The fighter jet flew straight ahead, the vibrations and acceleration much slower than liftoff from Earth. The two felt nothing as they returned to space.
Both breathed a sigh of relief. Seconds later, the return capsule shot out of the atmosphere. After reaching the predetermined altitude, it transitioned to level flight.
At this time, the shockwave from the explosion was still spreading across the ground. The expanding airflow surprisingly carved out a small pocket of quiet space within the fierce storm.
The mushroom cloud continued to rise, its covered area expanding. Viewed from space, it resembled a dark, black spot on the surface of Mars.
Ou Zhanpeng secretly rejoiced that they had detached in time. The shockwave had not affected the attitude of the fighter jet and return capsule; instead, it had given them a powerful push, adding thrust to their ascent and saving considerable fuel.
Xu Qing looked a little bewildered. "Did you bring a mushroom bomb? The visual effects weren't this exaggerated when the Expedition bombed the alien base!"
"How would I have the time to carry that thing?" Ou Zhanpeng laughed.
By then, the explosion was nearing its end. The storm continuously eroded the edges of the mushroom cloud, blurring and distorting its boundaries. In a short while, the storm once again covered the fleeting explosion and dominated the Martian sky.
This trip had been incredibly fruitful. The two exchanged smiles, all understanding conveyed without words.
However, it would still take some time to transport all the materials to their original altitude.
The fighter jet was relatively easy; it just needed to continuously change its orbit upwards. The problem was that the return capsule did not have such powerful flight capabilities. Its purpose was merely to send the landing astronauts back to orbit. After docking with the orbiting spacecraft, its mission would be complete. From the start, there was no plan for it to continue flying higher.
The situation was more complex than imagined. Ou Zhanpeng handed the fighter jet over to Xu Qing and performed an untethered spacewalk, entering the return capsule to check the situation.
With fuel still remaining, he immediately maneuvered the return capsule to accelerate and change orbit to a higher position.
A vertical distance of over nine thousand kilometers meant that the orbital change was destined to be an extremely long process.
Xu Qing promptly reported the situation to the base. Half an hour later, the fighter jet received a reply from Earth.
Dan Qiuyu first commended their actions, then expressed his reflections on humanity's first landing on Mars. Finally, representing all the officers and soldiers at the base, he wished the two on Mars and the 46 people heading towards Jupiter a happy festival, offering New Year greetings in advance to everyone.
It was only then that Xu Qing suddenly realized, "Today is New Year's Eve? I've been so caught up I completely forgot."
Ou Zhanpeng scratched his forehead. "Our New Year's Eve has been incredibly fulfilling!"
Fortunately, they succeeded. Had their mission failed and their bodies been left on Mars, next year on this day would have been their death anniversary!
Yes, a death anniversary tens or even hundreds of millions of kilometers away from Earth, where no matter who wanted to pay respects, they could only look up at the sky, gazing towards Mars with longing and sorrow.
And for many years to come, this situation would not change in any way.
If, in the future, humanity managed to make Mars habitable, they might enclose their remains under a glass dome for all Martian residents to see: "Look, these are the pioneering astronauts who first landed on Mars. It is a great pity they did not return to Earth."
Thinking of this, Ou Zhanpeng felt immense relief.
That night, the two spent an extraordinary New Year's Eve inside the fighter jet. They not only sent New Year greetings to the base but also exchanged greetings with their companions on the Expedition, making for quite a lively celebration.
To alleviate their loneliness, the base broadcast the New Year's Eve gala continuously to the Star隼 and Expedition.
Regardless of whether the performances were excellent, at least the gesture itself was extraordinary.
Many years later, recalling this day, the two still had vivid memories.
However, after the excitement, all that remained were boundless longing and a faint melancholy.
The two didn't indulge in excessive sentimentality. The next day, they threw themselves wholeheartedly into their work.
But on Blue Star, things were far from quiet:
In early November last year, the Expedition's first bombing of an alien base had caused a tremendous stir throughout the human world. Regardless of status or stance, everyone cheered for the Expedition's heroic feat.
Phrases like "bombing across fifty million kilometers," "humanity's first expedition to another planet," "humanity's first roar at aliens," and "saying no to alien hegemonic civilization" were common.
All sorts of flattering words poured in like a tidal wave, as if praising the Expedition to the heavens.
After all, it was for the common interests of humanity. No matter how biased one's position, one could not undermine China at this moment. At most, they would inject a little personal bias into their reporting; otherwise, it wouldn't be a matter of stance but outright treason.
Many media professionals expressed the same sentiment: the global public opinion had not seen such a one-sided phenomenon in a long time.
But whether it was the media or ordinary citizens, most people were forgetful. The relevant topics quickly dropped from the trending lists, making it seem as if humanity had already defeated the alien species and no longer needed to worry about distant Mars.
It was more practical to focus on how to deal with the increasingly serious marine monsters.
Yet, several months later, another powerful explosion occurred on Mars. Although it could not be compared to a nuclear explosion, at a time when storms were ravaging Mars, the sensation it caused was no less than the Expedition's bombing.
It was only then, through Beijing's public statement, that the people of the world learned that after the Expedition had left, two individuals had overcome various difficulties and silently remained in Mars orbit.
Not only did they stay there, but they also achieved humanity's first landing on Mars. The footage of the two stepping onto Mars simultaneously was widely circulated by major global media outlets.
The resourceful media even managed to identify Ou Zhanpeng and Xu Qing from their voices!
Although the Expedition had departed in secret, after the bombing of Mars, official information about the warship had been partially disclosed. The identities of the 48 crew members were no longer a secret. When the public discovered the handsome man and beautiful woman who remained in Mars orbit, the popularity of the two individuals skyrocketed, and they became the most dazzling couple on the entire internet.
Even if the news had spread, it shouldn't have become this sensational. However, it was fueled by media hype and also by official intervention; it was not purely organic spread.
The reason was simple: fighting alien species was not easy, nor was it a matter of a day or two. Under this premise, it was necessary to create a group of positive and high-quality idols to guide the outlook and worldview of the general public, especially the younger generation.
Timing, luck, and fate played their part. The two happened to be at the forefront of the era, leading to this outcome. Had it been a different time, the result would have been completely different.
However, all of this was happening on Blue Star. The two on Mars were completely unaware of it.