Chapter 37

It's survival of the smartest…

Confusion reigned in the New York City area. Elevators stuck. Computers crashed. And the Path train stopped in the middle of Hudson Bay. There was no announcement as the train rolled to a dead stop. The passengers had two choices: wait for help or walk out of the tunnel. Panicked and angry murmurings ran through the crowded car, but Chuck West's fiancé, Josie, was oblivious to it all. She calmly stepped off the train and continued on her journey. A small group, ignoring the warnings of the engineer, joined her, flicking their bics to light the way.

Chuck West couldn't get past the police who guarded the mouth of the tunnel. He cursed out the man in blue who blocked his way – almost loud enough to be heard. He paced, as did the growing crowd around him. Anxiety transformed to anger as time dragged on. A plan to storm the entrance was brewing in his mind when a small band of travelers stumbled out of the darkness of the tunnel, Josie among them. She walked into the waning daylight and straight into his arms, a broad smile on her lips. "Josie!" Chuck cried, "Are you all right?"

"Of course, I am. The train stopped and I decided to walk home. It was such a beautiful day in the tunnel," she told him in a surreal voice.

"What are you talking about? You just walked along train tracks under the Hudson Bay."

"Under the bay? Oh, no, Chuck, you're wrong."

Chuck couldn't believe what she was telling him. If he didn't know better, he would have thought that she had smoked crack before she left work. He grabbed her by the shoulders and stared into her eyes. They were glazed, but not reddened. "Josie, did somebody slip something into your drink today? What's wrong with you?"

"I had tea at lunch. Why are you so worried? Everything's fine! In fact, it's wonderful!"

"You just walked through God-knows-what and you think everything is wonderful?" The lights behind him winked on and illuminated the darkness. Across the river, however, there were no signs of light. He turned her to face the city. "Look, Josie. What do you see?"

"Nothing…"

"Exactly! No city lights… no airplanes… no trains…"

She wrinkled her brow. She knew something wasn't right… but… she had no idea what it was. Chuck took her by the arm and hustled her to his car. "Come on, we're going home."

By the time they reached their apartment, whatever it was that had a hold of Josie's brain was beginning to dissipate. Chuck clicked on the television and all channels reported the same news. New York and Washington were in darkness. Berlin, Moscow, and Tokyo had also been affected. The president had left Washington and was in an underground bunker somewhere in the foothills of the Allegheny Mountains.

Josie shook her head. "What's going on, Chuck?" she asked. "I was in New York today and everything was fine… or… I thought it was fine… but… I guess the train broke down and..."

"Do you remember walking in the tunnel?"

"Of course, but it wasn't dark… it was a beautiful day… or was it? I remember these cute little animals running around…"

"Cute? You mean the rats?"

She looked at him in horror. "Rats?" Then it all came back to her. "Rats! Oh, my God, there were rats… and it was dark and stunk like a garbage dump. Oh, Chuck, it was awful!" He took her in his arms and held her as her mind cleared. "I can't believe I didn't know how horrible it was until now…" She sobbed as her real memories came back to her. "What is wrong with me?"

"I don't know, sweetheart… I don't know, but you're okay now. It was like you were drugged or something."

"But who would do that? Do you think it has anything to do with the blackouts?"

"I'd lay money on it. You weren't the only one who walked out of that tunnel in a trance. This has got to have something to do with the Saticons."

"You mean the aliens your brother told you about?"

"The Saticons and Aolis Umbra."

"What are we going to do?"

"We're going to Houston…"

The engines hummed beneath the bed as Don made room for Judy to join him. His arms drew her to his chest and they lay together in silence for a few moments. Judy played with the hair on his chest wondering what would happen once they landed. Judy asked, "Do you think your parents got out of New York?"

"I don't know. I guess we'll find out when we get to Houston," he answered. "You know, I'm surprised that you didn't contact your cousin Joan to meet us."

"Oh, I didn't want to send a message. I wanted to contact her in person. I'll call her as soon as we land. She'll be totally surprised, but I'm sure she and my aunt will make arrangements to come see us."

He laughed. "I think 'surprised' might be an understatement, Judy. I just hope LA isn't affected before you get a chance to call her."

Judy sat up, "Oh, my God… Don… Suppose it is by the time we land? How will I contact her?"

"We'll find a way, Judy… Let's just worry about getting to Houston right now…"

John contacted the Bowers Base as soon as the Jupiter 2 was within range of the moon and asked for permission to land. He was surprised when the communications officer put him off. "Maintain your orbit, Jupiter, until further notice."

"Further notice?" Maureen asked. "Don't they know it's us?"

"They know it's us all right. I hope they haven't been hit by the Saticons."

"Professor Robinson…" It was Red Miles himself. "We acknowledge your request. Hold on while we lower the force field. It'll take a few minutes."

When the Jupiter finally docked, Red and Lee Ann were waiting for the Robinsons to disembark. Red reached out a gloved hand and John shook it heartily. "I'd like you to meet Lee Ann, who is General Bowers' oldest daughter and my fiancé."

John's face lit up. He went to hug her, but was stopped by Red. "I'm sorry, Professor, but it would be best to hold off on any physical contact until you've been decontaminated."

"Decontaminated?"

"Just a precaution in case you've brought any strange viruses back with you."

"Like Mr. Hapgood's ship, Dad," Will told him.

John nodded. "Did Don make it back?"

"Yes, Professor. If we had known you were coming, he and Tom would probably have waited for you."

"Is Judy with him?" Maureen asked.

"I'm afraid so. Don and Tom left for Earth as soon as we got the news that strange things are happening down there."

"What strange things?"

"Major cities, including Washington, are being affected by some sort of mechanical and electrical blackout."

"The Saticons!" Penny exclaimed.

"Most likely," Red replied. "Don and Tom had to get down there. They're the only ones who can help Washington plan a defensive strategy since they've had first hand experience with the Saticons."

"We've got to follow them as soon as possible, Red," John told him. "They won't be able to destroy whatever machines are holding those cities hostage without our help. Those machines are almost indestructible."

"And who knows how many of them there are. We surmised that the Saticons worked through Aolis Umbra to place those machines in strategic places. We might never be able to find them all unless we find someone who knows where Aolis Umbra placed them."

Red noticed the small man hiding behind the Robot. He knew this had to be the infamous Dr. Zachary Smith. Dr. Smith stepped from behind the Robot and cleared his throat. "I, sir, may be of use in that matter." All eyes fell on Smith. He took a communicator out of his sleeve. "I can establish direct contact with that organization… if I am promised immunity."

Professor Robinson raised his eyebrows at him. "Immunity? You know, Dr. Smith, you never cease to amaze me. You've found an angle to wiggle your way out of trouble again."

"I can't speak for the government, Dr. Smith, but I'm sure someone will be interested in your… connections. So, I propose I take you all to Houston and we'll find somebody down there to take you up on your offer."

"Indeed," Smith replied. "So, it's onto Houston, then…"

No one was there to meet them when Don the ship at Dyess Air Force Base in Texas. Instead, they were directed to the security office for debriefing. As they entered the building, they were intercepted by Tony D'Amico. All he said was, "Come with me." His wife, Debbie, was waiting at a side door with a van, engine running and ready to move, but not to the base as they expected.

"Okay, Tony, what's going on?" Don asked.

"I'm keeping you away from the higher ups," he replied.

"So, I'm AWOL again?"

Tony looked down before answering. He hated telling him this because he knew Don was prepared to do the right thing and face the consequences of not following orders – again – but sometimes, the right thing wasn't always obvious. "Yes… The government is in chaos, Don. There were no orders from Washington on what to do with you, and my superior is worse than Walters was. At least Walters was smart, but this guy has no idea what's going on. He was going to throw you in jail regardless of the circumstances. I think you'll be much more valuable to us on the outside."

"So, the rebellion has begun."

"And your father is the leader. I'm taking you to him right now."

"He's here?"

"Along with your brother. The Andersons are involved too. General Bowers' plan is being put into action."

Silence. A smile crept over Rebecca's face. "They did it."

"We didn't have any other choice, Rebecca," Tony told her. "Washington went underground and the blackouts are spreading. The entire east coast is down, as well as LA. It's spreading in Europe too. Even China has been affected. No one knows how to combat what's happening and no one seems to be in charge."

Judy held her breath. Her fears were realized. "I won't be able to contact my aunt and uncle," she said. Don took her hand.

"Mrs. West contacted them as soon as she got to Houston, Judy, but LA went out the next day. We don't know if they made it out."

"What happens now?" Tom asked.

"That's what we've got to figure out, Lieutenant Colonel Bryce."

"Tony, call me Tom. We're starting a rebellion, or resistance, or whatever you want to call it. Titles are meaningless. We're all equal."

"And it's survival of the smartest from now on," Rebecca added.