“Lieutenant,” he said softly.
Shou hesitated for a moment, as she didn’t want Devon to see that she was struggling emotionally. As she tried to compose herself, Devon reached out and put his hand on her shoulder.
“Lieutenant…Grace, are you going to be OK?”
He knew that was a stupid question considering the circumstances but found himself unsure of what to say or do. He’d spent half his life learning to suppress his emotions in order to think clearly. This had served him well in the past, but as he got older, he seemed to have more and more trouble doing it. He especially found it difficult to repress the strong feelings he had for her.
“Sir, I…I’m sorry. It’s just difficult,” said Shou, comforted by his touch.
“I understand. This isn’t easy, and it isn’t going to be easy for the crew when we confirm that not only is the planet in jeopardy but that we now have been cut off from Manikar Control. I need you to pull it together for me; we have to be united in our strength for the crew.”
Shou couldn’t help but admire Devon’s internal strength at a moment like this. He was thinking clearly and not wallowing in emotion, as she had been. His words soothed her and immediately brought her back to a sense of calm. She now understood why he was a great leader and wanted to show the strength he required of her. It also strengthened the feelings she’d secretly held for her commander these last few months.
“Shou, any word from Commander Windsor in regard to your last communication?”
“No, sir. Not a word.”
“We can’t afford to wait any longer; we have to inform the crew. Assemble all personnel on the mess deck in fifteen minutes. And Lieutenant, try to relax.”
Shou looked at him, took a deep breath, and briskly walked out of the room.
Devon paced the room, trying to gather his thoughts so he could provide some consolation in his message to the crew. It proved to be useless, as the fifteen minutes passed in what seemed like a few seconds. Shou was at the door exactly fifteen minutes from the time she’d left the room, and Devon could see she had composed herself.
“Sir, the crew is assembled as requested.”
“Thanks. Please join them, and I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
As Shou left the room, Devon looked in the mirror, adjusted his collar, and straightened his uniform. He’d never before had a challenge such as this where he himself felt hopeless and had to motivate his people. How could he outline a vision of hope if he didn’t see it?
“Damn you. Snap out of it,” he said angrily to his reflection. “They need you. She needs you.”
The thought of his words bringing comfort to Grace Shou provided the shot of adrenaline that he needed. He took one last look and hurried out of his quarters to the mess deck to face his crew and possibly the last remaining survivors of humanity.
As he entered the room, he could feel the tension of his crew fill the air. He noticed that some had tears in their eyes, and others just had blank looks on their faces. They all knew what he was going to say and had anticipated this moment for some time. Devon walked to the front of the hall, where he had the best vantage point to see everyone as he delivered his message.
“Brave crew of the Victory, I know you all have some idea what’s going to be said, so I won’t make you wait any longer for the inevitable. According to calculations, the object we encountered will impact our planet…our home…in forty-five days. We all know what that most likely will mean: total devastation not only to the surface but also irreparable damage to the atmosphere, making the planet uninhabitable.”
While this was certainly not a surprise to anyone in the room, Devon heard several of his crew cry out when the finality of the situation was confirmed.
“I’ve hesitated in delivering the official word to you because we have another situation of grave concern that I must inform you of. Commander Larsen has denied our findings and cut off our communication with Manikar Control. His motives are not yet clear, but what is clear is that we have several obligations that we must find the strength to meet. The first is to our loved ones who face this terrible destiny. We have an obligation to survive!”
Devon’s natural leadership took over as the crew looked to him for some semblance of hope. He didn’t need to rehearse any words of wisdom; it just came naturally for him as it always had.
“We have to survive,” he continued. “because if we don’t, then there’ll be no one left to remember those we love. No one left to remember our civilization and culture. No one left to carry on the teaching of the lessons we’ve learned in the wars we’ve fought, to make a better world for our children. If we give up now and wallow in sorrow, then there will be no hope for any of us. I’m asking each and every one of you to focus on your job and on what your loved ones would want. We have a place to go, where we have a chance to build a new life on a brave new world.”
Devon walked to the control panel that fed images to the large view screen at the front of the mess hall. An image of Earth, as seen from space, appeared on the screen as the animation began. The planet zoomed in closer, until its landmasses were visible. As if in one of O’Neil’s spacecraft, the animation simulated diving through the clouds toward what looked like a small island. The island grew larger, as the simulated view went further toward the planet. It was a smaller continent, surrounded by ocean and unconnected to the larger landmasses on the planet’s surface.
“Earth will be our destination—not the Earth you’ve all read about after the last Telos mission. Telos experts believe the ocean acts as a barrier to this area they call Eden. There is no evidence that these creatures have ever inhabited this part of the planet. Furthermore, they also report that life sustaining water and food sources are plentiful. This is where we’re headed to build our new lives.”
Devon could see by the reactions of the crew that some had found comfort in his words. He also detected the uncertainty that they had about life on Earth, as the images of the large creatures had been all they’d really seen of Earth for years.
“Our mission to build our new lives will be our top priority from this point forward. Lieutenant Shou will be forming teams with various tasks to prepare for this over the next few months.” Shou remained stone-faced although she was surprised that Commander Devon had not discussed this planning with her previously.
“We have another mission that we must complete, and once again it’s our obligation on behalf of those we love. We’ll be heading immediately back home at full power to see our planet once more before heading to Earth. We have no chance to beat the object to Mars, and due to Larsen blocking our communications, we won’t be able to warn them of their fate or communicate with our loved ones. I want each and every one of you to use every bit of your knowledge and experience to find other alternatives to warn Mars so that our people can make their peace with whatever their fate might be. I’m giving everyone the rest of the day off duty to make your peace with this. Our new mission begins tomorrow, and I have the utmost faith in each of you to face it with courage and dignity. The days ahead won’t be easy for any of us, but we have to stay focused on the mission ahead. Our lives and the survival of our culture depend on it. Mr. Knarr, before you head to your quarters, set course for Mars, maximum power.”
Knarr acknowledged Devon’s order with a solemn nod and walked out of the room. One by one, each of the crew left the room without saying a word. No words could possibly describe what they were feeling and what they would face in the days to come.
5
REVELATION
Stanzic led Will to another large ladder that ran down the entire backside of the observatory. It was a long climb down, and the canyon floor was thousands of feet below if they were to fall. Will carefully stepped over the side, and placed his foot securely on the first rung. He could see Stanzic quickly descending below him as he fought his fear and slowly began to climb down after him.
“Lars, why are we sneaking around and risking our lives? What�
�s this all about?”
“It’s about our new government. They’ve really taken strong control since the unification, especially here in the Folands. There are no limits now, no one to call them out when they grab too much power. This government is run by corrupt men who have forgotten why we fought the wars of the past; I fear the blood was spilled for nothing.”
“Does this have something to do with the military troops I saw when I was coming in?” asked Will, now breathing heavy from his climb and the anxiety he fought to control. “Why are they here, and why did they detain my men?”
“They are here because three years ago, when Laurion was hit by the asteroid, those in the government decided they needed a place deep within the planet to hide, should something like this ever threaten Mars. Not a place for the people, but for the rich and powerful. They’ve been digging here for almost three years, building an underground city. This is top secret, and I would surely be killed for telling you.”
“Why are you telling me, if this is so secret?” asked Will.
As they talked, they continued to descend the ladder at a brisk pace. Will was trying to be careful to look where he was stepping and unfortunately through the rungs of the ladder saw that they were tens of thousands of feet high. He started to feel dizzy as the anxiety set in, and just then his foot slipped off the rung of the ladder. He hung on with both arms, pulled himself up, and placed his feet solidly back on the rusty metal rung.
“Be careful, my old friend. That was too close,” yelled Stanzic from below.
They continued down the back of the observatory, where the ladder ended at a small outcropping of rocks. Stanzic jumped from the ladder and motioned for Will to follow. They walked along a narrow path that hugged the edge of the canyon wall and wound around the backside of the massive observatory.
“I’m telling you because they found something, deep underground, something that will change Mars forever. Something they don’t want the world to know, but they must know.”
“Lars, what is it?”
“You have to see it,” said Stanzic.
As they walked the narrow path along the sheer canyon wall, Will once again felt overwhelming anxiety. He slid his hands along the smooth observatory wall as he navigated the rocky terrain.
“Why were you playing that recording, and why did we have to sneak out of the room like that?” asked Will.
“Because they’re watching and listening. They want to make sure I don’t tell you anything, and they want to see if you know anything. They made me wear that device so they could monitor our conversations. There’s no way they can enter the hologram chamber, so they’ll have to listen to four hours of you and I having the most boring conversation known to man.”
“Oh yeah. I meant to compliment you on your work. I assume you took my voice recordings from my third-year planetary project?”
“It’s amazing what one can do with the proper equipment. I made it so you were in awe of my brilliant observations. I hope you don’t mind,” laughed Stanzic.
“Not at all, Professor Stanzic, sir,” said Will with a sarcastic smile.
They finally arrived at a small grouping of trees, where a small, open-top transport was hidden under some tree limbs. Its design was sleek and modern, and not at all what Will would have expected his aging university professor to have.
“Please get in,” said Stanzic. “We must hurry.”
“Why would they pick the Folands for this underground city? They would have to know people would be coming here and notice the activity. It’s not exactly an unpopular destination.”
“There are several reasons for this; the first is that they control this place under the guise of preservation. It allows them to control who can come here and who cannot. You were not supposed to be given access, but your friend pulled some strings and made it difficult for you to be denied. It would have been too hard to explain to some higher-level people in the government that their influence didn’t matter. They decided that it would be easier to just monitor you while you were here. They also picked this location because there is no deeper place on the entire planet; the caverns that lead down into the ground we had thought were immeasurable. The final reason for this location is that the crystalline rock allows sunlight to penetrate deep below the surface, providing a source of power and allowing growth of natural plants needed for survival.”
“Why don’t they want me here?” asked Will. “And my men, why were they detained and kicked out?”
“Because you’re getting close to the answers that explain everything.”
Stanzic navigated the transport out along the cliff’s edge and, to Will’s horror, put it into a steep dive down the canyon wall.
“What are you doing? This is crazy!” shouted Will as he held the seat with all of his strength.
“It’s the only way. They’ll see us if I use a traditional route. No one will suspect anyone would try this.”
Will was certain he was right about that. As they picked up speed, he felt as if he was going to pass out; the sensation of falling was beyond terrifying to him.
“This is too fast. Slow down!”
“Ah, some things never change—still afraid of heights, are you? I remember in your second year at university when we did the planetary reentry simulation. As I recall, you threw up all over my lab that day, and I had to give you a B-minus.”
As he hung on for dear life, Will was annoyed at the way Stanzic could carry on a calm conversation while hurdling toward the canyon floor.
“Don’t worry. We’re almost down, and then we’ll be out of sight.”
Will could see the ground rushing up and was bracing for impact. Just as he thought it was going to be the end of them both, Stanzic pulled up on the controls, and they leveled off just above the ground.
“There, you see? Now you can relax,” said Stanzic calmly.
As Will sat up straight in the seat, he felt drops of sweat falling from his forehead. He pulled a cloth from his pocket and wiped them away.
“Please take a few minutes to relax. I assure you this is all necessary.”
Will, still breathing heavily, raised his hand to say he was feeling better. “Where are we going?”
“I’m taking you to a chamber off of one of the main corridors of this new underground city. It’s locked down tight, and only the head of the study team can get in.”
“How did you get involved in all of this? Surely the military didn’t need you to help build their city.”
“That’s correct; they would just as soon have not had to involve anyone outside the government. The problem they had is that I can help them with what they did find, and for that, they needed to involve someone. I was the logical choice as I have the expertise and, fortunately for them, happen to be the director of the Meinar Observatory right in the middle of the Folands where they can watch me.”
Stanzic guided the speeding transport across the rocky canyons into the area that contained the crystalline mountains and vast areas of large trees. He handed Will a bag that contained a brown uniform and a mask.
“Please put this on. This is what members of the science team wear; it will also serve to conceal your identity.”
“What about you? You’re supposed to be in the hologram chamber with me. What if someone sees you and puts the pieces together?”
Will could see a strange look come over Stanzic’s face. “If my plan works, I should not be seen, but if I am I want to protect your identity. It may not matter anyway. I have provided my findings to the government, and if I am correct, they’ll be planning to have me killed to cover up the truth before the end of this project. That’s why I must share this with you: you have to take back the truth to the rest of Mars if anything happens to me. You’re the only one I trust to do it.”
Stanzic slowed the transport and stopped by a large rock formation.
“We’re here. Please follow me.”
“Where are we? All I see is trees, rocks, and the night sk
y.”
Just then, Stanzic hit a button on his wristband, and the large rock formation slid aside, exposing a metal stairway that led below ground.
“They had to create a secret entrance to keep even the people working on the underground project from seeing it. I’m the only one that has access to this entrance, and it’s totally secure,” said Stanzic, stepping into the opening.
They descended the stairway for forty feet until they reached a small room with nothing but an elevator. Will was amazed at the construction. It looked like a room you would find in a building back in Manikar. Stanzic looked into the retina scanner, and the elevator doors opened. They entered and began the long descent.
“Will, did you ever wonder why the Folands is so vastly different than all of the rest of Mars?”
“I think everyone wonders that. That’s what makes it so special, like the gods placed an oasis on a planet that is largely a desert.”
“Exactly!” said Stanzic excitedly. “Almost like it really wasn’t supposed to be here—like it was an accident of nature.”
“Something like that,” said Will.
The elevator stopped, and the doors slid open to expose a cavern, roughly carved out of the rock.
“This area is kept pristine. They couldn’t let workers down here for fear they’d see and leak this information, so it was dug with very little equipment by a few people. These people had a mysterious accident when the work was completed.”
Will looked at Stanzic as if to say he understood his fears as they walked through the winding tunnel.
“Will, your men who were here, they were able to get away with samples of the vegetation, were they not?”
“Yes. How did you know that?” asked Will suspiciously, while navigating the darkened path.
“It was I who arranged that, by paying their captors to allow your men to get away with them. I needed to get evidence out of this place, and I used them to do it. What did the analysis find?”
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