On the bridge of the "Odyssey," the final countdown ended. The last, desperate beep from the alarm system echoed and then died, leaving a heavy, awful silence. Everyone was braced for the end. Emma had her hands gripped on a console, her knuckles white. Seraphina was huddled with a young ensign, her eyes squeezed shut. They were all waiting for the big, universe-ending kaboom.
But there was no kaboom.
There was no crash. No shudder. No sound of tearing metal. Nothing. Just… silence.
Slowly, hesitantly, Emma opened one eye. Then the other. She looked around. The bridge was fine. The lights were still on. No one had been turned into a crystal statue.
"Did… it miss?" the young ensign whispered, his voice trembling.
Seraphina opened her eyes. "Maybe it got tired and went home?" she suggested, her voice full of a hopeful, slightly silly wish.
