Laser Light

Chapter 7

9th September 7.20pm

Bennett, Alan and Lucy were less than one hundred metres from the SOEV when the dish behind them disintegrated with a bright flash. The shock wave knocked them off their feet, but they were unhurt.

"Check your suits and your suit pressure gauges for leaks," Bennett instructed. He looked back to where the dish had been. It was completely gone.

"Lucky we got that warning from Tracy," Alan said, "If we had been standing under that thing a minute ago we'd all be dead. Do we go back and have a look at what's left?"

"No," Bennett replied, "Not until we consult with Tracy, but I have a feeling she'll tell us to stay right away from it for the time being. Let's get back to the SOEV and get back to the base."

As they continued towards their vehicle Bennett glanced back over his shoulder. For a moment, just a moment something shimmered in the air above the location of the now disintegrated dish. He blinked and looked again. It was gone. He opened his mouth to tell the others about it but then had second thoughts. They would think he was seeing things.

Soon they were flying high over the Martian landscape back to the safety of their base. While they were in flight a message came from Tracy asking for a report of what happened and instructing them to stay well away from the remains of the mysterious dish until further notice.

9th September 7.50pm

Phillip Hammond and Tracy stood on the roof of the Silver Star Research Complex examining the remains of the tachyon particle generator. Nearby lay the body of Carl Rozman, covered with a tarpaulin waiting for the police and ambulance to arrive.

"Dad, Grace saw it happen twenty minutes before it actually happened," Tracy explained, "She said 'it' had gone from Warren Harris to Rozman and it wanted to go home to Mars."

Phillip nodded. "Yes it makes sense now," he muttered, "When we went down to B3 the entity was still there and somehow attached itself to Warren Harris. He was the third member of the team with us that day. Then it must have transferred to Rozman and controlled or influenced him to move the test forward, increase the power of the tachyon beam, and then somehow travel along the beam to Mars to that receptor dish."

"Does that mean it's on Mars right now?"

"Probably. Can you feel its presence here?"

"No. What about you?"

"Nothing," her father answered, "Where is Grace now?"

"Waiting in my office."

"I'll talk to her after I take care of things with the police."

9th September 8.30pm

Despite what had happened Grace wasn't in a state of shock as Tracy thought she might be. The lift doors did not face directly along the roof to where the generator had been, so when it exploded she hadn't seen what had happened. Tracy had immediately gotten James to take her down to her office in the MRU. She hadn't wanted her seeing Carl Rozman's body lying by the smoking remains of the TPG.

Tracy herself had narrowly avoided being hit by flying debris. When the projector exploded she had ducked into the protection of the lift just in time.

Tracy waited with Grace until her father arrived.

"It's all taken care of," he announced, "There will be no investigation. The coroner will rule Carl Rozman's death as accidental. A horrible tragic accident."

"Dad, I tried to get him away from the projector, but...."

"I know," Phillip said gently, "The entity was still controlling him right up until the tachyon beam fired, then he didn't have time to reach the lift before the explosion."

"Granddad," Grace spoke up, "Just before the projector fired I saw something."

Phillip looked at her expectantly.

"Dr Rozman was leaning on the console," Grace continued, "and between his hands for about two seconds I saw a cluster of crystals glowing white."

Phillip nodded. "Grace, that was the alien entity about to make its leap onto the particle stream."

"So is it on Mars now?"

"I think so. It appears the mysterious dish on Mars was its destination. I'll talk with the Mars crew later and find out exactly what happened."

Grace suddenly looked stricken, and she grabbed her mother's arm. "Mum, what about Shannon?" she asked, "She'll be waiting at home for her Dad."

"I know the Rozmans don't have any relatives in this country," Tracy answered, "She can't be left at home on her own after the police give her the news. She'll be devastated."

"Can she can spend the night with us?" Grace looked at her mother with pleading eyes.

"Of course she can," Tracy said, "We'll go and get her as soon as we leave here."

One final chapter to go.
Don't forget to vote.