Chapter Text
Make sure you ask at least λ [three] people to help you identify λ different minerals! Bring in your examples! I call as my class begins to disperse. A few of them grumble, having expected me to lose track of time and therefore not assign their homework, but a few others seem excited. It only takes a few moments for the classroom to clear out.
I hum as I tidy up my desk. It was the end of the year, which meant students got a Iℓℓ [36] day break from classes. Each of my classes were given a simple assignment to complete. The younger groups were given tasks to encourage them to do something fun and share what they were learning with their egg-layers or friends. My older classes were given tasks to try to get them to take a break from their studies, or to learn something outside of their comfort zone.
There was time to kill before I was due to attend a molecular biology thrum. + [4] days prior, there had been a breakthrough with sequencing the genome of one of the microorganisms from Adrian. I was excited; if there was enough similarities between Earth life and Erid life, it could be the proof we needed for the panspermia theory.
Several of my students are gathered outside the classroom, chattering away. They wave as I head down the tunnel, and I chitter in amusement. Waving was not something I’d expected to accidentally introduce to an entire population, but the younger students especially seemed to enjoy it.
My walk home is not long, but I enjoy it all the same. A few people whistle greetings or thanks to me as I pass. Even after nearly +VI [157] years on Erid, I still get stopped. I guess that’s what happens when you save two different solar systems from freezing to death.
When I turn the corner and come within hearing range of my home, I pause for a brief moment. There are several people gathered in the main sitting cave. It’s not uncommon for Rocky or Adrian to have others over, but we have a rule where we give the others notice when we want to do so. Never has I [one] of us failed to do so.
I carry on. Descending into the entrance tunnel, I slip through the soundproofing curtain that acts as our front door.
I stop just inside.
Hey, Rocky says, and their primary claws flutter. They’re sitting next to Adrian, who’s completely still. Across from them are V [two] unfamiliar Eridians, both quiet.
What’s going on? I ask as I put my bag down.
Adrian shifts slightly. Come sit. Petrus and Alra have news.
I cautiously lower myself to sit next to them. Now that I’m closer, I can hear that Rocky’s humming at a very low frequency. It makes my heartrates increase. Is everything alright?
The larger of the strangers clicks. Greetings, Savior-of-Stars. I am Petrus, and this is my colleague Alra. They’re all sharp angles and pointy limbs. Alra is smaller than me, their carapace pockmarked like pumice. We are from the astronomy thrum.
I tap anxiously.
Alra inclines their carapace. Our sensors have detected a change in luminosity from Sol. It has returned to the strength that you described it to be prior to Astrophage’s arrival.
My world narrows. I can’t tell if Alra or Petrus continues speaking; all I can hear are my hearts pounding in my carapace. Emotions flicker through my mind so quickly that I hardly have time to acknowledge their existence before they’re replaced.
A pair of familiar claws gently take my primary hands. I shudder as Adrian hums, trailing the tips of their claws across the intersection of my fingers. They hum reassuringly as I struggle to process the news.
When you are ready, you are needed for a thrum, says Petrus gently. The astronomy, physics, engineering, and leadership thrums are meeting in I [one] day to discuss potential plans. They rise, and Alra follows their lead. Both Saviors are requested to attend.
I hum numbly in acknowledgement of their chords, focused on the random swirls that Adrian trails across my inner claws.
Rocky gets up and walks the V [two] visitors out, closing the soundproofing curtain securely. They return to the sitting area but settle before me. Grace.
I click.
Earth is safe. The Beatles made it in time for them to fix Sol. Rocky reaches out and taps a claw gently against my mission carving, right over the depiction of my origin star. Are you alright?
I’m not sure, I say slowly.
Purring, Adrian reaches out a λrd [third] limb to Rocky, who leans into them. We have confirmation that your mission was successful.
A huff of ammonia leaves my vents. We do. I’m not upset about that. That’s a good thing. I manage an approximation of a shrug. I just- my home is Erid now. There’s a wobble in my chords. Is it bad that I’m happy I didn’t have to be there when they got the Beatles? That I got to be here instead?
Rocky warbles wordlessly and I shuffle closer. Adrian moves their limbs and curls them around the V [two] of us so we’re all curled up together.
You’re allowed to feel that, they declare, even if you came from Earth, you chose to make Erid your home. You chose us.
I laugh. I did, yeah.
I think you should see what the thrum is about. Rocky says quietly.
There’s something in their notes that sounds off. Only if you come as well. They asked for both of us.
All λ [three] of us will be going, Adrian sings. The pebbles are already with my hatchmate. They will be fine for a sleep cycle.
That settles the nerves in my hearts. The subtle worry of where the pebbles would be while we were gone slips away. I’d prefer them to be here, of course, but Adrian’s hatchmate has pebbles of their own, and loves ours. The λ [three] of them will be watched while we attend the thrum.
Then I whine. I have to miss the molecular biology thrum!
Rocky cackles at my distress.
They want to send a ship to Earth.
Savior-of-Stars, your knowledge will be necessary for the success of the journey, the thrum sings.
Distantly, my limbs twitch in fear. You have the thinking machines.
You are the expert on interstellar travel. Star-Traveler, we ask that you at least help with the construction of the ship and training of the crew.
Rocky’s song, distinct and familiar even in a thrum of several I+ℓs [sixties] of Eridians, rings out. Grace. You do not have to go. Erid will not force it. But we cannot repeat what happened to my crew. A combination of grief and determination acts as the foundation of their plea. Please, Grace.
I hum. Alright.
The thrum sings in relief, in excitement, and dives into planning. They need to determine who will lead each team that will be needed for the design and construction of Erid’s Vnd [second] interstellar ship. I find myself loosening up and joining in. This was all familiar, something I was good at. I knew how to manage projects and resources, how to guide people into the right positions.
It helped a lot that I knew the same thing wouldn’t happen again. When Erid had found out about the circumstances around how I’d ended up on the Hail Mary, there had been riots in every city and town on the planet. It took me leading a thrum to calm the Eridians down and to get them to stop screaming about going and finding Stratt. I didn’t need to accidentally start an interplanetary war. Rocky and Adrian had set aside their own rage to help me maintain the thrum. Most Eridians were still furious, but it only solidified their decision to help me feel welcomed and at home on Erid. Not a single Eridian would attempt to force me onto the new ship if I didn’t want to go.
By the time the thrum quieted and we all began to disperse, there was a plan. I would act as I [one] of the main leaders, alongside Rocky and a clawful of other Eridian experts. Rocky would be leading the engineering team. Combining what they’d learned from their many years at Tau Ceti with the I+ℓies [sixties] of years of human knowledge of space and spacetravel would make this journey the safest mission in either planet’s history.
It’s reassuring.
I begin modifying my schedule for the next while. My students will need a substitute teacher for the foreseeable future. The break gives me time to create lesson plans.
Unlike my last experience with developing a ship, there’s no rush. No deadlines. Just research, planning, and development. There’s no budgets to worry about.
By the time we return home, my anxieties have long settled. My sleep cycle is coming up, so I curl up in the sleeping cave. Both of my mates settle down with things to do as I make myself comfortable.
Love you, I mumble as my consciousness begins to fade.
Rocky and Adrian sing back. Love you.
I fall asleep with their song echoing against our cave walls.