Listening Post
He got the call late that night. He'd been expecting something, but not this soon. "It lasted 72 seconds!" the breathless voice on the other end of the line exclaimed. "Everyone's talking about it. Can you get over here?"
"Yes, yes, I'm coming." Mestral grunted.
Maggie groaned, still half asleep herself. "What is it?"
"The university." Mestral looked at her.
Maggie understood immediately. "Go," she said. "I can watch the kids until you get back." After twenty years, she understood how important this was for him.
The drive to Ohio State took less time in the dark summer night. The Elvis Presley songs on the radio, played in honor of the singer's recent death, didn't distract Mestral as he pondered the consequences of what the Big Ear Observatory might have picked up. It was still primitive technology by Vulcan standards, but the humans were advancing rapidly. By his estimate, they would have developed their own warp drive within his own lifetime.
The lab was buzzing with excitement when he came in. "What's the frequency?" Mestral asked.
"Roughly 1420 megahertz, according to Jerry Ehman," one of his assistants, an Irish-American named O'Brien, said. He ran a hand through his thick red hair. "They think it came from Sagittarius…"
And thus it began. Notes were compared, results studied, data compiled on the Project's computers. Mestral read the final results, wondering where his former companions were right now, if they knew about this signal. They most likely did; Vulcan probes would have detected it long before it reached Earth.
"So, what do you think?" O'Brien asked as they had breakfast together in the University cafeteria. It was mid-morning; Maggie would be at work by now. "Is it the real deal, or not?"
"It's too early to say for certain," Mestral cautioned. "However…it does look promising doesn't it?"
O'Brien grinned. "I knew it. I knew you'd be interested. So, do you want to go out with the rest of the guys and celebrate tonight?"
Mestral shook his head. It still felt odd, having human-shaped ears. The plastic surgeon that he and Maggie had entrusted their secret to-a man named McCoy who had since passed on-had done a good job helping him to blend in. But, sometimes he missed simply seeing a Vulcan face on a world where his people were unknown. "The kids want to go see Star Wars…I thought I'd take them out for that later."
"Sure, I understand. Heck, I've already seen it at least five times. But you'll be there for the big press conference tomorrow, right?"
Mestral nodded. "I will be there." The news broadcast would be one way for T'mir and Stron to know that he was still alive on what they had considered a primitive planet. He was surprised that he didn't miss them more often-but he and Maggie had made a good life for themselves here, with the money that Maggie had earned from her Velcro investments.
He hoped that one day his companions-and the rest of Vulcan-would get to meet the humans in person. He wanted to be there when it happened. Until then, this would be his listening post.
THE END