10. Failure To - Communicate

"Base, this is Scout One. The atmospheric stabilizers are failing. Do you copy?" Silence. Then, a rhythmic thump-thump from the airlock.

The floor groaned. The last bolt gave way. As the module tilted toward the abyss, Elias realized her frantic gestures hadn't been technical reports at all. She had been waving goodbye. 10. Failure to Communicate

The intercom crackled, but only static came through. Elias stared at the console, his thumb hovering over the transmit button. Outside the reinforced glass of the observation deck, the storm on Kepler-186f was a swirling wall of iron-rich dust, turning the sky the color of a fresh bruise. "Base, this is Scout One

He looked back at Sarah. She wasn't pointing at the horizon anymore. She was drawing a circle in the dust on the glass. A zero. It wasn't "three minutes." It was "three seconds." Then, a rhythmic thump-thump from the airlock