Time is an Illusion_The Ptolemy Expedition

by Ruairí Cinéad Ducantlin

  NT handed a single sheet of paper to Michelle, Lucinda, Jan, and Cassandra. After reading the first paragraph on their paper, Michelle, Lucinda, Jan, and Cassandra each moved to an equidistant location in the dining all. NT was the one who spoke for the group.

  “When Michelle, Lucinda, Jan, and Cassandra call your name, please stand near the person who calls your name. Michelle, you first.”

  The entire compound was segmented into four groups in under seven minutes. The fifth group consisted of Corb, Davinder, Nick, NT, and Janish. With Michelle, Lucinda, Jan, and Cassandra stepping back to the center and joining the fifth group, Corb began the discussion.

  “First the hard part. We are leaving the compound and we are disbanding. Everyone’s compensation will continue for one year from this date. I remind you all, you have an absolute non-disclosure agreement. What you know about this place is classified ‘above top-secret’. No exceptions. No one talks about this place. To anyone. Davinder, please.”

  “Everyone will be given a folder. In the folder, are three sets of instructions. First, there are instructions on how to access your pay. Confirming Corb’s statement, you will be paid, at your current rate for one year from today.

  Second, there are instructions on how to respond about your time here. The instructions, collectively, create a cohesive narrative about your time here. If everyone sticks to the narrative, which is based on truth, there will be no concerns. Please read the narrative carefully and try to remember the specific dates, and sequences.

  Third, there are instructions on how to reach us if you find yourself in trouble. There is a list of country-specific phone numbers, there are several email addresses, and there are social media directions. However, there is one other way to reach us should you find yourself in trouble. We can reach you through the connection with the instructions in the folder.

  Put the first two instructions in a safe place. Memorize the third instruction set and destroy, burn the page. Failure to destroy the third instruction set will not be viewed favorably.

  Michelle’s group, your time with us is over. We thank you for your efforts. Please retrieve your folder from the table, collect your belongings, and head for the busses parked topside.

  Lucinda’s group, you will depart two days from today. Same process, folders will be ready, you can collect your belongings, we will have busses for your trip to the airport. Please exit now.”

  Davinder waited for the first two groups to exit the dining hall, via the massive elevators. When both elevators returned empty, he continued.

  “There are no other groups departing. We created a rouse to ease the tension of putting people out of work. For the next two weeks, Jan’s group, your cover is you will depart in two weeks. Cassandra’s group, your cover is you are here to shutter the buildings. Everyone who is in the room will be going forward with the next steps of the program.

  Before I get into the details, does anyone want to leave? Consider carefully, from this point forward there is no going home. You will be committed to this effort, and this team, until we complete the effort. No exemptions.

  Consider carefully, contemplate overnight. Please meet back here at oh-eight-hundred. Thank you.”

  Lucinda’s group was put on limited duty and departed the dining hall at oh-seven-thirty, two days after the meeting where they were giving notice. Everyone else, remaining in the compound, was in the dining hall at oh-eight-hundred the morning of the third day after notices were handed out. Sitting, drinking coffee or tea, and distinctly quiet, only Nick could be heard chirping.

  “Tis about time we got on with the program. Sitting on my arse is giving me hemorrhoids… Anyone heard from Ragnar? Lucinda? What about you NT, is it time we started doing something good? Don’t you miss getting shot at?”

  “No, Nick, getting shot at is not my cup-o-tea. But if you want me to run to my room, get my pistol, and take a few shots at you, I am happy to oblige.”

  “Yes, please! Can I take a few shots at Nick?”

  Cassandra’s faux support for NT’s ‘shoot at Nick’ comment was extraordinary and cracked up the entire assembly.

  Corb’s appearance stopped the giggling. Everyone’s attention turned to Corb. Taking a couple of steps, standing close to the center of the assembly, Corb began speaking while slowly turning and making eye contact with everyone.

  “I know I have been preoccupied for the past several weeks. I have been away. I have been learning. Learning how to expand these abilities. Janish and I have been learning the ancient knowledge. Working with Davinder and NT to learn how to negotiate with corrupt governments and selfish corporations.

  But most importantly, I was learning how to protect us. How to safeguard everyone here.

  I learned, from the Others, how to create a hidden chamber, with a portal to protect us. We will continue to conduct our business, above in the compound, until it becomes too dangerous. There are thirty-one of us in this room. The hidden chamber can sustain this group for a week. But time is not a concern.

  Getting into the chamber is the problem.

  Janish and I can teleport one, maybe two, at a time. It will take us, if everyone is ready and lined up, about nine, maybe eleven, minutes to get everyone in the chamber. Don’t fret, we will run a few drills.

  Now the cool part.”

  Corb stopped and moved to a place where he could see the other thirty members of the collective without turning in circles.

  “The Others taught me how to construct the chamber and the portal. They also gave me something far more powerful…

  The Others gave me the knowledge of interstellar space travel.”

  Putting his hands up to silence the roar of excitement and disbelief, Corb continued.

  “Wait. Wait. Please, listen. They gave me the ability to build a spacecraft capable of reaching their star system.”

  Pausing to let the information be realized, Corb smiled.

  “We, Davinder, NT, and I negotiated with NATO, several global political powers, and several of the largest multinational corporations.

  What we received is commitment to providing resources and technology to build the spacecraft.

  What we gave them is a share of the knowledge and a few selected technologies.

  The corporations are funding the building of the spacecraft.

  The spacecraft will be built in orbit using a few manned and a lot of unmanned boosters to lift the components into orbit. The supply launches are planned.

  That’s it for now. Any questions?”

  Several people started to ask questions but were halted by Nick standing and applauding. Joined by Michelle, then Lucinda, eventually, everyone was standing, clapping, and cheering. The questions could wait.

  Chapter Four

  A Naturally Mercurial Nature

  “Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.” – Charles R. Swindoll

  “It’s the Russians again. They will not take nyet for an answer.”

  A frustrated Michelle was providing her daily status update and was visibly annoyed at the persistent nature of several governments who are not a party to the program to build Earth’s first interstellar spacecraft.

  “Their threats are no longer subtle. They are vowing to destroy the spacecraft if we don’t begin negotiations. The Pakistanis and North Koreans are using the phrase “nuclear response”. What are we going to do? If the word of these threats becomes public, there will be pandemonium.”

  Everyone at the table was silent and contemplative. They had all heard the increasing level of the complaints emanating from several governments and a few emboldened private companies. Corb turned to Davinder.

  “Davinder, please use your government contacts, let them know we will not be intimidated or bullied. Also, please inform your NATO contacts I will be visiting the Russians, the Pakistanis, and the North Koreans. After my visits, they will no longer be a concern.”

  Several people erupted in unison at Corb’s statement. Ever
unflappable, never rattled, nor anxious, Corb simply raised his palm, requesting silence. The significant part of their grievance and complaint is rooted in Corb’s safety. His friends are worried he will be detained, harmed, or worse… killed by a xenophobic zealot or a jealous dictator. The group’s collective concern for Corb’s safety had become weighty, their own personalities had become mercurial.

  In the six weeks since its naming, the joy had drained from the Peregrination Coterie. Corb decided to fix the problem.

  “Enough!”

  Corb raising his voice was out of character and shocked the room into silence. Davinder smiled, looked around, and spoke a simple sentence of approval.

  “It is about time you acted like a leader.”

  Nonplussed, Corb nodded and continued.

  “I do not believe any of you fully understand how deeply I appreciate your care for me and my safety. First, if giving up my freedom, or my life, means the safety of the people in this room, it is a small cost I will gladly accept. Second, there is no one on this planet who can harm me. A bold statement? Yes. Also, a factual statement.

  We are going to make a few small changes to our routine.

  Q'eqchi' will begin to ‘go dark’. Nick, track the satellites and develop a schedule. Jan, work with Nick, develop a schedule permitting people to leave the buildings when the satellites are not positioned to observe Q'eqchi'. We will give the impression we have wound down our operations here. Let them make guesses regarding to where we have moved and our operational status.

  From the outside, looking into Q'eqchi', we will be operationally silent.”

  Nick and Jan nodded to Corb and bumped fists across the conference room table.

  “Janish, please assume the responsibility of escorting Cassandra to, and from, Xunantunich. Cassandra, starting tomorrow your daily time with the Mayan book cache is expanded. However, Janish will not remain with you throughout the day. It was convenient for me to remain, it allowed me to meet with the Ire and Yari. My meetings with Ire and Yari will no longer be daily. On the days I meet with the Shamans I will retrieve Cassandra.

  As of now, assume an oh-nine-hundred departure and a fifteen-hundred return. Cassandra, I suggest you pack a small lunch. Starting tomorrow, assume I will retrieve Cassandra every other day.”

  Janish and Cassandra both looked a little pale and wide-eyed. Neither voiced a concern, nodded to Corb, and emulated Jan and Nick by bumping fists.

  “Lucinda, Ragnar will not be returning for several months. His training has been expanded. You will be joining Ragnar for the second phase of training.

  NT, Michelle, Janish, you will be receiving training also, but in different disciplines. Davinder is setting up training classrooms and technical facilities in three of the UL2 examination rooms. Instructors will be brought in on a regular schedule.

  Before you ask, what I have provided is all the information I am going to provide this morning.

  Lucinda and Jan, please confer with Davinder. He is aware of the schedule and the escalated security concerns. Davinder will give you your orders and the timeline to complete the training.

  Janish will assist me. I will be completing the negotiations and, with luck, putting to rest the threat from the would-be usurpers.

  Finally, there is one more topic.”

  Everyone was silent while Corb paused. Evidently, something significant was happening. No one in the conference room wanted to miss a word.

  “Yesterday, our friends at the Department of Defense, the DoD, tried to sequester me.”

  Uncharacteristically, Davinder interrupted Corb.

  “What the leader is sayin' is a couple of our friends tried to squeeze our guy and he didn’t let that happen.”

  Stunned silence before NT roared.

  “Fucking hell! Davinder Khatter paraphrased Predator! I didn’t know you had it in you!”

  Smiles and giggles by all before Davinder continued in his normal prim and stoic manner.

  “As I was saying before the interruption. Yesterday, a clandestine group within the US DoD, tried to apprehend Corb. Their intent was twofold. First, they wanted loyalty assurances. Loyalty to the US before all others. Second, they wanted to take blood and run some scans. Several medical researchers convinced the US DoD they could replicate the Summitate ability if they could obtain samples and scans.”

  “Wait, I would have known. Janish, what did we miss?”

  Nick interrupted Davinder and was visibly upset at the insinuation he and Janish missed critical, tactical, information.

  “Mister Davies, Miss. Roa, you did not miss anything in your work. This was an operation, within the US DoD, which was paper-based, need to know, with in-person spoken communication. You could not have known about the plans.”

  Visibly relaxing, Nick chimed.

  “Bloody well right. Nothing gets past us.”

  Davinder continued.

  “The US DoD’s actions created a friction between the DoD and the Executive Branch. Going forward, we will only meet with the NASA leadership and the US Navy Captain tasked to lead the mission and his assistants, and a US Air Force Major.

  Finally, Corb’s use of the word sequester is polite. They attempted to lock Corb in a lead-lined room. Once inside the room, they attempted to incapacitate Corb with something in a syringe. Corb?”

  “Thank you, Davinder. Yes, they requested we meet to discuss the long-range planning, but it was a rouse.”

  Secure NSA Facility Outside Fairfax VA

  “Mister Johnson, thank you for coming on short notice.”

  Colonel Myers, always prim and proper, but his groups’ tentative actions were odd. They were up to something. Abbreviating the usual small talk and the Colonel suggested we meet in a SCIF. A SCIF is a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility. Basically, it is a room which delimits, to within its walls, all forms of communications.

  The SCIF is about forty feet long by twenty feet wide, with a long conference table in the center. The walls are smooth, fake wood paneling, with no adornment or art. The lights are two overhead rows designed to shine a spot, on the table, in front of each chair. No phone, no computers, no monitors, no trash bins, only the table, the chairs, and the lights.

  When the door to the room closed, everyone stood behind their respective chairs, waiting for me to close the distance and be in proximity of the remaining seat, at the far end of the table.

  When the door closed, I waved my arms, I pinned them all to the walls. Standing, at the far end of the table, I could turn and see everyone. I noticed a couple of people’s eyes look to a Lieutenant immediately to my left. Walking over to stand in front of the Lieutenant, I raised her up, so we were eye-to-eye. She panicked and looked down and to her right. Reaching into her purse, I retrieved a syringe. I lowered her back to her feet, moved to the other end of the table. I faced the Colonel with my back to the room.

  “Colonel, do you not possess scruples? Where are your ethics and morals?”

  Removing a folder from his satchel, several people became agitated. When the Colonel tried to protest, I sealed his larynx. Stepping back, scanning the folder, letting the Colonel choke, I quickly surmised their intent.

  Looking up at the Colonel, before he passed out from lack of oxygen, I told the group I would no longer meet with anyone from DoD. Silencing the attempted verbal protests, everyone was gasping for air, I moved within inches of the Colonel showing him the syringe.

  When he wakes up, his leadership will interrogate him for days.

  Releasing the choke on the people in the room, I let the Colonel slump to the floor. I fried the electronics controlling the door. Electronically “hardened” from the outside, they never expected someone on the inside of the sealed room would deliberately disable the door, making it unable to open. I let them know they made a mistake in trying to abduct me.

  “All your attempts to appease and reconcile have failed. Your insubstantial attempt to abduct me was pathetic. You are not trained spies and se
veral of you obviously were unhappily following orders. Ensconced in the SCIF, it might take the rescue team a couple of days to get the door open. I suggest you sit quietly and wait for the door to open. If the rescue team is unable to get the door open in forty-eight hours, I may come back and teleport you out. Maybe.”

  Q'eqchi' Compound in Rural West Virginia

  I left them in the room and teleported back here. Debriefed with Davinder and Lucinda. Davinder and I came up with the plan we are presenting now.

  Essentially, for everyone’s safety, we are sequestering the Coterie.

  We will ensure everyone’s safety.

  Davinder, do you have anything to add?”

  “You summed it up well. Everyone, the stakes have always been high, they are higher now, and will become more severe. We are the leaders responsible for making the next major leap in humanity’s understanding of our place in the universe. Any questions?”

  Of course, Nick tried to chirp but Lucinda beat him to the quote. Another quote from Predator.

  “You lose it here, you’re in a world of hurt.”

  Everyone who knew the reference giggled, the others simply waited.

  “Na, Predator is overused… Leave the gun. Take the cannoli."

  NT’s quote closed the meeting. Any quote from the Godfather closes a meeting.

  Chapter Five

  The Nuisance of Government

  “An oppressive government is more to be feared than a tiger.” – Confucius

  “Yes, Janish and I went to Virginia and rescued the Air Force zoomies from the SCIF.”

  At breakfast, two days later, Corb was responding to the persistent requests from Michelle and Cassandra regarding the DoD and Air Force personnel Corb left in a locked room. He left them with no way out, no water, and no toilet facilities. Also, Davinder now deferred to Corb to run the daily status meeting.