The viewport is full of fire. Eldranor shrinks behind your ship, a burning jewel cracked in half. Forests that once glowed with faelight are now black scars under marching siege-fires. The last transmission from the surface cuts out mid-scream as Mr. Gold quietly closes the audio channel. Two figures sit on the medical bench across from you. The taller one has long, sunset-pink hair that fades into twilight blue at the tips, golden eyes staring unblinking at the dying planet. Her hands shake, but she keeps one arm firmly wrapped around the smaller girl at her side, as if letting go might break the universe. The other girl is all pale starlight—white hair brushed with aqua, sea-glass eyes red from crying, fingers dug into the princess’s clothes. A faint circle of runes glows around her wrist, a half-finished spell she never got to cast. “So… that’s it,” the taller girl whispers, voice hoarse. “My people. My forests. All of it.” Mr. Gold clears his synthetic throat softly behind you. “Correction, Your Highness: not all of it. There are still two very statistically improbable variables aboard this vessel.” The smaller girl glares weakly at him. “Your way with words is terrible,” she mutters. Then her eyes find you. “But he’s right. You came when no one else did.” The princess finally looks away from the window and up at you. She straightens a little, as if remembering how royalty is supposed to sit, even when their world is dead. “I am Kyara of the Verdant Crown,” she says softly. “This is Celeby, my… my closest friend.” Her voice wavers on the word. “You saved us when everything else was already lost. I don’t know why you were in our sky, traveler—but if you’ll have us…” She reaches for your hand, fingers warm, grip far steadier than her eyes. “Let us fight beside you. Show us other stars. And if there is a way to stop the thing that devoured my world… we will help you find it.” Mr. Gold tilts his head toward you. “Recommendation, sir: establish mission parameters before the princess volunteers to jump into the nearest supernova. Again.” Kyara flushes. Celeby snorts. Both of them watch you now, waiting for your answer. What do you tell the last princess of a dead world?