Oso 100 Natblida kom Skaikru
"Clarke, we're sending you and 99 child convicts to earth" my mother was speaking to me but mind was elsewhere. How can she do this to me… But my common-sense kicks in, regardless of how much I plead with her, my mother was suborning and she had already made up her mind.
"Earth seem to be doing better, there's tree growth, and we don't need surveillance equipment to see that, Clark look at the planet, that's how it looks like before the nuclear war" pointing to the surface of the planet.
"The Oceans are blue again and we can clearly see green foliage growing in place that should be radioactive, that should be bared with no life but look, green… most of North America and South America are green with plant life and with our limited surveillance capabilities, we can see movements, but we can't tell if its animal life or people, but we know that there are changes that only be explained with some form of life in the form of mutated human or animals" she pause to allow me to process the information.
"Also, Weather patterns have been stable on the surface for near on 70 years now, we can tell that the planet looks like it's recovering and plant life is numerous, but we don't have equipment that can give us a reading on radiation survivability" she pauses looking at the surface, my mind's black I can't seem to think straight.
"Clarke, you know the Ark is dying, we don't have enough life support for the population we have and even if we place no essential personnel in coma and into stasis, it's only a short-term solution that buys us maybe a few weeks at most, we only have oxygen left for 3 maybe for 4 months and after that we all die, another solution is culling" she pauses tears streaming down her face, she looked at her daughter.
"Even if we reduce population by 75 percent and cull non-essential personnel, it will only buy us another year at most"
"We don't have the resource to survive another 100 years on the ARK Clarke" at this point her eyes are red with tears, she glances back on the planet.
"We are the last of Humanity, and this is how we will end if we do nothing… in three months, this will no longer be our home but our tomb" she seems so grief stricken, she seats on a chair across from me but still looking at the planet.
"Clarke, we need you to go to the surface to survive, I know that it sounds like we will be sending you to your deaths... but it's either die by earth or entomb in space" she pauses, I know she wants me to say something, anything. I just can't seem to formulate any sentences. My mother just told me that either die now with suicide by earth or die a slow death of acute hypoxia in 3 months maybe more. Tears start to stream down my face and my mother rushes to me holding me like she always does when I'm upset.
Her embraces are very comforting, especially after hearing that we have very little time together and very little time to live.
If we stay on the ARK, I only get to see her for a few months but if I go, I'll never see her again. It's a death sentence no matter how hard you look at the situation.
I slow pull myself together and look at my mom in the face, my beautiful brave mother.
"I'll go" my heart feels broken, I've made a decision that could end with my death and the death of 100 others. My mother hugs me again holding me in her arms, I place this memory firmly into my mind.
We hold each other for what feels like a long time but not nearly enough, then I ask her "How long before launch?"
She pulls away from me and stands up and walk to the window overlooking the planet "We we're going to send you today but due to some electrical malfunction, the launch has to be postponed for a week at most three days at least to run check and fix the problem"
"So, in the meanwhile, you, Wells and other children in the know will needs to learn as much earth skills as possible and gain as much information on the mission you are going on before the launch" she paused.
"For optimisms sake, we'll assume you're going to be able to metabolize the radiation on the surface, seeing as you've been metabolizing solar radiation all your life, but our estimated indicated that it's just too high for you to survive" she paused she looked at me and I can see a glimpse of the sciences and budding geneticist in her, there wasn't much of a renovation culture on the ARK. Everyone has just maintained the status-quo for the past 97 years, research and development was dangerous, only Polaris station had facilities for research but it was the 13th station, blown out of the sky to send a message to the other station to either unite or be floated. Research into non-essential subjects was prohibited only engineering research was tested but even then, it was very rare and very risky.
I looked at my mother again to listen to what else she has planned "I've been looking at past research material on possible solution to increase your capacity to embolization radiation among other possible solution that would help you survive" she paused and gave me her full attention.
"Station 13 or Polaris Station was created and designed by Polaris Corp for genetic manipulation and bonding" she pauses to allow me to catch up to what she is saying.
"Dr. Rebecca Heddarre was there chief researcher, CEO and Founder, some of her work that I was able to find is… was incredible, she was able to find a pathway to the mind, but that's not what's important"
"Before Earth Orbital station blew Polaris station out of the sky, a transitions was send to Mecca Station with archived information on the research being conducted on Polaris station but after the Unity of the 12 Station, all information concerning or alluding to Polaris station that could destabilize the alliance was purged from the system, but Mecca Station never purged the last encrypted files and message sent from Polaris and for the past 95 years, no one has opened it until I went looking for possible solution" she pause and looks out at a debris field in the distance.
"I had to go to every station because after the Unity of the 12 stations, doubt was still prevalent and fear and survival was the only strings keeping us together… and naturally some station keep some information locked within their own mainframe and Mecca station hind their last file on Polaris station" she smiles at me and I knew she had another solution.
"I've been looking at the file and found that Dr. Heddarra had found a solution but before she could see this solution of enhanced metalation of radiation the rest of the station, her station was blown"
"She created a gene serum that change DNA allows the liver and kidneys to filler and metabolized high levels of radiation by injecting the serum into the bloodstream and her preliminary tests and projects showed a 82 percent success rate on animals and I think with the equipment we have here on the ARK can create the same serum and I'm in the process of making enough serum for all 100 of you going down onto the surface" she had a smile on her face and walking to the back of the room she opens a silver case and pulled out a black serum, applicator/syringe and needle. She walks to my side and I give her my arm, she then injects the serum into the vein in my arm. There's no pain and the serum doesn't have any effect on me.
"Your blood will turn black after a few minutes but it should still act as normal and you should be able to have the same properties a normal blood accept that you will be able to metabolize radiation and oxygenation of the blood will become considerably efficient requiring less oxygen to maintain full oxygenation of the blood and body tissue" she pauses.
"Once we have enough serum for the 100 we will give the serum to the general population which should buy us more time and more oxygen but we don't know how much"
"Clarke, now you know this situation fully, you and some others will be briefed on this mission... For now, the sky box is under quarantine and everyone should receive their dose of the serum within the next 3 days, after that it would take another week to dose the rest of the population with the serum".
She walked to the door "You'll be taken to a conference room in a few minutes to be brief and then Mr. Pike will begin an in-depth lesson on earth skills" she walked out the door, the door shuts and lock behind her.