Space

Jane and her mother sat transfixed in front of the computer screen; the blood drained from their faces. Neither said a word. This is not at all what they were expecting when they woke up this morning, excited to see their brother and son. Watching a comet collide with Mars and obliterate all life is not something one expects to see on a random Wednesday morning.

Growing up, Jason was obsessed with everything related to space. He was forever going on about becoming and astronaut when he was small and later dreaming about studying space engineering at Caltech. He never considered other options, no matter how many brochures their mother brought home to try and convince him to take a different career. Even though a space engineering degree does not mean definite space missions, she just knew he would never settle for a space-related job on earth. Some way or another he would find his way onto a space mission and it scared their mother to no end.

For Jane, three years younger, Jason’s dreams of space were just a fact of life. It never unsettled her the way it upset their mother. Their father passed away when Jane was three and Jason six, probably making it even harder for their mother to accept the danger her son wanted to expose himself to.

Jason was in his freshman year of college when news broke of a space mission going to Mars to settle a colony there. Jane was sure Jason’s application reached them first. The requirements of the mission included physical fitness and at least a masters’ degree in a field such as engineering, biological science, physical science, computer science, or mathematics from an accredited institution. Jason started exercising three hours a day and worked even harder at his studies. He was determined to go. This was his dream, and nothing could stop him.

After having a nervous breakdown and starting on anti-anxiety medication, their mother tried her hardest, even using guilt, to try to convince him to drop the idea. This was even worse than her previous worst nightmare. She was initially concerned there may be an accident if he goes to space, but at least there was always a good chance that he would return. Mars Colony candidates will settle on Mars forever, never to return to Earth.

And this is what brought Jane and her mother to the computer early on this Wednesday morning in November. It was cold out, but they had an appointment to speak to Jason via satellite connection. He finished his masters’ degree in time and was selected as one of the first candidates. By this stage, their mother has accepted the reality of the situation, seeing her son once a week on a computer screen. He even met a girl while training for the mission and they were expecting their first child. One of the first new babies to be born for the new colony on Mars.

Neither Jane nor her mother could understand why anyone would go as far as to live on a different planet, but Jason and Jamie took to the place as if they were born to be there. Jamie being a medical doctor and Jason with his passion and qualifications in space engineering were the perfect couple and perfect candidates to live on Mars. And they were to have the perfect baby.

But when Jane and her mother switched on the computer on that cold Wednesday morning, they had no idea what was waiting for them. It was still early, so Jane decided to quickly scan the news headlines before they must log in to speak to Jason and Jamie. What she saw filled her with horror. Nasa headlines dominated the news, with pictures of a comet heading straight for Mars. The reporter hysterically reporting how the comet was expected to reach mars within the next 24 hours. Nasa could not explain how no one was able to see this earlier or predict that the comet was on a collision path with Mars. A few years ago, this would have been big news, but not of the life or death nature. Now there was human life on Mars. Human life that was to be obliterated within a few seconds.

The application they used to communicate with Jason started to make a ringing sound. It took Jane and her mother a moment to get out of their state of shock and realise that they need to answer. Jason’s face appeared on the screen. A deep frown creased his forehead. Seeing their faces, he knew they have heard the news. “I am sorry, Mom,” was all he could say before he broke down in tears. Jamie’s face appeared beside his. “Hi Mom,” she said. Jane could see her eyes were swollen and red. “How long have you known?” Jane asked. Jason regained his composure and answered. “We heard yesterday. It appears Nasa knew about the comet for many years, but it hit an asteroid which threw it off course. It was supposed to pass close to Mars, but it was never supposed to hit us.” Their mother, too stunned to speak, sat with wide eyes as reality set in. She knew from the day Jason first came home with the notion of becoming an astronaut that something terrible will happen to him.

The next moment the screen froze with Jason and Jamie’s faces on it. Then they were gone. Jane tried to log back in, but there was no connection. Opening another screen, they sat in stunned silence watching on a news video slow-motion footage of a ball of fire hitting a planet. Looking for other news channels with perhaps different reports on the incident, all Jane could find was the same image playing over and over everywhere. Jane’s mother got up and walked slowly to the kitchen. “This was inevitable, Janey. I always knew something would happen. I just never thought it would be this. Let me make us some sweet tea.”

A ball of fire sat in the sky for weeks after as Mars burned. Condolences streamed in and reporters camped on the front lawn while Jane’s mother lay sedated in her room.