At first, Tara wasn’t sure why she had woken a full two hours early. Then she heard the loud sirens and saw the flashing lights. Red. Everyone on deck, including the interns. Tara quickly pulled on her official jacket over her pajamas. There was no time for the rest of her uniform. Quickly she hurried up to the ship’s control room. The deck would look like chaos to an outsider, but Tara could see everyone was following strict emergency procedures. Making her way to her place by the commander, she gathered the situation. Both main engines were blown, supposedly from an impact with some random space junk, and the third emergency engine was wobbly at best.

Tara was soon set to work checking the air locks around the windows and engine compartment. All were sealed, but it didn’t make the situation any better. It was the last preparation flight too. The first families to move into the Mars Colony were supposed to be coming in a month or so. Tara’s shuttle was going to add some last supplies and ensure the air circulation/purification and waste disposal systems were working properly. That was the reason for the Colony, the pollution on Earth. It had gotten very bad in recent years. Each year there was less and less space where the land was fit for farming, the water for drinking, and the air for breathing. And the population was still growing. Now a few of these people would get a chance to make a fresh start away from the irreversible damage. They were so close, too. The large view screen was full of Mars, with the Colony just coming into view on the left. Tara was staring at it when the third engine failed.

“Abandon Ship!” The commander’s voice broke the silence of the astonished crew. Everyone became active again, heading down the corridor that led to the smaller escape vessel. As soon as everyone was inside, the commander detached the craft and they sped away from the disabled shuttle. Looking back, Tara saw the shuttle, already perilously close, drawn towards Mars, and the Colony. In the next seconds Tara watched as it smashed into the huge biodome on the planet’s surface. Maybe, she thought, as she watched the shuttle destroy the work of the past nine years, maybe we shouldn’t do this, shouldn’t ruin another planet. Maybe we don’t get another chance.