“Aye Admiral. The United States at that time did not possess the technology to extract a submarine from extreme depths. They formed a project with a company; I believe the company name was Hughes. Over several years, they developed a large ship and the capability to pull the submarine off the ocean floor. Moreover, they were able to accomplish this mission with a fair amount of secrecy. I must also report that the United States has shown sign of decline in the most recent years. Their citizens are growing increasingly dependent on their government and there is growing division amongst their people.”
Oria again interrupted “Very good Lieutenant, let's move on. I accept the recommendation to focus on contact with the United States. Please continue with your report given that we will work with the United States.”
“Yes sir, I see challenges with integrating the United States into Azortec. Other than being quite primitive, the country is morally decrepit. Crime rates are high including perjury and the people are routinely accepting high crimes from their political leaders. The government frequently employs force over diplomacy. Incarceration rates are high and the use of barbaric methods of punishment like solitary confinement is frequently employed by the government.”
Oria interrupted again. “Lieutenant, we all knew when we began this mission, that Earth would have difficulty fitting into Azortec’s moral fiber. As a classic example, look at me. I too did not fit into the generally accepted standards of Azortec. If it weren't for the Creytes, I would never have made Admiral. It is only because of my warrior mindset that I have been able to achieve victory where others have failed. Azortec needs more of this attitude to defeat the Creytes! I believe that you will still find this desired trait in the American people!”
“Aye sir, even though I have served you for many years, it is still hard to remember where we have all come from. I apologize. I meant no offense”, while in his thoughts he continued not wanting to accept anything less than the highest level of Azortec morality. After all, he aspired to be a great Admiral as his father was before him.
“Agustonson, there is no need to apologize. These are difficult times for Azortec. Azortec has existed with advanced technologies for thousands and thousands of years without battle and virtually no crime. I also wish there was no need for warriors and that the universe was peaceful. Unfortunately, that is not the reality. Let's move on with your report, we can save the less savory political problems for others once we have accomplished our primary objective.” Oria knew deep down many of his crew still had a hard time accepting the realities of war and the mindset required to win.
“Thank you Admiral. We think our initial contact should be indirect. Upon your arrival on Earth, you need connect with the scientific community. Our strategy is to have you present technology that’s far beyond anything currently available on Earth. This technology should have military potential. In that way, you should catch the interest of the U.S. military. Hopefully, our technology will spur interest in the Pentagon, the United States military command center, to meet with you. This should provide the opportunity to make our case.”
“Good idea Lieutenant, what information do you have on the U.S. military and their political structures?”
“The U.S. command center appears to be run out of a building known as the Pentagon. As you can see on this chart, the top leadership is comprised of civilians. There are two basic groups. The Secretary of Defense heads the controlling group. His organization is the Office of the Secretary of Defense, or OSD. A second group is the Joint Chiefs. This is primarily comprised of military personnel. The groups have representatives in each other’s groups.”
“Sounds good so far, please continue.”
“The U.S. military divided into several basic groups: the Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marines. There is yet another group known as the Coast Guard. I’m not quite sure where and how they report in the US government system.”
“Ok Lieutenant, so where do we start?”
“The Air Force has a small unit called STAR Hawks. The STAR stands for Space Tactical Attack and Rescue. I believe the term hawk is a predatory bird.”
“Yes Agustonson, I know what a hawk is, continue.” This remark invoked Oria to reflect back on his youth with the Nanticoke. He caught his thoughts and forced himself to focus on the briefing.
“Yes that's right sir, you were originally from this planet. It seems that most of Earth's space operations are oriented towards using space as a means of defense or offense against other nations also on Earth. None of their space oriented technologies pose a threat to our mission provided we remain in stealth mode.”
Oria was pleased with the young Lieutenant’s report so far. “I'd be surprised if they did, however, Captain Borella, please make sure all crew members are aware that we must remain in stealth mode.”
Lt. Agustonson continued. “The U.S. is pursuing several new technologies. The army in particular, is developing this concept they've termed situational awareness. This concept is based on three pillars, namely, where am I, where are my buddies, and finally where is the enemy? “
“Lieutenant, that concept sounds very interesting, where do you see it fitting into our mission?”
“This overall strategy is resulting in the development of specific technologies. One area of interest common to all military units is a high-energy laser. I suggest we use their interest in laser technology to get you an audience with high level contacts at the Pentagon.”
“Good. I see in your report that there is a symposium on lasers on Thursday.”
“That's right. If you get started today, you can visit your old home. A Dr. StalkingWolf is investigating some old ruins. They look like they may be your old home. If you hook up with her, she knows other scientists at a local learning institution. I believe it's called the University of Maryland. If you can get her to introduce you to some of her friends, you can probably get an invite to the symposium.”
“Very well, it sounds like we have no time to waste. Set me up with some appropriate clothes. If I'm successful, I will return after connecting with the other scientist. I want more details on Earth customs by tomorrow morning.”
Oria departed the meeting and headed back to his quarters. His crew had already prepared Earth clothing for him and set it on his bed. His crew had carefully labeled each piece of clothing. Oria saw a pair of pants labeled Old Navy blue jeans, a shirt labeled IZOD polo shirt, socks, and a pair of shoes labeled Rockport. He put the new clothes on and headed for the transporter room.
Oria Arrives on Earth near his old home
Oria walked into the transporter room wearing his new clothes. He saw Captain Borella standing near the transport console.
Borella chuckled at the Admiral’s new look. “Admiral, your new clothes are definitely the new you!”
“Thanks for your words of encouragement. I knew they would impress a fashion connoisseur like you. They definitely will take a getting used to.”
“I'm sure you will manage. In all seriousness, we all hope you do well. Good luck, I know your last memories of the Eastern Shore were less than good.”
“Thanks Borella, I have been doing a lot of reflecting lately. However, I will stay focused on our mission.”
Oria and Borella saluted each other. Oria turned sharply and stepped up onto the transport deck. In moments, he disappeared and rematerialized in a wooded area within the State Park close to his boyhood home.
Oria immediately began to scope out his surroundings. The briefing papers his crew gave him showed him to have materialized in a government wildlife preserve within several hundred yards of a road. The road connected the reserve's entrance to a series of makeshift buildings described as the preserve's headquarters and some sort of tourist facility. Oria headed towards that road.
His walk started out on dry land, which quickly changed into swamp. The map did not show the small swamp between the transport location and the road. It seemed on every mission, something always went wrong. On his flight to Earth, Oria had watched several movies where this concept was termed Murphy's Law. Oria thought to himself, “
The one constant in the Universe is this Murphy's Law.”
Oria started recalling other times he had walked through this terrain. He always liked walking through the water. However, Oria knew that he should keep his current outfit clean and dry. He opted to walk around the swamp. Oria looked out over the water and could see the flow was generally in a southeast direction. He decided to walk towards the source. He felt this would give him the greatest opportunity to keep from having to step into the swamp. He knew that he should have gotten more details on the terrain. His crew would hear about this later. Oria continued until the swamp turned into a small creek, which he could easily cross.
Oria finally reached the main road fairly close to the park’s entrance. He was still several miles from the buildings, which were his ultimate goal. As Oria continued his walk down the road, a surreal feeling came over him. This area gave him a strange yet familiar feeling. Even though Oria had visited Earth on several occasions since his initial capture, he had avoided returning to the place of his birth. Yet here he was within miles of his boyhood home.
In spite of Oria's many battles and his fearless reputation, he had difficulty handling the deep emotional scars and memories of his last brutal day on Earth. It was those memories that kept Oria humble. His father had been strong, confident, and boastful. Oria followed his father’s footsteps until that last day. Oria learned that for all of his father’s boasting, the combination of weather and enemy’s superior numbers ended his father’s ability to protect his family from a brutal death. If
pirates had
not kidnapped Oria, he would have died over 500 years ago with his father and the rest of his family and ended any chance for current day Earth to survive the onslaught of the Creytes.
After about an hour of hiking, the headquarters buildings finally came into sight. Oria entered the building labeled visitors. Inside he could see a series of historical displays describing the history of the Eastern Shore. The last display in the series was still under construction. It contained labels describing recent archeological finds in the area. There was an artist rendering of something that roughly looked like Oria’s childhood home.
Oria walked over to the display, stared at several artifacts and read some of the text. One of the artifacts was an old wooden doll that Oria used to play fetch with his dog. It was sitting in the hand of a model of a young girl. Oria smiled slightly, he knew that these historians got this fact wrong.
One of the center’s guides walked over to Oria and said “Sir, you seem quite interested in the new display.”
“Yes, I was just admiring the toy the girl is holding.”
She replied. “It's in pretty good condition. Our best guess is that it was some sort of toy used by one of the young girls in the village.”
“Really?” Oria said lifting his eyebrows.
“Yes, it was found near the remains of a young girl. Dr. StalkingWolf believes the young girl died holding the doll.”
Oria thought if she only knew the real story. The remains were of his sister. She had grabbed the toy from the dog as the Susquehanna grabbed Oria's father, his brother, and himself. The thought sent a chill up his spine.
The guide saw Oria's brows furrow, she started up again, “Sir, are you feeling all right?”
“Yes, I was just having a vision of the young girl holding the doll as she was slaughtered.”
The guide sucked in her breath. “No one is supposed to know that. We
did not release her remains. Are you with the Indian Bureau? “
Oria looked up with a slight smile and responded “No nothing quite like that. I just happen to know a lot about that era.”
The guide looked a bit surprised. There was not much information on Native American History prior to the arrival of the first white settlers. They had released very little information out of the new dig. She thought this guy was trying to impress her.
She responded “Oh really, you must be among the few experts on that era of our local history.”
Oria returned the smile and replied “I guess you caught me, I meant to say that I have a special interest in that era and have tried to research it. However, I did discover there must have been a brutal slaughter at this site. I believe there were almost 20 middle-aged men including two boys burned at the stake. You probably did not find one of their remains.”
The guide looked stunned. There was no way he could have known about the stakes. It was only several hours ago that they had uncovered the massacre site. She replied, “I'll accept that, by the way, if you're serious about your interest in the dig, I may be able to get you into one of Dr. StalkingWolf's private tours. One starts in about 15 minutes. I know she has room since two people just canceled.”
“That would be great. Where do I go?”
“Just follow me.” The guide immediately turned and headed towards the front door with Oria right behind her. She threw open the front door, walked out, and turned to the right. Towards the corner of the building, a small group gathered around one of the Wild Life Commission’s SUVs.