NationStates Jolt Archive

Jeremy awoke with a start. He was famous among his friends and acquaintances for his ability to sleep through an elephant stampede, yet this night the beatings of his own heart were enough to render him insomniac. He tried everything short of drugging himself, but nothing could overcome the anxiety and anticipation that had overcome him. Tossing in the bed, he looked over at his wife, with whom he had enjoyed one last wild night of passion and intensity and intimacy, her somnolent form now heaving on the bed with every breath. At once he was terrified and soothed. He would be leaving in the morning; this might be their last blissful night together. Yet she showed no signs of apprehension--she was confident he would come back safe, why wasn't he? But still...he tucked the covers in under her chin, still gazing at her immaculate visage, and resolved not to sleep for the rest of the night.

When she awoke that morning, she let out a yelp upon seeing a giant hairy face in front of hers. A split-second later, she realized it was her Jeremy and sighed contentedly.

"Jesus, sweetie...wow..."
"Scared, Brenda?" kidded Jeremy
"Quite...wow...that was unexpected. Um, let me get dressed and wake the kids, ok? Just be a second, we've got something for you before you go?"
"A song?"
"Huh?"
"You know...'Just a song before you go, a lesson to be learned. Travellin' twice the speed of sound, it's easy to get burned'?" He grinned. This was his wife's favorite group; he was a bit stunned she didn't get the reference from the start.
"Oh, heh, yeah, well, anyway, um, like I said I'll just be a second then we got somethin' for ya."
"Great!"
"Oh, and it's 'Just a song before I go', not 'before you go'."
"Mmm-hmm," muttered Jeremy as he reached for the phone by the bed. He was at the top of the phone tree, so it was his job to initiate the cascade of telephone calls to make sure everyone on the voyage was awake and ready to go.

Jeremy was beginning to regret his sleepless night, even though it was spent enthralled by his wife's beauty. The effects of insomnia were showing through in his inability to dial the phone, and more than once he was met with the angry rantings of a wrong number in the early morning. Nonetheless, he was able to complete the duties of his node in the phone tree, and within minutes joined his wife and children in the family room for a brief going-away celebration.

Entering the family room, he was greeted by a cascade of toothy grins. As he sat down on the couch his youngest child, six-year-old Stephanie, trotted up to him with a box wrapped in newspaper. He asked, "Is this for me?". She grinned and nodded. Exuberant as a child, he ripped the paper to shreds and then picked at the tape on the box with his fingernails. His wife, who had expected this, handed him a knife she had set on the coffee table. Jeremy let out a low giggle and proceeded to cut the tape with rapid precision. As he pulled open the cardboard flaps, his jaw dropped and his eyes went wide.

"Honey...it's...my God...I can't bel-"
"Yes, my poo, it is..."
"Wow...where did you...it's in such incredible condition"
"Does it matter? I love you. You need to go. Now...you have a radio on the ship, right?"
"Well, yes, but..."
"Then GO...I don't want to see you around here again, mistah!"

Jeremy couldn't believe it...after all these years, just like when they were dating--she hadn't changed a bit. Still playful, beautiful, and innocent. Any other woman would be jealous, but she knew that this voyage was what he wanted--what he had to do, and she loved him so much she truly wanted him to be gone and out in his element, playful though her voice was. He shook his head, staring at her as he went out the door. Finally, he stopped. He ran back inside, and together they performed one last long, loving embrace that wild horses couldn't break.

***

"Hey, Lenny! Lower me down that fuel hose--we need 80,000 more gallons in tank oh-nine-five-dash-three-two to balance 'er out!"

"Sure thing, Hank! Just give me a second while I decouple it from the retainer port!" Lenny twisted a series of clamps open, all the while checking for leaks from the hose. Suddenly, the hose flew off from the retainer port. Tons of fuel gushed out of the nozzle as Lenny was thrown off the platform. As he fell, the caustic fuel completely obliterated his body--within seconds nothing at all remained. Meanwhile, everyone who could scampered out of the way of the oncoming torrent. It was some time before anyone finally got far enough away from the disaster to radio the control booth to shut off the fuel valve, and a couple of minutes longer before the fuel that was already in the hose finished spilling out. By that time the force of the fuel coming out of the hose had been enough to topple the upper layers of the prep tower. Incoming ambulances had to be turned away because of the falling debris and spraying fuel, which was running all over the ground. The scene was horrendous.

By the time events had calmed down, it was clear that those who had managed to survive would be trapped for some time. Although the fuel had finally made its way to the emergency drains, there was still quite a bit left on the surface and the survivors were trapped inside a ring of the malevolent propellant. Chemical crews had to be called in to neutralize the remaining fuel, a task that took several days, before they could be rescued. In the meantime the men were fed via balloon drop, and personal matters were taken care of as neatly as possible. All the while, the horror of the disaster was burned in their minds like a brand on cattle.