Sol 12

That was how long it'd been since they'd set up camp on Mars.
12 Sols.

Days on Mars were slightly longer than those on Earth, hence why NASA called them 'Sols'.

That Sol in particular held some kind of energy to Jisung. Like something was going to happen.
Something...life changing.

The storm hadn't looked so bad from inside the HAB, but outside was a full on war zone.
It had approached quickly and without warning. Dust and dirt and all things in between were hurling themselves at the seemingly miniscule specks of white amongst the blackness of the storm. Still, they struggled on. The faster they got this done, the faster they could go home.

"Nearly there!" Chan's tired voice could be heard coming through the crackling speakers in their helmets. "Just past this ridge here. Remember guys, in and out."

"Yeah, I really could go for a burger right now."

"Jisung, not the time." Chan said, his tone suggesting that he was both smiling and rolling his eyes. Exasperation could be heard in his speech, even though everyone present knew that some humor was exactly what they needed.

Or maybe a full night's sleep.

Humor was much more achievable though, and Jisung was there to provide.

Jisung's thoughts quieted as they reached the dig site. He felt as if silence was necessary, both mentally and verbally.
That feeling was returning. The feeling that something was going to happen. Only now it felt more... ominous.

He quickly dismissed the pesky thought, however, and moved to his groupmate's sides.

They took their places around each side of the rig, getting ready.

Chan was monitoring surface conditions from his tablet, which he had brought along to assist them with precisely that.

Jisung was checking all systems. While he was doing so, Changbin, who was standing beside him, stumbled back onto the rusty ground beneath him.
Jisung couldn't hear the impact, but he assumed it would be pretty rough. Especially knowing how dizzy one gets when they're feverish.

Looking back at him, hands still busy checking the sturdiness of the screws that Changbin had worked on earlier, Jisung asked,

"Hey hyung, you ok?"

Chan who'd been keeping an eye on both Jisung and the surrounding conditions, turned away for a few seconds to help up his teammate. Their bulky suits could be quite hazardous if they didn't have someone there to assist them.

As Changbin was pulled to his feet, he looked down, brushing himself off.
"I'm alright I gues- Jisung!"

He looked up just in time to see one of his best friends getting pulled into the storm by their research project.

Before he could even finish his sentence, Jisung was gone. Disappeared from view.

The screws- nails- whatever, had not been completely secured, and in his concerned state, Jisung had accidentally twisted them the wrong way.

The low gravity and huge gusts of wind blowing around the monsterous storm had torn the drill clean away, carrying the helpless Jisung with it.

Chan and Changbin's shocked and terrified faces were slowly disappearing from view, being obscured by the darkness of the storm's clouds closing in around him.

Or was he just losing consciousness?

Jisung awoke with a gasp, shaking in fear of the still fresh memories.

Realizing that there was no one that would come to comfort him, he clutched the sheets and shrunk into a fetal position, letting a single, choked sob escape him.

But now was not a time for weakness.

He sat straight up and rubbed his eyes, determination in his heart, math equations unfolding in his brain.

How could he survive this?

It would take NASA at least four years to send another craft, if his existance went unnoticed entirely.

He had enough food in the HAB for three people to last 100 days. If he rationed that, he could probably make it last for at least a year.

Key word: probably.

None of this was certain.

None of it was ensured.

What it was? A huge risk.

But what could Jisung say, he was a risk-taker.

A risk-taker that also happened to be great with all things nature.

Luckily for him, he was a botonist.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

if you're wondering, a HAB is a survival habitat

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