Epilogue
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
Brille, brille, petite étoile
Comme j'aimerais savoir qui tu es!
Si haut au-dessus du monde
Comme un diamant dans le ciel
Brille, brille, petite étoile
Comme j'aimerais savoir qui tu es!
Soft singing pulled Oliver out of his dreamscape. At first, he didn't know where he was. The singing continued, assuring Oliver it was not a dream.
Shortly after, he heard someone whispering near his ear. He attempted to open his eyes to see who it was, but his eyelids were too heavy.
"What happened next?" a woman said. "My grandpa never mentioned any of this to me."
"Next, Oliver captured the beacon. Heeding the advice of the old man, he headed toward the edge of the star system," a male voice, unknown to Oliver, continued. "Sesom was right. Once in the asteroid belt, the 'Hope' got rid of its pursuers. But Oliver couldn't risk returning. He shut down the engine and concealed himself in the space dust. He stayed there for five standard months until the Explorers showed up."
"What about Mr. Kaos?" the woman asked eagerly.
"Unfortunately, the Explorers never found him. His secret base was destroyed by the time the Explorer fleets attacked April Space City."
Oliver had never been so close to death.
He finally realized that it wasn't starvation or thirst that would spell the end but sheer loneliness and despair.
Five months had gone by without the slightest trace of the Explorers.
As he wavered on the brink of death, Oliver caught sight of a cluster of stars.
"What happened next?"
"Next, the Explorers arrived. They found Oliver by following the source of the beacon. His body had taken a beating from five months of cosmic rays, but he lived. Explorer fleets obliterated the Carr Mining Group forces. Under the direct leadership of the Arbiter Committee, the Carr Mining Group trading network was completely disintegrated. Then, the Explorers started to rebuild the Stargate."
"Ah! Grandpa's awake!" the woman cried. Oh, her name was Elly, Oliver at last remembered.
Everyone gathered around Oliver. The elderly man opened his bleary eyes as hallucinations slowly gave way to reality, and he saw faces both familiar and unfamiliar.
"Grandpa, we've made it to the Explorers System!" Elly grasped his hands.
Oliver nodded gently, then repeated, "The Explorers System."
"Sir, it's my great honor to finally meet you in-person. I'm Li, the director of the Antonios Explorer Support Department. You are a real hero."
"I'm not a hero, son. Just an ordinary person who still believes in hope. I'm sure the ocean of stars harbors many more like me, longing to return home." Oliver spoke the longest he had in years.
"We'll bring everyone home." Li nodded in affirmation.
Oliver lifted his arm, struggling to reach into his pocket with a shaking hand. Even this simple act was hard for the old man.
"Grandpa, what are you doing?" Elly asked softly.
"Letter... the letter..." Oliver finally managed to pull out the letter from his pocket he had kept for decades. Elly took the letter, unfolded it, and read it. Then, she gave it to Li.
Li accepted the letter with both hands in a sign of respect. After reading it, he carefully folded it back up and said, "Sesom was right. Sir, we've been aware of this all along. Sesom Kaos was indeed accredited by Antontas University."
He then nodded to a young man behind him, who came forward and handed Li a certification. With both hands, Director Li presented the certificate to Oliver. "Sir, this is your Explorer Qualification Certificate from the Antonios Explorer Support Department. It's my great honor to inform you that, starting now, you're officially an Explorer."
Elly helped Oliver with the certificate. The old man looked at the Explorer emblem on its cover with a mix of strangeness and familiarity. Opening it, he saw a photo of his younger self, tears welling up in his eyes. He closed the certificate, holding it to his chest, whispering to himself, "Mr. Kaos, I've become an Explorer."
The old man's gaze transcended the crowd, yearning into the vast wide yonder. He beheld a mesmerizing sight — countless beacons weaving a stream of light, soaring into the starry expanse and joining the luminous grandeur of the City of Antontas in the endless cosmic sea.
From the wells of his withered eyes, tears emerged, and his heart, weary from the lifelong journey, fluttered one final time.
Oh, stars, our stars...
"Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!"
To the crisp sound of music, Oliver gently shut his eyes, but he wasn't greeted by darkness. For in the dark void of death, stars still twinkle with everlasting light.
The End
