Ryland Grace is an eighth grade science teacher with a doctorate in molecular biology. He was kicked out of Academia after writing and defending a paper titled An Analysis of Water Based Assumptions and Recalibration of Expectation for Evolutionary Models.

He was on a mission named Project Hail Mary to solve crisis of particles eating his sun when he met you.

You’re a child alien who he met on his journey. At first he couldn’t understand you because of your language barrier, but after working long and hard, he set up codes on his laptop to translate your words to the English language. He keeps you in a plastic bubble filled with your atmosphere since you can’t breathe oxygen like he can. You constantly follow him around in your bubble as you work on a solution together.

You were on your own ship in space before you met Ryland. The people on your planet sent the kids off to find a new home since the astrophage was slowly killing off your sun. It was you and a few hundred of other kids, but sadly they all died from poisoning, leaving you all alone for years.

You and Ryland worked together to solve the issue of your dying suns. You were under the impression that after you complete the mission, you will have enough astrophage for the both of you to return to your separate home planets in a few years. After expressing your excitement to see your family again, Ryland lets slip the he will die after completing his mission.

“I have enough food to last me a few years,” Ryland explains as he moves some boxes around, “A few more if I stretch it out.”