A bright, brilliant sun rises over a foreign planet’s sky, coloring the far horizon in vibrant colors of subdued pink and yellow hues. Looking at the place where our ship should’ve been, I saw Captain Hanna Io lounging back in the flattened grass where the ship should’ve been, calmly gazing at the sky with a piece of grass sticking from her mouth. “Hmm,” she sighed casually, well collected blase tone, “Guess you're awake now. Ah, well, I guess it’s just you and me now, Miss Amelia Furze.” She replied calmly, continuing to look at the white clouds drifting through the sky above the wide-open clearing on a plateau where we spent the night.

“W-WHAT?!” Panic, anger, and shocked frustration rose in my voice as I cried in disbelief. As I realized the ship was truly gone, I wasn’t dreaming, and my eyes weren’t imagining what I was seeing, I still felt disoriented and half-sleep as I approached my Captain, “What do you mean, Captain? Where the hell is the rest of the crew? Heck, where in the hell did the ship go?” I looked at Io, desperately looking for answers. I took a deep breath and asked Io more calmly, “Captain Io, where did they go?”

Io slowly stood up from the ground, brushing the coarse dirt off her clothes in a tough, rugged-looking manner, “Calling me Io will do just fine…” She said bluntly, taking the blade of grass out of her hand and swiftly dropping it to the ground, she immediately dropped her carefree attitude, shifted into a chilling, well-collected, professional attitude, making it clear her nonchalant attitude was merely an act, “I don’t know, they left…” The small scowl on her lips and the burning anger in her eyes made her frustration evident along with her voice, acknowledging that the majority of our crew abandoned us, despite her seemingly calm exterior. “They’re probably somewhere halfway across this solar system by now.” She said, “It appears they’ve mutinied me; you were just unfortunate to get caught in this betrayal as well. We’ve been left stranded here overnight while we were fast asleep… fucking bastards…” She spat furiously. I could see a flicker of anger in her eyes, “They’ve abandoned us here.” She paused, taking a deep breath to recollect herself, returning to her calm, professional blase tone, “But we can’t dwell on that now, since this planet seems to support us, it’s safe to assume it’s also capable of supporting complex life forms as well. That means we’ll have to try to make sure we don’t get eaten.”

I stared at Io in disbelief, unable to comprehend what she just said, frozen in shock like someone walking away from a car crash.

“Mutiny?! Wait, what?! How could they do this to us…?” My mind panicked as Io mentioned something getting eaten, “You don’t think we’ll actually get eaten here, do you? If life were to form on a planet like wouldn’t it form similarly to Earth?! If we’re respectful to the wildlife, they should logically leave us alone,” I exclaimed, trying to think rationally, but my mind was still swimming with disbelief. “And Captain, or I mean Io… how can you remain so calm in a moment like this?” I asked, frustrated at her composure.

“Amelia! Take a deep breath. Focus. And listen to me!” She addressed me sternly, approaching me and grabbing my shoulders firmly on both sides in efforts to ground me as she spoke. It was so strange hearing her call me by my first. Usually, it was just Furze, or Miss Furze. She looked at me with her intense dark brown eyes, black as night, “Getting worked isn’t going to help any of us in this situation. Panicking won’t do us any good. In fact, it’s something that could get us both killed.” Io continued with a strong, direct tone as she described the next course of action, “They’ve left us, and I can’t tell you how much that fucking pisses me off. But there’s no changing that they did, but that doesn’t mean we can’t try our damned hardest to survive out of pure spite. First thing we’ll need to do is find a source of water.” She looked down into a dense, dark, lush forest, she said professionally as she switched into work mode, “If we go downhill, there’s a good chance we’ll find a source of water. We’ll have to be careful as we continue, so stay close. Don’t wander off.”

I couldn’t help but feel a mixture of jealousy and gratitude towards Io for her levelheadedness. She had all the qualities of a damn great leader—unshakeable and steadfast, a rock in a hard place. I glared at Io, “Fine...” I huffed, reluctant resignation at her strong pragmatic authority. I let out a sigh, calmly readying myself to submit my compliance under her orders, just as I had become so accustomed to on the ship. My frustration was slowly being tempered by her stoicism as I entered bolstered a professional attitude. I was now active and ready for duty. “Let’s find some water. Then we’ll figure it out from there.”

“You really think we’ll find any water down there?” I asked as we started down the hill, entering the forest. My ears listened to birds…? Singing and flying through the trees. The scent of tree flowers and fresh soil filled my senses, making me sneeze slightly as I breathed the light pollen in the air coming up from the forest below. The trees were straggly, tall conifer trees with deep, dark, verdant needles.

Io nods. “Yes, I believe that should be correct; it’s our best bet currently.” She said, “Water generally flows downhill into low points, forming the classic bodies of water we find on earth due to gravity. It’s the path of least resistance or something like that, isn’t it, Amelia?” I smiled smugly as she asked me questions of physics, trying to get me to think with my brain and distract me from the surreal situation we were in.

I nodded, letting out a wry chuckle at her attempt to distract me with trivial facts, appreciating the effort despite the grim circumstance, "Yes, if we’re going off the general rules of gravity on earth, that'd be exactly correct. It's the path of least resistance. On Earth and on any similar planets, the force of gravity pulls the water molecules down towards the center of mass. Eventually, that water starts seeping into the loose ground until it reaches a harder layer. Over time, this water creates lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, and even oceans and aquifers." I explained as I rattled off the information at the top of my head quickly and confidently, slightly distracted by the fact that we were discussing physics and not the dire situation at hand. I appreciated Io's attempt to shift my focus to something more productive. It filled me with a comforting sense of familiarity by explaining such simple yet fundamental principles of physics, "And in this case," I added, "That area would be at a lower point than where we are now." I felt reassured by her rational knowledge and understanding, though her knowledge would more likely be more basic, based on practical applications. It was just basic laws of gravity.

"So, if we follow the natural slope of the terrain, that should definitely increase our chances of finding a source of water soon." I continue with a newfound confidence and determination, looking around, trying to spot something that would indicate water.

As we hurriedly descended further down the slope, my eyes scanned the forest, looking for a source of water while staying alert for potential threats. We carefully continued navigating a landscape of fallen branches and animal burrows. “Io! Down there!” I shouted, proudly pointing to a wide stretch of flowing water. The river was dark; it looked like a thick black snake moving slowly through the forest. “I think I spot a river just ahead.”

She paused, examining where I was pointing. “Yes, excellent work, Amelia,” she said, congratulating me by patting me on the shoulder. “Let’s go get a closer look. Go slowly, we’re descending on uneven terrain, and I don’t need you slipping and breaking a leg. Keep your eyes peeled for your surroundings.”

We hurried down to the bank of the river. I was brimming with excitement. The water roared in my ears, and the air felt cooler as we stood at the water’s edge. Examining it up close, I was filled with anxious fear and awestruck wonder, surprised seeing how wide it was and how powerfully the currents of the river moved. “We’ll definitely have enough water to drink from here,” I stated confidently as I was preparing to scoop some up in my hands to taste.

“Not so fast,” Io cautioned, “We cannot drink the water straight from this river. There are going to be contaminants in the water, bacteria, and diseases that will make us violently ill. Where do you think the animal waste in this forest runs off into when it rains? Into the river. We’ll have to collect and filter the water for now. Once we’ve set up a camp, we’ll make a fire so we can boil and purify it, then it’ll be safer for us to drink.”

I nodded, feeling humbled by what Io said. I hadn’t thought of contaminants in the river. I wasn’t extensively trained on what to do if a ship got stranded. Io, however, was trained and drilled constantly on what to do in basically any situation until it was hardwired into her brain. I had spoken with caution and wisely explained about the contaminants.

"Ugh, dammit..." I groaned in very visible embarrassment, palming my face briefly as I spoke, "Right... right of course. I wasn't thinking ahead. This river, of course, likely has contaminants like bacteria and diseases that can cause waterborne illnesses..." I murmured, repeating the dangers, mentally kicking myself as I acknowledged her warning clearly, and once again, "Thank you for stopping me so quickly, Captain Io." I continued to murmur graciously. I was grateful for her commanding presence and the way she thought of everything. Without it, I'd likely end up in this wilderness dead or worse in no time.

"So, Captain Io, what's the plan then? How do you propose we collect and filter? We'll purify the water when we set up camp, correct?" I asked, looking to her for proper instruction, my enthusiastic excitement slightly dampened by the work it required to make the water safe to drink. "Good news, though; we found ourselves a water source."

I looked at the rushing water in a different light as my shoes sank slightly into the muddy banks. Io’s eyes never left the river as she scanned it out. She seemed to be quickly observing and storing away every detail of the river that she could. I wondered what she was all calculating, if she was mentally trying to gauge how fast the water was moving, trying to guess the potential depth of the river, and assessing for any other potential threats or information she should know of in this moment.

I heard as Io let out a defeated sigh as she heard me still referring to her as Captain, knowing that despite her giving permission to be on first name basis, that I wasn’t going to cut the habit out so easily. She understood I respected her as my Captain despite the circumstances we were in. “I was thinking we’d pour the water through fabric to filter out as much debris as we can. And then once we’ve set up camp, we’ll boil it in some pots over a fire.” She answered.

She rummaged for a container through the duffel bags we had carried with us from the initial landing site we came from. I watched her rummaging for a container through the duffel bags we had carried with us from the initial landing site we came from.

“Seems surprisingly simple enough,” I responded attentively, taking in as many mental notes as I could.

She nodded, silently agreeing with me, “Good, simplifying a task helps us be more efficient and productive.” She simply said as she pulled out a clean white t-shirt from the bag with her right hand. “Hold this steady.” She said as she handed the clear plastic container in her left hand in front of me. I snatched it without hesitation and held it while I watched her scoop up water from the river, pulling the ends of the shirt together to create a pouch full of water. She then brought the t-shirt holding the water over then strained the water into the container. “Good job, that should hold about a gallon of water. All the bags we took should have a container like this in them. Each ship sent out by the ISA-MV provided bags filled with survival gear for every crew member, just in case of situations like these. And I’m glad you think the solution seems simple. That means it’s a relatively reliable and efficient method, which we should be striving for so we don’t use too much time or energy trying to do one task.” I nod at her explanation as I go to look in the bag I was carrying, “Luckily, we were smart enough to take our bags out.” Sure enough, there was another plastic container identical to the one Io pulled from her bag.

"Yes, we're lucky we grabbed those bags," I replied, eyes darting between the container and the makeshift filter Io made from the shirt. Her ingenuity never ceased to impress me. Even in the midst of this crisis, she remained calm and resourceful. I couldn't help but feel a swell of admiration for my captain. Her words about simplifying tasks also resonated with me. It was true. In times of chaos, streamlined thinking was key. As I examined the container in my hands, I asked, "Shall we fill up the other one too? And maybe find some rocks or sticks to create a makeshift filter system once we get back to camp? Something more...permanent than a t-shirt." I suggested, already planning ahead as I watched Io carefully pour the filtered water into the container. "Oh, and we should probably look out for any wildlife that might be attracted by the water too..." I added, glancing around cautiously, taking in the sounds of the forest. The river's roar seemed to mask other possible noises. "Eventually..." Io said with a short nod. A small gesture of positive encouragement. As I was taking inventory of what I had in the bag, I contemplated our situation. We had two extra bags on hand. I hesitantly asked Io about it, worried to hear her response, “So, we have two bags for us, but we have two additional bags with us. Why’s that?”

As I was taking inventory of what I had in the bag, I contemplated our situation. We had two extra bags on hand. I hesitantly asked Io about it, worried to hear her response, “So, we have two bags for us, but we have two additional bags with us. Why’s that?”

An uneasy silence hung in the air. Io took a deep breath, “I was afraid you’d ask that…” She said, giving a weary sigh, a grave expression shadowed her face, causing a more tired look than usual, “I’m afraid some of the other crew… they weren’t part of the mutiny either. They probably left their bags out here last night when we landed, expecting to set up base camp this morning, just like the plans I informed them of before landing. But some people had different intentions. The ship departed this planet before those individuals unknowingly caught up in this plot of betrayal could even collect their belongings.”

My blood immediately ran cold in a still fear and dread, and I felt my heart sink in my chest. Ironically, I felt fortunate now to have been abandoned and forgotten about on this foreign planet with Io instead of staying inside the ship, trapped with the rest of my colleagues and the mutineers. "So... they're... trapped… but up there… with them traitors…" I muttered quietly. It was unfathomable to think that some of my other crewmates, who were equally unaware of the conspiracy that unfolded, had stayed on the ship. And we were down here, unable to protect them from any potential danger.

“Oh god… Captain Io…?!” I muttered, my voice whispered, and distraught. The darkest scenarios I could think of played through my head as I thought of what might be happening to those two unnamed individuals. Would the mutineer possibly assault them, or worse, violate them? Despite my worst fears, I took a deep breath and then asked calmly, still, however mentally filled with trepidation and fear to pry further. “Do- Do you think they’re alright?”

“I don’t know, Miss Furze,” Io muttered; her voice shadowed with grave uncertainty. “I just don’t know…”

“But they’ll be alright, won’t they? They just have to be alright.” I asked with a soft cry. I was still determined to get a definitive answer, but unsure if it was better to know or not know at all.

“I don’t know,” Io muttered again softly. She pointed her head down, trying to avoid the vulnerable annoyance and frustration on her face, as she realistically feared the worst for the rest of her crew. There was a potential that without her maintenance and guidance on the ship, it would all together go dark, and the rest who were once under her command would die as the vitals and mechanics on the ship failed.

I couldn’t help but feel a growing sense of frustration and hopelessness. “What do you think will happen to them?” I muttered quietly in desperation, still clinging to the fragile hope that they were alright.

“I… I don't KNOW…!” Io cried angrily, letting out an outburst of frustration as she tried desperately to keep her emotions in check and maintain her calm composure, “How am I supposed to know? I didn’t even realize some of my own crew was planning to betray me.” Her voice choked with emotion as her body tensed up, her eyebrows furrowed, and her jaw clenched down tightly. She held her hands balled into fists at her sides, “I’m just as much at a loss for answers as you are. Believe me. If I knew, I’d tell you.” She admitted. With shaky hands, she dusted off her shirt and pants again and took a deep breath before she eventually spoke on the full reality of the situation for everyone on the ship. Her voice was strong as a display of strength, “There’s a very good possibility that without a proper captain supervising, the logs on the ship systems will degrade. Life support, propulsion - everything will eventually fail, and the ship will go dark. The MV-679 Dauntless will be a ghost ship forever drifting in the vastness of space.” I knew she was telling the truth. And I knew she just wanted to fall down and fall apart right there. To just cry and not let it stop. Her eyes looked at the river, reflecting thoughts of despair as she thought of her lost crew, in a way that bone crushing, unforgiving river before us looked so inviting to her in this moment.

It was the first time I had ever seen Io so close to tears. She felt as though she failed her crew as a leader; maybe that’s why she was left here. It felt wrong to see her so vulnerable, to see her other than as my fearless captain whom I vowed to follow to the ends of the universe. But it was a valuable lesson for me as well. She was still very much human; if struck at her most fragile points would crumble, even break apart.

“I-,” I began, reaching out my hand to Io in hopes of providing her a comforting gesture before she pulled her shoulder away and interrupted before I could say anything.

“Miss Furze, I’m fine. Let’s focus on our mission, on what’s obtainable. First, let’s finish collecting our things and go.” She said with a cold, closed-off tone, laced with the weariness that loomed over her heart. It was as if she were removing herself from her emotions for the sake of our perseverance and survival.

Understanding her discomfort, I decided to let the matter rest for the time being. It was best to listen to Io’s orders, so I continued filling the second container in silence; the task helped ground my thoughts. Once finished, we continued walking in search of a suitable place to set up camp—a place Io hoped would serve as a more permanent settlement. As she put it, “a little home away from home.” We kept following the river downstream, which Io determined flowed south, guiding us further into uncharted territory.

The more my senses adjusted to the forest around me, the more I noticed how alive this world around me was. I spotted small birds flitting through the trees. Bugs flew through the air with a soft buzzing sound… Some thought buzzed annoyingly close to the ear; the soft ambient became loud and irritating. The smell of decaying leaves and wood, along with a rich minty scent, filled my nose. My eyes spotted a deer on the other side of the river grazing peacefully; munching gently on young tender shoots of green grass, a sight I might’ve easily missed if I wasn’t on high alert and paying attention to everything around me.

“Ah, amazing…” I gasped softly under my breath.

They resembled the illustrations and photographs of the creatures once plentiful on earth quite closely. They were relatively small creatures with slender bodies, perfect for moving nimbly and gracefully through their surroundings; a beautiful coat of short, soft brown fur helped blend them so naturally into their surroundings.

Despite my current feelings of abandonment and betrayal from my comrades, whom I had grown close to over the years of living and working together, I couldn’t help but smile, wondering if the Earth we knew was ever like what our grandparents or maybe great-grandparents knew was ever like the world we were trying to survive in now.

“Mmm… what-?” Io looked up towards me, her usually stoic, stone-faced composure broke with surprise at my sudden remark.

“Oh, nothing… Just over there,” I murmured, just a little above a whisper, gesturing vaguely across the river, pointing it with my right index finger, “There’s... I believe what looks like a deer is across the river.” I could feel it in my cheeks that I was grinning ear to ear with delight as I quietly observed the natural beauty.

Io’s face momentarily gave way to wonder, her smile of amusement caught me off guard, tugged as she briefly observed and studied the creature, “Oh, yeah, I see it. I think you might be right, though I’m not too sure. I’ll admit, Amelia, I’ve never actually seen deer in person before, but that creature does look convincingly similar, doesn’t it?” she replied softly, her voice carried an echo of forgotten nostalgia, for a memory we never experienced. It was strange to realize that neither of us had ever witnessed a live deer before, despite how common a creature they once had been on earth. And somehow, we seemed to recognize the one across the river.

I silently agreed with her, realizing I had never seen a deer up until this point either. It was strange how deeply familiar this creature seemed to both of us, despite neither of us ever observing one before. Perhaps it came from some deep genetic memory that caused our collective recognition of the passive creature before us.

“It looks so quiet and peaceful…” I murmured in a quiet whisper, still feeling completely and utterly mesmerized by the world I was observing all around us. Despite how quiet we tried to be, the deer seemed to hear our voices. It instinctively flinched its head up from its peaceful reverie to look in our direction, put on high alert for any sign of danger. She returned to her grazing just as soon as she spotted the source of her interruption, knowing that the river prevented us from posing her a threat, but the doe's awareness of our presence in her domain caused her to react more alert and cautious of us. Even as she munched on her grass, her eyes were cautiously on us. She was ready to bound away deep into the underbrush of the forest at any slight hint of sudden movement.

Io smiled slightly as she watched the small deer continuing to graze more cautiously in our presents, its large brown eyes were undistracted as it constantly scanned its environment, even as it resumed its peaceful grazing by the banks of the river, "Indeed, it is a rather peaceful... isn't it..." She whispered in a hushed, respectful manner,r not wanting to disturb the dear any further as it nibbled to get its fill of lush green vegetation.

"It seems quite timid thou,gh as well doesn't it. It seems especially aware of us..." She murmured after a brief pause as she watched her eyes transfixed on the creature in this moment.

The deer's slender little black hooves pressed into the muddy earth, leaving faintly defined indents along the banks of the river with each nimble little step it took. The creature quietly remained undisturbed, yet watchful. Its instincts always exist between the fragile state of peaceful serenity and the constant fight for survival in an unforgiving wilderness.

"Yeah, it does..." Io murmured in agreement before we both fell back into silence. "As much as I like to stick around watching it, we need to stick on task. We should keep moving. Soon we'll find a place to set up camp for the night," Io said, breaking the silence. "We'll need to gather wood, look for dry sticks, and fallen branches. Grab some stones as well, we’ll need them for flint, keep looking for anything else that might be useful to start a fire." Choosing to respect the deer’s peace, we decided without saying anything to continue walking forward along the riverbank once more, focusing on the task we set out to do.

We only had to walk just a little further, maybe another fifteen minutes, before Io abruptly broke the silence with a sharp voice that demanded attention, “Hey, stop a second.” She used her hand, signaling me to stop, “I see a clearing in the distance.” Her voice remained sharp and strong as she saw a suitable site, gesturing to a small hillside clearing overlooking the river. “I think we’ll set up camp there. I’m glad it didn’t take us as long as I thought it would.” She gave me a proud,d smug look.

“Huh?!” I breathed softly on my lips, with a sigh of relief as I observed the land Io spotted just within sight.

I welcomed Io’s observation, grateful to have finally found a place to settle down. The sun’s heat wasn’t unbearably uncomfortable, but the sign of a place to rest was inviting from this planet’s sun was impacting me subtly but not yet uncomfortably as I wiped a light layer of sweat forming at my brow. Additionally, my body was adjusting to the presence of gravity; each step took more energy for the ship.

“Yeah, over there, Amelia.” Io reiterated, still motioning at the hill. “I believe there might be an ideal spot to set up our camp. We’ll develop it more over time, but firstlet'ss just focus on setting up a fire and a tent, then allow ourselves a break.”

Obedient and bound, determined tofolto followaptain’s lead, we reached the top of the hill, which provided us a clear and breathtaking view of the river below. Upon arrival, we set our bags down, immediately preparing whatever we needed for camp for the night.