Chapter 20: Reflections and Party Planning

Simon woke up the following morning in a cold sweat. He had been talking in his sleep and did not sleep well. Blaze was quietly seated beside his bed and was watching him carefully. It was morning for him and it was morning for all of SBE, since Simon had arbitrarily set the SFG clock at Calgary Time. Of course work and sleep cycles did not concern themselves with morning or night on SBM or on board Blazing Star. On SBM, it was similar to Earth but on Blazing Star, it was highly dependent on where they were at the time. Humans needed some kind of reference to make their sleep patterns easier to adjust to. Blaze understood this pattern, but was having trouble understanding Simon’s restlessness. So was Simon.

“Blaze,” asked Simon, “Is everything all right? I have just had a nightmare I think and that is unusual for me.”

“Captain, alert status is all green. You have been rolling around on that bed and speaking out loud, but I did not understand what you were saying. Is that a ‘nightmare’?” asked Blaze.

“I guess that is part of it. Usually, there is also a dream sequence that can be very scary to the person having the nightmare. Quite often they do not remember what they were dreaming about. The Human mind tends to forget or hide uncomfortable things within dreams from the person when they awaken.” replied Simon. “I do not remember what I was dreaming about, but sense that I was being alerted to something. Is Bill anywhere around?”

“He is on his way here now.” replied Blaze. “I just asked him to come.”

“Thank you, Blaze.” said Simon. “I think I need to talk to him.”

Simon and Blaze were sitting in Simon’s common room when Bill activated the door intercom.

Simon greeted Bill on entry and said “Bill, how are you feeling these days?”

“I am okay, but funny you should ask. I was just about to ask you the same thing.” replied Bill.

“Hmmm.” said Simon. “I just spent a restless night and woke up in a cold sweat. I do not know why. Would you have any ideas?”

“Well, let’s see!” said Bill. “You have been under a lot of pressure recently, getting very little sleep, had a major disaster to resolve, meetings with all our staff and three heads of state and their entourages, plus you are now planning on introducing SFG to three more country leaders. I think that tells me that you need a break. You need to relax. I also ‘feel’ that there is going to be some trouble in the very near future, but it will work out for the best. I was going to talk to you today about that as well.”

“Do you have any advice for me?” said Simon with a grin.

“Delegate!” said Bill. “That is the only advice you need right now!”

“You are right. Nate can handle a lot of this and he could use a change from his usual functions. James is certainly capable of watching over Blazing Star. Tonya can handle the SBM end of things and Grant can certainly handle security issues. I have already spoken to George and he can deal with the SBE issues.” said Simon. “Blaze here, has already made all arrangements for the changes to the command bay. I should do something different. What do you suggest?”

“I think you and I should check out the view of the Earth from space.” said Bill. “I, like you, have been far too busy fixing things and have not spent any time relaxing. I am also due for a change! So, I have prepped an Arrow for us. Blaze can come along too!”

Without further discussion, Simon went back into his bedroom and donned his new body armor. Grant would be very upset if he forgot to put it on if he was leaving the security of Blazing Star and SBE. Bill had already changed to his body armor and the three of them walked to Command Bay. Simon was very well aware that when Bill made a suggestion, it was prudent to pay a lot of attention to it, especially if he had some sense of foreboding. On entering the Command Bay, Simon was surprised at the appearance of the Arrow aircraft. It was larger than the Stinger, and had a delta wing configuration very similar to the earlier fighter which bore the same name produced in Canada many years ago. This one was considerably higher performance and carried an arsenal unmatched by anything currently in production on Earth.

Donning flight suits, the three climbed aboard and seated themselves in the cockpit. It was a three person fighter bomber with the pilot’s seat in the very front and two co-pilots seats, one on each side and slightly behind the pilot. The two co-pilots performed the duties of weapons control and communications. Blaze handled communications, Bill was the pilot, so that allowed Simon to control the weapons station. He was again surprised by the wide variety of available weaponry. Lasers, guns, rockets and bombs of various types made up the offensive display, while shields, cloak, electronic jamming, and countermeasures made up a defensive display panel. He had not been on the flight simulator training for this aircraft so he found it particularly impressive.

Bill asked Blaze to open the Command bay door and ask Dawn to open the base doors then request exit clearance. Comand bay door opened and Dawn replied that clearance had been granted, however, to ‘Please wait until the base doors were fully opened and the hologram was activated’. Bill eased the Arrow out of Command bay and halted before the base door. Bill activated the cloak on the Arrow and held station just inside the door until Dawn gave final clearance, then flew out of the base.

Once clear of SBE, Bill opened the throttle and climbed vertically. In several minutes, he was leaving most of the atmosphere far behind. The darkness of space took over and all the stars started to become visible. Bill and Simon just relaxed and watched the vast universe unfold in front of them.

It was a quiet time, no one spoke for a while until Simon said “You know Bill, I never get tired of looking at the stars. I realize how small and insignificant each one of us is in the bigger picture. You know, that is probably something every person on Earth should understand. I think the various leaders around the world need to realize that they and their country are not the center of the Universe. What they do may influence the world as they know it but have absolutely no effect on this Universe. This Universe does not care. I recall telling Aurora something like that when I first met her. Perhaps that was a bit negative, but that phrase has always struck me as being important. We have a responsibility to our Earth to defend it from any forces that seek to do it harm. The Universe will not help us.”

“Simon, you remember I told you that I had always dreamed about traveling around the Universe on a spaceship named Aurora?” said Bill. “Well there were a lot of episodes in those dreams and some of them are already happening. Not exactly the same, mind you, but close enough to remind me that there are a lot of unexplained things going on in this Universe. We are probably going to experience a few of them.”

“I am surprised you remember all those dreams. I had one last night and can’t remember a thing, except it must have seriously scared me. I woke up in a cold sweat.” said Simon.

Bill replied, “You had a nightmare! I don’t know about others, but I tend to remember most of my dreams, good or bad. I suspect they help me make decisions, although I must factor in that they are not real, but only dreams.”

“I can’t help but wonder if we will be able to defend ourselves if a large aggressive fleet were to target Earth. The people down there are so preoccupied with things that really are totally insignificant in the big picture. They are bickering and fighting among themselves when they should be co-operating to better the whole race. I find it very irritating, especially when they seem to think that everything in the Universe revolves around them and their beliefs. They have no idea what is going on in the Universe around us.” said Simon.

“That’s very true, unfortunately.” commented Bill. “One thing I have always felt is that all of us are shaped by what we learn or are taught by the various experiences of our lives. Those people with radically different views have contributed by their actions to the current mindset of everyone on this planet in some way, including you and I, making us tougher or more flexible. In general, Humans are an adaptive race, I think. We observe, we learn and we adapt to change. Some people, however, will never be able to adapt to change nor will they ever change their ingrained beliefs. These people will be severely shaken when the realities of the Universe unfold in front of them.”

“I only hope we are somewhat prepared when these realities begin to unfold!” said Simon.

“Captain!” said Blaze. “There are communications coming from Earth for you.”

“Who wants to talk to me Blaze?” said Simon.

“You have two telephone calls on hold and several new e-mails in your “inbox’ to reply to.” stated Blaze. “The President of Russia and the Prime Minister of Australia are both on hold, waiting for you.”

“Okay, Bill, take us back to SBE. Now, Blaze, let’s start with the Russian President.” said Simon.

Blaze nodded and Simon spoke “Hello, this is Simon Gordon. How may I help you?”

“Good day to you Mr. Gordon. This is Viktor Georgiy Yarolsavtsev, President of Russia, calling. I have a few concerns regarding our meetings in three days.” replied the Russian President.

“Ah, Mr. Yarolsavtsev, nice of you to call. What are your concerns? We will see if we can straighten them all out for you.” replied Simon.

“The first concern I have is about the duration of the meetings. Will they be all over in one day? I will need to arrange for my return to Moscow at the conclusion of these meetings.” said the President.

Simon replied “I will take care of all travel arrangements for all of the attendees. You will be picked up, and flown to the location of the meetings and returned whenever you choose. I expect a number of the attendees will wish to remain for at least 24 hours, some will wish to remain for longer but your schedule is up to you. I will make all travel arrangements and have already arranged all necessary accommodations. Just let me know what your wishes are, and they will be accommodated.”

“I see.” replied the President. “I have some concerns about security. I will be bringing a small security team with me as my government would expect and they would like to ensure that the facilities are well protected.”

“I understand your concerns, Mr. Yarolsavtsev. There will be heads of state from at least six different countries and each may have a small security team. I do assure you, however, that there will be no risk to you or any other attendee while you are with us.” replied Simon.

“I asked Alexi Kurshenski about you and he said that he found you to be a capable and honorable man. Strangely, however, my security team can find no reference to your abilities in hosting this type of celebration. I am a bit concerned that I do not know you better and am somewhat hesitant to place myself in your hands even with the recommendations of others.”

“That is not surprising. Others have felt the same way as well. I am positive that you will benefit from the occasion.” said Simon. “I have specialized in arranging ‘off the news media radar secure travel and meetings’ recently so feel confident that I can guarantee my security team will take care of everything. You can relax and enjoy the event and I am sure we will get to know each other a lot better.”

“Okay, Mr. Gordon, I will be at the appointed place and time. I trust I will see you there as well.” said President Yarolsavtsev.

“I look forward to meeting you in person and will be there as well.” replied Simon. “Goodbye Mr. Yarolsavtsev.”

“Goodbye Mr. Gordon.” replied President Yarolsavtsev.

“Okay, Blaze, put the Australian Prime Minister through.” said Simon.

“Simon Gordon here, hello!” said Simon.

“Ah, Mister Gordon, it’s Prime Minister Brian Jones’s office calling from Australia.” said a soft female voice. “I will connect you now!”

“Brian Jones here!” said the Prime Minister after a couple of clicks.

“This is Simon Gordon, how may I be of service?” replied Simon.

“Ah, Mr. Gordon, finally! I guess you are a bit busy right about now.” said the Prime Minister.

“Actually, Mr. Prime Minister, I just got off the phone with Mr. Yarolsavtsev. I am traveling at the moment, but I can relax. Fortunately I have an excellent crew who can take care of a lot of the details for me.” replied Simon.

“Simon, please call me Brian. I have spent several hours on the phone myself, talking with the other five heads of state who are going to be attending your little party. Those that know you, endorse you highly. The other two are suspicious by nature. I, on the other hand, listened carefully to the comments and have decided to keep an open mind. Just let me know what you require for planning and I will ensure my office takes care of it.” said Brian.

“Brian, Thank you for the offer. If there is anything we require, I will let you know! Just be prepared for an interesting time.” said Simon.

“Will do! See you in four days! Bye for now.” said Brian.

“Well that was interesting!” said Simon. “Different personalities altogether.”

Bill commented “Ya, and different motivations as well.”

“Thanks, I will keep that under advisement!” said Simon with a grim face.

Bill eased the Arrow into SBE and the Launch bay, settled into the parking slot and released the cockpit door. Simon got out and headed to his quarters to reply to the e-mails cued up by Blaze. The Japanese Prime Minister, Hiroshige Shintani, had sent a confirmation e-mail with a list of the attendees. The other heads of state had also sent their confirmations and lists. Simon forwarded the e-mails to Grant, George, Nate and Tonya. It was all coming together nicely.

The following day, Grant came to visit Simon in his quarters.

“What’s up Grant?” asked Simon as he greeted Grant at his open door. “Come on in.”

“I have been going over these attendee lists and have come across some interesting things I think you should be aware of before the ‘party’.” said Grant.

“Go ahead, Grant” said Simon.

“There were no surprises from the American, Canadian or British lists as was expected.” replied Grant. “The Australians and the Japanese attendees were all cleared with no surprises, however, the Russian delegation may present some difficulties.”

“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me.” replied Simon. “What specifically has you concerned?”

Grant stated, “President Viktor Georgiy Yarolsavtsev is bringing five ‘security aides’ with him as well as Alexi and his family. Alexi has a wife and four children and they pose no real concern. The other Russian crew member of the ISS and the family also are no problem. The five ‘aides’, however, are very well known in ‘intelligence circles’. His top Security Chief, Vladislav Pavlovich Charkov, has been a pain in the ass to so many other governments that I am concerned our ‘friends’ may be very unhappy to see him here. I have personally had a few run-ins with him over the years and found him to be very good at his job. He may be the second best security chief on the planet! He needs to be watched carefully at all times and I think I may just have to do that myself.”