…I had to continue to avoid the topic of Echot's fate in conversation with Dalla...
May she never seek him out or meet him...
May she forget about that passionate man...
After all, I'm her husband now, and I won't share her with anyone...
Dalla is my only wife!
With these thoughts before falling asleep, I held her desired body tightly to me... mine alone, and no one else's!...
Only then, one day, I couldn't wake up...
My consciousness, finding itself in a shaky void, couldn't comprehend where it was, and, my mind thrashing around like a container, I tried to find movement in my limbs, but found none...
I opened my eyes... but only a faint flickering of light brought me out of my slumber. Where am I? In some floating cloud? Nothing clear to see...
But I felt like a disembodied person, yet somehow still possessing a semblance of a body.
However, I couldn't move... even my fingertips didn't respond at all.
Am I paralyzed? Can't see anything? Is my brain dead?
But my heart still barely beat...
What happened to my body?
In the darkness of complete panic and despair, it dawned on me that I, as a solid human being, no longer existed...
The Commander and his beloved wife, his crew and ship, no longer existed, no longer the life I had before... nothing but this shaky state of mind within the bounds of the as-yet-unknown...
I felt deeply hurt, and tears filled my eyes...
I died... suddenly and unexpectedly, along with my love...
Our ship was blown up?
Dalla? Have I lost you? Is that it?
Realizing my helplessness, unable to move, I fell asleep again and awoke to the sound of indistinct murmurs around me.
"Who's there? Where am I?" my voice seemed to ring out, but no one answered.
"Everything is wonderful... He still needs time..." came the convincing verdict of a man to my side.
Not even a shadow could be discerned in the radiance that had appeared in his eyes. Only the distinct presence of someone... I felt as if I'd known them before...
...What will happen to me next? Some General… promised me eternal life in a clone... Am I already there? In my new body?
It really took a long time to get used to this new flesh... this realization helped me one day see the surroundings of my location...
I feel myself! I finally understood...
The illuminated bluish ceiling and the empty room... Blinking, I was able to raise my hands, delightedly examining the moving, dense phalanges of my long fingers, closing them together, clenching them into fists, and pressing them to my face...
My new appearance... What is it like? Scanning the distinct contours, I realized that the face was similar to my old one—high, pronounced cheekbones, large eyes, a straight nose, a strong chin—just right for me.
I still couldn't get up and sit up...
It takes time!
Some assistants, unfamiliar guys, visited me, smiling warmly... good thing they were people! I beamed back, still unable to speak.
"Look... who do we have here?" A young man in a white jumpsuit carefully examined my body and the reaction of my eyeballs to the light from the beam.
"Blink twice if you can hear me!"
"He is responding! Someone's finally here!" the second lab technician rejoiced, peering critically into my face. - "Marvellous!"
"You're a pretty! Did you know that? I'd love to kiss you!"
"Stay with us, newbie! We're doing great! You should love it!"
I wanted to laugh at the news that pleasant-looking people were bothering me.
"Yes... someone's conscious... let's hope for the best!"
''You'll get up soon, just be patient a little longer..."
They continued to visit me, leaving me in silence for long periods in this empty room, and one day I was able to sit up and take in my new body—so skinny, with long limbs, so tall… with skin shimmering like opal, pale under the muted neon light…