Stephen's Secure Blog #116
These stories about Stephen began was when he was 10 years old, and
moving to a new part of the country to attend a special school for
gifted students, in the 1950's. This was from a time before computers
would fit on a desk, and when people communicated with friends in other
countries by actual letters sent through the postal service. He wrote
225 of them to a friend. He stopped writing to his penpal, but found he
still wanted to record his life, in case he lost his memory again, and
wrote 30 entries in his first logbook. Then he wrote to an artificial
intelligence called Geenee, in the master computer in his school for
gifted students, which he started attending in 2016. Now it's after
2018, and he's continuing to save his memories in a secure blog.
All characters are fictitious, even if some of them might have names
that belong to some actual people, or act like people we know.
The stories may not be posted in chronological order.
Stephen is 14 in this story, in Winter of year 5 of his special school.
Stephen's Secure Blog #116 "Confederation Ship"
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I had asked father what city he would like to live in, and he chose
DC. I said he should pick another. After some words, he chose New York.
We took some pictures, and a week later gave him his new identity,
which included all the papers for the trust fund, and the bank in NY
which was managing it. I registered him in a hotel and paid it up for a
year, with the arrangement that any extra fees were his to pay. One
night in the Temple, when he was sleeping, I ported him to the bedroom
in his hotel, and left a note reminding him about all he was supposed
to know. In that was telling him his new identity would stand a light
background check, but if the police got involved, they would know he
was given his new identity by the FBI, and would know that if he
committed a felony, he would lose all he had gained. I didn't monitor
him after that.
Then I went back to work doing art for the Smithsonian, which
included the Native American things I had been authorized to do, which
I signed with my English and Navajo names. Hawk had played back for the
Council what I had said about being of them in at the RedCloud's. He
said some of them had some tears. I would like to say I loved doing
those paintings, but I'm not really there when I'm doing it, and I'm
just feeling IN the painting. I do love the results. The comments I
hear about them tell me I'm not the only one.
I noticed a starship was approaching our solar system. The people
inside looked almost as human as Earth people. I extended my
perceptions through my 4th viewpoint, and one of them noticed that. She
was an Adept who had had some training. I very carefully inspected the
minds and brains of the others on the ship, and they weren't psionic,
and didn't know she was, or that anybody was. I learned their language,
and organized it to push it to others. Then I told Pete, and he called
a major conference. There were the old Senior Guardians, their
assistants Percy and Ivanna, and my current primary team, Ichi, Rose,
and Hawk. I told them what I had found, and at their request, gave them
the language. Ichi said "Have you scanned their planet?" I said
directly to him, "No, I haven't." He groaned. We all grinned. I said
"Join?" He nodded, and we all linked up and looked at their planet,
which I had found coordinates for in their computer, and deciphered and
then correlated with our star charting system. Their planet and people
were a lot like ours, but a little more advanced. After some really
intense investigation and research, we discovered some interesting
things.
We pulled back, and I looked at Ichi to comment. He didn't groan this
time. He said "Now we know where the last ship ended up. It didn't go
to the same system as the other ships did, who became the Van. They got
lost, and went much father in space and time, before they found a
compatible planet. Now they have their own star confederation, which
the GC doesn't know about. They kept their history, and know about
Stephen's incarnation, and worked with her before they left. Unlike the
Van, they consider her a hero. Now we have to decide how to handle
their visit, which includes how much they should know about US." Ivanna
said "Their ship is armed, and they have small arms in the ship." I
said "What does that tell us about them?" She said "They are warlike."
Rose said, "Or cautious and prepared. They could have met with people
like the Centaurs and discovered they need a good defense. Without our
kind of shields, their best defense is a good offense." Ivanna said
"Well said." Percy said "Their technology is at the level of the GC,
but not implemented in exactly the same way. They may not have had much
contact with them, if any. We would have to modify an airlock to join
with one of theirs." Nigel said "Usual contact and notice, to start?" I
looked at Ichi and he said, "Yes. Want to be the comm manager again?"
Nigel grinned and said, "Naturally. That's why I brought it up." They
bowed to each other and grinned.
Ichi said "I would like the same introduction, with the same people
doing the visit. I want to see the Adept's reaction to Stephen's aura,
with me acting like the boss. We shield the ship for psionics, so she
doesn't realize we are Adepts until we are in their ship." I said "I
like that! Will she break cover to tell them about us? Very
interesting." I said to Ichi, "You can use me all you want." He
grinned, and said, "Thanks. And this time, we won't even have to clean
up, after." We all laughed.
When the ship was slow enough to enable porting, we were in the comm
center, when Nigel spoke into the mic, to the transponder which Ichi
had ported to and attached to their comm antenna, in their language, "I
am communicating to you for the Guardians of this system, in which
there is a Restricted World. Please pass on this message to your
Captain. If you need any assistance, please inform us of it. Please
state your reason for visiting this system, so we may allow it. If you
reply, please use minimal power, to maintain security, because our
shielded transponder is very near your ship. We will wait for your
reply." No answer. He repeated it. Then again. Then there was an
answer, "This is Captain Krack, of the Confederation Starship Searcher
12. To whom am I speaking?" Nigel said "I am Nigel, presently
supervising our comm center." The Captain said, "Please allow me to
speak with someone of authority." Nigel said "Transferring. Please
hold." After 20 seconds, Ichi said into the mic, "I am Ichi. I will be
managing all our contacts with you and your ship." The captain said
"What is your rank?" Ichi said "I am a Senior Guardian. We are not a
military organization, and to not have a rigidly defined hierarchy, as
you do. We do the work for which we are best suited, as a matter of
course, and are fully responsible for what we do." The Captain said "I
don't fully understand, but that is expected in meeting previously
unknown people. How is it you understand and can speak our language?"
Ichi said "We scanned your ship. That included your language. We
learned it, for your convenience. Now, about the questions Nigel
asked?" He said "I need to know more about you and your people before I
can answer them."
Ichi said "No, you do not. You are not the first welcome and
unwelcome guests we have entertained. If our necessary questions are
not answered to our satisfaction within a reasonable amount of time, we
will not allow you to enter this system." He said "How will you prevent
us?" Ichi said, "We will not tell you how, and you will not know how
after the action. You will not be harmed in any way, unless you
consider a little frustration, harmful. I know how painful thwarted
scientific exploration can be." He laughed and said, "So do I. We are
exploring, and come in peace. What do you mean by Restricted Planet?"
Ichi said "Just as you have your interstellar confederation, we are in
the area of influence of something similar, the Galactic Council, which
has ruled that the people and societies of the inhabited world in this
system are not advanced enough to survive intact, were they to receive
contact with offworld societies." He said "We have a similar rule, and
I will abide by your ruling." Ichi said, "We are not of the Council. It
is very much better at making rules, than enforcing them. This planet
and its people have suffered the surreptitious predation of another
system for thousands of years. We have stopped that, and stopped them
from doing the same to other systems. Where the Council can't or won't
enforce its charter to protect the planets it serves, we are doing it.
They don't actually know that yet, but soon they will. If you would
like to explore this system, you must do it in a way which their
science can't detect. If you are unable to do that, we might be able to
assist you. If you would like to meet with us in person, we can host
you in our reception center, if you have a shielded shuttle, or we
could visit your ship. The earliest we can visit you would be in
approximately 20 minutes."
Ichi said "We do not lie." He said "How will you do that?" Ichi said
"In a ship." He said "Oh, is it nearby?" Ichi said "No, it is in its
usual place on the third world." He said "It still sounds impossible,
but I will host you here as soon as you are able to join us." Ichi said
"We will board our ship, and be with you soon. Please maintain
electromagnetic silence until then. We have been blocking your sensor
sweeps, and will keep doing that until they stop. The people of this
system must not know of your presence. Signing off now. Goodbye." There
was some mumbling from the speaker, and then it was silent. I said
"Great work. Any bets on whether they'll turn off their radar?" Rose
said "I think they won't. A little pushy, for explorers." Ivanna said
"He's a military commander. He's just being normal for him. I think
it's a male." I grinned and said, "You would." She laughed. Ichi,
Percy, Rose, and I, went into the ship, and ported it, invisible, to
near their ship, matched vectors, and went visible. Percy said in front
of the ship's comm, "I am Percy, in the Guardian ship. If you would
like us to dock, we both should cut deceleration. If we come any closer
without that, our gravity fields will be very angry with each other."
It was word for word the same is he said to the last starship to visit
us. We all grinned at that. Captain Krack came on the screen and said,
"Angry?" Percy said, "That, and leading to an argument, resulting in
murder. We would be very poor hosts if we let our ship destroy you. Our
gravity drive is much stronger than yours. Even though it doesn't get
quite as much exercise." Captain Krack said, "I see, or almost do. You
look a lot like us." Percy grinned and said, "As we see it, you look a
lot like US." Captain Krack smiled and said, "Then which of us has
precedence?" Percy said "We do, as your people originally came from
this system." Captain Krack yelled "What!" There was some background
voices, and Captain Krack said "Please stand by a moment."
I said "Great work. Surprise nicely done." Ichi said "I think a
change is in order. Let me do the next bit at the comm." Percy got up
and said, "Good idea. Fun keeping them off balance." We all grinned.
After ten minutes, Captain Krack came back on the screen, and said, "I
have been informed that some of my people believe you. We will turn off
our drive when you want to synchronize actions." Ichi said, "That's not
necessary. Please do what you need to, and we will accommodate to
that." Captain Krack said, "With all I've experienced of you so far, I
expect questioning you about that would be a waste of time. Shutting
down the drive." They did, and we maintained our position. Captain
Krack said "Is your docking mechanism compatible with ours?" Ichi said
"We made it so after we scanned your ship." He shook his head in
wonder, and said, "Then please dock where the flashing beacon has just
been activated." Ichi said "Thank you. Signing off." Which he did.
While we were walking to the lock, Percy said with humor to Ichi, "You
stole my line!" Ichi said with a hug and a kiss, "Why change
perfection?" That got him a BIG hug and kiss in return.
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Grant
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