Idris didn’t waste another second. Stepping back with one leg, he swung his fist to meet Garrett’s face. Garrett dropped instantly, moaning and holding his face. He continued to lay there for quite some time, obviously trying to stifle his tears.
“Is that the guy who sat behind you at the last meeting, Aella?” a small voice asked. Looking up, I recognized Jane. She stood over Garrett with no emotion, just pointing her small manicured finger down at his writhing body.
“Yeah, that’s him.”
“Looks like he fucking got what he deserved then, huh?” she commented casually as she laid her pink jacket over one of the nearby chairs and took a seat.
Idris brushed his jacket off and stepped back quietly. Garrett’s moaning quieted to a hushed whimper before he sat up. “If you are quite done, Mr. Wells, I would like to continue this meeting, with or without you. Either way is completely fine with me,” Idris said.
Garrett stood up, holding his face, and grabbed a chair.
Chapter Four
We situated ourselves in front of the small stage where Idris sat, his legs dangling beneath him. We were quiet when he spoke, out of respect. He spoke with dignity and a reciprocated respect for us.
“Now listen, I know that the network and the director have no idea what is going on. They are the money funding this, though, so we have to comply with them if we are going to do anything worthwhile. I want you all to understand exactly what is going to be happening, and be prepared for it,” he said quietly. “The producers want drama and sex. It sells. They have very little interest in the science of what will be happening. I assume that is why Mr. Garrett Wells was put on this team.” Garrett sat up in his chair and lifted his chin. Idris continued, “We can’t let them win. We let them film whatever they like because we have to, then we do the real work.”
We sat quietly. Some of us nodded slowly in understanding, others stared intensely at Idris.
“We have the opportunity to change the world right now, hell, to change the universe! What we are doing is so much bigger than ourselves. You have to see that if this is going to work. Now,” his eyes narrowed, “we need to get to work.”
Pulling out a packed manila folder, Idris began to go over every detail about Circadia we had available. Its atmosphere was very similar to ours, with only a bit less oxygen. There were species of trees and vegetation that seemed different than ours, but scientists were unsure due to only seeing them through a telescope. It had all died on the trip into our solar system but seemed to be rejuvenating with the renewed sunlight and gases. Circadia had oceans much like ours, as well as lakes and ponds and streams. No intelligent life forms seemed to exist there, though.
We all sat and listened to everything, saving our questions until the end.
“That’s it,” he said. “Except, there is one thing not on here that I have heard circulating through the scientific circles that I feel you all need to know about.”
We listened intently.
“The planet didn’t just happen upon its name. Scientists originally called it E23b2. Civilian scientists and nerds, frankly, noticed something odd happening on the planet when it arrived. They caught that the planet ‘shuts down’ occasionally.”
“What do you mean, it shuts down?” I asked.
“A planet can’t just shut down,” said Spencer.
“Well, they say it has its own circadian rhythms, or so it seems. They were not sure exactly what they were seeing. It looked like the plants were reviving, and then everything died. Then it all came back again, then it died only two months later,” he said. “There were videos of it all over at the time, but the governments quickly had them removed. Somehow the name Circadia stuck.”
“Why would the government want the videos taken down?” Jane asked.
“I don’t know that answer. If I did, I have a feeling I would be upset,” he said. “But I intend to find out what causes it while we’re there, how we combat the problem, and why the government wanted to keep it from us. Okay?”
We all nodded in agreement.
“Now, onto the launch time,” he said. “Here are your tickets to New Zealand. This is where we will launch. It’s under wraps right now so the public doesn’t flock to the launch site and cause a scene, but it will be public knowledge when it airs.” Handing out the tickets one by one, he shook his head. “Crazy-ass people... Anyway! It's summer in New Zealand right now, so it will be a little treat before we head off to the new planet.”
“When are we leaving?” Smith asked.
“Soon! We leave for the launch site in two days.”
We were shocked. No one said a word, but we all looked down at our feet and took a deep breath.
“Not what you were expecting, I know, but it had to remain confidential for many reasons.” He waved his hand apologetically. “Now, here is the very important part. I know that you will all need supplies for what you do. When you request supplies, please realize that we have a weight limit, and a budget. Not every wish will be granted, so make sure you only ask for the things you really have to have—and then realize that you will most likely only have half of those things provided.” There was a collective sigh. “Here is a sheet of paper. List five items, and please be very specific.”
Smith looked at me and nudged my shoulder with his. “I feel like we’re going to a deserted island and only get to bring five things with us.” He winked.
I couldn’t even laugh with him, or at him. I was not pleased. I was used to having state-of-the-art equipment at my disposal at all
