The Light In Europa

From a distance it was a small flickering light in a vast sea of darkness. Invisible to the naked eye, being dwarfed by the other, much stronger, lights surrounding it. Alone and isolated, something that no human was ever meant to see, but humanity has a way of looking past what they can see to see what could be.

What could be took time and innovation, four years of meticulous calculation and numerous simulations to establish a base of operations on the frozen over sphere known as Europa, one of Jupiter's many moons, and that was after six long years of space travel. Now, the donut shaped base rested on the ice fields of the moon, a marvel in modern technology able to tend to itself using radiation from Jupiter to fuel its various functions. Its purpose; to explore the vast oceans hidden under the ice. Population; one. 

Cedric took a few long deep breaths; feeling the weight of hundreds of peoples life work, of ingenious technological advancements and of years of his own isolation all riding on these next few hours. He sat watching the bright holographic screens displaying the progress of the drill, which was only minutes away from reaching the under-ice water miles below. The drill had been running for days, vibrating the entire base causing him to miss many of his scheduled hours of sleep. Sleep that already came hard due to his odd dreams, dreams that he blamed on the growing anticipation of discovery. 

As the last few moments of drilling came to pass, Cedric watched with bated breath and whispered to himself. "How much does a polar bear weigh?" The hologram display showed the drill finally piercing the last bit of ice. He held his breath as the vibrating stopped and was replaced by the creaking of metal under stress that echoed through the bases corridors. The expected creaking rose and sank like the melodic droning of a deep throated and screeching chorus, but Cedric could not help but to hear the eerie call of a voice within those metallic groans and screams. 

Isolation will make someone try to find humanity in the most inhuman of places. Cedric thought to himself as he looked about the metallic walls as if to follow the sounds with his eyes. Cedric knew the compound was built to accommodate for the pressure change due to the exposed ocean bellow but it did not stop him from imagining a pressure valve exploding causing the base to implode on itself with him in it. 

Cedric let out a sigh of relief as the creaking settled. "Enough to break the ice." He answered himself, joking to break the tension within himself. It was important to keep in good humor during his isolation. He had spent years training for this mission but no mater how much training you have, nothing prepares you for spending so long on your own. He had no family to long to return to and had dedicated his life to being the first person to explore Europa, he still felt the longing of social interaction that he knew was engrained in the very essence of being human. 

Cedric double and triple checked everything on the monitors to ensure the tunnel was stable and the drill was retracting without incident. Everything was working wonderfully, probably the first time something didn't go wrong this entire expedition. He began the next phase, punching instructions into the computer to replace the drill with a deployable submarine that was designed to survive anything the cosmos could throw at it. 

The sound of metal moving metal clanged through the base let Cedric know the transference was in progress. He got up from his seat realizing that he could still feel the vibrating from the drill in his bones even though the drill was no longer running. The excitement of discovery bubbled through his stomach, quickening his steps. 

He moved quicker to prepare a specially designed suit that was designed to protect him from temperature, radiation and even the crushing pressure of the deepest oceans. The suit took nearly an hour to don and secure, a combination of his own hands and mechanical arms strapping the suit to his body. He was prepared long before the submarine was so he took a few moments outside of the subs hatch to compose himself.

Cedric leaned against the cold steel walls of his enclosure and closed his eyes breathing deeply, allowing his thoughts to retreat into his mind. Sleep had not come easy to him the past few weeks. He blamed it on the every approaching climax of his journey but he could not help but feel there was something else tugging at his mind. Something calling out to him in his dreams.

He would be standing out on the frozen fields of Europa, no suit, exposed to the elements but feeling no discomfort. He would look up at the skyless void above him and see nothing; no stars, no sun, not even the all encompassing mass that was Jupiter. A glow would come from below and as he looked down he would see an infinite cosmic mass of blue lights swirling just below the surface of the ice, calling to him. The swirling lights pulled at that deep instinctual feeling of communion that he had been denied these past ten years, putting stress on his training to handle such pressures. 

Cedric jerked awake, still leaning against the wall in front of the hatch to the submarine that was now prepared for him to enter. He shuffled anxiously like he just got caught cheating on a test at school. He calmed himself, Keep yourself together man, he thought to himself. His thoughts raced knowing that he would be taking a huge risk if he was truly this tired, but refused to delay his role in history. 

He opened the hatch to reveal the surprisingly cramped space that was the interior of the submarine. Anyone who wasn't trained would have refused to enter such a cramped space, it was so tight that one would have to lay down in the submarine giving only enough space to move his arms and head in order to operate the various switches, buttons and holographic screens inside.

He lay in the enclosed space and reviewed some of the displayed hologram screens to ensure that all systems were working. Everything was perfect. With the push of a button the hatch closed behind him and the submarine began descending down the vertical ice shaft, being lowered by the same arm the drill had previously been attached to. Cedric turned the submarines forward facing lights on to reveal the ice wall in front of him that had been carved out by the drill. 

The decent took longer then he would have liked, every minute seeming to stretch on for hours with only the carved ice wall to look at through the specially produced translucent metal like material that made up the front of the submarine, giving him a very wide view at what was surrounding him. His mind was spinning with the wonders that he could find; natural underwater structures, chemical reactions not seen on earth or the crown jewel of discovery, alien life. 

Finally the ice wall gave way with the gurgling of the lightless liquid void swallowing the submarine. Cedric flipped all the lights on, seeing the rays shooting through the liquid but making no purchase on anything. He looked down through the metallic glass and could not help but to draw a connection between the dark waters below and the starless void of his recurring dream. He looked up at the ice ceiling expecting to see the swirling cosmic lights of his dream and was surprised at his disappointment when he didn't see them. Despite his training, he struggled to suppress an overwhelming sense of loneliness.

He did his best to focus on the task at hand, he pressed a few buttons to turn on a hologram of his surroundings. A radar, that displayed itself to his right, that would show any obstacles within a few hundred feet. Running his fingers through practiced motions he ran diagnostics to ensure the sub was working, all while having the sub run samples on the surrounding liquid.

The test came back and Cedrics emotions were stolen by awe. It was fascinating. The liquid was water but there was so much more mixed in with it; minerals and chemicals galore, like a soup of everything found on earth and more. It was too much for Cedric to look through while in this enclosed space, which he was thankful that all the data he would be collecting would be recorded in the bases computers for him to review and send back to earth. 

With the diagnostics passing with flying colors the moment of truth had come, it was time to release the sub, and himself, into the unknown. One last check to make sure the rudders and back up systems worked so he would not end up stranded in the middle of this alien ocean. Perfection. 

He smiled, the suspense of discover cascaded through him, and pressed the button to release the sub. With a lurch the sub separated and, with a gentle push of the steering handles, the sub pressed forward into the darkness. 

Cedric pushed the sub in a cautious circle around the drill sight, checking all systems, just as he had been trained to do. When he was satisfied with the results he slowly began taking the submarine deeper, making large circles to cork screw his way down into the depths. 

Nearly an hour of this slow decent had passed with no change, the ice sheet above had disappeared out of the holographic sonars range long ago with no new obstacles coming into view. Cedric breathed easily, staying calm and vigilant for any change in the mechanics of the submarine. Now would not be the time for something to go wrong. He thought to himself. 

Even in his controlled silence, Cedrics mind raced. This is what he had spent his life working towards, being the first to explore Europa was a dream come true and the water sample alone was a massive step in the understanding of this planet and the universe they lived in. He looked from side to side, up and down looking for anything in the void. He could only imagine what could be found in these waters, he found himself captivated by his own imagination threatening to distract him from the displays that his life depended on. 

Miles below the drill site the sub stopped without warning causing Cedrics heart to skip a beat. He furrowed his brow looking about the screens and holographic displays to try to discern what had caused the sudden stop. The sub was meeting resistance, restricting the movement of its rudders and other mobile functions. Cedric turned the motors off and began running diagnostic tests and another sample test on the waters to try to find any answers. 

Moments latter an error displayed itself on the sample testing screen that read 'ERROR: UNABLE TO EXTRACT SAMPLE'. This puzzled Cedric, the pressure here alone should push the surrounding water into the sample tube with ease. 

Cedrics thoughts were interrupted as he felt the submarine gently tilt to the left. He instinctually grabbed the handles to try to control the movements but remembered that the motors were still off meaning something outside of the sub caused the movement. Maybe there is a current. He thought to himself but then the sub lurched, this time to the right, and the holograms and screens all fizzed as if being interrupted by static. 

The submarine lights blinked and struggled to stay on and in the darkness Cedric saw the speck of another light, small and distant. This captured Cedrics attention away from the struggles of his submarine, curiosity overcame him and he turned the lights, screens and holograms off plunging himself into darkness.

A small pale blue speck of light pierced that darkness, like a single star in a starless night sky. Cedric could only stare, speechless. Is it a chemical reaction of some kind? Some kind of bioluminescent creature? The possibilities ran through his mind. 

Cedric slowly, keeping his eye on the blue light, turned the holographic display of the sonar on. In the same moment that the holograms light filled the space the small blue speck disappeared. He raised an eye brow and scanned the sonar where the light had been coming from expecting to see a source but found nothing. 

He turned the sonar hologram display off and audibly gasped as his entire view was encompassed by swirling and spinning gentle blue lights of various sizes and moving at different speeds. It was as if the lights themselves were dancing in a chaotic, unorganized mass. It was beautiful and captivating, almost hypnotic, taking up ever ounce of Cedrics awareness. He found himself lost in the visual effects of these lights and could almost hear the music they seemed to dance to. 

The swirling lights reminded Cedric of the cosmic mass he had seen in his dreams. A tear fell from his eye, he could not help but feel a connection to these lights. A buzzing sense of wonder washed over him mixed with a relief, as if an unknown thirst had just been quenched. He felt an instinctual need within himself being fulfilled just by looking at these mesmerizing lights. 

He had to steal himself to turn his attention back to the sub, but just as he did all of the lights stopped moving. Cedric paused at the change and watch carefully, ready to react, uncomfortable with the change of pace. The lights then started becoming brighter and brighter as if charging at him. Cedric quickly turned the lights to his sub on in hopes to finally see the source of the lights before they collided with his sub. The lights of the sub beamed out in every direction and in that same instant, the charging blue lights blinked out of existence, but nothing could be seen in the liquid void to identify a source.

Cedric breathed heavier, confused by what he had experienced. He looked back at the switch that would turn off the subs lights and slowly reached for it, looking out into the void almost expecting some creature to come into the light that would explain what he had seen. 

He flicked the switch and the instant the subs light turned off a blinding blue light flashed before him causing his vision to go white. His eyes burned as he squeezed his lids shut instinctually. He blinked the light away only to see darkness before him. He blinked harder trying to adjust to the darkness with no results. Cedric had a moment of panic thinking he had gone blind, bringing his hands to his eyes and curling his knees to his chest. 

Just then Cedric realized the freedom of movement he had, he was no longer in the sub. He felt as though he was swimming with no resistance, floating in space, falling with no gravity. He kicked his feet instinctually trying to gather a feeling for up or down but could not conceive any form of gravity. He blinked his eyes but could only see the darkness. He thought to himself, am I dead, but the thoughts of his mind echoed in the world around him out into the void. 

A mote of blue light floated down in front of his face, captivating his every being. As he stared into the light before him he could feel all of his senses being syphoned into the light. He reached out with a hand that slowly began to dissipate, becoming translucent as it entered the faint blue light. He felt as if the hand he pushed forward became part of the emptiness around him, slowly fading into the light. 

The blue light started traveling away from him growing smaller but the light around Cedric seemed to grow and shrink in rhythmic waves as other small lights flew past him towards the retreating light. With each speck joining the central light it grew brighter throwing beams of light like spears through the void. As the spears hit his chest he felt a numbness spread through his body and mind. 

Fear was no longer with him, curiosity no longer drove him. His sense of self was slowly melting into the light that was now consuming him, with him, a part of him. He could feel the light as if it was a life like his own, a familiar sense of loneliness and the pull for companionship reflected into him and out of him. In his last few moments of knowing himself he knew he should be afraid but the overwhelming sense of wholeness and peace overcame all thoughts and plunged him into the light and then consumed him in darkness.