Fade

Part 4

-- -- Unknown planet, time not known

It had been umpteen days since they left Earth. There was no telling time.
A howl stirred everyone.
What is this now?  After all this pain, can't we have a break? Julia thought.
They were exploring the strange new planet and so far, there was nothing but dirt, and fog.
Someone screamed, and Julia jerked her head to the left in time to see a creature similar to a wolf enter her vision.
Her heart raced.
The man who had cried out earlier was slowly backing away. In less than a second, the wolf-creature sprang on the man's leg, puncturing his suit, and stabbing his flesh. It chomped down on hard, and blood spewed everywhere as the man screamed.
All the while, everyone stood still, motionless except shallow breaths.
The creature gnawed on the leg, and the man fell. The thing climbed on his chest to look him in the eye. It raised one paw and it was blood-stained, five times larger than the average. The wolf-thing quickly jammed it into his heart.
The life in his eyes left as an awful scream pierced the air, leaving Julia wincing in pain. The wolf dragged the corpse away.
What is safe? Julia thought. What is safe if we live in Hades' realm? There is no safe, she concluded, unless it is within me, and even that only lasts until I'm mad.

That night, they slept outside, unable to take asylum in the ship. It had been majorly broken, but only one piece was needed to get it operating. Until it was found, they were all stranded.
Everyone except Julia layed down on the ground, but she wanted to be extra secure, so she dug out a hole, crawled in, and covered it with chunks of solid dirt.
For now, she just prayed no one would step on it.