Weak memories, I suspect. Wait; look at this. Holy shit, that’s a Januki scout ship.

  “Are you sure?”

  Yes sir, I’m sure. They’re small and fast as hell and I think the Saurans would like to know how they work.

  Max asked her, “Is this guy some sort of Januki spy?”

  “I don’t think so, sir. When he answered about being a spy for someone else, he said no and it was the truth.

  “Max, how in the hell does this guy see a Januki scout ship, when he didn’t even know it exists?”

  “I would guess Nellis Air Force Base. That place has been suspected of hiding the dead aliens from the Roswell incident.”

  Here it is, boss. Years ago, he was one of the case officers that investigated UFOs. His name has changed dozens of times, as he looked into a number of sightings and especially missing people. Your government has known for a long time about aliens, but they’ve kept it quiet for years. Mr. Smith here is actually James Atteberry and he really is retired, as a Naval officer.

  “Bambi, can you communicate with him/”

  I can leave messages in his brain and set them to encourage him to be more cooperative, once he comes back around. Should I have the robot reactivate his consciousness?

  “Yes. Insert the messages and wake him up.”

  Five minutes later, the man was holding his head and complaining, about the pain.

  “Mr. Atteberry, you’re going to be just fine. We’re not mad at you. You did what you thought was the right thing to do. But, it should be obvious to you, by now, that the situation has changed. The years you spent protecting all of us from a frightening secret, was commendable and necessary. Unfortunately, a different group of aliens is the real problem and they are headed this way.”

  Max patted Atteberry on the knee and asked, “How would you like to help us keep these bastards from destroying the Earth?”

  He looked troubled, as he considered his options. Then he said, “Well, it’s obvious that you know more about what’s going on then I do. I retired fifteen years ago and the government let me retire as a Naval officer, so I could get into the veterans home.

  “I didn’t feel bad about it because I did do a hitch in the Navy, and then devoted my life to finding out as much as I could about aliens and abductions. Those missing people where a sign of things to come and my superiors didn’t want to alarm the public, or give any aliens watching us a reason to move any quicker.”

  Max sternly asked, “Who were your superiors?”

  Atteberry balked. He just couldn’t bring himself to say it.

  Bambi answered for him, as she spoke out loud. “His boss was a major in The Air Force. They have a small office at Nellis Air Force Base.”

  Atteberry said, “I’ve kept the secret for so long. Not even the President knows about all of this. For years it’s been handled by a few select officials and a few field officers, such as myself.”

  Mike took a gentler approach. “Mr. Atteberry, the president and several members of his staff now know about the alien presence. They are keeping it secret for now, but you must realize it’s only a matter of time until it leaks out. I refuse to answer to the bureaucracy on Earth…America’s or that of any other nation.

  “I love my country, but they have a bad track record of allowing a large and cumbersome style of management to bog things down. We can’t afford to let that happen this time, because things are moving to quickly and the entire existence of the human race is at stake.”

  Atteberry looked around, and then asked, “How did I get my health back?’

  “Alien technology, Mr. Atteberry. But you’ve only had the very basic improvements made to your body. If you join us, you’ll go through an upgraded program that makes you about twenty five years of age and you’ll be much stronger and able to think a great deal faster. I’ve had it done, as has General Kolbe here and Al Benson, Wayne Hurst, my son and his wife, Mary. You’ve met all of us and you’ve seen the video. There’s more, but for now, I’d really like to know what you can tell us about that Januki scout ship.”

  The man looked puzzled, and then a light of recognition went off. “Oh, the alien space craft. What did you call it? I only saw it once. That’s not my area of responsibility. My primary assignment was to investigate the disappearances. We think there may have been as many as four thousand, world wide.”

  Mike whispered loudly, “My God.” He looked at Max and said; “I find it hard to believe the Saurans are responsible for all of those.”

  Atteberry told them, “I have felt for a long time that there was more than one group of aliens who were behind this; possibly four or five completely different races. There might be as many as two thousand people who have been returned, but they merely add to the confusion, because their memories are so jumbled.”

  Bambi told them, “Sir, it’s possible that other races have been coming here for some time. They want to know about humans, just like the Saurans do. They want to know how you think and how you’ll react to certain stimuli. Will humans pose a threat hundreds of years from now? Then they wipe that person’s memory as best they can. Even the Saurans had difficulty in doing mind wipes, or so they told me.”

  Atteberry said, “That computer is quite amazing. I assume she is of alien technology.”

  “You are correct, Mr. Atteberry.”

  The man was actually shy, as he said, “If we’re going to be working together, you might as well call me Jim.”

  “Ok Jim, welcome to the team.”

  Max made a suggestion. “Mike, I think before we make the President aware of Jim and what he did for a living, we should try to chat with someone who might be in on the secret, someone at Nellis.”

  Jim told them, “By now, most of the people I knew have moved on. I doubt that even the base commander is aware of this, sir.”

  Max pursed his lips, and then grinned. “Son, you’d be surprised what a base commander might know, even if he’s not supposed to know it. I speak from personal experience.”

  Mike commed Bambi, Can you call the base commander at Nellis Air Force Base? He probably has some sort of private phone to the Pentagon. I’d like to chat directly with him and I think hacking into his secure line would be a good way to let him see we have surprising capabilities and that he could benefit from them.

  Yes sir. I’m sure I can. There was a long pause, and then she told him. Here you go General Hurst. The base commander is Lieutenant General Ludwig Boltz. He seems to have quite a record regarding new technologies that were developed under his command.

  Thanks Bambi.

  “Jim, I’ve had Bambi make a call to General Boltz, who is the base commander at Nellis.”

  “I met him, sir, years ago, when he was a Captain. He’s a very impressive man…very intense. I suspect he doesn’t have a sense of humor; so you may want to keep that in mind.”

  “I will.”

  You’re on, General and the man is not happy.

  “Hello, General Boltz, this is Mike Hurst. I assume that Mike Hardesty might have mentioned that we’ll be meeting face to face in a week or so.”

  “Listen buster, this is a secure line and it is a felony violation to hack into any defense system and disrupt our communications.”

  Mike smiled, but did so without comment. “Sir, I can assure you that no other individual, or government can do what we just did. I need to talk with you about a special vehicle that a select group, within your area of responsibility, has been researching for decades. I believe it looks like something from a sci-fi movie.”

  The man exploded. “I’m not going to talk with you about anything. You are in bigger trouble than you can imagine.”

  Sir, he has signaled one his people to run a trace of the call. They have sent him a text message that this call isn’t happening and that the line is out of service.

  It was all Mike could do to keep from laughing out loud.

  “General Boltz, I know you’re trying to trace the call. It won’t work, Sir, because we are using alien technology to jump your line. It is my intention to provide you with this technology for your own protection. The problem is, while we can use it, we can’t figure out how it works.”

  The General hung up.

  Sir, General Boltz ripped the lines out of the wall and threw the phone across the room.

  Bambi, does he have a TV screen in his office.

  Yes sir, a rather large one.

  Turn it on and put me on the screen live. Maybe if he sees me, he’ll be a little more receptive to having a conversation.

  When Mike’s image appeared on the big screen, Boltz cried out, ”Jesus Christ, how are you doing this?”

  Mike shrugged his shoulders and admitted, “As I told you, sir, we can use this tech, but we don’t know yet, how it works. I’m calling because I know you know what’s been hidden there for many years and I suspect that the President has never been told. He was recently made aware of alien presence and I thought you might appreciate a heads up, before he finds out that this has been kept from him.”

  “Listen, Hurst, or whatever your name is. If you know anything, you must know that I’m not about to tell you a damn thing.”

  Mike maintained a serious expression and told the General, “Sir, I don’t have much to say right now, but it’s important. I’m sending you a video of what has happened so far to me and why I’m stepping way out on a limb to defend the people of the planet.”

  Bambi, send him my service record and the video that we show first timers, but leave out the parts about upgrading. Be sure and show Jo and I talking on the video. He needs to see me with a live alien. Then show him the best picture you can of a Januki scout ship.

  “General Boltz, please take a few minutes to watch this video and the accompanying information. I’ll get back in touch with you in two hours.”

  Cut it, Bambi.

  Ok sir, we’re off the air.

  Mike turned to Max and said, “I thought that went well. We’ve got just enough time to chat with our Naval officers.”

  Max laughed and uttered, “Good grief, Mike, You sure do know how to stir the pot.”

  Mike turned to Jim Atteberry and told him, “Jim, for now we’re going to maintain your status as a Lieutenant Commander. In a moment, there’s going to be a robot here to escort you to sickbay for further analysis of your revival. If you have any questions, just ask them out loud and Bambi will see to your needs.”

  “Thank you, sir. I hope we can do something about those missing people.”

  Max said, “Jim, don’t get your hopes up. If we can do something, we will, but I doubt they’ll ever be heard from again.”

  Jim Atteberry looked very sad, as he and Max left his quarters and walked down to the conference room.

  Chapter 9

  Max and Mike walked into the room to interview the naval officers, in the hope that at least one of them had some experience with fleet maneuvers. They interrupted a conversation about who was the senior man among them.

  Mike announced, “Gentlemen, we’re so glad to see that you’re getting along nicely.”

  The four men sitting around the table looked at him and one of them began harshly tapping his cup on the table, demanding attention. He said, “I presume you’re Sergeant Hurst. What’s going on here Hurst? Why are we being held here like prisoners?”

  Mike smiled and replied, “You are not prisoners, sir. We have a need for men with Naval experience and a solid record of performance at sea. We have seen to your health and brought you back some of your youth, which will last for more than a hundred years. If you don’t wish to help your country and your planet, then you will be returned to America.”

  The man slammed his palm against the table. “Look, we know that genetic research has been able to bring people back their youth. It’s old news, so don’t try and fool us into joining some weird right wing group of traitors.”

  Mike tilted his head and said, “I’m going to guess that you are Captain Patrick Gorham, one of the great desk jockeys of the Navy. Sir, your services will not be needed.”

  “Now look here, Hurst. I’m your superior officer and you must obey my commands.”

  Mike moved so quickly to the man’s side that Gorham shrunk away in fear. He yelled, “You stupid fucking little martinet, you are superior to no one. You are dismissed, Patrick. You will be put in a safe place where you can’t harm yourself and be returned to Earth.”

  Gorham was about to say something, but a threatening glare from Mike changed his mind.

  Bambi, send in a robot and stun him to sleep. Then put him into stasis, after you have removed his memory of this. We’ll dump him back on Earth, when we return.

  It will be a pleasure, sir.

  Max commed, “I think you handled that nicely, Mike. There’s no sense in wasting our time with pipsqueaks like that little empire builder.

  A robot entered and as soon as it had a clear shot, it sent a weak bolt of ions at the Captain. The man collapsed face first on the table and the robot easily lifted him and took him away.

  As he was removed, Mike told the others, “Gentlemen, I am truly sorry for that ugly event, but we suspected he wasn’t going to be any good to us anyway. His Navy record indicated he lacked leadership talent. Also, I don’t want you worry about him. He is fine and if any of you wish to look in on him I’ll arrange it. We have no intention or need to harm any of you.”

  “Now, let’s get down to business, shall we?”

  Turning to Commander. Doolin, who he recognized from his file, he asked, “Commander, how would you like to be one of the first human space fighter pilots? With a little practice, you’ll be made the squadron leader and, I suspect, very quickly become the space group commander.”

  The man smiled and said, “Don’t you think this is moving a bit too fast?”

  “No, I don’t for two reasons. We don’t have the time for a long familiarization program and because it isn’t necessary. If you agree to be upgraded, you will have all the knowledge you need to fly in space and it will be placed right there in your brain.”

  Over the next two hours, the questions flew around and so did the answers. Mike and Max held back nothing, as they explained the horrible experience of the upgrade procedure, and the subsequent advantages to be had, once it was complete.

  When the topic came around to Commander Denniston and how he could be of help, Mike informed him that he would be setting up the equivalent of a CIC, on the Mother Ship. It would occupy one or two stations on the bridge.

  Denniston immediately answered, “It’s still too soon for me to be sure, sir, but I think a separate room would be better. If it’s anything like a ship at sea, there will be an enormous amount of information passing through and people can get excited and loud at times. I wouldn’t want that distraction to affect the decisions that must be made on the bridge. We will pass on what we know and what we think to the officer of the deck, if that’s acceptable.”

  Bambi responded, “Cdr. Denniston, Your idea may have merit. However, you must realize that with the upgrade comes great speed of thought. General Hurst’s thoughts are that the CIC department would provide an on going intelligence display, on the bridge and in his mind, therefore eliminating the few seconds it would take to pass on any pertinent information. In space combat, seconds lost can mean battles lost.”

  Mike had never told her of his thoughts on the topic of CIC, because he didn’t have any. He might have to take Bambi to task later, because she shouldn’t be speaking for him.

  He added, “Commander, I think we’ll wait until you have been upgraded and had a chance to work with your new abilities, before making the decision to put CIC on the bridge or somewhere else.

  “In the mean time, Bambi will provide you with some basics about traveling, within the solar system. I feel certain that will be the location of our first confrontation. You should familiarize yourself with the maneuvers necessary to get around out here and you’ll need to focus on maneuvering in three dimensions.”

  “Yes sir. But I want to point out that the Navy has been working in three dimensions for decades. We have to be concerned about the area beneath the surface, on the surface and in the air. I know it will be different in space, but the concepts will be similar.”

  Mike shrugged. “Good point, Commander and I am aware of that. However, the speeds at which events happen must be prepared for and executed with flawless precision. Otherwise, the ship will be toast, before you can react to the enemies well laid out plans.”

  He looked over at Cdr. Vollmar and said, “Commander Vollmar, you’re just the sort of man we’re going to need in a about five or six weeks. We’re going to try and capture a damaged ship that’s just like this one. We’re going to have to board it in three places and fight our way into those areas, if we’re to succeed. You wouldn’t happen to have any idea how that could be done, do you?” He gave Vollmar a huge grin.

  With a poker face, the Commander answered, “I suppose I could offer a few suggestions. Of course, I’ll need to know a few thousands things first, like what equipment will I have available, what weapons do we have and what are the enemies capabilities. Then there’s the need to know about the hull of the ship to be assaulted, what sort of resistance can we expect from their crew and is that ship’s design exactly like this one. Oh, and what about space suits for me and my men, assuming I’ll have men.”

  Max told him, “Commander Vollmar, we have been offered three seal teams for this assault. I’m sure they will want their own team leaders. But any pre-planning you do now for them, could save lives later and probably salvage the mission.”

  “I see. I’m too old and out of date to go in with them. Have you forgotten that I’ll be young again?”

  Mike gave him a sympathetic smile. “No, Commander, we haven’t forgotten. But you know damn good and well how you would feel if a stranger was thrust upon you, just before a mission as bizarre as this one. You will have a few weeks to get to know these guys and I’m sure they will appreciate the prep and analysis that a man of your experience can offer for this. As for whether you go in with them, that will be up to the mission commander.”