That red crescent
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Mother Earth ? Bye as of now. We are coming back to save you." They said to the almost destroyed Earth.
Nasty actions by none else but mankind, the only intelligent race on earth, had invited its own peril and also doomsday for the other living things. In a chain of reactions generated by humans.
The scientists of china had secretly developed a biological weapon converting oxygen taken by a human into carbon monoxide and used it against its enemy nation. The enemy nation was expecting such an attack sooner or later. So they developed a counter weapon which will kill the weapon and absorb carbon dioxide with the vegetation. This carbon dioxide will fight with the carbon monoxide particles in a human's respiratory system, will absorb atoms of oxygen in carbon dioxide and the carbon dioxide will be released as usual in the air.
But sucking carbon dioxide by humans reduced it for the vegetation. If they can not inhale carbon dioxide, they can not release oxygen into the air. So the system lost its balance.
Added to it, some enemy country, an alley of the inventors of bio weapons, sprayed clouds with inflammable substance like petroleum vapour particles. They passed over the forests and a storm created by low pressure over the already drying seas caused fire in the dense forests, like the fire in Australia a decade ago.
So, in 2030, man invited its own enmasse death. Still, those living on heights or near the arctic circles survived. They called immediate meetings of scientists and selected a team to go to the venus, farther than mars but next nearest to the Earth and vast in area.
The atmosphere of Venus is 90 times more dense than that on Earth but it is made of 96.5% of CO2 and a 3% of nitrogen. This means that both planets have the same amount of Nitrogen on their atmospheres. As at present CO2 or carbon dioxide was inhaled by humans, it may be easier to adopt them to newer but more or less similar environments.
They had just developed a technology to break the undefinable dense clouds there and then they were to create a large dome-like structure with an atmosphere similar to that on the earth.
The team had set a fixed day for their fastest possible journey.
On Earth, human life was deteriorating fast. Out of some 800 crores population before that chinese experiment, only 80 crores had survived. Most were in the age group of 15 to 65 years. Neither the children nor even strong, healthy olds could not survive respirating in such a climate.
Meanwhile, the scientists on earth were busy saving vegetation and mankind at a time. The governments on the earth were united to save the dying planet till a safe migration to venus can take place.
The mission was to take place on friday the 21st April, 2030.
Thumba, India. 7.30 A.M.
With a bang they started. In no time they left the Earth into the sky far, far away. After a few minutes they revolved round the earth like one sitting in a Disney World merry-go-round for some time. The space centre guided the ship to the shortest path to Venus. They left the stratosphere. Outside it was dark, nothing but extreme dark.
The captain Shukri, an Indian lady (whose real name was different but because of her knowledge of Venus she was named so.) established communication with the space centre at Venus.
Inter planet communication had been discovered in 2025. Life was accidentally found on Mars by second mission mangal, India, in 2021. Martians were living, concealing them from the rest of the solar system. They had a technology that could prevent clear magnified images of their life. They were in a far advanced stage of technology. They had built roadways, underneath highways, large water bodies and were testing skyways to approach other planets they intended to master. Earth being their nearest, was in their target. They were huge animals, of the size of dinosaurs on Earth. They were hostile to Earth.
It was said that the vehicle about to land on moon by mission Chandrayan by India was intentionally toppled by them in 2019 through powerful Laser like beams travelling through space. Reason ? It's camera pointed to their living side from the moon's dark side.
Whereas, Venus was friendly. Life on Earth was discovered by them in 2024 and the scientists here were immediately in contact with them.
Mars had threatened a catastrophe on Earth if Earthians trade or have bilateral relations with Venusians.
But in 2030 also, now the supreme power India was firm to find an alternate place to settle mankind when all resources on Earth were almost depleted. Even then, Modiji ruled India and thus the world. His government was firm to keep friendly relations with friends and to keep enemies at bay. Be nations here or planets in the solar system. So was the mission.
So the ship,the spaceship was going at an unbelievable speed, not that equalled the speed of light, but very fast. Soon Shukri sent signals and communication with Venus was established. She was the only one on ship who could understand 'Venusi' language as Indians called.
Signals were broken. Some curious sounds were recorded by the system on this ship. Zalovsky, a Russian scientist on the ship recognised it. Interruptions by the Martian system. They had intercepted the communication but it was encrypted in such a way that Martians could not understand.
Shukri ordered the crew to have their meals and to be ready for any combat in the space.
Ji Mi, a scientist from North East India was responsible for the maintenance . He heard a bell ringing. He searched the controls and reported a gas leak.
Till now the ship was completely full proof. How could this happen ? Zalovsky had doubts that Martians had attacked. But it can not be done externally.
Shukri and her team searched all the corners in the ship. Someone found an oxygen tank missing. Shukri ordered all to hold on to their nearest places.
Ji Mi shook the ship violently taking sudden turns, jumping and holding the ship back. Something tinkled like a pebble in a pot. A bang was heard in the bottom part of the ship. Intensive search was made. A huge bodied Martian was hidden inside even before taking off from Thumba. How come he was there ? Perhaps he came with India's Mangal mission 2. How did he survive ? What was his purpose ?
Nothing could be answered. He was tracking the ship's path and sending signals by a technology akin to our Wifi to Mars. They were knowing where the ship was.
'This man can not be kept till we reach Venus. Needs to be killed.' said
Christopher, an American astronaut. He was, besides other things, to look after security.
'True. Christopher, but how to kill him ?'
asked Shukri.
Without losing a second, Hormuz, an Iranian scientist cut something like a pipe going to the Martian's face looking like a bull. It was a mask under which a lizard-like face was hidden. He gasped for breath and attacked Hormuz. He moved to a side. The big red lizard having sharp thorns all over his body, the Martian quickly flung a tail like organ on his front body and it became an extended hand. Very quickly he pressed a hidden switch. Like a Laser show, there came up a screen in that vacuum place. On it came other more fierce Martians who warned the crew in pure English. "You tiny worms on Earth ! You have cheated us. Despite our clear warnings. You have attacked our man hiding in your ship to track your activities. What do you people mean ? We are terminating your journey midway and sending you nowhere. Not even to us as our slaves. Your entire planet is going to be so soon."
Before they shut down, Christopher and Hormuz started beating the martian with clean leather belts, a product of the Earth. There was a war between the astronauts and the Martian. The martian hit all with its big tail like a thorny hand. He again pressed the button and in Martian language shouted something. He forcibly diverted the ship to Mars using something appearing on that screen looking like our google map. Shukri shouted, 'Run, Ji Mi, we are on the nearest point to go back to the Earth in a straight line'.
Ji Mi took the turn. Shukri understood how the screen and the map worked. She concentrated on the directions. She succeeded in sending the ship back to the Earth.
"You..***, you failed our attempts." Saying the Martian fired from a hidden gun and Ji Mi's body was shattered into tiny particles moving in the space like dust pecks.
Hormuz had combat with the Martian. He tried to captivate the Martian. Shukri contacted Earth station and in short informed the happenings. She managed to switch off the screen.
Martian spit from his ass. Green liquid. The eyes of all were blind for some seconds. He covered all in his tail cum hand and pressed heavily. It seemed the ribs of all will be crushed into powder. He pushed all to the Engine room and forced Shukri to direct the ship back to Mars. He snatched Shukri, lifted her saying ' A woman?' I am going to produce a cross planet race. They will help our kingdom strengthen.' Shukri took out an electric wire and inserted it into Martian's body. Voltage must be high. The Martian groaned and jumped. Released, Shukri jumped in the space and started flowing. But it was not a big sea ship. How far could she go ? She found a UPS box kept in case the power fails. She hid behind and then beneath it.
Some bangs were heard. A loud scream of the Martian was heard before being thrown into the space.
Ji Mi's voice 'Earth, NASA, SOS. Take control..' . The voice was cut in between.
It seemed to Shukri that the ship spiralled like a top and then started moving round and round rushing in a straight line.
As if a goblet of fire was engulfing the ship, the ship was in the midst of a fire storm.
The firestorm killed the lights and knocked the ship deep into space. Somehow, the instruments were still alive, but there was no crew to read them. Far below a red crescent* shone, the edge of the burning planet silhouetted by the curve of a wing. It would be a lovely trip. She gazed through the porthole at the wavering stars.
Everything was quiet on the ship. The stars were unknown to her.
" Lovely. But I am going aimlessly in the vast space. Nowhere. Into the infinity. But what was that red shining crescent ? Is my planet Earth burning with that eternal fire ? Will all life, including all humans and vegetation be destroyed ? " She murmured to herself.
But yes. She saw only an arc like shape.
"So there must be something like a sea. In the vast space ? Who will hold the immense water ?
No. It can not be the Earth. What did she see ?"
She came out.
"The ship was deserted. The crew were thrown out along with that Martian. Must be flowing in the space. Am I leading to Mars ? She trembled with fear thinking of a 'cross planet race' through her. Multiple rape ? Before that, let me throw myself into the space."
She went to the already damaged and now open part of the ship. She was to switch off the system. She raised her hand and.. it touched an unknown hidden switch. It was a google map like thing. She was heading to the Earth. At this speed, hardly two or three days.
Ji Mi's instructions were carried out. Control was with NASA.
What was that burning thing ?
She received signals from Earth space station. Communication was established.
NASA was controlling the ship and maneuvering it back to Pacific Ocean.
She came to know that the fire storm was ignited by Earth from one side sending those inflammable substances into space. The technology to lift the clouds with such particles was provided by Venus science administration. The ignition was sparked by that same technology which sent and received communication signals.
News was that a spaceship from Mars to save their spy warrior had caught fire mid space in that fire storm sent from Earth.
She landed into the Pacific. She said on the live broadcast hailing her victory on a Martian enemy, "Mother, I have come. I kept our promise to you.
Rather than fighting to conquer another nation, just another area of human dwelling, we humans have now to fight to conquer our life.
I saw a red hot thing from space. I thought it to be our planet burning to death. Nay, it was not death, it was birth. A sunrise giving birth to a better life to all the living things."
-Sunil Anjaria
