Free. Truly free.

Carter walked the ship looking down at the earth below. All of his hard work was finally paying off. He took a deep breath reveling in the moment.

They were in orbit now. In just a few minutes they'd be flying to lands uncharted. He'd help build a base for scientists and astronauts to stay at and study the new terrain.

He turned in a circle, not for the first time wondering at the size of the spacecraft. With 95 total passengers, it was the largest spacecraft to make it off the ground to date. Carter still couldn't stop thinking about the genius that went into making something so large get airborne.

Wouldn't they be leaving soon? Carter was impatient to get away from the planet he called home.

The thought was interrupted by a sudden voice coming on the intercom. "Be advised we have just received threats from an unknown party who seems to be against the exploration of foreign planets. We are, at the time, unsure of the validity of these threats but you have orders to postpone leaving orbit until we've determined it's safe to do so."

Carter groaned dramatically.

"Fantastic," he said out loud. He'd just have to be patient. These incidents never amounted to anything. Just extremists making empty threats to prove a point. But the negotiations involved could take hours. He resigned himself to pacing until a decision was made.

Back and forth from the window to the door. A minute passed, then ten, then 30. Carter wondered what was happening with the negotiation. He wished there was something he could do to speed things along.

Emergency alarms started sounding and the captain spoke over the intercom. "Unidentified object coming towards the port side of the shuttle. All personnel is advised- Jesus Christ it's a fucking missile!"

Everyone froze in shock and then started frantically running away from the port side. Carter was one of the first to make it through the doors - he was already near them in his cycle of pacing - but not everyone was so lucky. 10 remained in the room as the missile struck and tore through the Hull.

Carter watched in horror as the emergency doors slammed shut and the 10 were sucked out of the airlock, clutching at their throats and faces as the oxygen was sucked out of their lungs and the water in their eyes and mouths began to boil.

Everyone was silent for a minute. Watching them thrash until one by one they all went still. His first trip was officially ruined.

While severe the damage wasn't enough to stop the shuttle from holding together until help could arrive. Hopefully, that was the only missile planned for the day.

"Here comes another one" someone yelled.

"Welp. Fuck." Is all Carter could think to say just before another missile hit. This one damaged more than just the hull. A chain reaction of explosions started as a fuel store was ignited.

"God damn it, now we're gonna be up here all day!" Carter said sarcastically. Amidst the chaos several stopped and stared at him dumbfounded. "What? We're all gonna die! We might as well die laughing right?" Hearing slight mania in his own voice.

Everyone ran around in hysterics as the ship started to come apart. Someone pointed at Carter "you're the mechanic! Do something!"

Carter glared at him. "Engineer. Not a mechanic. And I'm sorry but I didn't bring my magical anti-missile and explosion tools. Must have slipped my mind. Guess we'll just have to get in escape pods. You know, like normal people."

"How the hell are you so calm right now?!"

"Because last I checked shitting yourself doesn't scare away missiles! Now shut up and find an escape pod or at the very least panic quietly." Dismissing the man, Carter quickly and calmly headed for the escape pods on the starboard side. Large chunks of the ship were breaking apart but he had enough time. He'd get there faster than everyone who was losing their shit at the very least.

Another missile struck and a large portion of the shuttle was in flames now. There were safeguards to stop the fuel tanks from igniting each other but they wouldn't sustain if this kept up. Carter wondered if those on the ground could do anything to stop the attack. Who was so opposed they were willing to go to such drastic measures to stop this expedition?

Carter reached the escape pod bay as another large chunk broke away, taking over a dozen people with it. He found a group who had made it overall milling about and arguing all fighting for a place on a pod. Carter sighed with exasperation. "Everyone stop fighting and load into the pods in an orderly fashion! We can fit 15 in each pod if we squeeze together. There's enough room for everyone. But if you don't get organized no one's going to get on one."

Some started lining up while others kept panicking and fighting. "For Christ sake" Carter muttered to himself then went towards a group that seemed most reasonable. Gesturing them towards an empty pod he said "with me. Come on, let's go." He got them all in and counted 13.

"One more!" He yelled. "We have room for one more over here!" A man ran over. The same one who had been yelling at him earlier. Terrific.

Stepping in himself Carter hit the button to launch. Just in time. Seconds after they broke away from the ship, another missile struck causing the main engines to explode. And then the main oxygen tanks.

The remainder of the ship went up in a massive fireball that dissipated almost as fast as it was created. Only two other pods made it out of the inferno. One was knocked off course by the shockwave and rocketed deeper into space, the other was shredded by flying shrapnel. Were they the only survivors?

The thought was torn from his mind as they began to reenter the atmosphere. It wasn't going to be a soft landing.

They free fell at terminal velocity towards the ocean below. Which ocean? Carter wasn't sure.

As they got closer the parachute opened but it wasn't meant for this speed. A hole ripped in the material and it only slowed them enough to not die instantly when they slammed into the ground.

Ground.

They must have hit an island. They weren't near any continents. He took a look around. Everyone looked terrified and shocked, but not seriously injured. They were alive.

But where were they?