Markman pulled off his helmet and stood overlooking a sensesuit lab populated with staff in various degrees of shock. All were either standing at their stations looking at each other in disbelief or gathered around John Paul looking over his shoulder. So engrossed was John Paul, he gave no notice to Markman, leaving him to de-suit behind a chair in the absence of the usual courtesy curtain. Markman finished peeling off his suit and hurriedly squeezed into his jeans. With his charcoal V-neck shirt on and athletic shoes laced, he joined the crowd of gawkers around John Paul.
John Paul straightened up in his seat and looked around. He rubbed his eyes, spotted Markman in the crowd, and motioned one of his associates to take his place. He waved Markman to follow and left the test area in the direction of the commissary. There, John Paul called for two coffees, handed one to Markman and took a seat.
John Paul sipped and seemed to look right through Markman. “You could say this is our worst case scenario come true,” he finally said.
“Do you believe this? Do you believe we’re seeing the real future?”
“I do. I believe our fears of a Salantian invasion of Earth came true. They devastated Earth, and the only survivors were those who miraculously escaped to Crillia. The people on Crillia are what’s left of us, or will be at least.”
“Why do you think they walled up that part of their history?”
“We will probably find reference to that somewhere in the new material. I have no doubt that at some point it was decided they did not want their new culture living in constant fear that the Salantians would someday return and desecrate them again. They not only hid the exodus records. They seem to have removed and hidden any records of the real Crillians.”
“But they were leaving themselves unprotected, weren’t they?”
“They knew they had no real defense which made the thought of it even worse, or somehow they knew Salantians never return to a decimated planet a second time.”
“What will we do?”
“We’ve been working on this problem from back when you first discovered the Salantian intrusion in the New York sewer system. I often wonder had you not been brought in on that case by Federal Agent Ann Rogers, would we actually have found that Salantian outpost. That had to have been a kind of Salantian scouting mission. The good news is, when you discovered their lair back then, it made us aware and allowed us to begin evaluating the threat. The bad news is, they must know they were discovered and will probably move up the date of their full invasion. In any case, we’ve already been testing and preparing for that day and we know now they will open multiple vortports all around the planet. I’ll be briefing you and Cassiopia more on the tactical aspects of all this a little later. The material you’ve brought back today will probably go a long way in further educating us on the enemy and his tactics. My associates will continue scanning and transferring today’s material into text. As each book is compiled, a committee will form to study and summarize the material. I’ll receive their summaries as each is finished. We have learned a great deal. We confirmed today that the Salantians will open many vortports in a short period in many different areas around the world. They will try to bring in Queens to bear eggs to fortify their armies. We also know that if they get too much of a foothold, the militaries of the world will not be able to stop them. We’ll need to stop them before that buildup. Their biggest mistake was letting us get our hands on the sensesuit computer. I doubt they expected that to happen.”
“How can we possibly stop the main invasion?”
“A command center has already been set up for that. Systems for detecting the invasion are being developed and setup. Contacts with certain government officials around the world have already quietly begun. The new data we find here will be quickly transmitted to that command center. It’s possible we may already be behind the curve. Command will be advising us of status and any new developments.”
“What can I do?”
“Your names have already been mentioned. Command would like both you and Cassiopia to remain on standby. The two of you are the only people on Earth who have first-hand experience with the Salantians. Command would like you to be available if they need you.”
“Just say the word.”
“There is one good thing out of all of this. Our incursions into the sensesuit computer have finally turned out to be very valuable. The risks we took putting you in there were more than worth it.”
Markman tried his best to look optimistic as he left the lab, though secretly he harbored increased misgivings and doubt. He took Core back to Richmond. At the hotel, the Professor was settling in nicely. As Cassiopia had anticipated, long sleep periods were dominating his day. To Markman’s surprise, he found her excited about something, so excited she nearly forgot the usual long hug. The news that Crillians were actually humans seemed to energize her even more. She had conjured some sort of surprise for John Paul. She was anxious to see him. The news had to be delivered in person. With her father adequately medicated and sound asleep, she ushered a reluctant Markman back to the Vette, and back on the road to Culpeper. Try as he may, he could not coax the reason out of her during the trip.
A tired John Paul was working in the lab with Shandra and three other associates when they arrived. He looked up with an expression of surprise and puzzlement at the sight of Markman. It changed to one of delight upon noticing Cassiopia. John Paul pulled away from the work and began to sense the excitement overflowing from Cassiopia. He beckoned the pair to the commissary and cast an inquisitive stare as they sat.
“John Paul, can I get you something for a change?” asked Markman.
“What? Yes, coffee I supposed. Command ‘JP coffee.' That’s my mix.”
Markman went to the counter.
“So what is so important that you have dragged your poor page all the way back here, Cassiopia?” he asked.
Cassiopia ignored his attempt at humor and excitedly slid a tablet across the table to him. “One page of translated code, John Paul.”
John Paul picked up the tablet, looked at her, and then gazed at the information on the screen. “Lines of sensesuit code? We’re analyzing this stuff twenty-four hours a day. How could such a thing have you so excited?”
Markman hurried back to the table with two coffees and a tea teetering in his grasp. He assigned them to their proper owners and sat listening intently.
“I’ll give you a hint. There’s a smaller line of translation below each line of code.”
John Paul already had become engrossed in the data on the screen. “I don’t understand this,” he admitted. He looked up at Cassiopia in wonderment.
“Okay. This is so cool. When Scott confirmed to me that the sensesuit computer could be something from the future, immediately I knew the specs in the data you had given me were correct. I began to see new patterns in the code form. These patterns were aligned with the same isotope decay values I had suspected of being erroneous. Those alignments eventually led to a common algorithmic key that was universal to some timing segments of the processor cores. Once I had that, the entire coding sequence began to unravel. Because using the suit was a danger to Scott, I concentrated on the diagnostics portion of the language. Even I was shocked at how completely it all fell into place. So there you have it. It’s everything you need.”
Markman sat back, rolled his eyes, and said, “Geez… I hate being left out…”
John Paul continued to look intrigued. “This is translated code you have here. Why does this look familiar somehow?”
Cassiopia was squirming in her seat. “It’s more than that, John Paul. Don’t you see? It is your Rosetta stone. Continue to carry out the rest of it from that page and you have the entire translation of sensesuit computer logic. You have everything!”
John Paul seemed stunned. He stood without looking away from the tablet. “My God!” He paused in disbelief. “Please, the two of you wait here, I’ll be right back.” John Paul charged out, staring at the tablet as he went, brushing
by the side of the door as he turned the corner.
Markman turned back to Cassiopia. “And for those of us still struggling with algebra?”
Cassiopia had a big smile on her face. “I broke the code. When they are done extrapolating the rest of that, they’ll have complete control of the sensesuit and the computer. No more chance of someone being hurt in the suit. No more danger from combat. The sensesuit can be configured to be harmless to the wearer.”
“Oh. Okay. That’s good then. I won’t have to worry about being conked on the head or something.”
“No, Scott. It’s more than that. It means the suit can be set up so that anyone can wear it. You won’t even need to go back in unless it’s something they need you specifically for. And, they can use the other suit they still have.”
“Wow. Cass, you’ve probably saved my ass again.”
“Just remember that, Mister. I own you.”
Markman rested his chin on his fist and narrowed his stare in a romantic overture. “Yeah? Well, I don’t mind. Not at all.”
John Paul returned wiping his brow with a white handkerchief. He slowly took his seat and looked at Cassiopia, for once not knowing what to say. “It seems I must remind myself not to underestimate you, Cassiopia. What you’ve just done is indescribably profound.”
“You’re welcome, John Paul.”
“You are truly a remarkable individual. I am really at a loss for words.”
“I don’t want to spoil the moment, but would you answer a very sensitive and personal question for me then, John Paul?” she replied.
“At this point, I will not try to guess what that might be. Please, ask away. I will try.”
Cassiopia took out her cell phone and pressed a few keys. The photo of the civil war soldiers came up on the screen. She slid the phone across the table to John Paul. He picked it up and a strange, faraway look came over his face.
“That is you, isn’t it?” asked Cassiopia.
John Paul sat back in his seat and looked up with a tired expression. “My, what an odd experience. Having one’s feelings switch almost instantly from exhilaration to melancholy. Cassiopia, you see no matter how hard we try to limit your exposure to the secrets of our organization, sometimes fate plays its own hand. Yes. That is a tin plate photograph of John Paul the third, special engineer for the Union army. You’ve noticed the Victorian era apparel I wear. It was my attire at the time I agreed to leave my former life behind. Dressing this way helps me remember who I am. I was transferred out of the Union army and into this organization a short time after the war, a short time after I discovered the physics of antigravity and could no longer be allowed to directly affect the world around us.”
Markman sat with raised eyebrows. Cassiopia continued. “But that would make you well over one hundred years old.”
“Yes, it would. When you formally join the organization here, the previous scheme of your lifespan no longer applies.”
“Well, how long will you live?”
“As long as this existence is of benefit to both the world and me.”
“How long is that?”
“No one knows.”
“If we were to join the organization, would it be the same for us?”
“Yes.”
“Immortality?”
“No.”
“This is kind of a scary development.”
“Were you to join, there are certain educational sessions that are designed to help you understand these matters. That training makes these kinds of transitions quite easy to adapt to. You, of course, have placed the cart before the horse, so life seminars would be catch up for you instead of preparation as they were intended.”
“John Paul, just how many people have been removed from society because they became too smart?” asked Cassiopia.
“I do not know the exact number. I myself had the honor of indoctrinating Tesla into our group. There have been many others.”
“You can delay someone from dying? Your group has that much power?”
John Paul took a deep breath. “Cassiopia, no one dies. Our visits here to Earth are actually quite short, though at times suffering makes them seem much longer. When someone’s visit here is through, they merely withdraw to their real lives.”
“Their real lives where?”
“Cassiopia, we have touched on this already. They withdraw to their real lives on what you and I refer to as one of the heavenly dimensions.”
“Everyone?”
“If a person has become so dedicated to evil that his presence would disrupt the dimensions of heaven, he is taken and held elsewhere, a place that resembles the kind of world where his malevolent actions are the norm.”
“But John Paul, so many people have problems. I mean, everyone has faults.”
“Yes. One of the characteristics of Earth’s gravity field is that a person’s coarser, denser, cruder impulses are drawn to the surface here by it. So even as we confront the difficulties presented by others, we must also deal with the more primitive aspects in ourselves. It is the reason why so many of us are always at odds with our more primal instincts. These are the ways we refine ourselves to become a more mature, spiritual consciousness, part of our struggle to become better people. It is the challenge this visit to Earth offers. But Cassiopia, this information is a part of what makes up the growth seminars one receives when one becomes a part of my organization. This is not the time for them. We are involved in a race against an evil empire right now. The work to defend against a Salantian invasion must take precedence.”
“Why do the higher authorities you always speak of allow this evil race to destroy other peaceful civilizations?” asked Cassiopia. “They have the power to stop this.”
John Paul tried to look sympathetic. “As I’ve said before, Cassiopia, the universe is a complex place. You referred to the Salantians as an evil race, but to them, they are only doing what comes naturally. When ant colonies grow large enough, they too divide and set up new colonies wherever the environment suits them. If other species are already resident there, they overrun them unless they can be stopped. Ants can hardly be considered evil. The Salantians are no different. They too are doing what comes naturally to them based on their evolution and design. If they are driven back from a planet, I doubt they harbor any ill will toward that planet. They simply move on in search of the next. Heaven will help Earth to a certain degree, just as it does in all situations, but only in so much as the people of Earth help themselves. Humans must use the abilities they have been blessed with and join together to overcome this pestilence. They cannot sit back and expect the powers from above to do the work for them. Just as each of us must overcome problems and offenses each day, there come times when people must work together to avoid terrible things from happening. From what I’ve seen of history, I would say this is one of those times.”
Markman leaned back and locked his hands behind his head. “Well, at least we have your people, John Paul.”
“Yes. We are a part of that heavenly help I mentioned. Kind of a go-between.”
“Is there anything more we should be doing?” asked Cassiopia.
“How is your father?” asked John Paul.
“Almost back to his grumpy self. He’s starting to ask the more difficult questions.”
“Allow me to suggest this. Your father has been through a great deal. He needs to go home to get his bearings. Even if the three of you decided to join us formally, that transition would begin there. As soon as the testing is complete, take your father home. When the time feels right, tell him everything about our organization. When he’s ready, I’ll come for a meeting with all of you. We can decide how you would like to proceed. Scott, we’ll need a day to finish going through everything you brought back today, along with Cassiopia’s incredible decoding. You could assist in taking the Professor home and explaining all this. We’ll provide a special limousine for the trip. Scott, you should also take Core with you. We wouldn’t want you traveling without that
level of protection.”
Cassiopia bit her bottom lip. “Is it safe there at home, John Paul? Is it really safe?”
“Cassiopia, it is as safe as any location could be.”
“What exactly does that mean?” asked Markman.
“It means, unless you would choose to have the Professor live in a small, concrete cell, there cannot be a better security arrangement than the one we have designed for the Cassell residence.”
Markman asked, “John Paul, where does Earth stand in all this? What do you think will happen?”
“Sometime in the next few days, I will brief you both on our military and diplomatic efforts. I believe at some point Salantian incursions will begin showing up all over the world, probably sooner than later. When that happens, special assault forces will be deployed to attack and repel the invaders in those locations. It is a very old battle strategy that a small force can hold off a very large force by facing them in a narrow passage. That will be the cornerstone of our defense. I just hope we are ready in advance enough to shift the war in our favor.”
“War?” asked Cassiopia in disbelief.
“War,” replied John Paul.
Chapter 17