1085 Desolation

[Portal process will begin in three minutes. Please conclude all planetary calls and communications, as interstellar rates will apply after the transfer. Thank you.] The intercom informed the residents of Terminus.

They were headed for the first possible dig site, a planet well outside of Alliance Territory that an ancient probe had suggested might have either ancient ruins, or particularly unique geography, but no signs of life at all, not even plant life, though the world was in the habitable belt of its star.

Of course, the human definition of "Habitable" was much more broad than many species considered it to be, but most species had adapted to hot or cold climates, and not both.

The cruise ship gently moved through the portal, and then opened a second one to more precisely reach their destination, now that the star system was more clearly within their sensor range.