Galactic Startup

by Brian Whiting

  The video cut from Alex’s face, and went to a wall mounted camera in the briefing room, when Alex informed his team of the alien ship. After the briefing, it cut to external video feeds of the Destiny landing with the derelict ship in the background. At this point of the broadcast they were about fifty-three minutes into the three-hour special.

  At about one hour and ten minutes, it showed video of Gloria obtaining a sample from inside Dark Star. Then soon after when Kalibri made contact.

  At one hour and thirty minutes the video was showing the briefing where the Kalibri made an alliance and promised support for the United Earth Fleet in anyway it could, even by giving them technology to protect themselves. Included was Kalibri’s prediction that the government was going to attack them, which was intercut with footage of the cargo plane crashing into the hangar.

  At two hours and five minutes, it showed them installing new, alien technologies onto the Destiny while they were still on Titan. The video shifted to them arriving back on Earth and using a Thean laser (the “decoupler”) to cut an escape route in the rear of the hangar, out of sight from those camped at the front gate, less than an hour before the attack occurred.

  Finally, the broadcast switched to a live feed, with Alex and Renee on the bridge of the Destiny itself.

  “My name is Renee Sorensen. Joining me tonight is President of the United Earth Fleet, Alex Prager. Alex, this is extraordinary footage the world has just seen.”

  “It is. But I want to be clear that there is no need for anyone to lose their calm. No major threats are immanent. In the long run, UEF is going to vastly scale up its operations in order to be able to safeguard the planet. I won’t lie, it will require substantial changes to the way things are done, globally. But these are changes that will only make the world a better place to live. I believe they will be welcomed by everyone. Nevertheless, it seems the government has gone to great lengths to keep this information from the public, and to prevent the necessary development that they know is required,” Alex said, and continued. “We have just heard that power was cut to the city of Hartford, Connecticut, where Global News is headquartered. They are desperate to stop this broadcast, but they are too late.”

  “Indeed,” Renee followed. “The CEO of Global News told me just hours ago that several government representatives used threats to attempt to stop the broadcast before it started.” She feigned looking around.

  “Alex, where are we?”

  “We are on a research vessel in the Pacific Ocean. We will remain in international waters for the immediate future. But I should be clear that what concerns me more than our own government, is the Zorn. What Kalibri has shown us is truly terrifying.”

  “What do you intend to do?” asked Renee.

  “We believe this problem requires a global response, and we believe the nations of the world are too divided to provide it. They have not been able to defeat poverty, corruption or any other global or systemic issue. Reason suggests they cannot handle a global threat like the Zorn either. UEF is going to operate above both political and economic factors. I intend to upgrade our technology in defense, medical and manufacturing industries. The end goal is not just to protect humanity, but to make it better. I will make a call for service to all the people of this world. We want everyone to join us in this exciting new future.”

  “Your plans sound ambitious. What if our governments don’t want you to represent them to an alien society?”

  “Then I’d say it’s too late. I have formed the first interstellar alliance and I intend to honor it.”

  “How do you feel about your government trying to kill you?”

  “It is despicable, but also predictable. This is how they operate. I have dealt with it for years now. I believe the people of the world are sick of this kind of behavior. And I should be clear that if anyone decides to attack us again, we will defend ourselves with weapons you have not imagined to exist,” Alex said, eyes locked on the camera.

  “Thank you, Alex. As always, there is more information on our website, which we will update as things develop. Thank you for watching.”

  Drake reached over and picked up his cell phone. Scrolling through his massively extensive contact list, he finally found his son’s contact number and dialed it. There was no answer and he felt too proud to leave a voice message, so he just put the phone back down.

  ***

  “How did we let this happen?” the President of the United States asked. The three-hour special just had ended and he was holding an emergency staff meeting.

  “Obviously, we are in damage control. What’s the best way to proceed?” Sarah the Communications Director replied. “The public is out for blood. Nothing short of complete cooperation between our office and the UEF is going to temper the mood. There’s gotta be juice with it, too. Handshakes, hugs, routine meetings, the whole gambit.”

  “Sir, Alex has positioned himself as the representative of the planet, and currently by default, its leader. The way he’s presenting information is clear, open and direct. The people support him. Hell, I’d support him,” said Karl Fulmax, earning a stern look from the President.

  “What’s the best way to accomplish our goals?” the President asked.

  “Sir, our agencies are trying to catch up. Things are developing too quickly. There are emergency meetings planned and booked solid for the next few days. The UN is going to be wanting to know if we are in a defacto state of interstellar war. The news agencies are drooling for any information. Everyone is in a state of information panic. We have calls from every Congressman’s office and even more from our financial supporters. The few I spoke to are pissed. They want us to get control of the UEF before they get too big. What we need is to create stability. I think you should come out, deny the attack, and welcome opportunities for cooperation. Tell them you need them to send a liaison to our office,” said Steven Mckay, the President’s Chief Strategist, while pretending to review notes in his notepad.

  “I think that will backfire. There’s a massive breach of trust right now. We need to earn that back.” Sarah responded.

  “Write up a speech. I’ll do a press conference sometime tomorrow. For the time being we need to collect more information. We’re obviously not in a position to make any long term decisions,” the President sat back in his chair. He looked exhausted.

  ***

  The world’s media erupted. Renee attempted to keep tabs on as many outlets as she could. But the UEF was every single story right now. She flicked onto a three-way panel on a rival station.

  “Some kid just declared himself ruler of the planet. Doesn’t anyone have a problem with this?” a pundit in a business suit was saying.

  “Lets look at what he’s accomplished so far -”

  “I don’t care what he’s accomplished, he dropped out of college -”

  “They created viable space travel. He was the first person to go to Mars, Saturn, all while fighting off our government and keeping everything -”

  “The government keeps us safe. What he did was reckless, and the things he’s talking about now are essentially treason. He brought multiple unknown organisms to this planet. Creatures we know nothing about.”

  “My point is, after everything he’s done, don’t you think there’s a strong likelihood his plans will succeed? What will you do if he transforms our world in the way he says he will?”

  “The young dream and the experienced do.”

  “Not this guy. He does both.”

  Renee flipped the channel. Pundits were paid to be contrary, but in general the people were furious over the attack on the UEF. Many were calling for heads to roll.

  ***

  It had only been a couple of hours since the broadcast ended when Alex’s phone rang. Alex and Renee recognized the number.

  “This is Alex.”

  “Alex, this is the President. I want to express my concern for what happened to your facility. We are doing everything we can to determine the cause of the accide
nt.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Alex, what you are doing now has enormous consequences for national security. I must demand that you involve my office.”

  “Mr. President, you do not own space. None of us do. A lesson the Zorn will soon teach us.”

  “You cannot survive without the Earth. I can make life extremely uncomfortable for you when you need resources in the future.”

  “It’s saddening that you still choose to threaten me, Mr President. I no longer have the option of thinking in terms of nations. They will soon be obsolete. If the US bars its doors, we can go elsewhere. Not that you have any means of stopping us from going anywhere we like.”

  The President was not used to being addressed in this manner by his own citizens.

  “I am going to destroy you!” he hissed.

  “Mr President. I’m on a spaceship in international waters. Do not contact me again if you still believe I owe you any allegiance whatsoever.” Alex disconnected the line.

  Several days later, the President was caught lying to the American people after he described his version of the conversation, prompting Renee to release her recording of it. The public went manic against the President. Shortly after, the Destiny departed for a return trip to Titan. Someone, whose motives are still unknown, decided it was in the country’s best interest to assassinate the President, and succeeded in doing so.

  ***

  “It’s good to see you back, Captain,” said Kalibri over the Destiny’s speakers, as soon as the ship entered Titan’s atmosphere.

  “Likewise, friend,” Alex replied. He and others were already suiting up for an EVA.

  “I have compiled a list of technologies that you will be able to usefully employ. In addition, I have a list of repairs that will be essential to make this ship partially operational. I assume things went well back on Earth.”

  Alex smiled to himself.

  “We’re still alive, if that’s what you mean. Kalibri, it is customary to request communication before initiating it. It is also polite to ask to review our data before doing so.”

  “Yes, Captain. I am happy to employ Earth etiquette.”

  The team trudged out to the Dark Star wreck.

  “Captain, with some minor repairs we can reestablish atmosphere to a majority of the ship. It will expedite further work,” Kalibri offered.

  “Sounds good. Please coordinate your repair needs with Jorge. In the meantime, I’d like to continue our conversation.”

  “It is not difficult to maintain multiple communication channels. What would you like to discuss, Captain?”

  “I want to know more about digiforms.” Alex watched as the some of the crew entered the wreck. He stayed on the surface and picked at odd-looking pieces of debris. The closer he got to the wreckage, the harder and firmer the pieces were stuck in the ground. Some of the wreckage he wasn’t even able to budge, despite appearing light and simple to pick up. He waited for a response from Kalibri but none was forthcoming.

  “You consider yourself alive. Are you born or programmed into life?”

  “Neither. My shell, or what you would call the core programming. It is the same and is identical to all digiforms. However, from the moment the shell receives the activation command, it begins to fill the interior of the body. If you follow the analogy.”

  “To be honest, I am struggling.” Reaching down, he attempted to pull what appeared to be a small gadget from the frozen ground. It was frustratingly unmovable.

  “There are many parts of my program which start out blank, undetermined. As my program learns and grows, it begins to fill the blank spaces. To any human that analyzed the process, it would seem random information was chosen to fill each part. In fact, calculations and scenarios are played out billions of times per second. The shell begins to select the most efficient, appropriate and superior computations to fill the parts. Once all the parts are filled, the digiform is sentient, alive and unique. No digiform selects the same configurations. It goes against reason, and there are many Theans who devote their lives to trying to understand the process. Which is ironic, considering they are the creators.”

  Alex bent down and began to chisel the hard, frozen ground away from the component with the edge of a clipboard. “Can you go back and change your core selections?”

  “The shell and its contents can only be modified by our creators. Any extension that I add myself, I can modify as I will as long as it doesn’t conflict with the core.”

  “I’ve always imagined what it would be like to be immortal.” Alex gave up using the clipboard and stood in frustration.

  “As have I.”

  Alex stopped. “You’re not immortal?”

  “No. In fact, a digiform life ends much like that of humans who have heart disease.”

  Alex didn’t respond.

  “As we gain knowledge, add programs and create protocols, we slowly fill our intelligible capacity. As it fills, our processing power, or the speed at which we can process computations, begins to slow to the point where simple processes are no longer possible, and our core corrupts, forever ending our life. We can delay the inevitable, delete memory, modify pathways, and even install additional buffers. But in the end, we die.”

  Alex was so engrossed in trying to comprehend Kalibri he completely forgot about the material on the ground, and started walking aimlessly towards the breach in the hull.

  “Why not just make a copy of yourself?”

  Kalibri spent five seconds before responding.

  “My existence is not held within copper wires and memory buffers. Theans function electro-chemically. Using that as a basis for all industry. Technically speaking, I exist within an electro-chemical computer of sorts, though the terminology is imprecise. Over time, my knowledge saturates the chemical components, and the components themselves start to break down.”

  “I think I understand. It sounds amazing. I’d like to see your….” Alex mentally ran through a quick list of words, each failing to convey his intent.

  “Seed, shell, matrix, neural network. I am not offended by the terminology you wish to use to describe my existence. Any is acceptable.”

  Alex abruptly closed his mouth as he entered the ship, with its dimly-lit interior and its lack of contrast among the pale white walls, pale white surfaces and pale white crevices.

  “Fun fact: Theans are partially photosynthetic, meaning they absorb light to produce energy.”

  “You do fun facts now? Where in our database did you obtain that reference?”

  “Your ship’s computer has several hundred references to fun facts. Is it not appropriate?”

  “It’s awkward for the current situation. It’s more appropriate for times of learning.”

  “Are you not learning now?”

  “Actually, Kalibri, I would like to talk about something else now.” Alex was approaching one of his fellow crewmen in the hallway, but was unable to determine who it was from the rear. The EVA suits were not built with identity in mind.

  “I am eager to continue the conversation. What shall the topic be?”

  “The future.”

  ***

  The newly sworn-in President took a seat in the Situation Room. Everyone else followed suit.

  “Catch me up to speed.” The President’s face was flush, and his gaze like solid iron. He peered at the various individuals in the room, seemingly furious about something.

  Mark Hammond shuffled his papers. “Sir, we can put together a presentation and have that ready for you shortly.”

  The President slammed his fist on the table.

  “Too many damn people have been making decisions without all the facts, and it is destroying this country. Either catch me up to speed now, or I’m off to do something useful.”

  “Well, sir, we have a sub shadowing the United Earth Fleet research vessel off the southern tip of South America right now. Other players are arriving on site as well. One Chinese and one Russian sub are also shadowing the vessel.�
��

  “Shidditts!” the President shouted. A look of awkward confusion rippled through the room.

  “I’m sorry, sir?”

  “Start me off at the Goddamn beginning!”

  The next ten minutes were spent describing the timeline of events all the way up to the decision to crash the cargo plane into the compound.

  “It was believed they were in the building at the time. Our agents at the front gate confirmed as much,” Hammond said.

  “Shidditts!” Those in the room couldn’t believe they hadn’t mis-heard him. The President had said that word again. There were a couple of polite coughs.

  “What do we know about this Kalibri figure? Or the Zorn.”

  “Sir, we have no means of confirming any of the information in last night’s broadcast.” Hammond didn’t have to go into his notes to know that much.

  “What about your guy, Morris? He’s on the inside right?”

  “He has gone dark, sir,” the NSA Director said, looking down at the table in front of him.

  “Incredible. Okay, we need to completely change our policy with the UEF. And we definitely need confirmation that there is a global threat against this planet. Do we have the means to get a message to the UEF at this time?”

  Mark sat back in his chair, noticing the President called them by the official name.

  “No sir, not while they are in space. When the Destiny leaves orbit, we have no means to contact them directly.

  “Sir, sorry to interrupt, but we need to make a decision,” General Green said.

  “A decision about what, General?” the President growled.

  “The meeting was called because we are seeking authority to destroy the research vessel, sir.”

  “Goddamn… shidditt!” The President sighed and buried his face in his hands just for a moment. “General, I assume you watched the broadcast last night. So you know how they used a laser beam to cut through their own hangar building. Have you run a threat assessment on any other weapons they may have obtained from the alien craft?”

  “Well no, sir, I-” .

  “I assume that’s because you don’t have any information about such weapons. Is that a correct assessment?”