“They are to stand down, General Croft.”
“Stand down?”
“That’s right.”
“But Sir—”
“They are to stand down, General. Is that understood?”
“Yes, Sir. It is.”
Moments later the two Secret Service agents posted near the President nervously tell Ken Myers, “Sir we have to leave the area as soon as possible.”
“No, gentlemen, that’s not necessary.”
“I’m afraid we have to insist on that, Sir.”
“Sit down, gentlemen. We aren’t going anywhere.”
“Sir, we have to leave.”
“That is now impossible. What has begun must run its course. There’s no need to be concerned. I assure you. If you want to remain then sit down. If not, then leave, but you will do one or the other.”
With this, the President walks over to his chair and sits down beside his wife, Carol, still not having given as much as a casual glance to what almost everyone around him are intently staring at in amazement. Carol looks at her husband, and asks, “What’s happening, Ken?”
“It’s all right, Carol. Nothing’s going to happen that shouldn’t happen. It’s all for the good. Trust me.”
By now, millions of people have gotten out of their homes to see with their own eyes something so stunning that for most their only response is a muted, stupefying silence. Some who watch it on television initially think it might be some sort of special effect produced for the mass consumption of television audiences, but it slowly becomes clear that it’s something very different. What should have been immediately apparent was only now beginning to be understood. What they are seeing did not originate from anywhere on this planet. When data begins coming in about its size, and distance, the general reaction is disbelief. There has to be a mistake. It seems unimaginable. After checking, rechecking, and checking again, the numbers don’t change. The impossible conclusion is inescapable. An object of apparently extraterrestrial origin, approximately ten thousand miles across, larger than our own planet, is now in a stationary orbit two and a half thousand miles above the surface of the Earth. By now, more than one out of six human beings on Earth, over one billion people, were simultaneously looking at the same astonishing image.
In Miami, as elsewhere, throngs of people stand in amazement as they see the object begin to change its appearance. New patterns, shapes, and colors become discernible on its pulsing surface, the same vibrant colors seen in our flower gardens, but in forms and shapes of unthinkable complexity. Undulating patterns of fractal geometry spiraling in, and out of existence, in colors of every conceivable hue produce a visually hypnotic effect that is mesmerizing. Many find it so enthralling they have difficulty turning away. This incredible display continues for over an hour, and has a strangely calming effect on most who watch it. Then it stops. The collective gaze of more than a billion human beings suddenly hangs breathlessly in universal anticipation.
Then, in the center of the object, a tiny black dot appears. It gets closer, and closer, and begins to assume a definable shape as it approaches. A craft of some type, much smaller than the enormous object it emerged from, is coming in at high speed, and within a few seconds is in the air space over southern Florida. Moments later it hovers several hundred feet above Amelia Earhart Park and the Olympic Stadium. In its appearance, the circular craft is a dark shade of grey. It looks to be metallic, and is completely silent. This incredible sight leaves no doubt about what’s going to happen next.
The thousands gathered in Miami, and the countless millions around the world watching live images on television, all realize that this day, this moment, will be forever known as the point in human history when humans and beings from another world made initial contact with each other. Not measuring more than one hundred feet in diameter, the craft gradually moves to where the President is located, and slowly descends to the ground directly in front of him. As people move away, surprisingly little panic, if any, accompanies the remarkable event. Finally it stops, coming to rest no more than a hundred feet from where the President of the United States is standing. For a few minutes all who are closest to it, pull back, and stand aloof from what they are seeing. One man, perhaps knowing his place in history will be certain, or just out of basic human curiosity, tentatively starts walking toward the craft. Despite admonishments from people chaotically shouting their warnings to go no further, he continues his cautious approach. Seconds later he is less than ten feet from the craft. There he stops. With his heart in his throat he summons the courage to be the first human to physically touch an object produced by an alien, nonhuman intelligence. As he gets closer, shouts from the surrounding voices subside, until an absolute silence comes over the crowd.