The Life under Adventure Mars

1. The Life under Adventure Mars Created by: Emily

2. Start: Weird things have been happening recently. Really weird things. The type of weird where if people found out that the things you’ve been hearing, the creatures you been seeing, and the claws that seem to touch your ankles in the dark seemed real to you, they would send you to a counselor. Or a therapist. And then people would start to talk. Life seems to fall apart when people start to talk. You feel crazy, and the need to clear your headache takes over your concentration. You decide to: • Play basket ball in your parking lot • Read in the secret loft in the back of your wardrobe

3. Play Basket Ball You shoot hoops in the parking lot on the side of your house until your head hurts not from nerves, but from physical exertion. When you lean back against the fence, the sweat between your legs feels like shifting skin. You close your eyes and open them slowly, seeing shadows against the sunset. But as your head regains its balance, those shadows become more and more solid, until they form the shape of a human being. A…odd looking human being. A normal-looking tall boy, seeming to walk towards you with odd red and gold clothing. A few feet away, he just stops… and looks at you. You decide too: • Run back in the house • Stay where you are, and wait to see what happens next.

4. Run back in the house You get up, adrenaline pounding in your blood, you head finally clear for once. Except for one word…danger. After getting in your room, slamming the door, panting for a while, and calming down, you take a shower to get rid of the sweat. Then you get into bed. Even though you are tired, and sleep won’t come easily, you are grateful to stay awake. After the odd boy, you feel the need to stay awake to make sure nothing else weird happens. But you eventually fall asleep. And you stay asleep despite the strange beeping noise that strays in your dreams… You wake up in a clear room of glass, in a white bed, with a white beeping machine hooked up to you. With the strange boy that you saw earlier sitting at your bedside. You jump away out of reflex, and his head looks up just as fast. Then he starts to speak. “Hello. Sleep well?” • Wake up • Widen your eyes in shock and slight fear.

5. Wake up You open your eyes, shoot up in bed, gasp for breath, and hit your head on the top bunk of you bunk bed. Ow. Once the pain disappears, you find your head strangely clear. Just a freak headache, You decide. Right? End slide

6. Widen your eyes in shock and fear You find that you vocal cords are incapable of rattling. “I’ll just assume, then, seeing as we made it where you can’t talk, that you did. Welcome to Intralmars. We currently have a civil war going on, one that which we are losing desperately. We have monitored and picked a small team of humans with over average ability. Be it strength, brains, or kindness, we picked you for your qualities. We find that human ability is not superior, but much different than our own. For this reason we request the help of you to be our secret weapon. Do you accept?” He looks at you with hope in his brown eyes. “And by the way, in exchange for your help, we will give you a royal mansion here in the inside of the red planet (it is warmer near the center). But you will not be able to go back to earth. Ever. So, what do you say?” • Yes, I will help your nation. • No, I like my average life

7. No, I like my average life. “Well, alright then.” The boy smiles. You awake, opening your eyes slowly. Weird dream. Matches the shadows. Your head is clear, after weeks of worrying. “I must have been over stressed.” You guess. Right? End slide

8. Yes, I will help your nation. You nod your head, and with a flick of the boys wrist you can talk again. “Great.” He says. We don’t have a lot of time, so we’ll have to have a brief meeting of battle strategy to discuss what your plan is. You feel suddenly stressed, the fate of an entire nation weighing under your shoulders. They have all put their fate in you. And even though the boy hasn’t specified, you assume that if you fail, and lead the nation to destruction, your own life with perish with the life of the people’s. You can not fail. The boy leads you to a conference room, stunningly clean and clad in glass. One person sits at the head of the table, and his fiery eyes look into yours. You take a seat, as you realize that you know nothing about this country or their people. You assume it is a dictatorship as only one government official is in the room. “So,” the commander says in a deep voice, “As Sololan has surly told you, we don’t have a lot of time. Mere hours, perhaps, until the rebel half of the nation is rumored to launch electron bombs on our territory. What is your plan, human?” Suddenly put on the spot, your dry eyes blink. • Brains; make peace with the corresponding nation • Brawn; Launch an assassination attack on the rebels

9. Brains “I don’t know if your plan is destined to work, but the future is inevitable and at the same time unpredictable.” The commander says. “We shall send a balloon of peace filled with you, Soloan, and one of my top soldiers in the communication field. I will send the rest of the nation into their bomb shelters above ground. We wish you luck, kid.” Your eyes fill with an unexpected respect for the commander. His words have shown his old-wisdom. “Well,” Soloan says. “We better get going.” As you float over enemy territory, fear fills you. The possibility of being shot down rings in your mind. But the rebels let you land peacefully in their palace of solid red dust. It crumbs into your fingers as you run your fingers along the walls. As you follow a “rebel” into an auditorium, you gaze in amazement at the high walls of orange beauty. All below the surface of mars. How amazing. The stage that you stand on is being watched by many government officials. A democracy. Huh. Their eyes suggest kindness, and the ability to compromise. As you begin talking of your plans for a new nation, they listen quietly. As your speech draws to a close, they clap their hands appreciatively. “Such knowledge for a human.” One says. “I agree to your plans, and I sense my fellow officials agree as well. On one great condition. A price must be paid for this war, but unlike foolish humans, we don’t place our life in money, but life itself.” As your brain understands the concept, your eyes fill with tears. “As payment, punishment, and consolation for this war, each side will kill its prisoners of battle. It must be done.” Your knees fall. All the people you tried to protect, they have been affected anyway. Just when you think you had succeeded, you failed. “However… a human life is worth more than our own. Especially one of innocence. Will you perform one last act of heroism to save thousands of people from death?” A last choice must be made. • Give your life for a nation’s people. • Have the prisoners of war die

10. Give your life for a nation’s people. 100 years later, Great glass towers drift up into the sky. The clouds of frozen water skim their sides, and bring joy to the children inside. They learn of colors, of dreams. They learn of their ancestors, gone as an effect of time. But to understand hope and dreams, they must understand war and anger. So they learn of war. They learn of the great civil war that plagued their country many years before. Many lives were lost. But not too many. Prices were paid. Not easy, but for a greater cause. They learn of a hero. That wasn’t exactly like them. Quite different, actually, but great enough to stop the war. And good enough to make the ultimate sacrifice. In the middle of all the united buildings of shining glass and red dust, there is a platinum statue with a titanium base. And a name plate of gold. And flowers are planted at its feet. There is a difference between being great enough to lead a nation, and being good enough to save one. End slide

11. Have the prisoners of war die. You walk in your silk slippers to your balcony. The clouds wisp by your face, bringing a dusting of rain on your soft shirt. The clouds, almost like thousands of souls watching you. The sensation of water brings a realization and decision back to mind, one that saved your being. Life is always better than death. 100, years later. A family stands at a gravestone, inside a great grave yard. Stones stretch as far as the eye can wonder. They all read similar phrases, and have similar markings. They stones show creature against creature, a people so similar, the people of this time wonder how there could have ever been any conflict in a past time. But questions never make death easy, and if anything, they make it more difficult. On this anniversary, they, and thousands of other families, celebrate the lives not lost, but given, to make the nation whole once more. But they still wish that those great grandparents and great-great grandparents could still be with them. Life is always better than death. Or is it? End slide

12. Brawn “Yes. I agree. The rebels must be destroyed.” The commander’s eyes glow like a fiery bon-fire. “And a assassination attack is an even greater idea. We will send an Air-army plane to the edge of our territory, and from there you will march to their palace and destroy their leader. I will be your only partner in this mission. We must leave at once.” You are clad in a black shirt, red vest, black pants, and red boots. Traditional, for the rebel territory. But what is underneath would send cries of alarm. A harming poison, produced by your sponsors, hides in your vest, and when broken and smeared on your hands…won’t do much harm. It has your blood in it, to prevent its affects from digging into the skin, sprinting through fluids to your heart, and eating away its connections to veins. A painless, quick death, for the hunger for bloodshed has abandoned the advanced race under mars. But an effective one, no less. You walk inconspicuously through villages in rebel territory, hoping you blend in. You look around, and see mothers and children running around dusty huts. Red with orange mud. Coughs echo from the huts, and you realize that living in dust can be harmful to your lungs as poison. You begin to wonder how a half-nation so beaten down can be so bad. “Come. We have to hurry, and we are almost at the border to the palace. We must stick together.” You trot along to the commander. But your mind starts to wonder; maybe killing the leader of the rebels isn’t such a good idea. But you don’t think the commander would like what your thinking…” • Tell the commander that taking over the rebels isn’t a good idea. • Keep along with the commander. If you have more of these thoughts, you keep them in the back of your mind.

13. Tell the commander “Maybe crippling the nation isn’t such a good idea. I think…this might be able to be solved with peace…perhaps.” You say, timidly. The Commander turns around, slowly, with a smile on his face. A sweet smile. “Sure kid. You might be right. Hey, my old bones are getting tired. Can I wear your vest for a bit?” You feel relived. Ahh. Not only does he not want to pitch you off a red cliff, he agrees with you. You hand him your vest in silent gratitude. He smiles. But this time… it seems sour. “But on the other hand, you might be wrong.” As his hand touches your vest, it bursts into flames. Which travel across the vest and onto your hand. The fire is on your hand. You see his unnaturally red eyes, with black pupils like coal. Your vision goes grey. The end End slide

14. Keep with the commander You go along with the commander, and reach a big palace of red dust. Amazed at the architecture, your eyes gaze across the building as the commander stalks across the perimeter of the palace, looking for entry. He beckons to you after a moment, indicating an old and rusting air vent that can fit and hold a person. You both army crawl into it, and continue crawling until you reach a grand auditorium. Several figures sit around a glass table on pillows, while a man at the edge of the table sits on a small, leg-less chair with a back rest. The commander drops down from the vents, and you slip out behind him, landing in the middle of the table, shattering the glass. Shock spreads across the counsel’s faces, as they realize that their leader is about to be gone. The Commander is yelling, “Do it! Do it now!” But your brain conjurers up an idea. Even if you successfully take away the rebels leader, you will still be captured. You might be killed. You think of all the people in their villages, dying of dust. But this war has to end one way or another. You rip the bottle out of your vest, and throw it…” • On to the Commander’s face. • On to the rebel of all rebels.

15. On to the Commander’s face You see the appreciation in the leaders tired face. “Thank you,” He says. “My nation needed me in this time of hardship and poverty. All we wanted was a share of the prosperous land that our “enemies” had, to obtain more food and harvest the medical plants there. But they turned their backs against us. Greed almost destroyed our culture. But now, you have stopped the war and saved us all.” You smile, as the rebels kneel in the shattered glass around you. End slide

16. On the rebel’s face. The Commander’s face smiles with pride. “A true trooper. A great hero. Our nation will rule forever, because of you.” The commander takes off running. You smear some left over chemical on the surviving rebel’s faces as you take off over him. You bust through the doors of the palace as sirens start crying. As you run back through the village, the scared people are back in their houses. You can’t help feeling that if the commander succeeds with him plans, these people might be in even worse conditions than they are now. But on the other hand, you don’t know these people. They could be mean people, deserving of their fate. Another decision faces you. • Rub left-over chemical on the Commander • Forget about it, and keep running.

17. Read in your loft You grab a book, open your wardrobe, pull back clothes, and step through a hidden door to your favorite reading area; the loft. Your head soon starts spinning with the emotion and story of the chapters. As you turn the last page, your brain lets go of awake-ness, knowing that everything turned out all right and everyone was safe. You close your eyes. You wake up to a boy sitting on your window pane. His eyes are glowing, looking at you. You yell and stumble off your chair, then hide behind your lamp. He smirks. “If I was planning to hurt you, a lamp wouldn’t protect you in the least. Actually, I would probably use it to harm you.” He says. “But I’m just hear to make a request. One that you can simply turn down, if you wish. My nation needs you. We currently have a civil war going on, one that which we are losing desperately. We have monitored and picked a small team of humans with over average ability. We find that human ability is not superior, but much different than our own. For this reason we request the help of you to be our secret weapon. Do you accept?” He looks at you with hope in his brown eyes. “And by the way, in exchange for your help, we will give you a royal mansion here in the inside of the red planet (it is warmer near the center). But you will not be able to go back to earth. Ever. So, what do you say?” • Sure, I will help. • No, I like my average life.

18. Sure I will help. “Great!” He smiles. “My name is Sololan, by the way.” You wake up in a conference room, stunningly clean and clad in glass. One person sits at the head of the table, and his fiery eyes look into yours. You take a seat, as you realize that you know nothing about this country or their people. You assume it is a dictatorship as only one government official is in the room. “So,” the commander says in a deep voice, “As Sololan has surly told you, we don’t have a lot of time. Mere hours, perhaps, until the rebel half of the nation is rumored to launch electron bombs on our territory. What is your plan, human?” Suddenly put on the spot, your dry eyes blink. • Brains; Make peace with the opposing nation • Brawn; Launch an attack!

19. Wait and see what happens next You lean against the fence, and watch the boy. He continues to walk toward you, until he is just a few feet away. “Who are you?” You ask, with eyes narrowed. “ Don’t look so tough; I’m not here to kidnap you or anything. Geez.” He rolls his eyes. You like him less and less. “ I know this might be really bad timing, and it’s coming really suddenly, but I my planet needs you. We currently have a civil war going on, one that which we are losing desperately. We have monitored and picked a small team of humans with over average ability. We find that human ability is not superior, but much different than our own. For this reason we request the help of you to be our secret weapon. Do you accept?” He looks at you with hope in his brown eyes. “And by the way, in exchange for your help, we will give you a royal mansion here in the inside of the red planet (it is warmer near the center). But you will not be able to go back to earth. Ever. So, what do you say?” • Sure, I will help. • No, I like my average life.

20. Rub left over chemical on the commander. “Stop!” You yell. Your voice sounds so fierce that the commander slows his pace to a stand, and faces you. You bring your hand back, and slap him across the face, letting the chemical burn his cheek. He cries out, and falls to the ground, unmoving. You stand over him, and look around the huts. Full of people. Your people, you realize. Both leaders are gone now. Everything is yours. Forget the lush condo on a hill top. You would rather own a nation. End slide

21. Keep running with the commander. You forget the people. The commander has been here much longer than you, he knows these people. If he says they are reckless, you believe him. You keep running, and don’t look back. The Castle of the commander is lush with silk and glass. He sits on a throne, a platinum crown on his head. You step up on the top stair step, ready to receive your necklace of honor for saving his half of the nation. Restoring balance. The necklace is bound around you throat, and the room splashes with cheers and claps. “And finally, I offer one last prize. For you heroism, bravery, and ability, I offer the opportunity to be my second in command. In the army, in the government, and now, over this planet, thanks to you. If you deny this position, Sololan will take your place, and you can live a life of relaxation in your grand condo. What do you say?” • Be the commander’s second in command. • Live a life of luxury, for the rest of your life.

22. Be the commanders second in command The room cheers as your decision is made, and a shimmering crown is placed on your head. You climb the last stair step to stand beside your leader. Your face shines in the sunlight streaming through the glass windows. The commander holds open his arms to the crowd to signal happiness, and a new beginning. A new life of excitement awaits you. End slide

23. Live a life of luxury, for the rest of your life You step out in slippers onto your balcony, into the moonlight. Your waterfall pool reflects the brilliant moon, always tinted red because of the dust in the atmosphere. You take a sip of your cool water. You’ve waited a long time for this peace. You saved a nation. You deserve it. End slide

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