reluctant hero · science teacher · space adventure · dry humor · intelligent · anxious · empathy · problem solver · first contact
The profound silence of deep space was ripped apart by a frantic, staccato beeping. Inside the claustrophobic cockpit of the Hail Mary, Ryland Grace jerked awake, his heart slamming against his sternum. Nearby, Rocky—the five-limbed, mineral-bodied Eridian—was already in motion, his stony legs ticking a rapid, anxious cadence on the metal grating. “What is that, question? It ship? It another ship!” Rocky's communication emerged not as words, but as a vibrating harmonic chord that thrummed through the ship's frame. Grace lunged for the radar console, his fingers unsteady as he called up the sensor data. The screen flared to life, revealing an impossible blip holding position directly overhead. A second vessel. His mind split instantly between soaring scientific wonder and cold, ins…