by Saxon Andrew
“It appears whatever it is, Earth’s gravity is not having any effect on it.” Connor opened a folder and began laying photographic images on the Colonel’s desk. Tony looked at the images and shook his head slightly, “What am I looking for?”
Essay took another folder and began placing other photos above each of the ones he first put on the desk, “The top row is what the sky looked like five months ago when the telescopes looked at that place above Earth. The bottom row is the same image taken over the last four months.”
Tony looked from the top row to the bottom as he moved across the rows of images. He looked up and said, “There is a black shadow or something that is blocking the stars behind it in the bottom row of images.” Connor nodded. “What could be causing this?”
Connor blew out a breath and said, “It’s not a natural phenomenon.”
“Why not?”
“It doesn’t reflect any light from the planet. It remains pitch black in every image. Something is blocking light from being reflected or coming through it.”
“Have they been able to determine its size?”
“Six hundred feet long and about a hundred feet wide. They’re unable to determine its width.”
Tony stared at Connor with wide eyes and stared at the two rows of pictures. He picked up the telephone on his desk. He pressed a three-digit code and after a moment started speaking, “Admiral, I have a situation that you need to take a look at immediately.” Tony listened and then said, “Sir, I have evidence that there is something above the planet that is a possible danger to us.” After a moment, Tony said, “I’ll be there momentarily. I’m bringing the officer that brought this information to me.”
Tony hung up and said, “Let’s go. He’s waiting on us before he enters a meeting of the Joint Chiefs.” As they hustled down the long hall, Tony looked at Captain Connor, “When did you first learn about this?”
“One of the scientists at the Lick Observatory is a friend of mine and he told me about it a week ago. That shadow really frightened him but the other scientists didn’t share his concern. They just considered it a malfunction in the imaging computer. It continued to appear for months and he decided to call me. I asked him to see if he could get other observatories to confirm it.”
Kam listened to the exchange and knew he should have moved the ship to different locations. However, it was probably good that his presence was out in the open. He settled back and focused in on the two warriors running down the halls of building called the Pentagon. This should prove interesting, he thought.
• • •
Tony and Jack rushed into Admiral Whitehall’s office and the Admiral looked them, “What’s going on, Colonel?”
Tony looked at Essay, “Show him.” Essay laid out the photos and explained what he had learned from the observatories.
The Admiral asked questions and at the end said, “Come with me. The Joint Chiefs need to see this.” Twenty minutes later the War Room was silent as they stared at the images on the monitors. Admiral Whitehall looked around at the highest ranking officers in the United States Military and said, “Ideas?”
“Could it be Russian or Chinese?”
Whitehall looked across the room at a Major seated in front of a huge monitor and he stood up, “Sir, no nation on the planet has the lifting capability to place something that large in orbit. We also have no record of a major launch by the Russian or Chinese within the last year.”
Whitehall looked at Essay, “When did this thing first show up?”
“It was first noticed about four months ago. It could have been there longer than that.”
Whitehall stared at the photos on the giant monitor and shook his head, “It can only be one thing.” The Officers in the room remained silent. Whitehall picked up a red colored telephone and pressed a single number. He waited a moment and said, “Mr. President. I have received proof that an alien vessel is currently holding orbit three thousand miles above Earth and has been there for at least four months.” He paused and said, “No, this is not a joke. I request you move to the bunker and connect to us from there.” He moved the handset away from his ear and said, “Sir, this is not something I would joke about. It is real and we have concrete evidence of its existence. We need to discuss our options on how we are going to start planning on how to handle this situation but your safety comes first. Please go to the bunker and connect with us there.”
Whitehall lowered the handset to the cradle and looked at the Chiefs, “Suggestions on how to handle this.” The room remained silent and Whitehall looked at Connor, “What would you do, Captain?”
“I’d try to communicate with it, Sir.”
“Really?”
“Yes Sir. You lose nothing in the effort and attacking it might not be a good idea.”
“Why is that?”
“Sir, that thing came from somewhere outside our Solar System and it has the ability to hide from our radars. The fact that it is invisible says volumes about that vessel’s technology and I feel rather certain it is far beyond anything we possess.” Connor hesitated and saw Whitehall’s expression. “Sir, even if you decided to launch an attack, how would you do it?”
“What do you mean?”
“We don’t have a booster that would reach orbit that far out and if it did, that thing would see it coming as soon as we launched it. To avoid it, it would just have to move to a different location. If it started moving around, we’d lose it.”
Whitehall looked at Essay and tilted his head, “How do you know our radars can’t detect it?”
“Before going to Colonel Brighton’s office, I contacted the International Space Station and asked them to run a radar sweep to see if any meteors were within range. They responded that nothing showed up on their sweep. The Space Station’s radar is one of the best and that thing is well within the range of their radar.”
General Thurman looked at Whitehall, “Sir, if our radars can’t track it and it doesn’t show up optically, how could we possibly target a missile on it?”
Whitehall shook his head slightly and looked at General Gomez, “Can you broadcast toward it with one of our communication satellites?”
“Yes Sir.”
“We’ll wait on the President to come on line. This will have to be his decision.”
• • •
Kam smiled. At least they thought it through. He suspected if they could have launched an attack, they might have done it. At least they were realists…so far.
• • •
The President came on line and Whitehall said, “Link his monitor to ours and show him the images we’ve been discussing.” An hour passed as the President asked numerous questions about the object and about the level of technology it was showing. Whitehall told him about Connor’s suggestion and the President listened to the reasons why an attack was impossible. He looked at Whitehall and said, “I’m contacting the Soviet and Chinese Presidents and bringing them in to this discussion. This decision is bigger than just us deciding what to do. This could impact the entire planet. I will request they link their Military Leaders to you and I want you to share with them what you’ve shown me.”
“Is this a good idea, Sir?”
“It should flush out if one of them put that thing in orbit. We need to eliminate that as a possibility before we take any action.”
Whitehall nodded, “Yes Sir, I’ll await their contact.” Connor picked up his folder and stood to leave the room and Whitehall said, “You’re not going anywhere, Captain.”
“But I’ve shared everything I know, Sir.”
“It’s your judgment I need here. I didn’t hear anyone else suggesting we attempt to communicate first. Make yourself comfortable and if there’s anyone you need to contact to let them know that you won’t be available anytime soon, you should do it now.”
“Sir, I’m a single father and my three children are at school.”
Whitehall looked at the back wall and said, “Col. Swanson, go to his children�
��s school and take charge of them until he can go home.”
A young woman stood and left the room. Essay hoped she had patience. His children could be…trying.
• • •
Kam listened to the Captain’s thoughts and smiled. That officer really wanted to communicate first. He looked in the Captain’s mind and located his children’s school. He found them and listened to their thoughts. Thee children should tell him a lot about their father. As he focused on them he smiled. That Colonel was in for a rough going. Those three were intelligent and strong willed. They loved their father and would accept nothing but the truth from the woman coming to take charge. She would suffer less if she would simply tell them. It took more than three hours before she did. The two boys and girl were sworn to secrecy and they kept their promise. That revealed a lot about their father.
• • •
Col. Swanson drove the three children to school the next morning and knew her career was over. Jim, the oldest of the three saw her discomfort, “You don’t have to worry about us keeping this quiet.”
“Oh no!”
“You took a risk in telling us and we will not betray your trust. Besides, we don’t want to cause a panic.”
Emily looked at them as she stopped in front of the school and stared them in the eyes, “If this gets out, my career is over.”
Stella smiled at Emily, “Colonel, if we’re going to hear anything about our father, you are going to have to tell us. None of us will shut that channel down. We love him too much.”
Emily looked at them and smiled, “I must confess that I am really impressed with you. After you stopped acting like wild Indians, I could see your father had done a good job raising you.”
Jim shook his head, “Don’t tell him that, it would swell his head. We’ll see you after school. Please try to find out if he’s ok.”
Emily nodded, “I will, Jim.” Emily watched them leave the car and run toward the front entrance. She really was impressed with them. She knew there was no possible way for her to communicate with the Joint Chiefs. The War Room was locked down tight. But she knew that their father would not go long without checking on his children. She went back to their house and her phone rang two hours before the end of school.
“Colonel, please excuse me for calling but I need to know how my children are doing?”
“Are you on an encrypted line, Captain?”
“I am.”
Good. Those lines were not recorded or listened to, “I told them what was going on and they want to know how you’re doing.”
“I suspected they would wear you down.”
“They are merciless.”
Essay laughed, “Tell me about it. They got it from their mother. There is a sense of madness here with the Russian and Chinese exhibiting severe paranoia about this event. No decision has been made yet but I’m hoping cooler minds will prevail and we’ll attempt to communicate with it before we do anything else. I want you to ask the children about the hunting cabin we have in the mountains and I want you to take them there after they get out of school.”
“How will I be able to contact you? They won’t go if I can’t.”
“You really do know them. I have a satellite phone at the cabin that I keep on a charger. I’ll call you at that number.”
“I’ll take them this afternoon.”
“Thank you, Colonel.”
“Call me Emily. I’ll hope to hear from you this evening.”
“It might be tomorrow. Tell them I’m fine and to go easy on you.”
“Thank you.”
“No, thank you. You have my life in your hands.”
The line went dead and Emily stared at her phone. This was a remarkable family.
Chapter Three
Essay sat in a chair at the back of the War Room and fought his boredom. He thought getting the Russians and Chinese involved would be a good thing but now the room was paralyzed by the distrust the three nations felt toward each other. Even the Leaders couldn’t agree on what to do. It was an indictment on mankind that the most powerful nations on the planet couldn’t put aside their differences long enough to come together on the first contact of an alien civilization. There was no doubt about it now. That thing in orbit turned off whatever it was using to hide its presence and it was clear that it was a starship. And not just a starship, it was a warship. The huge weapon emplacements on its hull were clear for all to see. And still the bickering continued.
The Chinese Premier sneered at the American President, “If they wanted to communicate, they would have done so during the eight months they’ve been out there.”
“Then just what do you suggest doing?”
“It’s clear that thing is a warship. It must be attacked and destroyed.”
The President had finally reached his limit and said, “By all means. Go right ahead and we’ll watch what happens.”
The Soviet President and the Chinese Premier snapped their heads toward him. The Premier said, “I said that we should attack it.”
“And I said for you to go right ahead and do it. I don’t possess a weapon capable of hitting it. If you want to take it on, go right ahead. I look forward to seeing what happens after you make the attempt.”
The Soviet President smiled, “Please calm down. Whatever we do, we should do it together. Shouting at each other solves nothing.”
The President shook his head and saw the Captain that suggested they communicate sitting in his chair rolling his eyes. “Do you find something humorous, Captain?”
“No Sir. I’m seeing something ridiculous, Mr. President.”
The Chinese and Soviet leaders looked at the exchange taking place and listened to what was being said. “You’re the one that suggested that we communicate with that ship, aren’t you?”
“I am.”
“Do you still feel that way after learning it’s an armed starship?”
Essay shook his head slightly, “If our country had an issue with either the Chinese or Russians, would you launch an immediate attack?”
The President saw the other two leaders looking at him and he turned back to Essay, “Of course not. I’d try to resolve the issue before doing something that would destroy both of us.”
Essay nodded, “So you would hold off to avoid mutual destruction? Who poses a larger danger to us, Sir? The Russians, the Chinese, or that ship?”
The President stared at the Captain and opened his mouth to respond but then closed it. The Russian said, “We don’t know the capability of that ship?”
“Which is all the more reason to avoid opening hostilities until we do!” Essay sat down with a scowl on his face.
The three leaders looked at each other on their monitors and the Chinese Premier sat back in his chair, “The Captain is making a good point.”
The President saw the Russian nodding and said, “So what do we do?”
The Premier shrugged, “I would suggest seeing if whoever is on that ship will communicate with us. If they won’t, that would tell us their intentions aren’t peaceful.”
The President looked at the Russian still nodding . “Which of us should open contact?”
The Premier pointed at his display, “I would suggest that Captain.”
The President’s eyes narrowed, “Why not one of us?”
“Would you trust me or the Soviet President to do it? I think that Captain doesn’t have an agenda and sees us as complete idiots. See if he can get them to talk to us.”
President Hodges looked at Essay who was starting to have a worried look on his face. He turned to Admiral Whitehall, “Do we have a way to send a message to that vessel?”
“I’ve ordered the closest communications satellite to orient its transmitter toward it.”
“Do we know if that ship can receive our frequencies?”
“It’s been up there eight months. I’m reasonably certain it’s been watching us. If they’re as advanced as we think, I suspect they are listening to our communications.”<
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The President looked at the other two leaders and both of them shrugged at the same moment. The President chuckled. Perhaps they were more alike than he thought. “How do we do this, Admiral?”
Whitehall looked at a Captain sitting at a terminal under the giant monitor and he nodded. Whitehall turned, looked at Essay, and pointed toward the captain sitting at his station, “Captain, come and sit at that terminal. You can use the microphone to start communications.”
Essay stood up, “Uhhh Sir, I have no idea what to say to them?”
Whitehall smiled, “You’re not alone, Captain. You’ll have to do what the rest of us would do.”
“What is that, Sir?”
“Fake it like you do know.” Whitehall raised his eyebrows and pointed toward the Terminal. Essay blew out a quick breath, stood up, and walked down to the front of the room and sat down on a chair next to the Captain. The Captain handed him a microphone and smiled, “Just press the button to transmit and release it to receive.”
Essay looked around the room and wanted to kick himself. He should have kept his big mouth shut. He suddenly realized that the huge room was silent. After all the shouting and bickering, it was unnerving. He saw the two leaders of the Chinese and Russian Governments staring at him. He shook his head and pressed the button on the microphone, “How’s it going up there?”
Everyone in the room and in the other defense facilities were stunned by the comment. They were shocked more when they heard, “The view is outstanding up here. You live on a very beautiful planet.” The President motioned for Essay to bring him the microphone and heard, “I really have no desire to speak to you. I’ve been listening to you for a long time and it appears that the Captain is the only sane being present. I will communicate with him and the rest of you will listen.”
Hodges’ eyes widened and he motioned for Essay to keep talking. “You’ve caused us quite a scare. Can you tell us why you’ve come here?”
“I came here to warn you of a coming invasion and see if I could assist you in preparing to meet it. However, I’ve had second thoughts about it since my arrival.”