Fiction
Abeona: Part-1
Mankind’s Future in Space.
The year is 2040. Mankind had progressed leaps and bounds in space exploration. Every nook and cranny of our Solar System had seen human invasion. Our leaders were no longer world leaders but planetary. Each planet was a civilization with its governance, and together they formed the United Planetary Organization, headquartered on Earth (where it all began).
Earth, 2040: The UPO had congregated in Switzerland, the greatest scientific minds and the most influential leaders of the Solar System, seated around one round table, a holographic screen in the center.
The time had come. Humanity had grown and left behind the pretense of power that war and destruction give and focused all their resources and energy into scientific development and exploring the vast expanse beyond the horizon.
Captain Henry Tanaka and his team of cosmonauts- Engineers Atoy de la Cruz, Oluchi Adebayo; Raphael Müller, Doctors Abhitha Anand, and Aegeus Rousopoulos, and Research Scientist Doctor Frank Jacobs, were preparing for take-off from the Mars launch-site M-32.
Though they were from all over the world and their life books read differently, the crew was united by the common goal of exploring outer space and contributing a tiny droplet to an ocean of knowledge.
After years of intense training, accustoming their body and mind for space travel, Captain Tanaka was confident with the crew he had been given the responsibility of. The crew trusted each other, built a strong rapport, and worked like well-oiled gear.
Eyes screwed and hands fisted, the air of Abeona-I reflected the excitement and nervousness of the crew. Oluchi slightly opened her eyes to see the control panel light up like a Christmas tree in the pitch darkness. It reminded her of the billion stars that they will become a part of in just a matter of a few minutes. She shut her eyes again till they hurt, trying to calm herself down.
The congregation held their breath in anticipation and nervousness. That day was the beginning of the end of 4 years of planning, workmanship, and training to venture into the Milky Way galaxy. “T-minus 10… 9… 8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… 0, blast off.”
The congregation and the audience across the planets watched on in bated breath as the spacecraft carrying the crew accelerated at a tremendous speed to escape Mars’ gravity. The crew could be seen passing out through the live camera feed as the force acting knocked the wind out of them. The ship rattled ominously, and the lights flickered, then silence.
The planets sighed in relief as the spacecraft started its journey through the cosmos, the Sun behind it. The first to regain consciousness, Captain Tanaka announced with pride, “Base M-23, this is Captain Henry Tanaka of the Abeona-I. Successful escape and orbital entry. Abeona-I has begun its journey to a brighter and promising future.”
To be continued…
