Raum stared at the ash.

He stared at the devastation that rained down from the sky. Ash that was slowly and surely killing all that he had ever known across the nine years that he had been alive. Ash that was spreading through the sky at a rate that would, within the hour, render the sky an infinite black cloud.

Staring through the glass window before him as the ash slowly began to cover the window, Raum couldn’t hide the fear, panic and rising dread that reverberated through his body. His green slitted eyes were dilated. His orange fur was standing on end. His triangle ears were perked looking for a singular source of danger when it lay in every direction, and finally his tail stood on end in fear.

Backing away from the window, Raum turned around and looked around his house. Casting about Raum desperately tried to find a familiar figure as the earth beneath his feet rumbled as far off volcanoes continued to pour out endless waves of ash. Yet all Raum could find was the same old normal house he had grown up in.

The Reshari were not a technologically advanced people, as such the level of technology that was scattered throughout the room was unusual. The Reshari had created electricity, and even some commodities such as light bulbs, but in the end the Reshari were simply too carefree to industrialise beyond a certain level. Which was why seeing a radio about half a metre in length sitting on a table in the middle of the room, that Raum was in, was something extremely rare and even a little strange.

Racing over to the radio, Raum tried desperately to turn the machine on even as his mind raced in fear at the fact that his parents might be out there in the ash that was still burning as it fell. Yet no matter how Raum spun the dial, how he adjusted the frequency or the amplitude of the waves that he was broadcasting or trying to receive, all Raum heard was an endless wave of static.

Pleading with anything that would dare to listen to make sure his parents were healthy, Raum stepped back from the radio his face awash in fear. And as he began to succumb to panic, he cursed himself for not having learned to work the radio properly.

For while carefree, the Reshari were just as driven by curiosity. This was why a rare and valuable radio was in the middle of the house, because Raum’s father Allocer was driven by a curiosity that was nigh endless.

Allocer had always loved the stars and longed to reach them, which was why driven by curiosity and a love for what lay above and forever out of reach, Allocer had turned to the concept of radios and telescopes. For Allocer had hoped to see and even hear what was out there. In fact, Allocer had supposedly found music upon the radio waves, but all of the Reshari had ignored his findings because who was stupid enough to listen to second-hand music played across something as exotic as a radio.

Raum had, on the other hand, not found his father’s work all that interesting as he had something else that drew his attention: the desire to fly. This was why Raum lacked the skill to use a radio, as Raum had often spent more time trying to figure out how to fly. Although since he was a child the most he could do was fold paper to create a glider, a far cry from those rare scholars attempting to learn to create actual flying machines.

Panting in fear that he had failed to signal his father through the radio, Raum looked towards the front door of his family’s house and hoped that either of his parents would come through the door. A hope that seemed to be heard as the door almost immediately began to creak open.

Stepping through the door, Raum’s mother, Basset entered into the house. Her white robes stained with soot from the ash that was falling from the sky. Staring at the white robes that had a golden cat’s eye embroidered over the chest, Raum was aghast at what he saw. For the robes that were meant to signify that his mother was a healer, had been sullied in way that made it seem somehow sacrilegious.

Meeting his mother’s golden eyes, Raum tried to find comfort and answers in them, only to be met with tightly controlled fear. Those rare golden eyes that had earned Basset her name, golden eyes that were said to be the same as the first healer Bast, were now filled with a total and absolute lack of hope.

“Mum, what is happening?” asked Raum, his voice just short of a cry.

“Raum, do you remember the stories about our world, about Fenix?” asked Basset as she stood near the door, her robes slightly singed by the ash that had travelled several kilometres from the volcanoes to land upon her.

“Yes, every five thousand or so years the planets align and Fenix sets itself on fire,” said Raum, not understanding how a bedtime story related to a sky full of ash.

“The stories are true,” said Basset simply as she thought back to how the worlds in the sky had grown so close and how the earth had started to rumble as the sky became so frighteningly crowded.

“But it was six thousand years ago that the Fenix renewed itself,” said Raum as he remembered the stories his father had read to him to help him go to sleep.

“It seems that the planets alignment can be off by a few thousand years,” said Basset as she couldn’t bring herself to try and calm her son. For the world would soon drown in a sea of ash and, at the very least, their little village would be lost with no survivors.

“What about dad?” cried Raum as tears began to blur his vision. Tears that were at the same time filling the eyes of his mother. Tears that signalled that his mother’s immense will to continue standing upon her paw-like feet was running out.

“He is at his tower working,” said Basset as she slowly began to sink to the floor as her body was no longer capable of allowing her to stand up. “He hopes to send out a signal to get help. He intends to keep fighting, to keep trying to find an answer…”

“But what about the ash, won’t it hurt him?” asked Raum as he realised that his father’s tower would not shield him from the ash.

Allocer’s tower was situated outside of the village and was nothing more than iron and wood aligned together to create a place that Allocer could send and receive radio transmissions. Radio transmissions that mainly came from the capital city, although most of the time Allocer would try to use the tower to receive songs from the stars. However as most considered it to be a useless piece of technology, they had made the tower so very far away that crossing from the village to the tower would be impossible with the current ash falling from the sky.

“Yes, just like the rest of us,” whispered Basset, her voice too low for Raum to hear anything but the first word.

“I’ve got to go get him then,” cried out Raum as he raced to the door and dashed out into the ash covered world.

Running past Basset, Basset felt a fleeting desire to stop her son to keep him alive, but in the end she knew the truth of what was to come. She had argued with Allocer many times about its futility. The ash would claim all the lives of this little village. The village had neither the resources nor the shelter to keep any of them alive, so the question posed to its inhabitants was simple.

‘How would you like to die?’

Racing out into the ash drenched world, a world whose skies had become nothing but a black veil of clouds and lightning, Raum desperately tried to reach his father to somehow save him.

Raum, in his youth, failed to understand the despair of his mother and that it meant death to all living things in the village. But at the same time in the back of his mind some hidden instinct told him the reason that his mother had failed to stop him was because she knew it wouldn’t matter.

Breathing heavily as he reached the centre of the village, Raum took a moment to look around. The village centre was a place where merchants could come together to trade and gossip, and that was what it was mainly used for. But at its centre there was a statue commemorating the first healer, Bast. It was a statue commemorating when Bast had saved the life of another from a wound by a Saber Tooth Feline. Fixing his green eyed gaze upon the statue of the Saber Tooth Feline, a creature that many said they were descendants of, Raum used the statue to orientate himself.

Racing forth as fast as his legs could carry him, Raum tried to keep going on, but the ash was beginning to burn his skin, as it had managed to singe its way through his fur. While at the same time, the air itself was becoming something wrong, like every breath was trying to drink acid. All of this, combined with the fact that Raum was still so young, meant that as he crossed out of the edge of the village and reached the half way point to Allocer’s tower Raum collapsed from exhaustion.

Pawing at the ground with his claws extended, Raum tried to call out to his father, but it seemed that even making a sound was all but impossible in this ash ridden world. Feeling weak and like his body had suddenly turned to lead, Raum couldn’t even crawl through the ash anymore. His last ounce of strength had disappeared and with it so too had his consciousness.

Falling into a dream of a happier moment, it was all but a second before Raum knew nothing at all.

~~~

Hearing a deep thudding through the ground that his ear was placed up against, Raum was awoken from his dream of a blue sky to see that he was still in his ash covered world. A world that had grown even more violent as winds seemed to be whipping around him. Volcanic winds that heralded an even greater threat to life than simply ash fall, as even Raum could understand that the winds meant that the village was in even greater danger.

Still having his ear placed to the ground, Raum continued to hear the strange thudding through the ground, thudding that was coming from up ahead. Thudding that was measured and was growing closer, like as if someone or something was walking closer to him.

Prying himself off the ground, Raum looked out into the swirling maelstrom of ash. Yet no matter how Raum tried desperately to see anything before him, there seemed to be nothing there. Hoping in the depths of his heart that the footsteps had belonged to his father on his way back, Raum let out a cry to try and get his imagined father’s attention.

“Daaaaad.”

Feeling his throat seem to break as the air raced down into it, Raum had to stop himself from blacking out again when he saw movement in the ash out of the corner of his eyes. Looking up in the direction of the flash of movement, Raum strained with the last vestige of his strength to see what it was.

Standing at almost twice the height of Raum, easily reaching over 1.8 metres, the figure was wearing clothing made from some strange black leather, a material that the ash couldn’t seem to get close to. The figure was similar to that of the Reshari, but unlike them seemed to lack a tail and was taller than even the tallest of their kind by about half a metre. The figure also seemed to have strange limbs that were not like what the Reshari had. They were far too straight, especially the legs.

What truly caught Raum’s attention was the mask that the giant was wearing. It covered the creature’s entire face and was just as black as the rest of the clothing. But centred on the face were two lenses, lenses that were a deep red that gleamed in the low light of the ash maelstrom.

Moving closer, the giant continued to walk forward, its rhythmic footfall resounding through the ground as if each step was a heartbeat in Raum’s chest.

“Please Giant. Please God in the ash. Please save my father!” begged Raum, his breath all but gone, his throat torn up by the ash and heat of the air.

Standing over the prone form of the Reshari the creature reached down with something in its hand, something that Raum couldn’t see properly, but still tried to shy away from instinctively. Yet Raum’s attempts at trying to stop the giant were unsuccessful as Raum lacked the strength to even breathe properly.

Which was why when the contraption fitted around Raum’s mouth, and snout in general, Raum was shocked awake as fresh air washed through his body.

Shocked but at the same time relieved at what he was experiencing, Raum grabbed onto the contraption and started to suck in as much air as possible. Feeling strength return to him, Raum couldn’t help but try to speak to plead with the God before him to spare his father just as it had him. Only now that he could see the giant God up close did Raum see the symbol upon the God’s chest.

A golden cat’s eye.

Understanding that the God was a healer, Raum allowed the creature to pick him up and cuddle him to his chest, so that Raum was literally pressed up against the golden eye. Touching the eye with his paws, Raum was shocked to see that the golden eye was not something shown on the black leather-like material. Instead, the golden eye was a part of the material itself; it even felt the same as the rest of the garb. However the golden eyes seemed to gleam golden as light fell upon it.

Blinking in confusion at the fact that the symbol was reflecting light, Raum looked over his shoulder and toward the source of light, and as he did so his mouth dropped open in surprise.

Emerging from the ash as if they denied gravity itself were strange silver things. Things that gave Raum the impression of wings or even birds, but at the same time they were something else, something alien. What’s more they were shining light out of their bodies to illuminate the ground and everything else around them. The illumination caused Raum to see that thousands of Gods were standing in or marching through the ash maelstrom. Gods that all bore the golden cat’s eye symbol that marked them out as healers.

Unable to even begin forming a coherent thought, Raum looked on as the Gods continued to move. Many of the Gods raced forward to find other Reshari that had fallen to the ash, while others walked up to the houses of the buildings to mark their location with lights. And as the Gods moved through the village, the silver floating wings began to move about the village in a single orbit.

The moment the strange flying things had finished their orbit around the village, the village seemed to have a bubble placed around it, a bubble that prevented the ash from coming through it. Shocked again to the point that he was becoming lethargic to the miracles before him, Raum turned back to the God that cradled him and somehow shielded him from the ash.

“What about my father?” asked Raum, his voice somehow better even after having breathed the volcanic air.

“If you mean the Reshari in the tower, then we saved him,” said the masked God, his voice sounding strange, like the voices his father had allowed him to hear on the radio. Voices that sounded unnatural as if they were somehow artificial. “Would you like to see him?”

Nodding his head at the question, Raum let tears burn down his face as the God carried him deeper in the maelstrom of ash and out the other side. On the other side of the maelstrom was a great silver wing floating in the air, it’s body opening up to reveal a white interior. A white interior that was filled with light, that in turn revealed that the interior was free from ash and even had windows that seemed to look out to other landscapes.

Walking into the strange thing, the God carried Raum into the silver wing and once onboard the God carried Raum into a strange and empty room that was filled with tables and beds. But most importantly to Raum the room also had another Reshari in it, his father.

Lying on the bed making it look so much bigger than had he been absent, Allocer was talking to a strange hairless thing (save for the top of its head) that was spreading a blue sparkly goo over Allocer’s wounds. A blue goo that seemed to heal the burns it touched at a speed that made Raum wonder if the Gods really could do anything.

Hearing the arrival of another creature, Allocer turned to look at the approaching figure and then to his horror saw what it carried.

“Raum,” said Allocer as he tried to move, only for the spindly, hairless thing to restrain him with one of its long, fingered hands.

“He is alright. Minor burns, smoke and ash inhalation, but otherwise the scans say he is fine,” said the God that was carrying Raum, as he walked over to Allocer and placed Raum down next to him. “He seems to have come to rescue you.”

“What’s going on dad?” asked Raum as he looked at his father while the hairless thing fussed over him to make sure that he was okay. Its robes also having the golden cat eye symbol, except this time on the back, as the chest seemed to stick out much further when compared to the God that had carried Raum here.

“We’re safe,” said Allocer as he hugged Raum close. Feeling his father’s hug, Raum couldn’t help but feel tears well up in his eyes at his father’s gentle warmth while his words eased his mind.

“Do you mean just us, or the village and mom as well?” asked Raum as he purred in his father’s arms.

“I mean all of us, the entire world. The humans have saved us all,” said Allocer, his voice filled with a relief and a joy that Raum hadn’t heard in months.

“No,” said the God making both Raum and Allocer turn to look at him with unasked questions in their eyes. “We only came here because we heard your transmissions. We might have missed it otherwise. You are the one that saved Fenix. We just offered up all that you needed to do so.”

Hearing the words of praise for his father though they still sounded strange, Raum turned to congratulate his father only to see tears coming down his face. Except that this time they were not tears of relief but gratitude, tears that allowed the burst of emotion to flood out of Allocer’s brain. Emotions born from the fact that no one, other than family, had ever really believed in Allocer’s dream.

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“I only found the lot of you, because I heard the music in the radio waves,” explained Allocer as he remembered back to the garbled and distorted signals that had washed upon his world. “If I had never heard the music, I’m not sure I would have done.”

Exchanging a glance at the mention of the radio signals and music, the two healers seemed genuinely stunned at the idea that Allocer had managed to intercept and listen to the radio from so many light-years away.

“Were you able to decipher the music or was it just proof that something was out there?” asked the masked God casually, as he leaned in with an eagerness that belied the fact that the answer to his question was important.

“Yes, I was able to get music and occasionally even words out of the radio signals, radio signals from your homeworld,” said Allocer with excitement at being able to speak about his passion.

“Well so much for not influencing alien cultures,” said the masked God with a shake of his head. “I guess that’s going to be another talking point for Captain Ainsworth to address.”

“You don’t have to worry your music is pretty good,” said Allocer with a smile up at the giants that had called themselves humans. “Although it seems to me that you play the same song over and over again.”

“Did you ever decode what we were saying?” asked the masked God, a hint of worry in his artificial voice.

“Not really but I can recreate the sounds for you. This was the one that I heard the most,” said Allocer with a smile as he began to speak out the words of the song. Words that were in a language that Raum could not understand.

“Every Breath You Take,” said the masked God with a sigh of relief. “I was worried you might have heard some of our other songs.”

“Such as @$$!*,” said Allocer with a cheeky smile and wave of his tail. “I might not know the words meanings, but I can tell swearing when I hear it.”

“Oh dear,” said the healer in white before turning to tap away at a projection of the light that manifested before her, a hologram that would allow the healer to create a report to send to Captain Ainsworth to tell him the full extent of Allocer’s knowledge.

Chuckling at the discomfort of the two healers, Allocer grew serious before he asked a simple question that would have dire consequences for his entire world.

“What will you do now, once the world has been saved from the gravimetric strain from the planetary alignment?” asked Allocer, aware that his kind would be at the mercy of those that had saved them.

“Once you’re healed up, we can take you to Captain Ainsworth and the two of you can talk about what will happen to Fenix from now on,” said the white coated healer with a smile that made Raum want to smile back.

“Thank you Gods,” said Raum with a smile and a wave of his hand and tail, his words causing all present to go stiff before the masked God spoke.

“We can talk about that too with Captain Ainsworth, but for now just rest up,” said the God as he turned to walk out of the medicine room. “I’ll go see if we can find your mate.”

“Thank you,” said Allocer as he pulled Raum closer to him, so that the two of them could cuddle, while Allocer began to tell Raum everything that the humans had told him. The two of them so engrossed in what was happening they failed to pay attention to the rest of the world around them for a few hours at least.

~~~

“Allocer, Raum, you’re alive,” said a voice, hoarse with emotion, a voice that was trying desperately to believe what it was seeing.

“Yes, Basset, we are and were not hurt,” said Allocer as he tried to shift Raum off of him so that he could greet his mate. Except that Allocer found his attempts to do so were foiled by the fact that Raum was gripping him too tight and the female healer who had named herself Sonya, was still fussing over him.

“They are in good health and what damage the ash caused them has indeed been healed,” explained Sonya as she gestured so that Basset could come over and check on her mate and offspring.

Racing over as fast as she could, Basset quickly began to check over first Raum and then her mate Allocer. All the while, she was checking over them to see that they were alright Basset was holding back tears born from the regret and pain of being unable to stop Raum from entering into the ash.

“I’m sorry, Raum, I’m so, so sorry,” said Basset as her voice seemed to crack as she tried to hold it together as she knew that if she started crying she might never stop.

“Mum, you’re squishing me,” complained Raum as he was caught between both Allocer and Basset, the two of them trying desperately to deal with the sudden and miraculous turn of events that had saved them and their world.

Chuckling at the small moment of levity that Raum had injected into the moment, Basset slowly released her grip on her offspring and turned towards Sonya. Her paws clenched in fear but at the same time filled with determination.

“Can you show me how you healed and are monitoring their health?” asked Basset as she turned her golden eyes to the human, who was trying not to interrupt the touching moment. “Please, one healer to another.”

“Of course, I would be proud to help and teach you our medicine,” said Sonya as she walked forward and began to explain what it was that the various machines did and how they tracked vitals. Once that overview was done, she began to explain about the sparkly, blue goo that had healed Allocer’s and Raum’s burns when all three Reshari stopped dead still.

All three of them turned their heads in the direction of the door to the infirmary as their ears twitched about as they heard footsteps heading in their direction. Footsteps that eventually made Raum laugh with joy as he realised that the footsteps belonged to the God that had found him in the ash.

“Sorry to interrupt, but Captain Ainsworth wants to see the Reshari that contacted us,” said the masked God.

“Lieutenant Gregory, I must object they are in no condition to be moved,” said Sonya as she glared at Gregory for thinking about moving those that still needed time to recover from what they had just experienced.

“If you are concerned with their health you can come along, but we will be travelling back to the mothership,” said Gregory knowing that this was important enough to override Sonya’s concerns.

“If you want to take me anywhere you will have to take all three of us,” said Allocer as he refused to leave his mate and offspring once again.

“That will be perfectly fine,” said Gregory, his language translator even managing to make it so that his empathy to Allocer’s plight was heard by all.

“We’re going to meet the captain of the Gods,” said Raum, having only caught onto some of what was being said.

“Yes we are,” said Allocer as he hugged his offspring, clearly both nervous and excited at what would come next.

“Where is he?” asked Raum with excitement in his green eyes, excitement so joyful and filled with wonder that everyone else who saw it felt a small measure of it in turn, bringing a small smile to all.

“He is up in space,” said Gregory as he looked at Raum with respect, “We’ll have to fly up there to meet him.”

The moment that the word ‘fly’ registered in Raum’s mind, everything else seemed to fall away. He forgot his fatigue, he forgot his fear for his father’s life, he even forgot the curious nature of the strange ship he was in, he only wanted to see it! He wanted to see how high the silver wing could fly and what the view was like.

“Can I see it please?” said Raum as he tried to emulate his parents and contain his desires, his entire body seeming to quiver to the point it was only a matter of when he exploded into motion, not if.

“You can come watch from the front window,” said Gregory as he offered a hand before giving Allocer and Basset a quick glance, “provided your parents are willing to stand alongside you. After all, you wouldn’t want to leave them.”

Processing what had been said and then turning to look at his parents, Raum was caught between his desire to see the flying, to be a part of it and to stay with his parents, to not abandon them. A contradiction of emotion that caused him to visibly look torn between his two desires. A look that his parents took pity on as they held each other’s paws and looked at Gregory with solemn gazes.

“Raum can see from the window only if we accompany him,” said Allocer, his voice echoing throughout the room, an undercurrent of fear and trust warring within it.

“Then if you would be so kind, please follow me,” said Gregory, aware how brave the two little Reshari were currently being.

Leading the three Reshari out of the medical centre and down a few twisting corridors of white material, a material that the Reshari couldn’t even begin to understand, Gregory arrived at his destination. A room that had a floor to ceiling window in it, a window of glass that was thick enough to protect from anything hitting it, but at the same time it allowed one to see out without any form of distortion.

Racing to press himself up against the wall of glass, Raum stared out into the maelstrom of ash and tried with all his might to see what lay through it. An attempt that would be humorous to those present, were it not for the veil of ash that lay beyond the window.

“We’ve taken off and are flying upwards as we speak. We should be through the ash momentarily,” said Gregory as he remained back from the three Reshari so that they would not feel crowded by what was to come.

“Are you sure?” asked Raum as he turned from the window to look at Gregory as he had failed to feel that the ship he was in, was moving.

Yet before Gregory could speak the ash parted and the window started letting the light of the sun through the window. Having his head turned away from the window at the time, Raum missed the moment of transition from ash to space. But his parents didn’t and their gasps made Raum looked in the direction that they were looking. And as he looked his understanding of the universe changed and emotion beyond anything he had experienced before engulfed him.

The world of Fenix lay before him, a world that was drowning in ash, ash that had formed into cyclones that ravaged entire continents. A world that had red glowing spots on it, spots that were generated by the raw power and heat produced by the volcanoes down below. Volcanoes that were continuing to produce waves of ash, lava and worse still, all in an attempt to drown the world in death.

“Will the world really be okay?” asked Basset as she looked out over Fenix, her homeworld; a world that looked like it had been consumed by hell.

“We are attempting to lessen the gravimetric strain of the nearby gas giants to stop the volcanoes from erupting,” explained Gregory as he indicated shits deploying devices between Fenix and the nearby gas giants that Fenix was sandwiched between. “If we can stop the gravity of those gas giants from negatively affecting your world, then the volcanoes will not only stop we can turn our attention to fixing the ash in the atmosphere.”

“Why the gravity first?” asked Allocer more because he was curious than because he was critical of the humans’ methods.

“We need to stop the main cause, the main source of the problem, not just its symptoms,” said Gregory as he gave a quick knowing glance at Basset, who used similar logic on her patients.

Unheeding of his parents’ conversation, Raum continued to stare out the window at the wonders of space and all that lay within it, a sight that brought tears to his eyes, tears that streaked down his furry face. Yet Raum didn’t try to get rid of them as instead he continued to look out into space and the wonders that could be found there, including the mothership that Gregory had talked about.

Hopping about in excitement at what he saw, Raum started to point out the ship to his parents, who had drawn closer to see what Raum was looking at. And as they saw the human construct, both of them took a moment to reflect on what they were truly seeing. For this mothership was easily larger than all of their cities put together, in fact it might even carry more humans than the entire race of Reshari.

And as that idea permeated the minds of the two Reshari, their appreciation of their saviours was slowly turning to dread. For the humans were something so mighty and so powerful that they really were Gods when compared to the Reshari, at least when comparing their abilities and technology.

“When we get on board I will lead the three of you to Captain Ainsworth,” explained Gregory as he tried to break through the aura of fear that was creeping into the two adult Reshari. “Do you want me to carry Raum for you? So that he doesn’t get lost?”

“Yes please,” said Basset quietly as she was still trying to come to terms with all that she was seeing. As nothing in her life had truly prepped her for what she was currently going through.

“Alright then, I will take good care of him,” said Gregory as he made sure to also get Allocer’s confirmation. Although Allocer only nodded his head as he was still stunned by what he was seeing, not just the massive ship, but also the endless field of stars that lay beyond it.

Picking up the delighted Raum, Gregory waited for the ship to dock and to get confirmation to head off before he started to lead the Reshari to meet his commander.

Taking the quickest path there, Gregory made sure not to walk too fast so that Basset and Allocer could keep up; all the while Raum looked about like his head was on a swivel as everything and anything caught his interest.

Raum’s attention was drawn to so many things. First to humans walking along and discussing how they would create a veil that would protect Fenix from further gravity distortions. Then to a human woman that was carrying a drink that’s smell made Raum squirm to try and get at it. And then Raum caught a hint of a conversation that occurred in another language, a language that Raum was able to understand due to the translator the humans had given him.

“What do you mean, Chime, that you like being in a crystalline body more than an organic one?”

“Simple Jerral, it’s that I find this body so much easier and relaxing than my original body. There are so little things that I have to keep track of that I am able to relax in a way that I would not be able to in my original body.”

Not really getting the conversation, Raum turned his attention to the room that they had just entered.

The captain’s meeting room was a spacious room that had another floor to ceiling window, and a long massive table with seats clearly designed for humans, as they were too tall for the Reshari to sit in. Putting Raum down in one of the seats, Gregory then helped Allocer and Basset into the seats and got them a glass of water each before going to check on when the captain would be available.

Arriving only a few short moments later, Captain Ainsworth stepped into the room. And as he did so his appearance made Raum want to stare in surprise. For Raum was still not totally used to creatures without fur on them like the Gods he was sitting with, but even then they seemed to have at least some hair. Ainsworth did not, he was bald and as such an object of curiosity for Raum, however quick glances at his parents made Raum curtail any attempts to act on said curiosity.

“I’m sorry to have to drag you up here when such serious things are occurring, but I needed to talk with you,” explained Ainsworth as he sat down at the head of the table so that he could keep all three Reshari in sight at all times.

“Why us?” asked Allocer, although he had a strong suspicion about why Ainsworth was talking to them.

“Because you made contact with us, and because you are some of the only members of the Reshari that know for certain that we are present,” explained Captain Ainsworth, his words weary as if the entire ordeal had been just as troubling for him as it had been for the Reshari.

“You mean that you are not helping all the villages and cities?” asked Basset in alarm at the thought that they alone had been saved.

“We are, it’s just that only a very few of the Reshari have been caught out in the open, the rest have taken shelter inside buildings, caves and all manner of other refuges,” explained Ainsworth making sure that he was as clear and honest as possible. “This means that with the exception of some outlying villages, human involvement has not been detected or discovered. Which is why I brought you here.”

“Why?” asked Allocer, his face fixed in concentration as he was already beginning to suspect what would come next.

“Because we must decide what to do next, do we reveal that we are here and that we have come to help you or do we remain hidden and help from afar,” said Ainsworth, his expression conveying nothing as he tried to remain neutral and control his own impulses.

“Why is that even a question?” asked Allocer, although he had already figured it out, and just wanted confirmation.

“There are many among humanity who believe that we should not interfere with the course of alien life, especially if they can’t travel through the stars,” said Captain Ainsworth, a hint of disdain leaking into his voice to make it clear that he did not agree with this line of reasoning.

“But you’re helping us now,” said Raum as even he spotted the contradiction in Ainsworth’s words and actions.

“Yes I am, because only some of us believe that way, not all. And when it comes to planetary disasters such as the one you are facing, each captain is free to make their own decisions based on the context at the time. We saw the massive toll Fenix’s annual volcanic cycle would take on the Reshari and we acted to prevent the loss of life,” said Captain Ainsworth, his voice radiating an authority that told everyone present that he would never apologise for saving the Reshari’s lives, no matter the consequences.

“So you want our help to determine whether you should stay and help us, or if you should disappear,” said Allocer grimly as he was aware of the magnitude of the decision that he now had to make.

“Regardless of what you choose, I will make sure that the shielding for the gravity of the neighbouring gas giants will be left in place to protect Fenix for millennia to come,” said Ainsworth as he tried to reassure the Reshari before him that regardless of what happened he would take steps to ensure Fenix’s continued safety.

“You will stay and help us,” said Basset firmly as she spoke up to the captain, her voice containing an iron will that would brook no disagreement. For while Basset might be out of her depth with what was happening in regards to space and the creatures from it, helping and saving lives was her job. And she would not tolerate an action that would lead to the loss of life regardless of who or why it occurred.

“The idea of someone with the knowledge to help and save lives not using it, because they don’t want to interfere is sickening to me,” snapped Basset, her tone containing a vast amount of venom. “I have watched those I was unable to treat or heal pass away. And the idea that someone or something the next room over could have saved them is truly infuriating.”

Nodding in acceptance of Basset’s opinion, Ainsworth turned his attention to Allocer, who was looking at his mate with admiration and agreement.

“What about you, what is your opinion?” asked Ainsworth of Allocer, clearly expecting the same answer.

“I agree. If you help us in secret all you will do is ruin us,” said Allocer as he looked out the window at the field of stars and even at his homeworld Fenix. “If you spend time propping us up without telling us that you are doing so, the moment that you can no longer support us we will fall into a spiral of decay and destruction and we will never know why. When I was building my radios and trying to see into the vastness of space, if you had snuck in and fixed my equipment and never told me, I would have ended up failing, because my failures taught me more than my successes.”

Pausing to gather himself, Allocer took a long moment to contemplate what he would say next before continuing.

“If you had fixed it for me and not told me, you know what would have happened had I tried to build my radios again, and you weren’t there? I would go mad trying to figure out why it worked the first time and didn’t the second time,” explained Allocer as he stared with steely eyes at Ainsworth, his next few words laced with a determination that could not be overturned.

“You have helped and saved us, and you are setting up the means to prevent us from ever going through the same tragedy again. But the moment that fails, whether in five thousand years or a million, we will be on our own and unable to even figure out what we need to do to fix the problem. If you do not reveal what has happened, if you do not show the entire world the truth you will have doomed all of the Reshari,” said Allocer finally, and although he was clearly desperate to keep access to the stars open, he was also trying to convey his belief on what would happen if the humans remained a secret.

Stunned into silence by Allocer’s speech, the rest of the room remained silent as Allocer himself seemed to wind down as if the emotions contained within him had all been expelled.

“So I take it that both of you agree that it would be wiser to stay and help, to reveal our true nature to everyone and reveal what lies beyond the sky,” said Ainsworth after he had processed what the Reshari had said.

“Yes,” said Allocer and Basset in unison.

“Very well then, we will stay and reveal ourselves to the Reshari,” said Ainsworth in agreement, both as a captain and as a person.

“Why wouldn’t you Gods want to?” asked Raum, his question seeming to knock the air out of the room.

“Because we are not Gods, and we don’t want to end up taking control over others or being worshipped,” said Ainsworth. “We don’t want to enslave you through belief.”

“Then stay and be our friends,” said Raum, his green eyes mystified by what was happening around him. “You can’t worship a friend.”

“True, but what about altering your destiny?” asked Ainsworth, more to see what kind of a response he would get than because of any real desire to argue.

“Won’t we alter your destiny?” asked Raum back, his question seeming to catch the captain off guard. “Won’t we make you change just as you will make us change?”

Half smiling in response, Ainsworth nodded his head in agreement, before a buzz from the intercom resounded through the room.

“Captain, we have managed to create the gravity veil. The volcanoes are slowing down. Are we to remain and help with the clean up or do you want us to disappear?” asked the voice coming from a small device upon the table in front of the captain.

“We will be staying. Make sure to not crowd the Reshari as the ash parts away,” said Captain Ainsworth, his voice resolute to make sure that those under his command did not hear him waver in his decision.

“It seems that soon Fenix will be free of the maelstroms of ash. Would you like to come see?” said Ainsworth as he stood up and gestured to the window that overlooked the Reshari homeworld.

Standing up, the four of them walked over to the window and began to watch what was transpiring on Fenix.

The glowing red dots that marred the planet’s surface, the open wounds that were the volcanoes of the world slowly began to lose their glow. They began to grow dimmer and dimmer until at last they stopped vomiting ash into the sky. And as the ash stopped falling from the sky, the silver wings that Raum had seen back on his world started to work. They began to shepherd the ash so that it no longer fell upon the cities and towns of the Reshari.

Instead, they spread it over the land that would most need it, and began to use their strange technology to help make the ash dissolve into the soil so much quicker than normal. An action that would help renew the world of Fenix so that they could return to before the cataclysm almost immediately.

Staring in wonder at the changes that were happening in real time to the world below, Raum put his paw on the glass and stared at the ash. Except this time it was not in fear but in hope of what was yet to come.

And as the ash faded away Raum was grateful to the miracle that he had been given, the miracle that they had all been given. For while he had not found Gods in the ash he had found saviours and one day he hoped to give them a miracle back. Not just to Gregory or Ainsworth, but to all of humanity.