The Power Plant

The sound came from far away and everywhere at once, passing through thick glass, ducts, partitions, and bones. Three regular pulses, long enough to make a newcomer stiffen, familiar enough for the veterans to keep drinking their coffee. Above the entrance console, the test indicator changed from white to amber. A digital counter ran through three digits before returning to zero.

An engineer remembers the nuclear accident. No one shuts down a reactor because of a memory.