by M. Modak
“I don’t see any lights down there,” Rana said.
“The sun hasn’t fully set yet,” Michael answered.
They flew in silence for a while. They weren’t sure if Sapen could hear their conversations. Everyone had turned off their flexphones but due to the nature of their design, they were never truly off until all the power was completely drained from them. Most planes had their main systems integrated with the FAA’s networked computers though this one could be flown independent of the network in case of an emergency. In case the network went down the on board computer was constantly updating the air traffic data and saving it in its memory.
Michael didn't want to do anything that might give Sapen a reason to crash another plane. He felt responsible for all those who had died in that crash back at the airport. If he would have just kept his mouth shut about God then all those people might be alive. He didn’t know Sapen would do a thing like that and he would not blame himself for the insane actions of a megalomaniac. He could only guess the truth of what Sapen wanted.
“The sun is down now and I still don’t see any lights,” Rana said.
Everyone looked outside the window. It was a very cloudy night. The radar was showing an increase of cloud coverage as they approached the Keys. The full moon was shining through the cracks in the clouds but they still only saw an ocean of black forms below.
John looked at Michael but he was paying attention to the sky before him. Kayla said. “What is it John?”
“Do you have anything for me to write on Michael?” John asked.
Michael glanced back at him and saw a grim look on his face. He said, “I have some Smartpaper in the back cabinet.” He stopped then said, “I have crayons and markers in a box with some construction paper in the rear compartment under the table.”
John left the cockpit and returned a few minutes later. He passed a note to Michael written on red paper in black ink. It read:
I believe Sapen wants me to give him the designs to Aughra. I cannot let this happen. Too many lives have been ruined and now lost because of my selfishness; after we land, I’m going to kill myself to keep that information a secret.
Michael jerked his head back to look John in the eyes. John didn’t look sad or even angry; there was a look of steel in him now that he hadn’t noticed before. Michael passed the note to Rana who gasped but quickly shut her mouth as she handed the red letter to Kayla.
Kayla took a long time reading the note. She didn’t look up for a while and when she did, tears were flowing down her cheeks. Even though she had betrayed him, he felt another stab of pain as he thought of her being alone in this universe after he was dead. He now understood her reasons for what she had done to Aughra. How could he judge her when the greater responsibility rested squarely on his shoulders? Kayla was shaking her head back and forth on the verge of losing her self-control.
John slowly got up and put his arms around her. She hesitated for only a second before giving in to his full embrace. She started crying. He only held her quietly. Now that he was ready to share his heart, now that he knew how to, he couldn’t say a word. He started crying with her. The tears were not for his old life, which had been lived by a lonely, selfish and closed-minded man named John. But for his new life that had just been reborn.
He knew Joshua would have prayed and thanked God in this moment but he would feel fake if he did that. He now knew there was something greater than himself, even if that something greater were only the lives of those he loved. For now, that was enough for him. Before, when he was just a devoted scientist, he had made choices in a semi-unconscious state unaware of how his actions affected everyone else. However, this action would be taken in full awareness of its consequences. He only hoped it wasn’t too late.
He thought that if he would have done things different, starting all the way back in high school or nearly anytime between then and now, what a difference the world would be. He remembered thinking that one man couldn’t have any real effect on the whole of history. I was wrong. Sometimes history allows the actions of just one person to be a catalyst for the greatest changes to come.
The four shared the silence more tenderly now as they flew into the gathering darkness. Michael couldn’t see anything but what the computer told him was real. He followed or rather let the jet’s navigations systems follow the preset course that was supposed to land them safely at the birthplace of their worst nightmare.
Chapter 10 Plan B
Universe XJ824
Kayla’s eyes went wide as she pushed John. John was so startled by her sudden movement he fell backward and landed on his butt. “Oh I’m so sorry John,” she said, “Can you give me the paper and marker?”
John got up rubbing his backside, walked back to the desk, retrieved the pen and a new piece of blue paper, and handed it to her. She took it and began scribbling furiously then handed the paper back to John.
He read it.
Michael was looking back expecting something. John handed the note to him.
Michael read it and started smiling and nodding, he said, “Yes!”
John and Kayla joined his smile. Michael handed Rana the blue slip of paper and after she read it, they agreed.
Michael signaled he wanted the pin. Kayla quickly passed it over to him. He turned the paper over and wrote his instructions. They passed the note around again and then John got up and disappeared into the back of the plane.
After ten minutes had passed John returned to the cockpit and sat down. He said, “How long until we arrive?”
Sapen spoke through the jet’s networked computer, “You have ten minutes before landing procedures must commence.” John looked out the window. He could see nothing but the flash of lightning crackling from cloud to cloud.
Sapen’s voice came again, “What are you planning?”
John looked over to Michael and Kayla but they kept their eyes straight. Rana turned to John and said, “Did you get the food we asked for, were hungry.” John didn’t have the slightest idea what she meant.
“Yea John, did you take the list of food we gave you?” Kayla asked.
“Were very hungry,” Michael said.
John nodded as he said, “I was… planning on getting some peanuts but I could only find some… chips.”
Sapen said, “You are lying to me! I told you I have studied man for a long time. I can hear it in the stress of your voice, your hesitation and your pulse is racing. What are you planning?”
Michael hit the kill switch and the jet’s networked computer went dead. They would now be flying with outdated air traffic information. Michael said, “We are committed now. Put your flexscreens in sleep mode, I think that may block the data flow. I don’t want to think of how many lives will be lost because of what we’re going to do.”
“Should we just give him John and Aughra?” Kayla said angrily, “If we do nothing to stop him now, if we don’t even try, then how many more will die fighting a thing like him.”
Rana asked, “How will we find the power makers in the dark?”
Michael detached one of the jet’s small flexscreen from the wall and typed. A previously downloaded, aerial picture of the Florida Keys appeared on one of the larger flexscreens. He used his finger to slide across the screen and the picture zoomed in on the main Lab Works building they had visited. On the left of the building, he highlighted an area and said, “Right there!”
The picture zoomed in further revealing a group of building size pods sitting in parallel to each other and perpendicular to the main complex.
“And you can fly this jet into those power makers?” Rana asked.
John corrected, “Power generators.”
“Power generators.” She said.
“No but I won’t have to. I only need to get us close enough for my laser to lock on them then we can bail and let the Jet’s onboard, non-networked, computer do the rest.”
Rana asked, “And this will stop Sapen how?”
“I’m not sure i
t will stop Sapen but I believe it will severely limit him,” Kayla said, “You see, it hit me that the signal we were receiving back at Lab Works was being bogged down by the limited receiving capacity of the computers we have networked. Just before all hell broke loose, Dr. Peterson told us he was sure the signal wasn’t a typical message. It was a code used by a quantum computer with an enormous data base trying to download all at once.”
“Uh… when did he say this?” Rana asked.
“Oh, you were asleep then,” Kayla said with a small smile, “We didn’t want to wake you at the time. Anyway, Dr. Peterson said he recognized the pattern, it was similar to the one the military was using when testing their prototype quantum computer but this signal was many times more powerful. He thought Sapen was hiding the complexity of his program and, I think, the pattern changed because it found John plugged into the memory machine. When that happened, the code jumped to a wider bandwidth and a much more advanced signal. It decided that this was where it wanted to put its full signal.”
“Okay, but crashing a perfectly good jet into a power generator will stop Sapen how?” Rana asked.
“If we cut the power to the graviton receivers, and the network connecting them to the rest of the world, then some of Sapen will be trapped in the Lab Work’s computer mainframe. Sense the power to the gravity antennas will be stopped they will fall out of alignment and the signal will be lost. My guess is his program is too big to be stored in only those computers at the lab and he or it will need to spread out as the program is downloaded into our universe. He won’t get his full program downloaded.”
John added, “If we stop the flow of information then the bottle neck will become a dam. If we don’t stop Sapen completely at least we will be limiting him to the amount of program that has already downloaded.”
“Okay, whatever,” Rana said, “I still don’t get it but if this will save John from killing himself and …if it has a chance to save the world than that’s enough for me.”
An alarm sounded, “Collision alert!” Ding, Ding, Ding, “Collision alert!” Michael took the steering wheel and pulled back and to the right as hard as he could as he pushed the throttle to full power. On their left, John saw it coming. A jumbo jet was roaring straight at them.
“There’s another one coming,” Rana said, “It’s above us and a little further back,”
“I see it,” Michael replied as he strained to pilot the jet.
Kayla and John began searching the sky for kamikaze jets. In the dark clouds that surrounded the plane it was hard to see anything. Lightning struck all around them burning jagged lines into their vision making it hard to see the tiny running lights that dotted the distant planes.
The jet pitched again hard to the left as the wing of the first jet passed within feet of their plane’s nose. Kayla came crashing into John as she lost her balance and the two fell into his seat.
Michael yelled back, “Sorry, try to get in your seats and strap in!” Rana was already clicking her belt on when John got up, placed Kayla in his seat, and put the safety belt on her. The plane rolled hard again. Kayla reached out and grabbed John just as he began to fall toward Michael. The plane leveled for a second. John jumped in the seat and strapped himself in. The high pitch wine of another jet engine screamed by so close they could see the wide-eyed looks of the terrified passengers through their windows.
Michael said, “I’m taking her below radar. I think all these clouds are keeping the satellites from seeing us, but radar is still working. Our best chance is near the ground.”
No one said anything, but held on tight as the plane plummeted toward the Earth. As they looked up they saw three more planes heading toward their last position but they were too far away now to do anything. Michael turned off the planes running lights. The Jet was now a disembodied shadow flying through the night.
After a short while Michael said, “There it is.” Below them, lit by emergency lights was the parking lot and main building where all the gravitational antennas connected. It was hard to believe that they had just driven back from here only a few hours ago.
Above them, lightning struck throughout the ominous mushroom shaped cloud. The bottom most part of it was lit by a soft glowing ring of green mist that swirled around its large black middle.
Michael continued, “John can you get the parachutes you brought out of the cargo hold earlier and bring them up here. Its time I teach you guys how to skydive.”
John left and returned with a parachute on while carrying three other packs.
Michael said, “Good, now I’m going to need to take the plane up to 2,000 feet and program the non-networked navigational system to send this jet down into the target. When we reach the maximum height, just before the plane begins to dive, we jump.”
They all nodded as Michael went on to tell them how to put the parachutes on and how to operate them. He kept repeating himself over and over again. Then he made the three of them repeat the few steps he had just given them back to him several times. Finally, he gave them a pop quiz.
He said, “I don’t need to tell you guys how dangerous this is, but all we need to think about is what we are doing now and what we are going to do next. The rest will take care of itself.”
They all nodded dumbly at that.
Lightning struck not far away causing everyone to jump. They all stared at each other for a second then burst into laughter.
Michael locked onto the coordinates with the laser and the plane began to climb up near the side of the mushroom cloud. Michael unstrapped himself and waited until everyone was ready. Then together, they carefully walked to the back of the plane. When he got to his desk, he pressed a button and the flexscreens descended. He transferred the controls into them and he checked the autopilot. The plane was steadily climbing, following a red line that arched slowly up and then looped in on itself, then dove at a steep angle ending at the power generators.
Lightning struck again just outside the jet as thunder shook the cabin. The jet had been ascending and now was near the 2000-foot mark. Michael said, “It’s time to jump.”
Rana gave Michael a big hug. She said, “I know Joshua was proud to be a part of your team yesterday but I know if he would have been with us today he would be proud to call you a friend.” Michael offered a warm smile and hugged her for a moment.
Then she gave John a hug as she said into his ear, “John, it’s not what you’ve done that will matter in the end but what you are doing now.” John knew it was something Joshua had often said to her. She finished with, “I’m proud of you.”
Kayla stepped up and before Rana could say anything she said, “I know why he loves you so much. I don’t know how but I know you will see him again.” Tears were coming down Rana’s face when she pulled back. Everyone began hugging each other silently as the last moments of their plane ride ended.
Michael pressed a button, the back hatch blew open and a blast of wind and rain poured in. They all knew what to do.
Michael said, “Okay go!”
John jumped into the darkness and descended into the mushroom cloud then disappeared.
Rana hesitated for only an instant before leaping with a loud scream that was quickly lost in the wind.
Kayla looked back at Michael; she gave a soft smile, turned and jumped. Michael was lost in that smile for a second as the thought of Anna came to mind. Kayla wasn’t Anna but that smile was from the same heart.
He checked the computer again. It was locked on a collision course with the power generators, now was the last moment for him to jump safely. He turned and leaped.
Michael was free falling as he watched his beautiful jet turn its nose down and accelerate. Within seconds, it disappeared into the green glowing cloud headed directly for the ground.
Looking down, he thanked God for that jet and hoped it was worth losing like this. He searched for the flashing lights that were secured to the other parachute packs. The lights were designed to come on when the parachutes had de
ployed but he couldn’t see anything beyond the oncoming edge of the enormous dark cloud.
He pulled his shoot and it deployed, jerking him up into the mushroom cloud. Lightening crashed, thunder shook his bones. Then everything went silent and a bright green glow filled his vision…
Chapter 11 Systems Crash
Universe XJ824
Dr. Peterson sat in his car eating crackers and leftovers from yesterdays catered, office party. He listened to the wind howl, resigned to the fate that was about to overtake his world. He was amazed how the intense lightshow, high above him matched his mood. John had been right; I should have disconnected the gravitational antennas.
After the AI, Sapen, had taken over his computer systems and started wreaking havoc, he told Michael to get his friends out of here and get back to Atlanta while he could. Then he and his team tried to contact the Whitehouse but none of the communication lines was working.