The Darkness Outside Us

by Eliot Schrefer

At least I figure out why we’re underwater. Our atmosphere on Earth protects us because of its sheer volume—HZE particles have to pass through so many miles of air that they slow to non-deadly speeds before they reach the human body. Hydrogen molecules are efficient at blocking radiation, and water of course has plenty of them.

“It is not in the mummy’s eternal cold heart to believe that the world is anything but cursed.”

This is supposed to be a quote from a mummy movie.

I’m a little pitchy.

Apparently this means being a little bit out of tune.

On the third day, I wake up and head to my now-usual spot at the largest window on the Aurora, with its view over the bioluminescent plains. My clock has reset to these longer days—but then again, I guess I never was alive during any other circadian clock. This planet isn’t my new home; it’s the only home I’ve ever had.

A circadian clock doesn't reset to a different period. The resetting is limited to phase.

ELIOT SCHREFER is a New York Times bestselling author, has twice been a finalist for the National Book Award in Young People’s Literature, and has won the Green Earth Book Award and the Sigurd F. Olson Nature Writing Award for Children’s Literature. His novels include the Lost Rainforest series, Endangered, Threatened, Rescued, Orphaned, and two books in the Spirit Animals series. He lives in New York City, is on the faculty of the Hamline University and Fairleigh Dickinson University MFA in creative writing programs, and reviews books for USA Today. Visit him online at www.eliotschrefer.com.