Chapter 6 – Breaking News

Several hours later, at the edge of Earth's solar system…

Russell was just a few days away from being relieved. He looked forward to a few years back home on Earth, but knew it'd only be a matter of time before he'd come back. To celebrate, he was kicked back in his chair while he enjoyed a game of 3-D Chess with Max, the A.I. computer in charge of the station's sensitive communications systems. In the background, data streamed through the air, from computer to computer as it was received, processed, and scanned for valuable intelligence by numerous classified systems.

He had become so accustomed to watching the data flow here and there, that it had all become second nature to him. Most of the work was automated, but still there were times when human input was necessary, if not absolutely critical. Today was about to be one of those times.

His small outpost sat at the very edge of the Solar System; a position perfectly suited to intercept not just stray communications from Earth and its local colonies, but also interstellar communications to and from the few human space stations and colonies far beyond humanity's cradle.

Russell had just realized his castling maneuver was in jeopardy when one of Max's pawns was promoted at the end of its move. He thought this game couldn't get much worse. Just as he was prepared to sacrifice his rook to defend his king, an alarm sounded at the interstellar comms console.

Startled by the alarm, Russell jumped. Had the holographic Chessboard been real, pieces would have surely been thrown in every direction. As he made his way over to the console he asked, "Max, what do we have?"

Max replied, "Russell, I've detected an automated distress signal. It appears to be from the Alpha Centauri system. Specifically, the moon of Pandora: its originator tags belong to a U.N. special unit under the command of Colonel Miles Quaritch. It was weak and had just begun its second repeat when it was cut off."

The message had automatically dropped out of the data stream, so Russell could analyze it more closely. He reached into the holographic environment, pulled the message out, and spread it across the thin air in front of him so he could see the details more clearly.

Just as he began to digest the details of the message content, Max urgently stated, "Sir, I have detected two flags attached to the message that qualify for ops override status, could you please confirm?"

Russell looked through the message's transmission metadata until he found them. When his eyes came across the flags it took a few seconds for their severity to register in his mind. There they were, two special flag markers, one for "Disaster" and other for "use of a Weapon of Mass Destruction."

He pushed back from the console for a moment as it sunk into his mind what this meant. Unfortunately, it was only an automated distress message so there were no verbal explanations of the flags. Disaster was bad enough, but even worse was the WMD flag. Any "Weapon of Mass Destruction" flag demanded the immediate attention of his superiors on Earth. He turned towards a small lens on the wall. It was one of Max's many observation cameras. Russell's face turned very serious and he spoke as if talking to a fellow colleague. He firmly stated, "Max, we have a Critic."

Max replied, "I concur. Normal operations are now suspended. Critic clock has commenced. Critical message procedures are in effect."

Russell ordered with a sense of urgency in his voice, "Very well, wake up the station. Spin up all reserve power systems and superluminal generators for a system wide override." Max replied, "Yes, sir."

A short while later on Earth…

It was just after 0600 GMT, but time was just one of a near infinite number of watched details by the American military's NMCC, where there was always a hot-spot or crisis on Earth or somewhere in the solar system that demanded constant attention. On watch, deep inside the Pentagon's National Military Command Center sat a disciplined career soldier, Major General Wayne Fairall. Tonight he was serving as the on-watch commander, designated as the "Brass Hat" within the unified military command channels. It was a job full of stress, huge responsibility, and backed by Presidential authority.

Tonight's watch had been quiet in comparison to most nights. The mid-shift was nearing its end but while General Fairall checked his logs diligently, he received a private message on his secure holo console from the Chief of Interstellar Comms. Major Rummel's post was on the other side of the room. As General Fairall glanced at the message, his eyes widened. He looked up suddenly and stared in the direction of the Major. Major Rummel had anticipated the reaction and was already standing. He had already read the contents of the message and had a good idea what was about to happen.

General Fairall yelled a single phrase across the room "Is this for real Major?" It was rare for the general to raise his voice, so as if someone turned down the volume on the room, everyone grew quiet so they could hear the details in case they were called to take some action. The major replied in a loud, firm tone, "Yes sir, it's for real."

The general looked back down at the message again, reread it, then looked back up and yelled out to the room, "Ladies and gentlemen we have a WMD situation. I need all sections to implement a strict "Need-to-Know" protocol until further notice." A disembodied computer voice stated, "Critical Message Protocols are now in effect." The lighting throughout the command center dimmed as several blue lights began to flash. All unnecessary personnel were quickly escorted out of room and the doors to the center were sealed and placed under guard.

The general considered the far-reaching implications of the message for a moment. Then, he reached down and picked up a red phone handset. It had no dial pad because it only went to one receiver. He said into the phone, "This is Major General Wayne Fairall, NMCC Brass Hat on duty. Get me the Secretary and patch in the National Security Advisor and as many of the Joint Chiefs as you can." He listened intently to the reply. His face grew stone cold. He asked, "She's not available? In that case, wake the President."

While he waited for all the parties to be connected, Major Rummel walked up with a small holo pad in his hand and showed it to the general. General Fairall glanced at it for a moment and then asked, "Is this confirmed?"

Major Rummel replied, "100% authenticity sir." General Fairall nodded as he heard the drowsy voice of a President of the United States come onto the line.

He said, "Good morning, Mr. President. We've received a general distress signal from our Pandora special U.N. contingent, which indicates the use of a WMD. Initial briefs are already in production for your morning daily brief, as well we're notifying all pertinent commands. To cut to the chase sir, I was just handed an intercept. It's a message from a Charles Porter, the suspected leader of the hostile forces on Pandora. It confirmed the use of multiple weapons of mass destruction on Pandora, against U.N. forces and the native population."

The President's voice sounded stressed, "I understand. I want this situation placed at the top of my morning brief's agenda. I'll also want a sanitized version prepared for the U.N. Secretary General." General Fairall replied, "Understood, sir."

Late the next day at RDA Headquarters in New York City…

CEO Terry Chu sat uneasy in his leather executive chair and watched the latest headlines. In progress was a news conference being held in Washington D.C by the United States District Attorney. Terry Chu swallowed hard as he heard the D.A announce an investigation had just been opened into the suicide of former CEO Ronald Selfridge, based on newly discovered evidence.

Several reporters raised their hands at once. The D.A. picked one out of the crowd. She said, "Sir, the official record said Ronald Selfridge committed suicide. Does the government no longer believe he killed himself?"

The D.A. looked straight into the camera and said, "That's exactly what the investigation will determine. No further questions for now. Good Day." The camera followed him as he walked from the podium while several reporters still clamored for one more question. He ignored them as he walked away.

A moment later, Terry's personal phone buzzed with an unknown caller. He answered. The voice on the other end said, "I'm sorry, sir. Mrs. McIntosh is gone, along with her entire family. One of my special contacts managed to get into some of her accounts, but they were all closed, including her bank account. It's a pretty good bet she's the new evidence the govies are bragging about."

There was silence on the line for several seconds. Finally, with a frustrated tone in his voice, Terry angrily yelled into the phone: "damn it!" As he pressed the disconnect button he slammed the phone down on the desk so hard it shattered.

Terry switched on several screens to see multiple news channels at once. They were all discussing the case and what the investigation would lead to, if anything. Pundits had already begun to spin the story in a variety of directions, none of them good for RDA.

Terry said, "Moni, please have the Vice President of Public Relations come see me by close of business today. We need to get a handle on the publicity right away."

Moni replied, "Of course sir. I'll contact her right away."

Terry said, "Also, I want her here in person."

Moni replied, "Understood, sir."

Finally, after several minutes of contemplating the news and the media reactions, Terry decided he needed to call in a few favors. "Moni, please connect me with Senator Roger's office via a secure private line."

Moni replied, "Of course, sir." A few moments later Moni said, "I'm sorry sir, I'm unable to reach him. A secretary answered the first call, and said he was unavailable. I've tried two alternate lines to his office with no answer."

Terry Chu leaned back in his chair and kicked his feet up on his desk. He realized there was no answer for a reason. It was clearly time that he saw to his own future, just as his former allies were busy seeing to their own.