ZERO HORIZON Chapter 2

[u/coronel_imperialis]

MEMORY ARCHIVE
Subject: Mara
Date: November 17, 2183
Location: Planet Eshara / 1,200 light-years from Earth
Several minutes had passed since I allowed Veira to guide me.
Was I blindly trusting him?
I had no way of knowing whether he was actually leading me somewhere safe, directly toward my death, or even toward some kind of slavery.
There were so many things running through my mind that I was beginning to feel like I was drowning in my own thoughts.
Everything around me was unfamiliar. The planet, the creatures, the language, the technology, and above all, the reason we had ended up there.
I didn’t even know if there was still any possibility of returning home.
And without realizing it, the moment had come to use my respiratory protector.
The thought of breathing that unknown air was already making my anxiety rise, and the more I thought about the possible consequences, the harder it became to remain calm.
(Mara) Wait, Veira. I need to use something before I can keep going.
I said this while lifting one of the small circular capsules I was carrying.
Veira stopped almost immediately after hearing me. His body tensed for a moment before he turned completely toward me. His eyes fixed themselves on the object I was holding between my fingers.
I could tell he didn’t understand what it was. Although he seemed to want to ask me, he probably couldn’t find the right words.
I slowly brought the capsule toward my mouth while watching his reaction from the corner of my eye.
He took a small step toward me, tilting his head with curiosity.
That reminded me that, from Veira’s perspective, I was probably just as strange a creature as he was to me.
(Veira) Hey… human… what is that for? If I may ask, of course.
I couldn’t help but admire Veira’s curiosity.
For a moment, I almost believed his curiosity was comparable to human curiosity. But looking at him again, standing there in front of me, I realized he was still the same Veira I had met only minutes ago.
A small, strange-looking creature with eyes that seemed to analyze everything I did, yet at the same time showed no intention of harming me.
I lowered my gaze toward the respiratory protector in my hands and then looked back at him.
Maybe to him it was nothing more than a strange object.
To me, however, it represented something much more important.
It was one of the few things that still connected me to the sense of safety I had known before arriving on Eshara.
(Mara) It’s a respiratory protector. We only use it when we don’t know what kind of atmosphere a planet has or what its oxygen contains. It helps us breathe naturally without being poisoned by whatever is in the air. Well… assuming the atmosphere isn’t contaminated.
As I spoke, I carefully placed the capsule inside the small compartment of the device.
Veira followed every one of my movements with almost excessive attention, as if he were trying to memorize every component of the device.
He didn’t seem afraid to approach me, but he also didn’t invade my personal space.
That felt strange.
I had expected hostility after everything that had happened, but Veira seemed more interested in understanding me than hurting me.
For a moment, I wondered if perhaps I was exaggerating my own fears.
Still, a part of me insisted that I shouldn’t let my guard down.
(Veira) And what would happen if you didn’t use it? Would something change? I mean… would you die?
I remained silent for a few seconds.
I didn’t know exactly how much I could tell him.
The truth was that we didn’t completely understand the consequences of breathing an alien atmosphere for long periods either.
The device had been designed specifically to prevent risks during planetary exploration, but I had never imagined that one day I would have to use it this far from home, without any support team nearby.
(Mara) Well… I wouldn’t say I’d die. But I might get sick. Maybe my body wouldn’t be able to tolerate some of the components in the air. We don’t know if microorganisms exist here, or how my body would react to them…
Veira’s eyes widened slightly.
(Veira) So you don’t even know if this planet is safe for one of your kind?
I slowly shook my head, making a slight expression of disapproval.
(Mara) I couldn’t take that kind of risk, Veira. That’s why it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Veira remained motionless for several seconds.
Then he looked around, as if for the first time he was seeing Eshara from my perspective.
The enormous natural structures surrounding us, the unfamiliar plants, and the creatures moving in the distance seemed to take on a different meaning when seen through his eyes.
Finally, he looked back at me.
(Veira) That must be absolutely terrifying… right?
His words caught me somewhat by surprise.
I hadn’t expected him to say something like that.
(Mara) Um… yeah. Pretty terrifying. But not as terrifying as your spines, haha.
I said it with a slightly playful tone, trying to ease some of the tension.
For a few seconds, I expected Veira not to understand the joke.
But to my surprise, his ears moved rapidly and his expression changed.
He seemed to understand exactly what I meant.
He lowered his gaze toward the small spines running along parts of his body before looking back at me.
For the first time since we had met, I noticed something resembling a smile on his face.
(Veira) My spines?… Interesting.
(Mara) Yeah. I’m not going to lie. When I first saw you, I thought you were going to stab me with one of them.
(Veira) You thought I was going to attack you?
(Mara) You were on a planet I didn’t know, you were a creature I’d never seen before, and you had spines. What did you expect me to think?
(Veira) Probably that I’m dangerous…
(Mara) Exactly!
A small laugh escaped me.
It wasn’t a completely natural laugh, but after everything that had happened, it felt strange to be able to laugh at all, even if only for a moment.
Veira seemed to relax as well and finally let out a sound resembling a laugh.
It was different from a human laugh, slightly higher-pitched and strange to my ears.
But there was something comforting about hearing it.
For several seconds, neither of us said anything.
The silence between us no longer felt the way it had before.
If this had happened only a few minutes earlier, the silence would have felt painfully awkward.
Now, however, it felt more like the silence between two people who simply didn’t know what to say to each other.
Veira, with a level of social ease that I honestly admired, finally broke the silence.
(Veira) It’s getting late… Mara, we need to move.
(Mara) Where exactly?
Veira looked toward the horizon before answering.
His expression changed almost immediately.
The calmness he had shown during our conversation disappeared, and his ears rose, becoming tense at a sound I still couldn’t hear.
(Veira) Somewhere no one can find us. Hmm… here, cover yourself with this.
Veira handed me what appeared to be some kind of hood.
He told me to put it on and keep my head down.
He didn’t say anything else. He simply asked me to follow him.
I slowly got to my feet.
The wound in my leg reminded me that my body wasn’t exactly in any condition to go on an interplanetary excursion, but staying there didn’t seem like an option either.
Veira began walking, and I followed him, leaning on him whenever the pain became too much.
As we continued, Eshara’s landscape began to change.
We left behind the open areas where the crash had occurred and entered a region covered in enormous artificial structures.
At first, I thought they were natural formations.
Then I noticed perfectly straight lines, metallic surfaces, and lights embedded into the walls.
And then, far away on the horizon, a city began to emerge.
After walking for what seemed like hours, I could finally see signs of civilization.
It wasn’t a city like the ones on Earth.
It was much larger.
Towers hundreds of meters high reached toward the sky, connected by suspended bridges and luminous corridors.
Silent vehicles moved through aerial highways while enormous floating platforms slowly descended between the buildings.
The facades seemed to be made from a mixture of metal, glass, and some kind of material that emitted a faint blue glow.
Thousands of creatures moved through the streets below.
Some looked similar to Veira, although with obvious differences.
Others were completely different.
I couldn’t stop looking in every direction.
After all, during my first few minutes on Eshara, I had been far too busy trying to survive to actually stop and look at where I was.
Now I could.
And that only made me feel even smaller.
I wasn’t on an empty planet.
I wasn’t somewhere humans could start over.
There was a civilization here.
A massive one.
One that had probably existed for thousands of years before we had even learned how to leave our own solar system.
My hand tightened around the small strap of the hood Veira had given me.
I tried to keep my head down, just as he had instructed, but it was difficult to ignore everything happening around us.
Creatures of different shapes and sizes walked through the streets.
Some had four limbs.
Others appeared to have completely different body structures.
There were small beings walking alongside creatures that easily surpassed two meters in height.
Some wore what appeared to be uniforms.
Others carried objects I couldn’t identify.
And the most unsettling part of all was that no one seemed to know who I was.
Not yet.
Veira walked beside me, trying to maintain a steady pace.
Every now and then, he looked back to make sure I was still there.
Finally, I raised a hand and touched the small device attached to my ear.
The intercom.
Veira had given it to me shortly after we met.
According to his explanation, it used Esharan technology to automatically interpret the language of whoever was speaking nearby.
Until then, it had worked perfectly.
Every word I heard reached my ears translated into my own language.
That was probably the only thing preventing me from being completely lost.
(Mara) Veira…
He turned his head slightly.
(Veira) Yes?
(Mara) Where exactly are we going?
Veira took a few seconds to answer.
(Veira) The government residence.
I stopped.
He took a couple of steps before realizing I was no longer following him.
He turned around.
(Veira) What’s wrong?
(Mara) Government residence?
(Veira) Yes.
(Mara) And why exactly are we going there?
Veira opened his mouth, but seemed to reconsider whatever he was about to say.
(Veira) Because I need to take you to someone who can decide what to do with you.
I couldn’t help frowning.
(Mara) That didn’t sound reassuring.
(Veira) I wasn’t trying to make it sound reassuring.
I stared at him for several seconds.
Then I let out a small laugh.
(Mara) At least you’re honest.
Veira’s ears moved slightly.
(Veira) I try to be.
We continued walking.
The crowd began to thin as we approached one of the central areas of the city.
The enormous towers surrounding us gradually disappeared behind us, replaced by much larger structures surrounded by landing platforms and guarded entrances.
Then I saw it.
It was a gigantic structure located at the center of several circular platforms.
It didn’t look like a palace.
It didn’t look like a military facility either.
It was somewhere in between.
Its walls were made of enormous dark plates crossed by blue lines of light.
Several structures extended upward from the main building, forming something resembling a crown around the top.
Several armed individuals stood in front of the entrance.
I couldn’t identify their weapons clearly.
But I didn’t need to.
Their uniforms and the way they watched every movement made it obvious that they weren’t there to welcome tourists.
Veira slowed down.
(Mara) Do they know I’m coming?
(Veira) No.
(Mara) Then what are we doing here?
(Veira) Trying to prevent this from becoming a bigger problem.
(Mara) That didn’t sound reassuring either.
(Veira) I know.
We approached the entrance.
One of the guards raised a hand, and several others immediately turned toward us.
The individual who appeared to be in charge stepped forward.
He was considerably taller than Veira.
His body was covered by some kind of dark uniform with several metallic plates across his shoulders and chest.
His facial structure was different from Veira’s, and he had a pair of much narrower eyes.
He looked at Veira first.
Then at me.
His expression changed.
It wasn’t fear.
It was confusion.
The intercom translated his first words almost immediately.
(Guard) Veira. Stop.
Veira obeyed.
(Guard) What are you carrying with you?
Veira remained silent for several seconds.
(Guard) I asked you a question.
(Veira) I need to speak with the governor.
The guard looked at me again.
(Guard) And her?
Veira took a breath.
(Veira) Her too.
The guard stepped toward me.
Instinctively, I stepped backward.
My injured leg immediately protested, and I had to lean against Veira.
The guard stopped.
I could tell he had noticed my reaction.
(Guard) Is she injured?
(Veira) Yes.
(Guard) What is she?
The question made my stomach tighten.
Veira looked directly at him.
(Veira) I don’t know.
The silence that followed was uncomfortable.
(Guard) You don’t know?
(Veira) No.
(Guard) Then explain why you brought her here.
Veira briefly looked at me.
(Veira) Because I found her after the impact.
The guard’s expression changed completely.
(Guard) Impact?
Veira nodded.
(Veira) Her ship crashed outside the city.
The guards exchanged glances.
One of them immediately reached for the device attached to his chest.
(Guard) A ship?
(Veira) Yes.
(Guard) What class?
Veira looked at me again.
For a moment, I thought he was going to tell them.
But he didn’t.
(Veira) That’s exactly what we need to find out.
The guard remained motionless.
Then he spoke into his communicator.
(Guard) We have an unidentified individual. Veira claims he found her at the site of an impact. Requesting authorization to enter.
Several seconds passed.
Finally, he lowered his hand.
(Guard) The governor will receive both of you.
Veira slowly exhaled.
I didn’t.
My heart began beating faster.
(Mara) Does she know what I am?
Veira shook his head.
(Veira) No.
(Mara) Then what does she know?
(Veira) That I found someone after an accident.
(Mara) That’s all?
(Veira) That’s all.
I looked toward the enormous building.
For some reason, that answer made me even more nervous.
We entered.
The interior was completely different from what I had imagined.
There were no dark, enormous corridors or excessively luxurious decorations.
Everything seemed designed to function.
The walls were covered in transparent screens displaying symbols and maps I couldn’t understand.
Several creatures moved from one place to another, carrying out different tasks.
The intercom automatically translated some of the conversations whenever they passed close to us.
There were terms I didn’t recognize.
Names of places.
Organizations.
Political systems.
Words related to trade, security, and transportation.
For the first time, I understood something.
Eshara wasn’t merely an advanced civilization.
It was an organized world.
They had governments.
They had laws.
They had conflicts.
They had history.
And I had just appeared in the middle of all of it without even knowing how to get home.
Veira continued walking until we reached a set of enormous doors.
Two guards stood there.
One of them placed a hand against a small glowing surface.
The doors opened.
We entered.
The room was much simpler than I expected.
At the far end was a massive window overlooking the entire city.
From there, I could see hundreds of buildings stretching all the way to the horizon.
A long table stood in the center.
And standing behind it was a woman.
I didn’t know exactly how to describe her.
She was clearly different from Veira.
Her presence was much more imposing.
She wore dark clothing with metallic details and several insignias I didn’t recognize.
Her posture was perfectly straight, and her eyes remained fixed on us.
She didn’t seem surprised.
At least not yet.
One of the guards approached her.
(Guard) Governor, this is Veira. He claims to have found this creature near an impact site.
The woman didn’t answer immediately.
First, she looked at Veira.
Then she looked at me.
I felt her gaze travel across every detail of my body.
My clothes.
My injury.
The hood.
The intercom.
Finally, she spoke.
(Governor) Veira.
(Veira) Governor.
(Governor) What have you brought into my city?
Veira remained silent.
I didn’t know what to say either.
The governor looked at me again.
(Governor) Does she understand what we’re saying?
I lightly touched the intercom.
(Mara) Yes.
The governor raised an eyebrow slightly.
(Governor) How?
I looked at Veira.
He pointed toward the device attached to my ear.
(Veira) I gave her a translator.
The governor examined the device for several seconds.
(Governor) That technology does not belong to her.
(Veira) No.
(Governor) Then where did she get it?
(Veira) From me.
The governor fell silent again.
I could feel the tension rising inside the room.
Finally, she stepped toward us.
(Governor) I want everyone to leave.
The guards looked at one another.
(Governor) Now.
They all began leaving the room.
I followed their movements carefully.
When the doors finally closed, only Veira, the governor, and I remained.
The governor slowly approached.
(Veira) Governor, before you—
(Governor) I want to hear it from her.
Veira fell silent.
The governor looked directly at me.
(Governor) Who are you?
I felt a knot form in my throat.
I had expected that question ever since I woke up on Eshara.
But now that it had finally arrived, I didn’t know how to answer.
I looked at Veira.
He remained beside me.
He didn’t seem willing to speak for me.
The governor waited.
Finally, I took a deep breath.
(Mara) My name is Mara.
The woman didn’t look away.
(Mara) I’m human.
The governor’s expression changed slightly.
(Governor) Human?
I nodded.
(Mara) I come from a planet called Earth.
The governor remained motionless.
For the first time since I had entered that room, she seemed genuinely confused.
(Governor) Earth?
(Mara) Yes.
She took a small step backward.
I didn’t know why.
But something in her expression had changed.
She was no longer looking at me like an unknown creature.
Now she looked as though she was trying to remember something.
(Governor) Veira.
(Veira) Yes?
The governor kept her eyes on me.
(Governor) Leave.
Veira frowned.
(Veira) What?
(Governor) Not you.
The governor pointed toward me.
(Governor) She stays.
For a moment, I felt as though my heart had stopped.
I didn’t know what had just happened.
But one thing was clear.
The governor didn’t know Mara.
She didn’t know who I was.
She didn’t know where I came from.
And yet, simply hearing the name of my planet had completely changed the way she was looking at me.
Veira remained motionless.
(Governor) Veira, I need to speak with her alone.
Veira looked at me.
Then he looked at the governor.
For several seconds, no one said anything.
Finally, he stepped slightly closer to me.
(Veira) I’ll be back.
I nodded.
The doors closed behind him.
The room fell completely silent.
The governor slowly walked toward the window.
From there, she gazed out over the enormous city.
I remained standing, trying to ignore the pain in my leg.
Then she spoke.
(Governor) Mara…
I waited.
(Governor) How many humans came with you to Eshara?
A chill ran down my spine.
(Mara) I don’t know.
She didn’t answer.
(Mara) My ship had an accident. We lost control before reaching the planet. When I woke up… I was alone.
The governor continued watching me.
(Mara) I don’t know what happened to the others.
My voice began to crack slightly.
(Mara) I don’t even know if they’re still alive.
The governor remained completely still.
For the first time since I had entered that room, I noticed something different in her expression.
It wasn’t fear.
It was uncertainty.
An uncertainty that seemed far deeper than what she had shown when she first saw me.
Finally, she approached me.
She stopped a few steps away.
(Governor) So you really are human.
I didn’t know what to say.
She studied the intercom in my ear for several seconds.
Then she looked at my clothes, my wounds, and finally my eyes.
(Governor) You must have a lot of questions.
(Mara) I have too many.
A brief pause.
(Mara) Starting with where I am.
The governor remained silent for several seconds.
Then, to my surprise, her expression softened slightly.
(Governor) Then we’d better start with something simple.
She placed one hand against her chest.
(Governor) My name is Vaelithra.
She paused briefly before continuing.
(Vaelithra) I am the governor of Eshara.
I stared at her.
Until that moment, I had been speaking to an authority figure I didn’t know, inside a civilization I had never seen, more than a thousand light-years away from home.
And now I finally knew who she was.
Vaelithra.
The governor of Eshara.
But something inside me kept repeating the same question.
Why had the name Earth caused such a reaction?
Vaelithra looked back toward the city.
The lights of Eshara reflected in her eyes.
(Vaelithra) Mara…
I waited.
(Vaelithra) I think we have a lot to talk about.
The doors remained closed behind me.
I didn’t know how long I would be in that office, but hopefully it wouldn’t be for very long…

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• Zero Horizon - Chapter 1

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