The vast waters of 4546B swam large in Bea's vision as the planet spun slowly on her viewscreen. Beatrix LeBeau gaped at the sight of so much water in one place. She was used to the expanses of the Great Slime Sea, but of course it wasn't really water. It moved with the viscosity and mystery of the countless slimes comprising it. The ship readout was feeding her stats about air temperature, sea temperature, depth, pressure, wave height, currents, flora, fauna-but all it truly meant was water as she had never seen it. Now she had to see it.
She checked the chronometer even though it didn't really matter when it was. There was no one waiting for her to arrive at her new outpost ranch. She had plenty of supplies, and the slimes were none-the-wiser in the stasis of storage. A short detour wouldn't hurt. Bea punched new coordinates into the autopilot and leaned back to watch 4546B come to meet her.
Ryley was exhausted. He woke up exhausted and fell into bed exhausted, now that he had a bed. The only thing that kept him going these last terrible days were the little joys sprinkled throughout this ocean. That's why when he had found quartz last week, the first thing he built was a large window next to his bed so he could see the reasons to get up in the morning. Today he rolled over to look into the ridiculous eyestalks of a garryfish floating by.
"Morning, Gary," he said. "Are you breakfast?" It had taken some adjustment from the processed, condensed, Alterra-brand nutri-blocks they issued to the crew of the Aurora, but Non-Essential Systems Maintenance Chief Ryley Robinson was getting used to eating identifiable food.
An immense whirring sound interrupted his breakfast musings, and Ryley's heart leapt into his throat. He scrambled from his low bed and up a ladder to heft the top hatch open. The electric whirring slammed into his senses as he clambered out into open sea and sky. He felt as much as heard the obsidian tower spin, angle, and begin to glow a brilliant green. He watched in horror and helplessness as the second spaceship he was unable to warn exploded in countless pieces across the placid ocean.