»I certainly don’t want to doubt the ZyClonians’ abilities, but if they do that, the station will be flooded and destroyed by the water pressure. Old as this place is, its building structure must have suffered a lot over the thousands of years. A manipulation of the hull structure might even speed up the destruction. I don’t see how we’d be able to escape the collapse and chaos,« Pi warned.
»Naad and Nood know how to protect us,« Kuster~Laap replied automatically.
»We should also think about preserving this station for our scientists,« Maya Ivanova suggested.»Maybe Vasina can deactivate the robots. There must be a lot worth examining down here. There’s a submarine city close by, so we could call for help.«
Lai Pi was pondering.
»You’re right, Maya. I think it’s Puerto Nuevo, the largest submarine settlement in the Caribbean. I bet they have special rescue teams and technology available …«
Kuster~Laap stopped.
»I don’t think you understand. This station is irrelevant. The Progonauts and the information you want is not important! We need to know if Humanity is able to help us before the Great Tremor occurs. If you can’t, then we’ll have no other choice but to look for the second Reserve, and only hope we will find potential helpers there.«
Pi was flushed with anger but he held back his emotions. He didn’t like that somebody from outside the solar system was calling the shots, bypassing the Union Government. Humanity wasn’t sitting on Earth twiddling its thumbs, ready to be called on a moment’s notice.
»Let’s go, Pi,« Maya tried to calm him. »We probably just can’t see and understand the entire picture yet. Let’s call a truce until the conference is over … we can decide what to do after that. «
»Okay, then,« Pi hissed. » But let’s get out of here first!«
Abraham
Jakob woke Patricia at 4:30 am. He led her to the stable with very few words to show her the work she was expected to do. Everything was a new experience to her, particularly milking a cow by hand. It took a while until she understood how to do it correctly; her first attempts at the teats didn’t yield much, but she was getting better and better at it. The morning had started very early for her, but she found herself enjoying every minute, despite the muscle pain in her lower arms from milking the cows.
After she had attended the cows, Jakob led her to the chicken coop and let her collect the eggs.
»Is there something wrong with those eggs?« he asked her as she turned the eggs in the sunlight, checking them from all sides.
»I had no idea that they come in brown and white,« Pat admitted. »The synthetic eggs look kind of bluish. I always thought they were real look-alikes.«
Jakob shook his head, nonbelieving.
»Blue eggs, and you eat that stuff?«
Pat chuckled and nodded.
»Yes, almost every morning. You’d be amazed.«
Jakob went to work in his carpenter shop. People came by the house and introduced themselves, but Pat lost count after awhile and forgot the names of the people she had shaken hands with. It seemed that the Amish were interested in her. Some of the women even brought her some welcome presents, mostly bread and fruit baskets, which Pat received thankfully. She gave the presents to Jakob and Lisa later that day. Jakob had lent her some clothing which fit her perfectly. Simplicity was the key, and the women who talked to her in the morning were very impressed by how well the dress suited her.
Around noon the wave of curious visitors dwindled down, probably because they also had to do their daily work.
During lunch, where Pat had the opportunity to eat real corn-on-the cob with butter, salt and sprinkles of paprika for the first time in her life. Jakob told her that he was pleased with her work so far.
»You’re adapting very well, Patricia,« he admitted and smiled. »Have you found anything here you can use for your research article? I’m afraid our way of life doesn’t offer much.«
Pat just bit off a corner of a thick slice of homemade bread and almost choked over his question.
»Are you kidding me, Jakob?« she coughed and covered her mouth. »I’m incredibly grateful for this experience. What I’ve learned this morning alone is more than enough to fill a full column.«
Jakob pushed the butter tray over to her.
»Why are the English suddenly so interested in us?« he inquired politely.
»Well, we wouldn’t give up the progress and technology, we live in residential towers and well developed submarine cities with every imaginable luxury … but we don’t know our neighbors. People can decide how they want to live, almost like paradise, but there is an … an emptiness. Strangely enough, that connects us with you, who haven’t lost contact with nature, or with people, and yet, the Amish are not even remotely interested in how the other people live,« she tried to explain. »Frankly, there’re a lot of people who don’t care about you, don’t even know you exist. That’s why it’s important to educate people about you. You lead such as a fascinating life!«
»Well … this village and our way of life is as close as it can get to paradise for us,« Jakob tried to explain. »I imagine that you and the people in the cities don’t believe in life after death as we do. While the English are concentrating on today, we’re thinking about what follows and prepare for the afterlife. Will I ever go to Heaven? I don’t know … it’s in God’s hands, but I am striving to get here!«
Patricia was wondering about Jakob’s words. She had trouble accepting his arguments.
»We’ll have a visitor later,« Jakob changed the subject.
»Oh … I understand. David is coming back to see Lisa again,« she guessed. »I promise not to interfere this time. I’ll go to my room and work on my columns.«
»No, it’s not David. He has sent for Abraham, and he will visit us later to look at Lisa,« Jakob explained.
Patricia was all ears.
»The wonder healer? What are you expecting? Is he going to put his hand on Lisa’s head and mumble some incantations?« she replied, more sarcastically than she had intended.
Jakob ignored it.
»You know we are God fearing people. The holy scriptures tell us that Jesus healed people by placing his hand on their heads. Even blind people could see afterwards.«
Pat stopped chewing the bread and looked at Jakob blankly.
»I’m sorry … I can’t relate. The book you’re referring to was part of our journalistic studies, but I never really understood what the hype is about.«
»Patricia … we interpret this book by the letter. It is our life. I understand, though, that the English of modern times see things differently than even they used to.«
Pat contemplated for a moment.
»At least the book gives you hope. Let me make a suggestion: If the wonder healer is not successful, let me bring Lisa to Denver. The treatment is free of charge and she will have an excellent chance of beating the illness.«
Jakob smiled forgivingly.
»I know you mean well, Patricia. You will see. Abraham will heal Lisa.«
Moments later, somebody knocked at the front door.
Jakob jumped up from his chair and opened the door. Pat followed him, interested despite her doubts, and saw him greeting a tall man at the door. Jakob invited the man in; he was dressed almost like Jakob, but he had a strange aura that made Pat shiver. Was it the black suit, or the eyes? Pat didn’t know, but she was unaccountably nervous.
»Hello, my name is Abraham … and you must be Patricia, the reporter,« he greeted her.
»Uh … I’m a journalist, to be precise. I usually concoct a story at my desk at home,« she replied with a slight grin.
»Well, you’re here now, aren’t you?« Abraham answered and shook her hand.
Handshaking was something Patricia had to get used to; it was no longer common practice in the city. She found, however, that it wasn’t a bad idea. It could break the ice between strangers, encouraging trust.
Jakob seemed very pleased to see Abraham.
»Thank you for coming.«
»Please, show me your sister and leave us alone for a short while,« Abraham requested to Jakob, smiling and nodding at Patricia.
»Do you mind if I observe you?« she asked.
»I’m sorry, Patricia, but I’m not a doctor. I need the assistance of God to defeat her disease. You will understand that I have to prepare myself to become one with the environment and with Lisa’s spirit. I can do that only if I’m alone with the patient,« he explained.
Pat was still skeptical.
»How long will it take?« she wanted to know.
»I can’t give you an exact time frame,« Abraham apologized. »It won’t take very long, though.«
Pat pondered while Jakob led Abraham to Lisa’s room. Should she put and end to this spectacle? She decided she would have strong words with Jakob. When he returned, she opened her mouth to start talking but he interrupted her.
»We wait!«
A rescue bubble
»This is where we break through the hull?« Pi asked doubtfully and looked up to the ceiling. They had traversed several rooms and tunnels, ending up in a large domed room. They had passed deactivated robots and were able to glance briefly at their technology as well the materials in the rooms. Pi tried to remember the route they had taken, but his mind was caught up with wondering what the Progonauts had in mind when they constructed this station and what purpose it had. They found no more dead people as they advanced through the station, but most of the rooms were without energy.
»It’s not going to be easy to cut a hole through this ceiling,« Maya warned, looking suspiciously looking from the ZyClonians to the ceiling.
»Nood and Naad will establish a barrier energy field to prevent this room from flooding or debris falling in,« Kuster~Laap explained.
As if by a secret command, almost all nanopods detached and formed a strange looking object.
»This projector will transform the matter above us into energy, creating a tunnel to the ocean’s surface,« Kuster~Laap announced.
Speechless, Maya and Pi watched the transforming process.
»The energy field is strong enough to stabilize the tunnel walls and keep the water out. The released energy will be collected and feed into the generator to establish the strong barrier field,« the Prophet explained further.
»Okay, it sounds easy, the way you explain it, but how do we get to the surface after the tunnel is finished?« Pi inquired, still wary of the ZyClonians’ plan of action.
»There’s a solution to every problem,« Kuster~Laap replied mysteriously.
Suddenly a bright, white ring appeared at the ceiling. The unleashed energy rotated clockwise, eating into the dome’s hull.
Maya and Pi stepped back and watched as the energy field created a vertical, two- meter wide, smooth tunnel.
»What happens once we get through and the energy field collapses behind us?« Pi asked mutedly.
»As you said, water and debris will enter the station and flood it,« Kuster~Laap replied.
›Then the dead Progonauts will finally rest in peace,‹ Ivanova brooded.
The energy field slowly advanced upward..
Pi suddenly lost his footing and tried to regain his balance by waving his arms.
»What are you doing?« he yelped in surprise. Then he understood. They slowly followed the ZyClonians upward into the tunnel inside an antigravity field.
»It’s working, Maya!« he shouted back. »We’re ascending at the same speed the tunnel is being driven into the rock.«
›Energy-matter transformation, antigravity fields, defense shields … unbelievable what these ZyClonian nanopods can do. They’re true masters of nano-technology!‹ Pi thought, impressed. ›Still, they need our help to prevent the catastrophe …‹
The ascent took about an hour. Pi twitched for a moment as water droplets hit his face. The water tasted salty – sea water!
»I think we’ve broken through the surface,« he announced.
The swirling energy field had disappeared. The water above their heads was shimmering dark silver-gray. The laws of nature seemed to stand on their heads.
›A very unusual sight,‹ Pi thought, dryly.
The nearer he got to the end of the tunnel, the more nervous he became.
»I’m only 5 meters away from the exit. Can you hear me?« he asked anxiously.
He looked down and saw her gesturing with her arms, but he didn’t hear what she was saying. As he looked up again, his head was almost entering the water line and he took a deep breath.
›The water pressure is going to kill me!‹ he thought in unreasoned panic.
His vision blurred, but he noticed that the water, which must have been ice-cold, didn’t touch him. He slowly exhaled and let himself take a cautious breath. Clean oxygen filled his lungs and it was then he noticed the thin layer protecting him from the water pressure and the water temperature – another energy field! He started to swim away from the opening, where another energy aura left the tunnel.
›That must be Maya!‹ he thought.
Moments later, the Chiropter and his companions followed.
Pi suddenly felt a force that pushed him away from the hole while schools of underwater creatures followed him, attracted by the field’s glow. Some of the creatures collided with the field and were repelled. While he pushed away from the tunnel, a strong water current went in the opposite direction. Sea creatures, plants and mud were pulled into the tunnel leading to the station. The energy field which had capped the tunnel entrance had collapsed. Nothing could prevent the station from being flooded, destroying everything inside it.
Pi felt depressed. He had hoped for more time to examine the installation.
Their energy auras were drawn toward each other and combined into one larger bubble with room for everybody.
Maya Ivanova frowned.
»I’ve never seen anything like this before. I’m really impressed, but we’ve lost the station for our research teams,« she said mutedly.
»Yeah. Nevertheless, this is a great technical achievement. The ZyClonians saved us,« Pi replied.
Kuster~Laap turned his head toward Ivanova and stated calmly, »The energy field protects us and also filters oxygen from the water.«
Pi thought that the energy bubble had become semi-material and sturdier.
»We will now drive the energy bubble to the nearest underwater abode,« Kuster~Laap told them. »You can contact your people there, but we must hurry!«
The bubble accelerated, pulling a stream of eddy currents behind it.
»A hydrodynamic propulsion system, Pi?« Maya suggested.
»Yep. Something like that!« Pi winked at her.
A miracle
Abraham looked exhausted when he came out of Lisa’s room after about an hour. Pat watched his reactions closely as he came down the stairs. Jakob jumped up in hope.
›Is he only pretending to be exhausted, or was it really that hard?‹ Pat wondered suspiciously.
Abraham sat down at the kitchen table and slammed his big hand on Jakob’s shoulder. Jakob had returned to his chair and was seated to Abraham’s right.
»Your sister will be fine, Jakob. She’s healed, but she needs some rest. Let Lisa sleep now,« he announced.
With tears of joy, Jakob took Abraham’s hand, holding it for a moment, and then nodded in relief. He got up and went upstairs.
›I can’t believe this!‹ Pat thought, her anger rising.
»Uh … excuse me …«
Abraham looked at her, smiling.
»I see doubt in your eyes, Patricia. You’ll see for yourself shortly that I’m telling the truth,« he assured her.
Pat shook her head.
»I have a lot of respect for your faith, but you can’t tell me that you cured her by simply laying your hand on her forehead and that in hour …« she told him doubtfully.
»… I have to go now,« Abraham interrupted her politely. »It was a pleasure meeting you.«
Before Abraham left the house, he turned around again, smiled and tipped his index finger at his hat.
Pat grew restless.
Jakob returned, visibly relieved. He sat down beside Pat with a big smile.
»I’d like to see Lisa. I want to see for myself that she’s really okay!« Pat told him strongly.
»Trust him, Pat. Lisa will be fine,« Jakob insisted.
»What makes you so sure?«
Jakob ignored her raised voice and looked her straight in the eyes.
»He healed Samuel, a carpenter, who had fallen from a roof,« he explained.
»Think, Jakob, it was probably just a sprain leg or a twisted ankle. Nobody can mend a broken leg or a foot in a couple of minutes. That’s impossible!« she objected.
»Oh, no … it wasn’t an arm or a leg … it was his back. His spine was broken!«
Pat shivered suddenly.
»Oh … c’mon, Jakob!«
»He awoke Saul from the dead,« Jakob added. »Abraham has unbelievable powers!«
Pat jumped from her chair.
»Then Saul was not really dead, only unconscious!«
Pat was really agitated at the moment. She turned around and ran up the stairs to see Lisa for herself. Jakob didn’t hold her back, but he shouted after her, »You still need to find the true faith …!«
Pat opened the door to Lisa’s room and was greeted with a wide smile. Lisa was awake.
»I’m healthy, Patricia. I’m feeling much, much better now and my skin is clean!«
Pat held her breath. The cancer on Lisa’s arms and neck was gone!
»Show me your belly, please, and your legs,« she requested.
The girl pulled up her night dress and showed Pat the formerly affected areas.
›Unbelievable. No sign of cancer!‹ Pat thought, utterly perplexed.
She looked at Lisa.
»How did he do that?«
»He put his hand on my arm. I got very hot and fell asleep,« Lisa replied simply.
NEBULAR Collection 4 - Second Reserve: Episodes 17 - 21 Page 5
