<End>

The group sits around the pot with leftovers on the gas stove, enjoying the view of the skyline from above. They had decided to wait on top of one of the tallest sky scrapers the city had to offer to increase their odds of seeing where Emily would land. The intense light of the setting sun paints Nova Metropolis in vibrant hues of yellow and orange and the moon is already visible in the sky. They are engaged in a conversation about the mind-boggling vastness of space and all it contains.

bebebebeep bebebebeep bebebebeep bebebebeep

The alarm on Jack's watch interrupts them. He presses one of the buttons and says:
It's time. Emily will be entering the atmosphere right about now.
They get up. James pulls a pair of binoculars out of his bag. Jack does the same. Annie looks at both of them - her face clearly showing her disappointment.
Don't worry, I gotchu. says Jack as he pulls a second pair out of his bag before they start walking towards the edge.

Michelle and James are already leaning against the railing and looking towards the sky. Jack and Annie join them. Jack takes a compass out of his pocket and briefly looks at it. Then, he points in a direction in the sky and says:
The shuttle should appear somewhere around there.
James hands his binoculars to Michelle for a moment.
I see it! There! she exclaims before handing them back to him.
It looks like a tiny, red glowing dot in the sky, slowly growing in size. For a few minutes, nothing seems to happen. The dot gets bigger and bigger, turning into a black triangle as the glow dims and finally disappears. The shuttle sheds its heat shield as it slowly comes closer.

Around the 15 minute mark, Jack notices that it has moved almost above them.
That's a bit too close for comfort – and way too fast. he says.
Parts appear to be breaking off from it. They watch the last couple minutes of the fall realizing that something has gone seriously wrong. It plummets into the city, taking multiple buildings down with it. The ground shakes slightly. Nobody says anything for a while as they watch the buildings around the impact crumble and the remaining parts rain out of the sky in a mix of awe and shock.

Michelle interrupts the silence: Guys, over there! She points into the sky behind them. A parachute...
reaction needed – something along the lines of "Sie hat mehr Glück als Verstand"
They watch as it disappears between the buildings.

Annie walks over to Jack's bag and, on a hunch, unpacks the radio he had insisted on bringing.
Maybe, she can hear us from here...
She hooks up the battery, flips the power switch, and turns the frequency dial until the needle is in the position that Jack had marked.
Note to self: The battery is a car battery. Make that clear at some point before this chapter. Maybe include the part where Jack insists on bringing it.
Emily, can you hear us? Are you okay? Might benefit from proper radio protocol
They hear a slightly distorted but clearly happy response through the noise:
Yes... Yes. I'm alive... I made it.

This is the very end of the story. I originally didn't plan for anything to happen after this though I have managed to somehow already write about an event after this in ??.txt.