Commander Deena Larson had been cruising through empty space for weeks when she suddenly came upon a solar system of four planets. Only one of the planets had the necessary components to support life and Deena prepared her shuttlecraft for a trip the next day.
The short voyage to the new world was uneventful, but as Deena emerged from the upper atmosphere the only thing visible were ruins which extended to the horizon.
Clearly, there was once an advanced civilization on the planet, but it appeared to have crumbled ages ago.
The shuttle's onboard sensors detected a weak electronic signal on the other side of the planet and Deena set a course for it.
The signal emerged from a crude dwelling that was in the midst of even more ruins.
After landing the shuttle nearby, Deena approached the dwelling with her weapon ready.
Inside the building, a large slug-like creature was engaged in some sort of activity that involved various lights and sounds.
The creature eventually became aware of Deena's presence and ceased the activity.
The two stared at each other until the slug-man brought forth a small device.
The device turned out to be a type of translator that used images rather than language to communicate.
A series of photos showed that the planet had once been inhabited by two dominant species: a beast-like creature that resembled a wolf and the gentle slug-people.
Factions of the wolf creatures were often at war with one another, and those wars eventually obliterated the entire species.
Unfortunately, the weapons the wolf-beings used also affected the slug-people and their population declined until only one remained.
The slug-creature spent its last days playing an alien version of solitaire.
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