Hey, who could it be? (No, it's gotta be...!)

22

PLEASE READ THE NOTE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE CHAPTER <3

TWs: Feelings of anxiety/nervousness, implied altruism, mentions of death, brief coronal mass ejection/melting. Stay safe :)

"What's the deal, Proxima? Why are we gathered here of all places?"

"Yeah, I thought we weren't allowed near this part of the Milky Way."

"Well," The red dwarf started, "Someone asked for our presence; a planet that goes by the name Nine."

"A planet?" Gliese raised her eyebrows, "Are you serious?"

"He seemed reasonable enough." Proxima squinted their eyes at the other. Gliese scoffed, yet said nothing.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Prox?" Alpha spoke beside them.

"Of course." Proxima nodded, "I wouldn't have gathered us here if it wasn't."

"Speaking of, where's Spica?" Sirius questioned, spinning around to look for the other Star.

"As we all know, Spica resides farther out than us." Proxima briefly explained, "She should be on her way."

Gliese sighed, "Well, we have nothing better to do, so might as well meet this 'reasonable' planet."

The other Stars agreed, albeit reluctantly.

Fwoosh- fwip- crack!

A dark blue sphere came from within the Kuiper belt, greeting the Stars at the edge of the Oort Cloud.

"Hello, great Stars from beyond. It's so nice to officially meet you all." The planet spoke.

"I assume you're Nine?" Gliese raised an eyebrow.

"That's right." X nodded.

Gliese huffed, not impressed, "What makes you think we'll help you?"

"Gliese." Alpha glared.

"I'm serious. Planets don't just come up demanding things from us! What makes Nine here so special?"

"...She has a point," Sirius spoke.

X merely smiled, feining an innocent expression, "I completely understand, and you're right not to trust me, but... I would like all of you to hear me out if that's alright."

Gliese squinted her eyes, analyzing the planet before her. She let out a huff, "Fine- go ahead."

X smirked.

One step closer.

« × »

"Luna, what's the brightest Star in the solar system?" Earth asked, his eyes focused on something in the distance.

"I dunno." The moon spoke, "I'm pretty sure Jupiter said it was Sirius A, the Star in the Canis Majoris constellation. It's actually one of your nearest neighbors and is gradually moving closer to the solar system."

"Huh..." Earth frowned, "I don't mean to alarm you, but there's-"

"Everyone gather around for a planet meeting! NOW!" The Sun's voice rumbled throughout the atmosphere.

Earth glanced at Luna, who shrugged, "Must be important. Come on."

...

"That's weird..." The human uttered, "Should this be flashing red, Computer?"

"I'm picking up on some other energies entering the solar system." The AI spoke, "They appear to be moving closer at a rate of 6.68459e-9 Astronomical Units or one kilometer an hour."