Martian Republic: The Fateful Secret

Chapter 3: Into the Unknown

Location: Bosporos Planum, Martian Republic

Timestamp: 2:30pm, +2 Standard Martian Time

"Thank you, Mr. Bailey," said the class as they ended the last lesson of the day.

Most of them began to file out. However, Kelly kept staring at the sand dunes through the transparent right wall of the classroom, lost in her thoughts.

She flinched when she felt a tap on her shoulder, turning around to find that it was her best friend, Jen.

"Do you  think we should cancel the exploration trip today?" she asked.

"Given the crap ton of homework we have today, yes."

"I'll tell Mark later," said Jen. "That way it'll save you time."

Kelly followed Jen out of the classroom and towards Dome 2, where their living quarters were located. Earlier on in the day, when she was busy completing her essay on Martian history during the Startup Era, she had gotten a transmission from Amy telling her to meet up with her and a bunch of other people in Cafeteria 4 at 6 p.m. It was incredibly odd and considering what she had unearthed earlier on in the day, potentially scary.

She said goodbye to Jen as they reached Dome 2 before they returned to their living quarters. Hers were located in the Southwest sector, the smaller ones that were reserved for those living alone. Jen and Mark lived in the Northeast, in the larger quarters meant only for families.

Kelly opened the door and stepped in. On Mars, doors had no locks. There was no reason to have them. Given severe labour shortages, everyone had a job and there was no need to fight over resources. Due to that, there was a near-zero crime rate. It probably didn't hurt that any form of dysfunction could mean either life or death in the harsh Martian environment.

"Good afternoon, Kelly," said Alicka.

Kelly petted the dark disc affectionately as she set down her backpack.

"Remind me to go to Cafeteria 4 for a meeting later," she said.

"Got that down," said Alicka as the disc beeped twice and flared blue rhythmically.

Kelly tore off her clothes and stepped into the shower. She stepped out after ten minutes, dried herself off with a towel and pulled a dress over herself.

"Alicka, list the homework I have to complete today."

"For maths, an Algebra worksheet; Science, a summary of the workings of a fusion reactor; and for English, a review of the book The Case For Mars."

"Geez, that's quite a lot to do," she said.

Due to the fact that Alicka was linked to her SlatePC and various IoT devices, the AI could easily coordinate and pull out any information required.

She sat down on a plastic chair, pulled out her SlatePC and a few pieces of paper. Even though applications in her SlatePC could practically replace paper, which was difficult to obtain on Mars, many still preferred the traditional touch of pen and paper.

***

She was only through five questions when she reached a roadblock.

"Alicka, how do you factorise a polynomial equation?"

"Do you prefer me to explain it audibly or would you prefer a diagram with working steps?"

"I'd prefer a diagram," said Kelly.

The holographic projector on the black disc projected a shimmering blue hologram above the table.

"Thanks."