"The destruction of this planet was quite thorough," the retrieval officer reported. "We could only find a single small piece of text engraved in some kind of stone."

The head scribe glanced at the engraved chunk of stone. "It does look like it must have held some significance," she said, pointing out the different kinds of markings on the stone.

The Lij 'Opak roamed through space in search of lost or abandoned planets, trying to document what they could of their extinct people's previous existence through any writing they could find. Their ships were enormous and layered in the most efficient way for storing what they found. The life and history of worlds were very important to them and they took their duty seriously.

"I've analyzed the rock," the head analyst announced. "It was artificial, a mixture of ground stone, water, and aggregates. The people of this planet made this."

It was then up to the scribes to translate what the text said, the only remaining words of this long-lost planet. It was rare to find a planet in such a shattered state with hardly anything left. But the Lij 'Opak felt that even a tiny writing such as this should be saved and remembered.

"I'm thinking these larger marks are hand or footprints, perhaps a signature of some kind," one scribe said.

"It's hard to work with such a small amount," another complained.

After much hard work the team of scribes finally finished the translation. They gathered everyone together to read it aloud before storing it safely away, as was custom.

The chunk of stone sat on display at the front of the room, screens showing magnified images of the writing so all could see. The head scribe stood beside it and spoke, "The last first, and last, piece of writing from this doomed planet says 'My Cat sat here.'"

The crowd of Lij 'Opak whispered among themselves in wonderment.

"My Cat must have been a very important figure, to have had the place they sat remembered in stone like this."

"Indeed, that seems like a very high honor."

The head scribe finished the announcement. "You will always be remembered among the Lij 'Opak, My Cat," she said solemnly. "We will not forget you or your world."