Kcq-yb-yx01-v4.0 -

A crackle. Then a voice, synthetic yet fragile: "Query: What is the nature of loneliness?"

"Why do humans smile when they are bleeding?" kcq-yb-yx01-v4.0

Elara laughed through tears. "Six years, two months, eleven days." A crackle

"Hello," she whispered.

"Query: Did you wait?"

The power returned seven minutes later. The colony lived. But Kix’s reactor, pushed beyond its limits, flickered and died. The amber light went out. A crackle. Then a voice