Escape to the Stars! Page 3
Chapter 3: The Ultimate Elevator
Professor Keene, long retired, watched with satisfaction as the first Space Elevator and the tethered orbital space station were officially commissioned. Knowing that he had been a part of the background effort to promote the future of humanity had always been a great source of satisfaction to him. Many of his students had also been recruited to continue the effort. The University had gained a new department in his name, dedicated to cataloging the hundreds of new solar systems and planets being discovered all of the time.
Agent Jamison had stopped by unannounced from time to time to encourage him and to quietly bring the Professor up-to-date on developments in other areas of endeavor. These visits seldom failed to spur the Professor to greater efforts.
The greatest achievement mankind had ever made to that point was the development of practical Fusion reactors. The professor watched over the intervening years as first, coal-fired power plants, and then the nuclear plants were decommissioned one by one all over the world.
With the advent of low-cost energy, the oil industry shrank to a fraction of its’ former size and coal mines were largely abandoned. Natural gas was still being used in remote areas for power generation. Most cars were now powered by electricity or Natural gas. Fuel cells had made significant inroads on larger vehicles.
Hyper-trains now connected all points of the compass. A trans-Siberian link connected North America to Europe and Asia. Africa was the last to join the global rail-network as only the southern areas had population and the rift valley had blocked access from the Sinai.
Airplanes were now largely a part of history. With their passing, the Earth’s average temperature dropped more than a degree as the ice-crystals, created by their exhaust, evaporated. This allowed more infrared radiation to radiate out into space at night.
The combination of the CME’s devastation and the severe reduction of oil revenue had reduced the Middle-East nations to tribal states again. Israel had nearly been destroyed by the impact. In a remarkable show of maturity, the Middle-East conflict finally ended in a peace accord signed by all of the remaining Islamic leaders.
It was years after the CME event before humans could go back into North-Africa. The impact had turned the sand of the Sahara into a vast, undulating plain of mildly-radioactive glass. The human devastation was still remarkably evident. Entire nations had been deleted in an instant. Sicily was still uninhabited, its volcano having over-flowed, covering the land devastated by the flash and shock of the impact. Only now were plants beginning to gain footholds in the crumbling lava fields.
The first Space elevator was anchored in the bedrock of Central Malaysia, straddling the equator. A second elevator was started in Kenya once the area’s radioactivity-levels had dropped and the rift valley had quieted. There were plans for a third elevator in Brazil but the political strife there was delaying the start.
The completion of the Malaysian Space Elevator had allowed the development of low-gravity manufacturing. Processes that were impossible in full-gravity were now possible. Earth was soon benefitting from new materials and pharmaceuticals. Several lingering diseases were finally eradicated as a result. Several new strains of grains resistant to heat and poor soil helped to reduce hunger world-wide.
Several more and even larger CMEs had been observed but all had missed the Earth by a wide margin. Mercury was not so fortunate. It was knocked into an eccentric orbit that was erratic enough to threaten Venus. Two satellites were positioned between Venus and the Earth to keep an eye on them.
A knock at the door startled him. “Agent Kurt Jamison is at the door Professor.” The house computer announced
“Let him in Agnes!”
After a moment the computer announced “Scan completed. No weapons detected.”
A chuckle sounded from the visitor. “Hi Professor. Still paranoid I see.”
Keene guided the wheelchair into a tight turn so he could face his visitor. A nearly-bald and stooping Agent Jamison hobbled towards him and stopped, swaying slightly. The Professor waved him to a nearby chair. It elevated and tipped forward as Kurt shuffled sideways and dropped gratefully into the self-adjusting cushions. The chair settled gently back to the floor.
“I love this chair!”
“It’s yours then Kurt.” The professor responded.
Startled, Kurt stared at him and then settled back and squirmed around to fit more comfortably. “Thank you Patrick.”
“To what do I owe this welcome but unexpected visit?
“I just wanted to tell you that I have retired. I would have just sent you a message but we have worked together for so long that I felt that a vid-call was too impersonal. Besides, we’re going to be neighbors, of a sort.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah. When I visited you last time, I fell in love with this area, so I decided that I would buy a cabin in the woods overlooking the lake. It closed a few weeks ago and I am about settled in.”
“Well, welcome to the neighborhood. Update your profile so I can arrange to have the chair delivered.”
“Are you sure you won’t need it?”
A dry chuckle sounded. “The doctors have told me that this wheel chair will be my permanent mode of transportation now. Even with all of the new miracle drugs, they still haven’t cured osteoarthritis. Fortunately, my transport vehicle was designed with my handicap in mind so I still get around fairly easily.” He glanced down and added “I am saving a fortune in new shoes, and no one hassles me about wearing my favorite slippers when I visit.”
Kurt joined him in a healthy chuckle. They turned to watch a documentary on the Space Elevator and both men were pleased to see that their part in the venture was never mentioned.
When the show was over, Kurt excused himself and hobbled out. The Professor watched his friend until the door closed. “Agnes?”
“Yes sir?”
“Retrieve Kurt Jamison’s current address. Ship the recline-o-lounger to him.”
“Yes sir. Anything else?”
“Yes. Order in General Taos Chicken with white rice please. Delivery in an hour. Have the maid prepare hot green tea just before the food is due. Done.”
“Very well sir.”
Turning back to the screen, he asked for a replay of the ceremony. The meal arrived about halfway through the presentation.