Chapter 350
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May 31st marked exactly 50 days until impact. At midnight tonight the computers would randomely select the final million for the Arks. Over two hundred million Americans would lose their final chance at survival. Mason's soldiers, including his son, would be ready to retrieve the chosen. People would panic, that was inevitable. Eve remembered Brooklyn after the January lottery two women, both new mothers. One woman was selected, her baby wasn't. Another woman wasn't chosen, her baby was. So the two women traded their babies with each other. Their hope was that the would all eventually be chosen, even if they weren't taken to the same Arks. Many women must've done this all over the country, hoping they could all still be saved. Tonight, that hope was about to be extinguished. There was one chance, a final desperate attempt to destroy ELE. Almost noone here had any real hope of it working. But it might calm the people enough to keep some emblance or order for the final retrievals. Mason now regretted playing that card too soon, but after March 6th it seemed like the only way for society to still function. He could only play this card one more time. At 8pm, eastern standard time, president Mason addressed the nation.
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Mason: My fellow Americans. At midnight tonight, the comuters who've randomely selected social security numbers, who chose those selected for the Arks, will perform this function one final time. One million men, women, and children will be escorted to the Arks. Regretably, this means most of us will be rejected, me and my family included. I have taken measures to keep this as orderly as possible. Congress has approved a curfew, to begin at midnight tonight. No un-approved travel will be permitted during the next week. Those who are chosen will be notified within the first hour. Arrangements will soon be made to bring them safely to the Arks. Those who attempt to stop this, or hurt the chosen, will be dealt with swiftly, and harshly. Over the last three years, we've all entertained our worst fears. We have feared our own deaths, and the death of our species. Since the crises began, we have been working on a way to destroy or divert the asteroid. We may have found a way. NASA has recently learned that the missleswe sent to the asteroid two years ago were damaged, but still intact. Their nuclear payloads remain. We can detonate, but the signal is weak. In order to a coordinated bombing, we must wait until the asteroid is only a few hours away. This might save our species, albeit too late for far too many. While we must prepare for the worst, we should also hope for the best. Pray that God in his infinate wisdom, gives our planet a reprieve, that we might do better in the future.