A New World Order

The world is devastated after a nuclear war that happened because of a rather stupid US President and a very deviously dangerous Russian Premier. Only China Stayed the course, rescuing anyone left outside who wasn't already dying in the aftermath, and looking at planets out in the cosmos that should be colonised which, over time they did.
A recovering Earth was soon enough again facing over population and so tried to make contact with the first colonised planet, Olympus. .A manned flight was arranged, but when they reached Olympus it seemed dead until on the planet's moon, they made a baffling discovery -  a century old Crocodile skinned suitcase, which they brought back to their ship. Some hours later the suitcase turned back into a huge living Croc. So now the two crew members realised that greater powers were playing games with them...