about to do something that for most people took years
of training and an intense selection process, yet she was
about to do it as casually as taking a cab around the
block. She was about to travel out into space, to the far
side of Jupiter in fact. William climbed in alongside her
and sat back comfortably, looking like he had done it a
thousand times. How does he do that? she wondered. As Ray prepared for launch, William explained the
seat restraint system and some of the capabilities of the
Jaguar to Andrea. “You may have noticed that there are
no control devices, switches or buttons. As soon as we
move, your seat will contour around you and a bar will
come out and fit in your lap. Ray will control this Jaguar
via a mind link to the Systems Management Center. The
SMC provides navigation, speed, scanning and weapons
management tasks. He simply thinks a command or
control function and the ship responds instantly. In his
mind, he can see everything the SMC sees. Once we
leave Earth’s atmosphere Ray can provide a holographic
screen in front of us so we can monitor our progress.” Andrea looked out the side at the famous
Manhattan skyline. “The ‘Windows’ on either side are
three-dimensional video screens showing the world around us. So just sit back and relax, honey, this will be the smoothest ride you’ve ever had.” I will believe that when I see it, Andrea thought. She hated to fly, even the slightest turbulence made her nauseous. William sat back in his seat grinning like a Cheshire cat. Sounded like I knew what I was talking about, he thought smugly. Andrea looked across at him. Smarty Pants, flown once in this thing and he’s an expert already. As she smiled sweetly at him a slightly mechanical voice said, “Welcome aboard President and Mrs. Umberto. I am Marr, the Systems Management Center for this
Jaguar, we are ready for launch.”
Andrea reached over and took Williams’ hand. She
felt the slightest uplift then jumped as the seats
adjusted on cue. The sensation was of being hugged, it
was very comforting and she relaxed. Andrea looked at
the screen to her right. She could see New York below
as the Jaguar slowly rose. She knew they were moving
but felt nothing; it was like watching 3D TV.
Marr automatically scanned for local air traffic and
as soon as she was satisfied sent electronic pulses to the
antigrav unit. The unit adjusted to the effect of Earth’s
force of gravity and the Jaguar’s vertical ascent was
accelerated. Once above ten thousand feet Marr
increased the Jaguar’s vertical speed and within a few
seconds the day turned into night. Marr sensed the lack
of gravity as they passed out of Earth’s atmosphere,
shutting down the antigrav system and engaging the
Carvorite engine. She increased the agitation of the
Carvorite plates to accelerate the flow of particles
through the Venturi shaped engine duct as she received
Ray’s mental command to maintain speed at.25 C. Andrea watched Earth shrink on the screen in front
of her. Now this is the way to fly, she thought. She was
traveling faster than she had ever before and yet felt as if she was relaxing in an overstuffed armchair. Checking the speed on the hologram in front of her she could see they were traveling at forty-six thousand miles per second or one quarter the speed of light. She looked over at her husband who was smiling at her. He was thinking the same thought he had had for 30 years, why would a beautiful woman like her want to be with me? She looked stunning, like she was on her way to a party
instead of cruising through the vast emptiness of space. They had met at the U.N.; she was working as an
intern for the World Health Organization while finishing
her Ph.D. in Epidemiology. He had just finished his
Masters in Political Science and was on his very first day
as a staffer to an assistant’s assistant. There were no
empty tables in the crowded cafeteria so they were
forced to sit together. After a few minutes of polite
conversation, they began to like each other and after
comparing schedules arranged to meet for lunch the
following week. The lunches turned into dates and now
35 years, three children and seven grandchildren later
here they were on their way to meet the Colonial
Minister of the Hevinian Commonwealth who was waiting
for them on the Command Ship of the huge alien fleet
now only an hour away.
“A couple of months ago who would have guessed
we would be traveling in space to meet a high-ranking
official of an alien race,” said Umberto to his wife. “They are not really aliens dear,” she said.
“Technically they are more like cousins three times
removed. They are human; it’s just that they have been
around a bit longer than us.”
“I am still trying to get my head around the fact
that we developed from a race of humans millions of
years older than us who came here 400,000 years ago,”
said William.
The discovery that there were other humans in the
universe had changed everything for millions of people
on Earth. To many, simply knowing that we are not
alone in the universe and the fact that they are also
human was extremely comforting. The leaders of the
world’s largest religions were quick to point out that it
was to be expected, they encouraged their believers to
read their religious texts, to go to the very source of
their religion where it is written that if their God created
the Heavens as well as the Earth then they are all God’s
children. Not everyone agreed, at least two extremist
groups declared holy war on the aliens. One of the
groups attempted to overrun an old Russian InterContinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) site on the Ukrainian
border, convinced they could launch a missile at the
Orion. Unfortunately for them the old silo had been
emptied years ago and was now repurposed by the
Russian mafia as a staging point for drugs destined for
the west and was heavily guarded. They all vanished. The Russian Premier Anatoly Creskov said of the
incident, “You don’t have to be smart to be an
extremist, just extreme.”
In general, most Earthers were fascinated by the
Hevinians and Engineers were chomping at the bit to get
their hands on their advanced technology. The Captain
of the Hevinian Supply Ship Orion placed a moratorium
on knowledge sharing until the fleet arrived so the issue
could be deferred to the Colonial Minister.
William was completely comfortable accepting the
Hevinians. He had thought about it many years ago and
had decided that it was possible for life to exist
somewhere else in the universe and left it at that. He
was pleasantly pleased however when they turned out to
be human and it was one less problem. The President
sat back in his chair and closed his eyes, there were times when he regretted taking on the job of interim President of the New World Confederation. He thought about the massive task ahead. Earth could no longer support the billions of people inhabiting the planet. The Hevinians had realized this through the reports of their agents, or sleepers, and had come to offer th
eir help in relocating almost a quarter of the population to a nearby habitable planet in the Altean system, which was the purpose of this meeting. There would be so much to do but what choice did they have; it was either relocate or die. He allowed himself to doze. Suddenly he heard
Ray’s voice and was wide-awake.
“Coming up on the Hevinian fleet, Mr. President.” William focused on his screen but saw only a dark,
star filled blackness. “I don’t see anything.”
“Yes, Sir. It is difficult to see black vessels against
a black background. You have to look for what is not
there,” said Ray.
“I get it,” said Andrea. “You mean stars; look
where there are no stars right? You cannot see the stars
behind the ships.”
“Correct, Mrs. Umberto,” answered Ray. “Let me
show you what the scanning system sees.”
The screen shimmered slightly and was filled with
images of over a hundred ships; the smaller ones three
or four times the size of Earth’s largest super tankers.
The largest were over five miles wide.
“The Command Ship is the smaller one in the
center.”
“We got here faster than I expected,” said
Umberto, marveling at the sight.
“Yes, Mr. President; by about 35 minutes. The fleet
increased speed to meet us. By the way, if you look to
your left you will see Jupiter, we are about half a million
miles from her.” The left side of the cabin vanished, replaced immediately by an amazing close up view of the giant, gas covered planet. Andrea was startled by the effect. It was if the entire side of the ship had vanished. She placed her hand on the screen to reassure
herself.
“I know it seems as though you are looking outside
with no walls around you, but remember it is just a
visual; you are quite safe within the ships’ skin.” “It’s so beautiful,” gasped Andrea, in awe of the
multicolored bands seen clearly rotating around the
planet.
“If you like that, watch this,” enthused Ray. “Say
hello to Europa.”
Andrea tightened her grip on William’s hand,
enthralled at the sight of Jupiter’s Moon passing by at
seemingly very close range.
“We are about one hundred thousand miles from
her. She is almost the same size as our Moon but seems
bigger as we are much closer. You can make out the
lines that crisscross the planet which are actually
massive cracks in the ice that covers the surface.” The intercom came alive cutting short his tutorial.
“Earth Jaguar, this is the Hevinian Command Vessel
Janus,” the voice said in slightly accented English. “You
are approaching head on, please alter course and
approach to our right. Landing bay doors are open and
lights are red.”
“Thank you, Janus, I have a visual. Turning left
now,” said Ray.
The chatter was inconsequential as every move
was monitored but some things are traditional. To the
Hevinians voice communication is evidentiary backup in
case of automation failure and subsequent investigation.
As a bonus, it allowed the passengers to know what was
happening. Ray slowed down and maneuvered the Jaguar alongside the massive Hevinian vessel. He felt like an ant alongside a Mack truck. He slowed to a crawl as he approached the bright red lights illuminating the landing bay. Kris could see the concentration on Ray’s
face as he prepared to maneuver into the tiny opening. “Like threading a needle,” declared Andrea. There
was a slight bump and a blue light enveloped them. “This is new,” said Kris.
“Particle beam lariat,” said Ray, slightly surprised.
He had read reports that they were developing the
technology but didn’t know it was in use. At first, there
was a struggle as his mind fought against the lariat’s
control of the Jaguar but he forced himself to relax and
allow the lariat to do its job. The beam guided the
Jaguar effortlessly pulling it sideways toward the
opening in the massive vessel. The Jaguar slid neatly
into the landing bay, rotated 90 degrees, lined up with
the marks and landed on the deck. As the Carvorite
engine silently shut down, the exterior landing bay doors
closed and a few seconds later, the blue light of the
lariat went out and the interior landing lights went from
red to green indicating an oxygen atmosphere. The
overhead lights came on as massive partitions slid open
to either side of them, revealing a massive maintenance
space. Large doors in front of them opened and a party
of white uniformed crew members marched in. Ray
opened the door and the steps deployed just as the lines
of the Hevinian Honor Guard halted and faced inward
framing the door. Ray and Kris stepped out and stood to
the side to allow the President and Mrs. Umberto room
to step out of the Jaguar’s single door. At the door, they
felt a slight giddiness as they took in a breath of
Hevinian air. They had been briefed to expect this. The
Hevinian atmosphere contained slightly less oxygen than
Earth’s. Umberto recovered quickly and turned to help Andrea and to make sure she was ok. Andrea thanked Ray and, taking Williams hand, they stepped out of the Jaguar to be greeted by a tall woman in a crisp white uniform. Her six-foot-two height was accentuated by her slim body, short blond hair topping her chiseled
features, and perfect Hevinian tan.
“President and Mrs. Umberto, I am Fleet Admiral
Kiman Goswan. Welcome aboard the Hevinian Battleship
Janus. Please follow me,” she announced in English that
was flawless.
The Admiral led them between the rows of equally
tall, immaculately uniformed men and women; their
perfectly tanned skin contrasting with the white
uniforms. At the end of the line was a gaggle of civilians,
in the center of which was a tall broad-shouldered man
in what could only be called casual clothes. He was
wearing a long beige shirt over white loose-fitting pants
and sandals. His blond curly hair and deep tan reminded
William of the typical southern California beach bum.
And then there was the smile. Politician, thought
William, I’d recognize that smile anywhere.
As they approached, the tall man moved forward
away from the group and held out his hand. Feeling
decidedly overdressed in his suit and tie, President
Umberto took his hand and indicated openness to
friendship in accordance with the Hevinian custom by
holding it for a few extra seconds. Ray had explained the
custom on the ride up. It was tricky, not unlike the
Japanese gesture of bowing. Too much was insulting but
too little showed indifference. The Hevinian was caught
off guard by the gesture and smiled a truly genuine
smile.
“I am Welesdon Beltran, Hevinian Colonial Minister
for this sectant. Welcome aboard, Mr. President.” He turned to Andrea, “Welcome aboard, Mrs.
Umberto.”
Andrea took his hand only for a split second. In
Hevinian culture it was not customary for a woman to
indicate openness to friendship with a man u
nless she
was interested in a relationship. Had she done so it
would have put Beltran in an awkward position. “May I introduce my…” he faltered, looking for the
right word, “my deputy, Andrew Blaque.”
They all shook hands. “If you would care to come
with us, we have a small reception for you. Then we can
all sit down and discuss our visit to your planet.” Beltran guided the Umbertos to a waiting antigrav
transport. As the dignitaries left, the Honor Guard also
filed onto their own transport and disappeared.
Suddenly Ray and Kris were left on their own standing next to the Jaguar. They had decided to remain by the Jaguar and leave the politics to those more suited. Kris was looking around amazed at the size of the hangar.
“You could fit an aircraft carrier in here and this is one of the smaller ships?”
All around them were hundreds of vehicles of various sizes and shapes, some obviously utilitarian with open beds for hauling cargo and others built purely as transportation. Kris recognized several Barques. These fleet barges seemed to be the workhorses of the service. They were about three times the size of an eighteenwheeler on Earth and the same shape as an intermodal container since there was no need for streamlining or aerodynamics in space. The shoe box design gave them the capability of carrying multiple loads. There were other Jaguars and a few single riders nicknamed by the Battalion as Sharks. All were attached to the deck by flexible tubes and cables; some were opened to allow technicians to work on them. As neither of them had a real interest in engineering they began to feel a little bored after a few minutes and regretted not going with the President. Just as they were boarding the Jaguar to wait out the President a small open transport driven by a solitary crew member pulled up alongside them.
“Mr. Wright, Mr. Blackstock; My name is Grent Corbyn. Welcome aboard the Janus. I am the ship’s Senior Administrative Technician and it is my distinct privilege to be your escort while your President is in conference. If you are hungry, we can go to a dining room. As you know we are omnivorous like yourselves and enjoy a variety of meats and vegetables.”
“Great,” said Kris. “I’m starving, let’s go.”
It took Corbyn a second or two to translate the unfamiliar word and then as he did he looked distressed.
“It’s ok, Corbyn, Kris is not really starving, it’s just an Earth expression,” explained Ray.
“Oh, good,” he said, relieved. “Shall we go then?”
“You two go ahead. I would just like to sit somewhere and have a cup of Muska.”
Altis-5: Book #2 of the Sleeper Series Page 2
