Beta Planet: Rise (44 page)

Authors: Dayton Grey

Tags: #Fiction

“The power here is with the people,” Geon said. “Think about it. The people of this planet far outnumber CARE. And it’s true that they may control us for now, but things might be very different if everyone knew what was really happening!”

“You’re right, G,” Allea said. “It’s the only answer. We have to expose CARE. We
must.
But how?”

“Well,” Geon said with a smile, inspiration suddenly hitting me. “Even know none of us are one hundred percent sure how your TechSci Concours project works, do you think it might be able to broadcast this info worldwide?”

“Oh… my…
God
,” Allea excitedly whispered, grabbing Geon with both her arms. “That’s it. I can relay the information using the parabolic antenna and then everyone will know what CARE is really up to!”

“We need more, though,” Sabien added. “We need more.”

“Well,” Allea said, now deep in thought, tapping her lips with her fingers. “The ultimate accomplishment would be to block, or even,
change
the subliminal frequency that CARE is circulating. That way, not only would they have the truth about CARE, they would have the willpower and ability to act on it!”

“Can it be done?”

Allea shook her head and sighed. “Unfortunately, to do that, we would need to get back into Zenith to access their systems onsite. I can’t change the code from here. And you know that getting back in there will never happen again.”

There must be a way.

“What about… I dunno. What about… my LifeCuff?”

“Your… Life—”

“Oh my God. Your LifeCuff! Can it be done? Wait let me think. Wait. Okay. Hmmmm. It’s still there. If I can access it and use it as a contact point, I might be able to… it might be… oh my God, Geon, you are a genius! I think I can use it to undo the subliminal code!”

Geon laughed, feeling grateful that his accident might be able to help out in some way.

“Nice job, G,” Sabien said. “The way you
intentionally
dropped your LifeCuff in there. Good planning.”

“Yeah, good one, G!”

“Thanks, guys.”

“Okay, let me work on this right now,” Allea said. “There
is
one thing to consider. The moment we do this, there’s no hiding. There is no way to mask who relayed the information and who we are.”

“We know, Ally. They were going to know who we are eventually, anyway, right? At least this will be for a worthy cause. Do it.”

“Sabe?”

“Absolutely, Allea. Do it.”

“Kumuki?”

“Go for it!”

Allea smiled and began working on the broadcast while they all patiently waited, quietly reflecting on everything they had just gone through.

“Do you think they’ll send us to Narakai?” Geon quietly asked, as he, Sabien, and Kumuki sat at the edge of the room and watched Allea work at the main table.

“I don’t know, G,” Sabien said. “I don’t know if they send people our age there. But whatever it is, it won’t be pleasant.”

“Will they feed us?”

“I’m sure they will, Kuki,” Sabien said with a smile. “You’ll get the same disgusting slop that you already love.”

“That’s good!”

“Maybe we can talk them into sending us to Narakai,” Geon said sarcastically with a grimace.

They talked about the night before and the amazing sensation of flying.

“I have to say. JetSurfing is but a distant memory. ZeppWinging… that’s what life is all about!”

“Agreed,” Sabien said. “It was…
beautiful
.”

Two hours passed when finally Allea looked up from her hologram and shouted in glee.

“GOT IT! I was able to access the frequency via your cuff, G. I’ve subverted the existing subliminal code and replaced it with a more…
positive
one. And as for the rest of the information, I know how to do it. Once I start the broadcast, they will inevitably try to block the signal, but I’ve utilized Helano’s security code as a personal defense system for us, so they won’t be able to bypass it. Within an hour, the information will be global!”

I can’t believe we’re really going to do this. Is this really happening?

“Ally, you never cease to amaze us,” Geon said. “Where do we set it up?”

“The roof. Let’s hurry!”

The foursome scrambled up to the roof of their prefab and setup Allea’s device. As they sat there in the final seconds before she began the broadcast, they all looked into each other’s eyes, knowing that this was the most momentous and significant moment of their lives. Only a few weeks prior, Geon was in a coma, asleep, and now he was a vital part of the group that would help to reveal the truths about CARE to the world.

So much has happened in so little time,
he thought.
And so much more will happen from this day forward. I just hope we get to be around for it.

“Ally, before we flip that switch,” Geon said. “I just want to say… Mom and Dad would be so proud of you… of all of us. And I… I’m so proud of you all too. I’m so proud to call you my family. You asked yourself why you wasted all that time building this device, only to miss the top prize at TechSci Concours.
This
is why you built it. All for this moment.”

Allea smiled and flipped the switch, sending every secret about CARE around the world.

“They’ll be here soon,” she said. “We may as well be prepared.”

“We will be,” Geon said. “If they come, it means we were successful.”

Within an hour’s time, the PMVs showed up. There were nearly a dozen of them, and numerous CARE guards stepped out and approached them, their weapons drawn. Geon and the others didn’t fight or resist. CARE took them and Mama V into custody and put her in a separate holding room from the four of them. As they sat in the small, cold white cell, they looked at each other and smiled. Geon knew they were thinking the same thing as he.

It doesn’t matter what happens to us now. By tomorrow morning, the world will know everything.

Chapter 20

Geon lay in a half-dream-like state as the still white light from dawn crept slowly through the single solitary window of the cell. He pictured the man in black with the red logo, surrounded by bodies on the ground. That picture faded and he saw light and brightness. He saw his family and friends, old and new, standing side by side and walking together into a new world… a changed world. It was a dream he had envisioned many times before, both during his coma and after, and something he had unknowingly longed for. It wasn’t until now when he realized the man in black from his dreams was a CARE agent, the logo on his chest the same as the ones he had seen around the city, and that the visions he had seen were real, both of the past and of the future. Something innate, deep inside of him, had known all along that the world would need him… someday…
somehow
.

But where did those visions come from? How could I have seen these things and known these things?

He opened his eyes slowly, squinting from the morning glow. The other three lay dormant, quietly sleeping next to him. It was a peaceful morning, the most tranquil Geon could remember. He replayed the astonishing events of the last few weeks in his head, in disbelief of how much he had experienced in such a short time. It felt like a lifetime ago when he opened his eyes and saw Allea, Sabien, Kumuki, and Mama V for the first time. He thought about his parents and wished they could be there in that moment to see how much he had unselfishly done for the world and he knew they would be proud of him and Allea. The others slowly and softly awoke from their deep slumber and they all looked quietly at each other, knowingly, and with affinity for each other for the experience that bonded them forever. No one needed to say a word.

“I’m hungry!”

Some things never change.

“Okay, kids. You’re free to go.”

Geon looked up to see a CARE guard staring back at them as he unlocked the clear sliding door.

“Be careful out there,” he cautioned, as they walked out of the building and into the morning mist.

Mama V stood waiting for them just outside the doors, a blissful smile spread across her face.

“My babies! Come here all of you, give Mama V a big hug!”

“Are you okay, Mama V? They didn’t hurt you, did they?” Geon asked.

“Mama V fine, baby boy. I think they were more vorried Mama V gonna hurt them!”

“That’s probably true,” Sabien said. “Especially since they didn’t feed you!”

The fivesome laughed as they slowly walked the streets back toward their home. As they continued on their way, they all noticed something different around them. There were people out and about… more than usual. They weren’t rushing to get from place to place, and seemed more aware of their surroundings. Some even stood, unmoving, simply staring at the sky, or the world around them. Others were talking to each other. It was a sight that Geon hadn’t expected to ever see again.

“Look!” Allea cried, pointing down an alleyway.

They stopped and peered in and saw a number of Dissenters, climbing up into the street from the tunnels below. There were CARE guards and other people standing around and helping them up and offering food and water to them.

“It’s happening,” Geon said, looking at the others with a smile.

The next few days saw a fury of contention between the citizens of the world and CARE. The remaining ranks of the governing organization were broken down, and many high level members fled to save themselves. Geon knew it would be a long process to get back to a stable, balanced planet, but he also knew that this time around, it would be done with the consideration of the planet and all of humanity in mind.

This time around, we need to find harmony.

“Ally, I never got to ask you,” Geon said, as they sat around the breakfast table together. “What
exactly
did you change the subliminal frequency to say?”

Allea smiled and brushed her hair away from her face. “Well, G, it was just a jumpstarting message. It said ‘Always think for yourself and always be true to you’.”

“VAT! Dat’s Mama V’s message!”

“Yes, Mama V,” she replied. “It’s something you’ve always said to us, and I thought, if it worked for us, it may work for them too.”

“You are very sweet girl, Allea baby. Mama V love you. And I vant all of you to know how proud I am, and that if your parents were around today… Geon, Allea, Sabien, Kumuki… they would all be so proud of you.”

“Thanks, Mama V,” Allea said with a smile. “I also added a couple more things like ‘Love your planet,’ ‘Love your family,’ ‘The world is beautiful,’ and so on.”

“I love my planet!” Kumuki screeched, through colossal bites of sweet, fluffy pancakes.

“Great,” Sabien said. “We’re all going to be an emotional mess in a day or two.”

Allea laughed and replied, “Once we all get on the right track, I’m going to eradicate the code. It’s just hard to ward off the poison that CARE has infected everyone with without using some sort of antidote. But, soon, people need to start thinking for themselves.”

Geon smiled as they finished eating and walked out the door. As they headed toward the Glidewing station for school, he saw cues around him of the world he used to remember.
I can’t believe we did it. Everything is changing. The world will finally begin to heal.
He was amazed at how much influence and impact the four of them had on the world and felt so grateful to the others for supporting him and helping him achieve this breakthrough.

It’s time for the transformation of the planet. There’s nowhere to go but up from here
.

Allea stopped walking, as she scrolled through some information on her LifeCuff. Her face turned stark white and her mouth dropped open.

“Ally? Are you okay? What is it?”

“I…I…
no
. It
can’t
be. G…”

“Allea,” Sabien said. “What’s going on?”

She looked up at them slowly with shock and terror in her eyes.

“Do you remember some years back, when Geon was still in a coma, and CARE set out to try to find another habitable planet for us?”

“Sure,” Sabien said. “The Earth 2 Probe. But the mission was deemed a total failure and terminated.”

Allea looked at him and then at Geon. “Well, I found some hidden information about the probe wedged in with the rest of the things we downloaded from CARE. It took me awhile to piece it all together, but I’ve… I’ve checked it. I’ve rechecked it. I’ve rechecked my rechecks. It’s confirmed. It’s all here…”

“What is it, Ally?!”

“The mission was a success.”

THE END