Thread: Eartia: Chapter 1 - The Landing (Still accepting)

Alice Koenig Alice watched with wide and eager eyes as the soldiers made their way out onto the planet's surface first. As the mass of men and women who'd spent their lives preparing for this moment exited the ship, she couldn't help but envy them. Oh to be the very first to step onto their new home!! But even still, this was history in the making... all of them were going to be the first to forge the path to a new life and home on a place they'd soon be calling their own. Just then, she tilted her head in wonder. Just what would they be calling their planet? Oh, sure, there had been so many technical names thrown about along with other proposed ideas. But really... what would they call it? Really call it... Her hand covered her heart in that moment as her mind drifted. But all too soon, it snapped back into the moment, into the excitement. A smile crept over Alice's lips, her pale eyes sparkling as she watched the soldiers leaving. In a fleeting glimpse, she swore she'd seen Ozias among them all--one of the very first leading the way. Not a surprise. It made her wonder how Jane was holding up. Her twin was probably a wreck on the inside, but walking calm on the outside. Oh Jane... if only she'd let go. Just once. She was missing out on so much and it saddened her deeply. Even now, these new and exciting steps... just where was she? Hiding away? Letting out a sigh, she knew right well that her sister was. Trying not to dwell on what she could not change, Alice focused on that ramp. The ramp that led to the precious outside. She could hear all the laughter and excitement in everyone's voices as they moved about outside, taking their first breaths of real air, their first drinks of real water. How lucky! How... amazing! The moment she'd heard it was all right for civilians to venture outside, so long as it was close to the ship itself, she didn't hesitate to move. Tucking her blonde hair behind an ear, she set her jaw and let her feet do their work. In an instant, she was running down the ramp and outside. As Alice approached the surface, going through each passage that led her closer and closer to the outdoors, she could feel strange things occurring to her body. Finally, the final door opened and her blue eyes took in the wonders of the real outside. She blinked several times, almost fearing that she was in a dream and would somehow wake up. Smiling, her eyes beginning to tear, she took a step. For a moment, she faltered. The gravity... it was... different. Not like the gravity simulated on the ship at all. Gasping from the near fall, she sucked in a sharp breath. The moment she did, she began to cough violently causing her to bend at the waist and finally fall to her knees. The air... it, too, was... different. Still coughing, she tried to gain her sense of bearing. Covering her mouth, she tried to calm herself. Soon enough, her lungs stopped seizing and her breaths came a bit easier. Once Alice began to breathe a bit better, she looked around at the wonders of the new world around her. Home. This was home. And just what curious wonders did it hold? She could only begin to speculate.