The Complete Atopia Chronicles

26





Identity: Jimmy Jones



THE MOMENT OF truth had arrived.

We were watching projections of the two converging storms, overlaid with a glowing array of plotted future paths of Atopia through them. The phutures were stabilizing as we approached time zero. Everything was coming together and I readied to power up our weapons systems.

“Thanks for everything,” said Rick as we waited in the final moments. “Whatever happens, I wanted to thank you for trying to help with Cindy.”

I looked at him. How quickly our roles had reversed. He was pathetic now.

“Of course, Commander,” I said to him. “We’ll find her, get her out somehow.”

He nodded, his slightly bloodshot eyes holding my gaze for a moment. He smelled of alcohol.

“You ready for this?” he asked, watching the display.

“As I’ll ever be.” The high altitude displays of the storms had a mesmerizing, hypnotic effect. They centered on the pulsing orb of Atopia highlighted near their convergence point. We would only have a window of a few minutes to get this right.

The room was deadly quiet as we sat and watched the storm systems engulf the entire volume of the room. They were all waiting on me. I looked up at Kesselring, Rick, and then at Marie. Patricia hadn’t shown up in person, but I knew she was watching through her proxxi.

“On my command, power up the weapons systems,” I instructed, waiting, feeling for just the right moment as I fed the information flowing in through my extrasensory splinter network. I could feel the winds ripping at the surface of Atopia, the forests heaving and tearing, the waves pounding against her hull.

“On my mark,” I said, raising my hand. “Five…four…three…”

Everyone held their collective breath.

I waited.

Something held me back—something inside me. Someone inside me.

I continued to wait, trying to understand what was going on. Interminable seconds ticked by. Then I understood. It had been sitting there in front of me all the time, but I just hadn’t been able to see it.

Until now.

“For God’s sake Jimmy!” screamed Kesselring. “What the hell are you waiting for?”