Shades of Gray - Season 2

[BolianAuthor]

SHADES OF GRAY

- Season 2 -

Created, Developed, and Written By: BolianAdmiral

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the year 2037, the planet Earth changed forever.

In the year 2037, everything the Orvani race knew, changed forever.

The revelations thrust upon them affected the Orvani in a way nobody could have foreseen...


-------------------------------------------------------------------------

SEASON 2



COWPOKES BAR - LUBBOCK, TEXAS

The sounds of people talking, laughing, and mingling, intermixed with the clinking of glasses, as the lone Orvani sat at the bar, nursing a drink, as the people beside him suddenly burst out into loud uproarious laughter.

The Orvani hated this place. He could smell the combination of tobacco and alcohol on the breath of the humans around him, and the extremely loud music from the live honky-tonk band that was playing near the bar, was blasting in his ears.

But he felt he may as well be here... among the humans. After all, his race was now no different from the humans themselves... the Orvani had turned out to be just as corrupt... just as dishonest... just as dangerous.

Suddenly, the honky-tonk band began to play and sing "Mr. Spaceman", by the Byrds. That was all the Orvani could take. He downed the remainder of his drink, and then dismounted his barstool, as various bar patrons looked on. As his feet touched the ground, the effects of the alcohol kicked in, and the Orvani stumbled a bit, before regaining his equilibrium, which prompted a response of laughter from some of the bar patrons.

With a grimace, and a slight grunt of disgust, the Orvani began to walk out of the establishment, as the song began to wind down.

ORVANI SAUCER GROUP - UTAH RESERVATION

The large concentration of Oravni saucers sat landed, in the hot desert sun, their gleaming brushed metal hulls shining brilliantly, in the high noontime sun.

SAUCER CONTROL ROOM

The saucer's Commander stood over the control table, glancing down towards its surface, not looking at anything in particular. Around him, his crew went about their duties, but they were doing so at a slower pace.

That was how evertyhing had been, since the neuronic broadcast from the Oval Office... Orvani everywhere had been operating at a slower pace. It was as if they no longer cared... as if they merely resigned themselves to the fact that their race was now going nowhere. It was as if they had all lost hope. The Orvani were in a shared state of mass depression.

The Orvani Commander blinked a few times, as he deeply studied his own reflection, in the clean and smooth black glass of the command table. He now looked at his own face with a distant fascination. It was as if a stranger were staring back at him.

ORVANI WARSHIP - EARTH ORBIT

The massive silver ship hung over the Earth, as the smaller Orvani saucer drfited alongside it.

Inside the ship, the Orvani Commander that the President had befriended led him along through one of the ship's many corridors, as various other Orvani military officers walked past them.

The President seemed surprised, as he looked around him, which caught the attention of the saucer Commander.

"Something wrong?" the Commander asked.

"No." Bensen began. "It's just that... well... some of the Orvani on this ship... some have tan skin, others pure white, while others are gray. I just I never pictured the Orvani as having different races." he added.

This brought a small smile to the lips of the Commander.

"Aye... we have races, just as you do." he began, as the two men now came to a door, pausing. "Here we are... the Control Room of the ship." the Commander announced, as the door slid open, allowing the President and the saucer Commander inside.

As various Orvani officers in the room looked on, the Commander led Bensen to the large and expansive command table, its top layer of smooth black glass extending over the top of it like a vast shiny black sea.

"This is the command table." the Commander began. "It is from here, that we will chart a return course to Orvan." he explained.

The President wore a blank and perplexed look.

"I uh... I don't see any buttons or controls." he offered.

Again, the Commander wore a slight smile.

"You are correct, Mister President... for we have no need for buttons or displays of that nature... you see, the universe itself is the instrument by which we fly our ships." he began.

"I uh... I'm afraid I still do not understand, Commander." Bensen offered.

The Orvani Commander wore a knowing look, as he nodded.

"I know... but you will... soon." he offered.

-- TO BE CONTINUED --

 

[BolianAuthor]

ORVANI SAUCER GROUP - UTAH RESERVATION

The large concentration of Oravni saucers sat landed, in the hot desert sun, their gleaming brushed metal hulls shining brilliantly, in the high noontime sun.

SAUCER CONTROL ROOM

The saucer Commander continued gazing at his reflection in the black glass command table intently. Slowly, he brought his right hand up to the side of his face, watching, as the reflection in the glass showed his three fingers gently moving over the contours of the side of his face.

Suddenly, the saucer Commander opened his mouth... and screamed...

It was a sudden, and blood-curdling scream. One which instantly drew the attention of all the other Orvani in the room.

All the other officers suddenly looked to the Commander, lost as for what to do next, just staring at him as he stood there, screaming at the table.

Unfortunately for the others, their neuronic implants decided what to do next...

Because the crew were linked via the neuronics, every Orvani on the deck could feel and experience what the Commander was feeling and experiencing. Instantly, every other Orvani on the deck, also began screaming the same blood-curdling scream.

ORVANI WARSHIP - EARTH ORBIT

The massive silver ship hung over the Earth, as the smaller Orvani saucer drfited alongside it.

CONTROL ROOM

President Bensen looked to the saucer Commander, as the man signaled for one of the nearby Orvani officers to come to him.

As the new arrival took his place between the Commander and President Bensen, the Commander addressed him.

"Course Designer... this is President Bensen, of Earth's United States of America. He wishes to join us, on the return voyage to Orvan." the Commander began.

"I see." the Course Designer replied, nodding respectfully to Bensen, who returned the gesture.

"I think it best that we explain to the President, our method of course design, and navigation." the Commander stated.

"Of course, Commander." the officer replied.

"So... Course Designer... if you please... chart us a course to Orvan." the Commander ordered.

"As you wish, Commander." the officer said, now moving up to the command table, and waving his right arm and hand over it.

Suddenly, a massive light blue holographic cube appeared, which was speckled on the inside by uncountable zillions of small dots of blue light.

"What is that?" Bensen asked.

"That... is the universe." the Course Designer began, as he looked to Bensen. "Well, this universe, anyway." he added, now looking back to the holocube.

The Course Designer then began to input some data on one of the table's side panels, typing some information into the small keypad. The holocube responded to the new input by suddenly and very quickly zooming in, until only the Local Group of galaxies could be seen inside the holocube.

The view of the Local Group now began to also zoom, but at a slower pace, until only the Milky Way filled the holocube. It was at this point, that the Course Designer again looked to Bensen.

"Now this is where the fun begins." he stated, smiling a bit.

The Milky Way inside the holocube again zoomed, this time, until only the galactic arm containing Sol and Zeta Reticuli could be seen.

The Course Designer studied the view for a few moments, as Bensen looked on, curious. Finally, the officer looked to the Commander, his hands behind his back, to deliver his report.

"Commander, we have an obstacle in-path." he stated.

"Explain." the Commander replied.

"The obstruction is a nebula... a supernova remnant." the officer explained.

"Compensate." the Commander instructed.

"Yes, Sir." the officer replied, now turning back to his work.

"What does that mean?" Bensen asked the Commander. "Why can't you fly through the nebula... or around it?" he added.

The Commander walked over to Bensen, as the President continued to watch the officer make his calculations.

"We can fly through the nebula... but we prefer not to do so... we prefer open space, free of obstruction. We also prefer the most direct route, as flying around the nebula would delay our arrival at Orvan." the Commander began, talking softly, as the officer worked. "Since the most direct route between two points is a straight line, he is attempting to compensate for any navigational obstacles that may be in the way." he added.

President Bensen watched carefully, as the Course Designer picked away... literally picked away, at the starscape inside the holocube, literally removing stars, and rotating entire spatial grids around, as if manipulating a celestial Rubik's Cube. Entire solar systems were literally pushed down, or to the side, until the entire route from Sol to Zeta Reticuli was clear sailing. Whatever the Course Designer was doing, it looked like a highly developed art form... a kind of celestial surgery.

Finally, the officer completed his adjustments, and stood straight, facing forward, his hands again behind his back.

"Compensation completed, Commander. Course design hereby submitted for inspection and approval." he added, still facing forward.

"Excellent." the Commander began, moving to look over the adjustments, as Bensen watched, fascinated.

"I saw you physically manipulating the stars and systems and objects in that display." Bensen began, to the Course Designer. "What were you doing? Where did those objects go?" he asked.

The officer turned to face Bensen, as he delivered his reply.

"Sir... the objects are all still there. What I did, was simply move them out of the way... chronospatially. In some sectors, I set the ship on a course that will take us through the same region of space, but at a time in the universe, before or after a given obstacle exsisted. If we cannot remove an obstacle now... we must find a point where there is no abstacle at all." he answered.

"Remarkable... so that means that we'll be flying through not only space, but time?" Bensen asked.

"In effect, yes... that is fairly accurate." the officer replied.

"Amazing." Bensen added. "I wonder what that would look like... what space would look like during those events, if I were looking out a window." he said.

The Commander now looked to Bensen.

"It's very difficult to articulate into words you would understand, but if I were to use the closest Earth analogy I could think of... I would say it would be like looking at space through a kaleidoscope... certain regions of space would be in constant movement or flux." he stated, now turning his attention to his officer. "I have reviewed your adjustments, Course Designer. Your course is hereby accepted and approved. Thank you." he added.

"Thank you, Sir." the officer stated, nodding to the Commander, as he took his leave of the two men.

"So... that is the course we'll be taking to Orvan, then?" Bensen asked.

"It is, indeed." replied the Commander. "But first, we need to hold our press conference... no doubt, there will be concern among the other leaders of your world, that will need to be addressed." he added, as Bensen nodded, understanding.

-- TO BE CONTINUED --

 

[Nerys Ghemor]

Sounds like those neuronic implants are one hell of a double-edged sword! Hard to believe anybody saw that being worth the price--especially aliens that in the person of the Commander Bensen met, seemed so wise at first...

 

[BolianAuthor]

^

See... that's one of the main things I want to convey with this story... that yes, the Orvani are hyper-advanced beyond our wildest dreams, but they ARE still people, plain and simple.

They still have a history. Like humanity, it took them time to get where they are now, and they had both good times and bad.

And like humanity, their society and history is full of good people, bad people, honest people, and dishonest people.

The Designers who created the neuronic technology had good intentions at heart, but their grand experiment backfired on them. As a result, some Orvani tried to hide knowledge of what happened, while others, like the elderly Roswell survivor not only wanted to bring that dark page into the light, but was man enough to willingly take responsibility for his actions.

Bottom line... people are people. It does not matter if the people are human or Orvani.

-BolianAdmiral

 

[Nerys Ghemor]

And that's why I'm enjoying your story!

 

[Mistral]

And that's why I'm enjoying your story!

Yup!

 

[BolianAuthor]

^

Thanks, guys... that really does mean a lot to me.

I promise you a much more solidly-written Season 2, with more surprises and powerful moments.

-BolianAdmiral

 

[BolianAuthor]

ABC STUDIOS - NYC, NEW YORK

The hustle and bustle of the city's citizen and vehicle traffic filled the streets, as the rows of digital stock ticker continuously scrolled by, at the bottom of the large ABC Studio's Jumbotron monitor, which was now displaying the opening sequence to "Good Morning America".

GOOD MORNING AMERICA SET

The female morning anchor sat in her interview chair, as the main cameras slowly moved towards her, zooming in on her face, as the stage monitors showed the image that the viewing public could see on their TV's at home.

"Good morning, America, and welcome." she began. "We begin today with a Good Morning America exclusive interview, with Whitley Strieber, who at age 92, has come out of seclusion, to offer what he calls a "public denouncement" of the Orvani's presence on Earth." she stated, as now the image on the stage monitors shifted to a split-screen, for the interview, as a very old and frail Whitley Strieber could be seen sitting in the interview chair, on the other half of the screen. "Mister Strieber now joins us, via netlink, from his upstate New York cabin." she added. "Good morning, Mister Strieber... how are you?" she asked.

"Good morning, Anne." Strieber began, in an unusually loud and clear voice, for a man of his advanced age. "I'm doing well. You?" he asked, handing the interview back to the anchor.

"Fine, Mister Strieber." she began, now looking down for a second at her notes, before looking back to the camera. "You say you are here today, to... "publicly denounce" the Orvani... could you elaborate on that?" she asked.

"I'd be all too happy to, Anne." Striber began. "You see, I'm here today, to inform the people of America... and the world... that the Grays... these "Orvani", as they call themselves, are nothing but a bunch of liars. They claim to carry the message that they come to us in peace, and mean us no harm, yet they have admitted to abducting humans... even impregnating human women, and then removing the offspring, and transporting them to their home planet!" Strieber exclaimed.

"Orvan." the anchor offered.

"I don't care what they claim to call whatever rock they live on." Strieber returned, growing more passionate. "Hell... they even admitted to not only arranging the assassination of President Kennedy, but also admitted that they have been using NASA to hold our species back for years!" he added. "There is overwhelming proof, that theirs is a sinister agenda... they're hiding their true purpose for being here from us... something dark." he stated.

Strieber's comments made the anchor uncomfortable, and she appeared to have a hard time taking his rants seriously, as she looked to her notepad, forcing back a smile, as she scratched her forehead, before looking back to the camera with a look of resignation on her face.

"Well, Mister Strieber... in that case... what would you suggest we do?" she asked, her face broadcasting a look that said she really didn't want to hear his answer.

"Resist!" Strieber began, increasing the volume of his voice. "Show the Grays that Earth is OUR world, and we don't want them on it!" he added. "We shall not fall into their trap, and become slaves on our own world!"

With this, the anchor could take no more, and shook her head, visibly chuckling a little.

"Okay, Mister Strieber... I think we're done here." she began. "Thank you for coming on this morning, and have a good day." she added, now removing her earpiece, looking to the cameraman, and shaking her head in disbelief. "I think "wow" just about says it all." she told him, as he chuckled.

KING DISCO - BROOKLYN, NEW YORK

The old disco dance club stood on the corner of the street, a large white concrete monument to an era gone by, that was now frequented by those groups of humans who refused to accept that disco had died in the mid 1980's, and would never again return.

Inside the club, a lone Orvani sat at the bar, in a 1970's powder-blue disco suit... a complete ensemble, with a pattern-print polyester undershirt, gold medallion, and a white belt and shoes... exactly the kind of outfit that Mr. Furley, from "Three's Company" would have worn. It was an absolutely perfect recreation, and fit the Orvani precisely, like a finely tailored suit. This was no suit made or bought on Earth... it was obvious that the Orvani had crafted it on his ship, according to Earth specs.

This was a new occurrance... the Orvani had now begun to wear clothing... human clothing. Part of the reason may be because Earth was quite a bit colder than Orvan. The other reason may have been that the Orvani were now wanting to assimilate more, into human society. Part of the reason the Orvani almost never left their saucers, was because they did not want to be stared and gawked at, when they walked down the streets of Earth's cities. If they were going to mix with human society, they wanted to blend in fully. If that meant wearing human-styled clothes, so be it.

This Orvani man was also feeling quite disenchanted by both recent events, and his own people, and he sat at the bar, staring at his drink, slowly turning the glass around on the table with his fingers, as in the background, the DJ was playing a song that on a strange level, seemed to speak to some of what the Orvani man was feeling inside... "Stayin' Alive", by the Bee Gees.

As the music filled the club, and the multicolored laser lights bounced off the large mirror ball above the center of the dance floor, the Orvani turned around in his barstool, to watch the disco dancers do their thing on the dance floor, as the large multicolored squares lit up in rythym, beneath their feet.

His large black Orvani eyes captured every movement of every dancer's foot, as he watched everyone in their vintage 1970's finest boogie across the dance floor.

Suddenly, he was distracted by someone touching him on the right shoulder. He turned to see who it was, and found himself facing a human woman.

Even though he was Orvani, he somehow found her beautiful. She was maybe in her 40's, with blonde hair, a slender frame, and a very sexy face... high cheekbones, pointy nose, and beautiful blue eyes. She was also wearing a silver and gold sequin dress, that hugged her form, and accentuated her full breasts.

"Hi!" she shouted, over the noise of the loud music.

The Orvani nodded, in reply.

"I've never seen one of your kind in person!" she called out. "This is the first time!" she added, now gyrating her body to the beat of the music, which was blaring through the club, as she looked deep into the face and eyes of the Orvani before her.

"Life goin nowhere. somebody help me. Somebody help me, yeah."

The Orvani man also looked deep into the woman's face and eyes, as he drank in the sight of her.

"And were stayin alive, stayin alive. Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin alive, stayin alive."

The Orvani man realized that the lyrics of the song were true... his life was going nowhere... and he desperately needed someone to help him. And the humans... they were the ones that were going to stay alive... not the Orvani. For them, it was all over.

"Life goin nowhere. somebody help me. Somebody help me, yeah."

"Life goin nowhere. somebody help me, yeah. Im stayin alive."

"Can I dance with you?" the woman called out, as the song died down.

"Hmm?" the Orvani asked, looking up into her eyes again.

"I said, can I dance with you?" she asked again.

The Orvani was about to say no, but then changed his mind... screw it... it his people were at a dead end, what difference would it make, if he lowered himself to the level of the humans? If he began to act like the humans?

The Orvani man nodded his approval, as the woman took him by the arm, leading him off his barstool, and to the dance floor.

As they made their way onto the dance floor, the DJ selected another Bee Gees song... "Wind of Change".

The woman led the Orvani in dancing, as the music began to pick up, filling the club.

As the pair danced, the other dancers moved to the sidelines, opening the dance floor just for the Orvani and the woman, as the lyrics filled the club, while the two danced.

"Don't you understand what I'm sayin', we need a god down there. A man to lead us children, take us from the valley of fear."

"Make the lights shine down on us, show us the road to go. Help us survive, make us arrive, teach us what we need to know."

"But like me he don't know where he'll go wrong; he won't cry so many tears till he finds out why he don't belong like me."

"There's no room for us out there; you can lose your hope and pride. When it comes to broken dreams you'll get your share. Sometime a man breaks down, and the good things he is looking for are crushed into the ground."


-- TO BE CONTINUED --

 

[Macker]

Personally, I prefer 1970s disco to that Top 40 corporate s**t which spews forth nowadays!

 

[BolianAuthor]

Okay... given that this story almost always gets instant feedback, when a new part is posted, I'm assuming the last post provoked a collective "WTF!!!", lol.

So... I will explain.

The last post was an experiment... I had an idea to use the lyrics of the two songs, and the appearance of an Orvani in the disco club, to convey the feelings of loss and despair that the Orvani was feeling... I wanted to have the lyrics of the songs "speak for him", as it were. I wasn't sure if it would work, but I was hoping it would.

I see it failed, lol.

At least now I know, and this will not be included in the TV script version of the story.

-BolianAdmiral

 

[Mistral]

I've been sick-sorry. Interesting and very creative. You still run-on sentences with the word "as" though.Sorry, still out of sorts....

 

[BolianAuthor]

VATICAN CITY

The masses of Rome were gathered inside and outside the residence of the Holy See, as a lone Orvani saucer sat hovering above the palace where the Pope lived.

The American news reporter's voice filled the air, as the man conducted a live report, the Orvani saucer hovering silent and still in the background.

"Good morning from Rome, and good evening to those watching in the United States. I'm here live, where after much speculation around the world, it has been confirmed... the representatives of the Orvani Nation have agreed to meet with the Holy See, and at this very moment, the Pope, as well as religious leaders from every faith on the planet Earth, are meeting with the Orvani, on board the saucer that hangs in the air behind me." the man began, as he moved to the side, allowing the camera to zoom in close on the saucer. "As you can see, the people here are absolutely amazed... transfixed by what they are beholding... something nobody here could have ever imagined... a spacecraft from another planet... hovering over the residence of the Holy See. This is truly an amazing and historic event." he added.

The reporter now touched his earpiece, to listen to some new incoming information, before again looking to the camera.

"Okay... okay, I am being told that the Holy See and the representatives of the other faiths have completed their meeting on the Orvani ship, which I am told, also included a tour of the vessel. Hold on... okay... we are now being told that the members are about to leave the craft... again, what a historic event... as we look out upon the Orvani saucer... holding position above the Vatican..." he said, as the camera again zoomed in to the saucer.

Suddenly, a thundering sound was heard, like an explosion, and then, suddenly, without warning, the entire Orvani saucer just exploded apart, consumed by a massive explosion of fire, which sent parts of the ship raining down upon the Vatican in flames, as the millions gathered ran in terror.

"OH, MY GOD! OH, MY GOD! Did you see that! Oh... folks... oh, my god... this is... my god... the Orvani ship has just been completely destroyed... I can't... oh, my god..." the reporter shouted out, looking at the flaming wreckage of the Orvani ship, as the crowds continued running in fear. "This is... I cannot believe it, folks... the entire time the Orvani have been on Earth... we have NEVER seen one of their ships destroyed... oh, my god..." was all he could utter.

Below the reporter, it was utter chaos... sirens could now be heard, and Vatican police were trying their best to control the crowd, and prevent panic, as they shouted out orders in italian.

The reporter became visibly shaken, and appeared to be holding back tears with all his might, as he again listened to his earpiece, nodding, as he then lost control, sobbing before the camera, as he looked up, his face streaked with tears.

"Oh, my god... ladies and gentlemen of Earth... I'm hearing... oh, god... I'm hearing now, that none of the Earth's religious leaders made it off the saucer, before the explosion." he said, still crying. "Ladies and gentlement, it appears that the Holy See, and all the leaders of the Earth's major religions have just been killed, in what is... oh... in what is an absolutely horrific and astounding explsoion, that just occured on an Orvani saucer, which only moments ago was... I'm sorry, excuse me..." he said, as he could no longer control his emotions anymore, and lowered his mike, burying his face in his hands, as he sobbed.

-- TO BE CONTINUED --

 

[Nerys Ghemor]

Ohhh, man...your ability to write for the media really made for one powerful, sad sequence here. It reminded me of the Kennedy assassination, the Hindeburg explosion, and 9/11 all in turn.

What a devastating loss! The effects of this are going to be catastrophic to say the least.

 

[USS Fardell]

I totally agree with the previous post on this one. You convey the shock of such an event very well.

 

[BolianAuthor]

VATICAN CITY

Inside the walls of the Vatican, Italian police detectives and coroners looked on, as a large group of Orvani combed the wreckage of the downed saucer, with their own scanning devices, as various human and Orvani medical teams carried the dead out from the debris in stretchers, their bodies covered by a yellow sheet.

Above the Vatican, two Orvani saucers hovered, standing guard... silent silver sentinels.

One of the Orvani withdrew from a pile of debris, and walked over to two human police detectives, who were waiting for him to approach.

The Orvani met the two detectives, and looked to them, handing the male a pice of metal debris, that was badly charred.

"What did you find, detective?" the human detective asked the Orvani, handing the piece to his femal partner.

"It was sabotage." the Orvani began. "A planetd explosive device... placed right next to the graviton core. The resulting explsion consumed and destroyed the ship." he added.

"Huh... I thought nothing could destroy your ships... after what we saw with Air Force One." the man said, handing the debris back to the Orvani.

"Nothing can... from the outside." the Orvani replied. "But a big enough explosion from within, can prove deadly, as was witnessed here." he added.

"So then the question is... who did this... and why?" the female human asked, looking to her partner, who nodded, in grim realization.

U.S.S. BETSY ROSS - REVERE-CLASS AIRCRAFT CARRIER

The massive trimaran supercarrier steamed along the Atlantic Ocean, her planes all neatly aligned in rows on the flight deck.

BRIDGE

The Captain of the mighty American warship sipped his cup of tea, as his Xo walked over to him, handing him a printout report, which he read, before looking back to his XO.

"You can't be serious?" he asked.

"Aye... afraid I am, Sir." the XO began. "We have a single Orvani saucer, requesting permission to land on deck. They claim to have President Bensen on board their craft." he added.

"Well, then... by all means, Commander... clear the Orvani ship for landing, and dispatch a fighter escort." the Captain replied, handing the paper back to the XO.

On the ocean, the mighty marvel of American military technology continued sailing along, cutting a vast foamy swath across the ocean, as in the distance, the silver gleam of an Orvani saucer appeared.

The Orvani ship sailed closer, flanked by twin F-22 Raptors, which continued streaking ahead, as the Orvani saucer paused directly above the carrier's flight deck, and made a soft descent and landing.

On the flight deck, the ship's loudspeaker loudly announded the arrival of the craft, as the various deck officers scambled to meet the President, when he was to step out.

"Attention, all hands... clear the flight deck... Orvani saucer on deck... repeat... attention, all hands... clear the flight deck... Orvani saucer on the flight deck!"

After a second,. the saucer's ramp lowered, and President Bensen himself stepped out, along with two Orvani guards, as they walked to meet the ship's Captain, who was on the deck, awaiting them, as the deck crew now ran to the saucer, to secure it, standing guard around it.

The Captain saluted Bensen, who returned the salute, as he shook the Captain's hand.

"Mister President... welcome aboard the Betsy Ross." the Captain began. "If I had been informed of your arrival..." he began, as Bensen interjected.

"Think nothing of it... I didn't know I was coming here, either... but the Joint Chiefs and my Orvani friends felt it would be the wise thing, for me to be in a secret location, in light of yesterday's... event. At least, until we can find out if it was an act of terrorism, or an unfortunate accident." Bensen stated, as the Captain gestured for him to follow his lead, the two men walking, leaving the Orvani to supervise the deck officers around the saucer.


-- TO BE CONTINUED --

 

[BolianAuthor]

Here's a quick drawing I did of the "Roswell-era" Orvani saucers...

As stated in the story, the design is minimalist and functional... pure simplicity. The craft is a color identical to that of brushed stainless steel.

-BolianAdmiral

 

[Mistral]

wow, you blew up the Pope! I like the trimaran carrier concept-that I'd like to see!

 

[BolianAuthor]

U.S.S. BETSY ROSS - REVERE-CLASS AIRCRAFT CARRIER

The massive trimaran supercarrier steamed along the Atlantic Ocean, the single Orvani saucer sitting smack in the middle of the flight deck, as American military planes sat in rows, on either side of the deck, as if looking at the saucer in curiosity.

CAPTAIN'S READY-ROOM

The Captain sat across from President Bensen, sipping a cup of coffee, as a Marine walked in, stopping before Bensen and the Captain, saluting them both, before handing a folder of papers to Bensen, before walking off.

Bensen opened the folder, and began to read the reports, as his face paled, his look suddenly turning very sad and grim. Finally, he looked to the Captain.

"What is it, Mister President?" he asked.

"The monitor in here... can you pick up American media broadcasts?" Bensen asked.

"Aye." the Captain said, getting up from his seat, and walking to the large flat-panel screen, and turning it on, to ABC News.

The image on the screen showed the beginning of an ABC News exclusive, as the voice of the news anchor narrated.

"I say again, we have exclusive tape from the group claiming responsibility for the destruction of the Orvani saucer at the Vatican. We have not edited the tape, and will be seeing it for the first time, as you are." the man stated.

Suddenly, the entire screen filled with static, before clearing to show the image of a man behind a desk, his face darkened in the dim light of the room.

"Greetings." the man began. "Yesterday, the world witnessed a momentous event. The world was shown the true colors of the Orvani. The Orvani are not gods... they are not all-powerful. They have mislead you. For months now, the people of Earth have blindly fallen for the Orvani's illusion... the trap they have set for you... to lead you into believeing that they can do the works of gods, and that they alone, can solve what is wrong in the world. But be fooled no longer, for the Orvani are not gods. Far from it... they are demons, sent here to sway our souls from the light and truth of the word of God!" the man said, now working into a more intense tone. "Be fooled not, for now, you have seen, that the Orvani are mortal! They can be killed... destroyed! They are not perfect! By their own admission, thay have manipulated our society, and they wish to continue to do so! But no longer... for we will fight back!" the man said.

Bensen shot a look at the Captain, who returned his look, knowingly.

"There is only ONE God! The god of truth... the Christian god, who created the Earth, and the universe! That is who you must look to, and admire, and ask for help... not the Orvani! REPENT! Do not be misled! The Pope, the President of the Mormon Church, the Dali Lama, everyone who agreed to meet with those demons chose their fate, when they chose to embrace a false god... the Orvani! The Orvani ARE powerful... and so was Goliath. But like David, with his single stone, we mere tiny human insects, were able to deliver a crushing blow to the giant Orvani machine! RESIST! REPENT! Before it's too late!" the man closed, as the screen now again flickered to static.

Bensen slowly walked back to his seat, as the Captain watched him.

"Well..." he began. "I wonder what the reaction from the Orvani will be now?" he asked.

"I don't know." Bensen began. "Who would have thought it possible... a conservative Christian group, blowing up an entire Orvani saucer? The Orvani have already had to deal with the fact that their entire race will soon die off... now, they come halfway across the galaxy, for what... for this? To be killed out of fear and hate?" he asked, looking to the Captain.

"Talk about kicking someone when they're down." the Captain lamented.

"The reaction will be strong... they have the ability to wipe us from this world, with no more effort than a single thought. We have to make sure that does not happen. We have to let them know that this one group does not speak for humankind." Bensen added.

"Not to mention, the fact that they still have a full-scale warship in orbit." the Captain added, as Bensen looked to him, his eyes wide with the realization that they had to act fast... very fast.

-- TO BE CONTINUED --

 

[Nerys Ghemor]

Oh good grief. All the wonderful twists and turns and now we get the easy "Christian fundamentalist" thing?

I have to admit I found that quite disappointing; I really hope there's more to it.

 

[BolianAuthor]

Well, like I said... there is a plan for the whole series... this is just one part of it, as were all the other developments.