Chapter 41: Takeoff

“I have a plan,” Celia recalled Vitoria saying as she looks around the control room with Hikaru, making sure everything was in place, “I’m going to get the media over here by telling them that a rocket launch is about to occur. I have a few connections to major news channels and can anonymously send tips to their competitors to come over here too.”

“But what does that do?” Hikaru asked.

“It will cause a distraction and make the DDF falter a little bit, which should give us enough time to launch the rocket regardless of their presence. You might not have realized this, but DDF operations have never been recorded live. We’ve only ever gotten the results of their operations but never how they’ve played out,” Victoria explained, “the presence of the media here will make them more careful about how they approach the situation. Not only that, but you may have forgotten that this area is not supposed to exist at all. The shock factor of realizing that this part of the world isn’t the Amazon Rainforest like the maps said it was will also further cause a setback.”

Celia nodded and said, “plus, having the media broadcast the rocket launch is ideal. We want the people to see that the Tropodome can safely be broken through and repaired during rocket operations, while also showing people how cool it is at the same time. That way we can restart a chain of movements that will hopefully convince the government to restart the space program.”

“And that’s why we’re getting as many news channels as we can over here,” Victoria said, “each of us here is trying to make a point, and we already have everything set in place to do that. We just need to prevent the DDF from reaching us before we set everything into motion.”

“Then the next plan of action is to block off the entire place,” Hikaru suggested, “we have the benefit of knowing the layout of the building, while the DDF don’t. We can strategically close off certain entrances that lead to the control room, and send them on a wild goose chase. As an extra measure we can also board up the control room so that it’s harder for them to get in.”

“That sounds like a great idea,” Victoria commended him, “other than that, our previous plans don’t change much. I’ll be sending my team to help you guys close off the place and then we’ll drive back to Carama to prepare our end of things. I’m trusting the three of you to pull off this rocket launch alone.”

The original plan was to do a rocket launch with Celia and Hikaru in the control room and Alto inside the payload of the rocket. Celia would be the brains of the operation while Hikaru was in charge of helping Celia by managing other controls. Once the rocket was launched into space and the whole operation was recorded and posted online, the DDF would be notified of it and the two of them would be arrested.

Afterwards, Vitoria would come with her team and broadcast the reparation of the Tropodome, using it to show people that the dome can be safely reconstructed after being broken by a rocket launch. She would then manipulate the media in the background to slowly convince people to start a movement after realizing Celia and Hikaru were justified, and hopefully cut their prison sentences short while also restarting the space program.

The only difference in their plan now was that it was going to all happen at once, all while being broadcasted live. Vitoria will still play the role of the oblivious New Genesis leader, but this time she was going to arrive shortly after the rocket launch to repair the Tropodome while the media was still there.

“Alto, how is everything looking on your end?” Celia asked over the Neurolink.

“I am in position and prepared for launch at any time,” he said.

Celia and Hikaru frantically but carefully double, triple, quadruple check over the numbers on the screen, making sure that everything was in place and that the systems were safe and prepared to launch.

Meanwhile, a few kilometers away from the space center, many airships soar over the fake Amazon Rainforest.

“Weston! What is going on over there?” his boss calls over the systems inside his airship, “why are there so many airships in the area?”

Weston furrows his brows, as he too was trying to comprehend the situation. He had been put in charge of the entire operation because he was the one who had located the exact signals. According to his boss, successfully leading the operation will give the higher ups even more reasons to listen to his request to be stationed near his home.

Weston had only brought 2 DDF airships along with him in case he needed backup for breaking into the base, but for some reason there were about forty more — all of which were news ships. Furthermore as he looked down at the ground below him, he realized that something was off. Instead of a lush rainforest like the map had depicted, there was nothing but a large open field below them.

“I’m not so sure myself,” Weston said, “I’m still trying to process how outdated the maps we have are.”

“Well whatever the case, don’t make us look bad in front of the media!” his boss shouted.

“THIS JUST IN!” a loud announcer plays out from a nearby news ship, “THE AMAZON RAINFOREST IS FAKE?! THE MAPS HAVE LIED TO US THE ENTIRE TIME?”

“Ugh, why did they have to broadcast that out loud?” Anita complained, trying to cover her ears.

“They're from one of the news channels that are known for shouting and being loud,” Weston replied, “some people prefer watching that sort of stuff I guess, but just ignore them. What we need to do now is not screw up on this operation.”

Suddenly, as they slowly drifted across the skies, they heard a loud rumbling beneath them. There, on the ground, in a seemingly clear patch of grass, the earth began to crumble and open up, as a large, perfectly circular, latch pushed the dirt away, revealing a large hole with something tall and pointy inside.

“IS THAT?!” the annoying news ship shouted, “IS THAT A WHOLE ROCKET SHIP?! THIS JUST IN! IT SEEMS THE ANONYMOUS TIP WE RECEIVED WAS NOT A LIE! WE MIGHT JUST BE ABLE TO SEE A ROCKET LAUNCH IN REAL TIME FOR THE FIRST TIME IN ALMOST TWO CENTURIES!!! HOW WILL THE DDF RESPOND TO THIS???”

All around them, the quiet mumbling and buzzing of the more silent news ships became louder as each of them began to report on the situation.

“That rocket looks like it’s about to launch at any given moment… we need to get to the base of operations where they’re launching it from quickly and stop them!” Weston called out as he switched the Neurolink channel over to the second airship, “Airship 243, this is Airship 162, I need you guys to clear out the skies. If that rocket does launch, it’s dangerous to be too close to it. Tell the news reporters that if they want to record, that they must stay a further distance away.”

As the second airship begins to clear out the airships from the skies, Weston speeds up his airship towards the location of where he found the signals, while a few news ships follow behind him, more interested in the arrest than the rocket launch. As expected, he sees a small building in the distance and begins to park the airship, before quickly jumping off with his team and rushing towards it.

“It looks like the entrances are sealed off, just as expected,” Weston said, “Anita, get the drills and start opening up a path!”

A swarm of DDF support drones rush over towards the door, beginning to slowly carve into the building. As Weston leads the operation at the entrance, a loud broadcast plays out from the building.

“Attention surrounding DDF agents!” Celia’s voice rang out, “if you can hear this, that means it’s too late! We’re going to launch the rocket in t-minus 2 minutes and there’s nothing you can do about it, so I suggest you stop and enjoy the show. As for our lovely news reporters, please point your cameras to the east.”

Wait a minute, I know that voice… Weston realized, it’s Celia’s isn’t it? She’s the one behind all of this?!

“Weston! Look over there!” Anita shouted as Weston looked over to where she was pointing.

In the distance, he was just able to make out a tall white rocket being lifted up onto the surface, using a tall platform.

Celia’s right… it’s too late, Weston realized, maybe it’s not so bad after all… maybe this is my chance to see and understand what my daughter really wants to do.

“Agents… new order,” he commanded as everyone stopped trying to drill into the building, “stop drilling and let’s enjoy the show — I think it’s too late for now.”

Anita looked like she was about to say something but refrained, knowing he was right. They could always resume operations afterwards.

In the control room, Celia and Hikaru do one last check of everything as the rocket was finally placed into full view above the ground.

“T-minus 40 seconds until launch,” Hikaru said, “Alto… one last check… are you ready?”

“More than ever,” he replied, “what about you guys?”

The two of them looked at each other silently, as if still a bit nervous, but the look on their faces was resolved.

“Yes,” they finally said in unison.

“Good. I just want to tell the two of you each one more thing before I go,” Alto said, “be not afraid of success Celia; you’ll know what to do when you succeed, and Hikaru, be not afraid of failure; don’t regret it if you don’t. I want you each to keep in mind these two things in my absence, and I’m sure you’ll both do great things in the future. Now let’s go… towards that unreachable infinity.”

With a sad smile on their face, Celia and Hikaru hit the launch button at the same time.

The engines of the rocket heated up, ejecting a bright cloud of smoke from its base. News ships hovered nearby, recording the spectacle from afar as the smoke began billowing violently and the engines let out a thunderous roar. Moments later, the rocket slowly lifted off the ground, leaving a brilliant golden streak as it shot up towards the night sky, piercing the Tropodome above.

All around the world, the people watched on in silent awe; a girl with a butterfly drone, an old man with a music box, a freelancer and her grandma, a 9-year-old girl with her mother, a man and his wife on a fishing boat, and two loving parents, silently watch the sight on their preferred news channels.

As the world was seemingly silenced for the first time in a long time, Celia looks up at the hole created amidst the fake stars in the sky. There, amongst the pitch black void, was a single bright star — a real star, and the only thing that her mind could think before the building was broken into was;

They’re beautiful.