America One: War of the Worlds (6 page)

Slowly Saturn decreased the shield until it was gone altogether. There were several policemen who were trying to figure out what to do. None fired as the door to the craft opened and the two aides walked out with Lunar and Ryan Richmond towards the closest policeman.

Both Mandarin-speaking aides had been prepped what to say, and within minutes an old jeep drove up and they repeated their messages. The jeep drove off and the group returned to the ship to wait.

Wait they did. It took three hours before a cavalcade of old black sedans and two old battle tanks arrived to take the visitors to wherever they were going to go.

Mary Collins, the Australian Exterior minister, his aide, the U.S. aide, Martin Brusk, Ryan, VIN and Mars Noble, Lunar, and Maggie Jones entered the five cars and they drove off leaving the two old armored tanks with their turrets aimed at the shuttle. It didn’t take long for Saturn and her father to extend the shuttle’s blue shield. Also it would be ten minutes before
SB-V
would come over the horizon as backup.

The drive took less than 30 seconds before the cars stopped at a large government building on the edge of the Square itself—The Great Hall of The People. Lunar stated to VIN and Mars from her car that this wasn’t the building she had been brought to before. The cavalcade drove to the northern end of the large building, and they arrived as a red carpet was being laid out by workers.

The doors of the cars were not opened and they stayed closed with a soldier outside each door as a group of a few dozen soldiers with musical instruments ran up and quickly gathered to the side of the carpet.

Then the doors were opened by the soldiers in uniform, and the band began playing.

A group of half a dozen Chinese men in suits exited the large doors as the visitors were escorted out of the cars, along the carpet and towards them. They were bowed to by the greeters and were led into the building where there was a table of fresh snacks and drinks.

The food was interesting and different, and still the greeters had not said one word to them, even when the aides had prompted them for conversation.

Then two large doors opened and a single man also dressed in a suit waved them over and into a massive room where a long conference table was waiting. They were waved to sit down. There was one chair for each visitor and an empty chair at the head of the table.

The last chair was filled by a man a few minutes later. He entered the ballroom, headed for the empty chair, bowed deeply to the visitors at the table and sat down. Everybody looked at him as he sat down. On his one side was Mary Collins, on his other Ryan Richmond.

“May I welcome you to a new China, friends,” he stated in perfect English without introducing himself. “I know, or at least have seen photos of some of you, but let me introduce myself, and then I’m very interested to know your names, and titles. My name, In English is Jong Lee Sim. I am the new ruler of China, and have been since my father passed away eleven months ago. The system of ruler ship here in China was changed by my father back to the days of families, and will continue under my rule, and then the rule of my son, who is currently nine years old. My father did not like the West, and his hate for western democracy died with him. He wanted to revert to Dynasty rule and China will reform to this way of governing, except I would like to further our country’s friendship with the rest of the world. Ms. Collins, your face is very familiar to me, so is yours Mr. Richmond. My father used your face as target practice every time we practiced shooting. Sometimes he used your face Mr. Brusk as well, so you are also familiar to me. Exterior Minister Swanson, our countries have not yet spoken, and I was hoping that your country would one day send an envoy to meet with me. Please understand, I cannot make the first move to begin political communications with the West. Our older military generals would not appreciate my moves. Now that you have sort of invited yourselves to China, I can begin to communicate with you and your countries. I also remember your face Ms. Richmond. I watched as my father humiliated you nearly a decade ago. I did not like his ways, but then he was ruler, not me. The rest of you now have the chance to introduce yourselves to me.”

The members around the table did as they were asked, and then a line of men dressed as waiters arrived with what was to be lunch. It was midday in China after all.

The food was excellent and very few words were said over the meal. Wine was refused by the astronauts, and Ryan, but accepted by the politicians.

Once lunch came to an end, and the plates cleared away, Jong Lee Sim asked what he could do for the visitors. “Mr. Richmond, Ms. Richmond, I assume you and your spaceships are the reason for this visit?”

“Yes, Premier, as my daughter negotiated with your father several years ago, and was humiliated by him, I feel that China owes her an apology, and I believe every visitor around this table is owed one as well. I have no ill feelings for China. Your father had the right of every man to rule the way believes is the correct way, whether others like it or not, but not when it comes down to belittling a visitor like he did. Once China officially apologizes to my daughter, and to the table, only then can we, as you described the “tying of your hands” by the generals, can we have our hands untied.”

“Mr. Richmond, you came all this way, and brought these guests with you, just to get an apology for your daughter?” Jong Lee Sim asked seriously.

“That is correct,” Ryan replied looking the younger man in the eyes and his face was as serious as the Ruler’s. The others at the table didn’t move. The Exterior Minister was the only visitor who squirmed in his seat. He wasn’t used to the way Ryan negotiated, and was about to learn.”

“Then I must remember this day,” replied Jong Lee Sim. “I must remember this day in case I need to do what you, Mr. Richmond, are doing for your daughter, saving her face. I might have to do it for my son one day, so I will remember this day.” He then turned to Lunar who was also staring into his face. “Ms. Richmond, on behalf of my country, it’s government and its people, I, Premier Jong Lee Sim of the People’s Republic of all China officially offer you an apology on the way you were treated during your last visit to Beijing. Is there any way I, or the country can make you accept this sincere apology from me, and all the people of China?”

Lunar thought for a few seconds and not a noise was uttered from anybody at the table.

“I will accept this apology Premier if you accept my two conditions?” Premier Jong Lee Sim nodded for her to go on. “I would like to have the borders of China opened for the world to visit, especially the countries represented here today. Everyone here will pledge that their country will be at peace and harmony with your country. My second condition—I would like for you and, or your son to come and visit us in Nevada one day. The reason is that we have a great bunch of kids the same age as your son on the base, and I’m sure that they would love the opportunity to show your son what they are learning in school.”

Premier Jong Lee Sim smiled, and so did Lunar’s parents, Nobody had known what Lunar was going to say, but she did it in proper Richmond fashion. Kathy and Ryan brimmed with pride. Ryan couldn’t have done better himself.

“I, as Premier of The People’s Republic of China agree to your first condition.” He snapped his fingers and two men in suits came running. He talked quickly and they wrote down what he said, then they ran off. He then motioned another man over. He was an old man, and he nodded and walked off in the opposite direction. The table was waiting for the Premier to speak.

“You guys OK in there?”
stated Saturn in their ear pieces. It was the first words heard from the shuttle in Tiananmen Square.
“The tanks are rumbling off, and it seems that the policemen, all twenty of them now have lowered their rifles and are more like guarding us, than threatening us. Lunar, did you copy?”

“Excuse me Premier,” stated Lunar, and she pressed her earpiece with her hand and spoke. “Lunar Richmond to ground shuttle and orbital shuttle, we are OK down here, and it seems we might have new friends. I will let you know if anything changes, out.”

“Copy that,”
replied Saturn, and Jenny Burgos somewhere in orbit around the planet.

“I assume you have received your first condition, Ms. Richmond?” smiled the Premier.

“Yes, Premier, I believe we have, and I hope it never changes in our lifetime,” she replied as a young boy, dressed in Chinese clothing walked timidly towards the table.

“Ms. Richmond, visitors to China, may I introduce Jon Lee Jong, my son.” The boy looked at the table and bowed first to his father, and then to the table. “My son speaks English as well as I do. Maybe it is all the Hollywood films we watch together. I have recently made a new law, an important law that every Chinese Citizen under 50 years old must learn to speak one foreign language of their choice. I decided that English was my language of choice, so was my son’s. Jon Lee Jong, you have been invited to visit the Astermine space site in Nevada, in the United States of America. Would you like to visit?”

“Can I go to space in a spacesuit?” asked the young boy, excitement growing on his face.

“If you are willing to learn how to go to space in a spacesuit Jon Lee Jong,” Lunar replied smiling.

“How long does it take to learn?” asked the boy.

“About eight years,” replied Lunar. “My son is about to learn how to wear a spacesuit.”

“How old is your son?’ asked Jon Lee Jong.

“He will be nine next month, and his name is James.”

“You can join him and my son, Michael. He is 9, and also starts soon,” added Mars Noble, much to the table’s shock that somebody else was speaking out of turn.

“Father, I would like to learn how to go to space,” stated the boy factually and turning to his father.

“What about your lessons?” his father replied.

“I’m sure the American boys have lessons too?”

“I will think about it. Thank you son, you may go.” The young boy bowed to his father, then the guests, turned and walked off in the direction he had entered.

“I need a year for him to finish his current schooling. My son is learning Chinese history, and he must be perfect in this subject, Ms. Richmond. If it is possible, I would like to, as you Americans state in the movies, take a rain check on the offer? Lunar nodded. The Premier continued. “I believe my apology has been accepted and now new friends of China, I will assume that you have other requests for me and my country?”

“The lunch was really good, especially the Roast Duck,” stated Maggie as she sat with Lunar and her husband as they flew towards Seoul, South Korea.

“What happened next?” asked Saturn her father doing the flying, or at least the monitoring of the instruments. The others were all in the Captain’s apartment which had been turned into a seating area for the journey.

“Once Lunar was offered her apology, everyone at the table relaxed and there was even some laughter from both sides,” Maggie continued. “Ryan stated what he needed to complete the scheduled mission to Mars, and the Premier was quiet for several minutes. Then he clicked his fingers and the two same men ran over and bowed.”

“If I bowed so much my back would begin to hurt,” stated Jonesy.

“Don’t forget your legs, Dad,” added Saturn winking at her mother. Since he had returned from DX2017, Jonesy’s legs always seemed to hurt. They hurt when somebody mentioned the word, beer. Same with the words, whiskey and vodka.

What had made Saturn really think was a week or so earlier, when VIN and Suzi Noble caught up with her father on one of the jogs. Saturn and Maggie were about 100 feet behind Jonesy, who seemed to run quite well with his “painful” legs. VIN, with Suzi using her metal legs passed and apologized to the two girls. When the “half-metal” pair reached Jonesy though, he didn’t want them to overtake him, and the burst of speed he managed with his legs in the “bad way” they were, raised both the girl’s eyebrows. Jonesy was like a race horse out of the gate and VIN and Suzi took a couple of seconds to catch him up.

What passed the lips of those three runners wasn’t heard by anybody else, but both Maggie and Saturn had ignored Jonesy’s bleating’s about sore legs from then on.

“The desert was also good and it seemed that we were suddenly all friends,” continued Maggie while Lunar dozed next to her. “Ryan explained that he would like to share some of the gold from Mars with China, if they helped him with liquid hydrogen fuel to get to the planet and back. The Premier reminded Ryan that his country used to have a space agency, and program of its own, until the United States Air Force blew their space station out of the sky, when they nuked an incoming asteroid too close to earth three decades ago. Ryan apologized for his country, so did the U.S. Government aide, and then the Premier told the table the good news that his country still had liquid hydrogen reserves. The fuel was decades old but still useable as a fuel in space. His country had about 80,000 gallons at a secret location, and had already begun making new rocket fuel only a month earlier. Ryan stated that he needed 80,000 gallons within 60 days, and for three tons of gold the new Premier was happy to shake Ryan’s hand.”

“But that is a quarter of the gold we are returning from Mars with,” stated Saturn.

“They get some of the gold, we, and the other countries get the Rare Earth metals,” stated Lunar half asleep. “A pretty good deal, and we won’t need to bargain so hard on the next flight. But Maggie, go on. Saturn you haven’t heard the best part yet.”

“It seemed that a large reserve of liquid hydrogen had slipped the Premier’s mind,” continued Maggie. Saturn looked at her mother inquisitively. “Several minutes later a light bulb went on inside his head, and he told us about the reserves of the hydrogen fuel in South Korea very few knew about. Another 40,000 gallons.”

“That is why we are heading there, to discuss getting that fuel as well?” Jonesy asked, and the two girls sitting in the rear cockpit jump seats both nodded.

It was twelve hours later when the same group sat in the shuttle’s cockpit, this time on the way to the Australian island. They had landed in Seoul, also unannounced as that country still hadn’t communications with the West.