Paul and Zack left the school. Paul introduced Zack to Joe and Lisa as they walked from the classroom. Zack could sense their puzzlement as to why he was there. Normally, selected students did not go back with them in the limousine, but made their way later by plane to their specialized educational destination. That night in the hotel, Zack through his tears told Paul the entire story about his dad, Doc and Chaser. At the end, Paul simply said, “Zack, we’ll make it right.” Joe and Lisa tried not to eavesdrop, but soon found they, too, were feeling badly for Zack.
The next morning after the best breakfast he could remember, Zack was overjoyed as he climbed into the limousine. “Where to, Doc?” said Joe. “The Rutland mayor’s office, 52 Washington Street and 1 Strongs Avenue” said Paul. Upon their arrival, Paul entered the City Hall with Joe, Lisa and Zack. They went down the hall and entered the mayor’s office. The secretary looked up and immediately waved them into the inner office. “How nice,” thought Paul, “It appears I am known here by sight.”
Standing up and extending his hand, the mayor vigorously shook every person’s hand. “Hello, I am Mayor Bruce Beauford. Welcome, please be seated.” Paul introduced himself and the others. Joe then went to the office door and took up position at the entrance. Lisa went to one side. Only Paul and Zack took the offered chairs. Seeing the mayor’s puzzled look, Paul said, “Bodyguards.”
“I understand you are here to find out what happened to Zack’s dad, Frank Johnson. My staff dug through the records with some difficulty. You know things were quite chaotic during those times. We have determined that Frank Johnson was hurt in a bar fight. According to a surviving witness, some drunk started beating his wife. Frank stepped in to try and stop the fight. Unfortunately, the drunk pulled a knife and stabbed Frank. When the police arrived, the drunk charged them and they shot and killed him. Your dad evidently got to his car and left for home before the police arrived. The bar patrons thought he was fine, as no blood was evident. Likely his wound was more severe than he thought. As far as we can tell from the spotty records and extrapolation after the fact, internal bleeding caused him to pass out. His car then went off the road into a heavily overgrown ravine. It was some days later that the car was discovered by a hiker.”
Almost apologetically, Major Beauford then said, “Things often weren’t done right during the Blue Flu period. The police assumed your dad was a victim of the Blue Flu virus. Police and other town officials often didn’t always follow up on these events. Fear prevented some of them from looking for next of kin and going to their house. They often waited for someone to file a missing person’s report. The autopsy report later indicated the true cause of death, but things got lost between the cracks. I know that’s no consolation to you, Zack. Someone should have followed up by coming to your house. I’m sorry for what happened.”
A tear ran down Zack’s face. “I guess he was a hero of sorts, he did the right thing. Where is he buried?” The mayor looked downward. “During those times a special burial ground for Blue Flu victims was dug on the outskirts of Rutland. We have located his burial site. Don’t expect much. It just has a very simple marker with his name and date of death. Given the times, he was cremated.” Paul suddenly said, “Mayor Beauford, I want Mr. Johnson’s cremains exhumed.” He then handed the mayor a piece of paper. “At this address, where Zack lived once, you’ll find two graves. Hopefully, enough of Zack’s markers remain. Zack buried his neighbor, Dr. Harvey Monroe, and his dog, Chaser there. The dog was killed by an armed intruder and Dr. Monroe died a few days later from natural causes. He was in his 80s and likely gave up because his beloved dog was gone. I want both cremated and then have all three urns delivered to my hotel. I’m staying at the Rutland Ramada. I also want a nice burial site in town at the Trinity Episcopal Church Memorial Garden. The plaque should read ‘Here lies Zachary Johnson’s father, Frank Johnson, a hero, and Zack’s best friends, Dr. Harvey Monroe, and Chaser, the dog.’ Those are Zack’s wishes and they will be respected. Here’s the dates as best as Zack can remember them. You can at least check the date from records for his dad. Send me the bill.”
“No need. The city will take care of it. It’s the least we can do, given the circumstances of the past. Given some owed favors, I suspect the cost will be minimal. It will take a few days. Where should I get in touch?” “Well, mayor Beauford, we’ll continue staying at the Ramada. Let me know the minute we can come and view the site. Thanks. We will be on our way.”
Over the next two days, Zack blended in with the routine activities of Paul, Joe and Lisa. All three came to like Zack extremely well. Paul noted the transition in the relationships. He couldn’t help but wonder if it had anything to do with Zack’s empathic ability. Zack just seemed to know when anyone was too busy or in a bad mood and acted accordingly. Of course, thought Paul, it could just be a case of sensing emotions from facial signs and voice tones. Paul had already made arrangements for Zack in Stamford. Zack would go into the spare bedroom. Somehow Paul just knew that Roberta and Roxanne would fall in love with him. Later, they would head to Area 51 for testing, both for Zack’s abilities and possible insight into the alien.
On the morning of the third day, Paul and Zack arrived at the Trinity Episcopal Church Memorial Garden. Zack looked resplendent in his new suit that Joe had helped him pick out at the local clothier, McNeil and Reedy, in Rutland’s downtown area on Merchants Row. In a show of respect, Paul, Joe and Lisa all wore suits, even though none of them liked wearing such constrictive clothing. Paul introduced himself to Reverend Manning. At the conclusion of the burial, Zack wiped tears from his eyes, said his private goodbyes, and placed a large bouquet of flowers at the foot of the gravestone. As Paul wiped a tear away from his eye, he thought that the Reverend had done a superb job. As they left, Paul said, “Zack, we can come back here to visit the grave in the future.” Zack smiled and said “Thanks. I appreciate that.”
On the ride back in the limousine, Paul started to read the latest report from General Straub. While marked top secret for military eyes only, Paul was included in the General’s circle, having earned his place with saving the world from Blue Flu. Besides, the General valued his counsel and reactions to things over a glass of single malt scotch. Paul glanced over at Zack, who was busying himself with some sort of computer game. Paul thought to himself with a bit of an internal chuckle. He had been briefly thinking he shouldn’t read the report in Zack’s presence, as he might pick something up with his abilities.
The report was a summary of GAF’s state of weapon readiness for when the aliens showed up again. Paul paid particular attention to the last bit of weaponry only finished recently. Initially, most of the attention had been paid to surface and planetary atmospheric defense. That part Paul knew well and so did the general public. That knowledge was essential to maintain public confidence and support for GAF and the World Government.
Everyone knew about the new heavily armored fighters, the Warthog-OS and the F-22EV. The heavily armored Warthog-OS with its extensive array of uranium slug rapid firing cannons was designed for last ditch air defense of the lower atmosphere and ground troop/base support. The F22-EV with its laser reflective armor and combined fanjet/ramjet engines defended the upper atmosphere and near space region with its powerful missiles and attack lasers. The missiles possessed shaped charges encapsulated within an armor piercing uranium slug head.
Ground troops were equipped with state of the art body armor which when worn with the special target acquiring helmet gave unerring accuracy of fire from assault weapons firing hybrid cartridges with very powerful propellants and a three part bullet. The outer part of the cartridge consisted of an extremely sharp pointed titanium piece coated with Teflon for initial armor penetration. The second part was a depleted uranium slug and the third part an explosive charge that detonated on impact, thus ramming the uranium slug through the hole created by the titanium lead slug. Of course these target acquiring helmets also directed firing from the fighter planes, too. A special
cartridge insert for the helmet also protected the wearer from biological and chemical weaponry. The special energy pack that powered the armor and helmet was known to exist, but details had been deliberately withheld. These soldiers were the last line of defense. If fighting, it meant that the aliens had defeated the outer and near space defenses as well as the upper and lower atmospheric ones.
Near space was defended by orbital weapon platforms armed with powerful lasers and particle beams powered by lithium nanotech batteries that were capable of supplying large energy bursts and able to be rapidly recharged by solar energy from the sun. There were two sets of batteries so that one could recharge while the other fired. At a minimum, two shots in rapid order were possible. Special software designed by the Apple/Google consortium enabled the platforms to instantaneously track and fire upon multiple crafts in all directions. Ground bases were also equipped with similar systems, but also giant rail guns. These were the last ditch defense before the ground forces fought their last ditch effort.
The outer space defenses hopefully would stop the enemy before these closer-in defense lines were needed. That part of the report was what interested Paul. The public knew something existed out there and likely involved atomic weaponry, but had no idea of the design or capabilities. The something was designated as AIDAW, Artificial Intelligence Directed Atomic Weaponry. AIDAW development had been overseen by General Douglas and production under General JI. At this juncture, Paul thought to himself that General Straub was very astute leaving the weaponry program to General Douglas while he concentrated on overall defensive strategy. These weapons were designed to look like asteroids, meteors and comets. The Apple/Google software engineers created top secret AIs for the systems heart. The AI had an array of sensing mechanisms from radar to infrared to gravity wave detection. These sensors could detect an activating wormhole and track the emerging vessel. The AI would determine the best way to maneuver closer to the target without creating suspicion. It would make a decision on when and where to detonate the hydrogen bomb for maximal proximity destruction. If not close enough or it detected weapons tracking from the vessel it would stop stalking the ship and alert another sister AIDAW based on the vessels projected track.
A considerable part of Earth’s atomic weaponry had been diverted to these AIDAWs. That part had not been easy, Paul knew. General Straub used every pressure and diplomatic ploy to get these weapons under his command. President Chung had been the most difficult, being unwilling to let the US dominance slip. Of course, she also had no love for the General, thought Paul. She finally relented after the Chinese and Russian governments agreed and backed her into a corner. Paul had no doubt that President Chung likely held back a significant number of atomic missiles kept hidden from the official records. No matter though, he thought. It sounds like we are well prepared, should the aliens return. Paul closed the report for now as it was heavy reading. He looked over at Zack. “How goes your game, Zack? Are you winning?” With a smile Zack answered, “Yes, I am.”
Later the limousine pulled into the garage at Paul’s Stamford apartment complex. Paul had called ahead to alert Roberta to their new arrival and guest. As they opened the door, Roberta and Roxanne excitedly greeted them. After licking Paul’s face and hand, Roxanne trotted over to Zack and wagged her tail enthusiastically. Zack reached down and patted her head gently after letting Roxanne smell his hand. Then Zack massaged Roxanne’s ears gently to the obvious delight of Roxanne. Paul could tell from the somewhat pained expression on Zack’s face that Roxanne brought back memories of a dog recently left behind in Rutland. Paul hurriedly introduced Zack to Roberta, who gave Zack a motherly hug. Paul thought to himself, Zack will do well here between Roxanne and Roberta’s care and love. Zack went to bed that night, well fed and feeling better than he had in a long time.
Over the next few weeks, Zack was fitted with new clothes and started home schooling with a tutor. Things were going well. Paul felt a new lease on life. Having a young person around seemed stimulating. Roberta seemed more charged than usual, to Paul’s delight. Paul’s relationship with Roberta seemed to be going better than ever. Paul found himself becoming attached to Zack. He was in no hurry to send him off for psi testing and the ultimate meeting with the captured alien, should Zack indeed have empathic properties. Paul was beginning to feel that it might be true, as Zack always seemed to know their moods and act accordingly. He was sure that Roberta and Roxanne shared his strong feeling about Zack and were in no hurry to see him off. Fate seemed to have other ideas.
Paul decided one morning after breakfast to check in with General Straub. Zack was off with his tutor, doing quite well, based on the tutor’s feedback. Roberta was off on some errand. Paul rang the special number on his P-Com that General Straub had given him. General Straub was sitting at his desk. “Damn” said the General to the air. He was reading the latest report on efforts to glean any sense of communication from the alien, which was a total failure. Everything had been tried from obscure languages to current ones to computer language to mathematical symbols and equations. Nothing seemed to provoke any response from the alien. Either the alien couldn’t be broken or it utilized some totally weird form of communication. General Douglas looked at his chiming P-Com. He decided to take a break and chat with Paul.
“Hi, Paul; you caught me at a frustrating time. I was reading the latest report on the alien. We haven’t got any sense whatsoever of how to communicate. As he glanced down at the report, the last sentence caught his eye. Well, Paul, there is one bit of change. Some of the handlers seem to feel that the alien is showing some emotion. They swear he smiles to himself when they weren’t looking these last few days. They might be right. I’m looking at the surveillance tapes. I guess you could call that open mouth with its vicious teeth a smile. Something is up. So what’s new with you? How did the latest trip go? You have any new geniuses for us?”
Paul responded with a heavy heart. Once again, fate crashed the party. “Tyler, yes, we have an off the chart female, Amy Wang. She’ll become a world-class engineer. I also have a possible empath, who not only claims to sense emotions, but also snatches of thought or perhaps images. I don’t know exactly, as he hasn’t been tested yet. I have some reason to believe that there might be some truth to it. His name is Zack.”
“Paul, forget any preliminary testing in Stamford. Bring Zack here. We’ll have him meet the alien first and start testing later here. I’ll have everything ready. We’ll send a military courier jet to JFK for you and Zack and the bodyguards. I’ll have my aide text you the time.”
“Tyler, it won’t be just me, Zack, Lisa and Joe. I need to bring Roberta and Roxanne. It’s not for me. They seem to make Zack more functional, more outgoing. Just call it a hunch. I think Zack will be at his best if they are present.” “Fine, Paul. Just get here. I doubt that it is a good thing if the alien is smiling. We need to know why.”
Paul had a heavy heart. He texted Roberta: “Please return immediately. I’m OK, but we have an urgent situation.” He motioned Joe and Lisa into his office. “Put on your military dress uniforms and pack. Arrange packing for me, Roberta, Zack and Roxanne. We are going to Area 51 at once. Meet me here in one hour. Bring Zack with you. Joe and Lisa looked at him questioningly, but Paul didn’t take the bait. “One hour” was all he said again.
Paul looked out at the group with their questioning faces. Joe and Lisa looked great in their uniforms with their Captain’s insignia prominently showing. Paul appreciated having them with him when they arrived in Area 51. The military types took Paul more seriously when Joe and Lisa were with him. “An urgent situation has taken place in Area 51 regarding the alien. Something is up and we need to find out what, if we can. Zack, you are needed for this. I was hoping to not introduce you to the alien until after testing.” Seeing Zack’s eyes go wide, Paul said, “Yes, you will have a go at our captured alien. Understand that the alien is a top secret and you must not, I repeat, must not, tell anyone of this. Do you understand?” “Y
es, Dr. Laurent, I do. You don’t have to worry about me.” “Roberta, I am assuming you want to go with Zack. We’ll bring Roxanne, too.” The relieved expression on Roberta’s face said it all. While Roxanne couldn’t answer, Paul knew that the dog hated not having Zack around. She even followed Zack to his daily lessons.
Sometime later they emerged from the limousine in a private garage reserved for VIPs as designated by the U.S. branch of the GAF. Joe and Lisa trundled their minimal luggage to the elevator while Roberta led Roxanne on her leash. Seeing the longing look in Zack’s eyes, Roberta handed the lead over to Zack, who gave her a beaming smile. Somehow Roxanne’s normal senior dog walk got a little more spirited. As they neared the military VIP jet, Paul couldn’t help but marvel at the top of the line Eclipse jet. Once inside, they were all amazed by its luxurious interior. The GAF air force pilot and co-pilot greeted them warmly as they entered. Captain Angel Pintero requested that they be seated as quickly as possible while Joe and Lisa stowed their luggage and put Roxanne into a portable crate that was then belted to the floor. After they were airborne, Captain Pinter’s voice came over the intercom. “My apologies, we didn’t have a lot of time to stock up on food and beverages, given the rapidity of the need to get you to Area 51. Co-Pilot Norman Naderoff will serve you shortly. The choice is limited to Angus beef burgers with all the fixings, beer, wine, soda and water. Sorry, we have no desert. Oh, yes, we can provide coffee and tea. Roxanne had no clue about food, but licked her chops after Zack slipped her a nice piece of burger later. Turning, Zack saw Roberta give him a wink. Clearly, he didn’t need to sense her emotions. She had just given him that caught in the act look.
The Manhattan Incident Page 31