Chapter 116: To the Infinity Bar and Beyond
Shannon (The Four Seasons, Kauai, Hawaii)
Well, this was fun! I feel I may have lost a few hundred brain cells and like 7-9 IQ points with you two tonight!" I said, standing up from the bar.
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"...Just add it to my tab, Tom!" I told the bartender, jokingly. We all knew no one was paying for any of this shit!
"Night, chick!" Nick and Other Guy said, holding up their beers.
"Night, gents!"
I could hear the two laughing and talking, talking and laughing all the way back to my bungalow. I took the zigzag route, looking up for my cabin every few moments to readjust my heading. I collapsed into my comfy king size mattress and looked up through the double sliding glass doors at the bright (and now spinning) moon and stars. In a few hours, night would politely hand the island, and me, off to the day without incident or content. And yet, all I could think was:
"God, I can't die here!"
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Chapter 117: Left Alone
Emily Sue Foster (Home of Jack Richter, Erie, Pennsylvania)
"Sorry I didn't make it down last night, Amanda. I haven't been feeling so hot. Actually, that's not true... I've been feeling very hot! Tired, too. Think I'm coming down with something."
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"...You must be starving, going without dinner like that... I brought you some canned corn, your favorite."
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"...Good Lord, you 'were' hungry!"
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"...K, well, I'm going back to bed... get some sleep. See you in a few hours, enjoy!"
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Chapter 118: Let There Be Light
Bohdan and Sim Lu (Alcatraz)
"Finally figured out where we're getting power from," I yelled down to Sim.
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"...Rows and rows and rows of solar panels up here! You know what solar panels are??"
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Maybe a thousand panels, literally. Probably over a thousand. Alcatraz had its very own micro power plant and I don't think anyone even knew about it. Somewhere inside one of the numerous buildings was what must be a room full of electronic equipment... Dozens of batteries, automatic controllers, converters, inverters, you name it! There's no way this place needs this much power... but we had it!
Not sure how it all survived the blast. Guess the network of vertical and horizontal steel reinforcement rebar inside the concrete walls acted as a grid... a Faraday cage. As for the panels themselves, they contain little to no electronics, which makes sense. Their lifespan may have been significantly diminished and their output lowered, but even if they're now operating at 10% peak, that's still hundreds of times more energy than Sim and I would ever have use for.
"I'm coming down!"
Chapter 119: Left for Dead
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THE END [[#Wattys2020]]
Science FictionFull of growing suspense and surprise turns, "The End," set in the very near future, follows the winding and overlapping paths of several compelling characters as they're forced to navigate independent, yet inter-winding paths through the turbulent...
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