Bridge to Nowhere

Sky Watch Command

Wednesday

The colonel ended the presentation abruptly. He and Zsoldos sit alone in the dark auditorium, watching a confused doctor Munday pound on the glass.

The portly man looks to the colonel. "Send him through?"

The colonel hesitates, then nods affirmative.

Zsoldos reaches several inches in front of his glasses, touches the air, and speaks. "Move him forward."

The men watch the door of the presentation room open and Munday led away. Rick's presentation impressed Zsoldos.

"Very remarkable. He nailed it. I worked for a year with a team of astrophysicists before I discovered the cause of the asteroid activity. He knows everything."

"He's a criminal. I want to know how he got access to IXPE and EELT and who helped him. He illegally gained access to privileged systems. I want his personal communications blocked."

Zsoldos stands, pushing himself out of the comfortable chair. "I've had his communications blocked since he left the hotel. I agree he got into systems he should not have accessed, but to put it all together, by himself, without access to our other capabilities, is brilliant. No one else has done that."

The colonel taps his cane on the cement floor slowly as he speaks. "He's a thief. He got his information illegally. I'm glad we found him. I wouldn't want him in Los Angeles talking to reporters. We should have sent him down the blue hole, with the other idiots and fools. I want you to find out how he got into the EELT. I want assurances it's locked down. We can't afford to have high school hackers accessing our capabilities. Time is short, but we must contain information."

The colonel moves to the exit. Zsoldos follows. "Yes, Colonel. We will find out how he got in. You heard him say he hasn't had access for several months. I have confirmed every space mission, every space-based and terrestrial telescope accessible to schools, universities, and the public in the US and Europe are offline. We can't control every telescope and system worldwide, but we have done our best. The wars are a great distraction. Regardless, we continue to monitor and quash all related communication. It's good you moved him forward. I believe Munday will become a valuable member of our scientific team."

The colonel grumbles. "Huh, we'll see about that. He's a loose cannon. I am glad we have him under control."

The men exit the auditorium and walk a short distance to a door with a gel pad. The colonel inserts his hand and the door slides open to an underground rail station with a single car waiting. Zsoldos and Cruikshank enter the well-appointed subway car. A tone chimes.

The colonel speaks a command. "To the White House." The doors close and the train speeds to its destination via underground rail.

"Our world is about to face the worst disaster since the dawn of mankind and we're running around interviewing criminals and crazies," Cruikshank mumbles angrily.

A screen appears, floating twelve inches in front of Zsoldos' glasses. He views the image of a young Asian woman in uniform. He touches the air to answer the video call. It's Sky Watch Commander Chen, with two team members wearing navy blue tunics.

"Sir, we have an important update. Is the colonel with you?" asks commander Chen.

"Just a moment."

Zsoldos touches the air again, making a sweeping motion. The display moves to his band, mounted on the man's forearm, which then projects a display of the video call in midair. Zsoldos pinches one corner of the projected display stretching the screen larger.

The colonel looks at the floating display. "Chen. What is it?"

"Colonel Cruikshank, we have incoming. We have confirmed the measurements. There is a large scattered mass of asteroids approaching Earth. It's coming in quick. We have clocked the velocity at forty-five thousand miles per hour," reports the commander.

The colonel has a look of apprehension, or is it his battle face? "It is beginning. Perth was not an anomaly. It's real. It's starting."

The Sky Watch Commander defers to a young male team member. "The main mass of asteroids hasn't arrived, but it is approaching. We are tracking a scattered mass of medium-sized asteroids, arriving ahead of the main body. We have observed scattered impacts around the world. It was one of these wayward asteroids that hit Perth. We expect to see—"

Commander Chen puts her hand on the young team member's shoulder to stop him. "Colonel, there is a large mass of asteroids heading toward Earth. It is about to be a bad day for anyone topside."

"How long until the mass enters the atmosphere?" asks the colonel.

A female team member steps up to give her report. "Colonel, we got lucky. Mars is currently aligned with Earth and the incoming asteroid field. A few days ago, we recorded over four hundred impacts per hour on the surface of Mars. The red planet may have taken the worst of the first wave."

The colonel swipes his cane at the projected display. His cane passes through the hovering image. "I didn't ask about Mars, damn it. How much time do we have to get secured in New Arcadia?"

The female team member gulps. "Excuse me, sir. At its present rate of speed, the asteroid field will penetrate our atmosphere in the next eight hours."

The colonel lifts his cane, then smacks the gold tip on the metal floor of the car, making a loud pinging sound. "Eight hours! Damn it! Do you have a projected impact path? Where is this mess going to hit first?"

"Sir, trajectory tracking shows the flow coming in over the northern hemisphere across Southern Europe and as far south as the equator. Our tracking shows that initial impacts will hit France, Spain, and North Africa before crossing the Atlantic. Impacts will begin along the eastern seaboard of the US no later than 10:00 p.m. tonight."

The colonel is excited. "What? The UK gets spared? And Russia? Those bastards get to watch while we get pummeled?"

The team female team member isn't sure how to answer the colonel. Commander Chen speaks up. "Colonel, if the UK, Russia, and China are spared from initial impacts, they have only a matter of hours to rejoice or prepare. The asteroid field is massive, coming in several waves. Asteroids will impact every part of the globe as Earth rotates. It may take weeks for the mass of asteroids and comets to pass Earth."

The subway car comes to a stop, and Zsoldos stands to exit. He holds his arm level to keep the display viewable while the men walk through the tube station. The station is large with several rail lines ending under the White House.

"We have arrived at White House station. Set the security level to red. Signal the nuclear war drill for the cities. Send alerts advising council members and Arcadians they must move to the cities. Do it now!" the colonel orders.

The alert will advise anyone with approved access to move to the cities and restrict movement to topside. No one is getting in or out of the new cities unless approved by the colonel himself. 

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Later that Day–Commander Chen's Quarters

Chen sits in front of a video screen talking with a Chinese military leader. "Thank you for the update, Chen. Your information has proven invaluable. We continue to prepare."

"But General Tsoi, the African campaign and the push into Chad. It seems the Four Wars are intensifying," says Chen.

"A charade. A small sacrifice to mislead our enemies as we prepare for the grand battle and our ultimate victory after the storm. We are building an insurmountable arsenal of weapons in our underground factories," General Tsoi steps aside. The camera views rows of fierce looking tanks just off the assembly line.

"We will be on lock down soon. I won't be able to communicate again until the storm has passed," says Chen.

"Until the storms pass," says Tsoi.