Alice handed Reynolds her reserve pistol, then set off for the downed craft. The inferno intensified as she approached. The ship had caught fully now, its thick plastic walls burning with a choking smoke that made Alice drop and crawl to the crater’s edge. The aircraft was pulverized beyond recognition. Structural spars stuck upward like broken tree trunks, bright silver components visible through orange flames. Every so often, a red camouflage panel curled up and sublimed as she watched. There was no way anyone was still alive in there, but Alice had to be sure. She rose, ready to inch into the fire, when there was another explosion. Hot shrapnel sizzled against her body armor, and the shockwave flipped her over to face the dark sky.