Short Stories

Only the Beginning

It's scary. The choices we are given to make. The smartest people can make the stupidest mistake and still come out as a hero. But not this one. One mistake and humanity is gone kind of  choice. A child of seventeen shouldn't have that kind of pressure on their shoulders, bearing them down. But I do. And the clock is ticking.

So when the principal called the classroom I was in, to send me down to the office, I was confused. I never got into trouble. When I walked in, the principal had a grim look. His grey eyes looked darker. His hands rested on the desk before him. Mind you, I'm not a goody two shoes, but I'm sarcastic at the worst times.

"Ms. Jules, we had a call made to the school about the FBI wanting to talk to you. Since you're a senior and seventeen, someone will drive you over there." He said, his lips turning into a disappointing frown.

"Alright, then let's get this show on the road." I said. He nodded and pressed the button down on the intercom. He spoke something inaudible to me.

"He'll be here soon."
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Mr. Cruz was a middle aged man. He teaches history, so I had his class last year. He agreed to take me because he also wants to know the FBI want me as does the principal. So here I am, sitting in the passenger seat of my old history teacher's car. We turn into a building that had tinted windows. The ones where you can't see through on one side. I frowned, not liking what's about to happen. Did I get into trouble somehow?

I got out and met an agent on the front steps. He has black hair and and mustache. His eyes were a serious green and I shivered with the intensity of his gaze. "Are you Emily  Jules?"

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. I didn't know why I was here or for what, but I did know, I couldn't trust these people.

I followed the agent to a back room, that held a desk and two chairs, one on either side. There was a glass pane, most likely for the ones on the other side to watch us. I squinted my eyes at the tag that hung from his chest. James. His name was James.

"Ms. Jules, I'm going to go straight to the point." He said casually. "We brought you here because of your amazing grades, the highest points. We are in need of you."

I stated at him, not hearing him entirely. "Huh?"

He sighed. "We found you within a group of the smartest people in the northern U.S.. The difference between you and the others, is your grades. Straight A's since you've been in school. Its phenomenal."

I gaped at him. I was one of the smartest people? In the northern U.S.? "So what do you need me for?" I decided to play arrogant.

The agent, James, stared into my eyes and nodded to himself. "Three years ago, we have come to the conclusion that the world is trying to end. Animals are killing things they usually do not. Plants dying healthy. People are slowly loosing their minds. More people in the institutes in the last five years. The world is trying to end, but us as people are in the way." He stared into my eyes. "We have went through every possible outcome, of every time of plan to save the world and the people. But we've found nothing. So we compromised." He paused. Somehow, I figured it out already. What he wanted me to do.

"No..." I whispered, dread filling my gut. "I couldn't."

James nodded. "Yes, I already thought of you saying that. We came up with bombs, nuclear bombs. So many you kill about three-fourths of the population of the world. Everywhere, things that happen here, are happening other places too. We can save the world, even if we have to kill billions of people to do it."

"But that's murder!!" I yelled, my eyes filled with tears. "I can't kill people. It's murder."

James frowned. "It's not murder. We already have most of the people agreeing to die for the world. They know they will die one day to save the world they live on. For their children and their grandchildren."

I took a deep breath. He was serious. About this all. My mom was a scientist and I learned a lot from her over the years. It fancinated me. So I learned and learned and it went into my schooling. My father was never in my life. He left when I was born. I was being asked to kill billions of people.

Billions. Of. People.

I thought it over. I really did. But when I thought about it, one way, most of us will die. Either by the world or my hands. So I have my answer.

I nodded in agreement to help. He smiled, a sad sort of smile. "You have two weeks go figure out the formula. We'll copy the formula." And I knew what happened next. We destroy the world.