Time stopped as the stars darted past my window, leaving me lost in thought and

drowsy from the journey. I felt the room shutter, causing my long-untied auburn hair to

drift up in the gravity-free environment. A quiet beeping drew my pale blue eyes from

the void outside and to a small pad. When I touched the screen, it lit up with a reminder.

- You will arrive at Delga docking bay eighteen at 1500 -

I sat reading it over twice before finally resolving to act on my reminder. I was

exhausted, and my joints wanted nothing more than to rest, but I had work to do.

“O-kay Iris let's see” I slid the message to the right of the screen. Unbuckling the

seat belts that kept me tethered and moved to turn on the lights. As I wandered over, I

moved my aching joints that were far less aggrieved than I predicted. Anticipation for

my new life gave me newfound exhilaration and seemingly endless energy. I propelled

myself off of the seat toward the wall, and as I began to check, the fastens on my luggage

and supplies. I ensured all the doors were closed and ran an analysis on my pod before

moving back to my seat. Sitting down in the pilot's chair, I re-clipped the safety buckles,

tied my hair up in a tight bun and prepared for landing.

I feel my spacesuit tighten and loosened to encourage blood circulation in my limbs as the ship's speed increased. The ride was bumpy at first, but after it reached a steady cruising speed It was smooth sailing.

Gazing back out the window, finding a fast-approaching city of silver and glass hovering above a rusty-colored planet, I felt my breath hitch. It's thousands of miles of the state of the art technology that acted as the pinnacle of mankind started back with a beautiful sheen from its perfectly kept exterior. I dreamt of being one of its four million dedicated soldiers and researchers studying this magnificent planet that was teeming with life drifting barely two hundred thousand miles away from the Deliga since I was

ten and now I was. The ship itself was fascinating, but that rusty planet had the only

other known forms of life, and despite none of it being animal life, it was still the greatest Scientific discovery of the millennia.

“Deliga…” I spoke as I slowed my approach and sent a docking request. I looked

back up to the city in amazement before I was pulled from my trance by another beep,

this time louder and immediately followed by a voice.

“This is docking bay 18-B4. Please send your fight plan and ID” His voice was distorted ever so slightly by the transmission and laced with exhaustion as he repeated himself, no doubt, for the hundredth time today. There was another beep as he finally shut the communication down, leaving me with my words alone.

“Thank you” I was sure he hadn't heard me, but it felt right to let the words slip before I followed his orders and sent my information and reports over to the bay.

It didn't take long before I received a digital reply with the signal to dock and just as

quickly, as I received the message, I began my approach. I entered the docking bay slowly

as my ship fought to keep from being pulled in too fast and being crushed agents the larger ships shield. After getting in place with the landing crew, I stopped the directional thrusters and slowly descended to the ground with my landing gear. I had arrived.

One shaky landing later, and I was left feeling heavy from the artificial gravity I had lived without for the last ten months. Every ounce of pressure killed, causing an instant headache as it slowly built up.

“Ohhhhhh boy, oh boy, you are not ready for this Iris, not at all” I moved slowly to unclasp the buckle over my body and I struggled to stand under the immense pressure I had forgotten.

My legs shuddered under the weight of my own body. I stood with the help of my chair and moved to lean against the wall as I struggled to get to the door. It may have been a bit ambitious to start walking but I was so close I had hardly

made it to the wall when I was greeted by two medical officers.

“Easy there you just spent ten months in zero-G you are nowhere near ready to walk on your own yet.” They were obviously concerned by my attempt but were too calm for this to be

a first. The Meds helped me off my ship and sat me down for a brief check-up before

leaving me to deal with the physical therapists and the mettle gravity braces.

The braces were tightly strapped to my joints so they could help me stay upright as I

walked. It resulted in me needing to work twice as hard to move my legs forward but it keep me from falling.

After an hour or two of ‘practice’, I decided I could walk enough to at least find my new place of dwelling, and so I did. Ditching the medical professionals and physical therapists, I wandered down the halls of the Deliga with only my hola map to guide me.

The pressure eased as I got used to normal -9.8 gravity levels.

I wandered through the halls taking

breaks here and there along the way yo catch my breath.

The ship was just as incapable from the inside as it was on the outside with sleek

silver walls and pale blue floor and ceiling lights along the edges of the walls that went

on forever.

However, the simple but elegantly done-up walls were hardly the kicker. It was only natural to get distracted by the bubbles of alien plant life growing wildly. Obliv had thousands of different plant varieties but its most fascinating species were by far the rapidly evolving fungus spices, however, I had yet to spot any fungus in the bubbles yet.

I took the time to spot and identify each plant I had studied over my journey before arriving near the living areas.

As I approached the living quarters I began to slip through a maze of doors that seemed endless. I questioned the accuracy of my map as I continued up and down the uniform halls before finally stopping in front of a door identical to the rest.

According to my map, this was going to be my quarters for the foreseeable future. My heart jumped at the thought of my official independence. This wasn't the first time I was living on my own nor was this my first time having something that was mine alone, but It was different this time. I had always been an only child and along with the attention from my

parents came the expectations.

I let the door slide open, revealing the large metal boxes stacked up in the hall. My belongings had already been brought from my ship and stacked along the entryway.

Letting the excitement take hold, I emptied the boxes and filled the drawers and cupboards. The strange feeling that came with the place grew with every empty box and not just the soreness of my joints from all the physical activity. This feeling was similar to when I got my own pod and yet so much stronger. As I finished unpacking, I moved to rest on the bed, letting the excitement fade away as I finally gave noticeto my sorearms and legs.

The place was exciting and new but left me shaken the moment I was sorted. Thoughts darted through my head and panic steeped in with every passing second. Feeling like the silence was ticking away at my life, I rushed to fill the time just like I did ever since I was first recognized as my parent's legacy at the age of ten. If it could work during my legacy training, it could work now. I pulled up my hola pad and navigated to my main screen in search of my work journal.I wasn't picky. I just needed something to fill this void until a reasonable hour of rest.

Pulled up my work journal to check my schedule flipping through the years reviewing the seemingly limitless to-do lists and endless daily plans. Stopping on May 8th, 3175; my tenth birthday, and the start of my dual legacy training. It had been nine years since then, but the memories of that day lay fresh on my mind. As a legacy, my fate was sealed, I would follow in my parent's footsteps just as they did, with the small exception of needing to fill both my mother's and father's careers.

My parent's families were both legacy lines that dated back to the year 2460 when the legacy program was first installed. allowing an accelerated course of study for those who choose to continue their parent's work.

As the anxiety from the reality of my life closed in on me, I slipped into a small panic attack before the need for air drew me back to my task lists. Snapping out of the trance, I forced myself to move to my entry for March 14th, 3184; in other words, today.

As I looked over my schedule, hoping to distract myself for the day, I was left with a dreadfully 6 hours of free time. All I had planned to do today was to arrive, handle the

boarding protocols, and unpack. I didn't have a single thing to do and had three more

hours to use before 2100 when I could justify sleep as an option, though I was all too aware I wouldn't be sleeping till 2400.

After wracking my brain, I decided I could eat something. After all, I had just arrived and had yet to eat today. However, I quickly realized just how disgusting the idea was in practice, almost as disgusting as the thought of being diagnosed with an eating disorder and being forced to lose the job I had worked so hard to get.

With a newfound resolving to eat, or at least choke down a meal before I could hunt for my next task. I moved to my main living space, which had all the basic living necessities, all sealed and firmly connected to the ship. I used my wrist control to assemble a basic kitchen and dining room in the small nine-by-nine main room. It was simple and only held the bare necessities but was good enough to make a basic rice dish in.

Luckily enough, it was easy on the stomach, but I still couldn't help but gag as I attempted to eat the last bite. Physically, I was healthy, but for some reason, I never had the desire to eat and on difficult days the strength to not feel sick after.

Having finished my meal, I washed up and moved back to my perch on my bed to look at the other possible productive distractions.

I finally seteled on revewing my assignment information. After rereading my debrief and looking at the pre-work I had already finished for the genetics lab, I set my sites on starting tomorrow's workload.

With a minimum of two hours to lose, I settled on wandering the facility, checking my route for work, and maybe even dropping by the lab and introducing myself, if anyonewas still working that was.

I stretched again before hopping off the bed and desperately hoping I wasn't overworking my body. I left with my work log and study journal and set off toward my new workplace, the gen lab.

This time around, I was focused on arriving at the lab as quickly, as possible, the closer I got, the less I felt the need to explore. Until I finally arrived at the lab.

Unlike the rest, this pair of double doors was towering heavy doors decorated with warning signs. There were two labels on the door that immediately caught my eye “Genetic Lab Twelve” Indicating I was in the right place and “Plantae Facility” indicating the department I was to work in Punching in my code and praying it would let me in. As the door opened dispite not starting till tomorrow I entered the small sterilization chamber with a breth of gratitude. the room was designed so that you dress in my vacuum suit before being allowed into the lab.

Pulling up the map on my hola pad again, I found Dr. Micondry’s room and quickly realized to my relief she was still here.

She was to supervise me as I worked as a genetic engineer and researcher here at the lab. I knocked on the door to make my presence known to the older woman who had a few stray gray hairs spilling from her dark bun that had pens and pencils stuck in it. I wasn't sure if they were there for ease of use or because she lost them up there, but it was a relatable trait.

“Hello, Dr. Micodry? I’m Iris, Iris Luvits the… new intern.” I could feel my voice shake and my knee's weekend as the words spilled out. If it weren't for the assisted walking aparatice, I might not have been standing when I finished speaking.

“Ah, OHHHHH Oh... oh..., wait, wait, what day is it? I could have sworn…” she trailed off as she flipped through several screens on the computer she was working on.

It was obvious what she thought had happened. It was nice to know I wasn't the only workaholic that was going to be in this lab.

“Don’t stress too much it’s still Tuesday, I came early to see if there was any paperwork I needed to finish before I could start working in the Lab.” my nerves had settled as my goal became clear.

“Oh, but didn't you only just arrive today, protocol says you need at least two days of gravity training before you start work.” there was more confusion than confrontation in her voice.

There was no way I'd last another hour let alone day without any actual work to keep me busy. And let's be honest it's not like anyone really dose the 2 days of gravity training anyway.

“I’d only be doing paperwork. We have Ornax roots coming from Obliv’s ground team tomorrow anyway I’m sure I could help prepare for the new samples… if you would allow it that is.” The desperation to work was so evident it was comparable to begging.

Luckily for me, it seems Dr. Micodry was sympathetic to my need for busy work and gave me a report to revise for the shipment coming in tomorrow.

“Then perhaps you'd like to check over this sample briefing over for me. If you have any question ask ground team twelve, they are in charge of the samples.” It was as if I was a kid again with a shiny new toy.

“Thank you so much I will finish this tonight” excitement flooded my senses and I

started to head for my desk.

“Oh, wait, before you go, comms will be down from 2100 to 2400 so if you need the ground team between those hours you will have to go in person or wait till morning… And don't overwork yourself kid, it’s okay to just breathe sometimes ya know?”

I quickly nodded in understanding and headed to decipher my new treasure trove of information. Slipping into the work, I checked over the samples due to come in to Genetics Lab 12 and comfortably read over the information for three hours before finding anything even remotely incorrect. It was obvious I was at least the second person to check over this report, but I was happy to have this review on the Ornax root makeup reports anyway.

I flipped the pages and let my eyes drift down the charts and report for each of the sixteen samples until I landed on the third to last sample we would receive. The report said the root was 1.2 billion years old. Even if the sample could live that long, it didn't add up. Obliv was a rogue planet* until nine hundred million years ago. It was already fascinating enough that it had life on it, but without a sun or heat, life was impossible. Right? My head was spinning. If there was a mistake, I had less than eleven hours to fix it before samples came in, and if it were right, this would go against everything, I knew about what life needed to survive. The excitement of finding the truth filled me with determination.

“It's better to double-check anyway” I sprung up stretching as I went and made my way out of the lab with the report in hand, hoping to find some clues from the ground team this late evening.

I needed the info ASAP, so comms being down could be my excuse for being an impatient overbearing in person visitor anyway. It's not like they can be upset that the plucky new intern wants to double-check their work before samples are tested right.

A bit of panic, but mostly excitement took over as I was decontaminated and released from the lab toward the docking bays.

I pulled up my hola map and quickly located the ground teams docking bay. The main hall there was closed, so I'd have to take the long way around, but it was only a 30-minute walk, so I should still get there in time. Revewing my path one more time, I started to head down the endless halls once again.

The halls seemed to blur together as I walked down to the docking bays, I was only walking for a few minutes, but under the pressure of gravity, it felt as if I had been walking for hours. Even with the braces helping me, my legs were weak and sore from my excessive day of work. I brushed off my exhaustion with the promise of a nice relaxing evening when I was done. and tried not to think about how much further I had to go.

Even if the excitement was enough to keep my mind off the soreness of my legs, the elevator was still more than a present surprise when I turned the corner to descend to the basement.

I got to the bottom floor, and my hola pad began to flip out as it lost connection and forced my map to cut out. The hola pad would still respond to my voice and touch, but it acted as if it had been wiped of all its information.

“Maybe this is a part of the comm’s update?” I laughed nervously at how lost I was without my map. I had only been on board for only a few hours and was still unfamiliar with the area. but I remembered the rest of the route for the most part, and that was enough to keep me going. Mustering up what courage I had, I started in the direction my map last showed.

As I continued down the hall, the lights began to flicker before going completely black, I panicked and stumbled to the wall before I stopped to light my hola pad. Giving the metallic walls a ghostly reflection of my sole light source.

With the low light from my screen lighting the way, I let the fear set in as my mind runs wild with gut-wrenching thoughts. Most of which had vivid scenarios where I was brutally murdered. And even if I tell myself they're impossible, it doesn't change my unquestionable fear.

“Oh no, nope, nope, noooo; this is some serious horror bleep right here.” I stopped in my tracks and weighed the risks of continuing down the hall before realizing what I had said.

“Pffff, oh boy, even scared out of my mind, I can’t swear.” I quickly calmed myself down as I thought of my absurdity settled in. Having taken a moment to myself, I brought myself to follow the wall down the hall again, rambling as I went to keep my mind at ease.

I turned a corner with only the ghostly glow from my disconnected hola pad to guide me through the maze of halls. Taking my time to watch my steps, I tried to calm myself as I came to the end of this stretch of the hall before needing to turn yet another ominous corner.

I felt my heart stop as I watched a humanoid mass scrape its head on the seven-foot-tall selling and turned to face me with a wide frame and powerful arms that gave it an almost hulking silhouette. It was a good distance down the hall, but as soon as it stepped in my direction, I had no will to stay. Spinning on my heel and fighting the braces as I rushed back the way I came and prayed, I wouldn’t run into any walls as I stumbled on my feet.

I looked back only to see it race toward me, hitting the walls as if it were blind and releasing an incoherent sound from its indiscernible face.

I didn’t make it that far down the last hall before the elevator when I felt something grab my wrist with a ruff bark-like suffice. That was it, nope, nope, nope, nope, there was no way I was going to handle this rationally.

Letting out a scream, I turned twisting my captured wrist against the ruff surface, leaving my arm sore and scraped up as the cracks in its strange surface fought the change in position. Shifting my weight, I punched my mystery attacker with my free hand. I felt my hand sink into its solid head like mas as if I was pinching a tree. I may not have done much damage, but its footing faltered from the impact, and taking the chance, I made a run for it as it lost its grip. Both my arm and hand were sore and scraped up from the ruff interaction, but I was free.

The darkness didn’t do much to cover up its inhuman characteristics from my

vision when I turned to punch it, nor could it change the wooden feeling I got as my fist

collided with what I thought was its face. And even as it recoiled to the wall from the impact, it was easily three feet taller than me. As I made the misstake of looking back around at it, I watched as Its eyes burned a yellow tint and lines along its form glowed rusty reds and oranges highlighting the feathery shapes making up its frame.

“Nope, Nope, Noooope, no, no, no, nooo” stumbling down the hall, I could feel the adrenalin of my fearful encounter overriding the effect gravity had on my body. I could feel my whole body scream at the pain but not as loud as my head. My energy seemed unlimited until I saw armed guards, I might not know who they were, but at least they looked human.

“Hu… Help…” Relief extinguished the fear as I approached the soldiers. I fell from the exhaustion as my adrenaline burned out and fought my eyelids as I lost feeling in my limbs.

“ Sir, do you think…”

My vision faded to black, leaving my mind restless yet thoughtless.

…

Silence seeped in as my mind drifted to quiet dreams of everything and nothing

all at once.

Author speaking- so quick explanation a rogue planet is a planet that doesn't orbit a sun, Obliv was a rogue planet that got caught in a sun's orbit billions of years after its formation.