Thinking About The Stars

Due to Yume’s work, the mechanical Luminite has never been capable of exploring the space around her. She could only get close to the stars if her work demanded her to reach higher heights. Due to this, the most that she ever learned about the world that surrounds her little planet was through other’s retellings of their own adventures. 

Visitors aren’t frequent. Despite this, encountering another Luminite always brings a certain joy to the robot. Most only stay on her planet for a few hours, taking their much needed rest and taking this time to socialize with the caretaker of this place while they do. Everytime they  wanted to talk, she encouraged them to tell her about their life. People like talking about themselves, and she was the type who liked to hear about it.

Her favorite stories were always the ones where the speaker showed a clear fascination for the world. Sometimes, their descriptions were able to clearly illustrate the scenery to her. One of the worlds that were described to her made the machine overly curious about it. It was a planet submerged by snow, which experienced frequent ice storms, which would cover the branches and leaves of the flora that does manage to thrive in thick ice. Once, that ice was practically the same size as the traveler’s paw. The birds there would sing a gentle melody that intertwined with the flowing winds, and scattered footprints could be found on the snow below you. The ice almost never broke under your weight, and the fish you could catch could sometimes be as large as you. Their exterior would often be rigid, but once you were able to break through it, it would be soft and fill you with incomparable warmth. The sun would barely ever set, but when it did, auroras would fill the sky, painting it with beautiful colors and patterns. 

That planet was entirely different from her own. Hers always remained the same comfortable temperature, and it was a never ending night, and the plants lit up the place with their gentle bioluminescence. Not many of those she visited the dreams of ever had something as cold and beautiful as what the traveler described to her, so she could only hope that one day, one of them did. 

Next on the list were those who primarily witnessed the worst of the planets and galaxies they visited. They saw planets that appeared to be rotting from the sheer pollution and mistreatment from those who lived within it, and yet the inhabitants just didn’t care enough to try and change things. Although, it’s not like what they did to their world was even reversible. The world was quiet aside from the repeated noises that the machines would make, clanking and scratching away at what was left of the land. The rivers nearly had run dry, and animals would never allow themselves to be seen by anyone out of fear of what could happen. The factories would whistle loudly throughout the night, leaving not a single soul a chance to sleep unless they were privileged enough. The hands of the workers would be battered, their eyes lifeless as they repeated the same motions they did every day and night. Some barely were even capable of staying awake at their station, others’ bodies shook from their exhaustion. Focusing was a difficult task. Masks would be worn almost no matter where you were on this planet, as the air was overly polluted from their endless work. There, you worked to live, but living had no meaning unless you were privileged. The lower class could only hope to be able to make enough money to help their children live a better life than their own, but most of what they were capable of making barely was enough to pay for food and rent. In the land of the upper class, everything was fake. The trees and plants were made out of plastic, and the smiles on the people’s faces were clearly forced. Nobody seemed to be truly happy there, but then again, they might have just been annoyed by your presence. Everyone and everything was miserable there.

That place seemed like a living nightmare to Yume. She had previously seen dreams as depressive as that world’s, but that only came from the dreamer’s desperation from how difficult the world can be to live in. Even then, she typically was able to help the dreamer and restore things, make them better, but in that world… it would be impossible. The idea of suggesting any change probably would be enough to make a crowd laugh at you.

Lastly, there were those who could both see the bad and the good within planets. Few were able to tell her about sides of things, due to the fact that, often, one side seems to outweigh the other. Thanks to travelers such as these, she was able to learn about beautiful yet incredibly dangerous planets. The land of one was practically comparable to a maze, where you would need to squeeze your body in tight areas just to get from one area to the next. Some places within that planet would be incredibly open and show you beautiful sights like none other, but would put you in severe risk of a bird-like creature swooping down and making you their meal. Terrifying roars and screams of distress could be heard throughout the nights, sure to give you nightmares of just what might be the cause of all this noise. The land held beautiful ruins from past civilizations, and most were now guarded by grotesque monsters that likely caused their downfall. Some would be massive and imposing while other creatures would be tiny and deadly, sure to sneak up on you when you least expect it. While that planet was a difficult one to survive in, the beauty of it and the adrenaline it filled you with always left travelers wanting more, wanting to dig deeper into the secrets that it holds and hides away from visitors.

With so many worlds  there were countless possibilities. Sometimes, these stories would creep back into Yume’s mind, leaving her to wonder just what else there could be. Could there be planets similar to her own? If so, how were the dreamers? How does the gardener take care of them? Questions like there would end up swarming her mind, leaving her with what she could only describe as a headache.

Still, the world was so much bigger than she thought, and she wished that she could one day be able to see it for herself.