And so we return to the Railgun Complex once again to see what's going down with Blue. Hope you like :-D

Chapter 7

The Next Mission

"You seem very distant this morning Blue; I bet you've been staring at the world from the top of the Silencer again" Sarah noted as she cleared away the breakfast dishes.

It was definitely Blues turn to clean up, but his pseudo mother could tell his mind was off on another planet or two. The young man had been silent for at least fifteen minutes and had even ignored the cat rubbing the top of its head against his shoe.

"Hmm" was the only statement Blue would give in reply.

"If you don't give Jeffery some attention soon, you're gonna feel his claws on your leg."

Blue was fully aware of the wisdom in Sarah's warning; Jeffery the Jingle Cat had no qualms about drawing human blood just to get his head scratched the way he liked it. Considering his desire to leave all his red corpuscles inside his body, Blue reached down and picked up his feline roommate and his mood began to soften as the cat settled down in his arms, purring and snuggling.

"I thought I saw some smoke" he volunteered at last "down in the eastern valley."

"Probably just a lightning strike" Sarah noted "I feel pretty sure we're the only people in Sumatra, if not all of Southeast Asia."

"Why not the entire planet" Blue declared with venom in his voice.

"I sure there are still people on the larger land masses."

"Yeah but they may as well be on Mars too if we have to remain hidden."

The feelings of frustration Blue expressed were not new and he was not the only person in the railgun complex to have them. But he was the only person who would talk openly about these feelings and he was expressing them more and more as he grew. The morning clean up proceeded with very little being said and the only sound heard during their walk to Store 7, was the soft cheerful tinkling of the bell on Jeffery's collar as he trotted along behind them.

"Are you going up top again today?" Sarah asked in an attempt to force Blue into being more sociable.

"I wish" Blue sighed "but Sid asked me to look at some intermittent power dips he noticed during the last launch. It was happening only a few hundred meters from the end of the tunnel so it could be corrosion, could be rodents."

"You're not taking Jeffery!" Sarah stated.

"That little marshmallow?" Blue smiled at last "I'll need something that won't run and hide from his own shadow; I'll grab a couple of cats from one of the warehouses."

Just like all the other equipment stores in the vast underground complex, store 7 was once so tightly packed, it was impossible to walk from one end to the other using only the floor. But today there were only about a dozen racks left and half of those were empty and were currently undergoing disassembly. Sarah Spencer entered with Blue and Jeffery just as a cross brace was dropped to the ground with a loud clang, causing the cat to jump into its ready and alert stance. A few members of the engineering team waved to the small family as they passed by and made their way towards the two men on the opposite side of the warehouse. Blue needed to check in with his boss Sid Cartwright before he left for the depths of the Railgun tunnel, but Sid was more interested in arguing with Professor Linton Adisa, the head of the complex administration.

"It's not every day we see you two knocking heads" Sarah noted "What's the problem anyway?"

Her sudden arrival and comment caused Sid to fall silent mid rant. There were not many others in the gigantic storeroom and the wise ones were staying well away from the minor fracas going on near the eastern wall.

"For some unknown reason, the only decision our illustrious leader has made today is to be indecisive" Sid huffed as he threw up his hands in disgust.

"I'm sorry Sid but I need more time to run some more numbers and weigh up various consequences" Professor Adisa begged.

"WHAT CONSEQUENCES?" Sid waved both fists in the air as he stomped around in tight a tight circle "We've repurposed so many of these warehouses before, I've lost count. Why is it so difficult to make a decision about this one?"

"I'm sorry, it's my own fault" Linton sighed "I've actually been too... well, scared to be honest."

The professor's confession of fear caught the others by surprise; especially Blue who had always looked up to Linton Adisa as a wise grandfather who knew all and feared nothing.

"I promise to have an answer for you soon Sid" the professor continued "Tomorrow at the latest."

Linton Adisa smiled and nodded to those present before turning to leave, but he had not gone one step when Blue called him back.

"I'm sorry Professor; I know you have a lot on your mind but I've been psyching myself up for this and if I don't get it out now, I feel like I'm gonna explode."

Even Sarah was surprised to hear Blue outburst as Linton turned back to face the young man.

"What is it m'boy" he said with genuine concern.

Blue could feel his resolve waning as six unblinking eyes looked in his direction, but he managed to steel himself and speak.

"I want to leave... no; I'm going to leave. Not today but soon."

There was a short period of stunned silence; it made Blue so nervous, he had to keep talking just to stop himself from running away.

"Maybe leave is the wrong way to put it. I want to go and explore outside and see what's there. Maybe even set up a place to live and... stuff."

Considering she was the closest Blue had to family and having heard all his recent doubts and misgivings, Sarah suddenly felt embarrassed about how little she knew about the boys feelings and his desire to escape the groups self imposed prison.

Professor Adisa inhaled deeply "Well then, it sounds like I don't have time to consider my options after all. Perhaps we should all go back to my office and talk."

On their way out of Store 7, the professor stopped briefly at an intercom to page three more people. Willow Pascal and Henry Deming arrived soon after Linton Adisa's small group, but they all had to wait a few minutes for the last person.

"How dare you interrupt me during a delicate operation" Doctor Quill Vieira stated when he finally arrived.

"You don't look dressed for an operation" Sid declared doubtfully.

"Amos got a boo-boo on his left elbow" Quill admitted "But from the way he was carrying on, you'd think I'd just amputated his arm. So what am I doing here, or should I say; what are you all doing here?"

"I wasn't going to say anything about this for a few more months, but some people are beginning to speculate about our future here. And young Blue has expressed a desire to go back to the real world" Professor Adisa began.

'I wouldn't say I was going back" Blue noted "because I don't have any memories of ever having been there before."

There was a moment of silence as everyone in the room glanced at each other. After spending fifteen years avoiding conversation about their old lives, it had become a difficult subject to broach.

"I must admit the thought of going back up fills me with some trepidation as well" Sid Cartwright admitted.

"Wait just a minute" Doctor Vieira interrupted "Can someone please tell me why this has suddenly become important? I thought we had to remain hidden at all cost so the EFA could not stop us from sending supplies and equipment to the Mars colony."

"There isn't really anything the Earth First Alliance could do to us that time hasn't already accomplished" Willow Pascal noted.

"After fifteen long years, we are finally starting to run out of both the stockpiled raw materials needed to build the projectiles, as well as the pre-made equipment for the colony" Sid added.

"Exactly right" Linton Adisa agreed "but we are left with several choices as to which direction we should go from here on. I also have to face up to the facts; we don't really know what awaits us on the outside. It's safe to say there is nobody else in the general area, but what will we find if we try to travel back to our old homes?"

"First things first though; anyone who does try to go home should not tell anyone about what we've been doing here for the last fifteen years" Sarah noted.

"Yes indeed" Willow nodded "Although all Mars rocket launches would have ceased soon after we entered here, who knows what trouble the EFA has stirred up since then. We could be wanted criminals for all we know."

"I am hoping we have simply been forgotten about completely, but we should be cautious" Linton added.

"If you think you can guarantee no one will let something slip about this place once we all get out there, then I'd say you've been starved of oxygen. There are a few hundred people down here and they are not used to keeping secrets" Doctor Vieira succeeded in deflating everybody's hopes.

"If what we believe is true and we are the last source of supplies for the Mars Base, then that would mean there has been no one for the EFA to fight against for over a decade" Henry Deming put forward.

"We still don't know what mood the Earth First Alliance was in once the last of the transport rockets left" Linton sighed "Thousands of engineers and scientists helped get the colonists on their way and millions of people were supporting them. So did the war just end when the launches stopped, or did the EFA supporters seek some kind of revenge? Again we just don't know."

"How long will it be till we completely run out of launch equipment?" Willow asked.

"We have enough for one more full MTV load of thirty six capsules and a few dregs" Sid informed the group.

"Then what are you worried about?" Quill Vieira spouted "It'll take you almost two years to get that many capsules into orbit."

"And it may take that long for everyone to prepare themselves for another big alteration to their lives" Linton declared with concern. "Don't you remember how long it took for everyone to acclimatise to living underground?"

Doctor Vieira did remember although he was trying not to. In the first year of isolation when everyone was at their busiest, he had not noticed several members of the complex staff had not been able to successfully make the transition and had chosen instead to end their own lives. The memories still haunted him to this day.

"Shouldn't we be talking to everyone about this?" Sarah asked.

"I know I can't keep it to myself forever, but I'm still not sure if it is better to start making plans now or wait until we're only a few months from completing our task" Professor Adisa noted.

"So it was me who pushed you into this" Blue sighed "Sorry Prof."

"Don't be concerned Blue" the young man's mentor smiled "I don't think Sid was planning on going easy on me either. And besides, I still wasn't sure if I was doing the right thing by keeping it to myself anyhow."

"So can you tell me what you want to do with Store 7 now please?" Sid asked adamantly.

"Clear some machinery out of the main garage; see how many of the vehicles can be resurrected."

"Garage, what garage?" The Storm Petrel of Mild Surprise did its job well as Blue sounded a little shocked.

"Believe it or not young man, there are still a few places in this complex you are yet to see, even after fifteen years" Sid grinned. "The main garage is where we stashed most of the remaining construction machines and vehicles. It is also the way out, via the tunnel to the main ramp."

"Getting ready for a future change should give everyone time to get used to the idea" Quill Vieira noted "And fresh tasks like prepping the vehicles will ease people into the transitional phase. I suggest we make up a timeline schedule to give everyone a sense of continuity during the next year or so."

The small group talked of their future plans for only another twenty minutes. Everyone was reasonably satisfied with the outcome of the session but the only person who was truly happy was Sid. He finally knew what he was doing with Store 7 and he had been given permission to draft a few teams to help him. Professor Adisa requested of Sid not to tell his teams about the reason for their work until he could prepare an announcement for the whole complex. As the last of the planners wandered out, Linton Adisa put his hand on Blue's right shoulder in a signal for him to stay a little longer.

"Another year or more to spend down here; does that upset you son?"

"Not really sir" Blue sighed as he replied "I was excited about the thought of going out, but I must admit to being a little scared too. At least I know its coming and I can spend some time helping Sid get everything ready."

"He should teach you to drive; controlling a four wheel drive is extremely different to operating an interplanetary space ship."

"No computer assist sir?"

"None whatsoever Blue."

"Should be fun; I guess I'd better go down and check out L-41 for Sid."

"Leave it for now Blue; Word came through early this morning from Launch Team Gamma. They're ready to send another parcel up."

"Okay, I'll head out when the Post Fire all clear is given."

I was just reading through the next chapter to get it ready and it feels good to move past the introductory stage and into some main plot. Thanks again for reading guys and gals.