Declaration of the People - Part I

12th March

Malacca, Artemis

I've been so busy that this is only the second time I've seen my children this week. They live in my apartment in Malacca. The part of Artemis referred to as Malacca, is a ridge near the northern wall of the lava tube, that looks down on Diana and New Singapore. The drop is pretty steep and sometimes as high as a hundred metres. The view is fantastic, but walking to and from work is a pain, which is why I often sleep at the office. It's just a bit too far, and a bit too uphill for me.

I had been looking out the window overlooking Diana. You can't really see as much as you might think, however, since the apartment blocks still stretch all the way up to the roof. I look over toward the living room, where my two children are playing what appears to be a game of 'the floor is lava'. Akira is six, and his sister, Artoria, is four, although you wouldn't be able to tell their ages at a glance. Both of them are abnormally tall for their age, due to the gravity. Akira is almost 1.6 metres tall, and Artoria is about 1.4 metres. They're incredibly skinny, and look frail, but they move much more gracefully than any adult could ever hope to in this gravity.

Both of them were born with defects, almost certainly caused by the radiation that living on the moon exposes you to. Living underground, exposure is minimal, but the monorails connecting the scattered settlements cross the surface, and plenty of people work up on the surface, or not far enough under it. In Artoria's case, her right leg was limp and malformed from birth. Thanks to modern science, her prosthetic replacement is very functional, but it's still not perfect. Which is why she barely ever wins the games that she plays with Akira. Akira has very little sign of mutation, which is surprising given who his birth parents are. The only mutations to his genes that we know of, is his eyes which are a deep crimson colour. With his pale skin as well, the colour is really emboldened and noticeable.

Myself and Krista decided not to have children of our own because of the risk of mutation. As part of the first twenty, I lived in plastic and tin domes on the lunar surface for three months before we permanently moved down to the lava tube which later became Artemis. During that time, we were exposed to a horrifying amount of radiation.

"Today's the day, isn't it?"

The person standing next to me speaks. Jazz Connolly continues staring out the window over the city, looking just like I probably did a few moments ago. Jazz has been a friend and close ally of mine for about four years, since shortly after he moved to the moon. Jazz is a half-American, half-Indian, Singaporean citizen who was born in London, who speaks with a cockney accent. Since coming to the moon, Jazz has made himself a small empire in the entertainment industry. He owns a television station, multiple recording studios, strip clubs, gay bars, and brothels. Having him as an ally is incredibly convenient and beneficial for me. Many people underestimate the influence of entertainment. Everything from news bulletins to musical rhythms can give people an incredible amount of information, and even change their world views. I need people to support what happens today, and for that I needed to influence them. Jazz and the work he has done for me, has been a powerful weapon for making that happen.

"What gives you that idea, Jazz?"

"All the people in the streets are a bit of a giveaway."

I turn towards Jazz. Even though there's a pretty good chance my house is bugged (any number of groups would have reason to), I doubt if I talk in a low voice, they would be able to hear over all the noise Akira and Artoria are making.

"Do you have any news for me?"

"The Persephone is scheduled to arrive at Farside in a little under a week. The crew reported that the load includes 350 million tonnes of water ice."

"350 million?"

"Tonnes, yes."

"I see. That's reassuring. And that gives us how long?"

"About five weeks reserve when added to our current stockpile. More if we ration it."

"I see."

Jazz stretches out next to me, "it's all going to be over after today, huh?"

"Of course not. Tomorrow's just the beginning."

"I suppose so," Jazz sighs, "sometimes I regret signing up for this. You keep me far too busy, you know?"

"Really? You know you don't get as much work as Kyle or Seine, because I know you have other work to attend to."

"The fact that I have other work on top of it is what makes it such a burden."

I look over towards Akira and Artoria. Their smiling faces. They look so happy whenever I see them. I haven't been the best parent to them, really. I barely ever see them, and when I do, I'm far too tired to listen to what they have to say with my full attention. Krista and I only adopted them because it was convenient to. In fact, I only married Krista in the first place because it was convenient. It makes me look more relatable. More human. Even so, I've grown affectionate of the three of them over time. Of course, I would have done all of this anyways, but now the two of them are part of the reason. The reason I must see this through and make my dream reality.

"I can still count on you in the future though, can't I?"

"Of course," Jazz smiles, "after all, I want to see it. This world of yours."

"Yes," I smile back at him, "I'll make sure you won't regret it."