“Yes, I did. I’m glad I found you, but I thought you were dead,” Idris said.
“What the hell were you doing out there, anyway?” asked Garrett.
“I just needed to get away.”
“Well, next time you need to get away, tell someone, or don’t go as far,” Garrett chastised.
“I think we need to punish Leslie,” I said. I hadn’t even thought about it, or didn’t think I had, but there it was, falling out of my mouth. “He needs to pay for what he’s done, Idris.”
“What are we supposed to do, Aella?” he asked. “We don’t have a jail cell. We can’t order manual labor, because that's already going to be required of him. We don’t have a lot of options at the moment.” He shook his head. “Besides all of that, this is the last thing you need to be worried about right now. You have an IV in your arm. You could have died. Focus on you right now.”
“You could cut his rations,” Garrett offered.
“If we cut anyone’s rations further than what has already been done, they will die. Look at her, right now. We cannot cut rations,” Idris said. “We’re just going to have to forgive this. I know it’s not easy, but that’s our best option right now.”
I curled my lip in disgust. He was right, there was nothing we could really do to Leslie that was humane in light of the current situation. I watched as Garrett nodded his head slowly, as if trying to digest the truth as well.
“I do agree, however, that we need to determine, for future reference, how laws will work on Circadia for future offenses. Before, we didn’t really have a need for laws, but with this many people, it is going to become an issue,” Idris said. “Not an issue we need to deal with right now, though. Later, when it’s necessary. For now, you need to get feeling better.”
I nodded and turned to my side to rest. Never had I been so comfortable in my life as I was lying on a cot with fresh linens in Dr. Darcy Mayhew’s hut.
DURING THE NEXT TWO days of cold, I felt better, but was still bitter. I watched Leslie Marshal intently, from a distance, sure that he would be up to something. I became obsessed with learning his schedules and routines, who he talked to, what he did to contribute, and what he didn’t. For the most part, it seemed that he spent most of his time bitching about anything and everything.
Leslie lived in a ‘wattle and daub’ hut like the rest of us, which was unsatisfactory for his liking. Quickly enough, he had weaseled his way into living in one of the new stick-built homes that Ronald had built for all of us. He used the excuse that he had allergies, and therefore needed a more secluded area to sleep or he ‘might die’ as he put it. People eventually got tired of listening to his bitching and gave in.
Mr. Marshal was used to eating high on the hog, and in abundance, judging from his body shape. Here on Circadia, that wasn’t an option even with his advanced manipulation skills, and he was quickly learning what it meant to be hungry for the first time in his life. Not to mention the manual labor that he was unfamiliar with. Not that we did a lot of work during the darkness, mostly just making our own fires and occasionally helping prepare meals, but that alone was too much for him. The howling never ended.
With the darkness being a great motivator, the solar team finally got their systems up and running. Working in conjunction with the chem team, they made light bulbs that a few people were able to utilize. Mostly they were used for work, and the rest were installed in the new homes. The rest of us looked on in disgust from our mud huts as we watched the lights in Leslie’s new home flick on and off at his leisure through his glass pane windows.
Just before I was about to set my sights on more interesting things, I noticed a change in Leslie’s routine behavior. All of a sudden, he stopped bitching and started socializing. Talking with crew members from the last voyage, and in private. I quickly became more interested and decided to watch him even closer. It surely could not be that he felt he had more than us and was comfortable, because for a man like Leslie, enough was never enough.
On the last night of darkness, I watched as he and two other crew members snuck into the cave that held all of the food we had saved. No one was supposed to be down there except for the nutrition team, but they walked right in like they owned the place.
I hid outside the cave behind a bunch of trees and brush. I waited until they emerged from the cave, carrying ears of corn and a bucket of soybeans. They were stealing from the rest of us to make it easier on themselves. As if living in his cushy home with power wasn’t enough, now he could eat to his heart’s content while the rest of us suffered. I had had enough, and stepped quietly through the woods.
Chapter Seventeen
I went straight to Idris. Finding his hut in the dark amongst everyone else was not easy, but when I found it, he invited me right in. “What’s wrong, Aella? Why are you up so late? You look terrible,” he said.
Observing the walls of the inside of his hut as I stepped inside, I noticed large hand-drawn maps that were unfamiliar to me. They were colorful and detailed. “What are these?” I asked, pointing to one of the maps.
“I’ve been trying to map out Circadia. For the most part, we haven’t had the chance to explore outside of our encampment. It kind of brought about a curiosity in me. So, when I’ve had free time, I’ve been walking as far away from the camp as I can in different directions to map it out as far as my eyes can reach,” he said. “This is uncharted territory, and I thought it would be nice if someone took the initiative to ‘chart’ it. Map it out. I hope that one day we will be able to travel out farther, and map out more.”
“That’s awesome. They’re beautiful.”
“So, what did you need to talk about?” he asked.
“I’ve been watching Leslie.”
“Aella, I told you. You have to let it go.”
“I know. I couldn’t, though. So, I’ve been watching him. At first he was just bitching a lot. Like, a lot. But then he started meeting with some crew members I don’t know, and tonight I watched him go into our rations cave and steal food.”
Idris’ jaw worked back and forth in agitation. I couldn’t tell if he was more upset with me, or them. Until he finally said, “We have to do something, but it needs to be done quietly. Do you understand?”
I narrowed my eyes and thought hard.
“We don’t want people to know that food is missing. We also don’t want to cause a violent scene. Although Leslie is wrong for doing what he’s done, as well as the crew members that helped him, I don’t think he deserves to die for it, and the way that people have started to look at each other makes me uneasy,” he said. “Irrational decisions are made by the masses when they’re hungry and upset. We need to be discreet. I will talk to Leslie tomorrow. Hopefully, he will tell me who the crew members were who helped him. I’ll see if I can talk some sense into him, and maybe get him to give me back the food.”
“Okay, I understand. That’s why I came to you first.”
“Thank you. Like I said, don’t say anything about this to anyone, okay?”
I nodded in agreement.
IN THE MORNING, WE all gathered together to watch the sun that we loved so much peek out from behind Earth and shine down on our beautiful planet. The warmth that the UV rays delivered was instant. Quickly the solar panels began to pump out more fuel, and we had power again. It was a breath of life into a cold night.
Garrett stared at me instead of basking in the sun like everyone else.
“Aren’t you glad the sun is back?” I asked.
“Not as happy, or as sad, as I am to see you warm again,” he said.
I was confused and flattered. My cheeks flushed instantly. “What do you mean?”
“Well, I’m happy to see you soaking up the sun and happy. It’s been awhile. You deserve to feel some sunshine.” He smiled. “On the other hand, you don’t really have a need for me to come keep you warm at night anymore, do you?” He said the last bit as a rhetorical question, not expecting me to answer.
“Well
, even though it’s sunny out now, and the weather is a little warmer, I’ll still need someone there at night. You know, for security purposes and such.” I shrugged nonchalantly. “If you know anyone, you might send them my way.” I smiled broadly.
“I’ll see what I can do.” I caught a faint smile on his face as he turned to look up at the trees. Where they had been turning autumn colors, now they were already beginning to show hints of purple. The quickest and easiest defense, and the most beautiful.
The fields were calling my name, so I gently touched Garrett’s arm as I got up. Setting off in the direction of the crops, I soon had company. Smith ran to my side and kept pace with me. “Where are you going off to so quick? No time to just enjoy the sun?” he asked.
“Nope. People around here like to eat, so I gotta make sure there'll be food for them. Plus, I love my crops.”
“Oh yeah, I’m starving right now. Would love to go back to regular rations, or no rations, for that matter.”
“Yeah, well, join the club.” I spoke too sarcastically, and he caught on.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean everyone is hungry, just like you.” I tried to jump off of the subject.
“No, it sounded like there was someone in particular who was really bothering you about it. Is it Garrett?”
“No! No one is bothering me.”
“You know you can tell me anything, right? We’re friends. Sometimes you just need to talk, and that’s okay,” he said. His voice sounded sincere, and I really needed someone to vent to. I’d refrained from telling Garrett because I was scared he would make a big scene.
“Okay, fine. I’ll tell you. But you can’t tell anyone. I mean it. Idris is handling it quietly, got it?”
He nodded his head vigorously.
“Okay, so the other night I caught Leslie and two crew members stealing food from the cave.” I waited in anticipation to see his reaction, but he didn’t seem surprised. “Can you believe that?”
“No, that’s crazy.” His face was plain and unmoved. “Guess they just weren’t used to life on Circadia yet.”
His excuse for Leslie infuriated me. “Does that really matter? People could starve because he isn’t acclimated to Circadian life? What the hell?” My chest rose and fell with anger, and I felt sweat start to bead up around my hairline. “Do you even realize what you just said?”
He looked back at me in shock. “I don’t agree with what they did. I don’t want any part of it. I was just trying to tell you my opinion for their personal reasoning.”
“Sorry. I just really hate the guy.”
“I can tell. So, what’s Idris going to do?” he asked.
“He said just talk to him for now, see if he can get him to understand that it’s not acceptable. There’s nothing we can really do to punish him right now, but later there will be,” I said.
“Like what?”
“I don’t know, but eventually we will have to have a society here. Different from Earth, but there will need to be guidelines, you know?”
Smith shrugged and nodded his head. “We’ll see, I guess. Anyways, just wanted to check up on you, see how you were doing. Have fun with your crops, and good luck!” he yelled as he walked backward toward the rest of the group.
WHEN I APPROACHED THE crops, I noticed that the color of the leaves had changed. What once was an orange-brown color was now being replaced with purple, just like the trees. Back on Earth, the color pigmentation was common in fragile plants, but this was happening in all the crops.
The plants were growing at such a rapid pace compared to Earth, that the initial burst of sun being back on the surface was a lot for them to process all at once. With their quick reflexes, the anthocyanin emerged as a defense mechanism.
While this was strange, it was good. Anthocyanin was a great nutrient and protector. The protection that the plants needed must have been drawn from the unusual soil, and probably saved our lives, as the plants would make a speedy recovery. The increase in nutrients or ‘super fruit’ compound would be needed on Circadia. With the plants going dormant for a week and not having a great system in place, the extra nutrients would be much appreciated. It was clear we would have to ration for some time to gather a stockpile of food for the weeks of darkness that we would encounter.
Feeling hope was a great emotion after the darkness, and for the first time in a while, I felt it. While the dark weeks were rough, Circadia’s soil was so plentiful and the resilience it gave to the plants was insurmountable. It was clear we could survive.
I bent down to gently lift a browning purple leaf. It felt so precious at that stage, so vital to our survival, that it was beautiful. Just then, I heard commotion coming from the gathering place I had come from. I could hear someone speaking loudly, too loudly, and chants of protest to whoever was speaking.
Chapter Eighteen
OH, NO. HAD IDRIS CONFRONTED Leslie? Had something gone wrong? On instinct and anger, I picked up the pickaxe that was lying next to me and started running toward the commotion.
As I neared the gathering area, close to the supply hull, I realized just about everyone on the planet was gathered around one person, and that person was Leslie. Slowly and quietly, I stepped closer to the supply hull and knelt out of sight to listen.
“This is not how this is going to work, okay?” he said. “I paid to be here, do you understand that? You people think you're going to dictate how this world is going to work? I don’t fuckin’ think so. No, no, no. Absolutely not. You are here because of me. You should be thanking me. Or you could be down there with the rest of the monkeys, dying. You get that?” The disdain in his tone made me want to vomit. I couldn’t believe what was coming out of his mouth. I was glad I was unable to see him.
I listened as Ronald, the architect, spoke up, “We all work here, we all pitch in. It makes things go a lot smoother. Maybe you would be surprised. It actually feels really good.”
It felt good to have someone speaking on our behalf, until Leslie cut in. I stared at the dirt beneath me.
“I don’t think you're understanding me. You see, I sent you here to make fools of yourselves on television. You were supposed to make me money. All I care about is money and if you sorry assholes think that money has never been a ‘factor’ here on Circadia, you are wrong. That’s the whole reason we made the show, why you were sent here, and why I am here now. You really think the government that’s left on Earth wanted to help you? Wanted salvation for its people?”
Idris jumped into the conversation, although his voice sounded rough. “Why, then?”
“Why? To fill those pocketbooks, of course! You think it’s cheap to wage war? I don’t think so. They wanted our money to be launched up here, so they could afford more ammunition and soldiers. They don’t give a rat’s ass about you, but I do,” Leslie said. I imagined the words slithering out of his mouth.
“What do you mean?” Idris asked. “You paid to be here like other people. You said so yourself.”
“Am I incapable of lying? You see, when you get to a certain level of power, you get to know things other people don’t. I knew the whole nuclear war was just waiting to happen. At first I panicked, but then I realized I could create an entirely new world, one without weapons of mass destruction, or any weapons, for that matter. We could have a peaceful world, one not destined for doom, like Earth. That’s why I hired soldiers to send up here with you guys. You know, ‘the help?’ A ship of three hundred muscular soldiers that obey my every command because I pay them to do so?” He began to laugh. “Oh... you didn’t realize. Well, that must be a big pill to swallow, huh?”
I listened, shaking with anger, as I heard the crowd start to separate. I assumed it was the soldiers stepping out of the crowd to Leslie’s side. Peering around the side of the supply hull to see if I could see anything, the first thing that caught my attention was Idris being held by a crew member. His hands were tied behind his back, and he looked pissed.
Leslie carried
on. “From now on, we have rules. My rules. First rule, this world works in levels, just like a video game. Level three is low man on the totem pole. Level three people include the original hundred that were here before. Level two includes all soldiers. Level one includes people with a moral obligation, like myself, who serve to provide order to all of Circadia.” I could see Idris’ jaw working back and forth. “Level three people will turn in all tools at dark so that they are not used as weapons to harm others and will have minimal food rations. Level two will also hand in their tools at the end of the day and will have moderate rations. Level one may have tools or weapons at their discretion to keep peace and order and will have free range of the food,” he said, satisfied.
“That’s bullshit!” someone from the crowd screamed.
“Don’t worry, you're not stuck in level three forever. If you can provide value to me, or Circadia, you can always move up in rank. We want to encourage innovation,” Leslie said.
He can’t just come here and take over like this. We built this planet from the ground up, without his help. We can’t let this happen. I slowly stepped, crouched down, out from the supply hull to see the rest of the crowd. The ‘crew members’—Leslie’s militia—were standing in an organized wall in front of Leslie. Their numbers far outweighed ours. I looked toward Idris as I took another step and we locked eyes. ‘Go back,’ he mouthed at me. I wanted to attack them all, but quietly stepped back just enough to be out of sight. I could still see what was going on, though. I held my axe firmly in hand.
Leslie continued with his monologue. “Just like Mr. Green, here. Smith Greene has been my hired help this whole time and got me intel on Circadia when I needed it. He even told me when Idris was coming to chide me like a child. I guess Smith is really the whole reason we are having this conversation. I just felt like we needed to be clear on a few things, right?
The Circadia Chronicles: Omnibus: The Complete Colonization Sci-Fi Series Page 13
