The Constant Star (11)

THE STORY SO FAR

“It is not safe for you to be in school at the moment, so effective immediately you are under house arrest. You will not leave this place for thirty days-“

“Thirty days?!”

“During which time you shall read 'Mission Documentation and Purposes’ at least once a day.”

“That’s a hundred-thousand word document!”

“At the end of the thirty days you shall write a five-thousand word paper on the nature of humanity and the purpose of our mission. This document shall be read by each of the four members of the Council, and only if we each sign off on what is written will your house arrest cease. Am I clear?”

“….”

“I’ll take that as a ‘Yes’. Now go to your room; if I were you I would start reading immediately.”

7

<<Citizen#0024-48389264

Entry#13875

Such selfishness! Unrestrained rebellion against everything we stand for! This cannot be humored or forgiven. The girl must be put in her place or removed from our place. It is such a delicate balance we need to sustain here, there can be no favors for any of us.>>

<<Citizen#0021-48374639

Entry#10954

We guide Janus forward in the eternal weight of deep space to Olympus Nova, our final resting place. And though we can never find a home, I take comfort in knowing the Chosen Ones, the ones we protect, shall continue our destiny and shine brighter than ever before.

I pray only that our sins die with us, and those wonderful chosen few live forever.>>

The next couple of days Siff spends reading silently in her room. She doesn’t speak to her father or anyone else, and he does not speak to her. There is still anger and deep disappointment behind his eyes; Siff is hurt and filled with resentment. What kind of a world is it where you are beaten for having questions? Did Noven ever care even a little bit? How can she ever trust anyone again? Is it her future to hide who she really is? What is Bear going to think of her now?

She skims over familiar passages each day, as she reads about humanity turning Earth into a fully mined husk then expanding across systems and ravaged worlds for resources, how they constantly warred amongst themselves until one great invention brought all the factions under a tenuous peace to watch it work, how this invention was designed to mine the energy of a star, but it went terribly wrong. The Great Catastrophe was the man-made creation of a black hole that all but wiped out the human race, and through tremendous guilt and self-reflection there was a common realization among the survivors that the universe would be better off without their destructive species. The history follows with one last attempt to be a force of good by selecting the Chosen Ones and crewing the mighty ark Janus with the last of humanity, while sending terraforming equipment to a new home-world to begin the preparation work as the great experiment continued. The appointment of four offices to lead the mission. Two military: Pilots and Security, led by Jupiter and Mars. One appointed: Caretaker of the Chosen Ones, named Pluto. And One elected: Prime Minister, Saturn. And finally, the implementation of AI aboard the ship to monitor and develop the health and safety of the mission. A mission that, if successful, will see the Chosen Ones begin a new life on a new home-world and the crew obliterated in Olympus Nova, Vesta’s star.

It just all seems so…hopeless. Being told who you are by a ship that is taking your kind to its death. And not just told who you are, the AI monitors biology and psychology; It tells you when more crew members are necessary, and whose DNA to use. It tells you who can raise children or if the children need to be raised in artificial reality. It tells you who you are allowed to be romantically involved with. It tells you what you are to eat. It tells you…everything. Except how to be yourself. Or how to be fulfilled. Siff wonders if they are the same thing.

<<Citizen#0023-48325193

Entry#14235

I am in wonder at the beauty of the universe. The infinite stars shining around us, the last of humanity, living aboard Janus. This craft is a truly powerful juxtaposition to the beauty we see outside. For we are the filth of the universe. A blister of plague upon the majesty of creation. We cannot be allowed to leave this place or we will pour out like a festering wound, once again infecting everything we touch and bringing it to destruction.>>

On day three Siff finds herself going a little crazy. Her father is at work and she paces through the house in frustration. The doors and windows are locked shut so she can only watch the outside world continue on without her. She doesn’t dare draw anything or it could be seen as rebellion. She doesn’t dare write any of her thoughts or it will be seen as rebellion. She doesn’t dare speak her thoughts either: Janus is always watching, and always listening. This is hell.

Siff walks to the front door, leans her head against it in resigned frustration and weeps. Why can’t she be like everyone else? Why can’t she just accept the mission and play her part in it? Why does she always have to question? She turns and sits against the door with her head hung between her knees, letting her soul give up.

It is evening when she looks up again, her attention drawn to a malfunctioning holo-display in the front room. It flashes the same yellow path she saw in the VR before disappearing. Siff frowns in curiosity and is about to stand up when the door behind her opens. She falls outside the house, expecting to see her father, but instead sees no-one. Either Janus has malfunctioned, or someone has set her free.

Siff stands warily in the dark of

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