Old Colony by John Walker

Otis Hale signed up for one last job.He knew the mission was one-way: a colony expedition to a world at the edge of human space, where older settlers would build a foothold the young could one day inherit.At first, it looks like exactly what they were promised: harsh terrain, failing systems, and too much work for too few hands.Then the world starts breaking the rules.The colony begins to uncover signs that this planet is more than a bad bet and a death sentence. Hidden structures. Impossible technology. Phenomena no briefing ever mentioned. And the deeper they dig, the less this looks like a simple settlement mission.Otis came to build shelters, fix machines, and do his part.But on a world full of buried secrets and unexpected second chances, he may have found a new purpose.