Heatlink

         Martin Jones trudged through the thick blanket of snow. His old bones creaked as he moved up onto the front porch. The steps were old, but well maintained. A cold wind was blowing fiercely so he had pulled the hood of his parka tight around his face. He peered out past the fur liner, trying to find the doorbell. Tears swelled in his eyes from the bitter cool, but he managed to find it. He pressed the button with  a thick gloved finger and before long he heard sounds from inside. His daughter, Kayla answered the door with a smile and waved at him to come in. He pulled open the screen door, it almost flew away when a huge gust blew by. He stepped inside and pulled the door closed behind himself. Kayla came out onto the porch to greet him.

         “You should stay inside dear, it's far too cold out tonight.”

         “I just wanted to give you a hug daddy.”

         “Well, let me get settled and then you can give me a hug.”

         Stamping his feet free of the snow, he shook himself and then removed his gloves. The heat lamps in the porch felt good against his stiff icy fingers. He fumbled with his zipper until he had managed to get it all the way down. Sliding his arms out of the sleeves, he hung it neatly on the nearby coat rack. Then he stuffed the gloves into the pockets and bent to take off his boots. His back screamed at being forced to due such hard labour. With a groan, he got his feet out of the boots and placed them on the floor below his coat. He stood up and looked at his beautiful daughter and a grin came easily. He hugged her tightly and smoothed her long hair with his wrinkled hand.

         “I've missed you”

         “I know dear, it's this damned cold, I just can't bare going out in it that often.  I remember when I was a young man and it was nothing for me to walk a few miles, now I'm tuckered after a few blocks. Don't ever get old if you can avoid it.”

         They stepped inside the house and his senses were assaulted by the bustle of activity. Children ran around the house, several people were sitting in the living room talking and drinking. Pots and pans banged in the kitchen, accompanied by a delicious blend of sweet aromas. The heat was slowly seeping into him and he began to feel normal again. The lights were warm and soft, giving the house a cozy feel in contrast to the harsh street lights.

         “Where are my grandchildren?” he shouted, so loud that everyone stopped dead in their tracks.

         “Grandpa” came the delighted cry of numerous children ranging from three to thirteen. They raced over and surrounded him, asking all sorts of questions at once. He bent down and hugged each one of them, marveling at how they had grown. He had forgotten how quickly children changed, it was so long ago that Kayla had been young and she had been the oldest child. Greg and Tom, his two sons, came out of the living room with a glass of wine and a beer respectively. They shook hands and the boys escorted him to the living room. He was given a big comfortable chair next to the fire, which he eased into.

         “I don't think I'll ever get out of this chair.”

         “You could always move in with us.” replied Kayla's husband as he entered with a sifter of warm brandy that he promptly handed over to Martin.

         “You tempt me sir, with your cozy fire and warm brandy.”

         “All part of our diabolical plan to keep you here for ourselves.” chuckled Kayla.

         He leaned back in the chair, relaxing in the warm glow of the fire and his family. Tina came up and pulled herself up onto his lap, she was the youngest of his grandchildren. She wore a little pink dress with matching pink ribbon in her pigtails. Her voice was soft, so he listened intently to what she had to say.

         “Will you tell us a story Grampie?”

         The rest of the children were filing into the room, and all added to Tina's request.

         “What sort of story do you want to hear?”

         “Tell us about the war!” said Carrie, the oldest.

         “No, tell us about when you went swimming in the ocean!” said Neal, he was a little younger than Carrie.

         He smiled as the rest all had ideas from past stories he had told. It felt good to see that they had paid attention, and remembered.

         “I think tonight I will tell you about something different. All of the stories I have told were little bits from my past, though you have enjoyed them, they are not a part of our lives. Now this story goes a long way back, to before your mother was born, but it affects us all even to this day.”

         “I was a young man and had just met your grandmother. Having just returned from Double 'W' three, I needed a job. Now that was an amazing thing that war. All the jungle, it was next to impossible to find the enemy. They were hard to find and even harder to kill. All of the largest research contractors had built facilities down in Brazil, and when the war erupted, they took all the high-tech equipment. My work in the army near the war's end had been creating experimental materials for use in armor, trying to close the technological gap. My knowledge of molecular adhesion and synthesis were not useful in most jobs. Luckily a small company that was doing leading edge research needed someone with my skills. I began working for G.I.D. researching alternative energy.”

         “Why Grampie, we have lots of energy?” added Neal.

         “Well, I'm getting to that, now just listen and learn. Back then we relied on fossil fuels for just about everything. Our cars used a chemical called gasoline, which burned inside the engine to make it go.”

         There mouths dropped wide and eyes grew wider.

         “Now the how of it is not important, only that we were running out of the fuel that the whole world depended on. We needed to find new ways to get power. We had invented things like the solar panel, and windmills, and even found ways to turn plants and garbage into fuel, but none of these worked very well. I was a researcher for this company, where we were working on a new idea. You see, energy can not be created nor destroyed, it simply changes form.”

         “We learned about that in science last week” said Carrie cheerfully.

         “Excellent, now you will understand the story better. So, working on this premise, we figured that out of all the things the world had, a lot of the electricity ended up as heat. It was our goal to find a way to make heat back into electricity efficiently.”

         “Now that sounds simple, but then it was not heard of, and nobody had really thought about it that much. Heat was something we all took for granted. It was waste left over after something had done it's job. Because of this excess heat and the affect our fossil fuels had on the planet, it got hotter. Some people feared that it would lead to disaster. Global warming they called it and that was part of the reason for looking towards alternative energy.”

         “Did it snow back then Grampie?” asked Tina from her comfy spot on his lap.

         “I sure did Tina, it snowed in the winter every year, though we did not get this much snow.”

         “What's winter Grampie?”

         “Well, winter is when it snows, like outside right now it's winter.”

         “But if snow is winter, then it must always be winter.”

         “That was not always the way, we had four seasons when I was young. Spring, when the snow melted and turned to rain. Summer where it got really hot and then fall where it cooled off and the trees began to change color. Now back to the story, where was I?”

         “Global warming”

         “Thank you Carrie. Yes, Global warming, it was feared that the planet would get too hot to support life.”

         They all laughed.

         “Now this was a serious problem for us, it wasn't funny then. So we worked night and day on this project, to create something that converted heat into electricity. We worked for ten years on it, and by the time we had figured it out, your mother was already six years old.”

         “I remember like it was just yesterday, the manager was so excited, he had given us the rest of the day off. I came home early and hugged your mother. I picked her up in my arms and carried her to the kitchen to see what grandma was up to. She was baking cookies, and they smelled so good. Grandma always made the best cookies. They would melt in your mouth, you didn't even have to chew them.”

         He closed his eyes at the memory, savouring the imaginary smell and the feel of his wife. He missed her more with each passing day. He had always assumed that he would die first. She was so full of life and love, never sick a day of her life. He was glad though that he had outlived her. He was glad she didn't have to experience the loneliness that had become a routine part of his life. The pain of having to go on day after day knowing he wouldn't see her again.

         “So I go into the kitchen, to get a taste of her wonderful treats and she jumps in surprise. I scared the wits out of her, she nearly hit the ceiling.”

         They laughed at the image.

         “She starts scolding me for sneaking up on her and then she stops in mid sentence. 'What's that dumb look on your face?' she asks me. I grin and I says, we did it! Now she knew just what I meant, a man doesn't spend ten years of his life working on something that his wife don't know about. So she smiles and wraps her arms around me and your mom. She hugs me so hard I thought something would break. So I took them out and down  to the park and we spread out a blanket on the grass..

         “You can't do that, they won't let you” said Tina.

         “Back then, parks were free and you could sit on the grass all you wanted. You didn't need to follow the path. We even had huge forests full of trees where a man could get lost and never be found.”

         “Now you're just teasing us.” said Carrie.

         “I kid you not, this is the way things were back then. So anyway, we had quickly stopped on the way to the park and got a bucket of chicken to have a picnic.  We sat on the grass looking up at the sun and just enjoying our victory. Grandma had brought along a bottle of wine. She said she had bought it the day I started work, and wanted to open it only when I had succeeded. That was the best tasting wine I have ever had, I don't mind saying I was quite proud of myself.”

         “We didn't have much money back then, and life was hard. Wine was a luxury, so was the chicken. We ate like kings and queens and felt just as good. It was a glorious day and I have yet to have another as good.”

         His vision blurred as he tried to continue, but his throat had seized up and no words would come out. Kayla walked back in at that moment while they sat waiting for him to speak.

         “All right kids, go get washed up for dinner, Grandpa can tell you the rest after we eat.”

         The children complained but didn't hesitate to do as they were told. Once they had left, Greg walked over and put an arm around him.

         “You okay Dad?”

         “Greg my boy, I'm fine. I just miss your mother so much these days. Even after two years it hasn't gotten any easier. She was a wonderful woman, and though I love you all very much,  nothing can fill the void.”

         “I understand Dad, it's okay, we all miss Mom. I know how hard it must be, if anything ever happened to Warren, I don't know what I'd do without him.”

         “It gets harder the longer you're together. Your Mother would have been ninety  one this year. We had been married for so long, it's just hard sometimes. I'm better now, thank you.”

         “I'm always here for you Dad.”

         “I know son, how is Warren anyway, I noticed he wasn't here tonight.”

         “Unfortunately he had to work the night shift. He sends his regards.”

         “Are you two thinking of having children soon? I could use another grandchild.”

         “We talked about it, but we don't want to adopt and we can't decide who's DNA to use for an insemination. For now you'll have to be happy with only three grandchildren.”

         “I tell you, I can't get over how big Tom's little girl has gotten.”

         “She's like  a beautiful weed, that one. Tina will be gorgeous when she grows up, and brilliant too, just like her Grandpa.”

         “You always were the one to flatter me. The other two seemed to have slowed down and Kayla is doing a great job with them.”

         “Yes, Kayla's done wonders with Carrie and Neal, considering how hard they took Mom's passing.”

         “I remember, they were old enough to understand, but too young to know how to grieve. It was a difficult time, but they appear to be fine now.”

         “Well, children bounce back quickly, it's us old folks who have trouble.” Greg gave him a wry grin.

         “Old? You're the baby of the family, you are a long way from being old my boy.”

         They both had a little chuckle then made small talk until Kayla called them to the table for dinner. Martin slowly stood and walked into the dinning room. The children giggled and shoved each other while the parents gave scolding glances. Martin took his place at the head of the table, surrounded by a feast. A large roast chicken, fresh rolls, corn, potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, carrots. His mouth watered at the variety of food. The smells were even more pungent and intoxicatingly delicious. He had gotten used to the quick meal packets that he usually ate. A fresh home cooked meal was a luxury. His joy quickly turned to sorrow at the memory of his beloved wife. They had eaten meals like this often in the past. He closed his eyes, savouring the food and imagining she were here with him.

         Dinner passed by slowly as he sampled bits of everything. Conversation was light and casual, no heavy political discussions or religious arguments. They were vigorously avoiding topics that would cause conflict and get him riled. He had tried to broach some interesting subjects but his attempts had been swiftly countered. He knew the children didn't like it when he got to debating things, though he enjoyed it immensely.

         Once Kayla and Carrie had cleared the main course, the dessert was brought in. Always the entertainer, Kayla had prepared a variety of delicacies. Trays of assorted fruits, chocolates, candies, pie, cake, and pudding covered the table. He was already stuffed from the large meal, but decided to partake in the desserts, having a small piece of cake and some apple slices. It was a decadent display of wealth, but he knew his daughter only meant to provide them with a scrumptious meal. She had never been one to worry over money. His fortune had ensured that all of them would never feel the hardship of poverty he had grown up in. His strict oversight of their education was done so that they would never need his money. They had all accomplished amazing feats with the education and finances he had provided. He was proud of his family, and himself for giving them the opportunity to succeed in life.

         After dessert he was so full he had to losen his belt. It was a struggle to get up from the table and travel the small walk back to the chair in the living room. He sat down and once again enjoyed the fire. The children, hyper from all of the sugar played loudly in the next room while the grownups cleaned up after the meal. Kayla came to sit with him, Greg and Tom having insisted on doing the dishes.

         “I'm so glad you could come tonight Dad. I was starting to get worried about you all cooped up in that apartment by yourself.”

         “Don't worry about me dear, I am doing just fine. That meal tonight was exquisite, you take after your mother in the kitchen.”

         “It wasn't as good as Mom's but I think I did a nice job. You liked the cake?”
         “It was the best part. Carrie and Neal seem to be doing fine now.”

         “Yes, it was tough on all of us at first, but they are doing much better.”

         “Your mother was so proud of you and your brothers. She always talked about how good you had grown up.”

         “We couldn't have turned out this well without you and Mom guiding us. Have you given any thought to moving in here, we really want you to stay with us.”

         “No my dear, I'm an old man and this place is too full of energy for my tastes. I need my rest and though I love those grandkids, they wear me out. I'll stay in my own place as long as I'm able to care for myself.”

         “Well you should know we would all do anything for you. You are always welcome in my home, so consider it an open invitation.”

         “Thank you dear, I will.”

         The kids came screaming into the room, laughing hysterically at some private joke. They plopped down on the floor around him and looked up expectantly.
         “I guess you still have some story left to tell.”

         He nodded with a smile, they were waiting for the action part of his story. They always loved it when he described the scariest parts of his past, they viewed it as exciting, not understanding the fear one felt in the heat of the moment. He didn't mind telling the tales, it reminded him of living. He had only felt truly alive in those times where he risked losing everything. 

         Adjusting his position in the chair he began again, “Something you should know about your fireplace before we go any further. You see those logs in there, they are not made from wood right?”

         “Of course not Grandpa, wood is expensive, you can't just burn it, then it would be gone.” said Neal

         “That was not always the way of things. When I was young and the forests covered the planet. We used to chop wood up and burn it to keep warm. This is a nice fire but it's missing one thing, the sound.”

         “It sounds like fire to me Grampie.” added Tina.

         “Well, it does sound like fire, but not like wood burning. Wood snaps and crackles while it burns. That's the best part of the fire, little sparks shoot out BANG”
         They let out a small yelp and jumped at his sudden loud noise. He chuckled to himself as they settled back down.

         “Now you can only see wood in a museum and trees only in a book. Your mother saw real trees when she was young. In fact I imagine that one day your mother will be telling these stories, because she has seen almost as much as I have. Moving along though, I had spent the day celebrating with your Grandma and mother. We were overjoyed that the work was done because I would be home more. Once the research was done, my time was taken up with meetings and paperwork. The orders started rolling in and the small company grew. Since we had all been given stocks in the company in the beginning, now we were starting to make money. “

         “There were times in the beginning where they gave us stocks in place of wages and we grumbled about being able to feed our families with worthless pieces of paper. Now that we had succeeded, those stocks secured an unimaginable future of wealth that continues to this day. Other families don't eat as well as we did tonight. Fresh meat, fruits, it's all very expensive and we are lucky to afford such things. The really funny thing about it is that when I was a boy, chicken and fruit were everywhere and very affordable. I had an apple tree in my back yard as a boy. I picked an apple off that tree and ate it whenever I wanted one.”

         “So now we know something of how the world was, with trees covering large areas. Fields full of wheat and other grains that we used to make bread and it only snowed for a few months each year. What caused the world to change so drastically is the big question and it is one they still fight about today. I know the reason as I am sure everyone in the government knows. Heatlink is the name we gave to our invention. It was truly amazing, better than we had ever expected it to be. It was soft and flexible, able to be cut to fit any shape easily. The unique feature that made it truly incredible was it's ability to absorb heat and change it into pure electricity. Now of course it wasn't perfect, but it certainly was able to absorb a lot of heat. We made huge amounts of it for almost every industry around the world. Large blankets of it were shipped out daily by the tons. We thought the demand would never end. So many people wanted it. That Coolbox in the kitchen is lined with the Heatlink material. We used to use a thing called a fridge, it used a special gas and motor to cool food. Heatlink not only cooled food, but used the excess energy to power the light inside. You all have small coolboxes to hold your lunches, but in my day we didn't have such things.

         “The world replaced almost everything with Heatlink, so that it became the number one source of electricity around the world. Once we burned coal to provide electricity, worse still we had nuclear reactors that were very dangerous. Over the years, there were accidents that destroyed large areas of land when a reacter would meltdown, killing people, plants, and animals for miles around. Thankfully Heatlink had no such drawbacks, or so we thought. It wasn't until about fifteen years ago that we realized the true nature of the problem.”

         “It had gotten steadily cooler each year as we made more and more Heatlink. It was placed inside computers, it covered to outside of buildings. It was everywhere that there was heat. The Heatlink was absorbing the heat from around the world, sucking it out of the very air. The government denied it and we  continued to lose heat. Fifteen years later we have a constant winter. The huge greenhouses that grow our food did not exist until they realized the winter would not end. The government of course will deny it, saying this is a typical cycle of our planet, but I know the truth of it.”

         “But why don't they know it grampie?” asked Tina

         “They do know Tina, they just won't tell you they know. The reasons are complicated, but what it comes down to is that we need Heatlink to survive. We need the electricity to keep our houses warm, and keep our lights on. The old ways are gone and we can't rebuild them, but we can't keep using Heatlink or the planet will never recover. Can any of you imagine what it would be like with no power. No heat, no lights, no television, no fireplace, no hot meals? It is not something people could survive, but something must be done.”

         “I am an old man now and unable to change the world. What I can do is to inform others, like you, who have the ability and time. But enough of the rantings from a tired old man. I should be getting home.”

         All of the children whined and tried to delay him, Tom came to sit with him as Kayla ordered the kids to get ready for bed.

         “How are you holding up Dad?”

         “Not as well as I would like, my boy. My bones ache something fierce and I've gotten quite tired after that large meal. I think I shall have to head out soon.”

         “If you would just move in here then you would be home already.”

         Martin patted his sons' hand firmly, “So she has you helping to sway me. I am afraid I cannot accept her offer. You see, I am not long for this world, and while the thought of you finding me dead is terrible to think of. Having one of those grandchildren find my corpse is horrific. I will not risk the damage it would do to them.”

         “I understand Dad, I'll explain it to Kayla and we won't bother you again.”

         “It is no bother to know your children love you. Now I need you to help me with something tomorrow, so please come to the house when you finish work.”

         “I'll be there.”

         “Good, now that that is settled, I must be getting home.”

         Kayla intercepted him at the door, “Not so fast you, trying to sneak away. Say goodnight to the children.”

         “Of course my dear, how careless of me.”

         She called the children and everyone gave him a hug. It was a long goodbye filled with chit chat and lingering. Finally he escaped to the porch and once again he was alone with his daughter. She assisted him in getting dressed for the harsh weather and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

         “Happy Father's day Dad.”

         “Thank you my dear, you take care of yourself and your children. I want you to always remember how much your mother and I loved you.”

         “Are you okay Dad?”

         “I am just fine my dear, couldn't be more pleased with my family. Now I'm opening this door, you best be getting inside.”

         She hugged him one last time and gave him a kiss on the cheek, then went back into the house. He saw her watching him through the window as he stepped out into the blustery night. For the last time in his life; Martin Jones trudged through the thick blanket of snow.

THE END

An addendum here: Science Fiction has always inspired innovation! I would like to believe that my story had a little something to do with this breakthrough... A molecular approach to solar power