Reborn as a Spaceship

The sky of T'lish's new homeworld spread above us, deep violet clouds rolling across a turquoise horizon. Through the Arbiter's viewport, I watched the planet come alive beneath us—cities bustling, vibrant, filled with Kall-e who had reclaimed their birthright. A rebirth that T'lish herself had orchestrated. They were all the Kall-e who had currently had their memories restored.

"I never imagined I'd see my people like this," T'lish murmured quietly from my side, eyes shimmering with pride and quiet resolve. "When I left, I hated my people and didn't think they were on the right track but .. "

"Now it has a future," I finished gently.

She turned, her expression solemn. "We have our chance, Lazarus. Thanks to you. I have enough data from Thisse to undo much of the damage, maybe not fully but close enough that the next generation will have the tools to finish what we started."

I smiled softly, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "You did this, T'lish. I only provided the means. Everything from here is yours."

She held my gaze, nodding slowly. "Then we will see each other again, my friend. In victory."

"Count on it."

With a final lingering look, she turned away, stepping off the Arbiter's deck flanked with her children for perhaps the last time. I watched the shuttle depart, vanishing towards the planet below, filled with hope for a race that had found itself again.

"She'll succeed," Laia said softly from behind me. "She always does."

I nodded. "I believe she will. But it's our turn now. We've got our own destiny waiting."

Laia's eyes flickered knowingly, a silent acknowledgment of the future we both sensed approaching.

The return to our hidden water planet carried a quiet intensity. In orbit, the station buzzed with renewed industry. On the surface, the ocean glittered like an endless sapphire expanse, seemingly peaceful but now infused with a deeper purpose.

Over the next several months, Wayfarer and Laia oversaw the delicate task of setting up zero-point reactors in orbit around the planet, linking them with a web of dimensional anchors and shielding. Mira and Stewie tirelessly checked every subsystem and ran diagnostics, pouring themselves into the project with a fervour that spoke to their unspoken trust. I hadn't informed them of the true scope of the project.

We rarely discussed the purpose openly. I simply insisted it was essential for our continued safety. Yet each of them sensed the deeper meaning, the weight behind the task. And they accepted it without question.

The final preparations concluded quietly on an afternoon tinged with anticipation. Wayfarer appeared in the command centre, his planetary avatar shimmering, colours swirling across his skin with an anxious yet steady rhythm.

"All systems report ready, Lazarus," he said, his voice gentle but firm. "The dimensional shift can proceed whenever you wish."

I stood beside him, drawing a slow, deliberate breath. "Then it's time."

Laia took her place at the console, eyes gleaming with certainty. "Activating the dimensional shift in five… four… three…"

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

The station fell silent, all eyes on the viewport as space rippled around the planet. An azure veil slowly enveloped the world beneath us, a cascade of energy gently folding reality upon itself. The ocean and islands below blurred, stretched, and then with a soft, almost musical buzz our planet and its system slipped gracefully between the layers of the universe.

A subdimensional sanctuary. This had also been a gift from Thisse. The Traxlic had been able to merge the wormhole drive and our dimensional shift technology to be more energy efficient. It had cost nearly all our Telk but it was worth it.

The viewport now showed a vista like nothing I'd imagined: a silent, twilight expanse of delicate, ethereal energies surrounding our hidden world. We had stepped out of the universe, nestled in the comforting quiet between realities.

Mira exhaled softly, her voice barely above a whisper. "It's beautiful."

Stewie stared, awed. "It worked. We're… safe?"

"Not entirely," I corrected quietly. "But safe enough. For now."

"Safe enough for what?" Mira asked, turning slowly to face me, concern showing in her eyes.

I glanced towards Laia, then Wayfarer, each returning my eye contact with a quiet agreement. "There's something I haven't fully explained yet," I began carefully, my voice calm but heavy with purpose. "Something dangerous enough that we can only speak of it here, between worlds, where no one else can hear."

Stewie straightened, tension sharpening his expression. "You've hinted at this. It's about the Old Ones, isn't it?"

"Yes," I answered simply. "I've suspected for some time, but after all we've witnessed. I'm now certain. The Old Ones are deliberately manipulating the galaxy. They're culling races, Stewie. Encouraging conflict, orchestrating collapses. It's methodical. A pattern."

Mira paled, folding her arms protectively around herself. "But why?"

"To preserve their order," Wayfarer explained quietly, his voice layered with sorrowful certainty. "To stop civilizations from evolving too quickly, from becoming threats. It's a carefully managed cycle, tragedy after tragedy."

"And another one is coming," I added softly. "A great tragedy. I can't yet see its form clearly, but I sense it. All the signs are there."

Silence blanketed the command room, heavy with the enormity of the revelation.

"So we're going to fight them?" Stewie finally asked, quietly determined. "That's your plan?"

"We're going to break their hold," I said, conviction steadying my voice. "But it won't be easy. They've had aeons to perfect their methods. But if we don't act, the cycle will continue. We've already seen what they're capable of. If we remain passive, countless worlds and lives will be sacrificed, forgotten and erased from history."

"We can't just sit here and let it happen," Mira whispered fiercely.

"No," I agreed, feeling a surge of quiet pride. "We won't."

Wayfarer stepped closer, eyes glowing gently. "Then our fight truly begins now. From this hidden sanctuary, we can prepare. They won't suspect us—not yet."

Mira moved to my side, her expression fierce. "Whatever you need, we're with you."

Stewie nodded resolutely. "You got us this far, Laz. No reason to doubt you now."

I looked at them, this was my crew, my new family and felt profound gratitude mixed with sorrow. None of us had chosen this fight, yet each accepted it without hesitation. They had already sacrificed so much, and now they stood ready to sacrifice even more.

"Then we begin," I whispered firmly, staring out into the surreal space beyond our hidden world. "The Old Ones believe they control the galaxy's fate. That they alone decide who lives, who thrives, who vanishes without trace. But they underestimated something important."

Wayfarer's expression warmed, his planetary form radiating softly. "And what is that?"

"Us," I said simply. "Our resolve. Our bond. Our unwillingness to bow. They think they've already won. But we will show them how wrong they are. There is always power in numbers"

I let the quiet linger, the magitude of our decision settling into the very fabric of our new refuge.

"This sanctuary is only our first step, One that can't be taken from us" I said, my voice steady with conviction. "When we emerge, it will be to rewrite fate itself. We will end their tyranny not just for ourselves, but for everyone. We will give the galaxy back its future."

The Arbiter's lights flickered softly, as if acknowledging my words, and in that quiet twilight between universes, we stood united, ready to challenge the gods themselves.

The next chapter of our story the final battle—awaited.

But for now, we stood in quiet defiance beneath an impossible sky, ready for whatever awaited us in the darkness ahead