the narrator

• wants to get home
• does not care about the fate of the galaxy, since it has nothing to do with her. despite how perfectly average her life was, that was the life she expected. she is inherently a coward and wants nothing more than curl up in a ball and pretend none of this is happening. she's so done.

the prophet

• wants to fulfill her destiny
• she has lived her entire adult life waiting for this mission. she gave up the love of her life, any chance at children, her own family in preparation for this grave task.

the time-travelers

• want to do their father proud
• they have been given a task they were not prepared for (intellectually or emotionally). they are absolutely terrified all the time. they can't let their father down though, so they continue to persevere despite the hopelessness of their situation.

the (abstract) antagonist

• is a force of nature
• "the oncoming darkness" is devouring the galaxy and decimating all planets in its wake, leaving only empty space. unbeknownst to the greater galaxy (with the exception of a few highly enlightened races), the growing darkness is not destroying the galaxy but renewing it (similar to the regular shifts in the earth's magnetic poles or such).

the (physical) antagonist

• a terrorist organization
• many believe forces of nature are remnants of the divine. one such fanatical religious group has followed the time-travelers to the past to prevent their mission's success. they believe the galactic alliance and all the races thereof have reached their rightful end and must face that end with dignity.