“You all had a really special relationship, the first dozen or so of the group,” Todd observed.
“Everything was so brand new. We believed that anything was possible, and it was all because of Chris and his G-wave discovery.”
“And here we are,” said Todd.
“Exactly!”
“The adrenaline is wearing off and I’m beat. I’m going to get some shut-eye. Thanks for the stories, Chuck. I could listen to them for hours. But now that I’m safely anchored, I’m having a hard time keeping my eyes open.”
“Right on, Todd. I’ll check in with you tomorrow.”
“G’nite, Chuck,” Todd said, signing off.
Chuck had G2 check the status of the ground team and the whale without waking anyone. Satisfied that all was well, he prepared for bed, and allowed himself to drop off to sleep.
Chapter 26
WHERE TO NOW ST. PETER
The old joke among physicists was that God invented time so that everything in the universe didn’t happen all at once; alas it was not to be in Earth’s solar system. Christopher’s planning made sure of that.
He was awake very late into the night, too keyed up to sleep even though the Russian/EU mission was scheduled to match orbit with the colony the following night.
“Genesis, what’s the status of the ground mission?” Christopher asked.
“G2 reports that everyone is currently sleeping. The whale was dropped off in Lake Michigan without incident and it appears it was not observed. Todd took the eastern decoy run and dropped off of the U.S. military gravity wave detector in the Boston area. Chuck flew toward Baja California before he too disappeared from view. All three ships are concealed underwater and according to the performance data recorded by sensors, they performed as expected. The ground team has made a preliminary inspection of the storage warehouse and found it secure with the majority of the items on the departmental and wish list already delivered.”
“And how is your twin performing?”
“Quite well. G2 has infiltrated the U.S. military communications network and is able to maintain contact with all three ships and each member of the ground team. G2 is also streaming all transactional and observational data back to me for integration into my memory matrix. The experience is novel. However, the duality of the result is problem-free.”
“Very good. And what of the incoming spacecraft?” Christopher asked.
“It will arrive this evening at seven o’clock.”
“And the status of the NASA mission?”
“They are still broadcasting the same offer to communicate. There has been no change in spacecraft attitude. They are holding steady one hundred miles away. According to reports transmitted back to NASA the spacecraft performed better than expected.”
“And what of Joy’s father? Is there any word on what his real role on the mission is?”
“No more information has been received or sent.”
“Thank you, Genesis. I’m going to try to get at least a couple of hours of sleep.”
“Good night, Christopher.”
* * *
Lucius was awake before any of the others and dressed quietly, so as to not wake Julius with whom he shared a room. When he exited the bathroom, Julius cracked open an eye and asked, “What time is it?”
“Too early for you to get up. I always get up early. Go back to sleep and call me when you’ve all eaten breakfast.” When Julius laid his head back on the pillow, Lucius left, quietly locking the door behind him.
The early morning was very pleasant; birds were singing and the sun was well above the horizon as Lucius stopped at the motel restaurant. He purchased a cup of coffee and then set off at a leisurely pace for the warehouse. Arriving before the caretaker, he went around and turned on all the lights, then went to the office and to read online news sites to catch up on current events. He was so engrossed with his research that when a man in the doorway loudly asked, “And who might you be?” Lucius jumped.
“Didn’t mean to startle you, but this place is private property. Just who are you and how did you get in?” the thirty-something black man in a shirt and tie inquired again.
Lucius got to his feet, his hand out to shake the man’s. “I am Lucius Walker. My firm hired you to take care of this place while our shipments arrived. Bobby Parker, correct?”
“Mr. Walker!” Parker exclaimed and he vigorously shook the older man’s hand. “I’m very pleased to meet you. Sorry for the greeting, but I really wasn’t sure I was ever going to have the pleasure of meeting. Have you been here long? Is there anything I can get you? Coffee? Something to eat? Have you had breakfast?”
“Slow down, slow down. I’m fine!”
“Sure thing. No one told me you were stopping by, or anything. I’ve been checking in shipping, doing the barcode inventory and entering it in the computer like it said to in the emails. Would you like a tour?”
“No, thank you. Is it okay to call you Bobby?”
“Sure thing! What can I do for you today, Mr. Walker?”
“Our expedition is going to head for South America soon, as it said in the email messages we’ve been exchanging, and we’ll be leaving within the next few days. Now that the research team has arrived to pack everything up, I’m afraid that we won’t be needing your services any more. However, I have severance for you to help you through until you get your next assignment,” Lucius informed him, knowing that Parker worked through an employment agency.
Parker’s face fell, as he realized his cushy gig was about to come to an end.
“Here’s what I’m going to do. I’ll have the agency pay you through the end of the week and give you two weeks severance. Then I will give you six months pay in cash if you think you can keep that under your hat. How’s that sound?”
Parker was stunned speechless. Lucius chuckled at the young man’s reaction.
“Tell you what. If you could take a couple of my people to a car and truck rental agency I’ll pay you when you get back,” offered Lucius.
“Wherever you want, Mr. Walker! Are you sure that’s all you need? I’d be happy to stay on through the end of the week, it’s no problem,” offered Parker.
“That won’t be necessary, Bobby. But I do thank you for all the hard work you’ve put in getting our expedition’s equipment sorted out.”
“Sure thing, Mr. Walker!”
“All right, let me give them a call and we can hang around until they get here. They’re all sleeping in because our flight got in so late. Be right back,” Lucius said, pointing to his earpiece.
Once outside, he summoned G2.
“Is anyone else awake?” he asked.
“Lena is showering, according to the ambient noises coming from the room. It appears that the others are still asleep.”
“When she finishes, let her know that the caretaker will be driving them to the rental agencies. Remind them all of the science expedition cover story before they arrive. And please tell them there’s no rush, they should all eat before they set out. It’s going to be a long day.”
“Very well. Is there anything else I may assist you with, Lucius?”
“No— no, wait. How goes the search for the jumpers?”
“Both jumpers are anchored well outside areas the military is searching. Todd and Chuck are still asleep and the G-wave detector is currently unable to locate the ships.”
“And Sondra?”
“She is awake and preparing something to eat.”
“Connect me, please.”
“Yes, Lucius?” she responded.
“How goes it down there?” he inquired.
“Nice and quiet. It’s very cool having Internet access down here. I’m going to have a ball catching up on the movies that came out since we left,” she said excitedly.
“You could have watched those at home,”
Lucius reminded.
“I know, but I never think about it. I’m usually too busy to care, but since I’ll be cooling my heels down here for the next few days, I’ve got plenty to keep me occupied. How’s everything going with you all?”
“I met the kid—I guess thirty isn’t really a kid—who Genesis hired as caretaker and to receive in the things shipped here. Nice guy, happy to be getting six month’s pay completely off the books. He’s going take everyone to pick up the rentals,” he explained.
“Sounds good. Let me run, my food’s ready. I’ll check in with you later to see how everything’s going,” she said.
“Good enough. Take care.”
Lucius returned to the office to find Parker doing something on his mobile phone.
Parker looked up and said, “Just checking in with my peeps online, seeing what everyone is up to.”
Lucius cautiously asked, “Do you share what you do here with them, Bobby?”
“What? No, of course not … they do know that I’m kind of like a security guard for a warehouse. But none of them know where this place is. I read the rules!”
“Don’t sweat it. I was just curious. It seems today that you younger folk can do just about anything with those phones of yours,” observed Lucius.
“Oh yeah! I do everything with it,” Parker gushed.
“Sounds indispensable. Anyway, I left word with my team that you have kindly agreed to give them a ride to the rental agencies. When you get back, we can settle up. Is that okay with you?”
“It sure is, Mr. Walker. I’ve really enjoyed working for you. If you ever need someone for the same thing in the future, please keep me in mind!”
“I sure will. The others should be here shortly, is there anything you need the computer for or may I catch up on current events?” Lucius graciously asked.
“No problem, Mr. Walker. I can use my phone. Also, I can take care of anything that might arrive, too. Don’t you worry about a thing.”
Lucius gave a small wave and turned back to the desktop’s screen. He entered the make and model number of the safe Neil had found and located a user’s manual that showed how to change the combination. Not having seen the unit the night before, he was glad to find that it was equipped with a numeric keypad instead of the dial he was used to.
Letting Parker know he would be back in a few minutes, Lucius went and found the unit, using the combination taped to the top of the safe to open it. Then he changed the combination, telling G2 what he had entered. He tried the combination three times before he felt sure he could open it once he locked the briefcase inside.
He counted out what he had agreed to pay Parker, put the bills in an envelope, then stuffed it into his inner jacket pocket and put the briefcase away.
He took a good look around the warehouse, nodding in approval at how each boxed item had a barcode label in an easy-to-find location. He also found what looked like a shipping office; inside were four portable barcode readers equipped with small screens and keypads sitting in their chargers. He took one of the units and turned it on. He noticed that it was looking to connect to a base station wirelessly; when an icon appeared on the screen, indicating a connection, Lucius left the little office and went over to a stack of sealed crates.
When he scanned one of the crates a brief summary of its contents appeared on the screen. Impressed with the obvious amount of work Parker must have done to receive shipments, enter the contents into the database, and then attaching the corresponding label to the crate, Lucius decided to double the amount of cash he was going to give the young man.
When he returned to the office, he found that the others had arrived and had introduced themselves to Bobby. Neil and Julius were going to take a ride with him to rent the two vehicles, while Lena and Albert would bring the shipping containers inside and begin going through the database so they could decide what items would go in which container.
Neil ran to check the welding equipment to ensure the gas tanks were full. Finding them unused, he took a look at the refrigeration equipment and gave it a quick inspection, deciding to grab some additional coolant just in case.
When he returned to the office, he, Julius and Bobby took off.
Albert opened the huge loading door at the back of the warehouse while Lena familiarized herself with the loader, which looked like a huge forklift designed to lift a container from the side.
When she turned the ignition key, it started right up. She drove over to the farthest container from the door and picked it up. As she slowly drove over to the door, Albert came outside to watch clearances on both sides.
She angled one end of the container inside then wheeled the tractor around angling the container so the other end cleared the door. Once she was fully inside, she drove the empty container far enough inside to leave room for the others to line up alongside and lowered it to the floor.
Albert gave her a huge grin and a thumbs-up as she quickly drove to get the next container. In less than fifteen minutes she was parking the last container in the row as Albert opened the containers’ doors to make sure no critters were living inside any of the cavernous boxes.
“Girl, you really know how to wheel that thing!” said Albert after she parked the tractor.
“Moonlighted at the docks in San Diego while I was in school. Even had my Union Card, although getting it was a pain in the ass. How do they look?” she asked.
“They’re all in great shape. Neil can have his choice of whichever one he wants to insulate and refrigerate. These things are huge. Are they all going to fit in the hold of the whale?”
“Sure they will. With the G-wave lifters it will only take four of us to move them into the hold and stack them.”
“Okay, now I see! That’s why the four moving stairs!”
“Yep. Let’s go to the office and see if we can get a start on what should be loaded where,” she suggested. When they returned to the office, Lucius was sitting, engrossed in whatever he was accessing online. When he noticed the two had returned, he asked, “Need any help bringing the containers inside?”
They laughed, then Albert said, “Already done. She had them all inside in no time at all! All the boxes are clean, too. We’re ready to rock and roll.”
“We were going to check out the inventory and see how we should start loading the containers. Can we use the computer?” Lena asked.
“No need, the information is available on your tablets. They are networked by G2 with the inventory file on this unit here.”
“When we get back, we’re going to have to do something special for TJ for coming up with idea of Genesis in the first place,” said Lena. “I can’t think of how we could have done any of this without the A.I.’s help.”
“I think it’s the most fascinating intelligence in the whole colony, no offense,” Lucius said.
Lena and Albert pulled their disguised datapads out of their cases and turned them on, seeing icons for the inventory, local searches and even a connection to the Internet.
“Amazing … ” Lena said quietly.
“The really cool thing is that with the G-wave tech, we don’t have to worry about load balancing. But it would be easier unloading if the various departments had all their equipment in a single container for convenience,” said Albert.
“Look at this, we can sort by who requested the item and what department they belong to! This is going to be a cinch!” said Lena, inspecting the database records.
“I’ve got an idea. Why don’t we make it easier to load, since the containers open from both ends. Let’s put the sealed, heavier equipment in first, really pack it in at the middle of each container. Then we can fill in with the smaller boxes and bags around the big stuff,” he suggested.
“With the artificial gravity in the whale’s hold, the loads won’t be shifting around either,” Lena added. Looking around the office, she asked Luc
ius, “Does that printer work?”
“I have no idea,” Lucius replied. Activating his earpiece, Lucius asked G2 if it could tell if the printer worked. In response a test page was immediately ejected. “How about from the tablets?” Lucius asked G2, then all three heard the A.I. answer through their earpieces in the affirmative and the explanation of how to send print jobs to the office laser printer.
“Good!” Lena said. “I’ll sort everything we have by department and get started on the bigger crates.”
Albert jumped to his feet and said, “I’ll give you a hand until Julius and Neil get back. Then I’ll see if Neil needs help getting the freezer container prepared.”
Lucius then informed them, “I’m waiting for the car to get here so I can run downtown and get a few things squared away. Tonight, I’m treating everyone to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants. I’ve already made reservations.”
“Wait a minute, Lucius. I didn’t bring a coat and tie, I ain’t equipped for fancy!” Albert protested.
“You won’t need fancy, just clean,” Lucius promised.
“Okay then,” Albert said skeptically.
“If it makes you feel better, I saw some clean coveralls in the men’s locker room. Use them while you’re working in the warehouse. Be careful, you two.”
“I think I’m going to want a pair of those too,” Lena said, tagging along after Albert.
* * *
Christopher hurried along to the council’s office, running a few minutes late. When he arrived, the discussion was already in progress with Sydney the only non-council member in attendance. He quietly took a seat and played catchup. Maxwell was saying, “… it’s not like we’re obligated to say anything at all. However, if we do, then my suggestion is that we shouldn’t play favorites by engaging one mission over the other.”
Confrontation Page 42
