by Paul Phipps
“Thank you Lieutenant, Major Barnes we are going to attempt to capture both the Submarine and the rescue the children on the Villa Nueva. Make your plans accordingly.” He ordered the Commander of the small Marine Battalion on board the Huntress.
“Aye Aye, Sir! We’ll simulate the assaults in VR and Slowtime. I’ll get back to you with our recommendations in an hour or so.”
“Very good work Ladies and Gentlemen, Dismissed.”
* * *
Mary Roberts was sitting in her office fuming. The managing Director had vetoed the placing of a FOX/CNN news crew on the Huntress stating that there was no way in hell that the TSN would attack merchant shipping even in the name of stopping Piracy or rescuing kidnapped children to which the prick had said “There are no outcries of large groups of children being kidnapped let alone just ‘missing’ anywhere in the world.”
And then on top of that she had to get in contact with Commodore Webster to inform him that FOX/CNN would not be able to provide any embedded News crews to the Huntress. And that pissed her off even more as he had been totally gracious and understanding of her position. What she wanted to hear was anger in his voice not sympathy.
At that moment she received an intercom call from her personal assistant. Boss! You might want to turn on your set, go to Channel 215.”
“215? That’s CSPAN, what’s on there?”
“Just do it Ms. Roberts, you won’t be too disappointed.” And with that parting shot, Mary reached for the Remote Control and turned on the set in her office.
“Once again the President of the United States has made an unscheduled visit to the White House Briefing room for a statement.” The view changed to show President Richardson flanked by Admiral Caparelli and the Marine Commandant General Cappielo as well as the Attorney General.
“Good Afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen of the press, I have a brief statement to make. We have received credible information from the Terran Space Navy that they have discovered a clandestine international network that has been kidnapping children and funneling them to various places around the Earth.
They are going to use their resources to find and rescue these children before further harm befalls them. As President of the United States and Commander in Chief of our armed forces I have offered the assistance of the United States Navy and Marine Corp in stopping any of this trafficking in children in all United States Territories and International Waters. I have also notified the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation that their knowledge and services may be called upon in this endeavor.”
Mary sat back and pulled up a paper tablet and started to take notes. ‘Let’s see how the Director feels about us covering the TSN now.’ She thought in satisfaction as the President continued to speak.
Thursday, March 18, 2027
Command Chief Cavendish watched the Gel-Cell with its occupant in Suspended Animation being loaded upon a Fast Courier that was going to Space City One later that day. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that yet, however all of the A.I.’s were in agreement that this was not only a prudent decision but in the current circumstances the wisest one too.
With a decisive nod of her head she headed for the Camp Heinlein Obstacle Course and Firing Range. She had reserved two hours for her own personal training.
Sometime later she was reviewing her performance with the lead A.I. trainer. He told her “Chief, your accuracy and rate of fire with the rail-gun was adequate, however I think you can improve that even more with some more practice. You have shown a much better grasp of the usage of the variable rates of Slowtime. You are especially good at the 50% usage level, however you need to practice more at the 75% and 100% levels. You should be just as accurate at those because you have more time to aim and calculate your shots, instead you are acting like you are in spray and pray mode.”
“Yes, I thought that too.” Sarah told him reflectively. “I think it is a matter of not realizing the speeded up time rate and acting like I was in real-time still.”
“As long as you are aware of it then, next, you did exceptionally well on the obstacle course. You showed very good coordination in the Jungle section, I especially liked the Tarzan approach of using the trees as your highway to success. The water course was also very well conducted and you showed a judicious frame of mind when you decided to stay underwater and used your echo-locating training to good use.
Tomorrow I am scheduling you for the Escape and Evasion practical. You’ve had the classroom work and now it’s time to see if it can be integrated with your other skills and aptitudes.” The A.I. trainer said with approval.
Shortly thereafter Sarah left the evaluation section and went to her offices. She still had a Boot Camp full of trainees to manage. On the other hand she now had a full time staff to shoulder the common problems.
* * *
“Commodore, thanks to President Richardson’s announcement yesterday the board of Directors has directed me to place a permanent news crew on board the Huntress, if your kind offer still stands that is.” Mary Roberts told Ansel with a slight note of triumph and vindication in her voice.
“That’s good news to hear Mary, I too have some news for you. Yesterday we captured two surface vessels that were transporting kidnapped children for ‘unknown’ purposes and to an ‘unknown’ location. We also captured an advanced submarine, however it’s crew committed suicide before we could get to them. The children on board it though were unharmed, all of the children were transported to the M1 moon base and are being treated and cared for there for the foreseeable future.” Ansel told her.
“Would you be willing to come to our New York Studios to make an official announcement?” She asked quickly.
“Yes I can do that this time. We are contemplating opening up our own facility for this sort of thing. Do you think it would be possible to hire FOX/CNN to design and staff it for us?”
“Where do you plan on locating it, New York?” She asked quickly.
“In Geo-synchronous orbit I think would be best. We will provide an elevator service to and from it to a facility here on Earth.”
“It sounds interesting and fun too, why don’t you send someone here to the business office and offer the contract? Just make sure they understand that they only get one chance and then you’re off to a different network.”
“That sounds like the sort of course I like to chart. So how do you want me to break this news? On Sean’s show or in a more formal press conference style?” Ansel asked her.
“How soon can you get here?”
With a quick check with Diana, the Huntress’s A.I., Ansel replied, “If I hurry I can be there in an hour otherwise please give me three hours.”
“Three hours? That’s good enough for us and I’ll have as many other reporters and journalists from our competition there too. Just to show our ecumenical side.” She added with a throaty chuckle.
“Certainly, Oh yes please make sure that the attending reporters understand my policy about being talked over and interrupting. If they don’t then I can guarantee that they will not appreciate the response they receive from me.” Ansel told her.
“Ahhhh yes, thank you for reminding me of that. Yes I’ll be sure to brief them accordingly. Anything else?” Mary asked respectfully.
“No not from me, I’ll bring some footage for you of what we found on board the vessels. It’s a bit unnerving if you don’t understand what was done to the kids.” Ansel said and with that he was gone.
“Damn! Footage… Oh hell this is going to set the Fox on the chickens. I sure hope he knows what he’s doing.” She muttered and then with a call for her assistant she started to make her phone calls.
“Debra! It’s Mary, we’re going to have a major press conference here in the studios for Commodore Webster of the Terran Space Navy. He has asked us to offer the chance to question him after he makes his presentation to any Journalist who wants to attend.” Mary told her counterpart at ABC.
“Press Conferenc
e? Terran Space Navy! What’s it about?” Came the rapid fire questions.
“I’m guessing that it’s about the same thing that the President was talking about yesterday, Debra. I don’t know any more than that. It’s in three or four hours depending on when he can get here from wherever he’s currently at.”
“Ok, I can get somebody over there, will you share your video?”
Yes, it will be made available to all participants in real-time.” And with that the connection was dropped and Mary told her assistant to start the ball rolling on getting a studio set up for a Press Conference and to get the reporters gathered so that she could brief them on what she knew. And then it was back to the phones for a few more one on one’s with her various counterparts at the other networks.
* * *
Ansel was in the Make-up room submitting to the procedure. He was a bit uncomfortable about it but stoic as well. Once it was done he thanked the older woman for her fine work and followed Mary Roberts out to the Studio.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, Commodore Webster of the Terran Space Navy.” Mary Roberts announced from the lectern and then moved off of the podium to stand along the wall. It was all Ansel’s now. Make or break time…
“Good afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen, yesterday, March 17, 2027 forces of the Terran Space Navy captured two surface vessels and one submarine of an advanced type. These three vessels were all transporting kidnapped minor children of various nationalities to an unknown destination.
The children were recovered unharmed and transported to our M1 moon base. The crews of the surface vessels were also captured and are being held for questioning. The crew of the submarine committed suicide to a man. All of the captured vessels were impounded and placed into a one hundred and twenty mile orbit so that they can be seen as a warning to any other traffickers’ in kidnapped children.”
At that point the Holo-projector that Ansel had brought with him was turned on and the reporters were able to watch from the suit cameras of the TSN Marines what had transpired. In the case of the Villa Nueva the doors of the shipping containers were opened up and the reporters were stunned to see the children lying in tight fitting bunk-beds making no sound or movement. There were close to thirty children in each container. It was an eerie sight to see…
“The children were all drugged with what we believe is a ‘Camp-Tranquilizer’ drug that was developed under the former President-for-Life’s’ regime by FEMA for use in the ‘Holding Camps’ for suspected sympathizers to the resistance.” Ansel said in a dead-pan voice.
The scene on board the submarine was very similar only the children were packed in even tighter and many were standing or lying on top of each other. All were silent and motionless.
“None of the children responded to normal stimuli and had to be carried to waiting vessels of the Terran Space Navy for transport. At the present time the prognosis for these children is poor in regards to recovering in the near future. We have made enquiries with the current United States Government for assistance in this matter. In addition due to the non-communicative nature of children we are unable to have them tell us their name or where they are from. We are therefore going to have to rely upon professional policing agencies for assistance in returning them to their families.” Ansel paused at that point and then said.
“I think that’s enough for the moment. I will accept a limited number of questions at this time.” He waited for the reporters to indicate that they had a question. Finally he pointed to a middle aged woman who he thought he recognized. “Ma’am you’re up.”
“Thank you Commodore, I’m Edna Jameson, from NBC news, New York bureau. Can you tell us how you came upon these vessels and what made you suspect that they were carrying kidnapped children?”
“We witnessed the Submarine rendezvous with one vessel in the Pacific. We saw the transfer of the children from the surface vessel to the submarine. We then tracked the submarine until it rendezvoused with the second surface vessel. At that point we boarded them both and rescued the children.”
“I see, but HOW did you know the children had been kidnapped in the first place?” She pressed.
“Now that information is very classified, Ms. Jameson, so I won’t divulge it here.” Ansel said with a smile. “Next question please” He said indicating a tall man near the back of the room.
“Thank you Sir, John Barnes from ABC. Who gave you the authority to intercept and board vessels of Sovereign nations that are not your own?” He asked in a slightly belligerent tone of voice.
“A good question, Mr. Barnes. We did. These vessels were in International waters, under the United Nations Welfare of the Child treaty that was signed unanimously by all member nations’ any and all military and policing vessels are allowed to board vessels to insure that there are no children in distress. So we did and we rescued one hundred and thirty-nine children.”
“Thank you Commodore, one more question please.” After he received a nod to continue he said, “Do you know the final destination of these kidnapped children?”
“No we don’t, the crew of the submarine apparently did and they committed suicide to ensure that we didn’t find out from them. The submarine was also apparently ‘sanitized’ of any information concerning its home port or its current mission and destination.” Ansel told them.
“Do you know what the nationality of the submarine is?
“No we don’t, its name is the ‘Mother’s Love’ we think. There is a plaque in the Wardroom that states that anyway. The crew’s uniforms and badges are also unknown to us.”
“That’s a very strange name for a Submarine.” Ansel heard one of the reporters say to another one.
‘I wonder if they will start to research that sub any further.’ Ansel thought.
“Commodore, yesterday President Richardson held his own briefing and stated that he was directing several of the Federal agencies to assist you in stopping this child trafficking. Did he know about your assaults on these three vessels when he held that press briefing?” Asked a reporter from ABC.
“No he didn’t, these vessels were discovered after he had held that briefing with your colleagues. He did know that we were actively searching for vessels that were involved in this sordid trade.”
“Has the administration been notified of what you found and your actions with these vessels?”
“Yes the government of the United States has been notified. We are currently transporting members of the FBI to the M1 Moon Base as we speak. They will be the lead agency in identifying these children and hopefully returning them to the arms of their families.” Ansel told him. “One last question for now, please.”
“Commodore Webster, do you think that you have stopped this trafficking in children with your seizure of these vessels?” A reporter from the FOX/CNN bureau asked.
“Probably not, there is too much data we have collected that indicates that this has been going on for several years. Frankly, I think we got lucky in finding these children. Now that these people know that we are trying to find them, I am positive that they will become even harder to find.”
“Sir, one follow-up question please.”
“Very well, one question.” Ansel told him.
“Thank you sir, are there any other official agencies investigating this child trafficking ring?”
“Probably, I don’t know who though. Maybe you and your colleagues can do some investigative journalism and see what you can dig up.” Ansel said with a little twisted grin.
* * *
“Nice dig there on the ‘Investigative Journalism’ Commodore.” Sean told him at the follow-up meeting with the FOX/CNN insiders that Ansel had brought in to the ‘Conspiracy against the Quarn’.
“I admit it was a bit mean of me. However I think your colleagues need a kick in the pants every now and then instead of being spoon-fed their information.”
“You’ve got a point there Commodore, however real investigative journalism is an expensive undertaking and the netw
orks hate spending money unless there is a guaranteed payoff.” Mary pointed out. “Now how did the business office like your proposal on your new PR center?”
“Coming out of the blue like I did? Hmmm, not to badly actually, they will get back to me with a preliminary contract and cost analysis in two weeks. It’ll be interesting to see what they come up with as we will be supplying nearly everything except the talent.”
“And we will be supplying access to our network and affiliates.” Mary said pointedly.
“Very true Mary, now then, if your news crew is ready I can transport them to the Huntress when I leave.” Ansel told her.
“Ah yes… The news crew… We put out the word for volunteers and we got a crew out of Canada right away. They are currently located in Calgary and are ready and raring to go.”
