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The Colony

Page 20

by Rishi Sriram


  you. Without their support, I wouldn’t be where I am. Without their help, I

  couldn’t have accomplished anything.” He knew that he had spoken for a

  while, so he turned to the Board, making sure everything was alright. Their

  expressions looked as if they were satisfied in their decision, and with the

  things he was saying, and so he willingly picked up from where he had left

  off.

  “It is a great honor to stand before you today as not only The Chancellor,

  but as an ally, as friends. This is what I want you to think of me, as someone

  to help you and someone for you to help. I say this because I’m two hundred

  percent sure that I will need immense help along the way of this plan. I’m

  only eighteen, there’s so much I don’t know yet. I simply have a strong

  viewpoint on where the world needs to be. I am gratefully accepting this

  position, and vow to work my hardest to make this world a better place. I

  thank the Board again for this amazing opportunity, and wish the world a

  beautiful day. This will be a day to mark a new beginning, a step toward the

  future, a step taken together. Thank you.” He bowed his head, awaiting their

  approval. There was a slow clap in the front. Then it grew faster, and more

  people joined in. Then people in the back began clapping, and soon the entire

  crowd was roaring with excitement and acceptance. They were giving him

  their consent. He was being welcomed as a leader, and hopefully as a friend.

  Director Perry seemed impressed; he was clapping full-heartedly and

  smiling wide. “Wow,” he said. “That was amazing. I can’t believe you came

  up with all of that on the fly, you really are talented. The world expects

  greatness out of you, and we know that you will lead us to the peak of

  humanity…and beyond. As you beautifully said, this will be the beginning of

  a new age.” He lowered his microphone, and turned it off. He waved to the

  crowd and then walked over to Nathan, and spoke softly, “Report to The

  Chancellor’s building, Prospect Tower. Mark will lead you there and enter

  your information into the building system. There is another conference, a

  private conference this time that takes place in the evening. You are required

  to attend, as it will be happening in your new house: Prospect Tower. There

  will be many major politicians, government officials, and some influential

  celebrities; it’s a big deal. It’s an important meeting, don’t forget to come,

  dressed sharp. Till then, I’ll see you there.” He went back to the remaining

  directors who were speaking in a cheery tone.

  Nathan hugged his parents tight, “I never imagined something like this

  would happen, and I guess now it’s up to me to lead the world.”

  His parents nodded, tears welling up in their eyes, “We’re happy for you,

  son. We’re so proud. Whenever you need anything, we’ll always be here by

  your side, ready to do whatever it takes.” He smiled and forced himself not to

  cry. He felt a tap on his shoulder, and he turned around to his friends.

  Kara was the first one to speak, “We’re proud of you, Nathan. And like

  your mother said—we’ll be here to help you.”

  Nathan smiled back, and then he realized he had things to do. “I have to

  head down to Prospect Tower and enter my information in the system. I’ll be

  back soon. Say…all of you should head to my house. Old house now, with

  my parents. I’ll meet you all there when I’m done, and that includes your

  parents as well.”

  Appearing from behind Emily, her aunt smiled at Nathan, “That’s really

  generous of you, Chancellor.”

  He laughed, a little uncomfortable when she called him that, “You can

  call me Nate.”

  A dark-haired woman with ruby glasses stuck her hand out to him. He

  grasped it and shook her hand firmly. “I’m Nemiah’s mother, thanks for

  taking care of him on Mars, I’m sure he was a whole lot of trouble.”

  Nemiah flushed, kicking awkwardly at the ground.

  Nemiah’s mother flashed him a teasing smile. “Well, I feel reassured

  knowing that our world is going to be in your hands from now on. Take good

  care of us, will ya?” She winked at him and patted him softly on the back. It

  was nice to finally meet his friends’ parents; they were quite similar in nature

  to their children. Things were going well.

  Nathan remembered that he was in a rush and waved goodbye, following

  the person who appeared to be Mark down the flight of stairs. Nathan’s first

  glimpse of Mark was from the back, he seemed to be around Nathan’s age

  but he couldn’t really see him. Mark was maybe a few years older. He was a

  little taller than Nathan, and his dark brown hair was evenly cut. Mark turned

  around, gesturing through the crowd the direction, and Nathan could clearly

  see him now. Mark’s cheekbones were refined, and the look on his face was

  serious, but there was a friendly twinkle in his eyes. Mark stopped for a

  minute, noticing that Nathan was staring, and tried to break the silence. He

  turned and shook Nathan’s hand, saying, “It’s amazing what you’ve done on

  the expedition, surviving through such a horrible situation. It’s something to

  be proud of.”

  Nathan could see his own face lighting up, his spirits lifted. He was weak

  to compliments and could never think anything ill of someone who was nice

  to him. Mark pushed aside other civilians with the help of a few other

  officers, making way for them to walk through. From all directions, Nathan

  was bombarded with friendly questions, congratulations, and angered

  civilians who told him to step down from the position. He didn’t mind,

  having expected a varied response from the crowd. Once they had left the

  crowd, they cut through an alleyway to a hidden parking lot, where sat

  another sleek expensive car. Mark set his hand on the handle, and his fingers

  were scanned. The doors opened with a click, and Nathan sat himself in the

  back of the car. It was quiet for a while, so he decided to ask a question,

  curious.

  “How old are you?”

  Without taking his eyes off the wheel, Mark smiled, “I’m twenty two.”

  He drove down the streets, weaving through the bustling crowd, heading

  toward the famed Prospect Tower. It had been built by the former leader, for

  his business purposes. Isaiah Crane preferred a business atmosphere

  whenever he worked, so his best way to cope was building an entirely new

  building for him. There was a strange itching feeling inside Nathan. He felt

  like he had seen Mark somewhere before, but couldn’t quite put his finger on

  it. The smile, his dark eyes, the structure of his face, everything about him

  seemed familiar, but he couldn’t pinpoint where exactly he had seen him.

  There was an awkward atmosphere in the car, with Mark completely

  focused on the road, so Nathan tried to break the ice. “So…Mark, where are

  you from?”

  The look in his eyes flickering, he replied casually, “I’m from Queens.

  What about you?”

  His response was dull: “Minneapolis my whole life.” He joked, “Until I

  spent some time on Mars, but for the most part, this city is my world.”r />
  Mark laughed, “You seem like a nice guy.” Then he seemed to realize

  something, and his expression tensed.

  “But nice doesn’t cut it. I’m not convinced. Do you think you have what

  it takes to be the leader of the world?”

  Nathan’s reply was stern, and sincere, “Quite frankly, I don’t. Although I

  think I will learn along the way, and I have friends and family to help me.”

  Mark laughed quietly when he said the word family.

  Nathan was a little offended, “Is there a problem?”

  Mark responded nonchalantly, “Not at all. Not—at—all.” The car curved

  around a corner, and they could see a tall building peeking out of large

  evergreens. “We’re here. Let’s go.” The doors opened themselves, and they

  stepped out. He looked up at the building in awe. He had been to the tower

  once before, for a very strange school field trip, but he had never been there

  since. Mark placed his right forefinger on the handle of the door, and the

  doors opened inwardly. The smell was the first thing he noticed, the smell of

  fresh furniture polish, of polished steel, it was a rich smell. They entered a

  large lobby. Expensive furniture was neatly arranged, a roaring fire crackled

  in the fireplace, and a burnt sienna carpet lay between the overstuffed

  couches. It wasn’t far from what he had last remembered; the couch had

  changed positions, other than that everything was the same. The ceiling was

  high, and the other floors revolved above in the shape of a cinnamon roll. At

  the front desk, a few workers greeted them with an uneasy smile, and tapped

  a few buttons on their screens. Down the hall, another set of doors opened,

  and Mark led him through it. The way the building was built was very

  utilitarian. Everything seemed to have some sort of function.

  Mark finally came to a sudden stop, and placed his hand on one of the

  walls, which slid open. The orientation of the room was similar to the

  laboratory on Mars; after all, they were both designed by the same man. The

  deceased Isaiah Crane. They sat down on a soft, glove-leather couch, and

  Mark pointed to a robotic scanner sitting above the table between them.

  “Place your dominant hand on this, it is what will grant you entrance to

  the building. Once you’ve done that, scan your eyes for the retina, there are

  certain areas of the building only certain personnel like yourself can access,

  and this is important to make sure no one else can enter. Having become the

  most important person on the planet, safety is important.” In short time, you

  will be assigned a retinue of bodyguards. Although at the moment…I’m

  enough.

  For some strange reason, Nathan felt like the voice and the way he spoke

  was somehow familiar. He asked him a question, amidst the retina scan. “Just

  wondering, what is your last name, Mark?” He was silent for a second, and

  Nathan was tempted to turn around and see why, but he didn’t.

  Mark spoke in a stiff tone, his voice colder than ice, creating an

  interrogating feeling, “Crane. My name is Mark Crane.”

  Nathan’s heart went still, and his eyes bulged, turning his arms around

  quickly, but he felt something stab him in the neck, and his limbs went limp.

  He fell to the floor, no control over his body. His sight was becoming

  unclear. “Wait,” he said, “you’re the other son!”

  Mark growled and kicked him in the stomach, “The son of the man who

  you killed. I’m also the brother of someone who died seven years ago. The

  only thing my father wanted was to make the world a better place, but you

  and those others didn’t let him have his way. My father loved my brother and

  me the same. My mother died when I was born, so we were all that mattered

  to him. Bu—” He choked a little.

  “When Samuel died, our father suddenly changed. I didn’t understand at

  first, but I did later. He was completely right, the world needs to change, and

  I’m going to carry out his will.” Still on the ground, Nathan’s pupils dilated,

  his body burning up, his nerves were shutting down and he couldn’t feel

  anything anymore.

  He slammed his fist into the table, throwing the scanner aside. “You

  couldn’t imagine the pain he went through to become The Chancellor, and

  create the largest company in the world. The old him had disappeared, but I

  didn’t mind, he was still a good father. Now he’s dead, and I have no one

  left.” Nathan almost pitied him, but decided not to as per his situation.

  “But it’s a good thing he left me this Rava drug.” The word sent chills

  down Nathan’s spine. No! He thought. Not again!

  “It was the initial prototype, yet it still works perfectly. The reason it was

  only the prototype was because this version turned the inhibitor into a

  complete monster. The only way my father could stop it was by creating an

  antidote, which is still on Mars. Have fun terrorizing the citizens of

  Minneapolis, Chancellor.” Mark ran out of the room and shut the door

  behind him.

  Nathan thrashed around the ground, clutching his head tightly, letting out

  resonant screams, although no one could hear him. It was painful; the drug

  was polluting his bloodstream. He could feel every vessel in his body

  burning, and pretty soon, he was sure the injection would take its full effect.

  The antidote! He had a little bit of it left. He planned on giving it to the

  government so that they could make more, although at the moment he didn’t

  have time to be concerned about that—he had to save himself. He reached

  into his right pocket, then his hand went numb, and he couldn’t move it.

  Acting quickly, he reached his left arm around his body into his pocket, and

  stabbed himself with the antidote, injecting every last drop of it into his veins.

  He wasn’t sure if the antidote was enough, and time was running out. But he

  wasn’t going down without a fight!

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Rishi Sriram is currently in the eighth grade. He is the author of ‘Mystical

  Trials’ and ‘The Colony’ is his second publication. Sriram attends Dewitt

  Perry Middle School in Carrollton, Texas. He is part of the LEAP program

  designed for students with a high level of academic discipline.

  In addition to writing, Sriram enjoys playing the guitar, clarinet and

  competing in academic contests & tennis matches. He lives in Irving, Texas,

  with his parents and sister.

  REFERENCES

  Chapter

  1

  Fact:

  “Mars.”

  Google

  Books.

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  Feb.

  2019

  < https://books.google.com/books/about/Mars.html?id=BnPE37Ms5awC> .

  Chapter 2 Fact: “Mars Facts: Interesting Facts about Planet Mars • The

  Planets.” The Planets. 05 Feb. 2019 .

  Chapter 3 Fact: Howell, Elizabeth. “10 Interesting Facts About Mars.”

  Universe Today. 04 Apr. 2016. Universe Today. 05 Feb. 2019

 
  mars/>.

  Chapter 4 Fact: Knight, J.D. “Your Weight on Other Planets.” Constellation

  Canis Major - The Constellations on Se
a and Sky. 05 Feb. 2019

  < http://www.seasky.org/solar-system/planet-weight-calculator.html>.

  Chapter 5 Fact: Mathewson, Samantha. “’Martian Gardens’ Help Scientists

  Find the Best Veggies to Grow on Mars.” Space.com. 06 Oct. 2016.

  Space.com. 05 Feb. 2019
  simulate-farming-mars.html>.

  Chapter 6 Fact: “Videos - Mars Science Laboratory.” NASA. NASA. 05 Feb.

  2019

 
  v=29&a=2>.

  Chapter 7 Fact: Freeman, David. “What The Sun Looks Like From Other

  Planets.” The Huffington Post. 11 July 2016. TheHuffingtonPost.com. 05

  Feb. 2019
  from-other-planets_us_577ec142e4b0344d514e9182>.

  Chapter 8 Fact: Howell, Elizabeth. “The Planets in Our Solar System in

  Order of Size.” Universe Today. 12 May 2018. Universe Today. 05 Feb.

  2019 .

  Chapter 9 Fact: Lamm, Jay. “The 9 Tallest Mountains In The Solar System.”

  Irene W. Pennington Planetarium. 22 Aug. 2018. 05 Feb. 2019

 
  mountains-in-the-solar-system/>.

  Chapter 10 Fact: Potenza, Alessandra. “Mars is emerging from an ice age that

  ended about 400,000 years ago.” The Verge. 26 May 2016. The Verge. 05

  Feb. 2019
  climate-change>.

  Chapter 11 Fact: “Mars Facts - Interesting Facts about Planet Mars.” Space

  Facts. 06 Dec. 2017. Space Facts. 05 Feb. 2019
  facts.com/mars/>.

  Chapter 12 Fact: Chapter 57: Physical Principles. 05 Feb. 2019

  < https://science.larouchepac.com/kepler/newastronomy/part1/marsyear.html>.

  Chapter 13 Fact: “NASA’s Curiosity Rover Views Serene Sundown on

  Mars.”

  NASA.

  08

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  < https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=4581> .

  Chapter 14 Fact: Achenbach, Joel. “How Mars lost its atmosphere, and why

  Earth didn’t.” The Washington Post. 30 Mar. 2017. WP Company. 05 Feb.

  2019

 

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