Act VI - The News

                                    

                                          
The Five {Act VI}
The News
The International Space Station
Ross takes a bite out of his potato. Cohan takes a sip of water, sitting across from him. "Commander Kevin Ross! Do you copy?! Commander Kevin Ross. Astronomer Jane Cohan. Do you copy? This is Mission Specialist Joel MacKerron, do you copy?!" They suddenly hear. Ross looks over at their HAM radio, then at Cohan. Cohan's eyes are wide. Ross gets up and floats towards the HAM radio. He picks it up. "Hello? Commander Kevin Ross, do you copy? This is Joel MacKerron!" Joel speaks. Ross's eyes widen. "YES!" Ross shouts. Cohan starts laughing. Ross presses the button. "Hello?" Ross speaks. It wasn't going through. "Oh come on!" Ross grunts adjusting the radio's knobs. He hears it go clear, and presses the speak button. "Joel MacKerron? This is Commander Kevin Ross, I copy! We're here!" Ross speaks joyfully. Ross and Cohan wait for a response. "Ross! I'm here! You copy?!" Joel asks. "Damn right I copy, haha! Now tell me what the hell happened!" Ross says eagerly. There silence for a moment. Ross looks at Cohan. Cohan smiles. "Why hasn't NASA been responding? This just their way of firing us?" Ross jokes. What seems like a few minutes pass, and Ross and Cohan's smiles fade.  "Joel? Do you copy? What happened down there?" Ross asks. Ross and Cohan wait quietly until they hear something. "Uh.." They hear Joel mutter. Ross looks at Cohan. "It's.. It's bad." Joel's voice comes in. Cohan snatches the HAM radio from Ross's hands. "Well tell us!" Cohan says into it impatiently. There was silence for a few moments. "It's all gone. Everything is gone." Joel says. Ross looks up, his body shaking. "What? What does that mean?" Cohan asks. "We don't know what happened. It seems like everybody is..." Joel trails off. Cohan covers her mouth with her hand. Ross stares at the radio. "The cities. All the power is out. And the streets.. thousands of bodies. Everything is gone." Joel grunts. A tear strolls down Cohan's cheek. Ross holds his hand out for the radio, and Cohan gives it to him. "What about us?!" Ross questions curiously. Cohan looks up at him. 
It shows Joel standing in the MCC-H. He looks down, then clicks the button. 
Ross and Cohan sit still waiting for a response. "There's.." Joel starts. Ross and Cohan exchange glances. "There's no way of getting you down." Joel voice comes through. Cohan's face goes blank. Ross looks at her. "Cohan?" Ross asks. She starts to faint. "Cohan, come on!" Ross drops the radio and grabs her. Cohan passes out from panic. Ross looks around, starting to freak out. It shows Ross and Cohan from outside a window of the International Space Station. Ross starts screaming, but you can't hear it. 
Mission Control Center, Houston, Texas
Joel stands in the MCC-H, waiting for a response. After a few minutes, he speaks into it again. "Uh, I don't.. I don't know what to do. Maybe the CDC. Maybe there's still people there. I won't be able to contact you, I don't know what you should do either. Just try and survive." Joel says.
Ross looks down at the radio. "Once we find out what's going on I'll come back here and talk to you." Joel says. Ross pauses, then picks it up. "Joel?" Ross asks. "Yeah?" Joel responds. Ross clicks the button to speak. "Why don't you just tell the truth..? And tell me that Cohan and I are gonna starve to death up here?" Ross asks. 
Joel stares at the radio, then puts his hand on his head. Joel waits, then clicks the button. "I'll be back soon. Don't give up yet." Joel says. A few moments go by of nothing. Joel accepts that Ross isn't going to respond, and puts the radio down. Joel looks around at the Mission Control Center, then starts walking away from the computers. 
Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas
Glenn and Kate sit in the truck. Kate breathes heavily. "Glenn..?" She asks. Glenn looks at her. "Yeah?" Glenn asks, looking concerned. "I don't think I'm going to make it. Wherever we go next. We don't have a doctor, and I don't think we'll find one." Kate grunts. Glenn looks at her. "You can't give up." Glenn says. Kate looks at him. "Everything we've been through, giving up is the worst thing to do. Humanity has made it through everything so far, we'll make it. I promise." Glenn says putting his arm around her. "My muscles are getting weaker. My injury, I know it's infected. I'll probably die of whatever killed the rest of the world.." Kate mutters reaching into her jacket. She slowly starts pulling out something. She takes out a small revolver. Glenn's eyes slowly look down at it. "I found it in the glove box.. When you guys were in the gas station... It has three bullets." Kate says chuckling. "Ironic, huh?" Kate spits out. Glenn takes the revolver from her. "We don't need to do that. We'll find someone who can help you." Glenn says. Kate shakes her head. "I'm slowing you down." Her voice sounds weaker with every word. "Slowing us down from what?" Glenn asks. Kate pauses. "You'll be okay. I'll get Joel to drive you to a hospital, maybe I can find some equipment, at the very least stitch it up." Glenn says. "I don't think I have another trip in me." Kate says. Glenn looks up out the window seeing Joel walking towards the truck. "Joel is coming now. You're going to be okay. I promise." Glenn says. Joel opens the drivers door, and gets in. "Did you get in contact with them?" Glenn asks. Joel nods. "How'd they take the news?" Glenn asks. Joel looks over at him. "I don't know what we're going to do." Joel says looking down. "We need to get to a hospital, for Kate." Glenn tells Joel. Kate looks down. "Who's going to be there?" Joel asks. Glenn pauses. "Well, we can stitch her up! We gotta do something!" Glenn exclaims. Joel nods. "What about the CDC?" Joel asks. Glenn hesitates. "What about it?" Glenn asks. "Don't you think people would be there. Maybe a doctor. If this was an infection that took everybody out, the CDC is the one place they would keep going." Joel says. Glenn looks at Kate. "I think we should go there." Joel says. "Atlanta's 800 miles away. Kate won't make it." Glenn says. Joel stares at Glenn, then at Kate. "We're a team!" Glenn exclaims. Kate shakes her head. "You guys. Just leave me." Kate says. Glenn looks at her, and shakes his head. Joel looks down. "No." Glenn says. "Glenn.." Kate mutters. "No!" Glenn shrieks. Joel looks up at him. "We aren't leaving you behind! We can't!" Glenn says. Kate nods. "Please." Kate says looking at Joel. "If there's one place I want to die, it's here. At NASA. This is the only home I have left.." Kate mumbles. Joel looks up at Glenn. "I.." Glenn trails off. "It's not your choice." Kate murmurs, looking up at Glenn. "Glenn has a gun.. I found it in the glovebox. I can use that. You might need it for later, so if you don't want to have to come pick it up.. you can just leave me. I'll die peacefully.." Kate grunts. Glenn shakes his head. "It's my wish. Please. Then you can get to Atlanta." Kate whispers. Joel and Glenn exchange glances.
Joel helps Kate out of the truck. They walk her over to the main entrance of the Johnson Space Center. Kate slides down the wall, sitting on the ground in front of the doors. Joel looks at her. "You sure this is what you want?" Joel asks. Kate nods. "Yes." She says. Joel nods. "Alright." He says looking over at Glenn. "I'll stay with her, you don't have to see this." Joel says. Glenn shakes his head. "I'm staying." Glenn says. "Glenn." Kate mutters looking up at him. Glenn kneels down. "Don't be here for this. I know you can, but I don't want you to be." Kate says. Glenn looks down, then hugs her. Glenn lets go. "Goodbye Glenn." Kate says. Glenn stands up. "Goodbye." Glenn says, backing away, and walking towards the truck. Kate grips the gun in her hand. Joel looks down at her. Kate lifts up the gun, and presses it against her head. "It was a pleasure working with you.." She mumbles. Joel nods. "Yeah.. You too." He says. Kate looks up into the sky, seeing a flock of birds flying. She starts to tear up. Joel looks away, closing his eyes, and hears a gunshot echo. 
Glenn waits in the truck, then hears the same gunshot. He closes his eyes, trying not to think about it. A few minutes later, Joel walks over to the truck, getting in the drivers side. He shuts the door, then opens the glovebox, putting the revolver inside. Joel shuts it, then starts the truck. "I'm sorry." Joel says to Glenn. Glenn faces away from him. "We'll find someone at the CDC." Joel says, putting the truck into drive. Joel drives forward, leaving the Space Center.