The gray ones had words “The Dark Anomaly” imprinted on them. There were even less likely to contain the music I needed, but the words piqued my interest.
“Let’s see this one first.” I slid one of the gray slates into the frame, and it came to life, its surface turning into a touch screen. “I’ve heard about this technology in my Interplanetary History of Film class in college. I can’t believe you’re still using it.”
Holding the frame in my hands, I sat down on the floor right where I stood. Wyck sat in his usual spot in the entrance way, and I scooted closer to him, so he could watch with me.
“Tell me about this place.”
Humans had learned about the Anomaly having a solid core inside, but we weren’t sure whether it was a planet or something else. Finding life existing in its core was a complete shock.
“The Dark Anomaly is a disk, made of crushed ships it has been sucking in,” Wyck started, somewhat hesitantly. “They used to crash here more often in the past, but we still get a few a year. Most of them unmanned.”
“So, there is no solid planet here at all? No atmosphere?”
“No.”
“You don’t go outside?”
“Only for maintenance purposes. While wearing a suit with an oxygen supply.”
That would be like spending an entire life inside a spaceship. A sickening feeling of claustrophobia tightened my chest.
I pulled up a chart, or possibly a map, on the screen.
“What’s this?”
He leaned closer, peeking over my shoulder at the device.
“That’s the habitable sector of the Dark Anomaly, by the look of it. We’re here.” He pointed at a spot on the map with a thick finger, tipped with a smooth nail. His skin, the warm color of reddish clay, darkened to charcoal-gray on the protruding ridges over his knuckles. “This is the main corridor,” he continued sliding the tip of his finger along an arched line. “It runs from the place where your ship crashed, all the way here, past the vasai farm and the airlock on the other end.”
I read the labels, following the movement of his finger. The gardens, the library, the captain’s room, numerous storage and utility rooms along the way. The mess hall.
I had yet to see most of that with my own eyes, but from the map, this looked like a fairly large area, equipped not just for survival but for a lifestyle allowing for some recreation. This place had been built to live in long term.
Wyck had mentioned that he’d spent his entire life here.
“How did all of you get here, Wyck?”
“Crashed, the way you did.”
Except that I didn’t crash. We had deliberately come here. Our landing, as rough as it was, was not an accident.
“Why have you never left?”
“You can’t leave the Dark Anomaly,” he stated simply.
“Why?”
“It won’t let you.”
Despite his casual tone, his words sounded ominous, like a line from a horror movie. What he had said made the Anomaly appear alive, like a being with a mind of its own—a dangerous mind.
“But has anyone tried?” I asked, refusing to accept it.
“Many times.”
“And they ended up staying?”
“They ended up dead.”
The dreadful feeling grew stronger, prickling cold down my spine. Instinctively, I leaned even closer into the warmth of Wyck’s large body at my side.
“Why?” I ventured another question, already wary of the answer. “What happens?”
“Every ship that has tried to take off ended up crashing back, killing everyone.”
“So, you’re all stuck here for life?”
“As are you.” He gave me a side glance.
I wondered if I should tell him about the true purpose of our expedition. Could I trust him to help me get off the Dark Anomaly? Or would he try to stop me?
“You see. Ours wasn’t exactly a crash,” I started carefully. “We came here on purpose.”
He shrank away from me, catching my gaze, his expression shocked.
“How? Why?”
“This was a planned mission.”
“Why?” He stared at me in bewilderment, obviously unable to comprehend why anyone would voluntarily travel to this place.
His expression gave me hope that he might not be entirely opposed to the idea of getting out of here.
“Ever since the solid mass inside the Anomaly was discovered, there have been talks about sending a ship here.”
“But what for?”
“To see what it’s like. It’s a mystery, you know? Kind of like a modern-day Bermuda Triangle—” I cut myself off, realizing the analogy would be lost on him, since he most likely had no idea what the Bermuda Triangle was. “Anyway, there was a lot of interest from