The Lonely Cosmonaut

Mattix inspected the tattered remains of the abandoned spaceship. At length, she realized that the long trail of scattered debris indicated one thing: no survivors. Suddenly her fate was in focus. And the evidence pointed to the obvious: there was no way she was getting off the barren planet. Forever, she would be a prisoner in an alien world with no way of going back to earth.

In an instant, she felt heaviness in her body. Behind her, the rain sounds inched closer, and the downpour loudly clanked miles away. Yet, before her, the endless expanse of the desolate land stretched out. And she knew that there was no shelter anywhere nearby. Desperate and alone, she realized that this would be a fight for survival - one where only the strongest would make it through alive.

However, she questioned her resolve to push through as she realized how tired and hungry she was. Was it worth the effort? This expedition was supposed to be one of research. She was part of a scientific team sent here to discover new elements. Now she was stranded on a windswept rock with little vegetation - one that had monsoons of hot sulfuric rain and a red giant that burned hotter than she had ever imagined.

Altogether, this planet painted a picture of a living, breathing world, yet it was sterile and lifeless. In truth, it was a deathtrap that reminded her of hunting for bears with her grandfather in the thick mesic forests of northern Wisconsin. The howling storm winds sounded like the loud bellow bears made when caught in bear traps of perfect steel. But, of course, the creatures fought to escape once pierced by its blades. However, the devilish contraption, having tasted blood, held a grudge and took no prisoners. That's how this place felt to her.

In a moment, she licked her lips, slow and sensual. The tip of her tongue performed a figure eight before she would push it across the brim. Her lingua had a red tinge and was wide enough to cover both sides of her kisser. She felt they were cracked, like they needed a drink of water, yet she resisted. On the trek to find someone… anyone… she had burned through her reserves. And what she resisted was resorting to drinking her urine.

Mattix turned away and looked at the mountains in the distance. She turned her head; her eyes glanced out of the corner of her vision and saw the red horizon. Her gaze shifted to the jagged peaks that punctured the paper-thin atmosphere, anchoring the base of the garnet-colored sky. On one side, the sun kept rising; on the other, the torrential downpour kept advancing.

The ground beneath her feet suddenly felt uneven and detached from the rest of her existence. Without warning, realization crashed down on Mattix like an avalanche - simultaneously spawning a new sense of awareness and defeat. She thought about all those she had left behind - friends, enemies, family … Mattix turned back toward the bright sun… without determination, she threw hope into the wind.

Then, she realized there was one thing to do. She felt her chest ache, making her feel too big for the body she was inhabiting. Her heart throbbed like a twitching nerve after a spider bite; or after a hair-raising scare following a scorpion sting. She arched her back and spun around and around until the pain finally dissipated. Then, she brought her tiny hands to the base of her helmet. She pulled a few wires attached to her body suit. She took her helmet off and breathed.