John Krygelski - The Aegis Solution

Soon the banging on the door gradually tapered off, until it stopped completely, as did the shouts from outside.

The group, less Hutson and Crabill, who had decided to remain behind and keep an eye on the exit, walked slowly through the corridors which had been Kreitzmann’s lab. The area was quiet and deserted.

After their tumultuous episode, Elias’ voice sounded unnaturally loud in the silence. “I wonder where they are.”

“Perhaps we should check at Madison,” Wilson offered.

Lisa Clements came to a halt and said, “Do you mind if I ask a question?”

Wilson came to a stop beside her. “Of course not.”

The rest of the group stopped as well, circling around them.

“I’ve been thinking about what you said before, about how all of this could have happened. I know you didn’t mention God in your explanation… or theory… or whatever it is, but I believe there is a God, and I can’t imagine anyone else able to do what you’ve described. Do you really think that God would cause that poor girl, Neve Walker, to put a gun to her own head? And do you believe that He would hand the monsters behind this plot a disease which would kill everyone on Earth? Not to mention all of the other horrible parts of the so-called script.”

Wilson looked at her intently for a moment, a gentle smile on his face, before he answered, “I only look at the facts, Lisa. I take them in, and I sort them out until, eventually, I can ascertain a pattern. My theory, as you described it, makes no value judgments. To answer your question in the same vein, and assuming that your belief is valid and there is a God, there are only two logical possibilities. Either all of the participants, including Neve Walker and her father… including the man who concocted the doomsday bug… including Boehn when he ordered the extermination of the residents of ZooCity… and including all of us, are merely actors in a script penned by the hand of God, a cold and pragmatic being who could wipe out essentially all of the people on Earth, if it served His purpose….

“Or God is a more benevolent being, someone who watched with agony as the cataclysm unfolded and knew that He could, perhaps, intervene this time; but also knew that His actions would only delay the inevitable, that the tendency of man to destroy himself had reached a point of no return. And at some point in the procession of parallel events, He saw an opportunity to salvage a small piece of His creation, an opportunity to throw a group of us a life raft in the form of Aegis.”

Lisa absorbed what Wilson had said before she asked, “Which do you believe?”

With a subtle shrug, Wilson placed his hand on her shoulder and said, “If there is a God, I much prefer to see Him in the latter role.”

None of the others had anything to add, and they resumed their trek.

Walking slowly, as if they had all just finished a marathon, the eight of them trudged through the reception area and out into the main Aegis corridor, which was also absent any residents. With Sweezea walking point, carrying his rifle at the ready, they traveled through three connecting hallways without encountering a soul.

“Madison is around the next corner,” Sweezea muttered over his shoulder.

“I think I heard voices,” Tillie remarked with a tinge of relief.

The rest of them heard the voices, too. It sounded as though a relatively large gathering had assembled ahead. Immediately upon reaching the intersection, Sweezea motioned for the rest of the group to stay back as he edged forward and carefully peeked around. Signaling an “all clear,” he lowered his rifle and proceeded, the others close behind.

Ahead of them lay one of the zig-zag entrance barriers. As they came closer, the voices coming from the other side grew louder. No one was stationed at the barrier, and they passed through the series of switchbacks, still not encountering anyone.

Emerging from the final corner, Elias, following Sweezea, saw that they were entering a larger open area he had not visited before in his earlier travels. It was almost filled with people, far too many for him to be able to determine a count. They were all facing away from him, looking in the direction of a man on an elevated platform, whom Elias recognized as Milton Pierce. He was obviously in the middle of addressing the crowd when he spotted the six newcomers.

“Everyone… I see that we have a few new arrivals. If you would bear with me for a moment, I would like to speak with them. Perhaps they can shed some light on what is happening.”

The members of the assemblage began looking over their shoulders and saw Wilson, Elias, and the others, as Pierce came down from the platform and worked his way to the back. Breaking through the last of the crowd, he strode up to them, a nervous smile on his face. “Wilson, it is good to see you and your friends. Rudy Kreitzmann was brought to us earlier for medical care and he has been telling us some very bizarre things. Frankly, I’m not one hundred percent sure he isn’t delusional.”

“I don’t know for certain what he has told you,” Wilson responded, “but I would venture to say that he is not.”

Pierce’s brow furrowed with concern. “He was talking about the end of the world.”

Wilson glanced over Pierce’s shoulder for a moment before turning back. “We should probably find a quiet place to talk.”

Reading the seriousness of Wilson’s face accurately, Pierce turned to the gathering and, in a raised voice, said, “If you could all excuse me, I will be back shortly.”

The people murmured and began breaking into small groups as Pierce led Wilson and the others to a nearby room.

As soon as they all entered, he closed the door behind them. The room was filled with tables and chairs, arranged cafeteria-style. “Please, everyone, have a seat.”

They did, and Wilson, augmented occasionally by Elias and Tillie, told Pierce everything, including the final standoff at the exit. Elias could not get a good read on the man, who attempted to absorb both the facts and Wilson’s theory, and whose face remained impassive throughout the narrative. They finished, and Pierce sat back in his chair and stared up at the ceiling. No one spoke, giving him an opportunity to assimilate what they had said.

After minutes of silence had passed, he looked back down and leaned forward. “Well, it looks as though we have some work to do.”

At that moment, Elias’ respect for the man multiplied exponentially.

As calmly as if he were planning a family vacation, Pierce began, “We have already formed a salvage team to sift through the damage on the roof. We have found a surprising number of intact solar panels, and we have a team of electricians struggling to segregate them from the debris field and connect them to the grid. The winds are making their work incredibly difficult, not to mention the suddenly cold temperatures.”

He paused for a moment and a slight smile crossed his face. “But now, I do not believe we will be referring to them as the cursed winds any longer.”

“More like blessed winds,” acknowledged Matt. “I’m the contractor who built Aegis, by the way. I’d be happy to help with that project.”

“Excellent. We are very happy to have you. To continue, a large contingent of our citizens volunteered to clean up ZooCity. The bodies have all been moved to the nearest atrium in that part of the complex, and we have steadily been performing ceremonial burials.”

“A most onerous task. I’m impressed,” Wilson commented.

Pierce shrugged as if it had been a minor undertaking. “It had to be done. Medically, we are in excellent shape. Our stocks of antibiotics, asthma inhalers, and other medications are high. At Madison, we have encouraged the practice of monthly blood donations for quite some time and have built up an excellent bank. Now that Rudy Kreitzmann’s staff have joined us, we have three physicians and two surgeons as a part of our community, as well as a number of researchers with skills and training in the areas of biology and psychology.”