The news stunned me.
A spaceship? Crew members you knew? For months, I have given up on any possibility of returning to Earth. I had already resigned myself to the idea of belonging to this new dimension that had received me with so much hospitality, that I decided to return to my old life.
My thoughts were immersed in an endless whirlpool, causing me to begin reliving memories of my crew and everything I left behind.
"Where are they?" I asked, getting up from the ground immediately and leaving the sword aside so as not to carry it with me and thus not scare them.
The Ixorian, named Kathar, looked at me with that calm that made him so typical of his species.
"We've taken them to the main dome, Harper. They… seem… restless. They say it is urgent to talk to you."
Without waiting or asking another question, I picked up my newly repaired sword again and headed towards the dome with Kathar's company.
My mind was struggling to process the implications of what was happening.
If someone had come for me, it meant that the people on earth had not forgotten me. But why now? Why after so much time have they decided to come for me?
Upon reaching the main dome, I met four human figures. Three men and a woman, all of them, came dressed in space suits that I instantly recognized: they were from the Aurora Horizon.
One of them, I remembered perfectly who he was; Commander Rourke saw me enter and smiled with relief, as if he was waiting for his rescue mission to not be in vain in knowing that I was the person they were looking for to return to earth.
"Harper," the commander said, his voice echoing in the silence of the dome. "You don't know how good it is to see you alive."
"Rourke…" I could barely speak because my throat choked with the mixture of my emotions. "How did they find me? What is happening?"
But before Rourke could respond, Jade, the navigation officer, rushed towards me, surprising me with a warm hug that at first I didn't want to reciprocate, but after I reacted, I did, because I had already forgotten what it was like to feel a hug like that from a human.
We separated, and Jade and I looked into each other's eyes, I thought I had forgotten the love I have for her, that I had surpassed her over the years in this new world that now welcomed me, but that was not the case.
Jade's beauty and her pure heart continued to hypnotize me since the first time we met.
"Daniel… You have no idea how much time we spent looking for you. "We built a new ship, and we started a new mission to rescue you, because we really need you," she said, her eyes looking at me as if they were dull, desperate for me to return to them.
"But, what is happening?" I asked again, the intrigue was killing me.
Rourke took a step forward.
He seemed to have more information than the other crew members.
"We don't have much time. The earth is in danger, Daniel. An alien invasion. We lost contact with you months ago, but when we contacted your signal in Ixora, we knew we had to come for you. "You are one of the few who knows the tactics that could give us a chance to survive."
The mention of the invasion made my blood run cold. How was it possible that now they wanted to take over the land too? Have they run out of more galactic worlds to defeat?
"An unknown force," Jade interjected. "They are not like the Ixorians. These other aliens do not seek to coexist; They are devastating everything in their path. Earth's defenses are falling, Harper. "We were sent to find you because only you can help us."
Thousands of unclear thoughts fluttered through my head.
If the earth was on the brink of extinction, could I abandon everything in Ixora to return to help them?
For months, maybe years, I had built something here: a community, a hope for this abandoned planet where its inhabitants didn't know what else to do to rescue it. But now, the land that was my home, needed me. And if humanity fell, it would not matter what he accomplished on Ixora.
The danger would not stop at a single pose.
When the enemies finish off the earth, they will probably have more planets and other dimensions under their radar to go after.
"Harper," Rourke insisted. "The Ixorians are not out of the woods either. If the invaders get here, this planet will be devastated, even if they have done it once, they will not rest until they destroy them all. But if you come with us, we can find a way to stop them before it's too late."
Kathar watched me with concern and interest from a distance. He knew very well that although they had made me part of their family, I did not belong here. However, my home, my parent, and my race were in danger of extinction, and I could not allow that to happen.
However, in Kathar's eyes, I could see that there was more acceptance than reproach on her part at the idea of my departure.
"First, I have to talk to my people before making a decision," I replied firmly. "I can't leave them to their fate, in this time that they took me in, I became their leader, and I have to make sure that if I leave with you, well, I have to make sure that they will be fine without me."
The crew accepted.
"Of course. But hurry, we don't have time to waste," Jade replied.
I nodded.
I feel like my heart is divided into two parts: one part was aware of the love I felt for Ixora, but the other part was also sure that I had to return to earth, I could not abandon my loved ones.
I moved far enough away from the crew that they wouldn't have a chance to intrude on my conversation with Kathar. With time and concurrent treatment, Kathar became my best ally, my right hand, you could even say that now he was like my brother from another race, from another mother whom I never had the pleasure of knowing regardless of the difference of races.
"Kathar, I want you to know that even though I have to return to Earth, you have become my family, and once I can finish off the enemy that stalks us, I will return to you, I will not abandon you," I started talking to Kathar, her eyes looked at me with patience and understanding.
"Yes, we know that. Don't worry about us, we have learned a lot about you since your arrival in our world. "You have been very helpful, we will survive while you are not here." He responded confidently.
I smiled, but not because I was satisfied with his words, but because a great idea had occurred to me, one that I am sure he couldn't refuse.
.