Event Horizon

by Scott McElhaney

  “Well, I’m not going to stop praying. I don’t know the Lord’s will. I love her, Shauna,” he said.

  “I’m praying for her, too. I’m praying for both of you,” she said.

  Ephraim Year 85 Week 17

  Johnny sat down on the grass next to Brennan and Shauna. The little baby was asleep in the basket next to her. Johnny cautiously leaned over the basket; glancing up to gauge Shauna’s reaction. Her distracted gaze seemed to be fixed on the horizon somewhere. He peered into the basket and pulled the blanket down from the baby’s face. That tiny little human seemed so delicate and fragile to him.

  “Tell your mom I said thanks for the apple pie,” Brennan said, staring off into the distant woods.

  “I helped her make it,” Johnny admitted with a hint of pride.

  “I can’t wait to try it later,” he said.

  Shauna placed her hand on Brennan’s knee. He rested his hand on hers.

  “Why do people die for no reason at all?” Johnny asked.

  Brennan looked over at Johnny who seemed to be settling in and making himself comfortable. Brennan was pretty sure that his mom sent him over with the pie, expecting him to return right away. Everyone was doing what they could to help him through his loss, but truthfully, he wanted to be left alone. He wanted to avoid these questions that he couldn’t answer.

  “We don’t know, Johnny,” Shauna said, “Some people just get sick and we don’t know how to fix it.”

  “But isn’t that why we pray?” he asked.

  Shauna sighed.

  “Our world isn’t perfect like God intended for us in Genesis, Johnny. Now we have to deal with sickness and death. God helps us, but no matter what, we are all going to die. This way we can go home to the Lord and be free from sickness and death forever. Sometimes God wants to take someone home,” she said, “Maybe God wanted Edna to go home.”

  Johnny looked over at Shauna. She just stared over his head into the trees beyond him. It was like she was afraid to look at him.

  “How come you never look at me? Are you mad at me?” Johnny asked.

  “I’m blind, Johnny. I can’t see you at all, even if you think I’m looking at you,” she said.

  “Really? But how do you…” he said, thinking suddenly about all the times he has seen her going places.

  Then he remembered the path called Shauna’s trail. It was a trail that led to all the houses with a rope handrail the whole way. He remembered people always assisting her to her seat or walking her around the house. He had just assumed people liked to hold her hand. She was beautiful after all.

  “Wow. I never knew,” he said, “I feel stupid. How do you take care of Erica?”

  “She’s noisy when she needs me,” she replied with a chuckle, “So it’s easy to find her.”

  “That’s amazing,” he said, waving his hand in front of her face, “How come I never knew?”

  “Did you need to know?” she asked.

  “I suppose not. I could have been a helper though. I’m a good helper. Just ask my mom. And all this time, I never got to help you,” he said.

  “Well, I get along pretty well. I don’t need a whole lot of help. But if I ever do, how about if I holler for you?” she said, smiling in his direction.

  “Cool. Is that okay with you Brennan?” he asked.

  Brennan nodded before looking over at Johnny.

  “Sure, kid. It’s okay if you want to help out anyone at all. That’s what we do here in our community. We help each other,” he said.

  . . . . .

  Brennan moved over to the next grid on his viewing panel. He typed the command to magnify it as he had done several times before. This time however, a blurry image appeared in the corner. His eyes widened. He encircled the image and magnified it again. He instantly recognized it as a gray spacecraft encompassed by a massive GF Ring. The spacecraft resembled a typical Space Administration vehicle only much larger than he had ever envisioned.

  “Gotcha,” he said, magnifying the screen again.

  At this magnification, he could see the movement of the craft better. He typed a command to get an estimated distance and speed. The response came back with a TOA (Time of Arrival) of 20 weeks.

  “Yeah, I’ve got you now,” he said with a subtle laugh.

  He typed in a tracking command to maintain a constant lock on the vehicle. Then he printed the screen. Just then, he felt a hand on his shoulder.

  “I heard you going crazy at the terminal. Did you find it?” Shauna asked.

  “I’ve got it alright,” he said, patting her hand.

  She stood there over his shoulder as he typed in a few more commands before shutting off the screen. He grabbed the sheet that he printed and folded it. She stepped back as he rose up from his chair.

  “I’m going to run over to the cave. Warren’s working there today,” he said, grabbing a hold of her hand, “Will you be alright here or do you want to come?”

  She smiled and stepped aside.

  “I didn’t become suddenly helpless now that I’m staying here with you, Brennan,” she said, “I’ve got everything under control. You go on ahead.”

  He turned to her and touched the side of her face; a gesture he found himself doing a lot in recent days. With others, he would offer a reassuring pat on the arm or give them a friendly tap on the shoulder, but that didn’t seem appropriate with Shauna. Shauna was often led around by her arm, hand, or shoulder. A tender touch on the side of her face could never be misinterpreted as an offer of assistance.

  “I don’t think you’re helpless and I never have,” he said.

  “I know. I’m just not used to being led around all the time and having someone else always rushing for Erica when she cries,” she said, “I’m… I’m used to being alone.”

  “Thanks to Edna’s… well, you don’t have to worry about…” he started before choking up all of a sudden.

  Shauna stepped forward and pulled him into an embrace. He started to cry for what seemed like the hundredth time.

  “You’ve got to stop being angry at her. She told you she wanted to live. You know it’s true. She left against her will,” Shauna said.

  He sobbed harder.

  “That’s what you need. You can cry because you miss her or because you’re upset for her. But I don’t want to hear any more crying out in anger,” she said, running her hands across his back.

  “I’m tired of crying,” he growled through clenched teeth, “I’m tired of it.”

  He lifted his head from her shoulder. She reached up and thumbed the tears from his cheeks.

  “She’s been gone for only four days. I’d be worried for you if you weren’t upset. You’ve been with each other for so long,” she said.

  He stared into her blank eyes, grateful that she couldn’t see him. He wondered how she could willingly stay here with such a broken man. She put her hands on his shoulders and then backed away from him.

  “I’ll be alright while you’re gone. I think Erica and I are going for a stroll,” she said, “Is my wagon still outside the door?”

  “Yeah. I already put a rolled-up blanket in there for her,” he said.

  She snickered and turned back toward the spare bedroom.

  Ephraim Year 85 Week 23

  Dawn set the kettle on the stove and inserted another log into the fire chamber. She looked out the window and into the field behind Doreen’s house. She was surprised to see Warren outside with the two boys. Her own son was still asleep in bed while Danny and Johnny were outside tossing a Frisbee back and forth with their father.

  “Hey, pretty lady,” Edwin surprised her from behind, “Is that coffee I smell?”

  She turned around to find him shuffling through the cupboard. He grabbed a metal canister of oats from the shelf and set it on the counter.

  “Is Ariel still sleeping?” she asked.

  “Yeah,” he said, stepping over to give her a kiss on the cheek.

  “Why are you in such a good mood this morning?”
she asked, “I didn’t hear you moving any furniture last night.”

  “Funny, Mom,” he said, “I stopped doing that when I found out you knew what we were doing. That was just as embarrassing.”

  She shook her head as she reached over to grab the steaming kettle. Edwin took three mugs from the cabinet behind her and set them on the counter. Just then, Ariel came into the kitchen with the marks of sleep still imprinted on her face.

  “Hey, honey. Mom wants to know why I’m in such a good mood. Especially since we weren’t moving furniture last night,” he said.

  She rubbed her eyes then looked over at her mother-in-law. Dawn’s attention was currently focused on the coffee that she was pouring into the mugs. Flushing with embarrassment, Ariel offered a curious glance to her husband.

  “Um… well, the furniture moving that you’re talking about has resulted in you being a grandmother,” Ariel said with a grin.

  “Really?” Dawn almost shouted, setting the kettle down on the counter.

  She looked from Edwin over to Ariel. Ariel simply nodded, trying to hide her own excitement. Dawn rushed over and wrapped her in a hug, lifting her off the ground.

  “Wait. Are you sure about this?” Dawn asked.

  “It’s been seven weeks so far and I’ve got to say… it would be pretty hard not to get pregnant with all the furniture we’ve moved,” Ariel said with a laugh.

  “This is embarrassing. That’s my mom, Ariel,” he groaned, covering his face.

  “Hey, you’re the one who tried to embarrass me about the furniture in the first place. And it worked,” she replied.

  “Move all the furniture you want,” Dawn said with a laugh, “Go back in there right now and move some more. I’m going to be a grandma! And after this one is born, go move some more furniture. I want some babies to spoil.”

  “This just isn’t right,” Edwin said, shaking his head.

  Ariel reached over and took Edwin’s hand.

  “Come on, honey. You heard your mother. Let’s go move some furniture,” she said, pulling him toward the hall.

  He pulled his hand back and laughed.

  “I couldn’t ‘move some furniture’ if I had to right now,” he said, “There’s something weird about my mother ordering me to go make love to my wife.”

  His mother punched him in the arm.

  “Oh, go on ahead now. I’ll go outside,” she said with a laugh.

  “Mom, this is inappropriate conversation for someone to be having with his mother. I’ll never be able to move furniture in the same way again,” he said, taking a sip of his coffee.

  “Thanks a lot, Mom,” Ariel said sarcastically.

  . . . . .

  Johnny tossed the Frisbee to Danny, but it landed several feet in front of him. Danny huffed angrily as he lumbered over to retrieve it. He turned and tossed it quickly to his father.

  “I’m starting a new project, boys. If you want to help me, I’d really appreciate it,” Warren said, tossing the disc to Johnny.

  “What is it?” Danny asked.

  Warren drew a rolled-up stack of papers from his back pocket and held it in the air.

  “I tore these pages from the Planetary Survival Handbook. It’s how to build a solar-powered yacht,” he said.

  Danny laughed. His father’s expression remained serious as he continued to wave the papers in the air.

  “Are you sure you want to go to sea with those sea dragons?” Danny asked.

  “It was just a big fish and yes, I want to be able to go to sea. We need to keep our options open in the future. There’s no telling how long before the Sharks repopulate the whole continent,” he said, watching Johnny toss the Frisbee to Danny.

  This time the disc glided perfectly to his brother’s hand.

  “There are sea dragons?” Johnny asked.

  “No. There is no such thing. Will you help your dad with this, Johnny?” Warren asked.

  “Sure. Do the instructions look easy?” Johnny asked.

  “No, not at all. But they do look possible. We have all the equipment we need,” Warren said, “Will you help, Danny?”

  “That’s fine, but can we do it as a whole family?” Danny asked, “Maybe Mom could help, too.”

  “That’s a wonderful idea. Edwin and Jared-the-blacksmith said they would help also,” he said, catching the Frisbee, “The first thing we need to build is a launching platform. It’s really just a platform to build the yacht on. The platform will have a ramp that leads into the water. This’ll actually be the easiest part.”

  “When do we start?” Danny asked.

  “How about today?” Warren replied.

  . . . . .

  “Can I see that picture again?” Rodney asked when Brennan finally came to the door.

  “You walked all the way over here for that? I could have come to your place.” Brennan replied, stepping aside to invite him in.

  “I may be old, but I’m not crippled. Oops, I’m sorry,” Rodney said, quickly scanning the room behind Brennan.

  “She’s not crippled, Rodney, so don’t insult her like that,” he said, “And she’s not here anyway. She’s out back praying by the plum tree.”

  “You two are living in sin and she still prays?” Rodney asked.

  Brennan stepped back, feeling a sudden urge to punch the old man in the face.

  “I’m just messing with you, Brennan. I know it was Edna’s wishes,” he said, “But between you and me, you two should get married to dispel any rumors that may be starting. I mean let’s face it, with you two sleeping under the same roof, there are simply no boundaries. I’m sure you’ve thought of it before.”

  “I think you should leave already. I’m seriously not liking you very much at the moment and I don’t want to say anything I’ll regret later,” Brennan said, holding the door open.

  Rodney turned around and gave Brennan a stern look.

  “I’m sorry - truly. She’s always been a very good girl and everyone knows it. You’ve had a speckled past, though. People talk,” he said.

  “No one talks. I know everyone in our colony and they know me well enough. They know how I love Edna. The only person who ‘talks’ is you, Rodney. The only person who suggests that I am living in sin with Shauna is you. I know our colony well enough and they know me,” Brennan said, “Now I’ll go print you a picture of that ship and I’d like you to leave. Please just don’t say anything else.”

  Rodney nodded and followed Brennan to the terminal. Brennan turned on the screen. Since the telescope was already locked onto the target, the ship immediately appeared on the screen.

  “Before you print it, could you magnify something for me?” Rodney asked.

  “What’s that?”

  “There at the bottom. A ship of that magnitude should have a Landing Dome. There should be what resembles a large hatch at the bottom. I’m hoping there’s only one hatch,” Rodney said.

  “Down here?” he asked, encircling the bottom half of the ship.

  He magnified the screen further.

  “Right there it is. That’s the base of the Landing Dome. And see that right there,” he said, pointing to two circular hatches on each side of the Dome, “That’s trouble.”

  “What is it?” Brennan asked.

  “OLPBs. Orbital Launched Planet Bombs. If you needed to drop a Landing Dome on a planet that was overgrown with wild vegetation, you could drop an OLPB first to clear a flat area. These didn’t exist in our time, but neither did Landing Domes. Now apparently both have left the world of hypothesis,” Rodney said.

  “Why is that trouble? It kind of makes sense,” Brennan said.

  “Because I don’t think they’ll just be used for that. If that was my ship and I had been given orders to take out our colony, I figure it’d be a lot quicker and easier just to drop an OLPB,” Rodney said, “Why risk the ground troops? But that’s assuming that they’re coming for us.”

  “Which I kind of doubt. Why would the Earth send another attack force after they s
ent the Sharks?” he asked.

  Rodney laughed, drawing Brennan’s attention from the screen.

  “Because they never sent the Sharks,” Rodney said, “Did you ever hear of a Space Administration ship designed that way or to have any unnecessary paintings on the hull? That ship had shark teeth painted on the bow? Think about it - did you see any SA markings on it? Even that one on your screen has the SA symbol right on the nose. I never saw one on the Shark.”

  Brennan hadn’t thought of that. He turned back to the screen, looking at a ship that very clearly resembled the craftsmanship of the Space Administration. The Shark had no characteristics of the SA.

  “Oh no. Why didn’t you ever say anything?” Brennan asked, turning around in his chair, “Who sent that ship then?”

  “It could have been a private ship for all we know. Maybe another country perhaps,” Rodney said, “Whatever their purpose and whoever they were, their intentions were evil and they wanted the planet to themselves. Think of the Vikings and the Conquistadors. My guess – it was a private ship and SA never knew anything about it.”

  “What private group would have ever wanted to kill us?” Brennan asked.

  “Hey, I don’t have all the answers. I’m just here to give conjecture,” Rodney said, “Can you print me that?”