"Yup. She was a looker too. Go on now, you and your friend can make it a double date."
Christopher blushed to the top of his ears as he and Celeste walked back to the lobby to the sound of Desmond's chuckles. They re-entered the throng of people, making their way to take the elevators up to the third floor.
They stepped off the elevator into the decidedly more serene environment of the atrium. Tables were scattered around, most were filled, but none of the occupants were his uncle. Soft music played in the background. Christopher glanced around one more time, then pulled Celeste to the stairs which led to the upper floor of the atrium.
The top floor, more of a terrace, was built around the interior perimeter of the building. Through the opening in the center rose a huge column of various plants, both green and flowering, which grew from the floor below. The air was thick with the scents of food, pollen and perfumes (some of which came from actual flowers). He spotted his uncle about three tables to his left.
Dressed in his customary lab coat, which was smudged and dirty as usual, Tremain waved his hands as he talked, the frayed cuffs of his coat flapping as he did so. His companion had her back to them, but Christopher could see she had beautiful dark hair, which burst from her scalp in ringlet curls in all directions. It bobbed as she moved her head in response to something his uncle had said. Tremain noticed Christopher and Celeste and waved them over.
"Allow me to introduce my nephew, Christopher." Tremain waved as Christopher reached the table. "And this is . . ."
"This is my friend, Celeste," Christopher answered. His uncle's companion turned to face him, making Christopher's heart skip again.
She was without a doubt the most beautiful woman Christopher had ever seen. Her complexion was flawless and the color of rich chocolate, but her eyes were the most striking aspect of her appearance. Piercing ice blue and sparkling in the overhead light, they held a hint of humor as she took in the teenagers. Christopher wondered if the extra spark in her eyes was a permanent fixture, or due to his uncle.
Tremain and Celeste cleared their throats at the same time.
"Well, are you going to say something, Christopher, or stare all day?" He laughed and turned to his tea-mate. "I do apologize, Alice, he's usually better mannered." He took a sip of his tea. Celeste slapped Christopher's arm, and glared.
Christopher regained his composure and sat down next to his uncle, while Celeste took a seat next to Alice.
"Desmond said you'd be up here." He mumbled as he took his seat.
Alice gave a low chuckle.
"I wish all young men had the same reaction to me." She winked at Christopher, who blushed a deep scarlet. Her accent was exotic, but Christopher couldn't tell where she could be from. There weren't too many variations, but the further north or south you traveled, there were some deepening differences. He and his uncle had had a conversation about that very subject just a few days ago. He cleared his throat.
"So, how did the two of you meet?" He looked at his uncle, who had just taken another sip from his cup.
"Well, we sort of . . . bumped into each other." He laughed and gestured to Alice. "Yes, that was it, wasn't it? I was going for a walk, trying to work through a particularly irritating problem in the lab, when . . ."
"I pretty much walked into him." Alice finished. She cradled her tea cup in her long fingers as she smiled at Christopher. Even her smile dazzled. "I wasn't paying much attention to where I was going." She looked down at her tea, then up at Tremain. "I think we both ended up on our bottoms."
Tremain laughed, nodding.
"Yes, I believe we did." He turned to his nephew. "I helped her back up, and invited her for a cup of tea to apologize for my clumsiness." He shook his head. "It’s become something of a regular thing now."
Christopher looked from one to the other. He couldn't believe it. His uncle seemed smitten. Write that one down. He couldn't help but grin at them both.
"That's great. I'm sorry to have imposed." He made to get up, but Alice held out one hand to stop him.
"No, please, don't leave. I should be going myself." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a card. She set it on the table between herself and Tremain. "My calling card. Our next cup is on me." She stood and pushed her chair in. "I look forward to seeing you both again." She nodded goodbye to Celeste before turning from the table. Both Christopher and his uncle stared at her as she walked away. Christopher recovered first, at a sharp throat clearing from Celeste and slapped his uncle on the arm, who barely noticed.
"And when were you going to tell me about her?" His grin widened.
Tremain huffed.
"Since when do I tell you everything?" He made quite a show of being put out, then stopped and smiled himself. "You've not introduced me to your charming friend either. Alice is something though, isn't she? And she's quite intelligent. We've had all sorts of conversations. So fun to find someone you can actually talk with," He glanced at Christopher, "present company excluded, of course."
Christopher shook his head and laughed.
"It's okay, Uncle. I think it's good for you, and yes, I did introduce you to Celeste when we sat down. But your attention wasn't on us, now was it?" He waggled his fingers back and forth in front of himself. "Uncle Tremain has a girlfriend" He sing-songed, making his uncle blush. Celeste giggled.
"I don't know if I'd go quite that far."
Tremain stood, swooping up the card Alice had placed in front of him.
"Let's get back to the lab, shall we? I wonder if Desmond has burned the place down yet. Besides, I'm sure you'd like to give your friend," he emphasized the word, "a tour of the place." He started, then paused, staring at the card, flipping it back and forth.
"What's up?" Christopher asked, coming back to the table.
Tremain wore a perplexed frown on his face.
"Well, it's the calling card, or whatever this really is." He handed it to Christopher. "I can't make heads nor tails of it."
Christopher examined the card in detail, then showed it to Celeste, who was equally perplexed.
The front, or at least what seemed like the front of the card, had a series of symbols on a graduated blue background. Nothing made any sense to Christopher. Flipping the card over, he saw a plain white background with a series of numbers printed in a row. Christopher looked up at his uncle.
"What do these mean?" He asked.
Tremain shrugged and shook his head, taking the card back from his nephew.
"I haven't the foggiest." He placed the card in his lab coat pocket. "I'm sure it'll clear itself up, eventually."
The lab had not burned down, Christopher was happy to see, but it was a mess. The overhead fans were working overtime to clear up some smoke from the earlier mishap, while Desmond was facing the smart wall addressing a uniformed man with a crew cut -- apparently there had been a call.
"Oh, here Tremain comes now." Desmond said as the three of them entered.
The man on the wall wore a severe expression, which softened once he recognized Tremain. Christopher slunk back to his uncle's desk, pulling Celeste with him. They could still hear the conversation, but Christopher much preferred to remain out of the picture.
"Ah, Colonel Griffiths, nice to see you. Is the new satellite working well?" The Colonel frowned deeper and spoke, his voice gruff and commanding.
"Tremain. That's what I'm calling you about. We took our first pictures with it, calibrating the optics, you know, and we have an anomaly. I was hoping you could come and take a look and help us figure out if it's a problem with the satellite or what."
Tremain folded his arms.
"I'd be happy to -- but can't you transfer the photos here?" The military man shook his head in a crisp side to side movement.
"No can do, Professor. The higher ups are requesting your presence here." Tremain nodded in agreement.
"Well, I can't argue with your superiors. I'll be there in the morning." He paused, then asked, "May I bring an assistant?" The Colon
el thought about it a moment, then nodded assent.
"We'd like to keep this as quiet as possible, you understand. Don't want anyone to think we're wasting their investment. One assistant only, if you don't mind."
"Yes, of course, Colonel. I'll see you in the morning." The man gave another crisp nod, his short-cropped hair seemingly molded out of his head.
"I'll send a man to pick you up at 0700." And with that, the connection was cut.
Tremain threw his hands out in front of him.
"Well, would you look at that?" He walked over to Christopher and Celeste. "I help them design a new satellite and not a word from them for weeks until they need my help again. The nerve."
Christopher grinned, noticing his uncle's obvious excitement underneath the bluster.
"He called you ‘Professor’?" Christopher asked.
"Yes, well, he used to be one of my students, way back when I first started teaching. He was a great organizer and strategist, but the finer points of my field of study escaped him. It turns out not everyone has a mind for mathematics." Tremain shook his head in mock sorrow. "I steered him towards the military. He's done all right for himself, as you can see." Tremain looked sidelong at his nephew. "Of course, Christopher, you can be my assistant tomorrow, if you want. Unless you have something better planned." He gave a wink to Celeste.
Christopher quickly shook his head.
"I did promise to help Celeste with her math homework, but I can help her later. I just have to let mom know." He jumped up and moved to the lab exit, Celeste close behind. "I'll meet you here. What time?"
"Seven on the dot."
Christopher waved to Desmond, who waved back before going back to clean up the mess in the back of the lab. The techs involved were doing their part, pulling out parts of their cooking failure and just as quickly dumping the contents into a large trash can while turning their heads to the side to avoid the smell. So much for THAT lunch.
"Can I give you a rain check on the tour?" He asked Celeste while waving his hand in front of his face to disburse the last of the acrid smell.
Celeste nodded and wrapped her arm around Christopher's. He could so get used to this.
"Anytime."
He wondered how long he could draw out the walk to the train station.
CHAPTER TWO
The military vehicle pulled up to the Hawking building precisely at seven a.m. as Tremain and Christopher stood waiting in the chill morning air. Overnight, it seemed, the wind had picked up and a smear of dark clouds could be seen on the horizon. A storm seemed to be brewing.
It had taken some convincing for Davie to let Christopher accompany his uncle as assistant, but the truth was she couldn't say no to her son, especially where her brother was concerned. Tremain had really become the father-figure in Christopher's life. As eccentric as he was, he was still a good influence on the young man. Tremain gave Christopher a nudge.
"Look sharp now, Christopher." Tremain teased. "It's show time."
The driver, a young man in uniform, gave a salute as he opened the door for the two.
"Professor Tremain." He said in greeting. "The Colonel apologizes for not coming himself, but he's been held up at the base." They drove off into the morning mist.
Christopher watched as they exited the University district and drove past the open market, where the vendors were just starting to set up their wares for the day. Soon, they were leaving the city altogether.
"Where's the base, Uncle?" Christopher whispered. Tremain pointed ahead of them.
"About an hour's drive up the coast. Just under the space elevator."
The drive was scenic if nothing else. In the misty distance, Christopher could see the faint silhouette of Ebbett's Island. He knew it had become a resort area, accessible only by ferry or private boat. Up ahead he could see the faint filament of the space elevator extending into the sky. They were getting close.
The filament grew clearer as they approached. Christopher could see it was very thick at its base.
"The elevator was a marvel of construction when the colony ship arrived." Tremain explained as he motioned to the ever larger object. "The original cable was only half this size, but did its job admirably, allowing all the colonists and the equipment to disembark easily with very few problems."
Christopher looked out the window following the cable until it disappeared into the clouds.
"It's pretty strong?"
Tremain chuckled.
"Yes, it has to be. Not only to be able to carry heavy loads up to Platform One and back, but also to withstand the heavy forces of the weather. I helped create a self-repair system we built into it a few years ago. Should hold up for many more years to come."
"How long does it take to get up to the platform?"
Tremain furrowed his brow, performing the equations in his head, motioning in the air in front of him.
"Let's see, about twenty-five thousand miles up, speed around an average of two or three miles an hour in atmosphere, much faster once in space . . . Around three days, give or take an hour or two."
Christopher whistled, glad he didn't have to ride up the thing. The driver gave a short laugh.
"It's not a bad ride. The view is awesome, for one thing. We call it "space club" up there on the Platform."
"You've been up there?" Christopher asked. The driver nodded.
"Yep. I've taken two tours since graduating from the academy. We're up there about two months a tour. It's good work. Someday I'll make the ride all the way up." Christopher looked up into the sky.
"It goes up higher?"
Tremain laughed.
"Of course it does, Christopher, there needs to be an anchor, you know." He rubbed his chin as he did more math. "So twenty-five thousand miles plus the distance to the Lagrange point."
"Lagrange point?" Christopher asked, not familiar with the term. Tremain looked sideways at his nephew.
"Haven't they taught you anything in school?" He chided. "The Lagrange point is the point of equilibrium between two large bodies in space, so in this instance, New Earth and our star. So we're talking about a million or so miles here." Christopher's eyes grew wide.
"And you want to go all the way up there?" He asked the driver, who gave one crisp nod.
"Yes sir, I do. It's a little longer than a one-month trip up to the anchor, but we have to do it once in a while to make sure everything is still in good shape up there."
"Only one month?"
"No gravity or friction to fight against, so we can move at a good velocity."
Tremain leaned in closer to Christopher.
"You'll never guess what is being used as the anchor either." His eyes glinted as Christopher mulled it over.
"I don't know. What?"
Tremain gave a mock-serious look.
"The Mayflower. Or at least what's left of it."
Christopher's eyes grew wide with the thought.
"Seriously? I thought they tore it apart to build the original colony."
Tremain nodded
"They did, well, what they could use. What remained was basically an empty shell. One they could either leave in orbit to eventually decay and fall to the surface or extend out to become the anchor to the space elevator. You can see which one they chose. Platform One was built a few years later."
The car had by now reached an imposing gate. Pausing at the guard post, the driver flashed his I.D. at the sentry. The gate was opened and they cruised through to a sprawling complex of buildings, each with a satellite dish mounted to the roof.
They pulled up to the largest of the buildings, where the driver let them out. The base was built on a natural plateau overlooking the coast. The wind whipped at them as the exited the car.
"That view doesn't suck." Christopher said as he looked out beyond the huge cable and elevator base structure to the ocean beyond.
"Quite." Tremain answered. He looked up at the elevator cable as it rose into the sky. "Too bad we can't go up this time. I would h
ave liked to see the view from up there."
"Maybe next time, Uncle."
They were interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat. They turned to see an officer facing them.
"Ah, Colonel, we've arrived." Tremain walked over to the soldier and shook his hand. He motioned to Christopher. "And this is my assistant, my nephew Christopher." The Colonel gave Christopher an appraising look, which made the young man a little uncomfortable, but he stood his ground. The Colonel nodded and smiled.
"Good to meet you, Christopher." He turned to Tremain. "If you don't mind, I have the images in question queued up for you."
Tremain motioned to the door.
"Lead on, Colonel."
The interior was abuzz with activity. A small entrance way led into a dark room filled with huge screens. Facing those screens were two rows of terminals, all of which were manned by soldiers wearing large headphones. Christopher looked at the screens, trying to make sense of what he was seeing. On one screen showed a vectored representation of the planet, with dotted lines traversing around it. Christopher assumed they were the trajectories of the satellites in orbit around the planet. Made sense, so they could keep track of them all. He knew most were weather satellites, but some were GPS and communication satellites and still others were military and scientific. A few of the weather stations were following an ominous looking cloud forming over the ocean.
"Uncle, look at that storm." Christopher whispered.
Tremain glanced over at where his nephew was indicating and stopped short. He beckoned to the Colonel.
"That doesn't look good at all."
The Colonel nodded towards the screen, folding his arms.
"That is the mother of all storms building off the coast. It's not moving, only gaining in intensity." His face was grim.
Tremain was aghast.
"That's not possible!"
Colonel Griffiths nodded once, his eyes never leaving the screens.
"We agree. It's not natural, whatever it is. Our severity meters only go up to category five. This one is projected to be even stronger. The winds right now are speculated to be at about a Category Four."
The Adventures of Tremain & Christopher BoxSet Page 20