Blackout: Chapter 7

Previously

From the Journal of Jason Forrester

October 15, 2006

Arturius is in Bagram for a USO Tour.  After a great year with Surprise, he is getting bumped up to Lexington for Low A.  I am not surprised, I still remember him getting on the Varsity Baseball team at the High School our sophomore year.  It was a little intimidating to have scouts for college and professional teams at your baseball games when you are competing for the state championship.

He said he is married now.  Her name is Jessie, and her dad runs a sports bar in Surprise, AZ.  She's been a Royals fan since she was a little kid.  The bar is close enough to the Spring Training complex that most of the team retires to his bar after practice.  According to Arturius, she knows more about the team than either of us.  That is more than a little scary, to be quite frank.

I guess they must have met when he was in Surprise during his Rookie League training.  The rate he is moving up, he should make the show in five years.  I gotta make sure I get leave for his first game in KC.

Omaha, Nebraska

5 August 2013

The phone was ringing.  That was unusual.  Jessie stepped out of the kitchen where she had been helping Codie with her homework.  Arturius picked up the phone and held it to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Arthur, its Ramsey."

"Ramsey, what's up?"

"I need you to get back over here.  Rays is hurt, and the Royals are calling you up to the Show.  Congratulations, Berringer, you just made it to the big leagues.  We need you to put on a suit and get down here."

"I will be there soon, thanks Ramsey."

Jessie had an expectant look on her face.  "So?"

"I need to get changed."  Arthur said, "The PR guys want to hold a press conference.  I am getting called up to KC."

Turning to hide his smirk, he said, "Do you know where my suit is?"

Jessie began to cheer, along with little Codie.

"Seriously though, where is my suit?  You are the one who picked up the dry cleaning this week."

Jessie just laughed and handed it over.

At the sports complex, Arturius had enough time to make a few phone calls.  After calling his parents - Jessie had already called them and told them to have the TV on - he dialed Jayce.

"Jayce.  Hey, its Arthur."

"Arthur, what's up?  Wait, hold on, my boss is talking to me."

"Yes sir, it is important.  Arturius Berringer, the Stormchaser Short Stop, just called me.  Yeah, I will."

"My boss says hello."

Arthur grinned at that, "Tell him to turn on the TV."

"Which channel?"

"FOX Sports."

"Okay, why?"

"Trust me, you will know in a few.  I gotta go."

"Okay, later."

Arthur slipped the phone back in his pocket as he heard his name called, "…and thus, we are pleased to announce that Arturius Berringer will be joining the Royals at the game tomorrow."

The crowd applauded as he stepped out and onto the stage.

Lenexa, Kansas

9 August 2013

Jayce opened the door, "Arthur, Jessie, come on in."

Arturius walked in, carrying a bottle of whiskey.  Very nice whiskey.  "For you, Jayce."

"Wow, thank you."  He whistled, "1994 Jameson Limited Reserve, very nice.  What do you say we put this out of its misery?"

That evening, after the four of them had done some serious damage to the bottle of whiskey and enjoyed Rebecca's cooking, they settled into the living room of the apartment.  As they talked, the subject of the Coronal Mass Ejection which had knocked out power in Finnmark, Norway came up.

"Art, I am with Jayce on this one.  I think we are going to get another storm before this cycle is over."

"So?  I still remember those science classes I took.  The chances of another storm like that hitting the Earth in this cycle slim almost to the point it is not worth calculating."

"I'm not so sure, Arthur."  Arturius looked at him skeptically.

"You know me.  I am more than a little paranoid.  Ever since the storm at the beginning of the year, I have been keeping an eye on the SOHO and STEREO sattelites.  Do you know how many CME's have narrowly missed us recently?  Fifteen.  Some by mere minutes.  Don't forget the ongoing economic collapse."

"So what are you saying?"

"I am saying remember the motto.  Semper Paratus, 'Always ready.'  We must be ready in case something happens."

"Seriously, why hasn't the media covered this?"

The look Jayce gave Arturius spoke volumes.  Ever since High School the two of them had long talked about the Media's desire to shield people from the uncomfortable truths of the world which might challenge their world view.  The last election and the media's refusal to talk about Benghazi had been a topic of many conversations, and it had been only the latest of dozens.

"Okay, okay, I get it.  But this is something they would cover if they had an ounce of credibility.  I mean if you are right, people are going to die."

"Oh, I am sure they will cover it once the CME has lifted off and there is any real threat of it hitting us.  Until then, they have celebrity scandals to cover."

"Wait," Rebecca interjected, "What about the flap over Global Warming?"

"Fits the world view," Jayce responded.

"Come again?"

"The media want people dependent upon the government.  With a few exception they always support candidates who want to bring us closer to a literally totalitarian government."

"How do you mean?"

"I mean that they support those who want government control over our lives.  As much as they can get away with.  They honestly believe it will make this country a better place to live.  They honestly think, that if we are all subservient to the government, we will all be better off.  A CME right now, of the same level of energy as the Carrington Event, will cause the government in particular and society in general to collapse.  The idea of alerting the people to this, and thus making them more self-reliant and less other-reliant, is alien to their thought process, and many members of the press will simply reject it outright."

"Okay, okay, let's say you are right about this.  What then?"

"Simple, we start buying food and tools to survive.  We buy water containers and guns and ammunition.  We stock up, and prepare for the worst.  Because, and we need to be honest with ourselves here, if a Carrington Event were to happen today, it would be the worst thing which could happen.  Total collapse.  The end of the world as we know it."

Chapter 8