by Ted Iverson
Without flinching, Orion said, “Is that doubt I hear in your voice? If it is, it’s certainly something new to me.”
“Not so much doubt as it is a real concern. I don’t have anything to gain from this. I only know what I can lose.” Alec was still looking out the window. “You, Zach, and Ty, on the other hand, have everything to lose from this. As Ty said, “What would everyone think? How about maybe a little re-evaluating, like putting FTL on the back burner for a while and turning your attention to other products, other areas. That could be done.”
Turning his head away from the window and looking at his brother’s stoic face, Orion posed the question, “What exactly do you have to lose if we continue on?”
There were several moments of silence. Still facing the window, Alec lowered his head and answered in a cracked voice, “All of you.”
“I thought so.” Looking back out the window, Orion realized how difficult sharing those feelings must have been for Alec. He knew, though, that it was imperative to continue this tough conversation. There wasn’t any good way of handling things now; it must be straight and to the point.
“We appreciate your concern, but honestly Alec, I agree with Ty: there is no other course we can take, as individuals or as a corporation. We must stay the course laid out in front of us, no matter the obstacles, hardships, or dangers. I wish I could say otherwise, but that’s not how we were raised.”
Alec faced his brother. “I know, but it won’t be easy. I’m concerned about your safety. If someone got to Mom and Dad, then I’m worried that they would be able to get to you, and I don’t want to lose all of you as well.”
“You’re in danger too, but you must trust us. We’ll find out what went wrong, we will correct it, and we will not fail.”
“You won’t fail? Well that makes me feel better.” The two chuckled at that and Alec felt a little relief from the black hole deep inside. “We’re just wasting time here. Where do we begin to look?”
Orion shrugged, “How about you take the desk and I’ll start at his file cabinets. The problem is that I’m not even sure what we’re looking for.”
“As a good friend of mine once told me, ‘You don’t have to know what you’re looking for, just look and it will find you.’” Pulling out the top desk drawer, Alec started to shuffle through his father’s things.
“I would love to say that sounds like good advice, but you must’ve heard that from some old, foolish wizard,” Orion said, sifting through the top file drawer and snickering.
“Yeah, go ahead, quote ancient movies; go ahead, laugh it up, fuzzball.” Alec stopped searching, and looked at Orion who was looking back at him. They burst into laughter. After a moment or two, they went back to work, still snickering. That one moment reminded them of the many good times they’d shared with their dad. Small, seemingly dumb moments that they would miss.
Time passed quickly. They hadn’t found anything yet, and they had only a few minutes before they’d be meeting up with everyone else for Ty’s speech. Alec, finished with the desk, was now next to Orion and on the last remaining file cabinet. “Ty’s got an awful lot of things that he’s going to have to learn. Look at all these files. Incredible. And we didn’t find one useful thing among them. Not that I figured to find a whole lot, but something. My guess is Dad’s got the important stuff, like the prints and schematics, locked up somewhere. That’ll be the hard part, finding out where they are.”
“If I were some of the most important papers on the most important vehicle ever designed, where would I be? I’m pretty sure I’d be locked in a vault. We’re not stupid. We’re just impatient.”
“And tired. What’s worse is that the vault I’d be in would be where I was constructed. So then, we need to step back and find out where the StarDancer was constructed. Once we find that out, we have the location of the papers. At least, in theory that’s where they should be.”
“We’ll need to look at all the cargo that’s been hauled in and out of here, where it came from, and which warehouse on the corporate property it was delivered to. Then, find out where it was shipped to. Uncle Nate may be of some help. We also have to see if any big dollar orders were placed.”
“There’s more to it than all that, of course, and there’s not much more we can do tonight. First thing tomorrow, you and I will get rolling on this.”
“We’d better get moving. I don’t think we want to be late.” Satisfied with the plan, the two moved swiftly to rejoin the family. They all met up in one of the rooms off of the auditorium’s stage.
Aunt Peggy was sharply dressed in a dark, beautifully tailored suit. Her blouse was white with a neatly tied silk scarf. She looked stunning. The boys had rarely seen her dressed to kill and decided that you could definitely see the Bindl family resemblance. She gave Alec and Orion each a quick hug; it was obvious she was nervous. She wasn’t one who enjoyed being in front of the cameras.
“Zach contacted us,” Ty said to Alec and Orion. “He wanted you both to know that he’d arrived safely and will need to talk with you, Orion, first thing tomorrow.”
“Thanks, Ty. I’ll call first thing in the morning. How did all your meetings go?”
“Swell, thanks for asking. You’re joining me at the next board meeting, pal. That was so much fun. I’m guessing it’ll be as fun as giving this speech.” He faked a yawn and smiled. “Did you guys find anything?”
“No, but we’ve got a new direction that we’re going to look in tomorrow. We can talk more about it later. Right now, you’d better straighten yourself up, pretty boy. Where’d you get the outfit?”
“This? They all thought a suit would be in order. You guys are fine though; you’ll be standing off to the side. They thought it would be best if I were the focus. You know, showbiz and politics; gotta love it.”
“I noticed that Senator Axion found his way here tonight,” Alec mentioned. “I see he also brought his sidekick, Senator Thoma. So nice of them to attend.” In a way he was happy to see them. A visit after the speech would be very nice. He wanted an up-close-and-personal conversation with the man he had watched on the holoplayer.
Uncle Nate walked over to them. He had been talking to the gentleman who must be running the night’s feed. “We’re about to start. Just be yourselves, boys.”
Normally the advice would be good enough, if they weren’t going to be standing in front of millions of viewers around the globe and even off the globe. Orion had huge knots in his stomach. If he felt this way, he had to wonder how Ty must be feeling. Ty led the way as they made their way onto the stage.
Chapter Five
Uncle Nate took the podium first. “I am Nate Travalar, Space Tech’s Chief Financial Officer and Jeff Bindl’s brother in-law. Please take your seats. Speaking on behalf of the family tonight, my nephew and new CEO of Space Tech, Ty Bindl.”
Ty was tired. He’d thought he’d be nervous, but as he reached the podium and looked out at the crowd, he found himself calm and in command of the situation, even as all the cameras and microphones faced him.
“Thank you all for attending tonight’s brief statement. Senators Axion and Thoma, thank you for coming.
“I will not be taking any questions tonight. Pending investigation results, we will hold another press conference with questions at a later date. I would to like to start off by introducing myself: my name is Ty Bindl.
“On behalf of my entire family, I would like to thank you all for your sympathy and condolences. I would also like to thank the Senate for its support in the short time since the loss of our parents. It is a very difficult time, not only for our family, but also for our extended family, the employees of Space Tech. We are still in shock over this tragic event. The loss of our parents is devastating. Though we have only limited details of the accident at this time, we will put forth every effort and every resource available into finding out what went wrong.
“My parents had a vision to travel the stars. In this vision they saw the need for faster than light
travel, FTL as they called it. They saw it as a way to expand the horizons of space exploration, as well as of science. This type of space travel was intended for all mankind. Their vision, however, did not include their demise. We believed in them and what they stood for.
“Be assured, Space Tech will continue. We will stay on course to provide humanity with products that will enhance our way of life. We will continue to be honest and trustworthy. We will also continue to work closely with the OEC.
“Most of all, we will continue the vision. As a corporation we will investigate the accident, find out what went wrong, and correct it. We will succeed. FTL is the next step in science and space travel.
“Thank you once again for all your support in our time of grief. Thank you all for attending.”
As he stepped down from the podium he found the flashes from cameras blinding. The crowd noise was almost deafening. The press threw out questions, hoping for responses they knew would not be forthcoming. Quickly exiting the stage, with the family in tow, Ty headed for the small reception room where they were to greet the senators.
Senator Axion remained motionless in his seat. So, these children want to continue. Obstacles, always obstacles. After a moment, he stood, straightened his senatorial robes, and motioned to Senator Thoma. “Come with me.” At the end of the aisle, they were met by a throng of reporters. They stopped to briefly answer questions about the speech.
Upon entering the reception room, Ty collapsed into a large cushioned chair, exhausted. His laid his head in his hands. Aunt Peggy rushed over to him, went down on one knee. “Are you alright, Ty?”
“Yes, I’m okay. I was fine until I got about half way back here; then it was like a rock fell on me. When I was looking out at that crowd, knowing that the eyes of the world were on me, I was okay. But after it was over, I realized I’d committed our entire corporation to pursue an idea that may not exist. I feel like I might have lied to the world.”
Aunt Peggy gave him a stern look. “It’s not a lie if you believe in it. Your parents believed. They believed in it so much they died for it. We were raised to be tough, fight for what we believed in, no matter the circumstances. I believe. Do you?”
“Yes—no. Yeah, I guess I do. I just don’t know. It just wasn’t fair, them leaving us all this. We needed more time from them. This is all so, so...”
“Overwhelming? Son, it is for all of us. I lost my brother and friend. The doubts, and even a little anger, will be there, but we mustn’t let it get to us. They didn’t plan on dying. They didn’t plan on leaving you and your brothers alone. Besides, you’re not alone; you have family, and we back you one hundred percent. Take a deep breath. You’ll be alright. It will all work out.” She reached over and roughed his hair. Once more her eyes filled with tears, which she quickly wiped away. “Ty, we’re a tough bunch. We’ll be fine.”
“Thanks.” He still didn’t manage much of a smile, but he tried.
“I hope we are not intruding on you.”
The group looked up to see Senator Axion standing at the door. Alec noted almost immediately that Senator Thoma was standing a little behind him Axion and slightly to his right, as if an obedient servant. This didn’t surprise Alec. He’d heard from sources that Thoma had risen to prominence as fast as Axion. Seeing them together for the first time, none of that seemed like coincidence.
“Why, no, Senators; please come in. I’m Alec Bindl.” He reached a hand out to the senators. Then motioning to each in the room, “These are my brothers: Orion, and, as you know, Ty. Zach couldn’t be here. He is at the Space Lab with the employees.”
“A noble gesture, I’m sure,” Axion said without much interest. Turning away from Alec, he faced Ty. “So this is young Ty, who used to tag along with his father. Slightly older I see and with some added responsibilities as well. I do remember you.” His regal tone sounded almost mischievous. “The committee was saddened by the loss of your parents. It was so tragic. They were so close to achieving an incredible advancement for the world. We would like to offer any of the data we have accumulated. Just ask and we will make sure it is in your hands as soon as possible.”
“Thank you, sir. We would definitely like to see your documentation. I will have Orion contact your committee soon for that data. It will be vital to our investigation. We are pressed for time. I understand that my father had an appointment in a week to meet with the OEC?”
“Yes, he did. I see that you have been doing your homework, young man.”
“I assure you that I will be there.”
“You will? Son, do you have any knowledge of what that session will be about?”
“It’s about the grant expiring. We will be there, and we will have everything we need to ask for an extension.”
“That is a pleasant surprise. When I return, I will be sure to inform the other members that we will not be canceling the grant hearing.” Axion forced out a smile. “I will not keep you any longer. Once again, you all have my heartfelt condolences.” He gave a respectful bow, turned, and started to walk out the door.
During the conversation, Alec had slipped behind them and was now facing Axion. As Axion headed toward the door, Alec extended his hand once more. The senator stopped abruptly. He hadn’t seen Alec slip by. Reluctantly he took the offered hand.
“Sir,” said Alec, “it was very nice of you to come all this way.” They released the grip. Alec peered directly into the eyes of the senator as he spoke, “Could I trouble you with one question before you go?”
Axion hesitated for a split second, then answered, “Of course, what would you like to know?”
“Was this, in your opinion, an accident? I mean, did my parents have anyone who didn’t agree with them and what they were out to do?” As he asked this, he glanced toward Senator Thoma to gauge his reaction. Thoma flashed the quickest of looks in the direction of his superior. Then, as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone. That question had struck a nerve.
Axion didn’t skip a beat. “A fair question indeed, Alec. I think that even with your parents’ safety record, something went wrong. What we do not know is what that might be. We can only hope your investigation will reveal the truth.
“As for enemies—I’m certain that is what you meant, I do not know of any at all. Your parents’ reputations were impeccable. However, there are always people who will find a reason to hold grudges. I just can’t imagine anyone going to that kind of extreme. I mean sabotage, if that is what you are referring to. I hope that will suffice for an answer.”
Axion turned away and then stopped. Turning back to face Alec, he clasped his hands together and spoke. “There was one more thing, however. We—the committee, that is—and Space Tech had a certain agreement, a plan if you will. Your parents talked us into a slight deviation of the plan. I disagreed, but the committee had a majority, so I respectfully backed down. I cannot give you all the details yet. I would like to, but I cannot. I feel that you will find out soon enough what the deviation was, but if you don’t, I am sure that by the time I see Ty for the next grant meeting I will be able to discuss it with him. I wish I could give you more at the moment, but policy is policy. I am sure you understand.” He unclasped his hands and gave an open-handed, half-hearted shrug.
Alec stepped aside and let the two men proceed down the hall toward the spaceport. He watched them turn a corner and disappear. He’d gotten the distinct feeling from Axion’s tone that he either didn’t care for them or, possibly, for Space Tech itself.
Orion tapped his brother on the shoulder: “Earth to Alec. Funny, you know, pretty soon I’ll be saying ‘Orion to Earth.’ Strange, I guess.”
“You most definitely are strange.”
“Ty is getting ready to address all the employees. You plan on joining us?”
Coming out of his deep thought, Alec realized the family had slipped out of the room. “Sorry, I’m ready. Lead the way.”
They exited through a side door and headed down another hall. This time they ended i
n an area where there was a small but beautiful, cherry desk with a plush, high-backed black captain’s chair behind it. On either side of the desk stood a tall fern. In each corner of the small room, facing away from the front of the desk, stood two tall poles holding bright lamps: lighting for holoimaging. And, dead center of the room, were the holoimaging cameras.
Ty was seated in the chair. “I should’ve written something out for this,” he mumbled.
“Ty, we’re ready in three, two, and one.” The camera man flashed the go sign.
“Hello to all of you. I won’t keep you long. As I am sure most of you and the known universe already know, I, along with my brothers Orion and Zach, have taken over the reins of Space Tech. I will be running day-to-day operations. Orion and Zach will be running the outer earth ops. Nothing will change. No jobs will be lost. What you have been assigned to do today, you will be doing tomorrow. I have committed this entire organization to launch a successful FTL mission.
“I know that only a few days ago most of us did not understand much about this project. Truthfully, I did not know much. But today, we find ourselves with more knowledge than we wanted. As I stated in my speech earlier this evening, the vision will continue. We now go forward with a sense of urgency, not necessarily to fly tomorrow or even this year. We will need to be tireless in our endeavors. We must first find out what caused the death of our parents and correct the problem. We will then push forward to construct a safer ship, a ship that will reach FTL.
“This will not be a small task. It will require patience, but with every employee’s help, Space Tech will be successful. This project has become our number-one priority. The next weeks, months, and quite possibly years will be crucial. Not everyone will get the call to help with vital projects, but everything and every job will be important in the overall picture. We are entering a new era here at Space Tech, and each of you will have an important role. Thank you all for being dedicated to your jobs. Today we’ve grieved, tonight we rest, tomorrow we search for FTL. Goodnight.”
