Origin & Earth (The Orris Project Book 1), page 29
“What is that? Where is this?” Becky asked.
“This is the launch facility outside Dinesta. The guy filming is my friend’s father. This was the launch before mine. You can’t see me, but I’m actually in that crowd somewhere. I was your age then.”
“This is Osa?” Becky asked in a half whisper. Her eyes were wet.
“It was,” Garrett said. The image zoomed in to the white vehicle, which appeared to have an external cage surrounding the glossy white capsule. A loud voice boomed over a PA system and spoke gibberish in a professional voice for a few minutes. On the far-right side of the craft, they observed a glass or plastic window, which revealed the head and shoulders of the craft’s operator. The operator turned his head and nodded at the crowd. The mumbling from the group in the background got louder, and the craft moved from left to right. The camera followed its progression as it gained speed at an astounding rate. Just as it disappeared over the horizon, the white dot came back into view, lifting toward the sky. Once it was traveling vertically, an explosion of light appeared at its base, and it continued its vertical ascent until it was no longer visible.
The first audio they could hear well enough to understand came a second later. “Beannachd mac,” a deep voice said. “Tha gaol aig d’athair ort.”
Becky tapped Garrett on the shoulder with urgency. “What did he say?” She whispered.
“He said, ‘Goodbye son, your father loves you.’” Becky reacted, her breathing audibly hitched.
Mike shook his head and walked around the kitchen. Finally, he said, “Come on, man.” Garrett could tell that Mike was both frustrated and confused, still not wanting to believe. “That… that could be fake.”
“Did it look fake, Mike?” Mike shook his head again and continued his pace around the room.
“No, Garrett. It didn’t look fake. But if this is true, it shatters the whole world as I have ever known it!” He was getting animated. Becky sobbed. Mike went to her and wrapped his arms around her; not romantically, but as one human consoling another, as they learned for the first time that they were not alone.
“But it doesn’t, Mike. Nothing is different, nothing has changed. It has always been this way. The only difference is that you thought you were the ladder, but now you know the ladder is much larger, and you’re only a rung.” Mike said nothing, and Becky continued to sob. “Mike, Becky, I know that you both still have doubts, but I promise you, this will not get easier. I will only convince you further, and beyond any doubt. But it’s a good thing.” Becky lifted her face from Mike’s chest.
“How in the hell is it a good thing?” She said through hitching breaths.
“Because nothing changes. Earth has three or even four billion years left before your sun dies. When we make the selection and a few hundred of you leave the planet, you two will be so old that I would hope you smile at the accomplishment of humanity. All I bring with me are plans. Your kind have to build the thing.” Becky looked up at Mike.
“Will you bring me back to the hotel now, please?” Mike nodded. They gathered their belongings and walked out of the apartment.
11
“I think we need a little break from Garrett,” Mike said as he stood outside of Becky’s room after the great video revelation.
“Yeah, what do you suggest?” she asked. Mike wanted to take her hand in his but resisted the urge.
“After work tomorrow, let me take you out to dinner. That way we can talk without the fear of being overheard by my alien-roommate.” She laughed lightly and nodded.
“That sounds perfect, Mike. When you get done with work, come find me in Vanessa’s office, I’ll be working out of there while I’m here.”
“Okay, that sounds good. Do you need a ride into work tomorrow, then?”
She smiled. “No, Vanessa is going to pick me up. We’ve had a hell of a night, huh? I have to go to bed. Good night, Mike.” She hugged him and disappeared into her room.
12
Garrett was sound asleep the next morning when Mike left for work. When he got up, he was alone in the apartment and found a note on the counter in front of the coffeepot. It said, I probably won’t be back for dinner, eat without me. -Mike
Garrett thought he knew what it was about and made his coffee. He sipped from his mug and sat back at his laptop, where he planned to spend his entire day. During the time he had slept, four hundred and ninety-three more videos had rendered. He clicked through the folders, carefully avoiding the one labeled “T1-Rhodes,” and viewed many from the other folders. He glanced back at his folder and risked clicking on it to see how many files it contained. It was a mistake. There were dozens of files, and each had a thumbnail with the face of a past loved one printed in all-too-real resolution, among other faces he did not recognize. He clicked on a different random folder to get the images off the screen as his eyes filled with tears. It had been decades from his perspective, but the faces wrenched at his heartstrings as though he had only left Osa the day before.
13
After Mike finished his workday, most of which was composed of staring at the clock, he raced to the elevator bay and pushed the “up” button, excited to see Becky again. The doors opened to an empty car, and he boarded, hurting his index finger due to the amount of force he smashed the number ‘six’ button with.
Upon arriving on the sixth floor, he hurried to Vanessa’s bright, spacious office and saw her behind her desk, but no one else. He walked up to her. “Hey Vanessa, is Beck…” Two hands folded over his eyes from behind. He froze. “Oh,” he said, and smiled.
“You two make a cute couple,” Vanessa said.
Becky left her hands over Mike’s eyes, like this could somehow also impair his hearing and said in a whisper, “Vanessa? What the hell is wrong with you?” Mike gently removed her hands from his eyes.
“It’s fine, Becky, she’s just jealous that I’m not taking her out to dinner.” Mike blushed immediately after, not knowing what had come over him. Vanessa had been nothing but helpful to him, and he instantly regretted the comment. He looked at Vanessa, who was smiling and even laughing a little, “I’m sorry Vanessa, I was just kid…” She waved a hand at him.
“Don’t worry about it, Mike. You two go have fun. I never thought in a million years that you two would end up together.” Mike and Becky both flushed hot red.
“We’re not…” they both said simultaneously.
Vanessa laughed again and said, “Go! Just get out of here! I still have work to do before I can go home.”
As they walked to the elevator bay, Mike asked if she had a specific place in mind for dinner.
“I think anything will be fine, but maybe a place where we can sit at the bar and eat?” she said. “I always liked that, because the bartender is always close if you need something.” That doesn’t narrow it down. A lot of places have bars we can eat at, Mike thought.
“Well, can I ask what you want to do after dinner? Do you want to come back to my apartment with me, or go back to your room? I ask because it will help me pick a place.” He pushed the down button on the elevator panel and watched her think.
“I don’t know. I’m sorry, I know that isn’t helpful.” They boarded the elevator. Mike thought more about the different places he could take her and decided that it didn’t matter that much.
“There’s a place right near my building. It’s a pub, but they have great food. When we’re done eating, we can go back to my place, or I can take you back to the hotel. It’s not that big a deal either way, because the hotel isn’t that far.”
She smiled. “That sounds great.”
14
Thirty minutes later, they were at the dimly lit but spotless and polished pub. After ordering their meals, Becky clasped her hands around her drink. “So, what do you think, Mike, about Garrett? Do you still think he’s a loon?” Mike sipped his soda, which he had opted for instead of liquor, since he still had driving to do, and shook his head.
“I don’t know. I’m afraid when I get back to my place tonight, with or without you, he will have a hundred or a thousand more videos, pictures, audio clips, schematics, and… and I don’t know what else.” Mike sipped his soda again. “What about you? What do you think?”
She looked at him with concern. “I think you’re probably right. And where does that leave us? Where do we go from here?”
“You mean if everything he’s saying is true? If he actually landed on Earth almost four billion years ago?” It was a genuine question, and Becky appeared to take it as such.
“Yes, exactly.”
“If it’s all true,” Mike paused for several seconds while he appeared to think. “Then I think we do whatever he tells us to do. I mean, if he is actually who he says he is, then he knows so much more about the universe than us, we may as well know nothing. Did I tell you about our conversation the day we met?” She shook her head. For the rest of their stay at J.C. Reid’s Pub, Mike took her on a journey of the cosmos through Garrett’s eyes.
When they arrived back at Mike’s car, he stopped and turned to her. “Have you decided?”
She smiled and looked up at him. “I decided I don’t want to be a coward, and I decided I also didn’t want you to have to go through it alone. So, yes, I’ll go back with you to see what he has for us now.” Mike smiled and even laughed a little.
“Great! Let’s go!”
15
Garrett had eaten leftover Italian food from the night before for dinner and was halfway through his third beer when Mike and Becky walked in the door.
“Garrett? We’re back,” Mike announced. Garrett came into view from the direction of the kitchen.
“Hey guys, what have you two been up to tonight?” Mike put his keys and wallet on the shelf next to the door, as he always did.
“We went to the pub for dinner.” Without waiting for Garrett to respond, he said, “So, do you have a thousand more videos now?”
Garrett ignored the question. “Did you have a nice time?” He was smiling. Mike looked at him without smiling. Garrett laughed. “Um, yeah. I wasn’t sure you guys would want to see anything else, though. I know last night was tough on you.” Garrett walked back into the kitchen.
“How many, Gar? How many videos do you have now? How many audio tracks? Photos? Other things?” Mike asked. Becky followed closely behind him into the kitchen.
“I’m not sure, Mike, probably several hundred videos, same as the audio files, thousands of pictures, and a variety of other files. But that’s it, I’m done. I can’t go further without more of the signal.” Garrett looked from Mike to Becky. “Any idea when I can get the next part?”
The question took Becky by surprise. It hadn’t occurred to her that he would ask for more of the signal. “Oh, um, no. I’ll have to call tomorrow to see about that.”
“Okay, that’s no problem.” Garrett stood up and pulled a second stool over to his laptop. “I’ll tell you guys what. I’m going to sit in the living room this time. You two can peruse the files by yourselves, without feeling the pressure of me being there with you.” He grabbed the mouse and selected his folder without opening it. “This is the only folder off limits, ‘T1-Rhodes.’ I can’t bear to overhear anything in that folder. Promise me you will respect my wishes and the files are yours to look through.” Mike looked at Becky, who smiled and nodded. “Ok, I will be on the couch.” He turned to go into the living room.
“Garrett?” Becky called after him. “If we have a question about something?”
Garett smiled, “Sure, just let me know and I’ll come and translate for you.”
For the next two-and-a-half hours, Mike and Becky looked at photos and watched videos. They didn’t bother with the audio tracks because Garrett would have to translate every word, and they wanted to be on their own as much as possible. On six occasions during their viewing time, they asked Garrett to come back and translate some audio they had heard on videos they watched, but aside from that, they left him alone. As they reached the end of their exploration, Mike opened the “T1-Rhodes” folder. Becky, not wanting to alert Garrett, grabbed his left hand hard and stared at him. Mike leaned over and put his lips so close to her ear that they touched. In the softest whisper he could produce, he said, “I won’t open any of them, but look at the thumbnails.” Becky nodded. They both scanned the tiny images of faces, and Mike put the mouse pointer over an older couple, and then moved it to the next image in line. An older woman, the one from the couple in the previous thumbnail, sat by herself. She appeared in many of the files. Mike mouthed the word “mother” to her, and she again nodded. They both looked further, and Mike put the pointer on a young woman and mouthed “Lauren?” Becky shook her head and tugged on her own hair. She mouthed the word “Red” back to Mike. He nodded, and they kept looking. He stopped at a photo of a little girl and looked at Becky with raised eyebrows. She shrugged and shook her head. At that point, they heard Garrett get up off the couch and Mike clicked off to a different folder and stood up.
“How are you guys doing?” Garrett asked.
“I think we’re done, Gar. It’s late, and I’m going to take Becky back to her room.”
“Any new impressions? Do you still think I’m just a crazy person?”
Mike thought for a minute. “No, Gar, but I don’t know where I am. I’m in a daze about it right now.” Becky nodded. To Mike’s surprise, she stepped forward to Garrett and kissed him on the cheek.
“Good night, Garrett.” She walked to the door and waited for Mike. Garrett also looked surprised.
“Good night, Becky,” he said and shrugged at Mike. Mike walked to the door, slapping Garrett on the shoulder as he did.
“I’ll be back,” he said, and they were gone.
16
In the hallway, Mike looked at Becky to find tears in her eyes. He took her arm and led her down to the elevator bay. “What’s wrong?” Mike asked her. Becky shook her head but started sobbing. He pulled her into the elevator car and pushed the button for the parking garage. He wrapped his arms around her and let her cry into his shirt.
When the elevator stopped and the doors opened, he relaxed his arms, but hers remained locked around him. “We have to get off, Beck,” he whispered. She finally relaxed and followed him to his car. As he drove, he could hear her attempting to get her breathing under control.
“Take your time, Beck, I won’t leave you until you’re ready.” As he finished the sentence, it sounded corny to him, and he regretted it. Becky smiled, but Mike didn’t see it as he was watching the road.
She sniffled hard, and in a breaking voice said, “Thank you.”
When they were back at the hotel, Mike was silent, waiting for her to talk first, worried that if he said anything, it might set her off again. He walked with her back to the elevator bay, up to her floor, and then to her room.
“Will you stay with me for a while?” Relief washed over him, and he smiled.
“Of course, for as long as you need me.” She smiled, kissed his arm, and unlocked her hotel room door. He followed her in and stood awkwardly as she milled about the room, preparing to go to bed. The room’s furnishings included not just a bed and nightstand but also a desk and a love seat with a small table in front of it facing the TV.
After a few minutes, she seemed to have collected herself, and she pointed to the love seat and said, “Sit over there,” smiling. “I’ll be right back.” She disappeared into the bathroom, but was out only two minutes later, and in pajamas. Mike felt a little uncomfortable, feeling like he was looking at a very intimate image every time he laid eyes upon her. She did not appear uncomfortable at all, and sat down next to him, even taking one of his hands in hers.
“I’m sorry. I owe you an explanation for my reaction to what happened, and thank you for helping me so much. You don’t have any idea, do you?” Mike shook his head but was enjoying his current experience.
“It was the little girl. As soon as I saw her, my imagination took off.” Mike was no closer to putting the pieces together, but he was enraptured by her every word. “He never mentioned a little girl, only his nephew. The girl you thought was Lauren was probably his sister. His nephew’s mother. No little girl, Mike!” Tears formed in her eyes again, and her voice pitched up, “What if…” she broke off and breathed in and out several times before she tried again. “What if that was his daughter?” She started sobbing again. Mike put his arm around her, and she leaned into him. Through the sobs, “What if that was his daughter, and he’s never even seen her before? What if he didn’t even know he had a daughter? That would mean that we saw her before he did, and… and…” She broke down completely again. Mike rubbed her arm and kissed the top of her head. She let his hand go and wrapped her arms around him, crying into his chest. Mike felt a tear of his own form in one eye and blinked it away.
