Pandipa

• Alexandra Jarman, Grade 7
• Short Story
• 2018

12 years ago, the world was ending. A dark shadow hung over the planet, threatening to end humanity at any moment. Panic seeped out of every living being and emotion flooded the streets of Pandipa. The sun had made a quick exit, and the city was shrouded in darkness. All was peaceful for a moment. The wind stopped, and the trees stilled. Then the sky fell.
Now I am here, floating around in space. 12 years ago, another planet collided with my home planet, Pandipa. There was no time – people had to be evacuated. Children were ripped from their parents and thrust into space capsules, their wailing still heard from miles away. Eventually, I was taken and put into a capsule. At the time, I was two, and couldn’t understand why I was being taken away from my family, from my world. I was the last child to reach a capsule before the invading planet hit us.
I can’t wait any longer for someone, anyone, to come and rescue me. I have packed my belongings and made a plan. I’ve been alone for twelve long years, and I just can’t stand it. At the front of the capsule, there was a control centre, a steering wheel. I need to get back to my planet.
I have only one obstacle – The Plasma Cavern. Once I crossed through that cave, my planet was only a breath away. Glancing at the elaborate map before me, I pinpointed my location and dragged the steering wheel to the right. As the capsule soared through the stars, I marvelled at the beauty of the flickering lights surrounding me. The stars were dancing a merry jig together, bopping along to the jolly music of the man in the moon. But alas, I was quickly shrouded in darkness – but I could just see the faint outline of a daunting space cave.
Space caves aren’t like normal caves I used to see on Pandipa. These caves seemed to float around, though they never moved. While caves on Pandipa were made of stone and earth, space caves were made of stars and very rarely, plasma crystals. This particular cave was made of a dark purple plasma. The thing is, the plasma crystals are highly deadly, and one touch is all it can take for one to drop dead.
I gently eased the capsule through the cave, staying as far away from the walls of the cave as I could manage. Going at snail’s pace, I stared at the beautifully deadly crystals, jarring out from the darkest corners of the cave. I was nearly at the end of the cave – I could see light seeping in from the far end of the cave. ‘Nearly there’, I thought. Then I heard a deep growl.
Without thinking, I frantically steered out of the cave, miraculously avoiding all of the plasma crystals – and on the other side of the cave lay the amazing Planet of Pandipa. I sighed. I was home at last.