Local famers find the influx of people a boon to their waning sales. These newcomers attend special language classes each night and work in various factories during the day. Learning Mandarin and working are the requirements as these people settle in and start a new life. For many, this turn of events has been a great blessing. A few still hold onto old values, but they have lost their positions of power and are no longer feared. The rest may not be free in the truest sense of the word, but freedom is a relative thing.
Meanwhile, more than one thousand miles away at the Wenchang satellite launch center, there is also a lot of activity. An unmanned rocket reaches two hundred feet into the air, high atop its launch platform. A safe distance away, a lot of nervous officials are monitoring the last few seconds of the rocket’s launch.
“Main engines start. Four, three, two, one...” The noise level increases drastically as the heavy launch vehicle prepares to defy gravity. “Lift off. We have lift off.”
The massive CZ-5 rocket builds up speed as it accelerates away, heading skyward on its pillars of fire. The Chinese rocket propels upward, passing the six-mile mark within a minute of launch. As the rocket continues past the twelve-mile mark, ground observers begin to get rather excited. China will be the first nation to have a space based presence since the departure of the aliens.
“Status?” Demands Commander Jie.
“All systems are functioning normally.” One of the many people in the command center responds excitedly. He has trouble containing his own enthusiasm.
“We have satellite activity.” This new speaker is a small man hunched over a telescope, peering through its eyepiece. Commander Jie looks at the row of fifteen men all hunched over their hastily built, but powerful telescopes lining the wall. Each telescope aims through openings in the windows toward the skies above. A simple measure, but it is rather effective.
One by one, the other fourteen people raise their hands, the gesture confirms satellite movement. The Gamin satellite grid appears to be responding to the rocket’s launch.
“Exiting the stratosphere any second.” The man monitoring the rocket’s progress reports, his excitement waning as he glances at the fifteen people, all with one hand raised.
Suddenly, one of the telescope operators falls from his chair clutching at his eyes. “Agghh! Bright light, bright light!” He is blinded, temporarily. The other telescope operators notice their colleague’s distress, and look away. This action saves them from the same painful fate.
The Gamin satellite grid consists of thousands of small, yet technologically advanced solar powered satellites. Eight of these fire an energy beam at the approaching rocket. The thin walls of the rocket are no match for the brief, but intense heat. The CZ-5 rocket, China's crowning glory and hope for the country’s space dominance, is obliterated in seconds. The remaining fuel ignites, causing a fireball so spectacular it can be seen from the ground.
“We have lost tracking; the rocket has been destroyed, Sir.” The report is almost superfluous, but it is delivered anyway.
Commander Jie looks around the room as his shoulders sag. This failure will cost him his career at the very least. He gulps at the thought of other options. People are one resource China is not short on, he thinks, as he recalls stories involving firing squads for embarrassing failures.
Reluctantly, he picks up a telephone to relay the news of the disaster to his superiors.
The voice on the other end of the call is rather noncommittal. “The rocket was destroyed by the Gamin satellites. Very well. This was not unexpected; I want a full report in the morning, Commander Jie.”
“Yes, Sir.” Commander Jie is relieved as he replaces the telephone. With all eyes in the room on him, he squares his small frame and issues his orders with confidence. “All observers are to write down everything they saw.” Feeling as if a huge weight has been removed from his shoulders, he walks to his office. This was, after all, not his fault.
Commander Jie is so focused on not being held responsible that he totally fails to comprehend the ramifications of today's events. Even when he rereads his own report, he cannot help but smile at all the details he has added. He knows his superiors will be most pleased with him.
Later that night, he wakes up soaked in sweat as the significance of the rocket’s destruction finally sinks in. “Oh, no.” He groans as he runs to the bathroom, literally sick to his stomach. “Whatever will we do?” He says quietly to himself. “We’re trapped.”
Location:
Outback
Western Australia
Captain Jones usually pilots a 747, but this time, with fewer passengers, his route finds him piloting a smaller 737 instead. Once again, he has been blown off course, but this time they are flying under the storm, rather than higher and over it. The smaller plane shakes and rocks in the building storm.
With strong winds buffeting the plane, the copilot looks out his window at the swirling sands far below. “Oh, my. What is that?” His voice is full of surprise.
Looking through the cloudy mist, Jones can just make out a walled section of desert with buildings or something large inside the area. The walled off area encompasses a huge tract of land.
“Let's get a closer look.” Hitting the 'Seat Belt' sign, Jones banks the plane over and takes them even lower. The view is even more impressive closer up. Before them is a massive construction dock. But what surprises them most is the spacecraft inside the dock area. The craft is huge, and looks like most of the other craft the Gamin use.
Passengers inside the plane that happen to be looking out their windows are awed by the spectacle.
“Get an exact fix, and radio ahead; we have to report this.” Jones now understands why this was designated a 'no fly zone'. As Frank relays details of their startling find, he realizes with a shock that the government knew something was going on.
“Understood.” Frank replies to the radio. “They want us to land ahead of schedule.” Looking back down at the ground, his voice is a mix of confusion and bewilderment. “I wonder why they didn’t take it with them. It looks complete.”
The copilot’s comments mirror Jones’ own thoughts. Continuing to circle, he can see dust starting to build up on the leeward side of the surrounding walls, dock, and even the ramp that extends to the sand beneath the alien spaceship. After one more pass, he straightens out the plane and pushes the engines a little harder.
“Let's get moving then.” Jones states with conviction.
Even before the 737 lands in Perth, news of the amazing discovery has gone public. One fantastic video was shot by a passenger and uploaded to various social networks. In no time at all, it goes viral. There is no way this can be kept a secret.
By the end of the day, the Australian Prime Minster has little choice but to convene a cabinet meeting. It seems that almost every country in the world wants a piece of the alien spaceship; some even claim they have a right to it. A huge concern to the Prime Minister is that many countries have quite powerful militaries and some have indicated this during discussions. He can't decide if these are veiled threats or just posturing, whatever the case, he must act, and fast.
Location:
Deutsche Academy der Wissenschaften
(German Academy of Sciences)
Halle an der Saale, Germany
Cindy walks into the small room, looks at the ten seated men and mentally marks them off. The Russians are represented by Olaf and Peter ‘the Sleeper’, as she likes to think of him. As much as Peter had been watching Radclyf, her contacts had been watching him. She smiles as she looks around the room. Radclyf and his team are seated with Hayato's team, chatting.
Cindy sips her morning coffee as she begins the day. “You were part of the group selected for ‘Operation Archangel'. As you know, this was initially a counter terrorist force. The Russian president activated the team in response to the perceived Gamin threat. It seems our alien visitors really did only want some resources after all. Our job here is to piece together as
much information as possible. We need to know why the Chinese were given a power unit, and why the French were chosen to be the first-hand recipients of the medical training.”
She motions to Hayato. “I want a quick rundown on your activities and observations.”
Hayato considers his words, and then relays everything he knows, from the assassination of the North Korean leadership, to the disappearance of the military shortly thereafter. He goes on to describe the sighting and landing of the spacecraft in China and the subsequent delivery of the power unit.
“Interesting!” Cindy states. “I see that you managed to get quite a few photos of this unit, and of the workers attaching cables, or something, to it.” Without a moment’s pause she motions to Radclyf next.
Radclyf's report commences with the elimination of the terrorist cell in France, followed by his experience inside the alien spaceship, and concludes with the raid on the French medical facility. His team’s activities seem timid in comparison to Hayato's exploits.
Cindy stands again as she looks at the men. “Olaf, you have nothing to add?”
Olaf shrugs his shoulders indifferently and says. “We seem to have covered everything.” He meets her icy stare, with his own.
She does not believe Olaf, but there is little she can do about the lack of a report. Her tone switches to a more positive note as she continues on. “Well, I am glad I was wrong about the Gamin. They remained peaceful, sparing us from using the nerve agent, or worse. It has been made abundantly clear that an open conflict with the Gamin would have proven disastrous for us.”
Cindy thinks of the deadly green swirling chemical that Hayato supplied them, and shudders. She takes her mind off the chemical and continues. “We need to examine all the data we have before we...”
A man wearing a three-piece suit hurries into the room and hands Cindy a folded piece of paper. She looks around, perplexed, and then opens and reads the note. Her eyes widen in stunned disbelief. “When did this happen?” She demands, her agitation evident.
The messenger replies as though she should already know. “There has been an unsubstantiated video on various web sites for a few hours now. The sighting has been officially confirmed by the Australian government.”
She looks once more at the note as her mind races. “We must be involved in this.”
Peter casually speaks up. “What seems to be the new development?” He has a very suggestive and compelling tone to his voice.
Surprisingly Cindy replies. “It seems the Australians have found an alien spaceship.” She looks around the room one more time, and orders. “I want all of you to get to Perth, Australia. I will find a way for us to be included in whatever they plan.”
Peter calmly states, “I suspect that is going to be a lot easier than you think.” Cindy looks at him curiously; the news seems to not be much of a surprise to him. He sits passively with an all-knowing smile spread across his face. Cindy sighs; she does not like riddles. What does he know? Finally, after a moment’s silence, she realizes that he is not going to share his insight. She will have to figure it out for herself.
Radclyf smiles; it seems, as usual, Peter knows a lot more than he is letting on. How he gets his information is a mystery, but get it he does. He glances at his team, then over to Hayato. “Let us prepare for a trip down under, shall we?”
Hayato glances to his team members as he adds, “Agreed, positioning ourselves in Perth is a prudent idea. We, too, shall prepare to depart.”
Olaf surprises them all, though. “I shall be reporting to my own government for instructions.” He proceeds to get up and leave the room. Peter’s calculating eyes follow him as he departs.
And with that, the meeting is over. The news of an abandoned spaceship in Australia far overshadows anything else that was being discussed.
Cindy heads to her office where she intends on making use of every single contact she has. As she sits down, it dawns on her that she only needs to convince one person. She is a forceful woman, and quite used to getting her way. The call to the British Prime Minister is quite lengthy, as she discusses options for getting her team authorization to travel in Australia. If all goes well, her people will be heading to the Outback, officially under Radclyf’s command.
By the end of the day, she is also a very happy woman. Rehashing the day's events another thought comes, unbidden. Peter had this figured out within seconds. Her eyes narrow involuntarily; she will not underestimate him again.
Location:
Parliament House
Canberra, Australia
“The Speaker of the House recognizes the opposition spokesman.” He motions to a slightly overweight man and then rests back in his chair.
The man indicated, is heavy set and well dressed. He stands, his booming voice, dominates the room. “The Americans have already contacted us. Citing from various treaties, they imply that they have a right to the alien ship.” He glances down at his notes.
A voice shouts out from those seated. “They have no right to anything on our soil.” The man, an opponent to anything American, is in the minority, and is quickly booed down.
The Speaker of the House taps his gavel. “Order in the House.” He motions to the opposition spokesman with his gavel.
The heavy-set man nods, and then continues. “I will summarize then.” He pauses as he glares at the man who interrupted him a moment ago. “The British, Russians, Germans, French, and Japanese, are amongst just a few of the countries that have contacted us. These have been the ones with peaceful overtures, they’ve been quite demanding, nevertheless.”
Members of the House stand and shout at each other while the Speaker bangs his gavel uselessly on the table. “Order, order, order!”
“Why not let them all assign representatives?” The man making the suggestion is quietly spoken. With his hands tucked inside the small pockets on the front of his vest, he stands stoically. He represents the calming voice of reason in the midst of chaos.
The Speaker, seeing an opportunity to restore order, shouts loudly. “The chair recognizes the Governor General!” Even as the room calms down, he waits patiently until all are seated and quiet. Rarely does the representative from Britain speak up.
The Governor General commences, his heavy English accent fills the air. “Let them all have representation. What harm can it cause? We just need to decide who we will have on the initial investigative team. We can include others on any follow up team. We don't know what we will find out there. We do know they left it behind for a reason. It tells me that they plan to come back, and will do so sooner than we think.” He looks around the room, and again waits for the whispered conversations to cease.
Once it is quiet again, he continues. “I received a very interesting call just before this meeting from my Prime Minister. I have been authorized to share its details.” Looking around the room, the quiet, unassuming man from Britain now has them all transfixed. He smiles as he shares what he knows. “Cindy Klein of Germany is a lead geneticist who also happens to be in charge of a number of, shall we say, ‘other’ projects. Anyway, I shall cut straight to the chase. There are combat teams from England and Japan headed to Perth as we speak. There is also representation from Russia and Germany. There is still a US presence in Perth; thus, we have the start of a multinational team already in place.”
A loud voice resonates through the room. “Military personnel from other countries are already on the way here?” The man is shaking with anger. “What gives them the right? Arrest them, or send them back!”
Others echo the sentiment, but a few sit back and consider their words before speaking up. The talks continue on, until finally, the Speaker calls the words all were expecting. “Let's take it to a vote then. All for a multinational investigative team?” He counts the raised hands. “Those against?” Once again, numerous hands rise to the air. The vote will be very close.
The Speaker looks around about the room. “Seventy-three against and seventy-five for. The vote pass
es in favor of the multinational team.” The debate about the team’s composition and purpose rages all day and long into the night.
The following morning finds the Australian Prime Minister well rested. He reads his short speech one more time, and is quite pleased with it. Glancing up he notices an aide motioning his way. The Prime Minister follows the aide into a conference room, and then steps up to a podium. Facing numerous cameras and people alike, he begins. “Ladies and gentlemen, it is with my greatest pleasure that I officially announce our plan for with the site of the alien spaceship. There will be a number of teams put together from various nations around the world. The spaceship, though on Australian soil, is to be considered a global resource. No one country shall own it, or any technology obtained from it. All discoveries will be shared amongst the participant countries. The makeup and disposition of the teams involved is not for public review at this time. Once the site has been properly investigated, the nations involved shall determine the proper course of action from there.”
As he steps down, many reporters protest the lack of information and demand that he answers their questions. Annoyed, he steps back to the array of microphones.
“I have no answers to give. We do not know the condition of the ship, or what we may find out there in the desert. Let the teams do their part, and we will find out in good time.”
The Prime Minster steps away again, this time annoyed with himself for being goaded into any response. Glancing at his watch, he quickly leaves the room. He has many meetings to attend. Planning who would be on the first team was relatively easy. The follow up team, however, will require some effort to coordinate.
Initiation Series: Series One Compilation (Terran Chronicles) Page 23