[Atrocities]

Part VII (Disclosure)

It only took Tom about twenty minutes to reach the Prime Ministers Building and even less time to make his way to the Office of the Prime Minister. Bob’s secretary was sitting behind her desk when he entered the office.
“Has General Green left yet?” He asked.
“Um no General, he is still in the meeting with the Prime Minister and the Senators.”
“Good.” He replied as he started for the door to the inner chamber. This prompted the secretary to stand and object.
“General, you can not enter it is a private policy meeting.”
“Then announce me.” He said simply.

She did so, and was instructed to allow him to enter. Tom was surprised to see so many senators in one location out side of the luxury and comfort of the Senate Complex at one time. The thought of them actually working for a living had never crossed his mind.

“Gentlemen.” He said as he entered the room. The conference room was a large gray painted oval room, with white trim work and a solid Decka wood table in the center. The room was lit well, and comfortable looking. The Prime Minister was sitting at the end of the Conference table with General Green sitting to his left. Around the table were sitting about twenty-five Senators. They all looked as if they had seen a ghost when he entered the room. Only the Prime Minister stood as he walked in.

“General, please, take a seat.” Said Robert ‘Bob’ Benton, the Prime Minister, as he gestured for Tom to sit next to him on his right. Tom walked the distance of the room and stood facing acrossed the table from Green. Tom looked at him with utter contempt.
“Please excuse the interruption Prime Minister, but I am here to speak with General Green.”
“Tom, why don’t you sit down.” Said Benton in a calming friendly voice. Tom had known him for many years, and they were on a first name basis. Tom looked at him and flashed him a questioned look of confusion. “The General was about to tell us something important.” Tom looked from Bob to the General and back.
“Please, sit down General.” Benton said once again as he sat back down and relaxed in his chair. Tom had no idea what was going on, so he decided to accommodate his friend and sat down.
“Now General, would you be so kind as to revel this important news of yours.” Said Benton.

Green looked confidant and in control. He had not taken his eyes off of Tom since he entered the room, and was not about to. This was a challenge of his authority, and he was not about to let Tom win.

“A little over a week ago a scientific team conducting gravimetric experiments on the Northern Victorian Glacier, headed by a Dr. Brook Mentor, discovered an object of enormous size under the ice. They contacted the Global Corp of Engineers, and in turn my office was notified. I ordered a containment team to the site to evaluate the discovery as per Global Command Protocols. The site was secured and the scientists were quarantined. Over the Last week a combined effort of both the scientist and the Corp of Engineers to excavate a tunnel to a suspected opening in the object has been under way. They expect to complete this tunnel no later than this time tomorrow.”

Tom just looked at Green with contempt. You bastard, he thought, you’re covering your ***. Green only starred back at him with an equally contemptuous glare.

“General, do we know what this object is?” Asked Benton.
“No sir, all we know for certain is that what ever it is, it did not come from this world.”

The room exploded into chaos as the senators began to ask questions. Benton raised his hands and attempted to quell the noise and excitement filling the room. Tom and Green only starred at each other. Tom was as shocked as the rest of them, to think an alien ship within their grasp all this time, and Green willing to keep it a secret for his own purposes.

“General, why did you not come forward with the information of discovery immediately?” Tom asked as directly as he could.

The room began to quiet down a bit, allowing Benton to succeed in regaining control of the meeting. “Senators, please, you will all have a chance to ask question, but first, we must have quiet.” It took several more minutes before the room was quiet enough for Tom to repeat his question.

“I ask you again General Green, why did you not come forward with this information imminently?”

“At first we had no Intel on the object. All that we knew was that something had been found under the ice. It was not until this afternoon that I received confirmation that the object was of off world origins. Just prior to your call in fact.”

“You did not answer my question General!’
“Who the hell are you to question me?” Fumed Green aggressively.
“Gentlemen!” Benton said forcefully as he put up his hands to in a hold your comments gesture. “This is neither the place nor the time to discuss this subject.”

Tom and Green exchanged angry looks, but otherwise kept quiet.

“Senators, I am sure that you all understand the situation and will agree that it is best for all if this matter is kept confidential for the time.”

“The religious repercussion of such a revelation alone would cripple the planet.” Replied Senator Owen Cassady, one of the oldest Senators of the UGA and member of the Salideen religious sect. He was also one of the few Senators that Benton actually trusted. “Mass hysteria and panic of the population would most likely flood acrossed the planet like some great wave leaving in its wake destruction and ruin. You can rest assured; we will all keep what we have learned here today confidential until further notice. None of us can afford the panic that news of this magnitude would undoubtedly cause.” Several of the Senators nodded in agreement but a few seemed to be noticeably displeased. One of these was Senator Caparo Kordesh, a radical by any definition, and a man who adamantly believed in the old Global Alliance and opposed the formation of the United Global Alliance. He was also one of the many Senators that openly challenged Benton’s appointment to the Prime Ministership.
“Keeping this discovery, if indeed it is an alien space ship, from the public will clearly be a violation of the free information codes of your UGA constitution. If you are not willing to follow your own laws, then what business do you have sitting in that chair?” Commented Kordesh sarcastically.

“Surely you do no think the people of Pandora are ready to hear that we have discovered an alien space ship?” Asked another Senator.
“It is not a matter of whether or not I believe they are ready, it is a matter of law that they be told.”
“Senator Kordesh, we will not expose this information to the public until I deem it is appropriate. Do you understand me?” Benton demanded evenly. His dislike for Kordesh was as apparent as Kordesh’s hatred of him. “To ensure that, I will have you placed under quarantine.”

Kordesh looked about the faces of the Senators in shock. “There is your proof, he spoke of the value of principles and rules, of the honor of the law, yet when faced with the obligation to follow the law, he disregards is as harshly as any dictator ever could.”
“Senator!” Benton said loudly with anger in his voice. He had stood now, and was looking directly at him. “This is not the Senator floor, you will hold your salience regarding this subject. Do you understand me?”
Kordesh looked at Benton with sincere contempt but said nothing. He simply nodded a slow yes. Benton took a moment to calm himself before he sat back down.

“Eighty years ago our planet fell into the darkness of global war. All efforts at space exploration were halted as each nation took up arms in the name of religion and petty personal vendettas that nearly wiped out all life on this planet. I will not allow that to happen again. Senator Cassady is correct, the population would respond negatively to such news of a discovery of this kind.”

Benton was no fool, he knew that people individually are intelligent reasonable creatures, but people however, as a whole, are a panicky wild beast prone to random and bizarre acts of hysteria. To inform them that they may not be alone in the universe would most assuredly cause a panic and send the planet back into the chaos. The law be damned, this was far too serious of a risk to chance in the hands of the pubic.

“General Green, your action in this matter were appropriate, however, I expect you to keep me informed of all future discoveries that this object yields.”
“By all means Prime Minister.”

“Do we know for certain that the object is alien? Who actually made this determination?” Tom asked.
“Why Dr. Mentor of course.” Replied Green. “They used a device known as a Gravimetric Core Sampler to take measurement and metal density readings of the object.”
“So Dr. Mentor and his team are well?”
“They are fine. In fact, as I stated, they are assisting in the excavation.”

“I see.” Replied Tom. “Prime Minister, I will be flying up there this evening. I trust that the General’s troops will not shoot my Sky Chariot down?”

Greens look went from serious to one of out right concern.
“Your flying up there?” He asked in a reserved voice. “Why?”
“As Director of the S.E.D., it is my duty to be involved with any and all discoveries of such a magnitude as this.”
“My men can handle the situations.” Green was not happy at all about this. He had intended the to keep the discovery a secret in the hopes of obtaining new technology and weapons that he could use to proxy the Senate to do his bidding. But now that the darmok was out of the box, his best hope for salvaging any control of the situation was to maintain control of object. Having Tom Christopher nosing around would jeopardize his objective of being the first to obtain any new technology.
“That may well be General, but I am still going.”
“I can see no reason for this Prime Minister. The situation is well in hand.”

“I think having the Director of the S.E.D. investigate this object first hand is a good idea.” Said Benton as he stood. “General would you please notify your men that General Christopher will be assuming command of the operations upon his arrival.” Green face went white. “I expect you both to keep me apprised of any developments.” He looked from Tom to Green then at the Senators. “If there is nothing else, meeting adjourned.

The room cleared out rather quickly leaving only Tom, and Benton sitting alone in the room.

“My God Tom, an actual alien space ship.” Said Benton. “The very concept of it is amazing.”
“This could be one of the greatest discoveries in the history of our world and Green wanted to keep it to himself.”
“Well his aspirations in that regard are no more.”
“And Greens not to happy about it.”
“Apparently so. But he will have to learn to live with it. Its your project now.”
“Greens going to work against me on this. You know he is up to something, and this was just one small part of it.”
“True, and I will be keeping an eye on him. But to be honest, it’s not Green I am concerned with, are Senator’s like Kordesh that have me worried.”
“He did seem a little hostile.”
“Dissent has been growing in the Senate for sometime now.” Benton looked concerned, and Tom knew that if he was worried about it, then it was a serious matter indeed.

“I need for you to be careful up their Tom. I can ill afford loosing you to some accident, and you know what I mean.”
“I’ll take Richard with me and we’ll both be prepared for any random accidents that might try and befall us.”
“Good.” Replied Benton before changing the subject. “God only knows what kind of technology that thing could give us.”
“I haven’t given it much thought, it is still too amazing to believe. I would hope that at least would will be able to learn where it came from, and how long it has been buried under the ice flow.”
“True. Make it your priority to find out all that you can about that things origins. If we have neighbors, I want to know all there is to about them.”
“Well then, I guess I had better get going.” Tom stood as did the Benton, and they shook hands.
“Be safe Tom.”
“You as well Prime Minister.” Benton smiled at him, and watched as Tom left the room. Once Tom was gone, Benton’s smile evaporated and he took on a more serious look. The look of a man who knew more than he wanted to about a great many things. It was an aged look that transcended every fiber of his being.
“Be damned careful Tom.” He said to himself quietly as he starred at the back of the closed conference room door.

[ February 24, 2003, 15:51: Message edited by: Atrocities ]