“I don’t know,” said General Mitchell doubtfully. “You could be trapped down there.”
“I’ll take the risk,” replied President Drummond. “The people elected me and I intend to serve them until the last possible moment.”
“I’ll stay as well,” said Meadows with a nod. “NASA’s doing all the communicating with the Trellixians and you’ll need me to keep you informed. Maybe we’ll have enough of a warning to escape Washington.”
“What about the other countries? How are they progressing with their hidden facilities?”
General Mitchell picked up a folder and examined it for a moment. “The UK, Canada, Australia, and Germany are on schedule. China, Russia, and France are running slightly behind. They need another week to finish moving people and supplies.”
“What about Japan?”
“Unknown. Since we sent them the warning they’ve been strangely quiet.”
“Damn Japanese have always been confusing,” complained Maggie Rayne, shaking her head. “We’ve received reports they’re getting their installations ready but they’re not responding to our requests for information.”
“General Mitchell, how much time do you think we have?”
Mitchell looked at the president. “Two, maybe three days at the most. I think the arrival of the second fleet is a good indication they’re ready to launch their invasion.”
President Drummond nodded. “I want all of you out of Washington in the next few hours. It’s essential our government continues and the military has its commanding officer. Maggie, you and Katelyn are to go to different facilities. If the worst happens, at least one of you should be able to take over as president.”
“Don’t say that,” said Maggie, her eyes wide with concern. “You’ll make it out!”
Drummond didn’t reply. He had no intention of leaving Washington and allowing the country to die while he was safe in one of the secure facilities. Both Katelyn and Maggie would make good strong presidents for the country or what remained once the Trellixians launched their attack.
-
On board the battlecruiser above Washington, DC, Battle Commander Balforr examined the latest reports from the other battlecruisers spread out across the planet. “The Humans are stalling.”
“Why?” asked Second Officer Jaltor, confused. “Why would they be stalling? They can’t know our real intentions.”
Battle Commander Balforr gazed at the viewscreens in the front of the busy Command Center. “Not if they knew who we were before we arrived.”
Jaltor looked surprised. “How is that possible? None of our ships other than the exploratory cruiser have ever been in this system and the cruiser took precautions to ensure it wasn’t detected.”
“In the past we have cleansed a number of systems in this sector of life. Several of them had spacecraft capable of interstellar travel. What if one of those ships escaped and managed to make it to Earth?”
“But there are no signs of that,” objected Jaltor, his eyes widening. “None of the active media stations on the planet have ever mentioned encountering other life-forms.”
Battle Commander Balforr turned away from the viewscreens. “Check the Humans’ historical records. Perhaps we’ve missed something. The advance invasion fleet is already in orbit around the system’s eighth planet. We’re nearly ready to invade and I don’t want any surprises.” The Trellixians made it a point of being thorough; that was why they had cleansed so many inhabited worlds for future colonization. Balforr didn’t intend to vary from that commitment now. If something was going on he would find it.
-
Professor Wilkens was inside one of the major underground installations built in secret. It was a massive installation with labs, tooling facilities, and workshops. Many of the top scientists in the world had been gathered inside this facility to find a way to defeat the Trellixians.
“Everything’s nearly ready,” said Major Charles Cunningham, sitting across the desk from Wilkens in a large comfortable chair. “I spoke to Major Lorre and all the people we wanted have been assigned to different military units. They all have the new equipment and their mission has been explained to them. They’re just waiting to be deployed to the field.”
“Those are some of the brightest young people we have,” said Professor Wilkens, thinking specifically about Captain Lisa Reynolds. Lisa was the brightest and most enthusiastic intern he’d ever had. It bothered him immensely to put her life in jeopardy. It was one of the reasons she had been assigned to the 75th Ranger Regiment. She was with the country’s best and if anyone could keep her safe it would be them.
“How’s the research going on the pulse rifle?”
Pierre Fournier looked at some notes he had brought to the meeting. Pierre was from France and was a major research scientist working on the Hadron Collider. “It’s nearly ready to be put into production. We still have a few tests to run. It fires a thin stream of energy which will cut through a solid sheet of steel like it’s butter. We’re setting up an assembly line in the civilian complex to begin producing them as soon as we’re satisfied they’re fully functional.”
“I wish we had them now,” said Major Cunningham with a deep sigh. “They might make a big difference in the coming battle.”
“The Trellixians came too soon,” Wilkens said sadly. “Two more years and we would have had our energy shields and cannons ready to deploy. We need to place a high priority on capturing Trellixian equipment so we can reverse-engineer it. Perhaps it will help speed up our research.”
“I’ll get the word sent out,” Cunningham said as he made a quick note.
“Are all our people in place?”
“Almost. We still have a few we need to bring into the various hidden facilities. They should be arriving in the next few days.”
A knock on the door preceded a corporal stepping inside. “We just received word from General Mitchell. They expect the attack to begin within the next forty-eight hours. A Trellixian invasion fleet has been detected around Neptune.”
Professor Wilkens’s face took on a grim look. “We knew it was coming. Let’s make sure we get the last of our people inside the facilities. In twenty-four hours we need to lock them down tight and go silent. What about the president and the other Cabinet members?”
“Vice President Hathaway will be coming here, and Secretary of State Rayne will be transported to our other major complex,” reported the corporal. “General Mitchell is going to the main military complex to take command there.”
Wilkens’s eyes widened at one omission. “What about the president?”
The corporal slowly shook his head. “He’s refusing to leave Washington until the last minute.”
Wilkens looked at Major Cunningham. “You need to talk to General Mitchell and see if he can sway the president into leaving now. If he stays in Washington until the last minute he won’t make it out. I’m not sure he understands how devastating the attack by the Trellixians will be. Just the EMP blasts themselves will paralyze the country.”
“I’ll try,” replied Cunningham, frowning. “But the president can be quite stubborn. He won the last election in a landslide and I believe he feels by going to one of the secure locations he would be abandoning the people.”
“Nevertheless, you need to try.” Wilkens knew, from a morale standpoint, they needed the president. Staying in Washington would be a useless sacrifice.
Cunningham nodded. “I’ll express your concerns to General Mitchell.”
Professor Wilkens leaned back in his chair with a deep sigh. There was still so much to do and they were rapidly running out of time.
-
A few hours passed and Second Officer Jaltor listened as a research scientist on one of the lower decks reported in. When he was finished Jaltor turned toward Battle Commandeer Balforr with a look of deep concern. “We may have a problem.”
Balforr shifted his gaze toward Jaltor, waiting for an explanation.
“It seems that a number
of years ago a Jelnoid scout craft may have crash landed on the planet Earth.”
“Jelnoid?” repeated Balforr, his eyes widening. “If I recall correctly they controlled four star systems when one of our exploratory missions found them.”
“That’s correct,” replied Jaltor. “The war with the Jelnoids lasted nearly six months as they had a small war fleet and their home system had a very powerful defensive grid around it. In the end all four systems were subdued and, after a series of long ground campaigns, cleansed of Jelnoid life. A search was made of surrounding systems to ensure no Jelnoid spacecraft had escaped. There is strong evidence one did indeed escape and ended up here on Earth.”
“What is the evidence?”
“Old photographs showing part of the wreckage with Jelnoid inscriptions.”
“How long ago was this?” Balforr asked in a tight voice.
Jaltor hesitated and then answered. “Over eighty Earth years.”
“Is there any sign of advancements on Earth which could be directly related to Jelnoid technology?”
“Their computer systems. They’re far more advanced than they should be for the level of technology otherwise on the planet.”
Battle Commander Balforr stepped off the command pedestal and walked closer to the viewscreens showing the city beneath his flagship. “They’ve been playing us for fools!” roared Balforr, his eyes glowing red. “They knew who we were from the very beginning and have been stalling.”
“But why? What good will it do?”
“Search our scans of their military bases since we arrived. See if there have been any changes in the status or deployment of their armies.”
“I’ll give the order to review the scans,” replied Jaltor as he hurried off to do so.
Battle Commander Balforr gazed in anger at the viewscreens. It wasn’t often a world could fool the Trellixians. Balforr took several long and deep breaths, bringing his anger under control. If this world was stalling they must have a reason. It was essential Balforr find out due to the massive sizes of this world’s armies and other fighting units. Very few worlds the Trellixians had ever come across were as heavily armed as this world was. In some countries on this planet even the civilians carried weapons. What he was more concerned about was hidden weapons. The Jelnoids were very advanced and if the Humans had eighty years to prepare for the arrival of a Trellixian invasion fleet, it was hard telling what they might have developed in secret.
He returned to the command pedestal and sat down. He clenched his fists, his sharp nails nearly cutting into his flesh. For several long moments he sat there, mentally reviewing his conversations with the Humans. He called up numerous scans of the planet. Nowhere were there signs of advanced weapons based on Jelnoid technology. The Humans were either hiding that technology or they had never developed it. Reaching a decision, he turned toward the communications officer.
“Inform all battlecruisers that initial bombardment of this world will commence in twenty-three hours. First targets will be military installations containing nuclear armaments, then regular military installations, and finally their cities.” Balforr glanced back at the viewscreens, revealing several of the planet’s major cities. Very soon those would be radioactive ruins. If the Humans possessed Jelnoid technology he would force them to reveal it.
-
“Mr. President, I just received a confirmation several Trellixian shuttle craft have appeared over Roswell, New Mexico,” reported General Mason who had volunteered to stay behind to keep the president informed of developments.
President Drummond walked toward one of the three large windows behind his desk. His gaze wandered to the rose gardens and the abundance of blooms on the many bushes. With a deep sigh he knew shortly all this would be gone. “They’ve figured it out somehow.”
“That’s what General Mitchell believes. He’s recommending you evacuate now or at the very least go to the underground Command Center.” The deep underground Command Center was adjacent to the West Wing of the White House and capable of withstanding a direct nuclear strike.
“Have General Mitchell and the others made it to their secure facilities?”
“Yes, Mr. President. All are where they’re supposed to be and the facilities are being buttoned up even as we speak.”
President Drummond sat at his desk. “Are our regular military forces ready to be dispersed?” These plans had been drawn up long ago and then modified over the years. All the elite military units were already gone from their bases. All that remained were the regular troops.
“Upon your command.”
“Order the immediate activation of all National Guard and Reserve units per plan Armageddon.” This part of the plan had been worked out years in the past. The military units would be called in, given extra ammunition and weapons and then told to go into the countryside taking their families with them. At the same time all regular Army and Marine units would be dispersed as much as possible in order to ensure the maximum number of them survived when the Trellixians launched their attack.
“Inform all countries aiding us what is occurring and what we’re doing so they can prepare. We’ll give them one-hour’s notice when we’re ready to assume hostilities.” Plans had been made and once the signal was given each country was responsible for their own defense and any assaults made against the Trellixian battlecruisers. President Drummond was not going to allow the Trellixians to get in the first strike.
“Are the B-21s ready to take off?” The B-21s stealth bombers were each equipped with four cruise missiles armed with nuclear warheads.
“Yes, upon either your command or General Mitchell’s.”
“The F-35s?”
“Same thing. They’ll draw off any Trellixian small craft so the B-21s can go in. The B-2s will be held back for later.”
President Drummond took a deep breath. He knew by hitting the Trellixian ships with nuclear weapons there would be a lot of collateral damage to the cities below. The scientists also had a lot of doubt if the nukes would have any effect at all on the Trellixian battlecruisers protected by their powerful energy shields. Shields that were currently down or operating at minimal levels while they were so low in Earth’s atmosphere and close to the cities.
Drummond intended to take advantage of that. Hopefully the Trellixians wouldn’t know what was going on until it was too late. With a little luck they might lose a few of their battlecruisers. “Keep me informed. If the Trellixians make any aggressive moves we may have to speed up our timetable.”
General Mason nodded. “If the Trellixians see us moving troops around they’re bound to grow suspicious.”
“It’s a risk we have to take,” replied Drummond. “Initiate plan Chaos. It will give us a reason to move troops. This time tomorrow we will be at war with alien invaders. I just hope some of us survive.” President Drummond leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, taking several deep breaths. He wished none of this were happening. Opening his eyes he gazed about the empty office. In another forty-eight hours most of the human race would probably be dead.
-
“It has been confirmed,” Second Officer Jaltor reported as the results came in of the older scans they had examined. “A number of military bases across the planet are missing large numbers of soldiers. Aircraft and other military hardware are also gone.”
“How did we miss this?” Balforr was aggravated no one had noticed the Humans moving military forces around.
Second Officer Jaltor shook his head. “This planet has so many different military groups it’s been difficult to keep track of them. They’re constantly moving troops around or sending them out on maneuvers. We believe this was done gradually so we wouldn’t notice.”
Battle Commander Balforr considered his options. So far there had been no indications from the Humans anything was amiss. This could be nothing more than precautionary actions on their part and not a prelude to an attack. However, the information about the Jelnoid scout craft was disconcerting. �
��We will attack as planned. Contact the invasion fleet. I want them in Earth orbit one hour after we begin our assault.”
“I will send the order,” replied Second Officer Jaltor. “Should we place the fleet on a higher level of alert?”
“No, we must not tip off Earth we are suspicious. This time tomorrow it will not matter anyway.”
Battle Commander Balforr gazed at the viewscreens. It would soon be dark over this part of the world. It was tempting to speed up the attack as the Humans’ brightly lit cities made for easy targets. However, large numbers of Trellixian shuttles still crisscrossed the planet searching for hidden nuclear weapons. He needed to give them as much time as possible to confirm all hidden caches of the dangerous weapons had been located.
The locations or caches would be the primary military targets of the Trellixian fleet, followed by military bases and then the Humans’ major population centers. Even if the Humans had reverse-engineered some of the Jelnoid technology it would do them no good.
Within forty hours their military bases would lay in ruins and most if not all of their major cities would be burning. Within a month the Humans would be cleansed from the planet and it would be ripe for colonization.
Someday Earth would join the Trellixian Empire as a fully populated Trellixian world.
Chapter Four
In Chicago, special agents working for the government moved in and spread rumors of police brutality. Those agents had embedded themselves in street gangs and poverty-stricken neighborhoods where the residents were fearful of the police. They started fires in several businesses and spread more rumors of police indiscriminately rounding up gang members. Within hours a major riot developed, throwing the entire city into chaos. The government agents did everything they could to encourage the growing turmoil and then they disappeared.
The same disturbances occurred in a score of other American cities as populations were stirred up to protest and riot. The mayors of the cities were told by the federal government not to intervene as the military was being sent in to restore order. They were informed martial law would shortly be declared in specific regions of the country, giving the military a greater hand to resolve this growing emergency. The mayors agreed as the disturbances were rapidly growing in size and destruction. The police were barely able to protect the fire departments as they fought the blazes. In several instances, the police were overrun and the fire trucks themselves set on fire.
Earth Fall: Invasion : (Book One) Page 4