Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10
”The plants are looking really great, Hannah. I think they are even healthier since you started working here!” Andromeda gives me a wide grin. I fake one back.
”Thanks! I love working with them, plants are really great. So patient. And they just keep growing, I don’t think there is much I could do wrong.”
”Oh, there is!” Now she laughs. ”I was on greenhouse duty once and let me tell you, I almost ruined the harvest for the whole year. That they let me come back in here is a miracle. I was probably only allowed to return because I am under your supervision!”
I act like I think that’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard but internally, I’m rolling my eyes. I know exactly that Andromeda is great with plants. She has orchids in her room. Freaking orchids! Even back on Earth, those flowers were comparably hard to care for. But here she is, telling me how great I’m doing. I think she’s still feeling guilty and trying to make up for what happened. She doesn’t know that it’s too little, too late.
”I’ve been working on a new project”, I tell her, lowering my voice as if it’s a great secret.
”Oh?” She looks intrigued. ”What is it?”
”Let me show you.” I take her hand and lead her to a spot in the greenhouse that had been given to me as my 16th birthday present. Tiny trees are growing on it and they all carry bright green apples.
”I created those”, I explain. ”They’re way tastier and a lot more nutritional than the other apples growing here. And they grow a lot faster!” The first part is a lie but I’m not telling her that. Her eyes light up.
”So that’s the reason you have spent so much time in the genetics lab! Dr. Mashram was very excited about giving you so many lessons, you must have been quite the enthusiastic student!”
”Yes, genetics is fun! And I really wanted to contribute to our little society. That’s why I brought you here, I have a request.”
”Go ahead”, Andromeda says and looks at me, waiting for what I want to tell her.
”You know it’s my birthday this week, right?”
”Right! You turn 17! Almost an adult now.” She playfully punches me in the shoulder.
”Yes, exactly. And it’s also almost 2 years now that I joined you here. So that’s a reason to celebrate, isn’t it?”
”Absolutely. What do you have in mind?”
”Well, I wanted to introduce everyone to my new apples. I’m sure they’re going to love them! I want to bake some apple pie but I’d need your help to make such a huge amount of pies. You’d also need to help me prepare the party, I want everyone to attend so we need a lot of space.”
”Done! It will be the greatest party ever.”
”I’m sure it will be.”
During the following days, Andromeda and I prepare for the big party. Baking all the apples into pies takes forever but some of the cooks help us. Several times I have to ask someone not to try one of these apples. Despite their protests, I strictly stick to this policy.
”I want everyone to experience these apples for the first time together” I explain at several occasions. They all follow my wishes. Begrudgingly, but they do. And finally, after much preparation, the big day is here.
Everyone is assembled in the biggest hall the station has. In front of each person stands a huge slice of my special apple pie. They’re all waiting for me to give the signal to eat.
”Thank you all for coming!” I greet everyone. ”It’s been almost 2 years since I joined this wonderful family. I am truly thankful that you decided to take me in and make me a part of all this. I’ve done my best to be a valuable member of this society. Today is my birthday but instead of expecting gifts, I wanted to give all of you a gift. Pie made from my special apples. I hope you all love it as much as I do! Let’s eat!”
Applause. Then, everybody grabs their forks and starts eating. While they chew, I watch their faces. It’s clear that they like their pie but are a bit disappointed. They expected something more special than a slightly sour apple. But they’re too polite to complain. It’s a nice pie after all.
I wait and watch. They finish their pie. Other food that has been prepared for the party follows music plays. But I don’t touch any of the food offered to me. I just watch.
Suddenly, a man jumps up and clutches his throat. Desperately gasping for air he tries to call for help. But the people trying to rush to his aid quickly develop the same symptoms. In only a few moments, everyone is lying on the floor. Except for me.
Time for my second speech.
”While I now look at you all, dying”, I begin, ”I realize that I should have done this much sooner. But it was complicated, you know? I couldn’t just flood your station with carbon monoxide like you did with mine. I needed something else.
You’re probably aware of the tiny amounts of amygdalin usually found in apple seeds. Chewing the seeds from one single apple is usually not dangerous. But I genetically altered the apples I fed you. The amygdalin is spread through the whole apple and that in concentrations absolutely deadly for humans. Every single one of you is now dying of cyanide poisoning because that’s what your body turns the amygdalin into.”
A hand grabs me by my pants. It’s Andromeda.
”Please”, she wheezes. ”We’re your family.”
”No”, I say. ”My family is dead. And you killed everybody else connected to them and me. You killed them by depriving them of oxygen and now I’m doing the same for you. It’s a different mechanism than with the carbon monoxide but the cyanide cuts off the oxygen supply to your cells. Fascinating, isn’t it? Killed by a plant you thought was safe. Just as my whole crew was killed by people they thought were safe.”
”Please …” She falls unconscious.
My eyes wander around the room filled with bodies and dying people.
”It’s over”, I whisper. ”I finally got revenge.”
I am the last human on Mars. And soon, there won’t be any humans on Mars anymore. It’s better that way.
References:
Cyanide in fruit seeds: how dangerous is an apple?
Pattern of the Cyanide-Potential in Developing Fruits
Here’s How Many Apple Cores It Would Take to Poison You
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