Date: 2020-08-01T22:00:00+00:00
Description: Zhenyi Hypatia Drakos had two astrophysicists as parents, one Greek and one Chinese. They gave her a love of space and the intellect to study it. Her name, glasses and independent spirit made her the target of bullies from her first day of school. To survive Zen adapted by becoming self-sufficient and capable of fighting back. When the pulsar she discovered at age thirteen begins changing, she discovers that humans are not alone in the universe. Draconis is the story of how Zen shares this news with the world and prepares herself and the planet for what is headed their way.

Warrant

DRACONIS - Episode 3

Ethan Stand

Copyright © 2020 by Ethan Stand

Ethan Stand owns the content in this book and reserves all his legal rights of ownership. ‘Warrant’ is published for your personal enjoyment. He allows quotations in book reviews and social media posts. In fact, if they are positive reviews, he encourages their use. If you want to use it for some other purpose, then email him and get his written permission, if you don't then you may not reproduce or use it.

ISBN 13: 978-1-922336-11-8 (E-book)

‘Warrant’ is fiction, Ethan isn’t writing about real people and doesn’t intend in any way to point the finger at anyone. If there is a similarity, then it’s unintentional and a coincidence. Some of the places, nations, corporations, institutions, public figures, books, movies and songs Ethan mentions are real. Ethan has used them in a made-up story (fiction), i.e., IT ISN’T REAL.

Ethan designed the cover using Photoshop. Vellum was used to prepare the e-book.

Published by Ethan Stand in 2020

You can find out more at www.ethanstand.com or write to Ethan at ethan@ethanstand.com.

Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 1

Zen was staring out the window of the limousine as her convoy made its way down 2nd Avenue. At the front of the convoy were four motorcycle police followed by two black Chevrolet Suburbans and then two army humvees. Behind her limousine, though in the opposite order, were the same vehicles. The road itself had been shut down to other traffic for much of the day as hundreds of other people made their way to the United Nations complex.

Sitting with Zen were Miriam, the head of her personal security detail and John, the head of the Secret Service detail on loan from the United States. The humvees were part of an additional force of US Rangers who’d been assigned to keep her safe while in the US. Zen was feeling out of place, as only a week before she would have watched an event like this on the television and scoffed at the precautions someone felt necessary to keep themselves safe. Now, she knew that while a bit excessive, it was an important message to the people who wanted to kidnap her.

Zen was on her way to an Emergency Special Session of the UN General Assembly. This was only the twelfth time such an assembly had been called and the first where delegates had been advised to include scientists as their alternate delegates. Each country had room for six delegates, three primary and three alternates. Discounting the interpreters and reporters, Zen knew the almost two-thousand seat auditorium would be full. Thanks to discussions with her father, Zen knew she not only needed to convince these people of the dangers, but she also needed to convince the powerful people who pulled strings behind the scenes.

As they reached the entry circuit to the complex, the humvees pulled away. The General Secretary had only agreed for the Secret Service detail to be allowed onto the UN grounds. Even then, only the limousine with Zen was allowed to enter the basement garage, the other vehicles peeling off and heading back to wait with the Rangers. The room set aside for Zen was different than the last two times. She wasn’t there very long before Mr Morris arrived and said, “I heard about your trip this morning Zen. While I’m glad you are safe, I’m not thrilled about you putting yourself in any danger. Putting that aside, the meeting will start in five minutes, which gives us just enough time to get seated. Miriam, I’ve recorded you as a delegate, and this was confirmed in a cabinet meeting this morning. You will sit as an alternate and be behind Zen. John, I’m glad you were reassigned to Zen, but I’ll need you to wait outside the room.”

John nodded and said, “No problems, Mr Prime Minister. I’ve a few details I need to review, and that will give me time to make some additional arrangements for Zen’s security over the next few days.”

The PM nodded and said, “Zen, once inside you will sit on my right and our UN ambassador, Michael Fields, will be on my left. Phil already gave the presentation data to the media office. Are you ready?”

Zen nodded, and John opened the door. Mr Fields was waiting outside the door, and after greeting Zen, he led the way through the building to the main chamber for general assembly meetings. The room was already full, and most of the members were talking quietly in small groups. As the PM entered with Zen, the area around their path went quiet as they walked past, then became even more animated as they moved away.

Zen checked the time as she sat and saw there was only a minute before the meeting was due to start. At two, the General Secretary called the meeting to order. He said, “Delegates and guests, I declare this twelfth Emergency Session of the General Assembly to be open. This meeting was called by the Security Council. They have ceded the explanation for this meeting to the Prime Minister of Australia. I now invite Mr Steven Morris, the Prime Minister of Australia, to address this assembly.”

There was light applause as the PM got from his seat and made his way, followed by Zen, to the front of the room. When the room had quietened down, he said, “Thank you, Mr General Secretary. Delegates, I want to thank you for this opportunity to address this body without it having been informed as to the topic to be addressed. Many of you will have realised the issue is focussed on the young woman you see standing here beside me. Her name is Zhenyi Drakos and she, with her parents, approached our government only last week with news they felt needed to be shared.

“The information they shared was so significant I felt it was both important and urgent that I approach the Security Council. That they also found it momentous has been illustrated in the events of the last few days. The head of our intelligence forces says the current bounty to kidnap Ms Drakos is two hundred million US dollars, and we know some of your countries are actively involved in making similar offers.”

The room became noisy as various delegates asked to speak and others suggesting the statement be retracted. Finally though, the room became quiet as Mr Morris stood quietly waiting without seeming to be fazed by the reaction at all. When everyone was still, he continued, “I know that it has been protocol in this room to refrain from speaking bluntly so that we do not inflame situations, but that needs to stop. I have realised over the last week that if you are afraid to face the truth calmly, then it only makes things worse. Sweeping important issues under the carpet does nobody any good and just ruins the carpet. Even worse, in some ways, is our habit as politicians to dress up the issues in fancy words and images so that the ugliness of what is happening can seem palatable. That also must stop.

“The Security Council has agreed for Ms Drakos to present the first part of her research to this council. I am free to tell you that there are two more aspects of the information that you will not hear about today. These have been omitted to give you as a body, and you as individual delegates, the time you need to absorb the information. The Security Council is meeting tonight to discuss the third part of Ms Drakos’s message. I will now hand over to Ms Drakos, who will walk you through her data. She will not be taking questions from the floor at this time. If you have any questions, you may send them to the Australian Ambassador, Mr Fields. We will have Ms Drakos address outstanding issues at the end of her presentation.”

With that, Mr Morris stepped back, and Zen stepped forward. She had presented the material to groups on four occasions now and was much better at reading a room and explaining the details. Despite the occasional exclamations from delegates and scientists, there was silence as Zen shared her information. It took an hour-and-a-half to share everything. When she’d finished, Mr Fields sent her a message with a list of questions which had been collated by Phil and Ted. Answering those questions took another two hours.

When Zen had finished, the UN-General-Secretary took the floor and said, “Delegates, this news is momentous, and I understand some of you may doubt the conclusions. I have been kept aware of the issues and have discussed the science with several advisers who are experts in their fields. They all concur that the hypothesis Ms Drakos has presented is supported by the facts, and they have no suggestions of their own to counter her theories. I say theories because there is more, much more to be shared. I also understand that no matter what we all have agreed, this news will be shared through sources and friends to the larger world. To preempt this, the permanent members of the Security Council and I will be making an official announcement at seven this evening to the effect that we are not alone in this universe.

“In addition, the Security Council has moved that we have a second meeting tomorrow to hear additional information. Do I have a seconder?”

Zen had headed back with the PM to her seat and let the next half-an-hour of debate swirl around her. When that was finished and the second meeting agreed upon, the meeting was closed. The PM said, “Miriam, help Zen through the crowd and keep people from stopping her. Even though the next meeting starts in just over an hour, I’d take her back to the Plaza for food because the meals here are awful.”

Miriam nodded and led Zen from the room. John was waiting, and the UN security gave Zen’s convoy precedence. Hence, it was less than twenty minutes later when Zen sat down for dinner in the suite at the Plaza. Halfway through the meal, John turned on the TV in the room and said, “The UN announcement is about to start.”

Zen looked up at the TV just as the ‘Breaking News’ banner disappeared and a reporter appeared. Behind the reporter was the view of the Security Council chambers. Each of the permanent members was represented, each with their head of state instead of the official ambassador. With them was the Australian PM. The reporter said, “Welcome to the Security Council chambers. In a moment the President of the Security Council will make a public statement on the issues they have been discussing. This position is usually held by the leading diplomat of the country holding the presidency who is present at the UN. The leadership currently resides with China, and the Chinese President will make the announcement.

“With him on stage are the heads of state of the other four permanent members of the Security Council. They are the President of the United States, the President of Russia, the President of France and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister of Australia is also present at this announcement. We understand this has something to do with a young Australian woman, Zhenyi Drakos, who spoke at an Emergency Session of the General Assembly earlier this afternoon.

“Ms Drakos has become a household name in the last twenty-four hours with her revelations concerning the Secretary of State and her discussion with the Directors of the FBI and the CIA being broadcast across New York yesterday. There is also talk that she was involved in the complete collapse of the Chinese telecommunications network overnight. I can see the Chinese President stepping forward. Every reporter here is waiting with bated breath to hear what is to be announced.”

The screen changed to show the Chinese President. Zen glared at the man, knowing he’d been involved in ordering her grandparents arrested which had precipitated her grandfather’s heart attack and stroke. The President looked out at the press and spoke in Mandarin. Zen translated in her head as well as listening to the studio’s translation.

“People of the world. It is my privilege as the current President of the UN Security Council to make this announcement. Over the last few days, we have been discussing evidence provided by the Australian delegation. This evidence clearly shows that this planet is not the only one in the universe which has life. It also points to the conclusion that sometime in the next few years, we will be visited by beings from another star. Over the next few weeks, more of the evidence and findings will be made public, but at the moment all I will say is that this event will bring significant change to our world.

“On behalf of the Security Council, I ask that you do not panic as our best estimates are that it will be at least two years before these aliens arrive. Besides information about aliens, the delegation has provided information on new scientific discoveries which will benefit all humanity. For example, it was a new theoretical understanding of gravity which provided the warning to those in Peru. We would like to thank the Australian government for making their discoveries freely available to the people of the world.

“As many already have guessed, the primary source of the data and evidence came from a young woman named Zhenyi Drakos. Many countries and individuals would have kept this information hidden away for their own benefit. Instead, Ms Drakos, and Australia, have brought it to the world stage, so that united we all might benefit, and that together we can prepare for the new era that we are entering. We will not be answering questions at this time but will be issuing regular updates as the way becomes clearer. Thank you.”

John turned the TV off, and everyone in the room was silent, as before this only Miriam and John had been read-in. When the silence became uncomfortable Zen said, “Hey guys, chill out, will you? Freak out somewhere else. The stress is already high enough without you adding to it.”

Miriam nodded and said, “Sorry, Zen. It’s more than just the announcement. I mean, I knew that stuff. It just hit me that the ‘crazies’ will come out now. It’s hard enough to prepare for the dangers that we can predict, like the US, Chinese or Russian attacks. Preparing for what a conspiracy or religious nut might do is much harder. Then add in those who are just plain sick in the head. I’m sorry if that stresses you out, but you need to know that they’re all now in play.”

Zen nodded and said, “Yeah, my dad explained they’d be the real danger. I guess that the next announcement will shake even more loose than this did?”

John chuckled wryly and said, “Oh, you can bet on that. But enough negativity, you need to change for tonight’s meeting. We leave in five.”

Chapter 2

As Zen got changed in her room, Miriam took John aside and said, “It’s my fault as much as anyone, but we need to find a way to lighten up around Zen. She’s only sixteen, and she’s under a lot of pressure. Any ideas?”

“Nothing except to be more aware. In our training, they often talked about the psychological impact of security, and they taught a variety of ways to mitigate the negative impact. Even so, they didn’t give us any insight into teenage girls. To be honest, I’m finding it hard to think of her like that. I mean, she basically killed the President’s chances of being re-elected. She then broke one of the world’s most vibrant economies in the last twenty-four hours.”

“Yeah, I get that, but she also cried herself to sleep last night and her family and her only friend are over fifteen thousand kilometres away. I know she has the chutzpah to face down a Russian mobster or a Chinese general, but then she blushes at even the smallest compliment. We need to find a way to protect her spirit.”

John nodded but ended the conversation when he heard Zen’s door opening. She was dressed like a businesswoman and seemed uncomfortable. Miriam said, “Looks good, Zen. It looks uncomfortable, but it strikes the right tone.”

Zen smiled at the compliment and looked down before grabbing her bag and saying, “OK, I’m ready.”

Sergeant Kelso led the way to the elevator, followed by John, then Zen and Miriam. Two more agents and a Ranger followed them but waited outside the elevator, their replacements waiting in the basement. Once Zen was in the limousine, the Rangers walked beside it until they reached the humvees who were waiting at the exit. Miriam could see Zen was embarrassed by the number of guards, so she asked, “So, Zen, what’s tonight’s big reveal?”

“Nothing startling, I’m just laying out a timetable and trying to get the leaders to step away from their own self-interest and to see the bigger picture.”

John said, “I don’t want to be rude, but why would they listen to you about this? You know more science, sure, but they’ve a pretty good understanding of this world.”

“That’s the problem. They understand this world. They’re just as ignorant as everyone else about the new one. I don’t have any qualifications except I’ve been thinking about this for a while. They don’t have three months to work through the options. I hope they’d reach good choices, but it’ll take too long. They’ll have think tanks and interest groups, and by then we’ll be dead.”

“Can you give me an example?”

“I can, but I promised Mr Morris I wouldn’t discuss it until the meeting. Sorry.”

“Don’t worry, I was out of line asking. It’s just, I’m struggling to put this together myself.”

“Don’t worry. I don’t have a blueprint. All I have are some big picture questions and a few suggestions.”

Miriam said, “Don’t sell yourself short, Zen. The PM and Dr Bateman were pretty impressed. Now what are you smirking about?”

“Um, sorry. I was thinking of the Chinese stock crash overnight. I took a loan out from my grandfather and asked him to use it to short sell a heap of Chinese stock. When their market crashed, I made a packet, and it’s all clean because they’ll never press the point.”

Miriam said, “I understand it’s personal, but what do you call a packet?”

“Oh, I borrowed two million euro and will net about one million after I pay the broker fees. I’ve already some reinvestment plans in play, so I’m not sure exactly until I get the accounts from Pappous.”

“Reinvestment plans?”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure Mr Ivanov has his fingers in a lot of pies and knows the Russian market pretty well. When we met, I hacked his phone and found out who his broker is. Pappous is monitoring the situation, and I’m going to use the information and what I know that he does and doesn’t know, to see how much I can fleece from the Russians as well.”

“Where did you learn so much about the share market?”

“Pappous. He wasn’t very interested in space, science or soccer, so if I wanted to spend time with him, I had to learn his interests. He’s worked in finance most of his life, and it was something we could talk about. That and bird watching. I’m probably the only kid in my school who knows what a spotted crake looks like.”

“Sounds like you’re also the richest kid in your school.”

“Yeah, maybe? Jenny Williamson is pretty rich, she’s big into the whole influencer scene, but instead of branding herself, she controls the brands of dozens of people. With her cut, she’s earning more than any of them.”

John said, “Wait a minute. You hacked his phone?”

“Yep. Why?”

“Because he won’t be happy if he finds out. He tends to kill people who make him unhappy.”

“Don’t worry. He won’t find out. Besides, aren’t you supposed to tell me that hacking is wrong?”

“Nope. You already know it’s wrong, and I’d just be wasting my breath. How do you know he won’t find out?”

“Just like hiking in the wilderness, I took nothing but pictures and didn’t even leave a footprint.”

“Pictures?”

“Yeah, I cloned the phone. When I rang him the first time, I layered a mimic program over my voice. By the time he got to the restaurant, it was ready to upload everything to my phone. It scrubbed all evidence as it uploaded. The only thing that might show something happened is his battery life. I haven’t had time to go through everything yet, but I did find the contact details for his brokers, all eight of them.”

“For someone who likes their privacy, you seem far too comfortable invading other people’s.”

“I know. Occasionally I go through something like an existential crisis when I think of how hypocritical I am, but it doesn’t last long. My mum would agree with you, but my dad says I need to overlook life’s many inconsistencies and just enjoy it more.”

John let the conversation die as they approached the United Nations. There was a significant police presence, but thousands of New Yorkers had turned out to watch the spectacle. From the cheer that went up, both he and Miriam were certain they’d worked out who the humvees were for. By the time they’d moved past the crowd, they’d both decided they needed to change things up if they were going to keep Zen safe.

Both Mr Morris and Phil were waiting in the room. The PM said, “Zen, I just wanted to warn you that in many ways this will be harder than the other sessions. Even Phil and I found it harder to accept what you were saying because it is more philosophy than science. Be prepared for a robust discussion.”

“Yes, sir. I will. How blunt can I be?”

“What does that mean?”

“Well, if someone says something stupid do I have to pretend it’s smart and beat around the bush or can I just show them how dumb it is?”

“A week ago I would have said, beat around the bush. You’ve convinced me of the timeline so just give it to them straight.”

Zen smiled and let out a small breath she’d been holding. “Yes, sir. Thank you, that was worrying me.”

Seeing Zen was ready, the PM led the way into the Security Council. When everyone was present, the Chinese President again took the place of his senior diplomat at the UN as chair of the meeting. He welcomed everyone, then said, “I understand that this meeting is less to do with data and more a discussion of the way forward. While we have already agreed to have Ms Drakos speak, I would like some clarification as to why this is important.”

The PM was about to respond, but Zen raised her hand. The Chinese President acknowledged her with a small head nod then said, “Ms Drakos.”

Zen leaned forward and in Mandarin said, “I know that I’m less informed on the state of the world than all of you. I’m also in a position where I can say things you are unable to articulate and see things you are unable to picture. This isn’t because of any ability of mine, but more because you’ve had to prioritise your personal resources to reach your goals. You no longer see the world the way most people do. Much of what I suggest is what many in the world would call common sense. Unfortunately, none of you are common, and most of you have never been common, in any sense of the word, your whole lives. Although you once might have known what the average person in your countries was thinking, you now pay people to gather this information for you. You often ignore the fact that they all represent special interest groups because it is those same interest groups who help to keep you in power.

“If I’m honest, I’ll admit that my life is far from common. Even so, my first-hand experience with having to deal with common everyday problems is only a week old. Each one of you has blinkers on, and by the time you remove them the situation will be out of control. You think you understand the situation, but you’ve only known about it for a few days and the full scope of our predicament is still months away. Besides, what I have to share is more a series of questions than a treatise. Humour me for thirty minutes then send me on my way. If nothing else, it will give you someone else to blame when things go bad.”

There was silence as the delegates listened for the translation. As that was happening the Chinese President maintained eye contact with Zen. Finally, he said, “I open the meeting to discuss allowing Ms Drakos time at this meeting.”

The vote was carried unanimously once it was clear that both the United States and China wanted to hear what Zen had to say. Zen moved to the podium.

“Delegates, there are thousands of things that need addressing to ensure our survival. I would suggest that they can be grouped into five main areas. These areas overlap to some degree but each of them on its own needs to be addressed urgently. The five are space, ELE, long-term safe areas, military preparedness, and civilian preparedness.

“First, we need to get back into space, and we can’t afford the hodgepodge of different strategies. If I’ve calculated correctly, there is roughly an eighty per cent chance that the asteroid called Agni will hit the earth eleven months from now. Agni is a cylindrical M-type near-Earth asteroid with a length of eight kilometres and a diameter of three-and-a-half kilometres. It has a mass of over half-a-trillion tonnes. This is one of five major asteroids whose orbits will be significantly changed in such a way that they will come close to intersecting with our orbit. The next one is eight months after that.

“Besides dealing with the asteroids, we need to be ready to offer some defence of the planet from space. I assume the aliens will use some type of spacecraft to go from their habitat construct to the planet’s surface. Even if they are friendly, we will need to have a viable transition base to make sure they do not bring anything to the planet which might kill us. If they are, in fact, aggressive, then we need some ability to slow them before they reach the atmosphere.

“Still in space, we have the problem of the increase in solar radiation caused by the focusing effect of the gravitation pulses. When this is combined with the direct effect of the pulses themselves, it is likely we will lose upwards of eighty per cent of our current satellites. These will need to be replaced, or those that survive will need to be repurposed as we lose access to our communication and surveillance networks.

“There are other issues related to our presence in space, but even from those three, I think it is clear that it is a priority. Having said that, I don’t believe it is something one country can do, nor even something a consortium of nations will be able to manage in time. Each of the next four areas will push your countries to their limits and beyond. This needs to be an international effort with its own command structure that has access to the best engineers, pilots and scientists from everywhere on the globe. We don’t have time to manage this with people who answer to a variety of different interests groups, whether it be their country of origin or a board of powerful shareholders.

“We have the technology to get back into space right now. Leaders need to cancel the current restrictions because even if you gave the green light today, it will be three or four months until anything is ready. Agni will be best redirected at a distance and with our current technology, I predict the most effective attempts need to be made when the asteroid is still three months out. That gives us only six months to plan the mission and execute it. While NASA has a lot of technological know-how, the US site at Cape Canaveral will not survive the other geological and climate changes so it can’t be counted on for missions. You need to arrange another site.”

Zen paused as the US President interrupted and said, “Don’t you worry about Cape Canaveral. We’ll make sure it is still in good working condition.”

Chapter 3

Zen took a deep breath then said, “Like I said, ‘you all have blinkers on’. You’re making a promise without even listening to the problem. You somehow think the US will have a solution just because you are the United States of America and because you like building things. The problem with Florida is beyond your ability to solve and possibly beyond your ability to comprehend but let me at least try. Within a year, the Cape will be under water. To build a dyke in time to prevent the flooding will mean pulling several hundred thousand workers off projects that could save lives. Any wall you build only needs to be damaged in one place to shut down the entire site.

“Added to that is the increased solar activity. This will increase the number of severe hurricanes in the region. I would expect we will see supercells that could be classified as Category Six or Seven Hurricanes. The first tidal surge from these would wash your flimsy wall out to sea. What kind of an idiot would put their entire space defence in the middle of a rising ocean, and in a place prone to severe weather events especially when a single missile would shut down the entire program? It would be better placed in Australia, Kenya, Kazakhstan or maybe even Brazil.”

The US President waved his finger and said, “Ah-ha. You just want the money to flow into your own country. Well, that isn’t going to happen on my watch.”

Zen shook her head and said, “You still don’t get it. There will be no money. Money is a pointless commodity in the apocalyptic dystopian economy which will exist five years from now. Shelter, safety, food, breathable air, drinkable water and ammunition will be what most people want. I’d rather you built it somewhere other than my back yard because it will draw the enemy like bees to honey. I can’t really speak for the rest of Australia, but we don’t want to build the spaceport when we need to provide survival bunkers for upwards of fifty million people. Doing that will take everything we have, and more. If we import labour, we’ll have to find accommodation and breathable air for them as well.”

“You don’t have fifty million people.”

“No, we don’t, but what do you want us to do with the five million who live in New Zealand who want to survive? Their country is going to either burn as the volcanoes erupt or drown as the sea covers it. Add those who will come from Vanuatu, Japan, the Philippines, and Indonesia. Fifty is an approximate figure with an expectation that those areas will already have lost a minimum of two hundred and fifty million people. I don’t think we could expect to have more than this completed in time and there will be an additional hundred-or-so-million survivors who will need to look elsewhere. Your entire West Coast will need to be relocated, as will Hawaii. I expect you will ignore Puerto Rico, Cuba and the Dominican Republic. Where will you expect them to go? Please stop interrupting without thinking.”

The President glared at Zen, but she met his glare without flinching. The Russian President ended the confrontation by saying. “That covers space. What about the other four areas?”

Zen took a deep breath and said. “Sorry for the distraction. I’ve just touched on the second and third points. These relate to the Extinction Level Events and our long term survival. Yesterday I shared the various dangers, but let me reiterate them. In the next two years, besides the threat of asteroids, there will be significant climatic, geological and environmental impacts caused by the gravity pulse. It is almost certain this will increase in intensity because the aliens are on this side of their journey. Solar activity will increase, and the magnetic field around the earth will change. The result will be increased temperatures, rising sea-levels, more extreme climate events, elevated levels of damaging radiation.

“Add this to the destruction of farmland and the disruption to ecological cycles, and there will be famine, pestilence, droughts and floods. Then add the smoke haze across the planet from volcanoes, and it is anyone’s guess if we will boil or freeze first. Earthquakes will be triggered on all major and minor fault lines. The tsunamis they trigger will inundate already devastated coastlines. You won’t have ready access to reliable solar energy and playing with geothermal stuff at that time is dumber than dumb. Fossil fuels might work for a while, but there will be no ongoing large-scale ability to fill the reserves. Hydro and wind energy are possible, but with the extreme events, I’m not sure we have the expertise to be confident in using it. Nuclear is an option, but it needs to be only used in highly geologically stable areas.

“Unless you plan to ditch ninety-nine per cent of the people, then you will need to build mega-complexes. These need to be designed with entire levels for hydroponics and maybe protein synthesis using cultures. If not, then you will need facilities for a range of animal husbandry enterprises. If you ditch that many people, you’ll die soon enough, but I’ll come to that in a minute. These complexes will need to be dug into the rock, and if you don’t start soon, you’ll never finish them on time. They need reservoirs for water, towers to filter the air, plants to reclaim waste and resources to provide education and care to millions. Honestly, if you haven’t already asked your engineers to start designing these, then you didn’t understand what I said yesterday.

“The start of the more extreme events are already being seen. The earthquake in Peru is a good example. We know that is a dangerous fault, and if those people had already relocated, they would have lived. This brings up a related point that covers this whole discussion. Your governmental forms are not suited to weather the decisions which need to be made over the next two years. Western democracy, regardless of its form, won’t work. There is too much to do in too little time, and it isn’t suitable for the military-focused culture which we will have to become if we are to survive.

“The option of highly authoritarian regimes like Russia or China might seem useful, but with the almost certain transformation over time into fascism, elitism, opportunism and a myriad of other isms which mean corruption and tyranny, they would result, in the long term, with us just as assuredly slaves as any alien oppression would. How you survive in a megacity without becoming the cliché of most apocalyptic science fiction is something you need to think about.

“My suggestion is that you recognise that in any group there are wolves, shepherds, sheep and parasites. Let the wolves do their thing. Don’t stop or limit the individuals who are already prepared for something like this. Use them and resource them because they will be a good buffer with the enemy, and they will be a check on your tendency to oppress. Gather, feed and direct the sheep. They will build the cities, grow the food, man the weapons and be satisfied. You’ll need the shepherds to give leadership and guidance. Don’t put the individualistic wolves in charge, that’s stupid.

“Dump the parasites. There is no time to rehabilitate a murderer or rapist. They can’t be released to annoy the wolves because you lose any good feeling you may start with, and there is no certainty they won’t come back to haunt you. People who won’t work are also parasites, stop pandering to them. Don’t become inhuman and equate won’t and can’t, but my personal view is that we should help people who are trying to help themselves. The person who’s trying to crawl to safety, them, I’ll carry. The others who are sitting there waiting for me to carry them, they can sit all day. If someone sits all day playing PlayStation, sipping cappuccinos or playing golf and then wants to join the bunker, tell them to get lost. That doesn’t mean you can’t have artists paint the walls, and musicians organise the areas carved out for relaxation. Baristas can join the commissary. We’ll need all their skills in the future.

“Fourth is military preparedness. We still don’t have enough data to say if the construct is primarily filled with a gas or a liquid. However, once we have a more accurate estimate of size and density, we will be able to say with some clarity. My assumption based on the little evidence I’ve got suggests it has a gaseous interior. If that is true, then the creatures can land anywhere, so you need better surveillance, better armour and better weapons. Associated with this is the fifth area which is civilian preparedness. Everyone complains that North Korea has a standing army of a million people. If they want to survive, they need to arm the other twenty-three million as well.

“If aliens drop from the sky, your people can’t expect a squad of soldiers to turn up and help them. They need to have a weapon by their side that can start doing damage even as the enemy land. If you’ve learned nothing from all your wars of conquest, you should have learned that an armed and willing citizenry is almost impossible to overcome in the long term.

“This is another reason why China and Russia need to change. They don’t trust people in the population to have a weapon because they know they’ve been the oppressor. Stop glaring at me. Everyone knows it is true. If you are going to lead your countries, you need to understand this and do something about it. If you don’t, you will be all alone in your bunker and ruler over nobody and nothing. Not only do they need to know how to use the weapon, but they need to know how to hide, how to work with others to flank someone. They need to know basic health care because there will be no doctors, nurses and hospitals to run to.

“My recommendation to Mr Morris was to start military training for everyone over the age of thirteen and for those younger who requested it. Sure, I want people to have an education, but at this late stage, we need to scrap the make-do stuff that’s been tossed in and get people fit and situationally aware. If we don’t, they will die on first-contact. I suggested that kids need to learn that ‘no’ or ‘be quiet’ is not the prelude to a tantrum but something that, if it is disobeyed, will result in the death of them and their family. Look, I have no idea what the aliens are like, but the fact that they built the construct means they understand their science. They know what it is doing to our planet, and they could have done it differently and chosen not to.”

Zen stopped and looked at the time then said, “My thirty minutes are up. That was just an overview of what needs to be started in the next few weeks. Start after that, and you’ll be too far behind to play catch-up.”

As Zen stepped back, Mr Morris raised his hand, and the chair nodded to him. He said, “My cabinet has already begun preparing the appropriate legislation to start moving down a pathway similar to what Zen has outlined. Although I agree with Zen that we would prefer the space program located elsewhere, the cabinet has agreed that we will cede land to an international program if that is requested. Several architects have been read in and are beginning the draft plans for ten megacities, each capable of housing ten million people. Our plan is to build nuclear reactors to power these cities and dig them deep into the bedrock. Tunnelling machines which were in use in several cities are already being dismantled for transport to the chosen sites.

“I have a meeting arranged with the New Zealand Prime Minister three days from now and will offer her our full support in moving her people, should they wish to move. I will make similar offers to the leaders of Vanuatu, Tonga, and Papua New Guinea. From there we will move north as we have a clearer picture of what is possible. I am willing for Zen to present the dangers to the full meeting, but the way forward needs to come from those who lead, and that isn’t something we can delegate to Zen. Zen and I will be heading back to Australia on Friday morning. I would suggest we spend time reviewing each of these areas with Zen, now, before she leaves.”

There was some discussion, but an agreement was reached to let Zen flesh out her comments with more detail. It was after one the next morning when the meeting finally came to an end. As they left the room, Miriam said, “Zen, you didn’t make any friends today.”

Zen just nodded tiredly and said, “Story of my life.”

Miriam had to wake Zen when they reached the hotel.

Chapter 4

Zen’s alarm woke her at six, and as she sat up, she was startled by the two agents in the room. A female ranger was standing by the window, and one of the female agents was near the door to the rest of the suite. As she got out of bed, she said, “Sorry if I snored. It’s a bit weird you being in the room.”

The Ranger said, “It wasn’t loud, and we’re only here because the room is so exposed. Once you’re in a more controlled environment, it will be easier.”

As she headed for the bathroom, she said, “Maybe. I was hoping the announcement would have ended my brief moment in the spotlight and I can slip quickly into obscurity.”

She closed the door, so she didn’t hear the Ranger who turned to the other agent and said, “Poor thing, that isn’t going to happen anytime soon. Most of the soundbites through the night were snippets of her speech at the UN. She’ll be hounded for years.”

After dressing, Zen sat at her computer and worked on her finances and talked with her parents. Her grandfather was awake and slowly recovering, although the stroke had left him weak and without movement on his right side. Over breakfast, she practised Hebrew with Miriam.

After the dishes had gone, John arrived. After getting a coffee, he said, “Word is you will be asked to speak at this afternoon’s meeting of the General Assembly. It starts at two. That gives you about five hours. You have hundreds of requests for interviews and meetings from reporters and even more from celebrities, scientists, church leaders, and crackpots. I know you don’t have a secretary, but you need some help. It’ll be important to reply to some of these because if mishandled they can twist what you say to mean whatever they want and make you look like a fool.”

Zen smirked and said, “I bet it isn’t appropriate to say, ‘Bring it on.’”

“No, it isn’t. These people don’t believe you could do to them what you did to the Secretary of State.”

“Then it sucks to be them.”

John smiled and said, “Yes, it does. Still, it might be best to sidestep the battle to win the war, which is to help save the planet.”

“John, I’m sixteen. I’m allowed to be so focussed on my own agenda that I don’t have to care about the planet or other people.”

Miriam said, “Says the girl who cried when people died in Peru. We know you do care, at least a bit. Even if it saves one of those uninformed helpless sheep, you’ll do it.”

“Nuh, uh. I’m a wolf, not a shepherd. Set me free and leave me be. I want to howl at the moon.”

John smirked and said, “Zen, you are definitely a shepherd.”

Zen poked her tongue out, then said, “Maybe. If I get a secretary to make you happy, can I get a tattoo? I even know who I want to do it. Mr K. From Bang Bang Tattoos.”

“Nope. That was the only order your parents gave me. No tattoos.”

“My mother, I bet. Just cause hers needed to be lasered off, she thinks I need to wait. So, no tattoo. What can I do?”

Miriam said, “Well, John and I were talking and couldn’t find any evidence that you’d used firearms. He suggested we go to a shooting range and let you learn how to shoot.”

John started laughing at the huge grin that formed on Zen’s face. He said, “OK, let’s plan to leave in half-an-hour. I’ve already got people checking out the route so it won’t take long to set up.”

Twenty-five minutes later, Zen and the others headed for the elevator. John had arranged for Zen to be allowed onto the NYPD range at Rodman’s Neck. Miriam, John and Lieutenant Clark took turns instructing Zen on the different aspects of safety, care and use of firearms. In the next three hours, she practised with a pistol, a semi-automatic assault weapon and a shotgun. Each time Zen took a break, she watched as they showed the sort of accuracy and precision that they’d developed over the years. Although Zen was embarrassed by her skills, they all said she was doing exceptionally well for the first time.

By the time they headed back to the hotel, Zen was tired but feeling far less stressed. After a far more relaxed lunch than the day before, Zen dressed in another set of new clothes for the trip to the UN. Even though the police had cleared the streets of traffic, the number of people lining the way was easily ten times that of the day before, and most were hoping to get a look at Zen.

This time when she walked into the General Assembly’s conference area with Mr Morris, the room became quiet almost instantly. As she walked to the podium after the Secretary-General had introduced her, the room applauded and came to their feet. As she looked around Zen could see that while most were enthusiastic, the countries who were members of the Security Council were far less animated.

When the room went quiet, she said, “Thank you for that welcome. I appreciate the sentiment, but it shows the necessity of today’s meeting. If yesterday’s session could be considered the good news, then today’s is the bad. You see, while the data indicates that other intelligent species exist and that one day we might have the technology to visit the stars, it also points to the conclusion that this visit is not benign. My purpose today is to lay out the situation that faces our world. This will change the face of our world, both literally as well as any other meaning you could possibly apply. The evidence…”

The meeting had to be stopped dozens of times as the delegates yelled questions or became overly animated in their anger, confusion or distress. Finally, Zen finished what she’d planned. As before, Zen then answered the questions that had been asked. Just after six Zen finished answering the last question and although dozens more had come in the Australian Prime Minister stepped forward and took her place.

He said, “Delegates, I have made it clear to the Security Council that while Zen has outlined some possible actions that must take place if we are to be prepared for what is coming, it is now the responsibility of us, as the leaders of our nations, to step forward and make the hard decisions to keep our people and our planet safe. Zen and I are leaving in less than two days to head home. Many of you will still be in shock but let me suggest that you don’t have time to reflect for long before the things Zen outlined today begin to impact your lives.”

After arranging for another meeting to begin the next morning, the meeting was closed. This time the PM left with Zen and he shared her limousine back to the Plaza. After inviting her to a working dinner, he headed to his suite. When Zen was back in hers, she flopped on the sofa and said, “Yay, no more big meetings. Miriam, could I visit a toy shop tomorrow? I wanted to get something for Hal.”

Miriam looked at John, who started to shake his head, then said, “Let me see what I can organise.”

Zen smiled then went to get ready for dinner. As two of the US Rangers and one of her own security led her to the PM’s suite, she wondered who else would be there as he’d told her to dress fancy. Once inside, her guards seemed to disappear. With the PM was the Prime Minister of Japan and the UN Ambassadors of both Australia and Japan. After everyone was introduced, they sat and then the PM said, “Mr Prime Minister, thank you for accepting my invitation. From Zen’s reaction, you would have understood that she was not aware who my guests were. She hasn’t been asked to prepare for this meeting because I wanted you to hear her unfiltered responses. Please feel free to ask her anything about what she has shared in the last two days.”

The Japanese Prime Minister bowed his head, then asked a few basic questions before becoming specific on issues which impacted his country. The meeting paused briefly when the meal started, but throughout the evening the main participants were the Japanese guests and Zen. After the meal the guests thanked Zen for her presence, then let her leave while the two leaders talked. Back in her suite Zen looked through the messages and invitations and answered a few of the ones she thought might be important before heading to bed just before eleven.

* * *

Once again, she was awake at six, and after talking with her parents and Hal, she sat down for breakfast. One of the agents showed Phil into the suite as Zen was finishing breakfast. He said, “Sorry to disturb you, but the PM wanted me to thank you for last night. He wanted the Japanese to be prepared for more in-depth talks about the possibility of preparing several megacities for them on our mainland. In return, he’s hoping for help with the nuclear plants we need to build.”

“Good, I’m so glad you guys are moving quickly.”

“We’ve taken off at a run, that’s for sure. We still have numerous hurdles to get past before we can really get moving. Bits and pieces of what you said yesterday are already in the public arena, and there have been several riots and demonstrations overnight. They aren’t aimed at anything really but are just people running scared. You’d have thought people had learned, but no—there is already a worldwide buy-up of toilet paper and hand sanitiser. The PM was prepared though, and preparations had already been made and communicated to shopping centres and distributors. After dinner last night, a full spread of measures were announced back home to combat such behaviour. He’s had people working on how to keep people informed for the last few days, and we think it’ll work.”

“Yeah, Mum said he did a national broadcast explaining the situation.”

“He’s been talking with Cabinet and the shadow Cabinet constantly since we left Australia. Most of the legislation will have bilateral support, and he and the leader of the opposition will be making a joint statement to the nation Saturday morning. He’s called the nation to a Day of Prayer this coming Sunday. First thing Monday will see the roll-out of dozens of new initiatives.”

“I’d hoped we could move that fast, but never believed we could.”

“We’ve had people combing through your files as well as compiling petabytes more every day. So far, the evidence not only confirms your hypothesis, but it’s become evident that your anticipated increase in the effect of these gravitational pulses was almost certainly on the low side.”

“Can I see the data?”

“Of course, anytime you want to. Though, both the PM and I would suggest you wait till we get back home.”

“I don’t have much else to do here.”

“What would you be doing if you were home?”

“Probably getting ready for school and trying not to think about all the things that need to be done. Actually, by now I’d have given up on classes and be looking through the data trying to find what I’d missed. There’s always something that’s missed. Honestly, I’m glad you said to wait because part of me dreads what I might find. Space was always a big hobby for me. I knew it’d probably become a job when I grew up, but I mostly kept looking and learning just for fun. Over the last few months as I’ve considered the problem of the pulsar, the weight of what was happening had been creeping up on me. That was when I still didn’t really understand it. I’m almost afraid to take another look in the telescope in case I find something else.”

Zen’s voice had been getting softer, and Phil wasn’t entirely sure what was going on. Before he could say anything, Miriam, who had arrived in time for the last part of the conversation, stepped forward. She said, “Dr Bateman, you should know better than to discuss the state of the world with Zen before her security detail protection is in place to stop you hassling her. Fortunately, John and I have some things arranged to stop her dwelling on your dire conclusions.”

Phil nodded at the rebuke, then left the room to prepare for the morning meetings.

Chapter 5

Zen looked up at Miriam and said, “I’m OK, really. I’d rather be informed than uninformed. My dad always says that knowledge is the currency of life—on its own it’s not worth much, invested wisely, and the entire universe is open to you. The trick, he says, is working out where and how to invest it.”

“Your father is wiser than most. Even so, let’s leave Phil’s comments for the plane ride home. John will be here soon, and he’s arranged a visit to F.A.O. Schwarz, it’s a famous toy store here in New York. They’re used to having the occasional celebrity and have agreed to open for you at eight. The store usually opens at nine so you’ll have an hour uninterrupted. That means we leave here in ten minutes.”

“Won’t it be crazy with all the security?”

“It would be, yes. To prevent that, your so-called entourage will be leaving with the limo out the front and heading to Lower Manhattan as if you are going to see the Statue of Liberty.”

“We saw that when we were here last time. If we hadn’t, it might be worth it. I doubt it’ll last through the next two years. It wouldn’t surprise me if they try and move it. I hope they don’t.”

“Why on earth wouldn’t you want it preserved?”

“Because, for the cost and manpower required, they could save thousands of people by building more bunkers. This is what I was talking about. People don’t have time to waste on something as ephemeral as nationalistic nostalgia when actual people’s lives are at stake. Sure, pack up the books in the libraries, we’ll need them to rebuild. Bring the easy-to-carry art to stimulate our thinking during the decades we’ll be hidden away in bunkers. They should take their constitution without most of the idiotic commentary of the last few hundred years and let that serve to remind them of liberty if they need a reminder.”

“That’s a pretty advanced political critique from a sixteen-year-old.”

“Yeah, I know. We’re supposed to just stamp our feet and glare at you old people for ruining our lives instead of working out ways to make sure we have the futures we want for ourselves. Sorry, but the thing is I don’t trust most of you to make good decisions, so I’ll let my voice be heard while I start doing some of the heavy lifting myself.”

There was a knock on the door and John walked in. He gave a wan smile and said, “Everything’s organised. You’d best hurry and get changed, Zen, we need to leave in five minutes.”

Zen stared at him for a moment, then hurried to her room. Miriam said, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, sorry. I’m probably a bit tired. My mind was on something personal.”

“Um, OK. Let me check in with Dr Bateman then I’m ready to go.”

John nodded as Miriam stepped away and used her phone. She finished talking as Zen stepped from her room. Miriam said, “OK, let’s go.”

John led the way to the elevator, but instead of going to the basement, he went to the first floor. He then led them down a stairwell and out through a large service entrance where a truck was waiting with its back open. Once Miriam and Zen were inside, John closed the doors and made his way to the passenger seat. There were several comfortable seats with seatbelts in the rear container for Miriam and Zen. From the Plaza to the Rockefeller Centre was only one mile and the trip took five minutes. Once they were in the centre’s garage, John let them out, and they were joined by three more Secret Service agents, four rangers and three more of Miriam’s detail.

One of the Secret Service agents led the way through to the underground loading dock for F.A.O. Schwarz and then into the store. Zen had a pretty good idea what she wanted and knew she had an almost unrestricted luggage allowance. In the end, she bought gifts for the next few years. As she’d been choosing the different gifts she’d had to rely on John’s advice more than Miriam’s, as Miriam had been on the telephone for most of the time. When Zen was paying, Miriam turned to John. She said, “Phil and the Prime Minister have decided to head back to Australia early. I’d like to arrange for us to go straight from here to the airport. My agents are already packing Zen’s things.”

“Why the sudden change in plans?”

“There are several reasons, most of which I really am not allowed to share, sorry.”

John stared at Miriam for a few moments, then nodded and said, “I’ll arrange for the cavalcade to be waiting at the Plaza. We’ll go straight from the basement.”

Miriam just nodded and turned away to watch Zen. When Zen joined them a few minutes later, she looked between them for a moment then said, “What’s up? The tension is turned up a bit high.”

Miriam said, “The PM has decided to leave immediately. I have agents packing your things as we speak. We’ll go from here straight to the airport.”

“Um, OK. Can you ask them to get the electronic device in the air-vent above my bed? Ask them not to disconnect anything but bring the whole thing. There is also one under the comfy chair in the large lounge area, the one I used. It’s slipped inside the frame.”

Miriam raised her eyes and said, “What do these electronic devices do?”

“This and that, well, mostly that. That being a euphemism for being used as storage devices.”

“Storage for what?”

“Data.”

“What data needs to be hidden in the air-vent?”

“It wasn’t full of data when it went into the air-vent.”

“And it is now?”

“Almost. It’s still downloading this and that.”

“Downloading?”

“Yeah, this and that.”

“Where is this information coming from?”

“The air vent. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have put it there.”

“Are you going to tell me?”

“Not planning on it. You’d probably want to share a lot of moralising sound-bites, and I don’t need the aggravation.”

“So you are stealing data?”

“That is an erroneous statement. This device doesn’t steal data in any way, shape or form. All the data it is collecting is already is in my possession.”

“Then why is it in the air-vent?”

“I may have slipped out of my room when people weren’t watching and placed a relay antenna on the roof with a cable running through the vent. It gives a clear signal and lets me collect my data easily without having to use the hotel wifi.”

“May have?”

“I’m not admitting to any actual crimes.”

“How is leaving a crime?”

“I may have had to sneak through the suite next to mine to get out.”

“That is the PM’s suite.”

“I know. He snores terribly, and the agents aren’t anywhere as diligent as you guys.”

“Where is this data from?”

“Here and there?”

Miriam thought for a moment then said, “Would it be from half a million ‘here and there’s?”

“No comment.”

“You said you didn’t steal it.”

“No, I said I wasn’t stealing it with this device. This device collects and sorts information. I’ve not said anything about the source of the information. I said it is already in my possession and is being collated in the air-vent.”

“And the one in the chair?”

“It’s more of the this than the that.”

“More actively illegal.”

“No comment.”

“You can’t just go around stealing data.”

“Of course you can. Governments and companies steal data all the time. Google, Facebook, Tik Tok, banks, government agencies. Everyone takes more than you give them. They use it to fleece, manipulate and control people every day. Most people have no problem with others knowing stuff about them as long as it is used to pander to their appetites for information, safety, gadgets, merchandise and special deals. My rather tenuous ethical justification is that it isn’t fair that I have to compete with organisations who have greater access to data than I do. All I’m doing is levelling the playing field on my terms.”

Miriam looked to John for support, but he was trying hard not to laugh. “Zen, we will discuss this when we get airborne.”

“OK. I suspect it’ll be interesting to listen to a Mossad agent’s ethical take on information gathering and who can and cannot do it.”

This was too much for John, and he burst out laughing as Miriam tried hard not to blush. She was saved by Zen, who said, “Why are we leaving?”

“I’ll explain on the plane.”

“Can I try and guess?”

“You can say what you want to. I won’t confirm or deny anything until we are in the air.”

“Cool. I play this with my teachers all the time. It’s been the source of several suspensions. Stop me at any time. Let’s see, it has something to do with John because he was out of sorts when he arrived and you’ve been on the phone since then. It’s not personal, because he’s too professional for that. I suspect it was his way of warning you without saying anything because he can’t legally say anything. He’s conflicted because he has promised to protect me. He also likes you. He knows about what is happening but doesn’t really agree with it, but he’s a good soldier slash secret agent. For us to leave, it has to do with their government. It isn’t aimed at us, or John wouldn’t have said or done anything. You know what it is because you contacted Mossad who, by the way, is even better at stealing information than I am.

“Nothing has hit the news, but it will within the next news cycle, so we are leaving straight away. We won’t be detained, so again, it isn’t aimed at us and most likely not at other countries, so it is internal. My guess is the President has finally decided things are serious and is going to do something stupid that will cause panic and mayhem. Wow, both of you are not saying anything really loudly, which means I’m on the money. I mean that, literally, ‘I am on the money’. When the dollar crashes, I should make a packet. Let’s face it, for the leader of a country, he is so unpredictably predictable. Want me to guess what he is going to do?”

John said, “No. Not out loud. If you must guess, then guess quietly in the privacy of your mind.”

“John, do you want me to do anything about it?”

“There isn’t anything that you can do at this stage. Please, that is not a challenge. Even if you could, then my job is to support my leaders, and I would have to stop you.”

“Not as far as I understand your oath. I thought you promised to defend your constitution. It isn’t a long document, and it really isn’t that hard to understand. Even the amendments aren’t that hard to understand, although some seem kind of against the whole vibe of the original. It’s all the added commentary that seems designed to confuse people. I’d guess that whatever is happening isn’t in line with it or what’s being organised or proposed wouldn’t really bother you.”

“Zen, let it go. In this, you are too smart for your own good.”

“That is such a stupid saying. How can you be too smart for your own good? What that means is you think I’m not smart enough to weigh up the pros and cons and choose a suitable response. Smart people make judicious and wise choices. Stupid people act and speak out of turn. Still, it’s your country, so I’ll let it go. Let’s go, Miriam, I’m ready to go home.”

As she walked away to lean against a wall, she took out her phone and started typing away. John turned to Miriam and said, “Did she just smile sweetly and then outright lie to my face?”

“Probably. Her sense of right and wrong is heavily skewed in the direction of whatever she wants to do is right. Not that she doesn’t have a moral compass, she does. It’s just a bit temperamental and points where she wants it to. You know she’s right about this.”

“It isn’t that easy.”

“Not for you or me. I’m realising that we have years of dealing with political necessities and we can’t see the big picture with any real clarity anymore. For her, it probably is that easy. She just asks herself if what is being planned will help save or prepare people so they can fight the aliens or will it add to the death and chaos. We see everything as a heavily nuanced and highly filtered multicoloured picture. She sees it in black and white, and the outcome is usually boolean. Is it good, leave it alone or support it. Is it bad, stop it or kill it. Look what she did to China. You and I both know that what is planned is wrong. We’re just fooling ourselves if we say anything else.”

John glanced over at Zen then in a low voice, said, “He’s backed into a corner. Zen ruined any chance he had to leave office on his own terms. It’s his final term, and after the last few days his numbers have tanked to the lowest level of any sitting President, and that says a lot. This way, he may even have a shot at keeping the job.”

“John, all that does is emphasise how wrong it is. He’s basically walking away from the few values he actually had that were admirable. Don’t even think of blaming Zen for what’s happening. She didn’t initiate her kidnapping or force his hand except to set herself free.”

John was saved from responding when he got a call through his earpiece saying everything was ready for their departure.

Chapter 6

Zen looked away from her phone briefly as they walked to the truck for the trip back to the Plaza. Once she was sitting in the truck, she took out her laptop and kept working. Back at the Plaza, the limousine and rangers were waiting in the basement. Everything was packed, and roadblocks were in place for the trip back to the airport. Zen checked her storage devices had been brought then ignored everything while she kept trawling through information on her laptop.

Both John and Miriam were in the limousine with Zen, but neither could see what was on the screen. Several times they’d tried to start a conversation, but Zen had ignored them. As they approached JFK International Airport where the Australian Airforce Airbus A330 was waiting, she tapped the trackpad on her laptop then closed it. Looking over at John, she said, “You’ve got mail.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“You’ve got mail. It’s a line from some old movie my parents watch when they’re feeling all romantic, not that I’m feeling romantic even a little bit. I guess you’re younger than them, so it probably has no relevance. I sent you an email. It isn’t to your usual account. Go to Zenobiwandrakoni.com and log in using your social security number as ID and the name of the girl you went to prom with as the password. It won’t show up on your browsing history. If you need to send me something, then you can use the account.”

John was going to open his phone when Miriam said, “Use mine. I know Zen is good but let’s be extra careful if she isn’t prepared to speak the message aloud.”

John nodded, then used Miriam’s phone to open the webpage. He said, “Do you want her name in lowercase?”

“Either is fine. Adding spaces is up to you. You can add her middle name or even call her by the nickname she had in your final year. The only name that won’t work is if you had some special soppy nickname you used when you were alone.”

John typed in the information and saw he had one message in the inbox. He opened it, then looked up to stare at Zen. “Is this legit?”

“Yes. It was issued at six-thirty this morning.”

Miriam reached for the phone, but John held it close for a moment before finally letting it Miriam take it from his hands. Miriam read the document then said, “Zen, how did you get this?”

“I hacked the FBI. When I was talking to the Director, I added a ferret to his files. It sent me a flash copy of his phone’s security protocols. Before crashing his system, it migrated from his server to the main server and has been collecting information. I hadn’t got around to looking at it until you said we were leaving straight away. It took a while to decode the security protocols, but there was enough data to break the first layer of the FBI’s server. The ferret not only collects data but has been finding a way to escape. It was almost through the final layer when I accessed it. Once I was connected, it gave me access to heaps of stuff.”

“This isn’t FBI, this is Homeland.”

“Yeah.”

“How did you get their stuff?”

“No comment. I can justify breaking into the FBI because they tried to mess with me. Homeland is a different story and requires some creative ethical-manoeuvring on my part.”

Miriam turned to John and said, “What will you do?”

“No idea. There isn’t much I can do. I’m pretty sure I can fight the charges outlined here and I know I’ve done nothing against my oath, duty or country. I’d usually be confident to fight any and all charges but with everything going on, a charge of ‘Treason’ will be fought on emotion more than fact.”

Zen said, “You are the scapegoat. They need a fall guy for what’s happened over the last few days.”

Miriam said, “You could come with us.”

John looked up sharply, but Zen said, “He can’t. We wouldn’t get out of US airspace, and when we were stopped, he’d be taken into custody. The trial wouldn’t need to resort to lies. They’d condemn him on the fact that he ran. He really only has two options. He can agree to be the fall guy for the administration and the reason for their extraordinary actions, or he can escape in-country and have the same label. His name has already been added to several of their watch-lists. Personally, I’d recommend trying to escape.”

John smiled and said, “Thanks for the honesty, Zen. Truth is I won’t get off the island. I could hide, but with a charge of ‘Treason’ they’ll extend the hunt, and I don’t have your skills. I could fight it out, but I’m not sure I’m willing to shoot cops or agents just doing their job.”

“I can think of a way if you believe that document will lead to a conviction and you want to escape.”

“How?”

“I’ll make another deal with the devil.”

“You mean Ivanov?”

“Yes.”

“What do you have to trade?”

“Information.”

“What information?”

“Private information. If you do get caught, then I’m in enough trouble already without telling you everything I know. This way, they can’t squeeze it out of you.”

John shook his head and said, “No. Sorry, but I won’t do anything to help someone like that.”

“I’m going to make a deal with him anyway. All I’ll be doing is asking for an extra favour.”

“Why would you help someone like that? He is a monster. I looked at some of what they think he’s a part of and it is sick. Your friend was right when he said Ivanov was evil.”

“He is a monster, and I expect he’ll keep doing horrible things in the days to come. I’m using him because he can help me acquire certain things I might need. I want him to owe me in case I need something else when things are harder to get. There are other reasons, but you don’t need to know them either. Now, do you want help or not?”

John sat there quietly as the car was waved through a gate for diplomats. As they approached the plane, he finally said, “OK, I’ll accept help, but I want Miriam listening in to the conversation.”

Zen rolled her eyes and said, “Deal.”

Zen opened her laptop and using a virtual phone dialled Kirill Ivanov. This time when the phones were connected, Ivanov spoke in Russian and said, “Olezka, speak.”

Zen spoke in Russian and said, “Hello Mr Ivanov, this is Zen Drakos again. I apologise for using your colleague’s number, but I needed a number you knew.”

“Ah, Ms Drakos. I have kept my promise, and although you are about to leave earlier than expected, you have been kept safe. I have kept my word. Now, to what do I owe the pleasure of this call?”

“Business. I have some information for you. In exchange I would like a marker for significant help sometime in the future should I need it and a small favour to be done immediately.”

“Once again, you intrigue me. You are almost at your aircraft and soon will be out of reach. How can we discuss this?”

“As before, I will give you the information and trust in what you call honour. You can decide if it is worth our continued relationship. All I ask is that you give me your word to evaluate the information honestly. If it is worth something, then you will acknowledge a debt.”

“Is it of the same scale as before?”

“For the world, no. For you personally, probably more so.”

“Then you have my word Zhenyi Hypatia Drakos. Do not play me false.”

“Go to бтзбы.рф and using your INN number as the ID and Dalia’s mother’s name and birthday as the password. Dalia’s birthday, not her mother’s. There are several email for you. Please call back on the number in the last email if we have a deal.”

As Zen hung up, the car came to a stop near the plane. Miriam gave orders for their luggage to be loaded and said they would wait in the car while some of the detail did a final security sweep of the inside. It was ten minutes before Zen’s laptop showed an incoming call.

Zen tapped the touchpad to answer the call, then said, “Do we have a deal?”

Kirill’s voice was cold and almost harsh as he answered, “We do. I acknowledge a debt. What is the favour?”

“The head of my Secret Service detail is being set up to take the fallout for some of what is happening. I’d appreciate you helping him get safely out of New York.”

There was a protracted silence, then Kirill said, “I will send a return email with two locations where he will find sanctuary and assistance. You understand if this is a ploy against me, then I will take the appropriate action.”

“I understand.”

Kirill hung up, and Miriam told John what had been said. Less than a minute later Zen received an email which she sent to the address she’d set up for John. She said, “I sent that to the same email account as before. If you change your mind, then all I ask is that you delete the email before reading it.”

John nodded, and the three sat in silence until Nakul gave the all-clear. John was first out then waited as Miriam exited followed by Zen. When Zen stepped out, she stepped close and gave John a brief hug and said, “I’m sorry for the trouble I’ve caused.”

John hugged her back, then said, “Don’t be. If nothing else I can boast I actually got to talk with the one-and-only Zen Drakos. Before, I asked you to let it go and I know you haven’t, and I just want to say I think you are right to want to do something, so go for it.”

Zen smiled and said, “Thank you. I won’t say anything, but if I were you, I’d be prepared for the shit to hit the fan soon after we are in International waters.”

John nodded imperceptibly then led the way to the stairs leading to the front of the plane. Zen walked up without acknowledging him again, but Miriam turned and put out her hand and said, “Good working with you, John. I’m pretty sure we won’t meet again, but that will be one of my deepest regrets. It’d have been good to get to know you better.”

John shook Miriam’s hand and said, “Me too, Miriam, me too.”

Miriam turned quickly and headed up the stairs. John waved to the other agents and together they formed a circle around the plane as they waited for the Prime Minister to arrive. The airforce steward showed Zen to the same seat as before, and she sat and opened her laptop and began typing furiously. Miriam stood in the aisle and watched Zen for a minute, taking care not to look at the screen. She then reached over and closed the security screen and said, “Let me give you some privacy until it is time to take off.”

Zen looked up and smiled, then kept typing.

Miriam had several additional agents take position between the back of the aircraft, where the reporters and ancillary staff were, and the front section. Almost as soon as the reporters were seated Miriam was told the Prime Minister, Dr Bateman, the Defence Minister and Ted had all arrived. As Miriam pulled back the privacy screen from Zen, Zen said, “Miriam, would it be best to change our flight plan before we take off? Perhaps we shouldn’t go via Hawaii. Do you think I could suggest we go via Europe?”

Miriam said, “Maybe you should discuss the action you are taking with the Prime Minister? You understand that he knows something and that’s the reason we are leaving.”

Zen shook her head and said, “I understand, but I’m also aware he needs deniability just in case something can be salvaged from this mess. I could talk obliquely with Phil, I suppose. If the Prime Minister overheard our conversation, that is his business, but I need to be able to swear that I didn’t discuss anything with him.”

Miriam nodded then said, “Wait here. I’ll go see if you can have a few words with Dr Bateman.”

Zen nodded, and Miriam made her way forward to where the Prime Minister and Phil were talking. When there was a break in the conversation, Miriam said, “Excuse me, Dr Bateman, Zen has a few things she wanted to be clarified before we left. Are you free if she comes and talks with you?”

“Let me come back to my seat and we’ll let the Prime Minister get settled.”

“I think she’s concerned who might listen in on the conversation. She’d be happier I think to trust that only those up here have that opportunity. She knows those near you won’t really listen to things they aren’t supposed to.”

Miriam had let her eyes focus on the prime Minister, so Phil said, “Ah, well, in that case, let’s use the Prime Minister’s small lounge area. No one will be able to overhear what she has to say up there. I’ll have the area double checked while you get Zen.”

Miriam nodded and went to get Zen.

Chapter 7

Phil was waiting when Zen and Miriam arrived. Miriam stepped out of the small room and stood guard. Zen couldn’t see the Prime Minister but knew he was in his small bedroom. The door had been left open. Phil said, “What did you need to discuss, Zen?”

“This and that. Just musings if you like. I was wondering if maybe we could go home via Japan or Europe instead of through Hawaii?”

“I suspect you know why we are leaving, even though I was pretty specific that you weren’t to be told.”

“I may have worked things out. I’m pretty good at reading people and drawing random conclusions.”

“Then you know we are just taking precautions. We have nothing to fear by landing in Hawaii.”

“Maybe, maybe not. Can I give you a totally hypothetical situation and see if you can understand how I could be concerned?”

Phil put his head in his hands and said, “I think I’m going to need a drink, and I know I’m going to have a headache.”

He lifted his head, then said, “OK, what is the hypothetical situation?”

Zen nodded and looking away from Phil said, “Suppose that a country decided to do something stupid like be proactive the wrong way. What if the government had super-secret lists of citizens? These citizens owned lots of guns and had stored up provisions for when trouble hit and didn’t conform readily to all the dumb politically correct narrative. Now, what if the government was going to send out its goons to seize those guns and the extra supplies? The government will then have more stuff to use for the sheep they are going to corral in big camps to use as mindless labour to build what they needed to have to survive. Now, suppose someone had a way of letting all those prepared people know in advance they were about to be gathered up so their resources could benefit the country as a whole. I suspect if someone actually did let the people know what was happening, then the government might not be happy. It’d be dumb for that person to be in an airplane that landed where the government could get at them, right?”

Phil said nothing for almost thirty seconds before saying, “Suppose that person just waited until they were somewhere safe before sharing the information?”

“That’s a good idea, but what if they knew it was already almost too late and if they didn’t do something in the next hour, then many of those people would be caught and probably killed? Do you think that person could live with themselves?”

Phil was quiet as he tried to think through the options. Mr Morris stepped into the room and said, “No, Zen, they couldn’t. Not if they were someone of integrity. Phil, get the flight plan changed. Zen, if you send out the information now, will the government be aware before we get to International waters?”

Phil said, “Sir, I respectfully suggest you leave this conversation to Zen and myself.”

“No. If I ever get questioned on this, I want to be able to own it. Now Zen, if you send out the information now, will the government be aware before we get to International waters?

“I suspect they’ll know it went out, but I doubt they’ll connect the dots in time. I’ve isolated as many of the people they use as spies as I can, but I’ll have missed some.”

“Let the groups know who the spies are.”

“Um, yes sir, I’ve already arranged that.”

“Good. Then go ahead and save those wolves. They’ll be needed in the days to come, and even if they aren’t, then it is still the right thing to do.”

Zen nodded and slowly got to her feet. The Prime Minister said, “Zen, thank you for trying to protect us, but if we are to survive, we all need to own our actions. You shouldn’t feel you have to bear the weight of decisions like that on your own. Is there anything else I need to know?”

“Yes, but I’ve already taken the action.”

“Will you tell me?”

“I’d rather not, sir. It still has to play out, and honestly, it’s something you really need to have absolute deniability about.”

Steven Morris looked at her then said, “Fair enough, I would like you to tell Phil though just in case something happens to you.”

Zen nodded and left the room followed by Phil. Once in the aisle, Phil said, “I’ll arrange for a change of flight plan, then we’ll talk. OK?”

Zen nodded and turned to go but was stopped as Phil put his hand on her forearm. He said, “Thank you for the way you handled that. He’s in a difficult position, and you showed a lot of wisdom.”

With a slight nod, he let Zen know that was all and then he let her head back to his seat. Thirty minutes later, the plane took off headed for London. Once the plane had levelled out, one of Phil’s detail came back and said, “Excuse me, Ms Drakos, Miriam. Dr Bateman was hoping you might join him in the forward planning room.”

Zen said, “What if I see him first and then Miriam?”

Miriam shook her head and said, “Nope. I gather you know what this is about, so come on.”

“It’s all about deniability, Miriam.”

“Come on, whatever you do I will probably get blamed for anyway. They all think I should somehow be able to guide you, but the truth is most of the time I’m playing catch up.”

Once Zen and Miriam were sitting opposite Phil, the door was closed. He said, “OK, what did you do that the PM isn’t allowed to know about?”

“There was a warrant out for John’s arrest on the charge of Treason. I showed him the warrant and arranged a way for him to get out of New York if he wanted it.”

“Good. The Prime Minister shouldn’t know that we helped a fugitive. What else? From the inscrutable look on Miriam’s face, you coloured way outside those lines you’ve just drawn. Who did you arrange to help him?”

“Kirill Ivanov.”

“Ah, not only did you go outside the lines, but you used a black permanent marker. What did you give him for his help?”

“Plans I stole from Homeland. They’ve a plan to decapitate or control the main groups with any real power in organised crime. They had plans to kidnap Daria and another to kill Mr Ivanov. They’ve information that one of his lieutenants is willing to take over if Mr Ivanov disappeared or was not willing to cooperate. I gave him the information in exchange for a future debt. Helping John was just a side-favour.”

Phil just stared at her for a moment, then said, “Did you give him everything you have on him?”

Zen shook her head but said nothing.

“Why involve him? Even I can think of other things you might have done to help John.”

Finally, after the silence had dragged out and become almost uncomfortable, Zen said, “Well, it depends, how much further can I push the envelope before you start getting worried and want to lock me away?”

“Zen, for your safety and for what you have to offer, I want you locked away in the deepest, safest place I can find. As for pushing the envelope and making me worried, well, you have shown a distinct disregard for the legal process and our society’s lawful conventions. Having said that, you’ve usually had a solid moral foundation for what you’ve done. I’m a little worried at what you might do because I’m not as convinced as you are that the ends always justify the means you use. Kirill Ivanov is an immoral and evil man, and doing business with him is wrong from almost any angle I can think of. I understand why you used him to stay safe, and I can rationalise that away, but I’m struggling to know how his freedom is ever going to be a good thing. Having said that, I’ve found that you so far you have had a good reason for what you’ve done. Can you explain this?”

Zen looked at Miriam and said, “What do you think?”

“I have the same problem. I didn’t stop you because I still can’t think of any other way to get John the help he needs. Even saying that makes me cringe when I think of what I know Ivanov has done. I know I should have stopped you.”

“I was going to do it anyway. I’d already set it in motion. John was just the icing.”

Phil said, “OK, let’s leave John out of it. Why were you going to help Ivanov?”

Zen pursed her lips then nodded, having made a decision. She said, “He has a diverse criminal portfolio. In the long term, things like human-trafficking, child-prostitution and sex-trafficking will remain a part of organised crime. Still, in the short term, he’ll move away from those areas because his transport corridors will dry up. He’ll also struggle to maintain his current access to drugs. That won’t bother him too much because in the end people will pay more with the decreased supply and the demand is going to increase with the changing situation.

“Homeland had no plans to stop these activities, they only wanted to control them. All the white-collar, cyber and financial crime will mostly stop as the full weight of what is happening hits. He’ll morph those areas into finding influence in the newer structures being set up like the mega-cities. I suspect there will be a lot to be gained if you can help people navigate to the safest places, or if you can get some influence over something like the food supply lines into a major complex.

“I may not have been fully open about the extent to which I infiltrated his computer system when I mentioned I cloned his phone. I may have left a few small bits of apparently random code that gives me some ongoing access. What I do know is he’s a very astute businessman and has already been making some large changes in his organisation. He’s pulled money and personnel from most of his operations except drugs and one other. It’s in that other one that he’s invested a lot of money in to expand it, he’s pulled in a lot of favours. I don’t think he’s thought everything out quite well enough, but that’s only because I have more information than he does.”

Zen stopped for a drink, and Phil said, “Zen, OK, I’ll bite. What is he getting involved in?”

Before Zen could say anything Miriam did, “Arms. That’s what I’d do if I wanted to take advantage of what’s happening. I’d look to supply arms to people prepared to pay with information, influence and whatever else becomes the new currency. He’ll be able to sell to nation-states instead of tribal warlords.”

Zen nodded and said, “Yeah, he’s already siphoned thousands of tonnes of weapons from legit and illegitimate groups, businesses and armies throughout Russia, the US and Europe. What he’s missed is that he doesn’t have access to the transport infrastructure to move most of what he has. He doesn’t yet know he’ll need something different than what he’s been using. In the end, he’ll need to approach organised crime groups in Greece because a large percentage of the world’s merchant maritime fleet is in Greek hands. By the time he does realise this, the leaders in the Greek mafia will have a stranglehold on most of the illegal shipping.”

Phil nodded and said, “So how does this help you? Or us?”

“Homeland also has plans for dealing with some of the larger Greek families like the Velentzas and the Philadelphia Greek Mob. These guys have connections back home in Greece. I may have asked people I know in Greece to arrange for some favours in the future should I need them in exchange for the Homeland plans. If I, or we, need arms then we have both a supplier and a supply chain who owe me a favour or two.”

As Phil sat stunned, while Miriam started chuckling. Finally, Phil pulled himself together and said, “Thank you for sharing, Zen. I think you are correct that the Prime Minister does not need to know this. I’d appreciate it if you let me know before using this supply chain just in case I needed anything added to the order.”

“Sure. He’s also contacted some vory in Australia. He’s asked for a big push to find a method to acquire uranium or a stake in its production. We have a lot, and we’ve been cheapskates in using what we have. That’s going to change, and he wants in on what he thinks will be a very marketable product.”

Phil sat back, and after a few seconds of silence said, “Now that I needed to know. I’ll forgive everything else for that piece of knowledge. Do you have their names?”

Zen nodded then said, “You’ll have to get at them obliquely. If you do anything too direct he’ll put the pieces together. He’s crazy smart. He made a killing off the Russian stock exchange with only a few hours head start.”

Phil nodded and said, “Oblique it is. From what I heard, I suspect you also cashed in.”

“Yeah, but with far less principal. He moved billions. I had a lot less to play with.”

“Did you beat him at net percentage gain?”

“Yes.”

Phil just shook his head and then stood to end the meeting. As they left, he stopped Miriam for a second and when Zen was out of hearing, he said, “How much will you tell the Mossad?”

“As much as I can without even hinting at Zen’s involvement. They’ll probably make the connection, but it will be supposition only. I think that keeps within the guidelines of our agreement.”

“It does. I just wanted you to be extra careful to keep Zen’s name out of it. Everyone will be gunning for her, and your bosses are in tight with the US. They’ll connect her to everything she’s done even without the footprints. What she did to the Chinese made sure of that.”

“They won’t countenance what’s happening at the moment.”

“Neither will they speak against it. We both know they will do anything necessary to save your people and to protect your land. Their ethical boundaries are far looser than Zen’s when it comes to meeting those goals. I know I’m being brutally honest, but you need to tell me if you are fully committed to Zen’s safety over whatever may come. If not, then now is the time to step aside and not when you are being pressured to compromise that for the sake of your people.”

Miriam opened her mouth to speak, but Phil put up his hand and stopped her. He said, “Think it through. Let me know before we get to London. If you can’t commit, then we’ll leave you there so you can go back to your family. Another thing to consider is that I can’t guarantee you’ll be able to find a way home in six months when the secondment is over. If you need out, then this is the best time to do it. It’s clean and decisive before you know too much and before Zen gets too attached.”

Miriam nodded as she walked slowly back to sit near Zen.

Chapter 8

Even before the plane left JFK, the Homeland server had sent out several hundred email to some new accounts Zen had created. When they arrived, the various documents Zen had attached to each of the Homeland email were added to a short summary email that Zen had written. These were sent via email or text to almost a million email accounts and cell phones. The documents were broad sweeping warrants for the seizure of weapons, ammunition and excess food, medicine and other essentials which had been collected for use in emergencies.

Zen had used the homeland databases to collect information specific to each person and used search functions and macros to tailor the data to each recipient. The warrants were due to be executed as soon as the President began announcing a comprehensive range of measures in an address to the nation. The address was scheduled to start at midday in Washington DC, which gave those who were prepared almost two hours to decide to flee, fight, or hand over their supplies.

The databases were comprehensive, and Zen was able to identify thousands of people who had agreed to provide information for some form of extra privilege. She had no problem informing on them, although she would have been distressed to find that many of these were summarily executed by the groups they belonged to. In addition to the email sent to individuals, Zen sent templates of the warrants and seizure orders to the major news outlets. She included copies of the plans to implement sweeping new laws to force segments of the population into camps for protection and for use as labour in preparing for the aliens. These email she had on a timer and they would be sent five minutes before the President began his address to the nation.

As predicted, Zen missed several dozen 'spies'. These tipped off Homeland as to what had happened. Homeland hastily reworked the warrants to be executed immediately, only to find that their server had corrupted the files and most of the information was lost. The first set of back-ups failed immediately as the system they were retrieved from was connected to the central Homeland server. Altogether it was almost an hour later by the time the second set of back-ups were declared free of influence and were ready to re-issue the warrants.

When Homeland was alerted to the data breach, they included Zen's name as one of those who might have been involved. However, without any data even tenuously making the connection, they did nothing. By the time the first set of back-ups failed, Zen was in International waters. An hour later, the Homeland cyber-security unit found code they suggested was the signature of the hacker.

01010011 01010100 01000010 01011001

With this, Homeland issued a warrant for Zen's arrest on espionage charges. A copy of this warrant was sent to all their embassies as well as to international policing agencies such as Interpol. The President was told of Zen's involvement just minutes before he was to address the nation. Although he'd agreed to stick to the script of his speech, his personality was such that he couldn't stop himself publicly blaming Zen for what was happening.

As the hundreds of thousands of families and small groups did what they could to escape the agents assigned to arrest them and deprive them of their possessions, they were given the name of their rescuer by the one who'd planned to steal everything they'd prepared for the hard times. Steven Morris was listening to the address with Phil in the PM's private lounge on the airplane. Phil said, "That wasn't just an accusation. That had all the marks of certainty. If they have evidence, then we'll need to take care when we get to London. The US and the UK have a pretty strong extradition treaty."

"Yes. I'll contact Martin and have him convene an emergency meeting of the Cabinet including Aaron Abbott. I’ll ask him to move up the debate on how to utilise Zen. We were going to wait until everyone was more settled but we’ll do it now. I’d ask for bi-partisan support to appoint Zen as our Ambassador-at-large for Interstellar Affairs. Even if it is only temporary, it will give her diplomatic immunity until we get back to Australia. After that, go ask her how they pinned this on her. I'm pretty sure it was intentional on her part. I even suspect she probably took my statement of owning our actions to heart. I've two daughters and should know by now that they can make every word mean more than was ever intended."

* * *

John's team was ordered to a secure site for de-briefing. Seeing a Starbucks on the route, John asked to stop to get a coffee. After taking orders, he and another agent went to get the coffee. After ten minutes, one of the other agents went to see what was taking so long. They found the second agent handcuffed, gagged and restrained in the bathroom, he had a large bruise forming over his right eye and what looked like a broken nose. There was no sign of John at all.

When he was untied, Special Agent Axel Diago said that he and John were attacked when they went to use the bathroom and he didn't get a good look at those who took John, but they looked Asian. Orders were issued to find whoever had attacked the agents. Most forgot that Axel and John had been friends since they'd been in the same intake of people applying to work in the Secret Service.

* * *

When the aircraft was only an hour out of London, Phil came back to talk with Zen and Miriam. He said, "Zen, when we land we will go directly to Australia House. Even though it will be almost midnight, the Prime Minister has arranged for a small ceremony to be conducted before we retire for the evening. While we were in the air an extraordinary meeting of both houses of Parliament agreed to the appointment of Ms Zhenyi Hypatia Drakos as Australia's Ambassador-at-large for Interstellar Affairs. The Australian High Commissioner will be there, as will a representative of the Crown.

“The Governor-General has signed the appointment and suggested we have the ceremony here just to cross all the t's and dot the i's. Having said that, you are, as of twenty minutes ago, one of Australia's team of senior diplomats. As such you have diplomatic immunity and cannot be arrested although you could be deported. Mr Morris took this step to ensure your safety here in London and when we stop in Tokyo.

"While this is a way to keep you safe, it also makes sense. Whether you like it or not you can't just slip away into obscurity. This gives us something on which we can hang a variety of new measures we want to implement and in which we think you can make a real contribution. One of the first things you will need to do is to find yourself a staff. When we get back to Canberra, we will help you find the personnel you need."

Zen was staring at Phil with a look of horror. Finally, after what seemed to her like forever, she stammered, "No, you can't. I refuse."

Phil just grinned and said, "You can't. One of the first pieces of legislation passed was the Essential Personnel Act. This allows the government to appoint people to positions they are suited for even if it is against their wishes when it is deemed to be in the national interest. Another new piece of legislation was the reintroduction of the draft and of National Service. As a newly liberated sixteen-year-old adult, you have no choice but to enlist for a full year of military training and if necessary to serve at your country's pleasure. Let's face it, you were always going to have to deal with fame and the loss of anonymity.

"The only option to avoid the effect of these new laws would be to declare yourself a 'wolf', so to speak, and claim what we are calling ‘provisional-independence’ from the country. That would mean you agree that we have no responsibility to provide essential services for you from this point forward. We do accept the responsibility to help you source some of the essential resources you need to survive, resources such as weapons instruction and basic animal husbandry. You have three months to make such a declaration which then becomes binding. If you accept assistance for longer than three months, then you will be expected to help the national effort by serving two days for every day you were helped after those three months. I know I explained that very quickly, but as it was your suggestion I suspect you understand what I am saying.

"Now, Mr Morris understands the appointment as Ambassador-at-large for Interstellar Affairs will have greater significance as the aliens approach. He's agreed to grant leave from the position when your National Service starts in several weeks."

Zen was speechless and just stared at Phil. Phil turned to Miriam. He said, "If you could have Her Excellency Ms Zhenyi Drakos, the Australian Ambassador-at-large for Interstellar Affairs ready to depart as the PM leaves, that would be best. When we get to Australia House, there will be appropriate clothing ready and waiting. You will have about thirty minutes to get Her Excellency ready. She does have to be sworn in, so when she finds her voice, it would be good to have her practice what she has to say."

Phil then turned and headed back to the front of the plane. As he disappeared, Zen did find her voice. She turned to Miriam and said, "They can't do that. Why would they do that? I haven't even finished high school. Why would they do that to me? What have I ever done to them that makes them hate me so much? What do I know about being an ambassador? I don't want staff. I just want to study space."

As Zen took a breath, Miriam said, "I think it's a good fit. You said you wanted to have a say in your future and were ready to do some heavy lifting. Here is the opportunity to step up. Let's face it, no one knows more about these aliens than you. No country is being as forward-thinking as Australia. You have a chance here to help set the course. Look, most people will see this as a stunt to help move things along and to keep you safe. If you treat it with disrespect, then it will end up being just that, a stunt. I suggest you see it as an opportunity to move things in the right direction. Embrace it.

"From what I've seen, I doubt Mister Morris sees it is a stunt. He's taken what you've had to say and hit the ground running. He really needs all the support he can get because we both know that once this thing has momentum, then people will forget about working together. They'll start making a play for power. Six months from now and every setback will be thrown in his face as the nasty side of politics takes over. I assure you that while the opposition is giving its support at the moment, that will change as soon as it thinks it has a chance to change the narrative. From what you've said, I suspect the rate of change that is needed will be at least as great in six months as it is now. We need people prepared to put their own agendas aside, isn't that what you've been advocating?"

Zen had taken some deep breaths while Miriam had been talking and finally slumped back in her chair and just nodded. It wasn't until the airplane was on its final approach to RAF Northolt that Zen was able to pull herself out of the funk she was in. She realised she had no real option except to accept the position. Phil was right in saying this was what she'd advocated. Zen knew that individuals had to be prepared to put aside their own plans if they wanted to meet the group goals. The broader goals had to be met if they were to survive as a country, or more importantly, as a species. Having come to a decision, she started thinking of ways she could use her appointment to help achieve all that needed to be done.

Chapter 9

As Zen and Miriam approached the front door of the airplane to disembark, one of the stewards handed Zen an envelope. He said, “Ambassador Drakos, the High Commissioner sent this for you. It was waiting when we arrived. It is your new diplomatic passport. Dr Bateman said you need to keep it with you at all times. The Metropolitan Police have been informed of your status, as have all branches of the UK law enforcement. The US has issued a warrant for your arrest and this ensures you have freedom to travel with the PM.”

Zen cringed a little at the way she was addressed but took the envelope, and after thanking him, she put it in her backpack and followed Nakul down the stairs. There was a limousine waiting, and Miriam waited until Zen was inside before stepping away to get an update of what was happening in London. When the announcement of the possible approach of aliens had been made, tens of thousands had taken to the streets of London either to party or to want answers. While Zen and the others were in the air, the news had leaked some of the dangers that accompanied the visit. This had led not only to an increase in the number of people on the street but for some, it was an excuse to riot.

Most of central London had been closed to vehicles and police had finally got things mostly under control. However, there were plans for a larger gathering the next day. The PM’s cavalcade had been granted permission to enter the no-drive zone, and police had been dispatched to accompany the vehicles. Instead of staying at the High Commission or Stoke Lodge, the High Commissioner’s residence, several suites had been booked at a nearby hotel, the ME London by Melia.

When the security detail was up to date, Miriam got in the vehicle with Zen which followed the Prime Minister’s vehicle out of the airport. On the journey into central London, Zen and Miriam sat in silence until Miriam said, “Are you going to tell your folks?”

Zen shook herself, and as she took out her phone, she said, “Yeah, thanks. I’m still thinking about what you said and forgot.”

Ten minutes later, she hung up and said, “Mum’s so proud, and dad’s trying to work out how I can get out of it. Hal just wants me to get home soon. Mum said the morning news reported there was going to be a special announcement by the PM at eight-thirty so I need to tell Sahara, so she isn’t surprised.”

Miriam just smiled and nodded. As Zen called Sahara, Miriam considered how easily Zen seemed to have recovered her composure and wondered if she should worry.

Being late the roads were mostly clear, and they made good time until, as they approached central London, they moved off the pre-planned route. Miriam told Zen to crunch down and lie flat on the seat until she knew what was happening. Miriam received an explanation almost immediately and said, “You can sit up now. There’s been a change of venue. The ceremony is still going ahead but not at Australia House. They had to change the location for safety reasons. The PM’s plane was identified by several reporters stationed outside Northolt, and there is a large crowd gathering outside the Australian High Commission. Security asked for a change of venue just to be on the safe side. The High Commissioner will bring the clothing they arranged.”

“You’re hiding something. What aren’t you telling me? Where are we going?”

“The Queen’s representative suggested they have it at his residence instead.”

“His residence!”

“Yes, apparently the Duke of Cambridge volunteered to host the ceremony. The UK Prime Minister suggested he take the opportunity to be briefed on what is happening directly, and Kensington Palace has several small function rooms that have the right setting. The accommodation has been changed to the Milestone Hotel. The Metropolitan Police Service has a Specialist Operations directorate, and they have a Royalty and Specialist Protection branch. They are aware of the threats against you and have added extra security at both Kensington Palace and the Milestone. They are the ones who insisted that the Duke and Duchess not travel to Australia House as planned.”

Zen slumped in her seat and said, “This day just keeps getting worse.”

Twenty minutes later the cavalcade entered the palace grounds. The Prime Minister’s limousine headed toward the front of the palace. At the same time, Zen’s made its way to a side entrance so Zen could get changed into more suitable clothing. Zen hadn’t expected anyone to be waiting for her, so after slipping her backpack over her shoulder, she trudged up the stairs without taking much notice of her surroundings. As she stepped inside, she looked up and froze. The duchess was standing there alone with only one bodyguard that Zen could see.

Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, said, “Ambassador Drakos, welcome to Kensington Palace. Let me show you to your apartment. Your dress has already arrived.”

Zen froze for a moment then said, “Your Royal Highness, Ma’am, please call me Zen. I am so sorry for arriving so late and for all the fuss.”

Duchess Catherine smiled and said, “It is no fuss at all. My husband and I wanted to meet you, and this seemed like a perfect opportunity.”

As she finished, she waved Zen forward to walk beside her and said, “Charlotte will be so impressed we got to meet you. She’s been asking questions about aliens and space all day and was asking when she could start learning capoeira.”

“Well, Ma’am, I have instructed some children as young as five, so I suspect she could begin immediately. An instructor would need to assess her fitness level and flexibility. Perhaps one of the other martial arts would be a better place to start.”

There was a slight pause, and then the duchess said, “You seem to think it is a good idea?”

“Yes Ma’am, it’s hard to project how the royal family’s role will play out in the next few years. The land here is geologically reasonably stable, and the fault lines are ancient so you may be able to find enough sites to build housing. However, from what I can tell the reality hasn’t yet sunk in that living openly on the surface isn’t really an option. Add to that the fact that as a country you import almost all your gas, coal and uranium means you will need to either stockpile fuel for decades or find something new.

“Even the best modelling I’ve done suggests you’ll lose upwards of forty million people to climate, famine or all the other things that are happening, and that is just in the next two years. If you don’t work out the supply issues, then it will be much worse. If her royal highness is to find a place in the new society, I suspect she will need to have skills that are needed, visible and valued. The royal family has always been a part of every war effort, and this one is the largest you will have ever faced.”

Zen had been looking ahead as she talked and hadn’t noticed the effect her speech was having on the duchess. As she finished, she looked up and saw the shock on Catherine’s face and said, “Oops, sorry. Um, Ma’am, please forgive me for being so blunt. Maybe I’ll just walk in silence, so I don’t keep putting my foot in it.”

Duchess Catherine blinked a few times and brought her face back under her control. She said, “That is quite alright, Zen. I asked the question. I had hoped to get a read on you before the ceremony, and I have definitely achieved that. Now, here is the apartment set aside for you to get changed. Is there anything you require?”

Zen looked in and saw a baby blue coloured evening dress lying on a large bed with some shoes. She said, “Thank you, Ma’am, but I think I have everything I need. At least this time they haven’t handed me a whole lot of makeup stuff. I needed to ask one of the Rangers to help.”

“I do apologise, Zen, but I understand the cosmetics have been placed on the dresser in the bathroom.”

“That is OK, Ma’am, it can’t be all that hard.”

The duchess smiled and said, “I will have someone come and help. The ceremony will begin in twenty minutes, so I will let you get ready.”

Zen stepped inside followed by Miriam. Zen said, “I put my foot in it, didn’t I?”

Miriam shook her head and said, “Not at all, if nothing else you may have saved the young princess’ life. The duchess heard the truth and realised it for what it was, and that can only be good for her and the country.”

Zen nodded then grabbed the dress and headed into the bathroom to get changed. Miriam called out, “Don’t forget the rest.”

Zen turned around to see packets of hosiery and underwear lying on the bed. They’d been hidden under the dress. Blushing she grabbed the packages and said, “When this is over we need to find somewhere to spar. If I don’t get to hit something soon, I’ll scream.”

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Zen was ready when Phil arrived with one of the palace employees and said, “Wow, Zen, you look great. Everything is ready. The ceremony is short, and except for one small change in plans, I think everything is good to go.”

“What change in plans?”

“I’ll tell you after the ceremony. I don’t want you to stress about it. This is being viewed live across Australia and in many places around the world. Your appointment was picked up by the early news broadcasts, and with everyone knowing you are with the PM, people want to hear what is going on. The US has already put out a statement strenuously objecting to your appointment and condemning you either as a terrorist or a spy depending on whether your actions were at the government’s direction. There have been riots in most major US cities throughout the day. The government is blaming you for releasing the information in a negative and untimely way instead of promoting the news as a measured and helpful first step to saving the nation.”

Zen followed Phil, and it wasn’t long until they reached the antechamber of a formal reception room. There were only one videographer and one photographer. After a few words from the Prime Minister, the Duke of Cambridge heard Zen’s oath of office and signed her letter of appointment on behalf of the queen to confirm Zen’s appointment.

After a few official photographs, the cameramen left. The duke turned to Zen and said, “Congratulations Ambassador Drakos on your appointment.”

“Thank you, Sir.”

“My wife was most appreciative of your straightforward conversation earlier. I look forward to having a similar conversation as it can be arranged.”

Zen smiled and was rescued by the Prime Minister. “Your Royal Highness, thank you for adding your presence to this occasion. Zhenyi is possibly confused by your comment as she has not been informed of the change in plans.”

There was a touch of ice in Zen’s response, “A change of plans, Mr Prime Minister?”

“Yes, Your Excellency, The Duke and Duchess have extended the invitation for you to stay here in the palace. Their security is already at a heightened level. It will be more comprehensive than what will be in place at the Milestone. Her Grace suggested the change and hoped you might join them for breakfast and meet their family. Apparently, Princess Charlotte would be most pleased.”

With just a touch of ice, Zen said, “I see. Thank you for explaining, Sir.”

As the small reception wound down, the duchess approached Zen and said, “Zen, would you join me in the family quarters for a moment? William and I wanted to ask a few questions, and Dr Bateman suggested you would give us the unvarnished truth. I understand it is late, but this will be our only opportunity to ask the questions and be certain the answers are fully honest and uncensored.”

“Of course, Ma’am.”

“Zen, as my guest, I insist you drop the Ma’am, and all the other titles. It is incongruous when you tell me my children will inherit a world so unlike what I expected and for which they are so poorly prepared. I am Kate.”

Zen smiled and said, “As you wish, Kate.”

Except for the three bodyguards in the room, Zen talked and answered questions with the duke and duchess for four hours. Then, after three hours’ sleep, she had breakfast with the family and then gave Princess Charlotte her first lesson in taekwondo. She was picked up just before ten and this time shared the limousine with the Prime Minister as they made their way to the airport.

Chapter 10

Once in the air, Zen slept for five hours, then checked her email and messages. She responded to her parents, grandparents and Sahara and ignored most of the others. She’d just finished responding to Sahara when the PM’s PA came and said, “Ambassador, do you have a few minutes free? The Prime Minister asked me to go over your government login and to begin a dialogue on what size staff you might need.”

Altogether Zen spent two hours talking through the different responsibilities and setting up the official connections. After agreeing to think about a press release, Zen went back to sit with Miriam. Miriam waited until Zen had sat down then asked, “Do you want to talk about it?”

Zen shook her head. “Thank you, but there isn’t much to say. How about you? I was glad you decided to stay.”

Miriam looked shocked, “Did Phil say something?”

“Not to me.”

“Then how did you know he said something?”

“I didn’t know until just then. It was a fishing expedition. You kept looking at him and me and going all thoughtful. I suspected he wanted to know where you stood. I could have asked directly, but sneaky is my usual first step.”

“Hmph, I’m trained to expect things like that, and you suckered me in. Phil asked how committed I was. It was the right thing to ask. The Mossad has its hooks in me, and that’s expected. I needed to work out if my commitment to your safety came first or not. I also had to think about my family. We are very close, and the thought of not seeing them again frightens me. The truth is I decided that keeping you alive is the best thing I can do for them.”

“Well. I’m not sure about that. I just had a talk about everything people expect of me, and it was overwhelming.”

“So, what will you do?”

“My dad loves those food challenges. He’ll try to eat a two-kilogram steak if he can get it for free. He’s pretty good and loves the t-shirts. Now, he generally hates moralising unless he’s the one doing it. Every time he succeeds at one of the challenges he says the way to beat something difficult is to attack it one bite at a time. I’ve a few hours now so I’ll look at what’s been happening with the research then try and work through the first bite.”

Four hours later, as the aircraft started its descent into Tokyo. Miriam was amazed at the focus that Zen had brought to bear on reviewing the material. Not only had she read the reports but she’d made pages of notes and diagrams. As Zen put the laptop away, Miriam said, “So, anything new to report?”

“Not really, it was pretty much more of the same although it does look like my predictions were short of the mark. No one has mentioned the time scale yet, which either means they haven’t really understood the hypothesis or they’ve been told to keep some things secret. It seems stupid not to tell people, but I’ll need to at least ask Phil and Ted what the deal is before I blab.”

“Ask me what?”

Zen looked across to Phil, who was actually in his assigned seat for the first time she could remember. She said, “If you’re keeping the new time-scale a secret?”

“What new time-scale?”

“The gravity fluctuations are almost four per cent higher than the equations suggested they should be, even on this side of the FTL part of the journey. That means they’re decelerating faster than their initial acceleration. If they’re still hoping to come out near us, then it changes some of my propositions. It doesn’t change the primary hypothesis, only the FTL constant I used. In other words, they travelled further than expected and they’ll need to slow down quicker. They will be here sooner than expected. Instead of two-and-a-half years, they’ll be here maybe three months earlier. That changes the timeline we have. Some of the notes have discussed how it affects climate and the other stuff. Still, I didn’t see anywhere where recommendations were made to adjust the time-scale on preparing safe havens.”

Phil unbuckled himself and said, “Let me go talk with Ted.”

Phil didn’t return before the plane landed but brought Ted with him after the plane had come to a stop. Phil said, “Most of Ted’s time has been spent explaining the science to others. He agrees with your conclusions and says he doubts others have even made the connection as most are working within their smaller areas of expertise. When we get to the embassy, I want you to sit with us and go through your conclusions. We’ll only be here for fifteen hours, but we need to have some draft changes before we leave and you need to write a paper and submit it for review.”

Discussion of the changes took up most of the time in Tokyo. The only breaks Zen had were when Miriam took her to the embassy gym for a workout and when she had a small nap in the afternoon. Mr Morris had arranged a tour of a nuclear reactor and had meetings with several government ministers. Once they were back on the airplane and had taken off, Phil was in meetings with the PM and Ted had dozens of messages to respond to so Zen retreated back into the new data.

Two hours out of Canberra, Zen was invited to an early breakfast with the PM. Once the food had been served, he said, “Phil and Ted filled me in on the timing change. Because you caught it early, we’re not yet committed to a longer period. I’d like you to think about how you will factor in a regular review of the material even during the military training. To help, I’ll have my PA work even more closely with you to assemble the staff you need. Phil’s already trying to gather people to work within his new role so it might be good to work with him to come to grips with what you will be doing. He’ll have some good suggestions.”

“Thank you, sir, but before that, I need to know exactly what you expect from me? I looked over what the other ambassadors do, and they are concerned with achieving our country’s goals within their sphere of influence. Those who are successful manipulate what they know of the people they are sent to in such a way as to give us an advantage in war, in trade or in ideology. They also need to have a grasp of what our priorities are. I can be proactive doing that with respect to the aliens, or I can be a resource that Phil and others use, but I don’t think I do both. The first option gives me a lot of leeway to set the agenda within broad guidelines while the second means I primarily work as a lackey to achieve Phil’s agenda or yours. Which is it you had in mind for me to do?”

Mr Morris looked over at Zen and then looked down and ate more of his breakfast while he thought. Finally, after Zen had almost finished, he said, “I had in mind for you to work to our agenda but not really as a lackey. If you set the agenda, what would you be focussing on?”

It was Zen’s turn to consider her words carefully, and after taking a long sip of her coffee, she said, “I’d like to connect the dots. There is much happening that most people will get caught up doing everything they need to make sure we survive. I’m pretty sure Ted would have made the connection to time that I did, but like me, he was so busy doing something he never got the chance to sit back and see the links people had missed. When I first looked at the data I was amazed they hadn’t made the connection, I assumed they didn’t get it. Since then, I’ve reviewed five or six individual’s work, and they’ve been spot on. They do understand the science, but they had the task of evaluating how it interacted just within their area of expertise.

“I’ve spent the last eight hours stepping back and looking at the data, then going back to what little we know of the aliens. It’s pretty clear they have a mature scientific understanding of gravity. What is also fundamentally clear, when I think about it, is they must have a sophisticated and highly-developed fusion technology. I did a refresher on tokamak reactors and how much has been done with the ITER project. I applied some basic applications of the new theory we have on gravity and believe we could build a working stable fusion reactor now. What we need is to connect the two.

“I would imagine some of the scientists are already trying to merge the two technologies, but it isn’t on anyone’s radar as far as I could tell from the documentation I read. If we can get the power, then our plans for space will be easier to achieve. The gravity-well is easy to overcome when we have an ample supply of power. More importantly, the theory suggests several ways to manipulate gravity. With fusion power, these theories could mean gravitationally powered flight. I truly believe others will be working on these ideas, but so far, I’ve yet to see that we are. That’s two areas I’d like to help facilitate. I have a dozen pages of notes with questions that I think will join some more dots, at least for me.”

The Prime Minister asked for Ted and Phil to join them. Once they’d arrived, he had Zen share her thoughts again. When she’d finished, Ted said, “I have questions.”

Mister Morris said, “About what?”

“The science. I don’t doubt Zen, but it’s like she jumps three or four steps at a time. When she backs up and explains each step, I get it. Until then, I’m mostly lost. So, Zen says, ‘I applied some basic applications of the gravity theory and believe we could build a working stable fusion reactor.’ I’m not saying she’s wrong, but I don’t see the basic applications she’s talking about. I’m convinced they are there and that when I see them I may even agree they are basic, but I’ll still need the next two steps to see how it shows we can build them.”

The Prime Minister said, “OK, Zen, are you able to explain what you mean to Ted?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Then ignore Phil and me and explain it to Ted.”

Zen talked for twenty minutes and explained the first of what she called the basic applications she’d made and then did it again using diagrams and a notepad before Ted nodded. He said, “Prime Minister, Dr Bateman, I can see why Zen says this is a basic application of the gravity theory. Zen, how many more are there?”

“Three or four. The fourth is really a corollary of the third.”

“She’s right in that I should have seen that and expect others to have done so. The truth is, I hadn’t made the connection.”

The Prime Minister looked over at Zen and said, “I would like you to see your role as being mostly proactive, and as such, you may set the agenda. I would like you to keep Phil and Ted in the loop when you are able. National Service starts in three weeks, and you are registered to start in the first intake. I’ll sit down with Phil and those designing the training program and find a way for you to have one or two days each week to keep your mind on making those connections. We also need to sit down and discuss your safety until the National Service program starts.”

“I was hoping to get back to see my family.”

Phil nodded and said, “We’ve discussed that and while we would rather you stayed at a more secure location, we understand you need to see them back in Brisbane. There will be an aircraft waiting when we land in Canberra. It will take you and the security team to Brisbane and bring you back here Monday morning ready for work.”

Zen smiled, and after thanking Phil went back to call her parents and let them know she’d be home before lunch.