Chapter 1

Now that the command shuttle was on the ground, Captain Mike Lovett gave the order and his Rangers formed two lines about thirty feet apart facing each other. Alicia, Madge, Phyllis, and I moved to our positions with Paul and Aaron taking their positions behind us. As the ramp lowered, Captain Lovett ordered his men to come to attention and present arms. At that command, the soldiers raised their hands in salute and held the salute.

Thirteen Altairian military personnel, male and female, dressed in fancy uniforms marched down the ramp in two columns of six and one soldier in what must be their version of formal dress uniform at the rear of their formation. The two columns spread out so there was about twelve feet between them. When commanded to do so, the two columns stopped and turned to face each other.

I heard Aaron whisper to Paul, “That was rather smartly done.”

Two men in their version of formal dress uniforms appeared at the top of the ramp and marched toward us side by side. As they passed the first person in formal dress uniform, he fell in to the rear center of the two men. Their manner of dress and physical positioning clearly indicated the two front men were the senior military personnel, and the person to the rear of their three-man formation was junior.

The three men stopped five feet in front of me and gave me a moderate bow with the person at the rear giving me a slightly deeper bow; another indication that he was junior. Their leader stepped forward and nodded his head.

With a smile, I returned his nod, and said, “Good morning, Sir. I am Jeb Connor. Welcome to my home.”

Indicating each in turn, I said, “These ladies are my fellow Facilitators – Missus Alicia Connor, Missus Madge Connor, and Missus Phyllis Connor.”

Turning slightly so I could point to the military members of my party standing behind us, I said, “This gentleman is Brigadier General Paul Everett, my liaison with President Betty Kelt. The gentleman next to him is his Aide, Colonel Aaron Daniels. Standing next to the Colonel is Captain Mike Lovett, the Commanding Officer of my security detail.”

The Altairian Officers nodded to each of my people as I introduced them. The officer to my right, said, “I am Ship Commander Third Simon Tanat. I am the officer in charge of our detail. To my right is Ship Commander Fourth Mark Heist. We are two of Ship Commander Cindy Shimlt’s staff officers and we are the third and fourth in the line of command of our spacecraft. The gentleman to our rear is Explorer Leader Nick Thelt, the officer-in-charge of the Patrol Group that accompanied us.

“Ship Commander Shimlt apologizes for not being here to greet you. Her position as the Ship’s Captain, and Ship Commander Second Eva Fenner’s position as her Second in Command, prevent them from attending this meeting.”

My people acknowledged each of his introductions with nods of our heads. I said, “Ship Commander Third Tanat, I think we would all be more comfortable if we were to go inside out of the sun. Alicia, please show the gentlemen to the dining room.”

“I concur, Mister Facilitator. Give me a moment to give my people orders to set up our living area.”

It only took a few moments for Ship Commander Third Tanat to issue his orders to set up their camp. Explorer Leader Nick Thelt turned and gave his detail orders to join the other members of their delegation and assist them with setting up their camp. I heard the other three shuttles shut down their engines.

My ladies led the way into the house followed by the three members of the Altairian delegation. I and the rest of my group followed them. As we began to follow the Altairian delegation, I saw the Explorer Leader’s detail start to march in the direction of the three shuttles and heard their command shuttle’s engine start so the pilot could move the shuttle to their bivouac area.

Alicia indicated to our visitors that they should be seated at our dining room table. My four ladies went to the kitchen to bring to the table the beverages and finger foods that they had prepared for our guests. In the meantime, I and the rest of my party took seats at the table.

The leader of the Altairian party said, “It is customary on our spacecraft to be addressed by our position’s titles. However, we are all members of the Altairian military and our military ranks are easier to use in conversations. My military rank is Colonel, my aide’s rank is Lieutenant Colonel, and our Explorer Leader is a Lieutenant. The Altairian words for our ranks are different from what you hear, but our translators convert our Altairian speech to English and the ranks you hear are equivalent to the ranks of your military’s rank structure. It was then that I realized our visitors were subvocalizing what they were saying almost too softly for me to hear their Altairian words.

“Considering the circumstances, Ship Commander Shimlt wants us to form a friendly working atmosphere, so she suggested we have you address us by our familiar names. I’m Simon, my aide is Mark, and our Explorer Leader is Nick.

“I agree with Ship Commander Shimlt, Simon. We should establish a friendly working environment. You may call me Jeb, my liaison is Paul, his Aide is Aaron, and the Commanding Officer of my security detail is Mike. My fellow Facilitators prefer to be addressed as Alicia, Madge, and Phyllis.”

If Simon had not suggested we use first names, I was going to suggest we do so. We definitely had to work together in a friendly manner. I was curious about their translators.

“Simon, does your translator contain the complete English language?”

“No, it only contains the words and the corresponding Altairian words that our ship’s translation software was able to learn while we monitored Earth’s communications and the meanings of the Earth words. This early in a relationship with a new planet’s people there are errors in our translator’s conversions.

“As we hear new English words our translators add the words to their memories. The meanings of the words are determined and stored, and the meanings are updated as the word’s meaning becomes clearer during subsequent usage. The translators transmit the new words and meanings to the ship, and the ship automatically downloads language updates to all of our translators in real-time. If the meaning is not obtained immediately, then a list of untranslated words is made so we can learn the meanings of the words at a more appropriate time.

“The translator also includes what the ship believes are your rules of grammar, so it can create understandable sentences. Our speech may seem very formal to you until our translators have a better understanding of your rules of grammar. We may also mix the formal and informal modes of speech until the translators have a better understanding of the appropriate mode of speech for the different social situations. The rules of grammar are updated and the updates are distributed in the same fashion as words.”

“That’s interesting, Simon. What happens when you use a word that has no English equivalent in the translator?”

“In that case, Jeb, you will hear the Altairian word. The process of learning the equivalent English words and meanings is essentially the same as when we hear an English word.”

I said, “One of the things we are hoping to discuss with your delegation in a future meeting is trade relations. Here on Earth, we speak a variety of languages and it takes a long time to learn a new language. Would Altair be willing to sell your translators to Earth traders?”

“Yes, that is a possibility, but if you are thinking of developing translation programs between the different Earth languages, you will also need the system for creating and updating the translation program. As you said, that is a topic for future discussion.”

Alicia, Madge, and Phyllis rejoined us with carafes of coffee, tea, and water along with several platters of pastries and finger sandwiches. There were already cups, glasses, plates, and silverware in the center of the table.

Alicia said, “Simon, why don’t you, Mark, and Nick help yourselves to something to eat and drink. If you have questions about the food and beverages, just ask one of us.”

Once we all had something to eat and drink, I said, “Gentlemen, your uniform coats are likely to be uncomfortable and could possibly become soiled. Why don’t you remove them so all of you can be more comfortable?”

Once everyone had made themselves comfortable, I continued, “The first meeting we will have is with President Kelt and her representatives. Yesterday, I explained Directive 1495 to Paul and he briefed President Kelt on the details of the directive. She felt that the directive was important enough for her to personally attend tomorrow’s meeting. I expect her and her representatives to arrive in Seattle later today or tonight. Paul tells me her advance security detail will arrive here sometime today to ensure this area is safe for her, and the meeting is scheduled for tomorrow morning.

“Mike’s company is armed with their normal weapons, and they carry them when performing their security duties. At all other times, the weapons are stored in their armory.

“Simon, I have discussed the matter of carrying weapons in the area with Paul, Aaron, and Mike. I don’t know if your people have any weapons with them, but the four of us decided to offer you and your people the option of joining Mike’s people to ensure this area is a safe place for all of us. If you choose to accept this offer, I believe it would be to everyone’s advantage if your people are suitably armed while performing security duties.”

“That is a rather unexpected offer, Jeb. I believe we will accept your offer of sharing security duties. With Ship Commander Shimlt’s approval, I believe what we call passive defensive weapons will suffice for our personnel’s use.”

Paul said, “It sounds as if you have active defensive weapons and offensive weapons in addition to passive weapons. What are the differences?”

Simon said, “Our passive weapons are designed to incapacitate someone without killing them. However, at very close range a person can be severely injured, and if the person’s injuries are severe enough, they could die. We also wear armor when using our weapons since our armor’s energy cells provide the power for our weapons.

“Our active defensive weapons include personal weapons that are designed to kill or seriously injure a person at ranges of up to one hundred yards. Our policy is that these weapons should only be used when a significant threat is imminent or our people are being attacked. Our offensive weapons are designed to kill, injure people, and destroy property that is within a person’s line of sight. That includes a target that is on the horizon.

“Our spacecraft are equipped with even more powerful weapons. Our spacecraft’s most powerful weapon is a penetration bomb that is designed to penetrate to a planet’s core before it detonates. When it detonates, the planet’s crust is fragmented and the shock wave destroys most of the planet’s structures. Occasionally the force and fragmentation is so extensive that the planet breaks down and forms a field of rubble that drifts apart.”

Paul asked, “Is that the weapon used to carry out Directive 1495?”

“No. We use less destructive weapons for that purpose. When we carry out 1495, the intent is to destroy the world’s civilization, not the planet.

“Our penetrator bomb has been tested on a number of uninhabited planets, but so far we have never used it on an inhabited planet. We hope that we will never have the occasion to do so.

“I have to obtain Ship Commander Shimlt’s permission to use ship assets here on Earth. We have a passive monitoring system that can be configured to detect and track anyone who enters a designated area. I can discuss its capabilities with Mike to see if he thinks its use will be beneficial here on your farm.”

To return our meeting to my planned agenda, I said, “We have defined three meetings. I would like to discuss the purpose of those meetings with your delegation today, and to put together an agenda for the first meeting.

“Tomorrow’s meeting is the first meeting and it has two primary purposes: first for President Kelt to meet with you and discuss Directive 1495, and second, to define the purpose and a preliminary agenda for the second and third meetings.

“The second meeting is for Earth’s nations to discuss whether a third meeting to negotiate an alliance agreement should be held. I doubt if Ship Commander Shimlt will have input for that meeting. However, it would be beneficial if her representative were present to answer questions about the need for an agreement.

“The third meeting is to negotiate the terms of the alliance agreement. I anticipate that Ship Commander Shimlt will have input for the agenda of that meeting, so once the second meeting ends and she has had the opportunity to review the purpose of the third meeting, she can add to the agenda by routing her input to me through you. Once the preliminary agendas for the three meetings have been determined, we can modify them as needed. Does anyone see a problem with what I am proposing?”

Simon, Mark, and Nick talked with each other about my proposal while Paul, Aaron, and Mike discussed it amongst themselves. When both groups reached a decision, Simon said, “It sounds like a good approach to us, Jeb.” When I looked to Paul he nodded in agreement.

“All right, I have four items already listed for tomorrow’s meeting, and I expect we will add additional discussion points.

“We need to decide on the countries to invite, how many delegates each country can send, and how many support people each delegate should be allowed for the second and third meetings.

“We need to discuss why Earth should enter into an agreement with Altair.

“We need to discuss who should decide if an agreement is needed.

“We need to discuss the protocol for holding the meetings.

“I would like to have a starting position for the meeting. My first item has three parts. Let’s talk about the countries that we will invite to the second and third meetings. Any suggestions?”

Paul said, “As I mentioned that to you yesterday, Jeb, I think it should be all of the countries that are member nations of the United Nations.”

Madge said, “Why do you feel we should limit the meeting to just those countries, Paul?

“I believe that a country that joined the United Nations is a country that is interested in the welfare of its people and possibly the rest of the world’s people. A country that has shown no interest in their people and the rest of the world should not have a say in what is decided in the meetings.”

When I looked to Simon, he said, “We don’t know enough about your world to have a good opinion. We will reserve from commenting on the makeup of the group representing the people of Earth.”

I said, “Simon, here on Earth we use a number of terms for referring to Earth’s population. My preferred term in the context of our discussions is Earthlings. Feel free to use that term for it is less cumbersome than continually saying the people of Earth.

“I and my fellow Facilitators discussed the comments you made, Paul, regarding the countries to attend and the makeup of each country’s delegation for the two meetings.”

I said, “With a few minor reservations, we basically agreed that the member nations of the United Nations should be the only countries attending the meetings. I believe your response to Madge’s question eliminated our reservations.”

I looked at my ladies and received nods of confirmation, so I continued, “We also decided that each nation should send two delegates to represent their nation. We will suggest that a nation’s delegation include one delegate in favor of an agreement and one delegate opposed to an agreement. For the second meeting, we think each delegate should be allowed one support person. For the third meeting, we can increase the number of support people per delegate to two or three people depending on the projected workload. Are there any suggestions for something else?”

Mike asked, “Is there a reason why each delegation should be that small?”

I responded, “Yes, first of all, a larger than necessary delegation will make it more difficult to make any decisions. I expect the delegates will be politicians and we all know how a politician likes to take center stage and talk. We can discuss limiting a delegate’s discussion time later when we talk about the meetings’ protocol. The second reason is, there is only one main agenda item for the second meeting and that is whether Earth should enter into an agreement with Altair. It shouldn’t take more than two people to convey the meeting’s information back to their nation’s leaders.

“Do any of you think we should change my suggested number of delegates or support members?”

Paul, Aaron, and Mike all shook their heads no to indicate they agreed with me.

Simon said, “One clarification, Jeb. Earth will not be negotiating an Alliance agreement with Altair. The agreement will be with the Council of Empire Members, which we commonly refer to as the Empire. However, Altair will represent the Empire in this and any future relations Earth has with the Empire and will be the go-between for all negotiations, which is our normal arrangement.

“The ship needs to make a quick trip back to Altair. One of the reasons for that trip is to notify the Council of Empire Members that Earth is considering whether it should discuss an agreement with the Empire. I have no idea if the Empire will want to send non-Altairian representatives to attend the meetings in addition to the Altairian representatives; this has happened on occasion in the past during agreement negotiations when other Empire worlds were the go-betweens.”

Our meeting was interrupted by someone knocking on the front door. Phyllis said she would get it, and left the dining room. We delayed further discussion until she finished with whoever was at the door. She returned a minute later followed by a middle-aged gentleman.

Phyllis said, “Jeb, a group of Secret Service agents is here to check out the farm before President Kelt arrives. This gentleman is Agent Troy Ogle, and he is the head of the detail. He would like permission to check out the house and the rest of the farm.”

I said, “Agent Ogle, you may bring your agents in and go through the house and you may search the rest of the farm after that. About how long will it take you to complete your effort and what assistance will you need from us?”

“Thank you, Sir. We should be able to finish vetting your farm in about two hours. We will need access to all of the buildings on your property, and it would be helpful if we had a guide to show us around the property.”

Turning to Mike, I asked, “Can you assign someone to show Agent Ogle around the property?”

Mike said, “I will have one of my Sergeants act as the Agents’ guide.” Mike left to go find one of his Sergeants.

“Agent Ogle, I assume you primarily need to know where the farm’s boundaries are located.”

Agent Ogle said, “Yes, but we will also need to check the immediate area outside of the farm. Sir, do you have any weapons on the farm?”

I replied, “I don’t have a problem with you inspecting any portion of the farm, but I can’t give you permission to trespass on other people’s property.

“Other than the weapons my security detail has, I am not aware of any additional firearms on the farm. I will qualify that by saying that I recently made a brief inspection of the contents of the three outbuildings and didn’t notice any weapons. Two of the buildings contained crates I did not open. So, I am not aware of the contents of the crates or anything else of that nature the prior owner may have stored in the buildings.”

Ogle said, “Searching the surrounding properties won’t be a problem. Federal law permits us to go wherever we need to go to ensure the safety of the President. If a property owner refuses us permission, then we can cancel the President’s visit. However, the law also makes it easy for us to obtain a warrant to search the property in the event that the President’s visit is so important that the visit can’t be canceled.”

“Gentlemen, we will have to take a break while Agent Ogle and his people verify that the farm is a secure place for the President to visit. If you have other business to take care of, be back here in about an hour.”

Simon, Mark, and Nick left to see if their people were having any problems setting up their camp. Simon said he would contact Ship Commander Shimlt about my proposal to share security duties with his party and to arm his soldiers.