when one of their hookups scarpered. Certainly not enough to come up with such a derogatory name.

“In that case, what does it matter?” asked Hetwa, leaning closer to Gabriel.

“What?” questioned Gabriel.

“If Nish is how you say you are, then it would not matter if you confessed; she’ll just chalk up you asking to be her be your girlfriend as an alien doing an alien thing, saving both you and her any real embarrassment,” Hetwa explained picking up another biscuit.

“But if I’m right, if she is one of those rare Tufanda that does pair bond, then you and her both get what you want,” Hetwa added, punctuating her sentence by taking a bite from her treat.

"Even if she does, that doesn't mean she like me," Gabriel countered, although he could not deny the swelling of hope he felt.

"No one, not even someone who flies, jumps off a cliff without a moment's hesitation to save someone they do not care about," Hetwa retorted, looking Gabriel dead in the eye.

Gabriel paused; he had not thought about that. His mind instantly ran through the worst-case scenario of Nish simply explaining that she did not find anyone romantically attractive, and he found it far easier to swallow.

Still painful, but in that case, it would have nothing to do with him; it would not be him she was rejecting but the whole concept itself. He felt better and realised he did not have anything to lose.

“Is this what Erilur had been trying to tell me?” he thought as he looked up at Hetwa. “You are very smart and very wise,” Gabriel stated bluntly.

“One of the benefits of old age,” Hetwa replied, holding up her biscuit towards Gabriel, "So, are you going to give it a go?" she asked. Gabriel smiled and tapped his own against, and together gave a new twist to an old custom, “to giving things a go,” they both said.