Dawn broke, as it always did these days, with a sigh. The sunspeakers, whose chants and rituals daily coaxed the fiery orb from its slumber, relaxed and began to prepare for the end of the day’s lullaby and the arrival of the mooncallers.

Warm, honeyed light spilled across the landscape, pooling for a moment in a large open field a few miles outside what was left of the city. It sparkled off the metal scaffolding erected in the center of the pasture and the off-white shape cradled within. The crowd of figures gathered near the base of the structure had to squint to look at it. At least, those with eyes did.

A man strode forth from a low squat building nearby and approached the assembly, his bearing rigid, his head held high. He wore a uniform of sorts, cobbled together from various sources. Despite its muddled nature, the uniform was clean and neatly pressed. Several bottlecaps, a feather, and a small flicker of flame were pinned to the jacket’s breast with pride. A crude nametag named the man as ‘Magus General Smythleby.’

This man moved to stand behind a large podium between the crowd and the scaffolding. The others immediately ceased their excited chatter and were held in rapt attention as the man spoke.

“Ladies, gentlemen, figments. We are gathered here in an historic occasion. Our forefathers from the Nightmares Era tamed this harsh landscape and its dreadful inhabitants through magic and might so that we, their children’s children, might flourish in a time of unparalleled peace and prosperity. Their sacrifices so long ago enabled us the freedom to undertake this endeavor. To reach beyond this earthly firmament and turn our face…to the stars. I give you the MCS Dreamcatcher.” He gestured toward the structure behind me and received a round of earnest applause.

The man continued, “A marvel of modern imagineering, the Dreamcatcher boasts the very first faster-than-thought engine, capable of taking our brave starsearchers into the very depths of space and back again before lunch. Of course, they’ll need to stay out there a little longer than that.” A polite chuckle issued from the crowd. “The hull is crafted from a unique alloy similar in compisition to the Gates themselves and the ship is equipped with recording devices able to see through all of the spectrums, magical or otherwise. It looks like a clear day, so we should be launching on schedule. Any questions?”

What can only be described as a fuzzy purple octopus raised one of its hands. “Could we meet the starsearchers, Magus General?”

“I’m afraid that Witch Captains Applebaumer and Steelington and Lieutenant Adept Windsor-Phillips are spending the morning in the Preparation Chamber, giving their auras a good cleansing. But I’ll be sure to ask them to give you good folks a wave as they board the Dreamcatcher.” He pointed to another raised hand. “Miss?”

A blonde woman almost eight feet tall spoke up, “What do you expect to find up there?” Her voice was slightly muffled by the mask.

The man smiled. “That’s just it. We don’t know. We have some scattered records from before the Nightmares Era that hint at another planets, barren worlds of dust and gas, but those accounts are jumbled at best. We’re hoping this three-week preliminary mission will give us a better idea.”

“And what do you say to leading shamans who believe that this undertaking is a folly?”

“To those people who cling to the old ways, I say that of course it is important to respect our history, but we must also move forward. We must always strive for more. For is that not why we were put here?” Some in the crowd nodded at this. “Now if you’ll excuse me, there are some last-minute details that need to be taken care of. If you’ll all move back to the viewing area, you should get a nice look at the launch.”

The assembly dispersed, and a hovering sprite with the face of a forgotten movie star moved to collect the podium.

Soon enough, it was time. The starsearchers climbed aboard the craft. A booming countdown echoed across the field. The rocket shuddered and a multitude of colors exploded from its base. Several onlookers fainted from the sight. The scaffolding fell away, and the ship began to move upward. But it lengthened as it did, until it was a thin ribbon of white and then it just disappeared.

That night, the face in the moon was gone. It returned at the end of the week, though some say it looked different, sadder.

Two days later, a number of new suns appeared in the sky. They blazed ferociously for a time and then quickly set, never to be seen again.

On the evening of the eighth day, there were several new constellations in the night sky. Approximately 100,000 teenaged girls thought they could read their names in these stars.

At the end of the second week, for one terrifying hour, there was no sky. And then, for an equally terrifying hour, there was too much sky.

A meterorite crashed into the ground outside the city on the twentieth day. It climbed out of its crater, dusted itself off, and started a periodontal school several miles away. This was not regarded as all that strange.

The Dreamcatcher returned as scheduled, landing on a long strip of concrete near the ocean. The starsearchers brought back with them the infinite possibilities of space.

Some say it was the beginning of the end. Others, the end of the beginning.

And all of them were right.