"Silly boy, don't be afraid of the stars. They are thousands of miles from our being. They can't hurt us. Why do you cower between my breasts with fear, my infant? The shower is over and done."

Silly mother, why can't you understand? The shower isn't over. It haunts me so long as the stars and skies exist. Laying in my crib only instructs the night sky that bedevils my soul to further add to my nightmares and encourage me to wail throughout the darkened empyrean. Night has become my worst enemy.

You cannot possibly remember the evening of which I recall. You were there. Sitting adjacent my crib, massaging me, urging me to sleep. I look out of the nearest window as a last sight before morning. I glance at the countless stars. They grow.

They grow brighter, redder. Their scarlet glow soon floods my quarters. You turn in urgency. Then.. A crash. The nextdoor homes are in a blaze. One of the "stars" has fallen as a pyromaniacal harbringer of pain. You raise me from my crib and carry me. Suddenly, we are rushing through our home to your quarters where we find Father. He places on a jacket and urges us out of the door. We flee.

As we run through the snow to the car, more crashes and explosions encircle us. I begin to bawl. Without even so much as an attempt to hush me, you and Father continue to run. We scurry alongside my sitter and the couple from down the street. We board the car. The red lights from the background never fade. They only grow more intense as do the booms from the crashes and explosions. To where could we go for refuge? It seems even the skies are engulfed with the fiery stars that pelt the grounds. I scream louder, tears drench my face, and I shut my eyes tight. I never want to see again.

I awake to find black fog arising from the ground everywhere. People cry or comfort the weeping. I feel the disappointment overcome me as I am able to see it all. A year later, we relocate to another home. Every night up to now has been a seemingly never-ending torture. Daytime is the only oasis from my torment.

That day, you asked me me why I cowered into your chest. 'Twas because I dared not face the black sky again. The white spots that speckle it live there. Staring at their home may have encouraged them to return to mine.

Of course, as I grew over years, I learned that it was merely a shower of meteors. It was named the Shower of '16. This, for some unknown reason, infuriated me and I was determined to conquer my fear of the meteors and night.

The debris were identified to have once been inhabited by an alien species. The very thought of an alien terrified me to no end. The concept of there being other lifeforms in that never-ending night firmament sickened me. However, I became intrigued in learning about my phobia. I even began to stare at the stars purposley to taunt them. I had to understand my enemy.

I even purcahsed my own hyer-scope to get an even closer look in on their nightlife.

Then, the accident happened that would lead me to own my own business. I discovered a planet. Very distant from our own, the gray orb seemed larger than ours. Although, the discovery of a planet was rare enough, the real exposure lay inside the planet. A further look revealed inhabitants.

After only a month, I became famous for exposing an alien race. I was given the opportunity to appropriately name the planet which I came to label, Carmenta after you, my late mother. At just sixteen, I was transformed into a legendary explorer from only glancing at the stars that once plagued my mind.

On my seventeenth birthday, and after much analyzation and research, I was told that there would be a mission to land on Carmenta and hopefully form an alliance with the inhabitants called Glycoun. I was invited to go along. My seventeenth birthday marked the beginning of my being able to make such decisions on my own without parents' consent. I naturally, agreed to go.

The Glycoun, fortunately were a positive and friendly species and were excited to know there were other lifeforms in the universe to form alliances with. Naturally, there was a strong language barrier and efficient technology and sign language was used to help them understand our purpose.

My reputation skyrocketed upon my return to Earth. Winning many awards led to my earning the title, Youngest Astronomical Captain. The list of the awards and praise I received was only lengthened as more planets were discovered and visited. Soon, my fame led me to meet Noxi. Little did the two of us know we were destined to be betrothed.

Noxi, too was intrigued with the mysteries of space. This factor must have been the main reason I fell in love. She had earned her own reputation as being one of the explorers who traveled to Carmenta. After dating for several months, the subject of starting a business came up.

Noxi proposed opening an organization of forming alliances with aliens throughout space. Without much further conversation, we created the Transcel Institute. The organization took off without any difficulty, literally.

From then on, you know, Mother. I have told you repeatedly of my journeys to the various planets. the fourty-fourth planet left me exhausted in my later years. I retired not before settling down and forming a family. Noxi and I had your grandchildren after your accident. Now I remain an aged man awaiting the inevitable apocalypse caused by my own descendants. I look outside and see the red sky that once again speeds my heart rate. Look and see for yourself. Should you refuse to look, grant me this. Prepare yourself for I am going to be reunited with you and Noxi and Father too. Our eradication in imminent. How now, Silly Mother, may I face Phobia?