Red Darkness

A Martian Mystery

Photo by Nicolas Lobos on Unsplash

Gessyka was fascinated by the Red Planet. As a researcher stationed on Mars, she spent her days exploring canyons and studying Martian geology. It was her dream job.

The canyons on Mars were full of treacherous cliffs and caves, but Gessyka used her knowledge of the planet's terrain to navigate safely and avoid dangerous pitfalls. She had never been late getting back to the Martian base and she was always careful to stay inside when the weather turned terrible to avoid Mars' dust storms.

Today, when Gessyka burst through the compound door, her heart was racing. She was finally going to explore one of Mars' uncharted canyons. She had been looking forward to it for weeks. Bran, her co-worker and secret crush, had offered to go with her; she was thrilled.

Gessyka had admired Bran from afar since she'd arrived at the Martian base. That was almost six months ago. He was the most brilliant scientist on the team. Bran always seemed confident and in control, but Gessyka had never mustered up the courage to tell him how she felt.

She found Bran near the transport, climbing into his pearly white spacesuit.