This is the fourth earthquake today.
This is the fourth time today I've prepared to say goodbye to my parents. They said this day would come. My father and uncle kept discussing it, pleading with the High Council to fund their research so they could find a way to save our planet. They almost succeeded, too. We thought we had more time, though. No one expected it to happen today.
My parents did their best to explain it to me. "We've abused the planet's resources, Kara. Krypton's core is unstable," they said. They were right. Dad tried desperately to find a solution, but he always had a backup plan. He and Uncle Jor-El had designed pods to take my cousin and me to the nearest habitable planet under a yellow sun.
I got a brief explanation on the matter. Not much was known about this planet, but a yellow sun meant Kal and I would have extraordinary abilities. We would be able to fend for ourselves on a planet where everything was a question. I'd be able to protect him.
Ideally, there would've been enough pods for Kal's and my parents, but like I said, we thought we had more time. Now we only have two pods.
My mother's grip on my arm is tight. She tells me not to look outside, but it's hard to ignore people screaming, fire burning. Thara's house is ash. I have no idea if she's still alive. It doesn't matter, though. Soon everyone on Krypton will be dead. Everyone except Kal and me.
Tears roll down my face as my mother leads me to my pod. Uncle Jor-El and Aunt Lara are standing, crying. They just sent Kal to the new planet. I face my pod, ready for me to hop in.
"No," I whisper. "Please, I don't want to go." They said it wouldn't come to this. It was just supposed to be a backup plan. We were supposed to have more time.
"Kara, listen to me," Mom says. "You must go. This is your only chance at survival. You are Krypton's last hope."
"Kal-El has just left the planet, he is Krypton's last hope," I protest. "I'd rather die with you than alone in space."
"Kal-El will remember nothing of Krypton. He will need someone to protect him, to teach him about his people," Dad says, embracing me. "Our family, everyone on Krypton will live through you, Kara. As long as you're alive, Krypton will never die."
I cry harder. "Please…" Another earthquake occurs. The ground shakes and my mother lifts me into the pod before hugging me one last time.
"You remember what we told you about the yellow sun?" she asks. I nod. "Good, good. There are solar panels in your pod so you should have your abilities by the time you land. Here, take this." She puts her necklace around me. I look down at the charm. It's a tiny crystal. She has a collection of charms from all the planets her and my father have visited. This one is from Krypton. "I love you, Kara."
"I love you, Mom. I love you, Dad." The words barely make it out of my throat. The windshield closes on my pod and I hear the engine's start. For the life of me I cannot remember the name of the planet I'm headed to. I don't want to ask, though. I don't want that to be the last thing I say to my parents.
I feel the gravity of what's happening finally hit me. This is real. I'm saying goodbye to everything I've ever known. My friends, family, home. Everything will be gone soon, and I'll be on a new planet. I'll have to relearn everything I already know. My pod lifts off the ground. I look back at my parents as I'm shot off into space. Krypton from space looks broken. I can see the fire and earthquakes. I close my eyes and pray to Rao that Kal and I will survive on this new planet. I'm hurtling through space yet I still see the flash of light through my eyelids that I know is my world exploding. I can't open my eyes. If I do then everyone will be officially dead. Right now, it's all just a dream, but if I open them, Thara is dead. Jor-El and Lara are dead. My parents … are dead.
So I keep them closed.
