In Brightest Day, In Darkest Night

by Gary D. Snyder

Part 2:

Jimmy struggled to piece his fragmented memory together again as he clawed his way back to consciousness. He and the others had been using his telemonitor and something had gone wrong. There was some sort of explosion…no…something else…something from above. A blinding light from the sky…yes, that was it. A meteor had fallen from the sky and struck near them, and the impact had knocked him out. Where were the others? Were they all right? He fought to sit up and found that his body had somehow become impossibly heavy for him to move. Unable to move he turned his efforts to speaking and found that by some miracle he was still about to form badly slurred words, albeit slowly and with great effort.

"'Sev'r'body 'kay?" he mumbled as loudly as he could. "Keep away… dunno what…danger…"

From a great distance he heard a voice that sounded vaguely like Sheen's. "Jimmy? Are you okay?"

Jimmy tried again. "Sheen…keep them back…maybe radiation…"

"Keep back? From what? What are you talking about?"

Through sheer force of will Jimmy forced his eyelids open and tried to bring the dim world into focus. "Meteor…impact crater. Could be…dangerous."

A face materialized in his blurred field of view. "Okay, if you say so. But there's no crater here."

Jimmy tried again to sit up and this time succeeded. "Sheen?" It was becoming easier to speak as well. "Did you say…no crater?"

"That's right, Jimmy," Sheen replied. "No crater here."

"But – the explosion. There has to be a crater," Jimmy protested, then thought of something more important. "How are everyone else?"

Sheen thought about it. "Well, Cindy and I didn't really get knocked out. We were just kind of dazed. Carl and Libby came out of it a few minutes ago."

From somewhere behind him Jimmy heard Carl moan, "My scapula!"

"But you and the new kid were out for quite a while. He's still kind of out of it, but Cindy thinks he's finally coming around as well," Sheen concluded as he helped Jimmy up. Once on his feet Jimmy looked around, bewildered. Libby and Carl appeared unharmed (apart from Libby's annoyed expression and Carl bemoaning his scapula) and Cindy was kneeling next to Ernest by the telemonitor, but as Sheen had stated there was no sign of a crater. The telemonitor appeared undamaged and there were no indications of any kind of an explosion in the area.

"I don't understand," Jimmy said as he walked over to where Ernest lay. "If there wasn't an explosion then what was it that knocked us out?"

"Well, just from past experience I'd guess your latest piece of technojunk," Cindy responded. She was cradling Ernest's head on her lap and watching him closely. "Are you all right?"

"Well, still a little shaky, but –" Jimmy began.

"I was talking to Ernest, Neutron." Cindy shook her head. "It's not always about you, you know."

Jimmy was stung by the rebuff but decided that this really wasn't the time to spar with Cindy. He felt guilty about what had happened, and even more so that anyone had been hurt. He knelt down by Ernest on the side opposite Cindy. "How are you feeling, Ernest?"

"Okay, I guess," was Ernest's reply. "I have a funny taste in my mouth. Kind of metallic."

Probably the after-effects of some kind of electrical shock, Jimmy thought. "I'm awful sorry about this. I don't know what could have happened. Do you feel strong enough to stand?"

"I think so." Ernest got to his feet with Cindy's and Jimmy's help. A wave of dizziness swept over him and he put an arm around Cindy to steady himself. "I guess I feel a little dizzy."

"Take it easy," Cindy cautioned. "You've been through a lot."

"I guess I have." The dizziness passed and he removed his arm, although perhaps a trifle later and a shade more slowly than necessary. He looked into her eyes and smiled gratefully. "Thanks...for everything"

"No problem," she answered, feeling somewhat flustered without knowing why. "I guess we should be getting back. We've been up here a couple hours and it's getting late."

"I think that's a good idea," agreed Jimmy. He had been watching the exchange and much like Cindy felt bothered by it without understanding the reason. "If Ernest can help me get the telemonitor into the hovercart Cindy and the others can take the backpacks and other stuff to the hovercraft."

"Sounds good," answered Cindy, moving off to join Sheen, Carl, and Libby.

"Very good," added Ernest, watching her.

"I'm really, really sorry about what happened," Jimmy apologized to Ernest as they positioned themselves on either side of the telemonitor. "This really shouldn't have happened. I wouldn't have invited you and the others along if I thought there would have been any danger."

Ernest shrugged. "It's okay. It was nice of you to ask me." He paused. "Why did you ask me?"

Jimmy gave an embarrassed laugh. "Well, I noticed the movers carrying the telescope from the van when you first moved in and I just figured that you'd be interested in astronomy."

Ernest smiled. "Yeah, I am. Not many kids seem to think science is very cool. Everywhere I've been they've thought I've been kind of a freak because of that. It's really…cool…to meet someone who doesn't. Like you. And…Cindy." He quickly changed the subject. "I guess we'd better load this before the others think we're slacking."

"I guess so. It's pretty heavy, so don't strain yourself. We can always get Sheen and Carl to help if it's too much for the two of us. And lift with your legs, not your back." Jimmy rubbed his hands together and squatted down to get a grip under the telemonitor. "Now, lift –"

"Okay," Ernest replied on the other side of the telemonitor.

Jimmy had meant to say, "Now, lift when I say 'go'," but to his amazement the telemonitor rose from the ground before he could complete his sentence or get a grip on his side. He watched with his mouth hanging open as Ernest maneuvered the heavy equipment over the bed of the hovercart and gently lowered it inside without assistance. Once completed Ernest dusted his hands.

"Done," he said. "Gee, Jimmy, that was a lot easier than I thought it would be. I guess lifting with your legs really does help."

Jimmy was speechless.

End of Part 2.