Lurranus Stories: After Lurranus

The interior of the spaceship is white, with a few windows give us a view of the place I've always dreamed of. The chairs are blue leather ones and there are about ten seats so I'm guessing that there's twenty people on board. And there's the captain, and possibly some robots.

So as we all sit quietly, I reach into my pocket and take out my JAYLD E2 phone, an item I found in the aftermath of the war, and turn it on. I place my finger on the glass screen and start shuffling through the games. I feel someone looking over my shoulder and lift my head up. My new made friend Connor Jack is staring at my phone and then says "Nice phone." He pauses. "Do you have a nice, like, everything or something? Cos you've got a nice car and a nice phone. Next thing I know you'll be telling you've got a space station!"

I laugh. "A space station is a bit far." Then a thought crosses my mind and I reach into the rucksack wedged between my legs. Taking out an object, I press it into Connors hand and say "Here, take this."

His eyes widen as he realises want I've given him. "This is one of those glass screen phone things." He says, looking down into his hand. He moves his head up to face me. "Cheers man!" He cheerily replies.

"It's no big deal." I tell him. "I've got tons in my bag." It's true; I've collected loads of things over the years, in abandoned houses and old deserted shops. It's what fills the majority of my bag.

Connor starts talking but this words soon become a blur to me as the question of why I didn't go into Lurranus resurfaces in my head. I try to turn away from it, to listen to Connor but it just keeps nagging at me, demanding an answer.

"James?" I feel Connors hand on my shoulder. "Are you OK?"

"Oh, yeah, sure." I tell him, forcing a smile. "I'm fine."

"That's cool. So yeah, what phone is this?"

"A V-Tech 12u." I say, then I decide to tell him some extra facts to pass the time. "Made 2239, the eighteenth V-Tech phone..."

Soon we're having a conversation, my worries forgotten. We mainly talk about technology, because that's what's Connor wants to talk about and I enjoy going into  detail about it all. For the first time ever I'm able to relax, to lose myself in the words and just be me.

Suddenly we hear the captains voice and our heads perk up.

"This is your captain speaking. We have arrived at Mimas and are now docking in the moon base. Please prepare to disembark. There is gravity in the base."

I make my legs release my rucksack, let it float up and then grab it. Then I get ready to get out of my seat. We are here.

 

After the captain has announced that we have docked, everyone gets up, takes what they have (if they have anything) then goes down to the first floor to exit. I am the last to exit, as I take some time to look out the window into the depths of the universe. As I child I mainly thought about surviving and worrying about my family, but sometimes I wondered about space and what, if anything, was out there in the galaxy. But after my parents had both died I never thought about it again, mainly because I was consumed by sadness and haunted by memories. Memories that still haunt me this very day.

Just before I get sucked into a vision of one of my parents deaths, Connor taps on my and I am yanked back into reality.

"So, are you coming or what?" I hear him say.

"Um... Oh, right, yeah." I reply. "I was just looking."

My legs move me over to the door and out of it. I enter a corridor that's made of steel, with overhead lights showing the way to was presumably the main part of the moon base.

"So," Connor asks as we walk along. "How old are you? I always forget how the system works."

"I'm one hundred and forty-one. You?"

"I'm twenty-eight." He tells me. "So, do you now how the system works."

"Well," I begin. "The Slow-Down kicks in once your twelve, and basically when your twelve you'll look twelve, when your twenty-four you'll look thirteen and so on."

"Thanks." Connor says to me as we get to the end of the corridor and see a door in our way. We push it open and it leads into some kind of cafeteria. I'm not sure what the time is but since everyone else is sitting down and getting some Cubes, so we both go over to a stall and get a plate. Then I put six Cubes on my plate-a normal one, a toffee flavoured one, a strawberry one, a chocolate one, a chicken one and a crisps one-then look around for a place to sit. I see someone wave at Connor so he goes over to them and I decide to follow him there. My new friend has already started a conversation with the man before he has even sat down. I study the man. He looks about fourteen to fifteen so he must be in his twenties, thirties or forties. His hair is black, the same as Connor I realise, and he has emerald green eyes.

The two of us both sit down and Connor introduces us. "James, this is my friend Andy." He says. "Andy, James."

We awkwardly shake hands, then Connor starts talking about his new phone. "Andy, his guy is freakin' awesome! Look at the phone he got me!" I can't help but smile at the his enthusiasm. He seems so happy. I wish I could be like him.

"What kinda phone is it?" Andy quizzes him.

"It's a... Um... What'd ya call it James?"

"A V-Tech 12u." I tell him.

"It's a V-Tech 12u." He says to Andy proudly.

Soon we're all talking and eating our Cubes and it turns out we all get along really well. However, when I'm showing my HSI 3E phone to Andy we hear someone clear their throat and we all look up to see who it is.

A man has gone into the middle of the room and has just started talking. 

"You will be sleeping in rooms of three." Andy, Connor and me all look at each other and I know that the decision is made. "If anyone wishes to return to Earth, there are twenty-five escape pods that can be used for that purpose." He paused. "Now you are free to do as you please. Come with we if you wish to see the rooms."

The three of us get up, along with some others, then follow the man to the rooms. It's not far to walk, just around a corner where ten rooms await, five on each side.

"Please make your choice." Then he adds "First come, first served."

Connor eagerly sets of to a room at the far left and me and Andy follow him. He pushes the door in and enters then retreats back out, clearly happy about what he has seen.

"We got a king size bed in there each! It's awesome!"

We follow into the room, where Connor has clearly marked where he's sleeping, and look around. My enthusiastic friend isn't lying. The beds could fit in three people with a fair amount of space in between each of them. And the three of us have one each. I allow myself a smile. There is also a set a shelves for us each, three leather chairs and a door that leads into a toilet.

For the next hour or so, we continue the conversation we started at the table, talking about lots of things but we are all careful to avoid going into our pasts, as mine is painful and I'm sure it is the same for the others.

As we are mid conversation, we hear a tannoy announcing that dinner is in the cafeteria, so we rise from our chairs and head there. On our arrival, we see most people have gathered into groups, while their are two lone people at either edge of the room, showing no signs of emotion.

Once again, I follow Connor and this time Andy as well as we settle down at a table, near to the others but not incredibly close. We go up and get some Cubes, taking a couple since we no longer need to feed a whole population with them. At dinner, there is less conversation, a few sentences exchanged before silence takes over again. But it is still enjoyable. I am the first to head back to the room, putting my clothes and gadgets on a shelf before I collapse on my bed. After all that's happened, my body is now tired and the last thing I remember before blanking out is thinking maybe life here won't be so bad.