Chapter Text
Thirty years. It had been almost thirty years. Thirty years since a melody that had lived in their very core went silent. Thirty years since Rocky ceased making any sounds that could count as communication.
Thirty years since Ryland Grace, Human scientist and savior of Erid and Sol, died.
Adrian sighed to themself as they stood from their place curled around their mate. Rocky barely even moved these days. If it weren’t for Adrian’s attentive care, they were sure Rocky would have passed silently years ago.
“Beloved, I’m going to work. Will you come out today?” They crooned, stroking their mate’s leg with a claw.
Rocky shifted slightly, considering, then settled back down into the hollow of their nest without further response.
Adrian made a quiet sound of worry, but didn’t protest.
“I’ll be home before you have to sleep.” They assured quietly. More for themself these days.
When Rocky came home, almost ninety years ago, he had been paranoid still, and desperate to sleep in groups again. The need had eased up the longer he stayed safely with Adrian in their nest. But now? Adrian had found Rocky asleep all alone more times than they liked to admit.
It scared them.
But regardless, Adrian had work to do. Every Eridian must do their part to keep their society running smoothly.
“I love you.” They promised, touching the mating mark on Rocky’s leg gently, the same way they always did.
Then they left.
Rocky watched his mate leave. He couldn’t blame them. Rocky was pathetic. Rocky didn’t deserve Adrian. Rocky was useless. Rocky was burden.
Rocky shifted, wrapping his arms more tightly around his carapace. Rocky wished Adrian would just leave him alone.
But at the same time, the thought of losing the other part of his Soulthrum– the great melody that rang between two Eridians meant for each other– hurt almost as badly as losing Grace had.
Grace.
Rocky rose, moving slowly on stiff joints. He should visit Grace.
Useless. Rocky was useless. Couldn’t save Grace. Couldn’t stop Adrian from leaving. Couldn’t even speak.
Pathetic. Rocky was pathetic. No wonder Adrian always left him alone. No wonder no one else visited.
Burden. Rocky was burden. Burden on Adrian. Burden on community.
Maybe Rocky should give up.
Rocky slowly made his way from his nest up to the Eridian burial site. It had been years since he had come up here. Too long, really. He barely took note of his surroundings, though the details would be inscribed into his memory later. It always was. For now, memories of before ran through his mind as he made the slow journey.
He may not have been paying attention, but something was wrong. That alone was enough for him to snap out of his reminiscing. Twisting his carapace back and forth slightly, he examined the area around the grave.
When had he gotten here? Didn’t matter.
He continued examining the area, concentrating. Then it hit him.
The boulder. The boulder that he himself had dragged over Grace’s grave was moving. And not just moving, but breaking.
Panic the likes of which he hadn’t felt for thirty years surged through his core, hot and heavy and deafening. That shouldn’t happen. Boulders didn’t just move on their own.
But this one was.
Strange noises started coming from the shuddering, cracking boulder, and Rocky realized with a sobering chill that the sounds were words. Words in the Eridian musical language. Or rather, they were attempts at words, like whatever or whoever was making them didn’t know how to control the complex vocal cords.
Then the boulder broke. No, not broke, but… moved. Five sections broke away from the center, then… no. Five legs moved away from a central carapace. That was an Eridian. An Eridian just emerged from the boulder that stood sentinel over Grace’s grave for the last thirty years.
Rocky stood silently, staring. That was a fucking Eridian that just emerged from a boulder. It went against everything Rocky thought he knew about Eridian reproduction and origins.
“Rrrr… Rockkkk…kkkyyy?”
Rocky stilled fully. How did that stranger know his name? Not only that, but it was a broken, rough approximation of his name.
The stranger made another set of garbled sounds; it almost sounded like Grace’s name. It was wrong still, wrong in the same way a pebble learning to hum properly was wrong. Rocky made the sign for no.
The stranger took a stumbling step back. Their limbs didn’t quite work properly– again, like a new pebble learning.
“Rrrockky. Rocky.” They repeated, pointing at Rocky.
Rocky made the sign for yes, movements small.
“Grace.” There was no doubt in the word this time as the stranger pointed at themself.
Grace? How dare they! Rocky felt a great anger well up in his core, warring with the despair that still clouded every action. How dare that stranger call themself Grace? How dare they!?
“Grace. I… Am…. Grace.” The words came out slow and halting. “You… Rocky. Statement.”
Rocky hunkered slightly, twisting his carapace in a gesture he had picked up from Grace many decades ago, a mimicry of a human shaking their head.
To his shock, the stranger seemed to nod their carapace in return.
That made Rocky pause again. Why would they do that? Only Rocky really used human gestures, as did Adrian and a couple of other Eridians who worked closely with the human. Why would a seemingly brand-new stranger know to do it? Unless…
“Grace, question?” It felt weird to purposely make sounds after so long.
The stranger exploded with joy, the way Rocky remembered he had done long ago. Noise, attempts at dancing, signing yes over and over and over.
“Yes! Grace, statement!”
Rocky didn’t know how to react. He just… stood there. After a moment, the stranger quieted and tipped their carapace slightly, the way a human might tip their head in curiosity.
“Rocky?”
“Grace dead. You lie.” Rocky hissed, plopping onto the ground in what he knew was a petulant gesture but honestly couldn’t help. “Been dead long time.”
“.... Not dead.” It seemed the more this… not so strange stranger?.. heard, the more words they understood how to use.
“Not dead, Rocky. Apology apology apology.”
If an Eridian could stare, Rocky would be staring. Only Grace knew about that. That triple repeat of a word… It was something he and the human had come up with in their early days together for easier communication.
“Is Grace.” Rocky whispered, floored. There was no other explanation.
Grace had, somehow, come back to life inside an Eridian body.
And Rocky had just witnessed his rebirth.