Mace and Zara's Journey to Tireless Hope

Zara was firm in her belief that the world was becoming a better place. She had always been this way, even as a child living close to the outer edges of Dhaka. The radiation from the war-ravaged and unshielded core of Earth had poisoned the atmosphere, causing an extinction event that had wiped out most life on Earth, including mankind. But Zara, with her father's blood running through her veins, had survived. As a child she had seen all of the things that had turned people so cruel and uncaring: famine, war, plagues, and genocide. By the time Zara was twelve she believed that humanity would someday be better than it is now.

Mace always thought otherwise. He grew up in an idyllic setting in a small town near the shores of Lake Michigan. His parents were loving and provided him with everything he could ever want or need. But this didn't stop him from seeing just how cruel humanity could be. Humans were so easily swayed by negative emotions such as greed and lust for power that they would do anything to have more than their neighbors. Mace knew that no matter how hard he tried to change someone's mind they would never see things his way and they would never change.

This is why Mace joined the Star Army of Humanity when he turned eighteen and got his license to pilot a starship; why he left his home and family behind to go out into uncharted space where he could be free from the stupidity of the masses. There he met Zara; a brave young woman who had traveled across the borders of two feuding planets alone in search for something better than what she could ever hope for in her homeland. And together they set off on a journey filled with exhilarating adventures: hunting down pirates, solving mysteries, getting into trouble with alien races throughout the known universe, and discovering new truths about themselves and each other along the way.

"So then we're going to find this 'key' you mentioned?" asked Zara. "How are we supposed to do that? Do you know where it is?"

"Well," said Mace as he looked down at his star map which displayed the location of every habitable planet in their current region of space, "it's somewhere around here." He pointed at a cluster of planets labeled *Unknown* because there was only one star system listed next to it: **Nameless System**. "It's right outside our galaxy."

"So then how are we supposed to get there?" asked Zara again, much more anxiously this time than before. "The only way I know how to get us there is by using my...um...my...my..."

"Inertial Dampener," said Mace as if he knew exactly what Zara was thinking but couldn't quite remember what she called it until now. "Yeah, I know." He put down his star map and walked over to Zara while putting his hands on her shoulders. "The thing is," he continued while looking her directly in her eyes, "I don't think we should go there yet."

Zara looked back at him confusedly asking why not? Why did they have to wait? They were so close now! She hadn't even started learning about how to use her Inertial Dampener, though it seemed like she had been practicing for weeks now! She wanted to learn how to use it so badly, but nothing happened whenever she turned it on! Was there something wrong with it? Or was there something wrong with her? Was there something wrong with them? And why did they have to wait?! What was going on?!

Mace broke eye contact first as he moved his hands away from Zara's shoulders and began explaining why they shouldn't go straight for the key at their current position in space right now, but instead loop back around into another area of space where they had visited many times before: **Nameless System**. He explained how valuable their time was; how they needed to get back home before they ran out of supplies or worse yet ran out of fuel for their ship's main engine which took forever to refill once empty (and sometimes didn't refill at all). He told her about how finding answers took time and effort; how poking around too much in some places might cause other people to find them (or vice versa). And worst of all: How danger lurked everywhere waiting for them wherever they went! Danger like pirate ships trying to steal all of their hard-earned money or worse yet kidnap them for ransom! Danger like fleet admirals trying to catch them doing whatever illegal thing they might've done! Danger like confronting dangerous alien races who didn't want them anywhere near them! Danger like...dying! Yes, that's right: If they stayed out too long without food or water or air or safety, then dying would happen for sure! So best not risk any unnecessary deaths if it wasn't completely necessary!