Conquered by the Flare

“Newt”.

My heart sank when Janson read out my name.

How long would I live now?

A year? Or two? Less than that?

I knew this all along.

I never listened to the head that told me

That I wasn’t a Munie.

What am I gonna do?

Tommy, please don’t look at me that way.

You never trusted WICKED.

So why do it now?

I don’t wanna see you this way, Tommy.

Minho, you too.

You’re the only family I have left.

I don’t see Lizzie- Sonya as much as I used to.

So what if he says the Flare’s gonna eat me up?

Just wait and watch as I eat it up instead.

What? You don’t trust me?

I love you, Tommy. You’re one hell of a brother.

I knew that right since when you were the Greenie

Who’s gonna call you a shank- or klunk-faced if I’m gone?

Don’t say Minho.

Cuz’ no one can do that the way I do.

Like, Newt is Newt, you know?

Gally killed Chuck.

No, WICKED killed Chuck.

We’ll avenge that shuck-faced kid together.

But, you know what?

I won’t live that long.

No, the Flare’s not gonna kill me.

You will, Tommy, you will.

The Fifteen Minutes

The Daily Times News Station

Death Valley, California.

6^th August, 2099

The earth witnessed a gruesome episode of extreme heat over a year ago. It has settled down now, and shall hopefully remain under control for a while.

John Adams, one of the survivors of the twenty-five minute ordeal, is here to share his account.

28^th May, 2098

Jane, my wife of five years, Micheal, my four year old son, and I, a 32 year old pharmacologist, lived in the ground floor of this squatty two-storied building in the North of the city. Our house wasn’t that valuable. It had three rooms, a kitchen, and two balconies. The disrupted drains made the bathrooms stink and the entire house smelled of dead mice and cockroaches. No amount of room freshener could get rid of that ridiculous smell. I found myself locked in the biggest room in the house that time- the research lab. Mum had come home. Jane and Michael kept her company, while I, the extremely devoted scientist in the family, chose to spend those minutes with my work.

The city was unusually hot that day. It was 04:45, a time when we’d usually be lying snug on our beds, warm blankets protecting us from the cold. But that morning was different. The heat was unbearable. Worse than the episode in 1913. It woke us late risers up that early. To top it all, my mum was home. I couldn’t bear her whining about how hot the place was. We all could feel it too, for God’s sake. Once I got sick of her whines, I just got up, moved to my lab, and locked myself in there.

04:50

Jane called me from outside, and asked me to turn on the radio. I obliged, and turned on the dusty old radio to listen to the dedicated reporters who were ready to do the work in such a hot environment. “Temperatures have reached an all time high, standing at 140°F as at 04:48 hours, and is expected to rise. Citizens are requested not to get out of their houses until further information is received. You are advised to keep your houses as cool as possible. If you happen to be outside, kindly get to shelter as soon as possible.”

The world’s end, I thought. Dr.Mackenzie said this would happen. It was all part of our research. Temperatures were soaring that month, and this was the number one item at every day’s discussion at the Absinthe Labs. The multi-national company that aimed at developing newer and more efficient medicines had set up its base in our city just over a year ago, and the timely transfer gave me the opportunity to stand at the post of the Head of Pharmacology in the esteemed institution. Dr.Mackenzie, my Boss and the Director of the company, had studied meteorology, and was one of the best in his field. His prediction led to the beginning of Project Sathewo, which aimed at developing a medicine in case the inevitable, which was, the end of the world, was about to happen. And the reporter on the radio that filled up the absence from the inability to fit a TV in the room had just said that Dr.Mackenzie’s fear was about to come true.

But the medicine was still a step away from getting ready to give humans the immunity against the super high temperatures. We couldn’t give this to the people yet.

04:55

Just another drop. One drop more and the medicine would be ready. All I’d have to do then would be to spread it. I had 1000 vials ready. A machine that’d help me fill in the required medicine that’d save my city. I was just one drop away from being the Protector of my City. I was just one drop away from being famous. We’d be so rich! I’d be able to give Michael the home he wanted and a super big room in exchange for denying the biggest room of the house we lived in.

I was just one drop away.

Plop.

04:56

I held my breath. I watched in anticipation as the classified chemical dropped down the burette into the beaker. A short series of chemical reactions later, I found myself testing the medicine with the super advanced tester my team had developed.

It worked.

My medicine worked.

I was just one step away from being famous.

04:59

“John?” Jane called out to me.

“What?’

“Your mum says she wants to speak with you. She says she’s getting this bad feeling.”

“Later, Jane. I’m just a step away from saving our people. You’ll all be safe then, and we’ll have all the time to spend with each other.”

“But...”

I looked at my wristwatch. “I’ll be out in fifteen minutes. Then we’ll all go about saving the city.”

A short pause. “Okay.”

Then I found myself starting my team’s invention. 1000 vials. The amount of medicine each held was capable of saving more people than you could imagine. One bottle at a time, the machine that still leaves me in awe, filled and sealed the vials with the life-giving medicine. I was doing it all by myself. I could see it coming- John: The Creator of the Manna- they could make a film about me, no?

The last fifteen minutes.

05:00

Filling up the bottles all by myself was harder than I expected. I should’ve called someone from work. Paul lives just upstairs, I thought. But I didn’t call him. Maybe I was too stuck up in doing this all by my own that I had decided not to share the success with anyone else.

05:01

I had filled 25 vials. The machine was super fast, I must say. Michael called out to me. “Dada, can you please come out for a sec? Gramma’s getting kind scared. We’re all getting scared. Gramma really wants to talk to you.”

It’s just been 2 minutes, I thought to myself.

“Dada?”

“I’ll be out in a while, my boy. Dada’s in the middle of a super important job right now. This thing can give you everything you want. I can even get you the biggest house you want. Just give Dada some more time, he’ll be out.”

Michael hesitated. “Okay.”

05:02

The radio was still on. But the focus I had on the vials distracted me. I don’t know what, but something suddenly shifted my focus to the voice on the radio.

“Dear people, I’m really sorry to say this, but the temperature rise is going out of reason. We fear the world’s going to burn out soon. A few houses in my side of the city have already burst into flames. We request you all to spend as much time as you can with the people who deserve you. We fear there’s not much time left.”

It was Dr.Mackenzie.

05:03

No, this couldn’t be happening.

The world couldn’t burn out just like that! I mean, how bad could it be? It is really hot, but hot enough to burn buildings? Dr.Mackenzie must be saying that to ensure that way too adventurous people don’t take risks and walk out of their houses.

I haven’t spoken much about my Boss. Dr.Mackenzie was a super famous meteorologist. It seemed rather out-of-place when he was chosen as the Director for a company that manufactured drugs for diseases like common cold, but I realized his importance when the temperature began rising. Project Sathewo needed him. He had this immense love for the society, and would push all limits to ensure that the people around him lived. He’d state unreasonable lies to save humanity. He’d even commit the most heinous crime, if it would save his people.

This had to be one of those moments.

I stood in my lab, doing nothing for an entire minute. I just stood, wondering about what Dr.Mackenzie just said. “We fear there’s not much time left.” What on earth was wrong with him?

05:05

I convinced my mind that abandoning my work at that time was useless. I trusted Dr.Mackenzie more than myself, but what he just said was outrageous. I resumed my work. Jane pounded at the door asking me to come out. She shouted something. But all I could make out was gibberish. I didn’t understand a word she said. And I ignored her.

Useless woman doesn’t know how big her husband’s work is.

05:07

The radio called me again.

“Houses in the South of the city have been catching fire due to the excessive heat. It is getting close to impossible to capture a good enough reading of the temperature. Incidents of burning residences are slowly spreading in all directions. It looks like we’re nearing our doom.”

05:08

The lady on the radio is too much of a pessimist.

Dr.Mackenzie seemed to have convinced everyone that the world was coming to its end. I started hating the person I always considered my role model. His claims seemed so negative. He never was like this.

I kept my focus on filling up the vials. Surprisingly, I had filled up 150 vials by then, surprisingly. As if my luck had it, Paul came over just then. I heard him pounding on the door. Hearing his voice, I opened it and shut it as fast as I could. I couldn’t have any more pessimists in the room.

Paul was this brotherly character in my life. I never had any siblings, and Paul filled up that void for me. He was to be married in a month. I don’t think I would’ve been able to pass college if I didn’t have him. He was this supporting pillar that held me when I almost fell to my doom. I never want to recall those times.

05:09

Paul got in, and asked me to leave the room immediately.

“Good Lord, man, what is WRONG with you?” I shouted at my best friend.

“Dude, can’t you see it? We’re all gonna die! Spend your last moments with your mother! Think of Michael! And Jane!”

He spotted the vials I was filling. “Dude, seriously? This… thing is useless now!”

I couldn’t believe he had just said that. Ignoring him, I went to the back of the room and handed him one of the protective suits. I entrusted in him 25 vials.

“Go give this to all the people you can reach.”

He gave me a look of disgust, then stormed outside the room. 

05:10

Paul walked out of the room. I assumed he had regained his senses and resumed my work, when, about forty-five seconds later, I heard a crash outside in the hall.

He had smashed the vials on the ground.

“PAUL! ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?”

I barged out of my room shouting those words. I still had some vials in my hand. I was fuming at what Paul had just done. My best friend had ruined the very first steps that would lead me to my fame.

05:11

But when I walked out of the room, I stopped. I could see nothing. This blinding flash of light instantaneously filled the room.

I figured out in an instant it wasn’t there all this while. Dr.Mackenzie was right. The temperature was rising way too fast. My medicine could NOT save the people in such a situation.

I managed to make out four weak silhouettes a few centimeters away from me. 

The first one was closer than the other. Paul was there. My family and his fiancée too.

05:12

Guilt overpowered me. I had been such a jerk. I had chosen my work over the forces I needed the most. When did I grow so evil and selfish and cruel? I couldn’t see a thing in front of me, but ran anyway. I’d eventually run into someone. And I did. Paul grabbed me just as I bumped into him.

“GET DOWN! YOU’LL BE ABLE TO SEE BETTER!” He shouted.

I followed.

05:13

Five seconds seemed like an eternity. I reached Jane. Michael and Mum were there too. Grubby faces. Teary eyes. I normally hated those, but now they were the most relieving sights.

“Dada, are we all gonna die?”

“We’ll live, my boy. You’ll get to live in your big room.”

Lies.

Mum squeezed my shoulder. When I looked up at her, she gave me this smile, as if she were saying, “I’m glad you came, my son.” But she was sad. And disappointed.

05:14

I caught I glimpse of Jane.

“Do you smell something burning?”

My house was on fire.

We had second-degree burns. Or maybe it was worse.

We were dying.

05:15

I don’t know what happened, but a few seconds later, the flash grew brighter. Then I saw everything in front of me go dim. It was unsettlingly silent. I didn’t feel any pain anymore.

When I regained consciousness, I found myself in this hospital that was in a luckily well-protected location, about ten miles from my house. The place was not immune to the heat, but it was undeniably better than the other places I had seen. The nurse pointed out to the bed next to me and said there were only two survivors from the fire in my building. It took me a while to identify that that face was Michael's. The four year old had survived with me, I’m happy for that. The moment he saw me, he said, “Dada, I don’t want a big room. I just want you to be with me.”

Mum, Jane, Paul and his fiancée were gone. Heat stroke and suffocation chose them and spared the two of us.

I miss them so much. And I couldn’t even say goodbye.

6^th August, 2099

“The Daily Times covers the story of a lot of survivors of the ordeal. All of them just have one thing to say. They all regret having been victims of mechanization. They all despise having being blinded by luxuries.”

“Dr.Adams, do you have anything else to say before we conclude?”

“Oh of course I do. You see, we’re all so stuck up with keeping up. I’ve been stuck up with getting famous. But at the end, nothing was worth it. You’ve heard my story. It was the most harrowing experience ever. I hated it. I hope none of you have to experience this. Remember, work is not the most important thing in the world. It’s living with the people that love you that’s more important. Thank you.”

“Thank you, Mr.Adams. It’s time to sign off for the day. Mr.John Adams, everyone, and I’m Samantha Hedge."