The Darkness in Pandora

Pandora and Avatars

"When I was lying there in the VA hospital, with a big hole blown through the middle of my life, I started having these dreams of flying. I was free. Sooner or later, though, you always have to wake up." 

The voice of a man said as he opened his eyes and looked around the dimly lit space, it was a stasis pod on a ship for space travel, he looked around as he reorientated himself and focused on a few drops of water floating in the zero gravity. "in cryo you don't sleep at all, it doesn't feel like six years. more like a fifth tequila and an ass-kicking." the male said as the pod started to open up to the Cryo station of the ship, others started to wake up as well. "Tommy was the scientist, not me. He was the one who wanted to get shot lightyears into space to find the answers." The male said as a doctor approached him to check up on him "Are we there yet?" he asked as the doctor was helping him unclip and checking his vitals "Yeah, we're there sunshine, we're there" The doctor said patting the marine on the shoulder giving him the OK

"It's about your brother." A voice said as the image of a body bag was pulled back to show a man who looked similar to the Marine "So a week before Tommy's gonna ship out, a guy with a gun ends his journey-" said the Marine as they covered the body again and covered him with a cardboard coffin. "For the paper in his wallet"

"you've been in cryo for five years, nine months and 22 days. You will be hungry. you will be weak. if you feel nausea, please use the sacks..." The doctor said using the lines he had rehearsed and done dozens of times by now as the Marine floated towards his locker and the doctor's voice faded as he kept talking. "Yeah, Tommy was the scientist. Me, I'm just another dumb grunt going someplace he's gonna regret." 

The next shot showed the ship drifting in space as it neared its destination, a giant gas planet with an orbiting moon as the ship got closer"Up ahead was Pandora. You grew up hearing about it, but I never figured I'd be going there." The planet/Moon looked a lot like Earth did a few thousand years ago, with giant forests so vast you can see it from space and oceans so blue they looked like an opel vein.

"your brother represented a significant investment. We'd like to talk to you about taking over his contract." The agent said as the flashback of the Marine's brother's cremation was shown as they finished covering him and were now pushing him into the furnace. "And since your genome is identical to his, you could step into his shoes. so to speak" The other agent said as the Marine looked indifferent to his dead brother, a scene he was all too familiar with by now. the coffin was pushed in and the door was shut. The image of the ship over Pandora was brought back as the Agent's voice rang though "It'd be a fresh start on a new world." The shuttles were being prepared for the descent into the planet. "and the pay is good" "Very good" Both agents were doing everything to convince the Marine to accept the deal, and used the most powerful tool they had, Money. the shot shows the coffin lit up by the fire as the shuttle flies down towards the base set up on Pandora.

The ride was bumpy but that was to be expected for entry before it smoothed out and they continued on course. "Exo-Packs on! Let's Go! Exo-Packs on!" "Exo-Packs on! Let's go!" an officer and his assistant shouted to get everyone to put on a mask with an air tank so they would be able to breathe on the Moon. "Remember people, you lose that mask and you're unconscious in 20 seconds, you're dead in Four minutes! Let nobody be dead today! Looks very bad on my Report." he said as everyone finished putting on their masks it signalled it was sealed with a hiss. Over in the cockpit, the pilots were preparing for landing. "Hell's Gate tower, this is TAV 1-6 on approach. Crossing outer marker. Mine is in sight." The Capitan said as they neared the base as they passed over a mining sight. The shuttle was escorted to the base by two Scorpion gunships. "One life ends, another begins."