Wandering solemnly back to the office to find a car, he could only think of what horrors Sarah was being subjected to and for what benefit? It was always clear from the start that Sarah Palmer was a sceptic, she refused to accept the fact that the alien invasion was a reality. Joshua cringed as he allowed himself to analyse every word that had passed her lips in the previous weeks and attempted to see it from both angles. Could Sarah have really been one of these alien stooges, after all, she never accepted that the whole affair was in any way real? Had Joshua been duped by her persuasive attitude? He had to admit that her argument had influenced him in the difficult days and allowed him to become more critical of the facts as they were presented. As Joshua looked up to the dark, maroon overcast night sky, he swore that he would get to the bottom of this and if he was indeed right and a tragic mistake had been made, then he would do all in his power to rectify it and prove Sarah's innocence.
CHAPTER TWENTY
All in all, it took nearly two full weeks for the 'Census' period to come to its natural end. In that time, it could not be calculated how many men, women and children had succumbed to starvation, poor medical care or the cold as winter drew closer. Hospitals soon ran out of medication and staff shortages meant that the seriously ill patients never stood a chance. The elderly suffered the most, retirement homes could not function with so few staff and so little food. Questioning the wisdom of the government became the main topic of serious comment countrywide as the weak paid the ultimate price for the policy of containment.
Great Britain was on its knees, its infrastructure completely derailed. Desperately trying to regain some kind of normality, businesses struggled to resume their daily function without sufficient fuel, stock and labour. Resentment naturally grew and hearts were hardened at what appeared to be the governments unerring will to control every aspect of telecommunications and the media. Over the course of the fortnight, the state run television channel and radio began to air light entertainment shows which were more often than not, repeats although in the face of such hardship, it seemed a token gesture to appease the enraged population. Its banality was yet another reason for contempt at the efforts by the country's leaders.
News regarding the alien attack was still poorly presented and vague. It was reiterated that it was in the public’s interest that containment of the threat could only be sustained through strict monitoring and censoring of communications. Without the internet and telephone networks, it seemed impossible to address the situation of food shortages as haulage vehicles stood still and silent. In the small towns and villages, the people fared better. Farmers could sell their wares locally and small markets were established. In many ways in those cases, it was a return to the 'olden' days and a stab in the heart for the supermarkets and shopping malls which sat idle and empty.
Freedom of movement was poor as military checkpoints sprouted on major highways. A proliferation of vehicles on the roads lasted only a few days before the fuel supplies dried up. Newly 'chipped' and free to travel, families reunited or began the search for lost loved ones. Those with any sense or forethought sought food and supplies as it was clear that the coming months would bring only more toil and hunger. Warehouses were easy targets for scavengers, violence was rife as the stretched police and military support found it impossible to contain the spread of 'food theft'. It was clear that life, for the time being, would not return to the normality that the government suggested. Without sufficient news information, international affairs were simply a mystery, imports and exports were nonexistent and companies battled to trade without banking services or employees who were wary of working on the promise of payment which was unlikely to materialise.
Sensing the need to appease the populace and quell the disorder, the powers that be took the unprecedented step of announcing a forthcoming television documentary that would hopefully go some way to clarifying the country's opinions concerning their belligerent but seemingly aloof alien enemies. The anticipation of the event was enough to feed the need for informative fulfilment for a number of days as the program became the hot topic amongst communities in turmoil.
After the period of Census had officially ended, it was promised that communication networks would once again come back online beginning with the telephone land lines, followed by the mobile phones in the coming days. On the 5th December 2020, British Telecom were finally given the go ahead to restart their service. Not only did this serve to kick start the country in terms of business but the system was soon overloaded with desperate relatives calling their loved ones.
Joshua had returned home in Oxford to be greeted by the smell of rotten food waste emanating from the kitchen bin. His home, filled with cardboard boxes pre-empting his move to London was strangely cold and uninviting. The office had become his new home and at least there he had the company of likeminded people. Now he was very much alone in his thoughts and more than ever lived his life, like many others through the ubiquitous state broadcasts. When the telephone network resumed its functionality Joshua could contact his employers to find out what the situation was with resuming work; he busied himself preparing to move as planned. He had not yet found a property in London but was planning to rent until something suitable turned up. He had hoped that by then he would have showed his worth and doubled his salary anyway.
Finally achieving some meaningful contact with his line manager on the morning of the 6th of December, Joshua spoke hurriedly to inform his boss of some of the previous week's events. At any time, the line could be lost and he gabbled somewhat as he nervously trembled whilst explaining Sarah's arrest. Joshua agreed to return to London the next day, he had just enough fuel in the company car and he decided to take the risk of not being able to return the following night if he could not fill up. The empty house was draining his spirit and he knew it. Better to be in the heart of things in the capital, he thought.
That evening, the long awaited television event, the most profound screening in small screen history was played out to a captivated audience of over sixty million people. Joshua sat in his chilly living room to watch. Fuel and energy saving was a big initiative from the government at the present time and Joshua did his part by wearing three pullovers and multiple pieces of underwear in order to combat the cold. The documentary was well advertised, and from the moment it began, Joshua could tell that it was not some hurriedly put together journalistic effort but a precisely pieced together film that had been sweated over for some time. The first prominent point that caught Joshua's eye was that finally, after weeks of anonymity, a familiar voice was used to present the programme. Richard Kettley, the eminent television journalist and political analyst was used for a carefully worded and highly stylised narrative. Viewing like a classic episode of Panorama from the nineties, it began with historical shots of 'alien' sightings and 'UFO's' from the past fifty years. The film makers revelled in begging the question, were these real all along? All very captivating but nothing new here, thought Joshua as it seemed to mirror his own previous research in a number of ways. What the public really wanted to see was something current and in due course, the film makers gave them exactly what they wanted.
Using well designed graphics and a calm, soothing voice-over, the programme began to unravel the events of the very beginning of the 'invasion' as it was touted. World maps criss-crossed with shooting red lines depicted the times of the events which led to the collapse of society as it was known. The loss of satellite feeds, cyber hacks, unusual sightings, radar detections of 'anomalies', political events and irregular movement of monies around the globe all seemed to indicate some kind of attempt to reorganise, disrupt and breakdown global processes. The programme followed that information with the news that was not unexpected, that governments around the world had been investigating and tracking possible alien threats for some time. It was revealed that a secretive Whitehall based office had been compiling data which had at least in some part prepared them for the attack when it came, hence the emergency measures
that were put into place were somewhat planned in advance. Joshua had wondered for sometime how the communication networks were dismantled with such apparent ease.
The crucial part of the broadcast was yet to come however, and as the sensationalism reach a fever pitch, Kettley struggled to remain dulcet as he coolly commented over footage obtained after the downing of some wandering alien craft who had been shot out of the skies by a military jet of unknown origin. Proudly warning viewers that graphic scenes were imminent, millions of viewers inched closer to the edge of their seats as they longed to see the torn and mutilated remains of the alien protagonists. Indeed, the nation was not to be disappointed as a number of stills and limited moving imagery of the internals of the alien craft were broadcast. Joshua stared at the screen, his jaw resting on his chin, his mouth agape. The craft was small, tight and claustrophobic. The lighting was poor and the camera's lights scanned the damaged instrumentation panels as the camera operator panned nervously around the vessel. Considering the craft had been captured, the footage was hurried and brief but undeniably fascinating and compelling. The familiar grey and functional interior reminded Joshua of a submarine or underwater vessel, thick bulkheads, cramped confines and functional panels. The absence of seats and other 'human' comforts was also noted.
Despite Joshua's intellect and moral standing, he could not help but feel a deep desire to now see the crushed and battered bodies of the vessels crew, the recent events had undeniably hardened him in that respect. A modicum of vengeance would not go amiss at a time like this. He wanted to see the face of his enemy, he wanted to know what drove them to bring this hardship upon his kind and he was not to be denied this macabre lusting.
The film began by announcing that the alien crew had been killed outright in the crash which had apparently happened over the Atlantic ocean, hence the intact nature of the vessel. Perhaps it was for the best as Joshua pondered over the fate of these creatures if they had not perished in the fall. Their bodies had been deeply scrutinised and images began to be screened of the cadavers laying upon a stark white and sterile looking autopsy table. Abstractly at first, a limb here and there, lacerated and torn, the film makers were slowly introducing the horror to the viewers. It came as a surprise then when finally the facial features were shown that no warning was forthcoming and the whole screen was suddenly filled by vacuous black eyes in a screen-shot that would no doubt go down in history as the most profound and horrific moment in the country's collective consciousness. It was almost as if the director wanted to shock the audience, to suddenly jar something loose in their psyche. The haunting dark orbits dominated the large, bulbous cranium and instantly, this image was recognisable and familiar to everyone who dared to watch. It was the same 'grey' alien form that Jimmy had described, the same that countless others had recalled the world over to the scepticism and ambivalence of others, the same iconic shape that had dominated comic book, small and large screen and video game market for the last fifty years. The image was familiar but in many ways far more disturbing than anyone could have expected. Joshua instantly recalled Jimmy's tale and felt a need to call him and see how he faired. Unfortunately, Jimmy had Joshua's mobile number only and the network was still down. Joshua could only imagine what torture Jimmy was now going through as his experiences were once again made fresh by this news.
The documentary continued at a pace, introducing more questions than answers it pondered the aliens origins, their motives and their abilities to further inflict damage upon society. What did seem clear to Joshua was when all considered, the aliens had probably not made as big an impact to the detriment of society as the government had done in trying to contain their threat. What was the potential of the alien actions going forward? That is what the documentary appeared to revel in, the conjecture, the pessimism. Joshua felt that after the two weeks the British public had experienced, perhaps some optimism was required, it seemed strangely unfamiliar for a government statement to be so dour. Perhaps for once the voters opinion polls and the forthcoming planned elections were in the back of the ministers minds, a worryingly rare thing in itself. The film once again reiterated the aliens abilities to covertly infiltrate the human population, it did delight however in lauding the virtues of the Census and confirm that it had been 'extremely useful in revealing dangerously concealed alien operatives' in considerable numbers. The film did not discuss the fate of those detained in the course of the process, it seemed inconceivable to Joshua that any harm would come to Sarah, surely the interrogative process would be lengthy and detailed enough for them to finally determine her innocence?
If the documentary's purpose was to enlighten and inform the nation, then its mission was successfully achieved. If the films purpose was to rally the people of Britain and strengthen their resolve, it too succeeded. It did not however, answer some of the burning questions that needed to be asked, it did not mention the darkened blood red skies, the number of casualties as a result of direct alien action or indeed the predicted number who had perished as a result of starvation in the previous torrid weeks. Those of a more cynical disposition might argue that the governments of the world had somewhat overreacted to the crisis and perhaps a more measured approach could have been taken. Joshua had the feeling that there was far more to this than was forthcoming. He could not wait to get back to the office, back to his research which now seemed more pertinent than ever. He yearned the resumption of the free press, he wanted to know the opinions of others, share their stories, their knowledge. He wondered how long the Internet would remain down for and on its return, would it ever be the same again? The people of the world had changed, their beliefs and values had been brought into question and their resolve tested. It remained to be seen however if the worst of it was over or if this was just a taste of what was to come.
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
The Messenger, Fleet Street
December 6th 2020
Joshua sat at his desk, the office quiet and feeling rather empty. Of the staff who had remained at the office, only he had returned so soon. The remains of the home comforts he and the others had arranged still adorned the large open planned room and Sarah's coffee still sat proud upon her desk, a mouldy growth beginning to form on the half finished contents. The management team had mustered finally and they sporadically and individually wandered through the office looking flustered as they struggled to come to terms with the mighty task of resuming normal business.
The paper's production was reliant upon communications, the printed section reliant upon a tried and tested distribution network. Neither was in place, not now nor in the foreseeable short term. It was clear that it would be some time before a single copy could be produced. This did not deter Mr Fernandes from his aim of being the first national newspaper to resume its daily output. Joshua could detect his presence long before he came into view. The larger than life character could be heard from the next room, bellowing orders to the beleaguered section heads. Fernandes ambled into the office and made a beeline for Joshua who suddenly looked busy tidying his desk.
“Regan. I hear you were one of the few. Commendable effort in every respect. Back on the job so soon, excellent. I told you the public were interested in aliens did I not?” The giant round faced man was suited in grey, a narrow tin of Café Crème cigars jutted out of his white shirt pocket. His magnanimous nature and pompous arrogance suited his position. Joshua was yet to experience any meaningful contact with him on a professional level and was clearly nervous.
“Glad to see you in good health Mr Fernandes.” He replied respectfully. Fernandes grunted and raised his eyebrows.
“We've all been through some terrible times... my mother passed away last week I am informed.”
Joshua reeled in the sudden candidness of his employer who stood steely chinned and emotionless at the announcement of his personal loss.
“My God, I'm so very sorry.” Joshua stuttered, not knowing how to interpret the news or what condolences to offer.
“So am I. These things bring things into perspective. Makes you appreciate what you have and what you have lost. That is why I am giving you a new role.” Fernandes seemed to succumb a little to the wobbly voice of someone struggling to come to terms with their loss.
“A new role?” Joshua inquired.
“We've lost one of our own, we want her back.” Fernandes said, avoiding using Sarah's name in case of any further emotional twinges.
“Yes, Sir. I haven’t quite come to terms with it yet. I'm convinced that it's a mistake.” Joshua proclaimed with conviction.
“Absolutely, just like this whole damned episode.” Joshua mused over Fernandes' statement. Perhaps his recent loss had tested his belief in the government's part in the crisis?
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