“You’re actually going to watch it? The demise of billions?” the woman asked as she walked into the cold, metallic room and gestured at a glowing monitor.
On the screen, planet Earth sat motionless, aside from the blanket of clouds that slowly rolled over the surface. The word “Live” appeared in the corner, next to a timer that counted down the seconds and milliseconds. A gray-haired man sat watching, sipping a hot drink and paying no attention to her entrance.
“It’s sickening, and I can’t believe they’re airing it on our network,” she added.
With his gaze fixated on the screen, the man replied, “I hadn’t planned on watching, but it’s too surreal — too repulsive — to ignore.”
He finally turned to the woman, revealing the dewey sadness in his eyes. She felt comforted knowing that she wasn’t alone in her feelings, even though they weren’t shared by the majority in their base.
The man turned back to the monitor and rested his head on the palm of his hand. “So this is the impact that will destroy Earth, our home planet. I know that neither you nor I have ever lived there, but I still feel… bonded to it.”
The woman nodded in agreement, now staring at the monitor as well.
“Afterall, this is why we came to Mars — to hedge our bets against Earth’s eventual doom. So that our species could survive!”
“Sure,” she replied, “but I can’t imagine that the first Martian crew — back in 2026 — had the slightest inkling that…” Her words trailed off, finding the rest of her thought unspeakable.
“That Mars would destroy Earth.” the man finished for her, unblinking.
They sat in silence for a moment. On screen a fiery streak appeared in the upper right corner, slowly extending toward the blue planet.
“No, they wouldn’t have,” he continued. “But man took Earth for granted and was destined to destroy it one way or another. At least mankind is safe here on Mars. We shall survive.”
On the screen, the streak made contact and a red wave spread over the Earth’s surface.