Ernesto

Ernesto Mendoza pulled into his driveway in a quiet suburb of San Diego; another day was done. He thought as he took his briefcase out of the car, “Tuesday has to be the most boring day of the week.”

Then he had another thought, “It was ten years. Ten years to the day that he and two other Navy Seals went into apartment 1A. They went in to capture a man the assumed was a terrorist. They ended up being caught themselves. They spent fourteen hours in apartment 1A and, in that time, they proved that humanity was not ready for the technology that the mysterious Mr. Anderson had to offer.

Ernesto often wondered what the world would have been like if he and the other two members of the team had acted differently. Mr. Anderson said he could make energy a non-issue. Maybe it was all a scam, Lieutenant Robertson thought so, but Ernesto was not so sure.

When reenlistment time came up Ernesto decided to get out. He was proud to serve in the Seals, but what was done in apartment 1A always bothered him and he never wanted to have to follow that kind of order again.

In the last ten years his children have grown. Ernesto junior was an electrical engineer in Silicon Valley and Juan was a sergeant in the Marine Corps. Little Selena was a sophomore at San DiegoState.

His wife, Maria, was a real estate agent and he worked for the defense department in San Diego.

The Mendoza’s had one house rule. No matter what demands were made on them, they always sat down to dinner together. The person with the most time cooked, or brought home the carry-out. Today Ernesto brought the KFC into the house.

Maria and Selena were waiting in the kitchen. Maria was still dressed for business, it was clear that she had a showing this evening.

Selena loved to relate the events of her day and she generally dominated the dinnertime conversation. She spoke up proudly, “I aced my match exam.”

She talked through the applause, “It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. Ann aced hers also so we’re going to celebrate on Friday.”

“You won’t celebrate too much?” Ernesto asked.

“No Daddy,” Selena answered, “I know when to quit and Ann said she’d be the designated driver.”

Then Selena changed the subject, “We had a guest speaker in our Humanities class today. He spoke about the value of one human life in society.”

“Really,” Maria said, “and what was his conclusion?”

“His conclusion was the more socially advanced a society became; the more value it placed on each of its members. He sited examples of primitive cultures that sacrificed members to appease one god or another, and the major use of slavery in history. Both practices disappeared with the advancement of society.”

“Tell that to the young people in the Middle East that are convinced to blow themselves up for God,” Ernesto said.

“Daddy, that’s the point. They had to be convinced. They, at least, started out with a choice. However, he did go on to say that we are not out of the dark ages completely, and he posed a hypothetical situation. He described a situation where an alien culture offers the government an advancement that would guarantee us military superiority for the next hundred years, and all they would want in return is one of our citizens. In this hypothetical the government could not give the citizen the right to refuse and they would know that the remainder of the citizen’s short life would be very unpleasant. He asked the class if the government should consider such an offer. I was shocked by how many people said they should. Needless to say that sparked quite a debate in the class.

Ernesto’s fork dropped from his hand, bounced off the plate and clanged on the tile floor. This prompted Selena to ask, “Are you alright Daddy?”

Ernesto answered, “I’m fine dear; the fork for just slipped. What was the speaker’s name?”

“His name was Thomas Anderson,” Selena replied.

The blood drained from Ernesto’s face when he heard the name. His mind raced, “Why would he show up again, and was it a coincidence that he appeared in Selena’s class?”

He asked Selena “Was he a short well built African/American man?”

“Yeah, that’s right Daddy; do you know him?”

“I knew a man named Thomas Anderson many years ago. He always was a fighter for the individual. It sounds like the same guy. Is he going to be on campus tomorrow?”

“No, I don’t think so. He was only signed up for the one engagement.”

Ernesto tried to make small talk for the rest of the meal; he didn’t want to seem obsessed on Thomas Anderson.

After dinner Maria rushed off to her appointment and Selena went to her room to study. Ernesto sat in the family room paying no attention to the game show on TV.

Finally he reached for the phone but it rang before he picked it up. He answered, “Hello.”

The voice asked, “Is this Ernesto Mendoza?”

“Yes and who am I speaking to?”

“Ernesto, this is Danny, Danny Stevens from your old outfit.”

“Let me guess,” Ernesto said, “We have a mutual friend in town.”

“He’s in your town too?” Danny asked in surprise. I live in Detroit and she showed up as a speaker at assembly in my son’s school today. Little Danny said that he did a lot of talking about a citizen’s rights under the constitution. It’s him Ernesto; my son described him exactly. That’s one guy I’ll never forget.

Ernesto answered, “He gave an even more detailed lecture on the subject in my daughter’s class at San DiegoState today. You know today is the tenth anniversary of our visit to apartment 1A.”

“Holy crap,” Danny said, “Ernesto what do you think he’s up to? If goes after my son; I’ll find a way to take him down, I swear I will.”

“That was my first thought also,” Ernesto said, “but I don’t think he’ll do anything like that; he could have done it by now if he wanted to. Heck he could have zapped us to nowhere the way he zapped Robertson around the apartment. No, he’s not violent; he proved that. I think he’s trying to get our attention.”

The way Ernesto said, “Robertson” prompted Danny to say, “I know you guys had your differences but Mike Robertson isn’t a bad guy. He and I got out when our hitches were up. After you left he began to fall apart. He drank a lot and Commander Griffin was about to toss him out but he let him hang on until his hitch was up. The Commander pretty much asked him not to reenlist. Things went down hill for him after that.”

“I’ll take you word in the fact that he isn’t a bad guy, but I just can’t forget what he did and what he made me do. Anyway, how about you; what have you been up to? So there’s a Little Danny. I guess the wild man has settled down.”

“Yeah, Danny said, “Sarah and I have been married eight years. Danny is in second grade. I’m a cop in Detroit.”

“A police officer good for you.; I bet the bad guys get quite a surprise when they try to fight their way passed you.”

“There are some pretty tough guys on the street, but I think I’ve earned their respect. There are so many trade-offs when you’re on the street; it’s not just good guys and bad guys.”

I can imagine,” Ernesto said, “and I appreciate what you guys are doing out there.”

“Thanks Ernesto, Ernesto, what do you think Anderson wants after all this time?”

“I don’t know, but I’m sure we haven’t heard the last from him. You track him on your end and I’ll track him on mine.”

“Will do,” Danny said. “I have the facilities and I’m sure I’ll get all the help I need from the boys downtown. I won’t involve the Feds yet. I think that will scare him off.”

“Good point,” Ernesto said. He and Danny traded cell phone numbers; then they hung up.

Ernesto switched to the news just in time to hear, “In our final story; they’re at it again. Those little green men are putting on a show. It’s been a long time since we’ve had a good old UFO sighting, but we have one now. A large disk shaped object appeared over Adiam, Iowa today. This one may be hard for the government to discount; thousands of phone cameras and digital cameras had images flying around the net as the event was happening. As you can see in these images; this is not a glowing disk far away. There are details that clearly make this out to be a craft. Also a crop circle appeared in a field just outside of town. If this is a hoax; it’s a darn good one.”

Ernesto stared at the screen; he couldn’t believe this was all happening. Anderson claimed to have a ship. Was that ship his ship or have the creatures he called Haranota returned?”

The next day Ernesto couldn’t keep his mind on his work. He put in half a day and then went to the San DiegoState campus. There he was able to get information on Thomas Anderson; including a phone number. He tried the phone number and he didn’t get an answer; then he remembered another number. It was a number given them when they were in apartment 1A. It was 25 35 45 55 65 75 85 95 following by three asterisks. The odd combination of numbers was supposed to connect directly to him. Ernesto took a breath and punched in the series.

“You remembered the number,” The voice said.

“Mr. Anderson, what’s going on?”

“Mr. Mendoza first let me tell you that Selena is a bright and beautiful young lady. Have no fear; she will never see me again. I just needed a subtle way to get your attention.

“Well you got it,” Ernesto said. “What do you want for me?”

“I need to talk to you, Danny, and Mike. I need help and humanity needs help and you three are the only people on Earth who really know what’s going on.”

Ernesto reminded him, “You do know that we briefed our superiors quite extensively when we returned from your apartment.”

“I know,” Anderson said, “but the ones that believed you had their own agendas. If they acted at all; it would likely be in some clever self serving way. This has to be done quickly and it has to be done for the right reason.”

“What has to be done?”

“I want the four of us to sit down in a secure place to discuss that. Can you get a hold of Danny and Mike?”

“I’ve talked to Danny, but I haven’t talked with Robertson since I left the Navy. Danny has, he may know how to contact him.”

“Good,” Anderson said. “Ernesto, I want you to be my point man on this. You’re the one that put the lives of the people in that apartment building before your mission and that’s the attitude I need.”

“Yes before the mission, but not before my own life. When Robertson told me that he would shoot me if I didn’t follow orders; I was right there shoving paper in that hole.”

Anderson asked, “What would have happened if you refused and he shot you?”

“I would have lost my life, but I might have saved my soul.”

“And your children would have been without a father, and the families in that apartment building would have still been in danger. If giving your life would have saved those families; I might agree with you, but it wouldn’t have saved them. Your soul is intact my friend, and I want you in charge this time. When all of you agree on a time; let me know. You won’t have to travel to get to me; I’ll bring you here when you’re ready. All I will need is a phone call from each of you at the proper time. Please hurry.”

Ernesto had one more question, “Was that your ship the people saw over Iowa?”

“No,” Anderson said, “and that’s the reason for the urgency.”

“Mike is still down in Florida. He’s divorced now and he’s become something of a loner,” Danny told Ernesto.

“Can you get a hold of him?” Ernesto asked.

“If you’re going to coordinate; you probably should call. There’s no sense on passing information twice. I’m good with doing it at 1800 hours tomorrow. Let me know if that will be the time.”

As much as Ernesto hated the idea; he knew Danny was right, “OK, I’ll get back with you as soon as I can.”

Ernesto punched in the number that Danny gave him. It rang three times; then a voice came through. The person talking was barely coherent, “Yeah.”

“Is this Michael Robertson?”

“Who wants to know?”

“This is Ernesto Mendoza. An old friend of ours from ten years ago has returned. You, I, and Danny have to meet with him.”

“I don’t have any old friends; least of all you Mendoza; and I don’t have to do a damn thing.”

“Look Robertson, you’re not even close to being my favorite person either, but we have to put that aside. There is something important happening and the three people that were in apartment 1A can make it come out right.”

Mike Robertson slurred out, “You and Danny go play with little green men; I’ve got more important things to do.”

“Like what; you worthless bastard, drinking yourself into another drunken stupor?” I’ll never forget what you made me do in that apartment; it’s haunted me everyday since then. At least then you had some reason, now you’re just a piece of crap. You will be ready at 1800 hours tomorrow or, as you told me once, I come there and shoot you myself.”

“Do it,” Robertson said in a suddenly coherent voice. “Come here and shoot me; at least then it would be over. I can’t live like this. I haven’t had a full night’s sleep since I left that place. I have to drink until I pass out; it’s the only way. I keep seeing my hand shoving that burning piece of paper into the hole. Then I see images of little babies burned in their cribs and a little girl with a blistered face and arms seared to the bone looking at me and asking me why.

I couldn’t look at my kids. I was drunk so much that Nancy gave up on me. The Navy suggested that I not reenlist. My life is over; a bullet would just ease the pain. I wish I had the courage to do it myself.”

“There is another way to ease the pain. Stand up. Stand up like the man you were. No one that was in that apartment that day could forget what might have happened, but it didn’t happen. We almost did a terrible thing but we didn’t. Now I have the feeling something terrible will happen if we don’t help Mr. Anderson stop it. Don’t give yourself something real to regret.”

“What do I have to do?” Robertson asked.

“Wash your face, lace up you boots and be ready to go at 1800 hours tomorrow.”

“OK, but I don’t know how much help I’ll be.”

“Mike, you were a Seal; very few people can say that. That’s not training that you forget. You’ll be ready for the mission.”

The next day Ernesto gave Danny and Mike the instructions. It was simple. Danny punched in the number at 1800 and he disappeared in a flash; Mike punched it in at 1802 and he was gone.

Ernesto punched all but the last asterisk and waited to exactly 1804. When the time came; he took a breath and pressed the asterisk. There was a blinding flash and, when his vision returned he was standing in Thomas Anderson’s comfortable living room.

“Welcome,” Thomas Anderson said.

Then Mr. Anderson addressed the group, “Now that we’re all together; can we drop addressing each other formally? My name is Tom; may I address you by your first names?”

Everyone nodded and Tom continued, “First I apologize for taking you away from your homes, but it was necessary. That ship that was seen over Iowa was a scout ship. Its purpose was to deliver a message. The crop circle was the message. The message is meant for the same group that killed the original Thomas Anderson and created me. The Haranota want another human specimen.

I sent a series of messages to the Haranota home world that indicated that the human specimen delivered was deficient. I gave them the impression that the hybrid Thomas Anderson had a heart attack shortly after he was installed in their laboratory. I also gave them the impression that the ship had left the Sol system to explore other possibilities. I was hoping the Haranota would move on to other areas of exploitation. The Haranota are exploiter and not explorers, but I won’t digress down that road.

It seems that they want another shot at it. That means two things. First another one of your citizens will lose their life, and it also means that the Haranota are holding more Tzari.

There are three things that can’t be allowed to happen. One, your government must not be allowed to murder another one of its citizens to gain technology. Two the Haranota must not be allowed to keep Tzari as captives, and three, the Haranota must never get the knowledge that the Tzari possess.”

“I have a question,” Danny asked,”why not? I’m really not condoning the idea, I know murdering an innocent person is wrong, but is there something other than the degradation of our democracy involved here?”

“Yes there is Danny,” Tom answered, “your government is being duped. The technology that they are receiving is not foolproof. It’s just something the Haranota dug up from their old engineering texts. There is no reason to believe the stealth capability they were trading will be affective under Earth conditions.

The Haranota view humanity as a disorganized rabble and humanity doesn’t deserve the beautiful planet that it lives on. If they could exterminate humanity without harming the Earth’s ecosystem; they would and the knowledge of the Tzari could give them that ability. You three have to stop the Haranota from obtaining another human specimen.”

Ernesto asked, “Why didn’t the scout spot your ship? I assume your ship is somewhere near Earth and the Haranota should be able to override their own stealth capability.”

The ship is close to Earth,” Tom answered, “in fact you’re on it right now.”

That statement made the ex-Seals look around for clues. The first clue was the lack of windows anywhere.

Tom continued as they looked around, “The reason the scout didn’t detect it was because I modified the ship’s shielding.”

“You modified it?” Danny asked, “If you were just, as you say, created; how the hell would you know how to do anything with this kind of technology?”

“That’s a long story,” Tom said, “and I will tell it to you, but not now. It has to do with the incredible knowledge locked in the Tzari mind. The Haranota want that knowledge. The human victim is just a conduit to get to that knowledge.”

Mike asked, “They failed with you; why do you think they’ll be successful with another human.”

“It’s a matter of timing,” Tom explained, “I may have been lucky; I don’t know. It takes many months for a hybrid to be fully capable after the operation brings the human and the Tzari together. I became aware in the recovery area many days before I was transported to the Haranota ship. During that time I was able to hear conversations in the room and I realized the danger I was in. Also it gave me time to understand my new body and its capability. By the time I was transported to the Haranota; I was ready to defend myself. I don’t know if the next victim will get enough time to prepare. If the Haranota succeed in sealing him or her in their observation tank; it may be too late. In that case the Haranota will get what they want. The Haranota with Tzari knowledge would be not only be a disaster for Earth; they would use it to conquer as far as their ships could reach.”

“Tom,” Ernesto said, “you’ve shown us some amazing things and you done some amazing things; forgive me, but I’m still a little skeptical. Can you show us a little of this ship so that we can see this technology with our own eyes?”

Tom answered, “Your query is perfectly reasonable Ernesto, though it will have to be quick tour. When we leave my living area; please be careful of the ceiling. The Haranota spaces are meant for four foot tall people.”

Words could not begin to explain what the three ex-Seals were shown. The ship’s science and operation areas were like nothing they could have imagined. Then Tom came to the final stop on the tour.

“Gentlemen, everything I showed you could be faked given enough resources. What I’m about to show you now could not be faked by the best Hollywood special effects people. Do any of you suffer from vertigo?”

No one answered and Tom pushed the button and the door lid up. The men sucked in their breath. They were staring into space.

Tom explained, “This was the Haranota lounging area; now it’s mine. It’s a large transparent bubble. There is no gravity inside the bubble so it allows you to apparently float among the stars. They had an elaborate system that would retrieve them when they were ready; I have other means. If anyone would like to float among the stars; launch yourself off the doorway in a nice slow and smooth motion. Don’t worry; I can get you back easy enough.”

The men dove into the blackness and were greeted with a wondrous view. Once they cleared the ship’s haul they could see Earth in all its blue/green glory. “Holy shit,” Mike said and the others concurred in his assessment of the experience. In the other direction the moon loomed huge in a greater detailed than any human has ever seen it without a spacesuit.

Tom mentioned as he floated with the men, “Our position is far closer to the moon than to the Earth.”

“I have no words,” Ernesto said. “Tom, you have nothing more to prove.”

“Good,” Tom said, “Because we’re running out of time. You have to go home and prepare. You’ll need to come up with some reason to be away from home for about a week.”

The men returned to Tom’s living area and Mike asked one more question. “Wouldn’t it be easier to snatch this person after the operation? You seem to know everything about what he or she will go through. You could make sure the development goes smoothly and then you would have another of your kind.”

“That thought is more tempting than you know Mike,” Tom said. “I’m a hybrid but most of my memories and emotions come from the original Tom Anderson. The Tzari don’t have personalities in the human sense so emotionally I am mostly human. The thought of being the only one of my kind is disturbing at times and it would be nice to have someone else who understand exactly who, or maybe I should say, what I am. The thought is appealing but I can’t. That would make us no better than the people we’re trying to stop. The chosen human has a right to live and so does the Tzari the Haranota hold captive. I hope one day I can search for volunteers who may choose to give up their present lives to become a hybrid, but that time is not now.”

Tom then addressed the group, “It’s time for you to go. Can we agree to do the sequence calling again at nine hundred hours on Monday?”

Everyone agreed and each in turn flashed back to where they were at 1800 hours.

Ernesto appeared in the storage room down the hall from his office. It was dark and quiet; just the way he left it. He slipped out of the building and headed home. He was half way to his car when his cell phone rang; it was Maria.

“Ernesto, where have you been?”

“I told you I had a late meeting. I’m sorry about missing dinner; but I really didn’t have a choice this time.” Ernesto hated to lie to Maria but she would have never believed the truth; if he could tell her.

“Several people from your office were looking for you,” Maria said, “don’t you people keep track of each other?”

Ernesto had to think fast, “My meeting was with some people at the Pacific Rapid Reaction Headquarters, I told them that.”

“Anyway,” Maria went on, “they came here to the house. They said they needed your help training some people up at ChinaLake. They even dropped off a travel advance and it’s quite a hefty some for driving a few hours. I’ll tell you more when you get home. We’ve eaten, you can have leftovers or you can grab something on the way home.”

That got Ernesto attention. Anyone that worked with him would be privy to the fact that his training duties were just a cover for the real support he provides to the Navy. Even if he was doing training; there is no one at ChinaLake that would need that training. He’s been to ChinaLake; they don’t do that kind of work there.

Something was up and he’s sure these people are more interested in Tom Anderson than they are in his work.

“Ernesto,” Maria said, “Are you there?”

“Oh, sorry, “I was just thinking about something. I’ll eat whatever you have; I’m coming straight home.”

Before starting his car; Ernesto decided to contact Tom. Tom’s response surprised him, “Ernesto, I was just about to call you.”

“Why,” Ernesto asked.

“Part of the security system that I have scans the physical condition of anyone that is in my living area. It seems a bit paranoid, but I thought it would be useful. After you left I did a status check and I found out something I didn’t expect.”

“What,” Ernesto asked impatiently, “is there something wrong with me? Did you system detect something in my body.”

“Yes, it’s something in your body,” Tom replied, “but no, it isn’t anything wrong with you. Ernesto I discovered that you’re a candidate. You are one of the few in the population that has DNA that is compatible with the Tzari. I don’t know if the government knows this or not. They have a lot of physical information on you, but there is not reason to think you would be in their DNA search.”

“I don’t know Tom,” Ernesto said, “I just learned that there are some government types looking for me. They were at my house. They left money for me to travel to ChinaLake. If you don’t know where that is; I can tell you that it’s a long ways from anywhere and it takes a lot of driving on deserted mountain roads to get there.”

“That’s the way they do it,” Tom said recalling the painful memories. It’s good that I’m genetically one step removed from the event because it must have been horrible for the real Tom Anderson. I can recall it happening, but it doesn’t quite feel like it happened to me. That’s how they did it. They staged a small accident on a dark road outside of Baltimore and they took him when he stopped.”

Ernesto was overwhelmed with a barrage of feelings. Fear grew in him; also there was also a sorrow to think that he couldn’t trust his countrymen. After all of the years he spent putting his life on the line for an image of America. For the image of a country that was of the people, by the people, and for the people. To find out that they traded their people for trinkets like they were so many cattle and slept well at night believing they were doing it for the good of their country. Now he was one of the cattle, now he was a prize bull and they wanted him on the chopping block.

Then Ernesto had a thought, “Why don’t I play along?”

“What?” Tom couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“Why don’t I play along,” Ernesto repeated.

“Ernesto, they’re not kidding and you can’t take on a group of soldiers as well trained as you are.”

“I’m not going to take them on Tom,” Ernesto said. “You have some incredible technology at your disposal and some knowledge even beyond the creatures you were talking about. I would think that you would be able to put some kind of tracker in my body that these guys wouldn’t find. They take me and you track me to their meeting point. You guys come and snatch me and the Tzari thing and we’re home free.”

“It’s not that easy Ernesto, what about your family; they can’t lose you. I started this to prevent good people from dying; not to lead them to it.”

“What will happen to my family if these Haranota characters get there hands on the knowledge they seek?” Ernesto asked.

“There’s a chance they will use it against Earth; that has been their pattern from what I’ve learned from the systems on this ship. The orders from the superiors are to secure suitable planets by whatever means necessary, and the family of a commander that identifies a planet and a means to secure it is raised into the inner circle of the aristocracy. I know they want Earth and I know the knowledge will give them the means; but I don’t know for sure that they will use it.”

“That’s close enough for me,” Ernesto said, “I will not have my children exterminated by some little gray bastards from space. Tom, can you tell me that you’ll know when and where the next human specimen will be transported?”

“I know where I was transported from,” Tom answered, “I have my own memories and the information on the entire procedure was in the ship’s systems. I’m hoping that they will use the same procedure. I plan to monitor the location where the last operation took place.”

“That’s a little iffy isn’t?” Ernesto asked. “They can change their plans for many reasons. Maybe the Haranota have other plans; maybe the military moved their location for security reasons. Wouldn’t it be better to know for sure? With a tracker in me you would know exactly where I was at all times. You could monitor my life signs and you’ll know when they start doing something.”

“They will have you knocked out for a long time. We won’t notice any change in your vitals until they get you on the table. If we’re just a couple of minutes late, you’ll be cut open before we get there.”

“Tom, you know this is the best plan. I appreciate your concern and I’ve always been impressed on the value you place on human life, but this needs to be done for the sake of billions of human lives including my wife and children.”

Tom still wondered, “It is rare to find someone that is a DNA match to the Tzari, but it isn’t impossible. The surveys the Haranota did before the original Tom Anderson was taken were still in the ship’s systems. They show that there are almost a thousand candidates in the United States. There must be some that would be a hell of a lot easier to take than you. You’re a trained warrior; taken you will require far more coordination and organization that taking a normal citizen.”

“I can think of two reasons,” Ernesto said. “First, you said you told them that Tom Anderson died of a heart attack which caused the first attempt to be a failure. Maybe this time the Haranota are demanding someone in top physical condition.”

“That makes sense,” Tom said, “what is your second reason?”

“They can kill two birds with one stone,” Ernesto said. “Maybe they believe using me would not only complete the deal with the Haranota, but it will also give them one less loose end to deal with. I often wondered why they just let us wander off knowing what we knew. I guessed they figured that we would only sound like nuts if we told someone. Maybe with the appearance of the Haranota ship over Iowa; they would like to know that at least one of the three can’t add to the present UFO interest.”

Tom finally said, “I yield to your logic Ernesto. The original Tom Anderson had intellect and insight in his own right; maybe it is a common link with all humans with Tzari compatible DNA.”

Ernesto said, “You will forgive me if I’m not ready to join you in your experience at the present time.”

“No you’re not,” Tom said. “I will not see a beautiful young lady like Selena lose her father for any reason. When can you come back to my place?”

“I need to talk to Maria and Selena. I think I would like them to leave town for a while. Can I give you a call later tonight?”

“Just call me when you’re ready,” Tom said and the communication ended.

“What do you mean go to San Francisco?” Maria asked. “As much as I’d love to visit with Ernesto Junior; I just can’t go to San Francisco; I have appointments, people are counting on me.”

“Get someone to cover for you,” Ernesto said. “Maria, I wouldn’t ask this if there wasn’t a reason for it.”

“Ernesto you’re scaring me. What’s this all about? First mysterious men show up at our home, now you want Selena and me to get out of town as soon as possible. What’s happening?”

“Maria, don’t worry. I just can’t tell you what’s happening right now. You know the score. You’ve dealt with this for a lot of years now.”

“That’s when you were in the military,” Selena protested. “You’re a civilian now and you’re damn near middle age. You left that mission stuff behind you years ago.”

“I still support the Navy and there are things that I must do. I’m sorry Maria but I can’t do them with you and Selena in town.”

“There’s more to this, I know there is,” Maria said.

“You do know that I love you,” Ernesto said.

“Of course Ernesto,” Maria said, “I didn’t mean that you were planning something bad.”

“I know you didn’t, and I know I’ve never done anything that affected you or the children but this time it is simply better if you weren’t here. Please just trust me on this.”

“I do Ernesto,” Maria said. Then she put her arms around her husband, “Please, please be careful. I can’t live without you.”

The tracker was in and Ernesto was on his way to ChinaLake. After driving two hours he began to wonder if he wasn’t just being paranoid. Maybe he misinterpreted the message or maybe Maria didn’t relate it word for word. Maybe there really was a job to do at ChinaLake. His wondering ended when he saw a light waving back and forth on the lonely desert road. He thought, “Just like Tom described. Well they’ll get me but I won’t make it easy for them.”

Ernesto slowed his car and a woman holding up an apparently injured man came into the headlights. Ernesto pulled over and got out of the car carefully. He glanced around trying to sense any other motion in the moonless night. He picked up a handful of sand; then he turned toward the woman.

“We had an accident, “she said, “and my husband is hurt; please help us. Please get him to a hospital.”

“Have you called 911,” Ernesto asked.

“No,” the woman replied, “I was going to get my phone when I saw you coming. I thought it would be quicker if you could get us to a hospital.”

“Why don’t you ease you husband down while I call 911. I think it’s better if he’s treated by the paramedics on the way. I have some first aid training; I can look at him while they’re on the way.”

“Please,” the woman’s voice became more desperate but not for the apparent reason, “he needs help as soon as possible. We can’t wait for an ambulance. Please just help me get him in your car.”

“Sir,” Ernesto called to the man, “can you hear me?”

The man didn’t respond and the woman pleaded again, “Please we don’t have much time.”

I’m sorry if you think that I’m being difficult, but I’ve been warned to be on the lookout for certain things and I’ve been given certain procedures to follow. Your husband’s injuries don’t look life threatening, so again I ask you to ease him down and I’ll take a look at him.”

The woman relented, “OK, but can you at least help me get him to the ground.”

“OK, Ernesto said. He approached keeping a trained eye on both of them. He noticed that the woman never let her right hand come into view; that was a red flag to Ernesto.

Ernesto purposely moved to go behind the woman and she stepped back and said, “I got him on this side; get him on the other side.”

Ernesto took the weight for a moment then quickly slid away. The man stumbled a moment then stood up straight. That’s all Ernesto needed to see. He threw the sand in the man’s face, gave him a solid kick to the groin and a crescent kick to the side of the head.

The woman was calling for backup when he reached her. Ernesto threw a sidekick to her stomach that drove her back into her car. He jumped on her and snatched the needle out of her hand.

“Very nice,” he said, “you must have been trained. I don’t suppose you would like to tell me why you’re kidnapping me.”

“Let her go,” a man ordered from behind him.”

Ernesto grabbed the woman and spun her around and used her as a shield, “Not until I get some answers.”

“Mr. Mendoza, you know better than that. We just have to escort you to a special location.”

“Sure,” Ernesto said, “and the drug in that needle was to make me feel good on the trip. Obviously your orders are to bring me in alive or you would have shot me by now.”

“The man replied, “But we don’t have to bring you in with two working legs; you know we’ll do it., so just let her go and make this as easy as possible.”

“Since you know me,” Ernesto said, “then you know that I can snap her neck before you get a bullet in me.”

“And she knows,” the man replied, “the danger of her job and she accepted it. If I have to I’ll shoot you through her, I will. Come on Ernesto this is going to happen; it’s just a matter of how much pain it will require.”

Ernesto let the woman go and the man said, “Now give her back the needle; it really is best for you.”

Ernesto handed the needle to the woman and locked his brown eyes on her blue eyes and said, “If this is easy for you to do while staring into a man’s eyes; then you’re one heartless bitch.”

“The woman’s eyes showed hesitation and a bit of regret’ she said, “I’m . . .”

The man called out, “Just do it corporal.”

The woman pushed the needle into Ernesto’s neck and everything went black.

Tom filled in Danny and Mike as he nervously watched the data coming in from Ernesto’s tracker. “This was all his idea, but it does give us a far better chance stopping the exchange. You’ve heard the conversation I had with Ernesto so I don’t have to go over the reasoning behind what’s going on. What we have to do is get him out of there before those people cut him open.

The tracker is telling me that Ernesto is still in transit and it looks like he will end up at Nellis Air Force Base.”

“How about the little critters, Danny asked, can’t you track them when they leave there ship for the meeting?”

“I’m going to try,” Tom said, “but I have to be careful. I was able to screen my ship from them but if I maintain a monitor on their ship or on their shuttle; they could catch on. I’m going to try to do sporadic monitoring and hope I get lucky. Their technology is quite sophisticated and I haven’t had time to counter all of their systems.”

“I don’t understand,” Mike said, “why don’t we just go get him now?”

“He’s being transported by air,” Tom answered. “They’ll land at Nellis and likely taxi right to where they want to go. We also have another life to save. The Tzari will be brought in by the Haranota.”

“How are we going to know when the Tzari is there?” Danny asked.

“That will be the tough part,” Tom said. I can monitor the base once Ernesto’s plane lands. I will know when another craft lands there. A Haranota shuttle will not land like an airplane; I’ll know when it lands.”

“OK,” Mike said, “I’m sorry but I need to take a step back and get another look at the big picture. We know we want to do this to save the lives of Ernesto and the Tzari. We also know that we don’t want the Haranota characters getting a hold of the Tzari knowledge. My question is; how does this operation stop the Haranota from getting the knowledge? It seems to me that if dealing with the United States is going to be difficult that the Haranota would just approach another country. There are plenty of countries that don’t make a secret of their abuse of their citizens. Actually, I’m not sure I understand why The Haranota chose the United States in the first place.”

“They have to deal with the United States,” Tom answered. “There are several reasons why. First, they need a country that is highly technical. They need the host country to acquire the specimen, do the medical procedure, and monitor the patient during the assimilation process.

The host country would have to have a very stable and strong government and military. They have to be assured the process can be done in total secret. They don’t want an insurrection preventing them from getting their prize.

Their search for the DNA matches has to be done by tapping into medical records. The less developed countries have a small percentage of their medical information available in computer records.

Also, for some reason, Asian people simply don’t carry the gene. I have no idea why, but the information gathered seems to prove that quite conclusively.

In addition, the genetics that shows the highest promise is African and Latin. The place where there is a fairly high population of African and Latin people and has an adequate technology is the United States.

If the Haranota wanted to go with another country now they would have to start all over with a far less chance of success.

“Excuse me,” Mike responded, “but I believe with all of your capability and intelligence, this time, your being a bit naive.”

“How so?”

“Tom, there are many countries that have the technology that the Haranota need and they wouldn’t necessarily have to get the person from their country. They would send agents to the United States and snatch the person. It would be worth the risk for what the Haranota offer.”

“Then I will have to deal with the Haranota directly,” Tom said. “Now your support in this effort is more important that ever. You and Danny will have to secure Ernesto while I give our friends a little demonstration.”

“How the hell are we going to do this?” Danny asked. I know you can zap us into the place and zap us out, but how do we get Ernesto and this Tzari thing out of a high security facility without getting shot up? As soon as we appear we’ll be riddled with bullets. Believe me; these people will shoot on sight; that’s their orders.

Tom answered, “You’ll be protected by a variation of a Haranota body shield. I generate a shield naturally; its one of the benefits of being who I am, but I also was able to modify the Haranota body shields to be used by humans. It was another thing I wanted to present to your superiors ten years ago. We’ll have to wait until Ernesto arrives at his destination but I fairly certain they’re going to use the same facility. The lay out is here in the computer. Here’s what we’re going to do.”

An air force C-135 landed at Nellis Air Force Base. A black SUV rolled onto the tarmac as soon as the ramp hit the ground. Minutes later it rolled into the special hangar.

Later that night an octagon shaped craft silently broke through a cloud bank and landed on the runway close to the hangar. The short gray beings were quickly led into the building.

They entered a room containing three officers, an Air Force General, a Navy Admiral, and an Air Force Colonel. The Colonel reported, “The patient is being brought in and we’re ready to begin the procedure.”

It took two aliens to hand the large cylinder to the waiting airman. The airman took it quickly down to the operating room.

In the operating room below the doctors entered. They talked as they approached the table, “I know these little guys are smart and they know what they’re doing but how do they expect to put one living creature inside another and expect either to live? If this plan was so good; why didn’t it work the first time.”

Major Danielle Thompson glanced up at the observation deck then said, “They’ll live; if what will happen to them when they leave here can be called living. What’s not likely to survive this procedure is my self respect.”

Major Thompson heard the Colonel’s voice in her ear piece, “Doctor, are you ready to proceed?”

“Yes sir,” Danielle answered and may God have mercy on my soul.”

Next Danielle heard a squeaky alien voice, “Major your God will praise you for the good work you’ve done to support your country.”

“Sir, or however you want to be addressed, My God doesn’t work that way.”

The cylinder was brought in the room and it was quickly followed by two masked men. The doctors stood in shock as the men took control. Each had a biretta out and ready for use.

Mike announced, “Ladies and gentlemen; I’m afraid we feel it is necessary to break up this little party of yours. In case you haven’t noticed what you have on the table there is a human being, a citizen of the United States, and a goddamn veteran of the Navy Seals and you will not abuse him. Doctors, and I use that term loosely, please step away from the table.”

Danny went to the table and pushed a small needle into Ernesto’s arm while Mike hefted the cylinder containing the Tzari.

“Stop this immediately,” The Colonel called through the speaker. “This is insane. There are a hundred well trained and heavily armed soldiers right outside that door. Your only hope for survival is to drop your weapons and put your hands behind you head.”

Mike responded, “Let me be the first to say it, “Go screw yourself; you low-life piece of crap.” Out of the corner of his eye Mike was sure he saw a slight smile on the face of Major Danielle Thompson.

“Colonel,” the small alien asked, “what is holding up the procedure? Who are those people down there?”

“They’re mad men and they will be dealt with shortly.”

There was a flash of light in the room and Tom Anderson said, “I don’t think so.”

“So you’re behind this,” Admiral Hartman said.

“Yes Admiral and, if you read the report about the events in Apartment 1A then you won’t be surprised to learned that we are all sealed in here for a few moments. Now if you will excuse me.”

Tom said as he moved over to the Colonel. “Colonel Mitchell; I believe you kept tabs on my development after you murdered the first Tom Anderson.”
“If you’re expecting me to beg for forgiveness,” Colonel Mitchell said strongly, “you can forget it.”

“No,” Tom said, “I just wanted to establish that you were the Colonel who started calling me Frankie, as in Frankenstein, and that it was you that was standing watching me being wheeled out toward the alien shuttle, and it was you that looked at me strapped to that stretcher, and it was you that waved your hand and said, “Bye bye Frankie.”

“I don’t recall,” the Colonel answered.

Tom cranked up and hit the Colonel with a solid right cross. He went down like a tree in the woods. The other two officers came at Tom but they bounced off his personal shield.

Tom smiled and said, “Now I feel better. OK, now lets get down to business. This will be the end of this unholy alliance.”

He turned the alien that was doing all of the talking and said, “Bursom, you will return to your ship and leave this solar system forever.”

“How do you know my rank human? Who are you,” the little gray alien snarled.

“I’m disappointed that you don’t recognize me,” Tom said, “I was your first perfect specimen. No, I didn’t die as reported. In fact, it was the entire crew of the Kiasch that died. I own the Kiasch now. Bursom, you have no idea what your people have created. In fact, I’m likely saving your life by interrupting this procedure, but I digress. The Haranota are finished here Bursom, take your ship and leave.”

The alien shot back, “One word from me and cities across this backward planet will erupt in flames. Millions will die.”

Tom walked over and gave the alien a backhand that sent him sailing across the floor. The alien picked himself up and looked at Tom in shock.

“That’s right,” Tom said, “I’ve negated your personal shield, and I’ve also negated the shielding around your ship. It would take very little time for the Kiasch to smash your ship to pieces, but that’s not the real threat. The real threat is this, I have used the Tzari knowledge that you have been so eager to possess to modify the shielding and the weaponry on the Kiasch. All the ships of the Haranota fleet could not penetrate the shield. If a Haranota ship appears anywhere in this solar system; I’ll take the Kiasch to your home world with a very large meteor in tow. I’ll shield the meteor and launch into your planet. After the strike what remains of your people will be more worried about finding their next meal than about exploiting the other races of the universe. If you doubt me, contact your ship.”

While Tom was confronting the officers, Danny was helping Ernesto off the table. At that moment the lights went out. Mike felt someone snatch the Tzari cylinder from his hands. When the light came on the male doctor held the Tzari cylinder above his head, “Drop your weapons or I’ll smash this sentient life form all over the floor.”

“Hey,” Mike said, “happy with that. The way I see it; no Tzari, no operation. You’ll be making my job easier. I’m not the one worried about that little bugger.”

Suddenly a female hand came up under the man’s arm and held a scalpel to the man’s throat. Danielle Thompson said, “Put it down nice and easy Gary.”

“Major you’ll be drummed out of the Air Force for this; if you’re not tossed in prison.”

“Yes,” Danielle said, “but I’ll go with my soul intact thanks to these men.”

“My ship is defenseless,” the little alien growled.

“Now you know what I say is real,” Tom said, and then he turned back to the officers.”

“The human victim will be taken home. He and his family will be left alone; there will be no harassment and repercussions of any kind. He will never know what happened so he will not be a security risk. I will take the Tzari and see to it that it gets back to its home world.”

“What are you going to do after this is over?” Admiral Hartman asked.

“There are many ways I can use what I know and who I am to benefit humanity, but it won’t be through any government channels. Don’t be surprised if you hear stories about GrayTech Industries in the future.

Bursom, the door is open. Return to your ship and leave the solar system immediately.

Gentlemen, try to remember that the people are the United States. You can’t serve your country by harming its people. Weather a person is homeless or a CEO of a corporation; they are the United States and they have value.”

Tom disappeared and reappeared in the operating room. A minute later the four men disappeared along with the Tzari cylinder.

Ernesto Mendoza returned home to his family and his job. He pulled into his driveway and looked at his freshly cut grass. He got out of his car, picked up his briefcase, and thought, “Tuesday is a great day to be alive.”

He entered the house and saw Maria trying to get at something behind the refrigerator.

Ernesto said, “Wait a minute.” Then he got behind the refrigerator and gave it a push.

Maria smiled and said, “Who do you think you are Superman?”

Ernesto smiled back and said, “No, but I could have been.”