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January 29, 2023

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Mal’s best suit was crumpled. She hadn’t unpacked it since she arrived here almost a year ago – Mars wasn’t that kind of place. She didn’t really have a reason to wear it, but it was still a good-looking suit. To her relief, it still fit. If it hadn’t, she was at a loss: where do you find a tailor when a star goes supernova?

 

She looked at her good shoes – scuffed all over. She deliberated for a moment. The invite had said “Dress Fancy!”. After checking the time, she decided she’d polish them. It would take time to do it right, but she felt it was worthwhile: the care we take in a panic is what demonstrates our character – so her father always said.

 

There were no trams on the streets, so she walked the route in what amounted to silence. She had expected this – how often is there a supernova? Who would choose to work on a day like this?

 

She arrived at the skyscraper; the planet’s tallest it said on the plaque. Her friends were at the party on the roof. She entered an empty lobby, nobody was there to direct her, much less to stop her walking to the elevator. She pressed the largest numbered button. Floor by floor, the elevator climbed – it went so slowly that she started to wonder about the time. Eventually it reached the top floor, and from there she climbed the stairs up to the roof – some of her friends had connections, not that they needed to for this.

 

She was impressed by what she saw on the rooftop – canapes and hors d’oeuvres, glasses sparkling with whatever passed for champagne, silver service for the buffet. It was an opulence she had never experienced on Mars.

 

Mal looked at the crowd, none of the rich and famous here now, none of the glitz and glamor that featured in society holos. Before they learned about the supernova, anything hosted here would have been an exclusive event. Not so now. The people she saw now would have been the tram drivers and receptionists and wait staff. When the establishment returned to Earth, those remaining had become de facto in-crowd. She reckoned this party was more interesting than the elite gatherings that were here before.

 

She found her friends, waiting for her with a bottle of something bubbly. They had chosen to stay, to end their life on Mars over returning to Earth. Earth would only be a memory to them soon. Mars was whatever future they had.

 

Despite this, the party was surprisingly upbeat. Her friends told her about last year’s farewell parties having an air of finality hanging over them – unsurprisingly, seeing as they were held in the warehouse district by the rocket pad. By contrast, this felt liberating. She supposed the difference was that staying here was a choice for all of those in attendance, and they had rallied to support each other.

 

Mal used to wonder why they had come to Mars. For all of Earth’s problems, it was fairly complete, life was easy. She found the decision to leave tough. But she could see why Mars was attractive to many. It was a new frontier: the place where the future would start.


Someone stood on a table and called for attention. She vaguely recognized the man. The celebrity scientist from the holo, Jankovic? Jarovic? Whichever, he looked taller in real life.

 

"Hey fellow Martians!"

 

A cheer went up. Everyone was committed.

 

"In around ninety seconds – if the speed of light is constant, heh – we should be seeing the supernova just to the east, in the Lynx constellation, you know the one! It’ll be about forty degrees above the horizon. I don’t know how bright it’ll be at this distance but be prepared. If you didn’t bring your sunnies, there’s a table with some, so grab a pair. The sky is going to be pretty bright tonight!"

 

She ignored the rest of his speech but pulled her sunshades out of her pocket, just in case. It was unlikely that it could be so bright from over two hundred lightyears away. Foolish to worry. Silly so many people went back to earth. It seemed ridiculous the distant supernova could have any great effect here.

 

Mal came back from her reverie as she heard the crowd shout ten. She joined in about five! Four! Three! Two! ONE!

 

And then… nothing. After a minute the scientist joked about the speed of light not being constant, and then spoke about the gravitational effect of Saturn, and unreliable measurements at such great distances. It was uncomfortable.

 

Then suddenly it arrived. A sky so bright it hurt her eyes! Mal fumbled to get her sunshades on, but it burned bright through them. It seemed to come from no fixed point, the whole sky flooded with light.

 

Her instincts expected it to end despite knowing better, but on it went. It was projected to last a few months. With no native atmosphere, Mars would endure the 200-year-old explosion night and day for the duration, without a break.

 

Eventually the party got back on the rails, but it wasn’t the same. Not somber, but awe-struck.

 

The radiation wave was already washing over them now. At this distance, it wasn’t expected to affect much. The artificial magnetic field she came to build would hold it off. But space travel would end, at least for a few generations. They were trapped on the planet. Communications would be minimal for the next several years. Mars was now an orphan planet, filled with Earth’s orphans. But their destiny was now their own.

Copyright 2023 - SFS Publishing LLC

Sky So Bright

Their destiny was now their own

Martin French

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