The Inner Cosmos by Vargo Statten

"Inner Cosmos" by Vargo Statten is a science fiction novella set on Nalofix, an ageless planet in the Andromeda system inhabited by eight-foot-tall reptilian beings with highly developed intellects. The story centers on Kasmus, the planet's ruler and chief scientist, who has achieved a major discovery: photographing Time itself through a mathematical lens, revealing concentric circles representing each planet's temporal trajectory. Nalofix's circle is unique—a perfect unbroken loop, explaining the planet's eternal life, while other worlds show breaks marking their eventual death. Kasmus suspects probing further into Time's nature risks catastrophic consequences. Meanwhile, his adviser Selda secretly collaborates with physicist Mazro to exploit this discovery, plotting to harness Time as a destructive force to eliminate Kasmus and seize planetary control, arguing that breaking the Time-circle would restore normal aging and mortality.