Shining Sky, A Novel

Here's a story I've been working on. It's still in early stages but the first chapter has the plot set out for you. Notice the Masuji surname, thats from another book I like but I'm using it here: Shining Sky Chapter 1 2093 C.E. Ten years prior to 2093 C.E., the human race was nearly driven to extinction. Over 200 years of industrial pollution had turned what was once lush, temperate land, into arid, desolate wasteland: climate change had accelerated. On July 4, 2083 C.E., a ten year heat wave destroyed several cities around the world. Xī’an, St. Louis, Mexico City, and Madrid were some of the first casualties.

Now, these cities are primarily abandoned, their water supplies squandered. Cities like Washington D.C., Los Angeles, New York City, Beijing, Tokyo and Miami all survived, due to careful rationing of water and electricity. Then, in 2087, four years into the crisis, a group of scientists announced they had found a way to artificially influence climate. The system took another six years to implement in new cities, such as New D.C., located much further downriver from Washington D.C. During those six years, much of the world’s governments crumbled away, and the United States was no exception. Cities like New D.C. declared their autonomy, appointing governors who rule with a unicameral parliament. Thus began the struggle of the crumbling governments to bring these cities under control. Outside these cities, rural communities languished as their water supplies dried up and the lack of climate control left many abandoned. New D.C.’s current governor, James Slackthorn, is widely considered both a cunning politician and a puppet of the businesses. New D.C. drew several new residents from Japan, whose government decided to conserve resources by giving incentives for residents to emigrate until a nationwide solution to climate change was decided. Among these residents were a couple with the name of Masuji. Masuji Hitagi and Masuji Ryō, a couple of mixed Japanese and European descent, emigrated from Osaka to New D.C. in late 2083, during Japan’s first measures to preserve resources. During this time, New D.C. Was but a collection of closely packed towns and cities in Northern Virginia, however, the northeast sector of the city became known for its Japanese and Chinese residents as it grew.

New D.C.’s proximity to the Atlantic Ocean has caused seafood to reign supreme as the least expensive food, followed by vegetables and fruit after the implementation of the CLIMATROL® system in and around New D.C. for 50 miles. CLIMATROL®’s side effects caused the city to be blanketed in clouds, in order to mitigate the water shortages. Even so, the relatively unchanged city life is disrupted in the southern sectors, where meat shortages cause laboring workers to riot. The Japanese sector has partially benefited from a Yakuza presence, due to the fear of Yakuza retaliation for violence in their streets. Masuji Ryō, a weapons engineer, became a member of Yakuza shortly after his arrival, so that he may gain money to secure shelter for his wife and himself within the sector, safe from all police, Yakuza and terrorist violence.

In 2084, Masuji Hitagi was heading to the local grocery for nori and rice for bentō, when she stumbled upon a homeless child, dazed in the middle of the busy street. She pulled him from the road, whereupon she asked him his name. He only knew his given name: Zerak. Since he had no place to stay, she invited him into her home, whereupon he displayed his superior eyesight and aiming, able to test fire Ryō’s weaponry. He bonded to them, especially Ryō, and, for a time, they were happy. As the riots climbed in intensity, however, Hitagi was killed in a gunfight in the central sector in 2087. Ryō thereafter devoted himself to Zerak, making him his apprentice in marksmanship, weapon customization and computer integration. Ryō showed Zerak how to disarm the government mandated OpID® system, and modify it to allow him to use any weapon he needed. During this time, Zerak seemed to mature in the wake of Hitagi’s death, becoming skilled with weaponry and making money by acting as a mercenary. Ryō begrudgingly encouraged his occupation, as Zerak was hired by both Yakuza and New D.C. SWAT as a front-line spotter. His skill defused the planned attacks on New D.C.’s railway and a CLIMATROL® auxiliary unit, orchestrated by the United States against New D.C.

At the climax of the war, in late 2092, chaos erupted in the central sector as a set of M9 Reagan tanks cut through the west sector and began to shell the capitol buildings. In the chaos, Zerak managed to destroy one of the tanks with an M43 Yellow Jacket rifle, but, as the dust settled and the remaining US forces surrendered, Zerak returned home to find Ryō missing. A note was left on the kitchen counter: “Zerak, if this is morning is the last time I see you, I want to apologize. Circumstances have forced me to leave New D.C., and head into the wasteland. I’m making my way, with Hitagi’s ashes, to Japan, my one true home. Maybe I’ll make it, or maybe not. But know this: You’re the only regret I have, that I can’t take you with me. Be strong, my son. -Ryō”

Chapter 2 Assignment Zerak opened his eyes, yawning. He arose off his shiki futon, rolling the mat and stowing it in the closet nearby. He walked into the kitchen, the lights slowly brightening as to not hurt his sensitive eyes. Grabbing a pot from the counter, he filled it with water, placed it on the range and set the range to alarm when the pot was boiling. He added dashi and miso to the pot, along with wakame and tofu, and once it was ready, he poured some into a bowl and began to drink the soup as he looked out the one-way window nearby. Outside, the overcast morning in the Japanese sector was as uninspiring as any other day. Then, his computer alerted him to a call. He said, “Answer” and a video screen on the side wall flipped out to face him. Onscreen was the Governor of New D.C., James Slackthorn. Slackthorn was a man in his early forties, sporting a crew cut and a blue suit jacket. He had a shifty look about him, like he would sell out anyone for the right price. “Good morning, Zerak,” he said with a cunning smile. Zerak looked at him as he drank the soup, but did not answer. Slackthorn continued, “I have a job offer for you, with a very nice comissio-” he was interrupted by Zerak’s blunt voice.

“What is it you want?” Zerak said, disinterested, “You know I don’t need money, and I don’t care for your politics. I’ll entertain your offer, however.” “We’ve lost contact with the scientists at the CLIMATROL® unit responsible for New D.C.’s climate regulation. I need someone to go and confirm the status of the scientists, and to bring back a data log so we can handle changes in the system accordingly. Care to drop by and discuss?” Slackthorn grinned, showing his phosphor coloured teeth. Zerak’s eyes had snapped out of their disinterest and were focused, “I’ll be by in two hours.” The screen shut off and resumed its position against the wall. Zerak finished his soup, deposited the dishes in the dishwasher, and went to his wardrobe. He strapped his assault harness on, slipped on a pair of motorbike pants and a black trench coat. He then went over to his gun cabinet and grabbed a pair of shiny pistols, the kanji for “Hayate” on his left handed pistol and “Raiden” on his right handed. Zerak also took a black revolver, breaking the top of it to check that he had six rounds in it. He holstered the pair of pistols in underarm holsters, and the revolver in a backside holster. Walking over to the doorway, he grabbed his black motorbike helmet and stepped off the tatami before putting on his boots. Looking at the video feed placed beside the door, he saw the coast was clear before he opened the door, it slid upwards out of sight. He emerged outside into a room full of power transformers, and, turning around, he watched the door slide downward, the outside looking like the flat, smooth wall of a transformer casing. He walked over to the elevator and walked inside.

He pushed the lobby level, and waited. Once on the lobby floor he was surrounded by an open lobby full of unfinished construction. His apartment was a secret that he had built in this building for his own protection, courtesy of his previous Yakuza ties. It had been five months since the “Battle for New D.C.” as it was called. Not only had Ryō gone missing, but the Yakuza had been wiped out soon after by the New D.C. Police Force. Zerak emerged onto a deserted street of half-finished buildings. He recovered his red motorbike, hidden in an alcove behind a dumpster, and flipped the switch on the bike, the electric vehicle moving silently through the morning streets of the Japanese sector. Traveling southwest, Zerak raced past many tall structures, and eventually arrived in the central district. Overhead, many cranes worked ceaselessly to rebuild the buildings destroyed during the recent battle. Zerak made a beeline to the Capitol tower, a large, blue-black tower right below the a slowly rotating shadow, which was the aerial CLIMATROL system responsible for regulating cloud cover. In the patches between the clouds could be seen a grey smog, obscuring the sky’s true look. At the base of the tower was a parking lot, where a pair of armored guards guided him to a designated spot marked in red. Parking the motorbike, he walked through one of the many entrance doors. In the lobby was a man Zerak recognized as one of the many attendants to Slackthorn. Wordlessly, he guided Zerak to an elevator, and getting in the elevator with Zerak, pressed the button marked G. After several silent minutes of ascension, the doors opened and Zerak was flanked by two bodyguard of Slackthorn’s who escorted him into the Governor’s office. Slackthorn held out his hand, and, disinterested, Zerak shook it, applying enough pressure to make the man cringe ever so slightly.

“So, Zerak, my correspondence with the CLIMATROL® monitor system team has given me all this information, so take it into consideration. The CLIMATROL® facility is located about 20 miles southwest of the city limits, about 10 miles from it’s border of operation. The facility has 3 basement floors, with a small bunker above ground which you can get into. It is hidden under a rockface with a vertical break in it, the break is large enough for you to get into easily, but once inside the rockface you have to provide the door inside with a security fob, which I will provide. The recorder system is located on the third basement floor, and the scientist quarters are along the way, so also check on the status of them for me.” said Slackthorn. Zerak watched, disinterested in him as usual. He stared at Slackthorn’s phosphor colored teeth, and noticed the wastebasket beside the desk, filled with candy wrappers.