Natalie sat on the chair by her computer, taking deep breath's, she was still feeling a little out of it. Trying to distract herself, she turn on the computer and began a search of carpenters. Mainly something about how to make raw wood materials into, beds, chairs, tables.
The information that flooded in was overwhelming, desperately she narrowed her search for simpler examples. This resulted into something that could only be woodworking for idiots.
Natalie sighed, well it was informative and she understood it, so she guessed it wasn't entirely misnamed. She directed the file into her pod, she would need it later.
She then gathered her toiletries, a good hot shower and a meal was the next thing on her agenda. Natalie knew she was stalling, but she wasn't quite prepared to think about the last two hours. She wasn't sure if she even wanted to see her sister right now either, but knew that one was inevitable, they did after all live in the same house.
After a good long shower, she was feeling more herself. Walking downstairs, she could hear nothing from the kitchen. Everyone must be in their pods. The food keeper was sitting on the bench unopened, so Natalie helped herself.
Finished with lunch, she decided a trip to the park would be nice. Natalie wonder what Amanda was doing, probably still in her pod, she debated over contacting her. Finally she put the call into her wrist unit, surprisingly Amanda answered straight away.
"Hello? Amanda's voice sounded uncertain.
"Hi Amanda, it's Natalie, I'm heading to the park want to meet me at the old oak?" Natalie asked.
"Yeah that sounds good, I need a break," Amanda replied. "A walk in the park sounds really nice right now, I'll meet you there."
Natalie ended the call, she went into the kitchen to get some supplies, an afternoon picnic by the pond, that sounds just the thing they both need, going by the sound of stress in Amanda's voice.
It wasn't long before Natalie was standing under the old oaks splayed out branches, coming down the path from the west side of the park was Amanda.
"Natalie! Am I glad to see you," enthused Amanda, as she hugged her friend.
"Glad to see you as well Amanda" Natalie replied. "What have you been doing these past few weeks?"
"Lets go find a good spot to sit, I have some news I need to give you." Amanda's face was grave as she said this.
"I thought we could have a picnic by the pond," Natalie said, she was a little taken aback by Amanda's serious attitude.
She became further alarmed, as Amanda just nodded and turned off onto the path leading to the pond. She wasn't walking slowly either, Natalie was out of breath before they reached pond, and struggling to keep up.
" What's wrong Amanda?" she asked. "You were almost running to get here."
"Are you still playing that game? The one you told me about last time?" Amanda almost demanded.
"Yes, I'm taking a break from it right now, but I play it every day." Natalie told her.
"You know my father works in Worlds?" Amanda asked. "Mainly in the colonial section?"
"Yes, I remember." Natalie replied. "What has that got to do with the game?"
"I'm not sure...," Amanda seemed to deflate. "It could be nothing, but my father used it as an example. To try and make me work harder on my tutoring, I'm failing Natalie."
"Failing? You always did well in school Amanda," Natalie was shocked. "How did this happen?"
"My father, he made me take a load of courses," Amanda said. " Most of them are really hard, but he said if I passed the school selection, I should be able to do this as well."
Amanda was sitting hunched up on a grassy strip, she look so forlorn, Natalie scooted over to her and put her arm over her shoulders. Hugging the girl to her, she listen quietly as Amanda told her everything.
"I only just passed the evaluations, I'm sure they only did that because of who my father is. Today he told me I'd better work harder, he hinted that playing the game was not a good thing. Natalie he scared me," Amanda was shaking now and crying. "He said things were going to change and if I wasn't careful, I would be finding out first hand, what the change is."
"That sounds bad," Natalie said slowly. "Did he say anything else? That is kind of vague."
"No he didn't say anything more right then, mother came in and stopped him." Amanda said. "She sent me to my room, I could hear they were still talking, almost arguing, but it was muffled."
Natalie looked at her friend, Amanda's eyes were very red, her hair which was usually tidy, was a whipped up mess, just held together by a hair tie. She was dressed in a rumpled skirt and top, that looked as if they had been slept in. What ever was going on, Amanda was extremely upset and only holding on by a thread.
"There's more," Amanda said. "Yesterday mother and father were shouting at each other, about me. Father yelled that he had no choice, it was up to me to prove myself or I would be sent with all the other failures. They noticed me standing by the door and went quiet... Natalie my mother was crying, she pleaded with me to work as hard as I could, she said she didn't want to lose me, father pushed her away and made me go to my room again."
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
"What did he mean?" Natalie mused. "Sent with the other failures? Sent where? None of this is making sense."
"Natalie, father works for Worlds.." Amanda stated. "There are hundreds of planets out there."
Natalie became still, her eyes widened, she looked at Amanda's stricken face. Lifting her arm she accessed Sam's remote voice application.
"Sam, could you please see if you can find anything at all relating to what Amanda and I have just been talking about?" Natalie tryed to stay calm.
"You trust your AI?" Amanda asked.
"Yes, of course I do Amanda." Natalie said absently. "Our AI's can not be used by anyone else, they can be monitored, but only I can shut Sam down, and only a small amount of information is given to those who monitor them."
"Natalie, it seems that Miss Amanda is right to be alarmed," Sam said. "I have found a file that while isn't hidden, it is extremely hard to access. I only found it because of key words such as, Worlds and failures."
"Go on Sam." Natalie instructed.
"There have been debates over what to do with all the extra people on the planet. Colonisation was popular sixty to eighty years ago. With over 73 worlds found, that can support human life, but only ten of those worlds have colonies on them." Sam reported. "This has done nothing to alleviate the population densities on earth. Most people are content to stay on this planet, only a few volunteer each year and that amount is growing smaller."
"So they are going to force the issue?" Natalie asked.
"Yes," Sam replied. "They are using the game to select people, Natalie from what I have discovered, you might be already chosen, to be one of those unwilling colonists."
Both girls stilled at this, just looking at each other. Natalie, realised she wasn't that upset, Amanda however looked terrified. They sat in silence for a minute or two.
"Sam? Do my parents know about this?" Natalie asked.
"No Natalie, Amanda's father and mother know, there are a few dozen others that know. But the majority of the population are unaware of the plans." Sam said. "World congress is set to reveal all information in six months time. The game is a selection and training tool. They have a target planet, everything is almost complete. Natalie there is something else, the planet they will be sending people to is unusual, the survey team that landed on it all died. But the reports state the planet itself is very mild in weather much like earth itself, animals are numerous, the place is almost a paradise. They couldn't find anything to explain why the team died on the return trip home."
"Nothing found in the autopsy?" Natalie asked.
"No they were healthy," Sam said. "They just looked like they fell asleep."
"They want to send people there?" Amanda was shivering again. "Why would they do that? People died!"
"They didn't die on the planet Miss Amanda." Sam replied. "They died one month away from landfall on earth. The whole return trip was eight months."
"So seven months of travelling then death," Natalie said. "If it was the planet it would have shown up sooner, is that it Sam?"
"Thats the general argument." replied Sam.
"There is something else about it, isn't there Sam?" Natalie guessed.
"Yes, the team reported they felt unusually healthy after their stay on the planet, so much so, they were recommending the place as a health resort." Sam replied. "However there are individual reports that these feelings declined, the further from the planet they travelled. Until some of them reported feeling tiredness and sleeping more."
Natalie and Amanda, sat talking for the rest of the afternoon. Amanda kept trying to get some feelings of outrage from Natalie, she said more then once, Natalie was taking this too calmly. It was almost dusk when the pair decided to go home, on the walk back Natalie tryed to understand why she wasn't as shocked or scared as Amanda seem to feel she should be.
"Natalie," Sam spoke just before she entered the house. "Miss Amanda is correct, you are to calm. I have been searching deeper into the files on those selected, there is disturbing findings. You are being conditioned while playing the game, to accept the decision being made. Fear, rejection of the idea are being repressed."
"Is this happening to my parents and siblings?" She asked.
"No only to those selected, I have found the program and have isolated it, it will still function as they want it to, but it will no longer affect you." Sam said. "With time it will fade, and you will be normal."
"I think I need to tell my family about this." Natalie said thoughtfully. "They will need time to get use to the idea, since it doesn't look like anyone will be able to stop it from happening."
"As you wish, this might cause unnecessary emotional stress." Sam warned.
"So you think I shouldn't tell them ?" She asked.
"No I think it's the right thing to do," Sam replied. "It will cause stress, likely trouble, as your parents work to find a way to remove you from the selection."
" Maybe they will succeed?" Natalie said.
"No, Miss Amanda's father wasn't able to stop the selection of his daughter, and he did try." Sam said. "They will send you there."
"Oh poor Amanda, so she has been targeted as well?" Natalie asked, her shoulders hunched a little.
"Yes, it seemed prudent, not to say anything while you were still with her." Sam said.
Natalie opened the gate and walked inside the house, her family were sitting at the table, it looked as if she was on time for dinner. Natalie took her place, her mind was elsewhere, she absently answered her parent's questions of where she had been. Dinner was almost over when she decided that now was as good a time as any.
"I have something very important to tell you all," Natalie said.
She looked at the expectant faces turned her way, then began telling them everything that Amanda had told her. She then moved on to tell them about Sam's findings. Her family were quiet, their attention didn't move from her the entire time. Natalie found it more unnerving to be the centre of this, then she had, about finding she was going to be dumped on another planet.
Once they were sure she had finished telling them everything, her family exploded into action. Her parents started to contact people they knew, while her siblings used their own AI's to try to find more information. Natalie was a little surprised they had believed her without question.
Her father asked her if Sam was sure he had isolated the program enough.
"It doesn't matter Dad," Natalie said. "I will play the game a bit to keep up appearances, but I will be to busy with Sam, learning practical things, to prepare for my new home."
"They aren't taking you." Her father growled. "Your mother and I will stop them, your only fourteen, it's not happening."
Natalie didn't argue with him, Sam had said it was unavoidable, she would end up going, her parents weren't going to stop it. She just hugged her dad and then pleaded tiredness, escaping from the chaos, she climbed into her pod and slept.
The next morning, Natalie was laying in her pod, thinking about how she had been so wrapped up in the game. She had enjoyed it, she wondered what it was going to be like on the planet. Some of the excitement she had felt for the game, now leaked into her thoughts. She was going to a new world, one that hadn't been messed up by to many people. It just might be fun.