OUR WORLD IN RUIN

17/05/2545 - Saturday

I woke up abruptly to the sound of a hollow knocking on my front door. Mum and Dad had headed for the markets, meaning I could either choose to ignore the pounding or I could give the unwanted attention a piece of my mind. I opted for the latter when the echoing thuds continued.

"What could you possibly need at 9 AM on a Saturday?" I half yelled as I prodded towards the door. The stairs on my way down were an obstacle and a half that quickly fired up my temper. And I was mentally prepared to let my mystery guest know about it. Taking a deep breath, I slammed the door open, my speech on manners and mindfulness at the ready. Yet, despite the faint knocks from only a moment ago, the corridor of our apartment was so barren it seemed as though it had been cleared out by the military folk. Peering to my left, a large paper bag had been neatly placed beside our doorframe, its contents hidden by a mass of uneven staples. Though, what stood out the most was a pristine white card that had been stuck to the bag's front.

You are not alone.

Leave it out when you're done - P

The handwriting, or more correctly, the calligraphy on the card was beautiful. Each letter flowed perfectly into the next and it was somewhat relaxing to read. However, my curiosity quickly took away from my awe as I gathered up the bag and scurried back inside, my nails arching as I pulled each staple apart through the short journey. I had practically poured the contents from the bag by the time I had reached the kitchen bench. Its usual blue marbled surface now concealed by what I was surprised to see was a collection of papers. "Technology Then and Now:" I read its title aloud "How Terratation aims to use post-war radiation advancements to enhance the colonies, by Domar Gabrinfare." There will never be a word to describe the way my hands trembled at that moment, nor one to describe how quickly my emotions flickered while I tried to process what had come into my possession.

First was joy and excitement. That for some reason, someone, somewhere had heard my pleas. Then came anticipation. What would the contents teach me? Then came confusion. Of all the topics, why technology? And finally, came the fear. In my hand, I held information that was illegal to humans. I could only assume the punishment would be gruesome. I cackled to myself, obviously, this was a sick joke, fueled by a bored mutant who was eager to see another human executed in the plaza.

Imagining that these documents would be the only of their kind I would ever possess, I quickly disregarded that thought and decided that premature death was worth more than a life in the dark. Opening to the first page, the most obvious difference between this research and the books I was so familiar with was the smell. Rather than the satisfying scent of pages that had travelled through many hands, these pages were pristine white and smelt only of the residue from their printing press. But the most surprising feature of all was the familiar red sticker that made its home on all of our university library materials. Property of the University of Terratation, West Building.

"A student... Or a teacher..." I muttered to myself as I returned to my room. I made sure to bring all of the wrappings with me. I didn't want to run the risk of my parents finding out. One human with possession of illegal material was better than three. Wasn't it?

Falling into my bed, my heart was begging to break free from my chest as I began my adventure into the unknown.

This short work deeply examines how radiation technology has developed over the past century in order to develop sustainable communities and what this entails for future generations. This work uses experiments that have been conducted on human subjects as well as personal field testing within and outside of the pod system to represent how life within the pod communities is beneficial to mutant life. In conclusion, this work will attempt to propose how our mutant colonies can use pre-apocalypse technology to further our abilities and conquer the human race currently exempt from pod control.