SHACKLETON CRATER - LUNAR SURFACE - 7:45 AM
The two Titan-class ships descended toward the crater floor using graviton lift that made lunar landing trivial compared to the complex orbital mechanics and fuel calculations that traditional spacecraft required—they simply pointed down and descended, anti-gravity negating the Moon's weak pull and allowing controlled vertical landing.
"Touchdown," Sophia announced as Titan-Alpha settled onto the lunar surface with a gentle thump that kicked up clouds of gray regolith, "we are down, all systems showing green, cargo bay preparing for unload—welcome to the Moon, everyone."
Through her cockpit window she could see Titan-Beta landing two hundred meters away, and beyond both ships the rim of Shackleton Crater rose against the black sky, peaks catching sunlight in brilliant whites while the crater floor remained in shadow that held billions of tons of water ice.
