The year was 1985.
The USA is launching what would be the last of their primate inhabited rocket missions. These experiments were testing the biological effects of space flight on poor unwitting apes, among other things.
At first the launch was deemed a flying success. Glorious space flight!
Cheers, hard earned congratulations and embrace overcame the launch control station as the team watched their final rocket leave Earth’s atmosphere with marvellous resolve. “We did it!”
Or so they thought…
A dull, crackling voice could be heard muffled and almost drowned-out amidst the control station’s audible excitement and jeering. Something’s gone wrong.
“CRSSSSHHHHHHTTT……Houston, we’ve got a problem”. The voice over the radio confirms everyone’s doubts.
“Shhhhh, Everybody quiet down!” The Test Director exclaimed. The room stands silent.
“Can you repeat that son? What seems to be the problem there?”
“We’ve lost all tracking and telemetry data Sir.” The voice on the other end of the radio replies. “It’s just, gone, Sir” The voice remarked in a quivering tone. Anticipating the blaring response to follow.
“What do you mean ‘it’s gone’?” Demanded the Director. “How the hell do you lose track of a two million kilogram spaceship only minutes after launch son?” The Director fired back, now getting impatient.
“We detected a strange gravitational anomaly just outside the Van Allen Radiation Belt shortly after launch, Sir.” replied the voice over the radio. This time inflated with gusto and reverence. “It appears to have been a massive ‘ gravitational well ’ Sir.” The voice promptly followed up. “That’s what our data’s indicating.”
“ We thought at first it may have been a temporary equipment malfunction Sir, but confirmed the worst after we ran several checks and cross referenced our findings with the team in section 2. We both kept getting the same data back.”
“The Ship. It’s like it just vanished!”
This would be the last to be seen or heard of that fated rocked mission of ‘85. Or so one would typically assume. Pondered and queried before being committed to memory, then legend. Then forgotten entirely. Boxed up and written off as just another instance in a long list of unknowns and unexplainables within the dust covered, vaulted archives of NASA.
Fast forward.
The current time: Year 2885. Earth Human population: Zero
The Human species, a victim of their own success, driven off-planet by their own creation hundreds of years ago. Chalked-up as just another insignificant speed hump in mother nature’s long and momentous stride.
An Earth once clad in concrete and sterile cities now reclaimed in an organic takeover of poetic global domination. Streets and monuments from a time long past now the pillars of undergrowth spawning lush jungles and diverse vibrant ecosystems flourishing with new and beautiful promise. Justice and complete acquisition at last. Nature’s green thumbs thriving new life to all corners of the globe forging a new chapter on the pale blue dot.
But peace and tranquility are seldom uninterrupted.
A somber ethereal bellow from the space between spaces quakes in the twilight. Shaking the Earth and sending shockwaves through the fabricate of spacetime like a ‘CLAP’ of liquid thunder. “BOOM!” Rippling reality and echoing thunderously through the natural ambience and pristine skyblue of tropical island location Hakuna Banana.
In that flash of unexplainable light, sound and nothingness all at once, it appeared. Fiery and unstoppable moving at an incredible speed. Descending towards the earth billowing a thick and unwelcome smoke trail that blotted out the stars and choked up the evening sky. The hole in space torn through the heavens from whence it came collapsed and vanished just as quick as it had appeared.
The ship. It was back!
To be continued…
These are the Prime Mates
This is their story.
Get all the bananas in the mail digitally.
