Space: the final frontier, or at least it was.
Ninety-seven years ago, when the last Great War on Earth made the planet uninhabitable, there were survivors. Survivors from twelve different nations with operating space stations fled from the ground. It was said they were in the right place in the wrong time. But no one ever told them that this 'wrong time' would last this long.
Three generations have been born in space, not a single one of us taking a step on the ground. For years, many have dreamed of feeling the sun warm our skin or the crisp feeling of real air. The only thing my generation has known in The Ark, the combined space station from those original twelve. It is the joint effort of all the scientists aboard to research and work towards our return to the ground.
According to the leaders of the Ark, survival is our only goal. If that is our only goal then why do they find lives over the age of eighteen expendable? It is law on the Ark that any crime committed, regardless of the severity, is punishable by death. That is, unless you are under the age of eighteen. Instead you are sent to lock up, "the sky box." When you reach the age of eighteen, you are reviewed and depending on your crimes, there are two ways the review can go. Either you are released back into population, that would be the ideal outcome, or you get "floated". It's the nicer term for being expelled out the airlock into that vast frontier we call space.
With a judiciary system set up like this, it's easy for the hero of a story to be manipulated into becoming the villain. How a set of parents, whose only crime was trying to obtain extra food rations for their thirteen-year-old daughter to keep her full and happy, are sent out into space in front of her, leaving her in the custody of her father's friend.
This is what life is like on The Ark.
This is reality, my reality and this is my story.
"No, no please! Please don't take them, please!" The hysteric sobs of a thirteen-year-old girl could be heard through the corridors leading to the air lock. It was a heart breaking sound that no parent ever wants to hear but that was currently all Eric and Luna Woodland could hear as they watched their daughter cry and plead with Chancellor Jaha and Marcus Kane. "I need my mommy and daddy, please don't take them from me."
The small family had been given a few moments to say goodbye. It was the last time they would all be together and it was tearing Eric and Luna's hearts apart.
"Sweetheart, come here please. Mommy and I want to talk to you." She quickly launched herself at her father, her sobs muffled in the material of his shirt. Kneeling to the ground, his wife following quickly, he lifted her face from its hiding place. "Our little sunshine, you know mommy and daddy love you very, very much right?"
"So much darling. So, so much." Luna reached out, running her fingers through her daughter's hair one last time.
"I love you too daddy. I love you mommy. I don't want you to go, please don't leave me." Big hazel eyes shining with tears, so full of love kept flitting back and forth between Eric and Luna's faces, committing them to memory.
Eric could only smile at her baby girl's face, the most perfect thing she had ever done in her life. Over her shoulder, Jaha was signaling that their time was almost up.
"Come here sunshine and give your daddy a hug." He squeezed his daughter, kissing every available place he could, pouring so much love into the embrace. "Here I want you to keep this for daddy." Eric slowly removed his wedding band, which he received from his own parents when he got married, and placed it in his daughter's hand, kissing her closed fist as he held back his own tears. "I love you so much. Oh God, so much. I love you sweetheart." With one final kiss on the forehead, he pushed his daughter over to his wife.
"Oh, my baby girl. My little Ray of sunshine. You are my perfect little girl and I love you so much. I'm so sorry that we are leaving you, so sorry. I never wanted to do this." Luna's body shuttered as she held back a sob, clutching to her daughter so tightly. "Mommy wants you to have these to remember her by. Every time you look at them and your daddy's ring, you'll know we are always with you, always." She reached behind her neck and took off the necklace Eric had given her when their daughter was born. It was a simple chain that held a handmade charm in the shape of the sun, engraved with 'Our Little Ray of Sunshine'. Sliding off her own wedding ring, she hung it from the necklace along with her husbands. Fastening it around her daughter's neck, she hugged her one more time, kissing both her cheeks and placing a lingering one of her forehead. "I love you Ray. I will always love you." Looking at her daughter once more, she stood and moved over towards her husband.
They gazed at their daughter who was silently crying, just staring at them one last time.
"I love you mommy. I love you daddy." Her voice sounded so small and broken but she stood there watching as her parents were escorted into the airlock chamber. Her father had his arm tight around her mom's shoulders as her mom's was clinging to his waist. Both of her parents kept mouthing the words 'I love you' as the doors closed on them. Her mom kissed her fingers, waving goodbye before kissing her husband firmly. They exchanged loving words before the exterior door opened and sucked them out in to space.
The only sound the members of the council who attended the floating could hear was the heart breaking scream of little Ray Woodland as she sunk to the floor clutching her parents rings.
"You need to give me that necklace." Marcus Kane approached the broken little girl who curled in on herself chanting 'no, no, no, please, no.' Chancellor Jaha reached out and grabbed Marcus' shoulder, stopping his actions.
"She can keep them. She's been through enough. Just leave her alone." Both men left the little girl to her sadness. Abby Griffin stood at the end of the hall, watching as the child shattered to pieces, hoping that nothing like this would happen to her own daughter. One last sad glance at little Ray Woodland, she followed after Jaha and Kane.
Hours later, Ray Woodland still sat in the same spot, tears still streaming down her face as she stared at the empty airlock. The sobbing had ended about an hour ago but her body was still consistently shaking. She was afraid to move. Moving meant that everything that happened that day was reality, that her parents were truly gone. Ray could hear the steady pace of footsteps along the nearby corridor. Ray made no acknowledgement to the sudden pause then approaching sound of someone walking towards her.
A new cadet of the Guard had been making rounds around his section of the Ark, ended up near the airlock and noticed a little girl sitting on the floor staring at it. He knew it was getting close to curfew so he decided it would be better to escort her home instead of getting in trouble. She didn't move as he came to stand beside her. Crouching down, he could see how broken her gaze was and the tear stained cheeks.
"Why are you down here all alone?" His question just brought forth even more tears.
"If I leave here, it will mean I really am alone." Her voice was so quiet.
"You aren't alone, I'm here."
"But I am. Mommy and daddy are gone. And now I'm alone." Her gaze finally tore away from the airlock doors. He could see how much he was hurting, no one this young should have their parents taken away from them.
"Well, I'm still here. My name's Bellamy, what's yours?"
"Ray. Ray Woodland." So this was the little Woodland girl, he had heard her parent's were scheduled to be floated today. He looked at her sad face and could see the same look on someone's face that was very close to him. Bellamy knew he couldn't leave this girl here alone to be caught by guards and thrown into the skybox.
"Why don't I take you back home? Would that be okay?"
"Okay." The response was so small sounding he barely heard it. Holding out his hand, Ray took it and let Bellamy take her back to her home.
By the time Ray reached the age of seventeen, she had gotten used to living on her own. On occasion, Abby Griffin would check in to see how she was fairing, that day four years ago still stuck in her mind. Ray's heart had sealed itself off to the world, resulting in her keeping to herself most of the time. She wanted to prevent the pain she had felt when her parents were floated. She was working, as a baker's assistant, making her a contributing member of the Ark society. The word 'assistant' was used loosely; she was more like a slave. Ray thought that she would be learning how to properly cook but she washed more dishes than ingredients. Her boss, Mr. Doppler, was an awful man, constantly preying on Ray's co-workers. No one said anything about it; afraid they would be out of a job or worse.
A week after Ray had turned seventeen she drew the short straw and had to stay late to clean the kitchen. Around midnight, a loud crash echoed from the main room while Ray was cleaning out the fridges. Desperate pleas reached her ears, causing her to drop her sponge and creep out into the kitchen. Her boss was looming over one of her co-workers, knife nearby, pants undone, attempting to force himself on her.
"HEY!" Ray made her presence known. Mr. Doppler growled at her appearance, grabbing the knife from the tabletop.
"You aren't going to stop me from getting what I want." Ray kept dodging the knife as it swiped through the air at her. She kept crashing into counters, causing pots and pans to clatter to the ground, most likely alerting the Guard to everything that was happening. Ray hoped that the Guard would arrive before she got hurt but her small moment as a heroine abruptly changed course.
Ray gained the upper hand, knocking Mr. Doppler down. He quickly recovered, gripping the knife tightly. As he drew his arm back to stab Ray, the blade sliced through her co-worker's throat, as she tried to escape. The warm blood sprayed Ray as the shouts of the Guard approaching could be heard. Mr. Doppler shoved the knife into Ray's hand and quickly backed away as several Guards burst through the door.
"No! I didn't do it. Please, I'm being framed! Please!" Ray's pleading fell on deaf ears. She had been framed but who would take the word of an orphan. In that moment, she resembled the little girl crying for her parents before they were floated. "I didn't do it, please! PLEASE!"
"Ray Woodland, you are under arrest for murder. Since you are under the age of eighteen, you will be sent to skybox where you will stay until your review." Ray continued to plead her innocence as she was dragged towards the skybox. Along the way, Bellamy saw the little girl he had helped so many years ago being put away for something she said she didn't do. All he could do was watch as she was taken away, tears streaming down her face as she cried out her innocence, to wait for her own float date.
Her pleas reached the ears of some of the other delinquents in her cellblock. Those in skybox knew her as 'the innocent delinquent', remembering her cries as she was placed into her cell.
It's funny how quickly the hero can become the villain. This is my story and it was only the beginning.