[ Different indeed. Naomi presses her lips together, thinking, but ultimately decides it can't hurt. By all logic the protomolecule doesn't exist here or in his world. ]

We call it the protomolecule. It was discovered deep in the ice on an outer planet, and it's not what humanity thought it was. They tried to use it as a weapon at first, like humans do with everything, but it turns out it's... not meant for that. It's not a life form like we know them but it's sentient somehow, even if right now it's only communicating with one person.

It built something out on the edges of our space, a ring that can take us to thousands of other habitable planets. We don't know why, or what happened to the beings that created it. Honestly, I'm frightened to find out, but at least it didn't destroy us.