Elon Musk was right about Mars... /Part 1 of the "Space Billionaires Series/

“Listen…”

I can’t move.

Why can’t I move?

“Jaylen. Calm down. You are safe here.” a man’s voice says from around me.

As I calm myself, I take in my surroundings. I'm in a lighted coffin?

“We are attempting to rescue you Jaylen. Once you are out, you must listen to my instructions to survive.”

“No! NO! LET ME OUT!” I scream at the top of my lungs. The “Lighted Coffin” flashes red. 

“Loud noises detected. Set up a force field from outside?” a robotic voice askes.

“Jaylen! Don’t say yes. Say no.” the man tells me.

I think for a second. I don’t trust this man or this “coffin”. I just want out.

“No.” I say, still unsure of my decision. 

Maybe the man is telling the truth? The red lights flash back to white and I sigh. I’m not going to explode today.

“Help!” a woman’s voice screams, and I know it's not mine.

“Excuse me, what’s your name?” I ask the man quickly.

“Ethan.” he replies, and I imagine a tall, dark haired guy standing outside of this death coffin. 

“Well, Ethan. I need you to tell me who was screaming.”

“Uh,” he pauses, and I can only hear his breathing now. “Someone else from the project.”

“The project? What is-?”

“SHUT UP!” he yells and my ears start to ring. I guess he doesn't understand how loud it is here. “Stop asking questions.”

I stop, not wanting to get yelled at again. Staring up at the ceiling of the “lighted coffin”, I drift off to sleep.

------------------

“Jaylen! Get up!” 

My eyes fly open, and I try to sit up, but I still can’t move. I look around, checking for any signs of escape. Not yet.

“What?” I ask, angered by how loud Ethan is. He doesn't respond and my heart beats in my chest. “Ethan?”

“Relax. Your heart rate went up, and that's not good. Especially not right now.” he responds. 

How can he see my heart rate? I wonder. 

Why am I wondering about this? He says that’s not good, especially not right now. 

Why is it not good right now?

“Ethan, what’s going on out there?” My voice is strained, because I am extremely nervous right now. I want to see what’s happening outside of this coffin thing, but I’m stuck in it, and he still hasn't found a way out yet!

“Jaylen. Let me work.” he tells me, sounding frustrated. 

In the background, an alarm goes off that reminds me of one I’ve heard before. One I had heard when everything was…

Normal?

I think hard. When I first woke up, I didn’t remember anything except my name. Something must have happened to the place I was before, because I thought the word normal. What was normal? Where was I before this?

“Ethan. I need you to tell me. I don’t remember a lot.” 

I hear him inhale.

“Fine,” he says. “Your name is Jaylen Bassinger, you're 22 years old. You used to live on Earth, before we were attacked. You were part of a select group of people chosen to live on our new world, Mars.”

Mars? I thought that place was inhabitable…

The thought of me, being on Mars, because of some attack that happened is kind of nerve wracking. It feels weird, because years ago, I remember they never thought that they would ever make it to Mars. Well, except for Elon Musk and the shit he was on…

           ELON MUSK! I actually remembered that!

           “Jaylen, I need you to stay quiet. Something just got into the ship. You’re safe, but I’m not.” Ethan says quietly. Oh gosh.

          If Ethan dies, I’m never getting out of this thing. 

          Shit, now I’m hyperventilating. 

The coffin thing flashes red and tears start to gather in my eyes.

         “Oxygen levels low. Please leave the chamber.” The robotic lady says. I can hear Ethan cursing in the background.

         “Jaylen, I’m almost done opening the chamber. Give me one…..”

         The chamber opens and fog clouds my vision. 

         “Ethan? Where are you?” I call out. A hand reaches into the chamber and helps me up.

         He is nothing like I expected. Blond hair, and golden eyes. He smiles.

         “Welcome back Jaylen. Turns out the thing that got into the ship wasn’t a thing at all, it was one of the boxes that held our food rations. It fell and triggered the alarm."

         I get out of the chamber and start to float. Zero gravity.

        “Are there others?” I ask quietly. Ethan nods.

I float around without any control.

        “Jaylen, you’re part of the New Earth project. The future of everyone on this ship is in our hands right now because, for now, you are the only one I’ve gotten out of the chamber. Everyone else is still unconscious.”

         “How did I get to be part of this project?” I ask him.

         “Well Jaylen, where should I start?”