Never Again Page 36

  Margaret sat back in her chair and watched as Dave walked toward Neeta and then held her in a tight embrace.

  She whispered to nobody in particularly, “I’ll always blame myself for all of this. I wouldn’t blame Dave or Neeta at all for hating me.” She turned to Walter. “General, I know we’re going into lockdown soon, so if Neeta wants transport to another evacuation site, and if Doctor Holmes agrees that it doesn’t jeopardize our mission, just make it happen.”

  “Understood, Madam President.”

  She watched as Neeta and Dave talked animatedly to each other, and even though Margaret couldn’t hear what was being said, she watched as Neeta gave Dave a quick embrace and raced from the room.

  As Dave walked back toward Margaret and sat on his chair, Margaret pulled a handheld computer from her pocket, brought up the ‘notes’ application, and turned her attention back to Dave.

  Not having the heart to ask if Neeta was okay, she focused on what she needed to do. “Doctor Holmes, tell me what we’ll see from Earth in chronological order, starting with the time the Moon begins to move.”

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  The heavy thud of Burt’s rubber-soled magnetic boots echoed loudly as he plodded through the empty halls of Moon Base Crockett. The silence was eerie, as if he were walking within a tomb. Despite the change in gravity, it was the lonely silence coupled with the cool, sterile air that gave Burt the distinct sense he wasn’t on Earth anymore. On the day-long trip up to the base, he’d made peace with the task at hand. In fact, Burt was happy at the prospect of doing what needed to be done. Even though he’d been cornered by a quirk of fate into this position, he knew it would lead to something he’d always wanted.

  He wanted to make a difference in other people’s lives, even if it was at his own expense.

  “Well, Burt,” he joked with himself. “Knowing how President Hager is, she’ll probably end up erecting statues of your ugly mug in every state of the union.”

  Remembering well the maze-like hallways of the Moon base’s north wing, Burt turned into the control room and sat at the administrator’s workstation. He glanced at the clock, and for some reason envisioned a scene in a movie where he’d watched a man kick-starting an old Harley Davidson motorcycle. “Well, I have eight hours until I kick-start the engines on this big rock. Maybe, just maybe, they have some old movies archived somewhere.”

  It was then that he remembered what Margaret had said about the satellite link going down.

  Getting off his chair, Burt knew that the server could wait.

  As he returned to the room where the satellite feeds came in, Burt began talking to himself again.

  “If I can get the satellite link up, then there may be someone down there who can tell me where the rec room is in this place. They have to have some old movies.”

  ###

  It took him a couple hours to track down the issue, but after isolating the problem to a burnt-out network router and some faulty cables, Burt replaced the broken equipment that connected the satellite to the internal network. He smiled as he saw live network traffic flowing again through the satellite.

  As his computer wirelessly hooked into the network feed, Burt carried the tablet back with him, walking back to the administrator’s console.

  Setting the tablet up on a stand, he leaned his face against the retinal scanner he’d installed and placed his thumb on the fingerprint reader. He immediately felt the click of recognition from his thumb, but got a buzzing sound from the visor.

  “What the hell?” Burt growled and tried again.

  Again the buzzing sound.

  His mind racing, he couldn’t fathom what was wrong. Knowing that a person’s retina remains the same throughout their life, Burt tried a third time and yet again was denied access to the administrator’s console.

  He pulled open a drawer full of tools and glanced at the clock. “I don’t have time for this shit!”

  Luckily, he had the downloaded firmware for the machine and could try to undo the security measures he’d created, but Burt wasn’t sure if he’d be able to do it in time.

  As he began taking the platform apart, the tablet had automatically launched a browser when it detected the internet connection.

  Burt was beginning to pry off the chip that contained the platform’s firmware when the tablet began running a video that was counting down. Turning on the volume, the tablet broadcast an alert, “This is an emergency alert from President Margaret Hager of the United States for all within viewing range.”

  Burt nodded, and as he searched in another window for the source code to the firmware, he heard the message repeating itself until suddenly, the scrolling numbers fell away and a live video broadcast flickered to life. He instantly recognized the background: the Cheyenne Mountain Command Center.

  The president took her seat at a table, with the presidential logo that Burt didn’t remember being there only a day earlier. She projected the same calm, unflappable expression that all great leaders had, and he smiled as her voice rang clearly through the tiny computer’s speaker.

  “Good morning, my fellow citizens:

  “I am speaking to you again not just as the president of the United States, but as a global citizen.

  “I had not planned to give another public address until the time had come when I could announce that the threat overhead had passed and all of our lives could return to normal. However, a recent event has forced me to change that plan.

  “I also realize that my voice is reaching far beyond the borders of just these United States, and is in fact being automatically translated into over one-hundred languages. Rest assured that I’ve been in constant contact with all of the other world leaders, and only moments ago, I spoke to them about what I’m about to tell you.

  “There is an old saying that goes, ‘May you live in interesting times.’

  “Some claim that the saying is a curse, others see it as a blessing.

  “Friends, let me assure you that once I’m done with what I’m about to say, we’ll all agree that these are interesting times that we live in.

  “As I informed you the last time we talked, DefenseNet is acting as a shield against the incoming barrage of space debris heading toward us.

  “I would like to give you a brief update on that, so that you can know what has been happening.

  “Even though you can’t see it, the world’s top scientists and engineers have been working around the clock to defend us against the threat that even now looms ahead.

  “As of now, DefenseNet has already destroyed or rendered harmless over 13,000 space objects that had previously been aimed directly for us.

  “Yes, I know that number must be shocking to many of you, but every one of those 13,000 is a success story. Each a small victory against something that could have caused us great harm.

  “Yet DefenseNet has its limitations.

  “When we first detected the debris and I alerted the world, the scientific community thought that the asteroids had been sent flying towards us due to a comet colliding into a field of rubble on the outskirts of our solar system.

  “We now know that that wasn’t the case.

  “Heading our way is an unstoppable force. One that’s existed since the dawn of time. This primordial threat brooks no argument, and would bypass any shield we could ever hope to wield against it. It is this threat that flung debris ahead of its approach.

  “What is this thing, you might rightfully ask, and what can we possibly do?

  “Citizens of the world, a black hole has entered our solar system. An object whose pull is so strong that even light itself cannot escape its grasp. Yet that’s exactly what we’re about to do.

  “Yes, you heard me right, we are standing at a juncture in humanity’s path.”

  Despite the blunt and horrible news, Burt was busy making rapid changes to the console’s logic and compiling it. He began to sweat as time elapsed and he still hadn’
t managed to get the console running. All the while, he kept part of his attention on the president’s message. He heard the pitch of the president’s voice change. It suddenly carried a tone of optimism and hope.

  “Our children, and our children’s children will be able to point in the history books and note that humanity made a great leap on this day.

  “I know that we’ve all made huge sacrifices to even get to this stage. Many of you have been displaced from your homes.

  “Those of you who are still in your homes are experiencing extensive rationing, which is something that hasn’t been seen in this country since World War II.

  “However, I do want to make note of one scientist in particular. An extraordinary man who I want everyone to know and appreciate, for he’s an example of what is good and just in this world. An example of the silent, self-sacrificing person who works tirelessly for the sake of us all.

  “Doctor Burt Radcliffe was responsible for first alerting us all to the incoming threat that we now face. Since alerting us of this threat, he has dedicated every waking moment to the cause of seeing us through this time of crisis.

  “Ronald Reagan once said that the future does not belong to the faint-hearted, it belongs to the brave. Burt Radcliffe has epitomized what self-sacrifice and bravery are all about.

  “Doctor Radcliffe was recently faced with a task that only he could accomplish, yet in doing so, he knew that he’d be sacrificing himself so that the rest of us could live.

  “He made that choice without hesitation and without regret.

  “As I speak to you now, Doctor Radcliffe is about to clear the way for us all to have a future that he will never actually see.

  “Let us put Burt Radcliffe in our prayers and wish him well on his final journey.”

  Just after replacing the chip on the console, Burt stared wide-eyed at the screen and couldn’t believe what he was witnessing. The president closed her eyes and bent her head in prayer for a few seconds, then looked up with a serious expression.

  “Margaret, you’re something else,” said Burt to the computer screen with a sense of awe. The woman continued addressing the public.

  “I’m sure all of you have seen the miraculous ribbon of light in the sky, and most of you have likely noticed how that same ribbon is now glowing even brighter than before.

  “When DefenseNet was built, it had one public purpose. It was our shield against that which threatens us.

  “Yet there was another purpose in its design. That bright ribbon we can all see high in the sky indicates that a new capability has been brought online. In DefenseNet’s initial design, our scientists knew that there might be a threat which the shield couldn’t withstand.

  “At the time, they couldn’t predict what that threat might have been, and the scientists certainly wouldn’t have guessed that we’d be approached by a cosmic terror such as a black hole. Nonetheless, they knew that this secondary ability was one that could save us when all else failed.

  “What is this mysterious capability, you ask?

  “It is a capability that can provide an escape from the inescapable. Defense against the indefensible. A miracle when all hope is lost.

  “Through DefenseNet’s revolutionary technology, our scientists have just brought online an escape plan. A way for us to avoid not only the space debris heading our way but the black hole that threatens the entirety of our solar system.

  “I know what you’re all thinking, because these are the same thoughts I had when I first heard of this possibility.

  “Nonsense!

  “What do you mean, escape?

  “Escape to where?

  “Let me assure you that we are in no danger, but I, along with the other leaders of the world, strongly believe that the public should be aware of what is happening. We believe that you should know the truth, and in knowing the truth, have faith that all will be well.”

  Burt felt the warmth of Margaret’s confidence as her voice broadcast across the many thousands of miles. He felt a surge of strength that bolstered the rightness of his fate. If nothing else, Burt knew that his life hadn’t been wasted. He reassembled the administrator’s console, knowing that he would most certainly be making a difference in humanity’s future.

  “Like I said earlier, we are standing at an amazing time that all future generations will look back on and speak of in reverence.”

  Burt plugged in the administrator’s console just as Margaret’s voice began to grow louder and louder. The power of her message grew, and Burt felt the surge of pride rising within him.

  “This is the moment when humanity finally understands that we are all one people.

  “This is the moment when humanity takes its first step toward our future.

  “This is the moment when humanity will fight back against the darkness and win.

  “Let this temporary strife serve as a signal to us all.

  “As you see the bright ribbon of light in the sky, let it shine as a symbol of our future. The future is most certainly a bright one to behold. Let’s all be worthy of it.”

  Burt whispered, “Let’s all be worthy.”

  He leaned back against his chair and sighed with relief as the administrator console blinked on and awaited instructions.

  As the president continued with her speech, outlining what the public was about to go through, Burt smiled and looked up at the clock. It was almost time.

  The scent of freshly brewed coffee pulled him from his thoughts, and a woman’s voice spoke, “I brought some of the good stuff.”

  Spinning toward the source, Burt stared at the last person he’d have ever expected to see. His throat tightened, and no words could form in his head.

  Neeta smiled and walked toward him. She offered him a steaming mug of coffee and said, “It’s about time we start moving this big rock. Besides–everyone knows you suck at driving.”

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  It had been less than twenty-four hours since the explosion in Ecuador took Bella’s life. Every moment since then, Dave had been surrounded by people watching him. Somehow he’d managed to push all of his emotions aside, just barely managing to keep himself from flying apart at the seams. But now, in the privacy of his own quarters, with nausea overwhelming him, Dave heaved into a bucket as he emptied his stomach.

  Chills raced through him as he recalled Bella’s lifeless, green-eyed stare.

  He tried to take a deep breath, but it felt like a steel band had wrapped around his chest.

  “Bella, I loved you from the moment I first laid eyes on you....”

  Dave slid off the side of his bed, slumping down on the floor as his body tingled with pent-up emotions. His mind felt sluggish as he finally allowed himself to absorb what had happened.

  He’d never again experience Bella’s quirky sense of humor. The way she looked at him with those piercing green eyes. Her sheer brilliance and vitality. The warmth of her embrace that he knew was for him and him alone.

  All of it snuffed out for no good reason.

  Dave couldn’t see a way forward for himself. The heavy cloak of his misery suddenly seemed impossible to bear as he envisioned the loneliness of life without her.

  The steel band tightened as despair wrapped around Dave like a shroud. He didn’t care anymore. Nothing mattered.

  He closed his eyes and, for a moment, hoped the darkness would claim him. But suddenly Bella’s face appeared in his mind. Not the dead thing half-buried by rubble, but instead the beautiful woman who loved life. “If it’s possible, you have to try and save them.”

  The words she’d spoken all those months ago pierced through the depths of Dave’s despair, and he felt the warmth of her presence enveloping him.

  People needed him. Even if he didn’t think he cared anymore, Bella had cared. Maybe she’d cared enough for them both.

  Dave breathed in deeply as the metal band around his chest loosened and he placed his head between his knees
.

  He imagined Bella sitting next to him, running her fingers over his shoulder, when suddenly, a flood of emotions overwhelmed him and he began to sob.

  ###

  Startled awake, Dave groaned as someone pounded on his door and yelled, “Doctor Holmes, we’ve got incoming alerts from LIGO.”

  Grabbing the side of the bed, he levered himself up off the floor where he’d fallen asleep. He staggered toward the door and glanced at the wall clock. He’d only gotten two hours of sleep. He ripped open the door to his apartment, one of the few private rooms in the entire Cheyenne evacuation site, and was greeted with the image of a pale-faced engineer with a Mission Control badge. He barely looked old enough to have graduated college, and Dave suppressed his instinct to yell at him for disturbing his sleep. Taking a deep breath, he frowned and calmly asked, “What did you say?”

  “Sir, LIGO is still recording the arrival of gravitational waves, and they’re seeing an almost constant barrage of them right now!”

  With a deep sigh, Dave waved the engineer away and said, “I’ll be right there.”

  ###

  The buzz of activity was constant in the Cheyenne Mountain Command Center as dozens of engineers monitored hundreds of satellite feeds and signals coming from all over the world. Despite having been built under a mountain, this Command Center was bigger than any Dave had been in before. With an auditorium that was easily one-hundred-and-fifty feet wide and seventy feet from front to back, it housed more video screens and computers than even the Cape Canaveral Mission Control.

  Standing in the center of the room, Dave watched as the right-hand-side display showed the incoming LIGO alerts. He turned to the nearest engineer and pointed at the center screen. “Give me a patch into the Hubble2 satellite. I want that thing aimed at wherever those disturbances are coming from. In addition to visual spectrographic range, I want another feed showing me the color-enhanced images for X-ray and beyond.”

  “Yes, sir.” The engineer typed frantically on the keyboard, stood, and yelled across the room, “Can someone authorize my satellite adjustment commands?”