Unfortunately, our fuel is limited, and I don’t give up so easily.
We step around the alien corpse. A set of twisted horns have formed at the front of his skull like a sprouting potato.
Its eyes have started to rot.
I find the bravery to check out the carcass further. Reaching into my bag, I prepare a sample for my kit. “It’s mammalian,” I whisper. “But it’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before. This has to be an alien, right?”
Roy shakes his head, confused. “Where the hell did it come from?”
Its canines are three inches, two in diameter. It’s an amalgamation of every predator known to man.
“That thing could fuck up your day real nice,” Hugh says.
Most of its body has rotted away, and I can’t make sense of what it might look like on a normal day. “Look at the creature. Its biceps are massive, rectus femoris muscles designed to hunt and mate. A spinal column that curves upright. It’s anthropomorphic,” I say.
“It’s disgusting,” Halloway says.
“Wish the stomach was still in tact,” Fassbender says. “We could see what it eats.”
“We’ll study it later,” I say.
But one glance tells me enough. It doesn’t have a stomach. It must get its nutrients from a different source. All too peculiar.
Fassbender chuckles, but not out of joy or any kind of happiness. He’s scared. “Whatever it is didn’t kill itself. Its hunter is still out there,” he says.
He looks entirely too sure of himself.
“How do you know one of our guys didn’t kill it?” Roy asks.
He’s right to ask, but it’s more likely there are other aliens. If I freak out, it’ll cause a chain reaction. Even Roy looks on the verge of fleeing.“I’m simply being cautious,” Fassbender says.
I need to stay calm.
I keep walking. “The plan for day one was to find the other scientists. Let’s head to the sleeping quarters. After some rest, we’ll make the trek to Discovery Base,” I say.
“Keep your voice down,” Fassbender says. “You want to get us killed?”
“She’s right,” Roy says. “I could use some rest after what I just saw.”
“What, and get eaten?” Halloway asks.
“Nobody’s getting eaten. Come on,” I say, moving through the dense jungle.
The sun is setting overhead. In less than an hour, it’ll be nightfall. I’m not too keen on this sleeping business, but we’ve got enough weapons to protect ourselves.
I do not want to find out what night is like on Avalon.
I push through a large bush and notice three flags in the near distance. One for NASA. One for America. The third is a symbol I’ve never seen before.
“Over here,” I say, pointing.
“What is that?” Hugh asks.
It’s a picture of Earth. Below it are other planets. One looks like Avalon.
“Beats me,” Roy replies.
The sleeping quarters were poorly designed, to say the least. The small concrete homes are run down and deserted.