[ MP ] A short story to go with this music .

I was afraid. 
 
 They had told me about the risk. They had warned me about the sacrifice. I knew what they were asking of me, and I went anyways. 
 
 My daughter wept when I left. My son was silent for days. They asked when I would be coming home. They asked me what I was leaving for. They asked me why I would leave them alone when their world was collapsing around them. I wept when I could only respond with silence. 
 
 I looked over at my second in command strapped into her chair beside me. She was sweating and her breathing was uneven. Her eyes held the same fear that gripped me. The blackness outside was overwhelming—each second we traveled further into space felt like a second closer to death. 
 
 I clenched the sides of my chair as my vision became distorted. We were traveling into a wormhole. It loomed in front of us, a maelstrom of stars and matter swirling in the distorted darkness. I felt my consciousness fade as my heart beat through my chest. The cabin folded around us as the bonds of reality collapsed. 
 
 Through the cold silence, a familiar voice came over the intercom. I remembered the words from a poem I had heard long ago. 
 
 “ Though my soul may set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light; I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night. ” 
 
 As we slipped into the void, my fear trembled, then softened to a whisper of doubt. 

