Chapter Text
Black holes are definitely an exotic and unique beauty of the universe. Even though there are so many of them out there, how many are close to Earth? The closest black hole to Earth is called Gaia BH1, approximately 1,500 light-years away. Very far, definitely. This means that, in reality, if we look through a telescope and locate this black hole, we will be seeing the glow of its accretion disk – if it is feeding, of course – 1,500 years in the past. So just imagine, you may be looking at something that is no longer alive or present in space.
As everyone says and we know, time is relative.
This story, however, takes place a little further from Earth. A little over six thousand five hundred light-years away – 6,500 in human characters – from Earth, in an outer arm of the Milky Way called Perseus. Looking from a certain angle, even from afar, one could see a gigantic sphere in the middle of space, as if everything in that place had been consumed by something larger than human comprehension. On the other side, however, there were more stars, confirming that the anomaly not only occupied a significant space, but also moved very slowly. This view, of course, is only possible to see when it is not feeding – which is quite rare.
With its respectable nearly 800 million solar masses—that is, 800 million suns combined and compressed—The Point is a remarkable supermassive black hole. Its accretion disk envelops its event horizon and extends at the edges, like two asteroid belts, one below and one above. This asteroid belt of dust and radiation, however, glowed white when near the event horizon, gradually changing to a light blue and then dark blue until it reached complete black as it moved away from the center of mass. The dust cloud that was once a white dwarf star pulsed and drifted away, slowly dissolving into outer space. Eventually, this beautiful blue color will disappear and the black hole will be lonely again, with nothing to feed on.
However, it would still continue dancing with the planets that make up its system. In total, there are five planets orbiting this beautiful black hole, but their names and specifications are irrelevant here. All of these planets are points of trade and rest. The variety of trade can range from the furthest from the orbit, focused on frozen goods, to the closest, focused on weapons and forged products. Their paths are quite irregular, but thanks to a coincidence of fate, all five of these celestial bodies managed to form at a relatively safe distance, neither so close as to be sucked into the event horizon nor so far as to be ejected from their path and wander into the absolute void.
These planets and the entire system, however, are not just a place of commerce, but also a meeting point, as the name suggests, since this region has no owner and drawing weapons is strictly prohibited. In space there are almost no rules, but it is understood that important points must be respected by all. None of this prevents, however, a ship from being thrown against the event horizon and simply giving the excuse that they 'bumped into it' - but there will be consequences if it is witnessed, of course.
Although The Point's accretion disk is extremely hot and emits enough constant radiation to obliterate a living being, most modern spacecraft are coated with Datium, an ore known for its properties that make it crucial for spacecraft construction. In addition to being extremely lightweight, it also inhibits radiation.
The environment around The Point was initially calm, with only one or two ships heading towards their supposed objectives. They glided as if they were on the ocean. An ocean full of stars.
One of these ships—tiny compared to the black hole—is piloted by autopilot. It is far from the accretion disk and the other planets, but also close enough for the black hole to be seen in its full extent through the front window, just ahead of the control panel with two empty seats a step above the rest of the ship. The fact that they were far from everything meant that it was only passing through.
Its radiation sails were open and extended. Like solar panels, these sails use radiation to generate energy, something crucial for long journeys so that the engines continue to function as they should.
A few kilometers from the spacecraft, however, a small asteroid approached, drawn by the gravity of the black hole. Slowly, the asteroid struck one of the sails, the fragile hooks that held them in place ceasing to function. The sail, once a vibrant blue from absorbing radiation from the accretion disk, now lost its glow, gradually turning gray. The impact was so gentle that the spacecraft didn't even move.
Jaw cracking and a long grunt echoed in the room. A male Yautja took precise steps, his eyes alert to any movement. His outer jaw and mandible rubbed together, demonstrating his irritation. He wore only a simple loincloth and a partially torn dark shirt. His skin was a greenish-brown with dark spots. He was also without a mask. He growled audibly, his eyebrows furrowing into expression lines.
A humanoid creature crawled along the wall behind the Yautja, its movements calculated to make as little noise as possible. Its head was elongated into a phallic crest; its eyeless face made its expressions impossible to decipher. Its skin was completely black, as hard as the primitive iron of Earth. The name of its species was Xenomorph, a lethal creature feared throughout the galaxy.
Its mouth opened at an almost 90° angle, its mouth salivating excessively. The creature couldn't contain itself, however, as it hissed in a high-pitched sound.
The xenomorph leaped at the same time as the yautja, who turned and immediately opened his hand.
He grabbed the slender creature's neck, spun it around, and slammed it against the ship's floor, dropping to its knees on the cold metal. The xenomorph screamed and arched upward, hissing in pain as it tried to break free from the grip. The yautja growled and roared, opening its outer jaw as wide as it could. Saliva squirted onto the creature's face, which squealed in response.
The xenomorph gasped, but didn't give up and growled back. Its treacherous tail moved nimbly to choke the predator, the hard protrusions of the tail pressing against its trachea. The yautja's grip eased, now grasping the xenomorph's tail to try and remove it from its neck. The creature, however, immediately leaped onto the Predator and dug its claws into its rough skin. It opened its mouth again, ready to sink its inner jaw into the predator's face; but the yautja caught the creature's jaw-shaped tongue, squeezed and held hard enough to hurt. The xenomorph emitted a sharp chirp and recoiled, shaking its head from side to side to try and free itself from the grip that continued to pull it.
The Yautja took advantage of the creature's weakness and stood up, grabbing its neck—just below an electronic device—while simultaneously holding its tongue.
Before it forgot, the predator stepped on the xenomorph's tail and moved its foot in a way that crushed the tail against the hard floor of the ship. The predator growled, knowing it had won the fight. It then lifted the creature a little higher, twisting its own torso in a way that made a move to throw the xenomorph against the wall.
— Wait, wait, wait! I surrender, I surrender! — The device around the xenomorph's neck lit up, a spectrum of audio frequencies glowing in vibrant green. It could speak even without proper vocal cords thanks to the advanced technological device connected to its brain.
The Yautja narrowed its eyes and tightened its grip on the prey's neck.
— My toolbox — he said in the Yautja language, which the xenomorph knew well.
— Okay, okay! Ugh, it's in the cryogenics room... — The xenomorph was immediately released and thrown against the icy floor as the Yautja headed towards the previously mentioned room.
The xenomorph known as Tiamat snorted and effortlessly rose from the floor. It threw itself against the right seat in the control room after nearly tripping on the step.
His slender arms hung down the back of the upside-down chair. The chair was extremely mobile and contained a clever spring that made it possible to tilt up to 180°.
Through the glass, Tiamat saw the black hole and its accretion disk. His tail whipped behind her to display his delight at seeing such grandeur. A placebo effect made the xenomorph believe that the blue light bathed him, feeling his body temperature rise only slightly.
— How do they work?
She slid his six-fingered hand across the control panel without looking and changed the ship's lighting from yellow to indigo blue.
— I wish I could get closer — Tiamat mused, sighing.
He leaned back and turned his back, his elongated head resting on the chair. Tiamat squealed, almost a laugh, when she saw a tiny ship being spaghetti-ified.
— Idiots.
The Yautja, known as Kassar'kto, stomped up the step into the control room and placed the large toolbox and his bio-mask on the maintenance table next to the panel on the left side of the xenomorph.
—Ah, you will.
— Huh? —Tiamat tilted his head like a curious cat, staring with his eyeless face at the predator's.
— One of the sails was hit by an asteroid — Kassar'kto murmured as he opened the biomask's front panel, where the forehead is located, checking the complex wiring of Yautja technology before continuing.
— We're moving too slowly. However, if we don't fix that sail, we won't be able to fully restore the ship's energy and return to normal speed.
Tiamat whimpered, stretching in his chair.
— But outside? Can't you go?
— Ever since you tore our only radiation suit... No, I suppose not — He mocked the xenomorph with a snort. — Unless you want me to come back from there with cancer.
Kassar'kto shrugged — And you're the only one who, while not needing to breathe, isn't affected by the vacuum of space and doesn't react to radiation.
If Tiamat had eyes, he would have rolled them.
— Are you sure this is safe? — He looked at the metal rope wrapped around his waist with his arms slightly open. — That doesn't seem quite right to me.
He raised his head to look at the decontamination room camera like a kicked puppy, trying to gain Kassar'kto's compassion and make him feel sorry for the poor, defenseless xenomorph.
Extreme situations require extreme actions. - Kassar'kto's deep voice echoed from the loudspeaker.
Apparently, dialogue wouldn't work.
The door opened and suddenly Tiamat found himself in the darkness of outer space, his feet no longer seeming to be his own. He floated slowly in place. The xenomorph smiled, wiggling his feet as if in a game. It was funny.
Carefully, he crept along the ship's walls, clinging to the technological anatomy's protrusions. Truly, Tiamat felt almost nothing different outside the ship. Aside, of course, from an initial strangeness at being weightless and the intense cold even in orbit around an active black hole; it was bone-chilling, but he'd received worse treatment.
He soon spotted the defective sail and crawled to one of the high points of the ship where the hooks were located. Because the impact was gentle, the sail wasn't far from where it should have been. Slowly and carefully, he grasped one of the giant holes at the end where one of the many hooks should fit. He grabbed the hook with his tail and pulled himself up, then grasped the base of the hook, joining the two parts with some difficulty.
Tiamat did the same with all the others. One hook, however, was missing, probably torn off during the impact. He hesitated at first, but imagined that if the sails were too strong, celestial bodies could drag them aimlessly. In a way, the lack of this hook didn't matter, as the sails gradually turned blue. Tiamat's tail swayed slowly. He was happy that he had done something useful other than electronics maintenance.
With curiosity, the xenomorph crawled to the top of the ship; the light and uniqueness of the black hole bathed Tiamat. He slowly parted his lips and bared his teeth in an expressionless smile. The ability to witness such grandeur made him feel special. He squealed and tilted his head to the side.
Moments like this reminded him of the time he had been expelled from his colony. During those dark times, he stayed near the place, hoping to be accepted, but even he knew that would never happen. He remembers sitting in the treetops, tilting his head upwards, feeling the icy breeze of the wind and watching the stars, dreaming of one day traveling among them.
Slowly, the feet of Tiamat moved away from the ship. He didn't despair, he wasn't scared. He opened his arms, his tail slid slowly, almost motionless. It was like floating
in a black ocean with various white dots. The feeling of insignificance was simply delicious to him. And now that he had a family, why should he think about the past?
His reverie was interrupted when Kassar'kto pulled his rope.