Torus: Chapter 7

Eric Norzick gave his hair one last run through with his comb. Turning to face his full-length mirror, he admired himself. He had put on his best suit and tie and he went out to buy a new pair of leather dress shoes. He hoped to make a good impression.  

If only I wasn’t Eric the Miscalculator, he thought grimly to himself.

Anthony Norman had emailed him back the other night and it was all Eric could do to scream, “Yes, he replied!” and run around the streets like a madman. He was sure that Anthony would just brush his offer, after all he Anthony was well aware of Steve’s plan and trusted Steve.

Like everyone else in the world, Eric thought glumly.

Eric had an eerie feeling that something was not going to go as planned with the Wubble. His gut feeling worsened as he kept on studying the asteroid. It was just so strange! It was like nothing he had ever seen before.

“Hello Mr. Norman,” Eric practiced his speech, “As you know, I am here today to discuss about the asteroid Theio”. Eric looked down at his script; he had messed up again. Sighing he restarted.

“Hello Mr. Norman. I am here today regarding Operation Wubble,” he said correcting his mistake. He looked down at his watch. He still had three hours before the black BMW pulled up at his front door and take him to his certain failure. He picked up his speech and sighed, facing imaginary Anthony Norman.

“You have probably been informed about the construction of the Wubble…”

His wife came in and placed a cup of tea and a platter of cookies on the side table.

“Dear, don’t worry about it. Mr. Norman will take you seriously,” she sighed

“The Wubble isn’t prone to mistakes,” Eric muttered to himself, ignoring his wife.

Thirty minutes left before he had to leave

Eric’s pulse was beginning to race and he began to feel his throat tightening, a symptom of nervousness. He had to shake of his image of being the Miscalcalculator. He had asked ever scientist, astronomer, mathematician even the renowned George Wang to check his calculations. Perhaps if he looked professional enough and if he had accurate calculations, Anthony would take his advice. Of course Anthony had to now some of Eric’s slip ups but maybe not enough to know why he was nicknamed the Miscalculator. Maybe he still had a chance. Eric was startled out of his thoughts by a car horn blaring in his driveway.

Now or never, Eric thought as he stepped inside the car.

Mexycan Grill was Eric’s favorite restaurant. He went there every other week and he and the manager of the restaurant became quick friends. He had made special reservations in the largest room, overlooking the water fountain and the rainbow flowerbeds. He hoped that it would impress Anthony.

Anthony Norman was a tall and thin man. His deep brown hair waved over his forehead and behind his ears. He had thin eyebrows and a large forehead. He had a set of thoughtful eyes with short lashes. He had a pointed nose and his lips were pressed in a thin line.

Eric entered the cozy room and spotted Anthony, with his tight lips and crossed arms. Eric’s throat instantly tightened. He felt as if he was an uninvited lamb who wandered into a lion feast. He swallowed hard and forced himself to smile.

“Hello Mr. Norman,” Eric began, and to his disappointment, he sounded high and squeaky. What was his next line again? Eric’s hear began to race and his face warmed as he saw his face warmed as he watched his only chance slipping away.

He breathed.

“As you know, I am her today regarding Operation Wubble,” Eric began, discreetly wiping his sticky palms.

“Well…uh… you have probably been informed about the, uh, blask, I mean blast of the Wubble,” Eric stammered; he flushed at his stuttering.

Anthony only nodded.

“Well,” Eric continued, “Although Wubble is very likely to avoid the disaster, it isn’t completely fool proof. Theio is a strange asteroid, it is composed of almost entirely ice, and therefore it is very fragile. However, when this asteroid enters the ozone layer, it would harden. The only way to change Theio’s course is to hit the small piece of compact dirt on one side of the asteroid,” Eric explained and began demonstrated how the dirt packed area would be facing away from the Wubble once it reached the comet. He hoped Anthony was soaking it all in. He glanced at Anthony and was enraged to see Anthony picking at his plate. He wasn’t even listening.

“Sir, this asteroid will destroy our world! Although much faith is put into the Wubble, we should-,” Eric was cut off when Anthony spoke up.

“I have complete trust in Steve, I am sure his plan would work. Besides, if we were to run away like you proposed, how would we manage? We have billions of people to evacuate, and there is nowhere enough resources and manpower to build such a vast number of spacecrafts. Furthermore, how are you certain that these spacecrafts won’t collide with anything? The closest planet that can sustain life is in another galaxy, that’s thousands of light years away. Wubble will work. The team has already found a solution to all these possible hazards. There is no need for a backup plan,” Anthony said calmly, while taking another bite of his taco.

No need for a backup plan?! Eric boiled, Our entire race is at stake here! How can he just sit there eating tacos when an asteroid is on a collision course with us right now?
“Sir! I understand that you trust Wubble and Steve’s plan is very unlikely to fail but if that is the case and we don’t prepare for it, than that doesn’t leave us with much time. I am not suggesting that we put off Steve’s plan, but an only saying that we need to find a backup plan. No one is completely sure Wubble will succeed. The only other time we tried using the Wubble, it failed. Even though our technology is now much more advanced than it was 20 years ago, we never tested the improved Wubble. Going on with Operation Wubble without a backup plan would be too dangerous! Sir, the entire planet is at stake here! We need to act now!” he tried forcing reason into Anthony’s head, anticipating that this would take all afternoon.

Anthony sipped his drink, clearly thinking about something. Eric hoped it was about the backup plan.

“I see you have clear feelings on Operation Wubble, but we still must put all our manpower to building the Wubble.

Eric opened his mouth, but Anthony raised his hand.

“However, I agree that we are putting too much faith in the Wubble. I am giving you permission to select a small team to work on this backup plan, but it must not interfere with Operation Wubble. Understand?” Anthony finished.

Eric nodded, almost giddy. It seems that the world could be saved after all.