Far beyond the reaches of our solar system, trillions of densely packed spheres of burning gasses give light to the dark fabric of space. Each, though often similar, are at least minorly unique even among their galactic neighbors. On the clearest of Earthly nights, from the remotest of locations, the sky is so densely packed that it becomes a brilliant swath of color marked more by spots of darkness than spots of light.

Beyond even what is visible to the naked eye, where darkness ought reign supreme, other galaxies lie with their own trillions of stars. These stellar collectives, dazzling in their multitude, emit particles of light that traverse the impossible distances and temperatures that are warped by gravity and processes we never truly understood.

On a small hilltop in the Pennsylvanian wilderness known for its stargazing, these particles enter the mouth of a large silver tube. They are further concentrated or culled until they reflect the smallest sliver of the night sky into a focused, unblinking eye of blues and greens.

The stars beyond grew ever more clear as two hands deftly turned the knobs on the telescope, until the eye finally pulled away from the device, satisfied.

Unbending his hunched spine, a man gingerly removed his hands so as to not ruin his concentrated efforts. He stood reasonably tall, just short of the fabled 6 foot figure, as he brushed the single gray steak in his hair from his forehead and back into the brown that framed his face. Wrinkles exaggerated around his eyes and across his forehead as he broke into a content smile.

His name was John Mermous, America’s self proclaimed number one house husband, and few things brought him greater joy than a night under the stars. To others, he may say that writing his stories was comparable, but truthfully writing was hard. On the contrary, reading or spending time with his family were easy wins over a normal night of stargazing. Tonight however, was made very special by a certain attendee.

Not too far from him, sat upon a checkered blanket, was a much younger girl. Her face was illuminated by the iPhoon 27 in her hands, and was framed on either side by brown hair darker and more tame than his own.

While his own features were a classic example of the average American hodgepodge, hers had distinct Eurasian characteristics. There were some similarities of course, but he couldn’t deny that she had lucked out in the genetic lottery by inheriting all the best features from her mother. Her eyes however, were beset by a dazzling blue offset with subtle splotches of green like his own. She was his ultimate pride and joy for the last fifteen years.

“Luna! It’s all ready.” John’s voice called out to his daughter.

Tonight, they had journeyed into the Pennsylvanian wilderness on a mission, the deadline of which was quickly approaching. His wife Neah had given them the location of a cluster of stars and the best time to view them. It was a game they had played numerous times during her overseas trips for many years, but even then tonight was special.

“Finally! Let me see!” At father’s call, the young girl jumped with excitement. Yet as she approached, John gave a light cough and held up a solitary finger, stopping her. Assuming a clear and calculated tone unlike his normal voice, he prompted her.

“‘The universe is vast and boundless—’” It was an old phrase that his wife had ingrained in him many years ago, translated from some archaic asian dialect that his in-laws still practiced. Though it lacked any real ceremony, John ‘continued’ the tradition here in the Americas for a very simple reason. He thought it was cool.

“‘—and our eyes are full of stars’.” Luna responded with an eye roll and an exaggerated flourish. The small, buzzing voice in his head that murmured against cultural appropriation made itself known, but he waved it away. How could he appropriate his own family’s culture?

“Very good.” he said, as he ruffled her hair aggressively. When she began to pout and swipe at his hand, he pressed on until her hair was properly disordered.

“Dad, come on! StoooOOOoop.” His daughter’s pleas only served to fuel his mischief-filled mirth. Ah, teasing your children. An ancient tradition passed on from every parent to child.

“Hey, hey! Who told you to be so cheeky about it?” John chuckled a final time before removing his hand. She threw him a final pouting glare before assuming the same stance and tone he had just utilized.

“‘The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree’, correct?” She poked her tongue out at him as she straightened her hair. Hair as long as hers could be annoying when messy, especially when an errant strand could cloud her viewing through a telescope.

Her response elicited a bark-like laugh from her father. Was this what they called the rebellious phase? He wondered where it was she could have learned to verbally riposte like that, only to quickly rebuff those thoughts.

There was certainly no use going down that road. It was sadly and truly an unknowable mystery.

“Okay, back to business Lulu. Take a look.” He beckoned her to the telescope behind him.

His daughter eagerly slipped past him and pressed her face to the viewing apparatus. Softly exclaiming her awe, Luna remained pressed to the device even as doubt began to trickle into her mind.

“One of those stars is… mine?” Her voice was slightly doubtful, dubious as to their purpose in the face of reality.

John coughed lightly, repressing an immediate ‘yes’. No need to fill her mind with any logical delusions, even if the belief should remain.

“Unofficially, of course.” John said before continuing, “If people could just start claiming stars in the sky, well, not that we would run out of them, but things would still be a mess. Mom’s family has apparently done this for generations. Even I got one after I married your mom.”

“But dad, how could you tell which one to choose?" Her voice was full of both wonder and apprehension. It was a daunting task, for sure, as there were exponentially more options than the cereal isle of his suburban grocery store. Nevertheless, the how one chose never was the important part.

“Honestly? I chose the one that appealed to me the most. A nice blue star, not the brightest in the area but certainly not the dimmest. When you find the one, you’ll know, I think.” As he spoke, John fiddled with the stone that hung from his neck, unadorned and black with a barely noticeable sheen of blue.

It was a gift from his wife from before she left to take care of the family side of her business four months ago. A long time for sure, but with video calls, activities like these, and a solid effort, the once-every-two-year trip was far from unbearable.

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He would love to make it a family trip, or at least a vacation for Luna, but things were a little complicated with the in-laws. The first and ultimately last time he was presented to them, they nearly chased him out of the country after all.

Neah said it was a miracle that they didn’t disown her then and there for marrying an American. It was a humbling experience for sure. Blatant racism wasn’t something that he, as a white man living in America, really ever experienced. But that was all well over a decade ago, and at this point he felt more for his wife who still had to deal with the asshats.

“Hey, dad? I think— I think I just broke it.” His daughter's sudden, worry-laden voice came to break him from his thoughts. At least she didn’t have to grow up with such biased people in her life, he thought.

Not that his own parents were much better, but they were at least out of the picture as well. He could only hope that the lack of grandparents didn’t mean anything to her and do his best with what they had.

John shook his head to actually clear the thoughts from his mind. He was overthinking again.

As it were, John was sceptical as to the telescope’s integrity failure. In all his years of use, the thing had proven incredibly durable and reliable. Even if she had broken it, it wasn’t like he would be angry with her anyway.

“Well, what’s wrong with it?” At his question, John could see a flush of shame spread across her face. He winced, but understood the feeling. How many times had they gone out to stargaze, only for her to have a problem now?

“I don’t know, I can’t see anything anymore! I was just trying to zoom in a bit on my star, you know? See what it’s like? I’m sorry Dad.” Her voice came in a flurry of apology, which John immediately felt doubly bad for. And it sounded like she was settling on a choice as well, which made it doubly frustrating, no doubt.

“So you chose? Don’t worry about it, Luna.” John pat her shoulder warmly a few times to diffuse any tension. “It’s probably just miscalibrated or something. Maybe you turned the wrong knob by accident?” He decided to give the outside a once-over in case the problem was as simple as a leaf landing on the lense.

When he found nothing remiss, John placed his eye to the device once again. He would search for any of the landmark stars that would hopefully tell him where the telescope was pointing. In order to find the right cluster, he had scoured the area many times previously. As a devout hobbyist, John was supremely confident he could reorient the telescope after a little trouble.

However, what greeted him was not the view of a disoriented telescope, full of blurry and ambiguous starlight. Instead, there was nothing.

No light.

No stars.

Just an endless sea of black, like someone covered the front end of the telescope with thick black wool. Only, he knew the outside surface was clear. Was it something inside the device? Or maybe his daughter accidentally stumbled across an unknown darkzone?

“Come on, where did you go?” Hopeful, John continuously turned the many knobs on the device, hoping to find something to focus on before he’d have to call it an internal failure and move on.

It was an older model, he supposed, and maybe this was a sign that a new instrument was in order. Nevertheless, he didn’t want to part from his old companion that he and Neah had bought before they had married.

Then, as if rewarding his tenacity, a small light blossomed from the other end of the telescope. It was tiny, as distant as any star he had ever seen through the telescope, but he was glad for the point of reference.

He wasn’t sure where the device was pointed anymore, but anything that meant his old friend was still functional was good enough. Beside him, he heard a small gasp and felt a sudden tug on his jacket.

“What’s up? Don’t worry, it’s not even broken. Just aimed at a bit of deadspace I think.” He pulled away from the eyepiece far enough to notice a little eyelash sitting in the viewer. Snorting, he rolled his sleeve up over his palm to keep his hand oils from tainting the lens and started to rub away any errant pollutants. His actions were interrupted by his daughter's, now frantic tugging at his waist.

“The stars… Oh my god, dad, the stars! They’re going out!” Next to him, Luna's voice trembled with some trepidation. John felt his heart lurch for a second before a smile spread across his face.

His daughter, trying to pull one over on him? Not likely.

“Nice try, girl, but you’re much too young to be fooling me. Stars don’t just go out, they— oh. Oh god.” Far above them, the stars winked out one by one, vanishing as a wave of darkness spread steadily over the night sky. John's mouth opened wide as the vast expanse of the void beyond grew ever larger as darkness enveloped half of the Earth’s sky.

Then the rumbling began.

It was subtle at first, like a shifting of gravel beneath their feet, but it quickly became a steady tremble as if the Earth itself was waking from slumber.

“What the—? Luna, stay with me!” With one hand, John firmly grasped the telescope's viewing device for balance while he reached out desperately for his daughter. His mind was reeling, struggling to comprehend what was happening. An earthquake? In Pennsylvania? But then the sky—

[Origin Wave detected…]

A voice, distinctly masculine, sounded directly into his head. Instantly, he felt his body tense and adrenaline rush through his system. Was someone messing with them? His eyes darted around wildly, as he held his daughter ever tighter to his chest and gripped the telescope with conviction. He had always heard about dad reflexes, but had never really believed they were a thing.

Now, he only hoped they would be enough to overcome his mediocre build and protect his daughter if need be.

[Initializing Reintegration Protocol…]

The same voice came again, echoing about without a clear source. It seemed to come from everywhere around them, yet at the same time from inside his own head.

“Dad! What’s happening?” His daughter’s yelling only served to further his growing agitation. But as the night sky grew darker, so did the quaking earth grow stronger.

“Show yourself!” Fueled by adrenaline and fatherly willpower, his voice came out as less of a squeak than he would have expected. Even still, there was no response.

The now violent rumbling increased exponentially as the final star in the night sky joined the void. It was at that moment that, despite the sensory salad he was currently experiencing, he felt a subtle sensation pass straight through his body.

From head to toe, it continued unimpeded as a sudden searing pain shot from his hand which grasped the telescope. Before he could even scream, a far greater force struck him from above with all the strength and inevitability of a moving car.

Luna was instantly ripped from his embrace as he was shoved to the ground, tearing his hand from the angular telescope.

[Seed of Progenitor Archaeus recognized… ]

The voice came again, and with it came an even greater pain. First shooting from his mangled hand and into his body, then a prickling sensation as if being pierced by thousands of needles.

It then blossomed again from within as his body, forced into the earth, began to restructure itself. He suddenly lacked even the ability to scream, as the complete overload seized the organs required to do so.

[Relay Beacon activating… Multiverse signal sent.]

The voice continued to blare in his head, but he could hardly make sense of it over the pain. Oh gods, the pain! It was as if everything else were cut out from his world.

A small voice in his head, his own this time, was telling him that his daughter must also be feeling this pain. He desperately tried to take control of his body, to make any kind of movement, but there was no response.

[Reintegration successful. Survive until assistance arrives.]

All light suddenly faded from the world. Vaguely, he recognized that it must have been their own star joining the rest. The pain on the outside was nothing compared to the ravaging that occured within his body, as it built ever greater with the increasing force pushing him into the earth.

Then, all at once, he was released. In his rapidly fading consciousness, John recognized that light had returned to the night sky. An alien sky that looked far different from their own. The voice resounded one final time as his own darkness took him.

[Welcome back.]