Hello again everyone! Glad to be back.
A little bit of a shorter chapter for you this time. But, I thought it a necessary one nevertheless.
Just a little disclaimer, I've no idea how government officials operate behind closed doors. This is more an interpretation based on my own naive assumptions. Furthermore, any names of officials are completely fictional. Made up solely for this story.
Hope you enjoy!
(Ministry of Defence Building, London)
Events may have been quiet enough in the Midlands for Sam and Riyo throughout the progression of the night. However, at that same time down in London, there was nothing but sheer chaos within the government. Despite the earlier and routine response to the crash from the police, radars had detected Riyo's craft entering the atmosphere, tracking its every movement as it was coming down over the UK. Only when Riyo fell below detection altitude for the radar were the military left in the dark regarding her precise location. The prime minister had already been briefed on the possibility of an alien visitation. Upon hearing this news, he immediately ordered an assembly of the British Defence Council.
It was approaching five o'clock in the morning when a group of Defence Ministers gathered in the ministry's briefing room to discuss the situation and its latest developments. The Secretary of State, Robert McDonald, didn't wait long to present the ministry's report to the attending officials.
Straightening his tie, he sat down and opened his folder to announce the collected details of the document. "Good morning to you all. Now, as I'm sure many of you will already be aware, we have reasons to believe that the West Midlands police have indeed discovered the wreck of what is believed to be the debris of a craft of an extra-terrestrial origin. It was first detected on RAF radar from RRH Benbecula in Scotland. It then flew over Glasgow at an altitude of approximately forty thousand feet before heading west, back out to sea. It then began to descend as it followed the northwest coast of England, being detected thirty miles from the Isle of Man. After changing its course, it descended to an altitude of fifteen thousand feet as it passed over north and east Wales. The final detection was picked up by Stirling Lines as it crossed back over the English border into Hereford. The police have reported that it has come down approximately two and a half miles outside Bromyard. However, an additional detail they have added is that while the craft has been located, there is no sign of the pilot. But they tell us that there is a search operation underway at this time."
Taking a breath after his speech, he placed the folder on the table in front of him.
"Now, before we continue, are there any questions?"
The first to speak was the head of the British army. General William Peterson.
"Yes, I'd like to interject something which I find missing from that report. Whatever this aircraft's origin might be, why did the RAF take a much more laid-back approach to a possible threat? I would have expected pilots to have been scrambled to intercept any unidentified craft that may have entered UK airspace. That should be the basic protocol!"
The head of the RAF had also been summoned to London to discuss the incident. It was now his turn to counter this statement.
"General Peterson, to criticise the efficiency of our pilots is an unfair source of dispute under these circumstances. The RAF carry the dedication of their duty to the utmost of standards. I was awoken and informed that jets were being prepared for an immediate interception over Scotland. And as I already informed the Secretary of State before this meeting. If orders were somehow misunderstood or misplaced, then we will get to the bottom of it! Something must have gone astray!"
"In short answer to your question, sir, we do not yet understand the whole story as to why these pilots failed in taking off to intercept the craft. However, on a more positive aspect of the later outcome, we now possess the debris of what we are fairly certain to be an alien spacecraft," came McDonald's reply to Peterson. "At least we have managed to recover something instead of losing everything to the sea if it hadn't flown over this country's airspace."
"Have the Americans been informed about what's happened? I know that all incidents of this type should be shared with our closest allies immediately," one of the ministers asked.
"Yes, we've already been in contact with Washington. The president informed us that the director of the FBI has decided to mobilise a group of specialist agents. They're due to fly over to the UK later today to assist in our investigations. I think in this case we're going to need all the help we can get."
Sitting up straight in his chair, McDonald took a deep breath, his hands gripping the edge of the table.
"Gentlemen, the way I see it, we also are facing a historic chapter in history. The events that will follow over the next few days are going to be very unpredictable. Most of the world will have their eyes on us if word comes out about what's happened tonight. Something we must try and avoid for the time being. Although, for us to have a solid case, the way I see it, the only piece of the puzzle that we're now missing is the pilot."
He addressed the minister seated next to him. "Have we had any new information from the police about their plans for a search operation? After all, the report I read was documented when the news of the crash first came in."
"No sir," the young man replied, filing through the folder placed before him. "From what we know, they have already drawn in officers from Worcestershire and Shropshire to assist in the search. Furthermore, it's been calculated. Following the assumption that the pilot is travelling at a similar pace to what an average person could either run or walk, there is a search radius of nine miles to cover from a starting point at the crash site."
"Okay," McDonald replied, rubbing his chin. "Inform the police that we'll offer any resources and assistance they may need whilst covering that ground. That includes participation from soldiers. That search area will only expand as time goes on. We can't afford to waste time. The longer that this goes on, the more difficult it will be to keep this confidential. Never mind foreign governments. We can't let word that this incident may well be alien-related leak out into public knowledge."
"The Americans will play their part when it comes to that side of things, sir. I'm sure of it. They've managed to keep things such as that quiet for decades! In return, we've done so for them!"
"Hopefully, you're right!"
"What about the house, sir?" another minister interposed.
"What house?" said McDonald.
"The report that we've been given states that the spacecraft came down a little less than two hundred feet away from some rural cottage. Surely the police have considered the possibility of the pilot seeking refuge?"
"Already been done," the minister seated next to McDonald spoke again. "Officers claim in their report that they've already visited the cottage. No one was in except a twenty-two-year-old called Sam Walker. And his visiting cousin from Australia around the same age. Her name was Riyo Chuchi. Sam's mother is currently in London until Sunday, so we'll try and take the chance to contact her as soon as we can. Furthermore, the police said the pair claimed they had no knowledge of the crash. After a period of questioning, they checked out as perfectly genuine."
"Riyo Chuchi . . . interesting name," McDonald commented. "Are they sure there was nothing suspicious about those two?"
"Nothing sir. Although officers are planning to return to ask a few follow-up questions as the investigation develops."
"Okay, well, I think it best we keep a close eye on that cottage for a while. After all the experience I've gained working within this country's defence during my career, I've come to learn not to believe everything that I'm initially told."
He took a deep breath. "I think one definite fact people is that we're all going to leave this room with the knowledge that there is evidently life beyond our planet. And now, we've got an alien potentially wandering freely on British soil. If this search turns up with nothing, then I say we play a little waiting game with whatever leads we may have by that point. Because, sooner or later, whoever the pilot was, they'll make a mistake!"
Well, that was over and done with fairly quick.
Apologies by the way if I appeared to insinuate something about the US. I was merely following a cliche I'm used to seeing in movies, sci-fi stories, etc.
Please, leave a review if you're enjoying the story.
I'll try not to leave it too long for the next update.
Until next time.
Goodbye.