Chapter 8: Perth
It's 8:17 a.m., Wednesday morning in Perth, Australia. Marcus Conley and several others are sitting at a conference table, listening to a beautiful young woman giving a sales presentation on the new Armadyne automated production line. A man, the young woman's sales manager, stands at a distance, ready to assist if needed.
"The Armadyne X-54 factory in a box allows you to produce over one hundred unique products on a high-mix, low volume, production line based on the product templates installed. The patented Armadyne rapid liquid printing system extracts production ready components, which move through the assembly line and exit as final products, ready to ship to your customers."
Marcus is familiar with the production line. He's read the website, watched the videos, and studied the product data sheets. As the company's senior mechanical engineer, he'll get involved if his boss invests in the system.
"As you know, the Four Wars continue to rage around the world, disrupting shipping lanes, impacting international trade. We've all suffered from shortages and rationed items. Entrepreneurs in America who invested in Armadyne automated production lines are the bright spot of the US economy. Australian businesses are eager to get in on this new economic boom, as I'm sure you are."
The young woman is smart and attractive. Marcus thinks her boss is a bore. Marcus stares out the large conference room window at the Perth city skyline in the distance.
"The X-54 allows you to produce products locally, streamlining your supply chain, slashing lead times and cutting transportation costs—" She pauses as if she's evaluating her chances for a successful sale.
"You may recognize Armadyne for our food actualizers, but Armadyne produces much more than your next tasty meal. Today, Armadyne provides a wide range of products from autonomous personal assistants; I guess people call them noms, these days, to automated production lines and defense products to support our country and our allies in the Four Wars."
Marcus has shifted his gaze to the young woman, but a bright light in the sky pulls his attention back to the large window. Bright light fills the conference room as a fiery hot meteor falls through the atmosphere. The young saleswoman shrieks. The meteor is heading toward the city of Perth. Everyone in the conference room gathers at the window, shielding their eyes, trying to witness the sight.
The space rock explodes above the city in a brilliant flash. The only sounds are the words "ooh," "ah," "wow," and "amazing," as those in the room react to the aerial blast. The brightness fades and eyes adjust to normal light.
"Everybody; get down against the wall and away from the windows!" Marcus calls out as he crouches against the wall.
"Show's over. We have a couple more slides in the presentation, unless you're ready to move ahead," says the sales manager, as he walks to the front of the conference room.
"It's not over. Get down!" Marcus calls out.
The sales manager steps to the saleswoman. "Let me help you up," he says as he pulls the young lady to her feet. Then he whispers in her ear, "Great job, Cara. You're about to close your biggest deal yet."
Other people in the room stand. Marcus implores, "Get down. Shockwave—"
Marcus tucks his head low and hugs the wall. The conference room window bursts into a thousand shards of glass from a blast of wind moving hundreds of miles per hour. It feels as if the air is being sucked from the room. The wind is burning hot. His skin burns. He doesn't dare breathe. The bodies of the salespeople fly through the collapsing conference room wall and the wind flips the heavy conference table through the air. Then, for a moment, all is calm. BOOM! A loud sonic boom rattles the swaying building. The sound of alarms, moans of pain and crying follow. The only people he can see are three co-workers who followed his instruction and crouched at the wall.
Marcus stands and looks out the opening in the office wall which was once a window. The meteor explosion has left the city scape broken. Buildings are burning. Sirens echo in the distance and smoke darkens the skyline.
Marcus staggers through the building, pushing furniture and chairs aside, as he moves to the stairwell of the three-story building. The only thing he can think of is his wife who works in the main business district.