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

31

TWs: Past ejection, secrets, mentioned kidnapping/disappearances, feelings of unease. Stay safe :)

15 HOURS 58 MINUTES 35 SECONDS...

...

"Saturn's moons...?" Makemake uttered as he squinted at the words on the whiteboard, "Why would they need Saturn's moons?"

"Because," X made his way out from the darkness, shifting the asteroids in his path, "If not for Saturn, I wouldn't be stuck in this mess."

"What?" The tied-up dwarf planets glanced at each other.

"Are we talking about the same Saturn?" Pluto asked.

"I've met Saturn and the guy seems barely capable of hurting anyone." Eris frowned.

"That's what you think." X scoffed, "But... it was Saturn's idea to toss me into interstellar space in the first place."

The group's eyes widened, horrified at what they were hearing.

"What? That's not possible!" Charon yelled, "You're lying!"

"Y-Yeah, Saturn's not capable of doing anything like that..." Haumea agreed.

"Well, whether you want to believe me or not, it's the undeniable truth." X shrugged, turning to the board, "'Crown Jewel' of the Solar System... give me a break."

Sedna and Gonggong watched the scene with unwavering eyes. Gonggong prodded his elbow into Sedna's side, giving her a look.

Sedna rolled her eyes, letting out a sigh as she drifted up to the navy Celestial cautiously, "X, can I have a word with you?"

"Go on, Sedna." X barely cast her a look as he continued scheming.

Sedna averted her gaze, "I was just wondering, well, all of us were wondering... what, exactly, is your goal here?"

X turned to face the dwarf Celestial, "Isn't it obvious?"

Sedna shrugged her shoulders, "Mmh..."

X glared at the hostages before humming, "Follow me; Gonggong, watch them- and tell Salacia when she returns to make arrangements for our guests."

Gonggong nodded, his eyes scanning the tied-up Celestials.

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13 HOURS 46 MINUTES 28 SECONDS...

...

"And there's nothing you can do?" A female voice spoke through the comm.

"Well, that's what my boss said, but Mr. Spherical says otherwise." AstroDude spoke, "I just don't want to quit when I know there has to be a way out of this."

"I hope so." His wife sighed, "Looking up at the second Star through the window every few minutes makes me uneasy."

AstroDude glanced out the window of his ship, "I don't think there's anything to worry about for now."

The astronaut perked upon seeing something out of the corner of his eye. He hummed, turning and letting out a yelp, "Agh!"

"Is everything okay? Honey?" His wife called.

"Uh, y-yeah..." AstroDude gulped, his eyes widening upon seeing Ceres enter his peripheral, "Listen, can I call you back?"

"Oh, of course! I have to get our son to bed, anyway."