Home is Where You Left It

Steve Cantwell lands in a blistering desert outpost that once felt like home, only to find mud‑brick houses reduced to shells and a well that has turned bitter and poisonous. The heat of the Sirian sun draws every drop of moisture from his body as memories of childhood—well water, a shared community center, an aunt’s kitchen— clash with the stark reality of abandonment. He quickly discovers that the water source, the lifeline of the settlement, has been tainted, leaving the remaining inhabitants desperate and injured.

Amid the ruin, an aged Kumaji, the planet’s native people who have long resisted Earth’s presence, offers a weary explanation: the colony’s scarcity has driven both sides to desperate acts. Steve must navigate the fragile line between colonist survivor and native resident, weighing questions of mercy, betrayal, and what it means to call a place “home.” The story sets a tense, introspective tone as the protagonist faces a harsh landscape and a deeper moral desert.