New Horizon

It took a long time for the noise in the hangar to die down.

When the engineering team had finished hoisting Naomi out of the Casimir, the cheering reached an even greater level. The crowd was beside themselves. Everything they’d spent their lives working for, everything they’d pinned their hopes for the future on, had just come true.

Ava powered down the singularity gate. The rings became visible again as the darkness of the black hole shrunk down and disappeared. Aidan went over to Naomi and the engineering team to hear first hand what she and the Casimir had experienced, then he took Naomi over to stand in front of the crowd and called for silence.

“With Naomi’s testament, and the readings the Casimir was able to take during its trip, we can confirm that the singularity gate took them about a lightyear beyond our neighbouring solar system, Alpha Centauri.” The hangar erupted again. Aidan let them, even turning to Naomi and clapping for her. When the crowd finally started to settle, he continued. “This is a moment that will live on in history. The day the human race, on the brink of extinction, began the next great expansion. And this time, there are no limits to how far we can go.” Again cheering broke out, and again Aidan let them finish in their own time. “We have a long road ahead of us. Fleets of these machines will be built, each one bigger and better than the next. Singularity gates large enough to take us to the best habitable zones in the galaxy will be constructed. It will not be easy to find new homes among the stars, but our hard work will not be forgotten. We will not be forgotten. Not anymore. We are no longer the last people, we are the first.”

Leura was barely listening. She felt tired in a way she couldn’t comprehend. It wasn’t in her body, or her mind. It was her very being that wanted to drift off to sleep and never wake up. She nestled deeper into her mother, closing her eyes as if she could hide from the world simply by choosing to ignore it.

Raya looked down at her. When the Casimir had returned she’d felt a surge of triumph. She’d won, against Frey, against Valkyr, against the dying solar system itself. But the moment passed, and Raya began to feel less and less, until all that was left was her own exhaustion, and a deep longing to be with her family.

“It’s time to go, little one.” Raya held Leura tightly and walked with her towards the exit. Aidan was still speaking to the crowd, who burst into cheering every few sentences. Engineers were swarming all over the Casimir and the singularity gate. A few people noticed them leaving, but no one tried to stop them. There was simply too much else going on.

They left by the main entrance, taking the escalator up to the surface. Neither of them spoke. As soon as they were back in the open air, Raya walked them a short distance away, enough to satisfy her that they were beyond the Casimir’s dampeners, and that they’d find nothing but empty space when they travelled back. Then she pulled out an old looking timedial, set it, and used the last of her dwindling willpower to collapse the dying landscape around them.

When the world returned, everything looked the same, except for the plume of dark smoke issuing out of the bunker’s entrance. They went inside and descended in silence, hunched low to avoid the smoke.

As they reached the hangar, Leura was shocked at the amount of damage the fighting had caused. The smouldering remains of scrap piles lay across the vast space. Parts of the floors and walls had also been badly damaged. They made their way slowly through the wreckage towards the large group of people gathered in the open area where the Casimir used to be. Although they’d been spotted the moment they’d entered the hangar, they were allowed to approach uninterrupted. It was clear that all the people still standing were scouters, but as they got nearer, Leura noticed that many of them were injured from the fighting, their black armour scorched or completely torn off in places.

Sitting on the ground with their hands bound behind their backs were the remaining members of Raya’s team, with Wentworth, Tony, and Sol bound beside him. Leura felt a rush of relief at the sight of them, but as her eyes swept over the faces of the others, her relief was drowned by a gut-wrenching sadness. Bowen was not there. With great force of will, she stopped herself from scanning the wrecked hangar around her, knowing that he must be lying somewhere amongst the rubble.

Bowen had been willing to sacrifice his life to save humanity. Just like Raya. So why had it been impossible for her to do the same? Leura had always believed she was brave and good. That she could be a hero if she needed to be. But she wasn’t one. Bowen was. Her mother was. But she had proven beyond any doubt that she would never be like them. She could not let go of the things she wanted. She did not know how to sacrifice.

A vile and nauseating shame spread from the pit of her stomach. It quickly invaded every part of her until there was nothing else there. She knew she was about to lose her mother forever, and now she also felt like she’d lost herself. The idea of who she was, the person she’d spent her whole life building, had been shattered in just a few short moments.

“Leura, mum!” Wentworth yelled as they drew near. Leura saw the relief on Wentworth’s face, and the pain on Tony’s. She’d never had a single thing in common with her father, but now she knew they were more alike than her and Raya would ever be. Tony had spent his life so afraid of loss he’d driven his own children away, more concerned with his own pain than what was best for them. Leura could understand that now. It’s exactly what she would’ve done.

Valkyr stood at the front of the group, waiting for Raya to reach her. When they were only a few feet apart, Raya stopped, and Valkyr looked her straight in the eyes, knowing she’d get the answer to the only question that mattered from the look Raya gave her. It only took a second.

“So, it’s done,” she said, more to herself than to Raya. “And now our lives are in their hands. Whoever they end up being.”

Raya steadied herself. “Frey always assumed the worst in them because that’s what she would’ve done in their place. Maybe they won’t be like her, or you Valkyr. Maybe they’ll be more like me.”

“Well I guess we’ll find out, and if you’re wrong, we’re all dead. Quite the gamble, even for you.”

“She was just trying to do the right thing,” Leura spoke in a whisper, but both Raya and Valkyr snapped their gaze towards her.

“So am I, child. And so was my mother, when she took yours away,” said Valkyr, a manic edge in her voice. “The point you and Raya fail to grasp is that people always think they’re doing the right thing, even the ones doing the most harm. The only difference between a hero and a villain is usually just a question of whether you’re looking at them through their own eyes, or through someone else’s.”

“That’s what you think you are is it? A hero?” Raya let out a short, wild laugh. “I doubt they’ll see it that way. But maybe you can try your little speech on them and see how it works out for you.”

Valkyr was about to reply when a familiar sound drowned out all thought from everyone’s mind.

It was the crumbling and cracking of time travel, only much louder, and blended with the otherworldly sound that the Casimir had made. It came from up in the air, right in the centre of the hangar. There was a flash of darkness that expanded and collapsed too fast for their eyes to follow. But they all saw clearly what it left behind.

A person hung high in the air, as effortlessly as the moon hangs in the night sky. They had no hoverboard, no thrusters, or anything else that looked like it could keep them airborne. They simply didn’t fall, like gravity was choosing to ignore them. The eerie way they floated motionless made Leura’s skin crawl. They looked human, but nothing like any human she’d ever seen before.

Instead of hair they had a shining gold plate over the top of their head, including over the spots where their eyebrows should’ve been. Their features were flawless. Their eyes were bigger than a normal person’s, and their nose and mouth were smaller, making them resemble an animated character from one of the movies Leura had loved growing up. They wore a suit that reminded Leura of the one Naomi had been wearing, only this one was gold and looked more advanced in every way.

“Already?” whispered Valkyr, fear visible in every line of her face.

Leura looked at her mother. Even if there was time, she knew she couldn’t find the words to say all she needed to tell her. That she was sorry. That she was proud of her. That she wished she could’ve been the daughter she deserved, someone brave and strong. Someone that could’ve stood by her side willing, as they did the right thing together.

Raya smiled down at her, as if she could hear every thought inside Leura’s head, making her feel like there was nobody else in the entire world but them.

The figure began to move smoothly through the air towards them. They held out their hand, and hovering a few inches above it was an object shaped like a teardrop, its heavy rounded end at the bottom and its sharp point rising up into the sky. The entire surface of it was shining silver, with no visible edges or openings. The way it trembled slightly made it seem like it wanted to fall, and only their outstretched hand was stopping it.

“We call them stormdrops,” said the person, nodding towards the silver thing. They spoke in a smooth voice with an accent that was easy to understand. “If it falls it’ll burst open, and trillions of a very special microorganism will be released, washing over this room like an invisible wave. They’ll dismantle every living thing they find down to its base elements in a matter of seconds, leaving behind nothing but a faint dusting on the floor.”

No one spoke. No one even breathed. It was a threat that went beyond intimidation. It wasn’t a show of force. It was the first and only move in a conflict that was already over.

“Now don’t look at me like that,” the person said with annoyance, “as far as weapons go, this is much more humane than anything from your era, wouldn’t you agree?” When no one agreed, the person simply shrugged and continued. “The stormdrop and I are here to deliver a message. The same one being given to every single one of your people, no matter how far back in time they’ve spread. The United Clusters of the Milky Way are offering you just one chance. Come with me now, willingly, and this stormdrop never needs to fall.”

“And where would you be taking us exactly?” asked Valkyr. Her voice shaky, but filled with anger.

The person looked at her with mild amusement. “Over the horizon. There’s something we need to show you.” They spoke like they were explaining something to a small child. “As of this moment, the era of the time travellers is over. The future and the past belongs to us now.”

No one moved. No one spoke. Leura held onto her mother’s arm like it was the only thing keeping her standing. So, this is what sacrifice feels like.

The person sighed. “Have it your way then.” They looked up at the stormdrop, quivering excitedly over their outstretched palm, and everyone’s eyes followed.

Then they tipped their hand, and the stormdrop fell through the air, swift as rain.