Another little one today.
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Bill and Dave studied the photograph, taken at a distance using outdated equipment and processed by an amateur. For now it was all they had.
“We have to assume they are lines of communication.”
“Assume makes an ‘ass’ out of ‘u’ and ‘me.’ Got to be a weapons system, I think.”
“What’s the spearhead of any campaign, Dave–establish lines of communication, right?”
“Well, I suppose they do look like satellite dishes but they could be part of a guidance array.”
“Did the boys at WADAS come up with anything? Do they know what they’re made of?”
“Nope. Stronger than steel, though, and flexible. Could have all manner of applications from medical to aeronautics and of course other properties.”
“And they just appeared overnight?”
“Three near every major city. Whatever else they’re doing they’ve grounded flights, jammed satellite signals, fried telecommunications, and radar might as well be scrambled eggs this morning.”
“Wasn’t it the solar flare did that?”
“We’re not sure, to be honest. Whoever put these there could have used the solar flare for cover but global communications are still down–local too, radio, TV. The good thing about that is panic hasn’t spread. The bad thing is some pretty wild rumours have.”
“Best we get over there and take a closer look,” said Bill.
***
The streets were deserted. The airport had been evacuated. They used one of the baggage trucks to approach the three dishes glittering out beyond the end of the runways. At this distance they reminded Bill of something but he couldn’t think what.
“They must be twenty feet in radius.”
The closer they got, the less like dishes the structures looked. The construction wasn’t solid. Each was made up of silvery wiry threads, so thin that the morning rain had weighted their bowls into a parabolic shape. Near the base of each, connected to the ground, a single cable ran beneath the perimeter trees.
Bill got out of the truck to take better pictures and Dave followed. He wasn’t sure he’d brought the right tools to get a sample. A sudden breeze shook the whole structure and it skewed then settled back into shape like it was elasticated.
Dave was in position.
“Don’t touch it, Dave!” screeched Bill, realizing what it reminded him of.
“Why not?”
Bill had paled. “These things catch more than messages. Look at the birds stuck in it. I mean, if that’s the size of the web… what size is the spider?”
Copyright: © 2008 Oonah V Joslin
