Wake-up Call: 2035

by Robert J. Traydon

  Serena Harpon followed, “I must admit that I have my reservations as to whether we will be able to comply with this new Ultimatum. Even after we warned people in developed nations about certain environmental collapse and possible remediation, they were hugely reluctant to moderate their living standards and conform to family size restrictions. Unsustainable human entitlements have become so ingrained in our societies that to moderate them would take an inordinate amount of effort, backed by a draconian system of governance. I wonder whether prevailing attitudes will ever change, even in the aftermath of this remediation. Knowing our predispositions we will find anything and everything else, other than ourselves, to blame.”

  The Chinese President then spoke, “We shall constantly remind the world of the sacrifice that four billion people made to allow the remaining six billion to live. Their lives shall be celebrated as having been nobly sacrificed to ensure the survival of humankind and planet Earth. Unsustainable living practices should be viewed as an offence and insult to all those who lost their lives for us to prevail.”

  There was a long pause before the Empress spoke, “I understand that there will be extensive criticism and anger directed at us for the remediation. Your world leaders may question why we did not engage in negotiations, but we realised from the outset that negotiating with your species would not only have been futile, but would also have wasted precious time.

  “We will be accused of hostile and unprovoked behaviour, but we must point out that your species also exerts its own non-negotiable superior status on lesser species that inhabit your planet. You do not consider their ‘incommunicable rights’ when taking decisions that affect their survival. The fact that you cannot interpret their simple languages does not entitle you to disregard their rights. We did at least have the civility to give you the Ultimatum and with it, an opportunity to avoid remediation.

  “But, in truth, your planet’s environment has been terribly wounded and is now in desperate need of care and rehabilitation. Fortunately we caught this situation just in time, but let me assure you that your planet’s environment is still dangerously close to its tipping point. Only by your species acknowledging that population management, sustainable living and environmental equilibrium are the three core fundamentals of any successful inhabited planet, will the Earth and humankind stand any chance of surviving indefinitely into the future.”

  She continued, “There is a risk that the general outrage caused by this remediation event could incite further non-compliance, but your collective dedication gives us confidence that this can be addressed and averted. We have faith in your ability to do this.”

  Edward Payton spoke, “Your Majesty, you have our unconditional commitment that we will strive for the new Ultimatum to be incorporated into the fabric of worldwide governance. We will do our utmost not to fail a second time. You must understand that our power base was greatly diminished subsequent to our first encounter, but the remediation will reassert our authority irrespective of our titles or positions. The world’s leadership will have no option but to listen to us, and we will ensure that we’re appointed into high-profile advisory roles, linked directly to all world leaders. They must recognize that only as a globally united leadership entity, will we be strong enough to guide humanity through the required change.

  “The sad truth is that if our species is not able to learn how to live in an environmentally sustainable fashion, then we ultimately have no place here on Earth. We can only assure you that we will do everything in our power over the next three years to make sure that our people realise this.”

  The Empress responded, “Thank you for your assurance, Dr Payton.”

  The Commander and other four Chancellors also acknowledged their appreciation of Payton’s statement.

  The Principals then looked at one another confirming that none of them had anything further to say. The Empress then produced another data storage device which she placed on the conference table. As before, it drifted over the glide surface to Payton. She confirmed that the new Ultimatum, together with the full Remediation Report – which included the interim period’s non-compliance summary and environmental deterioration statistics – were all contained thereon.

  The Empress spoke, “I must reemphasize that full compliance will result in no remediation being required. Should your overall global compliance with the Ultimatum exceed 50%, then remediation including Selective Threat Removal will, as before, be carried out where non-compliance is prevalent. Areas achieving comprehensive compliance will be spared. However, should your overall global compliance not exceed 50%, then the strong possibility exists that the Galacian Senate will vote in favour of Total Threat Removal.

  “This is the worst case scenario for humankind, as the entire human population will be removed, including those people in nations which have managed to achieve comprehensive compliance. We understand that this could be interpreted as unreasonable, but this is the difficult reality that you must face. If Total Threat Removal is what is required for us to ensure a future state of environmental equilibrium, we will not hesitate to carry it out. I urge you to take heed of this stern warning. Consider this next interim period to be your final opportunity to prove yourselves capable of restoring your planet’s equilibrium.”

  The Council Chamber was then offered to the Principals for a further half-hour before their return to Earth, and they accepted.

  The Empress closed, “That then brings our encounter to its conclusion. As stated three years ago, we will not be communicating with you again for the next three years, so we leave the fate of your planet in your hands until then. We wish you all the best in your efforts. May the Great Creator be with you and your planet, throughout this time.”

  The six Supreme Beings stood and bid farewell to the Principals. Once they had left the Council Chamber, the Principals discussed the content of the third encounter as well as the new Ultimatum. Most of the targets appeared to be slightly more reasonable than the previous Ultimatum, although the adjusted population targets remained just as demanding.

  The Principals then discussed their strategy on how best to inform world leaders of the new Ultimatum. It was no doubt going to have its own set of seemingly insurmountable obstacles. But they had to do their best and hope that the world would embrace the whole sustainability philosophy with renewed vigour, especially having had proof that consequence was a reality.

  Between the Principals, it was agreed that their first objective would be to meet together in Shanghai, 36 hours after their return to Earth. The Chinese President would facilitate their travel since his nation’s fleet of remaining aircraft and newly introduced airships were intact. Once in Shanghai, they could work together on everything that needed to be done.

  Their second objective would be to restructure the Ultimatum Compliance Treaty to bring it into line with the new Ultimatum’s conditions and targets, and also to close all the loopholes that had been exploited in its first version.

  Their third and final objective would be to organise a second Global Unification Summit, this time for heads of state only, to inform them about the new Ultimatum and reassert the Principal delegation’s authority in global affairs. At the summit they would present the full Remediation Report, the new Ultimatum and also the revised Ultimatum Compliance Treaty. The summit would also present an opportunity for highly compliant nations to share their knowledge – in terms of their best practice and lessons learned during the previous three years – so that all other nations could benefit from them and increase their ability to achieve compliance themselves.

  When their 30 minutes was up, the void in the chamber wall reappeared and the 12 Principals made their way back to the Hyperglidonian Room. Within the next half minute, exactly an hour after they had arrived on the spacecraft, they were hyperglided back to Earth.

  3:00 p.m. Earth: Merrinov War Coordination Room

  President Rivensky spoke to his Minister of Foreign Affairs, “Get the American President on the line f
or me, so that I can inform him of our intentions. I don’t want him to think that we’re taking advantage of his nation’s weakened position when we launch this nuclear attack.”

  The Minister picked up the War Room’s red telephone to carry out the request. It still had a direct link to the American President, even four decades after the Cold War had ended. A moment later he caught the President’s attention. “Comrade President, I have President West on the line for you.”

  He handed the red telephone over to President Rivensky.

  He spoke, “President West, I would like to offer our sincere condolences to you and your nation. How are you holding up that side of the Pacific?”

  Even though relations had long been frigid between the two nations, this worldwide catastrophe certainly warranted them setting aside their differences to cooperate, even if only for a short period of time.

  The US President responded, “Thank you, President Rivensky. Your condolences are appreciated. It’s been a tragedy of unparalleled proportion for the United States and the world. I see that your nation has also been attacked and suffered casualties, and for that I also offer our condolences.”

  He spoke, “Thank you, President West … and hence the reason for my call. I am not prepared to sit back and tolerate this act of war that has been carried out against my country by these extra-terrestrial beings. We have thus taken a unilateral decision to launch a retaliatory strike against their spacecraft. I wanted to inform you personally of our intention, so that you do not think that our weapons are being launched in your direction.”

  The US President spoke, “President Rivensky, with all due respect, do you really believe that this is an appropriate response at this stage? Do you not think that this tactic could provoke an even fiercer secondary attack?”

  The US President was dismayed with the Soviet President’s unilateral intention, which would almost certainly be seen by the Supreme Beings as a serious provocation.

  The Soviet President replied, “President West, we have made our decision and it is final. I just wanted to ensure that you do not misinterpret our actions … the United States is not our target. I also want you to note that we only intend launching a tenth of our total nuclear arsenal, so please don’t get any delusionary ideas on your side. We are still very capable of defending ourselves.”

  West shook his head at the notion. “The thought hadn’t crossed my mind, Mr President. I can assure you of that.”

  Rivensky spoke, “If you want to join us in our offensive, President West, please feel free to do so. We can send you our calculated target coordinates right away, since we intend launching within the hour. We are aware of your high density laser and electro-magnetic pulse weapon-enabled satellites (WESs), and there is no better time than now for your nation to use them.”

  President West was shocked that Rivensky had intel regarding their Top Secret space weapons programme. It made the President wonder what weapons the Soviets had on hand to conduct their attack in space.

  West evaded the startling remark and responded as calmly as he could manage, “Mr President, we have also ascertained what we believe to be the moving location of the spacecraft, but at this stage we have no intention of carrying out any form of retaliatory action, even if we were able to. Considering our failed nuclear attempt to destroy one of the hemispheres, any measures we take against the spacecraft would almost certainly also prove ineffective … and could well result in further repercussions for the world. We have no idea what else these extra-terrestrial beings are capable of and cannot risk finding out. I must caution you, we do not support …”

  His sentence was cut short by the Soviet President. “I appreciate your warning President West, but your opinion is of no consequence to us. I have no doubt that we will be in contact soon. Goodbye, Mr President.”

  He put the phone down with a wry smile, effectively hanging up on President West. Rivensky felt a wave of defiant confidence surge through his veins.

  His Minister of Foreign Affairs then contacted the other superpower leaders to notify them of the Soviet Union’s intentions. His calls were met with similar levels of reservation that had been expressed by the American President. The Chinese President was especially outspoken against the proposed offensive and told him of the third encounter. He warned the Soviet Minister that hostile action of this sort would almost certainly provoke further external intervention of an unknown quantum. He went on to say that the Soviet Union stood to lose far more than it could possibly gain from an attack; and that the Soviet leaders should consider themselves lucky not to have suffered the brutal extent of remediation that other developed nations had, including the United States.

  The Foreign Affairs Minister started to feel nervous and conveyed his apprehensions to President Rivensky, who flatly ignored him. All the while General Drashenko pressed on with the final preparations for the imminent nuclear strike.

  3:50 p.m. Earth: Merrinov War Coordination Room

  It was now almost four hours since the withdrawal of the hemispheres. Final preparations had been concluded for the nuclear strike, and General Drashenko was satisfied that they were ready for launch. President Rivensky and the other senior officials were requested to reconvene in the Merrinov War Coordination Room.

  Once everyone was there the General addressed the President.

  “Comrade President, I can confirm that we are ready to launch the 500 Space Target Interception missiles. Each is equipped with five independent two-megaton warheads. Total detonation capacity is in excess of 5 000 megatons yield.”

  The President spoke, “Thank you, General.” He paused and then asked, “The Soviet Tsar, is it ready?”

  “Yes, Comrade President,” confirmed the General.

  The ‘Soviet Tsar’ was the codename President Rivensky used when referring to the Soviet Union’s most recently built nuclear mega-weapon. Its design was based on the globally infamous Tsar Bomb*.

  [* The Tsar Bomb was the largest thermo-nuclear device ever tested. It had been built by the Soviet Union in 1961, at the pinnacle of their nuclear armament drive, and had served as an overt symbol of intimidation against the West. Upon detonation, it was estimated to have a 50 megaton yield, which was effectively 3 000 times more powerful than the 16 kiloton nuclear bomb detonated over Hiroshima in 1945. The bomb was actually reduced from its original 100 megaton design to a 50 megaton design, for fear that a 100 megaton blast could inadvertently trigger worldwide earthquakes while at the same time release unprecedented quantities of highly radioactive contaminant into the world’s atmosphere.]

  Five years before, President Rivensky had instructed that a 100 megaton nuclear weapon be built for placement into a custom designed STIM. Relations with the United States of America had deteriorated to such an extent that the Soviet President felt it necessary to up the weapons ante on his long standing arch-rival. The existence of a nuclear mega-weapon, especially one that had been placed into a long range delivery vehicle, was extremely concerning to the United States, but there was little they could do about it.

  However, at that very moment the Soviet Tsar did not have its sights set on America, its target was in space where a far more menacing adversary was lurking. Even though the American nuclear attempt on the extra-terrestrial hemisphere had failed, the Soviet Tsar was in a completely different realm of power. This, together with the 500 other STIMs, defined invincibility. In the mind of the Soviet President, victory was a certainty.

  General Drashenko spoke formally, “Comrade President, Defence Minister: All has been finalised for the launch. Our Soviet Strategic Rocket Forces are on standby for the final launch sequence to be initiated. We can fire upon your verbal confirmation of the launch codes and dual key input authorisation.”

  It was time for the Soviet Union to unleash its nuclear fury on these unsolicited visitors. They were about to get one almighty wake-up call of their own.

  The Soviet President replied, “Very well, General.”

  Rivensk
y and Kurosnovich unlocked their respective Cheget suitcases – only two were required, and the third would serve as redundancy. Each was fitted with a nuclear weapons control computer, silver key and green ‘LAUNCH’ button. The President retrieved his launch code card from his pocket and read out the relevant codes while General Drashenko entered them into the President’s Cheget computer. The same procedure was followed with the Minister of Defence on his respective computer.

  Once the two sets of codes were verified, the indicator panels in both Cheget suitcases flashed, ‘Order – Conduct Launch’. The Army General then counted down from three to zero. On ‘zero’, the President and Defence Minister simultaneously turned their keys. A second countdown followed, and on ‘zero’ they each pressed their respective green ‘LAUNCH’ buttons.

  The Cheget computer screens both flashed red in unison, saying ‘Launch Initiation Confirmed’. The mass nuclear weapon launch was now underway.

  4:00 p.m. Earth: Worldwide Remediation Impact

  A particularly fascinating aspect of the remediation was that hardly any medical support was required, especially considering the enormous scale of the event. It was inconceivable that there were so few injured people in need of attention. In the United States, the nationwide 911 Emergency Call Centres that were still in operation had been inundated by calls for information and to lodge missing person reports, rather than calls for emergency medical assistance. This was most surprising to all the operators.

  Four hours post remediation, relief efforts that were being mobilised across the country included: distribution of food and water provisions; establishment of temporary accommodation for those people who had lost everything; counselling for those who had lost family members and loved ones; and re-establishing water, electricity and telecommunication distribution networks to service those areas that had been cut off.