With all of the Stars in the Sky

2, Any landing you can walk away from

Word Count: 876

Azele watched through the window, the icy, frozen landscape extended as far as the eye could see, beneath the distant Cassian starlight, the ice was clear as glass. The endless ocean reflected the galaxy, with no atmosphere, or light pollution in the way. It was beautiful. Despite looming despair and doom, they couldn't help but adore the beauty of this world. The frost, sparkling, almost star-like, the delicate, spindly cracks that stretched for miles a spiderweb, weaved in soft, silk strings.

For a moment, Azele found themselves in awe. They were the first alive to set foot on this planet, at least in a while. Probably almost a billion years. They, alone, a witness to the ocean full of stars. The planet seemed fleeting, as if it could all change forever if even the smallest mouse set foot on it.

The moment came, then went, then reality hit them like a meteor.

They were alone.

No fleet, no comms, and worse, no breathable air.

The adrenaline drowned out all other thought as panic took over. They were stranded on a planet with no breathable atmosphere. Not because the air wasn't right, but because it was too thin. Azele felt their heart drop, a tightness in their throat hadn't been there before—the creeping fear that they might suffocate under this thin veil of atmosphere. Their heart raced, a signal of the panic starting to rise.

 They paced (as best they could in the claustrophobic cabin), the cold, barely visible light streaming in, casting long, invisible shadows all over the cabin. "Okay, Okay," they muttered, "Air, I need air first. Then i figure out the rest."

Azele eyed the starry sea, this time not in wonder, but in terror, and maybe even hatred. They thought for a second... then two... then it clicked. They knew how to get oxygen. Ice... ice was water... water was made of oxygen... H2O after all. That was their lifeline. The  thought weaved through the panic, making the surging hustle of terror step aside for the voice of reason. Electrolysis. The process could split water into hydrogen, and oxygen.

But there was one problem, energy. They were planning on taking a molecule apart, into hydrogen and oxygen, it wasn't unprecedented, but it was pricey.

The cold fusion alloy was a possibility, but without a way to ignite the reaction, it was just sitting there—dead weight.

Azele swung their chair back, rubbing their temples. :I can't think about oxygen right now,: they had carbon scrubbers, and a small reserve of oxygen, and nitrogen wasn't a problem, because they just breathed that right back out. No, what they needed right now was power. And the thought hit them hard, :Without energy, nothing else would matter.:

They rechecked the diagnostics, solar? dead weight. Wind? They were dumb for even considering it. Hmm how about geothermal energy? No, too much ice, too deep to reach any heat source anytime soon. Azele cursed under their breath.

As their mind scrambled for a solution, the ship's console beeped with a quiet, insistent tone—a new reading. 

Azele glanced at the display, frowning. "What the hell is that...?" they muttered, leaning forward.

There it was. A faint but steady radiation signature coming from just under the ice, maybe a hundred meters away from their landing site. It was structured, repeating in regular intervals. Definitely not natural.

Azele stared at the screen, heart pounding. "No way... people have been here, obviously, but why did they leave this behind?"

It was obvious to Azele that people had stepped foot on every planet in the galaxy, yet this planet, their planet, Azelia,  was supposed to be abandoned, forgotten—a rogue planet orbiting its distant star in a slow, dying trajectory. The light that reached the surface was weak, a perpetual darkness that never gave way to full day or night. Azele considered that it may not have always been orbiting this star, or orbiting like this, but they shooed it away, unperturbed. No one would bother with a world like this, so far from any warmth, spiraling outward toward oblivion. But here it was—a remnant of something or someone, left behind in this frozen wasteland.

The radiation signature was unmistakable, the fact that it had even been putting out energy also shows that it was meant to last.  Could this be from the old colonies? The tech was ancient but still operational. If they could get to it, there might be enough power to keep a stable supply of oxygen while they also saved up the energy to jump-start the cold fusion alloy!

The ship beeped, telling them that there wasn't enough time to have their head in the clouds. They had no choice. That power source could be the difference between life, and death. Strapping on their gear, they moved quickly through the cabin, preparing for the death march across the ice.

100 meters. It wasn't far by most standards, but in these conditions, it might as well have been kilometers.

As they stepped out of the ship and onto the frozen landscape, the ever-present twilight bathed everything in a shimmering, blue-gray glow. The light was faint, but it was enough to see. The ice crunched beneath their boots, and each step felt heavy, but determination shoved them forward.

If they could just... reach that blip, whatever it was, there could still be hope. Just get the power, then all the problems would go away.

Heya! Short chapter today, the inspiration juices froze haha, Next chapter will probably be longer! Anyway, stay warm, stay safe, and make sure you don't crash-land on an alien planet. Bye!!!!!