by C. G. Mosley
“Yes, Dr. Holtz,” General Hightower replied, slightly annoyed. “Though Earth’s government has the final say, I feel I should remind you that I have a close relationship with the president of the United West.”
Phoebe’s face immediately contorted into a look of disgust. “General, are you saying you’re going to use your personal clout with the president to get him to side with you?”
Hightower’s jaw tightened, and he clenched his fist. “That’s exactly what I’m saying doctor. It’s my job to keep Earth safe and I intend on doing just that.”
“So, what are you going to tell President Callahan?” Roger asked.
General Hightower snapped his attention to Roger. “What do you mean?” he asked. “I’m going to advise him not to help the aliens.”
Roger nodded slowly and drummed his fingers on the table. “And how are you going to do that sir?”
“Careful,” Colonel Madigan warned him.
Roger shot the colonel a dumbfounded look. “What are you talking about?” he grumbled. “It’s a legitimate question.” He returned his attention to General Hightower. “Sir, with all due respect, I just find it hard to believe that President Callahan would not only immediately dismiss helping a friendly alien species that is in danger of being eradicated, but also completely disregard the opportunity to gain tremendous technological knowledge. Unless…”
“Unless what?” Hightower asked. He clasped his hands on the table and leaned forward eagerly.
Roger nervously cleared his throat. “Unless you somehow bend the truth,” he said.
He heard Phoebe gasp and someone else in the room whispered something he could not quite understand.
“I oughta have you locked up,” Colonel Madigan growled. He then glared over at Hightower. “Harry, just give me the order.”
General Hightower shook his head slowly and closed his eyes. “That’s not necessary Merrill,” he said softly. He then opened his eyes and looked at Roger. “Commander, we’ve known each other a long time and I have a tremendous amount of respect for you and the pilots you’ve trained.”
“Thank you, sir,” Roger said.
“And that is why I’m going to ignore your insubordination,” Hightower continued. “I understand that you’ve met the alien. You’ve spoken with him at length and clearly you believe everything that he is telling you.”
“That’s right sir,” Roger said quickly. “I do.”
“Quite frankly, it’s disappointing that you’d be so quick to believe an alien you just met, and then less than two hours later accuse me, your commanding officer, of conspiring to lie to the President of the United West.”
Roger felt his face flush red. “Sir that’s not what I—”
“You’d insinuate that I,” Hightower continued, “a man you’ve known for twenty years, would essentially tell lies to the president.”
Roger bit his lip and cleared his throat. He wanted to argue his point further but decided against it.
“I think we should give Commander Stellick the benefit of the doubt, sir.”
It was Lieutenant Hayden Carter. At twenty-seven, he was the youngest officer in the room. His blonde hair formed a perfect crewcut and his blue eyes were only second to Phoebe’s in beauty. The man was usually quiet, but known to be extremely intelligent and very wise beyond his years. Roger’s only gripe about him was that he had a nasty smoking habit. What he did have going for him was the fact that for some reason that Roger hadn’t figured out, General Hightower was quite fond of him.
“I agree,” Hightower replied so swiftly that it almost seemed rehearsed. He kept his gaze on Roger and said, “Commander, let’s not quibble over things that have not even happened yet. But for what’s it worth, I assure you that anything I tell President Callahan will consist of nothing but truths.”
Roger nodded and accepted the proverbial olive branch that was being presented to him.
“Let’s discuss the technology a moment,” Lieutenant Carter said, turning his attention to Roger. “Tell me more about this gateway Captain Steiger told you about.”
Roger scratched at the back of his neck and took a deep breath. “There’s really nothing else to tell outside of what I’ve already said,” he replied. “Basically, he told me that now that they’ve made the long voyage to our solar system, they can assemble a gateway in Saturn’s orbit that would essentially give them the ability to jump back to their world within a span of less than two minutes.”
“Did you see any of the materials he says will be used to assemble this gateway?” Hightower asked.
Roger shook his head. “No. I was just eager to get back and share all this intel.”
“But you believe him?” Hightower asked. He was clearly intrigued.
“Yes, I absolutely do,” Roger answered.
“That’s incredible,” Lieutenant Carter said. “That would be a very useful tool.”
“And it still can be,” Colonel Madigan said. “Whether we help the aliens or not.”
Carter and Hightower looked over at him simultaneously. “What do you mean?” the general asked.
Madigan smirked at him. “Well I’m pretty sure if we turn them down, they’ll just put together their little gateway and head back home,” he replied. “I don’t exactly see how they could take it with them.”
“That’s a good point,” Phoebe said. “The gateway is one piece of technology we’d get our hands on whether we help them or not.”
“Yes, but you’re assuming we could figure out how to use it,” Carter countered. “And if we did use it, and we travelled over to their world…what then?”
The room fell silent for a long moment and General Hightower was just about to speak when the large screen on the wall at the front of the room suddenly illuminated to life. Everyone immediately sat up straight and turned their full attention to the screen. The picture in front of them materialized to show the face of a man that appeared to be similar in age to General Hightower. The man had deep crow’s feet around his gray eyes and his cheek bones were prominent. His hair was dark gray in color. Roger immediately recognized him to be President Britt Callahan of the United West.
The camera panned out a bit and revealed another man seated beside him. This man was smaller, though he appeared to be similar in age. He was Asian, and, despite his age, his hair was a deep black color. His brown eyes were framed with large horn-rimmed glasses. Roger assumed the President of the United East probably spent a great deal of time dying his hair.
A deep voice off camera introduced the two men as President Britt Callahan of the United West and President Akagi Hiro of the United East. The voice then quickly debriefed the two presidents of all the events that had unfolded between Titan and Saturn, except for any details surrounding Roger’s visit with Captain Steiger. When the person was finished, he then announced the com-link was now open for dialogue.
“Good evening Mr. Presidents,” General Hightower said as soon as he’d become free to do so.
“Good to see you again, Harry,” President Callahan replied with a cheerful smile. “Tell us your version of what the hell is going on over there.”
The general cleared his throat and then stood from his seat. “Sir, it sounds as if you’ve been briefed well on the situation. Basically, we have an alien spacecraft hovering near the rings of Saturn. As you know, we’ve been training for a scenario such as this for as long as this colony has been operational on Titan. Commander Roger Stellick, whom I consider to be the finest pilot in the entire S.A.M.A. fleet, was ready and willing to intercept the spacecraft to find out what exactly they want. He did so, and the entire ordeal went off without a hitch.”
“Well, I’m glad to hear that,” President Callahan said. The man remained remarkably calm for someone that had just received confirmation that humans were not alone in the universe. He turned his eyes toward the direction where Roger was seated. “Commander Stellick, thank you for your bravery.”
“It’s my honor,” Roger replied.<
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“Sir, the aliens want our assistance with an issue on their home world that threatens the extinction of their race,” Hightower said, clearly trying to keep the conversation on track.
“What sort of issue?” President Callahan asked.
General Hightower sighed and crossed his arms. “Well, it seems that they’ve been invaded by some sort of deadly alien creature,” he replied firmly, as if he were trying to convince himself that it was the truth.
Roger looked on as President Hiro leaned forward and seemed to show great interest in the revelation. He also noticed that the man seemed to be eyeing him specifically.
President Callahan looked confused. “Clearly, they have a technological advantage over us,” he said as he shook his head. “If they can’t handle this threat, what makes them think we would be able to make a difference?”
“That’s exactly how I view the situation,” Hightower said anxiously. “In my opinion it is too great a risk for us to get involved.”
“However,” President Callahan continued, seemingly ignoring Hightower’s statement, “I also understand that if we provide some assistance they are willing to share their technology with us?”
“That’s correct,” General Hightower replied. Suddenly, he seemed less enthusiastic.
“General Hightower, thank you for your insight,” President Hiro said suddenly. He kept his eyes on Roger. “Commander Stellick,” he said with a slight smile. “I’d appreciate it if you’d be willing to answer a few questions.”
Roger nodded and immediately stood up. He looked over at General Hightower who suddenly appeared slightly worried that he was now being overlooked. The general reluctantly sat down.
“Of course, Mr. President,” Roger said. “What would you like to know?”
“I’d like to know more about Captain Steiger,” Hiro said. “Tell me about him.”
“Okay,” Roger said, and he paused to ponder the question a moment. “Well, he—and everyone else on the ship for that matter—looked just like us. In fact, the captain told me that they are humans, just like us. They know our language and probably know a lot more about us than they let on. Captain Steiger suggested that they’d been watching us for quite some time.”
“Do you believe that they are indeed as friendly as they portray themselves to us?” President Hiro asked.
Roger nodded. “Yes sir, I do,” he answered. “They treated me well on board their ship, and I never felt like a prisoner.”
Suddenly, General Hightower stood again. “Mr. President, though the aliens may indeed be friendly and cordial, I still strongly believe that it’s in the best interest of the entire human race to stay out of their affairs.”
For the first time, President Hiro turned his head away from Roger and to Hightower instead. “General, I have a tremendous amount of respect for you and your opinion,” he said with a toothy grin. “But I also recognize that you are not the man that actually sat down and had a discussion with Captain Steiger. That was Commander Stellick. I’d appreciate it if you’d allow me to finish questioning him so that I can form my own opinion.”
President Callahan shifted uncomfortably in his chair as he noticed Hightower’s face flush red. Despite the fact that the distance between Titan and Earth was 886 million miles, the tension in the room easily transcended time and space. Without another word, General Hightower slowly sunk back into his chair, and proceeded to apply another round of eyedrops. Colonel Madigan snorted and crossed his arms.
“I’m tired of referring to them as aliens,” President Hiro said as he returned his attention to Roger. “I understand that you learned the name of their planet?”
“Yes,” Roger answered. “They come from a planet called Kalo, located in the Ara Constellation.”
“Then from now on can we all agree to refer to them as Kaloians?” Hiro asked, glancing over at President Callahan.
“I think that would be respectful,” Callahan agreed.
Roger briefly looked over at Hightower and could see that his jaw was clenched tight.
“Commander Stellick,” President Hiro continued. “Do you think we could realistically be of any assistance to the Kaloians?”
Roger shook his head. “Sir, I’m really not sure. I don’t think it’s a decision that any one man should make. It could have terrible consequences for Earth if we make a wrong decision.”
“True,” Hiro agreed. “But it could also reap tremendous benefits. In addition to the technology, Earth would have new allies. We’ve long suspected that there were other sentient beings in the universe and it would be foolish to think that there aren’t more beyond the Kaloians. Perhaps they could provide more insight on this?”
Roger nodded. “They may know of other alien species,” he said. “Aside from the creatures that are currently attacking their home world, we did not discuss the possibility of other worlds and races beyond their own.”
“So, the creatures that are invading their world,” Callahan chimed in. “They’re not intelligent beings, correct?”
“That’s the way I understood it,” Roger answered. “Captain Steiger described them as insect-like. He said they were like the mantises of Earth, just much larger…the size of a man in fact.”
Hiro nodded and seemed even more intrigued. He then looked to President Callahan again. “Britt, I think we should put this to a vote in Congress. We should call an emergency session, present the facts, and get an answer on how to proceed very quickly.”
“Yes,” Callahan agreed, and he glanced over at General Hightower. “And to be clear, a vote to help the Kaloians will still require a great deal of planning and gathering information. We will not rush into anything, and if any new information suggests a greater danger, it will require another vote. Is that clear?”
“Yes, Mr. President,” General Hightower replied. “What should we do with them in the meantime?”
Callahan looked over at President Hiro for a reply. “They may remain in Saturn’s orbit until we reach a decision,” Hiro said. “As I said, we will have that answer very soon. I don’t think it will be wise to allow them to land on Titan until we know how we’re going to proceed.”
“I agree,” Roger said, and he was pleased to see that General Hightower was nodding.
“Commander Stellick,” President Hiro continued. “I want you to remain the sole representative of the humans for now—meaning, I want you to be the only person communicating with that ship.” He turned to Callahan. “Is that a reasonable request Britt?”
President Callahan nodded in agreement. “Commander Stellick, you may bring Captain Steiger up to speed and please thank him for his patience,” President Callahan said. “Plan to meet back here in three hours.”
At once, the screen went black and the presidents were gone.
Chapter 6
Jake Crosby snapped to attention as soon as Commander Roger Stellick entered the room. He’d heard a lot about the legendary pilot and his respect for the man had only grown when he watched in awe as Stellick bravely flew into the strange spacecraft, completely disregarding his own safety.
Roger gave him a nod and gestured for him to relax. Crosby immediately offered his hand.
“Commander Stellick,” he said, awestruck. “I’ve looked up to you for years…you’re one of the main reasons I joined S.A.M.A.”
Roger shook the younger man’s hand, and though he thought Jake’s behavior was slightly inappropriate, he was not about to correct him.
“It’s P.F.C. Jake Crosby, am I right?” Roger asked as he released his grip.
Jake nodded enthusiastically. “Yessir, that’s right.” He glanced over his shoulder at the vast array of screens on the wall and the knobs and buttons on the counter. “I’m here to assist you in whatever capacity you need, otherwise, it’s all yours.”
“Thank you,” Roger said as he pulled the padded rolling chair back and took a seat. “You know this is exactly how I got my start too,” he added as he flipped a couple of switches.
“Really?” Jake watched Roger work and suddenly felt more encouraged than ever.
If Commander Roger Stellick started in communications…then there’s hope for me, he thought. Jake seriously considered asking him what his T.A.P. score had been—or worse yet, how many times he’d been rejected before he’d gained entry into the pilot training program. Fortunately, he considered the matter long enough to talk himself out of it before verbalizing the question. During this thinking, General Harry Hightower approached behind him.
“Keep this communication all business,” the general barked, as he drew near Roger.
General Hightower’s distinctive voice startled Jake. He immediately snapped to attention again and his star struck demeanor vanished. Though it was the first time that he’d met Commander Stellick, he’d met General Hightower many times before. Jake was terrified of the man. He always tried hard to hide it, but he was certain Hightower could still sense his fear.
“Relax Crosby,” Hightower said, barely acknowledging his presence.
Jake exhaled slowly and slunk away into a darkened corner in a desperate attempt to disappear.
Roger pulled the headset on and adjusted the microphone close to his mouth.
“Captain Steiger, this is Commander Roger Stellick, do you copy?”
There was a long moment of static, when finally…
“I hear you Commander Stellick,” Malcolm replied. “You have news?”
“Not really,” Roger said. “Our leaders on Earth are discussing how to proceed. We should know something very soon.”
“You were unable to convince them,” Malcolm replied, disappointment evident in his voice.
Roger looked over at General Hightower.
“Don’t give them false hope,” Hightower said.
Roger cleared his throat and glanced at the monitor that was focused on the Pinnacle. “I don’t know yet,” he said. “They’re discussing the matter and will let me know something very shortly. In the meantime, is there anything you need?”
Hightower glared at him with a scowl. Clearly, he didn’t appreciate the question.