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“So Lou, how much longer?”
Major Graham looked at the tunnel that was being slowly cleared. “At least another hour Colonel, and that’s just to break through to the other side. Figure two hours before we can get a crew inside. Then there is the door itself. From what the Commander said the door is bowed out of shape from the explosion. It will take an hour to cut through it. I’d say three maybe four hours.”
“I suppose it could have been worse.”
“I agree there Colonel. I’ll let you know if anything changes.”
“Thanks, Lou.”
As Foster walked back to the control room, Graham thought, God, he looks like hell.
Colonel Jennifer Wallace sat at the head of the conference table with a team of tracking operatives she had assembled. On the vidlink was the image of Professor Reinhardt, joining the meeting from London.
“Okay people,” began Wallace, “the aliens just pulled a number on us and we have to figure out what they are up to. So I want ideas, I don’t care how farfetched they may seem.”
“Colonel, with the exception of the Professor, the Commander and Colonel Lake are the only ones who understand the big picture,” said Lt. Thompson, the youngest member of the team.
“So lieutenant, you’re telling me that we should just give up and go home?”
“No ma’am, of course not.”
“How about a slipstream drive?” suggested another operative.
“We would have picked up the neutrinos from the conduit. There was no evidence of that on the logs,” said Reinhardt.
“There was a buildup of tachyons about five minutes before the UFO was confirmed,” added someone else.
“Are they using extreme speed, like in the Timelash incident?”
“The wave pattern would have been different. This pattern was like someone dropped a stone in a pond.”
“What if they are using time travel to get around out defenses?” asked Thompson.
“Elaborate, please,” said Jen.
“We know the aliens can manipulate time, so what’s to stop them from going back in time before they hit the solar system and then coming back to our time at a point close to earth. They could bypass all our outer defenses.”
“They would have to have precise spacial coordinates and the further back in time they go the more complex the equations become. But it is possible,” said Reinhardt.
“Does that conclusion fit the data?” asked Jen.
“The tachyon pattern would match.”
“Is there any way to increase the amount of warning?” she asked.
“Yes ma’am, we can modify the detection parameters to classify this phenomenon as a confirmed sighting. We might get some false alerts but it gives us more warning.”
“Very well, I’ll take the false alarms, get working on it. In the mean time I’ll let Colonel Foster know what we found. Professor, thank you for joining us. The rest of you are dismissed.”
A few minutes later she was on the vidlink with Paul.
“So they’re using time travel again? I thought we coved that angle.”
“We only covered one possible scenario Paul. There a dozens of ways they can use time travel against us.”
“What’s the solution?”
“I ordered the tracking team to modify the detection parameters. We’ll be ready to upload the new program in less than an hour. It will give us an extra five minutes of warning although there is the risk of false alarms.”
“It’s not much but I’ll take it. Do you have any other thoughts?”
“Yeah Paul, you should consider combat air patrols over all our major installations.”
“I was thinking about that, it uses a lot of fuel and raises a ton of political questions, but I think your right. I’ll call Henderson and let him deal with the political fallout. Let me know when you do the update.”
“I will Paul, Wallace out.”
“Damn you Ed Straker! You son of a Biiiiitchhhhhh!”
“My, are we getting upset?” asked Ed teasingly.
“You think this is funny don’t you! Just you wait till I’m done here. Your ass is mine!”
“Is that a promise?”
“Oh, you’re very funny; you’d better not get within swinging distance! Oh, here it comes again, Eeeed!”
“Alright Push…Push…Push!”
“I’m pushing! What do you think I’ve been doing for the past hour! You want to come up here and fricking do this! You think this is easy!” she screamed.
“Come on Virginia, we’re almost there, don’t forget to breathe.”
“I’m breathing okay?”
“Alright sweetheart, one more push on the next contraction.”
“Okay, I can do this. You hate me don’t you?”
“Never happen.”
“Oh my God, here we go again. Ed! Aaaaah!”
“Push!”
“I’m Puushiiiing! Daaamniiit!”
Just after midnight Virginia gave birth to her first child. The room filled with the cries of the newborn.
“Oh Ed, boy or girl?”
“It’s a girl; she’s just as beautiful as her mother.”
“Oh Ed, let me see.”
Ed placed his daughter in his wife’s arms, while burning the moment in his mind.
“Hold on to her for a minute while I get the cord taken care of.”
Ed tied off the umbilical cord in two places and cut it. He picked up the phone.
“The first one’s a girl Doc!”
“Congratulations, but we’re not done yet. Make sure you keep the babies warm. Now she should be ready to birth the next one in a few minutes. Let me know right away of the baby is coming breech.”
“Alright Doc, hold on.”
“Virginia, let me get her wrapped up, the doc says that the next one will come in a few minutes.”
“Okay, but I want to hold both of them when we’re done.”
Ed took his newborn daughter and wrapped her in a blanket. He gently placed her in the makeshift crib made from one of the dresser drawers.
In the control room Keith announced, “The first one’s a girl!”
A cheer went up as the good news was received. Paul walked over to Grey who was still at the command console. He had two cups of coffee and handed one to Grey.
“Thanks, Paul.”
“John, you should take a break. You’ve been here all day.”
“I will later. After I know that Ed and Ginny are alright.”
“It sounds to me like they have it under control.”
“Colonel Foster, I have Colonel Wallace on the line,” said Ford.
“Foster.”
“Paul, we’re uploading the new program now. We’ll do a restart in two minutes.”
“We’ll stay on the line.”
“We’re through Major!”
“Can you fit any one in there yet?”
“Give us another ten minutes.”
“Let me know as soon as you can see the door.”
“Yes sir.”
“Ed, here it comes again!”
“Okay, round two.”
“You make it sound like a boxing match!”
“I thought you were really going to hit me.”
“I couldn’t reach, you’re lucky. It’s getting stronger, I’ve got to push!”
Ed watched as his second child began to crown, almost entranced in the miracle of seeing his children born. Birthing philosophy had changed over the past few years as husbands were allowed into the birthing rooms with their wives. Ed never expected to be delivering his own children however.
“Alright honey, we’re almost there. One more push ought to do it.”
Virginia simply nodded. Ed picked up the phone.
“Doc, the head has crowned.”
“That’s good news Commander. I don’t foresee any complications with the birth, but as I said it’s important to keep them warm. Twins normally have to be incubated after they’re born. You said they were due next week?”
“That’s what her obstetrician said. And he was planning on them being four weeks early.”
“Then we had better plan on incubation.”
“How soon before you can get to us?”
“I just heard from Major Graham, they’ve cut through the debris and are getting ready to cut through the door. He thinks it will take an hour.”
“Ed, here it comes, aaaaahh.”
Ed dropped the phone and got ready, “Okay honey, push!”
Ten minutes after midnight, Virginia brought her second child into the world. With a slap on the back again the room was filled with the cries of the newborn.
“It’s a boy,” Ed proclaimed to his wife.”
“Oh, let me…”
Ed placed his son in her arms, as he kissed her.
“It’s a boy!” said Keith, as another cheer went up in the control room.
“So Paul, how long will it be before you and Jane have children?” asked Grey.
“We’re not in any rush, but I know she doesn’t want to wait too long, probably within a year.”
“It’s an incredible experience Paul, but you’ll find that out.”
“So I gather.”
Major Graham’s team had finally made it to the door to the Commander’s quarters. They set up the cutting torch and began the long process of cutting open the heavy steel door.
Virginia and Ed looked over at the door seeing the light of the torch as it cut through the metal.
“Better late than never,” she said.
“We did alright ourselves.”
“Yeah, we did. Thanks Ed, I couldn’t have done it without you here. I hope I didn’t say anything too nasty.”
“I’ll let you make it up to me later,” he said teasingly.
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Expecting July's Challenge (Read 3956 times)
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