Are they just brainwashing me, so I won’t be a threat anymore?
Grant laughed rather charmingly.
“Give us the benefit of the doubt. We’ve gone very far in educating folks here.”
Yeah, I bet!
“Just don’t expect miracles.”
“You may surprise yourself.” She softly laughed again, and resumed her spiel. “The first part of your lessons will bring you up to date on your world history. A lot more than technology has changed.
“For instance, Earth would probably still be recovering from the Third World War if it wasn’t for the Alliance.”
Ray’s interest was immediately piqued. “What do you mean?”
“Our priority was rebuilding civilization after the war. We made some major discoveries on our own, but without the help of the Alliance, we’d be pretty far behind.”
“So the aliens just gave us all this awesome technology?”
“Ray, we all know nothing comes free in life; there’s always a price tag attached. The aliens didn’t forget that. Don’t think a Cettian ship happened to be orbiting Mars when an Earth shuttle arrived just to look at the scenery. The Cettian Alliance fully intended to make contact with the human race at that time. They did this for two reasons. The Cettians and the Tereaeans were intrigued by the fact we looked so much like them, so we all had something in common. Lots of Alliance corporations saw Earth as a great business opportunity, a way to make huge sums of money by selling us technology and buying out Earth-owned corporations.
“It’s no big surprise Earth was flooded with alien capitalists and businessmen when we joined the Alliance. I think some people still feel they exploited us in some way, that we sold out our freedom to them in exchange for advanced technology.
“You can no doubt imagine people are still ticked off about that today…. You’ll learn more about that during your lessons.”
Ray wanted to ask more about this rather mercenary spin on the first contact scenario, but Jennifer continued without barely any hesitation.
“We’re also going to have to retrain you so you can function as a military officer here. The training process has, as you can expect, changed somewhat, but not nearly as much as you might think.”
Ray had to say what was on his mind. “This isn’t some sort of brainwashing machine, is it?”
“Hell no. We don’t…can’t tell you what to think. You just receive the information more efficiently. How you use it is up to you.”
Ray couldn’t hide his skepticism.
“Ask anyone. That’s how we run our education system here.”
Her smile was genuine. Ray just sighed.
“I…I suppose it’s all right then.”
Ray continued to listen with rapt attention to the woman’s description about his upcoming lessons. He couldn’t help but look at her beautiful face, dancing eyes, and slim, athletic body, and his smile began to widen. This was someone who could help him forget his feelings of sadness and loss.
After she finished her brief lecture, Jennifer smiled. “We have to begin your training session. I’ve reserved the first desk for you. It’s already been programmed.”
“Are there any other students?”
“Not right now. You’re in a class of one; you’re unique.”
Ray flashed a confident smile, sat down and dutifully put on the headgear. He was about to push a button when Jennifer added a caution.
“Hold on a second, please. I have to give you a special pill to let your mind accept the intense flow of information. Otherwise, frankly, your brain wouldn’t be able to take it. You aren’t built to absorb this amount of information so quickly.”
“I’m not surprised.” Ray flashed a sickly grin, wondering what might happen if the medicine was dispensed in the wrong proportions.
“Now, don’t you worry. Dr. Johnson took care of that. Time will pass so fast, you’ll barely be aware of it.”
Strange how Dr. Johnson always managed to come up with something that could affect his mind. Ray wondered if it was deliberate rather than standard operating procedure. Regardless, he realized he must accept the inevitable, so he looked up with a passive expression. “Will I be aware of the learning process or just know the information when I need it?”
“It’ll be an unconscious process, Ray,” Jennifer exuded her most confident smile to reassure her new student. “You’ll know what you have to know, and by the end of the day, you’ll probably be exhausted from taking in information. Now it’s time to begin.”
Ray dutifully donned the headgear as Jennifer walked over to him with a brisk, efficient gait, took out a small oval-shaped device, and touched his arm with it. He sensed a brief rush of energy through his veins and then felt relaxed. Jennifer returned to her desk and sat down. After a few minutes, to give the drug time to take effect, she looked into the small viewscreen in front of her and muttered some barely audible commands. The room darkened, and Ray heard some noises coming from his headgear. He adjusted the visors to fit his eyes better and sat back a little nervously.
The sounds became louder and he saw flashes of light. At first, everything proceeded at a very slow pace. He could see what appeared to be a three-dimensional newsreel, showing him events from his own history. The passage of information began to accelerate. Soon, the march of events and sounds moved so rapidly, he nearly became dizzy. At this point, the medication he had been given must have taken full effect because he lost consciousness in a whir of information he could barely grasp.
As quickly as the feeling arrived, it passed, and silence came in its wake. He felt someone removing the visor from his eyes and gently taking the helmet off his head. As Major Grant promised, he was seldom aware of how much time passed during the sessions.
For the next week, the process continued without letup. It almost got to be boring after a few days. Ray sat down at his teaching machine, accepted his medication, his lessons and his lunch breaks. Jennifer remained with him all the time, looking for all the world like she was actually interested in Ray’s experiences while undergoing his rapid-fire schooling.
Well, I suppose she has to pretend to be interested. It’s all part of the game!
Ray felt he had been doing physical labor for hours without letup. He’d slowly stand, feeling a little dizzy. At times there’d be a wave of nausea. Neither Jennifer nor the security people who came in from time to time seemed overly concerned. When Ray was escorted to his room at night, he was given another medication to make him comfortable before he went to sleep.
* * *
As Ray continued to be fed the intimate details of present day life, President Rogers met with Dr. Johnson in his personal briefing room.
A grave expression lined Rogers’ face. “Now we need to assess the Rockoid situation. Show me the latest visuals from our scout ships.”
Johnson nodded and gave a few commands to the viewscreen. Within seconds, the pictures appeared.
The oval-shaped Rockoid warships moved slowly. Six small, triangle-shaped Alliance scout ships, literally dots on the screen compared to the gigantic Rockoid cruisers, were trailing at a safe distance behind them.
After playback concluded, Johnson said, “I wish I had some news to report, Mr. President, but the fleet has barely moved in the past two hours. It’s like an old rusty wagon or something. At the rate the Rockoids are going, they’ll never get anywhere. And they’re not responding to the hails from our scout ships or seeming to notice us. Luckily, they haven’t shown any signs of aggression…yet.”
“Exactly,” Rogers broke in. “We still don’t know exactly what the Rockoids will do, but one thing is clear: more and more ships are coming every day.”
Johnson’s eyes widened. “This sounds bad, Mr. President. I don’t think I’m alone here when I say I think the Rockoids are coming here for something other than simple exploration. They could be out for blood. Maybe we should put our forces on alert…just in case.”
“Henry, you know the Alliance has
to abide by its codes of conduct. We aren’t allowed to fire until we’re fired upon.”
Johnson rolled his eyes. “I’ve heard that excuse a million times already. I have a feeling we’re all gonna live to regret that policy.”
Rogers looked at his old friend sadly and said, “You know the political climate around here. They don’t have the stomach for another war. We’re just going to have to wait it out and keep our fingers crossed.”
A serious look came over Johnson’s face. “Mr. President, I hate to bring this up, but do you really think Perkins is right when he says we attacked the Rockoids first? Do you think it’s even possible?”
Rogers seemed unprepared for the question. A look of consternation came over him, and sweat began to pour down his face. After straightening his collar and clearing his throat, he responded in a hoarse tone. “No, of course not, Dr. Johnson. You and I know that Thompson is one of the Alliance’s most highly decorated military leaders! She would never risk doing something so terrible! You’ve been close to her and her family; how you could you even consider such a thing?”
Johnson sighed. The doubts began to pile up in his mind. In recent days, he had been thinking more and more about the disturbing information revealed in Ray’s dreams. Rogers was right when he said Thompson was not the sort of person who would launch an unprovoked assault on an alien colony. He had known her since she was a child playing cheerfully in his backyard. She was like a daughter to him. He had to trust her, her honesty, her instincts.
Why can’t I get that nagging feeling out of my stomach?
He managed to stammer, “I don’t know. I mean, Perkins’ dreams have been right all along, down to the very last detail. Could he be right about this, too?”
Rogers stood up and put a comforting hand on Johnson’s shoulder. “Henry, think logically here. You’ve said it yourself many times; dreams are not literal descriptions of events. Some of the details in Perkins’ dreams may have been distorted by his subconscious. I’m sure his impression that Thompson attacked the Rockoids first is way off target. How could anyone believe such a terrible thing?”
Johnson didn’t press the subject. No use trying to convince the President without hard evidence. He did find it rather strange that Rogers’ denial seemed to be forced. Unfortunately, he’d have to deal with that later; maybe Rogers was merely responding to political pressure, trying to maintain an even keel.
For now he could only pray the Rockoids didn’t have conquest on their minds.
* * *
It was the end of the first week of Ray’s training. After saying goodbye to Jennifer at the conclusion of his session and receiving his nightly dose of medication, he walked out of the room and back down the hall to the front of the building, where Gotlieb was waiting, nervously tapping his foot, glaring at him with hands folded.
“Where were you?”
“Sorry, Jennifer let me out late.”
“I bet she did, old man,” exclaimed Gotlieb with a smile on his face, a smile that looked almost like a leer.
“No, David, it’s not like that. I barely even know her!”
“I know you’re lonely, Ray, but you have to realize you’ve just gone through an experience unlike any other in Alliance history—at least any we know about. You’ve got to try to keep your feelings in check. I know it’s hard, but personal involvements right now probably aren’t a good idea...even if you do want to get laid.”
“I guess so,” Ray sighed. “I just wish everybody would stop trying to pry into my personal life! I mean, sure, leaving my home, my friends and family behind was traumatic, but I’m gonna have to settle down sometime.”
“I get what you’re saying, old man. What you’re feeling is totally normal and Jennifer’s a great-looking woman too. But there’s something you gotta know about her.”
“She’s a lesbian?” Ray broke in.
Gotlieb looked at him quizzically. “A what?”
“You know, a woman who...uhh...likes other women…a lot.”
Gotlieb’s eyes flashed in recognition. “Ah, I see you what you mean, old man. No, we don’t have a special name for anything like that. But these days, pretty much everywhere in the Alliance, you can get married to a man, woman, alien, whoever or whatever you want, as long as it’s legit. Marriage is for love.”
“That’s good to hear,” Ray smiled, feeling reassured that at least some of the discriminatory traditions of Earth’s past had been eliminated.
Gotlieb continued, “This is the situation, Ray. Jennifer’s had a pretty rough time these past few years. Five years ago, her husband died in that battle with the Rockoids on Dorton. She was on another assignment when it happened, and she blamed herself for Jeff Grant’s death. Jennifer had a nervous breakdown, and almost left the service. For the next few years, she traveled around the galaxy in this old freighter she bought second-hand. She said she wanted to get away from it all. It’s only in this past year she’s been able to resume active duty. Please, treat her gently, okay?”
“Of course I will. God, I’m so sorry to hear what she went through. I’ll try not to push her into anything too soon.” Ray gave a faint smile, trying to conceal the thought he could find other ways to comfort her. If only the image of Zanther would leave his subconscious mind. At times, he thought he was married to Zanther and she was always around, watching over him.
No wonder my marriage never worked out!
Since the Rockoids entered Alliance territory, his feelings about their presence had sharply increased. It wasn’t just due to those awful dreams, since the medication helped him rest without much interruption. Whenever he looked to the skies, he could imagine the fleet, closing in on Earth, coming there to…he just didn’t want to think about it.
He tried to change the subject.
“David, what’s the deal between you and Johnson? You’re always bickering with him. I never fought that much with my ex-wife.”
Gotlieb laughed and quickly turned serious, “Ray, old man, you need to understand Henry and I are oil and water. He came from a military background; he’s a military brat, and he can trace his family tree to the American Civil War! He was different in a big way, a child prodigy. He got his first Ph.D. when he was twenty—twenty, can you imagine that?”
Ray nodded. “No big surprise there. Seems like he has his paws in just about every major discovery I’ve seen here so far.”
“I don’t think anybody had the right to stop him, since he went on to get another half dozen of those silly pieces of paper. His family didn’t have any money. He worked nights, washed dishes, sold shoes, got scholarships, whatever it took to stay in school.
“Today he’s a medical doctor, an engineer, a top-flight military strategist. He could have written his own ticket; instead he works for the goddamned Alliance government doing their dirty work for a pittance. He’s the president’s right hand man, cause he won’t lie to curry favor with him.”
“Why does he seem to hate you so much? Personality clashes or something?”
“To some extent, but there was something else. You see, compared to Johnson, I had it pretty easy as a kid,” Gotlieb said, as if he didn’t quite believe things had been so simple for him. “My dad was rich, he contributed to the right political causes, and, worse, he bought a spot for me at the Alliance academy, pushing me ahead of candidates who were a lot more qualified. Johnson knew that, and never let me forget it; he made life miserable for me in basic training. I had to work twice as hard to achieve the same goals as everyone else. You know what—I did it! I got through it and got my goddamned commission, honors, medals. By myself, not with my dad’s cash.”
“I guess things didn’t turn out so bad for you after all. Why did you leave the military?”
“Old man, I was damn sick and tired of it. I was in the Alliance military for twenty years—can you believe that? At times I thought I wouldn’t get out of that hell hole with my head screwed on tight.”
Ray chuckled. “Tell me about it. I didn
’t last more than seven months when I had that goddamned accident in the Middle East.”
“Listen, old man, I just got tired of the hassles and the changing political climate. I had a wife and kid and I needed a real family life for once. I took early retirement and got this job at the Vegas police force. It’s great. Good pay, no serious crimes to worry about. I do my eight hours and head straight home. I don’t have to worry about the money at all, really. My dad left me with this trust fund. I can sit home and watch the viewscreen and drink vodka martinis, or go out and play hovertennis. It’s terrific, what a life.”
Ray could see Gotlieb was not quite as pleased with his situation as he let on. Things had changed now; he was recalled to active duty via the personal intervention of President Rogers the day he arrested Ray. Gotlieb seemed to relish his status as a good friend of the President, and head of the task force set up to probe into Ray’s unique situation.
When they got to the hotel, Ray asked Gotlieb if he wanted to join him for dinner.
“Sorry, old man, got to catch up on some briefing videos. Maybe next time.”
* * *
That night, Ray had dinner alone, as usual—he was hardly conscious of what he ordered or the fact he consumed it so fast he nearly choked on it. He took a shower and plopped down into his bed, asleep with barely a moment’s delay. The dizziness and nausea he occasionally experienced were long gone, and he fell into a quiet, restful sleep. He started to dream of Major Grant; those thoughts soon faded into nothingness. His sleep wasn’t even interrupted by the image of space cruisers, battles, or Rockoids. He didn’t dream at all.
Even better, the hauntingly beautiful Rockoid woman, Zanther, decided to leave him alone for once!
If only he knew that she too, dozens of light years away, often wished he would do the very same thing….
Chapter 11
For the rest of the month, most of Ray’s training sessions consisted of the same tedious routine, though he was seldom aware of the passage of time. By day, he was educated in the finer points of recent Earth history. As time went on, he found he became accustomed to the nausea and dizziness he experienced at the end of each day; after a while he almost didn’t need the medication anymore.
Attack of the Rockoids Page 13