PERIL (3 page)

“Can we change the world? Will this mission s
ucceed or fail?” Vanessa ponders.

The view from Vanessa’s apartment reveals a
holographic jumbotron beyond the rushing traffic. The holographic jumbotron plays an Ares Corporation commercial that depicts the increasingoverpopulation of the Earth, the slow demise of the ozone layer, the regular onslaught of massive tsunamis, and the rapid decline of the world’s endangered species
.
“…But there is hope. On December 25
th
vote yes on Proposition 9 to send a manned mission, the Decima to MV5, vote yes for life. The Ares Corporation, terraforming and deep space mining,
”
the announcer declares.

Vanessa laughs to herself at
the corporate dynasty’s political move to influence public opinion under the guise of goodwill. Yet, she realizes the importance of the Ares Mission. Still, she wonders if the rebel factions are right about The Seeyer becoming too powerful.

Vanessa continues to stare into the night’s sky allowing her mind to wander. Suddenly, a female computerized voice announces the arrival of her husband’s vehicle.

“Vanessa, Mr. Bains’ pod is docking in the landing bay. Shall I heat dinner?” it asks.

“Yeah, and go on standby. He and I need to talk,” Vanessa replies subtly.

She takes a sip from a glass of red wine then places it on a glass coffee table in front of her. The automatic front door opens and her husband Tyler walks in. He sets his briefcase by the door and lays his entry card on a table in the foyer.

“Lights,” he says.

Nothing happens. He walks into the living room barely seeing his wife lying across the sofa.

“Is the system offline? Why is it so dark in here?” he asks.

“No, I put it on standby,” Vanessa replies.

“Reboot,” she calls out into the dark room. The computer acknowledges Tyler’s presence.

“Welcome home, Tyler, dinner will be ready in 8.5 minutes,” the computer states.

“Yeah, u
h, lights on full illumination,” Tyler replies.

The room quickly lightens and his gaze falls on the half-empty glass of wine on the coffee table. His eyes widens in disbel
ief. He takes a seat next to his wife.

“Vanessa, you know you can’t drink i
n your condition. It’s not good for…” he’s cut off.

“The baby I know. Tyler we need to talk. There is no easy way to say this
, so I’ll just say it. There is no baby––– not anymore.”

She places a clear octagon shaped disc labeled Ares Corp. on the coffee table next to the glass of wine.

“What do you mean there is no baby?” Vanessa’s eyes fall on the disc.

“I got my commission as second in command aboard the Decima. I had to terminate the pregnancy,” Vanessa explains.

Tyler stands up over Vanessa.

“Holy shit, Vanessa!
You make a decision like this without me?” Tyler yells.

He grabs her by the shoulders and shakes her. “You selfish
, bitch!” he yells.

Almost without feeling
, Vanessa responds, “I had no choice. Take a look around, Tyler; this planet and its inhabitants are dying! Our only hope for survival is MV5 and we needed to go yesterday!”

“Why does it have to be you? Why sacrifice our future and the life of our unborn child?”

“You know why. For the last three years all I’ve talked about was this mission and now a window of opportunity has opened up,” Vanessa replies almost without emotion.

“I hope it’s worth it, everything this marriage was, is and ever could be is lost!” Tyler yells as he grabs his coat and heads for the door.

“Tyler
, wait!” Vanessa yells.

S
he finally loses her composure realizing the finality of her marriage.

She kno
ws Tyler is not coming back. Tyler pauses in the doorway for a moment without looking back at her. She realizes that if she persists perhaps he will stay, but then the thought of all her hopes and dreams about going on the mission blocks any more words from passing her lips. Tyler walks out and she falls back onto the sofa.

“Lights out
,” she commands the computer. Reaching for the glass of wine as the lights slowly fade she begins to sob. 

The next morning
, Vanessa is in a deep slumber still on the sofa. She is slowly awakened by an annoying tone. The tone gets louder as she regains consciousness. It’s an incoming call. The apartment is flooded with the bright light from the sun aggravating her hangover. She barely opens her eyes and commands the computer to activate the glare dimmers on the windows to her apartment. The glass panels on the windows holo-graphically project the phrase, “Domicile solar charge: 75 %.” This annoys Vanessa contributing to her headache. She has yet to get a full charge from the solar panels, but at least it is an eco-friendly system she often reasons to herself.

“Answer call audio only,” she says sluggishly.

She sits upright on the sofa. She scans her surroundings noticing two empty bottles of wine lying on the floor at her feet. The acidic smell emanating from her body repulses her. She feels nauseous but manages a weak hello to the caller.

“Vanessa, Vanessa, it’s, Todd, down at the lab. You’re not going to believe this,” Todd says excitedly.

Vanessa picks up the empty bottles of wine and walks them over to the trash-recycling unit.

“Todd, what is it?” she asks as she drops the bottles into the unit.

“Uh, not over the phone. Just get down here pronto. You’ll want to see this for yourself.”

Vanessa agrees and ends the call. An hour later she arrives at the Ares Corp. lab. She walks in and finds Todd looking intently through a magnifying scope. Without looking up at her he waves her over. Vanessa walks toward him noticing a display of a fragment he’s studying on a holographic monitor.

“What cha got there?” she asks.

So far she’s unimpressed. She’s seen these fragments before. He draws her attention to the circular etchings on the piece of metal he’s studying.

“More of these fragments floated up to the surface in the Pacific Ocean. The salvage
crew brought them in last night,” Todd says excitedly.

He raises his head up from the magnifying scope and takes notice of her.

“You look like, shit,” Todd says jokingly.

“
Never mind that—–what’s so important that you dragged me down here so early?”

“Well
, we still can’t identify all of the elements in this little beauty, but the larger pieces have these strange symbols all over them and our carbon scans date them back at least a few thousand years before dinosaurs. The symbols suggest language, Vanessa.”

Vanessa leans in for a closer look.

“These are not just random symbols, these are pictographs
, predating the Neanderthals! And get this, my metallurgic analysis of this particular fragment revealed that it’s part of a ship––perhaps capable of space flight.”

“That’s quite a reach
, Todd,” Vanessa responds skeptically.

“Vanessa you know my work ethic. I don’t deal in unsupported theories
; I deal in hard facts. Everything here points to technology a century ahead of our own. How the hell did it get here?”

Vanessa had heard theories about the many rises and fall
s of past civilizations predating early man. These theories suggest that mankind had lived and evolved four times, thousands of years before the Neanderthal. Each time he reached a peak in his evolution he inevitably destroyed himself. Some theorize that an early civilization of humanoids lived on Mars twice before asteroids destroyed the planet. During the second rise on Mars, many of these humanoids predicted their own demise and sent human DNA to Earth. They watched their progeny grow and even had some influence on the Mayan and Egyptian cultures. There was never any scientific data to support these theories––––until now. Todd could be onto something Vanessa thinks to herself.

“Have you told anyone else about this?”

Todd shakes his head no.

“Not until we’ve got more data,
but this definitely puts us up for another grant.”

“Which means more study. Unfortunately, you’re gonna have to proceed without me,” Vanessa says sadly.

“Without you?”

Todd can’t believe what he’s hearing. Vanessa smiles and grabs his hand and tells him about her new commission as commander aboard the Decima.

“I’m going to MV5.”

“Vanessa
, I’m happy for you, but how are you going to be able to do that pregnant?”

“I terminated the pregnancy
.”

Todd looks stunned.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know–––are you ok?”

“I’m fine. Can’t say the same for
, Tyler,” Vanessa says as her voice drops slightly.

“Well
, I understand why you did it. If we’re going survive the next fifty years or so we’re gonna have to reach for the stars right? I just wish you could stay here and work on this with me. We’re on the verge of something big here I can feel it.”

Suddenly, the automatic do
ors to the lab flies open. Three Ares Corp. executives and General Graham walk in.

The G
eneral is serious as usual. He addresses Vanessa.

“We’ve had a change in plans. You will be the new
, Captain, for the mission to MV5.”

Surprised Vanessa listens intently.

“Captain Daniel Briggs has opted for early retirement. His political views on the nature of our work on MV5 has created some–––concerns, with the board. Since we don’t have time to prep a viable candidate–––you’re up. Congratulations!”

He shakes her hand firmly.

“When do we leave–––I mean, I thought the mission was on hold at least until Proposition 9 is voted on,” Vanessa asks.

One of the Ares’ executives
interrupts the conversation.

“Prop.
9 is just a formality,
Captain Bains
.
A carrot for the public, besides we’ve already sent several missions to the planet to set up a habitat for you and your crew. The teams are already headed back to Earth. The site and its systems are maintained by HAB 1, our resident computer.” 

“I’m sorry
, but I wasn’t briefed on the current status of the mission. As I understood it we were going to MV5 to begin terraforming operations and surveying for prime mineral extractions. A habitat?” Vanessa asks.

Vaness
a directs her attention to the General. He hands her a clear octagon shaped disc marked MV5 Mining Mission Initiative.

“This is now
strictly a mining expedition, Bains. Our probes have confirmed the existence of massive amounts of precious mineral deposits we need for The Dyson’s Sphere. The Apollo Corporation and Aaron Enterprises have scheduled similar missions to the site. They expect to leave two months ahead of us. They want to beat us to the punch,” the General explains.

The Ares’ executive interrupts again, “Whoever controls the reserves
, controls the fate of the Earth. We’ve worked out a mining treaty for now, but it’s flimsy at best. With the site so far away you’ll be on your own if the, shit, hits the fan. So diplomacy is key here.”

“Review the disc–––
you’ll be introduced to your crew in a few weeks,” the General adds.

Vanessa Bains is
excited about her new commission and saddened by her choice to terminate her pregnancy. The choice to terminate her unborn child and the resulting demise of her marriage was a calculated decision–––one she wrestled with for a long time. Yet, her inner thoughts remain her own. Careful not to show her inner conflict, she put on a brave face for the company men and the general. She realizes that she will be the first black female in history to ever lead a mission like this. Racism and sexism are no longer issues that plague mankind. However, Bains realizes her achievement is significant.

Bains also knows that she will be
considered a pariah in some circles for her decision to terminate her child. Abortion is still a hot topic. Yet, her rationale is that her decision is for the greater good of humanity. She weighted her options and is prepared for the judgment; she just hasn’t considered her own remorse.

Weeks later, Vanessa Bains is put through her paces. Training is difficult, but her tenacity and ambition keep her on point. She is physically and mentally ready for the mission and the command of her crew.

She is eager to meet her crew and prepared for their expected rejection of her. Captain Br
iggs, her predecessor, is well-liked by the public and his crew. His crew is notoriously loyal to him and will, no doubt, be skeptical of her. Still, she can’t wait to meet them. She has spent countless hours studying their personnel files and personality profiles. She also studied the mission protocols endlessly, often wondering if she will be ready for the journey ahead.