Within a few days of the leaks, every government had conferred with every other government at the UN. They were left with no choice but to make a statement admitting the existence of FLO, while offering reassuring news via press releases and social networking pages that the planet was probably uninhabited and posed no danger to Earth.
The social networks exploded again, louder and stronger. It kept getting worse and worse because there just wasn’t much factual information about FLO that anyone could offer, even if they wanted to.
Meanwhile, the lack of success in decoding the signal from FLO did not deter the President and his international counterparts from their aim to send a message to the planet. To maximize the chance of the message being detected, it would be sent on the same frequency as the incoming signal. It would consist of both analog and digital transmissions, in uncompressed formats which the science teams hoped would be easy for the recipients to decode. It would be basic mathematics, simple text characters and wording, which would be repeated ten times at one-minute intervals.
The greater difficulty was deciding the content of the worded message. At Dr. Persaud’s recommendation straightforward greetings would be sent first. If Janet’s theory of identical development held true, the inhabitants of FLO might be fluent in or at least understand some Earth languages, and certainly numbers and mathematics. To keep things simple, the text portions of the first transmissions would contain only English. If there was no response after a predetermined time, other languages would be sent.
Decoding the original signal was given lower priority and preparations were made on Earth-based transmitters to send a message to FLO. Communication satellites would be used to repeat the message. Although they would be of lower power than ground based transmitters, space-based signals might have a better chance of reaching FLO due to their slightly more direct line of sight to the planet, with less chance of solar interference.
After some back-and-forth between several world leaders, a short message was composed professing friendship and future cooperation. The transmission would be sent the next day, exactly six weeks after the discovery of FLO.
The text based portion of the message was straightforward:
This is a transmission of greeting from the governments of Earth. Please identify your intent. We look forward to communicating with you.
Of the eight experts originally brought in as part of Doug’s shift, four had been released from service and returned home but were in daily contact with the rest of the group. Janet and Doug were each given apartments in Washington close to the Pentagon, and were working full time on the FLO issue. Wilson had left Washington but returned when the date for the message transmission was set. Dr. Persaud divided her time between Andrews, the Pentagon, and the White House.
All were present in the station room at the Pentagon when the message went out at 1500 hours UTC. Those world leaders involved had an open communication link with the White House, though there was little chatter. The radio message would take approximately eighteen minutes to reach FLO. Someone or something on FLO would then take an unknown amount of time to reply, if they chose to reply at all. The group determined the best case scenario would be a reply sent about thirty minutes after reception, making a total round-trip time of just over an hour.
The President was in the room for the transmission but then left to oversee other business. The problems of the country had been compounded with the discovery of FLO. The oval office monitor would still receive any message at the same time as those in the station room.
The group of scientists and White House personnel stayed in the station room out of duty and extreme curiosity. Any FLO reply would be detected by orbiting satellites and Earth-bound receivers, which would immediately relay the signal to the station room. A warning klaxon would sound and the message, whatever it was, would be displayed on the room’s large monitors. If the reply was sent in the same format as the one from Earth it would appear as text. If not, the content would still be displayed as faithfully as possible.
In the meantime the scientists discussed policy and contingencies, all the while keeping an eye on the large digital clock that indicated the time since transmission. The time passed very slowly as the scientists waited for the one hour mark. Some participants were working by themselves on laptop computers. Doug’s group occupied their time by jotting down notes and talking in low tones amongst themselves.
As the clock approached one hour the participants talked less and less, and the tension in the air was noticeable. Doug was sweating slightly, so he took off his jacket and rolled up his shirt sleeves in an effort to cool down.
As was his habit when he became stressed, Singh got up and paced the room.
Singh and I should never play poker, Doug thought, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow and smiling to himself.
All eyes were on the clock as it past the one hour mark. Nothing. Wilson exhaled.
“It was too much to expect anyway, that they would reply so soon,” he said to no one in particular.
For the next ten minutes the group remained alert and gave the clock most of their attention, but after that they relaxed slightly and started back into normal conversation. Leach had been among the group but he got up and left. Singh poured himself a water from one of the pitchers near the center of the table and sat back down. Doug yawned, and looked at his watch. 12:23 PM.
“Should we go for lun—”
Doug was startled by the loud warning klaxon. Everyone quickly looked towards the largest monitor screen at the head of the room.
BE PREPARED TO RECEIVE ENVOY IN FOUR DAYS. END.
Everyone looked expectantly at the monitor. Doug felt surprise, excitement, and disbelief. His heart was pounding. After about five seconds of utter silence a few of the participants let out a cheer. Everyone smiled. One person slapped the back of the man in front of him. Indisputable confirmation, once and for all, that there was active, intelligent life on FLO. And it was technically advanced.
“They’re actually coming here?” a man said, as he got up and hurried from the room.
Persaud was busy typing into her laptop.
Singh was the first to say something pertinent about the message.
“An envoy… due to arrive here in four days?
“Maybe they launched weeks ago,” Wilson said.
“Hold on,” Doug said. “Let’s get confirmation it’s not a hack. Somebody please confirm we haven’t been spoofed.” Doug thought it was unlikely but they had to check. It only took a few more seconds before confirmations started rolling in.
“The timing,” Doug said loud enough to be heard over the din in the room, “means they had to launch a vehicle as soon as FLO appeared. So just under seven weeks travel time?”
“Which is impossible, at our technological level,” Singh replied quickly. “And to ask us – no, to tell us to expect an envoy in a matter of days? Who the hell are they? What kind of envoy? And what do they mean by be prepared?”
Leach returned, and was quietly briefed by an aide. The message remained on the screen. Some people had difficulty looking away.
Janet hadn’t said much during the wait, but she gently touched Doug’s shoulder to get his attention.
“I don’t like this at all, why would they surprise us like that? Four days notice that they will be in orbit around Earth?”
“Or perhaps they will land,” Doug said. Janet furrowed her brow as she considered that an envoy ship might land on Earth.
“It does seem strange they wouldn’t have communicated earlier,” Doug said, as he took her hand in his. “And yet if their intentions were hostile, why give us any warning at all?”
Wilson and Singh appeared to be contemplating the implications. They looked just as troubled as Janet. Persaud overheard the exchange too and leaned over.
“It is strange,” she said, “but despite any similarities we’ve seen thus far, they could be culturally very different from us, and perhaps very cautious. We nee
d to keep an open mind, and not assume the worst.”
“Yes,” Jack Wilson said, “but planning for the worst is not a bad idea.”
Leach addressed the room, breaking their train of thought.
“Everyone,” he called, waiting for quiet, “the President and Dr. Lau are busy conferring with other leaders, and so won’t be available for a few hours. Please be ready at any time for an emergency meeting.” Leach and Persaud then left the room, conferring quietly.
– 18 –
The scientists stayed in the station room until their shift was up. They wanted to stay longer, but there was really no room for them when their relief arrived. They were on their way to lunch when they were passed in the hallway by the President and his entourage, including Stacey and Leach, headed back to the station room.
The scientists had been instructed to remain on the grounds. Doug, Janet, Singh, and Wilson went to eat in the Navy mess. They’d become friendly the six weeks they’d been working together. Doug and Janet had become as much of a couple as they could under the circumstances. Even the sometimes abrasive Jack Wilson was well-liked. He was just as brilliant as the rest and sometimes raised questions the others were reluctant to ask.
They found a quiet corner and sat down.
“Dr. Persaud could be right,” Janet said as they settled in. “We shouldn’t jump to conclusions.”
Wilson said, “I don’t buy that. Can you imagine if the positions were reversed? This is bad news. We would never be so mysterious when communicating with another planet. With so much at stake, we wouldn’t want any civilization we contacted to get the wrong idea.”
“Yeah,” Doug replied. “It’s almost as if we’re communicating with some ultra-secret regime. The language is didactic, lacks informative detail, and seems to make assumptions. Either that or the language comes from a place so similar to ours that the messenger understands how we’ll probably react.”
“Now you sound like Persaud,” Wilson said, “but you’re making sense.”
They were silent for a moment. Janet speculated on the mood in the station room.
“Right now the President’s group is formulating a response and trying to figure out who should do the talking when the Envoy steps out of their ship.” Janet shivered slightly at the thought. “I’d wager FLO won’t bother replying to any further messages, until they arrive in orbit.”
“Given their behavior thus far, I wouldn’t disagree,” Wilson said.
– 19 –
The next three days were full of briefings, meetings, and strategy conferences in which each scientist was given instruction on diplomacy and protocol. The President and his spokespeople in the White House were the first line of diplomacy, but many of the consultants in attendance were briefed in case the circumstances warranted additional personnel.
Three more messages were sent to FLO asking for more details, while also professing goodwill and friendship. There were no replies.
Anxiety levels were high. There was a mixture of excitement, trepidation, and frustration. Elation at the prospect of encountering a new race was quickly replaced by near-panic on the part of those responsible for logistics and protocol. How do you prepare for a delegation from an alien planet, especially one that has given no details? Were they going to remain in orbit? Did they intend to land? If so, where? It was impossible for any of them, let alone their government and military taskmasters, to know if the preparations were appropriate, inappropriate or a complete waste of time.
Some of the military personnel at the White House showed anger at being in such a weak position with few options. What if it wasn’t going to be a delegation? What if it was going to be something infinitely worse? The Pentagon – the institution itself – was fearful of what it did not understand and could not control. Was the word Envoy actually shorthand for invasion? Military confidence was always based on preparation and training. The problem was that none of them knew how to prepare or train for the arrival. The so-called Envoy from the other planet held all the cards.
All available observatories were directed to scan the sky in the general direction of FLO. The Envoy, whatever it turned out to be, would be coming from the direction of the Sun. It would not be easy to locate on its way to Earth. Everyone from professional astronomers to birdwatchers with binoculars trained their eyes on the sky, so it came as no surprise to anyone that an object was detected the morning of the third day after the Envoy message.
Under strong magnification it looked remarkably like the Space Shuttle and its fuel tank, but without the side booster rockets. There was another object attached to the side of the tank opposite to the shuttle. It looked like a second, slightly smaller cylinder though it was far from certain whether either container was indeed a fuel tank or something entirely different.
Hundreds of photographs were taken of the ship, and with each passing hour the photos grew slightly more detailed. Though it was difficult to judge the scale, it appeared the ship was the same length as the shuttle but much sleeker. It looked like a more advanced version of the craft. The ship was moving fast, over five times that of any spacecraft or probe launched by NASA or the Russian Space Agency. Most important to every government agency around the world was the clear confirmation that the Envoy seemed to be exactly what they all hoped it would be. A single ship.
The initial speed estimates of the Envoy ship brought shouts of disbelief and jeers about grade-school arithmetic mistakes. A few minutes later, confirmation of the speed silenced the room. Some of the best scientific minds in the world were present. They all realized that they were staring intently at superior technology and were shortly going to be confronted by the beings that owned it.
Separate teams were assigned to analyze the craft while Doug and his associates were periodically assigned to the station room in case another message from FLO came in.
Doug and Wilson, along with the usual White House staff that came and went, were in their usual four-hour shift. There was not much to do except wait. There wasn’t a lot of conversation beyond the business at hand. Everyone was on high alert. Somebody grumbled about having to give away prime tickets to a baseball game. Wilson laughed.
“You want a front row seat at a major event?” Wilson said. “Look around, pal. You’ve got the best seat in the solar system right here.”
At midnight on the morning of the fourth day after the Envoy message, Doug and his team had just come off their shift when the klaxon sounded. It only took them a couple of minutes to run back, but the room had already jammed up with scientists, staff, aides and security. Doug got there just in time. He stood in the doorway as the message appeared on the screen:
CLEAR JB ANDREWS FOR LANDING 1900 UTC TODAY. END.
There was silence as everyone digested the message. No cheers this time. Moments later the room erupted into activity. Most of the aides and staff ran off to their own posts. Several others were speaking urgently on the desk phones. All the scientists on the active shift were at their workstations analyzing data, making notes and consulting with other team members.
“How do they know the base by name?” Wilson said.
“Either by studying our broadcasts or they have their own Joint Base Andrews, and figure we do too since our worlds are similar,” Singh replied.
“I’m starting to believe,” Wilson said, looking directly at Janet. “Studying broadcasts is a myth anyway. It’s science fiction. How does an alien race separate geographical fact from entertainment fiction. Without reference points and definitions it could all be an indecipherable jumble. It works both ways. Anybody have any luck decoding FLO’s twelve second data burst yet? And it’s awfully nice of them to choose an airport so close to the White House. Twenty bucks says Janet is spot-on with her multiverse theory.”
The group turned away from the doorway and briefly debated what they should do. Too many people in the station room would cause a traffic jam, so they headed to the library, which due to the current situation was usually unoccupi
ed. As they walked, Janet addressed Wilson’s statement.
“I suppose they could have chosen any landing spot in the world, but take a look at the ship they’re using. It looks remarkably like a Shuttle, but a far more refined version. So Andrews here could be a parallel to a secure military location they already know on FLO.”
Nobody responded. They were grappling silently with the implications of a many worlds theory come to life, of parallelism, and of encountering something for the first time in their scientific lives that was truly unknown. Doug felt a rush of the ever present unease that had steadily ramped up since the Envoy message. The previous three days had been stressful. Everyone was operating on far less sleep than usual, yet had to be at their best. They were actually landing. Within hours. Whoever they were.
– 20 –
The group retired at 0200, deciding they should all attempt to get some sort of sleep. The assigned dorm rooms at the Pentagon had become familiar surroundings. Doug just managed to get to sleep when there was a loud knock on his door. It was Agent Bishop.
“An alarm went off. There is a new transmission from FLO. Let’s go.”
Doug put a robe on over his t-shirt and shorts and rushed after Bishop wondering shy he’d been the one to get him up instead of the usual staffer. When they got to the station room Foley gestured to the large monitor. The message read:
ENSURE THE FOLLOWING PERSONNEL ATTEND THE ENVOY LANDING:
Twenty names followed. Doug and Janet were both on the list.
– 21 –
Doug took a few minutes to return to his room and get dressed before getting a coffee in the diplomatic conference area. Most of those involved with the project were being assembled for an emergency meeting.
Dark Nights Page 7