i t o l d y o u t o b e q u i e t .

w e l c o m e t o m a r s .

The transport exits the atmosphere smoothly as I look out the window, to the once green and blue Earth. At least, that was what I was told.

There was all sorts of propaganda back then. "Save the environment!" they pleaded. "Do your part!" they said. But it was too late. It was never enough. The damage was irreversible.

As I stand in the sterile white cockpit of the ship, next to the humanoid robot in the pilot's seat, I stare out at the now brown, barren desert of the continents, almost completely enveloped by blue ocean.

I can't help but pity the people still down there, left to survive on their own by the Mars Council who stopped caring for them long ago. I was the only one to board the ship. Why, you ask? I too have no idea...

Back there, the Mars Council only gave us a few ration bars and water packets a month. One ration bar could typically last an average person a week, but often we had to survive on one for ten days. If they couldn't give us enough rations, then why would they waste so much fuel travelling to and from Earth for one person? There's nothing special about me...

As I zone out, staring into the vast darkness of space, I feel a cool metal sensation on my arm.

I flinch. My arm instinctively pulls itself from the robot's grip, my hand curling up into a fist.

"Don't. Touch. Me," I croak out, my throat closing up as memories come flooding back. The pilot robot apologises in its monotone voice, with no real remorse behind it. "I am sorry. I merely wanted to inform you that you may enter the main room."

And so I do, before sitting down on the soft, fluffy couch. The air here is sweet with a clean, refined feel. I lean back against a pillow, adjusting its softness with the remote on the table. A spherical robot hovers up to me, holding a tray of brightly-coloured drinks. Its eyes display a friendly green glow, a small black smile drawn on its face. The letters "MA-78" are carved on its side, which I assume is its name.

I grab a neon orange drink, inspecting it for a moment, before cautiously taking a sip. A sweet yet sour flavour explodes on my tongue and I down the drink in one gulp. I grab another drink off the tray, this time yellow in colour, and down it too. Then another. And another, until my thirst is finally quenched. I haven't had this much to drink in a long time.

Is this what the Mars Council has been keeping from us?

"We are about to go into lightspeed," a robotic voice says over the speakers, its voice echoing through the empty hallways. "Please remain in the main room for the next 13.647929 minutes."

I look out the large window behind me as my past fades into the darkness.

The trip is silent. Too silent. MA-78 hurries around the rooms, doing who-knows-what.

I spot a shiny silver storage box at the side of the room, next to the larger and much colder box. I head over, opening it to find all sorts of...what were they called again? Fruits?

I reach inside and pick up a yellow, long fruit. If only I could remember what it was called. All I remember is that it was grown back on plantations on Earth in the old days, and it was sweet and soft.

I eagerly bite into the fruit, but immediately spit everything out. Why was it so bitter and hard? I pick up the yellow piece of fruit I had spit onto the floor, before hesitantly placing it on the table, not knowing what to do with it.

MA-78 returns, picking up the piece of fruit from the table with its little metal hand, the other holding a towel to wipe the table. It then throws it into another box, before looking at me and giving me a friendly smile—oh wait. The smile's carved onto its metal body. I smile and give it a head pat, and its green eyes glow just a little bit brighter, before heading back to its duties.

I bite into the fruit again, hoping to get a different outcome. A contented smile slowly spreads across my face as I bite into the soft white flesh of the fruit, the sweet taste filling my mouth. Now that's what I remember. I take another bite, savouring the taste. After finishing it, I eagerly reach my hand into the box for another.

After almost devouring everything in the box, I'm left with a full stomach for the first time in a long time. I sink into the soft couch, sighing in contentment.

"How much longer?" a voice asks. It sounds like a child with its petulant and high-pitched tone. "It's been almost 2 hours," the voice complains.

There's someone else on the ship? Why didn't I know this?

The voice sounds like it's coming from beneath the floor... Based on the (limited) information that was provided to the people on Earth about this ship, there's a small hatch that leads to the lower levels of the ship which is primarily used for cargo.

I don't think that kid in there is cargo.

"MA-78!" I call out. The spherical robot comes hovering over, its green eyes displaying question marks.

"There's a kid down there, I think they need help, they said it's been almost two hours since they went in there and-"

I trail off as MA-78's eyes turn red. My gut tells me something's wrong. MA-78 hovers over to a little hatch at the corner of the room, before opening it and heading inside, leaving it open.

I hear gasps and a voice shouting, "Don't!" My eyes widen in shock as I dash over to the hatch, peeking inside.

At least a hundred humans are crammed together in the cargo hold, with little more than an inch between each person. MA-78 hovers in front of a scruffy-looking man, messy blonde locks mixed with dirt and a little girl with a blonde ponytail hiding behind him, clutching a small knife in her hands. Despite their ragged appearance, the family resemblance was clear in every part of their faces.

"I t o l d y o u t o b e q u i e t ." The letters flash across both the front and back screens of the robot as it slowly flies towards the girl hiding behind the man.

The girl silently slips the knife into the man's hands and he readies it in front of him, settling into a defensive stance.

Without hesitating, I leap down into the cargo hold, putting myself in between MA-78 and the man. The musty smell fills my senses, and I catch a whiff of blood. It's eerily quiet for a place housing what looks like a few hundred people.

MA-78 stops, that small black smile still etched upon its round metal body despite its eyes glowing a hostile red. Then its eyes turn green, and it hovers back up the hatch, motioning for me to follow.

I dare not protest, looking back at the people in the cargo hold.

"Is it nice up there?" the little girl asks in a soft voice.

"Yes, but what are you guys doing down h-"

MA-78 appears at the entrance, and I quickly climb up the ladder, taking one last look at the lifeless eyes of the people in the cargo hold before closing the hatch.

I'm sorry. If I could share the food up here with you, I would.

As I sit back down on the couch, its pillows feeling like hard pieces of wood, I look up at MA-78, who holds out a tray of snack bars with a friendly smile.

I knew something was weird. The people in the cargo hold. They're from Earth too. I'm not the only one here. They didn't just send for me. But why are they treating me differently from everyone else? Are they trying to gain my favour? Why?

I reach out and hesitantly take a bar that says "chocolate" from the tray, my hand trembling a little as I stare into those glowing green eyes.

I bite into the bar, the creamy texture feeling like sandpaper in my mouth, looking out the window into the darkness of space. Somehow, the darkness that once felt hopeful and comforting to me, seemed now to be a dark abyss that swallows up everything around it... Am I next?

Then the stars and a red planet come into view, and the robotic voice rings over the speakers once more, its voice ringing hollow in the quiet area. 

"Welcome to Mars."