The Distant Echo

Full-Scale Deployment

Splitting up, Burton descended to the tower's Power Matrix Level while Alex went to the Control Center. As with every time before, Alex teemed with awe and pride. Awe at the starship-bridge look of the room as it glowed and beeped with various computer screen colors and sound indicators, and pride because he designed it all. The entire project was due to his brilliance.

Patrolling the room, Alex ordered status reports from technicians at their various stations. He inspected the data at each terminal, going back at least 12 hours and comparing it to current readings. When he finished his tour at the Operations Control Station, Alex found it difficult to contain his anger.

"Lieutenant Dalby, status report," Alex said.

"Good morning Colonel Green. How are you?"

Alex shook his head. "I'm not happy, Lieutenant. Sensors are showing a magnetic resonance fluctuation. I want an explanation."

Dalby squinted. "There have been a few anomalous magnetic readings for about an hour. So far, they have been minor; none of the data shows anomalies outside the parameter threshold. I assigned a technical crew to investigate, but they haven't reported back yet."

An entourage of military stars and stuffy tailored suits entered the Operations Control Station. The facility commander, General Birch, approached with a fake smile. Alex saluted the General to which a halfhearted salute was returned, the General's head thrusting forward as a rooster's would, which emphasized his sharply pointed beak-nose.

"Mr. Green, as you can see, I have some highly important dignitaries with me. Please tell me that you remain on schedule to conduct the full-scale deployment of this emitter today."

With Dalby slinking into the background, Alex moved to General Birch. Since the inception of Project Echo, Alex worked under Birch's command, and he was the sole officer at the base that outranked him.

It had been a rocky relationship from the start. Birch was a cold, calculating, career military man. Straight away, during their first meeting, Birch put Alex in his place with extreme prejudice. Birch was a hardened soldier, while Alex was just a science nerd that was given a fake commission. The pecking order was clear, and it was the Beak Nose that did the crowing.

Alex asserted himself when needed, but his focus was the science of the project. Because of that, he was happy to play nice with Birch, who usually made accommodations to further his political power.

"Yes," Alex answered. "We will conduct a full-effect initialization of the emitter as scheduled."

The General peered at him. "I heard you mention a magnetic anomaly. Have you corrected that issue?"

Alex returned the glare. Damn it. Birds are supposed to have excellent vision, not supernatural hearing. "Not yet, General. So far, this appears to be a minor issue. Lieutenant Dalby has dispatched a technical crew, but I have reviewed the sensor data, and I'm certain this will be simple to correct."

"I should hope so, Mr. Green." General Birch motioned to the group accompanying him. "For security reasons, I will not introduce these dignitaries, however be advised they have the highest level of clearance, and of course, my approval to be here."

Some of the men nodded, others were stone-faced, and one displayed an odd smile.

"Please provide these men a brief overview of Project Echo," General Birch said.

Alex swallowed hard. "Good morning, gentlemen. I am Colonel Alexander Green, the Officer-in-Command of Project Echo, and the project's designer. Before my Air Force commission, I earned doctorate degrees in Chemical Engineering, Molecular Biology, and Astrophysics."

Alex surveyed his audience: not one person seemed to be impressed with his credentials. His eyebrow spiked and he decided that it might be best to get to the point.

"The U.S. Air Force was interested in development of a multi-function platform, with deployment application as an ultra-superior weapon system, an indefensible communication system, and a global transport system. Project Echo is such a platform."

One of the suits cleared his throat, clearly not buying it. "How are those objectives possible with one fixed platform, out in the middle of nowhere?"

Alex eased a bit and smiled. "This will sound fantastic, so please bear with me. The universe we live in contains multiple dimensions. Project Echo manipulates energy to affect the barriers that separate these dimensions. By doing so, portals can be opened that make travel over vast distances instantaneous. Dimensional energy can be directed to any place on Earth, destroying any target, and dimensional communication cannot be thwarted by any conventional technology."

General Birch exposed gleaming teeth. "Gentlemen, this weapon system puts the United States more than one hundred years ahead of any other nation. Nuclear weapons mean nothing compared to Project Echo."

Alex cringed. "This is so much more than just a weapon system. All the technology utilized in this project has the potential to revolutionize human life. The main apparatus is the emitter tower. It was an engineering marvel just to build the tower. It's over 2000 feet in height, with the base level being the size of a city block. That takes a huge amount of energy to operate. In fact, we have revolutionized the process of obtaining renewable, free energy."

He put his hands together while amazement played across his face. Alex was on a roll.

"In the 30 square miles north of the tower, 70 separate electro-biomatter tanks have been constructed and initialized to supply power. There is biological matter in those tanks giving off electricity due to physiological metabolism. That collective electrical source is what initializes the tower's basic functions.

"To supplement the primary energy generation, we devised a way to recycle the resulting static electricity. Hundreds of short towers, each of them 150 feet in height, were placed all over the forest floor to absorb the waste energy and convert it back into usable energy."

The suits were looking bored. General Birch was perturbed. But Alex didn't notice. His roll went on.

"But perhaps the most amazing piece of technology used in this project at the Zero-Point Energy collectors built into the Main Emitter Tower. Everything in this universe is energy, and the tower absorbs from that unified field to manipulate the dimensions of our universe."

General Birch stepped in front of Alex. "Gentlemen, today, you will witness the full deployment of this weapon system. In less than an hour, we will open a portal to demonstrate the destructive energy transfer from an alternate dimension."

An alarm sounded, and Alex turned to see Dalby working a data terminal. "Colonel, magnetic resonance has exceeded the threshold level."

Alex joined Dalby, checked the sensor readings flashing across the screen, and ignored General Birch when he pressed him.

"What is the problem, Mr. Green?"

Alex said, "Magnetic resonance has exceeded the threshold for dimensional manipulation, scattering the energy field generated by the tower for dimensional application."

"Mr. Green, I do not want a technical response. I want you to show me results," the General said.

"This anomaly is the result of a power-frequencyimbalance. I can fix it." Alex said with a nod that camouflagedirritation.