Chapter 15
Extinction or Salvation
Born entered the bridge yawning and stretching after a good sleep.
"How are we doing, Obos?" he asked.
"Progress is slow and methodical. The rotation of the comet is creating more difficulty than I considered, but we should be able to complete the process in time, barring further complications," Obos informed.
"That's good. Jenny! Obos says everything is going well," Born mentioned to Jenny as she entered the bridge. "If the comet holds together and we don't experience any other delays or complications, we should be finished in plenty of time."
"Awesome!" Jenny said. She was feeling more and more optimistic about their chances of succeeding, but she was still cautious not to get too confident, because they still had a long way to go.
Jenny gazed out of the window of the Traveler at the solid wall of frozen matter. The heat from the sun was breaking down the surface more quickly as the comet got closer to Earth's life giving star, the sun.
She was pleased everything was going well, and she thought how fortunate she and every inhabitant on Earth was, that chance, or fate, had brought her together with Born, at precisely the right time.
Was it by chance? Was it fate? Saving Earth was all that mattered. She didn't care if her meeting with Born was a fluke, or destined to happen.
The next few hours went by without event. The procedure was slow, and almost boring. If somebody had of told her a week ago that she would be racing alongside a gigantic comet and she would actually find herself bored, she would have said, "impossible."
"I have picked something up on my sensors, Born," Obos notified. "It is of Earth origin, and appears to be a crude spacecraft."
Born stood up from his seat, squinted his eyes and pursed his lips. "Hmm, I don't like the sound of this. What do you suppose the purpose of it is?"
"That has yet to be determined," answered Obos.
Jenny stirred in her seat, wondering what Earth was up to.
"I have picked up a second and a third such spacecraft. Calculations show, they are moving directly into the path of the comet."
Jenny remembered her father mentioning Earth's only option against the comet would be nuclear intervention. "I know what they are trying to do. Those missiles are probably loaded with nuclear explosives. My Dad said it was our only option, even though it wouldn't work," Jenny explained.
Born scowled. "The only thing they will accomplish is to make our task more difficult and endanger us even more."
"How long until impact?" Born asked.
"33 minutes," Obos replied.
"Get us out of here, Obos! Abort!" Born commanded.
Obos broke the ship's influence on the comet, peeled away from it, and accelerated to a safe distance, where they waited for Earth's futile effort to unfold. They were still well within the coma, and could see nothing out of the window but a foggy haze of material floating by, but Obos still maintained an image on the video screen, which provided them with a good view of the event.
"What's going to happen now, Obos?" Jenny asked.
"The nuclear warheads will do nothing to re-direct the comet, but there is a good chance they may fragment it. If that happens, we will have to move from piece to piece, and move each portion of the broken comet, which will extend the time required to complete the procedure," Obos explained.
"Hopefully it will hold together," Born commented.
"The comet will strike the first charge in one minute, and the second one shortly after. The third, will be about seventy-five seconds after the second explosion," Obos described.
The first explosion created a blinding bright flash of white light, from which Jenny and Born had to look away momentarily. When they looked back, there appeared to be no change in the appearance of the comet. Obos zoomed in on the affected area, and there was a jagged crater where the explosion had occurred. The second explosion took place, and it too seemed to have no effect on the comet. About a minute later, the third explosion hit, and again Jenny and Born looked away from the intense burst of light. When they looked back at the video screen, they could see the comet slowly splitting apart, into several pieces.
"The third hit found a fracture point. There are now three large pieces, and two smaller ones," Obos notified.
"Well, that did a lot of good. All they have accomplished is to make our task more difficult. They knew it wouldn't work so why even try it," Born said.
"They did the only thing that was within our capabilities," Jenny said, defending her people. "There was no way they were going to just sit back and do nothing. Humans are fighters, and survivors. Even if they knew it had a slim chance of working, they had to at least try."
"I'm sorry, Jenny. I'm just frustrated by the entire situation. Let's get back to work, Obos."
"I'm sorry too, Born. I guess we're all a little tense right now, except for Obos of course," Jenny responded.
Obos maneuvered the Traveler back towards the comet.
"I will move the largest fragment first and work our way down by size. My calculations indicate there may not be sufficient time to move all of the pieces of the comet," Obos said.
"Maybe if we can move the largest and most dangerous chunks, the smaller ones will vaporize in Earth's atmosphere," Jenny said hopefully.
"No, the smallest piece will still be of sufficient size, even after going through Earth's atmosphere, to do a great deal of damage," Obos corrected.
Jenny looked out of the window at the sea of debris hurtling through space. The explosions had broken up the comet and now there was more rubble than before. Large shards of splintered ice and rocky debris darted past them, due to the force of the explosions, and Obos took evasive action in order to avoid the largest pieces.
Obos piloted the Traveler up close to the largest segment of the comet, and again, gently nestled the starship up against it. Jenny looked at the video screen and all of the different views of the fragmented comet provided by Obos. She could see three large chunks of the comet flying side by side through space.
The two smaller pieces were within the three large segments. She observed the largest section, gradually moving and nudging the other pieces aside, as Obos, and the Traveler, pushed it away from its original disastrous course.
.
On Earth, Jenny's father watched the event through his powerful telescope. From his vantage point, nothing had changed. His telescope could not see through the dense coma, so he, and the rest of Earth were unaware that their attempt had only succeeded in splitting the comet, but what he could tell, was that it was still on a collision course with Earth. He hoped Jenny was all right, and that there was still a chance that she and Born would succeed in moving the comet off course.
The rest of the inhabitants of Earth had no such hope. Their only chance had failed.
Roy Thompson continued to monitor the comet and a strange sight puzzled him. There appeared to be a second tail forming, short at first, but very slowly lengthening, and the coma on one side of the comet, seemed to be bulging.
After several hours of study, he finally figured out what was going on. The nuclear weapons had split the comet, and now, Born and Jenny were moving one of the pieces away from its original path, and it was creating its own separate coma and tail. He was relieved that Jenny appeared to be okay, and there was still hope.
It took many hours of pushing until Obos was satisfied the largest piece was no longer a threat to Earth. The computer immediately peeled off, and positioned the Traveler up close to the next largest piece of the comet. This time they needed to push from the freshly fractured side of the segmented comet. Pieces of ice and debris were constantly breaking away from the main body, and vaporizing as they sped through space.
Jenny looked out of the window at the wall of frozen rubble, when suddenly, the side of the comet exploded before her eyes, and large shards of ice and rock ejected from it.
Obos immediately took evasive action in order to avoid the large chunks of f
lying debris, and a protective panel immediately slid over all of the windows. Jenny could hear the fragments smashing into the outer shell of the Traveler and feel the force of the collisions.
"What happened, Obos?" Born yelled, as large blocks of ice were smashing into the hull of the Traveler and splintering into many shards.
Obos calmly explained. "A pressure explosion from a heated pocket of methane gas close to the comet's surface suddenly broke through and released its energy and large pieces of debris were ejected. We were fortunate the largest pieces narrowly missed us or it could have been disastrous."
"This is too dangerous. I will have to re-evaluate whether we should continue this mission," Born stated, a little unnerved by the narrow escape.
Jenny felt a wave of panic go through her. They had worked so hard and spent so much time to get to this point. To give up now would be a shame. "What is the probability of that happening again, Obos?" Jenny asked. She was hoping it was a rare occurrence and she could convince Born not to abort the mission.
"It is a regular occurrence," Obos stated and Jenny's heart sank. "But the chances of it happening in our immediate working area again are remote." Jenny felt relieved, and shot a pleading look towards Born.
"How much damage did we sustain, Obos?" Born asked.
"We appear to have suffered the hardest hit on one of our hydrogen tanks. It has ruptured the hull and the reinforced tank is leaking slowly into space."
"Is there any immediate danger?" Born asked.
"No, and we still will have plenty of fuel to complete the mission," Obos informed.
"My boss is going to kill me if I get out of this alive. Very well, proceed. I can't believe I just said that," Born said, shaking his head.
Jenny breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Born."
"Thank me when we are done...and still alive."
Obos piloted the Traveler back into position. There was a jagged hole in the side of the comet from the methane explosion and a stream of gas was releasing from the cavity created by the blast. Obos again positioned the Traveler against the large fragmented piece and began the long procedure of pushing it away from its collision course.
.
The people of Earth were now aware they had succeeded in splitting the comet, and one of the pieces had changed course sufficiently, so it would now just barely clear the Earth. There was jubilation and renewed hope, maybe the rest of the comet would also veer away from the Earth because of their nuclear intervention. However, how could that possibly happen?
The one segment had obviously been affected by the explosions, because it veered away, while the other piece or pieces had not, because they were still closing in on Earth. Soon the impossible seemed to be happening. Another large segment of the comet appeared to be changing its course, but this was almost twenty-four hours after the nuclear intervention.
"Roy, do you have any idea what the heck is going on up there. Is it a delayed reaction to the explosions? I am totally confused as to why this is happening," asked a military representative over the phone.
"No, it doesn't make sense, does it. Maybe it's divine intervention. I don't really care what the cause of it is, I just hope it continues!" Jenny's father said, excited.
"Amen to that. The whole world hopes so, too."
"That's my girl, keep it up Jenny, you can do it," Roy Thompson muttered to himself, as he watched and charted the comet's movement.
Obos continued the process, moving from fragment to fragment, and progressively moving each piece away from its original disastrous path. Most of the debris released from the comet would burn up in the atmosphere before hitting Earth's surface, but some of the larger boulders and chunks of ice would survive entry, and would strike the planet. There were too many to do anything about, but as long as they hit in unpopulated areas, there was no danger to human life. The two smaller pieces of the comet were the main concern now. They were much smaller, but still of sufficient size to inflict a lot of damage to Earth.
Obos began to move the larger of the two small pieces. It was easier to move than the three large segments, as its mass was far less, so the time required to move it off course was less, but time was running out. Jenny looked out of the window of the Traveler, and she could see Earth in the distance as they moved steadily closer to it. Glancing to the side, she looked at the wall of the next fragment. It was solid ice, and its jagged edges were perceptively being smoothed by its passage, and from the sun's heat.
"We're not going to make it in time." Obos calmly informed. "The closer we get to Earth, the further we need to push so it will clear the planet. We will get this one moved, but we will not have sufficient time to move the final piece off course. It will hit the Earth."
"How big is the last piece?" Jenny asked of the computer.
"Approximately 400 meters in diameter. After the Earth's atmosphere has melted some of it away it will strike the Earth at an estimated size of 25 meters. It will still do considerable damage to the surrounding impact area. And many bits of ice and rock will also survive Earth's atmosphere," Obos described.
"Where is it going to hit?" Jenny asked.
"On its present course it will strike southern Africa," Obos explained.
"In your opinion Obos, where out of the possible options would it be best to aim this last chunk so the least amount of casualties would occur?" Jenny asked.
"A large body of water such as the Atlantic Ocean would provide a good dispersal of its kinetic energy, and it is the largest body of water that we are able to reach. My files on Earth population densities make the middle of the Atlantic Ocean the best option for the least amount of casualties, but only if evacuation of the coastal communities is possible," Obos advised.
"Because of a tsunami?"
"Yes, a swell of water, approximately 50 meters high would flood the Atlantic coastal cities and communities, creating extensive damage and possible casualties," Obos answered.
Jenny thought for just a moment. Born looked over at her, eagerly awaiting her important decision.
"Obos, is there any way to get in touch with my father?" Jenny asked.
"Yes, I can set up communication with any Earth audio unit," Obos stated.
"Great! Please ring the observatory at phone number..."
"The proper connection has already been made," informed Obos. "Just speak normally when your father answers."
"Wow, Obos-you are amazing. Your psychic, just like Relli."
"No, just logical."
The Earth was much closer now, and Jenny could make out the continental shapes of North and South America.
.
Roy Thompson sat in a chair and looked into the viewfinder of the observatory's powerful telescope. He had watched the entire amazing event unfold from his vantage point. He heard his phone bleep and quickly picked it up. He was busy fielding calls from all around the world, and now, one from outer space.
"Roy Thompson," he answered, his eyes still fixed on the final piece of the comet as it sped towards Earth.
"Dad! It's me!" Jenny blurted out.
"Jenny? Are you all right?"
"We're all fine. Dad, you've got to warn all of the Atlantic coastal communities to evacuate immediately! We don't have enough time to move the last piece of the comet! Earth split it when it hit the explosives. We're going to guide the last piece into the middle of the Atlantic!" Jenny alerted.
"Good idea. Good job, Jenny," he said, bursting with pride. "I'll see you soon," he was relieved to be uttering those words.
"Yep, I'm coming home," Jenny trumpeted.
"Okay, Obos, it's all set," Jenny looked over at Born for his okay. She didn't realize it at the time, but she was acting as Earth's only representative in this vital matter, making decisions affecting every human being on her planet.
Born shrugged and said, "That sounds logical to me, go ahead Obos."
He was just relieved the dangerous chore was almost completed, and that he was still alive. Born also realized h
e was witnessing something special happening to this impressive young earth human.
.
Roy Thompson hung up his phone and immediately hit his speed dial in order to get in contact with the proper agencies.
"But on what are you basing your theory, Roy. This is a huge undertaking, are you absolutely sure it's necessary," was the response he received.
"You've got to trust me on this one, Henry. Have I steered you wrong yet?" Jenny's father tried to convince.
"No. You're information has always been right on the money. It's like you have a contact up there or something. Okay. I'm taking your word on it. I'll get the ball rolling and try to evacuate those cities and communities, but this is a huge undertaking. There are some major cities that will be affected," the official replied.
"Yes, there will be a lot of damage, but hopefully we can limit the loss of life," Roy Thompson said.
.
Obos steered the final small segment of the comet towards the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The fragment was rapidly heating up as it sped into Earth's atmosphere. Flames leapt out and extinguished in increasing frequency and intensity, as it got closer to its eventual impact site. Soon the comet and the space ship were totally engulfed in flame, and a plume of steam trailed behind them. Once Obos had achieved the desired trajectory of the comet, it eased the Traveler away and followed the blazing fireball towards Earth.
"Wow!" Jenny exclaimed.
"Mission completed," the computer announced.
.
Jenny's father watched the final fragment of the comet speeding towards Earth, but in his heart he needed to be home for Jenny's return.
"There is nothing more I can do here. I need to be with my family," he excused himself from his work, but they all understood.
The human beings of the planet Earth were now aware of the astonishing episode that had just occurred in their small area of the vast cosmos. Word traveled fast, and everyone was glued to a radio or a television for the latest update on the killer comet. They were informed that the bulk of the comet would miraculously miss the Earth, but one small piece would soon hit the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
.
For Jenny and Born, their job was complete, they had done all they could.
"Thank you two so much for what you have done for my people. I'll never ever, forget what you have done for us. If there is anything I could possibly ever do for you, I would be honored to be able to repay you in some way," Jenny said. "And I'm really sorry the Traveler got damaged."
Born sat limp in his chair, "Oh, that's all right, I'm hoping that my superiors will be grateful for saving our primary source of water, and decide to be lenient with me. To be honest with you, at this point, I'm just happy to still be alive."
Jenny smiled, and said, "Yeah, us too."
Jenny looked out of the Traveler's window. She felt happy, proud, rewarded and relieved, about what they had just accomplished. Her family and her race were safe. The Earth looked so big, beautiful, peaceful, and safe to Jenny from up here, but she was well aware how vulnerable it really was. The portions of the comet they moved off course were visible in the distance. The re-direction had created a unique curve in the tails of the comets.
We were very lucky this time, Jenny thought to herself.
If it were not for her chance discovery of the anti-gravity suit two weeks earlier, she, and every other human being on Earth would be mentally preparing for their fate. How fortunate they had been.
Obos went through a long list of the damage inflicted by the mission, and Born moaned, as if in pain, every time the computer mentioned something.
"When you take me home I'll treat you to a tall glass of cool water, and a nice warm bath," Jenny said, in an attempt to lighten the mood.
The offer immediately got Born's attention and his mood perked up.
"I've never experienced that before, to be submerged in artificially heated water," he said, with a look of desire, and longing in his eyes.
"Well, you're going to experience one soon, and as many as you want too! You should try having a shower and a Jacuzzi as well," Jenny suggested to the overwhelmed Born.