Big Blue (Short Story)
By: Marcus Park
Tags: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Short Story, Material Design

Daniel stared down at the thin blue object in his hand. It was the length of a pen but had only the thickness and weight of a piece of cotton. He tried to snap it in half but the strand only deflected slightly and then eased back into its original shape. How could such a simple material have changed the course of human development so profoundly, he pondered.

He looked across at his larger friend on the next seat. “Hey Zac, did you see that? It’s amazing stuff this Manillium — and to think that you can virtually dig it up out of the ground. I can’t wait to see the big stuff.”

“Little Danny, always lost in your own thoughts. Well today your mind is going to be opened up,” said Zac, with a knowing grin.

The two friends gazed out of the train window as they soared high above the city buildings on the impossibly narrow blue skyway. They could see the congestion of the city traffic below them and, further ahead, the cluster of huge blue “super-scrapers” which dwarfed the steel and glass construction of their aging neighbours.

“Look at that — Manillium is turning the world blue!” exclaimed Daniel shaking his head in disbelief. “I can’t wait to see Big Blue.”

“Welcome to Big Blue,” shouted the attendant over the crowd’s heads. “Would everyone please show their tickets at the elevator door, and we can get on with the tour.”

Daniel took one last look up at the giant blue structure disappearing into the low cloud. It looked very similar to its neighbours at this level, but Daniel knew that there was only one Big Blue. The group of about two hundred people moved forward into the cavern of one of the express elevators. Daniel and Zac selected two comfortable seats before the doors closed, the lights dimmed and a large video screen flickered into life. The elevator droned and accelerated upwards as the presenter’s voice filled the space.

“The biggest engineering project ever in the history of mankind, Big Blue is only possible through the creation of Manillium — the new wonder material first created in 2015 by Professor James Foley in his breakthrough work in materials engineering. Manillium combines the low density lattice framework of sponge at a microscopic level with the incredible strength and flexibility of the newly discovered trilateral atomic bond between calcium, nitrogen and carbon — three of the most readily available elements on the planet. The blue colour comes from the unique refractive index of the material.”

The presentation continued for several minutes until the elevator finally decelerated and came to a rest.

“Welcome to Level 1 at 3000m,” called the attendant as the large group ambled out of the elevator. From the mezzanine area the group overlooked a huge open circular gallery surrounded by glazed screens and occupied by several thousand people. “Restaurants to the left, pool, spa and sun deck to the right, base jumping and hang gliding straight ahead,” called the attendant. “Level 2 passengers follow me.”

“That’s us,” said Zac as he pulled Daniel away from the breathtaking scene of human activity set against a backdrop of cloud tops. The two friends found seats in the smaller elevator and strapped themselves in.

“Hold tight ladies and gents,” called the attendant. “The Level 2 Express pulls about half a G, and if you feel some sideways wobble during the ascent, that’s just the lateral thrusters doing their work — all perfectly normal.”

They gasped as the smaller elevator accelerated hard for several seconds before settling down to a steady rise. After several minutes the elevator decelerated hard causing almost weightless conditions for the occupants.

“Welcome to Level 2 at 10,000m,” called the attendant as the small group emerged into a glazed hallway that resembled an airport arrivals hall. “Tickets and departures over there, arrivals over here, viewing deck up the escalator.”

Overcome with curiosity, the Daniel and Zac made their way up to the viewing deck. They looked out through a glazed screen onto a huge blue platform cantilevered out into the abyss of the deep blue stratosphere. They naturally adopted a slightly braced stance to accommodate the gentle corrections of the lateral thrusters that they could feel through their feet.

“It’s like being on an ocean liner,” noted Daniel. “Hey, look down there, it’s one of the new jets, is it going to land do you think?”

Zac, now gripping tightly onto the handrail, followed Daniel’s finger and spotted the blue shape of the jet liner below them in the sky. They both followed its path as it started to swoop upwards, its wings visibly bending under the force, its speed reducing as gravity overcame the aircraft’s forward momentum. It climbed towards the edge of the platform and in the final couple of seconds the wings unfolded and huge blue flaps emerged which seemed to stall the craft in its tracks just above the platform. And then, just as it appeared that the jet would crash down onto the platform, thin, blue telescopic legs and feet shot out beneath the body and connected with the platform below.

“Unbelievable!” exclaimed Daniel. “Just like a bird swooping up and landing on a branch.”

“Oh my God. This is not normal,” gulped Zac as the friends moved away. “Dan, stop. I’m sorry but I don’t think I can do this. I guess I’m just not ready for this. I’m going back down.”

Daniel studied his friend’s face and nodded. “Look Zac, it’s a different world up here and Level 3 is going to feel even stranger. For me it feels like destiny but if it isn’t right for you, then I understand.”

They locked gazes for a second and then with a parting gesture Zac moved back towards the descending elevator. Daniel approached the small Level 3 elevator door and joined the small group gathering there. The bell chimed and the doors opened.

“Good morning everybody — I will need to see your passes for Level 3 and the orbital launcher,” said the attendant in a business like fashion. “Anybody, requiring lunar transfer from earth orbit will need to be carrying Grade 1 security clearance.”

Before stepping forward, Daniel paused and took one last look through the clear ceiling panel at the tower snaking into the distance above him. There in the background the full moon shone in all its daytime glory so much clearer at this altitude. He traced his eyes across the lunar surface looking for the feature that he knew so well. There, just near the rim of the spectacular Crater Copernicus, he could see a small blue blob that he knew would be his future home; the first lunar pressurised bio-dome and radiation shield which already housed a small city and was visible from earth. With this new material Manillium, mankind’s imprisonment in Earth’s gravity well was over, the future was opening up — and he was destined to be a part of it.