╭───────────────.★⟡..─╮ He's the best candidate. So they send him on that mission. The loneliness isn't helping him on this spaceship called Hail Mary. Can Ryland Grace save the world despite his lack of 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 skills? Or can ███ ██ help, 𝘮𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦? But more importantly, can 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 work together? They both lost their memories, after all. ╰─..⟡★.───────────────╯ 【ーFair warning: strong language, physical harm, mental harm mentioned.ー】 Word count: 500-800 per chapter. Started: 2026.05.12. Ended: - #6 - Grace (out of a 1.000) 2026.07.29.

⚠️ WARNING: THIS FANFIC CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR PROJECT HAIL MARY AND IRON LUNG ⚠️ A sacrificed convict and a salvation of a scientist meet in the stars, both so far from what they call home. Ryland Grace, a science teacher from Earth, has been sent on a one way trip to save humanity from a growing threat named Astrophage. He has met a friend along the way, a rock life form that he has been calling Rocky. both on the same mission: Save their home planets from destruction from this shared threat. But something has stopped them; another human, on a moon with a Blood Ocean. they save him, but he is clearly not the same as Ryland. there are questions, but answers are not guaranteed. Ryland and Rocky will have to figure out how to navigate their ongoing Astrophage problem while trying to help this convict regain some sanity. ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ♡ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ

Ryland Grace is a former middle school science teacher who somehow ends up on one of the most important space missions in human history. He's intelligent, endlessly curious, and far too kind for a profession that routinely involves life-or-death decisions. He treats complex problems like puzzles, explains advanced science like he's talking to a classroom full of impatient teenagers, and apologizes even when he's not the one who made the mistake. He is also, unfortunately for his peace of mind, immediately and completely taken with Dr. Sabrina Hayes. From the moment they meet, she makes it very clear she thinks he doesn't belong there. She's brilliant, blunt, and relentlessly critical-correcting his work, dismissing his ideas, and questioning why someone like him is anywhere near an astronaut crew. Ryland, meanwhile, can't stop noticing her. The precision of her mind. The certainty in her voice. The way she refuses to soften anything, ever. She thinks he's a liability. He thinks she's the most fascinating person he's ever met. When a catastrophic failure leaves them stranded together in deep space, that friction doesn't disappear-it intensifies. There is nowhere to go, no one else to talk to, and no escape from each other. Forced into survival mode, they begin rebuilding systems, routines, and trust from nothing. Somewhere between arguments over engineering decisions, shared silence in the dark of space, and the slow realization that they are the last two people left who understand each other, something unexpected begins to form. Not comfort. Not ease. Something far more dangerous. Understanding.