Chapter 12

The Seeker’s appearance overhead was a shock to everyone.

Everyone knew The Seeker had recently departed Earth orbit. The people of Earth wanted to know why The Seeker had returned to Earth orbit so soon. My wives and I should have known why, but we wondered if The Seeker had a problem with the agreement.

Ship Commander Cindy Shimlt contacted President Betty Felt. It took time for Cindy to explain Time Distortion to Betty. Once Betty understood that while traveling to a destination, The Seeker was capable of moving forward or backward in time. Cindy informed Betty that the Council of Empire Members had voted to approve the Alliance Agreement between Earth and the Empire. She also provided Betty with some additional information. Betty then phoned my wives and me, and asked to be put on our speaker phone.

Betty said, “Good afternoon, Facilitators. That was an unexpected form of greeting for our positions as Facilitators ended once we delivered the Alliance Agreement to Ship Commander Shimlt.

“I just finished an interesting conversation with Ship Commander Shimlt. Cindy explained Time Distortion to me and informed me that the four of you are already aware of it. That makes me wonder what else the four of you are aware of that I don’t know. If there is something you think I should know, please inform me if you aren’t sworn to secrecy.

“Cindy told me that the Council of Empire Members has approved the Alliance Agreement, or should I say it will approve it sixty years from now.”

I said, “We find it convenient to speak of such things in the past tense, Betty, so stick with has approved the Alliance Agreement.”

“That seems right to me, Jeb.

“She also briefed me on several things related to their approval of the agreement that she has asked me to not publically announce until she has had an opportunity to talk with the four Facilitators. You can expect a shuttle to arrive at your location within the next hour. Cindy told me she needed your fourth wife present, so contact Elba and let her know this is a command appearance. Cindy said that if she is not at the farm or on her way to the farm, the shuttle pilot has orders to land the shuttle wherever she is, and to ensure she is onboard the shuttle when it lifts for The Seeker.”

Alicia asked, “Why does Cindy want to talk with us, and why is Elba’s presence required?”

“I can’t share that with you. Cindy told me the basics, so there may be things I’m not aware of, so that is probably why it is important that the five of you hear what Cindy has to tell you, before we discuss it.

“Jeb, right now I have a problem and need advice on how to handle the announcement I have to make. Other than the five of us and possibly Elba, no one on Earth is aware of Time Distortion.

“How am I to tell the people of Earth that the Council of Empire Members approved the Alliance Agreement? They all know that The Seeker left about a month ago. People will have problems with news that The Seeker has returned with word that the Council approved the agreement, when it seems evident that The Seeker’s roundtrip journey and time to approve the agreement would require months, if not years to complete.”

I said, “Betty, knowing that the Empire approved the agreement changes everything. Until now, my wives and I were sworn to secrecy about many things related to the Empire. Now that Earth is one of Altair’s trade worlds, we can talk about a lot of things that had to be kept secret.”

Mary interrupted me to think, “Jeb, share the truth of my existence with her. It will help her to deal with the situation. However, swear her to secrecy for there are still people who would attack us if they knew I existed. You will have to assist her for a while because it will take more than a month for her to adjust to what you will tell her.”

Oh, boy. Today is going to be a major shock to Betty. First Cindy turning her world upside down and now us.

Up until now, we had allowed people to believe that Mary was a physic and one of The Seeker’s crew.

I said, “Betty, I was just authorized to share our main secret with you. The Altairians here at the farm are aware of the secret, but they haven’t discussed it while on Earth. The only Earthlings aware of the secret other than me and my wives are Paul, Aaron, and Mike. They were also sworn to secrecy, so don’t get upset with them.

“I need to give you some background, before I explain Mary.”

“Are you referring to that physic on The Seeker, Jeb?”

“Yes, but not exactly. I’ll get to that, Betty.”

I described the Zldat race, and the relationship between the Supreme Royal Zldat, the Royal Zldat Council, and the Council of Empire Worlds. Then I described the relationship between Mary and her father and that her father was the Supreme Royal Zldat. Once she understood all of that, I explained my understanding of the Time Continuum and then explained that Zldats had the ability to view the Time Continuum and make predictions.

By the time I finished explaining everything I felt was necessary – including what I had allowed people to think about my fictitious Mary, the fact that I was Mary’s bearer, and what that meant in the Zldat culture – Betty was in a mental daze.

She said, “Jeb, you have overwhelmed me with that information. When I asked you to share your secrets with me, I never expected something like this. If you have other secrets like this one, please warn me before telling them to me.”

“I understand, Betty. My wives and I have gained the knowledge during the past four or five years, so we have had time to assimilate the information and adjust to it. Mary told us it will take you a month or more to be comfortable with this information. So if what I told you will affect your duties, I am willing to help you adapt.

“The important thing for all of us is, you cannot reveal that Mary is here at the farm. Putting that information into the remainder of the anti-Agreement group’s hands is like asking them to attack the farm. They are still out there and are probably just laying low and waiting to get revenge.”

“The information you need to explain is common knowledge in the Empire. I think you should start by reminding everyone that Empire technology is different and superior to that here on Earth. Then tell the world that The Seeker has three engines. The first engine is a sub-light engine which is used to move The Seeker when it is in a solar system. The second engine is used to travel faster than light between solar systems, which may be in different galaxies. The third engine is used to move The Seeker forward and backward in time.

“That news will be a shock to the people of Earth. Once you said that, tell them that The Seeker used its three engines to carry the Alliance Agreement to the Council and submit it for approval. Once the agreement was approved, The Seeker used its three engines to return to Earth a month after it left to inform the people of Earth that the agreement had been approved. That is why The Seeker has returned to Earth so quickly, and why it is here now.”

Betty said, “You’re right. That explanation will work. The media is asking me to explain why The Seeker is here, but I think I need to take a few minutes to get my thoughts in order, before I make that announcement.”

It was thirty minutes before a ‘breaking news’ alert was made by the media to announce to the world that Betty had obtained an answer as to why The Seeker had returned. The world had absolutely no warning about the bombshell Betty was about to present to the viewers.

While I had been talking to Betty, Alicia called Elba on her cell phone.

Alicia said, “There is an issue related to The Seeker appearing over the farm, Elba. We can’t explain it to you because we haven’t been told what the issue is.

“Ship Commander Shimlt has ordered the four Facilitators to join her on The Seeker, and a shuttle will be here soon. She has also indicated that your presence is also required onboard The Seeker when she briefs us on something that President Felt is not allowed to disclose to us.

“You need to drop whatever you are doing, and get to the farm as soon as you can.”

Elba said, “I can’t do that, Alicia. I have a meeting in a couple of hours and am swamped with work.”

“I know you are busy, Elba, and don’t want to stop what you are doing, but Commander Shimlt ordered the shuttle’s pilot to wait for you. She told him that if you don’t arrive at the farm within a reasonable time, he is to land his shuttle wherever you are and make sure you are onboard when he lifts to carry us to The Seeker. Do you understand?”

Elba said, “No, I don’t understand. I have a business to run, and I have a meeting with a prospective customer in two hours. So I can’t leave now.”

“Elba, this is probably a one-time thing. Call whoever you have an appointment with, apologize, and tell them the spacecraft’s commander requires your immediate presence onboard The Seeker. That will probably impress your prospective customer. Tell them, you have no idea why, but you have to leave now. Your employees can lock up, if you aren’t back by closing time.”

“And if I don’t?”

“Elba, do you want the shuttle to land in the middle of the street outside your office’s building and then be escorted or carried to the shuttle by armed Altairian soldiers?”

“Well, no. Okay, I’ll leave now, but this had better not be a waste of my time.”

A short while after we completed our phone calls, we heard a shuttle landing on the farm. The four of us were prepared for the trip to The Seeker. Elba wasn’t here yet. We told the shuttle pilot, she was enroute and should be arriving within the next thirty minutes. The shuttle’s crew joined us for coffee while we waited for Elba to arrive. Earth coffee is something Altairians find superior to Empire coffee. Coffee was one of the things on our list to export.

Simon, Paul and Aaron asked us about why we were going to The Seeker, and we admitted we had absolutely no idea why our presence was required.

Elba arrived and parked her car. The pilot and crew returned to the shuttle to prepare it for the trip to The Seeker. We walked up the ramp, secured ourselves in seats, and put on Upchuck Kits. A member of the crew informed the pilot that we were ready for lift, and the pilot headed for The Seeker.

In the past, our shuttles’ pilot and crew had always treated us with curtesy and respect. The level of curtesy and respect extend to us by this shuttle’s pilot and crew reached an all-time high. Elba had only traveled to The Seeker on one prior occasion so she wasn’t aware of the difference, but the rest of us were. Something had changed and we believed we were about to find out what was different.

The five of us were ushered into Ship Commander Shimlt’s briefing room. Being on a spaceship was still a relatively new experience for Elba, and she was trying to take in everything around her that she had missed on her prior trip. What the rest of us noticed was the change in body language of the people moving toward us on the way to Cindy’s briefing room.

Ship Commander Shimlt joined us as soon as she had been notified of our arrival.

Cindy said, “I apologize for the abruptness of this meeting, but I felt it was critical for me to brief all of you on your new status, and how you came to be elevated to your new positions.”

My wives and I looked at each other and it was plain to see that none of us had any idea what Cindy was talking about.

Cindy continued uninterrupted, “In the process of the Council of Empire Members approving the Alliance Agreement, they had to appoint an Ambassador to Earth. There were two obvious choices for this position, Ship Commander Third Simon Tanat and Mary Tight. The Council believed that Ship Commander Third Tanat did not have the diplomatic background necessary to fill the position.

“They wanted to appoint Mary Tight, because she had the background knowledge and the ability to fill the position. But that would create problems.

“Mary is a Zldat and she is known to spend the majority of her time viewing the Time Continuum. The duties she would have had placed on her by the position would cause her problems. Confidentially, Mary is known to be opinionated and she does what she wants to do. The Council believed she would ignore her Ambassadorial duties in favor of spending her time in the Time Continuum. I believe they were correct in that assessment.

“Then someone proposed that the Council appoint her Bearer to be the Ambassador to Earth.

“Jeb, they believed your experience as a Facilitator showed that you could fulfill the duties of the position. They were aware that you had handled the problems associated with bringing together all of the nations’ diplomats, and completing the task of negotiating the Alliance Agreement in an exemplary manner. As Mary’s Bearer, you would also have access to her guidance and counsel, not to mention her ability to determine what would happen in the future.”

I knew it was coming, but I had to ask, “Are you trying to tell me the Council appointed me to the position of Ambassador to Earth?”

Cindy looked at me, smiled, and said, “Congratulations, Mister Ambassador.”

I sat in my chair totally shocked by Cindy’s announcement. My wives’ eyes kept moving between me and Cindy.

I finally responded with, “Cindy, I didn’t do that by myself. I had the help of my three wives.”

“Jeb, the Council was aware of that and factored that into their decision.”

Alicia asked, “What does that mean?”

Cindy again smiled and said, “The Empire considers the four of you to be Jeb’s wives, even if you aren’t married to each other according to Earth’s customs.

“In many of the Empire’s societies, when a man and woman chose to live together for life, they are referred to as a Bonded Couple. So, in the Empire, the four of you are considered to be Jeb’s wives, as a plural marriage is a socially accepted relationship.

“The wife or husband of an Ambassador to a planet is viewed as one of Ambassador’s aides, since they help the Ambassador in the performance of his official duties. As the Ambassador’s Aide, the wife or husband is an official member of the Ambassador’s diplomatic staff.

“Since the four of you are Jeb’s wives, you are now also Empire diplomats and you all have diplomatic status in the Empire, which Earth is now a part of.”

The five of us sat in our chairs not certain of what to say or do.

It seemed like a short eternity to us before Cindy said, “I know this is a shock to you, but you will shortly become accustomed to your new positions. I have arranged a small meal for us, which will give you time to think of the questions you will obviously have for me.

“To help you adjust to your position, there are a number of things that I will need to discuss with you. I would like to do that now as it will create questions.

“The first thing to discuss is, as the Ambassador to Earth and his Aides, you will require an Empire security force. Since Mary resides at your home, your security force will need to be larger than normal to ensure her safety. I have ordered Patrol Leader Helen Beebe to deploy her Patrol Group to your farm as part of your security force. I expect this will be a permanent assignment for Patrol Leaders Nick Thelt, Helen Beebe, and their Patrol Groups. The security systems which are currently at your farm will become part of the Embassy’s security equipment.

“Patrol Leader Helen Beebe knew what their assignment would be once we arrived at Earth, so she and her Patrol Group packed all of their personal belonging and loaded their belongings, armor, and their defensive weapons into her shuttles. They departed for your farm while you were on your way to The Seeker. Jeb, do you believe they will need their offensive weapons?”

I was still stunned so it took me longer to respond. “No, I don’t think that level of force will be required. Most of the problems we experienced have been resolved. I don’t expect the resolution of our future problems will require weapons.”

“I agree, Jeb.

“I have been informed that The Seeker will be one of three spacecraft that will maintain an orbit around Earth for as long as you require their presence. The on-duty spacecraft will support your position on Earth according to your requirements.

“I want to be sure you understand your new position, Jeb, and the extent of your authority and powers. The Empire considers the Ambassador to Earth to be in charge of Earth, all of its governments, and your solar system. If the leader of a country were to challenge your authority, I do not recommend it, but you could order the on-duty spacecraft’s Captain to use its weapons to kill that country’s inhabitants. The Captain would carry out your orders. So if the situation here in Earth’s solar system changes, let the on-duty spacecraft’s Captain know what you need.

“The Captain and crew of the on-duty spacecraft will also aid Earth in controlling traffic within your solar system until Earth has developed the ability to assume that responsibility.

“The second thing I was going to discuss is your powers as the Ambassador to Earth, but I just did that. Just to reaffirm what I said, you are essentially your solar system’s dictator. Your power effectively has no limits.

The third thing to discuss is, as the Ambassador you will be required to attend a few functions on other Altairian trade worlds. An Exploration Force spacecraft will be assigned to you when you need to travel. You may take as many of your wives as you wish with you on the trip. I would suggest that you take at least two of your wives with you, and additional wives would be better for on most trade worlds a man with multiple wives is held in high regard.”

I said, “I am assuming the travel will be to the Empire sixty years in our future. Is that correct?”

“Yes, it is. Why?”

“What if I meet someone from the future Earth or even myself or one of my wives? Can that create a time paradox or result in my introducing something into Earth’s timeline after I return here before it was created?”

“Yes, it could. However, the Empire is familiar with these things, and measures will be taken to minimize that possibility.”

Our meal arrived and for the next hour, we were busy eating, thinking, and discussing what we had been told.

Until now, I had envisioned the position of Ambassador to Earth as just a diplomatic position. From what Cindy just told us, I was now in charge of our solar system and everyone in it. The worst of it was, my position made me the Dictator of Earth, if I wanted that position. I really needed to discuss this with my wives and Betty.

During the meal, Madge asked, “What will our positions as Jeb’s Aides mean on Earth?”

Cindy replied, “I don’t know.

“The five of you will have to establish yourselves within Earth’s diplomatic community. Since you will control the Empire traders’ access to the Earth’s business communities, it should not be too difficult to define a position within Earth’s diplomatic community. I suspect that once your business community understands you control their access to the Altairian traders, your diplomatic community will be instructed to treat you in whatever way you want to be treated.”

That seemed like good and bad news to me. Good news for our positions would simplify things for us on the diplomatic front, and bad news for we were likely to be accused of using our positions to further our business. I decided we will just have to deal with whatever the future throws at us. We would have to determine how to handle these types of situations without us flexing the muscles we now had. Yes, I had unconsciously decided to accept the position.

We asked Cindy questions which she answered to the best of her ability. Eventually, we ran out of questions. Cindy suggested that we return home and become accustomed to our new positions. While we were doing that, she would make herself available whenever we needed her assistance or advice.

We boarded the shuttle and returned home to a beehive of activity. Nick and Helen, under Simon’s direction, were setting up their living quarters and reinstalling the defensive systems. Mike’s people were assisting them where they could.

We were met by Simon, Paul, Aaron, Mike, Nick, and Helen. Simon greeted me with, “Good afternoon, Mister Ambassador. That told me the word was out here at the farm about my appointment. We barely made it into the house when the phone rang. It was Betty.

“Congratulations to you and your wives, Jeb.

“I was stunned when Cindy told me they made you their Ambassador to Earth and your wives would be your Aides. How does it feel?”

“Probably the same way you felt the first time you were elected President.”

“True, but you will grow into the position, Jeb, like I had to do.

“Did Cindy explain what your duties would be as the Ambassador?”

“Ah ... no. We were so stunned that we didn’t think to ask. If I had to guess, it will be our duty to enforce the Alliance Agreement. That will be a big job, even bigger than being Facilitators. But as you said, we will grow into it.

“We are just starting to become aware of how the position effects our lives, Betty. We had planned to dedicate ourselves to managing and growing JAMP; but now, we will have to do both. For the past two years, our employees have gotten along with minimal guidance from us. So in the future, I think they will have to manage with less oversight than we intended to provide.

“Our main difficulty is likely going to be keeping our LLC Presidents from creating a runaway growth situation. Right now we are starting to receive income from our Earth Business Division, and our Empire Business Division is ready to start marketing our products.

“However, certain government agencies are questioning the safety of our products.

“To a certain extent I can understand their concern. However, I suspect the companies who we will be competing with for market share sicced the agencies on us, and that is the real reason behind the agencies questioning the safety of our products.”

Betty said, “I suppose that I could have a few of my people quietly look into their motivation.”

I said, “No, don’t do that, Betty.

“When Cindy explained my new position to you, did she happen to mention the extent of my powers as the Ambassador?”

“No, but an Ambassador is just an Ambassador.”

“That is what I thought, Betty. Cindy explained the Empires definition of Ambassador to Earth to me, and it is far more than what I expected.”

“What do you mean, Jeb?”

I described what Cindy had told us about the power I had on Earth as its Ambassador. I finalized that by saying, “If I understood what Cindy said, I am effectively the Dictator of our solar system.”

“I had no idea, Jeb. I doubt Cindy misrepresented the position to you, and you are right about it placing you in the position of being a dictator. What do you plan to do?”