Magenta Monster

Angular stared around the vast room, it was like nothing she had ever seen before, her father was crying and laughing and shaking the aid workers hand. The man was grinning, ‘I’m glad you like it! You will be sharing this complex with four other families I’m afraid so you might feel a bit cramped.’

Five other families? Angular thought, they’d just spent seven years sharing one apparetment with three other families and that must have been the size of this entrance hall. At ten years old that was most of her life! She wasn’t sure she liked the big vualted cieling or the insesant bobbing of the floor benieth her feet. Not that the apartement had been still but it only tended to shudder when heavy traffic went past – this… this was something else.

‘Unless by some small chance you happen to have farming experience there will have to be a set up team – who will be arriving in the morning.’ the man continued.

Her father was blushing, ‘I was a cow farmer… before…. he trailed off.’ the aid worker looked delighted – really? Oh fantastic – I assume that goats will be not problem then?’ her father shook his head he’d grown up with goats.

‘However you will still need to produce crops,’ he said curtly.

‘Mum used to grow wheat and veg and stuff,’ Jess interupted, the fifteen year old really was looking quiet fat and quiet ill, Angular was worried her sister had always been so full of vitality. Benji was holding the older girls hands looking frightened, he had never really known the farm, he was less than year when the solders had come.

‘Excellent, don’t suppose you had hydroponics?’ the aid worker asked.

‘We had some, but not lab ‘ponics’ her mother answered looking slightly glazed.

‘Brilliant! I think we lucked out on having you as the first family on board this one! We will be introducing a family to each seastead to begin with, to get them all started. I will show you where the weapons are and how the bilge pumps work ect….’

‘Weapons?’ her father whispered looking ashen.

‘There will be pirates – probably not in the first few years of the project but there will be.’

‘Oh,’ the family muttered together, but then how different were pirates going to be from the soldiers? And this time they would have guns!

‘Are there fish?’ he brother asked suddenly, he didn’t really understand about the guns.

‘No not yet,’ the aid worker said, ‘though the design has aqua-bulbs below it for algea farms – this will be important for base nutrients and water processing. The bulbs are made so that we can attach fish tanks later once our scientists have a steady population going that is!’

‘Fish real fish?’ her father said looking wide eyed, ‘I remember there were fish when I was really little, I think we used to eat them?’

The aid worker nodded, ‘yes before the biodiversity crash people used to catch fish to eat – seems incredible now.’

He showed them this and that but Angular begain to get board, Jess and …… thought it was a good idea to explore. There seemed to be rooms for everything, ones with tables and chairs and others with very large stoves in and far too many cupboards! And when the children looked they were full of tinned food. There were bags of rice and flour and so many things Jess seemed to half remember but Angular could not recall.

The Farm narrowed as you went higher, they were very much like giant flating pine cones, the aid worker reckoned it was to make them more stable in storms, Angular didn’t like the sound of that.

Half was up green houses begain to appear, most had little in other than sacks of soil and packets of seeds awaiting planting. But right at the top there was a domed room, there were tables and chairs on a little plinth and some brightly coloured things Jess called toys. ‘They’re slides and swings!’ she breathed as if it was the most wonderful thing in the world. Angular and her borther prodded them suspiscously. But best of all was what they where on – grass! Cool green, sweet grass, all three of them stood bare footed and wriggeled their toes drinking in the sensation.

Jess seemed to be feeling better, though she kept putting her hand to her stomache. They found their perants saying hello to the goats. The aid worker was filling in the paper work – though this was all done on a small device that looked like the e-reader they saved from the Farm.

‘Oh by the way, there is no family size restrictions on these Sea Farms but I suppose you were steralised?’ he asked their mother, she looked sad but nodded her eyes darting to Jess for some reason.

‘And your too young!’ he said cheerfully, Jess burst into tears. The aid worker looked startled.

‘The soldiers had special work for Jess,’ her father said.

‘She did dancing for them!’ Benji said.

‘Contaception doesn’t always work.’ her mother said, blushing. Angular and Benji looked at each other wondering what the conversation was actually about.

‘Don’t tell them Mum they’ll take it away!’ Jess wailed.

‘Ah I see,’ said the aid worker looking suddenly older than he had. ‘We aren’t going to take your baby away Jess.’

‘Baby?’ Angular asked looking at her sister. Jess looked away still crying.

The aid worker coughed, ‘I will have a cott and things put on board later in the week and a medic will check her out properlly.’

‘Noooo! They’ll kill it!’ Jess screamed trying to fight her mother off.

‘No Jess no honey – it’s ok now! We have a farm and there are no solders!’

Jess looked at the Aid worker with red rimmed eyes so large with fear and innocence, ‘I.. I can have my baby?’ she asked quietly.

‘Yes’ he said simply.

‘So it’s going to be ok?’ she said looking at her perants

‘We hope so.’ they said.

Angular hugged her sister and kissed her tummy her brother lent over and whispered, ‘you’ll be safe now.’ and did the same.

Posted: Thursday, April 26th, 2012 @ 2:07 pm
Categories: Flash Fiction, Series, The Punks World.
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