The War of Pawns (The Human Chronicles -- Book Three) (12 page)

As it turned out, Adam had set them down about a kilometer north of US-70, and about 10 kilometers west of Roswell, near the intersection of Tierra Grande Boulevard. When the cavalry arrived, he didn’t want them to have to off-road it too far. He had no doubt their descent had been tracked, and that even now, a contingent of helos and Humvees was headed their way.

He didn’t have to wait long for confirmation.

The first indicator came from the distant hump-hump-hump of approaching helicopters. Soon he spotted two Apache AH-64’s, along with a pair of larger Chinook MH-47’s on the horizon, approaching from the northeast. Seconds later, the fierce-looking Apaches swept over them at 80 knots; Adam was sure video of the scene below was being beamed back to any number of waiting eyes, both locally, and all the way back to the Pentagon.

The Chinooks set down in clouds of sand and dust about a hundred meters away, while the Apaches remained aloft, taking up sentry positions about a kilometer beyond. Eight people departed one of the 47’s, all wearing yellow hazmat suits with full headgear. Three carried monitoring equipment, while the other five were armed with M16 carbine assault rifles.

By the time the people from the helo had covered the distance between their LZ and the shuttle, six Humvees had pulled off the highway and began the short trek over the flat, sagebrush-covered landscape. The vehicles fanned out, leaving a wide trail of dust streaming out behind them.

Four of the Humvees had men manning .50-caliber M2HB machine gun turrets, and the armored vehicles skidded to a halt about fifty meters from the shuttle. Two of the other Humvees continued closer, coming to a stop next to the landing craft. As the dust cloud blew past them, an Army officer and his entourage quickly climbed out, squinting through the cloud and into the afternoon sun. A few of the men from the shuttle rose from their seats and began to move toward the troops.

“No!” Adam called out. “Stay where you are.” He then stood near the rear of the shuttle and raised his arms, clasping his hands behind his head. Sherri and Riyad quickly followed suit. Soon, all 35 of them stood like silent monuments, casting long shadows in the approaching evening light, their hands locked behind their heads, and watching as the troops and scientists drew near…

What followed was a daze of activity – and confusion – as the troops and scientists soon came to learn that all the occupants of the spacecraft were Human. After checking them for radiation and other trace elements that could contaminate the scene – or the planet – the scientists removed their hoods and stood around with nothing much more to do. They had to wait for more qualified personnel to arrive before entering the spacecraft itself.

The leader of the military troops, Army Captain Jonathan Aronson, was soon led to Adam. For his arrival back to Earth, Adam had cut his hair to a tight half-inch buzz, and changed into his olive green t-shirt and boonie hat. As the officer approach, Adam saluted briskly and introduced himself and his rank. The captain slowly returned his salute.

“I suppose you have some explaining to do, mister,” he said, scanning Adam up and down.

“Yes, sir. And do we have story to tell. However, I believe the information I have to report should be done at a more secure location. I also recommend that all the people here with me be sequestered until fully debriefed.”

Sherri and Riyad looked at him with deep frowns. He turned to them. “We can’t let the news about what’s coming leak out to the public. It could cause a panic.”

“I know that,” Sherri said pointedly, “but I would really like to let my family know that I’m still alive.”

“You will – as we all will – but first we need to control the scene. Let’s let the military do their thing first.”

“You have a lot more trust in them than I believe the two of us have,” Riyad spoke up. Sherri nodded vigorously.

“Just trust me on this.”

Aronson had watched the back and forth between the three of them long enough. “Quiet!” he commanded, getting their attention. “I’m securing this location, and this…vehicle. Once
I
get direction from Command,
I’ll
tell you what’s going to happen next. Is that clear?”

“Yes, sir,” all three of them said in unison.

Chapter Thirteen

Within four hours of their arrival on Earth, all 35 repatriated Humans were aboard a military Boeing 757 and on their way to Washington D.C. Adam, Sherri and Riyad had been singled out and moved into the forward section of the aircraft. An Air Force major was with them, along with three stenographers and four military police. Adam did his best to report the sitrep clearly and distinctly. Every five minutes or so, the information he was relating was transmitted to Washington.

During the trip, real Human food and drink was provided, much to the immense pleasure of all aboard. Adam had not realized how far off the alien food modules had been until he had something to compare it to. He ate so much, and so fast, that he risked getting sick. But he didn’t care – none of them did. They were home.

It was a little after four in the morning on the East Coast when they landed at Andrews Air Force Base. From there, a military and police escort, complete with flashing lights, took the three of them through the near-deserted streets of the city to the Pentagon. Adam was told the other 32 men would be following, and would be housed at the Pentagon as well.

Adam had never been to the Pentagon before, and it was only a minute after they entered the massive structure that he was completely lost and turned around. But much to his surprise, the building appeared to be full of people, even at this early hour. Many of the people they passed looked as though they’d been roused out of bed and called into the office, existing only on coffee and Red Bull. Adam began to get the feeling that a lot of these people were there because of him. At least he was hoping that was the case, because the warning they had returned with was real and dire.

Eventually, they were shown into a vast conference room, with a massive oblong table of polished mahogany wrapping around a central open area, and with huge monitors lining nearly every inch of the surrounding walls. Enlisted personnel of all military branches scurried about inside the open area, placing documents before the numerous people already seated around the table. There was about a 70/30 mix of men to women around the table, all either dressed in suits and business attire, or military dress uniforms from all branches. Adam had never seen as many gold braids and silver stars in one place before. It was obvious that his report had made an impact.

As they entered the room, all eyes focused on them, many with looks of suspicion or concern. Many of the civilians in the room had aides seated next to them, whispering in their ears and pointing out sections of the papers before them. Every station around the table also had a laptop computer, and Adam could see the screens on some of the closer ones as they were led to three vacant seats near the center of the table. Many of the screens showed aerial views of the landing craft and of Adam’s group, tiny figures casting long shadows in the early evening light. One of the screens even displayed an image of Adam in full military attire. He immediately recognized the image as one from his service jacket.

Even though the whole scene was a little intimidating, Adam had been expecting this. In fact, he was relieved to see that his report was being taken seriously. He was sure it helped to have arrived in an alien spacecraft…

His gaze scanned the room, and immediately noticed a stern looking man seated against the wall to his left, dressed in the dress uniform of a Navy lieutenant – and staring straight at him. Adam’s jaw dropped. It was Lt. Andrew Tobias, his platoon leader. Adam had not seen him since the night he and his squad had boarded the helo at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan, on their way to that fateful mission in the Hindu Kush – the night Adam was abducted.

Adam smiled broadly at his LT, yet all he received in turn was the cold, hard stare. Adam swallowed loudly, and then turned his attention back to the rest of the room as the meeting was being called to order.

Abruptly, the room grew quiet, as a distinguished looking man with a masculine square jaw and thin-rimmed glasses cleared his throat. The man was seated directly across the room from Adam, and the placard in front of him read:
 
‘Matthew St. Claire, Secretary of Defense.’

“I want to thank all of you for attending this very important meeting at such short notice. Unfortunately, we do not have the luxury of time.” St. Claire began. Then he paused, while he attempted to make cursory eye contact with all the people seated around the table. “In front of you, and on your computer screens, is a report that has been provided to us by Petty Officer 2
^nd
Class Adam Cain.” He nodded toward Adam, and all eyes locked on him. “Mr. Cain, along with his associates here, has just completed a truly amazing journey, and has brought back an incredible tale.”

Adam didn’t like the use of the word ‘tale’ when referring to his report, but he chose to reserve judgment of the SecDef until he saw where the meeting was headed.

“For most of you, this report will read like a science fiction novel, as Mr. Cain relates the story of an empire of alien beings and their military forces, who according to him, are currently on their way to Earth. He states that these aliens, the Juireans they’re called, are coming here to exterminate the Human race.”

There were loud murmurs around the room, along with several “bullshits” voiced softly, yet firmly. Adam noticed how about a third of the room did not react at all to the news, while the others were quite animated.

“I know how crazy this may sound to all of you, and you’re probably wondering if the old man has lost his mind, to drag us out of our warm beds at this hour just to hear such a fantastical story.” The SecDef managed a wide grin as he scanned the room. Then the smile vanished in a flash, and his eyes narrowed. “Yet, as you scan the documents in front of you, you will see that Mr. Cain and his companions did indeed arrive in a spacecraft of alien design, with technology well beyond what currently exists on this planet. I hope now you will understand why Petty Officer Cain’s report must be taken seriously, and why you are here at this early hour.” The room once again erupted in an explosion of voices.

“Quiet please,” St. Claire said, trying to still the room, his voice rising as he did so. Many of those at the table were still shaking their heads and voicing their skepticism. “Before we get ahead of ourselves, I would like those of you around this table not already privy to this information to listen very carefully to what I say next.” St. Claire was an experienced politician, and he delivered his remarks with the cadence and tone of a true professional. By the time he resumed speaking, the entire room was deathly quiet, with all attention focused on him.

“I can verify that what Mr. Cain has reported concerning the existence of this alien race is one-hundred percent true.”

The table again erupted in a cacophony of voices, even louder than before. “What do you mean?” “That’s impossible.” Along with even more “bullshits.”

St. Claire raised his hand. “Please listen to me. Please.” When the room had returned to a somewhat manageable level, the Secretary continued. “We have been in receipt of certain intelligence for some time now that supports Mr. Cain’s claims of the existence of the Juireans. As a matter of national security, we have kept this information secret from most individuals in the public and in the government, including most of you at this table.”

Adam squared his jaw. He knew there was a possibility that the Klin had already made contact with the powers that be on Earth. He also knew that his task just became much more complicated. The Klin and 2G’s would have already passed themselves off as the saviors of Earth, and this would make it that much harder to convince the authorities that the Klin were not much better than the Juireans, and in fact, had manipulated the coming crisis into existence.