The star, Riga, was a brilliant glowing orb filling the monitor at the moon base. Phillip had news that would soon cast darkness over the future. He approached Gudonov. "I’ve got the results of the solar probe, Helios. We have 100 years at the most. Then life-giving Riga will become like the Hindu god Shiva, death, the destroyer of worlds."
     "You mean nova?"
     "It’s a certainty."
     The child sat before the glowing green cathode ray tube at the computer terminal. She punched - enter - file - history of lunar colony at Riga. It read: The colony is on the moon of the fourth planet, Barion, in the Riga system. It is 30 light years from the nearest major colony orbiting the star Vega.

     Excerpt from the diary of Myrna Harrison, an original colonist: "We crossed the depths of the blackest night. The name of our ship was the Leaf Erickson. We were the first generation of our multi-generational journey that would see sunrise across Barion, a gas giant, from it’s moon Fairhaven. We had a smooth trip. Five years before arriving we could observe the planet. As we got closer, we could watch swirling storms passing across the planet.

     Soon the moon was visible. It was brown, with white streaks of exposed ice forming brilliant star patterns around the craters. We settled into orbit around Fairhaven. After a week of observation, we found a crater suited to our purpose. Commander Thorn led the construction of the base. Fifty of us occupied the base. It was made up of hermetically sealed geodesic domes colored white and spread across the crater in a hodge-podge pattern. That’s how it is today." - Brief history of moon base - end.

     The young girl turned the computer off. She went to sleep and dreamed of ships crossing the galaxy, with paths like spider’s webs linking the stars.
     Phillip organized a council to consider what measures should be taken. Phillip began, "Vega could send a ship at fifty percent the speed of light. It would take sixty years to reach us. However, the message would take thirty years to get there. That would mean ninety years before help arrived. We know there is an uncertainty of give or take ten years before Riga’s nova."
     The message made its way across the depths of space. It was a universal S.O.S. followed by a description of Fairhaven’s circumstances. The radio waves would be unheard until received thirty years later at Vega.
     In a room on the base, there were oriental paintings. They had delicate bamboo shoots and Japanese sages in pin and white hues. The walls were pink with shining golden furniture. The smell of incense pervaded the room. A man with a pony tail, wearing a white robe, sat on a golden cushioned chair, playing a melancholy wistful melody. It was entitled, "Babylon" and mourned the Jew’s exile from their homeland in Israel. It reflected the player’s mood, with a secure home so far away for the doomed colonist of Fairhaven moon base. He knew that Fairhaven would soon be a ghastly inferno.
     Satusha Suzuki put down his guitar. He knelt before the statue of Buddha and recited the Diamond Sutra in Japanese. Through the corridors of history his ancestors had passed. He was light years away from Japan and generations away in time from his earthly ancestors. However he carried on his people’s traditions across space and time. He was eclectic and drew his music and rituals from the rich tapestry of world cultures from far away earth.
     Satusha was there, in the communications room, when the message arrived. As he watched the computer screen, his eyes lit up. His exhalation was irrepressible as his shout, "Hallelujah!" echoed across the corridors. The message read:
    

     Starship Long march estimated time of arrival at Fairhaven colony
     sixty years from now. Departure was thirty years ago as of arrival
     Of this message at Fair haven. Cargo manifest: New construction
     equipment for expansion of colony.
     Stand by for further information

     Years passed by without seasons. Only the vacuum of space and magnificent desolation were found outside the antiseptic corridors of the moon base. Earth was an almost mythical place of open spaces and greenery. Long March arrived in orbit. It could be seen as a bright cylinder crawling across the atmosphere less sky. The inhabitants of the Fairhaven colony were ferried from the moon base to Long March.
     The nuclear fusion engines ignited with an exhaust like a comet’s tail spreading out behind the ship. They were to journey across the light years to a new star one hundred years and fifty light years away.
     Generations passed on board Long March. People dreamed of open spaces and an earth-like planet. Perhaps they would find a blue and white sphere, perhaps with air that could be breathed and moderate temperatures. However, the chances of this were slim. In fact, this type of Garden of Eden had never been found in all humankind’s travels across the terra incognito of deep space. They approached the new solar system, eager with anticipation. Then through their telescopes, they sighted the distant planet. Spectrum-analysis showed it had enough oxygen to breathe. As they got closer they found that the equatorial region had equable temperatures, much like the north Atlantic of distant earth.
     They settled into orbit with silent grace. After studying the planet for six months they decided to send the first landing party. The air was thick with excitement on board Long March. The landing craft looked like a spider with folded legs. There was a silver cone-shaped heat shield on the bottom. The crew of Long March watched on the observation deck as the landing craft, Lilith, drifted toward the blue and white horizon. The stars were visible, glowing like candles in a sacred ceremony. The landing craft glittered in the sunlight. It drifted away until it was a pinpoint of light, then vanished.
     Lilith plunged through the atmosphere. A red fire blazed around the craft as it raced towards the planet’s surface. Parachutes billowed in the air, slowing the descent. Rockets fired a brilliant fireworks. Then with a thump they landed. The crew tested the atmosphere for poisons. They analyzed the surface and spent a week meticulously studying their surroundings. Finally they departed the craft. The air was cool and salty. The soil was dull red and powdery with green lichen-like plants covering small boulders. Out in the distance there was an azure blue ocean. The sky was deep blue. They were on a rise in the land and had a magnificent panorama.
     They camped out that night below a starry sky. The stars twinkled in the atmosphere, something none of them had seen in the vacuum of interstellar space. The wind rustled their polyurethane tents. They woke at dawn and saw the sun float above the horizon. The sunlight glowed yellow and warm.
     Soon there would be amber fields of grain with tassels waving in the breeze. Houses would be constructed. There would be villages with white cottages by the sea, like on the coast of New England, light years away. It would be a Garden of Eden for a while. It was the natal hour on the new planet, Eden. This was a place to start anew.
     The starship’s pattern of colonization would stretch across the galaxy from star to star carrying sentience to the worlds. Their paths would trace between the stars, in patterns like spider’s webs. Planets would be terra formed and made verdant. Starships would light across the galaxy, their nuclear engines blinking on and off over the centuries like fireflies in a forest at night.