Free Speech is an Inherent Right, Censorship is Hate. That’s what it is. That’s a freebie truism. But today we have an astronaut with a dilemma. It is Day 22 of Flash Fiction February.

A professor addresses a class: “I have a scenario for you.” You’ll be alone on a long mission; that’s what you signed up for. That was your decision. “If you had a family back on earth, you never would have been chosen for this mission.” It’s a solo gig, all the way. You wanted some time alone; the money was good, so you took the mission.”

“Let’s say there’s a planet,"  the professor says. “Let’s say it’s anomalous, because it has the perfect conditions for life, but there is no life. OK, wait. There is no intelligent, organized life, let’s say. Yes, you get to this planet, and it has many contradictions, but these contradictions sort of correct themselves.” He says. “Let’s also say it’s a very small planet, as in, let’s say it’s just about the size of our earth’s moon.”

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“Considering how warm the planet is, the tiny planet is further away from its central star than it should be.“ That’s because it’s volcanic, it has its own heater right in the middle of it, and it has an atmosphere that holds in the warmth that the planet needs to be so perfect. But if that balance is disturbed, it could easily throw the little planet out of balance. “It’s like a little space oasis. A small, beautiful, deserted island, out in the middle of the universe, and you found it.”

“What would you do, then?” He continues. “All of the readings show that things are tenuous; by using too much of the technology that you have with you on your ship, this entire little system you found could be thrown out of whack and you could literally break it.”

He continues: “In fact, you are stuck in a tough spot because your mission objective states that you are forbidden from doing damage to any of the natural systems you encounter on your journey; you are not to disrupt or influence anything, as much as you possibly can; it’s strictly an observation mission; but now you are in a situation where you have to make a decision.”

“You realize now that even by using your lift-off technology to get up and out of this little planet’s atmosphere, you could easily throw the little paradise off kilter and collapse the habitat.“ If you leave, you could possibly run afoul of your mission and destroy a biosphere, but if you stay, there are ways to survive without causing any real damage; you’ll just have to count on your more primal and physical instincts and keep your use of disruptive technology to an extreme minimum.”

“If you stay here, it is an idyllic life. There is everything you need, between the materials you have on your ship and everything this planet has for you. Everything you need to live is there.“ You signed up for this solo mission, but it was not supposed to be forever; eventually, you’d be on your way back to earth, and then eventually, you’d be back with people again.”

“Now, tell me what you would do, and tell me how it’s different than what you do here on earth. I need 20 pages.”

The End.

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