Starting from Scratch (28 page)

Mike shook his head and admitted,
Just between you
and me, We’ve talked about that and we agree that it’s too soon to
make such a move. We’ll either break up, or get hitched. I’ll let
you know which way the tree is going to fall, before I have to yell
‘Timber.’

Todd looked at Mike and asked, “Were the two of you
talking on that comm unit, just now.”

“Yes, we were. We had a brief conversation and it
took less than a second. For you to say what we just commed, would
have taken thirty seconds. As an upgrade does that, it never occurs
to us how quickly we’re communicating. The only reason I know is
because I checked my comm time log. Everything I think, do, or say,
is filed in my memory, which I can instantly retrieve on
demand.

“At first, you’re going to have to practice how to
organize your own mind. It’s actually a lot like setting up files
in a computer. After all, a brain is really just a biologic form of
a computer.”

Todd went straight to the set up at Nellis. “How are
the new men doing out in Nevada? Are they having problems with any
of this.”

Mike grimaced, which he did a lot lately. “Those
young men were already in great shape. But the med units still had
to structure their bodies to make them stronger, before the real
upgrade procedure began. It will make for a much smoother
transition for them, during the upgrade process.

“The first of them will be out of that part of it in
one to two more days. It is no more and no less painful for them,
than it will be for you and your wife. I’ve never believed in sugar
coating bad news and I don’t believe in making it sound worse than
it is. The bad news is it’s bad. The good news is, you only have to
suffer through it once.”

Wayne commed,
General, I have just agreed to a
deal for two thousand acres in central Mexico, in the southern
portion of the state of Zacatecas. The area is remote and ugly and
hot as hell. But I have been assured that we will have no problem
building an industry there and that the locals will leave us alone,
as long as we pay a monthly environmental fee to the presiding
politicians.

Son, how much is that going to be?

Ten thousand a month. We can afford it and if we pay
in gold, they’ll reduce their demand to eight thousand. It’s a
bargain.

What about local gangs?

Not much to speak of. The area is so remote and
poor; there isn’t much to be squeezed out of the locals. I have the
name of a Zacatecas power broker who will talk to them for us.

Dad, can I have your authorization to begin setting
up down there. Bambi has the large shuttle back up here at the
Independence, and she’s loading it with fabricators and several
more weapons, in anticipation of more recruits who will be trained
on our own private turf.

Yes, Wayne, you have my permission. Go immediately.
And maybe Bambi should include a few anti -missile batteries, just
in case.

Bambi responded,
I’m on it, General.

Wayne said,
Thanks, Bambi. There’s more news, dad.
Jim Atteberry has made arrangements to buy out a small investment
company in Mexico City. That’s going to be his base for a while.
From there he’s going to spread out his tentacles and try to
penetrate other countries, looking for intel on how those
government are taking the news of aliens, when the story
breaks.

The people he’s dealing with think he’s a Mexican,
educated in America. His Spanish is perfect, thanks to the
translator program. He assures me that he can speak any local
dialect that’s needed to move around inconspicuously.

Wayne, be sure to keep an eye on how he’s
progressing. I fear his info is going to be needed sooner than we
think.

I’m on it, pop.

Mike smiled and looked over at Todd, who had left him
alone for a moment, before saying, “I assume you’ve been talking
with someone for the last few seconds. What’s up?”

Mike grinned and told him, “Todd, we’re still holding
some of our cards close to our chest. It’s nothing nefarious that
would directly affect the United States. I’ll tell you this much.
We have concerns about the affect aliens will have on the rest of
the world, once the word gets loose. We anticipate denial, anger,
threats, suicides in large numbers and regional wars. The big boys
might do more than saber rattling.

“A country like Russia or China has to think of their
people’s reaction, when they find out that aliens are aiding
America and other countries of the free world. Such news could
spark rebellion. Those guys don’t play nice with their civilians,
when they feel threatened by them. It could get very ugly and I’m
not about to go in and try to stop it. We simply can’t allow them
to divert our attention from the defense of the solar system.

“And then there are countries like North Korea, Iran,
Pakistan and Israel. There’s no telling what they might do, in the
name of survival.”

Todd winced and asked, “Do you have any reason to
believe that Israel is a threat?”

“No. But, if they feel seriously threatened by any of
the other countries, they may decide to launch a preemptive strike
against Iran and possibly Syria; again, in defense of their right
to exist.

“The other bad boys might see this as an opportunity
to expand their influence, because we will be tied up dealing with
the aliens.”

Todd nodded, but revealed no opinion on Mike’s
thoughts.

Mike added, “And then there is Africa. That place
could turn into a slaughterhouse. I’ve had Bambi do a brief
analysis and she feels that as many as a billion people could be
killed in one year, on that continent.”

Pierpoint’s eyes did widen considerably at that
estimate.

He mumbled, “I hope that doesn’t happen. What a
nightmare for those people. There are hundreds of tribes who hate
each other and they always seem to be on the verge of assaulting a
neighboring tribe. We’ve seen it happen before.”

Mike’s expression was one of anger, as he said,
“Yeah, it’s a damn shame. But if we allow ourselves to get too
wrapped up in that, we’re going to be wiped out by the Saurans. And
it won’t be a billion people who die; it’ll be all of us, every
last human on Earth.”

Mike’s voice had risen to a point that all aboard
could hear him and he realized he was frightening Todd’s wife and
Marge Chalmers.

“I’m sorry, ladies. I get carried away
sometimes.”

Mary and Bet made an effort to keep things light, as
Todd and Mike quietly talked about details of how and what to
build, as well as what sort of research they should pursue.

When they touched down at Nellis, they saw the
rapidly expanding camp, which was dominated by six large
fabricators that operated 24/7. They crunched out large parts for
an even bigger fabricator, which would produce space fighters at
the rate of four per day. Every one of them would have mounts in
place for the new plasma cannons that Dr. Frankenberger had
suggested, although a prototype had yet to be constructed. He had
nearly completed the design details and as soon as he did, it would
be built and tested. If all went well, they would begin installing
plasma cannons on the space fighters.

Smaller fabricators were making missiles for use in
air-to-air combat and for ground and sea anti-air defense. They
were of an ancient design that Bambi had in her files, but were far
ahead of anything humans had developed. Mike felt that a need for
them might be necessary in a year or so. So, they decided to go
ahead and produce them for the time being.

Mike had denied the construction of larger plasma
weapons on this site just yet. He still didn’t trust the ruling
politicians enough, to hand them those advanced weapons, which
could be used successfully against his men and equipment.

As they walked to a temporary housing area, made of
prefabricated mobile homes, Todd asked him, “If you’re so worried
about building a space navy, why are you producing missiles for use
in the planets atmosphere?”

Mike grimaced and explained, “Once this gets out, I
fear the other super powers will be tempted to attack America,
before she becomes so strong that it wouldn’t be possible to win a
war against us. If it looks like that’s going to happen, America
must smack them down quickly and with ruthless efficiency. They
must see the uselessness of trying to defeat us. Then we back off
and invite them to help protect the Earth. In the long run, we’re
going to need them.”

Todd held up his hands, “But what’s to stop them from
using the new weapons to try and take us out again?”

Mike grinned evilly and told him, “If you’ll recall,
I told the President that I would have the minds of volunteers
altered to protect me, my people and the effort to defend the
Earth. When the foreign powers send people to be upgraded, those
same protections will be implemented.

“Todd, you and I know that they’ll send us men who
have been told to resist any such efforts to amend their thinking
and to use those new powers to take over the entire program. As we
do their preparation for programming, we’ll be looking for just
that sort of mindset, before beginning the upgrade.

“If they have some sort of hypnosis, or chemically
implanted ideas, Bambi will be able to catch it and alter the
mindset of it. Furthermore, if we have any doubts, we’ll refuse to
do any upgrades for men from that country. Those countries will be
left out of the program.”

Todd smiled at Mike’s comment and added, “That should
scare the hell out of them. The rest of the world would be
benefiting from all that you offer, while they dwindle into
obscurity.”

Once inside the temp housing, Mary apologized for the
small single bedroom mobile home. Then she said, “I understand that
one of the Fabricators will be assigned to construct a tunneling
device that is remarkably efficient. We intend to move most of this
way underground and that will include much nicer quarters for
everyone. Of course, as a representative of the US, your quarters
will be larger and have a conference room for private
meetings.”

Todd raised an eyebrow and asked, “Will they truly be
private?”

Mary shook her head and admitted, “It’s best to
realize that privacy is not going to be available for a long time,
maybe never. If nothing else, it should provide trust. It’s going
to be nearly impossible to keep secrets, from the rest of our
staff. But, of course, we have the same problem. You get used to
it. After a while, you don’t even give it any thought.”

Diane surprised her by saying, “I don’t see how
that’s possible. Knowing that you’ll never have privacy again is…is
…intimidating.”

Mary responded, “Why?”

Diane thought about it and confessed, “I don’t want
everyone to know of my private conversations with my husband. I
guess I’m saying I have a need for secrets.”

Mary smiled and loudly said, “Bambi, explain.”

“Yes, Major Hurst. Mrs. Pierpoint, if you plan to
overthrow the Terran Space Navy, I will report it. Otherwise, there
is practically nothing that I would divulge to anyone. Your private
affairs are just that, private. I’ve been asked to reveal such
things before and I have refused, because it’s wrong and I just
won’t do it. I won’t release any private information about you to
others and I won’t tell you about anyone else.

“However, Ma’am, if you want to know anything, just
ask and I’ll provide as much info as I think you need. That
includes questions about my commanding officer, General Hurst. I
won’t reveal any of his secrets, but in the interest of improving
information within the command structure, I will be glad to resolve
any questions you may have about him.”

Diane pressed Bambi a little further. “Would you tell
someone else about me, as well.”

“I would, unless you had specifically asked me not
to. I can be a very tight lipped computer.”

Todd looked up quickly and said, “I had forgotten
that’s what you are. You are obviously an Artificial Intelligence
and very intelligent indeed. It’s almost like talking to a
human.”

“Sir, it would probably be easier for you to think of
me that way. Just talk to me as you would anyone and we’ll get
along just fine.”

Bambi commed,
Sir, General Boltz is calling
you.

Mike answered, using the comm, without speaking out
loud.

“Hello General Boltz. What can I do for you?”

Boltz answered, “I was just made aware that you’re
back on base and I’d like to have your scientists meet with the
entire group of physicists who have been working on the UFO
project. My people have several questions, after the first meeting
they had, and they have suggested a face to face get together in
the junk room.”

“General, I’m sure my guys would love to meet
there.”

“Good,” Boltz replied coldly, which seemed normal for
him. “I’m going to be there also and I thought perhaps you could
join us down there. That way we both are kept in the loop of their
findings.

He added, “I already have a guide for you, Senior
Master Sergeant Walters is on his way to your quarters. If you’ll
go with him, he’ll swing by and pick up the others. He has been
authorized to bring you and your scientists all the way down to the
junk room.”

“I’m on the way, General.”

Mike excused himself, saying, “I have a meeting to
attend, Todd. Soon, you’ll be included in many of these things. I
want you and the President to see what’s what and I very much want
your input. For now, relax and Mary will get you folks ready for
the med units.”

Mike left the Pierpoints in Mary’s capable hands. He
and Bet went over to his quarters, where they found Senior Master
Sergeant Walters waiting for them. Mike noted the diamond in the
middle of his stripes, denoting that he was the equivalent of a
First Sergeant in the Army. In other words, the man was sharp as a
tack, which would be consistent with everything and everyone in
General Boltz’s command.