Jameson continued, “Then schedule a videoconference between one and three o’clock this afternoon for just myself and the 11 others.”
“I’ll do so, Madam President,” said Spence.
“And lastly, please arrange a meeting with the Vice President and Joint Chiefs of Staff – also this afternoon, from three-thirty to five-thirty,” said Jameson.
Spence confirmed the instruction, then said, “Anything else, Madam President?”
“Nothing at this stage, Sheryl. Thank you very much.”
With that, her Chief of Staff left the office. Within two minutes the President’s private landline was ringing. She picked up the receiver, ‘President Jameson here.”
“Madam President, it’s Sheryl. I have Serena Harpon on the line for you as requested …”
12:00 p.m. Earth: England – Oxford
Edward Payton found himself standing in the middle of his lounge at home, in the exact spot that he had thought of before being transported off the spacecraft.
His wife, Sienna, was standing just two metres away from him looking down at her mobile phone. He could see that she had been crying. She looked up and as they caught each other’s eyes, the phone fell from her hand in shock. She stared at him in total astonishment as though he was some kind of apparition.
He spoke gently seeing that she was traumatised, “My lovely wife. It’s me, Edward. Are you okay?”
As he stepped towards her, she ran into his arms and embraced him tightly.
She cried and spoke at the same time, “What just happened? Where have you been? I’ve been so worried about you!”
Payton heard her questions then checked his trouser pocket. He immediately knew that the whole encounter he had just experienced had not just been a figment of his imagination.
He held his wife close to him and spoke, “Sienna, my dear wife. I am so sorry, but I’m back now and safe.”
“What happened to you? It’s five o’clock, you’ve been gone for three hours now.”
He couldn’t think how to respond, but before he could say anything, she continued, “I got a call from the University this afternoon saying that you had literally disappeared from your lecture theatre. The students thought at first that it was just another one of your amusing lecture stunts, but after a few minutes they started to agree that something wasn’t right. They then alerted your faculty dean, David Westwood.
“He called me half an hour after you had disappeared to ask whether I knew your whereabouts, or if I had spoken to you since that time.”
Sienna started to cry. “I’ve been so scared … I thought I might have lost you.”
Payton held her again while she poured out her pent-up emotion “And then there was the incident with Serena Harpon who also mysteriously disappeared. It was all too much for me.”
Her comment about Serena Harpon, unknown to her, made perfect sense to him.
“Sienna, you wouldn’t believe where I’ve been, even if I told you. The most extraordinary event in the history of this world has just occurred and I was one of the fortunate few that was selected to participate in it.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
He then explained to his wife that he was not able to disclose where he had been or what had happened during his absence, but reassured her that his life was at no point in danger and that all would be made clear to her over the course of the next 10 days.
12:05 p.m. Earth: Oval Office
President Jameson sat patiently at her desk while the call was being transferred to her. She did not know what to expect from the conversation that lay ahead of her with Serena Harpon.
It clicked through and President Jameson was first to speak, “Good day to you, Ms Harpon. It’s Sally Jameson here.”
“Madam President, I’m very glad you called. I was starting to question my sanity,” Serena said in a relieved tone.
President Jameson breathed a sigh of relief herself. “As was I, Ms Harpon. I just wanted to confirm that the almost unbelievable last three hours of my life did really happen. If it had been my imagination, then I would be left with little alternative but to check myself into a hospital for medical observation.”
Serena Harpon appreciated the President’s humour. “No need for that for either of us thank goodness – not yet anyway!”
They both smiled for the first time in what felt like an eternity.
She continued, “Well, there is now no doubt in my mind that this encounter was real.”
Jameson responded, “I concur, and now the fate of everyone around the world lies with us.”
Just then the President’s second line started flashing, indicating another incoming call.
She spoke, “Ms Harpon, our IntraGlobe videoconference is set to commence on the hour. I assume you will be joining us.”
“Yes, Madam President. I’ll be online and ready.”
They exchanged goodbyes and ended the call. The President then pressed the flashing light on her landline to accept the other call. It was Sheryl confirming that the Vice President was waiting to see her.
12:20 p.m. Earth: China – Presidential Office in Beijing
It was now 1:20 a.m. in Beijing – 20 minutes since the Chinese President had returned to his office from the encounter. That time had been spent with various high ranking government officials. Firstly, convincing them that all was in order and secondly, giving them a number of urgent directives. Once they had all been dismissed from his office he finally had some time to himself to relax and consolidate his thoughts.
He leaned back in his chair and looked over at the beautiful mural of the Li River in Guilin, which decorated one entire wall of his stately office. He took a long, deep breath in contemplation – this was no ordinary storm that lay ahead of humankind: this was a ferocious squall that would wreak havoc on an unprecedented scale. All political agendas, religious beliefs and civil liberties would have to be set aside if anything tangible was to be achieved at the Global Unification Summit. It was truly daunting, especially considering how staunchly opposed the world’s population was to any form of regulation dealing with population management, economic austerity and lifestyle restriction.
No-one wanted anything to do with regulation of this sort, since it was in direct conflict with humanity’s incessant desire to develop and expand in the name of progress. Humanity was prepared to go to any length to continually raise its living standards, build wealth and better its own kind, irrespective of the long-term consequences to the environment. Inconvenient legislation was easy to side-step in a world where humans were accountable to no one but themselves. But this had all changed in an instant. The accountability of humankind to a superior race, one which was more powerful, more advanced and more principled in every imaginable way, would now be in full force.
People across the world would need to set time aside for serious introspection, not just from an individual point of view, but from a collective perspective as well. They needed to realise that if humankind’s multifaceted destruction of the planet was not summarily stopped and reversed, then it would face terrible consequences from this superior race.
The Ultimatum would serve as the means by which this accountability would be implemented and measured. The degree of non-compliance with the Ultimatum would determine the level of consequence; and the mere thought of remediation and its remedial threat removal as forms of consequence sent shivers down the Chinese President’s spine.
He would not, under any circumstances, allow his nation to fall victim to this so-called remediation. No matter what sacrifices had to be made by his nation’s people, China would comply with the Ultimatum in its entirety. He now had the arduous duty of convincing them that the sacrifices needing to be made were small when compared to the consequences of non-compliance.
12:30 p.m. Earth: Oval Office
President Jameson spent five minutes with the Vice President assuring him that she was fine and that she would explain everything at the Joint Chiefs of
Staff meeting later that afternoon. She confirmed that she would deliver the 12:30 p.m. press release, and that her appearance on national television alone would be sufficient to curb the growing speculation of her disappearance.
Once the Vice President had left her office she called her husband. They spoke for five minutes before her Chief of Staff indicated that it was time for the press release.
At 12:30 p.m. exactly, she delivered her statement from behind the resolution desk:
‘As I am sure that the majority of people in the United States and around the world are fully aware, some extraordinary events have occurred today. I firstly want to assure you all that I am safe and that there is no need for anyone to be concerned or fearful.
There is an explanation for the events that have unfolded over the last 12 hours, which will be revealed during the course of an upcoming summit that is to be held with all the world’s top leaders. The content and outcome of the summit will be disclosed to the public in full on its final day. In the meantime, please be patient and disregard any speculative media reports and conspiracy theories.
Please know that I have your best interests at heart and give you my sincere assurance that nothing will be hidden from the general public’s knowledge. Everyone has a right to know and thus everyone will know.
I ask again that you remain calm and continue with your normal daily lives. I thank you for this and, as President of the United States, you have my word that the wellbeing and safety of our people and the people of the world, are at all times my highest priority.’
The live broadcast was cut and Jameson sat back in her chair. She hoped the press release would help ease any uncertainty and fear. Her Chief of Staff then confirmed that both the IntraGlobe videoconference and the Joint Chiefs of Staff meeting had been arranged.
Jameson thanked her and then made a further request, “Sheryl, please get President Zhuge on the line for me: I need to speak with him urgently.”
12:30 p.m. Earth: England – Oxford
It was now 5:30 p.m. in Oxford. Edward Payton’s wife was finally in a calmer state of mind and she was content for him to go and work in the study. He sat down and switched on their home computer. He retrieved the data storage device from his pocket and placed it onto the computer’s flash-pad. It worked perfectly. All the content from the encounter was there, fully viewable with his computer’s basic software programmes. He grinned to himself and muttered, “Unbelievable!”
He logged into his IntraGlobe account and saw the invitation to the Global Unification Summit group. He accepted and immediately set about uploading the encounter data from the storage device onto the group’s ‘knowledge exchange’ cloud platform, so that it could be accessed by all 12 Principals. He then spent the next 20 minutes examining the data in preparation for the IntraGlobe videoconference.
12:35 p.m. Earth: Oval Office
As President Jameson sat at her desk deep in thought, her landline telephone rang. It was Sheryl confirming that she had the Chinese President on the other end of the line. Jameson was aware that it was now well after midnight in Beijing.
She heard the call being put through and then spoke, “President Zhuge, good morning.”
“Good day to you, President Jameson,” he replied in an alert tone.
“I trust I haven’t disturbed you, Mr President,” said Jameson cautiously.
“Not at all, Madam President. In fact, I have just delivered my press release to the Chinese Nation and am now preparing for our videoconference. I have no doubt that you are as relieved as I am to be safely back on Earth?”
The Chinese President’s statement immediately quelled Jameson’s fleeting yet unwarranted concern that he might, for some unknown reason, deny the whole encounter.
She responded with relieved conviction, “I certainly am, Mr President. I’m still coming to terms with the encounter, but am keen to move forward. Regarding our preliminary Ultimatum Plan that the 12 of us discussed earlier, are you comfortable with it and ready to set things in motion?”
“Absolutely, Madam President. My Presidential Assistant is in the process of booking the Burj al Persia as we speak. I have also instructed my Minister of National Defence to propose a strategy for the summit’s security measures. We will be offering military and naval assistance to complement the United Arab Emirates’ own defence resources, and perhaps you could do the same?”
“A sound recommendation, Mr President. I will have my Secretary of Defence liaise directly with the UAE Government in this regard,” said Jameson.
Zhuge spoke, “Excellent. I have also had a discussion with the Head of the Chinese Treasury, and our government can commit funding to cover 50% of all the costs that will be incurred for the summit.”
“That is a kind gesture and I will ensure that the United States covers the other 50%. We cannot expect anything from the European Union in the wake of their recent spate of national defaults,” said Jameson.
“Agreed. Thank you, Madam President. Just to confirm: I received your member request on IntraGlobe for the Global Unification Summit group, and have just accepted. Looking at the group now, I can see that all 12 Principals have accepted – a full house.”
“That is good news, Mr President. It confirms that each of us is on board and remains committed to what is expected of us.”
The call ended shortly thereafter and Jameson got to work in preparation for the videoconference.
12:55 p.m. Earth: White House – IntraGlobe Videoconference
It was five minutes to 1:00 p.m. when President Jameson’s Chief of Staff stepped into her office. She informed the President that the other 11 Principals had signed into IntraGlobe and were ready for the videoconference to start. She then escorted Jameson to the conferencing room, a few doors down the passageway.
As the President took her seat, the lights dimmed slightly. She looked up at the large 4x3 metre display screen which filled the entire end wall of the room. It showed 12 video feeds, including her own*.
[* IntraGlobe’s global-conferencing platform had a new feature which recognised the voice of each person and increased the size of that person’s specific video feed while they were speaking. They would be enlarged in the centre of the screen, with the other video feeds being shown on either side.]
As the time struck one o’clock, all 12 feeds had a Principal in view. President Jameson took the lead since it was her office that had arranged the videoconference.
“Greetings everyone. I am very glad to see that we are all safe and sound after our extraordinary encounter. The purpose of this videoconference is for us to expand on and finalise various aspects of our Ultimatum Plan that we did not have time to address while on the spacecraft. These include the invitation list of dignitaries, summit agenda, delegation of responsibilities and other general items …”
The US President facilitated the videoconference with her usual deft efficiency.
The primary list of 500 dignitaries was generated using the IntraGlobe Search Engine’s ‘ISE List Compilation Tool’, which specialised in creating lists. The defining parameters for the dignitary list included: all 195 heads of state; chief executive officers of the world’s top 100 companies; representatives of the world’s top 50 international funds, foundations, agencies and non-profit organisations; 20 religious leaders; 15 monarchs; 100 environmental, energy, engineering, political, economic, social and other discipline experts; and 20 prominent celebrities.
A secondary ‘backup’ dignitary list was generated containing the names of all deputies and suitable substitutes who could replace any dignitaries on the primary list who would not be able to attend.
The primary list was then split between the four heads of state and three league/union leaders to fast-track the sending out of formal invitations. The list was then split again amongst the 12 Principals for following-up on either non-responded or declined invitations, by means of personal calls.
The invitation itself was then discussed. Other than the standard
event details, it would include ‘participation terms and conditions’, such as: dignitary entourages not to exceed two individuals, no weapons and more. These would be deemed accepted upon confirmation of attendance.
They then defined the summit agenda and assigned the most suitable Principals to the various sessions in accordance with their specific areas of expertise and influence:
Day: Morning Session (AM) / Afternoon Session (PM) – Agenda item; Facilitator
Day 1: (AM) – Encounter Account; Sally Jameson
Day 1: (PM) – Environmental Enlightenment; Edward Payton
Day 2: (AM) – Ultimatum Overview; Zhuge Tzu
Day 2: (PM) – Question Session; Rakesh Naidoo
Day 3: (AM) – Implementation Recommendations; Veronica Carrera
Day 3: (PM) – Compliance Monitoring; Shafik Nazam
Day 4: (AM) – Treaty Overview; Jamba Mabunda
Day 4: (PM) – Treaty Finalisation; Emma Verlaine
Day 5: (AM) – Treaty Signing Ceremony; Principal delegation
Day 5: (PM) – Global Press Conference; Principal delegation
Everyone had a role to play in the summit and it was imperative that the Principals demonstrate absolute unity throughout the proceedings. Now it was up to each Principal to use the next two days to prepare their introductions, presentations and session structures for review at the pre-summit meeting in Dubai.
Various other general items and recommendations were also raised with reference to the summit. Abdul Shara stressed the importance of them being 100% transparent with regards to the encounter and Ultimatum, since it would serve no purpose to withhold or misrepresent any information.
Wake-up Call: 2035 Page 21