"W-what are we supposed to do now?"
Mia asks, turning to you with fear-filled eyes. You kick the soil in frustration, gritting your teeth.

"This is my fault. I shouldn't have let them go so far alone, I should've-"

"Jiyoo, we need to find somewhere safe, now!"

Mia raises her voice, staring at you before placing her hand on your shoulder. You clamp down on your lower lip, trying to calm your jittery self down. Mia grabs hold of your helmet, turning yourself towards her helmet.

"This is not your fault. Sure, you may be captain but it doesn't mean every downfall rests upon your shoulders. I know how pussy those two could be in situations like this, so this shit is on their heads. We need to keep ourselves alive, Jiyoo."

Mia had never spoken to you in that way before, and you grab hold of yourself, pulling yourself together as the wheels in your head begin to turn.

"Right now, we need to get to anything human; the ship."
You say, and Mia nods, rubbing her palms together as her eyes dart around the area.

"We'll have to inform the headquarters back on Earth too. Let's go."

Not waiting for any other catastrophe, the two of you break out in a sprint, your weapons held ready in your hands as a map lights up on the inside of your helmet, guiding you back to the ship. Mia yelps, as she sees a figure dart across the two of you to the other side of the forest and you yell,

"Go, go, go! Don't stop!"

Your loud breaths resonate through each others microphones as you near the blinking dot in the map, an indication of where the ship was. Your heart jumps into your throat when a distorted shriek echoed through the forest and you hear Mia's trembling voice through your speaker as the ship now comes into view.

"Jiyoo, my oxygen level is dropping fast. I think it's punctured."

You glance over at her to see large gusts of air leaving the back of her suit and you reply,
"We're almost there, just hang on."

You stumble towards the ship, grabbing onto the latch and groaning as you struggle to open it. Mia grabs onto it, and her higher groans mix with yours as the latch finally turns and the hatch pops open.

The shriek you had heard resonated through the air once more, but this time it seemed as though it was right behind you. Your breath hitches as you push Mia in, before you feel something nip at your ankle, a stinging pain surging through your leg for a moment as you scream, closing your eyes and pulling the hatch shut and turning the latch in a hurry with all your force.

Mia and you slump down as you're now met with the deafening silence, a stark contrast to the pace of the events that led up to now. Your lungs burned from the exhausting sprint and fear, and Mia twists her helmet, throwing it onto the floor as you do the same.

Your pants now echoed in the ship as Mia stares at you, a layer of sweat coating her pale skin.

"What was that?"

You shake your head as your chest still heaves.
"I have no idea... but we do know that... we have caught its... attention."

You say between heavy breaths and Mia closes her eyes, leaning her head back against the wall before parting her lips to speak.

"We need to inform HQ, and then run a decontamination on us and the entire ship."

You nod, groaning as you reach over and press the button that signals the headquarters on Earth. You wait for a few seconds before a muffled voice speaks in English,

"Earth to Scorpion 2042, do you read me? Over."

"Yes, we have updates on the mission. May I speak to the official in-charge of the Korean Space Institute for this mission? Over."

You had studied English for 4 years to qualify for attending missions, and even though you still had to work on your accent, your efforts seemed to have paid off.

"Copy, over."

There's an abrupt pause before a deeper voice speaks, now in the language you were more familiar with.

"Scorpion 2042, this is Kim Hong-joon from the Korean Space Institute, over."

"Scorpion 2042 reporting for an urgent update regarding our mission to Planet Xorad. We have lost two crew members, I repeat, we have lost two crew members. Over."

Silence is heard from the other side for a few moments, before he speaks, his voice now slightly agitated.

"Scorpion 2042, please specify the member's details and how you lost them. Over."

"Kim Namjoon - technological manager and Shim Jake - my fellow explorer. They were... taken by a residing life form on the planet, it has not revealed itself to us yet but it is guaranteed that we were chased on our way here. Mia's oxygen has been punctured and I have..."

Mia gasps when she notices the drops of blood dripping down your right ankle. You panic when your eyes land on the deep red liquid that drops slowly onto the white floor.

"Scorpion 2042, is everything alright on board? Over."

You find your voice, gulping as you mind scrambles to form a sentence.

"Y-yes, everything's fine. I t-think we're short on signal here. That'll be all. Over and out."

"Copy that, Scorpion 2042. Scout for your remaining crew members and report back to us if you've found them. It is imperative that they remain alive. If not, then we will have your team dismissed of this mission and returned back to Earth to prevent further casualties and a more capable, skilled crew will be sent in your place. Make sure to decontaminate the ship and yourselves. Over and out."

The line ends, and Mia stares at you with wide eyes.

"Why didn't you tell them?! We're strictly informed to report every incident, discovery, casualty or injury no matter the circumstances and-"

"Do you want us to be dismissed from this mission?"

You snap at her, pulling off your suit to find the source of your injury.

She stares at you, taken aback.

"No, of course not."

"Because that's what they'll do if they find out about this. They can't and won't depend on just a single crew member to go out into this unexplored and dangerous environment to scout for two captured members in some god-forsaken corner of this planet. You need me."

Mia goes silent as you manage to get out of your suit. You grab hold of your ankle, scanning the bloody area as you think,

Funny.. I don't feel an ounce of pain.

"What the hell?"

You blurt out loud when you rub your hand over your ankle, finding no cut, bruise or scrape. Just blood.

"That's messed up."

Mia mumbles, staring at your unharmed ankle.

"If I'm not injured, then where did this blood come from?"
You ask, as Mia snaps her fingers.

"Run a DNA test."

"Perfect."
Placing a few drops of the blood into one of the latest inventions by the International Space Equipment Association, you wait until the flat device starts beeping. Mia glances at you when your profile, address and professional information pop up.

"It's your blood, Jiyoo."

You shake your head, uncomprehensive about what was happening.

"But it makes no sense!"

Mia sighs, putting away the device before pressing the decontamination button as the ship begins to fill with white steam that smelled of chemicals. She steps out of her suit, shaking her head.

"Nothing makes sense anymore."

_________________________________

"How much longer, master?"

Dejah's sinister voice whispers, as they stare at the sleek black ship that stood silently on the sandy purple soil.

"Patience. I've already inserted our little helper into this situation. Now all we have to do is wait."

The silver haired being says with a sadistic grin splayed across his chiseled face as his skin glows in the sunlight against the lilac sky.

"Just watch, and wait."