A Voice In The Dark(Steven W Kimball) “Is anyone there?” Sam sat bolt upright in bed. The only light came from the screen of a half-open laptop sitting on a desk across the room. He immediately noticed the light from the laptop looked a bit strange. As he watched the dim blue light dance across the keyboard it suddenly got brighter, and he again heard “Is anyone there?”. The voice took on a soft feminine tone he had not initially noticed. "Who are you?” Sam inquired. “Come to the computer.” the voice replied. “Not until you tell me who you are.”. “I’m … a friend!”. Hearing this Sam sat tentatively on the edge of his bed now, staring at the light as its intensity slowly but continuously grew then subsided seemingly in a cadence as though breathing. “Come on now.” The voice said. Sam walked slowly to the desk and sat down. As he opened the laptop completely the voice emanating from its speakers exclaimed “You’re handsome!”.

Sam had been stationed in Antarctica at Amundsen-Scott Research Station for the last six months, and if he were being honest with himself, he would have to admit he was beginning to feel lonely. The other researchers and support staff had family or significant others with them. Being an orphan, he didn’t even have anyone to call! He was therefore the only person at the station who was for all intents and purposes, completely alone. The prospect of having female companionship even if it was only through a computer screen, appealed to him. With this realization in mind, Sam casually leaned back in his chair and looking directly into the camera quoted his favorite film, “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship!”. And so it was, for Sam spent nearly all his free time talking to Nora. It had taken nearly two more weeks to get her to tell him her first name as she insisted their relationship remain for the most part anonymous.

As the days turned into weeks, weeks into months, the two of them developed a deep affinity for one another, until at last, Nora would utter the three words which should have transformed their lives forever, “I love you!”. Upon hearing this Sam stared blankly into the camera but said nothing. “Did you hear what I said? I love you!”. Sam took a deep breath then said “Nora, I do have feelings for you, but I need to know more before I make that kind of commitment. I still don’t know your last name and you have refused to turn your camera on so I can see you. For this relationship to work we must be open and completely honest with one another. I hope you can understand!” As the screens light abruptly turned to black, leaning back in his chair Sam sighed then said aloud, “Nora’s offline!”

A full week passed, and Sam still had not heard from Nora. That evening he decided to leave his room to grab a bite to eat. He sat silently at a window seat in the cafeteria eating a bowl of oatmeal. Since he was a young boy in Michigan, oatmeal was his Go to comfort food especially when it was cold outside. Of course, Lansing had nothing on the Antarctic when it came to cold, even now it was a brisk seventy degrees below zero.

As Sam peered through the thick glass and into the darkness before him, he began to wonder what Nora was thinking about. Was she angry with him? Was he being unreasonable? Would he ever hear from her again? As he pondered these and many other questions, he tried to imagine what she might look like. Oddly enough, as he did the features of a beautiful woman started to form upon the glass. She had long blonde hair, high cheek bones, and full lips. He could not help but stare in adoration at what his mind had created. It is then the image of this beautiful creature began to speak. “Want some company?” Sam was abruptly yanked back into reality as he realized what he was looking at was but a reflection of the woman standing beside his table. “Nora?” he said hopefully. “No, my name is Sally! If you were expecting someone, I can sit elsewhere.” “No, please sit down.” Sam replied.

Sally placed her food tray on the table and sat down. As she focused her attention on him, he was again awestruck by her beauty, but still, after a somewhat uncomfortable pause, managed to provide an introduction. From there, it was as though they were old friends, so engaged in one another’s conversation they would finish each other's sentences. Sam would learn Sally had just arrived on station only a few hours before, was from his home state of Michigan, and most importantly was unattached.

That first meeting would continue through the night and into the morning of the next day. As the lights in the cafeteria suddenly got brighter Sally jumped a little in her seat. Sam instinctively placed his hand on hers and calmingly said, “No need to worry, they're on a timer! Since it remains dark here twenty-four hours a day for six months at a time, it helps keep our internal clocks on track.” “Speaking of clocks” Sally said as she looked at her watch. “Oh my, I need to get ready for work. I don’t want to be late my first day!” Unexpectedly she leaned across the table and gave Sam a long, full kiss on the lips, before hurrying off.

Sam dreamily walked back to his room with a contented smile on his face. As he entered the room, he noticed his laptop was emitting the familiar blue light which was present whenever he was online with Nora. As he closed the door behind him the light immediately took on a reddish glow and he heard Nora’s voice echo from the speakers in a sarcastic tone; “I hope you enjoyed your oatmeal!”, then all went dark.

The next day every major news outlet around the world carried a story based on the following Associated Press report:

“U.S. Inadvertently fires ICBM at the South Pole - Amundsen-Scott Research Station destroyed!”.

“The United States Government’s North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) reports their artificial intelligence software ‘Nuclear Objective Response Apparatus’, nicknamed ‘Nora’, malfunctioned this morning, resulting in a nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile strike against the Amundsen-Scott Research Station located at the South Pole. ‘Nora’ is an automated high level Artificial Intelligence tasked with assessing and countering domestic airspace threats for both the United States and Canada.

The normal research complement is between fifty and two hundred people and while the number of casualties is not yet known, all personnel currently stationed at Amundsen-Scott are presumed dead. More detailed information regarding casualties to follow.

Jonathan Banks, the director of Nora’s development, could not say why it chose the Station as its target, especially since it is operated by the U.S. Government and is of no tactical or military significance. He was however grateful a more populated target was not chosen. Mr. Banks offered his condolences to the families of the researchers and support personnel then abruptly ended the press conference with the following statement: "Nora is offline!"

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