Blackout

We think we have an idea where she’s been, if not where she’s going. There was an explosion in one of the supposedly deserted neighborhoods; police found evidence of a massive amount of computer equipment there. It’s possible she and her friends were trying to buy themselves new identities when something went wrong. How things went wrong, I don’t know. We thought we’d removed all the tracking devices from her body. If we didn’t…

If we didn’t, you may have to prepare yourself for the idea that all of this was for nothing. There’s nothing we can do now but wait and see what happens next.

—Taken from a message sent by Dr. Gregory Lake to Vice President Richard Cousins, August 5, 2041.

Alaric took less than kindly to the message that Maggie had been injured and I was remaining behind to tend her while the others returned to the lab. I didn’t mention Georgia. There’s complicating matters, and then there’s blowing up Parliament just so you can make a few adjustments to the seating chart. He’ll find out soon enough.

Please God we all get out of this alive. Please God Maggie gets better. I want to go home. I want to see my wife again.

I want this all to be over.

—From Fish and Clips, the blog of Mahir Gowda, August 5, 2041. Unpublished.