Dead on Mars

He poured the soil mixed with gravel and sand into the container. After closing the lid, he gently hit the container walls and shook it forcefully like he was rolling a die.

The motive for doing this was to let the tiny particles sink, and when doing so, they would fall to the bottom of the container through the gaps in the gravel. This would leave the gravel as the upper layers. Large pieces of basalt couldn’t be used for planting tomatoes, so Tang Yue needed to sieve them away.

He opened the lid and grabbed a handful of gravel. Then, he began a second round of soil extraction and filtering.

His actions suddenly slowed down.

“Hey, Tomcat.”

“Yes?”

“I see a small typhoon.”

“A small typhoon?” Tomcat frowned.

Tang Yue nodded. A small swirl ten meters in front of him was sweeping by. It didn’t look more than half a meter tall and had been dyed light brown by the sand. It kept wobbling and moved at an extremely slow speed. This wasn’t Tang Yue’s first time encountering a typhoon on the desert, but this was the first time he had been in such close proximity to a small one. This kind of small typhoon was typically born behind a sand dune’s sun-facing side. It would follow the sand dunes and mountain ridges and last for a few short minutes.

They usually had a strange feature. Once anyone approached, they would dissipate even faster. Therefore, few people ever had any close contact with them.

On Mars, seeing them was like seeing a sea lion sunbathing in the north pole’s ice. The typical person would give it a few curious looks, but one couldn’t exclude the possibility of someone with pent-up anger suddenly smacking the back of the sea lion’s head.

Tang Yue pushed the sample container filled with soil into the Mars Wanderer’s driving compartment and secured it in the seat. He then brought the remaining empty containers down and threw them on the ground.

“Shh~ Look, what did I discover? There is a small typhoon that is alone. We can attempt to capture it. One small typhoon can provide us with days of energy. They are rich in protein and a single unit of a small typhoon contains more protein than beef. However, it is not easy to deal with. We should approach it slowly from the back. Be careful not to make any noise.”

Tang Yue muttered a meme from back on Earth as he filtered the soil.

“I caught it. It’s struggling vigorously! We just need to twist its head once and we can then pull its innards out. The other parts can be eaten raw. Of course, if time isn’t tight, we can first roast it.”

Tomcat was taken aback before it rolled its eyes. Congratulations Mr. Tang Yue. After arduously surviving on Mars for nearly a year, your efforts haven’t been in vain. You have finally gained enlightenment and acquired inedia. You can obtain the energy to live by simply drinking the wind. From this day forth, I suggest that as the predator at the top of the Mars desert’s food chain, you should go about hunting typhoons.

Tomcat painted a scene for Tang Yue: A man running on the desert with all his limbs like a dog chasing after a typhoon. His eyes were red and drool gushed out from his mouth. From south to north and from west to east, he would chase unceasingly. In a day, he would run across the Isidis Planitia thrice.

“Isn’t that rabies?” asked Tang Yue

“Sir, it’s more like mad cow disease.”