The Mayflower Project, Chapter 1: "The End"

[CelesJessa]

Four days.

That's all Kaitlyn Haile could think of as she laid in her bed. It seemed like just yesterday that her parents broke the news to her. The news about how a 76-mile wide asteroid was on a crash course with Earth. The news that this big blue planet only had a total of about 4 days left before it would be wiped out, taking the human race with it.

She felt guilty spending time just lying in her bed. She felt like she should be out, living it up, appreciating nature, or something to that effect, but she kept trying to tell herself it was just a dream. That the scientists were wrong and asteroid wasn't going to hit the Earth, kept trying to tell herself that before a week was over, she would be in a deep sleep inside a hybernation berth alone with 79 other "survivors", floating in space as part of a last ditch attempt to save some mankind. Hybernation berths that weren't even 100% safe to use in the first place. The brilliant "Mayflower Project". The only reason she and her family had a spot on the Mayflower was because of her dad, a reporter who has stumbled upon this big story, threatened to fill the whole world in on the true story and start riots, endangering the Mayflower's mission, if he couldn't get spots on the ship for the family. Sure, the public was aware that there was an asteroid in the general vicinity of earth, but very few of them knew that the asteroid was, in fact, 12 times bigger than the asteroid that was believed to have wiped out the dinosaurs, and this asteroid was on an inevitable crash course with Earth, and would result in the extermination of over 99% of the human race, no, not just the human race, but every living thing on earth.

She wanted to cry, she wanted to be sick, but there was nothing that she could do to chance the inevitable. All she could do was walk around, as if she was in a daze, as if her brain refused to believe what was going to come.

Kaitlyn could hear her little brother, Keren playing in the other room, he was fairly oblivious of what was going on. He knew something big was going on, but he was too little to understand the major impact of something like this. Ignorence is bliss. She thought as she got up out of bed and walked to the window. Her friends were ignorent as well. As a matter of fact, one of her friends, Justiene was out of town, visiting family in New York. New York... a city that would be nonexistant in a matter of days.

Please let this just be a dream.

(OOC: basically introduce your character and what they are doing, and such. Before too long the black trucks will come for them, (you don't have exactly 4 days, they will shoot you out a little while before the asteroid hits, so that it will have the best chances for success)

[Dante]

Outside the cell, a pair of orderlies looked through the one-way mirror at the man who sat on the edge of his bed, looking at his hands, or rather, something inside them.

"Who the hell is he?"

"Beats me. He got thrown in here about a week or so ago. We feed him, but he never talks or does anything besides sit there and stare, or go to sleep."

"Still, he's in an isolation ward. You don't suppose he's got some kind of disease, do you?"

"He might. He's got the eyes of a dead man."

And as the orderlies moved on, the man within continued looking at the thing withing his hands. It was a picture. A picture of four people. Two were children, aged three or so, one boy, one girl, both dark-haired. Above them, holding them, was a blond woman, presumably their mother. Beside her was a man with dark hair.

The same man who held the picture, sitting inside a NASA isolation cell, staring at a picture of the family which was lost to him with the eyes of a dead man.

The nametag on his jumpsuit read, "Daniel Tay".

[Shadow Otenaki]

Taiki had just finished completing the manuscript for his latest book entitled 'Crimson Renegade Chronicles'. It was planned to be a six book series based on the adventures and misadventures of the Crimson Renegade clan. The next day before he was about to mail off his manuscript, he received a letter in the mail stating he was one of eighty chosen to board the new Mayflower Project. He knew the meteor was going to hit sometime, but he wasn't aware there was a survival project going on.

He scratched his scalp. He moved his bangs out of his green eyes and gave a sigh. He gathered the two things he would need. He brought his lucky pencil made out of tree bark from the coldest region in the world. He also took 10 sheets of specialized paper for cold weather, and folded them into his pocket. He was physically ready to leave the world, but was he ready mentally? He didn't think so.

He sat on his sofa idly waiting for the black cars to come and pick him up to be boarded onto the Mayflower project. He was as ready as he could ever be.

He took out the first sheet of paper and unfolded it. On the top center he wrote:

Mayflower: Next Generation
Written by: Taiki Fujiwara

[Squishy Cheeks]

4 days left...

I don't know what to make of this, or even if I'm going to survive past the next 4 days, if so I hope looking back over these notes I gain some measure of wisdom, or insight into these events I can't recieve now. I'd wish they'd launch us sooner. I'd not like to launch so close to the coming eternal night. These are the last four days of humanity and many act as if nothing is happening, carrying on their petty conflicts, blaming god, and acting on fear. Those that know what is happening have fallen into three camps: criminals; saints; and the forsaken.

I wish I could say that in our final hours humanity arose to the task and met our fate with dignity, but I have to say I am ashamed of what I see on the television and hear on the radio. I just want the waiting to be over. I guess that makes me one of the forsaken, I wish I could be a saint.

[Astral Harmony]

"Mom. Dad. Get up."
This was a routine, but Olivia Mason felt it was so much more important to do now. Until the very end, she felt that making her parents comfortable for as long as she could was the best she was able to do. Claire Williams was with her, but then again, the two were quite the pair. Almost like sisters.
"Honey, I'm trying to sleep," President Christopher Mason groaned in protest.
Olivia's responce was to fling open the curtains and utter once again what she always said at this time.
"How can you sleep when the birds are awake, the sun is awake, and most important, the nation is awake?"
A typical day. Chris sat up and slung his legs over the side of the bed, the movement enough to wake Beverly, Chris's wife and Olivia's mother. Olivia pointed at the coffee she set aside for them on the table. "The coffee is prepared, and I already have the news on."
Chris scratched the bottom of his feet and stood up. "Another morning of a nation badmouthing me for not even having a comment these days about the asteroid."
Olivia frowned. "But you are doing something about the asteroid."
Chris shrugged and moved to the coffee table next to the door.
"Yes, but what we're doing about it is highly classified," Claire spoke for him. "It's not like the president can go on the air now and tell everyone that all that he and all the others who know the truth said about it was a lie and that this could very well obliterate the planet, if not making it completely uninhabitable."

Olivia sighed. Father wouldn't be able to make a speech like that until it was far too late, after the Mayflower had taken off with his daughter and her bodyguard safely locked in cryogenic chambers.
"Safe" being the key word here.
Olivia thought about changing the channel, but decided against it. Regardless of whether father liked what he was hearing on the news, especially when it involved him, he just loved hearing news, period. It was routine.
In just four days, the news will never be done or heard by anyone on this planet ever again.

[GARUD]

Gone, in a flash. He held her limp body in his hands. He held the tears back, but his eyes still watered. Her face was pale, white as snow. There was no pulse eigther. He kept checking if it would come back. It didn't.
He reached into his tracksuit pocket and drew out an invitation. the heading at the top said: THE MAYFLOWER. He and that lady were picked in a draft lottery for a secret prize. The prize was salvation.
He picked the limp body up and set off towards the cemetary, his eyes lost in thought. He didnt hear the general conversations of the passers by. He left her at the church, propped up. They would bury her suitably.
How could he go on without her though. What was the point of life? He made it to the slums of the city, and bought a dirk. He was going to end it all. But he didn't. He knew that she would want him to move on. So, he bought himself some food and made his way to the pickup site. He would stay there. He would stay there until it was time to leave.
Four days until the meteor hits. Four days until the planet is obliterated. Four days until life ceases to exist. Four days until Earth is no more. What did he care. The Earth had nothing left for him anymore. His love was gone.
Night came, and he looked to the stars. What life would lie out there for him. He gripped his cross, and closed his eyes. His heart raced at the thought of an adventure into the unknown. For once, Garud looked towards the future.

[Truce]

Henry had never really spoken to his father. No, he spent his life growing up in boarding schools, with strict tutors, and only the occassionaly four word conversation with his parent. However, recently, there came a change over his father, and even if Henry couldn't help but feel something bad was coming, he ignored it.

The past few weeks had been too fun. He and his dad had spent so much time going to places they had never seen before, going on rides, playing video games, and finding time to just relax and talk. It was the first time in his life that he had a chance to bond with his father, to get to know him. In the first time in his life, he had felt they really were a family.

It was truly a shame how things were going to end for them.

[Nathano]

The quiet ruslte of the leaves as the wind brushed them was all the sound there was. The sun glinted on the horizen, promising another beautiful day. In the woods, not a single thing stirred. Nothing but three man, clad in green. Creeping along at a steady pace, they kept watch of their surroundings. Unfortunitaly for them, they were not careful enough. In one of the trees a few yards away, a shadow stirred. If one were to have seen it, they would think it was nothing more then the leaves moving in the wind. As the three soldiers continued to move, something continued to track them.
*crack*
The soldier at the back of the group fell. Stopping dead, the other two dropped to the ground, looking fir the source of incomming fire.

Perched in his tree, Kay say the first one fall and imeadiatly trained his sights on the next, following him as he tried to take cover. Idiots. he thought. With two more resounding cracks of gunfire, he took them out. "Red team wins" resounded over the load speaker. Dropping from his tree, he moved over to the downed soldiers and helped them up. "I swear, every day you're deadlier. We'll have to start making you use foam balls soon. Those rubber ones really hurt." One of them said to him. Shaking his head and laughing, he walked with them back to the base.

Only a few days left. Time seemed to be going by so fast. Almost everyone on base knew what was going to happen. This base was selected to guard the Mayflower untill launch due to its proximity to the NASA base.
Kay just wished they knew the full extent of the impending doom. As he parted with the soldiers, a runner came up to him. "Lt. Commander Smith, there is someone here to see you." with that he turned and ran away. Moving to the visitors center, Kay saw a woman standing out front. Grabbing her in a hug, they walked over to a beatup car. Looking at Kay, Amy was glab she had chosen him to join her on the Mayflower. "Thought you might want to get off this base for some lunch." she asked. "Sure, let me get changed first, then we'll go."

[Elmer J.]

John Tsosie groaned.
How did I get into the living room?
Last night's celebrations must have been gotten rowdier than I planned for.
He was now very glad he had given Jason to a babysitter for the weekend: he didn't want to set a bad example.
Well, i won't have to worry about that anymore, nothing to left to set a bad example with in four days.
"Laura. You awake? What's this?"
There was a note on top of a thick envelope. Jack read the note.
"I had to go to work, sorry. I had something to tell you, but couldn't wake you up. Wanted you to know before you left for your father's," Jack grimaced at the blatant lie he had told Laura, " so i wrote you this letter read it as soon as you get the chance"
Jack couldn't read it yet. Tears were already welling up in his eyes at the thought of leaving her. But it couldn't be helped, there were only two seats left to get by blackmail, and Jason needed to live. Jack would have sent Jason and Laura, but Jason need a father much more than a mother. And a brother would have to do. So he told Laura that they were going to see John senior.
He was outright crying now. He would have liked to see his father before the end. Make sure he knew that he and jason had turned out all right, shown him how much Jason had grown...But again. Couldn't be helped.
He wiped off his tears and took an aspirin. He need to pick Jay up from Ms. Wallace's

[Inbred Chocobo]

"Guess he pulled another all-nighter." Razma said to himself as he got up out of bed and walked past Jacob's room. He noticed an empty bottle on the bed, and as he picked it up, he smiled. "These things cause long-term damage." And then he tossed te bottle in the garbage can.

As he walked into the kitchen and started making some coffee, Jacob bursted through the door, holding a few papers in hand. "Want a glass Jacob?" Razma said without looking back. "Yeah sure, seems they are doing some last minute changes to the ship. Wrote down basically what they did here, take a look at it sometime would you."

Razma poured two cups and set one down in front of Jacob. He started sipping on the other cup as he pulled the papers up and started scanning them. "Are you sure these were for the best. It looks like they completely downgraded the engine and the cryogenics looks like it could fail at the slightest bump."

Jacob looked at him closely, shook his head and said "Actually that is only for your chamber, I don't know if they have time to impliment it, but I am thinking that you should wake up if something happens. It may not look like it, but that engine can burn a lot less fuel for near the same price and should get you guys clear out of here."

Razma looked at him, then said "Well maybe you should explain it better, because I am just not seeing it."

Jacob nodded and went into a techno babble Razma had a hard time following.