This morning started with a weather alert. I looked at my morning weather and saw just an exclamation mark with Extreme advisory written next to it instead of simply the morning temps. So I clicked to see what was up. Today we are expecting a heat index in the triple digits, which is early for us. While disturbing I did have to smile at the recommendations list. Some were expected, Stay inside if you can, drink water, wear loose light colored garments. All the usual. I did smile at the last one added. “Do not wear wool garments.” While logical I don’t think I have ever seen that on a weather advisory before and had to share. But now that I am well advised for the morning, it is on with the day. Ready for the first prompt of the week? Good, then let’s begin.
I’m not sure what the machine was or what it was supposed to do. I think I’d want to figure that out before looking into this more, but I do like that my main character has a good self preservation instinct.
Monday, June 13th: The machine began to shake and the stench of burning electronics snaked through the air.
The machine began to shake and the stench of burning electronics snaked through the air. ‘That can’t be good,’ Robert thought. He shifted his eyes sideways to his supervisor. Trevor Dennis seemed unconcerned. Robert sniffed the air and took a miniscule step backward on instinct. No one seemed to notice.
The rest of the crowd seemed unconcerned with the electronic snapping and popping. A glance through the window into the control room told him nothing. It was a silvered glass. It showed him only another angle of the machine. It was less inspiring than the front view.
He wondered if everyone behind the glass was as calm as the audience or if they were scurrying around like panicked ants. Robert glanced over the crowd. They were the bigwigs of the company, the deal makers, the head honchos. They understood law and international business. While all of them used various forms of technology on a regular basis., Robert suspected that deep down they each thought of it as a magical tool that simply worked when they pressed the button.
Robert was pushed from behind as someone tried to get a better view. He glanced over his shoulder and saw it was the vice president of marketing. Robert was low man on the totem pole, here to make sure his boss didn’t forget any names and to have the paperwork handy. As his boss was enthralled by the machine, Robert decided to cede to the corporate feeding order.
He stepped slightly to the side and offered the man his place. The offer was accepted and Robert was backed up by a person’s width by the eager VP. The people behind him still outranked him and almost as though he was a beach ball atop a crowd of concert attendees, he found himself surfed to the back of the room. The fact that being so much further away from the machine made him feel better about the situation, he tried not to let show on his face.
He was near the door now and he could see someone in the hall. They paused in the doorway as though wanting to ask a question, but unsure who to interrupt. Deciding he was probably their best choice, Robert moved over to the door, stepping into the hallway so as not to disturb the others.
“There is a problem with the lunch delivery,” the man whispered. A few cross looks were sent their way for the banal interruption to this glorious moment and Robert smiled in apology, stepped fully into the hall and closed the door behind himself so as not to disturb the others.
“What is the problem,” Robert asked. As the words left his lips, a loud crackling sound could be heard. There was what sounded like an gasp from the entire crowd, large enough that it had to had spilled from every mouth at the same time. Robert frowned. He expected a possible explosion or screams at a catastrophic failure. The gasp and then silence unnerved him. He reached for the door handle, but pulled his hand back with a yell. The door handle was hot enough that his light touch left a burn seared right across his palm.
“Fire extinguisher ,” he yelled. Seeing one attached to the wall, Robert shoved the man with the lunch conundrum aside and grabbed for it.
Ten til Midnight 