Once, there was a fence; a high fence that encircled and protected a warehouse. In this warehouse was held the most precious thing of all.
There was a single gate to this fence, which was permanently locked and sealed with a heavy padlock. The padlock was old - as old as time - and it was rusting; but it was still strong. That was because it had been built to last. They don’t make them like that nowadays.
But some phenomena have no regard for craftsmanship; and they do not respect things that are built to last.
---
Jim Harker sat in front of his PC screen and furrowed his brow. It was his first morning on the job, and he was suffering from the usual insecurities that the first morning brings. How long would it take him to become familiar with this new position? How alien would its practices seem to him? And of course, how would he get on with his new colleagues?
But he did not concern himself with these issues overmuch. He was reasonably confident that things would work out in his favour. Besides, this new job, though it was the latest in a series of temporary assignments that he had taken of late, had many advantages over the place he’d just left.
For a start it was in a comfortable office instead of a cold factory; the office was located in the middle of the bustling city instead of the back of beyond; the hours were not unsociable - heck they were during the daytime - and it paid better too.
Not that Jim was planning to stick around for too long. In fact he was putting together an application to go to university.
The very fact of this application made his future seem a little brighter. He’d had enough of these temporary assignments; living from month to month, with no security or hope of progress. So now he wanted to get a good education, and then it would be goodbye weekly time sheets and agencies and hello career.
But for now, he was content where he was; and this temporary job would pay him during the summer. Then, come the Autumn, a new adventure would unfold in his life.
The sound of movements and conversation interrupted his reflections, and Jim turned round to see two people in next bank of desks behind him.
One of them he knew already: it was the department’s supervisor, Sally: a cheerful middle aged woman with short brown hair and round glasses. But next to Sally was someone he did not know. When Sally saw Jim looking she interrupted the conversation she and the new arrival had been holding and made some introductions.
“Ah Jim,” she began, “this is Leona…”
---
In the dark skies above the warehouse, there was a rumble of distant thunder. The air was heavy with a silent threat. Yet there was also a sense of expectancy, as if something was about to happen that had been long anticipated – and long dreaded.
There was a sudden flash, and a huge bolt of lightning shot out of the sky and struck the padlock with all of its considerable force.
Slowly, and gracefully, the padlock relinquished its seal.
The lock fell though the air, its descent slow and ponderous. When it struck the ground, a minor tremor shook the earth, and a cloud of dust rose into the sky.
There was a loud, long creaking sound, and the gate swung wide open.
And the precious thing that the sealed perimeter had protected for so long was exposed to the world.
Exposed; and vulnerable.
---
Jim looked up to see the new colleague he was being introduced to. Leona had red hair, fair skin and crystal blue eyes. And the second he saw her, the second she looked back at him, he felt something in his chest lurch.
At that moment Jim knew he was in trouble.
