Dyrk adjusted the craft’s trajectory and then flipped the communication switch. “Is anyone manning the comm back home, control?”

“Yes, we’re still here.”

Diana jostled Dyrk’s shoulder as she deactivated the comm. Narrowing her eyebrows, Diana tapped her armrest and sighed, “Were you expecting them not to be listening?”

He licked his lips and drummed his console as he winked at her. “I figured everyone manning control might be on a break.”

Diana slid forward and covered the microphone. “You’re aware we’re retracing the colonization vessel’s trajectory. And it vanished the moment it entered this atmosphere, right?”

“I’m aware of the history.” He peeled her hand from the comm before reactivating the system and clearing his throat. “We’ve located the remains of the colonization ship.”

“Any signs of survivors?”

Dyrk’s tongue ran across his lips as he scrolled through the results of the scans. “Wendell, I’m uploading a full copy of the report now. But while you’re waiting, I can describe the eclectic array of life on this rock for you.”

“Please do,” Wendell muttered.

Dyrk took a slow breath, refreshing his display. As the records flowed across the screen, a whistle leapt from his lips. “While there are plenty of creatures that look familiar and would have been brought with the colonization team, they’re outnumbered by the creatures I don’t recognize.”

Silence filled the spaceship’s cockpit, and just before it became uncomfortable, Wendell’s voice shattered it. “Repeat that.”

Dyrk rubbed his eyes and leaned toward the comm. “The majority of the lifeforms on the planet appear to have been plucked from popular fiction.”

“Excuse me?”

Dyrk pressed his back into his seat and folded his hands. “Are you aware of the fantasy novels that have been popular these days?”

“What about them?”

Dyrk flexed his fingers as he reached for the controls. “You’ll need a sampling of them to identify the more unusual creatures in the report.”

“You’re not making any sense.”

Dyrk shook his head and tapped the microphone. “Wendell, that’s not the strangest thing.”

“And what would that be?”

His fingers flicked to the bottom of the report as he gnawed his lip. He released a pent-up breath and tapped the screen. “We’ve performed multiple checks and keep getting the same results...