“You’ve heard?” he asked. They both nodded affirmatively. “Let’s go then,” he said.
They hurried down the staircase to the ground floor and made their way to the communications station. Inside there were three women and another man looking anxiously toward Daniel. He moved to the station the group was gathered around and sat down. He was suddenly very nervous and unsure what to do, but the man who had awakened him pushed a button and said, “Capital Norixum, President Daniel Brickman is here.”
“Mr. President,” said a voice that was deep and soothing. The words were slightly clipped, but easily understood. “It is a pleasure to greet you at last.”
“Who am I speaking with?” Daniel said.
“Oh, you have to press this button to talk,” said the communications officer.
Daniel pressed the button and repeated his question.
“My name is Norixum, at least that is as close as your language will translate. I am the capital ambassador to your world.”
“Ambassador for whom?” Daniel asked.
“Ah, yes, that is a good question,” came the smooth yet strange voice. “I represent the free people of the Tolligark system, and Lord Vanoughack is our president. We are from the Boullash Sector of the galaxy.”
Daniel blinked his eyes and thought he must be in some kind of hidden camera scheme. He looked at the people crowding in around him. They all looked totally sincere.
“Is this some kind of joke?” Daniel asked without pushing the button.
“Absolutely not, sir,” said the man who had shown him how to use the equipment. “We received this transmission a few minutes ago.”
“Can we trace where it’s coming from?” Daniel asked.
“It’s off one of the satellite feeds that were down, Mr. President,” said one of the women.
“So this could be a prank?”
“If it is, it’s not coming from anyone here in New Washington, sir,” the woman continued. “There’s no one here with the expertise, and I’m not sure where someone else would get the equipment.”
Daniel turned back to the console and pushed the transmission button. “Capital Norixum, what is it you want?”
“I would like to meet with you to open diplomatic relations.”
“That sounds good,” Daniel said skeptically. “How do you propose we proceed?”
“I would like permission to land my escort near your base of operations, say at noon your time?”
Daniel looked at Scott and Jason, they both shrugged their shoulders and then mouthed the words yes and gave him thumbs up.
“Alright, we shall look forward to meeting you at noon.”
“Delightful,” said the strange voice. “I shall set down at the Ellipse, if that is favorable to you.”
“Yes,” Daniel agreed.
“Wonderful, I shall see you all in a few short hours.”
There was a click and the transmission ended. Daniel spun his chair around to face the people gathered around the console.
“What is going on?” Daniel said.
“It sounds like the aliens are trying to make contact with us,” Jason said.
“So how did they know to contact me, huh? How did they know we were here and had a president and everything?”
“The transmission,” Scott said. “I didn’t think about aliens intercepting the message.”
“Alright, that makes sense. What time is it?”
“It’s 3:48 a.m., Mr. President,” said one of the communications officers.
“Scott, go wake up the council, they need to know what’s going on,” Daniel said in a voice full of resignation. “I guess I’m destined to never get a full night’s sleep. Jason, would you get the kitchen crew together, have them brewing coffee for the council meeting and send one of them to the Oval Office to see me.”
“Yes, sir,” Jason said. He hurried off and Daniel turned to the communications officers.
“I know this is probably a prank, but we have to see it through. I would ask that you keep everything you’ve heard tonight to yourselves.” The men and women nodded, and Daniel stood up to leave, then said in as stern a voice as possible, “I guess I can’t have you arrested if you guys are playing a joke on me, but believe me, I will retaliate.”
Several of them smiled, while two of them shook their heads seriously. Daniel walked out of the room and headed toward the Oval Office. He was so tired his body ached. His stomach once again rumbled and he wondered if he might be getting an ulcer. There had been stressful times in college when he was cramming for a final, or difficulties in law school that required days without rest as he drilled himself over and over to memorize precedents and landmark cases, but nothing had come close to the unending roller coaster of fear, awe, panic, and pressure to make decisions that he had faced this week. He made a note to have a glass of milk if one could be found.
At the Oval Office, he dropped into his desk chair and started making a list of things that needed to be done. It wasn’t long before a bleary eyed, wild haired woman was escorted into the office by Jason. Daniel informed her that they would be hosting a diplomatic luncheon in roughly seven hours. He told her it would be outdoors and they had no idea what their guests would prefer to eat. He encouraged her to have several options ready, but to keep everything under wraps until they could find out what to serve.
The woman had questions, but Daniel sent her away without waiting for her to ask them. Next he met with the council, and for the next three hours they discussed what this could possibly mean. None knew, but they all agreed, given the information that Daniel had returned with, that this could be a real event. Regardless, they needed to prepare for contact with the alien race, even if this was a prank, so Daniel sent them to gather their people. He was going to give everyone the news in one hour on the South Lawn. Finally, Daniel met with some tech people to have them set up a public announcement system so that everyone could hear him clearly.
When everyone was gone, Scott met with Daniel in the Oval Office; he brought Daniel’s secretary with him.
“What do you need?” Scott asked.
“About a week of uninterrupted sleep,” Daniel said.
“Can’t give you that, but we can keep everyone out until you’re ready to give your speech.”
“That would be great and send in more coffee, too,” Daniel said.
Scott and the secretary nodded and left the room. Daniel didn’t need to work on a speech. He wasn’t trying to persuade anyone of anything. He would lay out the facts, and if people chose not to believe him, that was their right. If a spaceship really did land at the Ellipse, then no one could argue that he was making something up. If, on the other hand, nothing happened today at noon, they could impeach him and he could finally get some rest. He wasn’t sure which option appealed to him more.
He was just about to nod off when Scott hurried back in with coffee.
“I’ve some plans for you to take a look at when you get the chance,” he said. “It’s for the diplomatic meeting.”
Daniel sipped the coffee and let the hot liquid burn all the way down to his empty stomach.
“I trust you and, to be honest, I don’t need to worry about that right now,” Daniel said. “Scott, if you’ve got things planned out, just run with it.”
“Yes sir, Mr. Pres-“
Daniel cut his friend off. “Stop that ‘Mr.’ business. I’m too tired for all that this morning.”
Scott smiled. “I understand.” He left the room quietly and returned half an hour later to say it was time for his speech.
Daniel stood and stretched.
“I’ve got some clothes for you, and there’s a groom here to give you a shave.”
“A what?” Daniel asked.
“A groom,” Scott said again. “You know, someone to help you get dressed and ready.”
“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”
“You slept in those clothes,” Scott said accusingly.
“Well I didn�
�t have time to change before the aliens wanted to talk to me.”
“At least it was a radio transmission,” Scott retorted as he opened the door for the groom to come in.
“It’s not my fault that beings who can cross the galaxy don’t know not to disturb people in the middle of the night.”
Scott grunted at Daniel then left him alone with the groom. The man was carrying a pot of steaming water and a kit which Daniel assumed was his barbering instruments. He also had a laundry-type bag with clothes, which he laid gently across the back of one of the sofas.
“Where do you want me?” Daniel asked.
“Your desk chair is just fine, Mr. President,” the man said. He was short and overweight. He had a white apron on and sported a neat mustache. Daniel sat back and closed his eyes. The man pulled a soft cloth from the steaming water and wrung it out. Then he coiled the rag around Daniel’s face.
“Where’d you learn to do this?” Daniel asked, trying not to move his mouth too much and disturb the towel.
“My dad was a barber and I used to spend Saturdays in his shop with him.”
The warm cloth felt wonderfully refreshing and Daniel tried to relax without drifting off to sleep. He was starting to get anxious about the meeting with Norixum. What would the alien look like? What would he say, and why did the aliens want to meet him? There were so many questions, he felt like a child on his first trip to a theme park.
When the groom unwrapped the towel, Daniel sighed. The man then began brushing Daniel’s face with warm, lathered cream. It had a delightful old world smell, and reminded Daniel of his grandfather. His grandparents had passed away when Daniel was still very young, but the smell of the shaving soap brought back the warm feelings he had for his mother’s father in a powerful way. The groom used a straight razor, and before Daniel knew it, he was shaved and refreshed. He took the damp towel the man offered and rubbed the back of his neck with it.
“Let’s see what you’ve brought me to wear,” Daniel said.
The man pulled the plastic off the hangers and revealed a handsome suit, complete with starched shirt and matching neck tie. Daniel hadn’t worn a suit since the plague had hit. Before the plague, he had worn suits, although none of this quality, almost every day since he had come to Washington. He dressed and asked the groom how he looked.
“Most distinguished, Mr. President.”
Daniel wanted to laugh, but he didn’t. Instead he asked if the man had brought him any shoes, but apparently that was one detail he had forgotten. Daniel pulled on his athletic shoes and sent the groom to see if he could find some size 11 dress shoes. Then he headed for the Blue Room to make sure everything was ready.
When Scott, who was already waiting for him in the Blue Room, saw his shoes he grimaced.
“Don’t say it, I’m not being stubborn,” Daniel said before Scott could complain. “The groom forgot to bring shoes so I sent him to find some. Besides, no one will see my feet while I’m talking, and if they care that I’m wearing tennis shoes after they find out about the aliens, then they’re crazy anyway.”
“I guess you’re right,” Scott said. “But it’s not what I expected.”
Daniel smiled, “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
He stepped out onto the portico and was surprised by the crowd. He knew there were over two thousand people in the New Washington community, but he hadn’t expected to see them all. Word must have leaked out about the aliens, he had expected it to. Now it was time to set the people’s minds at ease, if that were possible. There was a microphone set up by the railing. Daniel stepped toward it and cleared his throat. The murmuring of the crowd stopped and it was a quiet morning.
“Thank you all for coming out this morning,” Daniel began. “I know this is unusual, but I wanted to share this news with all of you. As you know, I’ve been away these last few days in the Midwest. While I was in Kansas, I saw a spaceship land and unload what looked like alien cattle.”
He paused while the effect of his words rippled through the crowd. Faces that were once looking up at him now turned to those around them. The murmuring erupted once more.
“Please,” he continued with upraised hands. “I know this is hard to take in. We’ve wondered for months now what happened to our friends and family, to our neighbors all over the world. Now it appears we have at least one answer: the spheres were from an alien race. At this point that is all we know. They’ve come here to Earth, they’ve imported animals. This is what we know so far. We encountered another species of alien life; it’s hard to describe the animals. They were carnivores, we know that for sure, so we will be taking measures to ensure the safety of everyone in New Washington.”
He had to stop frequently to let the impact of his words die down. Each new revelation brought fresh questions to everyone’s mind. He prepared himself for the reaction to his next announcement.
“Last night we were contacted by what appears to be a legitimate representative of the alien civilization.” The crowd was getting loud now, some people were even shouting at him. “Please, stay calm. I will tell you everything we know. It isn’t much, but I will keep you informed. We have no desire to hide anything, so please give me a chance to finish. The alien, he called himself Norixum, wants to meet with me today at noon.” That was like a visible blow to the crowd, many of whom backed away from him. “I am declaring that work be set aside for the day unless otherwise notified. I will be meeting with Norixum at the Ellipse, and I am asking that everyone maintain a respectful distance. I know you will want to see what happens, and that is fine; we only ask that you do not come any closer than the far side of the street that surrounds the park.”
People were still talking and Daniel tried desperately to get their attention one last time.
“I know that many of you are scared,” he said in a loud voice, “but I believe the aliens themselves mean us no harm at this time. I know that doesn’t make sense with what has happened, but I need your support today. Please give us time to learn what we can. I will go on television as soon as I can after I meet with Norixum. I will answer as many questions as possible, but you must let us work. Please trust me, that is why you voted for me and your council representatives. We are all working tirelessly to ensure your safety and the security of our future. There will be footage of the animals I saw in Kansas on the air later today and I encourage you to watch it. Please stay in public areas and we will announce the interview well in advance so you can be sure to see it all. Thank you all for your time.”
He waved briefly then stepped back into the White House.
“That went well,” Scott said.
“You really think so?” Daniel asked.
“Absolutely. You were poised, clear, and you conveyed authority. Personally, I didn’t think you’d be able to finish.”
“Hey, I passed the bar exam.”
“Yeah, I forgot you were a lawyer. I wonder if people would have still voted for you if they had known.”
“Is that anyway to speak to your president?” Daniel asked in a mocking tone.
“Hey, don’t look at me, I voted for the other guy.”
Chapter 33
It was five minutes until noon. The Ellipse looked ready for a carnival. There were people gathered all around the park, and Jason had stationed security officers at intervals to ensure that no one got too close or tried anything foolish. There was a large tent set up on the lawn to one side of the large park. Inside, air coolers were circulating cold air, keeping the temperature at a comfortable 75 degrees. There was also a large, oriental rug inside the tent, with furniture on three sides. Tables were set up along the far side of the tent for food, which was being kept in a large catering truck someone had found and put to good use.
Daniel was standing under another canopy, waiting to see what would happen in a few minutes. He had a dreadful feeling that the whole thing was a big prank, and he would have to face the people and tell them he was wrong. But he hadn’t imagined the spacecraft
that unloaded the cattle, or the creatures that had tried to kill him. If this was a prank and they did make contact later, would anyone believe him? He tried not to think about such things, but it was difficult as he stood outside in the heat wearing the suit and new shoes that Scott had provided.
Suddenly there was a gasp from the crowd and Daniel looked up. There was a ship coming down, coming straight down from the blue sky. It was merely a dark blob against the bright summer sky at first, and then it began to take shape. It was a cube shaped craft with no visible markings. The bottom side, which was the side Daniel could see the best, had a circular appendage that was refracting light like the shimmering glare just above a fire. There was no noise, and as the ship drew closer Daniel was amazed at its ability to move so effortlessly through the air. A helicopter and some jet airplanes could hover in midair, but there was always constant movement as they battled air currents and gravity. The alien ship had no such peripheral movement. It came straight down so slowly and gracefully that it seemed to defy the laws of nature.
Jason and Scott stood on either side of Daniel, who fidgeted nervously. He was no diplomat; he had no experience in negotiations. Not that anyone had experience dealing with dignitaries from the Free People of the Tolligark System, wherever that was. He would hear what the being had to say and then ask for time before he replied.
“Can you believe it?” Jason said.
“Nope,” Scott replied. “I never believed in aliens. This is like being in an old science fiction movie.”
“Well, I’d rather be in one than just watching from the sidelines,” Jason said. “Know what you’re going say there, Mr. President?”
“No bloody idea,” said Daniel.
The spaceship set down softly on the lawn of the Ellipse. There was a hiss of air being vented, then a plank-like door slowly lowered, creating a smooth walkway from the ship to the ground. The creature that emerged was much like the being Daniel had seen herding the alien animals. He moved on what appeared to be a cushioned chair that glided a few feet off the ground. His legs were fat and round, with no appearance of knees or feet. His body was short and plump, with a trunk-like appendage sprouting from its chest. Its head seemed to be doubled, with large, round eye coverings that seemed to be attached near the top of the first head. There was no hair, just a smooth, oblong skull covered in a delicate looking white skin, as if the being hadn’t been exposed to sunlight in its entire life. The mouth was small and located on what looked like a caricature’s chin that protruded out from the head at an angle. There was no sign of a nose or ears. The second head, or skull, sat where the neck should have been and was at least as large as the one above. It was also covered by the albino skin, with no features whatsoever.
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