Last One Out of Eden

"Well, you made it look cool. If there had been a camera here, you would have been all over the Internet!"

"I guess that would have been my fifteen minutes of fame."

Carrie sat her paddle on the end of the table, turning back around, "I used to dream of being somebody famous, like a Kardashian only with real talent. When I was in high school, I sang a bit, but not well enough to get noticed."

"Did you want to be a singer?"

She shrugged, "It would have been more exciting than selling women's shoes, which was what I was doing before the shit hit the fan."

"I don't think I could handle being famous. I'm not the type who does well in front of crowds."

"I just think it would be nice that people would remember you for something, a legacy or whatever..."

"Won't be anyone around to remember much longer."

Jeffery immediately regretted the comment seeing the sadness pass across Carrie's face.

"Why don't we take a break I need to check the gas in the generators."

It was cooling down outside as dusk fell and the stars began to make an appearance in the dimming sky. An occasional meteor would fly past overhead some low enough to make a sizzling noise as they burned up in the atmosphere.

"This would almost be beautiful if it wasn't for..." Carrie let her words trail away leaving the thought unspoken, but evident to both of them.

"If you want to see the view around here I have a special place I sometimes lounge in the evenings," said Jeffery trying to lighten the mood.

"Oh! Where would that be?"

Getting another chair up the narrow stairs to the dormitory roof access was a pain, but it was worth it to see Carrie's smiling face while they lounged back and watched the stars fill the sky.

"Do you know which one is where the Arks are headed?"

"You couldn't see it from here easily without a telescope, but it's approximately in that part of the sky over there," he replied waving his hand to the west.

"Is it much like Earth?"

"Hard to say for sure. We took our best shot based on the data we had available. It won't be exactly like Earth, for one thing, it orbits a Red Dwarf star so things would look different with the light leaning toward the infrared side of the spectrum. It's bound to be dimmer, and who knows how biology would develop on a world like that, the plant life might evolve to absorb light in a way that would make everything appear black instead of green like it is here."

"Sounds very macabre...like a Halloween world."

"We were just guessing. They'll find out when they get there...If they get there."

"You don't think they will make it?"

"All I can say is that we had all the smartest people on the planet working on this and we gave it everything we had. There are a thousand things that have to go right, and even more that could go wrong, but at the end of the day, it was our only hope so...Yeah...I want to believe they will find a new home, and humanity will be able to continue."

"I'm sorry you missed your ride," she said, looking over at him.

"My chance to explore the Universe? I was pretty disappointed myself, but at least I got to play one heck of a table tennis match with the prettiest girl in the Sonora desert."

Carrie laughed and rolled her eyes for good measure, "Is this where you use the line about how these are our final hours, and I'm the last girl on Earth?"

"I would never stoop so low," laughed Jeffery in return, "I'm just glad you're here, Carrie."

"I'm glad I'm here too, but I'd rather we were on an Ark."

"Me too, Kid...Me too."

THE BIRTHDAY BOY -

The next morning started overcast, and by lunchtime, a rare rain was falling in the desert hitting the windows of the dormitory with a quiet rapping like tiny fists on the glass. Since it was too nasty to go outside, Jeffery and Carrie had contented themselves with continuing their table tennis tournament while taking an occasional break to play cards at one of the long tables in the cafeteria. They both tried not to look at the countdown clock, which now stood at thirteen days and change.

"I wish you could shut that thing off. I would just as soon not know," commented Carrie at one point.

"Sorry, it's tied directly to the building's power and doesn't have an off switch. It annoys me too," he replied, laying down a card.

"I've never cared less about what time it is than I do right now."

"Time...Just a reminder we're not getting things down fast enough, or we are getting older which is only exciting to children."

"I would be turning twenty-five in three months," said Carrie proving that Jeffery's guess at her age had been almost spot on.

"I'll be thirty soon," he commented, picking up a card from the draw pile.

"How soon?"

"If my dad was right about the time of day I was born in about six hours."

"Today is your birthday?!" said Carrie sitting up tall in surprise.

"Yes...I hadn't thought about it though until you mentioned yours."

"How can you forget your own birthday? This is cause for celebration!" said Carrie with growing excitement in her voice.

"You want to have a birthday party?" said Jeffery sounding incredulous at the thought.

"Come on! This is the last birthday you will ever celebrate we should mark the occasion, don't you think?"

He started to wave her off since he had never been big on celebrating his birthday anyway, but he could tell by the look on her face she needed this as a distraction, so he relented.

They had a hard time digging up the ingredients among the available supplies in the storage area, but in the end, they managed to put together a respectable if small cake topping it with a single candle they discovered in the back of a knife drawer. Carrie cobbled together streamers to hang from the ceiling from colored paper she found in a desk, and Jeffery watched with growing amusement as she drew a "Happy Birthday" banner with Sharpies and taped it to one wall.

Carrie went to take a shower saying that she wanted to get ready for the party. Jeffery wasn't sure what all that entailed and figured he was better off not knowing, so he went to feed the animals returning a short while later. The cafeteria was still deserted when he came back through Carrie having removed the cake from the kitchen sitting it on the table right beneath the streamers.

"Carrie!" he called his voice echoing in the empty building.

"Happy Birthday, Jeffery," came her voice from behind him and he turned toward it, but stopped in his tracks not able to speak at first.

"I didn't think Private Walsh would mind if I borrowed a few more of her things. She left her cosmetics behind and apparently cotton summer dresses are not in fashion where they are going," said Carrie.

"Yeah...There were stringent weight limits enforced," replied Jeffery still not able to take his eyes off the woman before him.

He had thought Carrie and attractive woman before, and she had used the cosmetics she had found to accentuate everything about that observation. Her eyes popped with eyeshadow, making the deep blue stand out even more, and her lips glistened a bright, cherry red. The short dress she wore clung to her petite body showing off every curve with her creamy white breasts stretching the top.

"You look beautiful," he blurted without thinking.

Carrie blushed looking bashfully at the ground for a moment, "Thank you...I always liked to dress up for a party, and what's a party without music!"

She pulled her hands from behind her back showing off the MP3 player she had retrieved from Walsh's footlocker.

"I'm afraid that Private Walsh had a real thing for seventies arena rock so I hope you like Styx and...that's pretty much all the bands I recognize from then," she said pressing the button.

They were treated with the opening guitars of the old Styx classic, "The Best of Times," while Carrie lit the candle and entreated Jeffery to make a wish. He blew it out quickly, watching the smoke curl its way toward the ceiling. The cake was surprisingly good, and they each enjoyed a piece while the music of another time and place played next to them.

"This is the kind of music my Dad used to listen too. He was very fond of 'Kansas,' you know, 'Dust in the Wind,'"

"'All we are is dust in the wind...'" sang Carrie who did have quite a pretty voice.

"I think you were selling yourself short. I could see you singing in front of a sellout crowd."

"That's very kind of you. I don't know; maybe I missed my calling. I wouldn't have minded hearing adoring fans chant my name. Too late for dreams of fame and fortune..."

"Hey, don't be a downer. It's my birthday!" said Jeffery trying his best to force some cheer into his voice.

From the player, he heard the start of "Free Bird," and he stood up offering Carrie his hand.

"May I have this dance?"

Her small hand slipped warmly into his, and he pulled her body to him. She had also found some perfume among Private Walsh's things, and the sweet scent made holding her that much more enjoyable. They swayed in time to the music, and he could feel the rapid beating of her heart against his chest.

"Do you think anyone will ever yell, 'Free Bird!" at a concert again?" asked Carrie wistfully.

"I'm almost willing to bet that no matter what direction music goes in on that new world there will always be someone yelling for 'Free Bird'," he replied.

Carrie looked up into his smiling face, and he, in turn, looked into her eyes that sparkled faintly with the tears she was holding back. They slowed as the music picked up tempo still starring into each other's eyes.

Jeffery began to move forward the urge to taste Carrie's sweet lips overwhelming his usual shyness when it came to women. He watched her eyes flutter shut and her lips part as he drew near. Just as they were about to kiss, a loud band came from beyond the windows of the dormitory followed by a shock wave that rattled the building and shattered several glass panes. Jeffery threw Carrie to the ground shielding her body with his as the ground shook beneath them.

"Is this it? I thought we had more time!" wailed Carrie.

"Were fine...This was a fragment from Nomad...A pretty good size one..." said Jeffery as he stood dusting himself off.

He helped Carrie back to her feet, and they made their way to the windows carefully stepping around the broken glass. In the distance, just on the other side of the low slung mountains to the south, they could see a gentle red-glow.

"We're lucky it came down over there if it landed on us most of this base would be a smoking crater."

"Is that really luck?" asked Carrie quietly.

He had no idea how to answer that, so he went to get a broom to clean up the broken glass while Carrie went to fetch a mop and bucket.

"The water isn't working," called Carrie from the other room.

Jeffery quickly joined her, turning the valve himself and then checking the plumbing underneath the sink. He frowned and went off to examine one of the lavatories before coming back with an increasingly grim expression on his face.

"What is it?"

"The water flow has been interrupted. When we first built this base, we trucked in or flew in water, but it wasn't practical to do that long term. Fortunately, we discovered an old underground aquifer in the mountains south of here, so we built a pumping station and ran pipe back to the base. That meteor strike was more south-easterly, and the station is south-west, but maybe a fragment broke off and hit close enough to damage the pipe or the station."

Jeffery switched off the music player which had fallen on the ground and started toward his quarters where he began stuffing tools in a duffel bag.

"What are you doing?" asked Carrie from the door.

"I'm going out to check the line. I might have to drive up to the pumping station, but it isn't that far from here. Still, depending on the damage I may be gone awhile."

"You're leaving me here?" she said a hint of fear creeping into her voice.

"I don't know what I'll find out there...It could be dangerous, and you would be safer staying here."

"Why bother with all this? I mean we have bottled water, and we can go without showers...I don't think it's going to matter how bad we stink at the end."

Jeffery smiled but shook his head, "The bottled water is getting low and won't last another twelve days, in this heat we would die of thirst before Nomad ever arrives and I would rather not go out that way. Besides, I like a good shower..."

He went to go past her, but she stuck out a hand grabbing his arm.

"Please, let me go with you. I can help."

Jeffery sighed, but he could see the fear in her eyes that mirrored what he could already hear in her voice.

"You have to do everything I say when I say it, understand?"

"Yes, Sir!" she said, throwing him a salute.

"I would put your fatigues back on this could get messy."

The pipeline was easy enough to follow it being all above ground, and Jeffery drove parallel to its length watching for breaks in the coal-black metal. The four-wheel-drive utility vehicle they had chosen for the trip bounced and swayed over the uneven ground throwing them both around the cab.

"Where did you learn to drive?" asked Carrie with feigned sarcasm.

"Sorry...We grated a road out here, but the desert has reclaimed some of it already. Road repair was not high on our list of priorities I'm afraid."

It was evident by the time they reached the edge of the mountains that the problem with the water was not in the line. Jeffery shifted gears as the road grew steeper climbing up toward a small pass that had been blasted in the surrounding rock. Carrie spotted the pumping station as they topped the rise. A small, low slung building pressed up against the ancient rock it appeared undamaged from the outside. It also had a battered-looking pickup truck parked next to it.

Jeffery brought their vehicle to a stop a short distance away.

"I take it your people didn't leave that parked there?"

"That isn't one of ours. You stay here and keep the doors locked!"

"Jeffery I should..." started Carrie but she stopped talking at the stern look in Jeffery's eyes.

He got out, pulling his sidearm from its holster.

"Jeffery..."

"It's going to be fine. Just wait here..." he said, trying to sound confident.

Carrie looked scared but nodded as he shut the driver's side door and made his way toward the pumping station.

The pickup truck's bed was filled with all manner of camping supplies and survival gear, but there was no sign of the occupants. He stepped to the door, putting one hand on it while taking the safety off his weapon. The entry made an obnoxious squeal the metal hinges already suffering in the desert heat from a lack of recent maintenance.

The inside of the pumping station was not large and mostly taken up by the equipment used to send water to the base kilometers away. Jeffery found himself confronted by two men who had whirled around at the sound of the door opening. They were both dressed in dirty clothes and looked like they hadn't bathed in weeks. The taller of the two seemed to be in his late fifties with graying hair and a potbelly while his companion was much younger maybe Carrie's age and lean with his blond hair a wild, unkempt mess on top of his head. They were both armed with hunting rifles though only the younger of the two was holding one.

"Freeze!" yelled Jeffery, "You are on United States military property. I need both of you gentleman to put your guns down and place your hands on top of your head."

The younger man gritted his teeth and tensed as if he was going to make a move, but the older one grunted at him drawing his attention.

"You heard the man, Boy, put your gun down and do as his says," he ordered in a deep voice.

Reluctantly, the younger man placed his rifle on the ground and joined his companion, placing his hands on top of his head as instructed.

"We don't want any trouble, Sir. We were just out of water, and we saw this pipeline and thought we could get some."

"What are you doing out here in the middle of nowhere?" asked Jeffery.

"It's safer to try and move cross country if you got a vehicle that can handle it. The roads are a death trap with scavengers grabbing folks," replied the older man.

Jeffery motioned for the two of them to follow him out.

"Keep those hands up!" snapped Jeffery when the younger tried to lower his.

"I told you we don't want no trouble. We were just thirsty," said the older man in a reasonable tone.

The trio started back toward the parked vehicles with Jeffery contemplating what to do next. It turned out that decision wasn't his to make.

"Hey! Soldier Boy! I think you need to drop that gun right there in the dirt!"

Jeffery stopped to find a third man holding Carrie around the neck a knife pressed to her cheek.

"Go On! I'll stick your girlfriend here in a heartbeat!"

Carrie mouthed "Sorry" at him as he tossed his pistol aside. As soon as the gun had hit the dirt, the younger man in front of him spun around and socked him in the stomach doubling him over. A second blow sent him to his knees, and before he could rise, he felt the steel barrel of his pistol pressed to his temple.

"I told you we weren't looking for trouble, but that doesn't mean we won't dish some out!" said the old man who now held his gun.

"Why don't you just take some water and be on your way?" suggested Jeffery panting from the pain.

"You hear that Frank, these military guys just love to give orders..." said the man with the knife who appeared to be about the same age as the one who had a gun to Jeffery's head.

"It wasn't an order I was just..."

Jeffery's words were cut off by the smack of the pistol butt coming down on his head.

"Shut your hole, Boy! I've had enough shit from you Soldier Boys to last me a lifetime. Killed two of my friends a few weeks back."

"Your friends weren't looting at the time were they?" asked Jeffery who got clocked upside the head again for his trouble.

"Leave him alone!" screamed Carrie.

She fought against the grip of the large man holding her, but he just laughed.

"Oh! Yeah! You're a feisty one, aren't you? You know, Frank, I think this is our lucky day! We get us some water, and we get to have some fun to boot!"

Jeffery's face clouded over and took on an expression of anger so profound that the older man holding his pistol actually took a step back.

"You men take the water and be on your way, but if you hurt that girl..." he let his words trail off the threat all to clear.

"Go finish filling our containers and fetch our rifles, Boy," snapped the older man whose name appeared to be Frank.

The younger man licked his lips looking around like he was worried he was about to be left out of something, but at another dirty look from Frank he moved off toward the station vanishing inside.

"O.K. Tom, I didn't want the boy to see I'm trying to raise him right," said Frank gesturing with the pistol in his hand at Carrie.

"Oh, Man! Gonna have some fun now, Girl!" said Tom shifting the knife back slightly as he slid his free hand down to grab one of Carrie's breasts through her fatigue top squeezing it roughly.

"Stop!" snapped Jeffery, but the two men merely laughed.

Carrie was starting to cry. Tears were spilling down her face as Tom tried to turn her toward him. The minute her head came around, she suddenly lept forward biting him hard on the neck and drawing blood as Tom shoved her angrily to the ground.

"You little bitch!" he cried, raising the knife.

"Easy now, Tom," cautioned Frank taking a half-step toward his companion. The gun barrel wavered away from Jeffery's head by only an inch or two, but that was all the space he needed. He moved like a striking snake slamming a blow right into Franks crotch and snatching the gun from his hand as the other man grabbed at his testicles and fell retching to the ground. Jeffery didn't even hesitate, but put two rounds right into the chest of the knife-wielding Tom who was thrown backward by the impact and was dead before his body hit the ground. Spinning around, Jeffery dropped into a crouch pointing his gun back toward the door of the station right as the younger man, now holding his rifle, emerged.