The trick seemed to work. A few moments later, the ship was taken over by a docking device which gently landed us on a grass surface after travelling through a thin atmosphere. We landed in what seemed to be the outskirts of a town. It was dark apart from some street lights. I surmised that the habitat rotated giving day and night cycle.
I opened the overhead hatch and we both climbed out. We were met by the most beautiful vista. A shining Earth stood overhead. It was a beautiful mixture of blue, purple and white. I could make out the great white deserts of Africa and South America, the toxic purple patch of the mid Atlantic and the blue where the seas were less contaminated.
Then you could make out some of the larger habitats surrounding the Earth. The enormous and the ones that could only only just be made out. I thought of the billions of lives encapsulated in that one view.
Underneath it all, were the tall buildings of the town. The air was crisp and carried a whiff of flowers. The nightmare of the previous habitat was laid to rest. I looked knowingly at Tabitha and we started what looked like a relatively short walk towards the town.
“Why artifacts?” I asked Tabitha.
“There is some sort of festival on,” she replied.
Mark's Writing Corner 