One Minute to Midnight

by Steve Lang

"No. Atlantis will return. Antarctica. Anunnaki?" Josh said. "That's all it says."

  "That's spooky. I'm officially creeped out. I'm going back downstairs." Tammy said.

  Josh sat at his telescope for another hour, pointing it around the sky as night fell, but there were no more messages. Before he quit for the night, he pointed the telescope at the ground and forgot to turn it off. As he clicked the light off, more zeros and ones flashed across the screen. The next morning, when Josh went into the telescope room, he was astonished to see that his computer had been busy collecting data overnight.

  "Excellent!" He said to himself. Josh transferred the series of zeros and ones over to his laptop and his jaw dropped. "To heal, I need peace! Quiet! Renewal!"

  Josh's pulse was racing as he turned off the computer. Who could he tell about this? Who would believe him? Then he remembered that they would be meeting up with Bill and Trudy that weekend on the lake. He told no one, not even his wife, about the message he had received. The temperature outside at 8 a.m. was ninety-eight degrees. Josh flipped on the TV to see a well-dressed reporter standing outside on the beach. He was speaking to another anchor at the news station.

  "Todd. Today is expected to be one of the hottest summer days on record, and summer is only three days away from ending. We expect to see record highs in the low one hundreds in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and much higher to the south! I'm talking about the South Pole. This heat wave appears to be global, and arctic ice is melting at such an alarming rate that it's causing ocean levels to rise all over the world."

  "Michael, have you noticed any difference in the water levels at Myrtle Beach today?" Todd asked.

  "Well, I'm standing twenty feet up the beach from where high tide usually rises and I'm up to my ankles in water. It's now eight in the morning and the pier is half submerged. Local authorities are not calling this a state of emergency yet, but people from the area are definitely getting nervous." Michael replied.

  Josh turned off the television and began to put the pieces of a very strange puzzle together.

  "Honey, are you still planning on going with us to the lake this weekend? Trudy wants to know." Tammy had a phone to her ear and had startled him as she came around the corner.

  "Yeah sure, but tell Trudy I'm coming over to talk to Bill tonight. I'll be right there."

  Tammy nodded and disappeared around the corner, agreeing with something Trudy was saying on the other end. It was Thursday, and Josh had taken a couple of his personal days to hang around the house and kick back. He had never anticipated his side project heralding a massive global change in weather, but Bill worked for the National Weather Service, and he might understand what Josh had seen. Josh emailed his results to Bill and ran down the steps, headed for their front door.

  "Where you going, dad? Can I come?"

  "Just over to Bill and Trudy's place for a few minutes. I gotta' chat with Bill about something. You stay here and protect your mom. I'll be right back." Josh tussled his son's hair and jogged to his car. He was excited. In five minutes he was pulling into Bill and Trudy's driveway and running up to the front door. Bill saw him coming and opened it.

  "What's up? Tammy told Trudy you were coming over." Bill stood about five foot three and had a stout beard that hung down to his chest. It was a thing of beauty that he had worked on for the better part of two years.

  "Did you see my email?" Josh asked.

  "Yeah, some zeros and ones or something. I was trying to figure out the joke."

  "That's what my radio telescope picked up when I had it pointed at the sun the first time, and then I left it pointed at the ground all night." Josh said. It took him about half an hour to convince Bill that he was neither making up the story, nor having him on. He also explained the news reports of rising temperatures and water levels, and his growing theory on how it all correlated.

  "So, I know you work for the weather service, and I was kind of wondering if you might be able to help me, or us, charter a ship to Antarctica?"

  "Now I know you're smoking something. Do you have any idea how much it costs to charter a yacht to the arctic?" Bill asked.

  "I figure at least a few thousand dollars a person, right?"

  "Ha! Try half a million dollars, my friend. Even if I was up for some sort of mission to the end of the world, we can’t afford it, man."

  Josh's face fell with disappointment. "Oh, I had no idea. Crap. That would have been a great adventure though, right?"

  "Possibly. Look, I wish I could help, but I don't know anyone working for the weather service heading that direction that would let you tag along for free" Bill said.

  "Alright, good night then. I'll see you this weekend on the lake?" Josh asked.

  "Wouldn't miss it. I'm making Mai Tai's, so we'll get smashed and make the women drive us home." Bill put out his fist and Josh bumped it with his own.

  "Be seeing you, then. Have a good one." Josh said. He returned home with a pit in his stomach. What were those messages, and why had he seen them? He put the whole thing out of his mind and left the telescope alone.

  "That telescope's a bad penny. Leave it alone, man." Josh said to himself.

  On Saturday afternoon, both families met at the lake and boarded the Slippery When Wet, Bill’s boat, and they sailed out for the center to do some swimming. The day was sunny, and extraordinarily warm, so the water felt like heaven when they all jumped in. Floating around on seat cushions from the boat, they all kept a watchful eye on Timmy, who was wearing arm floaties and an orange life vest. He bobbed around in the water like a human buoy. Bill swam a small distance away from the women and motioned for Josh to follow him, which the other man did.

  "I did some checking with a few friends who work in high government positions, and it appears that your message from the radio telescope might have some merit." Bill whispered.

  "Oh yeah? Why are you whispering?"

  "Because Antarctica is melting and satellite imagery shows there's something under the ice. Something large, and it's emerging. A research crew is heading down in two days on a yacht called The Legend, and in less than a week they'll be at the South Pole."

  "Does anyone have an idea what it is? How long will it be until it hits the surface?" Josh asked. He felt his stomach tighten with excitement.

  "They think maybe six or seven weeks, but the worst part is most of the eastern seaboard is going to be under water. We're moving to Denver in two days, because it's high enough that the water shouldn't reach us in a worst-case scenario. You and your family are welcome to come with us." Bill said. Josh was trying to absorb Bill's information and weigh it against the safety of his family.

  "I want to go Antarctica. I have to see what this is. Can you get me on that vessel? Can my family come with me?" Josh asked.

  Bill thought about it for a moment. "Yeah, I probably can. I already asked if they would mind a few passengers going along for the ride, and they said it'd be fine. I think my buddy Peter Long, the expedition leader, thought I was referring to myself and my family as the potential passengers, so we'll have to allow him to assume away until you show up and ask permission to come aboard."

  "I'll have to talk to the captain of the ship though and if he doesn't have my name..."

  "No worries, I'll give it to him. The captain's name is Donald Ricks, and we go way back. Don't sweat it, you'll get on the boat if that's what you want, but with that continent melting daily, the shit is about to hit the fan, my friend. The President of the United States is announcing a state of emergency for all US coastal cities tonight. California may be gone in a few weeks." Bill said.

  "My god. This is crazy." Josh said.

  "Well, I didn't sleep much last night thinking about it. You get any more readings from that telescope of yours?"

  "Nothing. I turned it off after our chat the other night. I figured I was overreacting and maybe it was some kind of hack on the system software." Josh said. Bill shrugged in the water and the two made their way back over to the wives. />
  After relaxing on the lake, they grilled burgers on the boat, and Josh informed Tammy of his plans for them and the danger they were in. After she recovered from a crying jag with the realization that their house may be under water soon, she lamented. Bill and Trudy were there with them to talk over what their next steps would be.

  "I've got a brother in Denver who we'll be staying with, and I'll give you the address. If you want to join us, you need to leave no later than tomorrow morning. Airports are going to be overcrowded once the news breaks about Antarctica melting. We're heading there tonight just to get ahead of the panic."

  "I think we'll go with Josh. I don't want our family split up. Josh, are you absolutely sure about this trip?" Tammy asked.

  "No, but I think we have to be there for this, especially since my telescope picked it up. I think we're about to see something humans lost a long time ago. Atlantis, a civilization covered in ice during a major continental shift." Josh replied.

  "With the rising water levels you'll at least be on a ship that's well stocked with food. You might be in the safest place on earth in few days." Bill said. He chuckled a little, but all four of them looked on with heavy hearts, watching Timmy innocently playing in the water.

  "Look, we're going to go through a rough patch here, but humanity has survived disasters before, and we'll get through this one. Take your boy and head to Norfolk Naval Station. I've got the paperwork you’ll need to get through the gates and onto the research vessel. Good luck." Bill said.

  When the two were alone, Bill turned to Josh and clapped him on the shoulder. "I kind of envy you for doing this, you've got brass balls, heading into the eye of the storm like this."

  "Yeah, it's a surreal experience. I just hope going with them is the right thing to do. Timmy’s so young, but what’s the alternative? There is no guaranteed safe haven, if what you just told me is true." The two nodded and drank a beer in silence as the moonlight danced on the water. It was their last shared moment in the familiarity of a world they both knew, because tomorrow everything would change. They all said their goodbyes, and Josh promised to find them when they returned.

  Josh and Tammy went home that night and packed what they needed for the trip. Once ready, the three of them drove to Norfolk Virginia, from Charlotte, North Carolina. Along the way they could see water creeping into the low land areas. Once dry forestland now resembled bogs as the moon shone off of the water like a mirror.

  “I guess it’s a good thing we left tonight.” Tammy said. She was depressed over the whole affair, and there was little Josh could do to console her, so he concentrated on keeping his family safe as the highway became busier than usual.

  "I’ll say. If the President announced a state of emergency, then these roads are going to become a walking trail as people try to flee the coastal areas." Josh replied. Timmy was asleep in the back, and Josh could not help but envy his son’s ignorance about the dire situation they all faced.

  Six hours later, they were granted access to the Norfolk Naval Station and directed to where The Legend was docked. Josh met Donald Ricks at the dock as he was directing the loading of equipment onboard. Tammy was holding their sleeping son as they approached the captain, and her watch read four a.m.

  "Good morning. You must be Josh Henderson. I’m Don Rick’s, pleased to meet you." Don stuck out his hand and Josh took it.

  "Permission to come aboard, captain?" Josh said with a weary smile.

  "Granted. Ma’am, you can take your little boy below deck and get some sleep. You’re welcome to sleep as well, Josh, unless you want to stay up and help out. Your call. We should be ready to ship out in a few hours." Don beckoned one of his men, and a burly, bearded man wearing a flannel shirt and blue jeans put down a heavy box and sauntered over. "Fred, can you please show…" Don began.

  "Tammy." She said.

  "My apologies, please show Tammy Henderson and her son to their quarters below deck." Don finished.

  "Sure, my pleasure. Mrs. Henderson, right this way." Fred said.

  The water level was above the dock now, and they were all ankle deep in the rising tide. Josh jumped in and helped load the last few crates and boxes before they set out to sea, and then he went below deck to sleep with his wife and son, who were both unconscious when he entered. His head was buzzing from the long drive, and when he laid down, he could hear ringing in his head as the gentle rolling of The Legend lulled him to sleep. When Josh awoke, Tammy was lying next to him, smiling with their little boy in between the two.

  "Thank you for getting us out of there. The captain came down a few minutes ago and said that a tsunami had washed out Norfolk and most of the eastern seaboard a few hours after we left. He said Charlotte’s now ocean front property. The highways are pandemonium and most of the airports are shut down. They weren’t prepared." She said.

  "It makes my stomach knot up just thinking about how close we were to being there when it happened. I should have taken the telescope with us, that thing might have saved our lives."

  The voyage to Antarctica was lengthy, but they had plenty of food, and as Josh and his family grew to know the research scientists and crew, it seemed less like they were escaping a cataclysm, and felt more like an exciting cruise. Eventually, they began to see walls of ice floating by as they melted in the rising ocean temperatures. Although they were in the southernmost part of the globe, where it should have been freezing, Josh felt a tropic breeze blow by as he stood on deck, staring out at an ocean of blue.

  One morning, as Josh was waking up, the family was suddenly thrown to the floor of the cabin. Timmy caught himself on his bunk frame before being dropped on top of his mom. They could hear people frantically climbing the stairs as the crew rushed to understand the threat, and when Josh and his family came topside, they could do nothing but stand in shock with the captain, the researchers, and crew. They had run aground on dry land.

  Pyramids rose high into the morning sky, surrounded by city buildings in an ancient city that was once lost to the eyes of man for an untold amount of time. To Josh, it looked as if New York City had been constructed beside the great pyramids in Cairo. Streets lined with gold, copper, and marble crisscrossed through the structures.

  "I believe we’ve found what we were looking for." Josh said.

  "If this ain’t Atlantis, I’d sure as hell like to know what just rose out of the ocean." Don said. His ship was locked on a jagged outcropping of rocks, and when he had a talk with the helmsman, it was not going to be a pretty conversation. "Well, let’s go see what we came all this way for." Don finished. He lowered a rope ladder over the side and his crew climbed down.

  A herd of dead humpback whales lay stinking in the hot sun as they were picked apart by flocks of birds.

  "When this continent came up it was fast. These poor guys couldn’t get out of the way." Don hooked a thumb to the whales.

  The sight of silent, drying city streets lined by skyscrapers went on for miles. Their windows had long ago been blow out from either water pressure, or a disaster that caused the continent to sink under a mile of ice. Otherwise, the buildings were immaculate, preserved as if the citizens would be filling the streets at any minute. They headed toward a pyramid in the center of the city that towered over all other buildings. It had a gleaming capstone that radiated with energy from the sun. Josh and Tammy walked with Timmy in awe of the magnificence of such a construction. When they finally reached the long staircase, they could see a closed door about half way up. Lining the stairs were majestic golden statues of bulls covered in dried, browning seaweed, still standing vigil after all this time under the surface.

  "This is so cool." Josh said. He ran ahead of the researchers and their captain, and was the first one up the stairs, running to the door.

  The door was starting to open as he reached the top step, and when he looked back, Josh almost stumbled down the stairs. He was eye level with the tallest building in the city, and without warning he was stricken with a nasty case of vertigo
. Don was right behind him and caught Josh before he nearly became a casualty in the new world.

  “Easy man, I got you.” Don said. After balancing, they both walked into the pyramid together. Minutes later, the rest of the party caught up, and after winding through a surprisingly well-lit tunnel, they entered an open room in the center of the pyramid. On the far side of the room was a giant golden sun hanging on the wall, and a pedestal in the center with a blue dome-shaped button.

  "OK, who wants to press the shiny button?" Josh asked.

  "If it weren’t for your radio telescope we would never have been able to get this trip together so fast. You do the honors, Josh." Don said.

  Josh looked around at everyone in the room, and they all nodded with a smile.

  "Now, if the ceiling falls in, we’ll blame you for it, just so you know." Tammy said. Josh could see she was serious.

  He walked up to the pedestal with caution, and looked back at the crowd huddled together like a bomb may go off any minute. The floor was white marble tile, and as he walked, Josh's footsteps echoed through the vast chamber. His heart beat faster, and as a result the blue button began to change color from cobalt to pink, and then bright red. Josh could feel sweat on his palms as he reached out to touch the button. He took a deep breath, let it out, and pushed it down with his palm. His mind was instantly flooded with images of green valleys, dinosaurs, winged creatures in the sky, and people congregating with each other in the city streets they had just walked through. A female voice began to softly speak to all of them from the direction of the giant gold sun. Josh removed his hand from the pedestal and stood still as a statue, afraid to move.

  "Welcome humans." She said. "I am Gaia, Mother Earth, and you stand on the edge of a new day for your species. War in your time is obsolete, and your technology has been rendered useless."

  "Why has this happened?" Josh asked. He opened his mouth before thinking, and the thought just popped out. The entire group received mental images of grounded planes, entire cities without light at night, and electrical grids being dismantled for parts.