IMMOLATION: CHAPTER 47

Things were going well, Matt thought to himself. Installation was on schedule, funding was more than sufficient, and the university was considering moving him up to full professorship within the year. He kicked a small, blackened stone in front of him and watched as it skittered across the floor of the enclosure. A few of the workmen looked up from their places at the clattering sound. So many of them were on edge, but they had nothing to worry about, Joan wasn't there.

Matt sighed, regretting the fact that he couldn't visit with her. He'd counted on her being there, but on further contemplation, it made sense that they'd moved Joan. From what he'd heard recently, Joan had become a bit unstable and accidents involving Joan and her fire were the last thing Matt needed. Permission may have been granted, but that didn't mean people didn't have their reservations about the project. The crew's nervousness was evidence enough of that.

Dr. Muto strolled over from the other side of the enclosure where he'd been going over some of the plans.

“You are distracted,” Dr. Muto observed.

Matt shrugged his shoulders. “There isn't much for me to do.”

“Are you not concerned for the installation?” Dr. Muto asked.

“These guys seem to know what they're doing,” Matt said with a nod toward the workers.

They walked along the perimeter while Dr. Muto thought.

“The people must know you are concerned,” Dr. Muto said at last. “If they feel that you do not care, how can you expect them to care?”

“They're just builders,” Matt exclaimed. Dr. Muto's concern over such things had increased to near obsessive levels over the past few months and it was beginning to wear on him.

Dr. Muto shook his head in disappointment. “These are not just builders,” he said, “These are people who will tell their families, their friends about what they are doing. You must inspire them so that they, in turn, may inspire others.”

“All we're doing is building a power plant,” Matt said.

Dr. Muto pursed his lips. “Tell me,” he said, “How many countries have fallen?”

Matt shook his head. “I don't know,” he said, “I haven't been keeping track.”

“Well you should,” Dr. Muto scolded him. “This world is dying and it's up to us to save it.”

“I agree that the world's a mess right now,” Matt said, “but this one Heat Machine won't be enough to—

“No, no, no,” Dr. Muto practically shouted.

Heads turned toward them and Dr. Muto regained his composure.

“It must go beyond this one Heat Machine,” he said in an undertone, “but unless the vision goes beyond you and me then other people, other nations, will ignore us and our world will not be saved.”

“Alright,” Matt sighed, agreeing more out of a desire to avoid excess preaching from Dr. Muto than anything else.

Dr. Muto motioned toward a group of workers who were comparing schematics and Matt moved to speak with them. Right before he reached the workers, he looked back over his shoulder to Dr. Muto and saw him smiling proudly in his direction. It reminded Matt of the looks his parents gave him when he graduated high school, and then again when he started college.

“How are things going?” Matt asked brightly.

The workers looked up from the schematics and Matt could see the weary expressions in their faces grow ever so slightly wearier.

“They're going good,” one of them said in a terse tone before they went back to studying the schematics.

“Good,” Matt said, rocking back and forth on his heels, “And the condensers are coming along nicely?”

The workers looked up at him for a moment and then returned to what they were doing without responding. Matt looked down to the schematics and realized they were not working on the condensers but were, in fact, working on the inner shell.

“Oh,” Matt said, his voice a bit muted, “I didn't realize you'd already finished the condensers.”

“Yup,” another of the workers said without looking up. “Finished those last week.”

“Been working on the inner shell ever since then,” said another.

“Right,” Matt said, “look, I know there's nothing I can do to help speed things up here besides leaving you all alone.”

The workers looked back up at Matt, some of them trying to conceal their smiles while the others did nothing to hide their amusement at Matt's forward admission of uselessness.

“The thing is,” Matt went on now that he had their attention, “this power plant, this Heat Machine, is really important to me. I've been fighting to get this thing made for years, and now it's finally getting built and I just can't help but check in every once in a while to see how things are going. And just think, we could be the solution to the energy crisis and end all of the wars going on right now.” Matt left them to their work after that and was glad to find Dr. Muto had left for the evening.

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So, I'm not sure how to feel about this chapter. I've been working it and reworking it for a while and though I still feel the need for this chapter, I'm not quite satisfied. I'll keep working on it, but in the mean time, what do you think?