The eleventh installment of my NaNoWriMo challenge: My Sister's Keeper, chapter fourteen. Words uploaded so far 17,800. total written is 24,100.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The shuttle pulled into the New Chapel Aerodrome. It had been a routine flight aboard one of the new Mars built A-Class shuttles, and Esha was looking forward to seeing the new construction that was unfolding in this new frontier district. “They seem to have gotten it right with these shuttles,” she said to her Penny, her Personal Assistant. “And not a moment too soon. These will help revolutionise this planet. How long did it take us to travel here?”
Penny looked at her digital watch, and pressed a few button. “Thirty four minutes and twelve seconds,” the watch responded. Penny looked at Esha to verify that she had heard the response.
“You timed it? Esha asked.
“It's my job to know what you need, even before you've asked for it,” Penny responded. And besides, I too was curious, she thought - but decided against mentioning that specific fact to her boss. I'll take the credit, I just may need it in the future, if she is as hard and ruthless as they say she is.
They were greeted at the landing platform by the head of the construction team. New Chapel was in the midst of a building boom. A city was emerging out of the rocky escarpment, with the expectations of tens of thousands of new residents arriving to Mars over the coming years. A giant dome had been built to contain what was to be the centre of the city. And bit by bit new construction was being added to the perimeter. Mars' atmosphere was still hostile to humans, but a solution to that was now in the works. This place will boom when the Terra forming starts to take shape. “Welcome to New Chapel, ma'am. My name's Logan, I oversee the construction here.” Esha shook Logan's hand, and proceeded to look up, at the inside of the giant dome that surrounded them.
“How high is this structure?” she asked Logan.
“It's the equivalent of eighty floors high in the middle. It stretches two kilometres side to side. We've started building some of the structures that will be housed within it,” Logan drew Esha's attention to where these structure were being built.
“So this here, under this roof, will be a self contained city. Like from the Science Fiction novels of old?” she asked. “Water, electricity, schooling, shopping – it will be here?”
“That's right ma'am. We'll be connected to the Atmospheric Water Generator that supplies the main hub. The pipe is almost complete,” he said, pointing out to the plateau stretching out behind the domed city. Esha continued to look around. The construction consisted of a large amount of glass – thick enough to protect the city, but allowing for an incredible view. Leading out from the main viewing area, the giant valley system that they had committed to bringing back to life when they first settled Mars. It had taken a long time. But it had been a success, leading now to this new development. “Electricity is predominantly from the wind generators out in sector three,” Logan continued. “So yes, we have energy supplies allocated, and everything people will need, here.” Yet to be complete, but finally taking shape, New Chapel was being billed as the pride of Mars. Not one item had been shipped from Earth for it's construction. A decision that Esha knew was turning out to be a very prudent choice, given the widespread destruction on Earth. What manufacturing would they even still have, she thought. Except for weaponry, of course. But the production lines for that too will cease one day. Then they will notice us. Then they will look in our direction and realise we have left them behind, to rot in the past. Esha was determined to make Mars the centre of all human activity. Although she had no time for war, Earth's current dilemma was playing directly into her hands. Earth will succumb, she reminded herself. They will bow before me, before Mars. I will defeat them, not with weapons, but with the might of their own arrogance and pride.
They continued to walk towards the centre of the dome, where Logan had a large scale model of the dome set up. “This is how it will look,” he said. “Once it's completed, and ready to take residents and workers,” he continued. He pointed out the many features, making sure to keep Esha as impressed as possible. “And this here,” he said pointing to a large section of the model, “that will be Mars' first Botanical Gardens. We currently have people on Earth collection species, as well as the ones we have already amassed and hold in our collection.”
Esha looked at the model, taking in this information, before looking around the space it represented. “And where in here will those gardens be?” she asked. Logan pointed to a large area a few hundred metres away.
“It will go as far as the perimeter wall, and cover that space there,” he said, trying to relay the enormity of the space allocated to it.
“This is very impressive,” she said. “Not to mention ironic, or is it fortuitous? I get those two mixed at times.”
“How so?” he asked Esha.
“The reports I have been getting indicate enormous destruction to Earth's plant life. Including the many gardens that had been established to preserve so much of the planets botanical splendor.”
“We intend to have many of these, as new cities emerge,” Logan added.
“We'll make Mars into a Botanical Ark, to protect Earth from her own madness. We may very well need to reseed the planet one day.” Esha turned to Penny and asked her to take down some notes relating to the discussion, “I may want to follow up on this. The garden idea has given me an idea I want to look into later.”
“So tell me, Logan, before we head off, where will the children be housed,” Esha asked, referring to the children that Mars had been accepting from the refugee camps. No one was particularly happy with the current arrangements, but this would all change, and she knew it. These children will by adopted by families here on Mars, and we'll house them, in cities like this. It must be such a world away from the chaos of those camps, or worse – the destruction of the war zones. Earth's loss will be our gain – these children will help secure our future.
Logan turned and pointed in the direction away from the shuttle, where several large buildings were already taking shape. “Those will be the first ones,” he said. “Overlooking the gardens, and plaza areas here, transportation just over there. It will be a new world for them,” he said. “It will be a new world for us all.”
Logan showed them back to the shuttle, and stood watching as Esha and Penny took their seats for the return journey to Mars' main hub. That went really well, I think I impressed her, Logan told himself.
“What do you think of Logan?” Penny asked.
“Logan?” Esha asked. “He has his uses. But it's the new construction that impresses me. Once we open up Mars, water her, breath her air, grow all our food – then we will have come of age. Then we can leave Earth behind, in the past where she belongs. This wont be any prodigal son story either. We wont be going back to Earth begging bowl in hand. It may be the other way around. You'll see, I'll make Mars great.”
Penny had never known anyone to be so driven by a vision. She had worked around the politically minded for all her working life. The passion, the drive, the ambition, and all mixed with a subtle sense of ruthlessness. She talks about leaving Earth behind, but she's as human as they come, Penny told herself. I will really need to be on my guard around her.
Chapters One and Two (Part One)
Chapters Three and Four (Part Two)
Chapters Five and Six (Part Three)
Chapter Seven (Part Four)
Chapter Eight (Part Five)
Chapter Nine (Part Six)
Chapter Ten (Part Seven)
Chapter Eleven (Part Eight)
Chapter Twelve (Part Nine)
Chapter Thirteen (Part Ten)
This fiction is my own work, written for Steemit
Image Credit: Unsplash.com
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