Карыбек Байбосунов

Отрывок из научно-фантастической мистерии“Endorphins of the Karmazoi”

– SACTA, SACTA, can you read me? –  the voice of JSC Andrew Morgan, head of the mission conducted from Lyndon B. Johnson Space Centre, was heard as clearly as if he were in the next room. He appeared on the screen wearing a medallion with a portrait of Neil Armstrong, who exactly 60 years ago, had been the first earthling in the history of modern civilization to set foot on the surface of the moon. Recalling Armstrong’s words, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind,” Morgan eagerly anticipated a quote from Angel along the lines: “For the first time, a man from Earth, far from his home planet, meets a heavenly wanderer from the depths of space. A new history of cooperation with distant worlds begins”.

-As determined by NASA and partner organizations, you have just over three months to execute this mission. The two-way communication system and on-board controls are in perfect working order. All of our hopes are pinned on you and your “friend” Saver. –

– Yes, Earth, I can hear and see you clearly. I’m enjoying fine weather up here; what’s it like with you? – joked Angel.

– It’s wet and snowy but I kind of like it. – replied Morgan. – How are you feeling? I see that your blood pressure is normal and your sugar and bilirubin levels are fine. But all that could change in seconds given that you’re currently racing away from Earth at a speed of 55.555 kilometres per hour towards the coordinates of your target.  I wish you a light solar breeze, but not enough to knock you off course, and that your instruments continue to work normally.–

– All is well Andrew, thank you. –

– Great. I’ll now connect you to your family. –

Angel’s Spanish-born wife Melanie de Torres then appeared on the screen alongside his son and daughter. No matter how hard they tried to put on a brave face, lumps still rose in their throats.

-Don’t worry about me; I’m great. Just take care of yourselves! –

– We’ll all be waiting for you, anxious for your return! –

Angel appreciated and was grateful for the comfort and happiness that social intercourse with loved ones would provide at every stage of his voyage but to limit emotional upset, parents, siblings, nephews and nieces had been prohibited from joining in. Little did anyone imagine that this would be the last two-way communication between the cosmonaut and his family.

Angel had been forewarned that a rock of such substantial mass and flying at such monstrous speed was unlikely to change its trajectory and any attempt to nudge it off-course with his torpedo-like ship would prove as ineffective a deterrent as a mosquito biting a cow. And what if fragments of the asteroid were to fall on the surface of the Earth? Or, for some technical reason, the ship was unable to strike its target? All hopes lay with the SACTA and everyone on Earth was riveted by this great mission. But how it would turn out, was anyone’s guess!

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      -How are you feeling, Angel? – asked Morgan. -The entire JSC team is anxious about the success of the upcoming event. Everything depends on your health and psychological state; absolutely everything! In 3 months, 23 days, 23 hours and 23 minutes you will face Apophis. Your first priority is to fire a laser at the target in order to split it. The second option, which requires utmost accuracy, is to attach a jet engine to the surface of the asteroid, and the third, to bombard it with atoms to fragment it. The fourth option is to pull three degrees of torsion around the asteroid, if you are able.  The fifth and last resort, the success of which is only 10 per cent, is a collision with a torpedo missile. –

– You’ve made everything very clear. But do I have to touch it at all? – replied Angel.

-What?!–Yelled Andrew. The director leapt from his chair with such force that his headphones fell from his ears, and in a state of shock, drops of cold sweat appeared on his face. His colleagues, equally aghast could hardly believe their ears.

– Do you understand that this is tantamount to treason? – exclaimed Victor Lewinsky, another member of the team. – Allow that asteroid to slip away, and we’ll all be fucked! And it will be us who’ll be left to deal with this mess whilst you continue your cosmic path in proud solitude! –

– Calm down, gentlemen; we all know how Angel enjoys a little joke.–Morgan tried to defuse the situation but fearing that the cosmonaut had lost his mind, turned to all gathered at JSC and anxiously asked: – Do any of you believe him capable of doing this? –

 No one uttered a word. The silence was then broken by the calm, confident voice of the cosmonaut:

– Dear colleagues, countrymen and relatives, heroes of astronautics and aeronautics, engineers and scientists, and labourers. My message will no doubt alarm you but please remain calm for ultimately, any decision regarding our future is made by God. I have considered this issue from every angle and confidently declare that there is no need to either shoot down, push from orbit, or fragment Apophis. This asteroid is a messenger of the cosmic community. It is a test of our spirit and requires all people on Earth to pray and to wish each other well. We must ask the higher powers not for mercy, but for cooperation in the composition of the Galactic Federation. They are not our enemies. If we can find a common language with nature, then objects in space such as Apophis, will no longer be perceived as a threat. Asteroids are also a part of nature and not out to kill us.  They are part of a shared environment, filled with music and light from the centre of creation … –

Sadly, no one paid due attention to Angel’s radical speech. Contact was broken and as the wise Michito Kaku would later comment, his plea had all been in vain…

Everyone in the room shared the single thought that Angel Sany had gone mad; a result perhaps, of unknown influences of gradient pressure in outer space. No matter how hard they tried to hide it from the public, news of the cosmonaut’s refusal to fulfill the task of eliminating the threat of Apophis to Earth flared with the speed of a shockwave from a nuclear explosion. Such was the universally shocked response to Angel Sany’s intended action that it quickly went viral, paralyzing the Internet and swamping every social media site. It took but two hours for the world to become aware of the “anti-heroica” of the cosmonaut Angel Sani, leading to global panic that the end of the world lay in the hands of just one individual. Environmental activists and the “Greens” began to organize psychological rallies. Religious leaders made an appeal for people to unify in exhortation for high morality and repentance. And adherents of alternative religious movements preached eschatological morals necessary to face the coming forthcoming trials with dignity.

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