The sky is falling, the sky is falling
The phone in the IPD office did not ring a great deal. Keith had the patrolling IPD officers dial from the call-boxes occasionally, to make sure everything was up and running, but he knew when that was going to happen. Unexpected calls were less frequent. He'd had one last week, from space, which had been something. But then, it always was, just usually not at that distance.
He tried not to prejudge, but when it rang again, he thought for a moment that the portal had stranded people up there again, that it could be a weekly thing. But then he recalled why it had been out the last time, and that seemed very unlikely.
Then again, so did a lot of things. Such as what Tony Stark told him when he did pick up the phone, before hanging up abruptly.
He put the receiver down. He rubbed his forehead and stared at it for a count of five, which he thought was all he could spare.
Then again, maybe a space station covered a lot of distance in five seconds, when it was falling.
There was a lot to be done even though there didn't seem like there was much that could be done. What did they have? He put the word out on the radio, and set all of the IPD he could reach, along with anyone he could grab, to rounding people up and making for evacuation points, the caves and New Atlantis, and he found the kind of people Stark had recommended he find and told them what was happening, and sent them there, too, to whatever they could. If that was anything.
Only when he had all this underway, when the emergency protocols that needed to be enacted had been -- it didn't feel like much, after he'd begun them, not considering what was happening -- did he spare a moment to step outside the compound door and stare upwards, at the growing speck in the sky.
[And the post for those on the ground. Again, slated here and here.]
He tried not to prejudge, but when it rang again, he thought for a moment that the portal had stranded people up there again, that it could be a weekly thing. But then he recalled why it had been out the last time, and that seemed very unlikely.
Then again, so did a lot of things. Such as what Tony Stark told him when he did pick up the phone, before hanging up abruptly.
He put the receiver down. He rubbed his forehead and stared at it for a count of five, which he thought was all he could spare.
Then again, maybe a space station covered a lot of distance in five seconds, when it was falling.
There was a lot to be done even though there didn't seem like there was much that could be done. What did they have? He put the word out on the radio, and set all of the IPD he could reach, along with anyone he could grab, to rounding people up and making for evacuation points, the caves and New Atlantis, and he found the kind of people Stark had recommended he find and told them what was happening, and sent them there, too, to whatever they could. If that was anything.
Only when he had all this underway, when the emergency protocols that needed to be enacted had been -- it didn't feel like much, after he'd begun them, not considering what was happening -- did he spare a moment to step outside the compound door and stare upwards, at the growing speck in the sky.
[And the post for those on the ground. Again, slated here and here.]