I stand on my balcony and look over the dull colorless city. You’d think I’d like it here in a billionaire’s penthouse apartment after growing up an orphan on the streets. The truth is, I don’t hate living with him, I hate living in this fucking Dome. A bubble surrounds us to keep out the harsh toxins of our abused planet. The air in the dome is filtered and everything is kept pristine. There is one I thing I do like about the dome is the massive tree that sits in the center of everything. The tree gives us life. It is a man made oak tree that helps keep the air clean and helps us grow food. All the animals died out so we are all vegans. The tree is the closest thing we have to what earth used to be. It is also the most color you are going to see in New Terra. My father walks out and stands next to me.
“Enjoying the view?” He asks “Yes.” “New Terra is beautiful, isn’t it?” “I like the tree. Everything else is kind of bland do you think?”
I look at the clothes we are wearing:our same bland white uniform that we wear every. single. day.
“It isn’t bland, it’s clean as should be.” “I don’t disagree but who says color is dirty.” “White is the color of clean.”
I roll my eyes. Suddenly a breeze blows. Something from the weather machine attached to the dome. I notice a leave blow off the tree. It blows towards us. I reach into the air and grab it. The leave is partly brown.
“Something is wrong with the tree.” I said “The tree is fine.” “The never loses leaves and it’s leaves never turn brown. It was grown over 2000 years ago and it’s always been green.” “Aelia, I think your just being paranoid.”
Damn it! Those shitty neurotoxins in the air. The designed to keep people in a constant state of bliss. Somehow I’m immune to it, but people so ignorantly blissful that they don’t care. I leave the balcony and go to the tree. I place my hand on her bark. She feels scared. Something is definitely not right.
“Howdy!” Says Fredrick.
Dr. Fredrick Glasier is an old friend. He used to be a spy for the government but was fired when he went rogue. He then became a scientist and was named head caretaker of the tree. He was one of the only people who treated me with kindness when I was living on the streets. He would bring me food everyday.
“I think something is wrong with her. I found one of her leaves. She’s turning brown.” I say
Fredrick’s face goes from jolly to worry. He takes the leaf from me and studies it.
“I need to look at this under my microscope.”
I follow him to his underground lab. He turns on the lights and goes over to his microscope. I watch him. My phone vibrates. I answer. A hologram on my dad pops up.
“Where are you? Did you forgot about the important meeting with the investors?”
“Shit! I’m on my way.” I say.
“Hurry”
I hang up.
“I’m sorry I have to go. Let me know if you find anything.”
I rush home. I hop in the super elevator and it instantly opens up at the penthouse.
“There she is. This is my daughter Aelia.”
I press a button on my wrist and suddenly my disheveled look is smooth and pristine. I shake hands with all the investors as I perfect my waitress smile.
Later that night I am woken up by my phone. I answer. Fredrick’s hologram pops up.
“What is it Fredrick?”
“You need to get over here now.” He says with a sense of urgency in his voice.
I sit up.
“Okay, I’m on my way.”
I do the secret knock on the doors to Fredrick’s lab. When I get down there, Dr. Fredrick is looking in his microscope.
“What is it?” I ask.
“I’m afraid she’s dying.”
Damn! They’re gaining on me. I try to paddle faster. The oar breaks. Rotting wood. I slam my foot down in frustration and it goes through the canoe and it sinks. Fuck! I jump out of the boat and swim as fast as I can without looking back. Lucky fir me I was a competitive swimmer in high school. The water is freezing and my pursuers get closer, but I’m faster. Suddenly I come up to a waterfall. I look behind me and grab onto a rock. Don’t look down. Don’t look down. Don’t look down. The forest looms over me and I hear a wolf howl in the distant. My heartbeat grows increasingly faster. I dive over the water praying the water isn’t shallow. Lucky for me it’s not. I hop out of the water soaked and freezing. Next to me a man who looked to be in his late 50s sits outside of his tent by a fire.
“Need a towel?” He said.
“Yes.”
“Warm up by the fire while I get you one.”
The heat feels nice on my ice cold body. I reach into my pocket to feel for the locket. I sigh in relief when I pull it out. I open the gold heart locket and look at the picture of the little girl in it.
My precious Rose. I will find you.
The man comes back with withered towel.
“It may not look the nicest but I promise you it ain’t dirty.”
I take the towel from him, graciously.
“You hungry?”
He hands me a sausage on a skewer. I let it roast over the campfire.
“Tell me, what’re you jumpin’ over that waterfall there?”
“It’s a long story.”
“I got nottin but time.”
“Okay, then. It started back when my wife died when my daughter and I moved to West Virginia.”
