Ch 1 P.8. The Palm And The Oak

The length of his wizard's robe limited Marle's anxious scramble for the inner door, but he made it just in time. Glass vials lay scattered on the floor as the emergency lights flashed red and the siren sounded. Time was not on his side; the sun-facing shield was nearly in place. Once it sealed, the small outer door would close, and his experiment would be lost. With the observatory reeling from the impact, Marle was forced to stumble. He landed against his workbench, and his hip struck the tablet hanging precariously over the edge, bumping it back to the center.

Marle stumbled to the wall and accessed the extrusion engine while eyeing the monitor. He could see the outer door beyond the heavy glass jar that contained the oak sprout. He was waiting for the light to turn green; on green, the engine would begin the slow process of extraction. The forty-five-second procedure would doubtless seem like an eternity. His finger was poised above the pad as he waited. Then, the outer shield sealed, and Marle was thrown away from the wall.

The impact of shield against core was just enough to send him back against the workbench. With no handhold, Marle continued falling and landed hard on the floor. He could see the small hatch above his workbench move to the side. He could see the transport rod extend below it. He also saw the light turn from red to green, but he was on the floor, and the outer door was closing. He had to move, and fast.

Marle rolled to his knees and put his hand on the workbench. He pulled himself up to his feet and lunged for the wall panel. Driving his finger into the pad with excessive force, Marle heard the chime that heralded initiation of the retraction procedure. He could feel his heart race as he looked at the monitor and saw the jar wedged between the outer door and its seal.

“No! No!” shouted Marle.

Astra said calmly, “Secondary wave detected. Impact imminent.”

“Hell no!” shouted Marle in response.

Marle opened the bottom drawer of his workbench and drew out a set of tongs. He would try to manually pull the jar free. First, Marle needed to be on the table, but the robe prevented him from getting a knee up.

His voice was strained as he complained loudly, “What the?!” He set the tongs down and unbuttoned his robe, fuming over the tight seal of each buttonhole. Marle freed himself at last, and with tongs in hand, he climbed atop the workbench and inserted the tongs. There was no light in the shaft, but Marle could feel the tongs close around the heavy glass container. He tugged down, but the tongs slipped off. Trying again, Marle worked the tongs from side to side. Time was running out.

Suddenly, the awful sound of breaking glass came to his ears. At that exact moment, the second wave impacted the observatory, and time slowed. It all seemed so clear as Marle tumbled from the workbench in slow motion. He saw it all as his heartbeat slowed its painful throb. Marle had his right knee on the table, his arms spread wide, and his back over a glass-strewn floor. He clearly saw the tongs falling from his hand, and it was followed by the bottom of the heavy glass jar. The oak sprout was falling with the jar as green light issued down the open shaft. It was just a flash, and with it came the loud hissing sound of venting air. He watched the tablet fly up from the workbench and stop at the shaft, sealing it.

Then, time sped up. The experiment fell past his hand, and he reached for it, sensing his desperation. The broken jar fell into his hand as his back impacted the floor. Marle could feel the air rush from his lungs. He could feel the rough edge of broken glass in his right palm. The oak sprout fell into his palm along with the soil, and Marle saw spinning stars.

He bounced and gasped, filling his lungs with air. The wizard's cap settled on his bare chest as he turned his head and looked at his right hand. He sought the sprout in his palm, feeling a sense of relief. He had saved it; he could rehouse the experiment. The stars continued spinning, and Marle could smell iron. He pulled in his right hand and blinked. The sprout was gone, and Marle blacked out.