Galactiquest

The crunching of wet grass and leaves accompanied the trek between the trees. Mia tripped over a branch. After regaining her balance, she noticed green needles and a bulbous brown thing attached. Familiarity compelled her to pluck off the brown growth, a pine cone if she recalled correctly. It reminded her of ones painted in the nature book she often rented as a kid. Seeing one up close, moving its rough scales around in her hands, it rendered her dumbstruck. Did others feel this way when meeting celebrities?

“Hey.” called Jun, the actual celebrity she met. They might be on-par with the pine cone, but it did have needles attached. “You’ll wanna see this.”

Mia and her pine cone emerged from the trees into a gorgeous sight: Water spanning a couple blocks, rippling ever so gently. Pine trees as well as flat-leaved ones created a towering barrier around it. Bugs zipped through the air. Birds flittered between the trees. Though she and the others stood alone, life burst from every inch of the area.

She stepped up to the lake’s shore. Her reflection stared up at her. She couldn’t believe it; all this water, just sitting here. Naturally. “It’s beautiful.”

“Oh, my bad, I meant the sky.” Jun’s reflection pointed upward.

“The sky?”

Little evidence of the rain lingered in this part of the sky, with only a few white clouds scattered against the blue. Mia appreciated it, though she didn’t know why Jun took the time to point it out. Then, something caught her eye. Just under the sun, a patch of colors hung in the air.

Roxie gasped as soon as Mia laid eyes on it. “A rainbow!”

“Wow!” Emil’s footsteps approached. “Consider yourself lucky, Mia. You don’t get to see these everyday!”

Mia’s brain could hardly register that the rainbow wasn’t some kind of simulation. Its faintness and patchiness helped a little to prove its authenticity. Lunaria would never program a rainbow that could go unnoticed, but that’s what made this one so beautiful.

Her phone bracelet vibrated. She set the pine cone down and took it off to see a message from Emil, a picture of the same rainbow. ‘Look what we saw!’ it read, followed by a couple of rainbow emojis.

“I sent a picture to everyone.” Emil explained aloud. “It can’t hold up to the real thing, but I figured Mia would want a souvenir.”

He was right. The phone picture couldn’t capture its beauty, but something about the gesture made Mia’s heart well up with gratitude. Earlier, she worried that everyone would just gawk at her reactions for their own entertainment. Maybe they still were, but someone thought of her when taking this picture. Someone bothered to point out the rainbow to her. Someone suggested going to the lake so she wouldn’t miss it. For some reason, these people felt the need to do things for her sake. Her eyes teared up. How dramatic. She didn’t feel that emotional.

A splash cut through her thoughts.

“Mia!” Roxie called from further down the shore carrying a pile of rocks. “You should partake in the rock skipping experience!”

“I used to love rock skipping!” Emil rushed down to the shore to pick up some rocks. Jun strolled to the other side of the shore, between Mia and Roxie.

Mia picked up rocks to throw, but quickly found that she couldn’t part with them. How could she? As many rocks as there were on the Moon, she could never pick them up with her bare hands no matter how much she wanted to as a kid. These came with much smoother textures and colors other than black and white.

“Aren’t you gonna throw any?” Emil took notice.

“I don’t know. There’s so much variety in the rocks here. It’s nice to be able to touch them.” She watched Roxie and Jun’s rocks collide into each other. “My dad used to take me hiking back home. We’d pick up rocks, but couldn’t take them home. Moon dust is a big deal.”

“Ohhhh. You should take some with you! Maybe bring some back for your dad.”

Shoot. She knew she shouldn’t have brought him up. “Um, he’s not…”

He read the room. “Oh, sorry about that.”

“No, it’s fine!” Good. She didn’t have to go into specifics. “I’ll just keep the ones I like the most.”

Mia separated unique rocks from ones that looked similar to ones on the Moon, setting the former down by the pinecone. She threw one into the pond. It sunk immediately.

“You have to flick it like this.” Jun demonstrated.

Mia followed their lead. Her rock sent ripples through the water, skipping three or four times before finally sinking. She did it again. A smile grew with each little bounce and each little splash. How simple, throwing without thinking. No wonder Naila found this relaxing!

The others managed to send their rocks much farther, probably because they were willing to use the smoother rocks. But distance wasn’t her goal anyway. In fact, trying to throw harder exhausted her more.

A fish jumped out of the water and slapped one of Mia’s rocks with its tail. She jumped too, gasping, then laughing. “Um, whoops! I’d say that’s kind of rude, but I’m the one throwing rocks into its home. Sorry?”

“That fish parried your attack!” Roxie pointed.

“It’s swinging like it’s tryin’ to go pro.” Emil skipped a rock far into the water.

Jun whistled at it. “How are you, like, throwing those so far? Like what’s your trick?”

“Anger issues~” He winked. His expression grew calmer, tossing another rock. “Skipping rocks in the pond behind my grandparents’ house helped me calm down as a kid. But I had to find other ways since there’s no ponds in space. Just like there’s no ADHD meds in the IF…!” As Mia’s brother would say, his smile reeked of pain. “I like to think I’ve mellowed out, though.”

Mia couldn’t imagine revealing something so personal about herself, let alone around people she’d barely known for two months. She worried for him. Going by how the captain talked about his life earlier, she wondered if he did too.

“I didn’t know about the meds thing.” Jun tossed a rock and caught it. “Sounds kinda bogus.”

“Yeeeah.” Emil skipped another rock. “I can already hear my bro getting onto me for tellin’ you guys.” He waved his hands, feigning panic. “‘You can’t let them know your diagnosis, they’re gonna kill you, aaaaah!’”

“I wouldn’t murder you for having ADHD.” Roxie promised.

“Jail time’s not worth killing for. To me at least.” Mia moved her pine cone and rock hoard farther away from the shore. The back of her hand brushed against some grass. It felt surprisingly silky.

“I’m a pacifist, so murder’s kind of like against my whole thing.” Jun moved the same rock around in their hand. “The captain seems very–” They cut themself off. “Hey Mia, you want this rock?”

“Huh??” Mia didn’t register the question at first, too mortified at being caught petting grass like a weirdo. “Sure, thanks.” The change in conversation was abrupt, but she’d accept a free rock any day.

“You look like you’re really enjoying life. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this happy before.”

“Me either!” Emil added.

Their words took Mia by surprise. She couldn’t remember being this happy in a long time. Even then, most of her best memories were tainted, and being let down became so routine, she could only trust written words to bring her joy without disappointment. Sometimes those failed her too! Her books would always be there for her, but she didn’t know when she’d get the chance to experience this planet again, if ever. She should enjoy it. Nothing bad happened yet, so maybe she should let go of her fear, too.

“I knooow, it’s so cute!” Roxie gushed. “You should’ve seen her reaction to ants!”

Mia’s face grew red from all the attention. “Uhhh, I’m going to see about collecting more rocks.”

“Cool. What about leaves?” asked Jun.

“Leaves?”

“Yeah, I figured you might want some for the road.” Jun pointed toward a cluster of trees far away. “There should be some good ones over there.”

“I’ll go with you!” Roxie volunteered, running over to the trees.

Mia trailed behind. She didn’t want anything that would shrivel up on the ship, but she figured she’d check the leaves out. Over her shoulder, she caught Jun tapping Emil on the shoulder with the back of their hand.

“Hey, is your bro, like, okay?” They asked in a hushed tone. Mia could barely make out their recounting of the drive from the spaceport.

“Awww, that means he cares!” Emil practically yelled. His voice lowered after that. “All jokes aside, I’m glad he opened up,” he sounded unsure of that choice of words, “to you like that. He’s just doing what we were taught, but sometimes I’m worried…”

“Behold!” Roxie dropped some pine needles into Mia’s hands. They were braided.

Mia surveyed it. “You did this?”

“I did, and I challenge you to do the same!” Roxie placed an unbraided plug of pine needles into her hands.

“Me??” Mia couldn’t braid to save her life.

“It’s only a right of passage, my dear Wattson. We used to do this all the time as kids with the few trees in my town.”

“You didn’t have many trees like this?” She attempted to anyway.

Roxie shook her head. “Only wheat.”

“I’d like to see wheat someday.” Mia’s “braid” turned into a horrific knot. “There’s so much I haven’t seen before. I feel like an alien here.”

“Technically, you are one!”

Mia scratched at her hand. She hadn’t thought of it like that, but it made sense. “I guess I am. Wow. I must be the most boring alien alive!”

“Noooo!” Roxie denied.

“I got excited for pine cones.”

“That’s pretty neat! Not many people get excited about pine cones!” She tried so hard to make Mia sound interesting. It might not be true, but she appreciated the effort. “What other things do you notice with your Lunarian eyes?”

“It’s not something I can see, but,” the freckled girl took a deep breath, “the air here is really thick.”

“...Thick?”

“Is it because of all the trees?” She scratched her hand again. Did that spider bite her?

“What do you mean thick?”

“Heavy. If Lunarian air is like water, this would be a milkshake. A little harder to get through the straw, but way more delicious.” A black bird with a red belly darted through the air, catching her attention. “Is that a pigeon?” The taller girl found herself tearing up again, but didn’t know why.

“No.” Roxie corrected. “But I think we have more pressing matters to attend to here. Are you struggling to breathe?”

“I wouldn’t say it’s enough to be a struggle, but it is harder than usual.” A creeping suspicion told Mia that air shouldn’t be thick.

“Mia, you forgot my safety ti–” Roxie abruptly stopped, blinking. “Have you seen your hands lately?”

“No, why?”

Mia answered her own question as soon as she asked. Swollen red splotches covered both sides of both of her hands. Rolling up her sleeves revealed they went halfway up her forearms.

“Wh-What’s–” she coughed. “What’s going… on? I can’t…” No matter how she breathed, the air wouldn’t fit down her throat. She patted the base of her neck to signal it to Roxie.

“We’ll get help for you soon, okay?” Roxie turned toward the shore.

Emil still carried on a conversation with Jun. “I know they’re just worried, but sometimes it makes me feel–”

“Jun! Emil! Mia’s having a reaction to something!”

“The leaves?” asked Emil.

“Anaphylaxis!”

He sprinted over right away. Jun didn’t take much longer to join him.

“Jun, call 911!” Roxie ordered.

“Got it.”

“I should take her coat, right?” Emil looked to Roxie for advice. She nodded. He offered a hand toward Mia. “May I have your coat please?”

Mia did as told.

“Put that on the ground.” Roxie pointed in front of where Mia stood. Emil followed her direction. “Mia, do you have an autoinjector pen with you?”

She shook her head.

“Okay, now we’re going to lay you flat on the ground.” Roxie reached out for one of Mia’s arms. “Emil, help me out.”

Emil took her other arm, and before she knew it, she lay on the ground, on her back, looking up at the two of them, gasping for air. Not only was the situation terrifying, it felt wrong to be this helpless, having other people look after her like this. She always fixed her own problems!

“Just try to focus on breathing.” The older ranger smoothed out the coat beneath her, barely hiding fear. Mia had no idea what else Roxie thought she could focus on.

“And I know it’s scary, but try to stay calm.” Emil’s uncertain eyes stared back at Mia as she tried to figure out how to suffocate more calmly. “Don’t hyperventilate.”

Though some of their advice sounded obvious, they were the medics, not her. She focused on her breathing as Jun told the others something. She focused on her breathing when the ambulance put her on a gurney. She focused on her breathing when someone– Naila?–administered an oxygen mask. She focused, and focused, and focused until she found herself in a sterile hospital room, staring up at the ceiling.

At some point Mia’s breathing came back, she didn’t know when. She stayed conscious the entire time, but if someone asked her what happened in the past–she checked her phone–3 hours, she wouldn’t be able to say much. Somehow she lived, even if she came out of the ordeal with sniffles and sneezes.

A ship doctor without a ship came by to ask her some general medical questions. “Can you list for me any new substances you’ve come into contact with today, whether it be a food, fabric, farm animal, that kind of thing?”

The thought overwhelmed Mia. “Ummm, grass, rocks, a tree branch, mold? I don’t know if I can properly list them all; it’s my first time on Earth.”

The old man lifted his bushy grey eyebrows. “Excuse me miss, did you say your first time? On Earth?”

“I live in Lunaria.”

“And you never lived on Earth, never visited your entire life?” he asked as if Mia hadn’t specified earlier. She shook her head anyway. “You’ve heard of the Satellite Generation, right?”

Of course she did, she was part of it.

“Do you know why you’re called that?”

“Because we’re always on our phones…?”

He chuckled. “Because some of you will have spent all your lives on Lunaria or space stations. Still, I never thought I’d actually meet someone like you. It’s amazing how far technology has come!”

She smiled politely, not really sure what to add.

“Not to sound like the Satellite Reclamation Society,” his expression grew grim, “but there are health effects that come with this. We still have a lot to learn when it comes to Satellite Children your age. Your immune system might be accustomed to other people, but when it comes to most plants, animals, and airborne particles on Earth, it may take years for your immune system to adapt, if ever.”

“I understand.” Mia’s words lacked emotion, but her heart sank.

“Your presentation of symptoms lines up with an anaphylactic allergic reaction and allergic asthma, so I went ahead and prescribed you an injector and an inhaler.”

“Thank you, Doctor.” Her sadness turned to panic. “Uh, how much is the medical bill?”

The doctor laughed. “You’re an active duty star ranger at an IF hospital. All you have to pay for are meals.”

“I didn’t have any.”

“Then it’s free!” He lifted his hands. She breathed a sigh of relief. “And so are you. You’re free to discharge whenever you’d like.”

Arming herself with paper towels from the bathroom, Mia began the lengthy discharge process. She signed papers as she sniffled, got the prescriptions she needed, and some advice on how to avoid almost dying again. Everything went well until someone asked:

“And who will be picking you up?”

“...Um, excuse me. Can I, uh, contact someone?”

The staff member nodded.

Mia checked her phone notifications for the first time since arriving. A text from Roxie greeted her. ‘Let me know when you’re okay!!! <3’

She texted back. ‘I’m okay. I just finished getting discharged.’

‘YAAAAAAAAY!!!! \(>0<)/’ A startlingly fast reply. ‘We’re in the parking lot.’

‘I’ll meet you at the door.’

Just as she sent the last message, a voice called out to her.

“You’re… Mia, right?” A familiar receptionist stood behind her, wearing a backpack.

“Naila?”

Naila gave a heartfelt smile. “I’m so glad you’re okay! And I’m glad I was able to figure out where you guys were in time.”

“Me too!” Mia stifled a cough. “I know you said you owed me one, but… this wasn’t what I had in mind. But thanks! You’re a real lifesaver.”

“I don’t know what to say.” Naila looked down bashfully. “Well, I guess we’re even?”

“This seems a little beyond–”

“We’re even.” She decided. “So, is your crew here to pick you up? I see Roxie at the door.”

Just as she said, Roxie stood at the door, waving excitedly. Mia and Naila waved back. She entered, walking over to them as quickly as possible without running.

“Miaaaaaa!!” Roxie crushed Mia with a strong-armed hug. “Nailaaaaa!!” Naila was her next target. “Thank you thank you thank you for saving herrrr!”

“Just… doing… my job!” Naila choked out. Roxie let her go. “It’s a good thing I was able to figure out exactly where you’d be, but you should give yourself and your lieutenant a pat on the back! Good first aid really helps.” She took a step toward the desk where Mia came from. “Well, I’ll let you guys get going. Stay safe!”

“Goodbyeee!” Roxie returned her wave along with Mia.

“Thank you again…” Mia couldn’t figure out how to express her gratitude beyond those three small words. If only she could.

Just outside of the door, a truck waited for the two of them. The red one. Leon waved from its passenger window. It embarrassed Mia enough that Roxie and presumably the captain would have a front row seat to her hack and sneeze fest without him being there too. Still, she waved back. Roxie entered first, and just like the last time, helped her into it.

“Welcome back, Mia!” he blurted out.

The captain began driving. He wore glasses this time. “Welcome back, Ranger Wattson. Your recovery is most fortunate.”

“Thank you both.”

“Are you alright, Mia?” Leon sounded so concerned, she felt a little bad for him. “What happened?”

“I’m fine. Sick but alive.” Mia sniffled. “The doctor said I was pretty much allergic to everything. He said I could develop a tolerance over some years but… with how long I lived in Lunaria,” she tried to ignore the lump forming in her throat, “maybe never.”

“Oh, Mia…” Roxie brushed a hand against hers.

“Aww man, I’m really sorry.” Leon offered his pity.

“It is what it is.” The sick ranger told herself and the others.

Mia looked out the window toward trees she may never be able to touch again. More than anything, she felt foolish. This was what she got for letting herself get excited. Happiness always aged like milk; pretending an expiration date didn’t exist wouldn’t change that. What’s the use of buying it if it poisoned her in the end?

“I let the others know of your revival!” Roxie slid her phone into Mia’s view.

‘CONGRATULATIONS MIA!’ Emil wrote. ‘We’re so happy you’re okay!’ Both messages were surrounded by celebratory emojis.

‘rox, tell mia we’re so stoked for her!’ Jun broke out an exclamation point for this. ‘aiden says ‘cool.’’

“Tell them I said thanks.” Mia smiled, but kept her fondness to a minimum. These people wouldn’t be in her life for long. Even her friendship with Roxie would become stale if not spoil. She hoped it didn’t spoil.

Out of her window, she saw the entrance sign to Fort Stillman. They passed it, turning onto the road back to the city.

“We’re not staying on base?”

“No.” answered the captain. “The other lodging facilities were in a similar state as the one we visited. I figured that someone with your… health concerns would require more sterile accommodations.”

“Yeah, we’re at a hotel now!” Leon added. “It’s really nice!”

“And don’t worry,” Roxie assured her, “while we took turns staking out the hospital, I got your luggage!”

“Oh, th-thank you!” Mia tried to hide her mortification at Roxie going through her stuff. Sure, she was most comfortable with her doing it, but that didn’t translate to being comfortable at all. “Wait, sir, how did you know to get a hotel room?”

Captain Galhardo glanced back at her from the rearview mirror. “Ranger Wattson, you have my sincerest apologies. I should’ve anticipated something like this may happen. Only after the lieutenant informed me of your emergency did I realize it was horrifically irresponsible to expose you to so many foreign elements at once.” His eyes returned to the road. “I was born on a space station.”

“Really??” Leon found a new target to bombard with questions.

Roxie gasped. “You’re a satellite boy!”

“...Yes.” continued the captain. “I was told that when we moved to Earth, I became sick very often. It took a few years for my immune system to acclimate. By being born here, the lieutenant escaped the same issues. Ranger Wattson, have you had allergy shots administered to you as a child?”

“I’m not sure my mom kept up with that kind of thing.” Mia often wondered how her family survived before she was able to pick up the responsibilities.

“They train your immune system to deal with enemy attacks!” Roxie explained. “And they can really improve your chances of standing up to the elements. All with a lower chance of putting you in danger~ You should really look into them!”

‘Can’ wasn’t a guarantee, but Mia had to admit the shots caught her interest.

“Plus! I sent Emil to go get your rocks.” she continued. “They’re not as likely to give you an allergic reaction, but I washed them off at the hotel in case they were carrying dirt or pollen. And if you are still allergic, it should only affect your skin. You might be able to use them to build up tolerance.”

“Wow, I… thank you so much.” This might’ve been the nicest thing anyone’s ever done for Mia besides saving her life. “Thank you so much.”

“Mia, look! Your home!” Leon blurted. “You can see it from our side!”

Above the trees lining the highway, Mia saw it. A big, white, glowing circle hanging in the sky among the stars. It was beautiful, it was her home, and most importantly, enjoying it wouldn’t kill her. Despite everything that happened earlier, a part of her held out hope that nothing could ruin this moment.

She took a picture. Like the rainbow from earlier, pixels couldn’t capture its majesty, but that’s not what she needed right now. She needed something she could hold onto. People may leave, and nature may harm her, but the Moon would always be there.

Mia vowed she’d come back to see it again.