I couldn’t breathe.

The sight before me was so gorgeous, so intense, so vividly ethereal, that I was unable to move. My nose was squashed against the thick pane of reinforced glass with my fingers splayed in a reptilian pose, but I didn’t care. I drank in the vision like it was water and I was a woman dying of thirst.

Rich cerulean buttered the surface of a massive orb, painted with strokes of animated lavender flourishes. The planet seemed as smooth as the glass against which my face was pressed, but I could see the ridged outlines of snow-capped mountain ranges and the divots of broad seas that textured the surface. I was riveted by the vibrant emerald landmasses, splintered with golden-sanded deserts and mahogany rock formations, and I was unable to tear my eyes from the way the entire sphere seemed to gleam in the aura of the alabaster sun it orbited. As if all that wasn’t perfection enough, the planet was set against black, endless space pinpricked with scattered clusters of stars. I was captivated.

My reverie was broken as a tall, tanned, toned blonde appeared by my side. She glanced out the window before nudging my arm with her elbow. “Celine,” she said in a low, uncertain voice. “What are you doing?”

I flicked my gaze to her. “It’s so beautiful, Donna. I never could’ve imagined it would be this beautiful,” I answered, turning back to the dreamlike scene.

“I was picturing a grungy gray kind of place, myself,” she admitted. “Like the moon.”

“Well, you were way, way off,” I murmured.

“Yeah,” she said, slightly disinterested. “Did you hear the captain’s announcement? We’re supposed to strap in.”

I nodded. “I just can’t stop looking.”

Donna wrapped her fingers around my upper arm and tugged. “Too bad. If you don’t strap in, you’ll explode on the ceiling and never see anything again, beautiful or otherwise. Come on.”

I was reluctant to obey, but I knew she was right and allowed her to lead me away from the window. We walked side-by-side from the deserted observatory into the equally deserted corridor at a rather accelerated pace. I could feel Donna’s anxiety about potentially finding ourselves unrestrained when the ship moved in for landing, but I didn’t share her fears.

“I still feel like this is a dream sometimes,” I told her as we strode down the narrow hall. “It’s surreal to be here.”

“What, aboard a spaceship bound for an alien planet?” she asked teasingly.

“Yeah,” I replied, still serious and musing. “I mean, who imagines their life turning out this way?”

“You know, there’s going to be a ton of men there,” Donna said. Her cheeks were pink with excitement, her eyes glittering. “And they’re all military. The last four colonist drops were just to establish a militant human force. We’re the first civilians to be sent to Albaterra. Do you realize what that means?”

I crooked a brow at her as we rounded into our designated launch pod. The other six crewmembers assigned to the pod were already in their seats, strapped and belted within an inch of their lives. The two chairs at the rear meant for Donna and me were empty and waiting. “That there’s a lot of B.O. and bad manners to look forward to?” I quipped, winding my way through the others to my allotted place.

She began looping the bands of her sturdy harness over her feminine figure. “It means testosterone,” she hissed delightedly. “Lots and lots of testosterone. Some of these guys haven’t seen a human woman in a year.”

I grinned, mirroring her actions with my own harness and straps. “That’s pretty much what I said.”

“That’s fine, make your jokes,” Donna dismissed carelessly. She clicked a belt into place between her thighs. “We’ll see how funny you think it is when you’re completely helpless to the sheer sexuality oozing everywhere. They’re like walking aphrodisiacs.”

“No, I think you mean we’re the walking aphrodisiacs. Or, at least, you are.”

Donna gave me a look that clearly expressed her annoyance at my comment. “Please.”

“I’m serious!” I insisted, snapping my last piece into place and settling back into the ergonomic chair. “You’re a personal trainer, for God’s sake. Blonde and tall and leggy. You’re basically California Barbie. Plus, you can kick the crap out of anyone who pisses you off. What’s not to love?”

“I know all that. I meant that you need to give yourself more credit.” I heard her wriggling in her seat, trying to get comfortable, but I kept my head pressed back against the headrest in preparation for landing. “You’ve got the kind of ass that makes guys sweat more than any workout I can put them through. And you’ve got those innocent doe-eyes men love so much. Besides, you’re a nutritionist, which means you know how to stay healthy without losing your rack. I went from a solid C-cup to a low B when I started training, you know.”

Her displeasure in her chest size was evident in her voice, but I couldn’t stop myself from laughing. Donna was a character, and I adored her for it. When I’d accepted a position at Last Stop Fitness in Baltimore after graduating with my shiny new degree, Donna had been the first person I’d met. Three years later, we were the best of friends. It had been thanks to her, in fact, that I found myself onboard the Conquest now, preparing to begin a life as a human colonist on a planet in another galaxy filled with aliens that, frankly, terrified me. She’d bounded into my office one day and demanded I pull up NASA’s website. They were requesting volunteers of various qualifications to become the next colonists to venture into the depths of space and take up residence on the A’li-uud planet of Albaterra. One of the requests was for a nutritionist to help develop suitable diets from the alien resources. Twenty minutes later, I was filling out the online form for additional information with Donna leaning over my shoulder.

There was a crackling sound overhead as the intercom turned on, and the captain’s voice boomed through the recessed speaker. If I wasn’t practically immobile from the amount of restraints I’d had to put on myself, it would have been easy to imagine I was on an airplane.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we are about to commence our descent into Albaterra. Please be aware the atmosphere is noticeably denser than Earth’s; it’s likely we’ll suffer some turbulence. Additionally, we will be landing in the kingdom of Montemba, which is a snowy region. It’s possible we will encounter blizzard-like conditions, which could increase any turbulence we experience. Please ensure you’re properly strapped in to NASA standards for the safety of yourselves and those around you. We will reach ground in approximately four minutes. Thank you.”

I twisted my head without lifting it from the headrest to glance once more at Donna. Her fingers were curled around her armrests so tightly her knuckles were white, and I could see the muscles in her forearms flexing repeatedly with nerves. I rolled my head back into place and closed my eyes.

In four minutes, my life would officially change. It was already too late to turn back, but the introduction of a countdown sent my stomach into a series of flips and spins. I was no longer going to be Celine Lemaire, the girl from Baltimore and nutrition coach to middle-aged women trying to lose the baby weight. My life was suddenly going to have a purpose greater than any I could have expected: the health and well-being of every human colonist on Albaterra was going to be on my shoulders. It was a weight I’d been confident I could carry, but, as my ears started to pop and I started to feel the impact of increased pressure in my belly with the ship’s descent, doubts began to bloom in my mind.

Without warning, there was a boom so loud that I went deaf entirely. Everything from the floor beneath my feet to the ceiling above my head shook violently, throwing my body from side to side with such force that the straps cut into my flesh. My stomach lurched and, as my deafness gave way to relentless ringing, I was tilted forward. Blood rushed to the front of my face, heating my cheeks. I realized with a jolt of horror that this was not turbulence; we were plummeting downward. The harness strained against my chest, and my rear slid toward my knees until the belt between my legs caught me.

Panic welled in my gut, and my head became light. The edges of my vision became white and blurry. It felt like I couldn’t get enough oxygen. The reality of the situation flashed through my mind: we were going to crash, and I was helpless to stop it.

Then, with my last ounce of control, I opened my mouth and screamed.