Chapter One: The Outside
The golden ray of the sun slipped through the curtains and kissed her eyes awake. She stirred, stretching slowly, adjusting to the warmth of morning as the world welcomed a new day. For a moment, everything felt peaceful.
Then the ache returned.
Gerald wasn't there.
The space beside her was empty, cold in a way no blanket could fix. She turned her face toward the window, wishing, hoping that somehow he was still near, that they could share this quiet dawn together like they used to. But Gerald was far away. Far beyond Earth.
He had joined the S.T.A.R. Troops.
Mankind had reached what was once impossible: light-year travel. Not just speed beyond imagination, but a way to return without losing time without coming back to a world that had aged years in their absence. A miracle of science that allowed explorers to cross the universe and still return to the lives they left behind.
Gerald was one of their best.
Courage ran through him as naturally as breath. Discipline, resilience, loyalty, qualities the commanders admired and trusted. They saw something in him, something rare, and guided him toward a future written among the stars.
Three hours earlier.
"We are heading out...," the commander's voice echoed through the ship. "...out of the Milky Way galaxy. This is uncharted territory—space no troop has ever explored. We will discover wonders. We will test our limits. And we will see how far mankind can truly go."
The troop stood armored from head to toe, weapons secured and systems humming. Plasma rifles glowed faintly along the walls. Acid-charged artillery rested in reinforced casings. Technology beyond imagination wrapped around each soldier like a second skin.
At the back of the ship sat Gerald.
His armor was polished, his posture steady. In his hand, hidden from the others, was a small photograph. Stephanie smiled back at him from another time, another place—a promise of home. A promise of a future he intended to return to.
He smiled once, softly, then tucked the picture safely into his armor and sealed his helmet.
As the engines roared and space bent around them, the final gleam of sunlight from their solar system shone through the viewport. The light faded as the ship crossed the boundary of the Milky Way, slipping into the vast unknown beyond.
Ahead of them lay the Outside.