[https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/0adcdb2b-2a27-4d02-b707-ec3de1b96f2a/dfbfq51-c36cb63d-a3ea-496b-9e3a-010e2566fb95.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzBhZGNkYjJiLTJhMjctNGQwMi1iNzA3LWVjM2RlMWI5NmYyYVwvZGZiZnE1MS1jMzZjYjYzZC1hM2VhLTQ5NmItOWUzYS0wMTBlMjU2NmZiOTUucG5nIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.BoVeoXTVKNSClP1ui3bHzrJ1QeKagMiFHbQq2tGF2-c]
On Gannicus, the Deep Space Sentinel has been traveling in space for a while now after its launch only a few hours before with its new engines fully functional.
Science has made a breakthrough with the engine. In a flash the DSS traveled to the outskirts of their solar system. Engineers and scientists have been clamoring around the event center of USA for a while after they had seen the DSS dart off - in preparation of possibly losing communication with it since it’s so fast.
The Deep Space Sentinel is already returning data to the United Space Agencies' headquarters. As engineers and scientists look at big monitors sending back visual data from the probe inside a large room littered with paperwork, computer monitors, and coffee cups, a technician exclaims:
"Look at that! Look at what it found!"
His disruption in the quiet room gets everyone's attention. They look at him immediately. Some, not even looking at the monitors pull off their glasses, rise out of chairs, and away from their manuals, to see him pointing at the large monitor on the left. In unison, they then turn to the monitor he's pointing at. The Deep Space Sentinel has finally reached Lumen and is sending back its data.
The video image is starting to crest something their eyes have never seen before. As the video starts to come in fully, people gasp all around the room as they look on at the video being played. The probe has passed the upper atmosphere of Lumen now. Beautiful green land, tall grey and black snow capped mountains, and flowing clear blue seas are seen on the monitor, but that's not the most shocking part. Lumen is showing them it was once inhabited as the probe continues to scour its surface.
Alien cities remain with curving architecture, almost half spherical in appearance. Their society does not look primitive or ancient from the modern looking structures, but the group notices the cities are being overrun by nature's paintbrush as greenery covers the outermost perimeters of the cities. Dark blue translucent arches cover the roofs of the structures, letting the scientists looking on, peer in. The scientists within the room remain baffled as the cities below have no networks of roads. From afar, the cities look as if they're designed to complement one another on the surface in a collective embodiment, as if they were built for a purpose. All the cities on the surface have polar orientation, with the extremes of the cities pointing north, south, east, and west. They have no link around their borders to the other cities - no walkways, highways, or airports. The small group of professionals in the room hope to investigate more video data after the probe returns from the other side of the planet, now in radio silence. As the video link diminishes, the people in the room look at each other, trying to find answers on their faces. Before papers start to shuffle and the busy body volume of noise in the room increases, a project manager speaks:
"Start getting that data analyzed now! We have work to do!"
At the same time on Gannicus, Hailey is about to cross a busy intersection after coming down from her apartment. Hailey recalls the dream she just had as all the recent events flash in a moment behind her eyes. She closes her eyes briefly, smiles bigger, and lowers her head as the events racing through her mind have given her new found strength and purpose. Opening her eyes she remembers Allijah's last moments alive vividly. In her mind, playing out behind her now wide open eyes and smiling, she recalls their conversation before Allijah passes:
"I really thought it'd be easy to go." Allijah says with pain in his voice.
Crying and screaming for help as the life monitors in the room start to go off without warning, she responds:
"You're not going anywhere baby! Just hang on until someone comes! Don't leave me Allijah!" Hailey says choking up at Allijah now laying his head back.
As nurses and doctors rush to Allijah's room in the chaos, their shuffling feet are heard amidst the now increasing sound of the monitors. Time begins to slow in the clamor as Allijah opens his eyes one last time to speak to Hailey before he's gone:
"Listen to me now baby." Allijah says briefly as the pain is becoming so intense, it hurts him to speak. Hailey's tears start to uncontrollably pour out of her eyes as she gets closer to Allijah to hear his painful voice tremble and continue:
"I want you to do something for me. One simple thing. I don't know how long you'll be here but I want you to know I've decided to go where I want to after this and it's because of you. You've given me hope in this world but so much more for the next. One day I hope to give it back."
Allijah leans his head back, arches his back, begins to moan, and grabs his chest as tears start to roll out of his eyes from the pain. With the doctors and nurses now present, they administer their best years of experience within seconds in the hopes not to gain yet another morbid reminder of their existence and mortal limitations.
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Fortunately, the doctors and nurses attempted their very best and Allijah was seen by Hailey passing peacefully within his last breath. Unfortunately, Hailey is alone for the second time in her existence. The moments start to eat at her as time slows down again ….
Coming back now to reality on Gannicus, Hailey pulls out of that torrid moment, and rejoins her consciousness.
She takes her first step forward in the confidence that everything at this point, even having her altered reality moments, will set her evermore a step further into this new world. Smiling, looking at the heaviness and bearing of the mundane, cussing, rushing, and pushing all around, she finds the still and peace of having her entire life or at least the most important parts that’s caused her to wonder about this experiment called her life, settled categorically in her mind. They seem so right that it feels as if she has worked an entire day in a garden full of infinite nourishment, having accomplished so much in so little time, and put all of it into a tiny little cabinet in her mind, later to show off to the neighbors. The smile pushes further up as she realizes this - that her confusion and bewilderment has gone. She feels as if her whole body is floating as she crosses the street, still gleaming with peace, when the tides of this ride she’s feeling start to shift.
[https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/0adcdb2b-2a27-4d02-b707-ec3de1b96f2a/dfbg3cz-a72c0bfe-3ca8-4af1-994f-4b46f154cd67.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzBhZGNkYjJiLTJhMjctNGQwMi1iNzA3LWVjM2RlMWI5NmYyYVwvZGZiZzNjei1hNzJjMGJmZS0zY2E4LTRhZjEtOTk0Zi00YjQ2ZjE1NGNkNjcucG5nIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.sfYUjVwo0ryy-syPZtljcJvt3cozASe3SrEAW2emFzc]
She looks up from hearing a loud crash, a rumble follows, and in her peripheral she momentarily realizes what’s happening. Stones start to fall as she slowly zeros in on the building falling adjacent from the crosswalk. As she realizes this, she squints her eyes to confirm her suspicion towards the falling objects, and so do others.
A cab driver is complaining to his fare that something is happening and to calm down but all the while not looking forward.
The cab gets closer to Hailey while she is looking at the city she lives in, start to crumble. Were they supposed to see Lumen - the planet the USA just discovered outside Gannicus’ solar system? It appears that the city has had some unknown force attack it but nothing can be seen from the skies as to what may have started this perilous destruction of Hailey’s hometown.
As Hailey starts to step out onto the street and away from the crumbling facade of the buildings surrounding her, the cab appears outside of Hailey’s vision.
The cab driver, who is also distracted, let’s his cab hurry on through an intersection and over a crosswalk, where Hailey stands.
Her head hits the windshield so hard that it startles the cab driver and his fare. In shock they both scream aloud as Hailey’s body casts copious amounts of blood across the windshield.
To Hailey, she just went to sleep yet again.
The cab driver who is now outside of his car after slamming on the brakes and forcing Hailey’s unconscious body onto the street, with crumbling buildings all around them, is frantically trying to understand what the heck is going on. His fare is in the backseat screaming at the top of her lungs to get Hailey’s unconscious body off the street and get out of downtown immediately:
“You freaking idiot you just killed her!” The tall lady with a fancy jacket and skirt screams at the cab driver outside.
“I didn’t see her!...you were screaming at me heifer!” The cab driver screams frantically.
“I know you’re not calling me a heifer you overweight, loser!” The fare says, continuing her onslaught.
“Just shut up would you! Get out of my cab now!” The cab driver settles.
“No! Get that girl you just killed and put her in this cab immediately….THEN QUICKLY GET US OUT OF HERE!” The tall lady screams.
“Yeah yeah, ok yeah, you got it.” The cab driver settles while staring down the lady in her very serious and determined tone. He stops running around and pulling his hair out and gently grabs Hailey and stuffs her into the back seat with a tall lady.
“Here. Do something lady, I’m not a freaking doctor. Just see if she is...you know….” The cab driver tries to explain.
“Alive, you idiot? Yeah I can do that…..” The tall lady says calmly while grabbing Hailey and trying to figure out if she is alive or not. She looks up at the cab driver, standing at the passenger door of the cab, trying to catch his breath and starts:
“WHAT ARE YOU STILL STANDING THERE FOR!” The tall lady exclaims.
“Yeah yeah yeah...I’m getting in….AAAAH!” The cab driver screams now moving towards the front of and then around the cab as stone continues to fly and hit the cab.
“I think she’s alive….I’m not sure...we need to get her…..MOVE YOUR BUTT SLOB! One of these things could crush the cab!” The tall lady yelps now very loud from within the cabin of the cab as falling stones get closer to the cab.
Still out of breath and with the cab still running, the cab driver floors it, dodging an onslaught of falling stone from nearby buildings.
“I’m doing it lady!….oh no! WATCH OUT!” The cab driver screams as he dodges a huge facade that just fell close to the car, crushing a group of people only a few feet away.
“HOSPITAL….NOW….YOU UNBELIEABLE JERK!” The lady yells again while she’s clutching Hailey’s body and still not sure if she’s dead.
“Lady we’re in a whole world of mess, did you not see those people? What makes you think we or anyone else is special...IN THIS CHAOS!” The cab driver tries to reason with the tall lady.
As the cab driver miraculously makes his way through the thicket of downtown and its tall buildings, he is finally able to lock his seatbelt in and breathe a little easier - even though Hailey’s status is still questionable.