When he succeeded in unstrapping me, I fell limply into his arms. Aunty Petti was by my side, stirring up a gauze and bandage. That was when I looked at my hands. I was bleeding terribly on my upper arm. As though a switch had been turned on, I began to feel the pain after I looked at it. I also hadn't imagined that I felt so dizzy because I was losing so much blood.

"Relax now. I'll stich this up really quickly." Aunty Petti said.

"What is going on?" I asked Austin.

"Well, we crash landed. Luckily, the entire ship didn't explode as the fuel had already drained totally. Also, the ship's metal did not spark up a fire. But we do have some casualties. The impact was really, you know, like a crash impact. There are no serious injuries and no one is dead."

I nod. "What about Major Santorez?"

Aunty Petti laughed. "Major Santorez is built like a rock. He has several cuts and a little toe hairline fracture. But he is outside, fixing up the medic tent so that all casualties can be moved in before night fall. He is efficient, that man. Here, I'm done."

I glanced at my hands again. It was neatly bandaged and steady.

"Thank you." I whispered and squeezed her hand with my good arm. She waved it off. "Don't mention it. I may be a pilot but it's also my position to take care of you guys. I contributed to the crash too."

"No! You saved our lives. We are grateful for that." Austin said.

"Are you hurt?" I asked her.

She smoked stiffly. "I'm good, kid. Don't worry about me."

As she walked away, I noticed she had began to walk with a slight limp. I wondered how much pain she was sucking up and ignoring, just to be strong for us. Austin too had a gash on his forehead, but he was here for me. I made a resolve to help too, no matter how I felt. We were all sharing ourselves, helping others whose pain was greater than ours. I was inspired.

"You okay?" Austin asked. He was peering into my eyes. "You got lost for a moment."

"I'm good. Let's go outside."

When we go out, I am stunned by the look and feel of this place. The ground is made of coarse sand, but it bounces and is papery, like soft snow. It is Burgundy in color. Major Santorez is now installing a makeshift sleeping pod next to the medic tent.

I see a group of people evacuating casualties and I join them. I see Zuri, sitting in front of the smoking ship, and I reach for her. Her ankle had been dislocated and she had a few cuts. I slung her arm over my shoulder and moved her to the tent. When I came back out, I was confronted by Austin and Major Santorez.

"Emma Mckinny." Major Santorez called, and I blinked.

"She's getting lost." Austin chipped.

"What?" I asked, looking at both of them.

Austin pointed to my arm. "Youre bleeding again." Sure enough, the bandage Aunty Petti had put on was covered in fresh blood.

"You have to rest." Major Santorez commanded. "You can't take care of the casualties if you are not in a good place, Emma. We don't want anyone dying here."

He sauntered away and Austin led me to the medic tent where I had just been taking people a few moments ago. Austin retrieved my backpack and everything I took with me from the wrecked ship. I could not thank him enough. When I opened the bag, the first thing I looked out for was Xavier. She was still shit down but there was no damage done. I placed my hands around her sleek frame and held it to my chest.

"We survived, Xavier." I whispered. "We survived."

By nightfall, the sleeping pod is sealed shut for everyone even though there is a good density of oxygen outside. The medic tent would be too. Major Santorez feared an attack and a number of people from the security team would take turns watching. We were not all going to sleep at once in this camp.

Before retiring, everyone gathered in little groups with lamps between them, discussing the next move as they snacked on energy bars and the regulated food reserve we had.

Aunty Petti had brought me food earlier. It was toast and coffee. I don't know how it was made because I was slipping in and out of a shallow sleep. The coffee was hot, and the toast was pleasantly warm. I was proud of how quickly we were making progress, improvising and building even in the midst of this Arid place and having survived a crash. Our training had not been for nothing.

I remembered I had a granola bar in my bag and I took it out and ate. I wondered if this place was messing with my appetite. A part of me wanted to save it for later, but I felt like I had to eat it immediately or something terrible would happen.

Finally, the chatter died down. It seemed everyone had gone to sleep to prepare for the day ahead, and the night was still and silent. My bed at the medic tent was close to a makeshift plastic window too. I gazed out of it at the moons, confirming what Xavier had taught me. There were three moons hanging low in the thick night sky. There were never at the same phase. One would be at a full moon, the other half, and the other, new. There was a phenomenon where the three moons would be full, but it occurred once in every century.

I am still thinking when Austin cokes up to me.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

I turned to look at him. He looked tired and it was apparent he was trying to hold up despite it. There were fine creases on his forehead that weren't there. It came from wearing the helmet too long. His eyes shimmered under the light of the three moons.

"I'm great. You look stressed."

He ran his hands through his hair. "Yea, it's nothing. Taken your meds?"

"Some Aspirin Aunty Petti gave me."

He nodded.

"What were you all doing outside? I heard some people talking about what could happen here."

Austin sighed. "Well, it doesn't matter what we propose. Major Santorez doesn't listen to suggestions, you know? He has his own plan."

I sucked my teeth. And drew my makeshift pillow closer. It was a duffel bag pumped full of clothes." And what's his grand plan?"

"He intends to take over the heart of the planet. He says there have always been signs of life, and we would search for it. We can't build a new ship with what we have here. So I guess it's valid. No one opposed his idea."

I looked out of the window. "That sounds dangerous."

"Does it?" Austin asked.

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Imagine being on earth, safe in your home, only to have someone attack and take over your resources because they had some incident? Not even asking politely?"

Austin shrugged. "Yes, I can imagine. Because it happened and threw my family into penury."

My face fell. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to remind you of that."

"It's fine. I guess the aliens weren't from Galsong-7. I understand how this would seem unfair."

I do not say anything. We sit in silence for a while and stare at the moons.

"You know, they have this famed specie. They are transparent bodied and their blood flows through them in the color of rainbow. Their eyes are white, hard rock white, and plants sprout out of their bodies in place of their heads. They are merely about 3 feet tall. The tallest discovered was 4 feet 2. Almost like little children." I paused.

"That sounds beautiful." Austin said flatly.

"Yes! It's fascinating, isn't it?" I don't wait for a reply. "Imagine if I got to meet one of them?"

Austin turned sharply. "They could be dangerous."

"They aren't. I've read all about them."

"Have you interacted with any? No? Emma, these creatures are very hostile to foreigners, a good percentage of them."

I fold my hands and stare out the window. I hate that Austin has taken it upon himself to dampen my enthusiasm.

He placed his hands on my shoulders and turned me to face him.

"Emma, promise me you won't go wandering, promise me you won't do anything drastic?"

I glare at him. "I'm not a child, Austin. Maybe you all can stop treating me like one."

I laid down back and drew the sheets over my body, turned my face and closed my eyes. It was his cue to leave.

"Goodnight, Emma." He said softly. I purse my lips and do not reply.