Introduction
The date is September 21st, 2147. I’m with a dozen friends and family on the lawn of George Washington’s Mount Vernon farm where history is about to be made. With a blip that could barely be heard, a craft suddenly became visible only a hundred feet overhead. With a slight hum, it settled to the ground in a matter of seconds.
Here we go!
~ * ~
The elongated oval craft had a liquid-mercury-like surface. About one-hundred-fifty feet long, fifty feet wide, and twenty feet high, it settled to the ground with half-a-dozen legs emerging to keep it level. The craft had no windows or other discernible appendages. It was flat on the bottom and sloped gradually forward on top. Once stopped, motion could be seen on the craft’s liquid-like surface, idling in discernable patterns.
After a few minutes, a ramp emerged from nowhere on the side facing us. Everyone tried to peek inside the craft through the now-exposed opening. Inching closer, we could only see light behind a fog, a mist moving from top to bottom. My sixteen-year-old son Billy suggested it was testing our atmosphere and pressurizing to the degree it needed. Three or four minutes later a form immerged.
Our entire group had moved to within a hundred feet of the craft. Passing through the fog, the figure appeared to be human, perhaps six feet tall with a slight build of one-hundred-seventy pounds or so. The proportion of arms, legs, head, and other identifiable body parts looked quite natural to our eyes. It proceeded slowly, like any human, down the ramp, stopping after taking a couple of steps onto the soil.
I studied the facial features, but there was no discernible difference between him and us. It moved its head from side to side and up and down to take in all that surrounded it. It turned at the waist and motioned back to the craft with one hand. Two others appeared. All three were dressed in what I would describe as jumpsuits. With the appearance of the other two, their gender could now be determined; one male, and two females.
When the male turned back toward us, he moved his mouth, but nothing could be heard. After several attempts, we finally heard without the use of our ears: Bill Bailey.
As I took a step forward, Billy grabbed my arm.
“I’m going with you, Dad. I’ll be behind you with Di (my twelve-year-old daughter) behind me.”
For some odd reason, I didn’t fear for them and simply nodded. From my first step toward the male, I was overcome with a feeling of peace and serenity. I would never have allowed my children to follow me without this feeling permeating my being. With my two children following me and the females following the male, we met near the middle of the distance between us. I extended my hand.
“Welcome to Earth. Your arrival has been anticipated with great joy and excitement. Welcome.”
Instead of a verbal reply, I got a handshake and received a telepathic response.
Thank you. We come in peace to meet you, your family, and your friends. We come to assist in your efforts to build a spacecraft. What you see is what you refer to as an android. I have transferred my essence into this form. When we fully adjust to your atmosphere and language, we will be able to talk directly. For now, I believe all three of you can hear and understand my thoughts.
I responded, “I do hear and understand you. These are my children; Billy and Di.”
Yes. We have been monitoring both of them for some time through those you know as Cho. They possess new capabilities for your species. All this will be explained in due time. You have many questions we will try to answer. You have enabled this to happen with the changes you have overseen while here on Earth. Your journeys and outcomes were prophesied. We are pleased to be with you.
“How long will it take you to adjust, and what do you recommend we do from here? There are obviously many behind me who also want to meet with you. How would you like to proceed?”
We will adjust very rapidly. In ten of your minutes, we should be able to talk where you can hear with your ears. Until then, I would like to invite you to board our vessel. There, you will see us in our true form and substance. We believe you will be comfortable with this.
“My children and I would love to board your craft, but I’d like to inform our people of what’s going on to allay any fears they might have. I’m sure you understand. I also know that if my children and I board your vessel, my wife will want to board as well. Is this permissible?”
Of course. You may want to bring your Emily and Griffin with you as well. We three androids will stay with the rest of your people until we decide how to proceed. We will communicate with Kim and the others while you are aboard our vessel. Everyone will be able to visit the vessel if they so desire.
“Believe me, everyone will so desire.”
With that I turned, telling my children to stay put until I returned, and led our guests to the other people waiting. The crowd engulfed us as I spoke.
“These are three envoys from the craft. They contain the essence of those onboard. They will interact with you in about ten minutes when they fully adjust to our environment. They asked for Kim to be the contact person to begin. In the meantime, they have invited Emily, Diana, and Griffin to join them in the craft.
“Everyone will be allowed inside the craft very shortly. Kim, please take our guests inside and begin to get to know them. Emily, Diana, Griffin, please follow me.”
The first meeting between humans and alien androids has just taken place. From this point forward, everything would change.
Chapter I – Greetings
As we got near the ramp, I had the others wait while I went forward. I walked through the fog and found myself alone in a very hospitable setting. Not knowing what to expect, I filled my lungs and held my breath for several seconds. There was a sweet aroma to the air I took in and I felt wonderful, after which I exhaled.
I quickly surveyed my surroundings. Vertical walls approximately three feet high, of what appeared to be beige-painted metal surrounded me. Above the walls, five feet in height, in every direction, the outside could be seen as if there were windows, even though the craft, had a metallic outside surface. Above the windows were soft soothing lights slowly changing colors before seamlessly blending into the ceiling. Floor to ceiling was about ten feet.
Several small sofas, along with three pilot chairs near one end were the entirety of what I saw. There didn’t appear to be any visible controls near the pilot chairs. This was nothing like any spacecraft I’d seen depicted before. It reminded me of an all-season sunroom instead of a vessel.
I took another deep breath to fill my lungs. It seemed perfectly normal, as I had no trouble breathing. Then, from behind me, I heard a voice without using my ears.
Bill Bailey, it is so nice to meet you.
A wall with a door had appeared from one section of windows. There stood a man nearly seven feet tall with a slightly larger cranium than ours, tan skin, western European eyes, and short dark hair. He looked very much like most humans in their late forties. His body was thin, with arms that looked somewhat underdeveloped and disproportionately long.
As we shook hands, I noticed only three fingers and a thumb. He seemed to have a uniform on, with short sleeves and pants extending to the ground. The clothing material looked like nothing I had seen before, a mixture of shiny cloth and paper without emblems, insignia, or rank.
“I’m honored to be the first to meet you. I apologize for being overly protective, but I’m sure you can understand. We have so many questions for you, I don’t know where to begin.”
He smiled broadly and blinked his eyes before replying with his voice.
“You might want to start by looking around.” He motioned his arms, welcoming me aboard.
I slowly walked around the craft fascinated by the windows. I could see in 360 degrees. I touched a window and it appeared to be a flexible material that distorted around my finger. They appeared to be windows, not projections, everything outside was seamless.
I ran my hand along one sofa. It was a soft material in brown accenting the beige walls beneath the windows. This was more of a living quarter, than a vessel.
The wall re-emerged and the door opened again with a slight hiss. Out walked two other beings. Shorter than the first and similarly dressed, their features, clothing, and hair were all similar to the male. As we walked toward one another, both extended their hands and spoke their welcome in a higher octave. They were female matching the androids first greeting us. Their smiles were warm and disarming.
I turned back toward my male host, smiling, shaking my head, and raising my hands as if to say, what’s next?
He motioned toward the ramp where, through the fog, there were some very anxious people waiting for my signal. I smiled and walked toward the ramp while gesturing for everyone to join me. Diana, holding tight to each child’s hand was the first to enter. She came to me while Billy and Di broke free heading for our host.
Emily introduced herself to one of the female hosts and immediately began questioning her.
Griffin headed toward the second female host and started conversing. Diana and I embraced.
Di had the male host’s hand and was leading him to the seats in the front where Billy was now sitting, staring out the window.
“Please show us where you come from.”
Both of them wanted to see their stellular map.
He smiled and waved his hand in front of the window. A front panel appeared with a three-dimensional map of several universes spinning in space. Billy immediately pointed to the Milky Way and asked where our host’s universe was. He pointed to one in what I would have said was two levels removed. Billy and Di chatted before calling it by name. Our guest smiled and nodded affirmatively.
Thus, began the communications between humans and friendly beings from outer space, the opening for many new frontiers and adventures. It was also the beginning of changes on Earth that would result from knowledge being shared, along with the ability to travel to new worlds. This was truly the beginning of a new age.
~ * ~
As Diana and I walked hand-in-hand toward the front of the craft, our children were debating the distance in lightyears between us and the host’s home. I couldn’t help thinking how easily this first encounter had gone. I guess I had expected an orchestra to be playing in the background and something profound to be uttered. Instead, we had a friendly greeting between people and were now engaged in conversations covering all manner of topics.
Billy and Di were peppering our male host with questions concerning travel, atmosphere, propulsion, and everything scientific pent-up by their Earth-limited studies of 3-dimensional travel and communication.
Emily was interested in civilizations, cultures, politics, and world events on other worlds.
Griffin and his three internal guests were busy gathering data regarding their android uses and integration. I smiled and whispered to my wife.
“This reminds me of Christmas in the twentieth century, except all the gifts are answers to questions: knowledge.” She smiled back and squeezed my arm.
After five minutes or so, the male host returned to where Diana and I were waiting. He spoke,
“You shouldn’t be concerned about our vessel. Only the ramp is now visible. Your radar is not capable of picking us up. I am pleased to see you at ease with your children and their questions. They are a primary reason for our visit. And yes, I can read your thoughts: Please give me an idea of what’s to come?”
“The reason for our androids is we cannot go into your atmosphere without what you would consider being a spacesuit, because of the micro-organisms in your air. When you walked through the fog, you were disinfected so we can interact.
“We are here to establish a communication channel and to begin the transition you as a species, will soon be undergoing. We and our androids will address all your questions. You and the other people onboard right now are our primary contact points, along with Kim. Yes, we will take you to the other parts of our vessel, and yes, (turning toward Diana) if you would like, we can take you for a ride.”
He smiled while reading my mind and answering my simple questions as well as Diana’s. I spoke,
“I know we’d all like a brief history lesson on human development and evolution. Is that something you might help us begin with?”
“Of course.”
He then spoke to all telepathically. Please join us and be seated. Everyone complied.
“Bill Bailey has asked for a brief history of man’s development on Earth. We will provide Griffin with greater details and data so he can organize and distribute it to satisfy your needs. I will give you what we think may answer your most basic questions. My android version will repeat what I say with your friends inside the building.”
He paused to collect his thoughts before continuing out loud.
“Your evolution has been assisted. By that, I mean with our help, people from outside your Earth. Many civilizations have visited your Earth. Some have left reminders of their visits across your globe. Because it started so long ago and early in your evolution, they concentrated in warmer climates where humans gathered like your Egypt, Africa, river valleys, and Mexico.”
“You are not descendants of fish or even apes, although your species did resemble one another, eons ago. You were genetically engineered with many capabilities you have yet to discover or activate. Throughout your history, you have discovered several skulls of ancestors varying enough to categorize different phases in your evolution.
“Your evolution has been assisted by breeding and DNA modifications. Bill Bailey’s unique cryogenic experience, along with the drug they used to repair his injuries, altered the DNA he passed to his children, Billy and Di.” He turned to Diana.
“Yes, we wish to study all four of you, and there will be no probing or intruding on your person. We will share our findings and we think you will be amazed.”
Billy and Di had big smiles.
“To survive, you were given muscle and aggressive genes differentiating you from us. Your actions with what you call Cricket and resolving the conflicts among major nations, give us great hope you have mastered most of the aggression that could result in great harm to your species. It will resurface, but we hope it can be channeled into further discoveries.
“Your species, more than most, is obsessed with power. From the beginning of your time on Earth, most human lives lost, have been lost to gain or retain power. Some of this you inherited from watching visitors, but most are part of your makeup as a species. Early on, it helped you survive.
“In general, the lack of education among the masses has contributed to the caste systems in the past on your planet. Once you reached your enlightenment period, your growth and knowledge have accelerated, even as the social hierarchy and consolidation of power have continued in many parts of your world.”
He swept his arms toward the windows showing George Washington’s home.
“Your choice of a landing site is interesting. Some of the great minds that propelled your experiment with self-governance were aided by visions of something never before accomplished. And what you know as fate, interceded on several occasions to help you defeat a superior opponent, including you, Bill Bailey.
“You have followed paths like your nuclear exchange and pandemic causing us great concern, but the changes to governance particularly in your China, were timely and have put you back on a true course.
“With Bill Bailey’s children’s communications and understanding, you have just recently become aware of what you call the fourth and fifth dimensions. Without knowledge of them, your species would forever be held back from traveling among the stars.
“There are as many civilizations and people as there are stars in your skies. Each is following its own path of evolution and is in different stages. We are among thousands of those who can travel and help developing worlds when the timing is right.
“Your theories on evolution are generally correct for plants, animals, fish, and birds. Humans, however, like all of us, follow a blueprint of humanoids throughout the many worlds. It was developed by some God, as you refer to Him, who even we cannot fully explain. All humanoids have an energy, which you relate to as a soul. Bill Bailey has encountered two forms of that energy that was released from other humans. There are many energy universes, several of which form the basis of religions.
“Religions were created to explain that which would not be understood by people during their development. All have tried to give hope, guidance, and structure to people. Most have been corrupted to meet the needs of those who seek power through religion. The results of this over time, even in other worlds, have been disastrous.
“Religion is practiced by most, in advanced civilizations, but without many of the rituals that you have today. We understand it as energy, but even we wonder about its existence and origins.”
He paused and looked at our children. He smiled and then continued.
“Billy and Di will further the evolution of the species on Earth. As they mature, those things that make them unique will be dispersed to many, raising the species to another level of development. What has happened by accident, with their father, will be incorporated for the good of all. This is what you refer to as fate.”
I interrupted him with a question in my mind.
“Yes, Bill Bailey, your integration with androids was another primary reason for our visit. In our civilization, as you have already seen, androids are an extension of our being. You have taken the first step in a long journey in this area. You may develop differently because you have free will. It will be of your choosing. You will find enhancements to your synthetic brain material and when you do, the separation between humans and androids will become minimal.”
He turned to Diana before continuing.
“And yes, we have mastered aging, but with that comes other issues we have wrestled with for centuries because all humans were built to procreate. If you cannot die, reproduction creates problems.”
Diana squeezed my hand and our male host smiled directly at her.
“So, what will we do while we are here and how long will we stay, you ask.
“We will teach Griffin, Billy, and yes, Di how to communicate with us and therefore, others like us. We plan to stay two of your earth days before departing. We will return when you have reached a stumbling block in your travel efforts.
“Your designs are close to being accurate. Billy and Di have done a wonderful job, given what they have to work with. They need some modifications and the materials you seek are available on your Mars as the closest planet.”
He turned to our former U.S. President and now head of Earth’s Space Program, Emily.
“You have a very big decision to make. How do you communicate our presence to your people, if at all? There are too many people here to keep it a complete secret. We suggest you develop a plan for releasing information. Our return visits will depend on what we perceive to be the risk associated with the general public knowing about us, and what might happen as a result of it.
“This has been a concern from the first visitors forward. I believe you refer to it in part as your prime directive. It is up to you to determine if you have reached a point where information can be shared in a positive manner. Remember, what I said about power.”
He offered the floor to his other two hosts. They smiled and declined. Billy asked.
“What do we call yourselves and your home planet?”
“The names are complicated because they have meaning. You may want to refer to me as Alpha, Beta (pointing to another host), and Delta (pointing to the third host). I believe these are common in your language and are easy to remember. Our planet you can refer to as Sigma.”
Billy continued, “You obviously breathe oxygen like us. What’s your planet, Sigma, like?”
“Our oxygen content is richer than yours and our gravity is slightly less than yours, perhaps between that of earth and that of your moon. We have oceans, mountains, plains, and all the other physical characteristics we find here. Our planet is slightly smaller, and our orbit takes twice as long as yours to complete. We have three distant moons which are actually stars. We will share pictures with you later, if you would like.”
“May we visit your planet?”
Diana interjected. “Hold on there, young man. We’ve got a long way to go before we do a foreign exchange visit.”
Emily entered the conversation smiling. “I’m ready now. Sorry, Diana.” Our host just smiled.
“When the time is right, a visit can be arranged.”
Billy responded, “How much time do you lose in travel? Days, months, years?”
“In your terms, hours or even minutes. That’s why your discovery of the fourth and fifth dimensions is so important. Even if you were to travel at or beyond the speed of light, as your Einstein suggested, the aging factor would be severely limiting. These are limitations that exist in three dimensions.
“In all cases, those traveling will experience a different aging process than those who do not, in three-dimensional travels. These are things we will teach you.”
“Can we start now? Griffin, have you plugged Albert into these discussions?”
“Yes, all the Neuros have been observing and we all have many questions as well.”
I responded. “You have been most kind and your comments were exactly what I was hoping for.
“So, how do you suggest we proceed?”
“Your human friends have been asking many questions and would like to visit the craft we are in. From what I can determine, all of you would like a ride, as you put it. I suggest the other humans join us, we take a ride, then we will go back to our planet.”
He continued privately with Griffin and me.
Yes, Bill Bailey, we will leave my android here on Earth with you until we return. He has my essence and will assist you on many topics. He will require very minor modifications to resemble Griffin which should help you assimilate him without undue attention.
I responded; I think that’s a wonderful idea. Griffin, please blend the Alpha Android into our crowd of friends. I’d like to have him join us later with as few people knowing about him as possible. Any issues?
Griffin answered, None at all. Strategically, that makes sense. I suggest he not appear until after everyone disperses. I will take care of that.
“I have announced to your friends that they may join us. They are very enthusiastically on their way.”
As they excitedly filed in, Alpha and I had another private telepathic conversation. Alpha began,
I understand your desire to keep our presence known to as few as possible. I think you are wise. Please don’t be concerned with defense systems and the possibility we might be discovered. From now on, our craft will not show up either visually or on any of your equipment. Where would you like to go?
Would it be possible to go underwater, then around the moon? I assume your panels would give us a panoramic view in close to 360 degrees. If you could do that, how long would that take?
I will allow you to determine the length of time. Have you any other questions for us?
Millions of them, but I’m a little dumbstruck right now. If you leave your android here, will it be possible for you and me to talk occasionally?
Yes. I would enjoy having discussions with you as we go forward together.
Can you teleport people from place to place?
Not in the manner of your sci-fi movies. We may come back and pick you up as we did today. I believe that is at the heart of your question.
That would be perfect. I’d like to ease Billy and Di into whatever we will do, and I’m not sure Diana will be totally in agreement with me. I don’t want to deceive her, but I want to keep it between us.
He smiled. I understand.
When Alpha announced our itinerary, there were gasps and applause. Within minutes and with very little movement, the panels were showing us what it looked like to be a big fish in the Atlantic.
External lights were turned on and internal lights were dimmed for maximum impact. Billy and Di were walking from panel to panel followed by little Riley holding Di’s hand, following various species of sea life. Billy asked.
“How is it we hardly felt any movement, and still don’t, although we can see we are moving? Is what we’re seeing real or a video of life in the ocean?”
“What you are seeing is real. Movement is similar to not feeling movement when in a plane going hundreds of miles an hour. We’ve mastered balance during start-up, moving, and landing. You will be taught this with the design of your propulsion, otherwise, you will feel the effect of your g-forces. In this craft, we create our own gravity and therefore can neutralize the g-force you feel.”
“If we came upon a submarine, would they be able to see us?”
“Right now, yes because we are using normal light to illuminate the sea life. If we didn’t want to be seen, we’d switch to a different light and we would absorb the submarine’s radar as if we were not there.
“In the air, we project images from 180 degrees, three-dimensionally, so, no one would see anything other than sky and clouds. Are we ready for a visit to your moon?”
Before we left and for a brief moment, the craft stopped, and Alpha spoke again.
“Your planet is well over fifty percent water, and yet you have explored space more than the bodies of water surrounding you. You have taken to the vacuum of the skies, rather than neutralize the pressures of the deep. There is so much you can learn about your planet, if only you changed part of your focus.
“The resources to sustain your life are abundant below the surface of your oceans. If you desire, we will assist you in harvesting these resources. Great riches in materials and knowledge await you. We know of worlds where civilizations flourish completely underwater. Something for you to consider.” I responded,
“I’m sure there are many opportunities you can enlighten us about. We look forward to your help and assistance. Guidance even, as we build a friendship between us. I’d imagine we are quite primitive to you and others you have visited.”
“Primitive is relative to the civilization. You have progressed far in your civilization. You still have some distance to go. If you desire, we will assist you and enable you to take your place among other like civilizations. As you sometimes say, this is all good.” He smiled.
“Thank you for that and your insights, like about our oceans. We take things for granted, often. Your observations and assistance can help us in many areas. Can you take us up slowly enough to give us the full impact of the journey without being detected?”
“Of course. Fifteen minutes up, five around, and then back to your Mount Vernon.”
For the next twenty minutes, there was nothing but wonderment and awe from everyone. After the trip around the moon, during which we were only several hundred feet above it, they made a loop around Earth to give us the full effect. It was quite remarkable.
~ * ~
For an hour after we returned to Mount Vernon, there were questions and answers about the home and life of Alpha. He graciously responded to each question (out loud) with as much detail as needed. Beta and Delta were holding silent conversations with Emily and Griffin respectively. I’d bounce from conversation to conversation according to the topic being discussed, all while the android Alpha was undergoing minor appearance modifications to more closely resemble Griffin.
Alpha and I began a silent, private conversation. He began,
The android Alpha has been made to look more like Griffin. From your thoughts, you want to hide his presence from the others. He is ready to deploy with you when you are ready.
Thank you. I believe this will be the best way to go forward. All the humans here are friends and wonderful people I trust, but I’d like to be more careful about how others find out about this. I hope you can understand.
Of course. The android Alpha is equipped with communication capabilities directly interfaced with me. His delay will be much shorter than the delay in communication we will teach the others. Our mission is to establish communication and assist in your development. We have studied your personal evolution and will comply with your requests going forward, as long as they are temporary and not intended to be used to benefit only you.
I appreciate what you are telling me. Griffin is a permanent Vice President in our government. There are others like him. I’d like your opinion on how to handle this as we go forward.
You have demonstrated a global objective with your Space Program, Cricket, and Emily’s Fast Start program. We would normally deal with your President, or with Emily in these situations, but are willing to follow your lead for some time. Your thoughts suggest you want to find out about Billy and Di before deciding on a path to follow.
Yes. I believe you said something about their abilities being something we would want to distribute. I’d like to understand it better before we come to any definitive plans on going forward.
Your thoughts fear a breach of understanding and a power struggle. We will respect that until everything is well understood and a plan is developed for distribution. We understand the desire to protect your family overrides other concerns right now. This we can work on together. Yes, this is one reason we are leaving the Alpha android behind.
Do you have other Alpha androids?
Yes. We anticipated leaving this one behind. Yes. We will take him back with us at some point in the future. When, will be determined by what has been accomplished while he is here? And yes, he has access to other knowledge of our species, most of which he can share to further your knowledge and understanding.
Your answers to our questions have startled me a little. I’m having trouble understanding this visit and your offer of help. I’m quite pleased and appreciative, but somewhat confused.
Your species is at a turning point. Your confusion has its origins in your struggles for power. We seek no power from you. We seek none of your resources. Your fears are misguided. You will not be able to assimilate much of our knowledge, but your breakthrough with what you refer to as the synthetic brain in your advanced androids, and your Cricket initiative to eliminate mass killings, have signaled a potential for positive change.
Your words sound like those of the Cho Master. The ‘potential’ indicates there may be other challenges ahead for us. Am I reading that correctly?
Yes. You were one of your decades away from the potential for mass eradication. Your efforts have moved this potential back somewhat. We and other civilizations are centuries away from such an event. You still have enough aggression and thirst for power to fall back into a situation only resolved with mass killings. In terms of advanced civilizations, you are still very young, and your path going forward could be altered.
So, are these efforts to support our continued movement to a more peaceful, less aggressive civilization in line with yours and others?
Fate, as you have called it, has positioned you personally to help in the adoption of major changes. Fate has brought you into a time when such changes could be made. And fate has positioned you alongside an advanced device making such a transition possible. Your offspring have completed an initial cycle that gives other civilized people great hope for your species. But yes, your journey is not done. Our visit is somewhat like what you would call a test. Are you ready for another step forward?
As I thought about what I had just heard, Billy and Di diverted Alpha’s attention.
His reference to fate was most interesting, as if all this had been predetermined, set up, and positioned. Was I just a pawn in a much larger game of chess?
I began to consider the circumstances of the twentieth century. Even if we had wanted contact, we were so primitive, there would have been little to be achieved. It was Griffin’s enormous potential that made the difference. Could I have been placed here with Griffin by some design of fate?
Of course, I had been.
The world had recently eliminated over half of its population, scaring all world leaders. We had continued in the U.S. to advance technically at an exponential rate, but the interfaces to our technological advances were still primitive. They were on the wrong path and it would have taken decades to accomplish what the technology could do itself.
And equally important was Emily. Without her positioning, real change could never have been made. Fate. Seriously? I really was, just a pawn in fate’s game of chess.
I watched my children pull Alpha away and guess I was staring blankly into space.
My lovely wife Diana took hold of my hand.
“Bill. Are you okay? You look like you’re deep in thought and surprised about all this.
“I thought you were expecting this.”
“I guess I was, but I’ve just had an epiphany of all the events leading up to this point.”
“And you’re surprised? I thought we had this conversation, about Ola and me taking you away from things you were supposed to do. I thought we’d talked about this.”
“I guess I hadn’t given it much serious thought. Because it was me, I guess I chose not to believe it.
“After all, who or what could make all this happen?
“Even now, I can rationalize it somewhat, but only now is it becoming believable to me.”
“Bill, my love. From our first meeting with the Prime Minister, to our Kiev adventure, to the first nights in D.C., I never understood it, but I knew something about you was different.
“All this, including those two wonderful children, was meant to be. How and by whom, I couldn’t care less. I’m here with you and our two gifted children. I couldn’t be happier.
“And by the way, why hasn’t that wonderful body of yours changed? Why are you still thirty-something and everyone around you in their forties or fifties?”
I was still lost in my thoughts and only participating in our conversation, not thinking about it.
“Bill. You do realize, you’re not aging, and I do love it.” Her wicked smile brought me back. “Why aren’t you aging like everyone else on this earth?”
“What are you talking about?”
“You, you silly boy. You’re not bloody aging. I don’t know how that can be, and I do appreciate it, but you’re still like you were when we first met. Well, at least like you were in Kiev.
“You are aware of that, right?”
Out of nowhere, I got another telepathic message from Alpha.
She is right you know. You’re aging at a considerably slower rate since you were awakened than everyone else on Earth.
Is this more from ‘fate’?
Let’s just say you have a lot more to do. You should understand by now, you are a conduit, a connector, and a mediator. You bring things together and carry them forward. You may not have thought about it before, because it’s you. Your reflections will bring awareness. Diana is right. You are not aging like others of your species. I’m sorry to interrupt, but you should reflect on this as well.
“Bill. Bill. Are you in there, Bill?”
“I’m sorry. No. I didn’t realize I wasn’t aging. I never thought about it. Holy Crap!”
“Don’t misunderstand me. I love your body, and you of course. But I’ve wondered about it several times. I was hoping if I didn’t mention it, it wouldn’t change.”
She smiled that wicked smile and chuckled.
About that time, Alpha returned with my two children. Alpha spoke to me silently.
Your children are indeed exceptional among all the children of your species. Your Griffin has also exceeded our expectations. And your Emily has an abundance of curiosity and excellent intuition. I’ve changed our plans. He paused before continuing.
You need to process this further and make plans for future visits. We will leave you now and communicate with you on several topics you have raised; when you are ready. We thought you would need more time to adapt to our visit. You are more prepared than we had hoped. I will make the announcement; we need to return to our home.
Thank you for your understanding and for continuing to communicate with us. I look forward to speaking with you again, often. My smile was returned. Alpha addressed everyone.
“May I have your attention, please? We are all very happy with the interactions and the warm reception. Unfortunately, I believe we must leave at this time. Bill Bailey and Griffin will know how to contact us, and we look forward to future visits. We wish you continued peace, prosperity, health, and happiness. Thank you all for attending.” I followed his announcement to get things going.
“Okay, I know you’re all disappointed, but we need to leave the craft now.
“Please gather in the Welcome Center’s auditorium and we’ll be able to debrief there.”
Turning to Alpha, I continued.
“On behalf of all of the people of Earth, I’d like to thank all of you and your civilization for this historic visit. We also look forward to future visits and communications. Thank you.”
There was applause as I shook Alpha’s hand. Everyone was reluctant but filed out of the craft, The android Alpha mixed in well, not bringing attention to himself. Griffin ushered him into a private office as we watched the craft slowly lift to about one hundred feet into the air, then disappear with a blip.
BillDeFoor 