When they decided to throw cover-up out of the window, I knew it would come to this. Public announcement. Lord Ar’Taz had proven Himself to be quite difficult to contain with conventional methods. In fact, I doubted that they even had any means of containing Him at all, given what He was capable of, for the moment at least. The real question was, how would our world react to His existence?

“Wait, you mean, I am going with Him, by myself?” I asked.

“The brass said that there had to be two, so don’t worry about it.” The Colonel said. “They also have an American specialist who is waiting for you in Canberra. They will debrief you when you get there.”

“Then, who is going with me, Sir?”

“Originally, they wanted to arrange their own personnel, but I suggested letting the man who has stayed with Lord Ar’Taz the longest to choose. The man who knew our special guest best. Namely you, Jack.”

“Sir, I am not exactly special or anything.” I hesitated. “I don’t think it should be me who…”

“Give yourself more credit, Jack.” The Colonel put his hand on my shoulder. “I have seen what you are capable of. Besides, I really doubt there is anyone who can handle this task better than you, given your current record.”

“Thank you, Sir.” Being acknowledged by the man who they called one of the most decorated veterans of our country’s armed forces was flattering. Though there were quite a lot people who have made direct contact with Lord Ar’Taz so far, my options were really limited. Aside from me and the Colonel, the only people who have actually made close contact with Him for an extended period of time were Mark, Albert and Oliver.

Albert interjected my thought process. “Excuse me, Sir! Can I borrow him for a minute?”

“Okay, Lieutenant! But don’t take too long.” The Colonel said.

“Thank you, Sir.” Albert said while giving me his phone. “Jack, you have a call. It’s Henry.”

“My dad?” I took the phone from him. “Dad?”

“Jack? Why the hell didn’t you answer the phone?” My dad asked.

“What? I didn’t get any…” I checked my phone and realized its battery had been dead for some time.

“I called you several times already. Why didn’t you answer?”

“Dad, my phone’s battery is dead.” I tried to calm him down. “We’ve been deployed to David Town, so I forgot my charger at the base. I’m fine!”

“Davis told me you got called back for duty. You were already discharged after the Saudi War, why did they call you back?”

I thought about what to say for a moment. The way I saw it, Lord Ar’Taz’s existence would sooner or later be revealed to the world, but arbitrarily disclosing such sensitive information so early would be disastrous.

“We… We are,” I fumbled for a satisfying answer. “They are short on personnel here, Dad. The experienced people, I mean. They need the veterans to help the rookies for dealing with some national security related incidents.”

“National security?” Dad said incredulously. He paused for a few seconds before, “That’s it?”

“Dad, you know that unless it is natural disasters, I can’t disclose sensitive information to the public, right?”

“So you are saying that the explosion at Federation Square is a sensitive matter of national security?”

“Sort of… Wait, you heard the explosion?”

“No, my friends said there was a big explosion there. The police said it was a terrorist attack, but they already had it under control. No casualties whatsoever. Honestly, we don’t buy it.”

What Dad said piqued my curiosity. Up until now, I wasn’t aware of what or how much our government had disclosed to the public, regarding the incidents for the last two days. I tried to ask dad more questions, but kept myself from carelessly revealing too much. Especially the fact that we were having actual alien entities within our borders.

“It was the other units who engaged them.” I said. “I, Albert and the others only secured the perimeter, so we don’t really know much. By the way, what is on the news these past two days, dad?”

He paused for a moment, perhaps being skeptical of whether I was telling the truth or not. I had always been terrible at lying to Dad, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if he figured it out right away. He was my dad, after all. Furthermore, he and others like-minded friends have always questioned the government’s credibility, be it ours or other countries.

“Well, there have been some weird videos on Facebook and Twitter since July 23rd.” My dad began. “Some video recordings of Federation Square, showing an ominous black sphere hovering above the sky. They seem kind of fake though. Since they are all too far away, we couldn’t tell if they were fake or not. We don’t know what the deal with those videos or the sphere is, but we can tell that this isn’t some terrorist attack. Then yesterday, news report said that Port Jackson and David Town have been completely sealed off, due to hazardous chemical contamination.”

“Is there anything else?” I asked.

“That’s it! Unless you have something to add.”

“So far, I only know as much as the next guy here. But even if there is something else, you know I can’t tell you, remember?”

“I figured you would say that.” There was a pause, before he said: “Listen, Jack! Whatever you are doing over there, just… stay safe, okay?”

The way he changed his tone surprised me. “I know. I am not fighting in a war or anything, dad. Don’t worry too much, okay?”

“Don’t give me that shit.” Dad exclaimed. “You almost gave me and Linda a heart attack three years ago, remember? I don’t know why, but I have a bad feeling about all this weird shit going on. Not to mention, it is happening right here, in our country.”

I was speechless for a moment, partly because he was right. Though, if I had told him the truth, it would have definitely made things even worse. Be that as it may, I still had my duty and I didn’t think I could live with running away to save myself, especially when several of my fellow country already lost their lives in this battle.

“Okay, okay!” I tried to calm him down. “I know, dad.”

Dad didn’t respond for a few seconds. Before I asked what more he wanted to say, he said: “Jack, I know we had a lot of disagreement when you decided to join the armed forces. But, you are still our son, we just...” His words slowly faded.

“Jesus Christ, Henry!” Another voice suddenly came through the speaker. It was my mother. “Give me that, you geezer!” There was some shuffling over the phone.

“Jackie!” Mom took over from dad, while I could hear his voice protesting in the background. “Linda, give me the phone.”

“Mom, how is it going over there?” I asked her.

“Oh, you know your dad. Always gets himself worked up over stupid stuffs. Now, he and his friends are getting really paranoid with those weird videos.”

“Well, as long as you guys are doing okay over there.” I laughed a bit and said. “Have you gotten used to your new place yet?”

“Davis helped us a lot in settling in this area. Don’t worry about us. Listen, we know you are busy, so I will keep it short. Wherever you are and whatever you guys are doing, just remember to stay safe, okay?”

“I know, Mom. Thank you.”

“Despite his occasional bias between you two brothers, Henry would never say it out loud, but he loves you too, Jack.”

Their words made me realize what I was actually doing. It reminded me of when I was about to be deployed to the war-torn country of Saudi Arabia along with thousands of other young Australian men of the armed forces. Now, I was about to venture into unknown and dangerous territories again. It was time I made my decision.

“I love you too, Mom, Dad!” I said.

“Remember to call us when you are done, okay?” She said. “Don’t you ever go and end up like your grandfather in Vietnam, you hear me?”

“Yes, ma’am!” Normally, it would be Dad who said this line whenever we talked on the phone during my deployment. But, hearing that from Mom brought a sense of nostalgia and made me realize how much things had changed.

“Now go make us proud, Jackie!” Mom cheerfully said and before ending the phone, much to Dad’s disagreement.

After the call ended, I breathed a sigh of relief. I finally made up my mind that I would see this through while trying my best to stay alive. I looked back at everyone and was greeted with an unexpectedly pleasant sight: Rhea was sitting next to Charlize on the balcony of the second floor, right next to Lord Ar’Taz’s shoulder; it looked like Lord Ar’Taz was telling stories to the pair while the guys were also listening just as attentively below. Meanwhile, Albert and Colonel Hannibal were sitting at one of the benches, talking about something.

“What are you guys doing?” I interrupted their conversation.

“Oh, you are finished?” Albert said as I handed him the phone. “We thought that it would lift Rhea’s spirit by having her interact with Lord Ar’Taz like this.”

He was right. The fear, anxiety and trauma within her eyes were gone. Now, Rhea looked happy, excited, or even enthralled by Lord Ar’Taz’s stories. From our perspective, it was like a father telling bedtime stories for his little children. Although Lord Ar’Taz spoke in short and brief sentences and only spoke when either Rhea or Charlize asked Him questions, He still responded accordingly. Before I could pay attention to what they were talking about, the Colonel stood up and said: “Now that is out of the way. Time to get back to work, lads!”

I checked the time, 9:30 AM. The call took longer than I expected. At the moment, I expected the Colonel to reprimand me for taking so long with my personal matter on duty. He didn’t. Instead, he asked me: “Did you decide who you are going with you for this mission?”

Who should I choose to come with me? Should I even choose someone and make them share this burden with me at all? Could I do this all by myself? These questions had been circling my mind ever since I arrived here. Moreover, the number of people I could choose was very limited from the beginning. Aside from me and Colonel Hannibal, the only people who had made close contact with Lord Ar’Taz for an extended period of time were Albert, Oliver, and Mark. Since Albert and Mark had their duty considering their ranks, Oliver was the only choice I had. Oliver may agree the moment I asked him. Like me, he was always eager for out-of-this-world experiences, but should I burden him with this task? No point overthinking about it. It was better to straight up ask him and get this over with.

“Yes Sir,” I answered the Colonel. “It’s Sergeant Major Oliver D. Hartmann. Out of all the current candidates, he is the most qualified.”

“Given the circumstances, I figured you would have chosen Lieutenant Forge or him. Did you discuss with the Sergeant?”

“Not yet, Sir. I just made my decision, to be honest.”

“Let’s ask him then. We are on the clock here.”

We called Oliver over while the others were still listening to Lord Ar’Taz’s stories. We explained to Oliver the current situation. He didn’t seem surprised. In fact, he looked a bit excited. “I will do it, Sir.” He said. “Thanks for choosing me, Jack! I won’t let you down, Sir!”

“Thank you, Sergeant Major!” The Colonel said.

Then, he walked towards Lord Ar’Taz and said: “Lord Ar’Taz, it’s time to go. Lieutenant Geralt and Sergeant Major Hartmann who on my behalf, will escort you to Canberra.”

“Thank you,” Lord Ar’Taz said. “We appreciate your hard work, Colonel Hannibal!”

“I am simply doing my job, Sir!” The Colonel said. “We will walk to the runway from here. I hope you don’t mind.”

“No. We prefer it that way.” Lord Ar’Taz agreed.

“Lord R’Taz, you are going already?” Rhea said. Interestingly, the way she pronounced His name reminded me of a certain character from a FPS (First Person Shooter) game whose name I forgot about.

“Yes, child! We have a mission to fulfill.” Lord Ar’Taz answered.

“Will I see you again?” Rhea asked.

“Most likely. Depends on the outcome of this mission.”

“Don’t worry, Rhea!” Charlize reassured her. “After everything settles, I am sure that we will meet Him again.”

Rhea looked at her, then back at Lord Ar’Taz. “I really like your stories, Lord R’Taz!” She said cheerfully. “I really look forward to hearing more.”

“When we meet again, little one!” Lord Ar’Taz said.

She ran down the stairs and towards me. “Mr. Jack, are you going to work?”

“Yeah Rhea!” I said. “Oliver and I are returning to our work. Mark and Albert will take care of you, at least until things settle.”

“I know. Mr. Albert told me.” She was quiet for a few seconds, then she said. “Mr. Jack, can you promise me something?”

“What is it, Rhea?” I lowered myself to her eye level and asked.

“Please don’t die!” She said softly. “I know we are strangers, but you are the first person who treated me with so much kindness. I wish to repay you, someday.”

I was slightly taken aback by her words. What this little girl had gone through infuriated me, as an adult, but it also made me glad that I was able to save her from that wretched house.

“I promise you.” I said as I gently stroked her hair. “I, no, we will come back alive. Just wait for us, okay?”

“Thank you!” She bid us farewell and hugged me. Since it made me feel a bit awkward, I patted her back and she let go. Mark and Albert didn’t say anything, but really, they didn’t have to. I knew that they would take good care of Rhea until everything was sorted out. In fact, I was worried that Mark might overwork himself, given his personality. The only thing that we had to worry now was finding her abusive step-father, but that was the police’s job.

“Let’s go, gentlemen!” The Colonel said and led the way, followed by Lord Ar’Taz and us. As we left the lobby, I asked Oliver: “Are you really sure that you want to come?”

“Of course I am,” He said. “We are escorting an alien VIP here. How many people in the world get to have this once-in-a-lifetime honor?”

“No, it’s not just that. It’s…,” I fumbled for the right argument. I was about to tell him about the battles that we might have to take part in, about the dreadful, horrid fate that could potentially befall us. Should I tell him the truth or simply talk him out of this?

“That we might die horribly in the upcoming battles?” He said.

“Wait, what?” His words took me by surprise.

“Your face says enough. Albert got a call from one of his friends in the Sydney battle group. He said that the battle on your side was quite brutal! There were even some casualties.”

“Then, why did you agree to go with us?” I asked.

“Don’t you think the right question should be, why are you still going?”

“What do you mean? I am just doing my duty.”

“We already talked about it, Jack.” He looked back at the path we were walking, then the surrounding environment within the airport. After a few seconds of silence, he continued. “When you were chosen to become Lord Ar’Taz’s “emissary”, we had a feeling you would have been determined to see things through, even when you have every right to refuse.”

“Are you going to talk me out of this?” I asked him.

“Not exactly!” Oliver chuckled. “Everyone knows how much of stubborn bastard you are. Everyone knows that they wouldn’t let only one man to escort an HVI (Highly Valuable Individual) like Lord Ar’Taz to Canberra. Since the number of candidates was already limited, it was easy to figure that you would most likely choose those whom you knew best. Mark has a family, so I doubt you would pick him. That left me and Albert, or perhaps someone else that we might not know about. We already agreed that if one of us were picked, we would accompany you as much as we can. If things got ugly, we would cover you. This time, we will make it right.”

To think they already thought this far, I was really glad to have them as my brothers-in-arms. “Thanks, mate!” I sniffed a little. “But if things get too dangerous, you are pulling out immediately, you hear me?”

Oliver laughed. “Same goes for you glorious, stubborn bastard!”

“I outrank you, remember?” I asserted. “Was the last part really necessary?”

“Hell yeah it was!” He exclaimed.

We both laughed and bantered the rest of the way. We talked about our respective lives after the discharge. Thanks to Oliver and my parents, my mind was finally clear. I could focus on the mission ahead. After several minutes of walking, we reached the runway where most of our forces had gathered. It looked like everyone was waiting to send us off.

“We are here,” The Colonel said. “Lord Ar’Taz, is this large enough for your ship?”

Lord Ar’Taz looked around the runway where nearly half of the battle group had gathered. He then said: “Colonel, please order your men to back away another 50 meters from their positions!”

“All right everyone, fall back for another 50 meters!” The Colonel ordered everyone. “We need a space big enough for Lord Ar’Taz’s ship.”

Everyone was confused at what the Colonel’s words since He clearly wasn’t carrying anything of sort. However, they followed his order anyway. When they finished moving, Lord Ar’Taz took something from His armor. It was a black cube that was around 30 cm in dimension. At closer inspection, there was some kind of ornate symbol around the cube’s edges. After placing it on the ground, He instructed us to step back. The cube’s top section opened a little, revealing a hole at its center. Although we couldn’t see it, we could feel a stream of unknown energy shot into the air. To everyone’s astonishment, a small sphere that was surrounded by pulsating energy manifested roughly 100 meters above the cube. It quickly grew in size and reached nearly 40 meters in diameter. Fearing that it might explode, everyone promptly moved further back. Some of them even hid behind the vehicles to brace themselves. After reaching a diameter of approximately 90 meters, the sphere ceased its growth and remained hovering. Ten seconds passed and the sphere started shrinking. As it shrunk, there was some kind of metal object protruding from its surface. After thirty seconds, the sphere had now completely been replaced by a giant metallic object. The object looked so alien that it took us a few seconds to register that it was some sort of spaceship or atmospheric vehicle.

The ship was nearly 60 meters wide and approximately 70 meters in length. Its rear section resembled the tail of a certain aquatic animal. The ship had an overall silver color, along with some black edges. It was truly massive, even compared to our biggest airplane. What astounded us even more, was that this massive vehicle was hovering completely still nearly 40 meters in the air, without any visible thrusters and making no sound whatsoever. It was as if the ship was defying the laws of physics itself. Beneath its belly, there were large glowing dome-like structures whose function I had no understanding of.

Strangely enough, it didn’t really surprise me as much as it was supposed to, given all the feats that Lord Ar’Taz had shown so far. As for everyone else, however, every moment of interaction that they had with Him was surely one incredible experience after another. Oliver was no exception, since his current expression suggested that his mind had been completely blown.

“Damn!” Oliver exclaimed. “Lord Ar’Taz, you have a spaceship in your pocket?”

“The cube is a pocket dimension engine,” Lord Ar’Taz asserted. “These devices are used to store varieties of objects.”

“I thought you could fly?” I asked Him out of curiosity.

“If you refer to the trip last night, we didn’t fly. We simply jumped.”

Having an alien entity jump straight the Parliament House and destroy some buildings along the way would be too hilariously absurd of an option for a first impression, especially when meeting two heads of states. At that moment, I realized how dumb my question was.

“Flying an alien spaceship? This is getting better than I expected!” Oliver said as the ship gradually decreased its altitude.

“Would you stop it already?” I said annoyingly, “You are embarrassing me!”

He simply shrugged me off.

“Jack, I already informed the RAAF about your arrival.” The Colonel said, “Captain Richter will escort you to Canberra. Call sign: Irene 614.”

“Yes Sir!” I acknowledged as Lord Ar’Taz walked over to retrieve the cube.

“And these are…” He took two backpacks from one of the soldiers behind him. “They are yours and Sergeant Hartmann’s stuffs. Since it is going to be a long trip, I asked Second Lieutenant Forge to prepare them for you. I hope they fit you.”

We took the backpacks and checked their contents. They were mostly necessities such as toothpaste, clothes, chargers, headphones, etc. Courtesy of Albert. He was really thorough in preparing them. I guess it was impossible for them to travel back to Victoria base, get our stuff and then drove all the way here, so they simply prepared everything from scratch, hoping that they could somewhat fit our needs.

When Oliver walked over towards Lord Ar’Taz and I was about to follow him, the Colonel put his hand on my shoulder, “Jack, listen to me!” He said with a much lower tone. “The Prime Minister and the President of the United States are making preparations with other countries to announce Lord Ar’Taz’s existence to the public. However, Intel gathered by the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) and AIC (Australian Intelligence Community) suggests that there are movements from the Chinese military, especially, the MSS (Ministry of State Security). We don’t know exactly what they are trying to do, but we suspect they are trying to get ahold of or capture Lord Ar’Taz.”

Those CCP bastards are at it again! I thought. Everyone knew that they had been pulling the strings behind the Saudi War years prior, but no one had enough evidence to prove it. There were even conspiracies suggesting that they were behind the economic collapse of Venezuela, Yemen, Syria, Myanmar and some other failed states as well. They had caused so much chaos and death to this world that almost half of the planet clearly resented them. However, due to their power of influence within the United Nations, very few countries could actually stand against them. Obviously, a significant alien entity like Lord Ar’Taz had literally infinite potential for any country to exploit. Heck, it wouldn’t be strange if they would kill to get their hands on any piece of extremely advanced technology that He possessed. Only if they managed to take Him into their custody of course.

“Keep your heads up, okay?” He said, “Remember, trust no one! Given those damn Chinese’s track record, there could be spies anywhere.”

“Yes Sir,” I said reluctantly. “Sir, can I ask something? Why does our government never bother hiding Lord Ar’Taz?”

“What do you mean?” The Colonel asked.

“I mean, think about it. Don’t you think that it’s bizarre that both ours and the American government are so willing to reveal the existence of an alien to the world? Normally, wouldn’t they go out of their way to hide things like aliens and top secret information from the public? In fact, it is too damn weird for them to be this negligent. How can they be so… you know what I mean, right?”

“Well, to be honest, I wonder about that too. So far, they have made literally zero effort in hiding Him. I thought they were too busy with all the mess in Melbourne, Sydney and this small city (David Town) so it is somewhat understandable. But, to go as far as revealing His existence to the world? That is just insane!”

When Colonel Hannibal – a battle-hardened veteran who had seen many things in the battlefield – called this insane, it really was truly mind-boggling!

“What do you think about it, Colonel?”

“I think they are doing this for a specific reason. Perhaps Lord Ar’Taz promised to share advanced technology with our people only if they agreed to reveal Him to the public. However, that wouldn’t make sense. Whatever the reason is, I doubt we are authorized to know about it anyway. At least, not now. Good luck, Jack! I hope you two can come back from this safely!” The Colonel said and held out his hand, suggesting a handshake.

“Thank you, Sir!” I took his hand. “We won’t let you down.”

With one final salute to the Colonel, I went to join Oliver and Lord Ar’Taz. The ship had halted its descent at roughly 20 meters above ground. A hole near the ship’s front section appeared and from there, a large beam of light shot down. Lord Ar’Taz stepped into the light and signaled us to follow Him. When the three of us stood inside the pillar of light, we were lifted into the air. To everyone’s astonishment, who was watching us, it was like there was an invisible hand extended from the ship’s belly and pulled us into its maw. After we reached the inside, the hole which we went through closed its doors. The light disappeared and we were dropped onto the ship’s floor. As far as I could tell, the ship’s overall interior was divided into two sections connected by a door-shaped hole. Instead of a physical door, the hole was filled with some kind of force field. We were standing inside the front section, presumably the ship’s cockpit, whereas the rear section was much larger, presumably the ship’s cargo bay. The interior had an overall white color and was extremely spacious. This ship was clearly designed for individuals with massive body proportions since Lord Ar’Taz who was over 4 meters tall could stand comfortably here. As we looked around the ship out of curiosity, the section where we were standing was approximately 6 meters tall and 10 meters wide. In addition to the size, what piqued our interest even more, was how clean this whole place was. Along with several ornate symbols and decorative patterns, its overall color and cleanliness made us felt as if we were walking inside a holy temple of some sort.

Lord Ar’Taz walked over and placed His hand on the counter in front of us. A strange alien language spoken in a female’s voice reverberated throughout the room. The voice almost made me and Oliver jump due to how abrupt it was.

“Welcome to our domain, Oliver Dean Hartmann, Jack Lennox Geralt!” The voice shifted its attention towards us.

“What the hell was that?” Oliver exclaimed.

“This voice, could it be?” I surmised. “Are you Gaina?”

“Yes, we have conversed before, First Lieutenant Geralt!” The voice, or rather, she asserted. “I guided your forces during the battle of Sydney!”

“You know it, I mean, her?” Oliver asked me.

“Not exactly! She is the artificial intelligence who guided us through the battle of Sydney last night. She communicated with us through our radio.”

“Artificial intelligence? You mean, like Alexa, Siri and stuff like that?”

“Well, in a way, I think those are the closest that we’ve got.”

“Gaina, set a course for Canberra!” Lord Ar’Taz ordered her.

“Affirmative, Your Majesty!” She replied. “Warriors of Earth, please make yourselves at home!”

“Warriors? I am flattered!” Oliver said.

“What do you mean by…?” My question was interrupted when two large chairs rose up from the floor and approached us. After we settled, Lord Ar’Taz sat on another chair which was obviously the biggest. The virtual screen lit up and showed us the full scenery of the airfield along with some numbers, data and alien language. There were also smaller screens which showed other areas around the ship. When the scenery changed, we realized that the ship was slowly lifting off. How strange it was that we couldn’t even feel the motion inside the ship! As Oliver was still fascinated by the ship’s decorations and interior, I noticed some of the numbers were changing, possibly indicating crucial data such as altitude, coordinates, speed, etc. After reaching an altitude of roughly 300 meters, the ship made a hard right turn and flew off at an incredible speed.

Though we could feel nothing inside the ship, I could tell that the speed we were going at was unbelievable for an atmospheric vehicle of this size, judging from how fast the sceneries changed around us. If we had a plane with this size, speed, and VTOL (Vertical Takeoff And Landing) capabilities, we could easily deploy troops and military assets almost anywhere across the globe.

After a few minutes of flying, there was the familiar roar of fighter jets getting louder and louder. We noticed one of the virtual screens showing a squad of five F–35A Lightning IIs approaching us from the rear. Two fighters positioned themselves at each side of the ship, while the last one maintained its position behind us.

We heard a voice coming through somewhere on the control center. It was much clearer and different from the normally static voices we heard through our radio. “Unidentified aircraft, this is Phoenix Squadron of the RAAF! You are entering restricted airspace. Identify yourself!”

Before I asked Lord Ar’Taz where the communication device was, an octopus-like robot detached itself from the wall next to us. It floated like a cloud and moved towards me, then raised one of its six metallic tentacles at me. The tentacle was holding some sort of device.

“Put this device on the back of your head, Lieutenant!” Gaina said through the robot. “You can respond to them with this.”

“Okay!” I took the device from the robot. Then, it retreated back into the wall while Oliver looked on with an expression mixed with surprise and excitement. After putting the headgear-like device on, it slowly tightened itself around my head.

“This is the Phoenix Squadron of the RAAF! Identify yourself!” The Captain’s voice came through again.

“This is First Lieutenant Jack Geralt of the Royal Australian Regiment.” I spoke into the device, “We are escorting an HVI to Canberra. Call sign: Irene 614.”

There were a few seconds of silence until the Captain returned, “Copy, Lieutenant! We will escort you to Canberra.”

When we were sitting behind Lord Ar’Taz during the flight, I noticed that the ship was almost faster than the jets and had to slow down to let them keep up. Furthermore, there were so many fascinating details about this ship, especially the rear section hidden behind that force field. It was as if the ship itself was inviting us to explore it. Therefore, both I and Oliver had to resist that urge. Honestly, we felt like teenagers who were too eager to explore an abandoned building.

After forty-five minutes of flight, the capital of Canberra slowly came into the horizon. When we were flying over the city’s outskirts and suburban areas, I wondered what the people down there would think seeing a giant UFO being escorted by fighter jets. As the ship approached the RAAF Base Fairbairn, there were some large tents set up near the runway, as well as a large crowd of people gathered around those tents, possibly waiting for us.

The fighters broke off and landed on a separate runway inside the base when we started our descent. Our ship landed on the runway a short distance away from the biggest tent. As we were preparing to follow Lord Ar’Taz and exit the ship, I recognized some of the people amongst the crowd. It was Prime Minister Nathan Turnbull, two members of the National Security Committee, and last but not least, President of the United States of America – Donald Eisenhower.

“Welcome to Canberra, Lord Ar’Taz!” The Prime Minister said as soon as we touched the ground.

“We thank you for your hospitality, Mr. Prime Minister, Mr. President!” Lord Ar’Taz said and lowered His head a little bit.

“Meeting the first and possibly, an influential individual from another species such as yourself? The honor should be ours, Lord Ar’Taz!” President Eisenhower said.

“You must First Lieutenant Jack Geralt, correct?” Mr. Prime Minister addressed me.

“Yes Sir! It’s an honor to be here, Mr. Prime Minister.”

“And you are?” He asked Oliver.

“Sergeant Major Oliver Hartmann of the 5th Armored Regiment, Mr. Prime Minister!” He introduced himself.

“I know that it has been a long day for you.” The Prime Minister said. “However, we need your skills and experience in a close encounter with our special guest to establish a successful official meeting between us. Can I count on you, gentlemen?”

“Yes Sir!” I said and saluted him, along with Oliver. “It is an honor to meet you too, Mr. President!” We addressed President Eisenhower.

“Oh, don’t mind me, young men!” He said, “We are just guests to your country, remember?” He turned his attention to Lord Ar’Taz and said: “Lord Ar’Taz, Prime Minister, shall we begin our meeting?”

Lord Ar’Taz nodded in agreement. From the looks of it, there had to hundreds of armed soldiers and secret service agents, along with dozens of armored vehicles surrounding the tents. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that they had prepared an army to receive our VIP guest here. We were then led to the largest tent which was made to accommodate Lord Ar’Taz. They had set up the tent to resemble a makeshift conference room. They even prepared generators outside in case of a power outage. Though it was makeshift, this conference room was really impressive, compared to the standard temporary command center normally used by the army.

The Prime Minister, the Committee members, and the President situated themselves at the other end of the table, while the other officials sat behind them. Lord Ar’Taz sat at the other end of the table on a large chair, whereas I and Oliver sat on His sides.

“We apologize if you are uncomfortable with this place,” The Prime Minister said. “Due to such short notice, this is the best we have at the moment.”

“It is fine, Prime Minister!” Lord Ar’Taz said. “Let’s discuss the main topic.”

After everyone was settled, Mr. James Davidson – the Deputy Prime Minister stood up and announced: “Good morning, everyone! Today, we are holding an official meeting between humanity and an extraterrestrial individual – Lord Ar’Taz Drekgard of the Thal Vorlanz Ascendancy. Because of the current crisis that our world is facing, the current attendants are only Australia and the United States of America. Our governments are working with other countries to prepare a proper second meeting at a later date. Mr. Prime Minister, I and Mr. Marcus Whitmore – Minister of Defense will represent the Australian government. President Donald Eisenhower and the American Secretary of Defense – Mr. Willis Ferdinand will represent the American government. First Lieutenant Jack Geralt and Sergeant Major Oliver Hartmann will act as Lord Ar’Taz’s temporary delegates because of their extensive experience with Him. Now, let us officially begin our meeting!”