Celestial Space Tours Pt. 02

Phil returned to the cockpit a bit later, stepping quietly past Cassie who was already fast asleep. His goal was to stay awake and hopefully save the ship. He set an alarm on his watch, just to make sure he didn't miss their window of opportunity.

Cassie awoke to the ship's alarm blaring and red lights flashing throughout the ship. She looked over to see Phil standing at the entrance to the port-side escape pod, having lifted the cover reading "Emergency Pod Release," triggering the alarm. He had his hand firmly gripping the large red handle, ready to pull it down, and he was staring intently at his watch. She could see him mouthing numbers in a countdown.

At once he yanked the handle down and with a loud "psssh" the escape pod fired off from the ship with nobody inside. He ran back down the hallway and looked out the cockpit windows and at the navigation display. The others were all awake as well, having been been brought out of their slumbers by the cacophony of alarms.

Seconds went by with anyone daring to even breath. The alarm, still echoing through the ship, only served to heighten the tension of the moment.

More time went by.

It felt like hours, an agonizing eternity, waiting for some kind of indication of what was going to happen now.

At last, Phil whooped loudly and clapped his hands together, spinning on his heel, turning back to face the other passengers that had gathered in the hallway.

"Boys and girls, I think we may have done it!"

Cheers and excited hugs were exchanged between the passengers.

"Don't celebrate yet!" he cautioned, "You may want to hold on, this is going to be a bumpy ride!"

Phil headed back into the cockpit, strapping himself into the pilot's chair located on the right side of the cockpit.

The others hurried back to various seats in the rear section that were attached to the walls, buckling themselves in. Cassie, still feeling responsible for these people, went around and made sure their harnesses were securely buckled, tugging on each one. As soon as she had confirmed that each of them was safely strapped in, she hurried back down the hallway and squeezed into the cockpit, buckling herself in next to Phil in the co-pliot seat.

The ship rumbled and vibrated as it careened through the planet's atmosphere. It was getting noticeably warmer inside the ship than it had been in days.

"Water! Ocean! We're gonna hit water!" Phil shouted towards the rear.

Cassie squinted her eyes closed, not wanting to watch the impact. Someone behind her screamed. She was pretty sure she could hear Elizabeth crying. The ship jolted back slightly as the emergency chute automatically deployed, trying to slow the ship's out-of-control re-entry.

What happened next was a compete blur.

There was a split second of deafening noise as the ship impacted the ocean and then nothing.

--Chapter 8--

When she finally came to, Cassie's head was pounding. She could feel dried blood on her forehead and her ear. She could tell she was upside down; in fact, the whole ship was upside down. She was hanging, suspended from the "ceiling," still strapped into the co-pilot seat in the cockpit.

It took a few seconds for everything to come back into focus for Cassie. When it finally did, the extent of the damage became clear. The windows of the cockpit were smashed out, with only sky visible from her current vantage point. Various objects were tossed and strewn about; darkened consoles were popped off, hanging from their wiring; more loose wires formed a colorful tangled web throughout the cockpit.

Cassie looked over to her right and gasped.

Phil was dead.

A large piece of metal, probably from the ship's hull, had pierced through him and the cockpit seat in which he was seated.

Cassie felt her hands start to shake and she quickly turned away, wanting to erase the image from her mind. She felt tears forming in her eyes.

However, her own survival was in the forefront of her mind. She figured she wasn't out of danger yet. Not to mention the other passengers could be injured or needing her help.

Cassie unbuckled herself, falling gracelessly down onto the ceiling of the ship's cockpit. She looked back through the partially open cockpit door.

Cassie's heart leapt up into her throat. A gasp caught in her throat.

The rear section of the ship was just, gone. There was a few feet of hallway and then torn metal, the rear section have sheared away.

The ship was inverted, with the bow pointing skyward, and the torn hallway was partly buried in the sand. Water was gently splashing around inside the hallway.

Cassie listened closely, trying to focus on the sounds around her.

Water.

She could hear calm waves outside through the broken cockpit windows. Cassie climbed, using improvised handholds to work her way up towards the broken windows. She shut her eyes tight at times, trying to keep from having to see Phil.

After finally making her way up to the front windows, she carefully climbed out, making sure not to cut herself on any of the broken glass. She lifted herself out and stood up on the nose of the ship.

She looked down at the wreckage, wondering if she could see the rest of the ship somewhere. Nothing; just Phil's limp body pinned in the pilot's seat.

She quickly averted her eyes and looked back up at the horizon.

It looked to be about midday, the sky was clear and the "sun" was high in the sky. The ship appeared to have washed up on a tropical island of sorts. A vast expanse of ocean carried on for miles. Behind her, thick jungle butted up against the sandy beach. Other parts of the shore were quite rough, with dangerous jagged rocks covering the coast.

Using her vantage point, Cassie peered up and down the beach, desperate to see if any of the other passengers had survived.

Nothing. No more wreckage or debris. Only the cockpit section of the Raven seemed to remain.

Cassie crouched and moved over towards the edge of the ship and jumped. She splashed down into the water about eight feet below. She twisted her ankle as she landed and toppled over into the water.

"Ow, fuck!" she yelled, cursing her clumsiness.

She walked out of the water and onto the beach, soaking from head to toe. Her tennis shoes where mushy and waterlogged. Cassie sat down on the soft, white sand with a sigh. She untied her shoes, pulling them off and pouring the water out of them. Next were her socks, wet and clinging to her feet. She pulled them off and shoved them inside her shoes.

The warm sand felt good. Cassie took her cold, bare feet, rubbing them into the warm sand, wiggling her toes.

Cassie looked up and down the beach once more, checking for anyone, as if out of habit. She pulled her wet shirt off over her head, revealing her pale torso and plain purple bra. She then stood up and pulled down her wet pants, tossing them aside with the rest of her clothes. Cassie stood there in nothing but her underwear, letting the sun's rays warm her body.

Cassie sighed.

She was truly, utterly, alone.

--Chapter 8--

Cassie took one final look at the ship. Heavy scorching scarred the surface from re-entry into the moon's atmosphere.

She knew that there was nothing left here for her and her only chance of survival was to keep moving; to try to find the rest of the ship, maybe some food or shelter if she was lucky.

Cassie picked up her clothes and started her trek up the beach.

The sun beat down on her relentlessly. The heat combined with the sound of the waves made Cassie feel drowsier with each passing step. Her underwear had dried fairly quickly, but the rest of her clothes were still quite damp. She could feel her skin heating up and knew she was likely going to have quite the sunburn.

After carrying on for nearly an hour, there had still been no signs of the other passengers or civilization.

"Hello??" Cassie called out, hoping that someone, anyone, would hear her.

A shadow darted through the trees in the jungle. Cassie quickly turned her head and peered, but couldn't see anyone. However, off in the distance, she did see something rising up from deep within the jungle.

A thin, barely visible, column of smoke was climbing out from the treetops. She stopped and stared, blinking once or twice to make sure she wasn't imagining it.

It was indeed real.

"The rest of the ship!" she assumed, allowing herself to feel excitement for the first time since the crash.

Cassie hastily pulled the socks out of her shoes, brushed the sand off of her bare feet, and stuffed them into the still damp sneakers. She bounded off into the jungle, hopping over large tree roots, pushing her way through vines, trying to keep moving in the same direction that she had seen the smoke.

It didn't take long for her to remember that she had only had a handful of chips for sustenance. Her body felt weak. Her energy reserves had run out.

"Dammit all. Where is everyone!?" she called out, "Where am I!?"

The steamy heat of the jungle was stifling, making every breath seem laborious. With no alternative, she marched on.

After two hours, the need to use the bathroom had snuck up on her.

Cassie stopped and set her clothes down. She pulled down her panties and squatted above the forest floor. She sat there for a minute, her bare ass and pussy hovering just above the ground. A small trickle of pee turned into a stream, bursting out from between her hairy pussy lips. The stream slowed to a dribble, a few drops clinging to her bush.

Cassie stood back up, pulling her panties up at the same time. Clean underwear and toiletries were not a luxury that she currently had.

She continued trudging along until thirty minutes later, something caught her attention.

Somewhere off in the distance she could hear a babbling stream, snaking its way through the alien jungle. She located the source of the sound and hurried over, falling to her knees when she reached the edge of the water. Greedily, she cupped up handfuls and splashed them against her face. It felt so cool, so refreshing.

"I wonder if it's safe to drink?" she pondered.

"Well, I'm definitely going to die if I don't drink something," she reasoned aloud with herself.

She cupped her hands again, bringing the clear, crisp water to her parched lips. Maybe it was the dehydration, but it tasted like the freshest, cleanest, coldest water she had ever had. Even better than that super purified, artificially created stuff they sell in cans back on Earth.

She gulped down her fill of water, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand when she had finished. Cassie sat down cross-legged at the water's edge.

"At least I have drinkable water. If I have water, I can survive," she said out loud to herself.

Talking to herself made her feel less alone, less scared.

She teasingly chastised her past self, "Get a job with Space Tours, Cassie. It'll be fun, Cassie." She smiled slightly at her own joke, trying to lift her spirits.

Everything started spinning and bending around her.

"Woah, t-trees, why are you so...bendy?" she mumbled, her words slurring together.

"Is that my? Is that my voice? Why do I-?" before she could even finish her question, her vision faded to black. Cassie fell back onto the soft ground, unconscious.