One Final Prayer

    Back on Earth, all was just as Sam had left it, nothing had changed and everything was still running as smoothly as before Sam’s departure.  No one noticed he was gone and there were no calls to the police reporting him missing.  Everyone still went to work, lived through their chosen routines and in a pub in Birmingham a middle-aged man was having a quiet drink at a table in the corner.  The place was very busy, the man was surrounded by anything but quiet yet his demeanour remained as if he were sitting all by himself without anybody or anything to bother him.  His eyes were firmly set on the door.
    Another man entered, unnoticed by anyone amongst the crowd.  He slipped between the throng of customers waiting to be served and eased his way over to the man at the table.  The two men looked at each other for a few seconds, as if a brief examination would tell them more than a prolonged conversation ever could.  The one standing up was younger and the grizzled older one had a beard and unkempt hair that was mostly grey by now, it was clear he had been drinking for quite a while before the other man arrived.  The older man said, “You’re right on time, sit down already, I got you a drink.”
    The younger man took his place at the bearded man’s table and said, “It’s strange to see a face with the voice that I’ve talked with so many times over the phone.  It’s funny, you are exactly how I pictured you in my mind every time we spoke.”
    “I don’t know why I agreed to meet you,” the bearded man said.  “There was no need too, I could have told you everything you wanted over the phone, this is too dangerous.”
    “I needed to hear it from you in person,” the younger man said.  “Have you been telling me the truth, is Celestia real?”
    “It’s definitely real,” bearded man said.  “I’ve been there, I’ve seen it, I helped create it.”
    “Are you sure that is where he is? ” younger man said.
    “Oh, he’ll be there, no doubt in my mind,” bearded man said.  “The only thing I’m worried about is your level of commitment, have you done what I recommended?”
    “I completed it two days ago,” younger man said.  “I am now an employee of the Olympus Corporation.”
    “Good,” bearded man said.  “You already know what else needs to be done if you’re serious about this.”
    “Yes, I do and I am,” younger man said.  “Why did you decide to help me with this?”
    “I was there at the beginning,” bearded man said.  “I wasn’t like any of my successors, I wasn’t plucked out of the land like a vegetable ready to be harvested, I chose it for myself.  I gave my mind to aid in the creation of that monstrosity, I helped form it’s design and shape it’s structure.  I was there from it’s conception to it’s birth and even a few more years after that, being the guardian, nurturing it in it’s infancy until it was strong enough to sustain itself.”
    “You never told me you were so involved,” younger man said.  “You just told me all you knew about it, never anything about your part in crafting it.”
    “Mine is a life filled with regrets and lacking in time,” bearded man said.  “I had decided before I first got in contact with you that I wouldn’t tell you how I knew so much information, or why I was giving it to you without asking anything in return.  I’ve changed my mind.  I know if I didn’t do it somebody else would have, but I still feel responsible for crafting that machination and unleashing it upon the world.  I oversaw the construction and I even went above and beyond my call of duty after it was completed, I can’t remember why I did it so it mustn’t have been a good reason, then.  I didn’t ask for anything because I haven’t needed money for a long time; especially not now.  What I wanted I knew you didn’t have.”
    “What is it you want?” younger man asked.
    “About a year and a half ago I finally got the news that I was terminal,” bearded man said.  “I got the best medical care money could buy but my doctors still gave me a few years to live, if I was lucky.  What I wanted no one less than God could have given me, but what I want now is just to try and help you.  When you tapped all your resources and asked every contact you had to gain the information you wanted, one of the investigators you used was an old friend of mine and he told me about you.  I don’t know if it was pity or guilt I felt, but I wanted to contact you anonymously, point you in the right direction and that was all.  I suppose, like most things in my life, it didn’t end up as I planned.  The first time I spoke to you I told you my name, why the hell did I do that?  Maybe a part of me wanted you to know.  I wasn’t like this before I knew how long I had left.  I knew from childhood that my life wouldn’t be as long as most but it still came as a shock when the numbers were laid bare for me to see.  I had never felt guilty about Celestia before, I don’t think I had ever felt guilt at all, it had seemed like such a useless emotion.  All you need is the news that your death is imminent for your take on the world to change.”
    “Admit it,” younger man said.  “I know you did it for the money and I understand why, don’t pretend you don’t know why just because you’re ashamed.”
    “I’m ashamed of everything I did yet I was still completely honest about it with you,” bearded man said.  “Why would I leave out one detail?  The money was a gift when I was finished for my dedication, I knew nothing about it at the time, the salary was introduced as standard after I had already left.”
    “I apologise,” younger man said.  “You’ve offered your help so readily and you have been incredibly open and honest, I should have believed you, I’m sorry if I offended you.”
    “Keep your apologies, I don’t have the time to be offended,” bearded man said.  “You’ve got bigger things to worry about than my feelings.  Knowing about Celestia isn’t even the first step, it’s just realising that you have some stairs to climb.  I can only help you with the basic outline and all my knowledge that I’ve already provided you with.  As for the practical side you’re on your own, you’re going to need to use a lot of ingenuity and even occasionally some improvisation to acquire the codes that you need and to be in the right place at the right time.  Do you have any idea how you’re going to accomplish this?”
    “I still have some friends willing to assist me and even some old associates of my brother’s,” younger man said.  “It might get a little chaotic at some times along the way, but I will not fail.”
    “How chaotic?” bearded man asked.
    “Well, the casualties will be high so let me give you some advice in return,” younger man began.  “Stay out of London.  I prophesise conflict in the city’s future.”
    “Are you positive that this will be worth it?” bearded man wondered.
    “Absolutely,” younger man answered right away.  “I need him back, no matter what the price.  You may see that as selfish as I won’t be the one paying it and I agree with you, I just don’t care.  I’ll need to be patient but that won’t be a problem, I can wait for him.  He’s the only person I’ve ever cared about, he’s the only person who understands me.  If you can’t relate with your relations, who else is there?”
    “You realise you’re about to incur the wrath of one of the most powerful organisations in history?” bearded man warned.  “If you go through with this you will both spend the rest of your probably short lives as hunted men.  Tell me that you’re prepared for that.”
    “I don’t care about the consequences,” younger man said defiantly.  “I need to put everything I have into trying to save him, he wouldn’t leave me alone in the dark.”
    “Do you not even feel afraid?” bearded man asked.
    “I’ve never been so scared in all my life, the prospect of enduring such a daunting task fills me with dread,” younger man said.  “If you really want to know the truth, I love every bit of it.  Fear is the most powerful emotion a human can experience, I mean real fear, when there’s a good chance that you could die.  Then when you survive, you feel so good that you didn’t perish, there isn’t another feeling like it in the world and I have felt it many times before.  I have had more than my share of adventures and excitement before I came to be here, sitting in this bar, talking with you.  After each time I was in danger, I found it was becoming harder and harder to become frightened but now, I’m about to meet the most difficult challenge I’ve ever faced and I am petrified.”
    “You’re starting to sound crazy,” bearded man said.  “Maybe you really are the only one who could do this.”
    “Oh, I will do this,” younger man said.  “I will enjoy the thrill while it lasts, there’s no other sensation like it, but deep in my mind I know that there is no chance of failure.  It’s not just my life in play anymore.  You and I both know the penalty if I lose.  A fate worse than death will await me.  Well, worst case scenario, if that does happens at least there’s a chance that I might be able to join him.”
    “You know that won’t happen,” bearded man said.  “They’ll kill you for sure.  Besides, if you were taken to Celestia you wouldn’t even be aware you were there, I’ve seen those guys up close, remember?  Absolutely zero higher brain function.”
    “I might not know it,” younger man said.  “But I think he will.”
    “Look at the pair of us,” bearded man said.  “Me with my body falling apart and you with your mind, you’re really are insane, you’re acting like a  fanatic.”
    “Excellent,” younger man said with a touch of lunacy in his smile and determination in his eyes.  “That means I might attract just the kind of people to my cause that I require for this to be a success, I’m starting to feel very positive about this venture.”
    “Your cause?” bearded man said.  “How much assistance are you going to enlist for this?”
    “As much as it takes,” younger man said.  “Don’t worry, it’s already planned.  You have been very supportive and soon you will be able to see the results of your labour.”
    “I don’t know how I feel about what you’re implying,” bearded man said.  “I have a problem with my work on Celestia, yet I wouldn’t mind seeing some anarchy.”
    “No need to be alarmed,” younger man said.  “Many people have those feelings from time to time.  Even though they live in a society that gets most things right, they still wouldn’t mind the occasional non-permanent change for the worst just for the sake of change itself.  You don’t have to fret, everything that I am about to instigate in the future will be rapidly recovered from by both the people and the government of Europe and you won’t have to feel anymore guilt, I promise this to you.”
    “You seem so sure of yourself,” bearded man said.  “Be careful, I’ve seen a lot of people who have been tripped up by their confidence at the last hurdle.  How can you guarantee that is how everything will play out in the future?”
    “Come on,” younger man said.  “This isn’t some fickle regime, we have a fully cemented form of government now.  It may have been true a long time ago that one person could make a significant difference in their world, but now this planet is just holding too many souls and one person can’t be heard above all the shouting anymore.  Me and my mission might be noticed for a time, but it’ll all be cleared away and a few years after it will be as if nothing had ever happened.  I bet there won’t even be a mention in future history books, no need to dwell on such dark times, they’ll say, it’s for the best.”
    “Many people might consider both you and your idea to be evil,” bearded man pointed out.
    “I won’t harbour any resentment towards such people,” younger man said.  “I understand that, from their point of view and the information they receive, it will probably seem that way to them.  In all honesty, I’m exactly like all those people.  There is no such thing as good or evil, everyone just follows one simple rule.  We all just do what we think is right.  Every human who has ever existed has strived to accomplish this, it’s all that you can ask from someone.  Why?  Are you among the people who will consider me to be evil?”
    “I’m finished with such notions,” bearded man said while chuckling weakly.  “I said to myself that I was going to help you and I like to believe that I have.  I realise you may have to do certain questionable acts, I guess you can say that I’m just doing what I believe to be right.  Besides, this will have to a patient plot, realistically I’m probably not even going to be alive when you’ve succeeded.”
    “I hadn’t thought about that,” younger man said, looking down at his drink.  “I’m now quite depressed.  I can’t believe you’ve invested so much of your remaining time into helping me, you could’ve been spending it doing all that you ever wanted to.”
    “I still have time left,” bearded man said.
    “So what are you going to do with it?” younger man asked.
    “Honestly, I have no clue,” bearded man said.  “When I was younger, working in a poorly lit room at the Olympus building in Newcastle, I used to have a list of all the places in the world I wished to visit.  Places that I’d seen on TV that I always dreamt of going to one day, perhaps after I retired.  I was young, now that I am old I’m not sure I have the energy for it, especially with my deteriorating health.”
    “You don’t seem that ill to me,” younger man said.  “Here you are, having a drink with me in a pub, still walking about and not confined to a hospital bed as I would’ve expected.”
    “No, believe me when I say I’m pretty much already dead,” bearded man said.  “I’m not still in hospital because there’s nothing they can do for me.  Soon I’ll be back, when there’s nothing even I can do for me, I don’t have as much good time as I like to imagine.  I feel as if I’ve wasted the best years of my life on that damn station floating about somewhere up there, I wish I could’ve left a better legacy.”
    “It could be worse,” younger man said.  “Most people don’t leave anything at all, I’ve always thought that it’s better to be remembered for a bad thing than for nothing at all.  Imagine if Hitler could’ve been given a second chance, an opportunity to live out his life as nothing more than a quickly forgotten mediocre artist rather than be forever known as the most hated human in the history of our species, do you really think he would?  Everyone wants roughly the same out of life, they want to be unique, special, they want to become famous and go down in history.  There’s nothing worse in life than to be considered boring because those are the people who are forgotten and I certainly don’t think of you as boring.”
    “Well, thank you,” bearded man said.  “I’ve never been so pleased when somebody is comparing me to Adolf Hitler, but I suppose that’s the best I can hope for at this point and it means more to me than you think.  It’s so strange being complimented by someone who is going to cause so much harm to so many people.”
    “I’m going to bring freedom to much more,” younger man said.  “After everything is finished I’m going to tell the world about Celestia, everyone has a right to know.”
    “I don’t believe you will,” bearded man said.  “I think you will get what you want and do your best to disappear.  I believe this is what will happen because that is what you should do, if you go around drawing attention to yourself spouting these massive conspiracy theories about Olympus, even I’ll outlive you.  If this is your plan, prove it.  Shout it out right now for all these people to hear.”
    “Of course I’m not going to do it now,” younger man said.  “I don’t have any proof, I’ll have to get some from Olympus headquarters or even Celestia itself, I will have access very soon.  When I return I’ll tell the world, then disappear.”
    “This would probably hinder your stealthy escape,” bearded man said.  “If I was you, I’d be tempted just fade away on the other side of the world, it will be a lot easier to vanish without the eyes of the entire human population on you.”
    “I said that I’m going to do it, so I’m going to do it,” younger man said.  “Why would I lie to you now, you’ve already given me all the information I require and I was the one who insisted on us meeting before everything was put into motion.”
    “OK, I believe you,” bearded man said.  “Is that why you wanted to meet me, to convince me of your motives?”
    “It doesn’t matter what you believe, it’s not going to change what I’m going to do,” younger man said.  “Everything that I said will happen will happen.  You said that you contacted me because you were feeling guilty and I just didn’t want to add to it, some casualties will occur but I want you to know it’s for the greater good.”
    “So the people who are going to die because of my actions are just a means to an end?” bearded man said.
    “It’s really more because of my actions,” younger man said.  “Anyway, if God didn’t want us to kill each other, He should have made us all invincible.”
    “What if I don’t believe in God?” bearded man said.
    “Do you know I’m a big fan of Fyodor Dostoevsky?” younger man said.  “My favourite quote of his is, ‘If there is no God, all is permitted.’ Very interesting, don’t you think?”
    “I hate it when people use quotes to argue a point,” bearded man said.  “I’ve always thought that quotes are used by those who can’t think of anything original themselves.”
    “That’s an interesting view,” younger man said.  “I may even quote you on that in the future.”
    They both shared a quiet laugh, “You’re awfully calm about what you plan to do,” bearded man noted.
    “Would you prefer it if I seemed anxious?” younger man said.  “I’m sorry, I just don’t see the point in worrying about something that’s going to take so long.  Nerves will just hold me back and increase my chance of failure at this point.”
    “You can’t just turn your nerves off when you want,” bearded man said.  “That’s why they’re so irritating.  A man in your situation who isn’t nervous is a bit suspicious.  All these years I’ve successfully stayed off Olympus’s radar and they’ve tried to find me, you’re not working for them, are you?”
    “I swear I’m not working for Olympus,” younger man said.  “Well, I mean before you told me to go work for them.  If I was, what exactly would happen, you would just be monitored during your final years.  You wouldn’t even know about it, you’d be completely unaffected and absolutely nothing would change in your life.”
    “I suppose my paranoia and secrecy doesn’t have much of a purpose anymore,” bearded man said.  “Fine, I believe you, if you were trying to trick me I’d be arrested by now and on my way back to Celestia.  I guess you really are just not concerned by what you have to do.  I have to tell you, I admire your confidence.  However, if you don’t want to fail during the course of this, don’t forget that you’re no god, you’re just a human, like the rest of us.”
    “Just a human?” younger man said.  “The mere fact that you would say that phrase clearly indicates you have no idea what humans are capable of.”
    “Maybe you can show me,” bearded man said.  “If I last that long, that is.  You might not be nervous but you told me that you were afraid, yet that doesn’t seem true from where I am sitting.  Is there anything that you are visibly scared of?”
    “You want to know what I’m afraid of more than anything?” younger man said.  “The thing that I am terrified of most is losing my fear.  I have never done anything scarier than this and, according to common opinion, I will probably never do anything scarier than this in my future.  I will most likely use up my lifetime supply of fear on this undertaking.  That not only frightens me, it worries me.  Fear makes me feel alive and I doubt I’ll be scared of anything after this, a familiar part of me is going to die.  I don’t know what will be left behind.  I guess I’ll just have to learn to accept that.  In a way, this fraternal responsibility is definitely going to kill me.”  
    “You haven’t told me what you are planning for the tech that’s already there,” bearded man said.
    “What?” younger man said.   “Oh, I don’t plan to personally harm anyone, if this person complies with my wishes then I see no reason why I can’t let them live.”
    “They can identify you,” bearded man said.  “You don’t seem like the kind of person who would take that risk.”
    “Olympus already knows what I look like, they took my picture, fingerprints and retinal scan when I applied,” younger man said.  “The technician at Celestia will have no information for Olympus that they did not have already.”
    “Good,” bearded man said.  “The tech doesn’t deserve to die.”
    “Nobody deserves to die, some deaths are just a necessity,” younger man said.  “I agree with you, though, the technician is an innocent, even though they did agree to protect something that you referred to as a “monstrosity”.  The tech doesn’t properly work for Olympus, therefore they’re a non-combatant.”
    “Imagine what that tech is doing right now,” bearded man said.  “They have no idea that they’re going to get caught up in the middle of this.  I guess they just must be inherently unlucky.”
    “I’ve been meaning to ask you,” younger man said.  “Why do they change the tech every five years, surely that means they’re just increasing the number of people who know about Celestia?  Why not have one permanent technician to live there and only replace him when he dies?  It would be cheaper too.”
    “Where would you begin finding someone who would do that?” bearded man said.
    “I’m sure I could find one soul on this planet willing to take the job,” younger man said.
    “That’s not really the point,” bearded man said.  “What do you think would happen to someone left on their own in a steel tube floating about in space for the rest of their life?  Don’t you think that may have an effect on someone?  I don’t mean they might become a little peculiar, they would go completely insane.”
    “Didn’t Olympus predict that one of these technicians would eventually talk about it?” younger man asked.
    “Well, they keep a very close eye on all former techs to make sure they have no contact with any unsavoury characters and the money persuades them to keep quiet about it,” bearded man said.  “They have been trying to monitor me for decades but they don’t even know where I am, they think I don’t even live in Europe anymore.  Since I worked for Olympus for such a long time they just assumed that I wouldn’t say anything out of loyalty, it seems they didn’t know me as well as they thought.  That time spent at Olympus just gave me the knowledge to escape their notice for all these years.”
    “You seem to really hate the Olympus Corporation,” younger man said.  “Why did you work for them for so long?”
    “When I was younger I didn’t hate them,” bearded man said.  “I only realised how I truly felt about them after I left and I could see them with an outside perspective.  I’d like to say that they weren’t always so bad and they changed over the years, but they haven’t, that’s the problem.  I’m the only one that’s changed.”
    “How have you changed?” younger man asked.
    “Everyone changes when they age, they just can’t tell you exactly how because their perceptions have changed also,” bearded man said.  “Olympus have always done bad things, I just refused to see them when I was young, now I’ve had enough.  More blood is on their hands than will be on ours, they’re just more adept at cleaning it off.  I never understood murder, what drives people to it?  Lives will be lost because of us, but it’s not the same thing, murder is intentionally killing someone that you wanted dead.  Olympus has done a lot of that in the past and present, I’ve seen executives sign people’s lives away as if they were writing a cheque.  Just part of the business to them, I can’t comprehend the kind of malice it takes to do that.  It must be the distance between them and the rest of the world.  That’s the problem with these companies, the bosses don’t need to see their victims.  If they actually had to look in the eyes of the people they wanted gone, I bet that their humanity wouldn’t permit them.  If you read any medical book and learn how complicated and precise human beings are, you couldn’t destroy one.  We’re the most complicated machines on the planet, the efficiency, the design, the wonder of us is something I have always marvelled at and respected.  How can someone extinguish something so precious?”
    “I guess some people just think that there are humans to spare,” younger man said.  “I’ve heard people boast about how many of their fellow humans they’ve killed.  I could never share such information.  I’ve always thought of murder to be something people should be ashamed of.  I don’t know what’s going on in the minds of other men, I barely understand my own.  I wish I did know, it would make everything so much easier.”
    The younger man looked the bearded man in the eyes, he could see tears starting to form.  He couldn’t comprehend what it must have been like to no longer have the luxury of not having to think about how much of your life remains.  The bearded man wasn’t very old, way below the average age of death, yet he couldn’t think of anything but his impending demise.  He undeniably had less time than most.  The younger of the pair didn’t want to feel sorry for the other man, he had always found pity insulting, but there was no other word for the emotion he was feeling right now towards the man opposite him.
    He was no stranger to death; many of the younger man’s friends had died before him, back during the days when he had previously done a lot of work for the global criminal organisation Honour Among Thieves, or H.A.T.
Many people he had met during this period in his life were now dead.  Despite their choices in life, they were all good people and their actions proved that to be true.  They were better than he was and he wouldn’t have been able to come to this point without their help.  If he wanted to he could have said their names to himself in the order they had died, but it would have taken much more than a passing moment and each one was worth more to him than a brief mention in a mental list.
    The eye contact continued for a few more seconds until the bearded man looked behind the younger man.  The place had quieted down significantly, but apparently not noticeably as the other man at the table had failed to observe this.
    “It’s closing,” the bearded man stated.
    “I didn’t realise it was so late, I should get back to London,” the younger man said as he got to his feet, the bearded man remained sitting.  “I have work tomorrow.”
    “Good luck with your new job,” bearded man said.
    “Do you really think I need luck,” younger man said.  “I told you, I’m in charge of my own life and I’ve decided that I’m going to succeed, I won’t fail, I won’t allow it.”
    “You’re about to attempt the most audacious prison rescue in history,” bearded man said.  “If it all goes well, you’ll be happy and remembered forever.  If it doesn’t, well let’s just call this an all-or-nothing situation and me wishing you some luck right now may just be the deciding point when it comes down to it.”
    “This is probably the last time we’re going to speak, isn’t it?” younger man said.
    “It’s for the best,” bearded man said.  “Now go home and get some sleep, you don’t want to be late for your job, if your not careful they might fire you.”
    The younger man laughed and said, “I’m glad that I met you, goodbye.”
    “Goodbye, David,” bearded man said.
    “What happened to no names?” David said.
    “I’m done caring,” the bearded man said.
    “Very well,” David said.  “Thank you for everything, Mr. Thorpe.”