My arms are moving on wide arks, dashing lines across the board. The chalk leaves dust in the air, my hands flying through the clouds, scrawling wildly, as if my last moments are here and these are my final words. My eyes are flicking between points, erasing, redrawing, erasing, more lines. I’m out of breath and my arms hurt, but I’m not done. So close, but not done. Finally, I draw the last line. I take a step back, looking in wonder at the chalk-covered board. The numbers fit together like a mosaic, pieces coming together to form art. The base equations are simple, but that’s the beauty of it. Such a complex problem able to be solved with pieces already known, weaved together to create something new. To create the unknown. I take a step forward, circle the solution, and set down the chalk. Turning around, I see people furiously checking my work, and one by one they set down their pencils, looking up at me with hope. It works. “This is the dawn of a new age,” I think.

“The stars await us.”