S.O.S.

I looked at my watch.

2 hours left

Inside my ship, I was safe from the empty vacuum of space. Sitting mere inches away from the window, I could see the stars, planets, and moons crossing my path. My mission was simple : undertake a journey outside of our galaxy and search for signs of life. Yet, as simple as can be, I still failed. I didn't find any life, be it intelligent or not. There were only vast deserts of nothingness. There was never as strange a thought as the fact that I crossed millions of miles of nothing to find more nothing. In that nothing, I could find respite for my loneliness, one that wasn't satiated ever since I left our space station 7 years ago. At first, I was excited - seeing all of those planets first, those unexplored worlds - but as time went on, I realised that there wasn't anything to be excited about. In fact, there wasn't anything at all.

1 hour, 30 minutes left

Sometimes, when gazing out of my tiny window, I could see an asteroid whizzing by, unaware of its existence. Oh, how life would be simple if I were an asteroid. I could help form moons and planets - I would serve a purpose. A life without purpose is a life not worth living, after all. Wandering alone amongst the stars isn't a healthy way to live, and I should know that better than anyone. Yet here I was, paying the consequences of my negligence - or should I say, my ignorance. I was supposed to orbit a planet behind another one a couple of months ago - the only problem was, there was no second planet.

1 hour left

I had used up all of my fuel trying to get back to the first planet. Maybe then, I could've sent a distress signal, but I was too far away now. In a last ditch effort, I sent a signal right as I realised there was no second planet. I was supposed to be rescued a few weeks ago. Instead, I received an emergency transmission coming from the very same space station that I had departed from. The screams I heard, I shall never forget. The metallic ripping sounds I heard, I shall never forget. Yet, the most disheartening of all, were the cries for help - asking for my help. All I could do was sit back and listen to the demise of the station I once called home.

30 minutes left

During the latter part of my trip, I could only think about that station. Ares-09 was its name - a name forever imprinted in my memory.

All I could do now was to wait. As my ship advanced with great speed to the outer edges of the galaxy, I was met with a sense of despair, as I was forced to watch as the stars and planets got further and further away from me. I had to face reality sooner or later : I wasn't coming back.

I was prepared. I had time to be prepared. Time to be prepared for my inevitable demise.

0 seconds left

OXYGEN LEVELS CRITICAL

As I felt the air inside my lungs escape my body, I felt a strange sense of relief. All those years of pain, of loneliness, were finally over. As I slipped into the eternal darkness, I rested with nothing but a smile.