Darkness in the Light- Creative writing

Planet KZ89 Day 1

I never realized how close this planet was to Inarthay, my home, nor did I realize how different it would be. The blue sky that I have always known is nothing more than a figment of one’s imagination here. Even the term ‘blue sky’ is a myth, a fairy tale compared to the arsenic filled atmosphere that rains acid here. On Inarthay, the valleys are wide and low with trees and tall grasses that hide secret patches of wild flowers. But here nothing exist, emphases on nothing. There are no trees, no bushes, and no plants of any kind. And the valleys here only produce strange creatures that have gills like fish and breathe in the poisoned airs filled with sulfur and arsenic.

 I don’t understand why anyone in their right mind would choose to live here, but they do and they have. So that’s why I’m here, I have come to this desolate planet for one reason and one reason only, to learn and unlock the mysteries of this planets past. I arrived at the space port early in the evening.

 Before leaving Inarthay I was told of an elderly man was there who would be waiting to greet me at the port. They told me he would provide me with the food and shelter that I would need.  Sure enough when I entered the lobby of the port there was an elderly man with a holographic sign that spelled out my name. He greeted me with warm smiles and welcoming embraces.

‘Welcome’ he said ‘Welcome to our humble planet. My name is Cyprus, but everyone calls me Mr. Cy.’ I smiled ‘May I take your bags?’ after being on that cramped ship for more than two months I didn’t think twice about accepting his offer. Without hesitating I immediately handed him my things. ‘Alrighty then’ he began ‘let me show you around.’ He was treating me like I was some kind of celebrity who was only stopping to replenish my food supply. And to tell you the truth I didn’t mind being treated like that. I mean how often someone like me get any opportunity to be treated like a somebody. Not very often I’ll tell you. Any way I told the man, oh I mean Mr. Cy what I had planned to do before returning home to Inarthay. I have a good feeling about this place. I can’t wait to find out this planet many secrets.

With his bags in hand and oxygen tank on his back Mr. Cy and Daemon made their way to the Transpo rails. Daemon felt as if he were drowning, his lungs aching for air, but after he inhaled a few quick breaths his lungs quickly adjusted to the steady flow exiting the tank and filling his chest with much desired air. As they waited in the Transpo station something didn’t feel right to Daemon. He stood stiffly next to Mr. Cy hoping that standing next to him would provide him with a sense of security. Mr. Cy squinted his weary eyes peering out into the harsh redness that he called home.

Daemon, unable to shake the feeling of someone watching him suspiciously looked over his shoulder as if someone were to sneak up on him. He looked over his shoulder again and again, thou he tried his hardness not to. With his head turned Mr. Cy slowly placed his wrinkled hand on Daemon’s shoulder. Daemon jolted,

“Are you alright?” Mr. Cy asked him.  Daemon’s heart was racing but he managed to nod to Mr. Cy. He didn’t believe him, but didn’t want to start anything so he just went along with it. Daemon stared at his feet trying to ignore the lingering sensation of someone watching him. “Right on time” Mr. Cy stated. Daemon looked up to and out the window.  It looked just like what the ancients called the High-Speed Rail trains, but the only difference is, there’s no window.  Mr. Cy picked up his luggage and started walking towards the oxygen chamber. Daemon was fixated on the similarities that the train possessed. “Hey!” Mr. Cy shouted, Daemon snapped back into reality. “Are you coming?”  he joked. Daemon nodded and quickly ran up to him.

“You know” he started out of breath “You’re pretty fast for an old man.” Mr. Cy shot back “well you’re pretty slow for a young man.”  Daemon wanted to be insulted but he was too tired to show attitude “touché” he said accepting his own defeat.  They entered the oxygen chamber and were instructed to put their air tanks on. Daemon copied what he saw Mr. Cy doing; all of a sudden Daemon could feel all the air in the chamber being sucked out of the open door. Quickly the people darted toward the trains. Mr. Cy picked up his pace and Daemon tried to keep up. “Hurry up” Mr. Cy warned.

The train’s engine started, Daemon had a sharp chill shoot up his spine as he ran ever faster to the train. “come on, your almost there” Mr.Cy cheered, he held out his arm for Daemon to grab hold of. Luckily Daemon jumped on the train just as it was taking off. Breathing heavily he whisked away a small bead of sweat from his forehead. “you lucky son of a microchip, it almost left without you.” Mr. Cy pointed out, Daemon agreed.

Mr. Cy walked into one of the cars to find a seat, Daemon followed. A sharp shock gave him chills. The feeling of someone watching him was stronger than before. “Daemon, come sit down” Mr. Cy invited. Daemon sat next to him, but he cautiously searched the train car thinking he could find the culprit. “are you sure you’re okay?”  Mr. Cy asked. 

“Yeah I mean yes, I’m fine, really.” Mr.Cy nodded, he knew he was lying. They sat in silence which shortly ended when someone said something behind Daemon’s shoulder “You’re new here right?”  Daemon looked behind him, but all he could see was the mechanical gears in the air tank. He struggled to find the person talking to him. “Excuse me?”  he said, but the person had moved and was now sitting in front of him.

“Wisteria, what are you doing here?”  Mr. Cy questioned, Daemon turned back in his seat. He faced a girl whose blazing red hair was held back with two braids like a halo, with blue eyes that could shatter even the strongest metals. She smiled at him, “your new here right?” Daemon knew the jig was up, “how could you tell?” She began to laugh as if he knew that he was still wearing his oxygen mask.  “What’s so funny?”  Daemon asked as he looked to Mr. Cy. “What?” he repeated. Mr. Cy smiled, “your mask boy, you don’t have to wear your mask in here.” Feeling foolish Daemon pulled the mask away from his face.

Mr. Cy turned to the girl, “now Wisteria, why are you on the train?” She straightened her posture and pulled something out of her carrying bag, she held out a paper-like tablet in her hands. “how else am I supposed to get away from Linden?”  Mr. Cy crossed his arms over his chest, “you should be with your parents and brother.”   “Ah, but Papou” She whimpered, her eyes growing and her mouth shivering.

“Excuse me?” Daemon said interrupting the girl’s begging. Mr. Cy smiled, “I’m sorry, yes?”  Daemon had some difficulty gathering his words, “um…uh…is it just me or is someone watching us?”  Mr. Cy and Wisteria looked at each other, their eyes widen. “What?” he asked looking from Wisteria to Mr. Cy. Wisteria shook her head, “no papou, don’t tell him.” “Don’t tell me what?” Daemon asked, Mr. Cy put his hand over his droopy eyes, “well I wasn’t until you said something, how many times have I told you to hold your tongue?”  “sorry” she repented.  Wisteria saw the look in Daemon’s eye and tried to change the subject.

“So, uh...” she mumbled “Daemon” he assisted her. “Right Daemon, so where you from” she asked, Daemon smiled and graciously gave his answers, “Oh…me… well I’m from Inarthay, a direct descendent of the planet Earth.” Mr. Cy knew what he was talking about, but from the look on Wisteria’s face you would think the planet Earth had never existed. No one said anything, but Daemon figured it out. Wisteria looked down to the tablet, she whispered “Earth, earth.”

“Uh Daemon, tell Wisteria why you came to our planet” Mr. Cy suggested, Wisteria looked up. “well I’m an archeologist and historian and I came here to learn and unlock the mysteries of this rocks past” he said confidentially, Wisteria laughed at how rehearsed his answer sounded. Daemon just shook it off.

The train had stopped and started again. On the floor of the train Daemon felt small vibrations, like a running child. Suddenly there was a small cry, “Wisteria! Wisteria where are you?” Wisteria’s face dropped, “ah man”  

“What, what’s the matter?” he asked. Wisteria crouched down in her seat, trying to make herself smaller. The voice shouted louder, “Wisteria! Wisteria, where are you?”  Daemon looked at Wisteria who was quietly whispering “go away, go away, go away!”

“Go away? Who is that?” Daemon asked frustrated. Mr. Cy smiled, “oh that’s…” “Linden!” Wisteria shouted. He was a small boy whose shaggy brown almost black hair was sticking to his face as hard tears were reddening his shadowed eyes.  Looking at him Daemon could see that something wasn’t right.

“Wisteria…”  Linden cried.  Seeing that his tears were genuine she looked concernedly to her brother. “what’s wrong Linden?”  She asked. Linden sobbed; he words were broken and hard to understand. “Momma and Dad…”  Her eyes blew up, she fell to her knees in front of her brother and she put her hands on his shoulders.

“What about mom and dad?”  She questioned, but the boy was crying too hard to understand. “Linden, calm down, what about mom and dad?” She asked again.  Linden was hyperventilating, but his breaths slowly eased and he was able to calm down.

“The landlords” he uttered. Wisteria’s face was painted by sheer disbelief and utter shock. Daemon didn’t understand what the boy meant. He looked to Mr. Cy whose face also had panic written all over it.

“No, it’s not possible. Not yet any way” Mr. Cy commented. Wisteria held her weeping brother close trying to be strong for him; she rubbed his head like a mother would do and kept telling him that things were going to be alright. But they both knew that words would only provide a false sense hope.

“What do you mean ‘the landlords’” Daemon asked curiously.  Wisteria tried to stand up but the moving train made it difficult. She eventually sat back down in her seat where Linden sat next to her. The boy curled up and slid to his sister’s lap, covering his eyes to hide his tears. Wisteria continued to rub his head; she looked up to Mr. Cy while droplets of salt water slowly fell from her eyes. Daemon was clueless; he turned to Mr. Cy thinking that he could shed some light on the subject. “Who are the landlords?” he asked.  Mr. Cy looked dead into Daemon’s eyes,

“Not ‘who’ but what” he corrected, “excuse me?” Daemon questioned. Mr. Cy explained, “the ‘landlords’ are not humans like you or I, no one knows what they are and those who tried to find out, never returned to report it.”  An eerie feeling crept up on Daemon, “I don’t understand” he said. Mr. Cy leaned over to Daemon and talked softly so that he wouldn’t upset Linden or Wisteria any more than they already were.

“The ‘landlords’ are the reason why humans could survive on this planet. They provide us with the food, hydro, and oxygen we need, and in return they name us and control our population.”  Daemon couldn’t believe what he was hearing, “they name you?”  Mr. Cy nodded, “why?” He asked.

The train began to slow down; Mr. Cy stood and said “we get off here.” Both Wisteria and Linden also stood and started exiting the car, Daemon followed behind them putting his mask back over his face before stepping off the train. They ran as fast as they could to house that look like it came straight from a sci-fi novel. The first floor looked relatively normal, but the second had rooms that shot off to one side and a storage room of the other. 

They entered the oxygen chamber and the front door closed behind them. Air filled the small area and everyone took off their masks. Then they all entered the house. Wisteria took Linden to the rooms in the seconded floor so that Mr. Cy and Daemon could speak in private. When they were alone Daemon asked again,

“Why do they name you?”  Mr. Cy sat on a nearby stool and cleared his throat. “Ever notice that everyone’s name is plant related?”  Daemon cocked his head, “yeah, but what’s that got to do with it?”  Mr. Cy stood up and walked over to his holographic fireplace, Daemon sat down.  “You may have already notice that nothing green grows here.” Daemon nodded. “Well the ‘landlords’ are fascinated by plant life and wish they knew how to make things grow, but they can’t so they name everyone who is born. And once an individual comes to a certain age they simply disappear.” He said softly, Daemon was become more fascinated by the mystery of KZ89.

“Disappear, disappear to where?” He asked. Mr. Cy turned to him, “no one knows, I’ve heard talk that the ‘landlords’ use humans in a system called Relife Cycling.”  The term ‘Relife Cycling’ confused and intrigued him, he was bound and determined to figure out the truth behind the system. Mr. Cy noticed a look in Daemon’s eyes, “Don’t even think about it” he discouraged him.

“Why not” Daemon pleaded “think about what we could accomplish.”  Mr. Cy warned, “some secrets should stay secrets.”  Frustrated Daemon stood up and paced back and forth. Wisteria came down from the top floor, her eyes showing that she had been crying. She dried her eyes and tried to smile.

“Linden fell asleep.”  Mr. Cy walked up to her and wrapped her in his comforting embraces. Daemon spoke,

“Are you just going to sit here and do nothing?” Mr. Cy looked over Wisteria’s shoulder, he stared at Daemon with a face that said “do it and your dead.”  Daemon was young and rash, he was also very foolish.

“We have to do something...” he urged “or are you just going to stand there and watch hundreds of innocent people disappear from their families.” Wisteria buried her face in Mr. Cy’s shirt; it was obvious that she was crying. Daemon began regretting what he said; he didn’t mean to upset her. “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to...” he tried to explain. Mr. Cy was obviously angry.

“Can’t you see you’re making things worse” he stated. Wisteria lifted her head and slowly tore herself away from Mr. Cy’s arms. She looked at him,

“No papou, he isn’t.” She defended “that’s not why I’m crying” “then what then?” Mr. Cy asked. “He’s right. We have to do something. We have to save my parents.” Mr. Cy was bewildered by this, but he understood. Daemon’s heart began to beat, fast and furiously. The feeling of someone watching him was back and this time it wouldn’t be going away.