Author: Alastair Millar
It was our usually bad-tempered neighbour Mr Winkelmann who first told us we could get ‘special benefits’ if we registered in person at the Central Bureau in Lapis. Indigo’s government knew we spent a lot on the exoskeletal clothing and bone-strengthening drugs we needed to help us deal with the gravity, and wanted to help. Later, on the etherwave, the President said that if we signed up, the government would guarantee better jobs, despite all the bad things people say about us. Mamma thought this was great. Pappa said nothing, but the lines in his face seemed deeper, somehow. I was just excited that we’d get to make a trip to the capital.
When we got there the following weekend, Central Plaza was filled with other Latecomers – people who’d arrived in the last Wave from Earth, like Mamma and Pappa, or their children, like me. There were lots of Security Bots, too, but nobody was causing trouble. We queued in the sunshine for hours, under a sky the glorious colour that gave our planet its name, but eventually we got to the scanning booths and had our DNA taken “to avoid fraud”, whatever that meant. Nobody really told us anything; when we tried asking, one of the uniformed scanner operators laughed and said “don’t worry, things will start happening soon”. Mamma was excited to find out what, but Pappa looked skeptical.
That night, there was another broadcast. The President was delighted that so many people had come forward. To save money, Latecomer support gear would now only be available from the State, so anyone who hadn’t registered should do so quickly, or they’d not be able to get anything. “I don’t like this,” muttered Pappa, but Mamma said being efficient was important.
A few days later we heard that all Latecomers were going to be moved to Azure, the second continent, to a brand new colony! We’d get proper houses, and wouldn’t have to worry about being bullied or discriminated against! We were told to come to the Spaceport, with two bags each; everything else would be shipped later. Mamma was delighted – a new home instead of our cramped apartment! Pappa just looked sad.
On Departure Day we were there as instructed. Mamma was goggling: “They’re taking us in style,” she said, “that’s a space-capable liner!”. Our bags were taken by some uniformed attendants, but when we got on board it was nothing like I expected: no cabins, just big dormitories with bunks set into the bulkheads, three-high from floor to ceiling. We managed to get a vertical for ourselves, and I got the top bed! Mamma said not to worry, it was only a short ride. Pappa’s face was grey, and he stayed silent, but I didn’t understand why – even if it was uncomfortable, this was an adventure!
But we didn’t get taken to Azure after all. Instead we were onboard for weeks, and then found ourselves deposited at a bleak landing pad on Earth. The Terran Government wasn’t expecting us, and made a big fuss, but Indigo just stopped talking to them. We never got out baggage back, and now we’re living in a tent in a field while things get worked out. The Sun here’s the wrong colour – big and orange instead of small and blue – and the sky just isn’t right, but I guess we’ll get used to it. It looks like we’ll have to.
“What do we do now?” asked Mamma the night after we arrived. “Start again,” replied Pappa, tiredly; but for the first time in a long while, he was smiling.