Chapter Text
The last thing Simon remembered before everything went black, was blood pouring into his lungs. The monster was crawling it’s way into his skin, warping his flesh into it’s horrifying design…
Then nothing. The voices ceased, the smell of iron and rot dissipated, and all that was left was a hazy darkness. Like waking up from a dream. God, he hoped this had just been some fucked up dream.
The next thing he felt was cold. Freezing cold down to his marrow. Such a terrible, overwhelming feeling of cold he could only have been in the middle of space, no suit or ship to shield him.
But that, too, faded into nothingness. He felt formless, weightless, lifeless.
Was this the purgatory he was cursed to spend eternity in? The more he thought about it, the better it sounded. No pain, no hunger, and most importantly, no blood. He could get used to-
Wait.
‘Hull pressure warning.’
What?
Then everything came barrelling in all at once.
-
‘Grace okay, question?’ Came Rocky’s voice through the comms. Ryland Grace heaved a sigh, every muscle in his body contracted so as to not lose the collection device in his arm- or his life.
“Well, I’m not dead, so yes.” He replied, heart hammering in his chest. As quickly as he could without falling, Grace made his way to the airlock. He was just about to close it when he saw something barrelling out of the sky. It looked like it had come out of nowhere, but it wasn’t on fire despite how high up they were.
‘Grace what that? Falling from sky.’ Grace squinted, trying to get a better look at it.
“Oh my god- is that a person?” He asked, horrified at the image of Icarus with wings of blood making his descent.
‘Human Grace. Human falling have human heartbeat.’ Rocky chirped, adding to Grace’s growing disbelief.
“What do you mean heartbeat?!” He yelled, finally breaking out of his stupor and shutting the airlock. The collection device almost forgot about, Grace scrambled to get to the cockpit.
He burst in, head full of falling people and the teeth-grating sound emanating from all around them.
“Where is that noise coming from?” He asked, doing his best to buckle into the captain’s seat.
‘Noise is from all around. It’s loudest at port side of bedroom.’ Rocky answered, and- if it was even possible- made Grace’s stomach sink even lower. They only had a matter of seconds to decide what to do, but Grace couldn’t take his eyes off the figure.
“The gravity’s tearing the ship apart.” He breathed, taking the controls and diving towards the figure.
‘Grace what doing question. Need to leave. Ship break, Grace Rocky die.’ He didn’t know it was possible for a computer to have inflections, but Grace could hear the panic in his friend’s voice as he opened the airlock and turned the ship sideways, fully intent on catching the person.
They slammed into the ship, sending the whole thing clattering with impact.
“Now we leave.” Grace said, closing the airlock with a frantic fist down on the button and powering the engine.
‘Hull pressure warning’
-
A blinding pain flooded his system as disorientation gripped him. He felt like he was in the midst of a solar storm with how much the cold floor beneath him was shaking.
He only opened his eyes for a moment- white light assaulted his vision and followed him behind tightly re-sealed lids.
Had the COI really delivered their promise? Was he back on the ship? He was certainly on a ship, he knew that. The hum and whir of machines and circulated air was as familiar to him as breathing.
Not long after, the shaking finally stopped and everything stilled.
It remained so for what felt like an eternity, before he felt something grab the collar of his sweater. He hadn’t heard anyone walk in- though that might have been due to the persistent ringing in his ears that he hadn’t even realised was there until now.
He wanted to move, to fight, to stop the thing dragging him and taking him to whatever it had in store, but he couldn’t. There was too much pain, too much residual numbness. Which was weird now that he thought about it. Almost every part of his body was practically on fire, save for his left arm. Maybe it had been saved from the torment?
No; he could feel something in his head, almost like a memory trying to pop up, but he couldn’t push past the barrier. It was probably just the last of the shock.
The light subsided and he embraced unconsciousness once more.
-
The next time he woke, the pain was more hazy and warm. He was fairly sure this wasn’t a hallucination- he hadn’t felt anything in those, but he still had to be careful.
He tentatively tried to open his eyes once more.
‘Eye movement detected’
What the-
He blinked a few times in an effort to clear his vision. Above him was a white mechanical arm coming down from the ceiling, sliver claws extending towards him.
Simon’s heart shot up, adrenaline re-fueling as he remembered tales of the COI’s “extraction” process. He tried scrambling up but tumbled sideways off the bed as he failed to stabilise himself.
The ripping of IVs was just another thing he vaguely registered as he collided with the metal floor. His shoulder took the brunt of the fall and it pounded as he looked around, confused as to why he’d fell.
It wasn’t what he saw that made him freeze- it was more so what he didn’t see; his arm. Most of his left arm was completely gone, what was there stopped at about the midway point of his bicep and was wrapped with the cleanest looking bandages he’d ever seen.
“Oh my god! Are you okay?” Said a voice from the opposite end of the room. Simon’s head snapped towards it with such force he might have given himself whiplash.
His mouth formed into a snarl that felt wrong, almost too wide. Using his- now only- arm, he crawled into the nearest corner like a feral animal, all senses in hyperdrive.
“Woah, sorry! I didn’t mean to startle you!” Into his vision appeared the softest man he had ever seen, his hands partially in the air and an embarrassed look on his face.
Simon didn’t know what this was, but whatever tricks they thought they could play on him wouldn’t work.
He practically hissed as the man took another step forward.
“Okay, okay I won’t come closer.” He said, stopping in his tracks.
He looked… almost awkward. It wasn’t something Simon was used to seeing so it took him a second to place but yes, awkward. The man was wearing a knit cardigan with some type of animal on it, and his hair looked a mess- like he had repeatedly run his fingers through it.
Everything about him oozed non threatening- and that’s what had him on guard the most. Who knew what he was capable of, especially since he was COI.
“I’m, um- I mean, my name’s Ryland Grace, but everyone just calls me Grace- or, I suppose they did.” He says, frowning to himself about something at that last part. What the hell did he mean by that?? Maybe the COI had actually delivered on their promise of getting him out…
‘Don’t be stupid Simon.’ His mind echoed. ‘Why would they ever free you? You’re a fucking monster, they literally sent you down there to die.’
“What’s- uh- what’s your name?” The blonde asked, faux look of innocence still plastered on his handsome face. Simon barked out a humorless laugh.
“Even you guys don’t know my name? I did it! I got the fucking blackbox! I saved all your asses and you still don’t know my fucking name?!” He slammed the side of his fist into the wall beside him and, to his utter shock, dented the metal.
“W-what..?” Grace stared, eyes wide and locked onto the spot Simon had just hit.
“Don’t. Just- can you just stop lying. Please. I’m so tired I can’t- I just can’t.” He deflated, sinking even more into the harsh corner of whatever room he had woken up in.
“I’m sorry- I don’t know what you’re talking about. We just found- you were falling out of the sky man! Like,” He made a noise of disbelief. “Falling! Like a meteor!”
Simon’s vision tunneled. Surely not… He had to be lying. He had to. Yet there was still something in the back of his mind disagreeing. ‘Look at all the evidence,’ it said. This guy was the exact opposite of everything the COI was. Even just his eyes were more open and expressive than anyone he had ever met before. The longer he stared at Grace, the more his defenses started coming down. Was he really free?
It was all too much. One moment he was the COI’s lamb, drowning in the blood of his own sacrifice, then the next he was apparently falling out of the sky? He couldn’t wrap his head around it. Simon couldn’t help the sob that escaped him.
“Where am I?” He pathetically demanded, the bite all but gone from his words. There was a too-long silence before the only other person in the room responded.
“Oh! Um, you were talking to me- well you’re on my ship the Hail Mary, we’re orbiting a star called Tau Ceti.” Simon scoffed. What the hell was going on?
“A star? How stupid do you think I am?” His legs shook with the strength it took for him to stand up, bloodstain following his body as it slid up the wall. Grace looked baffled.
“What? I don’t- I’m so confused.” He ran a hand over his angular face, disturbing the already precariously perched glasses on his face. If he was going to get answers, it sure as hell wasn’t going to be from this guy, Simon decided. He took a tentative step forward, doing his best to ignore the sharp pain that shot up his leg. He went to shift his weight but he miscalculated how injured he actually was as his leg immediately gave out.
Just as he was about to hit the ground he saw a blur of color, and suddenly he was in the arms of the man he was just trying to get away from.
The man who was staring. At him.
It wasn’t a bad stare, he just looked sort of curious. Still, it made Simon’s skin itch. To be perceived was not something he was used to. The places where their skin connected was starting to burn. Why wasn’t he letting go?
Simon did his best to wiggle out of Grace’s grasp which must’ve broken him from whatever trance he was in. He quickly stood up, looking sheepish.
“Come on, let’s get you back to bed. Even with all the painkillers I gave you, you must still be in pain.” He stuck his hand out, soft fingers just a foot away from Simon.
“Painkillers?” He stalled, looking up in dawning horror. Grace’s smile flickered into confusion, then panic.
“Oh gosh, you’re not allergic are you? I gave you some morphine a while ago and there haven't been any signs of allergic-” He rambled on but Simon interrupted him halfway through.
“Why would you waste your painkillers on me?” He asked, the self-defiling voice beating the inside of his skull screamed ‘unworthy’.
“Waste? It’s not a waste- it’s- your arm was literally torn off!” He looked at him in disbelief, arms flying in the air and pointing to his stump, dumbfounded. Simon scowled.
“So? That doesn't mean that someone else isn't going to need them more…” He trailed off, frustrated that precious resources were thrown away without a second thought.
“Buddy, there is no one else; and even if there was, it doesn't matter! We’ve got so many supplies on this ship.” Grace then knelt down so that they were more eye level, a suddenly serious look on his face.
“You’re not a waste of resources.” He then stood up, not giving Simon enough time to truly process his words.