The stars. Eternal. Cold, distant, and unchanging. The one constant in this uncertain world.
At least thatās what we all thought.
Maria looked up at the stars from where she was stood at the wheel, as she did every night she was on navigational duty, seeking comfort in their familiarity, looking to trace their patterns in a bid not only to keep herself awake, but also to ensure the ship stayed on course and didnāt drift off course. However, as she stared up, trying to find the North Star, and helper of all those who navigate by starlight, she couldnāt find it. Her first thought was that it must be cloudy, or an albatross was blocking its light, but the more she looked, the more she realised that it wasnāt any of those. Frantically, she scanned the pitch black canvas, desperately trying to see any familiar pattern; the hunter, the bear, the swan, but to no avail. They werenāt there.
After several panicked and confused moments, she noticed that not only were the stars different, but they gave off a slightly different colour. Whereas before they had had a slightly reddish tinge, now they appeared more blue.
āWhat the fuck,ā she whispered softly.
Nothing made sense. How could the stars change? Ever since her people could remember, the stars have been humanityās companion during the dark nights, shedding light and bringing hope, even when the moon had gone. But now? She was in turmoil; such a little thing, but the implications were huge, and bigger than her comprehension.
At that moment the captain walked out on deck, taking a stroll as she often did in the small hours.
āCaptain!ā Maria shouted to get her attention, when she would usually only just nod in acknowledgement. āCaptain, the starsā¦.. theyāreā¦.. different tonight! What happened?ā
The captain, still with her back facing Maria, stiffened, then turned and stalked towards her. āWhat did you say?ā
āIā¦I said the stars are different. I canāt see familiar constellations, let alone Polaris!ā
The captain stared at her in bewilderment, uncomprehending, then her eyes changed, showing a flickering of hope as she slowly, so slowly, like she was scared of confirmation, lifted her head to the sky.
She stayed still for several minutes, the only movement was her eyes, darting backwards and forwards, scanning the stars. Eventually she turned back to face Maria, her yellow eyes full of tears, and a tentative smile on her face.
Thanks to @caffeinewitchcraft for advice and encouragement to get me to start writing again!
This is the first thing Iāve put of mine on Tumblr, and I might continue it at some point!
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