The ship plummeted through the thick atmosphere, shaking violently. Flames licked at the windows, and the cabin filled with acrid smoke. Alarms blared, but the screams of the crew drowned them out. As the craft slammed into the alien surface, metal crumpled and darkness took hold. Captain Royce awoke to silence. He tasted blood and felt a sharp pain in his leg. The cabin, now a mangled mess, lay eerily