Simon Seville walks determinedly across the bridge of his spacecraft, preparing a few last minute cross checks with the craft's computer main frame. The soothing Artificial Intelligence he developed specifically for this mission. He calls her All-Mother and as she's programmed to do, she does not take the task of protecting Simon lightly. There is not a moment where his vital signs aren't monitored as well as the changes of atmosphere around the ship, Navigating precisely where they need to go for various reasons.
Most importantly All-Mother will be able to all of this and more from the comfort of a mobile apparatus; A suit crafted by Simon to take him beyond that of the known universe and directly into the blazing sapphire light known to him as the keywork. His ship, "The Netta" , named after his beloved wife Jeanette, is too fragile to traipse into The Keywork's energy . and like its namesake will remain a safe distance behind. Not that this is the decision Simon would have made for his wife. In his final moments at home on earth, he pleaded her to join him on this journey into the unknown "It will be our lives' greatest adventure!" he assured her. Yet, the only thing she would consider was the possibility of something going wrong… of being forced to watch as her husband was hurt or lost or worse. Instead she had begged him to call off the entire endeavor, to remain home with her and turn his research toward more reasonable avenues. Staying home however, was never a real option for Simon. This exploration was the thing he was born to do. For as long as he can remember, he's felt a magnetic pull toward the stars and what lay beyond. The glowing beams that began to surface over the night sky as their childhoods came to an end. Like an all-encompassing question it was the very reason he became a scientist, thrusting himself into breaking down all the current and accepted theories about small interplanetary gravitational fields. Along with developing seemingly far-fetched hypothesis of his own, Simon disproved research which others in the scientific community had spent their lives pursuing, making him one of the most controversial researchers of all time. But this is how he thrived most efficiently when left to his own devices and without others consuming his mental energy with their own theories and needs; he had always felt most productive, most comfortable.
The one excepting to this was Jeannette, who once had been a driving force in his life since the day they met over a decade before now,. She had always been his biggest fan and the person who understood his brilliance long before anyone else could. Yet now she had refused to join him, Though he hadn't had time yet to allow the seriousness of their last argument to sink in, the idea that she just may not be waiting for him when he returns has begun to creep into his psyche. It was less than thirteen months ago that he had –after sleepless nights turned into sleepless months and then years—at last found the missing piece. It had been staring at him all along. A Star, seemingly planted in the middle of a portion of The Keywork, it's emission calculations elevated ever so slightly giving away its location. Then, he found another like a needle in a haystack of energy. He used the distance between these two to approximate, where others may lie, finding a total of seven. Seven perfect stars serving as points to connect the beams of blue light. They have since been named "The Stars of Simon" concluding that the structure had served to hold all of the planets in position and quite possibly, provide the worlds with the essential mineral and chemical elements each needed to sustain life. Simon believed he could unlock all of the secrets of life, His Keywork. The Scientific community however did not support this theory. In fact they still don't even at this moment as, Simon suited up, striding through the fog that tends to accumulate in the bottom portion of the aircraft, earning it the nickname of The Hollow. Every day of his existence has been building up to this moment, but for the first time, the reality of the potential consequences rise up within his mind as heavy as the bay door that stands between him and the unknown. He wonders if this could be his final breath. There's a chance he won't last more than an instant out there, incinerating the second he comes into contact with the energy. For the first time, the familiar system he's spent a lifetime discerning seems alarmingly alien, but even so, the allure of the unknown is far more persuasive than fear. And So he continues on. The bay door opens letting in free-flowing gas which mixes with the fog. Which sparks memories of walking into a storm His steps are synchronized with the robotic song of All-Mother's voice in his ear, setting his course into the gaseous indigo that may welcome him with open arms…or gnashing teeth.
"All-Mother, Are You Awake?"
"I Am always Awake, What do you require of me?"
"You'll stay with me won't you?"…
"I'll be there Every Step of The Way"
He lets out a sigh"Away We Go"
"it's Incredible " Simon Can't help but say aloud into his helmet. , as he floats about in the wondrous blue, noting the shades shifting and swirling from navy to the lightest aquamarine . he fumbles for a suction container from a compartment in his suit, to begin collecting samples. He considers whether the color changes are the result of energy shifts- possible the molecules circulating to maintain equilibrium ; then he does something completely new to him, Simon puts the container back and allows himself a few profound moments of enjoyment, he is the very first person to have been to this place the first person to ever question the information known to be true about the haze, though it had surrounded every world the same since the beginning of it's existence, planets filled with beings who accepted what they'd been told about the blue without hesitation. But not Simon.
A sense of accomplishment rushes through him. Pure adrenaline. The persecution by his scientist peers seems worth it now that he is here. Then…something…
Simon is Bewildered, as from out of the silence, tiny scattered noises begin to fill the space around him, leaking into his helmet.
The eerie whispers grow, louder still, they sneak into his consciousness, as the glow of the keywork begins to pulse and move, ever so subtly, like a million maggots weaving within it. The haze shifts from transparent to translucent. The Micro-movements strengthen, gaining more definition until Simon can make out human shapes and heads squirming to get out, as if an endless sheer blue veil was pulled taut over them and they can't seem to escape. All-Mother cannot identify the composition of what they are seeing through scientific classification of any sort. She scans all of her databases and comes up with over a hundred words borrowed from every dialect known to her, and though Simon cannot make sense of it. The words all have nearly the same translation: Souls
Without warning one entity forcefully makes its way through the mass of spirits pushing them all aside with pure muscle. This is the soul of domino, who bursts forth into Simon overcoming and possessing him, His essence churning through every organic fiber in his body. He struggles desperately for control
"I am unable to process your brainwave function Simon. Troubleshooting now" drones All-Mother. But Simon cannot respond, he cannot move to check whether the electrodes at the base of his skull have come loose. He is with Domino viewing him through the eyes of an audience. He is Domino, sharing the apparition's every emotion, the most intense of these being the feeling of complete hopelessness. Simon's possession by the entity gives him dual perspective, a perfectly clear view of the impact of another person's choices in life, juxtaposed with the reasons and traits that drove the choices in the first place. Domino hasn't learned much in his afterlife and feels that this new inhabitant. Could be a conduit to return to the world of the living.