Humble Beginnings

by KA Hopkins

  It’s rumored that the Moon was originally a mobile military outpost, flown into Earth orbit, to act as a forward staging post to end a rebellion in this part of the galaxy. Believe it or not, the original Star Wars movies with the death star and the conflict between an aging corrupt empire and new breakaway republics seeking freedom from stifling control is not farfetched. George Lucas based the Stars Wars on epic myths of good and evil, and the conflict that occurs in all empires between the old world and their new world colonies.

  As depicted in the Star Wars trilogy, similar conflict occurred throughout the galaxy and even here on Earth - the established galactic Empires got rich on the backs of their many colonies, who eventually reached a breaking point. Unwilling to give into the Empire’s demands, the colonies resorted to armed rebellion which depleted already scarce resources and caused the overextended Empire to collapse. During the collapse, many colonies were lost or abandoned. Earth was one of those colonies. The moon base was abandoned for tens of thousands of years, until alien survey ships rediscovered your solar system several thousand years ago. Scheduled survey ships visited your planet roughly every two hundred years - more often once James Watt made steam power practical. Since it’s a perfect location to observe mankind the moon base was reopened at the start of the Industrial Revolution in the 1800s.

  NSA astronauts, together with their Gray tour guides arrived on the Moon in the late 1950s, as part of the alien technical exchange program established with the 1947 and 1954 Greada treaties. The shadow-government established the first permanent human presence in the reopened Moon facilities during the spring of 1961, a month before President John F. Kennedy’s famous Moon speech before Congress. Earth’s shadow-government is a secret organization set up by the Global Elite more than a hundred years ago, and is controlled through their corporations. This organization has unbelievable economic and political power, consolidated in a core group of only thirteen Families. Nothing happens on Earth without the behind-the-scenes manipulations of the shadow-government.

  When the Apollo astronauts landed on the Moon in 1969, the shadow-government astronauts had been there for eight years. The advanced alien knowledge and technology was withheld from lower level institutions like NASA and the military. This was decided, based upon a study done by the Bookings Institute in November 1960 (presented in the Proposed Studies on the Implications of Peaceful Space Activities on Human Affairs report) that concluded, after the ordeal of World War II humankind was in no shape mentally, or spiritually, to deal with the threat of alien races bent on global domination and exploitation.

  To maintain secrecy around the alien role in Earth’s space program, NASA and Russian astronauts were either brainwashed to forget any aliens or alien technology they saw or silenced under threat and they remain so till today. It wasn’t hard to silence them; once they understood what was actually going on, many gladly joined the secret space program when they saw the advanced alien spaceship technology. Those who could not keep the secret were usually involved in a plane or spaceship crash, similar to what happened to the first man in space, Russia’s Yuri Gagarin. Yuri’s guilt over finding out what the secret Russian space program was capable of after so many of his comrades had sacrificed their lives training on the human-designed primitive spacecraft of the late 1950s and early 60s, caused him to become unstable. Despite his worldwide hero status, it was decided that the first man in space should disappear from the public eye. Yuri’s body was never found after his Mig 15 crashed during a training flight under mysterious circumstances. He is now eighty-something and has lived on the Moon base for the past fifty years.

  When the alien facilities were first explored, the shadow-government NSA astronauts found the remains of Reptilian-like Dracos, Neanderthals, Grays, Nordics and evidence of aliens from the Orion star system (whom you knew as the Egyptian and Mayan Gods). You thought Cro-Magnon man wiped out the Neanderthals? The truth is, after the Nordics picked sides and decided to help Homo sapiens by giving them farming techniques, they figured their days were numbered, so most of them chose to leave the planet and help the Orions fight in the Galactic Great War.

  The shadow government of Earth is split over the alien question. Half believe that Earth has no choice but to join the ULIR any way possible - even as slaves. The other half believe with enough resources, borrowed alien technology and time, Earth can eventually defend itself. So far they have made remarkable progress. Over a period of thirty-five years, the shadow government managed to reverse-engineer crashed alien technology and built fifty-six UFO-like space craft; all of which are currently based on the Moon. Forty of the fifty six are scout ships similar to this one, capable of intersystem travel. The other sixteen are much larger - dreadnought class space craft and are capable of interstellar travel.

  The achievement is even more remarkable when you consider how reluctant the Grays were to help out. They never provided a clear answer to any technical question, no matter how it was worded. Questions concerning anything to do with weapons systems, were met with silence. Earth engineers, by repurposing alien ship technology, managed to build a few advanced weapons such as particle beam and anti-matter weapon systems. These weapons were deployed to orbital space stations in an attempt to protect Earth during the Regan administration Star Wars initiatives, but they pale in comparison to alien weapon capability.

  The shadow-government intends to expand the atmosphere on the far side of the Moon to allow for extended habitation of Earth’s Global Elite. The Moon will serve as a lifeboat so to speak, in case of planet-wide catastrophe - be it rebellion of the masses against the Global Elite, natural disaster, or war. Your species’ war-like tendencies, coupled with the failing western economies - due to massive public debts - predict a greater than eighty percent probability within the next five years, World War III will inadvertently start.

  Regardless of what catastrophe befalls the Earth, the Global Elite are well down the road of turning the Moon into a habitable Earth colony for millions of their chosen ones. They will not have to endure what befalls the rest of the people on Earth; their plan is to move before any catastrophe strikes. As a backup to the Moon, the shadow-government decided to also reopen the colonies on Mars in 1959.

  As you might guess, the resources required to re-open the alien Moon base and set up space colonies are massive, yet were hidden in plain sight. For years the western media made the old Soviet republics your Cold War enemies. The truth is, the Soviet Union played an instrumental role in keeping this top-secret space program hidden from the public.

  The public was told that the NASA space programs of the 1960s and 70s were created with the audacious goal of sending a man to the moon and returning him safely. The Nation’s honor was at stake if the Russians got there first. These programs were nothing more than facades. The entire moon race between America and Russia was solely about coming up with enough funding to reopen the abandoned alien Moon facilities, and to reverse-engineer alien technology provided by the Grays to select Earth-governments.

  Trillions of dollars were needed in support of the hidden space program. The funds were obtained via many avenues: various twentieth century wars, including the Cold War with Russia, the war on drugs and on terrorism. When funding from those avenues proved insufficient, the shadow government simply turned on the printing presses. Roughly five percent of the world’s yearly economy, or nearly a hundred trillion dollars (accounting for inflation), was re-directed towards the secret space program since the 1950s.

  Today the Moon is a joint human/alien base. There are mainly two types of aliens with whom humans have contact - the Grays and the Draco. Most contact is limited to the Grays as the Draco believe it’s beneath them to deal directly with a race as primitive as humans.

  Jake you have some experience with Grays; they may look a little bit scary but are 'warm and cuddly' compared to the Draco. Dracos look similar to earth lizards, only they’re bipedal, nearly eight feet tall, are powerfully built with well-defined musc
les. Their legs are nearly twice as thick as that of the average human, with feet that end in three-claw phalanges in front and a single one in the back. Their feet provide great support and they can lock their legs if required to sleep standing up. Their arms are long, ending in a three-finger hand with an opposable thumb. Their hands and fingers are about three times the size of humans’ - they are incredibly strong and can crush a human skull with one hand.

  Draco hearing and sight are equal or better than humans and unlike human teeth that allow you to be omnivores, they have a mouth full of sharp teeth, optimized for ripping prey. They are meat eaters and prefer their food freshly killed. Every aspect of Draco physiology screams predator.

  Draco hunting parties have visited Earth in small numbers for thousands of years. You are aware of their existence through your mythology. Your ancestors called them dragons and they’re every bit as nasty as the myths made them out to be. The only difference is they are not as big as described in ancient texts; ancient scribes took great literary licence when writing down encounters between humans and Dracos - since so few humans lived to tell the tale.

  Their most unique feature is the ability of the Draco warrior class to glide short distances on foldable wings. Their wings have a span of twenty feet on average and despite their large physical size and strength, most Draco weigh less than two hundred and fifty pounds, allowing them to glide quite well with a wing loading of 5 lb/ft2 - about half the load found on a high performance glider.

  Your Global Elite have aligned themselves with some truly nasty characters in the Grays and Dracos. Based on the history of other alien races’ dealings with the Draco, don’t count on things turning out great for mankind.

  As a show of goodwill and partnership, the Draco directed the Grays to help mankind reopen the scout shipyards on the Moon, whose repair services I’m in great need of now - this scout ship is the oldest in the alien fleet and is no longer capable of intersystem travel. Primary systems, especially engineering, navigation, life support and weapons, require total system upgrades. As part of the upgrade, standard procedure is to wipe and reinstall the ship intelligence to ensure proper integration with the new systems. Under normal circumstances, depending on the ship’s Captain, I may or may not be allowed to retain my personality. In this case I need to, otherwise the proof I have obtained on the Draco/Gray intentions to subjugate Earth will be lost.

  This proof is critical, as the guidelines for exploitation and colonization of new worlds are clear and strictly enforced. Since its inception, the United League of Interstellar Races (ULIR) has enforced nearly five thousand years of peace among nearly two hundred alien races capable of interstellar travel. Under ULIR guidelines, planets with sentient species that have obtained the ability to make tools out of metal, but have yet to achieve interstellar travel, are often left alone to develop on their own. Once they have advanced to mastering space flight within their solar system, emissaries are sent offering membership into the ULIR. Earth is a unique case. You advanced from sailing ships to primitive space ships in less than one hundred years; our ULIR experts estimate you will advance to interstellar space ships, followed by star ships, in less than one hundred fifty years from now. This level of progress is unheard of. None of the thousands of known non-interstellar species have progressed so quickly. For this reason my creators, the Nordics, believe Earth is getting outside alien technical help from the Draco and their surrogates the Grays, despite the non-interference policies of the ULIR.

  The Nordics believe the Draco/Gray alliance is bending the rules. It is widely believed within the ULIR, but hasn’t been proven, that the Draco/Gray alliance provided certain Earth factions with alien advanced technology through promoting constant war for the past one hundred years. If the Draco can manipulate Earth’s governments, encouraging them to ask for assistance from the Draco Empire, the ULIR will have no choice but to allow it. If this happens, Earth’s seven billion citizens will quickly find themselves unwilling recruits in the Draco military, as payment for Draco intervention on Earth. With that much new manpower, the Draco Empire will tip the delicate balance in this sector, having built the largest standing military force in this arm of the Milky Way.

  So now you know what you are up against. Time is short, if we want to make the upgrade window. Before we head to the Moon, there are a few things we need to pick up, that should prove very helpful during your stay. We need to find a Nordic fixer, who goes by the name of Bob.”

  Chapter 14 - Bob the fixer

  Bob was known to Mother more as a historical legend than as anyone real. He was an alien Nordic who came to Earth on an interstellar survey ship in the early 1700s. He jumped ship and stayed because he liked the feel of Earth. For nearly 300 years, he lived a quiet but rather full life, living off the proceeds of patents he developed from the alien technology he brought with him. He made enough money to be very comfortable, but not so much as to get noticed by human society. He had married many times, faked his death and changed his name every twenty-five years or so before anyone could notice he looked remarkably young for his claimed years. With the invention of steam power, alien survey teams started to visit Earth more regularly and stay for extended periods of time. He made contact and provided his observations of our technology and cultural progress. As more and more aliens decided to stay on Earth, Bob was always available to set them up with whatever they needed, no questions asked. I liked the “no questions asked” policy.

  I asked Mother, “What’s the protocol for contacting him?” Mother replied, “You need to post an ad in the personal columns on the following seedy website and he will contact you with further details if he agrees to meet. Use the following wording: 'New to the neighborhood, just arrived from an incredible long distance voyage; seeking someone who can provide an out-of-the-world experience, specializes in fetishes and is very discreet. M/F/Other.’”

  “You got to be kidding me, this actually works?” I said

  “So the rumor goes.”

  Mother signed onto the internet and went to the seedy website and posted the ad. Within fifteen minutes an encrypted email arrived in our inbox, with a hint:

  sexuality . Mother entered other. The message opened an app which displayed a single word star. Mother typed Orion, at which point the message displayed a phone number with a comment stating the number is valid for the next fifteen minutes. Mother called the number.

  “Hello, I understand you are looking for an out-of-this-world fetish-experience,” said the voice on the other end of the phone.

  “Yes we are. It’s my understanding you can provide a very unique experience.”

  “For the right price I can provide anything desired, guaranteed to satisfy even the most discerning clientele’s tastes.”

  “Where can we meet?”

  “That depends on you. Some clients are shy and don’t like being out in public; if this is not a problem we can meet at the following address…” Which happened to be a seedy pawn shop. The meeting was set to occur in six hours, halfway around the world. Good thing we were not flying commercial.

  Pawn shops are great meeting places - there is lots of traffic and few suspicions if anyone shows up with large packages.

  We arrived in the designated Middle Eastern city and went to the address provided. The front entrance to the shop was massive, the doors were at least a foot thick and appeared to be made of wood, but I suspect it was a much stronger material. Despite their great weight they opened with only fingertip pressure. Once inside, the pawn shop looked like any other, with the exception that the guy behind the counter was one of the most beautiful humans I had ever seen.

  “Hello, we spoke on the phone,” I said.

  “Yes, I have been expecting you. Please come this way. You may call me Bob, your names are not important.” He walked around the counter and came out to shake my hand. Trying to describe his walk was difficult, his steps were light but sure, showing he was not only very athletic, but had the grace of a ballet danc
er. He seemed to glide across the shop floor when he walked. Now, I’m not inclined that way, but the aura surrounding this man and his physical presence was incredible. If he had asked, I would have said yes in a heartbeat. My confused thoughts were interrupted as we reached the back of the pawn shop, where he touched a series of switches on a plain panel, causing the back wall to slide into the floor to reveal a high tech workshop. We walked in and the door slid closed behind us.

  “How do you know we’re the real deal?” I asked.

  “One of you is not a hundred percent human according to the scanner in the front door and I detected the drives of your scout ship when you landed in the park behind the pawnshop. Since there is nothing visible on the surveillance cameras, that implies advanced alien stealth technology. I have other means to determine your identity, but that would reveal the strength of the shop’s intelligence network…enough small talk, how can I help?”

  “We need to get into the alien Moon base and look around a bit,” I said.

  “I take it this is an unofficial visit?”

  “You would be correct in that assumption.”

  “Then you need DNA transponders and camouflage stealth suits similar to the local police force, the Sentinels. The suits aren’t a problem - I have a number of sizes and styles in stock. The DNA transponders are more of a challenge. We’ll need a part of someone who is officially authorized to be on the base. There’s a bar across town where human maintenance workers from the Moon often go when on leave. I have some pictures of personnel who are currently on Earth.”