The Mars Experience

Chapter 12: Athena

Outside on the hot cement, people protest. Their signs read phrases like,

"It's murder!"

"You can't kill us on a different planet!"

Cops are running around everywhere. A large fire starts up in a small structure nearby. Panic fully strikes. The bruised protestors crawl out from the building, their faces covered in ashes. They cough and turn, some crying, others still furious.

I see my mom being dragged over to the crowd by two cops, each gripping one of her arms.

The people turn in a U-shape to face her. They want answers. We're all tugging at each other's arms to move, but simultaneously too spellbound by the sheer chaos. It's horrible, yet you can't look away.

The crowd turns silent.

A few tense moments pass, and my mom yells, "It's true!"

She's leaving me behind. She's breathing, but I'm looking at a dead woman. I blink back tears. If the company doesn't get her, the people will. The crowd turns silent. They're all as shocked as I am. If anything, nobody expected her to admit to it.

The yelling starts up again. My mom is shot by the cops hauling her. The entire crowd upheaves in shock. My eyes burn and I instinctively run towards her bleeding body before Brianna and Jedrek pull me back. Right. The mission. Can't forget about the mission. I try to cover my face and wipe away the tears that seem to flow uncontrollably.

"Hey! That's the scientist's daughter," someone calls out from the audience. Reporters begin to move closer, but they're stopped by two shots fired up into the air.

Immediately, a group of cops attempt to surround us. Most of us manage to run out fast enough, except for Emma. Seven cops making a tight circle around a little kid, carrying two guns each, one in their hands and one in their holster, is more than enough to send a message.

A wannabe hero from the mob drops their sign and starts running towards Emma. "Stay back," one of the cops yell. The protestor refuses to listen and continues charging forward. Another cop shoots him in his upper shoulder, barely taking time to aim. It makes him slow down enough so that he isn't a threat anymore. I'm guessing it hurt enough for him to give up on being a hero.

The precision and willingness for bloodshed makes me realize they're the cops with the TTSICA. The ones who'll kill people for accidentally listening in on a meeting. They circled Emma with the full intent of ending her life.

Hugo remains frozen at the sight of Emma. While we still look for a plan, Conner takes charge. He sneaks up behind one of the cops and manages to slide the gun out of the uniformed man's holster, pressing it against the back of his neck. The scene probably looks very bold to people who aren't looking at Conner's face right now. He keeps looking back with panicked eyes and mouths, "I don't know!"

While the rest of the police pause to grasp the situation, a small group of activists from the mob follow by raiding the remaining cops of their guns. The element of surprise works wonders on people who think they've planned for every possible situation.

When the cops circle Conner, the activists run off and drop the guns on the ground. The uniformed men don't move to get the weapons.

Emma runs off into Hugo's arms, who hugs her close to his chest while they watch the situation go down. Donna begins shouting instructions at Conner on how to work the weapon. The cops continue facing Conner, some of them angry, out for blood, and the others with a twisted smirk plastered on their faces. People around us are still screaming, causing my head to spin so violently I can barely stand up straight.

Luckily, Conner catches on quick to Donna's commands. He cocks the gun and fires, the bullet rapidly entering a cop's gut. I can't help but notice that the smirking is quickly wiped off some of their faces. They thought it was a bluff.

He does it again, yet all the other cops still seem hesitant. Conner's face pales more and more with each hit. He shoots four more times, getting all the cops in their ribs with impressive accuracy. Jedrek and Donna even smile. Not all hope seems lost.

He turns around to face his last opponent and misses. "Shoot him again!" demands Donna. Her face turns pale. The cop successfully dodges, making him miss once more.

Conner cocks it and tries to shoot another time, but nothing comes out. While he's busy fiddling with the weapon, the policeman sprints to fetch a random gun and load it with a single piece of ammo. Conner is struck right in the stomach. He falls to his knees in the middle of the circle of bleeding cops, still trying to work the gun. The standing policeman reloads again and shoots him one more time, in his back, and he collapses. A pool of blood rapidly seeps around what used to be a happy kid.

My hand flies over my mouth in shock. Emma freezes, her bulging dark brown eyes turn pink, tears sticking to the corners of her eyelashes, and her jaw drops as she stares at Conner's lifeless body. Brianna starts sobbing. Jedrek tries to contain his emotions, but can't stifle back shedding a tear. Hugo stays behind in silence. Donna, with tears streaming from her eyes, charges at me.

"You did this!" she wails. Jedrek has to hold her back. She first tries to fight him but gives in to slumping her body and weeping.

"Guys," Hugo says with a quiver. "The cop's calling for backup."

Although nobody wants to, we run. The weight of Conner's death pulls us back. No point going back for a body, but it's impossible not to think we're leaving him behind. The boy who helped me on the first day I was in the shelter is now a body. It's my fault.

I think the cop tries to chase us but stays back for all the dead. Conner. My mom. Once we are in the safest stopping point, the middle of some deserted land, I collapse on the floor and feel the world turning dark as I hyperventilate.