A Storm of Luck
1 “Now don’t go too far, Trynn,” said Mrs. Jemmerson. “You know how fast those dust storms blow in.”
2 Trynn Jemmerson was used to her mother’s concern, but she was also used to having time alone. As the daughter of two space archaeologists who loved their work, she was often on remote planets with only her parents for company. They included her in their conversations as if she could understand their scientific talk, which, of course, she could.
3 She knew exactly why they were on Mars and was aware of her parents’ objective on this mission. Trynn’s parents worked on accumulating early space equipment, such as the first rovers sent to explore Mars. Humans had left the Red Planet many years ago as they advanced well beyond their solar system. No one had actually colonized Mars, although the failed attempts set the stage for the success of further space travel.
4 The Jemmersons wanted to track the history of human travel to the farthest reaches of space. On this trip they intended to compile information and bring back the first Pathfinder to land on Mars, as well as Rover Five, the last rover sent before humans arrived. The Jemmersons had already found several other important relics, but the smaller Rover Five continued to escape their search efforts.
5 Today Trynn had decided she needed to leave the confines of the HoloGlobe she shared with her parents. This was the home that had been unpacked from their ship and filled with oxygen. She liked drawing landscapes of the places they had traveled, and yesterday she had seen an interesting cliff formation she wanted to draw. She put on her spacesuit, grabbed her sketchpad, and began her journey.
6 Jumping rapidly across the red rocks, Trynn made tracks in the opposite direction from her parents. Once she reached her destination, she began to draw. Trynn did not notice the darkening of the sky through her shaded visor. When the first wave of dust flew past her, she was so startled that she fell over. Staring straight up at the sky, Trynn noticed it had turned a dark red. She knew she should go home right away because the dust storms on Mars greatly reduced visibility. She struggled to her feet and began moving back toward the HoloGlobe. Soon she couldn’t see past her hands. Trynn realized she didn’t even know for sure that she was headed in the right direction.
7 Holding her hands in front of her, Trynn walked slowly and bumped into something solid. She felt up and down and realized this was the cliff wall she had been drawing. She decided it would be best to find shelter and wait out the storm. She traced her hand along the wall until she found a crack she could fit through that led to a cave.
8 Inside the cave the dusty wind was not as strong, so she sat down to wait. The light was dim, barely enough to see by. Trynn looked around at her surroundings and saw a glimmer of something shiny. She crawled farther back and with trembling hands wiped the dust from a large, square metal object. Trynn recognized it immediately from her studies. “Hello there, Rover Five!” she laughed.9 The storm did not last long, and soon she heard the unmistakable roar of her parents’ space buggy. Barely able to hold in her excitement, she ran out of the cave to their buggy. “Mom! Dad! Come look—I found Rover Five!”
10 Her parents were astonished at what they saw, but there was no doubt. Trynn Jemmerson had made her first archaeological discovery at the tender age of thirteen—and her parents had a feeling it wouldn’t be her last! They held her close and flew back to the main ship, ready to report that their mission was complete. Trynn, still excited about finding the rover, was curious about where her parents would go for their next mission. Wherever it would be, Trynn would be right there with them, making her own contributions.