by A. K. DuBoff
Jason smiled slightly. “I wish we could see their faces when we jump in.”
“I’m sure there will be plenty of ground-level footage captured,” Wil said.
Jason, likewise, was doing better than he had been since Alkeer. It was only natural for him to be despondent after witnessing something like that, and especially after losing someone who’d been close to him for so long. However, he seemed to have inherited Wil’s ability to compartmentalize and commit to the task at hand, no matter what else was going on. It would serve him well in what was to come.
Wil checked the reports from the other ships in the fleet. Everyone was in position and ready to jump. “Okay, let’s go make contact.”
The Conquest executed a short-range jump from behind the moon, within the shielded zone out of sight, into broad view. Simultaneously, the rest of the fleet popped in, speckling the surrounding space with flares of blue-green light from the spatial distortions. The ships took a coordinated flight pattern to drop into low Earth orbit, concentrating most of the vessels on the side of the planet presently cloaked in night, so the appearance would be visible to anyone watching with magnification.
“Any military response?” Wil asked.
Rianne kept a close eye on the scan data. “We’re picking up orders to stand at the ready, but no incoming fire.”
He released a relieved breath. “Good.”
“Our Agents on the ground have checked in and given the go-ahead,” Saera stated.
“I guess it’s almost that time, then.” Wil brought up some of the top network video feeds to see if anyone was talking about the appearance of spaceships yet. A handful of the live broadcasts were starting to react, expressing surprise that the ‘strange message’ seemed to be panning out.
“Good luck,” Saera bid Wil and gave him a quick kiss.
“See you soon.” Raena gave her mother a hug, and then she and Jason followed Wil down to the hangar in the belly of the ship.
They boarded a shuttle they would take to the surface along with a contingent of Agents as a security detail, not that Wil was overly concerned. Still, better to be overly cautious in such matters, especially with his children.
Wil kept a close eye on the scan as they descended through the atmosphere, looking for any potential threats. Fighter jets appeared in the vicinity, but they made no offensive action.
“Escort?” Jason asked.
“More like watchdogs, I suspect,” Wil replied. He looked over at his children. “I’ll go out first. If any crazy person out in the crowd tries to take a shot, I’d rather it be aimed at me.”
Raena frowned. “You don’t think that will happen, do you?”
“No, but I’d rather proceed with caution. I’ll test the waters with a welcome interview, and then you can join in once we know it’s going well.”
Jason nodded. “There is the possibility this fails spectacularly.”
“I hope it doesn’t,” Wil replied, “because TSS Headquarters will be in a bad situation if we can’t establish good relations with Earth.”
Raena straightened in her seat. “Then we’ll charm them into submission.”
The shuttle was on its final approach to the specified field. It wasn’t far from where their family had lived when the twins were young, near Saera’s relatives and hometown, in the Virginian suburbs a short drive from Washington, D.C.
Figures it would be one of the most stereotypical places for first contact, Wil thought with an inward chuckle. But we chose it because it was home. At least they weren’t landing a ship on the White House lawn.
The instructions had urged the local humans to make the event an international affair. No matter where they landed, one country or another would try to take the lead, since the middle of an ocean or Antarctica certainly weren’t viable options. So, they may as well go with a place they knew well.
As the shuttle approached the field, Wil caught his first sight of the crowd through the viewport. A mass of well-dressed professionals, armed security, and civilians circled the quartered off landing area. Per the instructions, no official government representatives were supposed to attend in an official capacity, though he suspected at least a handful were intermingled in the crowd. At cursory glance, the security presence was within the established guidelines—enough to keep attendees in check but not so much to make it a military affair. Again, he imagined many of the ‘civilians’ in the crowd weren’t quite what they seemed.
“So far, it looks like they’re actually following instructions. I must admit, I’m pleasantly surprised,” Wil commented.
“I’m shocked anyone showed up,” Raena said with a chuckle. “I mean, I read that message you sent out. It sounded like a joke.”
“It probably would have been taken as such if we didn’t have a little official presence established. Not to mention testimony from astronauts and everyone else who’s been sworn to secrecy over the years. All it took was a handful of leaders saying, ‘This is it!’ to make the world listen.” Truly, it’s amazing our deception didn’t come crashing down decades ago.
Raena smiled. “If they weren’t listening yet, they certainly are now.”
The shuttle landed on the grass in what was certainly a wonderous display to the locals. While nothing special by Taran standards, the craft’s propulsion no doubt seemed otherworldly as the vessel touched down quietly and with minimal turbulence. Many jaws in the crowd were slack with wonder, eyes wide as they waited to see what would happen next.
“Have any visuals of the Empire been released publicly?” Jason asked.
Wil smiled. “None. I must admit, I toyed with the idea of manufacturing some robots to look like aliens from popular culture and sending them out first.”
“Dad…” Raena rolled her eyes.
“It would be hilarious and you know it.”
Jason smirked. “Now I’m disappointed you didn’t.”
“Stars, you two! Go on, get out there.” She shooed Wil toward the shuttle hatch.
“All right, I’ll see you soon.”
He straightened his TSS formal uniform and took a deep breath. Here goes nothing.
The hatch hinged upward, and a ramp extended to the ground with a soft mechanical whir. He took a few seconds to let his eyes adjust to the brighter natural light—which also served for dramatic effect—and then began descending the ramp. Not knowing how people might react, he kept a shield raised around himself; though invisible to anyone but trained Agents, he would be impervious to any attack.
A hush fell over the crowd as he walked toward the greeting party. Their unguarded thoughts were so loud that Wil couldn’t help catching snippets of internal monologues expressing their confusion about how this ‘alien’ looked remarkably like them.
Wil stopped ten meters from the end of the ramp and the security detail of Agents flowed out from the shuttle to take up defensive positions between him and the audience. He waited for someone to emerge from the throng to meet him. The instructions had specified that Earth should agree on a single interviewer to represent the planet; though a tall order, it seemed like the best way to keep the governments out of it.
Eventually, an older man stepped forward and stopped a conversational distance away from Wil. Based on the press credentials badge the man wore around his neck, he was from one of the leading European news outlets regarded worldwide as a neutral, fact-based reporting authority.
Wil extended his right arm, palm up, in traditional Taran greeting for new acquaintances; the gesture was meant to show there was no weapon in hand and good intentions were meant, but the person was not yet a friend trusted enough for touch.
The reporter looked awkwardly at the outstretched hand, seeming to weigh whether it was intended as a handshake. He ultimately settled on mimicking the gesture. “Welcome to Earth.” The words were amplified and played back over speakers positioned in towers throughout the crowd.
“Thank you,” Wil replied in English. “It’s a pleasure to be here.”
<
br /> The audience murmured in excited and surprised tones. No doubt, this wasn’t the kind of alien contact anyone anticipated.
“Where have you come from?” the reporter asked with the clear intonation of a seasoned interviewer. The question, however, left a lot to be desired as an opener.
Oh, stars, this isn’t a great start. Wil forced a friendly smile. “Well, that’s a multi-layered question. In short, space.”
The older man’s gray brows drew together. “Do you have a home planet?”
“Me personally, or our race in general?”
“Um, both?”
Well, this quickly went off a cliff. There wasn’t a straightforward answer to the question, but Wil did the best he could. “I actually grew up in a secret military base inside Earth’s moon, so that’s as close to a homeworld as I have. The seat of our civilization, however, is the planet Tararia. It’s on the other side of the galaxy.”
The reporter blinked rapidly. “Your English is very good,” he managed to say at last.
“If you mean I speak English well, then yes. I did live on the planet for sixteen years while my children were young.”
“Oh. So, your kind have walked among us?”
Really, they chose this guy? A quick gleaning of the man’s mind revealed that he was used to being in a studio—and was well-respected in that capacity—but he hadn’t conducted an on-the-fly field interview in two decades. It was understandable why the world would have nominated a known, trusted person to serve the role—probably one of several candidates selected via a lottery—but he was unfortunately stumbling in this novel situation.
Wil looked around the growing crowd of press and spotted a reporter he recognized from his time as an Earth resident. She wasn’t the best investigative journalist he’d seen, but she had a calm confident energy even amid the current frenzy. “You.” He pointed at her and beckoned her forward. “Jessica Rodriguez, right?”
The middle-aged woman looked down at the press credentials hanging around her neck as if she needed to verify her own name. “Yes, that’s right.”
For a moment, Wil wondered if he’d made the correct call to invite her over. “I remember watching you on the evening news,” he replied to her unspoken question. “Let’s see if we can have a more productive conversation.”
The original interviewer made little effort to hide his disappointment and annoyance at the turn of events as Jessica took his place near Wil.
“Why don’t we start over,” Jessica suggested, to Wil’s relief. “Who are you and who do you represent?”
Much better. He smiled. “My name is Williame Sietinen, and I’m here to reunite Earth with the Taran Empire.”
— — —
“Ouch, that was an awkward start,” Raena said to her brother as they watched the interview unfold from the otherwise empty passenger area of the shuttle.
In all fairness, her father had cut off the original interviewer before he’d had a chance to get his legs under him, and his abrupt answers hadn’t helped the situation. However, there was no guarantee the conversation would have gotten on track after the rocky beginning, and they would only get one chance at this first impression. She had been over the talking points with her father and they knew what needed to be said in order to set the tone for what was to come.
“We share a common ancestry,” Wil was explaining outside. “Tarans have sought to honor the wishes of those who settled on Earth to allow your free development. However, you have reached a level of technological sophistication that it is no longer feasible to keep our presence hidden from you.” That particular line was stretching the truth, but they’d agreed that it would make humans feel more special.
“I detest the pandering,” Jason said, shaking his head. “The only reason we’re making contact now is because of imminent doom.”
“Oh, and that would make such a great first impression?” She eyed him.
“We’re starting out the relationship by hiding key information. Not great.”
“Nothing about any of this is ideal.”
The interviewer had taken Wil’s response and expertly rolled it into the topic of opening cultural relations.
“She’s pretty good,” Raena commented with a smile.
“I remember Jessica,” Jason said, watching the interviewer. “I’ll deny it if you ever try to tell another soul, but I had a little crush on her when I was, like, twelve.”
“Oh, I know. No twelve-year-old is that interested in suburban traffic incidents.”
He smirked. “Right. Just like you were fascinated with the weather there for a while.”
She crossed her arms. “Shut it.”
“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” He sat back with a smug smile.
They were quiet for a while, half-listening to the interview outside.
“I’ve missed this. Us,” Raena said.
“Me too. But life took us in different directions.”
“We could have tried harder to stay in touch.”
He shrugged. “You were off learning to be a princess with your Prince Charming. I was living in Dad’s and Mom’s shadows in the TSS, trying to prove myself in my own right. There hasn’t been a lot of time for socializing.”
“That’s not an excuse, Jason. We could have easily exchanged more messages here and there. I made an effort. Why didn’t you?”
“This is really not the time.”
“Then when will it be? Isn’t that the issue? We’re always putting off conversations rather than saying what we can when we have the opportunity.”
He glared at her. “We’re making freaking first contact with Earth right now, and you’re starting an argument with me about how I could have been a better brother? Are you hearing yourself?”
She pursed her lips, realizing she hadn’t come across in the way she’d meant. I don’t want him to feel like he’s alone. He just lost his girlfriend of nine years and he hasn’t said a word about her.
“What I mean to say is,” she tried again, “I’m always only a call away if you ever need to talk.”
He looked her over, evaluating the statement. “I hope you know how good you have it.”
An amazing husband. Wealth. Power. I know I do. She nodded.
“I don’t mean that tangible stuff,” he countered, picking up on her open thoughts. “You have this natural way about you that lets you slide into any situation and, almost magically, know exactly how to act in order to get your way. I’ve always been envious of that.”
“You’re plenty adaptable.”
“Not like you, though. I take things in first and then want to test the boundaries. You just know what those confines are and then turn the situation to your favor. At least, that’s what it always seemed like to me with our friends.”
“It doesn’t work like that on a galactic scale for the Empire,” she said wistfully. “I wish it did.”
“Maybe it’s that you haven’t found the right way to play to your strengths,” he suggested.
“I don’t know. Perhaps.” When he didn’t offer any more, she asked, “So that’s why you pulled away? Because you were envious of my adaptability?”
“What? No.” He shook his head. “I saw you were on a meteoric trajectory and I didn’t want to match that pace. I pulled back so you could do your thing.”
“Jason, I would never think of you as ‘holding me back’.”
“I didn’t mean it like that. Just… attachments change how we approach situations. We always did things together, but with our respective duties to the Empire, that couldn’t continue. We both needed freedom to grow in different areas.”
“It did force me to find my new ‘normal’ once I got to Tararia,” she admitted. And help me get even closer to Ryan.
“Hey, and now you’re an ambassador for the Taran Empire to bring Earth into the fold. I’d say it worked out pretty well.”
“And we’re here together, when it counts the most.”
“I wouldn’t have it a
ny other way.”
Outside, the conversation was progressing. Raena had been half-listening while she talked with her brother, but now she fully tuned back in to make sure everything was on track.
“What are your proposed next steps?” Jessica was asking.
“Humans and Tarans diverged a long time ago, but we have an opportunity to move forward together. We are prepared to begin offering access to our technology to aid in your planet’s continued development. We hope this can be the start of a new, prosperous friendship between our people.”
“And how do you propose to do that, given your instructions to leave government out of this conversation? You may represent your people, but I can’t speak for mine.” Jessica really was a pro; she’d no doubt be getting a nice promotion after this.
“Nor can I speak for mine in all regards,” Wil said. “We are very fortunate, however, to have liaisons who understand the nuances of both cultures and can help navigate this transition.”
“Hey, I think that’s our cue.” Jason nodded toward the shuttle hatch.
“Right. Yes.” Raena was struck with an unexpected wave of nerves. She smoothed her dress and quieted her thoughts. This is going home. Nothing to worry about.
The two of them walked together down the ramp. Fully exposed, the crowd seemed much larger than it had from within the shuttle.
“Speak as you would to your friends,” her father said in her mind.
She stopped next to him, and Jason stood on her other side.
“My children, Raena and Jason, grew up here,” Wil introduced. “I lived here, but it was never my home in the way it is for someone who was raised on this soil. They know what it’s like to find out about the Taran Empire and begin integrating into that much larger civilization.”
“It seems crazy, right?” Raena began. There were a few chuckles in the audience and many nods. “I thought the whole thing was a massive prank when I found out, too.” She motioned to the sleek shuttle. “Seeing ships like that helped make it real, but it’s all so… big. I don’t think you’re ever really ready to hear about something like a galactic empire when you’ve lived your whole life here on Earth. It’s the stuff you read about in books or see in movies. And the concept of aliens is something totally foreign. To know that there’s a race that looks like you but has all of this advanced technology—and they want to share it… It’s like a dream.
