“Seismologists are reporting that a localised earthquake estimated at 8.3 on the Richter scale hit the border town of Wisptown, leading to collapse of various suburbs. Wisptown was built on precarious foundations – with an extensive cavern system extending outwards underneath the city. Experts posit that the earthquake could have been sparked by the activity of greater earth elementals in the vici—”

  Lilian Laurent rubbed at her temples with a sigh. Her irises flickered, and the vast television display in her quarters turned off. For the eighth time that day, she withdrew her personal pad, opening the tracker app. The tension in her fingers caused them to slip abruptly on the edges of her pad before she righted her grip.

  No signal.

  No signal.

  No signal.

  With another silent, optical command, the display of her pad turned dark. She stared into its glossy surface, at a familiar face in the reflection. Eyes that captured a dark shade of viridian, which could only be found in moss secluded away in the depths of forgotten caverns and caves.

  Or at least, that was how her younger sister had poetically described them. Her eyes were framed by dark, red hair neatly tamed into a slick and tight bun, without so much as a strand out of place.

  A dull tone echoed outwards from the blank television display opposite her desk, its surface blinking back to life. Lilian let out a long breath, gently setting down her pad on the table as she straightened her back. Her expression hardened as she regarded the pulsing notification that prompted the reawakening of the dark screen.

  It’s time.

  Rising from her seat, Lilian climbed up a small flight of stairs, pausing before the doors to her quarters. She heard the familiar click of the door unlatching and the hiss as it opened. Her room was situated on the executive level, and her heels echoed sharply across the wooden floors of the dimly lit corridor.

  The hallway was bordered on either side by small channels of crystalline blue water, lit from beneath with lights inlaid throughout, sending waves of light cascading on the walls adjacent to her. The facsimiles of rivers echoed with the gentle trickle of flowing water, complete with mossy stone and small, bioluminescent flowers which sprouted from their edges. She paused to greet a passing employee with a smile, as the woman’s eyes widened when she discerned her appearance in the dim light. Lilian’s eyes traced the wisteria hanging from the ceiling, glowing with a purple hue.

  She entered the meeting room, sparing a passing glance at the huge window that spanned the entirety of the wall to her left. She took a seat at the long table, her fingers tightening around her pad.

  Lilian’s optics flashed as she accepted the call, the conference screen blinking into life.

  “Lilian! I trust your journey was comfortable?”

  A woman who looked to be her own age stared back at her, a slight smile on her lips after delivering her greeting. Victoria Laurent’s voice was bright as she greeted her daughter with an easy smile. Beside her was Lucien Laurent, her father, with dark, black hair and a trimmed silver beard. Where her mother had opted for Elysium’s aesthetic countermeasures, her father had embraced the wizened look that came with age.

  No visible cybernetics on either of them… of course.

  While they differed in their aesthetic preferences, they had both equally embraced Elysium’s Immortality treatment. Her parents were garbed in flowing, white robes reminiscent of the chiton garments worn in Ancient Rome and Greece. They were seated on a dark grey couch with a crystalline table packed with various delicacies in front of them.

  They must be at the Villa in Lake Como.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  The room around them was a light beige, with sandstone walls and floors bathed in a gentle, restorative light. Stunning foliage adorned the walls. Vines sporting blooming white roses peppered the walls in the villa.

  “How was the trip, Lily? I hope you enjoyed the convenience.”

  “Of course, father. I have no complaints.”

  Her voice was curt and laced with professionalism. Still, Lily watched as her father’s expression eased, a modicum of tension draining from his expression.

  “Ingenious technology that Nezha has developed. We are no longer as reliant on Tsukuyomi or Inazumi to sail the stars. This way, the secrecy of our operations is less jeopardised.”

  “Of course. Please begin the briefing at your convenience.”

  She watched as her mother’s lips twisted into a wry smile at her overly rigid wording, before exchanging a glance with her father and taking a sip from her crystal wineglass. Lily felt rage flare within her at the sight of their amusement, even as she kept her outward expression impassive. Victoria Laurent leaned forward.

  “Ever the professional. Getting away will be good for you, darling. I know you miss Noelle.”

  Lily felt sweat surface on the palms of her neatly folded hands resting in her lap. Her eyes carefully traced her parents’ expressions, watching as they impassively raised their glasses to their lips, before returning their attention to her. The concern that her father had found a place for was nowhere to be seen at the mention of her sister. Her mother continued, gleaming, green eyes so much like her sister’s, locking onto her own.

  “It was only a matter of time before your sister strayed from her path. She never had it in her to bear our responsibility. Our vision. Grieve, darling. Yes. But the sooner you let go, the better.”

  Victoria Laurent’s sharp green eyes softened.

  Lily maintained her silence, her outward expression immaculate, but she felt a surge of relief as her mother’s words reached her.

  Good. They still don’t know.

  But now… she might be dead for real.

  “The project… thank you for entrusting me with this responsibility.”

  “There is no one else we would entrust it to,” Lucien said. Lily watched as her mother affectionately rubbed his forearm, giving a nod in agreement.

  Then, she watched as her parents’ expressions changed.

  Like a switch had been flicked.

  Cold eyes flashed in the darkness. The warmth that they had reserved, no compartmentalised for her, fled. No longer were they speaking to their beloved, sole daughter.

  They were speaking to an operative.

  A tool.

  Lily watched as the room around her parents began to darken, making the white roses adorning the walls shine in the darkness. Blinds dropped on either end of the hall, and she watched a hologram flicker into existence on the crystalline table in front of her parents.

  “Project Gaia will be your main assignment. It reaches its final stages, and its success will usher in a new age of prosperity for Demeteria. For all of mankind, with what it will make possible.”

  She saw a flicker of green emanate from her mother’s eyes. Lily turned to her left, watching as the opaque window comprising the wall of the conference room turned transparent and permeable, allowing her to glimpse the scene beyond.

  Innumerable stars dotted the inky abyss of space beyond, framing the planet below. She had the perfect view of the red glow of the planet’s atmosphere, from where Demeteria Agricorporation’s supercruiser hung in low orbit.

  Mars.

  Her mother’s voice rang out, cutting through her thoughts.

  “Veil-assisted supply lines have been established. Facilities have been manned and work is underway. Atmospheric oxygen concentration is at permissible levels, made possible with our recent… acquisitions.”

  Immediately beneath the Demeteria’s supercruiser spanned out a wealth of green. Foliage that created a vast blotch on the planet’s rusty surface. Vast, twisting jungles with plants both native to Earth and those alien to it.

  Forests in the midst of desolate, red sands that twisted irreverently into Martian skies.

  As Lilian looked out at the planet, she saw other green patches across the planet’s surface beneath other Supercarriers hovering in orbit. While vast swathes of the planet were still desolate, the sight of the progress they had made induced a chill.

  As she amplified her visual acuity, her optics made out the details of the plants below. When her parents referred to the ‘acquisitions’, she had little doubt about what they were referring to. Species not native to Earth that would truly be able to thrive in Demeteria Agricorporation’s new garden.

  The ambition of the megacorporation’s vision on full display.

  Lilian Laurent rose, inclining her head, as her parents – no, Demeteria’s foremost executives – delivered their final instructions to her.

  Their dream that she would bring to life, even as her mind, heart and thoughts lay elsewhere.

  Lilian watched her parents’ optics flash a deep green in the darkness of the Villa, transferring her the requisite information, activation codes and permissions.

  Their instructions.

  Words that encapsulated the impossible dream of her parents.

  Words that encapsulated the heights of arrogance embodied by Demeteria Agricorporation’s vision.

  Life in Desolation.