Fragments 1: Devolution Landing

Prologue

From high above, the planet was gradually revealed as a mottled patchwork of dusty greens. It was a dry world of scrubland, open plains and tundra. The only sign of moisture was the occasional wisp of cloud, although a more careful observer might have spotted a network of shallow lakes and rivers. Most of the water on this world was locked away in spider-like polar ice caps which held the planet in a solid grip. Powerful glaciers forced their way backwards and forwards like probing white fingers with the passing seasons.

The huge starship banked slowly as it prepared to enter the atmosphere. It was a massive and elderly craft which had clearly seen better days. There were signs of wear and tear from front to back and many of the metal panels on the fuselage seemed dangerously loose. It had been patched and repaired so many times that it was difficult to tell what purpose it had originally served. There were gaps where weapons or sensors had once been attached, but these had been removed many years ago and little remained of its former glory.

On the bridge the crew were focussed on their tasks as they attempted to line their ship up for its final flight. Some of them wore fragments of old and worn uniforms, but they all looked different. This was not a professional crew.

It was an ancient and bulky craft and turned very slowly. The men and women on the flight deck had just about survived their long flight across the galaxy, but were all extremely nervous about the next few minutes...

With its shields on full power, the starship hit the atmosphere like a mighty bolder striking the surface of a river. The heat and plasma generated by the impact was intense, and the huge vessel tore across the sky like a fiery comet. The crew worked hard to keep everything steady, but began to panic as various systems began to fail...

Before long the ship had slowed enough for them to regain some control and the hull temperature started to drop. They were now committed to a landing whether they liked it or not. This huge vessel would never reach orbit again.

In the bridge they could already see the ground flash by beneath them as they passed over vast empty plains, rocky outcrops and wild scrubland. Some of them were fighting to keep the ship upright while others had already given up and were praying for their lives. A man with a peaked hat called for calm and ordered everyone to prepare for impact.

Throughout the ship, families were gathered in small groups as they waited for the end to come. Parents held their children close, while couples whispered quiet farewells. There were over a thousand people on board and they all knew how quickly their dreams could turn into disaster.

On the bridge, the captain watched the data screens as they drew closer to the ground. They were less than a thousand meters above the dusty earth. So much would depend on the decisions that he would make in the next few seconds. So much would depend on the luck that fate would send his way. He prayed out loud as he flicked the switch that would give him control. The others held tight as the ship rattled and creaked. There was very little they could do to help now. Their lives were in his hands.

The starship had never been on a planet before. It was simply too big. It had been built in an orbital shipyard and served its brief time as a heavy cruiser before ending up in a deep-space scrapyard. Its original designers had, however, given it the ability to make one desperate emergency landing. This was an ability that had never been tested. Today, this crew would find out if the designers had got things right...

Everything appeared fine as the mighty ship passed over the dry surface of the planet. Inch by inch, the distance between the heavy sled-like keel and the dry ground continued to close. Eventually the tail end of the ship gently scraped the soil and it began to cut a sharp trench in the earth leaving a cloud of dust and debris behind it. The huge starship was now decelerating rapidly as friction pulled heavily on it, bringing the vessel slowly down into a horizontal position.

On the bridge the crew began to breathe more easily. They were going to make it...

It was then that the tail hit a solid rocky outcrop and the starship shuddered and creaked. The heavy keel split and the entire vessel was twisted apart by the force of its own momentum. Steel panels buckled and fell away and the fuselage was ripped in two, revealing the metal innards of the dying ship. The two huge fragments of the fractured spacecraft tumbled slowly through the air like the carcasses of immense beasts. They hit the ground heavily and rolled - over and over again. By the time they had stopped moving the starship was left broken and crippled.

Smoke rose over the surface of the planet as the sun began to set...