Chapter 8: Another Busy Day

Simon was still sleeping when he felt the contact.

(Captain!)

[Oh, yes Blaze?]

(Security reports a situation we may need to respond to.)

Grant had been monitoring the perimeter from his console in Command and noted the presence of a solitary vehicle approaching from the southwest. It was still several miles away from the property perimeter and posed no threat as yet, but did bear watching. He put his team on alert and asked Blaze to notify the Captain. He continued to watch as the remote sensors tracked and analyzed the vehicle as it slowly wandered closer and closer. It looked like a four wheel drive ATV with one lone occupant. He appeared to drive a bit, get out of the vehicle, take some readings on some equipment that he carried, pack it away again and drive a bit more. It seemed at first to be random, but it was definitely working towards them and it was quite methodical. The intruder was observed to be a male, well tanned, about 50 years old and wearing hiking boots, blue jeans, faded denim shirt, cowboy hat and a leather jacket.

Simon walked into Command and said “What have we got Grant?”

Grant replied “Single male in an ATV. He is searching for something. He is also very slowly working his way towards us.”

“Can we get enough clarity on the video to identify him or his vehicle yet?” asked Simon.

“He should be close enough to our southwest corner shortly!” answered Grant.

“Nate, James and Bill, can you come to Command?” asked Simon through his new wrist communicator.

“On my way” replied three voices almost as one.

When Nate, James and Bill arrived, Grant briefed them on the situation.

“It looks like this guy is going to intersect our perimeter shortly. How do you want to handle this, Captain?” asked Grant.

“We will need to find out who he is, what he wants and we will probably have to meet him to do some of that. We have two aircraft on the ground by the cabin, so we need to show two pilots at least. Okay, Bill, James, Blaze and I will take a shuttle to the cabin, and wait for him to show up. We’ll conceal the shuttle a bit away from the cabin and keep it cloaked. Nate, stay here and see if you can find out who he is and what potential threat he represents if any. Relay any information through the RAVP in the cabin. Grant, keep your team alert but do not intercept. He may be a diversion, he is too obvious. We will put on civvies over our new uniforms and make like we are here fishing and relaxing.” said Simon. “Let’s get over there before he does.”

Within minutes, they had made it to the cabin. Blaze parked the shuttle at the near end of the runway off to one side and hopefully out of the way. All apparel was checked and looked like it should pass inspection. Blaze just looked, well, like Blaze in blue jeans, shirt and jacket. Grant let them know when the ATV had arrived at the perimeter. The man apparently got out of his vehicle, checked his map and did a quick equipment check, got back in his vehicle and headed toward the cabin around the north side of the lake. He was now clearly on Simon’s property. Nate had the detailed pictures from Grant on the vehicle and the intruder and was tracking down information on him as he arrived at the cabin. Simon walked out onto the front porch to greet him as he stepped out of his ATV. He was a big man, over six foot tall and ruggedly built, probably weighing around 220 lb. He had a big grin on his face.

“Hello there!” said Simon.

“Hi, I’m George Langdon.” the man replied extending his hand in greeting. “I didn’t expect to find anyone out here.”

“Simon Gordon” replied Simon, shaking his hand with a firm grasp. “We didn’t expect to see anyone else out here ourselves.”

“We?” asked George.

“Yep, the four of us were just about to sit down to some breakfast, won’t you join us?” asked Simon.

Sometimes Simon was a bit too eager to befriend people, noted James and Bill. Blaze simply stood off to one side and observed as George was invited into the cabin. It occurred to Simon that he and likely all of them had not had anything to eat so far that morning, so combining breakfast with interrogation may be a better approach to the situation.

“My turn to cook breakfast, I’ll get started.” said James as he went to the kitchen.

Everyone else seated themselves in the common room. Simon made appropriate introductions.

Simon said “So, George, what brings you way out here?”

“Oh, I am on a little field trip. Every summer, I take time off from work to do some prospecting and surveying. I find this part of Alberta fascinating so I drive around out here looking for anything interesting. Sometimes one can find Gold and Silver deposits and sometimes even oil and gas.” replied George.

“So have you found anything interesting this trip?” asked Bill.

“No, it has been a bit of a letdown. I guess all of the finds have been recorded and scooped up by the big Corporations. Not much left for the little amateurs like me.” replied George.

“I noticed a couple of aircraft out on the runway out back, a couple of you pilots?” asked George.

“James and I are.” replied Bill.

“Always wanted to do that, had to settle for chemical engineering!” replied George. “So what does the little lady do?”

“A bit of everything.” replied Simon. “And since you were probably getting around to asking about me next, I am retired. I purchased this property about two weeks ago and am just relaxing with friends as I contemplate my future.”

“Ah, that explains it then.” said George. “I have been dropping in here over the last few years to say ‘hi’ to whoever was around. I didn’t know they had sold it though. They were a good group. Say, I think I saw you, Bill, fly in some supplies one day last year.”

James served up a breakfast of bacon and eggs with toast and freshly unfrozen orange juice. Everyone dived in like they were famished except Blaze who accepted only the orange juice and sipped it conservatively.

[Anything yet]

(Grant just confirmed that his name is George Langdon. He has been truthful with us and appears not to be concealing anything. The vehicle is registered to him. He works with a small mineral exploration company out of Edmonton. He is one of the founding owners.)

[Interesting!]

Everyone finished the breakfast and commented to James on how good it was, or better than the last time.

(Captain, George has become flushed, his heart rate is elevated and he is having trouble breathing.)

“George, do you have heart problems?” asked Simon.

“Yes, but why do you ask?” questioned George.

“You appear to be flushed and you seem to be having trouble breathing.” Simon noted.

“My pills, in the ATV, in the console box.” said George. “Please, can someone get them?”

James said “I’ll get them.” just as George collapsed.

“Blaze, bring the shuttle to the back door. Is Helen awake yet and trained?” said Simon.

“Yes Captain.” replied Blaze.

“Notify her we have an incoming patient, probable heart attack.” said Simon. “Get him onto the shuttle fast.”

George was transported quickly to ST-1 and then to Blazing Star where he was rushed to Medical. Helen had just completed her rest and training and was not quite prepared for the incoming patient but was rapidly gaining the required knowledge. George was unconscious, still breathing but his heart was fluttering badly. Helen had quickly set up the scanner and started on preparing Biotes to handle any repair work. The big thing was to keep the blood flowing to his brain and that seemed to be no problem. The scans confirmed what she believed and the Biotes were injected and went to work on repairs. James had grabbed his pills and showed the prescription to Helen.

She nodded then said “Good thing you found him quickly. He would not have lasted another few minutes. Even these pills were only delaying the inevitable. He has very serious heart problems. Let’s see what a few hours will tell us. Where did you find him?”

Simon realized that Helen had been asleep when all this had gone down, so simply replied “He showed up at the cabin door and collapsed while we were having a friendly discussion and breakfast. I was hoping it wasn’t James’ cooking that set it off!”

“Not likely food related. It was probably just timing. Wrong time for us, but maybe for him the right place!” replied Helen.

“This may be a problem. He knows nothing of us and now he has Biotes healing him and is on board.” said Simon.

“Captain” said Grant, who had met them in Medical. “I will post two men in here at all times till we decide what happens with him.”

“Agreed.” said Simon. “When he wakes up call me.”

“Blaze” called Simon.

Blaze the hologram appeared just behind his right shoulder and asked “Yes Captain?”

“Prep two of the two-seater Stingers. As soon as Helen can leave, you will have to get her back to Ottawa and deploy the RAVP. Then get back here. You and James can each take one up to Cold Lake for your appointment this evening. This may just tighten our schedule today a bit.”

“Understood” replied Blaze and disappeared.

Simon and Grant left Medical and went to Command. Grant was staring at Simon as if he had something to say, but was unsure whether he should or not.

“What’s on your mind, Grant?” asked Simon.

“Captain, I don’t like the idea of someone being on-board that we do not know any more than you do. What do you intend to do if he proves to be a security risk?” asked Grant. “We can’t let him go, and I am not comfortable simply making him disappear if he is no real threat.”

“I know. I feel the same way. Let’s check with Nate and see what he has dug up on him. Maybe we could use a chemical engineer.” said Simon solemnly.

“Okay Nate, what do you have on our guest?” asked Simon as he and Grant entered Command.

“Let’s see. He is 55 years old, single, co-founder of a small mineral exploration company in Edmonton. He has a house outside of Edmonton on about 100 acres of property and two married children, no pets, bank accounts totaling several million dollars and owns 51% of his company. The company is worth a couple more million. He employs two household staff and is currently on vacation and out of touch with the office. This is his normal summer holiday. We recently discovered he had a severe heart problem monitored by his Doctor in Edmonton, a personal friend, Dr. Hank White. His company has been facing severe competition from the larger exploration corporations and there was talk of him closing it down. His co-founder is similarly well-to-do and both of them have talked of retirement. He is very respected in the industry and considered honest and sincere in his dealings. His corporation holds mineral rights on a large number of properties all over Alberta, although none of them appear to be all that significant. His wife of 20 years passed away 5 years ago with cancer and although he has dealt with his loss, he is not happy with his life. How is that for a start?” replied Nate.

“Not bad for a start!” replied Simon, grinning. “You know, he just might be the kind of person we need. We’ll see what he says when he wakes up.”

Several hours later, George woke up. Helen was by his bedside and two security guards were at the door.

“Notify the Captain” said Helen as one security guard relayed the request through Grant.

“Where am I? What happened?” said George. “Who are you?”

“I am Helen, a Doctor, and you almost died.” replied Helen. “Fortunately you were in the presence of probably the only people on this planet who had the resources to save you. They were able to get you here in time for me to cure you.”

“Ah, the airplanes on the runway!” said George. “So what Hospital did they take me to? I have to notify my Doctor.”

“And that would be Doctor Hank White in Edmonton.” said Simon as he walked into the room. Bill, James, Grant and Blaze accompanied him.

“Yes, but how did you know that? Oh, right, the prescription on my pills.” said George. “Did you call him and is he coming?”

“There has been no need to contact him yet. You have one of the best Doctors and certainly the best equipped Medical facility in the world taking care of you.” said Simon. “So how is our patient Helen?”

“It looks like he will make a full recovery in a few more hours. He may be a bit tired for a while, but he can be up walking around any time now.” replied Helen. “God that felt good to say that. It has been such a long time. Does your Doctor White realize that you had a malignant tumor on your left lung and several cancerous lesions in your kidneys?”

“If he did, he never mentioned it to me! Of course I am a little reluctant to take so much of his time with my problems. He has enough of his own! I guess I will need to see him to set up some testing for those other problems you mentioned.” said George.

“No need, George.” replied Helen. “We have already fixed them up for you and a few other minor problems.”

“How? How long have I been here?” stuttered George.

“Four hours and twenty two minutes.” replied Blaze.

“What? Where am I?” asked George again as he started observing the room around him.

It did not look like any hospital room he had ever seen before and he had been in more than a few. The two security guards by the door were not in normal hospital issue clothing either. It must be a military base. Probably Cold Lake he thought.

“You are not far from where you collapsed, George.” replied Helen.

“George, we have treated and cured you of all the diseases and ailments you had, just as I and all these others have been treated and cured over the last several weeks. You are now in better health than you probably have been for 50 years and may be able to live several hundred years. We were able to do this because the technology we are utilizing is not from Earth. We were all born on Earth and until two weeks ago had no idea this ship existed. Yes, George, we are on a ship. A star-ship named Blazing Star. I am its Captain.” explained Simon.

George felt a bit woozy as some things started to make sense.

Simon continued. “When we found this ship, it was, literally, dying. We have nursed it back to health, just as we have nursed you. We still have a long way to go to get her into space, but we will continue to try. We consider this a project. We all want you to consider joining us in this project. Your knowledge of chemistry and engineering will be very valuable assets to us. You will be among friends here and may experience a great adventure. Who knows what we will discover in the future. Keep in mind, however, that the world must not know of the existence of this place for a while yet or any of our plans. We assure you that all of our intentions are for the betterment of mankind and as such we assume that you feel the same way. If you were to join us, we would insist that you not reveal anything to anyone that might put us in danger. You would also have to be prepared to disappear from Earth at least temporarily and possibly permanently. Any ties to Earth may allow others to attempt to threaten us.”

“And if I don’t wish to embrace your project?” asked George.

Simon gave some thought to the question before replying, “We would deactivate the Biotes that have cured you. They would flush out of your system over the next few days. You would then be susceptible to human illnesses as you were before. You would likely live to a ripe old age here on Earth. We would allow you to continue on your vacation, but we would have to expect some additional visitors if you told anyone about us. That would change our plans and timetable significantly.”

“I would never reveal anything to anyone that may bring you guys to harm. I owe you all my life. I only asked that question as a confirmation of what kind of people I think you are. I don’t know how much help I can be in your project, but if you want me, I would very much like to help. I do have a problem, however. I cannot leave some of my friends behind. Is there any way, you could include them in your project?” asked George.

“We do need people to help us, George, but we have to be very careful who we allow to join our project. Who did you have in mind?” asked Simon.

“Doctor Hank White and my two staff at my house.” replied George. “Hank has recently acquired AIDS from a patient he performed surgery on. He took a chance and extended the guys life but a bit of the patients blood found its way into his veins when he was nicked by a scalpel. It was a stupid mistake by an intern that allowed it to happen. Hank has been rather recluse ever since it was confirmed. He has closed his practice and has no family or friends, other than myself, having devoted his life to helping others. Can you cure him, Helen?”

Helen replied, “I am pretty sure we can. I am still learning about this technology, but it seems to be able to treat anything we have come across so far.”

George continued, “My staff and I are really good friends. They are without family as well and would have nowhere to go if I were to leave. I have been worried about what would happen if I were to die. It seems my concerns were justified somewhat. Shauna is a great chef and a good housekeeper. She treats my home as her home and has free reign in it. Dave is my gardener, for lack of a more appropriate term. He really is a botanist and a zoologist rolled into one. If it lives, he is interested in it. He tends to be reclusive, but has an incredible mind. He takes care of my grounds and shares my accommodations. They are really good people.”