Hello, SFIA audio listeners. In this month's Nebula exclusive, big alien theory,

we're asked at the reason alien civilizations might be rare is because most aliens are huge.

To hear it and every episode early and ad-free, plus hours of bonus content,

check out go.nebula.tv slash Isaac Arthur and use my code, Isaac Arthur.

500 years ago, the world was divided by oceans, ruled by kings, and driven by hunger.

500 years from now, hunger itself may be long forgotten, but the hunger for knowledge,

for prestige, and for shaping our destinies, remains. After all, such ambitions are not exclusive

to humanity, they may even outlast us, carried forward to new worlds by those who follow whatever

form they may take. Dinner and Tales of the Future.

The dining hall aboard the model lane was an impressive space, lined with reinforced windows

that framed the endless void beyond.

Earth was a pale blue dot, fading behind them as the ship's drive carried them toward the Neutron Star

System that was their penultimate destination.

The hum of machinery and the occasional clinks of utensils on ceramic were the only sounds

as the ship's senior crew and the seven VIPs gathered for their last formal meal together.

Captain Dominic Vork sat at the head of the long table,

his presence imposing but quiet. To his right sat Exo Nathan Osai, who had spent most of the

meal in easy conversation with Dr. Becky Laurent Hoshino about atmospheric dynamics and how different

star types impacted them. Across from them, security chief Idris Kalu watched the VIP as carefully, his polite,

friendly smile at odds with his sharp-eyed gaze.

The Magnificent Seven, as they had been dubbed, two Rourke's quiet irritation, had spent

the first leg of the journey settling settling suddenly into their temporary accommodations aboard

...