Echoes Across the Stars

Explorers investigate an odd Earth-like planet on the other side of the galaxy

Sergeant Peters threw his hands in the air, motioning to the suburban street and its cookie-cutter houses. “We can ditch the suits, right?”

Isaac grunted. “Not until they’ve processed the air sample. We follow procedure.”

“Fine. They’re so bulky, though.”

“Procedure,” Isaac said, trying to sound final.

“I mean, look. There’s blue sky, grass, yellow sun. Oh, and an entire freakin’ neighborhood. You still think the air is toxic?”

“Assume the worst until we can prove otherwise. That’s the end of it.”

Peters let out a growl, but said no more.

Tens of thousands of lightyears from Earth, with no communication since passing the galactic center, all their electronic instruments were down as they woke from stasis. Their lead technician had pulled some magic to bring back flight and navigation, but the scanners were toast.

At least they had local comms. Captain Jaya came in with a report. “Three houses down. No sign of life.” She sighed. “Every room is clean and organized, like they were prepping for military inspection: beds tucked, drawers closed, clothes ironed and hung, no hint of trash or dust or even food. No vehicles on the street or in the garages.”

“We’re seeing the same. Keep searching. Remember, rendezvous at landing zone, 0200 hours.”

“What the hell is this place, Commander?”

“I don’t know. ” But he did know. At least, he knew more than he would tell. This was his childhood neighrbood. Except, that was impossible, because they were on the other side of the galaxy. Maybe he had space-craze from too much time in stasis, but he felt normal, and he’d passed the bioscan after waking up.

Yet somehow, he stood in the yard of his parents’ home, its steepled attic window leering over him. He could still remember his excitement when his father had finished mowing the lawn so he could go out and play. He’d pretend to encounter strange alien creatures, the small yard transforming into an entire world of his imagination.

He also remembered the ghostly figure in the window, and the strange metal ball he’d found in the yard. Those were no figment of his imagination. But his parents didn’t believe him, nor his psychiatrist, teachers, friends, or the rest of his family. Why would they? All they had to go on was his word. Eventually, he’d found it easier to play along, to say it wasn’t real. But he always knew what he’d seen that day.

Peters stepped up next to him, his helmet was off, hair rippling in the wind. Before Isaac could scold him, he said, “We’re clear. Weren’t you listening?”

Isaac’s eyes narrowed. He switched comms to the ship. “Repeat previous message.”

“Air quality is roughly Earth-like, safe to breathe. You are free to remove your helmets.”

Peters smiled.

Isaac wanted to smack him, but instead removed his helmet and tossed it on the grass. “After you.”

The front door was unlocked, like all the others. “Hello?” Peters called as he crossed the threshold. No response.

Isaac followed, taking a deep breath to stop any reaction to the familiar sight. The entryway was identical in every detail. In one of the closets, he found his favorite childhood jacket, a light blue windbreaker he insisted on wearing regardless of the weather. He’d rather shiver or sweat than leave it behind. It was striking next to his parents’ dull gray and brown coats.

Peters opened the fridge in the kitchen. “Nothing here, either. Next?”

“Need to be more thorough than that,” Isaac said from the stairs. “Let’s head up.”

Peters stepped into the bedrooms. Isaac found himself studying the attic hatch. His father never allowed him into the unfinished attic, worried that he’d miss the rafters and drop through the ceiling. He could get hurt. But worse, his parents would need to to pay for repairs. They were never tight on money, but sure hated to spend it.

The floorboards creaked from his parents’ room. “Is that you, Peters?” he called out.

“Yeah, I’m looking around, Commander. Nothing so far.”

But his voice had come from Isaac’s room. Was someone else here?

Peters stepped into the hallway. “Something wrong?” he said. “Did you see a ghost?”

Isaac realized he was frowning, his eyes wide. He returned to a neutral expression, pointing to the closed door on the other side of the hallway. “Someone’s in there.”

The sergeant readied his pistol. “After you,” he said. He almost looked excited.

Isaac approached the door, the floorboards creaking under his weight. Whoever was in the other room must have heard them. He gripped the handle, his weapon ready, and pushed.

Peters stepped in, his pistol pointing forward, left, right, left again. “Clear,” he said, holstering the weapon with a laugh. “You gave me a fright, Commander. Thought we’d finally found the aliens.”

Isaac started to shake his head when a creak and a slam caused him to jump. He turned toward the sound, pistol ready. The attic ladder had dropped, but that was impossible. It took immense strength to pull it down.

“Did you see anyone?” Isaac said, his gaze locked on the ladder.

“No, sir.”

“I’ll head up. Cover the stairs in case they find their way down.”

Sunlight barely penetrated the attic’s darkness, dimmed by a dense cluster of cobwebs. Isaac swung his weapon to clear a path. He flicked a switch to turn on his pistol’s flashlight and ran it along the sloped walls to each corner of the attic. Nothing. His father would store boxes up here, but even they were gone.

He stepped carefully on the rafters toward the window. Maybe whoever came up here had gone through it. Ridiculous, but the only possible explanation. He’d have seen them go down the ladder.

Peering through the window, he saw someone in the yard. Not one of his crew. Too short. A child, who looked up and waved. Isaac waved back.

The child was wearing a windbreaker, in a beautiful light blue.

For Writer's Cramp 2025-09-20
Word count: 994