After all the years of doing this, I never really got used to the way it feels when you step out of the veil. I focus on not being nauseous in the few seconds before the automated lights turn on. I notice the mud on the floor right away. Someone on the team sent here to deliver the 127 power unit yesterday had dirty boots. Before I do anything, I get a stick vacuum and make a mental note to tell Sam that his crew needs to be more careful. This may be my last day, but over the past 19 years Waihona Station and I have built a special relationship. There’s no way I’ll be able to enjoy my retirement if I’m worrying about people tracking mud everywhere.
Once the floor is clean, I grab my tools and start working on installing the 127 unit. They say it can last 400 years. I hope that doesn’t mean the company plans on cutting the hours of my replacement, this place needs constant TLC to stay in optimum shape. It takes me most of the morning to finish the installation, and to be honest I’m glad that I don’t have to start it up. I had my concerns four years ago when the first canister of solar produced 127 arrived in Maui, and a lift operator spilled a whole container a while back, that almost took his and a co-workers life. I don’t think it’s giving everyone cancer or making them crazy like the TV lawyers say, I just want to avoid being engulfed in a radioactive fire on my last day.
I move on to dusting and changing the filters in the operations room, sinking into a familiar rhythm. Things have changed a lot since I was assigned to Waihona in 2031. Joe wasn’t even ten yet when I started, and now he’s in grad school. I was in the data room when the Gateway Travel Accord was signed, and now people from almost every nation are veiling across the globe every day. I was up here during the Veilcorp Luau attack. Actually, I was here almost 24 hours that day. They locked down everything including veil travel. That reminds me , I need to check the food storage and make sure the protein bars aren’t expired in the event that we have another travel halt. When Eric Oeming returned to work, I was replacing some wiring. A lot has happened, but this place stays the same. It even survived hurricane Neki. I have a lot of respect for that.
I knew going in, that saying goodbye to Frank was going to be the hardest part of today, so I decide to put it off and work through lunch. I enter the data room to replace a few fans. I know that there are dozens of these satellite backup stations, but I can’t help but feel a sense of wonder, and a little nervous when I’m in this section. The data and personalities of tens of thousands, maybe more, is stored here. I know they say it’s only a backup, but I can’t help but imagine accidentally spilling something, or disconnecting the wrong cable and wiping out half of Lahaina. I replace the fans without a hitch. There isn’t anything left to do now but walk the exterior, and see an old friend for the last time.
One of the worst things about being a remote tech is the isolation. Most of these backup stations are in very remote locations, and the only time you see anyone else is when something is seriously broken. It can get lonely, but I made a friend on my first day. Perched on a rock, and upset that I’m taking my lunch 3 hours late, Frank squawks his disappointment with me when I walk outside. They say Ravens are among the smartest animals on Earth, and by the way Frank has memorized my weekly schedule, I believe it.
I take out his bag of bread, and throw bits to him as I walk the building. I make a note that the southern vent is going to need replacing, while Frank protests that I stopped distributing his lunch for a moment. I don’t see anything else of note and make my way back to the raven’s rock. I swear Frank does a little dance of excitement when he sees the tin of sardines, one of his favorite treats. I don’t say much as I feed him, just goodbye, and thanks for all the years. I tell him I’ll leave a note about him for my replacement, but I can’t promise he likes birds as much as I do. Part of me hopes that he doesn’t. Big changes are coming for Frank and I, but I have a feeling we’ll be fine.
