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Astronaut Juniper landed her ship, the Stardust Slipper, with a gentle thump on a new and wondrous planet. The sensors had indicated a breathable atmosphere and a rich, sugary-sweet smell. Juniper stepped out, her helmet visor reflecting a world unlike any she had ever seen. The ground was a fine, sparkling sugar, and the trees… oh, the trees! They were made of giant, swirling lollipops in every color imaginable.

Juniper, a seasoned explorer, had seen a lot of things, but never a planet made of candy. She carefully walked past a cherry-flavored tree that was taller than her ship, and a lime-flavored one that glittered in the sun. The air itself smelled like a candy shop, and it was getting harder and harder to resist the urge to just… lick the scenery.

Her mission was to collect samples and map the planet, but her primary mission was now to avoid eating her way through the landscape. Her ship was parked right next to a massive grape lollipop tree, and the heat from the engine was starting to melt the bottom. A small purple puddle was forming, smelling deliciously of grape soda.

Juniper radioed her base. “Mission log, day one. Planet designation: Lollipop-Land. Trees are lollipops, ground is sugar. The ship is currently marinating in a puddle of grape-flavored goo.”

Base command radioed back. “Juniper, you must not ingest any of the local flora. It is unknown what effects it may have.”

Juniper looked at the small, delicious-looking puddle. “Understood,” she said.

The problem was, getting back to the ship was becoming a problem. The sugary ground was getting stickier, and her boots were starting to get stuck. Worse, a flock of very colorful birds with bright plumage started to peck at the base of the ship, trying to get at the melted lollipop.

“Hey!” she yelled, waving her arms. “Shoo! That’s my ship!”

The birds, which seemed to be made of spun sugar themselves, just chirped happily and continued their feasting. Juniper realized she had to get the ship off the ground before it became a sticky, immobile monument to sugar.

She ran back to the ship, her boots making loud slurp-slurp-slurp sounds. She turned on the engines, and the thrusters roared to life. The heat was even more intense now. The whole area around the ship became a puddle of grape-y syrup. The ship lifted off the ground, a little wobbly, and Juniper could see the sticky residue clinging to the landing pads.

She radioed base again. “Mission log, day two. Ship is sticky. The landing pads have a new, and surprisingly pleasant, scent. We are attempting to leave orbit. Requesting a clean-up crew for the ship’s exterior. And maybe a toothbrush for the whole thing.”