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  After the conference, which had been televised around the world, a series of religious protests erupted, with the common thread that if there is a God, then he had made humans in His image, not these creatures that had fallen out of the sky, and with that in mind, they were considered sub-human, and calls for their internment intensified.

  Members of the scientific community couldn't believe some of the things that were being suggested by those in Nairobi and were even becoming concerned about the influence that Tohil was able to put on the Paraguayan government, and they were very concerned about the overt militarisation of the entire project. President Bednarik had even made a statement calling for a pulling back of all armed personnel from the crash site, but his pleas fell on deaf ears.

  While humanity was busy debating the visitor question, Yuli had finally been able to make a star plot of the ship's position using data supplied by NASA, a development that pleased the members of the crew. They were 1100 light years away from their home base at Traxis, and only 50 light years from the closest planet in the Etelainen, Jaxos, but they were also very close to Rancor 7, a world held by the Coalition. The news elevated their spirits, knowing they were so close, in celestial terms, to a friendly world.

  Only the question of contacting Alliance Fleet was left to be discussed, and on that front, Sulvan had bad news. The distress call that Yuli had sent into space was just as likely to be detected by the Coalition as the Alliance or worst a species beyond The Reach. And that was a thought that worried Sulvan the most. The Reach hadn’t been expanded since the days of the Empire, and in that time there was an enormous likelihood that another intelligent race capable of faster than light travel, or at least off-planet travel, would have been discovered by now.

  Looking at the main view screen where their location had been displayed along with several key Alliance worlds, Sulvan couldn’t help but notice that Earth was almost exactly on the original line that separated the two peripheries, and were less than fifty light years from Reach Sanctuary 91. He shook his head. They were painfully close to the sector of space that patrolled by the Reach Guard, and the Sanctuary, a heavily armed starbase, was so close it infuriated the engineer.

  Ranix looked at the screen and laughed. “Pity about our communications systems being offline.” He looked back at the map. “Bring up Floxis.” His order was acknowledged by Yuli, and an image of his homeworld appeared on the screen. “Distance?”

  “1250 light years.” She replied.

  He smiled. Close in galactic terms, he thought to himself. “It’s amazing that we are so close to The Reach.” Ranix commented, “And yet so far from being rescued.” He shook his head. He knew that even if they were close to a Sanctuary in galactic terms, the purpose of the Sanctuary was to defend the Borders of known space and was not equipped or designed to search for life beyond the limits of known space.

  While they now knew where they were, it did them very little good. With the comms systems damaged there was an infinitesimal chance of getting off a second message, albeit one directed at an Alliance world this time.

  It was back to business as usual, the waiting game. After a while, Joe couldn't conceal the build-up in military personnel from the Sentinel Commander who had noticed the increase in military hardware in the area and was beginning to develop plans in the event of another strike on the crash strike by the humans. He wasn't the only one becoming suspicious, Ranix had recently spoken with Major Hunt about the developments, and they both agreed that Tohil had shown their hand too early, which might give the SETI team loyal to Joe an advantage if something happened.

  26

  By late September, the cranes were on schedule to be finished in a week's time and to begin attempts to lift the ship two days later. Joe Hunt was making his regular afternoon visit to the crash site with Doctor Stokes, who he now considered his girlfriend, a concept that was mildly novel, considering his past dating behaviours.

  Approaching the ship in late September was nothing like it had been in the middle of June when the ship had crashed. What had once been a lovely stroll through the woods was now a walk along a paved road that was as wide as a six-lane highway, running from the Tohil village directly to the crash site. While it wasn't pretty, the road had been necessary to allow access for the trucks bringing the materials for the cranes to the site, and as a result, the forest had been pushed back, hugging the road for dear life, perhaps hoping that it wouldn't suffer anymore amputations.

  "Feels like a million miles away from the first time I visited the site." Rhea said as they walked down the middle of the road.

  "True." Joe didn't feel in the mood that afternoon. He had spent a significant portion of his morning on a video conference call with President Bednarik who was contemplating trying to get Ranix to speak before the United Nations General Assembly in a few months time. The idea of putting Ranix on live television, and allowing him to directly address for the entire world was possibly a premature plan, given the divided mood around the world at the moment.

  "It'll be interesting to see how much damage the underbelly of the ship has sustained." Stokes noted, trying to draw Joe into a conversation.

  Looking to his right, Joe scanned the wood line, twenty metres away, then glanced up at the sky, which was free of clouds. He was finding it harder and harder not to constantly think about what Tohil was actually planning, and when they were going to try to pull off whatever stunt they were concocting.

  He looked towards Doctor Stokes, her eyes hidden behind her Dior sunglasses, "What were you saying?" he asked.

  "I was saying that it will be interesting to see how much damage the underside of the hull has." She repeated.

  "True. Getting that ship off the ground will be the first step in getting it back in the air."

  "Do you really think that ship will be able to fly again?"

  "That'll be up to Sulvan, but he said that they've got enough fuel for limited flying operations. I think they stated that they had at least sufficient fuel to get to Mars and back."

  "That brings us to another concern of mine; what if a decision is made not to allow them to contact their homeworld?"

  "That's what I'm worried about." Joe pointed out. "It's one thing to have a single alien ship on the planet, add the possibility of who knows how many more visitors and you've got a dangerous situation. I'm not sure this world is ready for an infusion of a large extraterrestrial presence."

  "Yeah."

  As Joe and Rhea continued forward, they were oblivious to the fact that a signal had already been indiscriminately sent into space, putting the whole planet at risk.

  As the pair got closer to the crash site, they marvelled at the giant red Mammoet cranes which were straddling the crashed ship, and now stretching over 200 metres into the Paraguayan sky.

  "These things are enormous." Joe always had an ability to state the obvious, one of the traits that Rhea found charming.

  "Yes they are." she replied.

  The team from Mammoet, their best team, had flown in from the Netherlands the previous day to supervise the final phase of the assembly process and would operate the cranes. Wearing the distinctive red and white shirts of their company, the engineers were swarming all around the ship, making calculations for the tandem lift they would attempt during the first week of October.

  As the pair reached the ship, they climbed up the improvised stairs and entered the hanger deck. Access to the ship was still very much restricted to the SETI team, and a Sentinel was stationed at the entrance twenty-four hours a day. On board the ship, there was a tense atmosphere, with the members of the engineering department studying diagrams and other documents to guide them in the repair of the underside of the ship.

  Since the ship had crashed, and its landing gear was most likely damaged, a cradle had been built using specifications that Sulvan had supplied Tohil. Once the cranes had lifted the ship, and the four cradles had been put into place, repairs could finally begin. There were some questions about
what repairs would be required to make the ship flight worthy, and what Earth-based materials could be used as substitutes for damaged or destroyed original components.

  While the crew felt confident that, given access to the necessary materials and time, they could make the ship fly again, there were still questions in various circles around the world whether or not it was a wise idea to give them those resources out of fear of what might happen next.

  While Rhea headed towards the medical bay, Joe headed forward to the bridge, where he found Ranix, who, along with Yuli were going over star charts that were displayed on the primary monitor. The pair were speaking in Universal and didn't seem to notice Joe's presence for a few moments.

  Looking at the screen, Joe tried to understand what he was looking at. The star chart showed a top-down image of dozens of dots, some coloured in white, and others in red, and several dots in green. On the extreme left of the screen was a dot that was flashing yellow, which Joe assumed represented Earth. Joe also concluded that the Alliance and Coalition were represented by either the red or blue dots, Joe just wasn't sure which was which.

  When Ranix finally noticed Joe's presence, he tapped a few buttons on his command chair, enabling the bridges translation systems to come online. "Welcome Major."

  Joe moved forward to get a better look at the chart displayed the screen. "Are these the planets that made up the Empire?" he asked.

  "Yes. The green dots represent the Alliance or Etelainen worlds, the red represent the Coalition or Pohjois worlds, and the white dots represent worlds that once made up the Core or inner planets in the Empire. Those worlds are almost entirely abandoned, and several are heavily irradiated from sustained nuclear exchanges." Ranix moved around the console to stand just before the view screen and pointed at the yellow flashing dot. "And this is your planet."

  Joe moved closer, "It looks to me like we are equidistant between worlds held by the Alliance and the Coalition. It was probably only a matter of time before Earth was discovered." He said dryly.

  "I can assure you that your planet is on our celestial charts, but there are many reasons why you have not been visited yet. We call the area of space where Earth is The Reach. It is the edge of our border, and the mark hasn’t moved since the war started." Ranix looked down at the deck, then walked back to his command chair and slumped into it like a dropped sack of potatoes. "The war has been going on for almost 70 years. Many aspects of life have regressed since its start. My parents talk about the days when new worlds would be colonised all the time. Technological advancements were made with great consistency, and there was peace in the universe. There was always plenty of food to eat, and resources to travel the Empire at low costs to those from even the most humble origins." He looked up at Joe. "It seemed that it was a bit of a golden age, during the Emperor's reign."

  "Has anyone tried to stop the war?" Joe asked.

  "We were taught that during the opening days of the war that Princess Via offered a ceasefire, and to turn over a handful of worlds to Prince Salrugina's control, but he rejected the offer, and the war has dragged on ever since." He looked at Joe. "Right now, the war is in a stalemate. There hasn't been a major battle in several years. Most of the activity now is based around raids and other quick strikes on areas of vulnerability." Ranix looked at Yuli. "Could you excuse us."

  After Yuli had left the room, Ranix leaned back in his command chair and looked at the ceiling. "Many believe that once the Prince and Princess die, that their heirs will call for peace. It isn't a prevalent theory. Many people in the military are convinced that the only endgame is the surrender of the Coalition."

  "Which theory do you support?" Joe asked.

  "Unless there is a significant development in weapons technology on one side, I don't see how the stalemate will ever be broken. A ceasefire is the only real option in the long run, but I'm afraid that the war has made some people very wealthy and powerful, and they are quite happy to allow things to continue as they are."

  Joe sat down, thinking about what Ranix had just said. It scared him how similar things seemed, even though their cultures were radically different in many ways, that some of the less attractive characteristics were found in both civilisations.

  27

  The morning of the 5th of October started with a light drizzle, which the surrounding areas needed after two dry months, and while it might have been a Sunday in a very Catholic country, there was to be no rest at the crash site. The Mammoet engineers had completed their final safety checks with Sulvan and had announced their intentions to begin the tandem lift the next morning.

  Even though the ship had been lightened as much as possible, the PTC-200 DS cranes would be operating at their maximum limit, a challenge that the engineers from Mammoet were relishing.

  By the time Joe made it to the crash site, dozens of reporters were in position with their various cameramen already sending back footage to their different outlets around the world. Doctor Chan was standing behind the long row of cameramen supervising the space allotments under a large black golf umbrella. Jose Berenguer, the SETI team cameraman, was filming Doctors Temple and Beck, nearby.

  Even though the day was grey and wet, the spirits around the crash site were high. An on-site command centre had been set up by Mammoet, which would control the lift operations with close supervision of Sulvan, who was perhaps the most concerned individual in the area. The Epsilon was his baby, and he was hoping that no more damage would be done to her.

  Joe made his way to a covered area that had been prepared for the SETI team and the ship's crew about 50 yards behind the crane closest to the Tohil village. Already waiting for him was Doctor Stokes and Lieutenant Ranix, who were discussing the weather. Several translation devices were in operation, with Universal and English being spoken all over the place, and just behind the canopy were the four Sentinel's standing silently in numerical order, flanked by the two crawlers.

  Looking over at the cranes, Joe marvelled at how enormous they were. He had spoken with the lead Mammoet engineer last night about the basics of the crane, and how the tandem lift would be executed. It amazed Joe that the ship, almost 200 yards in length could be lifted at all, let alone high enough for it to be set on the cradles that had been built especially for the task.

  With a scheduled hoist time of nine in the morning, Joe noticed that the commotion around the ship started to drop off sharply fifteen minutes before the lift was meant to start. The large engines that would power the cranes were surprisingly quiet when they started up, silently belching a short puff of smoke into the gloomy sky. Glancing down at his watch, Joe counted down in his head the final seconds until nine, and in true military fashion, the Mammoet engineers jumped the gun by five seconds, which put a smile on Joe's face.

  As the massive cranes slowly began to pull the ship from its three and one-half month resting place, Joe started to feel a little nervous, knowing that the cranes were pushing the limits of their capabilities. It was well known that the cranes were going to lift the ship at a very slow rate, so when it took two minutes of activity before the slings that had been slipped under the ship to become taught, it wasn't a huge surprise.

  Mammoet had suggested that it would take some time to pull the ship out of the crater it was in, which was roughly five metres deep. Ranix had credited Rais for controlling the descent as well as he had. The impact could have been much harder, and the results more critical to the ship's structure.

  Once the ship finally began to rise, ever so slowly from the ground, there was an outburst of applause from the Mammoet engineers that were standing outside the control structure. The clapping was infectious, and soon almost all the people who were watching this momentous occasion were clapping. Doctor Prure, who had studied human behaviour more than the other crew members, joined in the applause and was joined, after a few seconds hesitation, by the other officers of the ship's crew.

  Bobby Temple had been standing a few feet away from Joe when the operation had s
tarted, and once the ship cleared the ground, he gave Joe a heavy pat on the back, then put his right arm over Joe's shoulder. "It's really going to work!" He said.

  Joe looked at the burly scientist with a smile on his face. He was a little surprised how apparently concerned Bobby had been. Maybe he shouldn't have been surprised at his fellow American's reaction. Just under four months ago an alien spacecraft had crashed on Earth; now relationships were going well, and now the first major steps to repair the ship were underway. It was an exciting day for all of humanity, not just for those at the crash site.

  28

  It had taken an arduous five hours of slow lifting before the ship was high enough off the ground for the Tohil engineers to start to put their cradles into place. Each cradle had to ensure that the ship would be resting level, and to do so on uneven ground was difficult before contending with the fact that the hull had different levels of damage.

  The cradles, which had been made by Tohil's subsidiary, Yoon-Collins Heavy Industries, had vast bases, to allow them to stretch under the ship, and end on the cement foundations. In the centre of each cradle was a U-shaped holder that was shaped based on Master Engineer Sulvan's guidelines.

  Finally, at ten past five, the last cradle was inspected, and given the all clear by the Tohil and Mammoet engineers. The rain had continued all day, and most of the spectators were soaked from hours outdoors.

  Joe, Bobby, and Rhea were standing under one of the temporary shelters watching as the engineers moved away from the ship and gave the signal to remove the support cables. Using a series of electronic signals, the bolts that had held the support straps in place released their grasp, allowing the straps to fall to the ground.

  With a visible sign of relief, the Mammoet engineers erupted into a loud cheer, with high-fives being shared all around. Bobby grinned ear to ear and wrapped his right around Joe's shoulder.