by Keith Martin
“I’ll get loaded then head down to fuel up. If you miss me I’m heading straight to Vandenberg. Just get there quick, Understand?” Then he added. “What about writing me up?”
“You’re scaring the heck out of me but you have my attention, I won’t be long.” Vic jumped into his Hummer and hit the lights and siren. With the wheels spitting rocks and dust all the way out to the street, he was wasting no time doing what he had to do.
* * *
Otto went into the house and found an ice-cold glass of lemonade waiting for him on the table. He picked it up and drank deeply. He knew this could be his last glass of the real thing. “Ma, that’s just great.”
The old woman smiled and said. “You look to be in a hurry Otto. What can we do you for?”
He didn’t pause for thought; he just fired from the hip. “All of the corn, wheat, rye, rice and soy seed. The entire supply of package seeds in your vegetable rack, all your chicks and rabbits, one ton of feed for them both, cages if you have them, two tons of good all-purpose fertilizer and all the irrigation supplies you have on hand. And I need it all loaded in twenty minutes.”
“You heard the man Buck, get to fillen his order.” She turned back to Otto. “You best pull your rig down to the barn. Buck and the boy can load it faster there.”
Behind her was their old color TV set with the world news streaming death into every house on the planet. They knew exactly what was going on and were as calm as could be.
It all went like clockwork. Buck pulled all he could with his forklift first then he hitched a thirty-foot triple axel trailer up to Old Gray for the pipes and feed. Ma took care of the seed packs and started to add a lot of things Otto had not ordered. Tools; medical supplies for the livestock; incubators; two rifles and shells; and a big can of black powder. At this point Otto had to ask what she was doing. “Ma, what are you doing?”
“We got TV out here too. I recon you’re headed up to the Moon with your boy?” She said without a flinch.
“Yes Ma, that’s the plan.” He responded without surprise. He knew she was a wise old bird.
“Well ifen this here thing reaches here, we all won’t have no need for all this in heaven with our lord. So you might as well have it where it will do some good. We all is too tired and old to come along for the ride. Like to bust my back in that there shuttle thing. If it doesn’t reach here you can get Uncle Sam to reimburse us for our generosity. Sound like a deal?” He could tell she didn’t care about the money at all; they were just doing the right thing and trying to help in some way.
Her words almost brought tears to his eyes. He was amazed that they where so calm while facing death. He figured she might not last long without Buck. But then she was the strongest woman he had ever had the pleasure to meet. On second thought he realized Ma would be right there watching the store until the Good Lord took her kicking and screaming for another day.
“Load it up Ma, there is nothing we can’t use more of. And God bless you both.”
“You just keep that family of yours safe Otto. That’s good enough for us.” Buck cut in as he loaded the last of the irrigation supplies he had onto the trailer. “Now help an old man get this gear tied down. Ma, go fetch our 45 cal and magazines.”
“It’s in the truck you old coon dog. What did you think, I done gone stupid?” She barked back with love in her voice. In the face of death she was standing strong and was not going to give an inch.
“God take me from her sooner!” He prayed, raising his hands to the heavens with a smile on his face.
As they finished tying down the load Buck asked. “What did it Otto? Was it those damn terrorist?”
“I’m not sure Buck, but it’s killing like nothing in the history of man. All I can do is get off the planet and pray for the rest. It is not killing woman, so it looks like they’ll inherit the Earth after all.”
“Figures, they had control of it the whole time anyway, might as well give it to them. You get now, times awasten. I know your boy is waiting to get you up in the stars. You send your family our love now, ya hear.” He pushed Otto into the cab and took Ma into his arms. “We all are just going to go watch this here thing come our way. I can’t think of a woman I would like to spend my last days with more then this one.” They had been together for the past fifty-two years through thick and thin. At this point there wasn’t much that could scare either of them.
“You’re a lucky man Buck. I’ll send your love to the family.” He started Old Gray, and slipped her into first gear. “Tell Vic to get a move on. He can catch up with me on the road. I can’t wait for him.”
“Sure thing my friend; and via con dios. We will see you on the other side.” They shook hands and Ma kissed his cheek, her eyes filling with tears. Otto closed his door, let out the clutch and punched the gas. He was soon flying down the road again, the trailer pulling straight and the truck slowly gaining speed under the heavy load.
* * *
The Center for Disease Control was tracking reports of death from the virus as it spread. It didn’t take long to figure out that there was a line of virus more then a thousand miles wide moving east with the wind. Thank God it couldn’t move against the wind or we, as a race, would have had it. From Salluit Quebec moving south through Ottawa and down to Washington D.C. the virus killed all men it came in contact with. City after city lay filled with the dead. Millions upon millions lay where they fell. The U.S. government was wiped out. Most of Congress and the Senate lay in chambers, dead.
The President and his cabinet would never be leaving the White House. The United States was without a leader.
And it wasn’t finished. It was heading east looking for more victims. Europe and Africa where going to be next and the virus widened as it moved out. By the time it reached landfall again it would be three thousand miles wide and spreading. It killed every male it came across; nothing was going to stop it.
Boats that where out fishing along the Grand Banks where now sailing without a captain, their crews dead but the boat motoring along lost in whatever direction it was heading. They would run out of fuel, sink in a storm or run aground on some random shore.
A few cruise ships were found on the seas by the virus, the men of there crews where all dead now. The woman passengers were at a loss for what to do next, on most ships at sea, the entire ships senior staff where now dead. The woman who now sailed on these ships of death did not know how to captain a ship. Yet the ship was still steaming along its programmed course on autopilot. If they hoped to get back to land, they would have to figure out how to do it on their own. Fear ran through the ships as the woman realized how hopeless their plight truly was. Even though they called for help using cell phones, there was no one to help them.
The world as it was known was coming to an end.
There were no crews to go out and rescue these women, those crews where dead on shore. It was going to be up to the woman onboard the ships to do what they could do to save themselves.
One ship got lucky; The Atlantic Queen was headed for the island of Saint John’s. Its auto pilot program brought the ship to within a mile of the port before shutting down. One of the women onboard found the anchor switch and dropped the anchor. The ship came to a complete stop and they started to unload the ship with two speedboats that the ship had onboard. It was going to be slow going. But they would get off.
Their lives now tied to the island. There was no returning home.
Others on other cruise ships plying the waters of the world wouldn’t be so lucky. The oceans being so massive these women didn’t know what direction to sail in to find land. The dead mass of bodies rotting where they fell throughout the ships, no one willing or able to command the remaining passengers to throw the corpses of their loved ones and their crews into the sea.
These women were the pampered arm candy of the rich and were going to wait for room service to save them. Ships of death floating on a sea of such vastness, it could take years for the winds to push the sh
ips to shore.
* * *
Touch down was letter perfect and he taxied to Loading Bay 1. Joshua noticed that all of the Control Staff in the Ready Room where so entranced by what was unfolding before them on a news screen they seemed to be frozen in place. Joshua even took another few seconds to see what was happening on the screen, it froze him in place unbelieving the reality being streamed live across the planet for all to witness.
His wake up call came via his co-pilot Pete. “We are going to be flying non-stop for the duration Jackal.” He said as they watched CNN in the Ready Room. “I guess its time to do some of that hero above and beyond the call shit?” Pete slapped Joshua on the back to help him snap out of it.
It hit him like a slap on a cold day sending him into action. It was the second time he had to be pulled out of his trance. He didn’t plan for it to happen again. “Pete, get the Base Commander down here. Tell him to call out all shuttle pilots. Fuel all the shuttles and load everything we can use on the Moon. We may not be able to return to Earth once this thing covers the planet.” He ordered.
“I’m on it Boss.” Pete saluted smartly as he leaped into action.
“And Con Man... Get armed!” Joshua gave him no room for question.
He ordered the televisions shut off. It was bad; they all knew that now, now it was time to get to work saving as many lives as they could. “Men this is war, a war to save mankind if we can.” He stood tall before them all taking Command of the situation. “Right now I for one am not sure we will pull this off. But I do know... I WILL GO DOWN FIGHTING WITH MY LAST BREATH. Call everyone in now and lock down the base. No non-military personnel are allowed on base without a pass signed by the Base Commander. There will be personnel coming over from U.C.L.A. to help man SMB. We will need their help. If they don’t have a pass but possess a college ID, hold them until you get an escort for them at the gate. I want this base on alert as of right now.”
His words were responded to with a rush to the exit doors and phones by everyone in the Ready Room, The base just became the Command Center for the mission to save mankind.
He called U.C.L.A. and asked to speak to his family’s old friend, the President of the college. “President Wilks here, how may I be of assistance Commander?” He liked the Chisholm family…. In fact he loved them as if they were his own. Both Ashley and Shianne had graduated with honors from his college after years of study. He knew Joshua from his many visits on campus as he stopped in to harass his sisters between missions. He had even attended Joshua’s graduation ceremony when he joined the Shuttle Force with his whole family in tow.
“I’m sure you have seen the news by now, its time to get on the ball. I want your brightest people, I need a thousand people say no one over thirty years of age. I know this is going to be hard on you sir. But we have no time; I need these people at Vandenberg as soon as possible. Let’s call it a fifty/fifty split, men and woman. I’m filling the Ark here Sir. If this thing doesn’t stop, the people you send me could be the last hope for mankind. Do you understand Sir?” He shot from the hip with both barrels.
It took a second for the educator to grasp what he was being asked to do. “Commander, I can not decide who is to live and who is to stay behind and die. You cannot ask me to do this Joshua.” To him Joshua was asking him to do nothing short of playing God. He was not going to be sucked into a position where he would decide the fate of so many. To choose just a thousand from his campus of fifty thousand was more then he could bring himself to do.
“Look, we have no time to debate this in committee. I do not know how much time we have. A day, a week, no more than a month, I’m sure of that. You can’t think of those who will be left behind. Just think of those who you can save. It’s a hell of a job and it’s yours. We will need teachers on the Moon. How old are you and your wife?”
“We are both in our fifties, we have a daughter too. She is twenty-one.”
“Well there you go then, now you only have nine hundred and ninety-seven more to find for us. Don’t spend a lot of time on this; pick only the best. Women who can help to make a new future for mankind, men with brains and brawn to plant the seeds that will save our race. I don’t think I could ask any more of one man. I am asking you to play God sir, I know that, but it’s your job to do, so do it quickly. The shuttles will be waiting for these people on the flight line. I’ve got room for twenty on my next crossing to S.M.B. If you don’t have bodies for those seats I’m pulling men from the base. This is not a time to drag our feet. This is what we trained all our lives to do sir. Do it, NOW!” He hung up without waiting for a reply. The deed had to be done. There was no way to get around it.
He sat there for a few seconds before calling his secretary into his office. “Lori I want all the names of the brightest students in the engineering, computer sciences and biology departments! Simply look at test scores and find me the vary best minds we have on campus. We need one thousand names on the list. So we start with our brightest and let the numbers do the choosing for us. In fact please have them all contacted and advise them all to pack and head here to my office at once. Transportation will be provided from here. Call your husband and get your kids here, you’re going too. Lets just hope my wife picks up her phone now.” She was hard to reach due to her busy socialite schedule.
* * *
The Base Operations Commander: Major David Green came into the room as he hung up. “You sent for me Joshua?” He asked as he walked in. “Your co-pilot is barking orders like a General. He said you authorized it. He pointed a sidearm at one of my men to get the man moving. You don’t have the authority to order shuttle missions. It must be scheduled by the Mission Control Commander…”
“Commander, this is no time to play Army. I believe the world, as we know it, has come to an end. We have to get supplies and personnel to the Moon as quickly as possible. I am personally willing to do anything it will take to make sure this gets done fast. If that means I have to kill to get it done, I will.” He didn’t want this to turn into a confrontation; he needed this man on his side to pull this off on time. He backed off the testosterone and tried a little passive persuasion. Think about it David, the east coast lost all of its men in an hour or less.” Con Man walked up handing Joshuia his weapon as he continued. “The wind is carrying whatever it is out to sea. Once it circumnavigates the Earth it will be here, then it will be too late to do anything about it. I’ve ordered a thousand of our brightest from UCLA to be sent over for transportation. They will need passes to get to the Shuttles. David I suggest you get your family here as soon as you can if you plan to go up with us and save their lives. I want you to order all the fuel you can get your hands on to be delivered here at once; we will need it for the shuttles. I’m ordering all shuttles to fly nonstop until we are forced to stop. Get me crews online. David; this is the big game. We are at war. A war to survive, I suggest you climb on board and join us.”
The Base Commander stood unmoving for only a few seconds. He was having problems believing that this… whatever was happening…was going to totally wipe out all males on planet Earth. Never in history had anyone been confronted with such a devastating and relentless enemy. Yet, he had to agree that what Joshua said was true and it was a sound plan. He understood that he was facing a true Commander that could think on his feet when the chain of command was broken.
“You will have all that you need Commander, the men and I will keep the shuttles full and flying.” He extended his hand to seal their accord. The plan was in place, it was now a matter of implementation. “From this moment forward you are the Commander of this mission. I will be taking my orders from you Sir. Without your insight we would all be lost.”
“Very good Commander, as I pilot the next crossing I will put together a wish list of supplies that will be needed. You will not wait for any suppliers to send the needed supplies. You are to send armed squads to go get the supplies. Understand, this is no game, this is a war to save mankind, if we need it we take it and w
e take it all. Are you prepared to execute these orders Sir?”
“To the death Commander. You have my word!” He vowed with conviction standing rock stiff and proud. Like Joshua, he too had trained for this all of his life and he planned to prove that the money spent training him was well worth it.
Joshua was relieved the Commander was seeing things his way. “Now there is a matter of shuttle security. I want six fully armed guards on duty with each shuttle at all times and I want this now. I will take my security team up with me when I go so you need to get on this right away. Side arms for all ground and flight crews also. I put the base on full alert. We also need to get as many women here as possible to man these posts so that once the base is over run there will still be a base here for us to us in the future. We will not be militarizing the Moon so there will be trouble with your own men here on base I’m sure. I say we will have to fight off our own men who are just trying to save themselves. It is just natural. So we will take four men from base with each load delivered to the Moon as long as the men respect the fact that all will not be going. S.M.B. simply cannot hold that large of a population. We will get a few thousand off the planet and that is it. We have to take educated men to the Moon to save the human race. A squad of warriors is all they will need to keep them secure and working on the cure to this? Most of those heading up will be dismissed from military service and added to the workforce on the Moon as soon as they arrive. Give us your best Commander. Men with brains as well as balls.” He took a deep breath to give the man some time to drink in all he had said. “Now that the time has come, our position in life kind of sucks. We are the ones who have to make the choices, who gets to live and who gets to die. Are you ready for this?
He stood there for a few seconds realizing just what they were about to do weather they liked it or not. “Sucks to be us but we do get a ride off the planet for doing it right?”