Author: Mina
Newsflash:
The outpost supply ship Reliant exploded this morning at 09:00 earth time. All 62 crew members died instantly. The Nicene anti-expansionists claimed the attack as one of their own. It is the first time they have targeted a non-military vessel, which may herald a worrying new trend in interstellar terrorism.
Excerpt from recorded film as part of the last will and testament of JB Reiser:
Hey Bro, if you’re watching this, the unthinkable has happened – I’ve just met my sticky end in the inky vastness of space (laugh). I’ve been updating this message every year or so and this time is really important. Cass found out she was pregnant just days before I was due to head off on this six-month supply tour.
Jesus, I really hope you aren’t listening to this because that means I never got the chance to meet the new person growing inside Cass’ belly.
Cass is well provided for – this job has good health and pension cover. I’m directing this message at you because I don’t want mum taking over. She’ll do it with the best intentions, but then she’ll railroad Cass completely. I need you to watch out for Cass, help her stand her ground and do what she thinks is right for the baby. We were planning to join the new settlement scheme and maybe move to some obscure part of the galaxy where life is less programmed, more of a surprise. If Cass still wants that, you’ll have to fight mum over it.
I’ve instructed that you be told first if something happens to me. I want you to be the one to break the news to Cass. I know you’re more of a words man, Bruce, but she won’t need your words, they won’t help her. You need to hold her as tight as you can. I know you’re cringing there (laugh), but it’s hugs that she’ll need.
Tell her I love her more than anything. It sounds clichéd but I really mean it. Tell her I’ll miss her dancing to merengue while she cooks or laughing at whatever she’s reading, the mean back massages she knows how to give me, how she looked on our wedding day in red because it’s her favourite colour (and white just makes her look ill), and the silly debates we always have over coffee in the mornings when I’m on home leave. Tell her I would never have left her by choice.
Tell her, too, that I want our baby to grow up knowing who I was but I want them to know the real me, no turning me into a hero. No naming them after me, not even as a middle name; they deserve to be their own person.
And the next bit of this message is for you because you are much more to me than just my messenger…
Annual meeting of the non-animal-protein development committee:
The meeting was interrupted when the chair, Cassandra Reiser, was called out to speak to a relative bringing urgent news. Those present were not able to hear what was said through the sound-proof glass, but they observed Ms. Reiser collapsing against a tall, thin man, wearing glasses (unthinkable in this day and age of corrective eye treatment). It was clear she was sobbing, wailing even, and the young man was holding her very, very tight.
Excerpt of passenger manifest for the Aurora settlement ship traveling to Kairos:
Bruce Reiser (28), traveling with wife
Cassandra Reiser (26) and child
Aria Reiser (2)
Great story. A good fellow with a good brother providing insurance that can’t be purchased.
Could have sworn I’d commented …
That’s a hell of a thing to ask either of them, maybe especially her if the brothers are as different as suggested. Wasn’t quite sure where it was going, and the manifest put a nice cap on a tale of terror and grief.
Yep, it is. But don’t you ever wonder what happens to the loved ones of those that end up a statistic on the news? Is it so bad to imagine that a shared love and loyalty can lead to a new beginning? And I was probably influenced by a little-known film – “My Life Without Me” 🙂
In this circumstance I’d like to think it was more than ‘of convenience’ regardless of how much a battle-axe the mother-in-law is 🙂 And I’d like to think everyone has a life that, like red wine, gets better with age, but I am way too cynical despite being a bit of a hopeless romantic, to think that will happen to/for all.
So, I’m not very informed on how a manifest would look…so is that last part trying to say that now the brother (Bruce) married his dead brother’s widow and they are traveling with their own baby on the way or is Bruce and his wife (unmentioned) traveling with his brother’s widow, their daughter and unborn child?
The former was how I meant it (there are only 3 of them) 🙂
I see now…I was wrong on both accounts. Bruce, his new wife, and his niece/step-daughter.
Excellent.
An immediate addition to my favourites list. http://www.lizardsofthehost.co.uk/20.html
Wow! Thank you.
Nice idea. Spoilt by the portrayal of females as either weak or overbearing. Unless in #2 she kills both brothers for their pension….
You aren’t actually going to tell me that feminism means that suddenly there are no more overbearing parents-in-law (hey, equal rights to be a pain the ass!) left out there? And, if you look at their ages, the hint is there – she is simply very young. And hey, she gets to still follow HER dream of heading out to a new world and, cunning lady, she takes a support network with her. Seriously, watching out for a partner and making sure there’s someone there for them – has this been suddenly made irrelevant now or in the future, gender issues aside? I must admit though that I did make her marry again on purpose because feminism means you get to be traditional too, should you want to be 🙂
Women are equal, but they are not infallible, and plenty of them out there are in forms that fall short of the feminist “ideal.” That’s fine. It’s called having interesting characters. Readers can’t connect with flawless saints, women or not. Please try to read without hunting for chinks in people’s political correctness armor, and just think about the story from now on. Start with this one: I think you’ll find it rather enjoyable.
I might suggest that it speaks volumes about the strength of the woman to choose to leave the planet for a brave new world with the brother of her dead husband, putting the memory of her partner and the well being of herself and her family ahead of any stereotypes as to what’s ‘acceptable’. There was nothing to suggest any requirement of even obligation, this was pretty clearly her decision.
If you’ve suffered catastrophic loss in your life, moving at all after requires tremendous strength, and there’s nothing in this that makes me think she was anything but strong.
A lot of story in so few words. EXCELLENT Well told
Thank you! No wasting of words is something I learned from one of my favourite authors, Nevil Shute (author of “On the Beach”). He’s a product of his time though, even if he would have counted as open-minded for his generation, so he would be a bit old-fashioned now. He is also very good at framing his stories.
Very interesting, I loved how you framed this… so expansive yet so compact. Also, “On the Beach” was required reading when I was at school, and I must say it was by far and away the best thing that I was ever force fed to read 🙂