Year: 2174

by Faith Daramola

Ikara’s vibrant green eyes surveyed the barren landscape from her nook on the cliff. The harsh winds swept her hair onto her face, and the sand blew in her eyes, but Ikara didn’t mind. This was her favourite place, a secret she kept to herself. Somewhere she could go when the noise of the bustling city became too much. She reached up, almost wishing she could take off the ugly, plastic mask covering her face, and breathe.
She just wanted to breathe.
She sat, resting her back on a rock while watching the sun set, thinking about the startling events that had occurred earlier that day.
Ikara was sitting in the living room with mama, when an older man, maybe 80, had been broadcast on the projection screen in front of the square. He ripped off his mask, and was accusing The Guard of being corrupt, forcing the world to wear masks while reassuring that everyone was safe and there was no reason to worry.
Within minutes he collapsed, hacking, coughing and spewing out words that were almost impossible to comprehend. “Why…do this?” He grunted, “...monsters you are …we are fine?” Soon, he was barely moving on the hard concrete floor.
Soldiers in all black dragged his body away, and within seconds, Prime Minister Caddel appeared on the screen.
“What you all have just witnessed was an unfortunate accident that could have easily been avoided.” Her serene voice echoed off the now quiet walls of the city.
“Why do this to yourselves? Just listen to our humble requests and you will live. We know this is a confusing and challenging time for many, but we are working on a solution. You only have to trust us. Thank you.” Her image clicked away, bringing Ikara back to the present.
She buried her face in her hands and let the tears rush down her cheeks. What had their world become? Nani had told her stories of green forests and free people where masks were not needed. Animals of all kinds roamed the Earth alongside humans… Ikara had never seen any living thing besides humans.
Her eyes scanned the desert terrain. It was getting late. She was about to grab her bag when a movement off to her right caught her eye. A scaly tail darted behind a sand dune. Ikara stood up, goosebumps electrifying her body. She moved closer, about to take a closer look when her wristband began glowing. Ikara tapped to accept the call.
“Ikara, where are you!” Mama’s voice shouted over the whistling wind.
“You need to stop running off. Do you know what The Guard is doing to people out past curfew. Get back here!”
“Yes mama, I just went for a walk. I’m coming.” Ikara replied, standing up and shutting off the call. She rolled her eyes. Curfew was over an hour away, and Mama always overreacted.
She grabbed her bag and began trudging through the sand, back towards the
bright lights of the city. She had just climbed the large hill that formed a barrier
between her nook and the city, and was about 50 meters away from the buildings,
when ash began to fall all around her.
Ikara coughed, looking up at the sky to see black clouds forming over the desert. The ash touched her skin and a searing pain erupted from her arm. She flinched. The dark flakes sank below the skin leaving a burn that would take months to heal. She began twitching as the ash fell all over her face and hands, and made a run for it.
Ikara sprinted towards the city as her skin began bubbling, turning red and black. She screamed, but kept fighting through the pain. 30, 20, 10 meters left. She could make it. She just had to get through to mama’s apartment which was on the outside of the city. She was five feet away when everything went wrong.
Ikara tripped and fell on a boulder just outside the city limits. She groaned, her entire body screaming with pain. She couldn’t get up. She writhed, trying not to roll onto the burns and reached for her wrist, trying to apply pressure, and began crawling slowly towards the town. She had almost made it to the dome when she saw two guards running towards her.
“She’s been burned.” One spoke, reaching for their wrist, like they were about to call someone. The other knelt beside her and lifted her up onto their back, her head rolling to the side. “Check her ID and call…” The voices faded out and Ikara drifted away.

* * *

Pain surged through Ikara’s arms and neck, and she tried to sit up. “Shhh, you're okay, beta.” Mama’s familiar voice calmed her, and she opened her eyes. She was back in their house, at home in her warm bed. Mama had bandages and alcohol on her bedside table, as well as food. Her stomach growled at the sight of Mama’s famous lemon loaf and some salad.
“What happened?” Ikara asked as mama positioned the pillows so she could sit up.
“Well, you ran off again without telling me and got hurt.” Mama glared at her.
“Oh. Right.” The memories flooded back. “The guards. They brought me home?” Ikara asked.
“Yes, thankfully. You could have died out there, Ikara! How many times have I told you not to go out of the city limits?”
“I’m sorry mama, you know I can’t stand being trapped inside all day. I just went for a walk. And I’m fine now, see?” Ikara tried reaching for the lemon loaf, only for her wrist to begin burning as soon as she moved it.
Mama raised an eyebrow.
Ikara slouched.
“Why do these things keep happening?” She asked, “Snowstorms out of nowhere, and falling ash, and not being able to breathe the air? Why the sudden changes in temperature? It didn’t used to be like this.”
“Well, beta,” Mama began, “Do you remember the stories your Nani has told you about the world with animals, and without masks? I don’t remember much but when I was young - younger than you, we didn’t need masks. All the other animals had perished because of the toxic air, but we could breathe it still, for a little while.
“Nani said it used to be sweet and fresh, but when I was young, all I tasted was filth. Slowly, the air became polluted with carbon dioxide and began killing everything and everyone that lived and breathed it. We had cut down all the trees to build highrises and apartments, and the amount of clean oxygen was dwindling. Nani and Nana took me away to the mountains, where a small group of people had built masks that supposedly filtered the air. We trekked for days, and Nana was lost along the way. He sacrificed himself so we could keep going. So we could live.” Mama’s voice cracked and she brushed a tear from her eyes.
“Against all odds we made it to the mountains, however, we became
overtaken by a government that wished to hide the truth from us. I know we are spiraling towards our own downfall. The gasses we let out when driving, and the plastic we are littering, and the ground we mine for wealth. It is killing us bit by bit. It is our fault, Ikara.”
“What?!” Ikara tried to sit up more. “Why have you never told me? Why have you never spoken up before?”
Mama looked down, “Have you seen what happens to people who speak up Ikara? Don’t you remember that man in front of the parliament? There’s nothing I can do.” Mama stood up. “I think you should get some rest. I’ll be back up with some cold compresses later.”
Ikara moved her pillows and lay down, staring up at the ceiling. She had to do something, she had to find a solution. The future couldn’t look this bleak. Ikara remembered the tail in the desert earlier. Was there another species that lived beyond the city? If so, there could be hope for life beyond the desert. Somewhere free, where animals and humans thrived. A safe space where the carbon dioxide hadn’t polluted the air.
She closed her eyes and began imagining this world that was unbound and fresh, filled with trees and animals.
Now, how could she get there? Where could she start?