A hundred years ago, ninety percent of females were infertile. Then the birth rate of females dropped from fifty percent to twenty percent to zero. Last year, the last female died giving birth to the last son of Mars.
Mars is now a paradise with everything we could ever need: everything except women.
The timegate technicians call out the intricate sequence, igniting the massive gate that took a decade to build. We have one shot at this mission. If we fail, we are all doomed.
Even with our vast understanding of genetic manipulation, we have yet to produce a viable fetus in an artificial womb. Perhaps it is because of our broken genetic code. Perhaps it is because we began harvesting eggs too late to salvage them. Perhaps we simply lack the technology to incubate a fetus outside a natural womb. All theories have been suggested, but the simple truth is, no one really knows why every experiment has failed. But we all feel each new failure as another nail in the coffin of our species.
Our only hope now lies beyond the timegate.
The circular gate begins to spin. The view of the sun and planets beyond it disappear from view as the gate comes to life. It is a blank void, like a black mirror that reflects nothing but our ignorance and our sins.
We’ve sent many unmanned missions through the gate. We have ample evidence that it is safe, but I cannot help but feel a wave of anxiety at the thought of flying through it.
“Timegate ready, Captain,” the engineering crew informs me.
“Good luck, gentlemen. See you on the other side. We embark on my count. Five, four, three, two, one…”
The ship shoots forward, charging toward the void. I hold my breath as the sharp obsidian tip of the Xojor pierces through. There is no going back. Our fate is sealed.
A cold shiver of panic drenches my senses as we pass through the void. The blackness slices my awareness in two, and I come out on the other side of the gate an instant later, heart pounding, dripping sweat.
A collective sigh of relief rises from the crew. I command status updates from the various departments: zero-point core, timegate engineering, life support. All report back at optimum capacity. The view outside is of the planet Earth as she had once been. An emerald gem against the red glow of the sun. A split screen shows the view of Mars. Red, barren, dead.
We’ve made it. We’ve traveled to the past.
3
My whole body aches, and I slowly open my eyes to the dim red glow. I groan as I pull myself up to sitting and find myself in a small, crowded room surrounded by bodies. I gasp and scramble back, fearing the worst. But then I see movement and realize that the others are not dead as I had feared.
I look around me, trying to recognize the faces. To my relief, I spot a familiar red cross on one of the figures nearby. I crawl over to Bethany, my head screaming in pain. I shake her, trying to get her to wake up.
"Bethany. Bethany, are you all right?"
She groans but slowly sits up. "Doris? What's going on?”
"I think we've been abducted by aliens," I say, the irony of the situation not lost on me.
"This can't be happening," Sophia says, sobbing.
"We’re going to be okay, Sophia," Madeline says soothingly.
"You think it's just us they abducted?" Bethany asks.
"I don't remember anything after the library," I say. “I passed out.”
"So did I," Bethany admits.
"You're not the only one," Sophia says. “If Abigail were here, she would understand what's going on.”
“I never believed her. I always thought she was wasting her life, chasing her crazy conspiracy theories. But now…" Madeline sucks back a sob and covers her face with her hands.
"We aren’t the only ones," Bobby says, speaking for the first time. Her back is against the wall, and her hair is hanging in her eye, shielding half of her face. “I stayed awake while the rest of you passed out. There are a lot of other girls on the ship.”
"What about the rest of the planet?" Bethany asks, almost as much to herself as to anyone else.
"From what I saw on the way up in the ship, these things are here for a reason,” Bobby says.
"And what would that be?” asks Madeline.
“I don't think you want to know," Bobby says. "But you will find out soon enough.”
"We all saw what happened to Mrs. Henderson," I say, my voice soft and distant. The memory of Mrs. Henderson’s scream and the crunch of bones runs through my mind. I wince at the thought.
"This can't be happening," Sophia sobs again.
"It’s going to be okay. We just have to stay strong." Madeline wraps her arm around her friend’s shoulders, and they huddle together in the darkness. I glance over at Bethany. My usually positive and upbeat friend appears mortified. I've never seen her so scared. And it makes me wonder about the expression on my own face.
"We've got to get out of here," Bobby says. "Or we’re going to be some insect’s lunch.”
"I don't want to die," Sophia says.
"We're not going to die," Madeline says, holding her friend closer.
"There's got to be a way out of here," I say, standing up and inspecting the cell as my eyes adjust to the dim light.
"There's not. I've already looked.”
"We’re going to die," Sophia wails.
“Bobby, could you keep your pessimistic attitude to yourself?" Madeline snaps.
"It's not pessimism if it's true," Bobby mutters. “I'm not afraid to die.”
"I've come too far in life to go out like this," Sophia says.
"We're not going to die, Sophia. Don't listen to her. She's just being negative. There's got to be a way out of here,” Madeline says.
I run my hand over the walls. The material is smooth and cool to the touch. Some kind of metal. The light is coming from a recessed glow in the walls. I don't understand the alien technology. There doesn't seem to be an opening anywhere.
I hate to admit that Bobby could be right. There may be no way out. We may all be doomed to end up as some insect’s lunch. I think about my mom and grandma. All the hopes and dreams I had for the future. All gone now.
I want to cry, but I have to stay strong, if for no other reason than to comfort my friends until the end. In all of my reading and research, I learned that one thing is true–life is what you make of it. Your choices and your attitude are what create the reality around you. There's no way I'm going to go out sniveling in a corner or scaring my friends.
“We’re going to be okay," I say. “We’re going to find a way out of here. And then we’re going to go home.”
"I can just imagine what Abby is thinking right now," Madeline says to herself. “If we were together right now, I'm sure she would be gloating that she was right all along.”
“Being right about an alien invasion isn't really something to gloat about," Bobby says.
"Let's try to focus on what we know," I say. “We were abducted by mantis beings who Bobby tells us have taken us for food. But if they wanted to eat us, then why didn't they just do it back on Earth? Why kidnap us?”