Midgel felt oddly distracted as he dressed. The Rockhopper was on the quickest route to Arctlantis. Normally, when they were on their way home, he was excited. But this time, he found himself terrified. He didn't know what to expect. He had no way to contact Misty or anyone on the planet for that matter. He walked out of his room and headed for their vault. Instead of being dressed in his orange uniform that he wore for normal missions, he wore a tight, long-sleeve shirt with armored jeans and boots. He carried a sweatshirt with him to put on over the armor that he would wear from the vault. He rarely dressed this way. He felt as if he was going into battle.

The pilot stopped outside the door and placed his hand on the scanner to let himself in. He walked past the many compartments carrying special documents, money, and other valuables. He opened a door in the back and walked into a closet. The light switched on to reveal the armor that was specifically designed for each crew member. Zidgel's armor was already gone. Midgel approached his own corner and threw his sweatshirt onto the floor as he pulled his body armor from the compartment. It fit easily over his tight shirt. He smiled slightly as he pulled out his "lucky" tee-shirt. It was a royal purple shirt with his favorite band on the front. He hadn't worn it since his days on the Federation football team. But they had never lost a game when he wore it under his uniform. He pulled it on over his armor then slipped into the sweatshirt as well.

There was one more thing left in the compartment. Midgel paused before reaching for it. He pulled out a gun in a holster. He sighed. When was the last time he'd used a gun? He examined the contents of the holster. It consisted of several rounds of ammo along with the gun itself. He strapped it around his middle, making sure it fit snuggly. He glanced at himself in the mirror. The pilot that he normally saw was no longer there. He saw the classically trained soldier that he usually managed to hide under his laid-back personality.

Midgel sighed and pushed his hair out of his face. He looked up as the door opened behind him. Fidgel walked in, looking grim.

"Hey." Midgel murmured, turning back to his own compartment, which he closed.

"Hello," Fidgel said distractedly. He started pulling on his own armor which was identical to Midgel's.

"How's the captain?" Midgel asked. He was almost afraid to find out the answer. He knew that he was not taking this whole thing well.

The doctor sighed. "He seems calm. Well, as calm as you can be considering the circumstances."

Midgel nodded. "How close are we?" He asked after a moment.

"Not far." Fidgel said. "We should land in 15 minutes."

The butterflies in Midgel's stomach fluttered. "There's no way this is real." He muttered. "Maybe I'll just wake up and it'll all be fine."

Fidgel snorted. "I'd like to think the same thing."

"Yeah, I guess it's a long shot." Midgel said. He straightened his shirt and turned towards the door. "I'm heading up."

"See you up there."

Midgel made his way down the hallway, his boots thudding loudly. He pushed his hair out of his face again. He realized that it would be really annoying with the helmet he would be wearing. He made a detour to his bedroom and into his bathroom. He stared himself down in the mirror. Fidgel had told him they would be landing in almost 15 minutes. That gave Midgel plenty of time to prepare. He ruffled his hair so it fell in his eyes. It was way too long for him at this point. He reached into one of the drawers and pulled out a pair of electric clippers. He flicked them on and stared at them as they buzzed in his hands. He wasn't doing anything drastic, his normal haircut was a buzz cut, when he wasn't too lazy to do it.

Midgel ran his hand through his hair one more time, then placed the clippers on the front of his hairline and pushed back. He watched his black hair fall in front of his eyes. He moved swiftly along the left side of his head, a mountain of hair collecting on the floor.

Midgel always preferred to keep his hair shorter. It was cooler and easier to manage. He purposefully grew it out several inches for the satisfaction of shaving off large chunks at a time. He finished after a few minutes and looked at his shorn hair on the floor and in the sink. It was a good time for a haircut, he thought.

He cleaned up and walked out of the bathroom. Just as he was about to head up to the main deck to prepare for landing, he caught sight of the picture he always kept next to his bed. He found himself walking towards it. It was his favorite picture from his own wedding. Midgel smiled as he picked the frame up. It was different than a lot of wedding pictures. Instead of a cheesy couple pose, it was a picture of them splashing each other in a lake, Misty in her wedding dress and Midgel in his suit. Misty was even holding her flower bouquet.

That was Midgel's favorite thing about Misty, she defied what was expected of her. She had suggested a nice picture in front of the lake, then when Midgel was close, pushed him in. After the surprise wore off, he had grabbed her leg and dragged her in with him. The photographer had done a great job at capturing the memory.

Midgel opened up the back of the frame and pulled out the picture. However, just behind the picture, he kept his second favorite photo from that day. They were standing in the same lake, but Misty had her hands draped over Midgel's shoulders and his hands at her waist. It was the moment just before they kissed, standing there soaking wet in their wedding attire. Midgel felt his eyes starting to well up. Misty was trapped on a dangerous planet that had once been their home. He closed his eyes and clutched the pictures in his hands as he said a silent prayer that she and their new baby girl, Amber, were alright.

The pilot sucked in a breath and stuffed the pictures into his back pocket as he turned and left the room. He ran his hand over his short hair and started walking faster. He would do anything he had to if it meant that his family made it out alive.

"Where were you?" Zidgel asked as Midgel finally entered the main deck.

"I had to take care of something." Midgel answered without looking at the captain. He walked to his station and started letting down the landing gear.

Zidgel stared at him and his new haircut. "Really? You had to do that now?"

"You're one to talk." Midgel muttered. "Besides, I had plenty of time."

Zidgel wanted to argue back, but he was too distracted by the approaching planet. It looked normal- you'd never imagine that it was ending.

Kevin was watching as well. "I wish we could save everyone." He said quietly.

The captain looked at Kevin. "I do too." He answered. "But there's nothing we can do. This is just too big for us."

Kevin didn't answer, just continued to stare at the Vizzy Screen. Zidgel sighed and placed a hand on his shoulder. "We'll get them out, big guy, don't worry."

"Buckle up, boys! We're coming in." Midgel announced and continued to punch buttons and flip switches.

Zidgel patted Kevin on the shoulder once then moved to his own chair. The whole crew was getting antsy, with the possibility of death hanging over their heads. It was such a different atmosphere than most of their missions, Zidgel felt like he didn't know how to handle it.

Midgel concentrated on the sight of Fidgel's town. It came closer and closer. He noticed with a jolt of his heart that several billows of smoke could be seen scattered over the landscape. It was truly an apocalypse. He approached the ground as carefully and slowly as he could.

The ship suddenly lurched and Midgel covered his face with his arm as sparks flew from the controls. All systems shut down and they found themselves nosediving for the ground. "Brace yourselves!" Midgel yelled.

The crew covered their faces as the Rockhopper crashed and ground to a stop.