Section 1, a Crash and a Family

The sign just kept flashing, red-dark-red-dark.
S.O.S. Deploy ... --- ...   ... --- ... S.O.S. Deploy
          “Don’t do it Jerry!” Marilyn shouted. The ship gave a great shudder and started rocking uncontrollably.
          He looked at her, then looked down, and pushed the button.

	Wham! Wham! Wham!  Jerry could hear a loud noise, but had absolutely no idea where it was. His face hurt a lot, he knew that, it felt like he was lying down, but he didn’t know where, he did not possess the strength to look. He heard a loud noise, it sounded familiar, like a banshee.
          “JERRY!!! JERRY!!! YOU IDIOT!!!”
          He opened his eyes, SMACK, but quickly closed them again. It all came back to him, the ship, the message, and Marilyn who, unfortunately, had woken up an hour before him and had done quite a lot of damage to Jerry’s face.
          “Stop, Marilyn!” Jerry got to his feet, tottering as he did so. Marilyn’s hand stopped in mid air. She fell to the ground, crying. Jerry knelt down too. “The ship was going to crash Marilyn, I had to.”
          “I know,” she said in a pathetic voice. He hugged her and quickly took out his portable geometer. As he did, he looked about himself for the first time.
          “No!” he shouted, “No, this is wrong! Marilyn, when did you wake up?”
          “I dunno, about an hour ago.”
          “And was it like this?” he pointed all around them.
          “Yep,” she said, the fearful tone in her voice clear as day. 

						_ _ _
         
       	To understand most of this story, it is vital that we understand where we are. The year is 2100, and Earth looks very different. Climate Change, which had not been fully eradicated until 2085, has frozen Europe, made the Americas into a desert wasteland, and Asia into a never halting tornado. In fact, the only habitable places on planet Earth happen to be Antarctica, South Africa, and the Falklands. The Emperor (position installed in 2071) rules all, and as a result of the Orion-Parsons War, has only ten-million subjects. Though Antarctica has a Senate, it has little power and is frequently circumvented by Their Imperial Majesties. Here is an excerpt for your enjoyment:

           “So far, there have been four sovereigns of the Antarctican Imperial Union:
First to be installed was Empress Anastasia (1997-2083); she ruled the Imperial Union with an iron fist and was assassinated on her eighty sixth birthday. The next sovereign, Emperor Alexandre I (2028-2084), dismissed many of his mother’s barbaric laws and steered the Union into an intellectual, prosperous, and ethical renaissance. His son, Emperor Nicholas (2059-2091), was highly loved at first because of his father, but really didn’t do that much and was overthrown in the coup of 2087. His five year-old son, Carl Frederick (2082-), became Carl Frederick III, Emperor and Supreme protector of the Imperial Union of Antarctica, King of the Falklands, and Grand Duke of South Africa on December 18, 2087. The Emperor has four siblings: Louisa (2084-), Amelia (2085-), George (2087-), and Alexandre (2087-).         
          
	 --Excerpt from “The Emperors, Antarctica’s Fathers,” by Cristoph Anderson, courtesy Ross Imperial Library of Civil History, Ross, Antarctica.
	
	The Imperial Residence at Ronne was established in 2028 (as a research station), and is perhaps the grandest of all the Imperial palaces. Built entirely out of jade and marble, it seems to be almost transparent when lit by the sun. In these marble halls of divine right, the governing of the country is decided by His Imperial Majesty, with the help of his ministers.
	On this particular morning, the Emperor awoke with a start. The window was open. Christine (his wife, the Empress) must have done it when she left that morning. He rose out of bed and stepped towards the window. He meant to close it, but instead decided to walk a bit before everyone arrived for the day. The palace was extremely pretty at this time in the morning, aglow with the summer sun. He sat at the fountain of St. Andrew and played with the water for a little while. It was very nice here, a slight breeze was marauding over the landscape, playing tag with the trees.
	Just then he heard the window slam shut. He turned around and saw his sister, Her Imperial Highness the Grand Duchess Amelia, standing just out of view of the window. He’d seen this behavior before; she was hiding from her tutor, Sister Margareta. She apparently had not noticed her brother, for she had decided it was safe to move and suddenly gave a start at the sight of him.
	“Goodness,” she said as she jumped back. “You sure gave me a fright, Carl.”
	“A thousand apologies,” he said, as she picked a fruit from the large bowl and bit an enormous bite out of it, hardly the manners of a cowgirl, from the table on the veranda. She sat down.*
*Sitting down before his Imperial Majesty is considered incredibly rude, especially in his own residence, but is allowed on occasion, in informal meetings.
	

	Just then, George and Alexandre rushed through the window, slammed it shut, and let out an identical sigh of relief. Then, like Amelia, they both turned round and jumped. 
	“Out with it, what did you two do?” The Emperor said in a half exasperated, half laughing voice.
	They both glanced at Amelia and she responded with a quick flick of her head to signify that if they said anything they would have her to reckon with. “Amelia caught Sister Margareta’s wig on fire.”
	Amelia laid her head in her hands. “Idiots,” she thought.
	Carl sighed, deeply. At times it seemed that his family was a ridiculous comic strip. “All right, get up Amelia, we’re all going to go apologize to Sister Margareta. Where’s Louisa?”
	“Probably day dreaming about one Lt. Braven,” Amelia muttered. Alex and George snickered.
	“Well,” Carl said, dismayed, “we’ll do it without her.” 

	A couple hours later, Alex was walking on the grounds, not really noticing where he was going. Alex both liked and disliked being the youngest. It meant that everyone was older than he (and never let him forget it), but it also meant that he was also treated differently, he was somehow more interesting to people then his siblings (besides the Emperor, of course). He had walked into the artificial wood they had put in a couple of years ago behind the Saint Mary Garden. Classes were over for the day and he had nothing to do. He picked up a large stone and threw it into the pond. 
	“Nothing ever happens here,” he thought a loud to himself. “Nothing!” His life was anything but excitement. Just the same routine, day after day. Oh he knew he was much more fortunate than others, but he also knew that others got to do what they wish and go where they please. He headed back toward the palace, dejectedly thinking about the boring events of the day.

						_ _ _

	Jerry quickly ushered Marilyn behind a clump of bushes and out of sight. According to the geometer, they were in North America, but that couldn’t be. America was supposed to be a desert, not a green valley bordered with trees. And there were people down there! How could there be people in North America, hadn’t everyone been evacuated in 2069?
	“Jerry?” Marilyn said, the fear in her voice was unmistakable.
	“Not now Marilyn,”
 	“Jerry?”	
	“Not now, there are people down there, we have to be quiet!”
	“There are people up here too!” This got Jerry’s attention. He spun round and sure enough, there were twenty or so people standing behind them, shocked faces on all. They were bringing apples back from a day in the orchard and were gaping at the strangers.
	And, like clockwork, everyone started to scream. Marilyn grabbed Jerry and off they were into the woods; the natives grabbed their children and scurried toward the village at the end of the valley. Neither party stopped until they had put considerable distance between the other. In the village, the story quickly spread and soon a mob had formed. In the woods, Jerry and Marilyn had run for about ten minutes. They were now utterly lost. The forest engulfed them, swallowing them into complete darkness. But just because they couldn’t see, didn’t mean that they couldn’t hear. They voices of the mob were coming closer and closer. Suddenly there was a great burst of light above them, flickering. Fire. Jerry looked around for something to hide behind; there wasn’t even a shrub.
	“Up Jerry, climb!” Marilyn shouted, and Jerry hastened to do so. Jerry had always been an expert climber, and climbing these trees was a cinch. Marilyn was even better than Jerry and had studied the physical and mental effects of climbing at the Queen Maud Land University of Physical Culture. Soon both were well hidden in a mighty oak, watching the ground for any sign of the mob. 
	At several points during their camp in the tree, the mob seemed to be right below their hiding place, but they never saw them. After what seemed like forever, the crowd must have gone back to their village because there were no more sounds. All was quiet except for a small bird whistling in the early evening. 
	“What do we do now?” Marilyn asked Jerry.
	“I think we should stay in this tree until tomorrow. When there is light we’ll figure out how to get out of here,” Jerry said, frowning.
	“Okay, you sleep for a couple hours and I’ll keep watch,” Marilyn said, looking about her.
	“Okay, but at the slightest thing you wake me up.” He pinched his fingers to signify smallness as he said it.
_ _ _
	
	“Sir Frederick is here Majesty; he says it is urgent.”
	“Oh, send him in,” the Emperor said with disdain. “The sooner the better.” Carl was seated at the magnificent Catherine II desk given to him upon his ascension to the throne.
	“Majesty!” Sir Frederick boomed, “How delightful to see you again, and in good health!”
	“Good morning Sir Frederick, I trust your journey has not been too harsh?” said the Emperor.
	“Not in the least, Majesty, but it would seem that I am the bearer of some rather bad news.” He paused, waiting for the Emperor to ask, but he waited in vain. “It is my sad duty to inform you sir, that the Galactic Flier has crashed. It never made it to Renvar (Renvar, pop: 100,830,342, capital of Mars) and we’re not quite sure where it is.”
	The Emperor usually made it a habit not to stare at people, but this time was different. He gaped, his mouth dumbly hanging there. Finally he managed to put a question together: “Survivors?”
	“100,000, all missing majesty, they crashed in the Great Huron desert.”
	“God help them all,” His Imperial Majesty said, meaning every word.

Section 2, Plans

	Alex stepped back in horror, he had only stopped outside his brother’s door to ask if he was ever coming to dinner (the chicken was as cold as the Ross Ice Shelf), not to hear that! It was terrible, all those people. It was like that legend of the ship that sank on its maiden voyage, the “Titan,” or something like that; he couldn’t believe it. He hesitantly retraced his steps back to the main dining room and sat down. He stared at his brother and sisters. How could they be so happy, he thought.
	Louisa held up a gentile hand to signify the end of her conversation with George and turned to Alex. “What is the matter? You look like you just got the shock of your life.” A tear started to fall and she immediately stopped mocking him and rushed over to his chair.
	“What is it? What has happened?” she asked, worriedly.	
	“I w-went to get Carl, and, and...”
	“Nobody’s died, have they?”
	He looked up at her and she knew something horrendous must have happened.
	“Who has died, what has happened?”
	“The Galactic Flier crashed, in the Great Huron Desert,” he said. “Survivors: unknown.”
					                  _ _ _

       Jerry was slowly recovering from his night in the tree. He ached all over. They had started out at dawn and eaten only berries. He was starving, but they had to move quickly, the barbarians could come back at anytime. As they quickly scuttled, then stopped, then scuttled, Jerry noticed that Marilyn had been in deep thought ever since starting out that morning. Marilyn herself knew that she was thinking a great deal, but wasn’t quite sure what she was thinking about. It had all happened so suddenly; The ship coming down--who knew if there were any survivors, the realization that America was not completely a desert, and there were people down there, in that valley, as she was thinking!
       Jerry suddenly stopped. Marilyn bumped into him.
       “Hey--”
       “SHHH, don’t you hear that?” Marilyn listened.
       “We will not harm you, we will not harm you. Please come out.” Called a shaky voice. “We just want to help you.”
       “Do you s’pose--” said Jerry, Marilyn replied with a nod. They were calling them.
       “Marilyn, I think we ought to go, the ship must have crashed miles away, we’ll never find it.”
       “What if it’s a trap?”
       “Well, we sure can run fast.”
       Marilyn cracked a smile.
       
       That night, the Emperor and his siblings sat in a hushed silence. It was all too horrible to take in. Finally, Alex broke the silence
       “Will there be a search?”
       “I suspect so,” the Emperor said very quietly, lifting the drink in his hand to his lips.
       “Could I--” They all stared at him, “Could I go with them and help?”
       The Emperor looked long and hardly into his brother’s face. On any normal day he would have immediately said “no,” but this was different. He understood the feeling in his brother to help and the fact of not being able to. 
       “Yes,” was only word the emperor would say on the subject that night.
       The others stared in silence.
       “Thank you, Majesty,” and after a quick nod toward his brother, Alex made his way to his room and started packing, given new life by his quest. He didn’t know what it was, but he just couldn’t sit idly by while there were so many people out there in the unknown. This was finally the chance for him to do something with his life.
       
       The next day brought with it more bad news. Preliminary spotting ships had been sent out and had discovered a crashed life pod, over a thousand people had died trying escape. The emperor had ordered an immediate rescue team to respond to the crisis, but that was not enough. Over 100,000 people had been on the Galactic Flier, too many for a rescue team. So, the emperor went on live television that night and urged all who could make the journey in a sea worthy vessel, to come to the aid of their fellow Antarcticans. It was with one of these, that Alex wished to help bring passengers home. But it was three days until Alex heard any more about going to North America. The emperor pulled him aside after breakfast and gave him some good news.
       “You’ll be taking the Imperial Yacht with Captain Finnagan in the morning, all right?”
       Alex could hardly believe his brother was really letting him go.
       “Now remember,” said Carl, taking his brother’s stunned silence for a ‘yes,’ “You are representing the Imperial family. You’ve got to be very kind and courageous.”
       “Don’t worry, I’m always that,” said Alex, a smile spreading on his face for the first time in a long time. He gave his brother an enormous hug and started to leave when his brother stopped him.
       “Wait!”
       “Yes?”
       “You stay--stay safe, okay?” the emperor asked. Alex knew the words were hard for him to say.
       “I promise,” he said and squeezed his brother’s hand. Then, without further ado, Alex ran off to tell Louisa, Amelia, George, and anyone else who would listen.

Section 3, the Departure

	Marilyn and Jerry soon found themselves in the little village where the call was coming from. It was a strange place; all of the homes seemed to be made out of old tents, and, Jerry thought he might just see something that looked suspiciously like a television aerial. As they approached tentatively, the villagers began to watch them, and soon Marilyn and Jerry were surrounded in a circle. A man shouted “They’re here!” And through the crowd an old voice came.
	“Move along, step aside.” An old man said, coming out of the crowd and sticking out his hand for Jerry to shake, then, with an air of the past, kissing Marilyn’s hand when she did the same. “Welcome to our home,” he said, pausing for breath. “Are you from the ship that crashed?” Marilyn and Jerry gaped at him.
	“How do you–”
	“Most people may have been evacuated in 2069,” the man said, tottering a little as he did so, “but they left all of their things. We have over 20 radios and we get the station from Mars. My name’s Eric, by the way.”
	“Ohh! Sorry!” And Jerry and Marilyn quickly introduced themselves. “So, you’ve been living here this entire time?” Marilyn asked, “Why?”
	“We did not want to leave our homes and roots, other than that we’re basically the same as you two.” The old man replied. “We listen to the same things, watch the same tv, you just never knew that we existed.” He stated, prompting Marilyn and Jerry to gaze sheepishly at the ground.
	“We thought you wanted kill us,” Jerry said, apologetically, “Sorry we haven’t been particularly friendly.”
	“Ohh, that’s fine.” Eric said, “Now, you both look like you’re starving, let’s get you fed!” And soon, Jerry and Marilyn found themselves at a long table eating delicious apple delicacies (which appeared to be the only thing these people ate) and were quite contented, now knowing that if they were not rescued, they were at least not going to be eaten by crazy villagers.
						_ _ _

	The fog horns could be heard for miles from Queen Maud Land Port. It was amazing, Alex was so excited; he couldn’t sit down. The Imperial yacht was sending out its dinghy to come and fetch him. Alex was leaning over the railing of the pier, the emperor not too far away, while the others sat on a bench. He couldn’t believe he was doing something that could really help people! Being a part of something larger than life made him larger than life. 
	And finally, after what seemed like an hour of rowing from the decent-sized Jupiter (the Imperial yacht), the dinghy arrived. Captain Finnagan was there to help him and his small bag on to the cramped boat. He saluted as Alex climbed down the pier ladder and then bowed deeply upon seeing His Imperial Majesty. 
	“If he gets himself in trouble, just lock him below decks,” Carl said to Captain Finnagan jokingly. 
	“Aye-Aye Sir,” said Captain Finnagan, a smile on his face. Then, with a departing salute, Alex and Captain Finnagan were off. Carl, Louisa, Amelia, and George all waved and yelled as loud as they could and Alex did the same back. He wondered when he would next see them, but wasn’t too anxious. This needed him more than they did. 

						The End

		Crash, 6-8, p. 8		

		   Crash, 6-8, p. 1