Despite her initial caution, Sally was taken in by the scene. She cautiously sat down beside Misty and Tiny and then, a little fearfully at first, she reached out and rubbed Misty’s belly as well. “Oh wow,” she said with wonder in her voice, “She’s so soft!” In seconds, Sally lost all of her fear. When the dog got to her feet and then offered her paw Sally, she laughed and said, “Well hello there Misty. Nice to meet you. I’m Sally.”
Misty got up, shook the dust off her fur and began running around again like a thing possessed. Spying a stick on the ground, she picked it up, dropped it on the ground in front of Sally and woofed at her.
Kelly called over to them. “She wants you to throw it.”
Sally picked up the stick and threw it. Misty ran so fast that she was nearly able to pluck it out of the air before it hit the ground. She ran back to Sally and dropped the stick in front of her. Tiny jumped up and down and said, “Tiny wants a turn!” Sally, with a big smile, nodded to Tiny who picked up the stick and threw it with all of his might. Misty, so fast that she still nearly caught it mid-air, grabbed the stick, ran back to Tiny and dropped it upon the ground at his feet. She sat there panting until Tiny threw it again.
Kelly, who was watching the scene with Mary, smiled at her and said, “I think that your friends like Misty.”
Mary returned the smile and replied, “Indeed! I think so too.”
Chapter 31
Jane motioned Max and Mary to her side. Addressing Mary, she asked, “You said your father is in Australia, helping with a food crisis?”
Mary nodded. “Yes, we only just recently found out that the other colony had survived. We also learned that a fungus had destroyed their last harvest so we sent a train full of food to help them get back on their feet.”
Max shook his head in agreement and said, “Both of our colonies were nearly lost. It was a near thing, however we survived. Our colony had been cut off from its technical wing by a collapsed tunnel when the nukes hit. Our last reactor had failed and we were running on a compromised auxiliary power supply. It was a near thing, however our only remaining repair bot found a way around the collapse through the old subterranean transit tunnels. Mary followed it and then reopened the collapsed tunnel using an ancient digging machine.” Max took a deep breath, held it, and then slowly let it out through his nose. “Mary found another functioning repair bot in the technical section. Between the two bots and all the spare parts in the tech wing we managed to repair a reactor.”
Nathan looked at Max in alarm. “You are running on only ONE three-hundred-year-old reactor?”
Max shook his head. “No. We have managed to repair another reactor since first repairing the first one.” He rubbed his temples with his fingers and said, “It was a very near thing. The door to the outside was sticking and would not open on just aux power. If we had been unsuccessful we would have all very shortly had died out.”
The people of The Starship Project all stared at Max in alarm. Jane finally said, “That is a frightening story Max!”
Nathan nodded in agreement. “My God! Without body replacement tech they would have all been gone for good!”
“Well,” Max said, “It’s okay. It didn’t happen. We’re okay now. Within a week or so we should be back up to five fully functioning reactors.” In a voice almost too soft to hear he added, “There are only one hundred thirty-eight of us left at colony seventy-six.” He raised his voice a little. “Anyway. We’ll be fine now that we have access to the technical wing again.”
Jane grasped his arm and said, “I take it none of the people trapped in the tech wing survived?”
Mary shook her head. “No, they ran out of their freeze-dried food stock after around seventy-five years.” With a deep sigh she said, “Cut off from the farming wing they could not produce food and the farming wing could not make spare parts for the reactors.”
“Wow,” cried Jane. “It is a miracle that any of you survived at all for so long.” Mary and Max solemnly nodded in agreement however said no more. Jane looked at Max and said, “What about the Australian colony? How did you discover that they survived?”
Mary pointed to Tiny, who was playing with the dog. “Tiny accidently called for a train when he poked around on the old transit station console. Two reactor techs in Australia detected the power drain caused by the train and realized our colony was still alive. They sent an expedition, found us and the rest, as they say, is history.”
Jane pointed vaguely downwards and said, “What about Australia? You said that they are having a food crisis?”
Mary nodded. “Yes. My dad took a train load of our surplus food which should help them get back on their feet.”
Nathan got Jane’s attention. “Maybe we can deliver a few of our food synthesizers to them?”
“Yes. That is an excellent idea Nathan.” She smiled at Max and Mary. “Want to go for a ride with us in the shuttle? We will go to the starship Curiosity and pick up some food synthesizers. They are basically just like the 3D printer in the medical bay except that instead of printing body parts they can print any kind of food imaginable.”
Mary jumped up and down, turned to Max and said, “Can we? PLEASE?”
Max shook his head sadly and said, “I can’t go. I am responsible for the colony when our leader Paul Hydro is away. I have to stay here.”
“What about ME? May I go?” Mary pleaded.
Max shook his head again. “I am sorry. No. Paul would KILL me if I let anything happen to you.”
Mary’s eyes teared up. She was about to plead her case some more however Kelly held up her hand, silencing her. “Max,” she said, “Do you honestly think we would let anything happen to Mary?
“Well… um…” Max sputtered.
Kelly laid her hand upon his arm and said, “We just traveled untold lightyears to get here… all in perfect safety. A trip to the other side of the planet is child’s play.
“Come on, Max!” Mary pleaded. “Please?”
Max closed his eyes, took a deep breath, let it out and said, “Okay then.” Before Mary could say anything else he added, “JUST you though. I will not risk anybody else until I am convinced it is safe.” Mary shrieked in happiness, ran over and kissed Max upon his cheek.
Kelly laughed and said, “Mary. Load your buggy into the shuttle. We may need it. We did not bring any surface vehicles with us. There is a recharge port just inside the door if you need it.”
Mary nodded and took off at a run. “Out!” She said to Sally who was sitting down in the dune buggy, watching Tiny play with the dog. When Sally looked at her curiously she said, “I’m going for a ride in the shuttle.” Sally’s mouth made a little O as she watched Mary drive the dune buggy up the shuttle’s ramp. She hopped out, poked her head out of the door and shouted, “I’ll be back later. Take care of Misty for me!”
The people of The Starship Project hid grins behind their hands as they boarded. Max stood there, watching as the ramp retracted and the door closed. He continued to watch the shuttle as it lifted, sped off and faded to a speck in the distance. When it was gone, he knelt down on the ground, reached out his hand, patted Misty upon her head and said, “Well, time for me to get to know you, Misty.”
As Paul Hydro rode through the tunnels of the Australian colony with their leader, Martha Turner, the one thing that kept coming to mind was the overpopulation of the colony. This colony did not have the quiet, echoing and sparsely populated tunnels he was used to. If anything, the pressing humanity in the crowded tunnels felt a bit oppressive. When Martha had to stop for the third time and bellow for a crowd of people to move and let them pass, he turned to her and asked, “How can you stand all of this crowding?”
Martha glanced at him. “We’re just used to it.” She waved her arm out indicating her colonists and said, “I am sure that my people would feel nervous at the emptiness of your colony. It’s all what one is used to.”
“True. Makes sense,” Paul said. He remained silent for a second or so and then
said, “Well, it will help the crowding somewhat if some of them immigrate.”
Martha shook her head, “I doubt it will really help much. The few adventurous souls that will want to pull up roots and relocate will not make that much of a difference,” she admitted. They rode on in silence for a bit. Each lost in their own thoughts. Martha broke the silence first. “I am hoping that since we have discovered that it is now safe to go outside, we will be able to build some outdoor housing.” She sighed and admitted, “You are entirely correct. This colony is bursting at the seams. Over one thousand people in a colony designed to hold only five hundred makes for a real shortage of elbow room.”
Paul looked at her. “You said that you have already started work outside?”
“Yes. We have begun laying pipes for crop irrigation and have manufactured tractors for tilling and planting the fields. Most of the work will be done by bots, of course, however I am sure some people will want to move out of the tunnels.” She leaned over and said in a conspiratorial whisper, “I’m secretly encouraging anyone who mentions wanting to move outside to do so.” Paul nodded in understanding. Martha inclined her head, indicating a destination up ahead. “Would you like to see the work we have done so far?”
“Yes,” he said, “I would indeed. I want to learn about it so I may do the same at our colony.”
“Capital!” Martha said. “The door is just up ahead.”
“Ready?” Nathan said to Mary, who sat in one of the chairs on the bridge. Mary gulped and nodded. She gripped the armrests on the chair so tightly that the tendons stood out on her arm. Nathan chuckled and said, “You better hold on tighter than that. This shuttle is new. We have not had time to install the safety belts yet. Everyone on the bridge feigned hanging onto their chairs for dear life. Alarmed, Mary held on even more tightly. Nathan hid a grin behind his hand and then lifted off at maximum acceleration. Mary shrieked at the rapidly disappearing surface of Montana on the main viewscreen. A split second later, she caught onto the joke that had been played upon her. She looked at Nathan with a sardonic expression on her face and said, “Nice one Nathan. Nice.” The entire bridge crew broke into peals of laughter. “Okay,” Mary said, “Pick on the poor ignorant and savage Earth girl. Go ahead!” Her words sounded angry, however the crinkles of laughter around the corners of her eyes gave her true feelings away.
Kelly, shaking with laughter, laid her hand upon Mary’s shoulder. “It’s okay Mary. We couldn’t resist.”
Mary, her eyes full of curiosity and wonder simply said, “How?”
“The ship has gravity generators internally that cancel out all effects of acceleration. Without them it would take a lot longer to get to our destinations since we could only accelerate at the maximum G forces a body could tolerate.”
“Wow. Thank you, Kelly,” Mary said. “I want to learn about all of this stuff!”
Jane walked up beside her too and said, “Sure Mary. We can provide a modern computer loaded with technical databases for you once we return to your colony.” Mary smiled in appreciation of the offer however she said nothing. Her eyes were drawn to the image of the starship Curiosity which was rapidly growing on the main viewscreen.
Curiosity was a five-hundred-meter-long, gleaming white cylinder. Spaced equidistant along its length, the bright red, five-meter-wide, circular warp coils encircled the ship. Light twinkled from innumerable windows. Nathan maneuvered the shuttle to a large airlock situated amidships between two of the warp coils. The airlock was painted in alternating black and yellow diagonal stripes with a large ten painted upon it in large reflective white numbers. Around the entire circumference of the door, lights glowed green. Nathan picked up a microphone on the radio and said, “Curiosity, opening the airlock for landing bay number ten.” Almost instantly the radio crackled and said, “Understood. The room is clear, please proceed.”
On the surface, Sally heard the exchange on her radio. She picked up her microphone and said, “Safe trip, Mary.”
Mary took the microphone from Nathan and said, “You should SEE the ship Sally. It is HUGE!”
Back on Earth, Max took the microphone from Sally. “Be safe, Mary.” He thought for a second and added, “Have fun!”
“I will!” Mary said and then handed the microphone back to Nathan.
The lights around the airlock changed from green to a pulsed, bright red. The door ponderously began opening. When it was fully open, the lights turned green. Nathan maneuvered the shuttle inside, picked up the microphone and said, “Closing doors in shuttle bay ten.” He pushed a button on his console and the lights again began pulsing red. When the door fully closed, the lights turned solid red until the ship had replenished the air in the landing bay and then they lit up solid green.
Nathan put his hand on Mary’s back and gently led her to the shuttle door. He pressed the control that opened it and when it had fully opened and the ramp settled upon the deck, he led Mary outside and said, “Welcome aboard the starship Curiosity.”
Martha drove her utility cart out through colony number eleven’s main door. Alongside the ancient roadway leading out from the door, utility bots were digging a trench and laying an irrigation pipeline. Martha stopped just outside the door. “This utility cart is fairly useless on the old weathered road. We walk from here.”
Paul nodded and then his head turned this way and that as he took in the scenery. Alice springs sat in a valley surrounded by dry, arid hills. Most of the old buildings had crumbled into rubble. The skeletons of old, dead trees, poked their parched and bleak fingers skyward. The crumbled remains of old asphalt roads crisscrossed the grave of the city. Several excavator bots were hard at work removing the old rubble to clear the way to make fields for the crops.
Paul and Martha picked their way carefully along the crumbled roadway. Martha stumbled and only Paul’s quick response kept her from tumbling to the ground. Martha sighed, muttered a thank you and then, breathing heavily, held tightly onto Paul’s arm.
“Are you okay, Martha?”
Martha shook her head. “No. Not really. I’m about through. My old body is about to give up the ghost any day now.” She sighed again and said, “At least I got to see all of my children, that is how I feel about the colonists you know, my children.” More softly and with a hint of resignation in her voice she said, “At least I got to see them return to the surface before I die.”
Paul stopped surveying the view, turned to her and said, “It’s that bad?”
Martha, still breathing heavily, nodded in response. “I don’t know how much longer I can keep my condition hidden from my constituents. I hope I can hold out a while longer. The political infighting that is going to happen when I pass on may disrupt our surface recolonization efforts, I’m afraid.”
Paul laid a hand upon her shoulder. “I’ll help in any way I can, Martha. You know that. You need just ask.”
Martha smiled at him. “I appreciate it but unless you can give me the body of a twenty-year-old, I don’t think you can help me.”
Paul laughed. “Hell Martha, if I could do that I would have replaced my own tired old body ages ago.”
As Paul helped steady the old woman at his side, Martha laughed deeply. “If wishes were fishes…” she said and then fell into a coughing fit.
Paul looked at her in alarm. “Martha, do you need me to take you to the doctor?”
“No.” she said between coughs. “I. Just. Need. A. Minute.” Paul supported her until she got her breathing back under control. “We should get back inside,” he said and began to lead her back to the travel cart. Martha stiffened, stopped him and pointed towards the sky. “What’s that?” she asked, clearly amazed.
At first Paul did not see what she was referring to, however he quickly noticed the gleaming white arrowhead shaped shuttle speeding towards them. Martha and Paul stood, holding onto each other with their mouths hanging open as the shuttle settled to the ground a few hundred feet away. “Oh my!” Martha said, “It’s the Starship Project.
They have returned to Earth!”
Paul said nothing. His eyes were glued upon the ship. He stared as a ramp extended from the rear of the shuttle and a spindly vehicle quickly backed out and onto the parched earth. His eyes opened wide in shock and his mouth opened just as wide. He remained frozen in place as the vehicle sped towards them. As amazed as he was, his amazement reached a whole new level when Mary hopped out of the dune buggy, waved at him and said with a grin, “Hello dad!”
Epilog
A small crowd of people stood nervously waiting in a medical bay upon the starship Curiosity. Nathan, Lane and Jane stood off to one side. Kelly stood beside a wall monitor attached to a massive 3D medical printer. Mary stood alongside Paul and Martha, who were now living in perfectly fit bodies which looked to be just thirty years old. Mary, watching Kelly like a hawk, was so nervous that she clung to her father as if she were drowning.
Upon the table, an anesthetized Tiny lay face-down as the robotic arms installed a wireless brain/computer interface into the back of his neck. The printer/scanner beeped and then one of the diagnostic monitors displayed, “Download of memories for subject Richard Farmer, nickname Tiny, is in progress.” A few seconds later the device chimed and displayed, “Download completed.”
On an identical printer/scanner, the robotic arms leapt into action. In a flash, Tiny’s new body appeared. When the printer indicated that it had completed its task, Mary broke free of her father’s grasp, ran over to the new Tiny and shouted, “Tiny! Can you hear me?” Tiny sat up, shook his head, looked at Mary and said nothing. “Say something!” Mary pleaded. “How are you feeling?”
Those Left Behind Page 21