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PERCY WAS RIGHT, he did want to shoot him in the face. Instead he pinned his old friend down on the ground, his knee grinding into Percy’s lower back. “So, let me get this straight. You’re part of the same group of nut jobs that blew up my building?!”
“Liam, please, let me explain!” Percy struggled under his weight, but couldn’t budge.
“Shut up! I’m calling security.” He used one hand to reach into his pocket searching for his cell.
“No! You can’t call them unless you want us both dead.”
Phone in hand, he paused. Pieces clicked together in his mind. “Of course. That’s how the explosive got in. Our guards work for you.”
“Let me up and I will tell you everything you want to know. We’re still friends, Liam.”
“You run, I break your neck. Got it?”
“Fine.”
He hesitated, then decided to give Percy one chance. He took the seat Percy was evicted from moments ago when he threw him to the floor, while Percy struggled to sit upright. He leaned forward resting his elbows on his knees.
“Talk,” he snarled.
“Some of the guards who worked here during the attack also worked with me, not for me. I’m not some terrorist mastermind. The organization I work for views the STS commission as the terrorists, actually.”
“You’re insane. How are we the bad guys here?”
“We call ourselves the WWLO. The World Will Live On. I know, the name needs work. We believe that with the right scientific minds at work, we can save the world. We can save Earth! Twenty years have been wasted while our best minds focused elsewhere. They gave up on our own planet instead of solving our problems.”
“So you think if we had never decided to form the commission, never decided to leave Earth, that things would be better? Half a million have died of starvation so far this year. Things are not looking up.”
“Now they’re not! Because we’ve wasted time looking to the stars chasing some science-fiction dream of living on other planets. Can you imagine what we could have accomplished if our best and brightest had their focus here, where it belongs?”
“I can. We would have lost twenty years of progress getting our asses off this death trap. The UN said 2175—the last year for us. ”
Percy shook his head. “A prediction, nothing more. It was just a study, it wasn’t set in stone. It should have rallied us to save ourselves with new innovations. Instead we built rockets hoping to find somewhere to land them where we can start over. Proxima is a crapshoot, we all know it. There’s no telling what’s there. If it’s uninhabitable, then what? We just roam the galaxy forever? What kind of existence is that?”
“Better than whatever kind of existence we can expect down here in fifty years,” Liam replied angrily. “The few of us who might still be alive will be struggling every day to find one drop of clean water, or one area of soil to farm, or animals to hunt. They will be desperate primitive scavengers. A few years after that and they’ll all be gone.”
“Do you think that would be the case if our scientists were focused here?”
“Yes, I do. What do you think they were doing throughout the twenty-first century? Nobody solved it then, nobody could solve it now.”
“You’re speaking as if it’s fact. It’s not. Scientific breakthroughs can happen overnight. One experiment takes a fortunate turn and our problems are solved. We can still solve them, Liam. It’s not too late to give up on mother Earth. Not yet.”
“It is. What’s your organization planning?”
Percy looked up at him, locking eyes. “To stop you. To stop the campuses from launching their ships. If we can keep the ships here, we keep the scientists here. If we can do that, then maybe they’ll be forced to save everyone else.”
“They’ve only attacked one other campus and that was in India over a year ago. Why? What are you waiting for?”
“We’re not that large of a group. We stopped India, yes. But we kind of lucked into that one. Long story. For months after, we tried to plan how we could spread to the other sites. We would need people in Russia, Egypt, France, Brazil, Australia, and of course two cities here in America. We had to regroup, there just wasn’t enough of us to stop them all, especially the ones that were further along like The Christensen in Dallas and The Linwood in Russia.
“We came to the realization we just didn’t have the resources to stop all seven of the remaining ships. Instead we decided to focus our energy on ships five, six, and seven. India obviously was ship eight, but we already got to that one. Focusing on those three ships, the ones with the most work left to do, would give us enough time to at least destroy half of the STS fleet. Governments would be forced to take us and our concerns seriously.”
“So, why are you telling me this? Why come clean?”
“Because fifteen minutes ago the game changed and I don’t know what to do about it. This morning I firmly believed that our scientists could figure out how to save Earth and if that met a few explosions and, yes, some loss of life, then so be it if we could end up saving the two billion people left. But now? If these aliens are indeed hostile, then evacuating the planet may be the better of two bad options. Truth is we don’t know their intentions. Are they coming to wipe us out, enslave us? Save us?”
“You know I’m going to have to have you arrested, right? Damn it, Percy!” He stood and paced around the small office. Fuming at his friend, he felt betrayed and imagined putting his fist through Percy’s face—his head smashing into the drywall behind it. His hands clenched tight, unclenched, clenched again. Full of anger he lifted the chair and tossed it across the room, crashing it into the far wall.
“Liam—”
“Don’t talk! Fuck, you put me in a bad position. I vouched for you to the commission. Hell, Foster even offered his support to bring you on. You’re a terrorist and I walked you and your buddies right through the front door. I’ll lose my job for this. That means I lose my spot on the ship. I’ll lose Ann...fuck. She’ll want to stay behind with me. No way will I let that happen.”
“I’m sorry about that. Truly.” Percy lifted himself off the floor, groaning from the pain shooting through his back, to look directly at him. “But it doesn’t have to come to that.”
“What do you mean?”
“The most likely scenario is our new interstellar friends are coming to harm us one way or the other. We don’t have all the information, but that’s what I’m feeling, and unlike before, I think now we do need the ships.”
“Are you proposing a deal? Get to the point.”
“I know you hate me, but let me get through this next part without you attacking me again.”
“No promises.”
“Fine. Earlier today when you were escorting the last of my guys out of your office, I plugged in a usb drive into your computer. The WWLO has some excellent hackers. The program only needed a few minutes to find every file it needed and then transmitted it to our headquarters here in Orlando.”
“Shit!” Liam put his fist through the nearest wall. Dust and drywall filled the air. “You just keep screwing me, Percy. So while we’re finding out we’re about to be invaded, you were sending those bastards what? Ship schematics? Launch dates?”
“Everything. That was the plan. The first attack was to get you to hire me. Once I was in, I needed to bring in more people that would eventually help me take out the rest of the ship still being constructed. Meanwhile, I needed to get that drive on your computer. They have it all now, Liam.”
This time the anger got the best of him. He threw himself at Percy delivering a mighty blow with his right fist to his stomach. Percy doubled over, the wind knocked out him. He prepared to strike another punch to the back of Percy’s head, but hesitated. He grabbed Percy by the shirt collar pulling him back to an upright position. “Here’s what’s going to happen. Me and you are going to walk out of here like nothing has changed. We’re going to get in my car and drive straight to the police.”
He grabbed Percy’s arm and began walking him to the office door. Struggling to breathe, Percy managed to weakly squeak out one word: “Wait.”
They stopped as Liam’s hand rested on the doorknob.
“If anything happens to me, if I get arrested, they’ll know. They’ll assume you’re aware of their plans and they’ll implement their back-ups instead.”
“What are those?”
“I don’t know. I just know that my mission was plan A. They kept us separate so we couldn’t rat on each other.”
Liam released Percy’s arm and stepped in front of him. “What do you propose then?”
“Let me go. I’ll work with you. We carry on as nothing has changed like you said. The alien news isn’t public yet and as far as I know they’ve never managed to plant an inside person on the commission. So I think I’m the only one who knows about it. I’ll go to the headquarters and break it down for them. Maybe they’ll view the situation like I do and back off.”
“Or maybe they’ll put their plans in motion sooner. Time frame for plan A?”
“Four weeks. In the middle of the night between shifts,” Percy answered.
“To limit loss of life. Not a good idea to kill so many of the best and brightest minds needed to save the planet.”
“Exactly.”
“Well, aren’t you a bunch of saints? So if we carry on, we have four weeks to stop it. If they figure out I know about the plan and that you’re helping me we’re both dead and an unknown plan is set in motion. Alright, you go back to them. Find out as much as you can about—well, what did they need with the files on my computer?”
“Schematics mostly—to know the strategic places to plant the bombs in order to cause the most damage. If I had to guess, they also wanted the launch schedule for plan B. If infiltrating the facility was plan A, then it would make sense, to me at least, that plan B would be to destroy the ships when they’re not securely guarded in here, which either means when they’re in transport or when they’re on the launchpad.”
“That makes some sense. You’ll have to see if you can dig up more information on plan B. What about the other campuses around the world?”
“All the ships are designed alike. We only needed one set of schematics and nobody else has a relationship with any of the higher staff at the other campuses. That’s why I was chosen here.”
“So no one has infiltrated the other campuses?”
“That’s what I was told. We needed the information here before we could begin infiltrating the campuses for ships six and seven.”
Lied to most likely, Liam thought. He would need Percy to find out for certain. He wanted to believe that the man he fought with, the man he once considered a brother, still stood in front of him today. But that man would never have fallen in with this WWLO cult. How did he end up with them?
“Go and figure out what you can.”
Ann’s childhood loomed over her as she stood in its shadow. Her father was inside waiting for her to return. What would she tell him? Hey Dad, aliens are coming to kill us all, thought you’d want to know.
Instead, she found herself wandering up and down the street lost in her own thoughts. She knew she had to travel back to Orlando as soon as possible. Her assistant was capable, but she’d rather be there herself now that the launch had been moved up.
Her cell vibrated in her pocket. It was Liam. She ignored it.
She wanted more time to process everything. The thought of an alien fleet chilled her to the bone. Her and Liam occasionally watched old science fiction films—every once in a while they included aliens. The movies never scared her, but now the terrifyingly real threat produced an overwhelming fear that crawled up her spine. They existed and they were coming.
A bird shrieked from the trees behind her making her jump. Her hand flew to her heart and she laughed at herself. Get it together.
Several minutes later she felt composed enough to return home. She opened her father’s front door and the refreshing air conditioning and the nostalgia of her childhood memories greeted her. She remembered playing on the living room floor with her mother. She recalled watching the last Tennessee snowfall during the winter of 2108 and how excited she was to go outside and build a snowman. Her parents helped and they made three, one for each of them. Memories flooded her mind as she made her way to her father’s bedroom down the hallway lined with family portraits.
“That you, Ann? You were gone longer than my nap! How’d your phone call go?”
“It was...informative,” she said. Would she lie to her father? Ann didn’t think so. She never lied to him and wasn’t about to start now when this may be the last time she saw him in person.
She sat at the foot of the bed, resting her hand on his leg. “Dad, I have to tell you something. It’s top secret and cannot leave this room.”
“Are you sure you can be telling me this, then? Not like I have anybody to tell, but still. I understand if you have to keep secrets, you have an important job.”
“I’m going to tell you this. But remember, top secret.”
The incredulous story stumbled out of her as she tried to make sense of it herself. Her father did not interrupt, but merely nodded along as she told him all she knew.
“How’s that for irony?” he finally said when she finished. “We’ve been killing ourselves slowly since the industrial revolution and then just like that some aliens come to finish us off. I never thought I’d see the day.”
“Nobody did.”
“You have to get back, don’t you?”
“Yes. I’m sorry, I wanted to stay longer, but with the timetable so messed up now, I don’t have a choice.”
“I understand, sweetie. You’re my hero, you know that? You’re helping to save the human race.”
“I’m a glorified botanist, Dad.”
“Nonsense. When you get to Proxima, who will be analyzing the plant life to make sure it’s safe to eat or not? You.”
“I’m just one of several, but thank you. I love you.”
“I love you, too, Annie. I couldn’t be prouder.”
She leaned over to kiss the top of his head. They spoke for a while longer neither one ready to say goodbye.
Debra Sizemore shuffled her clothing back into place before leaving Captain Landon Jameson’s office. Over the last five months the two have carried on a secret affair and after that meeting, finding out aliens exist and heading their way, they needed to relieve some mental stress.
She and Jameson knew each other from their time at the Air Force, flirted often, but never hooked up until she was brought on by the commission. Her final rank before leaving the Air Force was Command Chief Master Sergeant. After climbing to the top of that ladder the commission recruited her and she felt it was her duty to serve.
She led the crews of their two smaller craft fleets including Z56s which were specially modified space ships capable of quick movements mimicking a fighter jet in atmosphere. They spanned about fifteen feet in length and ten foot width. Only one pilot could fit inside. Built over ten years ago, they were capable of taking off from the ground and flying straight up into space, no rocket required. Outside of training for their pilots they had yet to experience any real action. Debra didn’t think they ever would, until an hour ago.
Another type of craft, the Z48s, would also make up their own mini-fleets on board each STS ship. These would primarily be used for shuttling around cargo and crew. Much slower and less versatile than the Z56s, they still featured the capability of direct take off to space sans rocket.
Similar to what other department heads would be doing this instant, she gathered her pilots, maintenance crew, and any other position that fell under her to a meeting in the Z56 hangar. She thought of Landon. Right now he would be talking to the hundreds of staff making up the administrative crew assigned to The Hawking.
Her people slowly trickled in one-by-one. She didn’t tell them this was an emergency meeting because she wanted the time to think of what to say—the craziest thing she would ever say in her entire life.
She studied the faces of those joining her, waiting for her to tell them what all the commotion had been about. There weren’t that many young faces staring back. Yes, she recruited the best of the best from the Air Force, which required years of experience, but even still. A hundred years ago the average age in this room would be ten years younger. Not enough youth anymore and not just in her field, but life in general.
Time to begin.
“Alright, everyone. I think most of you are here. The rest will find out soon enough. What I’m going to tell you is being withheld from public knowledge for now. It will not leave this base, got it?” Her audience agreed.
“Our schedule has been bumped up—significantly. Our Z56 crews, you need to double your training regimen. Most likely, you will see combat soon.” The looks of confusion spread throughout the crowd. Time for the crazy part...
“Three alien ships have been spotted at the edge of the solar system. They’re coming our way.”
Blank stares greeted her. She wasn’t sure what to expect; maybe some people walking out, or yelling at her. But the reaction was minimal if not non-existent.
“Um, did you guys hear me? Aliens. I expected a bigger reaction.” A hand shot up from the front row, a Z48 pilot named Liz.
“I can’t speak for everyone else, ma’am, but...what? Maybe we’re just not sure we’re understanding.”
“I know it’s insane. To deal with this on top of everything else? But it’s true. The commission is attempting communication, but who knows how that will work out. The alien ships will be here in six months. We have to be prepared to fight them off.”
She answered question after question as best as she could, but overall her people took it well.
That night she talked it over with Landon back at her apartment. Ten years her senior, she thought he looked young for fifty. She sat next to him stroking his salt and pepper hair.
“Believe it or not, my bridge crew are actually excited. They’re having a Star Trek marathon tonight in the barracks,” Jameson said.
“A Star what? That the one with the wookie?”
“Oh, dear. Much to learn, you still have.”
“I’m so lost.”
“You just need to brush up on your classics.”
“I’ve never been into sci-fi. I like drama and comedies.”
“Well, you’re about to be living sci-fi soon.”
“That’s the truth.” She poured herself another glass of wine. They sat together on her couch, the local news playing on the wall-screen. The anchor talked about one small town in North Dakota where the birth rate actually increased in the past three years. Not that big of a deal when only a thousand people resided in your town in the first place, she thought.
“It’s funny. We just received the biggest news in human history and it’s not even on the evening report,” Jameson said.
“It’ll leak. Thousands of people around the world were told to keep a secret today. No way everyone will. Someone will tell their family, who will tell their friends, and on and on. I give it twelve more hours.”
“You’re being too generous, Debra. Six hours.”
“You’re on, captain.”