The Burning.

PART 1.

CLIMATIC CHANGE. LIFE AS WE KNOW IT.

It is the year 3003 today. Saima crawls out of her makeshift bed of straw and tries to register her mind back to reality. She focusses in on herself and tries to come out of her pleasant dream into the darkness of her life as it is now.

The world no longer exists as it used to. Human beings destroyed it. She fondly remembers her mother who used to tell her stories of how things used to be. But when the ozone layer became depleted on Earth, many human beings died. UV radiation levels had increased at the Earth's surface, which was damaging to human health. Negative effects, which still exist today, included increases in certain types of skin cancers, eye cataracts and immune deficiency disorders. Sadly, Saima's mum had died of skin cancer.

Saima's mum had survived many illnesses, including covid 19. She had been an amazing woman. Saima sat reminiscing about her mother's long, thick black curly locks of hair and her beautiful smile. Tears began to form like liquid crystal. She gently caressed the heart shaped locket, recalling life with her mother. They had had to wear face masks for as long as Saima could remember. Her mother had told her tales of a time when people roamed the Earth mask free, visiting each other's houses but people had been reckless and foolish. Governments had allowed the building of HS2 in England and had destroyed their own planet in the name of greed and corruption.

Saima looked inside the locket, very carefully perusing a picture of a brown base and emerald like shapes coming out of it. She looked around at the barren earth surrounding her and imagined several of these luscious green things covering the Earth. She was imagining droplets of rain and birds singing in the background. She imagined her mother hugging her and chasing her around a patch of green square, breathing in clean air and laughing without any cares. She recalled the word "tree" and thought about all the trees she had seen in her life. These days there were no trees or birds to live in them. There was no singsong melody to counteract the sharp pain she felt in her soul.

Suddenly, she was slapped out of this reverie by a hard, cruel hand. "What are you doing? Why are you not working for your food like the others? growled Priya. "You really are a useless, vile creature and I don't know why I even took you in! We do not dream and dwindle here. We simply work! If you do not look for food, I will get The Burn army to evict you! Mark my words! she shouted, giving Saima another sharp slap across the face. Saima felt the slaps form in to bruises on her already sunburnt skin. Her protective clothing had not been enough the last time she was sent to work.

Saima got up slowly and purposefully. She did not allow herself to cry but made herself look right in to Priya's eyes, penetrating her with her glare. Priya shifted, looking uncomfortable, screaming "Well go on!"

Saima's job was to look for food in under the harmful UV rays of the sun. She would have to go and find the food and then share it with others, but Priya would often take the food for herself and sell it on the black market.

Priya provided the anti UV home, so they were all under her authority. Anyone who dared to challenge Priya was thrown out into the UV desert by Priya’s Burn Army where they would meet their slow and painful death.

PART 2.

ESCAPE.

As Saima put on her protective clothing, Michael entered the room. Saima looked into his kind eyes. Michael always had a knack of making her feel safe. He had sensed her distress. Even though he was not supposed to, he gently closed the door behind him and sat next to her on her bed of straw. He whispered the code into her ear. His breath felt warm like lying in front of a fire on a winter’s day had felt for her as a child. And then he did the unthinkable and put his arms around her. Hugs had not been allowed since 2020. Saima was shocked but strangely warm. The last person who had hugged her had been her mother.

Then Priya barged in. Michael quickly got up before she could see what had happened. Priya was however oblivious and yelled, “I need to get this damn door fixed! Michael you are supposed to be preparing packages! Get your lazy arse out of here! No skiving!”

Saima could feel the palpitations in her heart and the embrace had reeled her, but she stayed calm in front of Priya, quickly put on her protective clothing, anxious about venturing out into the scorching heat.

On approaching the entrance, she saw a member of The Burn Army. He had been striding the corridors around Priya’s anti UV home on patrol for any potential escapees and for any unwanted invaders. He glared at her. She knew he was not alone for they are never alone. With one word he could signal other Burn Army members. She had seen them evict people from the house without warning, their unprotected bodies flailed out as if garbage, whilst they screamed in agony. He approached her and asked her where she was going. She replied uniformly and calmly, “To forage for food as instructed by Mistress Priya”. He grunted and nodded. Her heart felt like it was going to explore. She felt as if her heartbeat would betray her. She stepped out with an unauthentic confidence, hoping she had successfully fooled Burn Army man. All the while, the heart shaped locket was resting on her neck, the picture of the tree inside it breathing life into her and giving her the hope that she so badly craved.

PART 3.

THE REBELLION.

Saima took off the locket when she had walked for exactly two kilometres as instructed by Michael. She had managed to hide behind an old useless building that still attracted UV light and therefore no one would enter it protective equipment (protective equipment was hard to come by). Besides, she had stolen a Potassium Iodide tablet from Priya’s house this morning and, unbeknown to Priya, had been for quite some time to be able to go out safely with the radiation poisoning out there and start the revolution.

She carefully opened the picture of the tree her mother had given her. Michael had turned this into a miniature envelope which opened out into a map. The map would lead her to where she needed to go. Michael had been so clever in disguising it in this way.

She entered the cave after having walked for what had felt like half a day and saw The Woman. She gave the Woman the code and the Woman warmly welcomed her into the cave, smiling. The Woman had acquired food and Michael had already insured that they had more than enough Potassium Iodide.

The Woman’s identity could never be given away, but Saima knew who she was and that a great battle lay ahead for all of them against the elite.

Saima was given food to nourish her. She had not eaten any berries for as long as she could remember but the Woman had somehow acquired dried berries. There were radiation free zones although few and far between and the elite occupied those areas, exiling the less fortunate to radiation spots that were dangerous. Saima felt angered by this as did others in the rebellion.

Thousands of faces stared out at Saima, and she felt an enormous pressure in her head. She quickly collected her thoughts and smiled so that she would not look afraid. She needed to be brave for her people.

When Michael entered the cave, she sighed with relief and love. He had made it out of Priya’s house! He ran to her and hugged her.

He asked Saima if she was ready, and she nodded. “Of course, Michael. Let us do it!”.

He quickly swallowed a Potassium Iodide tablet and they wandered out of the cave hand in hand.

There was no longer much in the way of transport, but they had managed to procure a truck through Michael’s contacts. After several kilometres, they started loading the truck with medication and arms. Saima had been against using weaponry. However, this was the only way to stop their oppressors, the elite, from harming others for their own gain. Samia and Michael had been under their control for far too long now.

They finished loading up the truck and headed back to the cave.

The Earth’s population was scarce now. There had been many wars and revolutions, but the elite had found means of regaining control after the successful 2025 post covid revolution. Her mother had often told her tales about the proletariat victory and 20 years where humans had managed to preserve the planet Earth. But then Priya had come into government and, as Prime Minister, she had led her cabinet in to joining the USA to destroy what we had worked towards. The USA no longer existed now as its people had died from UV radiation.

The Rebellion were going to change history for good this time. She felt it in her bones. If it did not change history then what would?

PART 4.

THE UPRISING.

Saima and Michael carefully unloaded the medication and weapons. There was only a handful of people left on Earth and largely populated Great Britain. India, where her mother had come from, was destroyed now. She could not believe how quickly a place on a map could simply disappear as if it had never existed.

People queued up for Potassium Iodide and weapons. Thousands worked and some got into the truck with Michael and her. They made their way to Priya’s house to fight The Burn Army and to fight Priya.

The Woman smiled and informed them that all would be well and that they would all be free soon. But Saima caught a glint of something else in The Woman’s eyes that unsettled her in ways she could not fathom.

On entering Priya’s anti- UV house, the guards immediately appeared as if they had known what was coming. The Woman, Michael’s sister, had set them up!

Priya entered the room and smirked at Saima, “You thought me that foolish Saima! Who do you think was supplying your rotten cave with food all this time! I am going to put you out of your misery so that you can join your mother!”. She brandished a knife and had a mad glimmer in her eyes before they glazed over.

Just as Michael was jumping to her defence, Priya swiped a blade at him. The floor was covered in blood and Saima fell with him, tears flooding her eyes as seas of grief took over, timeless. She let herself fall. She let Priya’s blade strike her too for what was the point in being on the wretched Earth as it was without her Michael?

As her eyes started to close amidst the throbbing pain, she thought that she had seen a tear drop on Priya’s face, but she could have been wrong. Anyway, it did not matter. Nothing mattered anymore except that she could not live without him.

The Woman appeared and looked horror stricken. She murmured that she was sorry, but it was too late. The Woman’s face changed and became unrecognisable, contorted into something uglier than she could ever have imagined. As she lay their hugging Michael, she felt his heart stop and her mother singing to her in a park surrounded by trees. She could finally breath and find peace in death.