Chapter Text
They were a few years into their journey to Erid when they came across the submarine floating in space. No idea how it got there, and even less of a clue as to how the human inside was still alive. After much debate between the human and the Eridian, they decided to make a stop at the drifting object to at least check on the person located by the Hail Mary.
Once he shook off Rocky’s anxious trilling about him leaving the ship, Ryland suited up and floated out to the other object floating beside his ship. Upon prying open the welded submarine, Grace recoiled immediately at the sight of the blood-filled vessel, but not before his eyes locked onto a human-like figure floating in the sub, unconscious.
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And that was how Simon ended up on the Hail Mary. He awoke with a jolt at first, his eyes blinking widely around the bright, surgical-like room before landing on a… seemingly glowing being at his bedside, in the middle of drawing blood from his arm. Before the angelic being can so much as open his mouth to speak, Simon grabs him by his collar, lifting him,
“Where the fuck am I?!” he asks before looking down at the needle still in his arm and the stump where his other one should be. “You’re not putting me back out there! You promised me that would be the last time!”
An alarm suddenly sounds overhead as robotic arms, he’s just now noticing, reach towards him, the claws opening,
“No! Armando, it’s fine,” the angel yells, waving at the robot to back off. “It’s fine- fudge. Hey, we’re not going to hurt you.”
Simon glares at the robot before whipping back to look at the other human he was still holding onto,
“Armando-?” he starts before the door to the surgical room slides open, a clattering coming up to them. “What the fuck?!”
A walking rock in a ball rolls into the room, looking quickly between the two humans before rolling into Simon’s shin, much to his surprise. He drops the angel and clutches his leg, falling back onto the cot he was previously in,
“Rocky, no,” the angel lectures, shooting his hand in the air, “I told you not to come in until I said so.”
“New human bad bad, Grace not say he would get hurt. New human hurt Grace; Rocky save.” The rock trills, the words coming out roughly from a computer nearby as he gears up to ram into Simon again.
The angel, Grace, darts in front of the rock, waving his hands around, blocking it from going near him again,
“Rocky! I’m fine, I’m not hurt. Wait outside until I say otherwise. Boundaries! What did we talk about?”
Rocky assumingly looks up at Grace for a minute before rocking back a few paces,
“Rocky wait nearby, not leave room.”
Grace lets out a sigh before leaning forward, his hands on his knees and holding out a thumbs-down.
“Okay, sounds good, pal.”
The rock hesitantly rolls back behind the cot Simon sat on, the human leaning forward to watch it. Grace inhales deeply as it stands up straight, turning to face Simon again, smiling awkwardly,
“Hi! Sorry about that; he gets defensive. It took a lot just to convince him to stop for your ship,” he says before sticking a hand out. “I’m Ryland Grace, but you can just call me Grace.”
Simon pulls his gaze away from where the rock-like alien rolled off to, looking up at the other human in front of him. He gets a better look at the radiant creature this time. The way his pale skin seems to glow against the light of the room, and his glasses are balanced precariously on the tip of his nose. His blonde hair is mussed up, sticking out in odd places,
“Angel…” Simon whispers without thinking, then, blinking in slight surprise, shakes his hand awkwardly. “I’m Simon.”
The angel seems to brighten up at that immediately, shaking his hand enthusiastically,
“It’s nice to meet you, Simon! That’s Rocky,” he points to the alien still hiding behind the cot, “Don’t mind him, though; he’s not as aggressive as he comes off. He’s really chill, actually. Are you hungry? Shoot, I didn’t make anything; I wasn’t expecting you to wake up so soon. Let me go prepare some of the food packs- oh! You’re probably tired, right? Would you rather sleep?”
Simon watches in silent disbelief as the angel dashes around, going back and forth in front of him,
“Uh-” he starts, Grace pausing immediately in front of him, “Where am I exactly?”
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The Hail Mary was the name of the ship he learned shortly after the meeting. He was given a pouch of savoury jelly, surprisingly filling, and ushered back into his cot so that Grace could fix the needle in his arm. The angel explained their situation: how he and Rocky, who Simon learned was of a species called Eridian, had saved the stars of their galaxies and were now on their way to Rocky’s home planet. While cruising through the galaxy, the ship had picked up on a blip in the distance, which was the submarine Simon had been trapped in.
How he survived the blood moon after the events that transpired with the eel, he had no idea. How there were stars to be saved at all was a mystery on its own; hadn’t the quiet rapture taken everything? But that made Grace… an angel, right? His Saving Grace, the man who saved him and the stars. All he knew now was that he was missing his arm, and the left side of his face was mutated from the blood ocean and sapling, his lips splitting further up the side of his face and breaking into jagged teeth. He also had a few flaps up his neck, suspiciously close to resembling gills.
Simon grew accustomed to the large ship, oftentimes following Grace around while wrapped up in the quilt lent to him. He didn’t like being alone, doing so only when he was learning the controls in the cockpit and the other two were working on their own things. It worked out, although; it seemed Grace didn’t want to be alone either. The two shared Grace’s cot, Simon refusing to sleep in one of the other two once he learned the people they belonged to died there.
Rocky was… another thing to grow used to. It’s not every day you meet a new species. Especially one without much of a sense of boundaries. It was one thing to get used to the Eridian lurking over them as they slept, a non-negotiable for him and Grace. But it was another to learn of the lack of privacy they had because of his echolocation, which allowed him to see through walls. It left Simon constantly on edge, which he could’ve sworn gave Rocky some form of weird pleasure, but he would never have enough evidence to back up a claim like that.
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One thing he did love was the large, round room with all the screens, or, as Grace had dubbed it, the ‘don’t-go-crazy-room.’ He often found himself in there throughout the day when he wasn’t following Grace or working in the cockpit, staring at different scenes of the Earth the angel had grown up on.
He sits in there now, his head tipped back as he stares up at the bright screens showcasing a lush valley full of flora. Rocky sits a few feet away from him, crafting something out of xenonite in his ball. The two had… an interesting relationship since their first meeting. With Simon around Grace whenever he could be, and Rocky still protective over the human.
“When Grace and Simon mate, question?” the Eridian suddenly pipes up, the warbles quickly translated with the aid of the computer always nearby.
Simon whips around to look at him, almost too fast,
“What?!” he sputters, his face burning up immediately. “Where would you even-?! I mean what-?”
“Friend Grace and Simon only humans, always together, statement.” Rocky holds up what he had been crafting, a necklace with shiny xenonite crystals, and dances happily. “Next is mate! Rocky make celebration clothes.”
Simon stares at him in disbelief, waving his arm around, which Rocky mimics in response,
“No, no, Rocky, we’re not together like that; we’re just friends. Grace, he… doesn’t like me like that.”
Rocky pauses, looking up at Simon before dropping his arms almost in disappointment. The necklace slips from his hold as he clicks his claws together in thought,
“Not true! Grace like Simon! Rocky watch,” he chirps excitedly suddenly, “Simon not like Grace, question?”
Simon gapes down at him before dropping his arm into his lap, picking at a stray thread on the borrowed sweatpants,
“No… no, I like him,” he mutters, earning a trill in response. “I just doubt he likes me, dude. I mean, he saved me; he’s basically an angel. All I am is a burden to him.”
“Not true!” Rocky repeats immediately, stomping a leg down, “Rocky try proposing many times before mate. Know when feelings are true, Friend Grace’s feelings are true.”
Simon looks at him before snorting,
“How many times did Adrian reject you?”
“Forty-seven,” Rocky replies quickly, puffing out his ‘chest’ with pride before pointing to the turquoise mating mark on his leg. “So Rocky know when feelings are real; Rocky wait for long, long time.”
Simon hums quietly, turning back to face the screens still showing the vibrant green valley, the flowers blowing gently in the video.