[ WP ] First people on Mars discover buried ruins of ancient Martian civilization .

We have been in cryo for the last 5 months. My first few breaths are difficult. It's been almost 300 days since we left Earth to discover what Curiosity saw before going dark. 
 `` 3 Hours until arrival'' sounds across the vessel. 
 The nausea kicks in and I fill my breathing apparatus with bile and whatever else was left in my stomach. I rip it off my face and watch it get vacuumed down the hose on my mask. Looking over, Chris and Alex seem to be in similar shape. I argued against cryo before leaving. It does n't keep you sharp, kills the senses we've been tuning up for years. They said it would be impossible to fit enough food and supplies for us to survive the trip there and back. Could n't win that argument. 
 
 We quickly get our suits on and prepare the module for the Martian landing. Alex looks bad, real bad. 
 `` You good to go?'' I ask. He nods. 
 He would n't back out if his eyeballs were bleeding out his skull. You do n't dedicate the better part of your life to something like this and turn around at the front door. 
 
 `` 3 minutes'' Chris tells us. 
 I think about how far we've come, both literally and physically. The three of us have traveled further than any human in existence. My stomach is in knots as I hear the countdown tick. 
 `` Time to go gentlemen'' Chris gives us each a look then we detach from the shuttle. Smooth and easy. We position the module for entry. 
 
 I've re-entered the Earths atmosphere two times. The Martian atmosphere is much different, slower, and more forgiving. After the heat shields release, we get a look at the surface of the red planet. 
 `` 45 seconds to touchdown'' Chris shouts. 
 `` Deploying landing equipment. Thrusters engaged'' I tell them. 
 
 We set down like a feather floating to the ground. 
 `` Alex, deploy the rover.'' Chris orders. 
 `` Deployed'' he answers. 
 We make our way down the ladder. Chris closes the hatch and pressurizes the cabin before opening the external hatch. Suddenly, Chris freezes and looks at me. 
 `` We never decided who would be the first man on Mars'' 
 `` I'm ok being second or third'' I tell them both. 
 Alex shakes his head allowing Chris to be the first man to step foot on the red planet. Chris opens the hatch and starts heading down to the rover. I follow. 
 `` I should have pissed first'' were Chris' first words on Mars. We all share a laugh and hop into the rover. 
 
 The gravity is lower here, have to be careful not to drive this thing off the wrong side of a crater. Curiosity was last heard from a few miles from our landing site. I wondered what it saw that made this mission priority number one. It's not our job to ask those types of questions. 
 `` Slow it down, we're close'' Chris states. 
 I ease up to the edge of the massive canyon. We jump out of the rover and get our gear ready to rappel down. Alex knows he is hanging back with the rover. Chris and I do one final check on the equipment before heading down. 
 `` Ready?'' he asks. 
 `` Guess so'' I respond. 
 
 The face of this canyon runs longer than I can see. It gets darker the further we descend. I just hope we have a long enough line to get us somewhere flat. 
 `` I'm seeing a plateau coming up in about 300 feet. Slow down and prepare for touchdown. Copy?'' 
 `` Yeah, dropping sticks.'' 
 I crack a few glow sticks and watch them fall slowly to a stop. We land on a the plateau easy enough. Chris pulls a sun spot from his belt, tosses it in the air and lights the area around us. It hovers above us as we move into the valley of the canyon. 
 `` You getting a reading yet?'' 
 I look to my screen, it shows nothing. 
 `` Nothing yet'' I look up and almost knock over Chris. He's stopped and looking up. His eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. I trace his gaze. My heart nearly stopped. Before us was an incredible structure. It had columns the size of a football field and the architecture was impossible. It could only stand in this gravity. 
 `` So there's your answer'' Chris states. `` We are not alone...'' 
 It takes me a minute to digest this all. Alex chirps in over the comms. 
 `` What is it? Can you guys he..'' he cuts in and out. Chris moves toward the structure. A figure forms in between the large columns. 
 `` Chris, there's something there. Wait a minute'' I yell. 
 The figure matches Chris' movement, like a mirror image moving closer to itself. They come face to face. It takes the form of Chris, in his suit and all. They do n't speak, only staring. 
 `` Alex, come in. Chris has made contact with some... thing.'' No response. 
 I look away and then back again. Chris is walking back towards me. Changed. The figure has vanished. 
 `` We're leaving'' Chris tells me. 
 `` What are you talking about? What was that Chris?'' 
 He does n't answer and makes his way back to the canyon face. 
 `` Stop Chris, what about the mission?'' 
 I ca n't get through to him, no use. Hopefully Alex can. 
 
 We reach the top of the canyon face and Chris gets in the rover, still saying nothing. Our leader and captain of the mission has final say. So we follow. 
 When we reach the module, Chris goes up first. First man on, first man off of Mars. I ca n't believe what is happening. I did not waste the last 9 years of my life preparing for a day trip to Mars. Our mission was to recover Curiosity and assess the reasons it malfunctioned. We have not done either. 
 The module ride back to the shuttle is quiet. 
 Chris breaks his silence with `` I'll explain everything back on the shuttle.'' 
 
 When we connect back up to the shuttle, the three of us get out of our suits and collect near the bunks. 
 `` Chris, what just happened?'' I ask. 
 `` You saw what I saw, only you did n't hear what I did.'' 
 Confused, angry I want him to just spill it and stop dragging it out. 
 `` This is going to be hard to understand, but that thing I saw was...'' 
 He pauses a moment. 
 ``... it was one of our ancestors.'' 
 Alex and I look at each other like Chris has lost it completely. 
 `` We are them and they are us. Much more evolved than us or differently evolved. Millions of years ago, Mars was much like Earth is today. The Martians used up most of their resources like we are doing now. The planet eventually could not sustain life.'' 
 I knew he was telling the truth. 
 `` They were only able to send life to Earth in a very simple form. We evolved from those organisms, adapting over millions of years and becoming what we are today.'' 
 The news was not easy to digest. 
 Alex asks, `` How are we going to be able to explain this Chris?'' 
 Chris extends his hand to Alex. He insists on touching it. Hesitant at first, he reaches out and almost immediately Alex's eyes go wide. His heart races and he can hardly catch his breath. Alex knows everything. 
 I wait a moment. Chris insists on me touching his hand too, but do I really want to see what he has and have my entire sense of reality morphed? I touch his hand.
