|
|
|
Setting The Scene |
| Written by Dan Greathead | |
| Wednesday, 19 September 2007 | |
|
Share it:      The year 2058 marked the beginning of the British Civil War. The Scottish and Welsh nations turned on the English and the Irish. Car bombs were an hourly occurance. There were numerous attempts the bomb the English Houses of Parliament, but always ended in failure. Three years later in the year 2061, The United States of America invaded the British Isles. Due to the Civil War, the invasion lasted only three weeks, and by the end America had control of the whole of Britain. By the year 2072, a third of land on Earth had been swallowed by the ever hungry oceans. Fossil Fuels had long run out, and massive recycling plants were dotted all over the planet, producing fuel for equally massive power stations. The Global council had little under a decade to decide a course of action, else all life would become extinct. Earth had become almost a dictatorship, as this was seen as the only way to maintain order. The President of the United States and Europe, Ms Jenna Bush Jnr., had siezed control of all major parliaments, and had formed the Global Council. Crime was at an all time low, but with even a parking ticket landing you a life sentace in the newly opened 'Alcatraz II', a huge prison complex in what used to be Ecuador, this was hardly surprising. Everyone was scared, but no one did anything about it. People went about their lives in abject misery, locked in an invisible cell to which there was no key. Tests funded by the Global Council had proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that there was no way that mankind would survive if it was to remain inhabiting Earth. The only viable option, it seemed, was to up sticks and leave, as it were. There was one major problem. Test after test had proved inconclusive as to whether or not there was another planet in our solar system that could sustain human life. This, of course meant looking further afield. Technology was capable of this, however with such a short timescale, mankind, it seemed, was doomed. Every story needs a hero, and in this part of the story, that hero was an Englishman named Smith. He claimed to be the last direct descendant of a certain chap named Albert Einstien. No one knew if he was, but at this point, no one cared. Smith said that he had developed the technology for a craft to travel at two-thirds the speed of light. The Global Council piled funding on him, stating that as far as he was concerned, they had an blank cheque, and that no matter what the cost, they would see this project through. In any other circumstances, one could be considered foolish for putting all one's egg's in the one basket, but once in a while it pays off. In this case, it did. By the year 2180, every man, woman and child had a boarding pass for one of these 'Super-Ships', known simply as 'Smiths'. In true biblical style, a breeding pair of every single animal on Earth were also given passage. Airports were turned into docking stations. The largest of these would hold anywhere up to a thousand Smiths, which in turn, would hold anything up to ten thousand passengers, dependant on size. For weeks and weeks, Smiths were launched and sat patiently in orbit around Earth, and around it's moon, waiting until all ships were off the ground. It took eighteen months, but eventually, the last Smith left docking bay 7 at London Spaceport, and joined it's sister ships in orbit. Two weeks later, Earth was just a distant memory. And mankind survived. Each Smith developed it's own rules and regulations, it's own personality if you will. Pretty soon, Smith's were defined in the same way that one might define a country, the only difference being, they were encased in titanium shells. Everything on a Smith was propelled by Hydrogen, from it's engines, to it's oxygen regeneration unit, and it's lights. This meant, in theory, that a Smith could travel through space indefinately. With no friction to damage it's exterior, providing there were no unexpected meteor showers, everything should remain intact. There were some casualties of course. Not all of the Smith's had been built in the same place, so shoddy workmanship was to be expected. However, out of the millions of ships that left Earth, only twenty-five thousand or so didn't make it past the fifty year mark. There was of course, one problem. That is that no one knew where they were headed. The lead ship sent out scouter probes every six months in an attempt to find inhabitable planets, but the result was always the same. Every ten years, all Smiths would sit in orbit around a suitably sized planet, and Smith Captain's would hold council. Smith Captain's were always put into office by vote, and acted as Judge, Jury and Excecutioner for their respective Smith. Each Smith Captain would choose his or her own Smith Parliament, and they would aid him or her in making decisions. It was, however, during the thirteenth Smith Council, that news was recieved that would once again change everything forever. A suitable planet had been found. as time went on, it was soon realised that it was not just a suitable planet, but a suitable system. A Twin-Sun system, with an estimated three hundred inhabitable planets, moons, and other interstellar bodies. This news, obviously, was recieved with much joy and celebrations by everyone. Five generations of Mankind had called these 'Smiths' their home. Now, at last, that would no longer be the case. It would take twenty years to reach this new system. This, is now. Copyright 2007 Dan Greathead {moscomment} |
|
| Last Updated ( Friday, 21 September 2007 ) |
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
via Email
