Serizawa recalled that several lives had indeed been lost during the meltdown, although the death toll could have been much, much worse had not all necessary emergency measures been taken in time. Curious, he rifled through the man’s possessions, finding a framed family photo, along with over a dozen obsolete zip disks and a collection of graphs and printouts.

“I thought all the data from that day was lost,” he whispered to Graham.

She glanced at Brody’s collection. “Guess he was doing homework.”

Leafing through the confiscated material, Serizawa froze as he came upon a crumpled computer printout of a certain waveform pattern. He recognized the rising series of crests immediately. It was the same curve he had just observed on the monitors upstairs.

Snatching up the printout, he turned excitedly toward Graham—just as the overhead lights flickered once more, even more noticeably this time. The electromagnetic pulses from the cocoon were indeed increasing in intensity.

“See?!” Brody exclaimed, as though in vindication. “There it is again! It knocks out everything electrical for miles!” The foundations beneath their feet rumbled as the lights continued to waver, despite the best efforts of the backup generators. Brody grew louder and more agitated. He shouted fervidly like a prophet of doom. His face grew flushed and the tendons in his neck stood out. “It’s what caused this whole thing, and it’s happening again. IT’S GONNA SEND US BACK TO THE STONE AGE!”

A technician from the control room rushed into the antechamber. “Dr. Serizawa, they need you upstairs! We have a problem.”

Serizawa glanced back and forth between Brody and the confiscated printout. Was it possible that this crazed American engineer knew something they didn’t? He stared apprehensively at Brody and their eyes met through the glass door between them. Serizawa wanted to stay and question the man directly, find out what precisely Brody knew about the events of fifteen years ago, and how they related to what was happening today, but the technician from the crow’s nest hovered in doorway, waiting anxiously.

He hastily gathered up Brody’s possessions and rushed to answer the summons. He shouted back at Huddleston and the guard.

“Keep that man here! I need to talk to him!”

Graham accompanied Serizawa as they raced back to the control room, which was now in a barely controlled frenzy. The elation and excitement of only a few minutes ago had been supplanted by an almost palpable sense of panic. Emergency alerts and warnings flashed urgently on almost every screen and console. Buzzers and sirens sounded. Alarmed technicians shouted over each other.

“Just seconds apart!” Jainway called out.

Another man, whose name Serizawa didn’t know, stared in dismay at the readings before him. “—stronger, broad spectrum!”