Chapter 13 — What Comes After

  The SOLACE races forward, engines glowing.

  It slips through the gate chain, the rhythmic hum filling the silence.

  Inside, the Hammonds sit quietly.

  No words.

  The soft blue of the gatelight washes over them.

  Only the steady pulse of the gates.

  Electricity gathers in front of the Solace —

  then it bursts free of the gate chain.

  Above Dynesis Two.

  Alive. Green.

  The ship dives through atmosphere.

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  Landing rockets FIRE.

  The world has changed —

  the once-crippled ship, then colony,

  now a thriving city,

  seen through new eyes.

  Arthur leans forward, taking it in.

  “Sean really saved this place, didn’t he?”

  —

  Rain falls steady, soft.

  Rows of weathered stones stretch across the hillside.

  Arthur kneels at one grave, digging gently into the wet grass.

  He pulls a small BOX from his pocket and opens it.

  Inside:

  — A family photograph.

  — Sean’s coin drive.

  Arthur buries the box before the stone.

  The inscription reads:

  MILES CRANE HAMMOND

  BELOVED BY ALL

  TAKEN FROM THIS WORLD TOO SOON

  The Hammonds bow their heads.

  A quiet prayer.

  They rise to leave —

  but stop.

  An older man approaches the same grave..

  Worn by work, but carrying himself with quiet resolve.

  Thomas watches as the man kneels.

  His voice is gentle, respectful.

  “How did you know him?”

  The man looks up.

  “Miles? I didn’t. Not really.”

  He wipes his hands on his pants.

  “He was my dad.”

  He reaches out and shakes Thomas’s hand.

  The family’s faces shift — surprise, wonder —

  as Thomas takes it.

  “He died before I was born,” the man continues.

  “My mom was fifteen when she had me.”

  She told me Miles was my father.”

  He shrugs lightly.

  “I come here and tell him about my day, when I have the time.”

  He looks at the grave.

  “I know it’s silly.”

  His fingers brush the wet inscription.

  Then he looks back, curious.

  “How did you know him?”

  Arthur steps closer, voice steady.

  “It’s a long story — if you want to hear it.”

  They walk together.

  The family follows.

  Their voices fade into the rain.

  The end.

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