Dead Man's Planet

When the freighter Mick Conner pilots touches down on a barren rock drifting between Mars and Jupiter, the crew expects only dust and dead silence. Instead they discover rows of corn‑like stalks, strange vines and even a towering tree clinging to the iron‑rich surface, all thriving in an almost weightless environment. The low gravity lets them float gently to the ground, turning a simple inspection into a surreal walk on a floating garden.

But the alien flora hides something stranger: phosphorescent beads burst from the tassels, drifting like slow meteors before igniting the rock beneath them with a blue glow. As the beads fall, the surface flickers with sudden heat, sending Mick and his mate Alf soaring upward as daylight breaks on the horizon. With each mysterious reaction, the asteroid proves that even the most desolate worlds can hold secrets worth exploring.