Ernesto looked up from the book he was reading and glanced at Yolanda. She gazed at him with a smile.

“What?” he asked.

“Nothing. I was just remembering how we met.”

Sudden, sad memories surfaced for Ernesto, and he looked away with a frown. He hadn’t said anything, but she sensed what he was feeling. She came closer and hugged him. “Why are you bringing this up?” Ernesto’s voice was hoarse and full of emotion. “Tell me that I’ve done what I could, that I’ve atoned for my sins after all these years.” He looked at Yolanda with true sadness.

Bobbie looked up from her glass data screen and gazed through the transparent dome of the small marine-research station. The sea bottom looked alien, but this was her work environment. As a marine biologist, she studied deep-sea creatures, such as the eels and swarms of bloodybelly comb jellyfish she’d observed yesterday.

For a while, she marvelled at the breathtaking bioluminescence exhibited by the plants and creatures here at the bottom of the sea. The Mariana trench was literally alive, and the versatility of life was a sight to behold, with purples, blues, reds, and dashes of oranges and yellows. The undersea creatures resembled beings from another planet, yet they’d evolved on Earth over millions of years. She enjoyed her work immensely.

An almost imperceptible vibration brought Sean out of his sleep cycle. He opened his eyes, recognizing the wake-up call from his house AI. He sat up in bed and looked down at his partner, Ciara, still sleeping beside him. With a loving smile, he felt his immense unconditional love for her as well as for every being on the planet and beyond.

Samantha was tired, but that feeling in no way kept her from being blissed out, seeing her great-grandchildren again. Twins Neya and Inara had recently celebrated their fifteenth birthdays and announced their decisions to join the Rangers.

It was late afternoon, and they sat in Samantha’s garden pavilion on a beautiful mid-summer day. With a smile, she said to the twins, “What is it with you youngsters today? You all want to join the Rangers and leave Earth. I’m so happy that you each recognized and are honouring your Heart’s calling, but I feel that leaving Earth might deny you of the joys and wisdom that come from being close to nature and your planet. Not to mention, I will miss you dearly.”