The Astralaceaes

Epilogue: Pink Moon and Silver Lake

Beyond the event horizon, all Haledon could see was blinding darkness; all he could feel was crushing pain.

"Ahg!" The Guild released a collective cry of agony.

Haledon could feel Gazeas' grip grow tighter and tighter before suddenly releasing. There was a collective sigh of relief as the darkness eased, revealing the Guild evenly separated around the invisible platform of the Nucleus.

The seed rocked against a gravitational eddy, lurching down and up again.

"There's our stream," Witch-Hazel announced as Birchbark's voice echoed in delay. "Follow that towards the singularity."

Concentrating, Haledon could see the silver wisps of foam that floated and swirled among the gravitational waves. Occasional pools of gravity spun in micro-vortices that the Astralaceae rolled to evade.

Haledon could feel the combative tug of gravity fighting the Astralaceae for control with every twist and turn they took to avoid threats. It pulled at his arms and legs, contorting his body as he fought against the force until it finally became nearly impossible to ignore.

The Guild screamed again in agonizing torment as they tried to will the seed forward.

"Almost—through—the torus," Mek-Tek grumbled.

"Almost—through—the torus." Birchbark's voice echoed out of synchronization.

A pinpoint of light appeared and grew exponentially fast as the seed approached. The glow became a sphere, a glowing ring of unbridled energy. Haledon could almost taste its gravity and hear its density as they raced forward. And with every moment they drew closer, he could feel the hull of the Astralaceae growing stronger as the pressure hardened the bark carapace.

"Through...the ring." Mek-Tek groaned.

"Through—the—ring?" Haledon asked as the voice of Birchback began to echo Mek-Tek.

"Yes!" Mek-Tek replied through the noise of echoing voices.

The Guild only had a moment to think about navigating the seed into a catching streamline. And as they hit it, like a leaf caught in a flash flood, the Astralaceae was quickly ripped forward, no longer in control.

—

"Haledon..." A soft voice cut through the darkness. "Haledon, it is time to get up."

Opening his eyes, Haledon blinked against the red bioluminescence of the cave that he and his Guild had called home for the last nine months.

After being swept through the torus' center, the Astralaceae lost navigation control and was eventually ejected into the unknown. Desperate for a home, the only opportunity for seeding had been a barren rogue planet expelled from its previous solar system into the void of space. When the Astralaceae landed, the seed drove through several layers of ice, burrowing itself against what had once been a massive rocky cliff where it began the process of terraforming.

An ice ball was tossed onto Haledon's bare body, shocking him back to consciousness and causing him to sit up with a start.

"Brr," He exclaimed, shooting an equally icy look toward his waker. There, he saw the frosty grin of Witch-Hazel.

"Rise and shine, snowberry," Witch-Hazel said with a laugh. Walking to their stone bunk, they withdrew a crossbow from its wall mount. "It's time to prowl the habitat."

"Okay," Haledon grumbled as he stood. Tapping the bark on his chest, the wood quickly grew and covered his limbs with thick, insulating bramble. "Why the cold awakening?"

"Don't you know what day it is?"

"Two-hundred and seventy-six days since seeding?" Haledon asked as he stretched out his limbs, even though he knew the answer.