Nest Among The Stars

Arrival - Part 17

The Earth Forces shuttle flew low over the Aegean Sea's clear azure water, leaving the white sands of the Grecian coastline behind. In twenty minutes the craft's lone occupant would arrive at his destination somewhere in the Middle-Eastern sector's rock-strewn emptiness. Everything operated within its course and there was nothing to be done but wait. If true to their word, the 'Aliens' — or whatever they might be, for Michael had been given valid reason to question the initial perception — would arrive before the day ended. No reason had so far been given to doubt them.

Despite the nearness of the appointed time, deep space monitoring indicated no unusual activity. Probes searching past the most distant colonies detected nothing that had not been noted innumerable times before. Gabe tracked it all, careful not to make direct contact with the Earth's dispersed citizenry least the dictated protocol against doing so be violated. The computer quite easily and surreptitiously plucked the needed information from sources transmitted throughout empty space and then, following Michael's explicit instructions, neglected to report on what had not been found. Gabe was only to advise him once actual contact with the Aliens was made. Other matters possessed his thoughts and he did not want to be distracted.

Michael sat in the pilot's seat, hands on the controls, flying manually.He intentionally brought the craft down to almost skim the placid waters, watching the altimeter scale drop below five meters. He ignored the craft's verbal warning to increase altitude and then instructed Gabe to disengage it. Flight regulations meant to ensure the safety of the shuttle and its occupant had been violated ever since departure. If the universe were ever to become normal, Michael knew he would be subject to reprimand for doing so. The possibility either of these things happening sat so remotely in the distance, he possessed no ability to care.

The brilliant Mediterranean sunlight warmed him through the command deck's windows. Shading controls were off, allowing the unfiltered natural light to be fully enjoyed. Another technical violation since it caused the pilot to squint against the glare, but again one which could not trouble him. Softly, almost inaudibly, the adagio of a violin concerto played within the shuttle as the world slipped by underneath.

As the diverging watercourses of the Nile Delta came into view Michael pulled back on the controls, gaining altitude and loosening affinity with the surface. He watched the world below go from azure to green to brown. Structures evidencing human activity rapidly came and went from sight and, only moments after having left the sea, he was thousands of years past. When passage through the sienna landscape came to an end Michael chose to handle the landing himself, foregoing the automated assistance needlessly offered. Despite a slight jarring he was pleased with his efforts.

Doffing his uniform, he dressed in short khaki pants and a matching short sleeve shirt. A foreign legionnaire's hat, complete with a cloth protecting the back of the head and neck from the sun's rays, almost completed the ensemble. Only after fastening the scanner and gun to his belt was he ready to go.

The shuttle door unsealed with a soft 'phtt' and Michael was immediately bathed in dry heat. As soon as he stepped out beneath the desert sun, the optics adjusted to it and his vision remained clear. Despite the oppressive environment everything around him felt good. Saddened by the cold gray European winter, he now sensed renewal in his spirit. It had been more than just the weather contributing to his then desolate mood. It was Nathaniel's departure more than anything else. It wasn't only the sudden lack of companionship that drew him down, there was more to it. 

When Nathaniel left he took with him a hope for certainty, a chance to confirm what he had asserted to be true. Michael's experiences endured, but they were also unresolved. It would have been impossible for Nathaniel to move him about in time, and therefore with the impossible excluded, only the improbable 'God' remained as a viable explanation for him. Michael was prepared to accept the improbable as being true, if only he could prove the experiences had really happened and that they were not symptomatic of a malfunctioning mind. Once his own doubts about what had taken place, and about his own sanity, were satisfied with hard physical evidence, he would then believe. This desert place would end his quandary one way or another.