Can you?
Hello?
She smiled to herself. I wonder how long they’ll allow me to sit here before they lose patience and have to send someone in to get me?
She glanced up at the door, its interior knob equipped with a lock. Reaching for it, she pushed the center button in.
Jessica relieved her bladder. When she was finished, she pulled up her pants and flushed, then lowered the toilet’s lid and sat, waiting for her hosts to make the next move.
After a minute the lights flickered on and off.
Come on, guys. You’ll have to do better than that.
“If you are finished,” the female voice spoke out loud, “please join us in the chamber.”
“So you can play more head games with me? I don’t think so. I came here of my own free will to do a job. I didn’t ask to be promoted, but if this is the way you treat your Cosmic Clearance candidates you can count me out.”
“Dr. Marulli, this is Paul Sova. We met several years ago at Lockheed Martin. Do you remember me?”
“You worked with my mother.”
“And now I’d like to work with you. You have my word — no more head games.”
Jessica exited the bathroom.
The chamber was lit, revealing an oval conference table situated at the center of the circular room. Twelve chairs were occupied by ten men and two women. A vacant thirteenth chair was positioned on Paul Sova’s left. The tall, dark-haired rocket scientist from North Dakota waved her over, his hazel eyes failing to reflect the ceiling lights.
He’s a hologram… they all are. General Cubit’s presence at the far side of the table confirmed her theory.
“You are quite right, Dr. Marulli,” Dr. Sova said, still tuned into her thoughts. “We are joining you from all across the globe.”
Jessica glanced around the table. With the exception of Paul Sova and the general, none of the facial features of the other ten virtual attendees were in focus.
“Who are you people?”
“We serve on Council’s selection committee,” one of the men replied, his voice distinctly Australian. “You have been approved for promotion in the science and technology sector.”
“There are four sectors, Dr. Marulli,” said a man in a white lab coat, his dialect revealing his nationality to be Chinese. “Besides science and technology, there are representatives of the military, business and commerce, and security.”
Jessica rubbed her eyes, the blurred faces of the holograms giving her a headache. “I’m a little confused. Who is Council? What do you do?”
The image of Paul Sova smiled. “Essentially, we run the world.”
Part 2
“… The stories I have heard from these people, who are more highly qualified than me to talk about UFOs, leave me in no doubt that aliens have already visited Earth. When I learned that aliens really do exist, I wasn’t too surprised. But what did shock me when I started investigating extraterrestrial reports a decade ago is the extent to which the proof has been hushed up.”
“Yes, aliens really are out there, says the man on the moon.”
Michael Andrew Sutterfield
SS #711-19-0878
GVP Unit: PA-762-32443
AGE: 13 years, 1 week
GRADE: 7
SEX: Male
ACADEMICS:
Student has made acceptable progress in mathematics, language arts, history, and the sciences. Student demonstrates an aptitude in quantum physics and expresses a desire for space travel.
SOCIAL SKILLS:
No racial, anti-Semitic, or other human prejudices demonstrated toward GVP instructors during the student’s first semester.
NEURO-BEHAVIOR PREDICTORS:
A flat line in neuro-synaptic activity was detected during Phase-III of the Risch-Avery protocol, indicating potential sociopathic tendencies. Series S-1 through S-6 will be added to the curriculum and student retested in twelve weeks.
“Today’s lesson is on consciousness. Mr. Sutterfield, are you listening?”
Michael Andrew Sutterfield glanced at his new instructor. He estimated Joseph Williams to be in his early thirties. Half black, half Irish, bald and heavy-set, Michael found the man and his habit of posing questions he already knew the answers to be quite annoying. He wondered if the system had generated the character just to agitate him.
“You know I’m listening. It’s just you and me in this pod.”
“What was I speaking about?”
“Consciousness, what else?”
“The topic annoys you?”
“When will I be ready for CE-5 training?”
“An understanding of consciousness is a prerequisite for CE-5 training. Consciousness goes hand-in-hand when communicating with our ET delegates.”
Michael sat up. “Okay, teach me.”
The interior of the GVP-5000 transformed into a two-man vessel, Michael’s instructor strapped in next to him. One moment they were looking up at a brilliant blue sky, the next they were hurtling into a black velvet tapestry sparkling with a billion stars.
“Sweet!”
“I’m guessing this is your first simulated flight into space?”
“If you know it’s my first simulation, why ask?”
“Perhaps I am attempting to simulate conversation?”
They continued soaring out into space until the Earth was centered in the forward view screen.
“The universe is not only teeming with a multiplicity of intelligent life both in the physical and spiritual realm, Mr. Sutterfield, but the universe itself is a living, intelligent entity. One of the great fears the religious community had about disclosing the existence of other intelligent non-human species is that it would challenge the established religious dogmas. In fact we’ve learned that there is a unified singularity that runs through all existence — a pure cosmic consciousness that confirms God is absolutely part of the equation and we are all bound to it and to one another. And yet there is also separation, good and evil, the physical universe and the spiritual.
“To 21st century humans, the existence of non-human species that are far older and far more advanced than us was initially made frightening by the taboos the covert government had assigned to extraterrestrial vehicle sightings. While some of these civilizations may be tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of years older than ours, there are also those that are millions of years more advanced. These species have evolved to exist outside of the physical realm, their appearances conjuring labels of angels and avatars.”
“But why Earth? What made them come here?”
“They were concerned. Among intelligent biologics, there is a natural progression that determines whether a maturing Type-Zero civilization will survive. Energy is the key to equality, and equality is what ultimately transforms a Type-Zero civilization into a Type-1 civilization. It is at this point that the dangers of splitting the atom are replaced by zero-point-energy. Type-2 civilizations terraform other worlds within their solar system while Type-3 civilizations — the highest level attainable for third dimension physical beings — have mastered transdimensional, faster-than-light travel, uniting them with the community of intelligent beings within their galaxy.”