Star Missions - Book One - Part IV

Chapter 36 - It's A Miracle

Hydra

22-10-2201

Ground Zero

It had been ten days since the bombing on Hydra. The search for survivors ended days ago, sadly, with no trace. But the good news was that there was no sign of killer alien bugs. Also, radiation levels subsided, and the bad air had cleared enough. Workers could now bring in more equipment and remove the wreckage. Major Lee, acting leader of the Strolla System, felt it essential not to allow the extraordinary lows in morale over the past week and a half to become the new normal. Rebuilding would remove the void where the lab was. He hoped that it would also help heal their wounds as well.

Major Daniels, commander of the Hydracorps engineers, led the clean-up. The Nova Lab was an integral part of the settlement. Volunteers from all over the system came to help. Some even came from smaller private mining settlements on Nova and asteroids in proximity to the system. The community wanted to and needed to rebuild.

Victor Belter was recovering from his injuries under house arrest on Nova Station, and hundreds of people that lived on Hydra were still missing and presumed dead. For those less affected, they had to move forward. The sooner they removed the debris, the easier it would be to put the tragedy behind them. Even those that lost loved ones needed to start accepting reality, they weren't coming back.

Before leaving on the mission to recover Blue-Ray, Colonel Hand had given precise instructions regarding the clean-up. It would be cleared, leveled, and prepped for reconstruction. However, rebuilding the Nova Lab on Hydra was not the top priority. There was something else that had that spot. Major Daniels didn't know or care what that was. He was just glad to have the resources and the workforce he needed to get the job done.

It took the better part of the morning to get the equipment to the job site. The Hydra military base situated some sixty kilometers from where the Nova Lab once stood. Some of the machinery still needed to be airlifted out while the most cumbersome equipment was getting towed to the site. The work zone was bustling with volunteers. They erected tents for shade, and a kitchen was getting set up. They were in the process of moving piles of debris into the crater to be buried. It was then that one of the bulldozer operators noticed some movement on the beach that was just visible from the far end of the work zone. He thought he saw a Hydran though he couldn't tell for sure since it was still very far away. Next time he worked that area, he planned to check again.

Thirty minutes later, he had a clear view of the beach. Those little dots he saw earlier were closer. They were not Hydrans at all. Nor were they any other type of sea creature. They were Humanoid!

The sight, however, made him more curious, and he stopped the bulldozer and call the supervisor on duty, Maurice Jennings, one of the private mining company foreman volunteering in the clean-up. He was also one of Victor Belter's most prominent supporters, as he had many dealings with the Governor since he was appointed.

Major Daniels was back at the Base, so Jennings was the man on-site that day. Jennings and many other workers made their way down to where the bulldozer was. They wanted to see what all the commotion was. What Jennings thought were dozens of people walking from the beach ended up being hundreds.

No one said a word. To Jennings and the others, a seemingly impossible but fantastic dream was unfolding in front of them. No one wanted to be the first to wake up and make it all disappear. The group had made their way from the beach, dazed but undaunted, and moved ever closer to the motionless workmen.

One of the workers eventually broke the silence and cried out, "It's a miracle!" followed by, "Everybody, come take a look," to anyone else that was not already there.