PROMPT: By @ScienceFiction Your team returns to Earth after a long trip, but something looks different.

Dedicated to elveloy  whose story Good Intentions in Tevun-Krus #73, Ooorah monthly sci-fi magazine, inspired this.

"I can't wait to go surfing," Rainier said, balanced atop the centre console.

"Get down! We need to finish prepping for approach." Makalu laughed and swatted at Rainer, who promptly jumped down. 

The excitement of walking on terra firma had them all acting goofy in their excitement.

They'd been away for sixteen years, seven months and three days. It was the longest-ever manned mission - well, at the time they left. They'd been out of radio contact for so long everything back home was a mystery.

"I don't remember it looking so...clean," Rainer said, leaning her forehead against the porthole.

Annapurna tapped rapidly on the command console. "I thought we'd fixed our antennae since we started picking up those radio signals, but I still can't raise anyone on the comms."

Makalu frowned and called up information on her own terminal. "Well, thankfully NASA is still beaming out information on windows for our approach. They've been waiting sixteen years for this indivisium. Let's just hope the climate change hasn't gone past the tipping point."

"Captain."

The use of her title caused Makalu's head to snap around to Annapurna. The look on her communication officer's face had her running. "Talk to me."

"My software just finished unpacking a datastream I picked up. Am I reading this right?"

After quickly scanning the screen, cold sweat broke out over Makalu's body. She pressed the ship's intercom and said, "Everyone assemble on the bridge."

As the crew arrived one by one, their exuberance at being almost home faded when they caught sight of Makalu and Annapurna's sombre expressions.

The captain leaned on the table before her. "It appears we're too late. Annapurna decoded a transmission. Apparently a scientist developed a bacteria that broke down air pollution. They seeded clouds with it, but then it must have mutated because it started breaking down carbon-based lifeforms. We've tapped into some weather satellites. It appears nothing is moving down there."

Stunned silence met her words as they all processed the news.

Denali rubbed his forehead. "We can't be all that's left. It would take a minimum of 500 people to have enough genetic diversity to repopulate without serious complications."

"If sperm banks and egg-storage facilities are still intact, we can easily harvest those, but we'd have to be the surrogates." Blanc looked around at the six other women.

"Seed archives for plants," Rainer added.

Makalu shook her head. "Before we go there, we need to find out if the bacteria has died. Is it safe to return to Earth, or...?"

The unfinished end of the question rang out, 'Or is it a suicide mission?'

Their eyes all looked out the window to the beautiful, but potentially lethal, globe spinning below them and the gamble they'd have to take.