“You don’t, sir,” said Redford. “But if you bear with me, I’ll prove that my version of events is true. Which brings me to my urgent request. Under the influence of the Tartarians’ drug, Secretary Stinnett gave the Tart leader command authority equal to his own. A Tart named Shane Frey. If you check with Nessie, she’ll confirm this.
“As commander-in-chief,” continued the colonel, “you’re the only one who outranks the secretary, so you’re the only one who can get Nessie to confirm what happened. So I would ask that you put us on hold and check this out. If Nessie confirms what I’m telling you, you have to admit that the only way this could happen is if Secretary Stinnett was under alien influence. And you’ll need to reverse Frey’s authority immediately. We can’t have a hostile extraterrestrial leader in a position to control our military.”
“Yeah, thanks for that insight,” snapped the president sarcastically.
Stinnett was growing more agitated by the second, pulling against his restraints, unable to fight off the compulsions HCS had created in his brain. Vega had warned them that this would happen when anything that Stinnett had accomplished at Frey’s command was in jeopardy of being undone.
“But what you say can’t be true,” continued the president, so lost in thought that he didn’t notice Stinnett’s behavior. “Nessie was programmed to allow me or the secretary of defense to transfer powers to trusted underlings in times of crises. Military underlings. Which is how you quickly gained extraordinary powers when the Travelers—Tarts—were discovered. But the transfer was supposed to be to military leaders already extremely high up in the chain of command. Not random strangers. And only under very special circumstances.”
“That may be true, sir,” said the colonel, “but either the programmers forgot to tell Nessie that these powers could only go to a narrow group of recipients, or Frey figured out a way around it. Either way, it happened.”
McNally frowned deeply. “I’ll check this out immediately,” he said. “I’m putting you on hold, Colonel,” he added as his perfect likeness, and that of the chair he was in, evaporated from the room.
Anna considered the initial exchange while the group waited for McNally’s return. It should have been surreal for her to be in a meeting with the actual President of the United States. But after all that she had been through in the past seventy-two hours, it was one of the least unusual events she had experienced.
A holographic Quinn McNally, seated in his holographic chair, materialized once again less than ten minutes later. The president looked shaken to his core. “You were right, Colonel,” he said. “The secretary did transfer command authority to a stranger named Frey. Unbelievable. That authority has now been fully rescinded. I’ve also taken the liberty of restoring your good name, Colonel, and your emergency powers. Nessie will make it clear to all concerned that you were framed, remain the head of Evie, and are as loyal to our country as ever.”
“Thank you, sir,” said Redford, and while he maintained a stoic expression, Anna could tell how much this meant to him. Of course it did. He had spent his entire career building a sterling reputation and earning the passionate loyalty of his subordinates. And that had been wiped out in an instant. Anna had recently been the victim of false accusations herself, so she knew better than anyone just how painful this could be.
The president’s cancellation of Frey’s powers also ensured that Anna’s second vision would never come true, since the Tart leader could no longer send special forces commandos into the woods of Albania. All of those in the Vorian conference room were well aware of how significant this really was.
“After I restored your powers, Colonel Redford,” continued the president, “I made sure that Nessie could never transfer power in this way again.”
Stinnett was now fighting against his restraints like a feral animal. “Mr. Secretary,” said Redford in his most soothing voice, “I’m going to begin the briefing now. Are you ready?”
Stinnett instantly stopped struggling and blew out a long breath. “I am,” he said calmly, now that Redford had aligned reality with his programming. “And thank you,” he added. He shook his head in horror. “This is a nightmare. I’m at the mercy of the instructions Frey fed me. When they’re triggered, positively or negatively, I have no control of my own actions. It’s maddening.”
“I’m truly sorry about that,” said Vega. “Had we known the Tarts were on Earth earlier, we’d have had a supply of the antidote ready. But it won’t be too much longer.”
The president stared at Vega and raised his eyebrows.
“Allow me to make introductions before I begin the briefing,” said Redford. “But I’ll ask you to brace yourself, Mr. President. There’s a hell of a lot going on here, and most of it will seem impossible. Or at least preposterous. But I’m hoping you can humor us while we lay it out.”
McNally nodded. “I’ll try to keep an open mind.”
“Thank you,” said Redford. “To begin with, the man who just spoke isn’t actually a man. He’s an extraterrestrial who has given himself the name Tom Vega. He isn’t a Tart, but hails from a different species entirely, one calling themselves Vorians—Vors for short. He’s their leader here on Earth.”
The president’s eyes widened as he considered the possibility that he was actually in the virtual presence of a live extraterrestrial, but to his credit, he didn’t challenge this assertion or interrupt.
The colonel gestured to Kaitlyn. “This is Kaitlyn O’Connor,” he added, “who is also Vorian. She’s their chief scientist here. We’ve come to believe the Vors are an ally of humanity.”
McNally studied the two Vorians carefully for several long seconds. “Where are you?” he asked Redford. “You aren’t calling from space, I assume.”
“No sir, we’re right here on Earth.”
“Where?”
The colonel winced. “I’m afraid I can’t say, sir. This is information the Tarts don’t have. There are only a few other pieces of information like this that we’ll need to keep from you. Otherwise, we’ll tell you everything we know.”
“Are you saying you don’t trust me with this intel?” asked the president.
“That’s not what I’m saying, sir,” replied Redford. “Of course we trust you. But we still can’t risk it. Just in case the Tarts are ever able to drug you the way they did Secretary Stinnett. Admittedly, this is unlikely, as your personal security is much greater than his was. But too much is on the line to take that chance. And that’s why this briefing is for you only, at least at the moment.”
McNally thought about this for several seconds. “Understood,” he said begrudgingly.
The colonel blew out a long breath. “To continue with the introductions,” he said, “the woman seated to my right is named Anna Abbott. She isn’t an alien. But she’s extraordinary in her own right. It turns out that she’s . . . precognitive. Clairvoyant.”
“What?” said the president in disbelief. “What does that even mean? That she can see the future?”
“Sometimes, yes,” replied Redford.
The president looked alarmed, and it wasn’t hard for Anna to guess why. He was willing to be open-minded, but he was now wondering if the colonel was stark raving mad after all.
“I know how this sounds,” added Redford hastily, “which is why I’ll ask Anna to prove it to you before we proceed. Once she does, you’ll be more likely to believe everything else I tell you.”
“And how does she intend to do that?” asked McNally skeptically.
“Think of a number between one and a million,” said Anna. “And I’ll guess it. But once I do, right or wrong, you have to tell us all what it is. Immediately after my guess. I don’t read minds, so if you don’t remember to tell us—in the future—I won’t be able to see what it is.”
McNally shook his head. “Surely you can’t be serious?” he said.
“I’m very serious, Mr. President,” said Anna, and then, with a broad grin, added, “and please, don’t call me
Shirley.”
51
The meeting lasted almost three hours, and the president left a believer. They had told him everything they knew, as promised, except their location and the location of the Vorian portal.
Since Redford now had his command authority restored, he and the president initialized a massive manhunt—although Tart-hunt would be more accurate—to locate and eliminate all Tarts now on Earth. Both knew this would be no easy task. The moment Frey discovered that Nessie would no longer acknowledge him, he and the rest of the Tarts would go further underground.
Redford also agreed to give the president updates at least once a day until the crisis was averted, however long this might take.
Vega assigned two Vors to imprison Stinnett inside a locked room and keep guard outside. The secretary of defense had insisted upon this himself, unsure if there were other, hidden orders he had received that would force him into acts that he would later regret.
Meanwhile, Kaitlyn had been tasked with constructing a wearable signal blocker, so the secretary didn’t become a living homing beacon, and was protected from further manipulation by Frey until the antidote did its job.
After they had all eaten, Vega pushed for a meeting to discuss strategies for getting Anna through the portal, as if they were playing a galactic game of soccer, with the Tarts as potential goalkeepers, and Anna the ball. A game in which a single goal would win the day.
Anna agreed to the meeting, but insisted on consulting privately with Steve Redford first, something Vega couldn’t refuse. She and the colonel retreated to the Black Ops helicopter, since it was the only location within the compound that they could be certain could not be eavesdropped upon. They sat in the parked aircraft, at the end of the runway, among multiple jets and helicopters owned by the Vors, and used it as if it were a conference room.
Bizarre times called for bizarre measures.
Redford had the nearly irresistible urge to embrace Anna the moment the door to the helicopter was closed, but managed to fight it off. He was a colonel in the US military, with the fate of the world, and maybe more, at stake, not a horny fifteen-year-old behind the bleachers. Yet his body and his emotions didn’t seem so sure.
He blinked several times, hoping to erase the puppy-dog look he suspected his eyes conveyed, and studied his clairvoyant companion. “What does your gut say about the Vors?” he asked. “Do you still trust them?”
“I do. For the most part. But not blindly. That would be stupid. They’re still alien. They could still have hidden agendas.”
“Hidden even from you?”
Anna nodded. “I’m far from infallible,” she said. “My intuition has no experience with their species, so my gut isn’t reliable when it comes to them. And as everyone keeps pointing out, my visions of the future are sketchy. This is too important, and I don’t know nearly enough. And as we discussed, even if I was able to see the near-term future perfectly, who knows what the long-term future might look like? Especially if I travel to Vor. Maybe their government kept secrets from the people they sent here, knowing that if they did find someone like me, these secrets wouldn’t be safe.”
“So trusting them is still a leap of faith?” said Redford.
“Trusting anyone is a leap of faith. Human or alien. But on the whole, as I said, I do trust them. And I’m beginning to have a vague sense of why I agreed to be their admiral. And how other events that have happened recently might fit into the grand scheme of things.”
“Is that why you wanted to meet with me in private?” asked the colonel.
She grinned. “That’s why I wanted to speak with you in private, yes. Later tonight, I’m sure there are other things we can accomplish together in private that have nothing to do with speaking.”
“I have no doubt,” said Redford with a smile. “To be honest, I’m having trouble keeping my hands to myself even now.”
“Good,” said Anna impishly.
The colonel sighed and forced himself to stay focused. “So what’s on your mind?”
Anna frowned. “As if I only had one. I can tell you what’s on my hidden mind. My subconscious continues to dictate actions that don’t necessarily make sense to me. It wants me to set certain things in motion. But to be fair, it has proven itself. My gut told me to surrender to Frey’s forces at the Rest Easy Motel, which seemed a horrible move at the time. But if I hadn’t done this, we never would have met. And I wouldn’t have had the chance to put men who knew I was framed into police custody. Men who can clear my name.”
“Do you think your subconscious was able to see these positive outcomes?”
Anna shook her head. “No. They were too far in the future. And the Vors hadn’t even improved the functioning of my microtubules at the time. Still, I continue to think I should do what my intuition dictates. Even if I don’t understand why. I have to trust that I’ll connect the dots at some point. No matter how treacherously complex the pattern made by these dots turns out to be.”
Redford thought about this. “I agree,” he said.
“Good. So let me tell you what my gut is broadly saying about our current situation.”
“You mean the situation on Earth and in the galaxy,” said Redford. “Not our personal current situation.”
Anna smiled. “I can tell you about that, too. My intuition says that you’re crazy about me.”
“Well, yeah,” said the colonel. “But that doesn’t require intuition. I told you the same thing just last night.”
“Men have been known to lie to a woman to get her into bed,” she pointed out.
“Impossible,” said Redford, feigning shock. “I’ve come to believe a lot of crazy things lately,” he said, trying to keep a straight face. “But now you’ve gone too far.”
52
The colonel and Anna joined Tom Vega, Kaitlyn O’Connor, and Lisa Moore in the library, as before, except this time with the notable absence of a deck of cards and a timer.
“I’d like to begin by reviewing where things stand,” said Vega to kick off the meeting. “We’ve had some setbacks, but on the whole, things are looking great. Anna has been successfully enhanced. Steve has been restored to his position, and neither the police nor the military is hunting for him or Anna. And the president of the most powerful country on Earth is committed to doing whatever is necessary to weed out every Tart on the planet.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Most importantly, at least from the Vorian point of view, our portal has reappeared in Albania, and is now active. And Anna has agreed to accompany me to Vor and to become the allied fleet admiral. Finally, since Frey can no longer command the US military, Anna’s horrific second vision can’t possibly come true.”
“Any negatives?” said Anna.
“Not really,” said the alien leader. “Everything suddenly seems to be going our way.”
“I agree,” said Redford, “but the picture isn’t quite as rosy as the one you’re painting. Yes, the vast might and resources of the US military are being deployed to hunt down the Tarts here on Earth. But the same was true for a fugitive named Osama bin Laden years ago, and it took over a decade to weed him out, even so. So we can’t expect miracles. It’s true that the Tarts’ features and their demon-eyes are quite distinct, and a dead giveaway. But they can keep their light amplification devices off if they have to. And bin Laden was six feet five inches tall, and also very distinctive in appearance, and he evaded the US military for a long time. Worse, the Tarts will be able to deploy technology that we’ve never seen before, which will make them even more elusive.”
“Then why not get every country on Earth involved in this effort?” asked Lisa Moore.
“Good question,” said Redford. “You weren’t in on the call with President McNally, but we discussed this briefly. The president and I agreed that one of our top priorities going forward will be to decide if, and when, we should share what we know with other world leaders. We could use their help, as you suggest. And that’s assuming that the Tarts’ por
tal doesn’t reopen, which would make matters even more dicey. Also, it can’t be denied that the presence of two alien species here on Earth impacts every human, not just those in the United States.”
“So why would you even hesitate?” asked the Vorian genetic engineer.
“There’s still a lot to consider before we make such a momentous decision. Possible unintended consequences. If we do spread this to worldwide governments, some will insist on making it public. The president’s feeling is that we have enough on our plate at the moment without having to deal with what will surely be the most massive public fallout of any disclosure in history. We both agree we can’t put it off for too long, it’s just a question of when.”
“I think we’re going to need to do this very soon,” said Anna.
“I agree,” said the colonel. “And I’ll be making this recommendation to the president when we speak tomorrow. My own belief is that the public has a right to know that we’re not alone in the universe. I don’t buy the argument that this might incite panic. And I haven’t forgotten Frey’s threat. He said they have a comprehensive tech library here on Earth, and now have a critical mass of fellow Tarts to implement inventions that will make them invincible. We can’t afford to give them time to come to full strength.”
“Amen to that,” said Anna.
“Thank you for raising these issues, Steve,” said Vega. “Does anyone else have any others that we’ve missed?”
There was silence around the table.
“Then let me return to Anna’s second vision,” said the alien leader. “The fact that the Tarts were aware of the location of our portal is still highly troubling. They may not be able to make this exact vision come true now, but we can’t rule out that they’ll find other ways to accomplish the same ends. So I think it’s important not to be too hasty. We may only get one chance at this. If we miscalculate, we could, as you humans say, snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. So let’s not rush to Albania before we’ve really thought this through.”
Oracle Page 31
