David Simpson - Post-Human Trilogy

Old-timer shook his head. “No, I didn’t say a word.”

“Oh,” James smiled, embarrassed, “I guess it was…” He didn’t finish his sentence, as he turned to see that Rich had floated several meters away and out of earshot. He was staring up at the white mist as it climbed hundreds of meters into the sky. “That’s the damnedest thing,” James said.

“What happened?” Old-timer asked.

“I just… I swear someone asked me if I missed Katherine. It was as clear as a bell.”

Old-timer could see the sudden distress in his friend’s expression. It was only natural that James was having a harder time getting over the death of his former wife than he would admit to himself. It was true that James loved Thel, but he would always be haunted by the death of Katherine at the hands of the A.I. He put his arm on James’s shoulder and said, “It’s probably just the sound of the falls messing with your ears. Come on, kid. Let’s go see that woman of yours. And I could use a replicator right about now. I’m starving!”

James smiled and nodded. “Yes, of course. Let’s go.” He activated his magnetic field and contacted Rich. “Let’s move out, buddy.”

In seconds, the trio was blasting up into the sky and away from the waves, heading toward James’s Venusian hideaway.

The mystery of the voice haunted him all the way home.

Thel stood on the balcony of the third-floor entrance of their beautiful lakeside home and waved the three men inside as they shut down their magnetic fields and landed softly on the lush carpeting. She wore a yellow sundress and was holding a glass jug of cold lemonade. “Hello, men!” she greeted with a smile.

“Hello, woman!” Old-timer responded as he embraced her and then pulled back immediately to take in the changes in her appearance. “You’re so golden!” he commented, referring to her tan.

“I’ve had a nice vacation, as you can see,” she replied, continuing to smile. “And your flight suits are all damp from the falls. I can see he took you in for a close look.”

“Oh, sorry about that, milady,” Old-timer smiled as he stepped back from her. “And while I believe you are his pride and joy, my dear, he did take us to the falls. They were spectacular… and spectacularly wet.”

“Thel, hi,” Rich said as he eyed her drink. “It’s nice to see you. Say, that lemonade looks pretty good, and it’s awfully hot.”

“Hello to you too, Rich,” Thel replied. “I promise you can have some of this lemonade once you’ve dried your clothes. You and the boys can use the dryers in the bathroom.” She pointed toward the back of the house.

“Much obliged,” Old-timer replied with a small bow as he and Rich withdrew.

James met Thel’s eyes, and then stepped to her and kissed her. “I missed you.”

“You’ve only been gone for an hour and a half, and I was sleeping through most of it,” Thel replied, kissing him back.

“I stand by my statement of missing.”

She laughed and gently pulled herself away from him. “You’re all damp too, flyboy. I think you better join the boys in the locker room and dry off.”

“Fine,” James replied before kissing her once more. “I’d rather be with you in the locker room though.”

“Tonight,” she replied. Thel made him feel as though he were the luckiest man alive.

Old-timer and Rich were already under the air vents as James entered the white-tiled bathroom. “How do you point the vents down? I need to dry my pants,” Rich asked Old-timer, who responded by doing it for him with his mind’s eye. “Thanks,” Rich replied.

“So…what do you guys think of the place?” James asked.

“It’s paradise,” Old-timer replied. “Are you sure you want to tell everyone about this? I’m sure you could keep it a secret a little longer. Since the Council canceled plans to terraform Venus for the foreseeable future, no one is going to be looking your way.”

James smiled. “Are you thinking you and Daniella would like to put up a little villa somewhere?”

“Maybe.” Old-timer smiled back.

James laughed. “Well, you’re welcome to, but I think the longer I keep it a secret the more upset the Council is going to be with me when they find out about it. Six months is probably bad enough.”

Suddenly, James’s mind’s eye flashed open. It was an emergency call from Aldous Gibson, Chief of the Governing Council.

James sighed. “Speak of the devil.”

“What is it?” Old-timer asked.

“Chief Gibson. This should be interesting.”

“Wow. I’m not here,” Rich said before James answered.

“Keats here.”

“Commander Keats…” Gibson began before pausing; he seemed to struggle to finish his sentence, “we have an…extremely serious situation brewing. We need you here at headquarters immediately.” The most concerning part of the call was that, for Gibson to ask for James’s help, it meant that he had run out of alternatives. James patched Old-timer, Rich and Thel into the call immediately so that they could listen in.

“What’s going on?” James asked.

“Our long range sensors have picked up something—something massive. It’s headed toward Earth at an impossibly fast rate.”

An image of the mass suddenly appeared in front of James on a map of the solar system that was sent by Gibson. A dark red smudge representing the mass had just passed Neptune.

“We’ve already calculated its speed and trajectory, and we’re expecting it to reach Earth within the next eight hours.”

An instant realization struck James. “My God,” he whispered.

“We need you here, Keats. We’re formulating an emergency plan as we speak.”

“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” James replied, awestruck by the news.

“Immediately,” Gibson asserted.

“It’s going to take me a little while,” James stammered.

“Keats, did you not hear what I just said?”

“I did. It’ll still take me a little while.”

“What’s your ETA?” Gibson responded tersely.

James paused for a moment. “An hour—maybe less.”

A flabbergasted expression contorted Gibson’s features. “Where in the hell are you that it’s going to take you a whole hour to get here?”

“That’s my business. I’ll be there as soon as humanly possible,” James replied before shutting off the communication.

“James, what the hell was that thing?” Thel asked over James’s mind’s eye.

“I have no idea, but you better get your flight suit on. We’re heading for Earth.”

Just under an hour later, James and his three companions entered Earth’s atmosphere, generating a glowing inferno as they did so. James had analyzed the available data a number of times as he made the journey, barely speaking to his companions as he worked his way through the possible explanations. Only one fit—and it was mortifying.

When they reached the front entrance of the Council headquarters, Djanet was there to greet them. Her face appeared stricken by worry, and she began walking with them in step as James hurried into the building. “The situation appears very bad, Commander. No one has any idea what’s going on. The anomaly doesn’t appear to make any sense…and the chief is furious with you for taking so long to get here,” she informed James, her eyes on his flight suit. It would be very difficult for James to explain himself.

“It’s okay, Djanet. That’s a minor concern right now,” he said without even looking at her as he marched toward the door of the emergency strategy room. As soon as he entered, the eyes of all of the Council members who were present, as well as the dozens of assistants and advisors, fell on him.