Luna and I practically raced towards the bridge, so much so that we almost ran straight into a bunch of marines who were just having their coffee break.

“That coffee looked very hot. I’m happy we didn’t get that over us.” I laughed as I turned the next corner.

“Is that in any way, shape, or form something to laugh about?” Luna asked while she tried to keep up behind me.

“Absolutely not, but I tend to laugh when I’m nervous.” I chuckled back and skidded to a halt in front of the bridge’s door. They had momentarily locked the bridge down as a measure to keep any unwanted information from getting out and to the rest of the crew. Luckily, the marines that were stationed at the bridge at the time all were in on the plan, as they were going to be part of the team that would accompany the Dokazuuk down to the planetary surface if we were to find a suitable one.

They saluted us and opened the door with the console so we could walk through. Zu was excitedly explaining something to some other officers at Luna and I’s station.

“Commander!” Zu exclaimed. “Look at this!” She ran over to Luna and me and showed her holostick to us. Making it bigger so it would be easier to see. “This is the planet that I just picked up in our scanner.”

“You picked it up?” I asked.

“Yes, Commander.” Ellie spoke through the intercoms.

“I was experimenting with some of our scanning sensors when it popped up right in the middle of my screen. It was as if the planet wasn’t there to begin with until I changed it to these specific parameters.”

“You are one-hundred percent sure that the planet is actually there, right? You didn’t somehow mess up the entire system.”

“No, Commander. I confirmed Lieutenant Zu’s find.” Ellie said. “For some reason that we currently have not figured out yet, it’s almost undetectable with optical scanners and our other equipment failed to notice it as well. But once you know what to look for, it is, in fact, there.”

“That sounds rather strange? Doesn’t it?” Luna commented. “I’ve never heard of anything like this happening.”

“I got to agree, that sounds like trouble to me.” I nodded.

“I get your point, Commander, I do. But just look at this planet.” Zu directed us back to the image rather than our objections. “For all intents and purposes, this is the perfect planet. Our scans with the new settings indicate incredibly high livability scores for both us Humans as for the Dokazuuk. It is a relatively small world, but that’s still about 90% of Earth’s size.”

“A perfect planet…”

“Planets like these have been theorized by astrobiologists and have been named as so-called ‘Gaia planets.’” Ellie explained. “They are seen as worlds where every kind of alien biological life could prosper.”

“So, because Zu was messing about with our scanners, she just so happened to find a hidden world which incidentally would also perfectly suit both ours as our allies’ needs?” I repeated just to make sure I got everything lined up and I wasn’t imagining things.

“So it would seem, Commander.” Ellie replied. “While caution is definitely warranted, I think it would be best to go and inspect this planet more closely. It might be the only opportunity we get to execute our plan to save our Dokazuuk allies.

I looked at Luna, she seemed as unsure about this as I was feeling at the moment, yet it is also true what Ellie said, we’d relatively soon be back in the solar system, getting another opportunity like this is very unlikely. I looked back at the bridge crew, who were all looking at me expectantly.

“Alright.” I said. “Zu, how far is this planet from our current location?”

“Three days of jumping at most, Commander.” Zu saluted with a smile on her face.

“Okay, I want our sensors on that planet constantly from now on. Try to gather as much information as you possibly can and scan the surrounding systems to be sure as well.” I looked up at the ceiling. “Ellie, if you would, please alert everyone who is part of the plan that we may have found a planet that suits our needs. Let everyone quietly make ready, if it is indeed something we can go for, I want the plan to be executed immediately.”

“Yes, Commander.” Ellie responded.

Last, but not least, I directed myself to the rest of the bridge crew. “I know this is very exciting, but please, everyone, do try to get enough rest. There’s a possibility things will go awry and I want everyone in tiptop shape if it does. Furthermore, also be prepared that this might not be the answer to our problems, so keep in mind that disappointment is also a distinct possibility. That does not mean, however, that we can’t be cautiously optimistic. It just doesn’t hurt being prepared for the worst.”

“Aye aye, Commander.” One of the marines who was standing next to us saluted me. The rest of the bridge crew soon followed.

“Good. Don’t forget to keep your lips tight about our plans. As such, the LC and I will retire back to our chambers to avoid rousing any further suspicion. If anyone asks while we ran over here in a hurry, just tell them we have discovered a habitable planet in a location you didn’t expect.” I then looked back at Lieutenant Zu. “Lieutenant, you know what to do?”

“Setting course to the planet now, Commander.” She nodded and got to work on her station.

“Good job everyone.” I spoke to the entire bridge before I gave a nod to Luna, signaling that we should return to the cabin now. We left the bridge in silence.

The entire way back, we didn’t say anything to one another, not necessarily because we didn’t want to, but because we couldn’t. It was only when we arrived back at my cabin and I’d made sure Ellie was outside that Luna and I could start speaking to each other again.

“I don’t know about this, Com… Lauren…” Luna shook her head. She seemed uneasy.

“I suppose you are speaking about the Gaia planet?”

“Yes… it’s just… I don’t know…”

“I wanted to ask you about that.” I threw my beret back on the bed and then sat down next to it. “Have you ever heard about those kinds of planets before?”

“Not under that name, but the concept is something The Conglomerate has also studied.”

“Have they ever found any?”

“Saying they have found any is a wrong choice of words. The planet from which the Conglomerate originated is one.”

“Oh… So they do exist.”

Luna sat down on a chair next to our dinner table. “They exist. Yes… But they are so exceedingly rare... So much so that the planet we have just discovered would be the second one I know of.”

“Which means that in presumably thousands of years of exploration, the Conglomerate has never encountered one of those planets before?”

“Yes. Pretty much.” Luna nodded. “And this ship just stumbled on one right when it needed it most… that’s just… It’s very hard for my brain to comprehend…”

“I can definitely understand that. It just seems surreal, doesn’t it?” I nodded back at her. “But at the same time, we can’t let this opportunity pass us by.”

“I do agree on that as well.” Luna said. “It would be stupid not to take the shot… But I just have a very bad gut feeling about this.”

I nodded once more. “And that’s exactly why we should be taking every precaution we can.”

“Hmmm… well… if there’s anyone who can bring this to a good conclusion, it’s you.”

That brought a smile to my face. “Wow, I’m really happy you have this much faith in me.”

Luna stood up from her seat and walked over to me. Crawling on top of my lap so she could stare straight into my eyes. “How could I not? We’ve made it this far because of you, haven’t we?”

“Well, that wasn’t a solo effort, you know?” I laughed and crossed my arms behind her back.

“Still though. Everyone on this ship looks up to you, and rightfully so. You always know what to say and when to say it to make everyone do what they are supposed to do. You connect people.”

“Do I?” I smiled, I could feel my cheeks starting to blush up a little. A barrage of compliments like this would do that to anyone.

“Like you connected me to you as well.” She cupped my face in between her hands and then she gently put her lips against mine and then slowly pulled away from me again with a smile.

“I definitely don’t regret that.” It was my turn to approach now. As we started kissing, it didn’t take long before I was with my back on the bed and with my beautiful girlfriend on top of me. In the meantime, the selected Pimsey movie just sat there, waiting to be played. But neither me, nor Luna, even thought a single second about that. The only thing present in our mind was the thought of one another.