Flora on Uta!
As the rocket landed and the roar of the engines stilled, I looked out the window of my maiden vessel. This new, unnamed planet, really was a wasteland after all. Boring brown soil stretched as far as the eye could see. Not quite as dry as the Sahara Desert, but still, I couldn’t imagine any life out there. As much as I wanted to just leave with that preliminary finding, I couldn’t simply not do my due diligence, so I put on my spacesuit and opened the door, hopping into uncharted territory.
Dirt, dirt, and more dirt! There’s no semblance of life here, just a graveyard of potential. I knew coming out here was a waste of time. Maybe I should…wait…what’s that…melody? It sounds sweet and soothing? But how is that possible? I didn’t program my visor to play anything, so what on earth could be making that music? Could there actually be some undiscovered life on this backwoods planet?
A harsh roaring sound threatened to shatter my eardrums, cutting through the melody. The earth below my feet began to crumble, and before I knew it, several muddy green vines had wrapped around my torso, suspending me in the air. Despite my terror, I couldn’t help but think about how wrong I was about there being no life here. Flora had somehow managed to thrive in these hostile conditions. Could these plants actually thrive in an environment as dry as this?
Further interrupting my thoughts was another rumbling on the earth, the ground cracking as several venus fly traps, or at least, something bearing its appearance, rose from the soil. As I stared up in terror, my frail body shaking in my spacesuit, they opened their maws…and…sang?
My eyes widened as the same deceptively pleasant melody rang in my ears. Were these plants the ones singing? As their song continued, and their jaws opened wider, my eyes widened in realization. Those monstrous plants were singing because they had just found their prey to sate their hunger…and I was to be the main course!