Beta Planet: Rise (35 page)

“Take it all in, children,” Mama V said quietly and introspectively, staring at the vivid display below them. “Life is filled with beautiful moments like dis. They make life beautiful. Take dis moment into your head. Take it into your hearts. Never forget it and never let it go.”

Geon smiled to himself while thinking about everything that had happened since he awoke only weeks ago. He thought about his family, old and new, remembering his parents and wondered if they would be proud of him. Missing their faces and wishing they could be here in that moment to share this with them. He looked over at Allea and remembered her as a tiny, adorable girl who would follow him around the house when they were young and now stared at her in amazement at the brilliant, sensitive, and wonderful girl that she has become. The risk he made today took all of his bravery, but the motivation to help Allea was so great that it made the decision easy for him. He thought about Sabien and Kumuki and couldn’t help but smile, thinking about all the wonderful memories and humorous conversations he had with them. He was full of appreciation for all that they had done for him, from making him feel welcome in this world to saving his life. He turned and looked over at Mama V who seemed lost in her thoughts and thought about how wonderful she has been to him, taking him in when no one wanted him and taking care of him, even though she must have realized that there was only a slim chance of him ever waking up from his coma. And lastly, he smiled at Vaya next to him and squeezed her hand, feeling so lucky and blessed to have such wonderful people in his life.

I’m so lucky to have all this. Even in this troubled world, there is beauty and love, and magical moments.

He vowed right there to never take anything for granted and to always appreciate the simplest things in life.

Chapter 16

The next couple days passed without major happenings, except for the late night venture under the streets for Geon and Sabien. They were somewhat cryptic about exactly what happened down there, but did provide more details about the world of the Dissenters to the other two. They took turns telling Kumuki and Allea that there were many more people living down below the surface than they had even imagined, and that when they approached the inhabitants with the newly purchased high-capacity water filter, they were welcomed with open arms. Geon explained that the Dissenters had a barter system with a vast array of goods and merchandise. He spoke about the enormous rooms that they were taken into, with high ceilings and items piled up as high as one could see, each pile organized by different types of items. There were relics of the past, from technological items, to garments, to antiquated transportation devices. The most shocking items, however, were the rare cultural artifacts from societies before their time. Things never seen anymore. Items such as old books, magazines, art, and even musical instruments. They reminded Geon of his youth, and though it seemed so recent, it was truly such a long time ago, and a drastically different world than the one they lived in today. The Dissenters explained to them that CARE had tried to destroy as many of these cultural artifacts as possible, in an effort to try to “re-train” the remaining human population.

They talked about how the Dissenters were living in awful conditions, many of them sick, malnourished, and some even suffering from dementia caused by long periods of time living under ground. Food and clean water were the most difficult items for them to obtain. They spoke about the “jackals,” who were appointed scavengers that would sneak to the surface each night to try to bring food to the rest of the Dissenters, risking imprisonment and death on Narakai each time they did so.

The Dissenters also showed incredible gratitude for the gift that Geon and Sabien had brought them, and gladly exchanged it for the parabolic antenna that Allea had been searching for, and a promise that they would offer a favor to them if in the future if they ever needed it. Geon explained that the filter would go a long way to keeping the most vital source of survival, water, clean for them and that it would save many lives. The exchange for the antenna seemed so much less important than what the filter would do for the Dissenters in that moment. Of course, Allea was eternally grateful to Geon and Sabien for getting her the antenna and began work on her project immediately.

At the time trial in school, Geon even managed to earn the first position placement for the upcoming JetSurf competition. Although it wasn’t his most stellar demonstration of skill, he was glad to have the opportunity to try to rectify his past performances and setbacks. With both the TechSci Concours and JetSurf competition falling on the same day, the night before was a chaotic scene in their house. Allea spent much of the night frustratingly tweaking and testing her project, and the three boys talked excitedly about the JetSurf competition, the Dissenters, Zenith, and when Allea was out of earshot, Aurora. Although the allure of Aurora was enchanting, Geon found himself less intrigued by her, now that his relationship with Vaya had begun to form stronger bonds and they were slowly getting closer. She and her friends had spent the last few lunches sitting with Geon and the others and he had enjoyed his conversations with her. He felt a sense of guilt, because he wanted to confide in her the things that were going on in his life, with Enkia, the Dissenters, Shiv, CARE, Zenith, and so on, but Sabien continually reminded him that they did not know who they could trust right now and that their plight was far too sensitive and more crucial than anything else right now. Geon agreed and kept it a secret but hoped for the day when he could tell her everything.

“Is it done? Ally? Can you hear me? Is it done?”

“She can’t hear you, Sabe. She’s in the zone,” Geon said, as he motioned toward her. She sat typing and tapping buttons furiously on a three-dimensional hologram of the core of her device.

“I’m so excited for today!” Kumuki shouted through mouthfuls of his food. “You guys are gonna win!”

“I hope so,” Geon said, thinking about the JetSurf competition. “To be honest, I hope Allea wins her competition more than I care about ours.”

“
Excuse
me
? Listen here, little brother,” Sabien said sternly, putting his spork down with a clink. “Not only will she win, but we’re going to win as well. Have no doubt about that!”

Kumuki nodded vigorously as Sabien sat with his hands crossed behind his head and leaning precariously backward in his seat.

“Sabien! You sit properly okay! Now listen all of you. Mama V know today is a big day, and I gonna come to see you at the school okay? And I vant you to remember dat Mama V love you all and dat I’m so proud of you today, okay? You do your best and everything gonna be just fine.”

“Okay, Mama V,” they all chimed together. They finished eating and headed out to school. Today would only be a half-day, as the TechSci Concours would take up the whole afternoon. They walked briskly toward the Glidewing station and they talked about the competition of years past.

“I’m really stressed out,” Allea said. “You guys know that some of the greatest innovations of our time have come from these competitions right?”

“I’m sure you’ll do great,” Geon said. “Don’t worry too much.”

“I just hope mine works when it’s supposed to and impresses the judges.”

“Hah! The judges,” Sabien loudly responded. “The judges are from CARE. This whole competition is rigged. And those judges are all corrupt. There are no winners!”

Geon could see that Allea looked upset about Sabien’s comments and he gave him a glaring look.

“But…” Sabien quietly and carefully continued, “I’m sure your project will impress them nevertheless, Allea. It’s a great… device, thing… whatever it does.”

Allea shook her head with a grimace and frustratingly replied, “It’s a long-range, line-of-sight, multi-media-platform, direct-communication device. I’ve told you guys that already!”

“Whaaaaaaaat?” Kumuki said loudly, crinkling his forehead and pausing his music for a moment.

“Okay, okay,” Sabien said. “I can see that you’re a little bit tense right now so I won’t even ask how it works. Come on, I see the L-RUD approaching.”

They boarded the Glidewing and headed off to school. Geon felt a rush of anticipation for the day’s events. Once in school, Kumuki and Allea parted ways and Geon and Sabien headed to their first period. They grabbed two seats in between Helano and Chiah.

“Goodth Morning, Thabien. Goodth morning, Geon. Ith goodth to thee you. How are you doing, and are you ready for your big rathe today? I am tho looking forward to both the TechThi Concourth and the rathe!”

“Good to see you too, Helano,” Geon said with a smile. “We’re definitely excited. How’s your project coming along? I’m really look—”

“SO,” Chiah loudly interrupted, leaning toward Geon, his breath smelling of something rancid and something foul dangling perilously from his right nostril. He had one leg propped up on the other leg right near Geon and was quickly fluttering his shoe about, looking up at Geon and then back down at his shoe. This continued for a few very awkward seconds.

I think he wants me to look at his shoes.

“So,” Geon said, finally breaking the strange silence, trying not to stare at the unidentified object in his nose. “Chiah… how are you?”

Chiah responded back in his deep garbled voice, “Vat? Yaokay. Fine. Ijusthavesomethingstodobeforethe… racesoImight be a littlelateokaycoolcool.”

“Oh. Okay… that’s fine Chiah. You don’t need to tell me your schedule,” Geon politely responded.

“Vat? K! I Justthoughtthatsinceyoumightbewaitingonmeorsomething!”

Chiah turned back forward and gulped down the remainder of his drink at a rapid pace, looking agitated when the slurping noise indicated the last of the sweet fluid.

A message from Vaya popped up on Geon’s clearboard. “Hey, G! What are you guys talking about up there?”

Geon typed back, “I wish I knew. How’re you? You coming today? You don’t have to, you know. No big deal.”

Vaya responded, sensing Geon’s sarcasm, “Haha, funny. I’m not sure yet. I have SO many other important things to do. If I get time I’ll swing by. But don’t worry… your friend Chiah will be there!”

Geon messaged back a single solitary sad face to which she laughed and turned back and smiled at him.

“Vatsfunny?”

“Oh, um, nothing, Chiah. I was just… nothing. Hey are those new shoes?”

“Vat,” Chiah replied, suddenly pleased with the attention from Geon. “Ya. Igotthemawhileagobutyathey’reprettynew… Imightgetanewpair… onourdayoffthisweek… Idunnowellsee. Cool.” He sounded out of breath, wheezing a little as he began fluttering his shoe quickly in front of Geon again. Geon looked down at them and smiled, wondering how Chiah had the credits to purchase so many new shoes, and why he would even do so, considering they were all exactly the same.

A beep signaled the start of class just as Geon was wondering if he had made any headway with trying to understand Chiah and get to know him better.

He’s an enigma but I’m still going to keep trying.

The entire morning was difficult on the teachers that day, as the students excitement of the day’s upcoming events grew stronger with each minute. Most of the students were energetically chatting and debating about whose project would with the TechSci Concours and who would win at that day’s JetSurf race, rather than focusing on the class at hand. Professor Ulie, sensing the frustration of the other teachers, decided to let all the students out one period earlier than planned, so they could spend some extra time finishing up their projects for the competition.

“That’s a first!” Sabien exclaimed as the students rushed out of the classroom. “The only time I’ve ever seen Professor Ulie let us out early is during a natural disaster, and even then he waits until it’s really serious and we’re never permitted to leave the safety of the Commons.”

Kumuki nodded in agreement and hollered, “I can’t believe it!”

“Interesting,” Geon said quietly. “Apparently we do have
some
power over authority figures.”

“Well,” Sabien replied with a laugh. “Not sure about authority figures… but teachers, anyway!”

“Aaaaaaghhhh!” Kumuki yelled as he was suddenly and violently shoved to the side and into a wall by Chiah, who was rapidly charging toward the Commons.

“VATCHIT!” he yelled back as he quickly hobbled down the hallway, other students stepping back to clear a path for him.

“You okay, Kuki?” Sabien asked, patting his brother on the shoulder. “I told you… never get between that guy and his red drink. When he needs a refill, look OUT!”

What do they put in those red drinks?
Whatever it is, it can’t be good for you. Maybe those microchips Sabien was talking about.

Geon laughed and the three of them headed to the lab to see how Allea was coming along. As they walked through the sliding door, they were met with a scowl from Shiv and a smile from Allea.

“Hey, guys! So, it seems to be working better now,” she said while scratching her head. “The hard part was converting the old analog language of the parabolic antenna and the radio relay system into the new digital holographic language that I needed to use to make it all work. But I think it’s finally ready.”