Lost in Space (Closed)

[cyberman2005]

OCC : Closed for Fox-in-hiding

The one hundredth colony ship was ready to leave every one of the 500 plus passenger’s was an expert in their field. The crew consisted of 30 who would work in three shifts of one month on and two months off, the oldest member being 30 years old. The passengers where all in their prime of life again everybody was under 30 and were all complete strangers to each other. Travelling would be in suspended animation for the passengers, they would be woken every six weeks for one week so they could tone their relaxed muscles. It had been found on earlier ships that anything in excess of six months caused hardship once planet fall had been reached, some people never recovering from the wasting of their muscles.

The ship took off from New York spaceport amongst a fanfare as it was the hundredth ship it would travel at almost the speed of light and take approximately one hundred years to get to it’s destination. Each passenger had a personal pod which contained everything he or she would need to carry out their position in the new colony. The pods also carried laser side arms and rifles that could be recharged using solar power, they knew the sun that the new planet circled was suitable for this. Also the pods carried equipment for survival in case the occupant was separated from the main group on planet fall, as each pod would be shot at the planet as a separate shuttle.

The ship ploughed through space, going through asteroid belt after asteroid belt without any problems the shields doing their job even at a speed near that of light. Finally they were about a month to planet fall when they hit the last asteroid belt, the crew watched as the shields did there job until alarms started. On a collision course with the ship were two enormous asteroids much to large for the shields to deal with, and at the speed they were travelling too late to avoid them. Both hit the ship destroying the life support system, leaving the crew and the passengers who were awake only a few hours of air. What wasn’t known by the crew was virtually all of the passengers pods were also damaged, making them unreliable. The majority had guidance system failure, while others lost their suspended animation control and air tightness.

Not knowing this the captain at the time ordered the pods fired at the destination planet, effectively ordering abandon ship. A message was sent back to earth but it would take another 100 years to reach there. Only twenty of the pods made it to the planet, and out of that twenty only two pods with their passengers survived intact.

 

[cyberman2005]

Gavin Williams
Age 26
5ft 11in tall, dark hair, blue eyes.
Had lost some weight during the trip but he’d started as a well muscled guy, even the toning during the trip hadn’t managed to keep him to his normal body weight 210 lbs.
Electronics expert, his job was to help bring the colony to the level they all had before leaving Earth. He had enough equipment in his pod to create solar powered radio’s and computers to get the colony going.

Fortunately for Gavin one of these pods was his.

Gavin woke to the gentle pinging of the waking mechanism and was surprised when the pod opened to see a landscape instead of the inside of the ship. The automatic systems of the pod were already in operation, pin pointing the positions of the other pods that had made land fall within 50 miles of his. He could see twenty spots on the screen ranging from what the computer said was five miles to one almost at the end of the range about forty five miles away. Knowing that all the other pods would have also started automatically, Gavin sent out a call and waited for a response, expecting one within a few minutes.

“Gavin Williams, can anybody respond,” he called.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

Eva Marr
Age: 25
Height: 5' 5"
Description: Shoulder-length, firey red hair, and light brown eyes. While the long trip has certainly softened her once lightly toned body, she's lost much of what little fat she had as well. Slender, but not petite, she has a nice hour-glass figure.
Bio: Eva was recruited for this trip because of her expertise in the field of botany, specifically her studies in aeroponics. Just in case the soil turned out to be wrong for growing crops at first, they would be able to grow food through aero and hydroponics in the meantime.

---------------

When Eva awoke, she expected to see the crew helping her and the others out of their pods. What she saw was a wilderness. A few broken branches marched the passing of her pod, but nothing more could be seen; not even another pod.

She was still in shock when something inside her pod beeped and a voice called out, “Gavin Williams, can anybody respond.”

It took her a moment, but she found the device and hit the com button. “Yes, Eva Marr, here! What’s going on?”

 

[cyberman2005]

“Hi Eva, I don’t really know either,” Gavin told her as he checked the pods log. “According to my pods log something happened to effect the integrity of the ship and everybody was just shot off in their pods without being wakened. I can only see twenty pods instead of the nearly six hundred that should be here, and so far you’re the only one to respond to my call,” he told her hoping she wasn’t the type of person to panic.

“Our two pods appear to be at either end of the group, we’re about fifty miles apart, I’m going to check all my equipment and I think you should check yours before we do anything else. That way we’ll give some of the others time to respond,” he suggested as he started by getting out his sidearm and rifle. Seeing that they both were fully charged he fitted the sidearm into its holster and fastened it on to his belt, leaving the rifle within easy reach.

It took him about an hour before he was satisfied that everything was in order and decided to check how Eva was getting on with her check.

“How are things your end,” he asked. “All my stuff appears to be in order so I’m going to stretch my legs and have a look around, I’ll stay in range of the com so if you need me just shout,” he told her as he got out of the of for the first time.

He’d landed in a clearing in a wooded area and could hear the sound of running water and birds twittering in the trees. There was no other sign of life but he was sure there’d be other animals around, maybe even primitive homo sapiens.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

The only one to respond, he'd said... Well, that didn't mean anything, yet. Some might be having a harder time waking up, or their coms might even be broken.

As Gavin signed off to check the rest of his equipment and open the channel up for other survivors --she felt her stomach tighten unpleasantly at the thought of that word -- she sucked in a deep breath to try and steady herself. One thing at a time, that's what would get her through this. They'd all been given basic survival training, this wouldn't be so hard. If the planet was suitable, maybe they could just colonize here instead of the intended planet. Then they could find a way to contact someone and everything would be all right...

Thinking about such abstract ideas kept her from focusing on anything negative, at least for the few moments while she keyed open her pod and took her first wobbly steps onto the planet's soil. The first thing she noticed about her new surroundings was the temperature. I wasn't overly one extreme or the other, a fact that she was glad for. The jumper they wore in stasis wasn't really meant for weathering the elements and, without the main ship, she wouldn't have access to anything warmer.

She didn't walk far and soon went back to her pod to catalog what she had going for her. By the time Gavin contacted her again, she'd affirmed that her equipment and supplies were intact, despite the rough landing. At least there was that much good news. Especially since she had not heard a single call over the com lines since she'd last spoken to Gavin.

"How are things your end? All my stuff appears to be in order so I’m going to stretch my legs and have a look around, I’ll stay in range of the com so if you need me just shout."

"Everything seems to be fine... yes, I will." She replied and sat back, staring at the roof of the pod.

 

[cyberman2005]

“Remember the drill, if you leave the pod take your weapons with you,” Gavin sent a reminder as he set off to explore the area around his pod.

He headed for the sound of water first and came upon a stream about seventy yards from the pod, using the test equipment he had with him he tested the liquid and was relieved to find it was pure water. He cupped some in his hand and tasted it thankful of the chance to drink clean water instead of the recycled stuff on the ship, it tasted good to him.

He looked around and could see animal tracks but no sign of humans, some of the tracks indicated that there were large cats around so they were going to have to be careful until they’d found somewhere to build the colony. He wandered around in the wooded area find runs made by small animals but no sign of any danger.

He returned to the pod, he now had to decide the best way to meet up with Eva, the pod was twenty foot long but would break up easily into three sections. The front and back sections would be eight foot long with the middle four foot, the middle section held the life support equipment needed in space but could be salvaged for use by the colony. The rear section held all of his personal equipment and tools to help the colony, the front was his living space. Both the front and rear sections had retractable treads so the whole unit could be moved on land, or the centre section could be left behind with the rear section becoming a trailer for the front.

Gavin decided that he’d keep his pod intact for the moment, the life support part would come in handy as a refrigerator once they settled.

“Hi Eva, I’m going to keep my pod intact and make my way in your direction so we can meet up. We’ll be able to listen for the others on the move, if we don’t hear anything we’ll investigate once we’re together,” Gavin told Eva over the com link as he got into his pod and started the solar powered engine.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

“Remember the drill, if you leave the pod take your weapons with you,” Gavin sent a reminder as he set off to explore the area around his pod.

She winced sheepishly, but replied with an affrimative. Aftter all..she'd already left the pod once without her weapons. One really could blame the shock, but honestly, she had simply forgotten.

'Nice way to start your first day out, Eva.' She sighed and tried to relax. There was probably a dozen things she could and should be doing right now, but all she really wanted to do was gather her thoughts. The trees were spaced a good distance apart in this area, so she shouldn't have trouble navigating the pod through the woods, assuming the engine was in working order. With luck, the forest wouldn't become any more dense as she went.

“Hi Eva, I’m going to keep my pod intact and make my way in your direction so we can meet up. We’ll be able to listen for the others on the move, if we don’t hear anything we’ll investigate once we’re together,” Gavin told Eva over the com link as he got into his pod and started the solar powered engine.

"All right." She sucked in a deep breath and released it before opening her eyes. "Sounds like a plan, at least."

Moving to the controls, she began the start up sequence on her pod as well, relief flooding her for a moment as all of the checks showed green. Turning the pod in the direction of Gavin's signal.

"While you were out... did you see anything?" The question was more to make conversation than anything, but it was information that she would need to know anyway. Best to be prepared.

 

[cyberman2005]

“I found the water was drinkable, in fact it tasted good after the recycled stuff in the ship, there were plenty of small animal tracks around near the stream and what looked like big cat tracks. Oh and lots of birds with bright plumage” Gavin told her as he drove in her general direction.

The pods were made with a top speed of around seven miles an hour so with them travelling towards each other it would still be about three plus hours before they met. Not knowing the movement of the sun on this planet he hoped they’d meet before the sun went down, otherwise they’d have to stop for the night. Even with the electronic equipment in the pods it was still possible to miss each other without lights.

“Did you get a chance to look around?” Gavin asked Eva when they’d been travelling for about an hour. He estimated that they were still thirty miles apart, but there was no sign of the light fading yet so it looked as if they’d be together before nightfall.

As it happened there were no other pods in the direct line between them, the nearest would have meant a detour of three or four miles, Gavin felt it was more important to get together before worrying about the rest.

He started wondering what his companion looked like, so he had his pod bring up her file. She was a pretty redhead with quite a nice figure, then he remembered that he’d lost weight during the long sleep and wondered what it had done to her. He now had her age, her speciality and what she looked like all that was left was for them to meet which would take at least another couple of hours.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

“I found the water was drinkable, in fact it tasted good after the recycled stuff in the ship, there were plenty of small animal tracks around near the stream and what looked like big cat tracks. Oh and lots of birds with bright plumage”

"Well, that's good news. With water and signs of life, at least we know nothing is immediately toxic." Of course, that wasn't taking into account any number of toxic plants of animals that could be out there. Still, drinkable water was a start. Plus, the fact that both she and Gaving had been able to breath easily and the fact that she felt no extreme swing in the gravity compared to what she was used to made for promising envirnmental conditions.

Even if this wasn't where they had intended to land, if everything continued going well, they might be able to set up the new colony here. Provided they find the rest of the survivors, of course. She was sure that there would be others.

Her fingers were already itching to get out her equipment and start examining the plant life. Would it be anything like that of Earth? How would the cell structures differ; would they feed off nutrients in the ground, or did they have some other method of replenishing themselves? The scientist in her quivered with anticipation.

“Did you get a chance to look around?” Gavin asked Eva when they’d been travelling for about an hour. He estimated that they were still thirty miles apart, but there was no sign of the light fading yet so it looked as if they’d be together before nightfall.

"A little," she replied, "but I didn't want to roam far from the pod. Without taking time to examine samples I can't tell much about the plant life on this planet, but judging from the environmental conditions so far, it looks like we picked a prime spot to crash land."

This was said with a tone of light humor in her voice. The fact that the coms were silent other than Gavin and her didn't bother her, yet. There was still the chance that someone's com was damaged, or that the others had yet to awaken from stasis. Once she and Gavin were together, they would search for the others. Safety in numbers and all that.

 

[cyberman2005]

"A little," she replied, "but I didn't want to roam far from the pod. Without taking time to examine samples I can't tell much about the plant life on this planet, but judging from the environmental conditions so far, it looks like we picked a prime spot to crash land."

This was said with a tone of light humor in her voice.

Gavin liked the smile in her voice, he was generally a happy person so already he was sure they would get on together. They chatted about everyday things as they travelled eating up the miles and time.

He crossed another stream and looked ahead, he could see something metallic moving over the brow of a small hill about half a mile away.

“I think I can see you,” he told her over the com as he stopped his pod. “I’ve just crossed a stream so I’ll wait here, we might as well spend the night where we’ve got fresh water,” he said as he watched Eva's pod come slowly down the hill.

Gavin got out of his pod ready to greet her when she arrived, it didn’t take long before they were standing facing each other. Gavin held out his hand to shake hands with her.

“I’m Gavin Williams, you must be Eva Marr,” he said as they shook hands.

“Oh! What the hell,” Gavin said as he pulled her towards him giving her a big hug. “You don’t know how good that feels, then again maybe you do,” he said laughing at his own impetuousness.

“Shall we set up camp here for the night and then in the morning we can check the other pods if they haven’t signed in by then,” he asked not wanting to it appear as if he’d taken charge.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

"And you must be Mr. Gavin Williams."

She laughed a bit as well at the hug, surprised and pleased. She'd been immensely relieved when she saw the other pod and was reassured that it was Gavin's. Hearing his voice was one thing, but iut was quite another to have physical evidence that he was real.

She hadn't bothered looking up his dossier, so she was pleasantly surprised when Gavin turned out to be quite handsome. His voice sounded different in person than over the coms, but she liked it. His grin and good mood soothed her nerves.

"Yes, I understand completely. It's a relief to know I'm not alone out here." She smiled, her eyes bright. "Setting up camp first sounds like a perfect idea."

 

[cyberman2005]

“Please call me Gavin, we’re going to be spending the next few days together and it’s a lot less formal, and if we set up the colony we’ll probably know each other for years,” Gavin suggested.

When he’d first saw her for real he’d thought that she was a pretty girl, but when she smiled and then laughed her whole face lit up, her eyes sparkled and he realised that she was a beautiful young woman.

“If we get out one of the small tents that should do us for the night, according to the inventory each pod should have sleeping bags as well, along with changes of clothing for the pod occupier,” Gavin suggested.

They set about putting the tent up, there was plenty of room for inside the tent for about four people, having finished the tent they just threw their sleeping bags inside. Eva had got out her solar powered stove so Gavin went to the stream and filled a container with water, all their food was dehydrated and the water when heated would give them a good meal.

By the time they’d finished eating the light was starting to go, so they went into the tent and settled down for the night.

“We’ll check the nearest pods first tomorrow, then slowly work our way through them all,” Gavin said as they lay in their bags near to each other. “Goodnight,” he finished and turned over to sleep. Going through his mind was the problem of the other pods not responding, he knew that there could be many reasons for this. He was just thankful that at least he had Eva for company, he wondered if they’d ever get further than friends if they stayed around each other.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

Eating outdoors like this was an unusual experiance for Eva. She'd grown up in the city, surrounded by glass and steel. No matter how they tried to make it aesthetically appeasing with parks and carefully groomed plantlife, it was too artifical to really give the feel of nature. Even if this planet was Earth, it was close enough that the forest around them was both strange and familiar.

They made light conversation over dinner and while they set up for the night, mostly talking about what they had done during the trip when they were awake, what routines they had been put through, how glad they were to be breathing air that wasn't recycled.

This would be their first night of true sleep since the trip had begun almost a century ago, though that concept hadn't sunk in for either of them, yet. With as little as they were aware during the trip, it didn't really feel like it had been that long.

Eva snuggled down into her sleeping bag and the stress of the day began to take its toll. The next morning they would conduct a search for the rest of the survivors and start looking for a place to really set up a more permanent camp. They would need to analyze the soil, air and water for any trace chemicals that couldn't be picked up in a cursory scan. Eva needed to know if Earth plant species would survive here or if she would have to alter the plants to make them fit in.

She was eventually lulled to sleep by the soft sound of Gavin's breathing. While she couldn't remember the last time she'd slept so close to someone, she had to admit that she was gratful for his presence and for the fact that it was someone as friendly as handsome as he was.

 

[cyberman2005]

Gavin woke early next morning to the sound of birds twittering, he was initially disorientated finding himself in a sleeping bag and tent, it took a couple of minutes before things started falling into place. He looked across at Eva, to make sure he hadn’t dreamt meeting up with her, seeing her there reassured him as he watched her sleep.

Carefully he got out of his sleeping bag, and putting on his side arm he left the tent to collect fresh water for them to wash in and make some sort of breakfast. He washed himself while he was at the stream and started to wonder what the best action would be for the day but decided to see what Eva had in mind first.

She was a botanist and would obviously be interested in what plants would grow on this planet, he didn’t know which was the most important, find other survivors or if the could grow food.

When he got back to the tent he checked the stove they’d used the night before and finding it still had plenty of life so he put water on to boil and considered waking Eva. No the thought let her sleep until she wakes they had plenty of time, he’d checked his com in the pod and seen there were still no replies so another hour or so wouldn’t make any difference, it might even get them a reply.

Taking two dehydrated packs from his pod he sat waiting for Eva to rise before starting breakfast.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

Eva awoke not long after, blinking her eyes. She couldn't remember the last time she'd really slept and it felt... good. She rolled over onto her back and stretched her arms above her head, luxuriating in the feeling for a moment. Then she sat up with a sigh and crawled out of her sleeping bag and the tent. She stood and blinked in the light until her eyes adjusted.

"Good morning," she greeted Gavin, running a hand through her tousled hair. "I must look a fright right now!"

She moved down to the stream to wet her hair and wash her face before returning to camp. She sat down next to the stove where Gavin was finishing their breakfast preparations.

"So, we'll go hunting out the others now, right? Kind of hard to set up much without the other stations."

 

[cyberman2005]

“Yes as soon as we’ve had breakfast, the only question is how do we travel, nothings wrong both pods should be fine” Gavin said.

They ate their breakfast, it was good to get some food inside them. Neither had been awake in the last four months of travel so their bodies had survived on intravenous feeding. When they’d finished eating they washed what had been used and stored everything including the tent back into the pods.

“I was wondered if we wanted to traipse both pods all over the place, or disconnect one front part and both travel in that. Then if we hit anything unexpected one can use the weapons while the other drives,” he suggested. “Of course that will mean us returning here tonight, but at least here we’ve got fresh water,” he added.

He could see Eva thinking about the situation, of course it would mean she didn’t have her equipment with her to do tests, but there was plenty of time for that later. The priority now was to find the other survivors, then find a good place to set-up a permanent camp.

Eva walked over to her pod and started to disconnect the front end, so Gavin knew he was going to ride shotgun for the journey.

“I’ve checked the positions of the other pods, we should be able to visit five of them today. We’ve got a fifty mile round trip and we want to be back here in plenty of time. Tomorrow we might have to find another camp site near water,” he told her as they both got into her pod. Both were wearing the side arms, Gavin had his rifle in hand and Eva’s rifle was stored in its position close to hand.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

Eva wasn't exactly an ace driver, but they'd been trained in the use of all necessary equipment (such as the pods and their firearms) before they were allowed to joing the mission. Ignorance could get one killed, after all. It was that senitment that made Eva fidgety at the thought of traveling so far without her testing equipment. However, finding the others was top priority, at least while they had daylight.

It was nearly two hours before they spotted the downed pod closest to their current camp location. The sight that greeted them was more than a disappointment, though. The pod had crshed down, nose first, and the fusilage was crumpled. It was obvious, though, that this pod had been wrecked even before it made its unlucky landing. The sides of the pod were covered in tears; metal most likely shredded while still in space.

Eva's face fell and she stared at the pod. "How horrible... I hope there aren't many like this... What a way to die..."

 

[cyberman2005]

Gavin couldn’t believe the state the pod was in, there was so much damage that it wouldn’t even be possible to salvage any of it. They couldn’t even open the pod to bury the person inside it had ploughed so far into the ground.

"How horrible... I hope there aren't many like this... What a way to die.

“There’s no sense in staying here, shall we move onto the next, we can’t do anything for the occupant. We can’t even get them out to bury them on our own,” Gavin said.

Eva nodded, Gavin could tell that she was in shock as she drove away from the horrible sight.

“Stop her a while,” Gave said when they were about an hour away from the damaged pod. He got out and helped Eva out after laying his rifle where he could get at it quickly. He gave Eva a big hug, it was the first time they’d held each other since Gavin’s hug when they met.

“I know it’s horrible, but something must have gone terribly wrong in space for that much damage to have been done,” he told her still hugging her and running his hands down her hair trying to comfort her.

He felt her body start to relax as he cuddled her and spoke reassuring words to her, he knew the were losing time but it was more important that they kept themselves focused.

“Shall we move on,” he asked when he thought that Eva had got over the worst of the shock.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

Eva let him pull her out of the pod and into an embrace. She sighed and leaned into him, glad for the comfort and the prescence of a living person after seeing the wreckage. His voice and soothing hands calmed her nerves and she sighed, relaxing under his coaxing hands.

“I know it’s horrible, but something must have gone terribly wrong in space for that much damage to have been done.”

She nodded, understanding. She knew the occupant of the pod was no one she knew, but that didn't make it less upsetting that someone had died. They were so few on this world... Now they were most assuredly one shorter. It made her wonder if they would find more like this, but she tried not to think about it.

“Shall we move on?"

She nodded again. "Yeah, we'd better. No one should be left alone out here." She squeezed her arms around him one loast time. "Thank you..."

 

[cyberman2005]

"Yeah, we'd better. No one should be left alone out here." She squeezed her arms around him one loast time. "Thank you..."

Gavin climbed back into the pod behind Eva and they set off for their next destination, as they neared the pod they could see that the pod was open.

“It looks like we’ve another survivor,” Gavin said seeing the pod open. “I wonder where they are,” he added when he realised that there was nobody obviously around.

Eva stopped their pod alongside the new one and they both got out, Gavin still carrying his rifle looked into the other pod.

“Whoever it is they haven’t taken their weapons with them,” he said seeing both the sidearm and rifle still racked in position. The com was still pinging but they ignored that it was more important to find their fellow survivor, Eva had retrieved her rifle and they both looked around.

“Looks like they went this way,” Gavin said seeing tracks. There was no way they could tell if it was a man or a woman from the tracks as they all had the standard space boots to wear in the pods.

They followed the tracks for a couple of hundred yards before they heard movement to one side of them, the undergrowth had been disturbed as if something had been dragged through it. They found the remains of the person from the pod about twenty yards into the undergrowth. He’d obviously been attacked by a big cat from the large claw marks down his ripped overalls and partially eaten.

Gavin turned Eva away from the sight, knowing she was upset from the first pod she’d be even more upset that the guy had survived and died because he hadn’t taken his weapons with him.

“Damn! If only he’d taken a weapon with him there’d be three of us now,” Gavin said as they examined the body. Gavin collected large stones while Eva kept a careful watch, they’d heard movement and it was probably the cat being disturbed by their presence. There was a good chance it would return and they didn’t want to be caught the way the guy had. He covered the remains with large stones making a cairn to stop more animals scavenging the body that was all the could do for the poor guy. It would have been quicker with two of them working but they didn’t want to take the chance.

“I think we’ll take his pod with us, you never know the equipment he was carrying could be useful,” Gavin said as they returned to the two pods.

Gavin gave Eva another big hug and a quick kiss on the cheek before they split up to the two pods to set off again, he was starting to worry that they were the only two survivors. They should have heard from any others by now, but they had to check on them all. If they were the only two the equipment in the pods would be useful to them as they set up waiting and hoping that earth knew of their dilemma and could send somebody after them.

“Do we continue or return to our camp with this pod it’s getting late?” Gavin asked as he realised it was getting later than they’d thought. The stop after finding the crashed pod and then searching for the guy and burying him had taken a lot of time, and they needed to get back before it went dark. “We can start again tomorrow,” he suggested.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

Eva had been hopeful upon seeing the other pod, especially intact and with the door open. It hadn't bothered her that the occupant had not taken his or her weapons. After all, she and Gavin had yet to see anything other than plantlife and insects, there was a chance that the area held no large predators.

Apparently she was mistaken, however, as they discovered when they found the remains of the pod's occupant. She gasped in horror at the sight, despite the fact that Gavin quickly turned her away from it. She bit down on a gag reflex while he rubbed his hands over her arms to try and sooth her.

Unable to look at the body again, she was more than willing to let Gavin cover it while she kept watch. She tried to push the image of the body out of her head and focused as much as she could on keeping an eye out for the predator whose meal Gavin was currently covering.

“I think we’ll take his pod with us, you never know the equipment he was carrying could be useful."

"Agreed. He ight have been carrying something crucial to the colonization process as well. None of us were superfluous, after all..." Her brow scrunched briefly, as if in pain. It smoothed away when Gavin hugged her again and she sighed, comforted greatly by the gesture and the kiss that followed. They parted and took care of the pods, peparing the new one to move back to the campsite.

“Do we continue or return to our camp with this pod it’s getting late? We can start again tomorrow."

"Yes, let's head back. I think... I've seen enough for one day." They turned the pods back toward the site and Eva wondered silently, 'will we have to deal with this tomorrow? What if we're the only ones who made landfall alive?'

She shook her head and said aloud. "That was only two pods... there's no possible way they've all fallen on trouble. I'm sure we'll find someone tomorrow." The reassurance was more than half for herself.

By the time they reached camp, sunset was approaching. Eva exited her pod and looked out at the landscape with a sigh. So far from home, but... they would survive. Somehow, they would make it.

 

[cyberman2005]

Gavin was as shaken as Eva after what they’d found on their first days search, As they both got out of the pods they were driving he moved over to her giving her a hug and a quick kiss on the lips.

"That was only two pods... there's no possible way they've all fallen on trouble. I'm sure we'll find someone tomorrow."

“I don’t know hun,” he said still holding her close. “Something must have gone wrong with the ship for only twenty pods to make it to this planet. The first pod had obviously been battered by something in space to be in that state, we both made it and the guy we buried made it. But we haven’t heard anything over the com, if there are more survivors we should have heard something by now,” he said hanging on to her, partially for his own comfort as well as for hers.

“We’ll look again tomorrow, but don’t get your hopes up,” He said as he started to prepare their evening meal. With the extra pod they now had rations to last them about three months.

They ate in silence both lost in thoughts of being stranded here and having to survive with just the two of them. Once they finished eating they set up their tent, without saying anything they set their sleeping bags close to each other, both wanting the comfort of having the other close during the night.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

Eva was too distraught to really be distracted by the kiss, but the embrace was comforting at the very least. Gavin felt strong and alive, which had suddenly become very important. His words fell heavy on her mind and heart and, once he released her, she wrapped her arms around herself.

Alone on this strenge planet, light-years from the nearest settlement that they knew about. Things may have changed ince they'd left Earth, but chances were, evene if they could get a message back, they might not be in any state to received the help sent. She shivered and went to work on the pods with Gavin, trying to distract herself with work.

Their sleeping bags were laid close to gether and she huddled in hers, lying on her side so she could see Gavin's sleeping bag move as he breathed. She'd never handled death well and that was with her friends and family around to comfort her. Now, nearly alone in a dangerous wilderness on a distant planet, she barely kept herself from clinging to Gavin for comfort. She needed to be strong, to hold up her end of the work and growing weak in the knees at the sight of a trashed pod wasn't going to help matters.

When she awoke the next morning, the first rays of light were beginning to brighten the purple-hued sky. She did not rise, however, remaining huddled in her sleeping bag, watching Gavin in silence. After seeing what happened to that other member of their team, she wasn't in any hurry to go out there alone.

 

[cyberman2005]

Gavin woke to find Eva watching him, she looked worried but a slight smile came to her face as he opened his eyes.

“What a lovely sight to be greeted with when you awake,” he said with a big grin on his face, “You look wonderful this morning,” he added his grin turning to a laugh at the look on her face.

“Are you up to searching again today, or should we consider making this place our base it’s got running water nearby and the woods aren’t too close,” he asked.

He would be quite happy to start making a permanent base especially after the previous days results, he also wanted to spend some relaxing time with Eva to get to know her better. When they were out searching there was too much going on for them to get to know each other, they were watching each others backs for safety all the time.

“If we stay here today, it will give you some time to do a bit of research while I get out the things for making a permanent building,” he suggested.

Each pod had the materials to make part of a building, initially the material was like tent fabric but once it was set up and exposed to the air for twenty four hours it became as solid as concrete. With the three pods they had there was enough material to make a decent sizes three roomed building with a number of small rooms as well.

“Well what shall it be, search or research and set up camp?” he asked.

He didn’t think they’d have much success with search, if they were going to find anybody else alive they’d have heard from them by now. And with three pods together the others would be heading towards them, but there was no sign of movement on the screen.

 

[Fox-in-hiding]

Eva pouted as Gavin laughed at her, but she let the pout go as he made his suggestion. The thought of going back out there and searching sobered her up quickly.

"While I'd really like to know everyone's whereabouts," she sat up with a sigh and drew her knees up to her chest, dragging her sleeping bag with her, "I... don't know if I want to deal with another disappointment right now."

She sucked in a deep breath and nodded. "Yes, let's focus on making the camp more secure. That way, if anyone does come, we'll be ready to handle emergencies."