There was no life—just a desert planet a thousand light years away. There was no more fuel, only a few days supply of food, faulty generators, and no one to rescue them. More than a thousand years had passed since each of them had boarded the ship, and the only thing they could be certain of, was that life back home had ceased long ago. Earth was a relic of their past, something for each of their minds remember as they gazed from The Ark's windows. Beyond The Ark there was mostly darkness. In the distance, there were speckles of light—stars they had already passed and stars they were unable to reach. Most importantly, there was a planet—a desert planet, but a planet nonetheless—just below them and within landing distance.

As The Ark depleted its fuel supply, the ship's artificial intelligence had strained its resources to find the nearest inhabitable planet. Programmed with the knowledge that mankind could not float in space forever, The Ark looked for our new home the way a wounded animal searches for home. Perfection was not on the table; The Ark weighed based its decision on chance of survival. No one had been impressed with the A.I.'s final choice—especially not the commander—but the decision had already been made, there wasn't enough fuel to change course.  Scientists knew from the moment the ship disrupted their cryo-sleep that this was humanity's last option. Sleep would not derail their mission, determined to insure humanity's best chance, they worked around the clock studying the foreign planet's atmosphere, biosphere, and overall compatibility with mankind. As anyone could have guessed there was a long list of shortcomings—this planet was not Earth, that much was obvious—but there was water and oxygen. The conditions would support the growth of vegetation, and though it would take some time to get used to the thinner air, they would be able to breathe.

Unnamed and barren, it looked like a brown marble with blue specks; nothing but vast expanses of desert and tiny blue pools of water could be seen. There was nothing green. There was no movement. No one could deny the fear of impending doom lurking in the shadows. There was a chance colonizing this planet would fail. Each scientist verbalized his or her concerns about the task that lie ahead, but the citizens of The Ark didn't need to understand all of the details to understand desperation. A unanimous vote proved everyone wanted the same thing—to fight for their survival. Each person on The Ark agreed, it was better to die fighting than rotting away as they drifted through space on The Ark. 

After everyone was briefed on what to expect upon landing, the commander gave the command to enter the planet's atmosphere and initiate the landing sequence.

"What are our odds of survival?" Kofi adjusted his uniform nervously—he wasn't just commanding this ship, he was commanding mankind's survival mission.

The scientist wouldn't meet Kofi's dark eyes. He didn't want to discuss the odds, not when there were no other choices, but Kofi was the highest ranking official on the vessel, that practically made him the president. He sucked in a frightful breath of air and started rattling off assumptions and technicalities before reaching the point.

"It's a coin toss, sir."

Kofi's dark fingers gripped the soft leather of the chair before him and clenched his jaw tight. Those were not the words Kofi wanted to hear.

"Not a word of this to the civilians." Kofi he said sternly. "Tell them the odds are higher. If they find out the truth there will be mass panic. They'll kill each other."

Kofi and the scientist had worked together to select the perfect location for landing—just south of the planet's equator near a body of water, about the size of the Caspian Sea which connected to a larger body of water. The water was flanked by a lush forest and a region of cascading plateaus. It was an oasis fit for a vacation, and their best chance for survival.

As The Ark descended into the gravitational field of the planet, Kofi watched the solid green and blue blobs of the oasis become more detailed and his spirits lifted. The Ark jostled in the sky as gravity fought for control. There was a brief tug of war and then, they were in hurdling toward the ground.

"Fuel supply depleted. Cannot power engine." the computer repeated mechanically. "Fuel supply depleted. Cannot power engine."

Kofi bowed his head as he tried to brace himself against chaos.

"God help us—"