Operation Atlas

No one can hear a scream in the vacuum of space, or so they say. However, as I floated next to the latest of several ships to head to the Mars colony, the Titan, watching Earth be devoured by the monster, I knew that every single being in the universe could hear me. Even if that meant just the rest of my team.

"What the hell is that?!" called Flight Engineer Charlie Farriday over the comm system.

No one answered him. No one knew how. I'm pretty sure we all in that moment forgot how to even breathe.

The monster was enormous. It made the earth look like the size of a basketball in its immense blue claws. The beast took small bites, savoring every bit as it fed the earth into his unhinged jaw, heat radiating out from its mouth. Tears fell from my eyes as I thought about what everyone on earth was experiencing right at that moment.

"Charlie," I called. "Do you have any audio from Mission Control?"

"I do," he replied, his voice breathy and shaking. "Do you really wanna hear it?"

"Please."

Charlie gave a sigh and patched me the audio.

Screams. Crashes. Sounds of panicked mayhem as hundreds of people sought to escape. Escape where? What did they think was happening? Could they see the monster in the sky? Its bulbous violet skin and fiery red eyes? Did they understand what was happening?

"For god's sake man, turn that off," pleaded science officer Rachel Carson.

Charlie obliged and we were left in silence once again.

"Sarah, please come back inside," urged Rachel. I heard her voice break in fear.

"Charlie, are we recording this?" I asked. There would be no one to show it to, but I would be damned if I didn't record the last moments of human civilization.

"Started the second I saw the bastard."

"Good."

I finally broke my gaze and pulled myself along the side of the Titan towards the airlock, hurriedly stripping my flight suit once I was inside and the doors were sealed and I had once again re-engaged with the artificial gravity. I raced out of the space walk room and into the hallway between the living quarters and the command deck, stopping to watch as the monster continued eating, having now devoured just over half of the earth.

I collapsed to my knees, unable to tear my eyes away. The beast had already eaten Michigan, my home state. I thought of my mother tending to my bed ridden father. They had been so proud of their daughter for being chosen to command the first mission of the Titan space station, the first space station that would orbit Mars. They had said we would celebrate when I got back in 18 months.

My sobs continued to fall out of me as I thought of my fiance Liam. We had only been engaged for a week before I was chosen to lead Operation Home Base. He was the love of my life and now I would never see him again.

"Rachel," I asked. "Are you okay?"

I knew she was not ok. Rachel had children.

"No," she said softly through sobs.

"My god..." exhaled pilot John Combs. He struggled to find more words but there were none.

We all just watched, wracked with horror as the enormous beast finished off the earth and dared to devour the moon as well. With what appeared to be a final breath, the beast turned and floated onward towards Venus and began to slowly eat.

"Alright, we need to leave now," I said, standing and racing to the command deck. "Is everyone in position?"

"Where would we go?" Rachel replied, her voice soft.

"Don't do that Rachel," I said, leaping into my chair next to a dumbstruck John. "You can't give up."

"What the hell are you talking about?" she said. "What are we fighting for? There's nothing to go home to."

I sat down in my seat and engaged the thrusters. John did the same on his side, trying to shake off his shock.

"I'm not just gonna wait around to die!" I called back. "And I won't let anyone else die either!"

Rachel's soft sobs tore at my heart, but there wasn't time to convince her. If we really were the last of humanity in the whole of space, we needed to get the hell out of the galaxy.

Just as I was about to engage the thrusters and pull away, Charlie's urgent voice stopped me.

"Captain, I'm getting a transmission."

I shared a look with John. Farriday was good at his job, he would know the difference between an old transmission and one that was currently being broadcast. He wouldn't have said anything if it wasn't important.

"What kind of transmission?" I asked softly.

Charlie patched it through. The voice was low and crackly, as if the speaker were talking through a gravel road. At first it was nothing but guttural clicks and growls, but then words starting coming through and when the transmission and I could have sworn my heart dropped out of my body.

"Do not run. It will see you and it will not stop. Stay where you are. We will assist."