by D F Capps
* * *
Master Sergeant Peters woke the film crew of TV4 and got them moving.
“It’s decision time,” he said to Abernathy. “The rest of your hubrid buddies in Washington are all in custody. You can spend the rest of your life in a holding facility, or you can be famous, but you have to decide right now.”
She looked around at the film crew as they stared at her in handcuffs. “What do I have to do?”
“You will work for us to help identify other hubrids. In exchange, you will become the face for all things extraterrestrial on the news, starting with the landing of a Tau Cetian spaceship in back of the White House.”
Her eyes widened.
“Yeah,” Peters said. “Your Zeta Grey benefactors have lost. You’re either with them, or you’re with us. Final decision.”
She stood up straighter. “I’m yours. I never liked them anyway. They stink.”
Peters nodded. “That they do. Come on, you’re doing a live broadcast in ten minutes.”
* * *
“This is the first day of a new reality for planet Earth,” Jan Abernathy said, as she stood in front of her film crew. She glanced at the White House in the background. “You are a witness to history being made live, in Washington, D.C. We have been tracking a UFO that is circling the city. This is what we’re seeing.”
The cone-shaped spaceship glowed bright white with pulsing red and blue lights on the top and the bottom. It slowly approached the White House from the south, past the Washington Monument, descended, and came to rest on the ellipse lawn, a short distance from the White House. The glow diminished and the pulsing lights stopped. The spaceship was now a dull metal grey.
“I have been informed that the spaceship is from the Tau Ceti star system, which is twelve light years away from Earth,” Abernathy said. “Tau Ceti is a star quite similar to our sun, but a little smaller. It has one inhabited planet.”
She motioned for her cameraman to get a shot of the people gathering around. “A substantial crowd is forming as the Capitol Police construct a makeshift barrier around the ellipse and the spaceship.”
A slot opened up in the underside of the ship.
“As you can see, something is happening.” The camera focused on the ship again. “Some kind of a ramp is extending from the underside of the spaceship. The reaction of the people in the crowd is to move back, but several adventurous souls are actually moving closer. I can see someone at the top of the ramp.” The excitement in her voice was unmistakable. “It looks like two people are coming out. One in a shiny white spacesuit and the other . . .”
An unmistakable murmur ran through the crowd.
“Oh my God. I can’t believe it! The other person looks like President Andrews!”
A podium with the presidential seal and several microphones attached was quickly carried out onto the lawn. Andrews stepped to the podium.
“Yes,” Andrews said. “I’m alive.”
He looked around at the growing crowd.
“The vicious attack against me and the White House was not carried out by Russians. That assault was planned and executed by a small group of people working with an alien race known as the Zeta Greys. Those people have been captured and will pay for their crimes. It is my honor to introduce the first ambassador from another world. Will you please welcome Ambassador Doran from Tau Ceti.”
Scattered applause came from the crowd. Doran stepped to the podium.
“I bring you warm greetings from Tau Ceti, one of your neighboring star systems. Your struggle against the Zeta Greys is also our struggle.
“Not so many years ago the Zeta Greys dominated our planet. We fought our way to freedom at great cost, just as you are doing here. I understand how sick of war people can become. We, too, were sick of war and endless conflict. Because of that weariness, we were too quick to accept what appeared to be peace. It was not peace. It was surrender to a wicked and relentless tyranny that knew no limits or reason. This is why we have come to your world. We stand with you as brother and sister humans fighting against a sinister, malignant, evil force. That battle is not over, but a significant victory is being achieved even as I stand here speaking with you.
“Over the next fourteen hours, several hundred Tau Cetian ships will land in the center of your largest cities. We come as friends, willing and able to share our advanced technology with you. We bring you cures for all of your diseases, essentially free energy for all of your people, and the ability for you to live for up to two hundred and fifty of your years.
“When our ships land, please come up and talk with us. We want to get to know you just as much as you will want to get to know us.”
Doran turned to face his ship. A Tau Cetian female in a shiny white suit walked down the ramp. She was about six feet tall with tan skin, light brown hair, and blue eyes. She carried a circular device about a foot in diameter and two inches thick. She stopped next to Doran, handed him the device, and walked back up the ramp.
“This is a gift of friendship,” Doran said. “Each ship that lands will present one of these devices to your people. It is an electrical generator that can be used anywhere. It requires no fuel and causes no pollution. The design is also given to you as a gift. You may make as many of these devices as you wish.”
Doran lowered his head in respect, stepped back from the podium, raised his head, and gestured to Andrews.
“Thank you, Ambassador Doran.”
* * *
Sean Wells sat with his new editor, Brett Finns, in the conference room on the seventh floor of the Wilson & Reese Publishing building. They watched the landing of the Tau Cetian saucer on the TV screen, followed by Andrews’s appearance, and the introduction of Ambassador Doran.
“This pushes up our timeframe for getting your book out,” Finns said.
Sean nodded. “I knew we weren’t going to have much time. I just didn’t think today was going to be the day.”
“Heath is contacting the White House to get an official security release for the contents of your book. Saundra in publicity is preparing a media release for the launch of the electronic version. We can start on the print edition as soon as the e-book is released.”
Sean nodded. “Sounds like we have a couple of all-nighters ahead of us.”
“We do,” Finns said. “We have to capitalize on the timing before anyone else gets something on the market. I’ve got two copy editors and a formatter joining us. I’m thinking we can have this book released within forty-eight hours.”
Sean raised his eyebrows. “You’ve completed a major book in that timeframe before?”
“Not exactly,” Finns replied. “But your writing doesn’t need a lot of corrections, so, yeah, we can do it.”
Chapter 65
Charlie sat next to Andrews in a small conference room in the West Wing. Jan Abernathy was led in and motioned to a seat. Andrews was wearing a telepathic blocking helmet.
“You asked to speak with us,” Andrews said.
Abernathy nodded. “Look, I know you are highly suspicious of us. We understand that. What you don’t know is that we relate much more to you than we do to the hybrids—and especially the Zeta Greys. We don’t like the hybrids and we despise the Zeta Greys. We don’t want to be forced to leave. We have adapted to your world to the extent that we also consider it our home. We are willing to register with you and be subject to surveillance and any other restriction that you consider necessary.”
“Would you consent to a mind probe?” Charlie asked.
“Yes,” she answered.
He moved his chair close and opposite to hers and sat down. She relaxed and stared at him.
Charlie nodded. She wasn’t resisting, blocking, or trying to interfere with his mind. He stared into her eyes, initiated neuronal engagement, and followed her optic nerve back into her brain. He searched her thoughts, memories, and past conversations with other hubrids. Everything he found was consistent with what she had told them. He broke contact with her and tu
rned to Andrews.
“I think we have what we need.”
Andrews nodded to the soldier from the Space Command Army, who led Abernathy from the room. Andrews removed his helmet.
“What do you think?”
“She’s being honest with us. I don’t see any harmful intent on her part or with any of the other hubrids she is associated with. Yes, they participated in controlling the minds and responses of people to the Event, but maybe that was for the best. They should be monitored, of course, but probably not confined.”
Andrews nodded. “What about them mixing with normal humans?”
Charlie raised his eyebrows. “That has probably already taken place, at least to some extent.”
Andrews shook his head. “That’s not my concern. What I want to know is if one of them has children with a normal human, will the child be telepathic?”
Charlie smiled. He could sense where the conversation was going. “All human babies have both telepathic and verbal capabilities. If a parent is telepathic and trains the child, any human child will become telepathic.”
Andrews scratched the side of his face with his left hand. “We wouldn’t have any control over what they learn, would we?”
Charlie shook his head. “You don’t have control over that if the child is not telepathic either. I grew up here as a telepathic child. Maybe it’s not such a bad thing.”
Andrews nodded. “That’s exactly what I’m thinking. The biggest obstacle we face to the future of this planet is the control exerted by people of immense wealth and influence. The public has no idea of the manipulations that take place behind closed doors. If our population slowly becomes telepathic, more and more people will recognize the few who pose a danger to our civilization. We can put a gradual end to the covert control these people exert over our world.”
Charlie watched him closely. There was one more area that needed to be addressed. “The hubrids are not as socially evolved as normal people. They are still very self-centered and egotistical.”
Andrews chuckled. “Socially immature, you’re saying?”
“Essentially, yes,” Charlie said. “Some of them have engaged in criminal behavior.”
Andrews frowned. “How serious?”
Charlie shrugged. “It depends. Most of their illegal actions come in the form of manipulating people’s minds to con them out of money or products from retail businesses.”
Andrews appeared deep in thought. “So if we chip them and track their location?”
Charlie nodded. “Knowing they are under close surveillance would curb a lot of that kind of behavior.”
“We’ve captured Abbott, Senator Stevens, and several others. They will face trial for their crimes along with any other hubrids involved,” Andrews said. “If they’re going to live in our world, they’re going to be subject to our laws and system of justice.”
“Of course,” Charlie replied. “It has to be that way.”
Andrews drummed his fingers on the table. “From what you’ve shown me of your father’s world, the primary difference between our two civilizations isn’t the technology, it’s the telepathy.”
Charlie nodded again. “That would take the longest time to change, yes.”
“And how do we teach our people to become telepathic?”
“It takes a telepathic parent to teach the child. A few adult people are capable of activating their telepathic abilities, but it will fall primarily within the parent-child relationship.”
Andrews blinked slowly and nodded. He got up and opened the door. “Have Admiral Hollis and General McHenry join us.”
The two men came in as Andrews sat down.
“I want all of the hubrids identified, located, chipped with RFID trackers, and placed under constant electronic surveillance. If someone is stirring up trouble or breaking the law, I want them arrested and treated the same as any other troublemaker. Beyond that I want them left alone. We will not identify individual hubrids to the public. People will know that the hubrids are among us, they just won’t know exactly who they are.”
General McHenry jolted back. “They’re part Zeta Grey. They can’t be trusted!”
“Which is why we keep them under constant surveillance,” Andrews replied.
“But they’re telepathic,” McHenry said. “They can communicate with each other without talking. How are we going to monitor that?”
“We’re talking one out of every thousand people,” Andrews said. “We have to trust them at some point. I’m making that point now.”
McHenry drew in a deep breath. “Yes, sir.”
Charlie smiled. McHenry wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice with Andrews. He studied Andrews for a while and nodded. The Zeta Greys created the hubrids as a mechanism to bring our world under their complete control. Now that the Zeta Greys were gone, Andrews was going to use the same hubrids to gradually transform our people into a telepathic society and catapult our world into an advanced civilization. It was a stroke of pure genius.
* * *
Conrad Kaplan sat with his eyes closed in a navy jail cell in Hawaii. He had managed to send his request for help to USAP317 several days ago, then his strongly worded demand for help the next day. There had been no response. It was as if USAP317 had ceased to exist.
A guard unlocked the door and led him to a small room. A man in a nice suit waited for him.
“Finally,” Kaplan said. “They’ve sent someone to get me out of here.”
The man shook his head. “I’m afraid that your company has cut all ties to you. Your other businesses and all of your bank accounts have been seized.”
Kaplan stood there with his mouth open. “Then, who’s paying you?”
The man shook his head again. “I was assigned by the federal court, pro bono.”
“What?” Kaplan shouted. “They can’t do this. When can you get me out of here?”
The man lowered his head. “With the number and severity of the charges against you, I may not even be able to avoid the death penalty. You’re not going anywhere.”
* * *
Major Bob Montgomery, MD, ran his hand through his hair. Every twenty minutes another truckload of survivors from New York City arrived at Camp Echo, one of eighteen emergency facilities established by the First Medical Training Brigade from Joint Base McQuire-Dix-Lakehurst out of New Jersey. Most of the people were suffering from a lethal level of radiation poisoning. The lucky ones were only exposed to radioactive fallout, which covered most of Long Island. Because of the exposure to radioactive dust and ash, they would live long enough to develop cancer within the next five to eight years. Their struggle was long term.
The people who had been exposed to direct ionizing radiation from the hydrogen bomb were his primary concern. They were in severe pain and suffering from unrelenting nausea. Opioids and anti-nausea meds made the suffering less, but it was still only a matter of time before they died an excruciating death. This was what he hated so much about nuclear weapons. It was one thing to die quickly from the fiery blast, but it was another matter altogether to suffer this way. They would live for up to two weeks in absolute misery before they finally died. All he could do was try to relieve the suffering of people who had no chance at recovery from the radiation poisoning. He just wished there was another way.
“Sir,” Lieutenant Kellerman interrupted. “Medical Command just informed us that we have an alien spacecraft en route to our location.”
He looked at Kellerman. He had seen the landing on TV. He just didn’t know why they thought what he was doing was important enough to come here and interfere.
“Great,” Montgomery said. “Just what I need in the middle of this disaster, a visit from aliens.”
“Sir, MEDCOM says the aliens can help us. Each camp will receive an alien spacecraft.”
Excited voices from outside the large tent drew his attention. He walked out in time to see a bright, white glowing saucer-shaped object with red and blue flashing lights circle the ca
mp. As people cleared the center area the saucer slowly descended, extended its six landing pods, and settled on the ground. The bright glow diminished and the saucer now appeared to be a burnished grey metal. A wedge opened in the bottom of the spacecraft and a ramp jutted out to the ground. A man and a woman walked rapidly down the ramp carrying satchels. Both were tall and thin. They wore shiny white one-piece suits with silver belts and silver boots. They visually scanned the soldiers and settled on Montgomery as the one in charge.
“I’m Dr. Schna,” the man said, extending his hand. “And this is nurse Elu.”
Montgomery shook hands with them.
“We’re from the Tau Ceti star system. The chemical in these vials will relieve the suffering of people with radiation poisoning, but it’s hard on the kidneys. We can repair the damage from the radiation and the chemical. We need your worst patients first.”
Montgomery nodded. “How long before renal failure sets in from the chemical?”
“Three to four weeks,” Dr. Schna said. “The chemical should buy us enough time to get them into the regeneration chambers and restore them to complete health. Where are your patients closest to dying?”
“This way,” Montgomery said. “Regeneration chambers?”
“Yes,” Dr. Schna said. “I’ll show you.”
He led Dr. Schna and nurse Elu past a long row of tents and into the last enclosure. “These are the people expected to die within the next twelve hours,” Montgomery said.
Dr. Schna took a golf ball sized object out of his pocket and began scanning people lying on cots.
“This one,” Dr. Schna said after scanning the fourth person. “Take him to the saucer.”
Montgomery watched as Dr. Schna identified another patient. Whatever this alien doctor was using to scan patients, he was picking the ones closest to death.
Nurse Elu guided the soldiers carrying the patients on stretchers back to the saucer.