meanwhile

in a Martian cliff dwelling.....the old man leans back in his recliner and calls up a news feed....the implants in his skull decode the message hidden inside the insipid chatter of the newsperson....he sighs once, and sets a grim expression on his face as he rises from the recliner, and crosses the room to an Andy Warhol print hanging above the sideboard.....the print swings aside, and the old man presses his palm onto the smartlock of the wall-safe......reaching in, he takes out a small rosewood box. He pulls a thin gold chain out from beneath his sweat-shirt collar, and opens the box with the tiny key hanging there.....he carefully takes out what looks like an old TV remote....with a number pad, and one big red button.....he considers for a moment, and starts to enter the sequence......