Green
Experience: that most brutal of teachers. But you learn, my God do you learn.
July 20th, 2069, 10:56 PM, somewhere in the Pacific Ocean
The man hesitated for a few seconds in front of the door, and then he carried on. The door closed behind him with a faint hum. He was alone, walking slowly on the empty corridors of the research station. He had been there for three years, always watching the world through the dim windows of the station. This was the place where he felt good, shut off in his own world, a world in which he had absolute control over every detail.
Three years ago, he had to leave his family, so that he could come here. And he did. He wasn’t sorry. In fact, he felt rather comfortable there, sitting among plants that had been brought from all over the world. He used to spend countless hours sitting in the enormous greenhouses, sitting near palm trees or admiring the Amazonian jungle. It was all there. All he could ever wish for… But his greatest wish was for the experiment to succeed. He was trying to discover a way of controlling the growth of plants. He had realized what this could mean for mankind. And so did the US Government, which brought him here, on a small island in the Pacific.
There were 7 people working in that research station. They were also the only people on the island. In case one of them had left the research team, the entire project would have been compromised. They were a team. And he was their leader… They all worked in perfect harmony, and that is why they were approaching their goal rapidly. However, the substance that made the plants grow bigger was not ready to be used yet. He looked at the container in his hand. It was marked “ACI-11-6″. It was their latest achievement, but he had a strange feeling that this was just another failure…
He was heading towards the lab, where he was about to test it, when he heard a voice somewhere behind him:
“Professor, you have to see this!”
“Something happened, Kathy?!”, asked professor Morrison.
“Look at this”, she said, showing him the palm leaf which she was holding…
The professor examined it carefully, and then he exclaimed:
“It works! We’ve made it! Finally, we’ve made it!!”.
“Come with me to the greenhouse, professor. You have to see it with your own eyes…”
They both headed towards the greenhouse, where the Amazonian vegetation was rapidly expanding its green tentacles. Morrison gasped in astonishment. The plants in front of him were visibly growing. Soon the greenhouse would turn out to be too small to contain them, if the plants continued in the same rhythm…
“They are tripling their volume every three hours.”, Kathy said. “And they cover an area twice as large. I have been examining them for a few hours now, and they don’t seem to stop…”
“It looks like all our experiments were not in vain…”, answered professor Morrison…
July 21st, 2069, 8:14 PM, NCW News
“We now have a pretty humorous piece of news, which we received less than an hour ago. A mislead experiment on a small island in the Pacific Ocean interrupted the studies of 7 scientists, who were trying to find a way of genetically altering the plant growth. This incident ended up with the island being covered with a plant that is still to be identified. The plant increased in size and destroyed the research station where the 7 scientists were carrying their studies. We will come back with more details. And now, the weather forecast for tomorrow…”
July 21st, 2069, 11:00 PM, NCW News
“We come back with more information regarding the event that took place earlier in the Pacific. The “Green Plague”, as it was called, now covers a surface of over 15 Km2, and it is not showing any intention of stopping. Solutions are being examined as we speak. Thank you for your time. We’ll come back in the morning with more information. Good night.”
July 22nd, 2069, 5:33 AM, NCW News
“We interrupt the normal program in order to inform you that the “Green Plague” is still expanding, doubling its surface every hour. It now covers over 1.000 Km2. The attempts to stop were unsuccessful.”
July 22nd, 2069, 8:32 AM, NCW News
“After a meeting of the presidents from over 100 states, a decision was taken: any means have to be used in order to stop the “Green Plague”, including nuclear weapons. The operation will commence in approximately one hour. The “Green Plague” now covers over 10.000 Km2. Specialists predict that, at this rate, the entire planet will be fully covered today, at 11:57 PM, in case the use of nuclear weapons is unsuccessful…”
July 22nd, 2069, 9:47 AM, NCW News
“And now, the news we’ve all been waiting for. We have been informed that, unfortunately, the nuclear weapons had absolutely no effect. The “Green Plague” is extending both on the ocean’s surface, and below. It now covers 23 islands and a significant part of Australia. It seems that the fate of our planet was decided less than 36 hours ago, by the unsuccessful experiment of a professor…”
July 22nd, 2069, 12:00 PM, NCW News
“Good day, citizens of the entire planet. I am the president of the United States of America and I have been entrusted with the difficult mission of informing you about the imminent devastation of planet Earth. Time is very precious, so I will get straight to the point. According to the latest satellite data we have received, nearly 150.000 Km2 of the planet’s surface have been completely covered by the “Green Plague”. We have 12 hours left. All measures taken to stop it from spreading have failed. The only solution we have left is to leave the planet. The first destinations will be the colonies on Mars and Venus. The terraforming of other planets will then be attempted, so that the human species may continue to exist. I know that many of you won’t survive, and that is why this tragic event will always be remembered, as it is the moment when the human race had to abandon the planet that gave birth to it. May the Galaxy be with you!…”
July 22nd, 2069, 5:23 PM, Last edition of NCW News
“Good afternoon. Unfortunately, I am here to announce you that this is the last edition of NCW News. We did this in order to bring you the latest information regarding the disastrous event that has changed the history of mankind. The “Green Plague” now covers over 5.000.000 Km2 of the Earth’s surface. In approximately two hours, the TV station we are broadcasting from will turn itself into another victim among the many that already exist. The world population has commenced to abandon the planet, using their own vehicles or the ones belonging to the space transportation companies. Many of us will however be unable to leave Earth and reach safety… Thank you for being with us in these difficult moments of our existence. Good bye!…”
July 22nd, 2069, 11:57 PM, Earth
Silence…
November 6th, 2097, 9:14 PM, Ganimede, orbiting Jupiter
“So this is how the Exodus took place, grandpa?”
“Yes, Alan. That is the story of the Exodus…”
“How did you manage to escape?”
“I used my private, two-person transport ship…”
“Didn’t anyone come along, if the transport ship was for two people?”
“Oh, yes. It was Kathy, your grandmother…”
“Oh, I see!”, said Alan, and then he briefly watched the stars out the window. “Was there anyone among the people that died back there you feel really sorry for, grandpa?…”
“Billions, Alan. Billions…”, said professor Morrison, gazing upon Jupiter, and then directing his look towards the point in space where a green sphere now drifted in silence, merely a shadow of the former “blue planet”, the home of all mankind…
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