As March began, it brought with it a return of temperatures in the forties, at least during the daylight hours. Thanks to this slight raise in temperature, which practically felt like a heat wave after the last few months, and began to herald spring, at last, Jared awoke early in a reasonably good mood, and feeling motivated. He headed outside, had a quick breakfast, and then began gathering together materials that he might be able to use for a new project.

When Lili did finally force herself to rise from their covers much later that morning, she headed outside to take care of nature’s call, casting Jared a puzzled look as he continued to work with wood and vines several feet off from the shack. Upon returning a few moments later, her ears caught him humming slightly as he worked, which only caused her to narrow her eyes over at him, her own anxiety still very real, even if she had chosen not to voice much about it in days of late.

Though, seeing Jared working and obviously much more content than she, Lili couldn’t help letting a bit of that anxiety bubble to the surface as she took a step towards where he continued to work, “So, if you won’t tell me, don’t you think you should at least tell them?”

“Pardon?” he asked, moving his eyes from his current work to glance back her way.

“I get that you think I’m too mentally fragile, or whatever, to know exactly how long it will be until we do find the ship, if at all, but what about them? They’re the ones out there wasting their time looking, aren’t they?” she asked, her tone slightly bitter as she retrieved a glass of water.

“One, it’s not that I think you’re too ‘mentally fragile,’ Lili.” Jared began apologetically.

“Really? Not the way it sounded when you first had the vision.” she mumbled.

Jared just sighed sadly, not really able to think of any way to honestly disprove her statement, so instead he moved to the next part of it, “And no, I can’t tell anyone exactly how long it will take to find the ship, because I honestly don’t know.” he added in the same apologetic manner.

“But you know that it’s not gonna be any time soon. Definitely not any time in the next five months, and I’m guessing even that number is way off, isn’t it?” Lili returned in the same somber tone.

Jared sighed heavily again, “Just because I know that it will take longer than five months,” he paused with a slight look down, “doesn’t mean they’re actually wasting their time. Maybe they do need to keep looking, the way they are now, in order for us to find it when we’re actually meant to. Even if I don’t know, yet, when that is.” he added more quietly.

“So, they just stay out there forever? Even though every day you’ll know that they’re not gonna find a damn thing?”

“When did ‘over five months’ become forever?” he asked with another sigh, “And we don’t know that they won’t find anything else that may be useful to us in the meantime. Let alone, the fact that we do need to map as much of our surroundings as we can, which is another thing they’re doing out there, remember?” Jared attempted to argue, though gently.

Lili just shook her head, seeming unmoved by his arguments, “I just think they have a right to know.” she mumbled as she pretended to busy herself with her own breakfast.

“But knowing might change things. Knowing the future does have a way of doing that.” Jared offered, though quietly.

Lili shook her head again, “But it may change things for the better. Maybe that’s why you’re getting the visions at all. Not just to try and make me feel better, but to hopefully change things. Ever think of that?”

“Maybe.” he finally gave in, then couldn’t help adding, “Maybe you’re right. Doesn’t seem like they are working to actually make you feel any better, anyway.”

Another deep sigh from Lili as she looked back at where his mood did seem much closer to her own now than it had before she had spoken, “I just can’t help thinking the worst, and you not being willing to tell me certain parts of it, that just makes me think there are reasons to think the worst, after all. I can’t help it.” she repeated in a whisper.

“It’s just really hard, Lili.” Jared returned as he moved toward her, his own tone now matching hers, “When I tell you the truth, you find something bad in it. When I leave anything out, you use that as a reason to worry even more. It’s so hard trying to find anything I should or shouldn’t say in order to keep you from thinking everything is so bleak all the time.”

“I just…” Lili sniffled as she rethought her original words, “It’s just that the entire future of the world, of our race, of everything…it feels like it’s all on my shoulders. And I never asked for that. I never would, not in a million years. But here it is. That’s what’s been handed to me, whether I want it, or not. Whether I can handle any of it, or not. How can I not be crushed, all the time, when it’s that much weight that I’m expected to hold. Me, of all people? How can I possibly be able to do that?”

Jared was quiet for several long moments as Lili continued to try and hide her tears by remaining facing away from him, on her knees, pretending to be looking through their stored food, as he thought over her words.

After another long moment and a deep breath, Jared finally responded, “I honestly don’t know when we will find the ship. I admit that.” another breath as she still avoided looking back his way, “But I do know, that despite that, all of us, you, me, the baby, Kyle, Ian, all of us appeared to be healthy and safe from what I did see. You can’t tell me that that doesn’t make you feel at least a tiny bit better, doesn’t it?”

“Of course I’m glad that all of us will apparently still be around after the birth. Though it still doesn’t come close to explaining why none of you were around during it.” she then shook her head, but continued before he could once again remind her that his vision of the birth did only cover a few moments, “I just wish I knew how hard it is going to be to keep us all that safe and healthy, and for how long it will continue to be that hard. I just wish you could see some end in sight for any of this, some hope that it will get easier, at some point. I just want that.”

Jared allowed another soft sigh as he stooped down next to her, his hand gently touching her hair, “I want that too, Lili. But right now, we just gotta take these visions as they come, and hope that the next one might actually give us some of those answers. After all, this one did give us a bit more hope than the last few, didn’t it?”

“But you still won’t tell me how far into the future it was. How long you know for sure that we will have to continue this way.”

“Remember, I don’t know exactly how long.” he repeated.

“Jared.” she stated his name in a scolding tone, finally turning her eyes back toward him.

Jared let out another deep sigh as he turned his eyes downwards before speaking, “At least three, three and a half years.” he finally gave in and put a date on that vision for her.

Lili’s breath caught in her throat again as she blinked back another set of tears, “Years?” was all she managed.

“The child looked to be around three or so.” he admitted, “But Lili, that number could be a lot worse. And we still don’t know anything for sure. I mean, maybe we’ll figure out where the ship might be one second after that vision ended. We just don’t know anything for sure.” he reminded.

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“So, why did you even get this vision? I mean, there had to be something else to it. It can’t just be so you could tell me we all survive another three and a half…years.” she continued, her voice dropping slightly on the last word.

“There honestly wasn’t that much to it, Lili. It was mostly just us sitting around, preparing for a meal.”

“Mostly?”

“Lili.”

“Well, then why get it at all?” she repeated with another shake of her head.

“Remember our first real conversation, back before we even knew we were coming here. Back then I was still trying to figure out why I got any of these at all. Remember?” he reminded her.

“But before we came here, you had visions about this planet. Then, you had the vision about me having this baby. Then about what actually happened to the ship. I mean, all of those did have some point. This one has to too!” she argued, sounding more like she was trying to convince herself than him.

“And I’m still trying to figure that out. It’s not always all that easy to do.” Jared told her softly as he gently squeezed her hand.

“But, you will tell me, when you do?” she asked for one more reassurance.

“When I do.” he assured.

----------------------------------------

Fifty miles off, still using the pod as shelter for the last several nights as he worked on it, Kyle slowly stretched into consciousness. He and Ian had been using the supply area of the pod as their sleeping quarters, just as they had done when they had first arrived there in their own pod, seven months earlier. Once Kyle did complete the return to consciousness, he sat up quickly with a sudden start, the quick movement also waking Ian from his spot next to him.

“Jesus, Kyle.” Ian mumbled hoarsely as he was startled awake by the motion.

“Shh.” was Kyle’s only response as he appeared to be concentrating on something.

“Morning to you too sweetie.” Ian mumbled as he slowly pushed himself up onto his elbows. Ian then simply shook his head over at the teen, who still looked as though there was something distracting him quite a bit, “So, you heard something, I assume?” Ian asked after another moment, though did keep his voice at a low volume.

“I don’t know.” Kyle responded with the same distraction.

“Right then.” Ian shook his head again as he sat up fully and reached for the shirt he had discarded the night before, “Well, I didn’t hear anything.” Ian added after he replaced the shirt and waited another moment for any more clarification, or to hear this phantom noise, himself.

“Well, you might not.” Kyle told him in the same distracted tone.

“Sorry, did I develop a hearing problem that I don’t know about, and you somehow do?” Ian returned wryly.

“Dammit Ian, would you just believe me when I say that someone else might be here?”

“Someone, as opposed to something?” Ian raised a brow at that particular word choice, though his hand did move to one of his many weapons that he always kept close.

“Well, someone had been at this pod before us, in case you’ve forgotten. And I think they might be around, now.” Kyle stated, his voice trailing off due to more factors than one.

“What? Where?” Ian asked, becoming completely alert at that moment.

“I don’t know. I just…” Kyle just shook his head as Ian moved to very carefully and quietly open the door of the supply compartment.

“You don’t know?” he returned.

“I just…it’s a feeling.” Kyle attempted to explain as best he could.

“A feeling?” Ian scoffed, “Did you actually hear anything, or not?” he asked more impatiently, “Even though I didn’t.” he had to add, but still spoke all his words quietly as he inched toward the still locked door of the pod, weapon at the ready.

“Define hear.” Kyle returned, though in his own overly quiet tone as he also moved to stealthily take a step after Ian.

“You’re kidding me, right?” Ian scoffed again.

“Do I appear to be joking?” Kyle stated bluntly.

“So, now you get ‘feelings?’” Ian returned with an only slightly subdued sarcasm.

“The best way I can explain it is that I did hear something, but it was something that you wouldn’t hear.”

“Right…” Ian narrowed his brow again as he moved to try and peer through the dirt-caked window at the front of the pod.

“Thoughts. I heard someone else’s thoughts, ok?” Kyle finally admitted, though grudgingly.

That was when Ian looked back at him and swallowed hard, but only for a moment before quickly returning his attention to trying to make out anything he could through the dirty window, “And it wasn’t Jared or Lili?” he finally asked for clarification.

“How could it be? If it’s over a distance, I’m the one that has to establish the connection, remember?”

“So sorry, not up on how all the superpowers work in this happy little family of ours.” Ian returned with continued sarcasm, though it seemed to be only there to mask his own nervousness at the information Kyle was trying to share.

“So, you see anything?” Kyle asked as he remained a few feet back from the door as well as the window that Ian was still looking through.

“You tell me.” Ian scoffed.

“Come on, seriously.” Kyle complained.

“No, you tell me, seriously, what exactly were these thoughts you heard? Are we about to be attacked, or what?” Ian pressed.

“You military types. That really always is your first assumption, isn’t it?”

“Can we discuss the difference in our world views later? What exactly did you ‘hear?’”

“He…I think, he…he wants to know why we’re here.”

“He?”

“I think. Gender isn’t always that obvious when we’re talking about thoughts.”

“Just what we need, another ‘he’ around here.” Ian mumbled then shook his head, “Any idea who this mystery man might be?”

“Probably…” Kyle began as though trying to get a fix on the thoughts he had honed in on earlier, however briefly, “Probably whoever put her here. All those years ago. I mean, who else would it be, right?”

“That’s not sounding like a real solid guess there, Kyle.”

“He wants to know so much. Why we’re here, what we’re looking for, what we’re trying to do, what we did with his…” Kyle began, though suddenly let his voice trail off.

“With his what?” Ian prodded more impatiently.

“Parents?” Kyle whispered the final word as though shocked by it, himself, his eyes inadvertently turning toward the now empty seats the two bodies had previously rested in.

“Parents?” Ian repeated with another hard swallow of his own.

“That’s what that basket was.” Kyle added more quietly.

“Wait, what?” Ian asked, still reeling from the last statement Kyle had made, let alone the oddness of the new one.

“It was a crib. His.” Kyle swallowed again as he looked back at the place where it had been sitting when Jared and Ian first found the pod.

“Those two…they had a baby with them in this pod all those years ago? And he’s still here?”

“Where else would he go?” Kyle shrugged sadly, his eyes also turning toward the window to catch some glimpse of this mystery person.

“No, I mean, still alive, here, on this planet, after all this time?” Ian returned hoarsely.

“Seems like it.” Kyle answered in his own whisper, both their eyes now scanning the surroundings through what little they could see from that window.

“Well, is it just him? Is there anyone else?”

“I didn’t get anyone else. Just him.” Kyle answered in the same quiet tone.

“He’s been here alone, for at least ten to fifteen years?” Ian asked, his voice breaking slightly, though he quickly tried to hide it, “I mean, what would that even do to a person?” he asked warily.

“I don’t know.” Kyle replied with his own bit of sadness, both of them having their thoughts inadvertently wander to what it would have been like if either of them had been the sole survivor of their own landing, and what it would have done to their own psyche after less than one full year, let alone, a decade and a half.

“Well, you should know. You can read his thoughts, can’t you?” Ian prodded.

“No, they’re gone now.”

“Gone?”

“Yeah, I’m not getting anything anymore.” Kyle stated quietly.

“I thought he had a million questions for us. Why would he leave without getting any answers?”

“I didn’t say he left.” Kyle replied, “Just said I’m not hearing his thoughts anymore.”

“Well turn it back on and finish reading them. He could be nuts after this long. That might be something kind of important to know.” Ian told him firmly.

“I never turned it off, Ian. I’m just, I’m not getting anything anymore.” Kyle attempted to explain further.

“So, then he did leave, just like that?”

“I don’t know.” Kyle told him once more.

“Well, if he didn’t leave, and you didn’t turn it off, then how come you can’t hear his thoughts, now?” Ian complained further.

“I don’t know.” Kyle shrugged again, then had to add, “Unless he shut me out.”

“Shut you out?” Ian repeated with another scoff, “I thought the only person that could keep you outta their damn head was Jared.”

“Well, Jared, or…”

“Or what?” Ian asked loudly.

“Think about it Ian, this guy out there, he’s from an e-ship, and he was still a baby at some point after this pod landed. That would make him twenty years old, at the most.”

“And?” Ian pushed.

“If he’s from an e-ship, and he was a baby when they got here, or was born right after, that would make him, like twenty years old.”

“Yeah, you already said that.”

“Twenty years old? From an e-ship? Are you really not getting what I’m saying, here, Ian?”

“Well, you’re the genius, maybe you need to break it down for the Neanderthal.” Ian complained impatiently.

“This guy, who’s somehow managed to survive here all alone, from the time he was only five to ten years old, if not longer, he could actually be the oldest one out of all the e-children. Out of all of us.” Kyle swallowed again, “Which would make him more powerful than me, or Jared, or even Serena. I’m pretty sure he could shut me out if he wants to. Or do just about anything else he might want to.”