Chapter Text
I expected to wake up in hell, but instead I was met with 2 robotic arms hovering above my face, slowly pulling out what appeared to be some kind of oxygen tube from my throat, I coughed up liquid urgh.
"Eye movement detected, what is 2 plus 2?" the robot spoke.
"Whrthffk?" I couldn't get any words out, I tried to sit up but everything felt heavy, like I couldn't move at all.
"Incorrect, what is 2 plus 2?" the robot spoke again, maybe this really was hell.
"You're awake!" I tried to turn my head to see who just spoke, but I really couldn't move at all, I felt my breathing get faster, slight panic rising in my chest.
"I'm Dr. Ryland Grace, or just Grace, but uh, I'll explain everything after you're feeling a bit better" the man stood across the room, a weird rock statue next to him, I gasped when it spoke "my name is Rocky." I rolled out of the bed, trying to kick off the sheet that surrounded my body.
"Body movement detected, For your own safety, please return to the medical platform." This was definitely hell.
"Fuck!" I finally managed to say something, the man 'Grace' just stood above me, trying to help me get back on the bed, and the weird rock rolled beside me, "fuck off-" finally after a while I managed to stand up, I held onto the wall beside me, trying to stand as far away from both the robot, Grace, and the weird rock. "What is this" I coughed as I spoke, my throat scratchy.
"You've been in an induced coma, you're my crewmember" Grace spoke softly, as if I would break or something. "Crewmember??" I coughed again. He looked to his Rock friend with some sort of worried look, then whispered something to him before talking to me. "Don't panic," he cleared his throat "we're in space, on a ship called the Hail Mary. I checked your IVA suit, I think your name is 'Henry Letham' I don't know if you remember, probably don't, but we were sent here to save Earth from something called astrophage, me and Rocky succeeded so-" What the fuck does he mean we're in space "What??!" I put my head in my hands, looking down at myself and the medical gown I was in, I felt my head for blood, for an injury, but there was nothing, I needed to find a mirror. "Mirror, where is a mirror" I held the wall as I stumbled around the room.
"Mirror? There's one in the dormitory, hold on" Grace walked closer to me, I wanted to push him away but I knew he was just trying to help me.
"Why is human acting like that, question?" the rock spoke again. "He's been in a medically induced coma, like I was, I told you a little bit about them before, can make you confused for a bit" seeing a man talk to some weird alien rock was not what I'd expected to see after getting in a fatal car crash, let alone being in space, but whatever.
Grace held my arm as he led me to the dormitory, I struggled to climb up the ladder but it was manageable, nothing compared to all the pain I'd experienced in my life.
We finally got to a mirror, I touched my face, turning my head side to side to check for injuries, but there was nothing, not even scars on my head. I tugged up the sleeves of my medical gown, there were no scars on my arms either "What..? Where the fuck are we, what is this??" I turned to look at the man and the rock "I said we're in space, its okay, we're on our way to a planet called Eridani, where Rocky is from."
This couldn't be real, I let go on Earth, I'm supposed to be dead, I've never even been associated with astronomy, my last memory on Earth was bleeding out, my parents..oh god my parents, dead in the car crash, blood everywhere, and it's all my fault. I didn't realise I'd started crying until Grace patted my shoulder "Its okay, Rocky will try to give us a home on Erid, I know its a lot to take in but-" I pushed his hand off me "you don't know anything!" I stormed out of the room, my muscles seeming to work a bit better with every moment that passed. I climbed up another ladder, making it to a strange hatch, I opened it, there were so many stars out the window, we really were in space.
I couldn't deal with it, I should be dead, I want to be dead, I sobbed into my hands, collapsing to the ground, my vision got blurry, darkening around the edges. "Henry? Henry!-" the voices faded as everything went black.