"Welcome, pioneers! If you would please take your seats, we will begin."

The four of us had approached the table. The metal legs of our chairs screeched against linoleum as we all sat down. The genial man in front straightened his glasses and leaned forward, addressing each of us.

"Thank you all for coming. This mission is our top priority here at the Columbus Project, and we're very happy to have such a group of volunteers here to help us."

I looked around me at the three who would be my future shipmates. Were these the best they could get? Three men, none of them looking any higher than Delta-level citizens. One looked like he had lived most of his life in a prison. His name was Cal. I was able to read the name before he pulled off the name tag in disgust. The second, Ramon, looked like he would he would have made a good lawyer had he the funds. Probably an office slave. The last one, Neal, looked the most normal. Wore darker colors, mainly listened, never talked. Maybe one of those quiet artist types, looking for new scenery. Well, he was sure to get it here.

"As you all know, our predecessors didn't put too much effort into caring for our planet. Pollution, the greenhouse effect, and increased reproduction rates have wasted our resources and in recent years have taken a direct toll on our quality of life here."

A map appeared, projected from a computer screen built into the table, showing our solar system and others beyond. All of the planets in our solar system along with a smattering of others were colored red, the others white.

"Our solution is to find a new planet. The damage here is irreparable. Somewhere in the vast space of our galaxy, we must start anew. That, my friends, is where you come in. You shall be sent to a planet B356," he said as he tapped the screen, the chosen planet blinking in response. "You will go and find a place that might be hospitable for human life. Are there any objections so far?"

Taking our mutual silence as a 'No,' he took out a briefcase and handed each of us a form along with a pen, "Of course, space travel is a tricky business. We guarantee that our spacecraft is thoroughly tested, following the strictest regulations. However, there is always the chance for accidents."

We each signed our forms with little hesitation, putting them all in the center of the table. Our host nodded, and gathered the forms into his briefcase, "Good, follow me."

He led us out of the room, down a hallway and into a sort of workshop area. Voices echoed off the cement walls as engineers and mechanics worked to piece together these pioneering ships. Most of the materials seemed to be scavenged. Scrap metal from old vehicles and computer chips from monitors discarded decades ago in landfilis. Still, they were as selective as they could be with the parts they were given. Parts that were too damaged to repair were set to the side to be recycled for future use.

We stopped in front of a craft no larger than a submarine. It almost looked like one too, minus the propeller and the periscope. It was a patchwork of colors. Blue, green, red, silver. The engineers had not bothered to paint it save for the name of the ship, Santa Maria 216, in black letters. We all stared at the ship in silence. Cal was the one to voice what was sure to be our mutual thoughts.

"We're flying out in space in this piece of shit? Can this thing even get off the ground?" Cal gestured at the old clunker, glaring at our tour guide.

"Now, now, She might not look like much, but the Santa Maria is perfectly safe for space travel." Neal answered in a quiet, but confident voice, "While it might be safe for flying in space, it doesn't look very sturdy. I doubt it could last more than a few flights."

Our host cocked an eyebrow, "You've got a sharp eye. Yes, the ships are built to fit their purpose. A one-way trip to the selected planet. We have full confidence that Planet B356 is able to support life. Once you have found and established a settlement on the planet, we will send others to fully populate it. There are risks, of course. If you have any objections...”

Neal shook his head. The rest of us looked at each other and back at the ship. What did we have to lose? Life on Earth? Scavenging scraps from the garbage just to get by? Laying in a new man's bed each night to pay the rent? It was worth the risk. I had no objections, and neither did the rest.

"Excellent, excellent. Once the final testing has been done on the ship, we'll have you on your way. Trust me, friends, you won't regret your decision."

It had been three months since that initial meeting. Who would have known that space travel could be so…boring? I sat up in my bunk, staring out of the porthole. Blackness dotted by specks of white. The novelty wore off fast. Same view, same shitty food, cramped living quarters, nothing to do. We could have been flying into a sun for all we knew. I found myself thinking, we had better touch down to day, for the love of God, or I’ll...

"Lauri! You gonna hole up in your room all day? Still gotta bug up your cootch?"

I felt my lip curl at the sound of his voice. Cal. Why they let that criminal on this ship in the first place, I had no idea. Never had I met such a crude, disgusting example of a human being...

"Oy! Lauri! You gonna eat with us or what?"

I removed the belts that kept me secured to the bed. Hell if I would give that mooch the opportunity to cat my portion of the rations. I pushed off the bed, floating to the door. I slid it open, and pulled it behind me, making sure that it was locked securely before entering the common area.

I was greeted with raucous laughter. Cal and Neal were belted on the sofa and the surrounding chairs, already eating. Ramon had, once again, popped the tube of nutrient paste as he was trying to open it. He swam around the room, trying to catch the floating reddish-brown blobs, but only succeeded in getting it all over his face and suit. Neal rolled his eyes and went back to sucking down his serving, washing it down with an eight-ounce bottle of water, our allotment for each meal. Cal looked in my direction, and tossed over my "breakfast."

"What flavor is it today?" I mumbled as I ripped open the top.

"Sunny-side-up eggs with bacon and hash browns," Cal responded with a flourish of his hand.

"If only that were true..." No matter what I might have tried to imagine, the paste always tasted like dirt.

"I doubted it would work. Artificial flavoring only seems to make everything taste worse," Ramon said. He was trying to wipe the paste off his jacket, but only managing to smear it.

"Hey, we're on the final stretch, ladies and Lauri. Got a transmission earlier saying that it's today for sure. At least we have that." He smiled, looking around for some sort of reaction, and shrugged his shoulders, "Geez, for a bunch of people about to step onto a new planet, you guys are a bunch of stiffs."

"I'Il believe it once we've landed. They've been saying that for four days now. I still think we've passed it," I muttered. I pitched the plastic tube and the water bottle into their appropriate recycling containers, and then sat down in a vacant chair, securing myself appropriately.

"That's not very likely," Ramon chimed in, "They've been keeping a close eye on our progress. They've just had to alter our course to avoid possible obstacles."

"Just as long as we get there. Anything's better than this hellhole."

"What about the hellhole you left behind?" Cal said. He leaned his back against the chair, letting off a series of cracks from his spine.

"At least food had flavor there...”

"Why are you looking back now? There's nothing left there. At least here, we have a chance at something better. Why else would we all be here?"

Ramon nodded in response. Neal gestured in agreement.

"All right, all right. I'll try to be less moody. Just getting a bit anxious, that's all."

Cal brushed his fingers through his tangled mass of brown hair, "Don't worry so much about it. We'll get there." Then, as if struck by lightning, he sat straight up in his seat.

"We still need to give a name to this place, you know that? Sure, they call it B254 or whatever, but this. is going to be our planet. We should give it our own name."

"We should probably continue with the Greek and Roman mythology. Just to keep it consistent," Ramon said. He had given up on trying to retrieve his meal and returned to his seat.

"Like I know anything about those myth names outside of our solar system..." Cal grurabled, scratching his head.

"Elysium." Neal said We all looked at him like he had grown another head. Since we had met him, he had hardly said a word. We had at first assumed that he was a mute.

"Elysium?" Cal repeated it to himself, as if trying to summon its meaning. After a moment, he simply shrugged. "Sounds as good a name as any."

"What do you think it'll look like?" Ramon asked.

"Maybe like how Earth was before civilization. Lots of forests and animals."

"Do you think there might already be sentient life there? I mean, they said that this planet was able to support life and all... What if they've already claimed the planet? What if they're hostile?" Ramon cringed in his seat.

"Don't worry about it, Ramon. I have a plan all figured out." Cal smirked and pointed at me, "We'll just give 'em Lauri."

I scowled at him. He laughed and waved it off, "I'm kidding. I'm kidding. I wouldn't sacrifice the only woman on the ship. We'd hand over Ramon. Maybe they can use him as a sacrifice for their tribal gods or something."

I leaned over, far enough to give Cal a light smack across the face. We all laughed. Even Neal grinned. As annoying as he could get, at least Cal lightened things up. When we all first met, I thought that they had just chosen us randomly. Just thrown together a rag-tag team of losers to launch out into space. Maybe those people back at the Columbus Project really knew what they were doing.

The conversation trailed off from there, and we all returned to our usual habits. Cal sat by one of the windows, counting the stars. Neal drew on the walls of the ship with permanent marker. Ramon read over one of the books he had brought. As for me, I returned to my room, sat on my bunk bed, and continued writing in my journal. Perhaps, one day, it would be published as a work of literature that all students would read in their classes. I would be remembered, revered for my efforts. The first woman on Elysium. The thought brought chills down my spine... if only we would land!

Suddenly, the room started shaking. No, the entire ship was. I pulled the restraining belts tighter and gripped the sides of the bed. I looked out the porthole. No more blackness, but the sight of a green sphere surrounded by rocky debris, and we were being pulled into its orbit! I gritted my teeth as I watched our descent. The surface started 1o become closer. I couldn't see the full view of the planet anymore, but I could see the swirling blue-green clouds that covered it. A screeching filled my ears as the ship maneuvered through a patch of rocks floating in the planet's orbit, barely getting past the satellites. The ship was shaking harder now. I turned away from the porthole, trying to keep down my nutrient paste. The ship was going to shake apart. It couldn't take a beating like this. We were going to die before even reaching the planet... Then, impact! The ship skidded across the surface, finally coming to rest.

I unbuckled myself and stood up, dusting myself off. I looked out the window of our new home, Trees reminiscent of the ancient, extinct tropical rainforest surrounded us. The grass itself looked high enough to reach our knees and was the most vibrant red I had ever scen. Flowers everywhere, in blues, purples, yellows, pinks, every color imaginable. The planet was a rainbow of color! And the streams, so crystal clear, not the muddy sludge that remained on Earth. No, this was our Elysium. Our new home. I walked out to the common area. Cal, Ramon, and Neal had already unbuckled themselves and were looking out through the windows. We looked at each other, smiles on our faces, excluding Neal — his face bore the same expression of disinterest. Cal, Ramon, and I opened the hatch, and stepped into this new world.

We breathed in the air without the aid of oxygen masks, something that was foreign to us. It tingled at the nose and skin. The constant air filtering back on Earth was to blame. We simply weren't used to this. We walked through the grass, took in the sights of the trees, the flowers, the blue-green sky and aquamarine clouds. Such colors only existed in crayons and plastic, not in nature. We jumped through the streams, rolled around in the red grass, breathing in the scent of the flora. It was Paradise! I laughed, I danced in the purple sunlight. After a while, I collapsed on the ground, panting. Looking over, I saw that Cal and Ramon had done the same. We all were splotched with red from the grass, wet and shining.

"I think that suit is done for, Ramon," I said, pointing to the new red stains.

He laughed, wiping his stained hands on his pants. Strangely enough, the red didn't wipe off, like it was stuck to his skin. He looked closer at the spots, and his eyes widened, his mouth hanging open.

I looked at my own skin. It was the same. I took some of the grass and wiped it on my pant leg. Nothing. No red. The red was from me. Flesh had melted into blood. That elated high had faded, and I realized that the tingling had not gone away, but had intensified. It was burning! Breathing had become more difficult. I gasped for air, but with each breath, the pain grew. The spots grew too, skin turning white to red. I could feel something drip from my face. I held out my hand to catch the blood. My shirt and pants were burning away slowly, soaked in red. I could hear Cal's screaming as he ran for the ship. Ramon sobbed as he crawled towards the stream, rolling into the water to cool his growing wounds. There was a hissing noise as he splashed into its depths. He didn't get up.

I sat there, watching as the air ate away at the flesh on my fingers, revealing the ivory beneath. I would have screamed, but I couldn't get enough breath in my lungs to make the sound. I sobbed softly. Neal walked out of the ship, a serene smile on his face. He sat next to me, looking up at the sky.

"We've finally made it. Elysium. Don't worry. Cal and Ramon have gone before us, but we'll be there soon too. You understand."

I nodded in response, laying back against the grass, red against red, looking at the blue-green sky.

"Elysium," I whispered to the sky.

*

The map in the meeting room was projecting from the table once more. Briefcase open, the genial host sat in his chair, pulling out the files for Planet B356, It had been three months since departure and about twelve hours since their estimated time of arrival. A man with the Columbus Project logo across his shirt entered the room and whispered into the host's ear. He shook his head in response, closing the file. He pulled out a red stamp and pressed it against the front cover. Failure.

"I expected that the atmosphere was a touch too acidic. Well, we needed to make sure. We'll always remember the brave sacrifice of Subjects 216 to 220. If you would bring in the next four, please. Thank you."

The Columbus Project employee walked out of the room as the host place the file back into his briefcase. Four new volunteers entered the meeting room to meet the genial host, the president of the Columbus Project.

"Welcome, pioneers! If you would please take your seats, we will begin."