"You're doing it all wrong!" she screamed.
The Blue Project leader shook his head defiantly, "We are making progress. We have increased ozone density by three percent. I have the finest brains in the land working with me and we are constantly sharing information globally with our counterparts in other countries. Who the hell are you?"
"Who I am is of no importance. What you are is an asshole. You cannot repair a goddamned stratosphere with synthetic ozone, it's too unstable."
"The whole oxygen ozone cycle works by being unstable, it's inherent. You're just talking bollocks."
"And a good morning to you too," greeted D with a sigh, part resignation, part surprise, if such a mood were possible. "I see we have a conflict of ideas here. Who are you, and how did you get into a secure area?"
The woman shrugged, "No one stopped me."
Again, another sigh, this time with a rolling of eyes, "I'm going to have breakfast. I think it might be fruitful if you two joined me, is it day or night?" Simultaneously both informed her it was night time and glared at each other for actually agreeing on something. "Ok, let's have it in the observation lounge," and turning to the woman added, "There's no steps."
The observation lounge was no more than a room with a glass roof for observing the weather; the rising sun would never blind anyone as there were no windows in the walls. Breakfast was brought to them consisting of coffee, bread biscuits, cheese, sliced tomato and some grapes.
"Cheese?" enquired the woman, "I didn't know it still existed, and is that 'real' coffee?"
"Being the boss has a few perks, not many, but a few, we didn't totally annihilate all animals and plants; in fact we've successfully bred nineteen calves locally with four more due. I'm sorry, I'm forgetting myself, call me D, and this is your new best friend Winston. You go by?"
"Holly," she replied accepting a cup of black coffee, "Thank you."
Her bald head and bony frame gave her an androgynous look, if it wasn't for her fiery temper she could almost pass as other worldly.
"Update me," she asked, handing a cup to Winston.
"It's difficult to tell without satellite communications, we can only monitor the stratosphere locally. I would tentatively estimate a two to three percent increase in ozone, possibly and optimistic four, but with jet streams and turbulence it quite impossible to be exact."
"Not enough, but let's be positive, we're moving in the right direction." Holly fidgeted agitatedly in her chair anticipating her turn to trash this. "And you would like to add?" asked D picking up on this.
"As I told this… man, earlier," she stated, with disdain, "ok wait, wait, a truce, deep breaths… Let's be constructive here and thrash this out together. I have an idea to boost the natural generation of ozone; synthetic will only work for a short period. If we can saturate the sunrise with oxygen it will be converted into its atomic state by the massive bombardment of ultra violet, and as we all know, atomic oxygen wastes no time becoming ozone. Ultra violet in the direct sunlight is probably a thousand, even ten thousand times higher than normal at ground level now. Has it been measured?" she enquired looking to Winston. But he didn't answer, not through any rudeness, just seemed lost in mathematical calculations; on another planet might be an apt description of him, a man who could do mathematics quite freely in binary or hexadecimal.
"But isn't this happening every sunrise?" asked D.
"Yes, of course, but we need to increase levels, turbo charge it if you like; we need more oxygen. The sunrise is happening somewhere on the planet as we speak, the planet is continually being bombarded somewhere with high energy ultra violet. Harness this energy. Use it to do what used to happen in the stratosphere but at ground level."
"But how does it reach the stratosphere, and how do we affect a saturation of oxygen?"
"We have to do it manually. Nature is doing it with waves at sea level. It used to do it with plant life but that's too depleted to have much effect anymore. We quite simply have to physically release oxygen from cylinders before dawn all over the planet. How it gets up is another prayer. Hopefully there will be enough thermal vectors from the sun itself heating up the air and land to carry it high enough. The physical process itself generates heat at an atomic level which should help. Even being released from the cylinders is a jet effect, point them skyward."
Winston spoke briefly, "In theory this works. In practice the storms will disperse the ozone."
"I know," sighed Holly, "I'm just hoping the massive updraft can have an effect before the winds hit. There are six, seven, sometimes even fifteen minutes before they kick in, although the latter is unusual."
"Hospitals, factories, oxygen cylinders are everywhere, all over the planet; almost every manufacturing industry will have some. They're probably just sitting there; they'd be no use to toasters. This could help, if it, or part, could reach the stratosphere; its success is proportional to the amount of oxygen available and the amount of ozone that gets there, but the raw theory of the reaction is viable. This idea could buy us some time."
"Get your facts right, coordinate this," announced D slapping her thighs, "relay it to all Project leaders. I'd like to say I want this happening by the next sunrise but that's already happening somewhere; I want it happening in that somewhere next sunrise. Get the military in on the manual implementation of things, manoeuvres close to sunrise can be dangerous, keep it professional. Find that oxygen, and where it can't be found, get industry manufacturing it, increase their power quota. No stone unturned." She downed her coffee and set off to address the House glancing back at 'the new best friends' and thought - 'Sarcasm? How wrong I was.'
"Update me," asked a busy John.
"Isn't that my line?" she retorted. "We're winning. It's a miniscule win, but we are beating this. All methods must continue, and I'm still open to new ones, I see no reason unified prayer should not be constant, that was an enormous sensation last night, day, whatever, I've lost track of time."
"That opinion seems to be reflected globally, there's no need for any further directives on it, it will continue until the err… end, either way," assured John. "There was a new idea came in, the ritual sacrifice of virgins to the sun god, but it was dismissed due to a lack of virgins locally, most decided at the announcement of a mass cull to go out with a bang rather than a whimper."
D stopped in her tracks and looked at him, "I'm hoping this is a joke."
"Yes, I'm sorry," he admitted, "not in very good taste."
"Apology accepted," she said, looking at him curiously as if previous assessments may have been wrong, but as she resumed pace she couldn't help but smile; and cautiously, even slightly rebelliously, John did too.
"I see a small light at the end of a long and dark tunnel," announced D to the House. "Ozone is on the up, albeit ever so slight, but if we keep the graph ascending then we have hope for the future. One third of the children and minders have already been delivered to the Genesis Island, I cannot tell you of its location, that has been deemed by the authorities as classified, top secret; I'm sure I could find out but I think this method is best, I see no benefit from this knowledge, just the knowledge of its success is enough.
"Blue Project engineers have relayed a few components that have been overlooked, these needs will be addressed soon with the delivery of the final children, animals, fruit, vegetables and plant life, and when this is complete; and hopefully unnecessary I cautiously add with our current ozone status; Genesis should be fully self sufficient.
"But I do feel our own global success is imminent, so Plan D, or whatever further new dynamic name you pick, will soon be implemented, the regeneration of our wildlife, both flora and fauna. Initially the empty space generated in the world's city green houses produced by the creation of Genesis Island will be utilised. Hopefully next, as ozone increases to more favourable levels, this drastic weather will abate, the regeneration of our barren lands will be addressed. And anyone who doubts the propagating powers of plant life should be reminded of a thirty thousand acre farm in South Africa that was created in three years, from a single spider plant.
"People, I cautiously and optimistically thank you, and the whole of humanity thanks you too. Now if you'll forgive me, I need to don my tie-dye t-shirt and holy jeans, unconventional as that may sound but it is only metaphorical. Even the boss needs a break; I'm taking thirty minutes off; I have a small but quite possibly important concert to go to."
Unless you lived in the green house or were one of its many gardeners, you could never but be totally bowled over by its beauty, its sheer lush fullness; how could we ever have considered destroying anything so powerful, so full of life? For two kilometres an otherworld kingdom stretched in magnificence, this was just one of so many domes, each had its own environmental settings optimised for the plant life and animals that dwelt there from whatever global region, huge lamps and humidity jets controlled a fine eco-balance, compared to the raging planet outside it was a humbling experience for any human who dared put self success above nature.
As promised musical activity was low key, a collection of artists and followers of whom it was hard to tell which were which so integrated was the feel of this group, together they recited poetry, sang songs and danced in harmony, in celebration, at one with nature.
No damage was caused, not a flower picked, and some really were simply just hugging trees as equals. Even the wild life seemed to sense the beauty of what was happening as birds and butterflies lighted on heads and shoulders, as undomesticated animals sat beside humans happy to be stroked.
"Thirty?" D queried.
Dog smiled. "Would I be a credible rock and roll star if I didn't rebel against the shackles of authority? I promise you with all my heart there will be no damage. I feel you know this, sense it in all you see, these are beautiful people. We are as one with Mother; can't you feel her presence too?"
She sighed, but not from his irresponsibility, from lost wonder, if ever she had doubts or misgivings about her duties they were all reinforced by this sight, and her purpose for the next year, the next natural cycle, was clear; the world must become like this once more. "There's a naked man over there, I sincerely hope he's not going to start smoking any of the plants."
Dog laughed, "I think I should sing a song."
"Please do," replied D, "and when all this is over; and I know it will be successful, I can feel its power too; come back and see me. Perhaps I will bestow some title or honour upon you, although that might lose you all your street credibility, but would I not be a worthy world leader if I did not keep in check a rock and roll rebel?"
Dog laughed again, and in keeping with all that was him, took her hand and bowed to kiss it, then returned to his guitar.
"This is an old but beautiful song, a song for Mother, an apology. I'd like you all to sing along."
"Well, I dreamed I saw the knights
In armor coming,
Saying something about a queen.
There were peasants singing and
Drummers drumming
And the archer split the tree.
There was a fanfare blowing
To the sun
That was floating on the breeze.
Look at Mother Nature on the run
In the nineteen seventies.
Look at Mother Nature on the run
In the nineteen seventies.
"I was lying in a burned out basement
With the full moon in my eyes.
I was hoping for replacement
When the sun burst thru the sky.
There was a band playing in my head
And I felt like getting high.
I was thinking about what a
Friend had said
I was hoping it was a lie.
Thinking about what a
Friend had said
I was hoping it was a lie.
"Well, I dreamed I saw the silver
Space ships flying
In the yellow haze of the sun,
There were children crying
And colors flying
All around the chosen ones.
All in a dream, all in a dream
The loading had begun.
They were flying Mother Nature's
Silver seed to a new home in the sun.
Flying Mother Nature's
Silver seed to a new home."
'After the Goldrush' Neil Young 1970
D marvelled at this beauty and quietly left, somehow with her position she felt a little out of place and guilty, if not her, then maybe her kind, were responsible for all the wrongs in this world, all the political calamities, all culminating in the state of the outside, this inside was not for a politician, a politician's place was outside, and to fix outside. She had endless work to do; she doubted if she would ever see Dog again. As she left the merriment faded behind her…
"…They took all the trees
And put them in a tree museum
And they charged all the people
A dollar and a half just to see 'em
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got
Till it's gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot.
"Hey farmer farmer
Put away that D.D.T. now
Give me
Spots on my apples
But leave me the birds and the bees
Please....!"
'Big Yellow Taxi' Joni Mitchell 1970
6. ifuture