My dad had been working on the engine and rockets, maintaining and making sure they had been running correctly and efficiently since we started the trip. He was gone so often, I'd barely said two sentences to him at any given time, but he stayed in our room that day because it was Christmas Eve, and my mom forced him to stay with the family until after Christmas.
We decorated as best we could and just sat, and talked. It was the first time we'd just done nothing but talk in so long. Even on Earth we never really noticed how distanced and separated our family had become, and in some ways this tragedy seemed to draw us closer.
We talked about Earth, and all that was lost there, and we also started to talk about Novelta, with all of the possibilities and experiences we'll have. We talked about our family and friends that weren't as lucky as us, and just how lucky we are. We just talked, for hours and hours, until a loud growl made us all laugh.
"I guess I'm getting hungry!" my mom said, and smiled. "Let's eat in here tonight- not the cafeteria. Just a family time." She stood and told us she'd be right back with the food. Allie and I stood to follow, but my dad looked at my mom.
"Just you girls go, I want to show Ridge something." he said, glancing at me.
"Just be back by six, okay?" mom replied, and walked out with Allie.
He nodded his head toward the door, and I followed him out into the carpeted hallway. Most people were headed to dinner right now, but we turned right- to the back of the ship.
A couple of small children were chasing each other around, squealing and laughing. I envied them. Too young to fully comprehend anything that took place... all they knew was they were in a rocketship, going to a new planet! I wished so badly to be like them, carefree and happy.
I figured we were headed to the engine and rockets, and when we arrived at the locked doors I knew I was right. Before he unlocked the doors my dad turned to me.
"Remember when you were little, Ridge, and you watched that movie about that kind everyone thought was evil, but in the end it turned out that everything he'd done was actually good for everyone in the kingdom?"
"A Light in Dark?"
My dad smiled. "Yes, that's the one." He fished out his id from his pocked and unlocked the doors.
"I believe that movie captured a very large truth, that there's good in every evil. No matter how apparent that good may be, it's still there. Wouldn't you agree?"
We stepped into a small room with many buttons and a big window.
"I guess so... " I answered. I looked out the window and gasped. It was the rocket behind the ship. We were above it. It was absolutely beautiful. A bright red cloud followed the ship, sparkling and shining as it swirled in space against the blackness. I couldn't take my eyes off from the way it faded away. My dad chuckled.
"Do you know that the element which destroyed the Earth is what powers the ship?" he asked, looking at the screen. "So it's almost good that Ruski created it."
I didn't answer for a few moments, still mesmerized by the sight. I turned, puzzled. "But if no element had ever been made... The Earth wouldn't be destroyed anyway..."
"Don't you see, Ridge? The Earth was already destroyed!" He looked me in the eyes, and continued.
"Billions and billions of us... It was too many! We had taken over our planet... But we can start over now, on Novelta things will be different. It'll be a fresh start for mankind! We can take care of our home, a perfect new world, and society."
I didn't understand. "Aren't you sad at all about this?! All of the history and culture and languages that are lost? All the objects and people and places lost forever? All those species of animals, and races of people, gone. Earth and the sun and the moon, gone..."
There was look in his eye that I couldn't quite make out. I'd never really contradicted my father before, and was surprised that it was that easy to do.
"Of course I'm sad, Ridge. There was so much still left to discover, so much to improve. But now, although so much good is gone, think about all the bad things gone too now. No one here is sick, so every Earth disease is gone! And all criminals are gone, Novelta will be crimeless!"
I looked back to the rocket. He put a hand on my shoulder.
"Look, Earth only had so long anyway. It was severely overpopulated... all this global warming stuff. And trust me, war was about to break out too. And Yellowstone! We only had so much time until Yellowstone volcano erupted and life would be impossible. We had to leave, sooner or later..."
I started to walk back. "I don't need to hear this."
"Wait!" he said, and ran his hand through his hair in frustration. "I just want you to know that we have a future. And we'll be happy again, you'll see."
"Come on," I said quietly, "dinner's probably ready. We should head back."
"Just remember that there's good in every bad and bad in every good as well. And Novelta is going to be a very good thing."
We walked back to the room in awkward silence. This was definitely a side of my father I'd never seen before. Why tell me all this? Why me and not Allie? I guess it doesn't matter, soon he'll always be gone again. Working to get to the beloved Novelta.
