by C A Gleason
They were asked many questions. And then, even more questions. Including if they’d seen any other survivors during their drive. They all said no. The military personnel on the aircraft carrier hadn’t either. They were checking boxes.
Before they were to hammer nails.
Jonah wanted to see. He explained he was prior service for the American military. He left out the part about being kicked out. They probably wouldn’t have cared anyway.
Although there were laws against civilians taking part in military operations, Jonah was told those laws could be reinstituted later, and he was handed protective goggles.
Surrounded by armed soldiers from the secured safety onboard the aircraft carrier—as it moved further out to sea—Jonah watched the mushroom cloud expand in the distance. Soon after he also heard—and felt, and sensed—its destructive power.
He was witnessing the beginning of the eradication. The Molting would soon be under control. Maybe Molters would even be annihilated from Earth forever.
Jonah turned away from the destruction, being led by the soldiers in charge, freeing him from his responsibility, something he wasn’t free of for years.
Before he was escorted to the comfort of the decks below, he saw a submarine shark fin the water. There were many more missions going on worldwide without his knowledge. But Jonah’s missions were complete.
For others, their missions were only beginning, but they weren’t his responsibility.
He hoped to get a good night’s sleep tonight. One free of nightmares. He was looking forward to knowing Doreen’s big secret. She mentioned having something important to tell him.
He’d longed for a fortification, a protection, something he didn’t sense since Henrytown. Only now, aboard an aircraft carrier, had it come to fruition.
Wherever the aircraft carrier took them—it really didn’t matter—and once they decided where to go next, Jonah wondered when Doreen wanted to go on their honeymoon.
