DSF@bdf8b9948e4e59702002be621fa970a1
The two-hour resupply passed swiftly, and once again we soared away from the supply station, one spacecraft following the other. Before us lay the vast expanse of the outer solar system, and both 3137 and 4177 swiftly accelerated to a cruising speed of 700,000 kilometers per hour. Our home planet was now a distant memory, 500 million kilometers behind us.
Side by side, we would traverse the orbit of Saturn, with a distance of approximately 15 astronomical units separating Jupiter from Uranus. The journey would take around 130 days. Throughout this period, we would maintain real-time audio and video communication, until the time came for us to part ways and enter different gravitational slingshot orbits around Uranus, propelling us towards our respective regions within the Kuiper Belt. But for nearly 14 astronomical units, equivalent to 2.1 billion kilometers, we would fly alongside each other. The vastness of space-time becomes ever more apparent, with even light taking almost 2 hours to traverse this distance. Sometimes, the magnitude of such cosmic scales makes me feel as though we will remain side by side until the end of our lives...
At this stage of our journey, our home planet had already disappeared from view, hidden on the opposite side of the sun. While occasional signals from other exploration spacecraft reached us, they were too far from us. It was as if the sun acted as a barrier, separating two distinct worlds. On one side, there was the cold yet comforting realm of space that Ami and I inhabited, and on the other side, the bustling world of human civilization.
Through the signal relay of the Beacon I/II system, we still received greetings from Ami's mother, Mr. and Mrs. Bryan, who resided on the other side of the sun. Together, Ami and I would watch these videos, savoring the connection with our loved ones. In response, we would record joint video messages, which Mars would synthesize and transmit back to them.
During this period, alongside our preparations for the Kuiper Belt exploration, we found solace in music, movies, conversations, and even shared gaming experiences with our AI companions. We often sat by the window, gazing in each other's direction and contemplating the distant stars. I pointed out familiar stars like Vega and Alpha Centauri, recounting the story of my mother, my father, and the star Vega that held significance in my life. Ami, on the other hand, cherished the childhood memory of spotting Orion's Belt—three stars named Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka - adorn the winter midnight sky. She had once believed they were three close friends due to their neatly arranged alignment, only to later discover that they were separated by over 1,000 light-years of cosmic distance...
The several thousand kilometers between our spacecraft were a huge spatial gap on the home planet, but communication at the speed of light only took milliseconds, and this real-time communication based on it supported us and warmed us as we flew through this unmanned darkness.
In a dozen days, we will separate and enter the gravitational slingshot of Uranus. When I woke up from a rest, I heard the music chosen by Anguirus. I was familiar with the rhythm, but I didn't recognize it. I asked, "What song is this?"
Anguirus, Mars, and Ami almost simultaneously replied, "行かないで."
"Huh?" I was confused because they were all speaking Japanese...
Ami laughed and said, "This is 'Don't Go' by Koji Tamaki. You should have heard it." Then she began to hum along with the music:
"いつか心は いつか
遠いどこかで
みんな想い出になると
知らなくていいのに
知らなくていいのに
あー 行かないで 行かないで
どんなときでもはなさないで
あー 行かないで 行かないで
このままで
..........."
I remembered, this song was also adapted into Chinese as "Li Xianglan". After listening to Ami sing, I asked her, 'Ami, you're good at Chinese, English, and Japanese. How about you translate the original lyrics into Chinese?'
Ami thought for a moment and said, "Sure, I'll translate the part I just sang."
She lowered her head and pondered for a while before slowly speaking:
"彼时我心，终将远去，仅存回忆，宁可不听，宁可不知....
请不要走，无论何时，请勿别离...
请不要走，请不要走，愿此刻永存..."
---------------
Note:
The lyric of the specific part of the song in English:
"At that time, my heart would eventually drift away, leaving only memories, I would rather not hear, I would rather not know...
Please don't go, no matter when, please don't leave...
Please don't go, please don't go, may this moment last forever..."
YOU ARE READING
Star Rider
Science FictionAmi: "We may be in different worlds, but we share the same moon and stars." This is a sci-fi love story, dedicated to those people who had to depart... Can you still see the stars in the city's sky? Have you ever imagined that your imagination could...
