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  "Joe, this is the beginning of something extraordinary." He looked at Rhea, "I can't believe that this is actually happening." A small tear ran down his cheek. "Can you imagine what the possibilities are if we're able to get that thing flying?"

  Rhea nodded, "The possibilities are endless." She said with a broad smile on her face.

  The trio stepped out from under their canopy and started walking towards the giant ship, which was now suspended off the ground, giving the SETI team and the other humans looking on their first glance at the real size of the ship, and the damage that the ship had sustained when it crashed.

  As Joe made his way towards the ship, he noticed that the Tohil representatives were also moving in the same direction, lead by John Robert, wearing his customary trench coat. Looking at the Mammoet engineers, Joe noticed that they had popped open several bottles of champagne, and were spraying each other down in celebration. The image put a smile on Joe's face, they deserved it. The first time any crashed alien spacecraft had been raised off the ground, and this niche Dutch company had pulled it off without a hitch.

  As the humans drew closer to the ship, two of the Sentinel's moved in under the ship and started looking at the damage, transmitting the video of the underbelly to the bridge and the engineering stations on the ship. Sulvan, who had been standing with the Mammoet engineers moved forward and began his own inspection of the underside of the vessel.

  When Joe reached the ship, he noticed that the entire hull had been flatted almost uniformly along the bottom of the ship, except one large hole where it appears that the ship had hit a large rock, which could be seen in the crater that the ship had left.

  Joe noted that several pieces of the ship's hull had been detached from the ship, and were laying in the bottom of the impression, and had caught the eye of some of the Tohil engineers, who had moved towards the grey coloured pieces. As the men picked up one of the smaller pieces of debris, one of the Sentinels approached them and asked them to put the material down. Perhaps Ranix was catching on that the Canadian tech company was not to be trusted, Joe thought to himself.

  After observing the Sentinels and Sulvan carry out their inspection, Joe approached the chief engineer.

  "How does it look?" He asked. He already had an idea in his mind about how it looked, he was just curious to hear another assessment.

  With a translation ball hovering in between them, the engineer waved Joe to follow him. The pair walked under the ship, where Sulvan pointed to a badly mauled section of the hull. "This is where the ships fourth jump coil should be. As you can see, it's been completely destroyed, which means that this ship will never be able to jump again." Sulvan looked down at the datapad that was in his hands. "Looking at the images that the Sentinels have taken, I would say that the damage is more atheistic than anything else. This ship was not designed with any major sensitive equipment on her underside. Once we've repaired the landing gear, and patched up the holes, she'll be flight capable, assuming that all the systems checks on the engines continue as planned." The engineer made a few notes on his datapad and started moving away from Joe.

  Bobby, who had been standing only a few feet away walked over to Joe. "It's interesting that he didn't seem too concerned about the damage to the ship's hull."

  "Perhaps that is because he knows that he can only fix certain parts of the ship, and the rest is out of his control."

  "That's kind of a fatalistic way of looking at things." Bobby noted.

  "It's an honest way of looking at things."

  The pair walked along the length of the ship taking note of the damaged hull, and the dozen or so Mammoet and Tohil engineers who were also taking the opportunity to get a look at the big ship. Joe had to admit to himself that the damage didn't look all that bad, except the one area where the ship had struck the large boulder. Maybe the there was a real chance of getting the ship in the sky sooner than they had initially expected.

  29

  When Joe finally woke up, he propped himself up on his elbows in his bed just in time to see Rhea pulling her trousers up over her athletic figure. It had been three weeks since the Mammoet engineers had lifted the alien spacecraft off the ground, bringing the ship one step closer to being repaired and made flight capable.

  "Going somewhere?" He asked, laying back down on the bed.

  "I'm going to see Doctor Prure today. He's going to show me more about how the healing baths aboard the ship work." She turned around to face Joe while she finished buttoning up her shirt. "When you were treated in one, I wasn't given a full run-down on how the system works. You?"

  Joe opened his eyes and looked at the ceiling. "I was going to go down to the airport and say goodbye to the guys down there. Colonel Willis is flying back to the US today, and the guys from the command centre are leaving tomorrow, so I thought this would be the last chance to say adios before they left."

  "Good point. Please give them my regards."

  "Of course." Joe picked his watch up from the bedside table and put it on, checking the time. "After tomorrow, there won't be any US military personnel in the country. We'll be at the mercy of the locals and their fascist mercenaries after that." Joe flung the covers off, and got out of bed and grabbed a dry towel and slipped his flip-flops on. "I need a shower." He said as he passed by Rhea on his way out of their room, spanking her lightly on the butt.

  "See you later, hot stuff." She responded and gave him a wink as he passed into the hallway.

  By the time Joe got back to his room, it was approaching nine-thirty on the 27th of October, and beams of light were pouring into the chamber. Dressing in his standard garb of olive drab trousers and white shirt and converse, Joe headed out, grabbing his Raybans and his car keys before leaving the room.

  Looking down at his Suunto, he noted it was exactly nine forty-five when he finally emerged from the housing unit. The sun was beating down, and it was a gorgeous 23 degrees outside. Putting his sunglasses on, he moved off towards the dining hall where he grabbed himself an apple which he ate while walking towards his car, which was kept under a cover near the Tohil command centre.

  The Sting Rays gorgeous paint looked as pristine as always when he pulled the cover back, bringing a smile to his face. Opening the driver's side door, Joe sat down into the car, letting the soft leather cushion his descent. He closed the door behind him, which shut with a dull thud. Sticking the keys in the ignition, he gave them a firm turn to the right, bringing the car to life, a letting out a low roar into the quiet morning's air.

  Back out of his parking spot, he drove slowly across the soft grass to the dirt path that would lead him to the asphalt road which he would take south towards the airport. Just as he was pulling up next to the housing building, he saw Bobby emerge into the sunlight, still tucking in his shirt, with a slightly befuddled look on his face.

  "Morning, Bobby."

  Doctor Temple looked down at Joe with a rather fatigued look. "You mind driving me to the ship? I'm running late for a meeting with Engineer Sulvan."

  "Hop in." Joe said with a smile.

  As the husky American eased himself into the tiny sports car, Joe revved the engine slightly while grinning at Bobby. "Ready?"

  With the door of the car finally closed, Joe floored the accelerator, spitting dirt from the rear tires, and sending the backend of the car slightly to the right. "Let's boogie!" Joe said with a wide grin on his face.

  As the car finally got traction, it took off with a roar towards the new expressway that linked the Tohil village to the crash site. When Joe hit the pavement, he put the pedal down and gripped the wheel with a wicked smile on his face. With a quick glance to his right, he noticed that Bobby was clutching his knees with his hands, and had a petrified look on his face.

  Pulling his foot off the gas, he let the Corvette coast the remaining 200 yards to the ship along the smooth road. "Remain calm, young Skywalker." Joe said, glancing over at a still shocked Doctor Temple. As the car rolled to a stop about ten yards from the sta
irs to the hanger bay, Joe noticed that the Sentinel Commander was talking with Doctor Ji-woon, who was holding one of the alien datapads in his hand.

  "Morning." Joe said as he put the car into park, and exited the vehicle.

  "It is good to know that you can drive fast in a straight line, Major." The South Korean scientist said dryly.

  Joe tilted his head to the right and removed his sunglasses. "Funny." He approached the much shorter scientist. "What are you looking at?"

  Ji-woon removed his spectacles and gave the American a long, cold look. "We are going over some information about Alliance terra-forming technology."

  Bobby, still sitting in Joe's car looked over at Ji-woon. “That’s cool.”

  Joe looked at Doctor Temple, then back to Ji-woon. "What exactly is terra-forming?" He asked.

  Ji-woon put his glasses back on and took another look at the datapad. "It seems, Major, that the Alliance has technology that enables them to make uninhabitable planets, habitable." He moved his finger over the pad for a few seconds. "It seems that they are able to build giant atmosphere processing plants that are able to make a planet's air breathable. Truly remarkable."

  "Wow." Joe looked back to Bobby, who was getting out of his car. "With all the different species in the Alliance, how come they can all breathe the same air? But we can't breathe their air?"

  Ji-woon lowered the datapad to his side. He looked at the American. "That's a damn good question." He turned his attention to the Sentinel Commander. "How can all the different species of the Alliance breathe the same air?"

  The robot looked at Joe, Bobby, and then finally back to Doctor Ji-woon. "This is a question that you should address to Doctor Prure."

  "True, but he's not here right now." Ji-woon replied."

  "Very well. The reason that all of the species of the Alliance can breathe the same air is because when the Empire was first formed, genetic engineering was still legal, and scientists at the Royal Academy of Genetics decided that it would be most effective if all species in the Alliance were required to be given a genetic resequencing pill to all offspring producing individuals. The pills altered the foetus's genetic code to allow them to breathe what the Alliance calls Type 1A air. Just before terraforming plants went operational, adults were operated on by Imperial surgeons to enable them to breathe 1A air. After a few generations, the resequencing pills were no longer required. This world has Type 2J air, making it unsuitable to Alliance standards, but capable of being terra-formed."

  Bobby shook his head. "You're talking about genetic manipulation on a galactic level so that you could have a standard type of air breathed by Imperial citizens. That's insane."

  "Maybe, Doctor Temple, but now a member of any Alliance species can travel to other Alliance worlds without the need of respirators or other devices." Ji-woon countered. He looked back at the Sentinel. "How would this process work on Earth?"

  "Very simply. Terra-forming plants would be constructed in the necessary quantity and in the appropriate locations around the globe. Once they were activated, humans would have roughly six months before the air became toxic to them, but in that time that would be able to undergo the necessary surgeries to make them capable of breathing Type 1A. Once the atmosphere had been converted, any pregnant women would also be given the necessary pills to help their offspring breathe the new air."

  "Enough of this genetic Mickey Mouse," Joe said, waving his arms. "I need to get down to the airport."

  Just as Joe took his first step in returning to the driver's door, he heard the hum of a floating translation device zip up behind him. "I've been interested in seeing how that machine works."

  Joe spun around, only to find the translation device a few inches from his face.

  "Backup." He said, giving the hovering device a light shove.

  Looking up into the hanger bay, he noticed Ranix stepping down from the ship.

  "Good morning, Comms Officer."Joe said, rolling his eyes behind his Raybans. He watched as the alien moved towards his Corvette, and gently ran his long fingers over the smooth paint, a small smile creeping onto his face, revealing his many, tiny teeth.

  Looking down at his watch, Joe noticed that time was still moving, even if he wasn't, and he knew that the Raptors were leaving around noon, and it was approaching ten in the morning, and it was almost a two-hour drive to Mariscal Estigarribia at a moderate pace.

  "I hate to break up the party, but I've got to head south to the airport."

  Ranix stopped and looked at Joe. "Something important?" He asked.

  "The Raptor pilots are flying back to the US in a few hours. I wanted to thank them again for what they did."

  Ranix listed to the translation, then thought on the matter for a moment before responding. "Then I should accompany you, and thank them on behalf of the ship, and the Alliance for what they did for us."

  Joe looked at Bobby, and Doctor Ji-woon, who both shrugged at him. "Fine." He said.

  "Just a moment." Ranix turned, and ran towards the steps up to the hangar bay, and disappeared into the ship.

  Joe looked up at the Sentinel Commander who had remained silent during the exchange. "And you're comfortable with him leaving the ship?" Joe asked.

  "I think that your vehicle appears a safe enough form of conveyance." the large robot responded.

  "Thanks."

  30

  When Joe came to, he found himself lying on a medical bed in the infirmary on the alien spacecraft. A lightweight blanket was draped over him, while he was still dressed in the clothes he had put on that morning. Blinking a few times, Joe looked down at his white shirt and noticed that it was badly stained in red. Looking to his right, he saw that Ranix was lying on a similar bed with Doctor Prure, Sulvan, and Doctor Stokes standing over him.

  Feeling weak, Joe closed his eyes and thought back what had happened earlier in the day. He remembered arriving at the airport with Ranix...............

  "Colonel!" Joe spotted Fred Willis from across the runway once he had parked his car.

  The Colonel and the other Raptor pilots were in the process of doing pre-flight checks on their aircraft before the long flight north. The weather had been gorgeous, with blue skies as far as the eye could see, and the Raptors were lined up in a neat line on the runway.

  Walking over to the fighter pilots, Joe noticed that the airport was the quietest he had ever seen it. The American command centre tent had been taken down, and there were a lot fewer military personnel moving around. The airport was still not taking civilian flights but was starting to serve as a meeting point for people that were trying to get close to the crash site.

  Joe was pretty sure that he and Ranix had had lunch with Colonel Willis, Major Hankins, and Captains Hudson and Hollis. He wasn't quite sure what he had had for lunch, but he was fairly confident that they had dined together before watching the Raptors take off and fly north. He vaguely remembered that Ranix had given something to Colonel Willis, some form of thank you gift, but he couldn't remember what it had been.

  Joe was also pretty sure that he and Ranix had left immediately after the Raptors had departed, but nothing about their departure had seemed out of the ordinary. The drive up to the security checkpoint had gone without incident. The next thing he remembers was letting Ranix try to drive his car, and then promptly watching the alien drive the car into a tree at 40 miles an hour.

  "What the fuck!" Joe shot up in the hospital bed, attracting the attention of the other individuals in the room. Reaching up to his forehead, Joe felt a bandage about his brow. Feeling dizzy, he lowered himself back to the bed as Rhea approached.

  "Joe, are you alright?" She asked.

  "Am I alright? How about my car?" He asked coldly.

  "It's pretty badly banged up, Joe." She replied. "But at least you and Ranix are alright."

  Joe turned his head to look at Ranix, who appeared to still be unconscious. "Sure, he's alright now, but not after I get my hands on him." He said dryly before closing his eyes.r />
  Doctor Prure and Sulvan looked at each other, and then to Rhea, who quickly deflected Joe's statement. "He's probably still shaken up from his concussion. I wouldn't worry about anything he says." She said with a not too convincing fake smile on her face.

  Doctor Prure looked down at a datapad that was in his hands. "Yes, concussion. That would explain everything, Doctor. Perhaps he needs another sedative."

  And with that, Joe drifted back to sleep, with only thoughts of his beautiful car wrapped around a tree with some blue alien behind the wheel with a ridiculous smile on his face.

  31

  October tended to be a lovely month in Washington DC, and just a few days before the end of the month, the city was living up to expectations. The President had started his day with his customary run, followed by breakfast with his wife, and then his short walk to the Oval Office, where he found his morning briefing waiting on his desk.

  It had been three weeks since the alien spacecraft had been lifted off the South American ground, and repairs had been underway that entire time. This morning's report suggested that the water that the ship had been given for its reactor would be enough for the ship to fly to Mars, although those facts had yet to be confirmed, which meant that once the hull was repaired, and the ship was airtight, a trial flight could be scheduled.

  In addition to the possibility of a trial flight, the sealing of the hull would allow the ship to go onto its internal air supply. This development would enable to the ship to run more efficiently, which was a concern to some who opposed allowing the aliens to have control of their ship once it was fully operational, even though all the ships weapon systems were non-operational.

  Having read the report, the President set down the papers and picked up his desk phone and asked for his National Security Advisor to join him. He hadn't seen Zach North since he had accompanied the Vice President and the Secretary of State to a meeting at the United Nations to discuss the idea of having Ranix make a live address to the General Assembly, which would be broadcast live around the world. After Major Hunt's stunt of driving Ranix to the local airport, which exposed him to a huge number of news reporters, making the need for the alien to address the world all the more pressing.