The Dark. Chapter 1.

I wrote this for AdmiralFoxx's challenge, but it said I didn't have enough coins, so I thought I'd post it as chapters, since I'd still really like people to read it!

In 2100 the Mars Terraforming Project was initiated. Several terraforming pods were sent to Mars to begin making the planet suitable for humanity. Half a century later in the year 2150 the first Mars Colony was established. They named it First Sight. Six other colonies were established on Mars in the years that followed. Each colony was outfitted with start-of-the-art technology that would monitor the outside conditions and inform the colonists when the planet was ready for human habitation, expected to be near the year 2230, though atmospheric conditions could alter these estimates. The Mars Space Station orbited these colonies and provided them with everything they needed for comfortable living. It was considered an unparalleled success until the year 2205, when the colony of Last Watch was lost.lost.

9-21-2218

9:12 a.m.

Mars Colony No.7,

‘Last Watch’

The colony of Last Watch was dark. That’s what all the elders said anyway. For Analia Tenten, it was just another day. The lamps were hung high above her head and shed a dim yellow glow that faded to near black before the next lamp took it’s place, as they did every afternoon.

Her yellow jumpsuit crinkled noisily with every step as she hurried down the street toward the greenhouse. The large glass building stood on the edge of town, lit up like a beacon compared to the shadowy residential district.

Analia slowed as she reached the rear of the building. She sometimes wondered why adults complained about the dark to much. This much light made it harder for her to sneak into work when she overslept.

She crept toward the supply room hoping to grab a few bags of fertilizer. If Mrs.Lin thought she had been organizing the shed she might not ask why the gardens hadn’t been watered yet. Analia shuffled past the recycling bins noting that they were almost full. Toting them to the recycling plant would probably be on her list of chores today.

She opened the shed door slowly to minimize the creaking. It needed oiling, but most of the oil had been claimed by the maintenance division. She was lucky, the door swung open without alerting the whole colony, and she slipped inside the dark room.

She could barely see by the light of the greenhouse that filtered through the cracks in the shed walls, but it was plenty for her to find the bags of fertilizer stacked in the back of the shed. She tossed one over her shoulder and stacked two more on top of it. Bouncing it once to balance it she stepped confidently out of the shed and through the back door.

The interior was hot and humid, which the plants needed to grow as big as possible, but Analia still hated the thick, soupy feel of the air. She walked down the center isle to the sprinkler controls without seeing Mrs.Lin, which was strange. Mrs.Lin was a very involved boss. The garden was like her baby. She fussed over every plant as if she would be tried as a murderer if it died. Sometimes it was sweet to watch her coddle them, but most of the time it made her obsessively strict with Analia’s daily tasks and led to a lot of yelling.

Analia put the fertilizer into a wheelbarrow to be distributed later and turned on the sprinklers. The small spigots dotting the hoses strung through the gardens all started misting the plants with their morning dose of water and vitamins. Then Analia started checking off her list of daily jobs.

An hour later Mrs.Lin still hadn’t made an appearance, and Analia was starting to get worried that she was actually sick. She took off her gardening gloves and wiped the sweat from her brow before heading upstairs. The spiral staircase that led to the second floor was badly rusted. She would have to paint it again soon.

The second floor was mostly used as an office for orders and shipments, along with storage of anything light enough to pose no structural risk, but still big enough to be in the way downstairs. The only enclosed room on the second floor was a room Mrs.Lin converted into a personal office. Though she slept in it often enough for it to be considered a bedroom. Most nights she wouldn’t go home, instead opting to sleep close to the plants in case something happened. Analia couldn’t think of anything that would require her to be here in the middle of the night, but she didn’t want to ask in case Mrs.Lin had a lecture prepared on just that topic. She stood in front of the office door and raised her hand to knock when she heard Mrs.Lin’s voice. Analia considered walking away, but where would be the fun in that? She leaned in closer and listened. Mrs.Lin was on the phone with someone, it sounded like this conversation had happened before.

“No! I’m telling you Georg, it’s not enough!” She said. There was a moment of murmuring from the other end of the phone and then Mrs.Lin replied,

“I’ve told you, there has to be more! The plants can’t live like that!” More Murmuring and Mrs.Lin seemed to deflate,

“I know, I know. I know you’ve been shifting a lot for me, but we need it. I can’t raise that much food without it. What are we going to do, order a population cut?”

Analia could only follow the conversation a bit. It sounded like Georg was stealing something for Mrs.Lin. But what did that have to do with a population cut? That couldn’t be what it sounded like. Analia wondered what she was eavesdropping on.

“Could we increase the bike hours?” There was silence until Analia heard Mrs.Lin sniffle. She was crying? What was going on?

“I know, I’m just... I’m worried about everyone. What will happen to the children?”

Analia leaned closer, what about the children?! Why couldn’t they just be clear?

“It looks like it’s going to get darker...Bye, Georg” Mrs.Lin said. She sighed and Analia heard her get up from her desk.

Analia shuffled around the corner as Mrs.Lin came out of her office. Mrs.Lin walked straight toward her hiding place, stopping beside her.

Analia looked up to see Mrs.Lin looking disapprovingly back down at her.

“Good morning, Mrs.Lin.” Analia said hoping to sound clueless.

“You’re late, again.” She said.

“I’m sorry.” Analia said giving up on her shed-excuse. Mrs.Lin was already upset, Analia didn’t want to lie to her now.

“You know the sprinklers need to be turned on early so they have time to soak in.” She said.

“They’re on now.” Analia replied. Mrs.Lin sighed,

“I know you’re only thirteen, but you need to be more responsible. One day I’m not going to be here to make sure all this is done, and you’ll have to make sure there’s enough food for everyone.” Analia started to ask why she would be gone, but Mrs.Lin said,

“Come on, there’s lots of work to do and we don’t have a lot of time.”

Analia followed Mrs.Lin into the garden slowly. She couldn’t help but feel like something very wrong was about to happen.

Thanks for reading my first chapter!