the only sentient species in the universe, how short-sighted they were. Now, here so deep in space, she was beginning to feel space was a little crowded, and that she didn’t want to meet any more aliens today, or any day, while they were so far from home.
Garth plotted the course, and the cruiser moved away from the wormhole, and she felt as if they were being separated from the last thread of contact with Karal.
However, as the new planet came into view, all that was forgotten; it was like she was coming home, in a way she couldn’t understand. The planet in front of her was so like Earth: it was blue, with swirling white clouds drifting around in the atmosphere.
“It’s beautiful.”
“Yes, it is,” Garth acknowledged, while taking readings of the air quality and temperatures. They orbited once, and then he set the nose of the cruiser down and they began their descent.
The cruiser was buffeted on solar winds, but Garth managed to correct the angle of descent so that they entered the atmosphere at the perfect angle. Down they went, the planet growing bigger, the land below them green, surrounded by oceans.
“Is it habitable?” Tamzin asked. “Is it possible we have found a new planet?”
“It is suitable for humans, yes, the air is much the same as Earth would have been in the prehistoric times. What we need to know is if there are large predators, which would make the planet too dangerous.”
She looked out of the window excitedly as they passed over large dense forests and skimmed across mountains, one of which looked like an active volcano, a plume of smoke rising out of it.
“Wow. It’s like a teenager, young but volatile.”
He laughed. “I remember those days.”
“You do? I can’t imagine you being a troublesome teenager.”
“It was about a hundred years ago. But I still remember it.”
“Wait, you are that old? I’m impressed,” she added, when he nodded. “You’ve aged so well.”
“From now on I will grow old quickly, once my prime passes.”
“Then we will grow old together. On Karal.”
“We will. First, we need to get this mission completed and head home.” He looked around for a place to land, checking the ship’s computer until he found a flat plain where the forest had been cleared. There he set the cruiser down, and as the engines stopped, it hit her how exposed they were, if there were indeed giant dinosaurs on the planet.
“Now what?” she asked.
“I have asked the computer to do a full scan of our immediate area.”
“In case there are dinosaurs?” she asked.
“In case there are dinosaurs, but it all looks clear. There is plenty of movement, but the animals are small, more like your first mammals.” He undid his seat belt and stood up, stretching. “Are you ready to explore?”
“I am.” She got up too, trying to feel confident and excited, but it wasn’t helped by the churning in her stomach.
Garth walked to the back of the cruiser and opened up a storage closet and took out two masks. “Use this if you feel faint, or dizzy. It will filter the air.”
“OK.” She took the mask and looped it around her neck.
“Here is a kit for collecting samples. We need soil, water, and plants. The plants are put in here so they are sealed in a vacuum and will still be fresh when we travel back to Karal.”
“OK.” Was that all she could say?
Garth went to the ramp and pressed the button. They waited for it to descend, and then he looked at her and nodded, before walking down the ramp and onto the new planet.
Just like that, Garth had become the first person to set foot here, and as she followed him down and stood next to him, she realised she was at least the first human to stand on planet K23RT.
“We’ve arrived.” She looked around her, and breathed in the fresh air, so clean, so pure, maybe even sweeter than Karal’s.
“Yes, we have, so let’s get to work. Once we have everything we need, we can relax and find somewhere to rest for a
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