In the last episode Adam, Evelyn, and Bear met the orphans who are in Ikeda’s care. Adam immediately noticed the wonderful relationship Ikeda shared with the children. In fact, he felt a bit of envy because he himself didn’t experience this kind of nurturing as a child.
Also, Bear warned of a monstrous storm brewing. As soon as he warned the group he realized the sense of foreboding he felt wasn’t just about the storm, it was about something much larger that he couldn’t yet understand.
Welcome to today’s episode of Alarm Clock Dawn! I hope you this installment.
It was becoming apparent just how special this tiny, wise man really was. In a world full of charlatans, he was most certainly the real thing. Ikeda genuinely cared for these children that society had carelessly tossed aside. Judging by the size of the group and the ornery look of some in this bunch, it would’ve been no small task.
As their bedtime tale came to a close, one by one the children lay down and began to fall asleep near the fire on their beds of neatly folded woolen blankets. The smallest child of the group eventually drifted off in Ikeda’s lap. He scooped her up in his arms and carefully laid the tiny child down in a spot just close enough to feel the fire’s cozy warmth. He then tucked her in and gently kissed her on the forehead. Even though this display of tenderness toward the children was touching, what impressed Adam even more was the affection the children showed toward Ikeda. His father had always told him children and animals were a much better judge of a person’s character than adults could ever hope to be, and this he believed.
“Okay, now we can go,” Ikeda whispered to Adam, Bear, and Evelyn. He led them deeper into the children's living quarters, past a small kitchen and pantry. Ikeda pushed a small square cut into the stone wall, and a deep scraping began as a massive stone door began to retract into the wall to reveal a dimly lit room dominated by a round stone table with several large flickering beeswax candles.
“Ikeda, the children are amazing. So well behaved and so much brighter than the children I remember from the cities,” Bear said.
Ikeda smiled at Bear. “They are more amazing than you and I even yet realize, my son. These children are nothing less than the keepers of the torch.”
“The keepers of what?” Adam asked.
“Your future, my son. The torch of humanity. Here they've been taught meditation, to forage and grow their own food, survival techniques, and even self-defense. They are quite well prepared for what comes next.”
Bear and Adam exchanged glances.
Ikeda's mood then grew noticeably somber. “Please, have a seat. We now have something very important to discuss.”
As everyone found their seats, Ikeda continued. “They have caused a quickening in the inevitable. It is only a short matter of time now. The people of XenTek have now used the machine a second time.”
“Do you mean the Phoenix Collider?” Adam asked.
Ikeda took a deep breath, looked at each of the three of them, and sighed. “Yes, son. They do not fully understand what they do. Each time they activate the machine, they only put the planet and its people deeper into peril. Please blow out the candles,” Ikeda instructed. Bear’s chest heaved and he blew a massive stream of air that extinguished all of the candles’ flames.
From the deep darkness, still smoky from the smoldering candles’ wicks, a bright holographic image emerged from the small silver disk. The quality of the three-dimensional image amazed the group. It seemed so lifelike, much more realistic than even what they had seen the Holo produce. There was a thin blue halo around a rotating sphere that was spotted by large masses of swirling gray clouds.
“Please note the green mass that is flashing near the South pole of the planet,” Ikeda said as he reached out and grabbed the image with his hand and rotated it like a globe. “Notice the thinness of the ozone here. Through the green colorization, you can see this gas slowly escaping from the top of the planet. See this?” The group all nodded their heads.
“This gas is our atmosphere gradually dissipating into space. The ozone layer is becoming insufficient to contain within it the oxygen that sustains us. What we have found in our research is that a planet behaves exactly like an organism. The storms that we have experienced are like the planet's very own white blood cells attacking a germ that has infected it. The planet is merely trying to defend itself against an imbalance. Unfortunately, in our case that imbalance is you."
“Through aid of this computer generated module, we will move forward in time one week to see what happens.” The holographic sphere slowly morphed from a vibrant bluish green to a dull brown.
“During this stage, the depletion of the atmosphere will cause a rapid increase in radiation from the sun, that much they would tell you. What they fail to say is that as the level of radiation increases, it will wipe out all but the hardiest plants, and most animals will soon perish. Those that are left exposed will be weakened on a cellular level and eventually disfigured by the sun’s radiation. We will now move forward two weeks.”
The planet again changed before them, making it almost unrecognizable as it took on an auburn hue. “The radiation levels at this time will have peaked, sterilizing the soil and killing all but the most resilient bacteria embedded deep beneath the soil. The planet will become a barren, frozen desert. In just over three weeks’ time, it's projected that the planet will be completely sterile, unable to support even the smallest of viruses.”
It felt as though time stopped and a warped reality wrapped itself around Adam. The sheer weight of this message began to take hold of him, so much so that Evelyn, who sat right beside of him, looked distorted and almost psychedelic.
Three weeks. Millions of years of evolution would be snuffed out in a mere three weeks' time. The thing was, as crazy as this news sounded, deep down inside Adam knew it to be true. The bluntness of Ikeda’s words brought an abrupt end to any naïve misconceptions they may have held.
Ikeda paused for a moment in reflection. His kind eyes showed true empathy, and the words he uttered next would stay with the group for the rest of their existence.
Tune in every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for new episodes of Alarm Clock Dawn! The final episode including a ENORMOUS plot twist will be read by yours truly live at the first annual SteemFest in Amsterdam on Saturday, November 12th.
Alarm Clock Dawn is the first novel of a trilogy. The sequel entitled, Truth Is Stranger, will be published in the Spring of 2017.
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