You have to do it."
Mark's exhaled quickly. "Oh, I know, Zip-I know. But as I reached out
my hand, I had a sudden chill that our destruction was a second away.
It just didn't feel right. And if this asteroid blows into fragments,
then Earth will be peppered with hundreds of devastating impacts!"
Zip slowly turned and faced the silent crowd. Every face was marked
with grave intensity. Joe stood at the back, his face drawn and tense.
"You all heard," Zip said. "But you all know that we have no choice."
No one said anything. A few men dropped their eyes and shuffled their
feet. Zip turned to Mr. Madera in silent appeal. Madera nodded very
slowly.
Then Mark wiped both hands on his shirt and slowly reached out and
pressed the last button.
A distant grinding noise as of gears engaging sounded from far away.
There was a whooshing sound as of air filling a giant bag. The grinding
sound leveled off into a bare hum. The lights gradually came on.
The men cheered. Mark looked relieved. The tension under which he had
been operating quickly released. His face wrinkled up and tears began
to flow down his cheeks.
Then the bare hum began to build. It turned into a whine, and then into
a shriek. The floor began to shudder. Mark wiped his eyes and stared at
the screen.
"The reaction is starting, but the energy level is climbing much faster
than it should! Something's wrong! Something's wrong!!"
The men began to hear small explosions.
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