State of the Union
December 24, 2045
Washington D.C.
2 PM
Twelve years later, President Jackson Forsythe shifted nervously while he stared into the lingering eyes of the large collection of television cameras. He was following in the footsteps of a powerful predecessor. President John Faulkner had kick started many programs, including environmental awareness, space exploration, and widening the global scope of Yellowstone’s super volcano. Forsythe wasn’t fully prepared to delve into what was about to happen. After many restless hours of pouring over countless streams of data, conferring with his most trusted cabinet members, and world-renown volcanologist, Dr. Nolan Drake, the president had found it necessary to relinquish the information he had gathered to the public.
Dressed in a black suit, the president began to sweat under the hot lamps. His State of the Union would be broadcast across the world, to millions of homes. He didn’t delude himself; his victory at the polls was a conglomeration of outstanding heritage, robust intellect, and marvelous good looks, not to mention his attention to detail and keen eye for fashion. All of it culminated into the ultimate GQ president.
Forsythe was a young gentleman. He had become the first African-American man to be elected president. The 2044 election was a landslide for Forsythe. He came out of a very productive first term that catapulted him into securing a second.
The president was now faced with a threat unlike any other. He would need the smartest scientists, keenest intellects, and strongest wills to combat this new menace; a menace that had been hiding for the last six hundred thousand years and quietly building enough energy to shatter the very world they lived in.
“Are we ready?” he asked the director.
“In exactly thirty seconds, Mr. President,” he answered.
“I have the best speech writers on the planet. Ironically, I have absolutely no idea what to say to the American public.”
“Just speak from your heart, Dad,” Valerie Forsythe said, trying to cool down her nervous father.
“Thanks Sweetie.” He gave her a fatherly wink. In some odd way, a six-year-old child always seemed to bring a pinch of normalcy back into the fold of any tumultuous agenda.
“Ten seconds.” The director gave him a quick flick of his hand.
“Here we go.” The president jumbled his independence theme tie at the last moment trying to reconfigure the sharpened entity back to form.
“Five, four, three…,” The director’s words trailed off as he brought down his hand in a silent gesture, signaling the president to begin his address.
“Good evening, Ladies and Gentleman, my beloved citizens,” Forsythe began.”I have a most pressing issue to talk about tonight.”
The president squinted underneath the increasingly hot lights. The lamp’s distraction made it a chore for Forsythe to read off the Teleprompter. His nerves began to get the better of him, forcing sweat to congeal underneath his arms.
A Warning
Three Hours Earlier
Yellowstone National Park
11 am
“This can’t be.” Nolan Drake paced around the control room. His hands were grinding together, wrought with a systematic building frustration. A surge of excitement flowed through his pumping veins, tempered by the worrisome anxiety that this was news that President Forsythe was not going to want to hear.
Over thirty years of real time experience, and an additional decade in the field of volcanic study didn’t prepare the tiring volcanologist for this.
“I assure you it is, Nolan,” Timmy Starr said, trying to soothe his boss.”This baby’s ready to erupt.”
“These numbers are off the charts,” Nolan responded earnestly. His fingers ruffled his last remaining assortment of red hair in a nervous antic.”She’s ready to go to the dance.”
“The numbers don’t lie,” Timmy replied sympathetically.
“If these numbers are correct, then Timmy, my boy, we won’t be around much longer.” Nolan reached for a seat and wheeled it over to Timmy’s monitor.”This sleeping giant’s about to wake up, and when it does it will be one cranky son-of-a-bitch.”
“Explain,” the younger student replied.
“Okay,” Nolan said while he reached for the cold cup of coffee he had poured over five hours ago.”These stats point in one direction and one direction only. About thirteen years ago I gave a speech at Boulder University about Yellowstone and her looming eruption. I personally never thought I would see it in my lifetime. I only wanted to bring it into the politicians’ public conscience.”
“Okay,” Timmy said, confused. His modest six-month tenure as Nolan’s intern was drawing to an immediate close.
“Listen, back in the 1950’s, a park ranger who had interned in this area meticulously watched the north and south shores of the lake.”
“Yeah...”
“And, over the ensuing fifty years, around the year 2005, he noticed the southern tier of the lake had become depressed, burying the trees underneath the water.” Nolan sipped from the cup.
“And that’s significant?”
“Yellowstone’s sitting atop an active super volcano. A super volcano that could end life as we know it here on Earth.”
“Wow, deep.” The young intern reached for his cold soda.
“These numbers indicate that over the last forty years, she’s been brewing quite a bit.” Nolan spun around and grabbed the latest printout of earthquake activity.
“And what does that data tell you?”
“It tells me that she’s ready to blow, and the increasing seismic activity supports my theory.” Nolan studied the data closer.”It’s amazing that within the next month, she’ll blow, and totally shift our environment, spinning us like a top. I need to get this information to the president.”
Timmy gapped at him.”Wow, you know the president?”
“Sort of. He recently appointed me to this project in order to track Yellowstone’s progress.” Nolan stood up and walked over to the red phone. He did, in fact, have a healthy relationship with the president. Nolan’s advice was always taken at face value.
A raging force rocked the laboratory, spilling Drake’s remaining coffee all over the control board. Sparks flew and smoke crept into the room. All of the keys sizzled underneath the liquid’s penetration.
Timmy jumped from his seat.”Did you feel that?”
“Did I ever.” Nolan raced over to extinguish the minor flare up.”Sounds like she’s on the hormonal side today.” Nolan finished whipping the red fire extinguisher over the control panel.”Here, take over.”
Timmy obliged, albeit reluctantly. Nolan scooped up his binoculars and coat, and headed straight for the door.
He flipped open his phone and dialed the president’s number.
“Mr. President?”
“Speaking?” The voice was formal and dry.
“This is Dr. Nolan Drake.”
“Ah, Nolan,” the man’s voice loosened up.”What’s up? Do you have anything new for me?”
“Yellowstone and about a billion tons worth of lava in about a week’s time.” Nolan whirled around when he felt another tremor from Yellowstone’s belly.
“That soon?”
“The numbers don’t lie, Mr. President. The quakes are increasing with rapid intensity. If this scale keeps elevating, she will erupt by the end of the week. No later than month’s conclusion.” Nolan sniffed the air, catching a dour scent from the western front.
Nolan stood directly outside the research laboratory, gazing across the vast Yellowstone landscape. He could see thousands of tourists walking about the campsites, trails, and the park itself. They were all oblivious to their uncertain deaths.
“Mr. President, I’ve timed the geyser eruptions, and they are happening in uneven intervals,” Nolan said into the phone.”The caldera’s immense size supports that information. It will be the epicenter of the explosion.”
“And the end result will be...?”
“Thousands of innocent people will perish in the ensuing eruption. Where the tourists gather to witness the geysers is where the explosion will happen. It’s kind of ironic, actually.”
“The uneven geyser eruptions are a definite sign?” Nolan knew the president held his knowledge in the highest regard. When it came to loyalty, the president trusted only a handful of people.
“It’s a sign that her belly’s rumbling. We won’t have enough time to react.”
“There’s one last hope,” President Forsythe whispered into the phone.
“Which is?” Nolan peered over the landscape noticing the enormous caldera at the center of the park. It was the result of the last eruption that caved in the center of the aging park.
“I have a person in mind.”
Nolan paced, trying to find the right words to express his concern.”Mr. President.” Nolan looked at the thickening skies.”You’re a history buff, yes?”
“Yes,” the president’s said solemnly. Nolan knew history was one of his strength he drew upon speech after speech during his election run.
“Lake Toba, Indonesia, 74,000 years ago,” Nolan started.”Do you remember what happened?” His voiced sizzled into the receiver.
“Vaguely,” the president coolly responded.”I’m sure you are about to tell me.”
“The massive eruption plunged the Earth into a devastating volcanic winter, eradicating the human population by sixty percent.”
There was total silence across the line.
Nolan could see Old Faithful’s last exhale into the atmosphere.
“This magnificent eruption also accounted for the formation of sulfuric acid in the atmosphere and kick started the Millennial Ice Age.”
Nolan could hear a low whistle escaping the president’s lips.
“If that isn’t enough, back in 1815, Europe witnessed the violent eruption of Tambora. This eruption covered the entire globe. In the summer of 1816, the pyroclastic cloud eventually killed not only people, but all of the crops in New England, plunging the Northeast into a premature winter during the summer months.”
“We’re treading on thin ice,” the president said.
“To say the least.” Nolan fished around in his pocket for one of his crumpled up cigarettes.”Yellowstone remains the largest active volcanic system in North America.” Nolan slipped the cigarette between his lips and a flame sprouted from his palm sized lighter.”The geyser’s shifting schedules are indicative that Yellowstone’s ready to erupt.”
“Then I must continue with the implementation of our plan,” the president said.
“The Europa Agenda?”
“Yes. I will gather my resources and make a State Of The Union in a few hours. Europa’s been a keen interest of NASA’s for the last sixty years. Back in 2015, Europa was moved to the top of the list and became a ‘flagship class’ mission of theirs.”
“Interesting. I remember hearing about all of this on the news channels.” Nolan crumpled his left hand into his right crackling each knuckle one by one.
“We’ve stationed an elite team on Europa for the last several decades, gathering information, building a massive International Space Station, and breaking new ground for colonization. Europa is basically the modern day’s infatuation with Mars. Several decades ago, the country’s love obsession with the Red Planet left NASA virtually bankrupt. But now, through the best cutting edge technology, we have been able to see things not available to us before, we can now concentrate on Europa,” President Forsythe replied.”I will be sending another ace team in order to expedite our colonization process.”
“How’s the previous team faring?” Nolan asked. He began to notice the static over the lines, a direct result from the seismic activity happening underneath the park.
“To be honest,” the president’s voice was chewed up by random static penetrating the cell phone’s connection,”we haven’t been able to re-establish contact with them.”
“How long has it been?” Nolan strained his ear to hear the garbled words.
“A little over two months. We thought at first it was a communication error, but Angela Nestor, our top expert, couldn’t find anything wrong with either side’s equipment.”
“Have you picked out your new team?” Nolan asked.
“I will be handling that angle of the new mission,” President Forsythe assured Nolan.
Nolan knew Forsythe was being his usual cagey self, but he didn’t press him for an answer.”Anyway, I have one more juicy tidbit for you to chew on.” Nolan blew rings of smoke into the air.”When this caldera refueled after its last eruption 640,000 years ago, the eruption was deemed as cataclysmic, releasing over 1,000 cubic kilometers of ash, rock, and pyroclastic materials into the air.” Nolan paced around, drawing deeper pulls on his cigarette. His hair was tussled by his nervous fingers running through it.”To put it simply, Mr. President, Yellowstone’s last eruption made Mount St. Helens’ eruption look like a hiccup.”
“That’s why I handpicked you to run this,” President Forsythe responded.”I trust you, Nolan. John Faulkner trusted you, and that’s good enough for me.” His voice turned stern.”I want instant feedback the moment anything else occurs.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll be going up in the helicopter in a few and take some geothermal images of the magma chamber.”
“Excellent. I will talk to you later, Nolan.”
“Good day, sir.” Nolan flipped shut the receiver and snuffed his half-smoked cigarette into the palm of his hand, scouring the flame. It was decades ago that a single cigarette ignited the entire park into a raging wildfire that spread for thousands of miles before being controlled.
Adrian Blakely
BLAKELY INDUSTRIES
Boston
11:04 am
Adrian Blakely walked around his large office, intermittently gazing out of the deluxe sized window, and staring down at the people scattered across the courtyard below.
A sharp dressed man, he had a taste for only the best in life. Like moths drawn to the proverbial flame. His thoughts randomly skipped about inside his cramped brain.
He was always a step ahead of the masses. It was through his complete control of modern technological advances that the general public survived. Adrian was a very intelligent man, using his wits and fortune to build and monopolize the corner on manufacturing. His business was the sole distributor of steel, metal, building supplies, pharmaceuticals, and anything else one could think of in the manufacturing industry. His vast fortune led Adrian into a fancy lifestyle that included fast cars, boats, and luxurious homes spread throughout North America. Even his diamond cuff links were culled from the finest stones, and his suits supplied by top-notch tailors.
His unlimited cash flow had helped recharge NASA’s dying space exploration program. The newest ships, Europa’s colonization, and the brand new space station all came from Adrian’s deep pockets. NASA owed their recovery to Adrian Blakely.
A self-made billionaire, at forty-three he had serious health concerns of late that had sidetracked his latest project. But now, as all the pieces started to come together, Adrian wanted to make a legacy for his name, beyond the corporate world. Adrian had decided not only to finance the president’s Europa colonization campaign, but also spearhead the construction of a series of mammoth spaceships that would transport the president’s handpicked men and women to the planet’s frozen moon.
Adrian had garnered a close relationship with President Forsythe. Not only on a business spectrum, since Adrian’s companies supplied the world with 3/8 of their needs, but also as a personal friend.
Adrian heard his telecom jingling, which meant he had an incoming call. Adrian had canceled all his planned meetings for the day to work on a personal project. Walking slowly, he finally took refuge in the leather chair and pressed the button to see who was calling. President Forsythe’s haggard face stared back at him.
“Adrian? How are you today?” the president asked.
“Jacks
on.”
“You’re looking a bit tired,” Forsythe observed.
“It must be the camera,” Adrian snorted.”It’s probably dusty.”
“Yeah, it could be. I thought you had the best of the best over there?”
“You didn’t just call me for chit-chat, did you?” Adrian could read his old friend like a book.
“How’s our girl Abagail doing?”
“She’s doing well. Almost ready for her big trip.”
“We’re going to have to move the trip up. My contact in Yellowstone has indicated that the volcano could be ready to erupt very soon.”
“Not a problem.”
“I have a favor to ask of you, Adrian.” Forsythe lowered those normally unwavering eyes and looked at his hands. Nolan knew something was up.
“Name it.”
“I’m emailing over a list to you.”
“Of..?”
“Names.”
“What for?” Adrian adjusted his thin wired frames, studying the man in the screen.
“I want you to personally recruit these people for your trip.”
“I only take my own.” Adrian replied angrily.
“I’m the president, and this is the list I’ve prepared.”
“It’s my ship, Jackie,” Adrian snapped.”This is my dance.”
“I asked you to build a ship for me, not to fly it. That’s what pilots are for.”
“You’re being a prick, sir.”
“Just do this for me, Adrian. These are hard-working people. I will need the best on that spaceship if we are to make this trip a success.”
“Yeah, yeah. I understand. I’m ready for the list.”
“Good. I’m sending it now.”
“Thank you for letting me in on this,” Adrian said.
“Ever since your dishonorable discharge from the war, your dream of serving as an astronaut became a moot point.”
“Do you have to remind me?”
“Every day.”
“That’s what friends are for?” Adrian glanced around the room.”I’m excited about this trip. I’ve made Abby the best of her fleet.””According to NASA, it will take eight years to reach Europa.” Forsythe’s eyes rolled, his face shifting inside the screen.
Rise of the Carnelians (Europa) Page 2