The Shape of Things to Come
The Shape of Thngs to Come
By Jay Caiola
Disclaimer - All characters / locations / events contained herein are copyright © Jay Caiola 2010. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, or real events, past or present, is entirely fictional.
Every generation has at least one event where anyone can tell you exactly where they were and what they were doing when they heard about it. For my great-grandparents, it was Pearl Harbor. For my parents and grandparents, it was JFK's assassination. For my older siblings, it was 9/11. For me, it was Thursday, April 25th, 2013. First contact.
I was like seven at the time. I was getting ready to leave for school in the morning when my mom called me into the living room. She was sitting on the couch, staring at the TV. The president was on it, looking like he was going to give a speech.
"Mom, I'm going to be late for school!"
She didn't even look away. "Sssh, Adam. I'll write you a note." She replied absently.
That got my attention. School was important in our house, so if Mom was willing to let me miss school for this, it must be important, too.
Just then, the man on the TV started talking. "Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I come to you today not as a representative of the government of the United States, nor do I address you solely as an American. I join you all today as a member of the human race, and as a human, a citizen of Earth, I bring you an amazing piece of news.
"We are not alone in our universe."
There was a split-second of absolute silence. Then everyone went completely mad. The view switched to a point farther back from the stage, where everyone could see four people to the right of the podium. One was human, but the other three were covered in fur. Actually, they looked a lot like...
"Doggy!" my sister May giggled. My mom smiled and held a finger to her lips, and May giggled but didn't say anything more.
By this point the audience had quieted down, and the President started talking again. "Late last night, Ms. Kiyai Rhysnem contacted me." He said, nodding at the white-furred one, who nodded back with a smile. "She told me that she would has a message for the people of our planet. And so, without further ado, I'd like to turn the microphone over to her." He stepped back, and the alien came forward. She paused to shake his hand, then continued up to the podium.
If it was quiet before, it was dead silent now. The woman adjusted the microphone down, and then started speaking. "Good morning, people of Earth. My name is Kiyai Rhysnem, and I am a member of a race called the Hegemonians. With me is Siyen Rhysnem, also a Hegemonian, Lieutenant Kanis Selidae, a Lupian, of their navy, and Lieutenant Kevin Grey, a human, of the K'nyn's Sol Fleet. The four of us were asked by a race called the Elder to deliver a message. As the name implies, they are the oldest race in our area of the galaxy, what we call the Ward. They also created the Hegemonians, as well as the Lupians and another race called the Nazhkans. They are not our gods, but because of what they have done for us, when they make a request is is a matter of good etiquette to fufill it.
"Their message is this - that they would invite humanity to join them in the stars."
If I thought it was loud before, I should have waited for that part. Ms. Rhysnem just stood back and smiled. The audience quieted down soon enough, and she leaned towards the microphone once more.
"And now, I understand it is customary to take questions?"
One of the other things everyone remembers about that day is how honest she was about answering questions. As we would later learn, none of the members of that first delegation was actually involved in politics. Sure, the Selidaes have their own standing in Lupian society, but that was about as far as it went. One of the questions I remember the most was from the reporter from Fox News. He stood up and asked, "Ma'am, I'm sure that the entire human race appreciates this offer. But, I have to ask, what good does this do these Elder?"
You could tell that most people were expecting her to get mad, but she just stood there and smiled at him. "Mr. Jackson," she began, "There isn't a single person in the Ward of any other race who could tell you how the Elder think. Their brains just don't work like ours. However, I will say this - in our recorded history, we've never heard any account of a member of their race taking advantage of a member of a younger people." If it were any human talking, no one would have believed that for a moment. And yet, there was something about the Hegemonian that said that she was being completely honest to the best of her knowledge. Either way, by noon the next day the entire planet knew it was in for a change.