Alien Storm

by Don Viecelli

  Alex looked up. “I think I found something. It needs to be checked by some of our people in NASA, but if it’s what I think it is, then someone needs to be told right away.” He looked concerned.

  “Is it another solar flare?” Commander Bonario was worried about radiation again.

  “No, it’s something different. The data the aliens sent us does seem to give us the ability to forecast solar flares, but it also shows possible effects on Earth. I’m checking historical data we have now on our planet’s magnetic field and cross-referencing the data the aliens sent us.”

  “What’s up?” Major Helms asked as she saw the two of them talking and decided to join them.

  “Alex says he found something in the data the aliens sent us. He was just explaining it. Go ahead, we’re listening.”

  “Well, you know about Solar Minimum and Solar Maximum, which occur in eleven-year cycles. We’re almost at Solar Maximum. At Solar Maximum, the number of sun spots increase and that’s when we also have the most solar flare and CME activity. What you may not know is Solar Maximum is also the time when the sun’s magnetic field flips.”

  “Flips? You mean the poles reverse?” Major Helms asked.

  “That’s right. You have been listening to me, Major,” he grinned at her. “The sun is beginning to reverse poles again. The sun’s north magnetic pole is currently pointing through the southern hemisphere. By next year the North Pole will gradually migrate back to the northern hemisphere. The sun’s poles reverse like clockwork, every eleven years?”

  Back to ‘time’ again, thought Commander Bonario. He couldn’t get away from that damn clock. “If this is so normal, then what are you worried about?” he asked.

  “It’s not the sun’s poles I’m worried about. It’s the Earth’s magnetic poles. They’re beginning to shift also.”

  “What? How can that be?” Commander Bonario asked.

  “Well, the Earth’s magnetic field also flips, but not as often. NASA’s data shows the last reversal occurred 740,000 years ago. It’s happened many times before in our history, on average every 500,000 years.”

  “How do we know this?” Major Helms asked.

  “Believe it or not, it’s based on plate tectonics, the movement of the Earth’s crust. When lava pours from a volcano, it solidifies into a black rock called basalt. Basalt is slightly magnetic, so when it solidifies, it takes on the direction of the surrounding magnetic field at the time. On the sea floor, we found that the lava solidified in strips over a long period of time. The strips were magnetized in opposite directions. So we know how it happened and when. We just couldn’t predict when it will occur again, until now. The aliens gave us a mathematical formula based on the sun’s influence on the Earth’s magnetic field. It seems each time the Earth’s magnetic field is bombarded by a solar flare, it stores a little more energy until finally it has enough energy to start the reversal process. According to these calculations, the Earth’s magnetic field reversal has started. Our poles will completely reverse in two years.”

  “What will happen? Will it be bad?” Major Helms asked.

  “Fortunately, not as bad as you might think. The effects will be minimal as far as I know. The magnetic field will still be there and our atmosphere is thick enough to protect us from the sun’s radiation. The only thing I know for certain that will be affected is our navigation systems. All our compasses will be off for a year. Everything will have to be recalibrated to prevent navigational errors.”

  “What will you do?” Commander Bonario wanted to know.

  “I need to send these calculations to NASA to verify. They can decide what to do from there.”

  “Alright, do it. I’ll tell Major Parker to help you send it. Let us know when you’re ready.”

  Commander Bonario was getting ready to leave when he heard Major Parker call him over the intercom system. His voice was tense. “Commander, you better get back here! We have company again.”

  Commander Bonario, Major Helms and Alex all rushed to the command module. On the monitor screens they saw the alien space ship parked in orbit above them some distance away. The sight of the ship made Major Helms uneasy. She didn’t know why. She didn’t feel threatened. It was just that the ship was so big. Commander Bonario and Alex were more excited than scared. They both wondered what it was like on board. They were dying to visit the ship and see for themselves.

  “You better send word to NASA, Major Parker,” Commander Bonario said. “I think it’s time to find out what the President is planning to do. Tell them we need to speak with Doctor Tannenbaum. The sooner, the better.”

  Major Parker put the call through to ground control in Houston. They exchanged a few words and Major Parker turned to tell them what the CATO officer said. “Commander, Lee says the Director is trying to pass word on to Doctor Tannenbaum. We should hear back in a few minutes. They waited in silence. Everyone’s eyes were on the monitors, half expecting the aliens to start communication with them though the computers again.

  Ground control called them back in seven minutes. Doctor Tannenbaum was on the line, patched in from Washington, DC by Lee Chen. “Hello, this is Doctor Tannenbaum. Is Commander Bonario there?”

  “Yes, Doctor Tannenbaum, I’m here.”

  “NASA told me the UFO is back. Did they say anything?”

  “I wouldn’t exactly call it a UFO, Doctor. We know who they are now and, no, they haven’t said a word to us. They’re just sitting out there waiting for our reply.”

  “Sorry, Commander. The President has been very busy. He just heard from the Defense Secretary. It seems the aliens abducted some of our people last night and returned them this morning. The aliens found one of the disks, so we don’t have to worry about giving that one back. The President plans to go public today with the news about the alien crash in the U.P. He is willing to return whatever the aliens want. The President just needs a little more time to work with the news media and clear the news with others in the government and alert the United Nations to what’s going on. We don’t want to panic anyone down here.”

  “What should I tell the Tularians then?”

  “The President has given me a statement for you to send to them. It’s brief, but I think it will do the job. Do you want me to read it to you or just send it?”

  “Go ahead and read it, Doctor.”

  “Okay, here’s what it says: ‘To Commander Orlutinion and the people of Tular. It is with great sadness and our deepest regrets that we acknowledge the loss of one of your spacecraft on our planet and the death of all four crewmembers. It was an unfortunate accident and steps will be taken to prevent it from happening again in the future.

  “We are extremely thankful for the efforts of your crew to save the life of one of our astronauts aboard the International Space Station, and also for your efforts to help save the space station during the most recent solar storm. Our nation is very grateful.

  “On behalf of my country and all other nations of the world, I welcome you and the people of Tular to our planet. Your presence has confirmed what only a few people on our planet believed beforehand, that other intelligent life besides our own does exist in the universe. It will take some time before everyone on our world believes this.

  “I have authorized that the bodies and other items you have requested be returned to you as soon as possible. We will have everything ready for delivery to you by the end of today. We will advise the location of the bodies by sending you the coordinates through Commander Bonario aboard the International Space Station.

  “We look forward to meeting you and partnering with your people in the further exploration of space.

  “Signed: Tom Maxwell, President of the United States of America

  “That’s it. I’ll have NASA send you a copy. Please forward this statement to Commander Orlutinion.”

  “It sounds good, Doctor Tannenbaum. Please thank the President on behalf of our crew. We’ll forward it to the Tularians as soon as we receive it.

 
“By the way, one of our crewmembers, Alex Vladamir, has been analyzing some of the data the Tularians sent us. He found something interesting about our magnetic field. He is sending the data to NASA ground control for verification. You might want to discuss it with them.”

  “Will do, Commander. Let me know if the Tularians have a response to the President’s statement. He’ll be going public this morning after he meets with some people. The press briefing is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. this afternoon, Eastern Time. I’ll talk to you later. Good luck up there.”

  “Thank you, Doctor.” Commander Bonario turned to the crew. “Well, you heard what the President had to say. Major Parker, send the statement to Commander Orlutinion as soon as you get it from NASA. Let’s see what happens.”

  Chapter 31

  Duluth, MN:

  The trip from Duluth Air Force Base was tense with anticipation. They lifted off the airfield at 0730 hours Central Daylight Time. This time Dave was flying in a modified troop transport plane. It could hold 140 people plus enough cargo space to outfit a platoon. General Anderson was on the phone with General Walton, so Dave got up and walked back to where Kaye and her TV crew were busy preparing for the newscast. Kaye saw him coming and signaled him with her hand that she would be off the phone in a minute. Kurt and Debbie were going over details for the day’s events.

  Dave sat down in the seat across the aisle from Kaye. She hung up the phone and smiled at him. She looked excited. “Sorry, Dave. I was on the phone with Dick. I told him we found Ryan and his friends. I told him about our meeting with the aliens. He wants all the details, but I told him I would tell him later. He’s making arrangements in Chicago for me to go on the air as a co-anchor starting next week.”

  “Congratulations, Kaye. It’s what you always wanted, isn’t it?”

  “It is, but I feel more nervous than I thought I would.”

  “Don’t worry. You’ll be great.” He could feel her excitement. It was a dream come true. It happens to only a few people in their entire life. “What’s the plan for today, if I may ask?”

  “It’s going to be a very busy day. After I meet with the President, I have to do a piece about the press briefing on the northern lawn of the White House for my news station in Chicago. The President’s Press Secretary will release some of our film footage of the UFO crash and give a statement to the press and news bureaus starting at eleven Washington time. By eleven-thirty, the whole world will know what happened. At twelve-thirty, I meet with the Press Secretary. I’ll attend the press briefing at two p.m. and after the President reads his statement, he’ll let me ask the first questions about the aliens. What about you? What are your plans?”

  “General Anderson and I will meet with General Walton and the Defense Secretary, Harry Patterson, after we land at Andrews Air Force Base. They want to meet you and your team as well. I’ll update them on the crash investigation and our little trip aboard the spaceship. Then we all meet with the President just before his press briefing. So I guess we’ll see each other at the press briefing.”

  “I guess we will. I’ll talk to you later. I have to go over plans with Kurt and Debbie before we land.”

  Dave got up and walked back to his seat. The general was off the phone now. General Anderson motioned for him to sit down. “General Walton says the meeting with Harry and the President is all set. After the plane lands, we’ll be driven to the Pentagon to meet with the Defense Secretary. Then we’ll go to the White House to meet briefly with the President. You'll tell him what you told me about the Tularian Commander. He wants to know everything. General Walton says the Tularian spaceship returned this morning. It’s near the ISS again, but there hasn’t been any communication since yesterday. The President sent a message to the ISS for Commander Bonario to forward to Commander Orlutinion. The President agreed to return the bodies and the devices they requested. The President is waiting for a reply. I instructed the team in Milwaukee to prepare the bodies for transport today. We’ll assume the Tularians will pick them up sometime tonight, so we’ll have to fly to Milwaukee after the press conference.”

  “Anything else?” Dave asked the General.

  “I suggest you finish your report before we land and send it to General Walton. He’ll pass it on.”

  “Okay. I should be done in an hour. I’ll talk to you later.” Dave moved back to his seat and began typing up his report. He asked for another cup of coffee and concentrated on finishing the report. He had written so many reports on the crash investigation so far, he figured he had enough material for a book. Maybe that’s what he should do after this was all over he realized for the first time. He could take a leave and write a book. He could do it on his boat. How long would the material be classified Top Secret, he wondered? He would ask the general when he was done with the report. He put the thought out of his mind and concentrated on finishing the report.

  The plane landed at 1030 hours at Andrews Air Force Base in Washington, DC. Everybody packed up their things and walked down the steps to waiting cars sent from the Pentagon. Dave, General Anderson and two aides got in one car, and the TV reporters got into the second car. Within a few minutes, they were speeding westward on the Beltway to the Pentagon.

  The cars stopped at two checkpoints before being allowed to drive into the underground parking garage at the Pentagon. They all exited the cars and followed General Anderson to the elevators. They went up to the top floor and stepped into the lobby where they had to show their identification badges and pass through metal detectors. Then they wore allowed to be escorted to the Defense Secretary’s office. General Anderson greeted Mary warmly, “Hello, Mary. We’re here to meet with Secretary Patterson and General Walton.”

  “Good morning, General Anderson. Secretary Patterson is expecting you. Let me tell him you’re here.” Mary walked to the Secretary’s door, knocked quietly, looked inside and told the Defense Secretary that General Anderson and several other people were here to see him. The Secretary told Mary to send them in. Mary opened the door and let them enter the room. Harry Patterson and General Walton were waiting for them.

  “Hello, General Anderson. It’s good to see you.” Harry Patterson greeted him in front of his desk and shook his hand.

  “Good morning, Mr. Secretary, General Walton. Let me introduce the others with me. This is Colonel Dave Hampton, our chief crash investigator handling the UFO crash, and this is the TV news crew from Chicago the President requested to document the crash scene—Kaye Weston, the TV news reporter; Kurt Flannigan and Debbie Meyers. Colonel Hampton and Kaye both were taken aboard the alien spaceship last night. They have a message for the President.”

  Harry Patterson and General Walton shook everybody’s hand and asked them to sit down at the round conference table in the room. “Would anybody like something to drink?” Secretary Patterson asked. He asked Mary to bring some coffee, water and other refreshments for the group. “What was it like aboard the spaceship?” he asked.

  “It was big, Mr. Secretary.” Dave described the abduction and trip to Jupiter in detail. He described the size of the spaceship and the ride on the transporter vehicle. Kaye added several comments on what the Tularians looked like and how they were dressed. They both described the meeting with Commander Orlutinion and the Administrative Council. Everyone listened in complete silence. Dave told them what Commander Orlutinion said and what information he was willing to give to the President in exchange for the return of the bodies and the memory disks. Then he told them about Commander Orlutinion’s daughter who was one of the crewmembers who died in the crash. It took ten minutes.

  “Did they say when the next solar flare would occur?” General Walton asked.

  “No, but it might be found in the data they sent us. NASA may know something by now,” Dave replied. “We also have data from one of the memory disks in Milwaukee. General Anderson can fill you in on that.”

  General Anderson described what happened in Milwaukee with Bill Murphy, the computer scientist from JPL. Gene
ral Walton was already familiar with the story from his conversations with General Anderson. They were still analyzing the data. With the data from NASA and from Milwaukee, the generals knew they would uncover enough information to advance Earth space science and technology by at least 100 years. The President would have to make the decision on what to do with the information.

  Time was up. They had to end their discussion. It was time to meet with the President. Secretary Patterson said they had a meeting with the President in the Oval Office at 11:45 a.m. The drivers were waiting for them in the parking garage. They left the Secretary’s office and hurried down the hall to the elevators. They found the drivers waiting by the two cars. They split up into two groups, Secretary Patterson, the two generals and Dave got in the first car and the TV reporters got into the second car. They drove out of the garage and were soon speeding down the highway along the Potomac River to the White House.

  The sun was shining though scattered clouds. Kaye could see the capital buildings as they crossed the 14th Street Bridge over the river. She called her boss on the cell phone and told him where she was. He told her what was happening on the news. “They broke the news on the UFO crash, Kaye! At eleven a.m., the White House released a statement to all the national news stations and cable networks. They released footage you and Kurt shot in the U.P. Everybody is trying to locate you. They want interviews. You’re going to be famous, Kaye.” He sounded genuinely pleased for her.

  Kaye thought for a moment. “Did the President say anything, Dick?”

  “No, the statement said he would hold a press briefing at two p.m., Eastern Time. I called the Press Secretary. He was trying to get a hold of you. You have a meeting with him after you see the President. He wants you to ask the President a couple of questions at the press briefing. That’s the deal we cut when you promised to withhold breaking the story two days ago. He also wants you to do an interview with the national news network after the press briefing about the UFO crash. He’s making the arrangements. I’ve done everything I can for you from here, Kaye. You’re on your own now. Good luck today with the President.”