Six months after the Resolute's destruction...
The discreet chime of the morning alarm broke the silence.
Lying wide awake in bed, Maureen stretched \to switch it off, and rolled over to face the window. The fog that swallowed the forest every morning was much thicker today. She couldn't even see the entanglement of large fronds, moss-covered branches and vines a few feet off the hull.
The sense of doom that tightened her chest each time she woke rose again.
Humanity had reached for the stars, but here, the Jupiters might as well be caves. They were back to square one of history, a vulnerable hunter-gatherer group of two hundred souls, fighting against the unforgiving elements and prehistoric wildlife to survive.
Here be dragons.
That warning should have been printed on the side of the Resolute in big, bold letters.
At least, the robots didn't seem to have followed them. So far, they were safe, but for how long?
Another beep interrupted Maureen's train of thought. She ignored it. It was probably Don wanting to remind her of her promise to join Naoko Watanabe's "meditation-in-the-fog" group this morning.
It had seemed like a good idea yesterday evening - as far as sitting on damp ground and listening to Naoko talking about the mystical healing powers of nature, and the mind-cleansing properties of fog - was a good idea in the first place. She felt her chest tense just thinking about it. If anything, this fog had become the symbol of their lack of perspective. Her lack of a future.
A chime from her compwatch again.
"Yeah, I'm coming," she muttered out loud, swinging her legs out of the bed.
She'd better get up and dress before Don barged in to drag her outside by her feet, like he'd threatened to do if she insisted on moping in her quarters again.
Maureen froze as she glanced at her compwatch's screen. It wasn't Don's caller ID. A rush of blood to her head made her feel dizzy suddenly.
Judy?
It couldn't be…
No, of course, it couldn't.
Her jaw clenched hard as she quickly reined in the false hope. Someone had hacked her device. This was just another sick joke, and by far the cruelest.
Since that coward Hastings had blown John's cover and told everyone that he was a CIA officer whose mission was to spy on every colonist and report any seditionist views, she'd been criticized, insulted, and ostracized by the majority. It didn't matter to the other colonists that John had kept her in the dark about his job. It didn't matter that she was grieving the loss of her husband and couldn't take the hurtful comments of people wishing she was dead, too.
Her compwatch went off again. Judy's picture appeared once more. What if...?
Bracing herself, Maureen accepted the call, ready to explode at whoever dared to go beyond all decency to make her feel even worse than she was.
"Mom? You're there?"
Her whole body starting shaking, Maureen choked on tears, unable to utter a sound.
"Mom, do you copy?"
"Judy?" she managed to croak after a few seconds.
"Yes, it's me. I'm so glad to hear your voice. Look, is Dad with you? I've got good news and bad news for you guys. Which one do you want to hear first?"
Maureen heard the words, but it was like the fog in the forest had permeated the ship and was inside her mind. "Judy?" she repeated, holding her pounding head in her hand. "It's really you?"
"Yeah, it's really me," her daughter replied, amusement filtering through her soft voice. "Okay. I see that you're in shock, so I'll choose for you and begin with the bad news to get it out of the way. The signal we followed didn't come from the colony."
Not the colony? Maureen barely registered the information. "Are you all safe and sound?"
"We are. Sorry, I should have begun with that. We're all fine, all ninety-eight of us. Although I should say ninety-nine because we've picked up a stowaway."
"A stowaway? Who?"
"Harris, of course. Who else would have the cowardice to think about saving her own skin even if that endangered everyone else? But she doesn't matter. Are you ready for the good news? I warn you, you'd better sit down."
"I'm… sure," Maureen stammered, trying to find her words as conflicting emotions caused her throat to lock. She had only bad news to tell. Not the kind you announced over a comlink. Were Will and Penny within ear range?
"Are your siblings okay? Is something wrong?"
"No, nothing's wrong, don't worry. There's someone here with me who wants to say hello. Just promise me you won't have a heart attack, okay?"
A sudden, dull pain in her belly made Maureen lean forward. Could Judy have found her father alive, stranded miles away from the camp? His compwatch must have been damaged. That was the reason he'd never called for help and because of the fog, he'd lost his way. Navy Seals were trained to survive in hostile jungles and fight underwater. If anyone could survive a gator attack, it was John. He was a survivor. He'd always been, no matter what. He was alive.
Maureen closed her eyes as she now registered all of Judy's words.
No, he wasn't.
Her daughter wouldn't have asked her if John was with her if they had just rescued him. Besides, nobody could've survived being hit by a storm of lightning, Navy Seal or not. John was dead.
"Hello, sweetheart. Long time no see," a voice from beyond the grave said.
Her eyes opened wide. What? Maureen pressed her hand over her mouth.
It was a voice that she had nearly forgotten the tone but one she recognized instantly. If she could believe her ears, the revelation was more implausible than John surviving this accident at the ring.
"Mom? You still there?"
"Maureen? Do you hear me?"
"Mom? Say something, please."
"Grant?"
"Yup, it's me, Maureen. I swear."
"You're alive?"
"Very much so."
"How? I… I mean NASA lost all contact with you. They said the Fortuna had been destroyed. But you've been alive all these years? All of you?"
"We were in the stasis pods when– " Grant's voice trailed off as Judy cleared her throat and continued:
"It seems the Fortuna was caught in the same kind of anomaly as we were, but look, we're almost in your position. The fog is getting pretty dense. Is there a place we can land?"
"Yes, but just give me a few minutes, okay?"
Maureen sprang to her feet, dressed quickly, and shot out of her bedroom.
A hum grew louder above the forest.
Standing outside with Naoko and Angela, Maureen looked up anxiously while Don placed the last few flares.
"Step back!" the mechanic shouted as he jogged toward them, waving his arms to direct the small crowd of colonists. "Everybody step back!"
When it was clear, Maureen tapped her compwatch to reactivate the communication. "Judy? You can land now."
"Roger that."
Four blue halos of light appeared in the grayish haze, blown away by the powerful engines as the Jupiter descended. A pleasantly warm draft of air hit Maureen. She shielded her face with her hand. Victor's wife, Prisha, came to her side.
"Vijay just called us. What are the kids doing here? Why aren't they at the colony?"
Taken aback by the sudden about-face– the woman had not talked to her once in four months– Maureen straightened but did not answer. She'd just caught sight of Hastings, elbowing his way into the crowd. The bastard was coming straight at her. He had some nerve. People were shouting questions. All eyes were on her, demanding answers.
Sensing her distress, Naoko and Angela closed ranks around her while Don and Victor walked around to block everyone else.
"Hey! The kids are safe. All of them are accounted for and safe. Now back off!" Victor yelled.
Using the confusion as cover, Maureen whispered to Naoko: "The kids found the Fortuna intact with its crew."
"Oh my god, Maureen…" Naoko said, her voice trembling at the unexpected news. Angela grabbed her arm and gave it a slight squeeze.
"Judy's father?" she asked as the landing pods touched down. ""Alive?"
Maureen nodded, half-smiling, half-crying, eager to see her children as the ramp opened and two thin silhouettes appeared in the mist.
Cries of joy sounded as Vijay and Aiko were the first to rush out. Maureen left her friends hugging their teenagers and strode toward the ship. But as she reached the ramp, the eight-foot tall, humanoid robot stepped out of the garage. True to its duty as protector, the machine prevented her son from going out.
"Mom!" Will called, trying to escape the robot's grasp. "It's safe, let me go."
It didn't. Although it let Maureen wiggle her way into the Jupiter.
"Will!" she said, sighing in relief as she took her son in her arms. Footsteps drew her gaze to the back of the garage.
"Judy!" Her voice was choked with emotion. Maureen opened an arm to hold her daughter and son against her. "Where's Penny? Is she here with you?"
"No, she stayed on board the Fortuna with the other children," Judy replied.
"Why didn't she come with you?"
"Because she's jealous of Ai–ouch!" Will exclaimed as his sister elbowed him.
"Oh, I see," Maureen said. Vijay and Aiko were together now and her sweet Penny felt hurt to be rejected.
Teenagers love disasters. She so much wished this could be her children's only preoccupation that she didn't have to inflict a more profound and cutting pain. Couldn't she just enjoy seeing them smile a minute longer? Just one more minute…
Maureen kissed them. "I missed you so much. How did you find us?"
"It wasn't easy," Judy said, her brother adding: "We burnt the robot's engine."
"Which means we need a new one or we'll be stuck here," Judy completed. "But this can wait. Mom? Grant is upstairs. He thought that you might prefer some privacy. Come on Will, let's go find Dad."
Hearing Judy referring to both her biological father and John in the same sentence made Maureen feel dizzy. By the time she shook it off, her children had already exited the garage.
"Wait!" she cried, her breath shallow as she staggered after them.
A grave voice froze her on her way out. "Maureen?"
"Grant…" she whispered, not daring to look behind.
Her heart hammering in her chest, she leaned a hand on the bulkhead, trying just to breathe as her former lover came closer.
A strong hand brushed her shoulder. Then, warm breath blew against her neck, sending chills all along her spine.
Staring at the floor, Maureen raised her trembling right hand to her left shoulder and touched Grant's fingers. She could hear him. Now she could feel him.
Her legs buckled under her. She would have collapsed if Grant hadn't grabbed her shoulders. Shaking from head to toe, she let Grant hold her, leaning against his body, her head pressed against his chest.
"You are alive," she whispered after she'd calmed down enough to take a deep breath.
Their eyes met. In his, Maureen saw the same pain, joy, hesitation, and confusion.
"You have three kids," Grant replied, biting his lip. "Three brave, wonderful kids, Maureen. Oh my god, twenty years? Can you believe this? Or is it a dream and I'm going to wake up on Earth, next to you? Did I bang my head during training? Am I imagining all of this?"
As they hugged again, footsteps hammered up the ramp. With dread, Maureen watched Will enter the garage and stride straight to the main shaft, the robot at his heels.
Breaking from Grant's embrace, she stretched her hand to reach for her son. "Honey, come here…"
At the bottom of the shaft, Will paused. "You know what to do, old friend," the boy said to the robot.
"Danger, Will Robinson."
"Yeah. What else is new?" he replied before rushing into the shaft.
Maureen followed him. "Will! What's going on?"
"You don't understand," the boy said as he dashed across the ship's central living-room and walked into the flight deck. "Dad's not supposed to die. Something went wrong."
Maureen froze in the cockpit's wide door frame as her son slipped into the pilot's seat. "Everybody buckle up."
"Mom?" Judy asked. "What's happened? Will?"
Maureen glanced at her daughter, at Grant, then back at her son, stunned to see him going through the take-off sequence quickly and easily, as if he'd been doing this all his life.
"Since when do you know how to fly?" she asked.
"Yeah, about that… let's hope we have enough juice left for this," Will muttered as the ethereal murmur of the alien engine reverberated in the ship for a second before stopping. Will cursed and slammed his hand into the console. "Come on, just one more time!"
This was crazy. "We're not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on," Maureen said, pulling on the lever next to the blast door, aborting the take-off.
"Mom! I know what I'm doing. Trust me, all right? Now sit down and buckle up. We're going in."
"In?" Judy asked.
"In where?" Maureen said at the same time.
The alien sound rose again, more powerful than the first time. They were all scrambling with their harnesses when the ship lifted into the air, fast. The Jupiter's nose pierced through the fog into a clear blue sky, took a sharp turn to the right, and flew right above the forest's canopy. Maureen shuddered. In the distance, a thin streak of blue lightning spread along the dark line of obsidian monoliths.
"The ring…" Maureen whispered. "Will, it's not safe there."
"Don't worry, mom. I got this. Everything's going to be alright, I swear. "
The alien engine's melody rose to unpleasant high-pitched tones as Will pushed it harder, increasing their speed. Maureen's eyes widened.
"Will, pull up!"
Panic seized her. They had done it once before, flying into the electrical field to jump start the alien reactor and surviving. The ship had protected them from being fried. Instead, the lightning had jump started the inactive robot's engine. They were flying too low. If they even slightly grazed one of the conductive monoliths, the slightest crack in the hull would kill them.
"Will!" she screamed as lightning burst all around them.
"Trust me," was all her son said as their ship's belly hit the top of a monolith.
There was a terrifying shriek and sparks flew from all the instruments.
Blinded by a purple flash, Maureen gasped. She heard her heart knock against her chest, and felt herself grow numb as the darkness closed over her.