A Broken Family

It was exactly 4:00 p.m., October 31st, 2050. The majestic city of New York was in all of its technological glory, with flying cars and humungous turbines rotating in the air! The turbines purified the atmosphere and removed the toxic air pollution. People rushed around to do their usual tasks. Everyone seemed to be in a hurry in a peaceful, thriving metropolis. BANG! A Nuclear Missile crashed onto the Empire State Building. In a split second, a bright light covered the entire town. An ear-piercing shockwave was heard, and the entire city, along with everything in it, was disintegrated within nanoseconds.

“Wake up Thomas, it’s 6:00 a.m.”. Thomas woke up. It was his alarm.

He had had another nightmare. He pulled himself out of his bed, freshened up, and put on his uniform. Whilst having breakfast, he had flashbacks of his childhood- spending Christmas with his parents, their first pet, and his first day at school. He was happy, he had everything he wanted. Then he lost it all.

In the 2050s, a horrific, world-ending World War had occurred, killing billions. The assassination of the President of the United States shook the entire world, leading to a nuclear war between the US and its enemies. It destroyed and scarred future generations. It is now roughly a thousand years into the future, 3050. An iota of human civilization has survived and lived through this horrific nuclear winter lasting for several centuries. The passing of this winter has allowed humanity to rebuild and survive. The remaining nations have united to form a sovereign government called the Union.

This union had promised to restore human civilization to its former glory.  Despite its ambitious goals, it failed to do so, sparking a revolt, forming an opposition called the Radicals. This opposition then turned into Radicalism. They were a twisted version of the Union. They believed the Union to be inefficient in keeping up to their promises and spreading false hope. They wanted to establish peace, prosperity, and order. Though their motive was good, their methods were unspeakably evil, killing millions of innocent civilians and removing the fundamental rights of those who survived. They had conquered the entirety of the likes of Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania. The remains of the Union consisted of only North and South America, Greenland, Iceland, and Antarctica (which after centuries, due to the retardation in the climate of the Earth, became habitable). The Radicals outweighed the Union in all aspects and crushed it, resulting in the entire eastern hemisphere being subjugated by the Radicals.

The Radicals had grown under the nose of the Union. By the time they had realized, it was too late. They had already lost.

Thomas walked along with the remains of what used to be a magnificent New York City, the cultural capital of the world. Almost every building was decimated. There was a bleak blackness in the atmosphere with ash covering the city for miles and miles. Only a few buildings survived, and they were demolished and uninhabitable. The radiation had lurked around for more than a thousand years, killing any living organism which entered the city limits. Only a few years ago had the city become safe for people to take refuge. He strolled along the dark streets. It was broad daylight, but still depressing. He finally reached the Union base in upstate New York. He saw the traumatized and scarred refugees, engulfed in fear and pain. Thomas sulked and remembered his own childhood.

Thomas used to live with his family in London until it was captured by The Radicals. It was his birthday; he was having dinner with his family. They were joyful and were having the time of their lives. Suddenly their apartment was bombed. He and his little brother, Harry, had somehow managed to survive, but the rest of their family didn’t. Their mother, Laura,  father, Lucas, and little sister, Rachel had died. Thomas sat next to his father and sister’s dead bodies in the rubble, crying in despair. His innocent little brother alongside him, asking why they weren’t waking. They couldn’t even find their mother’s body to bid a final goodbye. Both Thomas and Harry got drafted by the Union to fight against the Radicals. They travelled to New York to join one of the last remnants of the Union forces on the Atlantic coast. By then, The Radicals had already shifted their base of operations to London.

“What’s up Tom?”. Harry showed up from behind. He was tall, younger than Thomas, had curly hair, and a cheerful face. “You seem to be in a good mood today”, replied Thomas. Harry took note of the comment but did not reply. “Anyways, today’s the day”.

Thomas, Harry, and a few other fighters were selected to carry out a secret mission. They were tasked with the assassination of the Radical leader and the destruction of the entire city of London. Today was the day when they would be dispatched to Iceland. From there, they would travel to London via a Stealth spacecraft and end the war once and for all.

Though the Nuclear War of 2050 had slowed down the rapid progression of technological development, humanity had still achieved heights of technology that would be considered impossible in the 21st century. Humanity had finally converted the sun into an infinite source of energy.  Spacecrafts could achieve light speed. Advanced Quantum computers helped humans to understand the universe even further, AI helped them explore the ocean depths and other planets. However, most of this technology was destroyed by the Radicals. Humans now relied on ancient technology.

Thomas and Harry reached the airbase. Over there, Thomas met his childhood friend, Scarlett. Scarlett was bold and had a strong countenance. She had blond hair and had a serious expression. She was battle-hardened and had more experience on the field than both Thomas and his brother. She was also older than them.  Scarlett was Thomas’s best friend and among the few survivors of the London Bombing. She had spent her entire childhood with Harry and Thomas. Alongside them, she also joined the Union. They were her childhood friends. Scarlett was the leader of their special operations unit.

“Ready for the mission of your lives?”, she questioned them. “Born ready”, replied Harry. She turned to Thomas, “Why the long face?”, she said. He shrugged. The trio caught up with the rest of the unit and geared up.

The color of his bulletproof vest reminded him of the dusty, broken debris of London. The sound of him clocking his gun reminded him of the ticking of his house clock just before they were hit by the missile. He had promised himself to get justice for his family.

All geared up, they went into the air carrier. Whilst taking off, Thomas closed his eyes and relived the sight of his parents. He was nervous. He had a promise to fulfil.

RUMBLE. The plane started to shake. “The fuel supply is low. Looks like we are goin’ to have to stop at the Union base in Iceland”, Scarlett exclaimed. The plane landed on an airbase near what used to be Reykjavik. Everyone went out of the plane. Harry sighed, “I feel nervous,”. “About what?”, Thomas asked. “Just… this mission- the fate of the world in our hands,”. “Hey remember what our mom used to say, it’s okay to be nervous. Instead of fighting that anxiety, dance with it. Welcome it. Relish it. It’s a sign you’re on to something,”. The sadness from Harry’s face began to disappear. He looked up at Thomas and thanked him. Thomas felt a warmth inside him. They had never laughed since their parents’ death. He wanted to hang on to every single moment of happiness.

As they were about to enter the plane, a sudden shadow fell on them. They looked up. Their expression changed from a pleasant smile to a bewildered horror. A missile was headed straight toward the plane. BOOM! An explosion pushed them away from the aircraft. Thomas blacked out. In a few seconds, he woke up, half-deaf. The atmosphere around him was full of muffled screaming and shouting. Harry gave him a hand and helped him up to his feet. The explosions and shouting distorted everything around him. He spotted a figure in the distance. It was Scarlett. She was calling for anyone left alive to climb onboard a spaceship next to her. Harry and Thomas ran for their lives. The duo reached Scarlett. Then another missile crashed down upon the airbase. Thomas blacked out.

He woke up. He was in a flying jet. Looking towards his left, He saw a damaged Harry tending to his wounds. He was sitting next to the cockpit. Scarlett was present in the cockpit flying the plane. She was also wounded. Harry turned towards Thomas. “Look who’s awake,”. A dazed, perplexed Thomas questioned Harry and Scarlett what had happened. “Those goddamn radicals!”, Scarlett replied. “But how did they know about our base?”, asked Harry. “I don’t know, someone must have told them,”. “A mole? In the Union?”. Thomas cut between their conversation. “What happened after I blacked out?”. “Scarlett had found another jet. We dragged you along with us.”. “Why didn’t you leave me?”. “We’re family, we don’t leave anyone behind,”. Thomas breathed a sigh of relief, knowing his friends had his back.

“Is the mission still on?”, asked Thomas. “Yes,”, replied Harry. “We are nearing London. We will sneak into the city and reach the Radical base. When we do, we blow it to kingdom come,”.

They reached London. Although it was a hard task, they managed to snuck into the Radical base amidst its maximum security. They were almost caught multiple times. Finally, they reached the main Radical control center.

There were two hallways. None of them knew which one led to the control panel. The trio decided to split up. Thomas and Scarlett would go towards the left hallway while Harry would go to the right. Thomas and Scarlett entered the hallway and found two security guards. After tackling those guards, they entered a room that they thought was the control room. Thomas tried to radio signal Harry, but Harry’s earpiece was static and Thomas did not receive any answer.

The room they had entered was not the control room. Suddenly the door closed. “I’m very sorry to do this,”, said Scarlett, taking out a gun. She pointed it towards Thomas. A chill went down Thomas’s spine. “You?!, You were the mole?”. Thomas felt betrayed. His best friend, who he had trusted with his life and grew up with, was a spy and had stabbed him in the back. He was terrified. His life flashed before his eyes. “I wish I never had to do this,”, sighed Scarlett. She reloaded her gun and aimed it at Thomas’s head. Thomas was confused and scared. He felt angry, petrified, and sad at the same time. “What about Harry?”, he asked. “Guess I’ll have to kill him too”, she said coldly.

A sudden surge of adrenaline rushed through Thomas’s veins. He grabbed Scarlett’s gun and threw it away. The duo engaged in a life-threatening and intense battle. Scarlett managed to take out a knife. Thomas fought for not just his, but his brother’s life. He grabbed the knife and stabbed her. She looked at her wound and stared at Thomas in despair. She fell to the floor and bled to death. Thomas fell to his knees and sat still. He was still trying to understand what had happened. He grieved. He wiped his tears and went in search of his brother.

He finally found the control panel. He saw Harry pointing a gun at the Radical leader. She wore a noir hood and a dark, purple-tinted mask. She held her arms up in the air. “Harry?”, Thomas exclaimed. He glanced at Thomas. “Where is Scarlett?”, he questioned. “She was a mole,”. Harry’s expression slowly changed to a bewildered horror. “What happened?”. Harry was stupefied and wanted an explanation, but the expression from Thomas’s eyes gave him the information he needed. The divergence of Harry’s attention proved to be fatal. The Leader immediately tackled Harry and aimed his gun at his head. “Make one move and say goodbye to your brother,”. Thomas was confused.

“How do you know he is my brother?”. The Leader took off her mask. Thomas and Harry were horrified. It was their Mother, Laura!

“What? How?”. Both Thomas and Harry were baffled. “We thought you died!”. Laura explained, “I thought the same for you. After the explosion, I couldn’t find you and the Radical forcefully made me join them. I gradually went higher up the rank and managed to over-throw the previous Leader.”. “But how could you join the Radicals? They were the cause for our pain!”. Harry was at gunpoint and was too shocked to say anything. Thomas was frightened.

“Don’t you see? The world is broken. We need to unify it and bring order to it. All of this democracy and individual countries have destroyed the world. We need to unify and control the people. This way the world is safer and better.”. Thomas replied, “Not by killing billions. Not by subjugating the free will of people. This is wrong and cruel.”. Thomas tried to convince his mother to come back to them, but it was too late. She was brainwashed.

At this moment Harry broke free of Laura’s clasp, snatched her gun, and pointed it towards her. He immediately shot her leg. Thomas ran and tackled him. “We need to kill her for her crimes”, Harry exclaimed.

“If we kill her, we are no better than the Radicals themselves”, John replied. “She will have to answer for her crimes, but not by our judgment.”. Harry looked at John. “How many more people shall die at the hands of her!”. Harry aimed the gun at Laura. Thomas jumped at Harry and the gun fell from Harry’s hand. Both of them were engaged in a hand-to-hand fight. Thomas finally gave a finishing punch to Harry. He fell to the ground. Just as Harry was about to get up, He heard a loud BANG! He looked down at his chest. They both turned to Laura, holding the gun. Harry fell to his knees and looked at Thomas for one last time, and then closed his eyes.

Thomas, enraged, took out a gun from his holster and shot Laura. She sat down, stupefied. She took one last breath and uttered, “There was nothing I could do,”. Laying over the two dead bodies, Thomas cried. He looked towards his brother’s corpse.  He took out multiple bombs, scattered them across the room, and held a button to ignite them. He glanced towards Harry. He had lost everything he loved. He sat near his brother’s lifeless body, looked around for one last time, and pressed the button. “Goodbye”.

About the Storyteller

Pratyush Jha is a sincere student of class IX, and he took fascination to books, sports, and music at a very early stage, which inculcated in his daily routine. Excelling in Piano grade exams (Trinity College London) and a Red Belt in Karate (Chi Combat System UK), he has been awarded ASA Swimming Stage 5 (UK) and RoboCHAMP Pro Engineer in Robotics. Having received several Head Teacher Awards while schooling in the UK, he has been a consistent performer in his current school in India where he was awarded for his academic excellence in the Annual Prize Day. He likes spending hours slumped over a variety of books and which got him to pen down his thoughts in the form of stories as his creative outlet. Imbibing the joys of primary years, he likes playing football and cricket in his pass time.