by J E Grace
The Zarion-Saving Mankind
By J.E. Grace
Copyright © J. E. Grace
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the express written permission of the Author.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
Prologue
Sometime after midnight, I got up to check on a noise. I was halfway down the hallway when I was grabbed from behind. A firm hand covered my nose, and the smell of an unpleasant odor filled my nostrils as consciousness slipped away.
I awoke in the back seat of a vehicle with a covering of some sort placed over my head, and my hands fastened securely behind my back. After a lengthy ride, I was ushered from the car and led for what seemed like an eternity. A heavy metal door slammed, a buzzer went off, and we began to climb. At the top, my captors knocked loudly at the door, and I was ushered inside and pushed down into a chair. I was afraid of what might come next. I could hear footsteps and uneven breathing. Where was I and when would they remove this blindfold? I was at a definite disadvantage, and it was a position I didn’t like being in.
A gruff voice echoed at me through the darkness, “Mr. Summerfield, I trust we have not inconvenienced you too much.”
“I would say kidnapping is a little more than an inconvenience.”
“Sorry, but we really had no choice. I’m just following orders,” the man said rifling through files on the desk. “You were brought here because you are the most experienced man in your field and we want you to head up our team of researchers in a top-secret project.”
“You know I might be a lot more cooperative if you removed the blindfold.”
The man before me was Reginald Livingstone, Head of Interplanetary Colonization. He had been appointed by the President to head the department, and he wasn’t happy about it. His stomach contracted like a fist, and his palms grew clammy. He looked old beyond his fifty years. His face was weathered, his deep-set gray-blue eyes were bloodshot, and his jet-black hair had turned prematurely gray. He paced the room nervously as he spoke.
“You will be working for the President of the United States under my direct supervision as head of the Research Department of Alternative Studies for Interplanetary Colonization. We will provide you with an itinerary and a contract which you will find more than adequate. You will have a new residence, and you will confide in no one concerning the project other than your staff or myself. Do you have any questions?”
“What makes you think I will just voluntarily go along with your agenda? I was retired. You brought me here against my will.”
“You will do it because the alternative will be quite unpleasant.” He rose from his seat and pointed to the door.
Chapter One
I was distinguished looking at forty-eight with my graying black hair and didn't fit the typical scientific profile. I was tired of interference from reporters hounding me for information concerning my past projects. It was not available for public knowledge, but they would never give up. I had considered selling my house and moving to another locale, but now with the latest development, the decision had been taken out of my hands.
I had left my last post with the observatory due to government cutbacks. My search for interplanetary civilizations had come to an abrupt end after ten years, but I was starting to enjoy my retirement.
Now I was told that I would head up the research group at Interplay. It was a secret, highly classified project which called for someone who could be discreet. After a lengthy search with various criteria applied by sophisticated computer equipment, my name was spat out the chosen victor.
Reginald had been correct. I wasn’t ready to be framed for something I hadn’t done and their ability to pull it off went without question. Maybe working for Interplay wasn’t so that bad. Only time would tell.
In a matter of hours an unmarked moving van had emptied out my humble home, and I was settled in my new one.
I had a total of twelve hundred square feet of space consisting of a large living room, bedroom, office, bathroom and deck on the fourth floor, with a view of the surrounding hills with its heavy forestation on one side and the Interplay laboratory complex on the other.
Interplay headquarters encompassed thirty acres that consisted of a commissary, medical center, laboratory, fitness center with running trails, space training facility, space launching platform, and a conference center. It was positioned behind locked gates and armed guards and was adjacent to Morning Star Air Force Base.
I had spent the morning trying to arrange my possessions in a somewhat orderly manner and had turned the room overlooking the fenced compound into my office. From the window, I could watch the comings and goings of the personnel.
It had all happened fast, and there was so much I hadn’t been told. I decided to take out my frustrations in the Fitness Center and then call it a day. Tomorrow I would start my new assignment and then hopefully it would all start to make some sense.
~
I glanced over at the alarm clock which flashed six a.m. I was just coming out of the shower when the phone rang.
“Mr. Summerfield, Reginald Livingstone. Be ready in thirty minutes. I’m sending a car over to pick you up for a briefing.”
“I’ll be ready,” I said as I grabbed the towel to finish drying off. I got dressed and exited my condo.
I walked up to the elevator and punched the button for the main floor. When the door opened, I could see the dark black car with tinted windows waiting just outside. I exited the building and walked up to the car.
“Mr. Summerfield,” said the driver holding the door open so I could get in.
In a matter of minutes, we pulled up in front of Interplay Labs, and I was escorted inside and provided with an encrypted name badge. I followed the guard down a long, brightly lit hallway to the elevators. I was motioned to get in, and the guard punched the button for the third floor. The elevator came to an abrupt stop. When it opened, the door to the research lab was in full view, and I followed the guard inside.
“Mr. Stevens, this is your new Head of Research, Davis Summerfield.”
“Welcome aboard. I’ll show you around the lab, and then we can go over the project agenda. Coffee?” he said shaking my hand.
“Thanks, don’t mind if I do.”
“What exactly do you do here? I didn’t get a rundown on job assignments yet.”
“I’m supposed to have all the answers for how life originated on Earth and hopefully elsewhere.”
“Interesting, what’s the verdict?”
“I’m working on it. That’s what I’m paid the big bucks for.”
“This is quite the lab. Someone has connections in the right places. They must have some budget.”
I couldn’t believe the hi-tech equipment and size of the lab. It had an open feel created by unusually high ceilings and the enormous space within. The machines had been placed in sterile working areas depending on the type of research involved.
“Besides heading up the research team what is your expertise?”
“Inter-planetary research. I worked for some years at the observatory with SFAI. Until a few days ago, I was retired. Things change,” I said refilling my coffee cup.
“The rest of the staff are at briefings going over the data we compiled and will be here shortly. There’s Doug Pierson; Organic Chemist, Jeanette Simms; Physicist and Michael Ryerson, Interstellar Engineer and Geneticist. They’re a good team.”
"In
the meantime, I’ll go over some calculations we’ve been working on,” he said picking up the clipboard. “From our last mission into space, they brought back ore and water samples from some virtually unknown planet in the solar system. Our job has been to run tests and find out what elements are found. We desperately need to find a clean source of water. So far all tests have proven negative.”
“I thought we had reserves to last for years.”
“I guess not. The project was put on top priority as of a month ago. Michael and I are scheduled to accompany the next astronauts on their mission to Europa and Ganymede. I understand that you may also be on that mission. Am I correct?”
“It’s the first I’ve heard of it. I did, however, have space training years ago. With a little refresher, I suppose I could go into the wild reaches of outer space without a hitch. When is this mission supposed to take place?”
“We never know until the last minute before training commences. Interplay runs a secure facility. No leaks. Soon though, I think.”
The door to the lab opened, and two researchers entered the room. The first to notice me was Doug Pierson. He was a typical young surfer type with long blond hair to the nape of his neck. He didn’t seem to be the type that would be working in a lab.
“Well, Randall, is this our new leader? Doug asked as he pulled his lab coat from the closet.
“Davis Summerfield, glad to meet you too.” I sized him up. There was something about him that I disliked and I was a good judge of character. I would definitely keep an eye on him.
Jeanette Simms, the other researcher, was an attractive woman in her forties. She had worked at Interplay for the last fifteen years and was the veteran of the staff.
“Did you get detained in the powder room?” asked Doug.
She glanced his way and gave him a perturbed look.
She was a petite woman with short red hair and sparkling green eyes. She gave off an air of intellect that surpassed the other team members. There was, however, a quiet, reserved side to her. She walked up to me, and her eyes met mine.
“Jeanette Simms. Welcome aboard. I do hope Doug hasn’t given you the wrong impression of our staff. He has a habit of not taking things seriously enough.”
“I’m used to the indiscretions of the young,” I said shaking her hand.
There was an immediate attraction, and I noticed she wasn’t wearing a wedding ring.
“Has Randall given you the grand tour of the laboratory?” she asked pulling some data from her clipboard.
“Yes, he has. The equipment is more high-tech than I expected, but I think I can be quite comfortable here. I’m looking forward to working with all of you.”
The door to the lab swung open, and a pleasant voice rang out, “Looks like the gangs all here. I’m Michael, glad to have you on board.”
“Davis. It’s nice to meet you. I haven’t been given the staff rundown yet, so tell me a little about yourself.”
“I’ve been at Interplay for five years. I have a wife, Carol, and two children, Samantha and Scotty. My wife’s a freelance writer, and we occupy one of the homes on site.”
I liked Michael from the first introduction. He was a tall, thin man probably in his forties, and wore fashionable wire-rimmed glasses. His hair was sandy brown and was cropped short. He seemed very self-assured, and his humor was refreshing.
“Well, now that I’ve met all of you, I guess I’ll give you ample time to fire questions at me.”
“How long are you at Interplay for?” asked Michael.
“I’m here until they cut me loose I guess. I really don’t know at this point. Until a few weeks ago I was retired.”
The laboratory phone rang. Jeanette quickly answered it at her station, “Yes, Sir. He’s right here. Just one moment,” she said putting the receiver down. “Davis, you have a phone call. You can get it over here.”
“Davis.”
The voice on the other end was Reginald Livingstone. “I trust you have got acquainted with your team and that I can be assured everything will run smoothly. I know you won’t let me down.”
“You can count on it,” I said even though I wasn’t all that confident at that particular moment.
Chapter Two
I had spent endless hours learning to use the sophisticated lab equipment running numerous tests. All of them came up unproductive, so we decided maybe looking elsewhere in the Solar System might not be a bad idea.
I was utterly obsessed by the voice recognition robotics DNA that analyzed our data. It could do in a few short hours what it had taken us years of computations to do before, and I had become quite proficient in its operation. I was busy working when the guard entered the laboratory.
“Mr. Summerfield, you are to come with me.”
“Randall, can you take over for me. I need to leave,” I said laying down my clipboard.
“No problem.”
I followed the guard across the complex to the conference center, wondering what was so important to take me away from my work in the middle of the day. After all, we were on a strict time schedule.
I was taken down a long hallway to a small room at the end of the building. When I entered, I was met by Reginald Livingstone and a distinguished man who appeared to be in his late sixties. He had dark brown hair with a peppering of gray, was stout, and retained a hardness about him.
“Have a seat, Mr. Summerfield. Sorry to call you away from your work, but it’s a matter of great importance,” he said taking a seat across from Davis. “This is Wilson Bench, Head of Interplay Security.”
“Mr. Summerfield, I’ve heard remarkable things about you. Glad to have you on board. What is said between us here today is extremely classified and is not to leave this room. You are to discuss it with no one, not even members of your staff. Do you understand?”
“Yes.” I hated being in a position to keep things from my staff, but I agreed.
“Reginald and I have reason to believe that a member of your staff is sabotaging efforts in the lab. We do not have concrete evidence at this time but need your cooperation. We want you to observe and let us know of any unusual activity.”
“What happened to make you suspicious?”
“Shortly before you arrived, our research staff was supplied with ore samples from an undisclosed location. They were instructed to run tests and provide us with the results. We were on the brink of discovering something so top secret that very few of us knew the exact outcome, but before the tests could be run the samples mysteriously vanished. They have never been recovered,” said Reginald tapping his hand nervously on the table. “We fear that this traitor is in league with one of the renegade groups that we have had reports about.”
“We’ll need a report every couple of weeks on your progress. Don’t contact us, we will notify you,” said Wilson as he rose to shake my hand. “We’ll let you get back to work. By the way, we want you on the next space mission, so you will have to attend training camp this next week.”
“Okay. I’ll start preparing myself. It’s been awhile.”
The guard escorted me back to the lab. The staff was waiting for my return, wondering if there would be new assignments. I was told that meetings with Reginald always meant change for someone.
“Our fearless leader returns. Trouble in paradise?” asked Doug with a smirk on his face.
“Nothing I can’t handle. I’m sure you have work waiting for your undivided attention. Are you sure you can handle it or do I need to call for reinforcements?”
Doug gave me a dirty look and walked over to his station quickly absorbing himself in his work.
I wasn’t about to let a young know-it-all like Doug get the best of me. I had to make sure he remembered who was in charge.
“Hey, boss it looks like you’re making enemies already. He’s harmless though,” said Randall. “Anything I should know about?”
“Not really. I guess it is the three of us at training camp starting next week. As I remember, it can be brutal.
Guess I’ll call it a day. See you tomorrow.”
I left the building and headed to the fitness center to keep in shape. The vigorous schedule of space training would take its toll on my body. I had to pick some form of exercise as a part of the training regime that was the least painful and decided that my best choice was to run, as I could make two to five miles a day easy.
After my workout, I went directly to my condo. I couldn’t help thinking about the conversation with Reginald and Wilson. I hated to single anyone out without proof, but if I had to guess who was involved, my first choice would be Doug. Before long I would know for sure. I would have to ask some questions about him. Maybe Michael would be an excellent place to start.
I lay in bed unable to sleep. Visions of Jeanette filled my mind. We had just met, but I was already fascinated by her. I imagined kissing her smooth pink lips and touching her soft skin. I fell fast asleep, and the last thoughts were of placing my arms softly around her body in a warm embrace. Then I went under to that deep place you only find in dreams.
Chapter Three
Our sixty days of vigorous training were almost complete. I had been running five miles a day and had endless hours at the space-training center using their equipment.
First, we were put through a series of exercises where G’s were administered to simulate a launch profile with a computerized voice-activated robot running the controls.
Simulation views of the Earth, Moon, and the stars were projected. We practiced imaginary launches, engine burns, orbital flight patterns, docking, lunar landings lift-offs, and Earth re-entries. Thanks to new technology we were free from having to go through weightlessness training. Our environment inside the spacecraft would be the same as our everyday atmosphere keeping it a constant seventy-degree temperature. We would be free to roam around the entire cabin at will, except for takeoff and landings.
Ground crews were also trained with simulators that created emergency situations to test the skill of the ground controllers.
