“South African Defense Force,” Jameson replied.
“I thought the UN had pulled out of Malawi,” Bower said.
“They had. That was, until they realized the only alien left on the planet was sheltering in the US embassy in Malawi.”
“I don’t understand,” Bower replied. “What’s happened?”
“The mothership has returned to its original position near the Moon. From what we can tell, they’re preparing to leave. Look, from what I’ve heard, this whole thing has been a clusterfuck from the start. Everyone’s been so goddamn paranoid.
“People fear that which they don’t understand. And fear leads to lousy decisions. The Russians and Chinese were convinced the US was behind the floaters, that the floaters represented some kind of alien-human alliance led by the West. No one could believe that NASA wasn’t on top of communication with the alien fleet moving through our atmosphere. Truth’s a bitch. The reality was, we were as surprised as everyone else.
“The Russians brought down any floater that crossed into their air space, while the Chinese used tactical nukes against a bunch of floaters that entered the atmosphere over Mongolia. There was no way they were going to allow a bunch of aliens to drift over Beijing or Shanghai.
“The US was more tolerant. At least it wasn’t our official position to bring down the atmospheric craft, but there were plenty of red-necks willing to try. And once the floaters were down, the hunting began. There’s been newsreel showing US civilians parading the carcasses of dead aliens through the streets of Dallas-Fort Worth, Des Moines Iowa, Oklahoma City, you name it.
“A couple of trigger happy pilots in the National Guard brought down another floater outside of DC. That the alien craft was passing almost fifty miles inland from the capital didn’t matter. They complained about lost comms and said they had to take the initiative. The Media treated them like fucking heroes. As far as the Press was concerned, they were repelling the invasion. NASA pleaded for reason, but no one listened. They were too busy celebrating our independence from an alien war that never happened.”
Bower was speechless.
“Apparently, your buddy with the red, wavy fronds can be pretty darn vicious when cornered, but these aliens were still no match for a gang of armed men motivated by sixty years of Hollywood hyperbole. It didn’t take too long for word to get out that the alien’s core is vulnerable. No armor. Can you imagine that, going into battle without any armor.”
“They didn’t think they were going into battle,” Bower said, feeling indignant.
“Yeah, well, we fucked this up. We were pumped. Too many movies or ghost stories, I guess, but we were ready for them. Problem is, they weren’t ready for us.”
“So what’s going to happen to Stella?” Elvis asked.
“Shit, I don’t know,” Jameson replied.
Bower didn’t believe him. There was a slight hesitation in his reply, just enough to cause her to doubt his sincerity.
Jameson must have caught the look on her face, as he continued explaining. “As soon as I confirmed we had a live alien in custody, control got passed from CentCom to NASA. There are a whole bunch of guys stateside dying to talk to you two… well, to you three.”
“I won’t let anything happen to her, Sarge.”
Elvis gritted his teeth. He looked as though he could have taken on the entire US army singlehanded.
“Easy, big guy. No one’s going to hurt her. In fact, that’s what all this is about. The South Africans have orders not to let anyone within a mile of the embassy. They’re going house to house, driving everyone out, pushing them back beyond the cordon. And that fly-by, that was purely for show. Those birds don’t need to come in that low. They’re flexing muscle, sending a clear signal to the rebels that the gloves are off. There’s two AC-130U Spooky gunships en-route with orders to flatten anyone that so much as sticks their head out of a window with a weapon. Malawi’s center stage. Lilongwe is going into lockdown.”
“And your orders?” Bower asked.
“To keep you safe, all of you.”
“Next steps?” Elvis asked.
Jameson smiled. He had been hiding something, that much Bower knew. Elvis called his bluff. Jameson must have been lousy at Poker.
“Look, don’t be alarmed. There’s no conspiracy here. The UN is going into overdrive to protect your friend. No one’s going to let anything happen to her.”
“Where are they taking her?” Elvis asked coldly, and Bower got the distinct impression Elvis knew what was happening, perhaps not the specifics, but he understood the military mindset. NASA might have executive control, but operational control had to lie with some general somewhere, and Bower didn’t even want to think about the political machinations of the United Nations complicating things further.
“There’s no secret base at Area-51 or anything like that. The powers that be simply want to get the alien into a secure environment.”
“Where?” Elvis demanded.
“The William Lawrence is steaming down from Dar El Salam into the straits between Mozambique and Madagascar, while the Ronald Reagan has turned back from Diego Garcia and is en-route toward Dar El Salam to provide air support.”
Bower cried out, saying. “You’re going to put her on a warship? Are you mad?” She couldn’t help herself. She got to her feet, as though standing would somehow make her objections more resonant.
“Think about it,” Jameson replied. “She’s in the middle of a war zone. It’s the safest option.”
Bower shook her head.
“They’re sending in a Osprey to take you to the USS William Lawrence.”
“And what if we don’t want to go?” Bower demanded, her hands resting on her hips. She could see the lieutenant standing behind Jameson. He was quiet, letting Jameson do the talking.
“No one’s going to force you to do anything,” Jameson replied, his hands out in a gesture of friendship. “Look, Liz. It’s me. You know me. Remember back in the village? There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to keep you out of harm’s way. I’m not going to do anything that would hurt you or Elvis or this creature. Sure, I’ve got orders but, honestly, if I thought they were in anyway belligerent I’d have no hesitation in defying them.”
He breathed deeply.
“This is bigger than any of us,” he continued. “Look, they’re flying in a NASA specialist from India. He should get to the USS William Lawrence around the same time you guys arrive on deck, at least, that’s the plan.”
“The plan?” Bower asked, an eyebrow raised.
“Liz, we’ve got to get you out of this country.”
Bower didn’t like plans being made without her input. Elvis might be used to that kind of authoritarian treatment, but she wasn’t.
“So you decided to throw us on a helicopter?”
Jameson opened his hands up in a gesture that suggested he was being honest. “What would you do, Liz? Where could you go from here? Everyone knows you killed Adan. You think the rebels would allow you and your friend safe passage? And what about government troops? They’ll sell you out in a heartbeat with the price that’s on your head. And even if you could get out of the city, where would you go? Where would be safe?”
“So what’s your plan?” she asked.
“Liz,” Jameson continued. “The plan is to get you safely into NASA’s hands, the William Lawrence is simply a meeting point. You need to trust me.”
“I trust you,” Bower replied. “The problem is, I don’t trust anyone beyond you.”
“And yet you have to. You and Elvis have done something remarkable, something incredible. You’ve saved the life of one of these things at a time when everyone else was shortsighted and acting out of fear. Now, the world is rallying around you. You’ve got to trust those that can help.”