Carnage ~within me

Carnage

I grew up in a town called Nuvalis, a place whose lifeline was its nuclear power plant. My father, Arthur Kane, worked diligently there, providing for our family and inspiring me with his tireless commitment. I still remember how he would come home after long shifts at the plant, his face etched with exhaustion, yet he always found time to share stories about the stars and encourage me to dream beyond the boundaries of our small town. He had a dream for me—a dream as vast as the cosmos. He wanted me to become an astronaut. Inspired by his vision, I devoted myself to my studies, pouring every ounce of effort into achieving that goal. Years later, his dream became my reality. I not only became an astronaut but was celebrated as one of the best.

My reputation earned me a mission that was as thrilling as it was daunting: to find a new planet where humanity could thrive—a task fraught with uncertainty, peril, and the weight of humanity's survival resting on my shoulders. With hope and determination, I embarked on this journey, leaving Earth behind. For years, I floated through the endless void of space, scanning planets, analysing atmospheres, but finding no sign of a new home for humanity.

One day, as I drifted in the silence of the stars, the faint hum of my spacecraft was my only companion. Suddenly, the lights on my dashboard flickered, and the familiar signal from Earth disappeared. Panic gripped me as the oppressive stillness closed in. My fingers trembled over the controls, searching for answers, but all I could feel was the cold sweat trickling down my neck. It was as if the vast emptiness around me had swallowed Earth whole. At first, I thought it was a technical glitch, but soon I realized the true cause: I was near a mysterious planet called Aetherion, emitting radiation that interfered with my systems. Before I could react, the planet’s gravity seized my spacecraft, pulling me toward it with a force I could not resist. The descent was violent. Flames licked at the edges of the cockpit as the ship shook uncontrollably, alarms blaring in a chaotic symphony. The oppressive heat seeped through the layers of insulation, and I could feel the pressure building in my chest as the gravity intensified. My spacecraft hurtled through the atmosphere, streaking like a fiery comet against the alien sky, before slamming into the planet’s surface with a bone-rattling impact that echoed through the desolate terrain. Miraculously, I survived, shielded by the advanced suit I wore.

As I stumbled out of the wreckage, I braced myself for the unknown. But to my astonishment, the inhabitants of this alien world were human—just like us. They looked at me with curiosity but also with understanding. They realized I was an astronaut, and their advanced civilization came to my aid. They assured me that my spacecraft would be repaired and invited me to explore their world while I waited.

Their planet was a marvel. Technology flourished in ways I could hardly comprehend. Cities shimmered with energy and innovation, blending nature and machinery seamlessly. As the weeks turned into months, I became enchanted by their way of life.

One day, they showed me something extraordinary: a telescope unlike any I had ever seen. This device could predict the future by processing light before it fully formed. It was as if the telescope could see the universe’s script before it was written. Intrigued and anxious, I pointed it toward Earth. What I saw chilled me to my core. My hometown of Nuvalis was engulfed in flames, buildings crumbling, people reduced to ashes. The devastation was total. And it would happen in just one week.

Panic surged through me. I begged the people of Aetherion to let me return to Earth immediately. They hesitated, explaining that my spacecraft was not yet fully repaired. But I insisted, desperate to save my home and my people. Reluctantly, they agreed and sent me on my way.

The journey back to Earth was fraught with tension. Seven days passed as I raced against time. When I finally approached Earth, my worst fears materialized. My spacecraft began to fail. Flames erupted in the engine, and the controls spiralled out of my grasp. I struggled to maintain control, guiding the ship toward Nuvalis, determined to warn them of the impending catastrophe. But fate had other plans.

The spacecraft, engulfed in fire, crashed directly into the nuclear power plant—the same plant where my father, Arthur, had once worked. The impact unleashed a catastrophic hydrogen explosion, its force obliterating the town in an instant. As the fire and destruction consumed everything, I realized the horrifying truth: the future I had seen through the telescope had come to pass, not despite my actions but because of them.

Had I stayed away, the chain of events leading to this tragedy might never have been set in motion. My attempt to save my home had doomed it instead. The weight of that realization crushed me, a burden I would carry for the rest of my days.

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This is the story of how a journey among the stars brought me back to the ashes of my origins. Sometimes, in our quest to change the future, we become the architects of its inevitability.