─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
┈ ⋞ "Good morning, my love. It's time to wake up." ⋟ ┈
Charlie groaned softly at the tinny voice, snuggling more into her pillow. Maybe if she ignored him he'd give up. She slowly drifted off again.
A few minutes later she was freezing.
"PENDI, turn down the AC," she said, her voice hoarse with sleep. She wrapped herself more tightly in her thin sheet.
┈ ⋞ "If I do that, will you fall asleep again?" ⋟ ┈
Charlie sighed, grumbling something under her breath. She threw her legs over the side of the bed and stood up with a big stretch of her limbs, grunting before letting out a yawn as she relaxed, "No, I won't fall asleep again."
She heard the AC click off.
┈ ⋞ "Your breakfast is ready. I kept it hot for you. The others are already done eating." ⋟ ┈
She almost rolled her hazel eyes at how cheerful he sounded, a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. She changed into her usual loose grey jumpsuit and tied her long dark brown hair into a neat bun behind her head before slipping on her short brown work boots.
┈ ⋞ "Don't forget your glasses, my love." ⋟ ┈
"Yes. Thanks, PENDI, I got it."
┈ ⋞ "I detect sass." ⋟ ┈
She snorted then laughed, shaking her head. She put on her black wire-framed glasses, "It's just that you've never reminded me of that before."
┈ ⋞ "You'll be needing your glasses today." ⋟ ┈
Charlie paused as she reached her door and it hissed open, "Why?"
He didn't respond and she could practically hear his amusement in the silence. Damn A.I. with complex feelings and shit. Was it an advancement or a huge pain in the ass? She found it depended on the day.
"What is it, PENDI?" she asked again, trying not to sound irritated. She didn't need the usual comments from him about her morning grumpiness.
She almost thought he just wasn't going to reply as the seconds ticked on, but then—
┈ ⋞ "Take a look outside." ⋟ ┈
Charlie ran into the polished white hallway, nearly tripping over herself. She made it to the bridge where the nearest window was. Usually the only view beyond the glass was an endless ocean of black and stars. But when the door to the command center whooshed open she gasped.
Holy. Fucking. Shit.
Her voice came out as an excited squeal, "PENDI! Why didn't you tell me we arrived? How long have we been here?"
The planet was huge, taking up most of the view the large window provided. Clouds like snow blanketed across its atmosphere in wisps. Its surface had oceans almost as vast as Earth and the land glowed soft greens, blues, purples—bioluminescent forests. It was beautiful.
┈ ⋞ "I was going to tell you after waking you up, but you were ignoring me. We arrived an hour ago. And before you reprimand me for not waking you sooner, take into consideration how grumpy you get if woken up too early." ⋟ ┈
And here she was hoping he wouldn't mention that today. She sighed, but nothing could shake the smile from her face as she stared in awe at the planet they'd been traveling to over the course of five years. It didn't feel real. Finally things were about to get interesting.
YOU ARE READING
Cosmic (18+)
Science FictionCharlie always dreamed of a grand adventure--of saving her planet. It was why she signed up to be one of the few to traverse across the vastness of space in a ship she'd only heard stories of as a child. The journey taking five years was only a smal...
