1st 5 Pages January Workshop - Kerr Rev 1

Name: Carryn W Kerr

Genre: Young Adult romantic, light science-fiction, adventure.
Title: Petriville

Without hesitation, as though I’d change my mind if given half the chance, Liam pulled open the door to our Home Virtual Experience room. Laying one arm around my shoulder, my brother held out his hand, palm up, towards the center of the room. The L-shaped leather couches in one corner looked inviting, but we weren’t using them today.

The door sealed behind us, and I sucked in a sharp breath. The ceiling-mounted VE cube threw a triangular light to the floor. The light expanded, sliding over our feet, up our legs, bodies, heads. A gravitational pull sucked us to the center of the room, into another time, right outside our front door.

I drew in the fragrance of spring flowers and freshly cut lawn. The soft early evening breeze brushed my skin. And tiny recording drones floated around spectators like silent flies, recording moments to become Petriville’s history. As sunset’s orange glow deepened, a three-dimensional version of Dad exited our home — looking all of the eleven years younger than he was now. The drones took in every facade of Dad’s tall, fair, sculpted physique. My eyes dropped to the more youthful image of Mom — stretched out on our front lawn. An incredulous expression lit her olive-toned face, her dark hair haloing around her head; jeans never quite long enough to reach her ankles.

At seven and five-years-old, Liam and I buzzed around our mother. The breeze fluttered Liam’s soft blonde curls, as he clasped my tiny hand in his and pointed to the sky. I recalled none of it but noted how, even then, we were tall for our ages. Even then, my deep blue eyes contrasted my olive skin and straight, dark hair while the knobby knees, Liam had so often teased me about, protruded below the hem of a pale blue dress, I could almost remember.

“So, here we are, Emily; kids.” Dad hummed in his smooth baritone as he paced back and forth.

Mom fluttered her long fingers as though to push a recording drone away. Her smiling, elite English accent flowed through the speakers in warm harmony. “Oh, come join your family, Peter.” Without tearing her gaze from the sky, she held out her hand to Dad. Taking it, he crouched then sat beside her.

The scene was so lifelike, it drew me into that moment. I looked up our block, then turned in the other direction. People filled the cobbled walkway, curving past our homes. And neighbors lay on their lawns or in the park over the walkway. No eyes left the darkening sky as the myriad of tiny recording drones floated around families. Slowly, I followed everyone’s gaze.

This was the day our town had launched into Earth’s orbit. It should have left me with a thousand vivid memories. But mine were like broken shards of glass — shimmering or shattered. To an onlooker, Petriville’s launch must have seemed unnatural. A town within an indestructible giant dome — a transparent kaleidoscope of rainbow colors. The dome had ballooned into a ball that grew and grew until it popped into Earth’s exosphere. Complete with houses, gardens, trees, conveyor streets, schools, and shops, our town seemed to magically hover at the ball’s center.

My focus drifted back to the VE, my eyes drifting upwards. The most magnificent scene materialized, laced in tones of the softest blues to the deepest greens. Draped over it all, clouds floated in languid majesty — crisp white to deep, dark grey. It was as though we were Earth, and Earth was our very large moon.

I stood like a spectator in the scene and turned to Liam. “This is not new, though Li. Earth isn’t much different now to how it was then.”

As usual, Liam’s rapid-fire speech emerged in smooth tones. “Wait, Cassidy. This is so you can see how it was that day. And anyway, you know Earth was not like this for most of our lives here.”

Almost as soon as Liam had spoken, the scene faded, and we were back in our home VE room. Then a new Visual Experience descended from the cube, spreading its light out and up over us.

Again, Mom and Dad were outside our home, this time in the park over the curved cobbled walkway. No children were out on this dark night, and no adults lay. People ignored the drones, again skimming the crowds. All eyes were locked on the night sky, whimpers escaping both men and women. I followed their skyward stares, and my chest tightened.

An enormous flaming ball and tail descended toward Earth. As the mass drew nearer and nearer the beautiful, doomed planet, a deathly silence fell.

Even though I knew the outcome, I found myself wishing things would turn out differently: the meteorite would incinerate in Earth’s atmosphere; the asteroid would glide past — miss Earth entirely.

Dad pulled Mom back against him, as she swatted at drones. Tears flooded her deep blue eyes and cascaded down her cheeks.

Ethereal brightening seared the dark sky. And a shimmering mushroom of debris rose from Earth! Mom’s heart-rending scream shattered the night. An echo in a chorus of onlookers’ grief. My young parents collapsed to the ground, comprehension slamming into them: They had just lost nearly every person they loved. Their parents, Aunt Susan, and Sarah! Their horror-filled screams pierced my heart like an icy spear as if it was happening now! A sharp, searing agony tore into my gut. I barely noticed I was clinging to Liam; that he held me against him, his arms as tight as the vice gripping my heart; that I shook, sobbed; that tears slid down his cheeks too. Mom’s screams continued to cut a burning, stabbing pain through my chest. But, I couldn’t drag my eyes from her nor escape the suffocating VE. My body numbed as a weighted, nauseated, distant dream took hold. But I couldn’t raise my hand to wipe at the tears, burning my cheeks.

The VE faded, and we were back in the room with the two leather couches. The old sweet-sixteen maxim really applied to me. But it felt back-to-front. Like the soft sensation of a boy’s lips on mine should have come before what I had just witnessed. After the longest time, Liam loosened his grip, and I stepped away, wiping my cheeks.

A sharp rap on the front door brought me back.

Liam raised his brows in a not-really-surprised way and went to answer the door. I stalked after him, wiping the remains of torment from my face.

In the doorway stood Gina Petri, Petriville’s founder. Horn-rimmed spectacles magnified her watery blue eyes, and a toothy smile grew beneath her parrot nose.

My lips pressed into a sneer. “Gina! What brings you here?”

Gina’s oh-too-sweet melody reminded me of a snake. “Is that any way to greet the woman who saved your family? I am merely here to wish you, as do I all on their sixteenth.” She flashed a glance at Liam, “Your brother remembers.”

The words burst through my lips. “Really? Then, where are my grandparents, aunt, and cousin? You could have saved them. But you let them die!”

Liam closed his hand around mine as though to calm or comfort me.

Gina continued, not changing her smarmy tone or slow pace. But an airy chuckle slithered, seemingly unbidden, into her voice.