the doctor as he wrote on his clipboard. “Well, okay, you will need to take it easy for the next few days. You can try just studying, but no physical activities will be permitted.”
“ But what am I supposed to do then? I can’t get back to training and I can’t leave the base. Am I just supposed to sit in my quarters?”
“ No, you can use this time to study or spend time with your fellow pilots. After all, they will be with you in the end and will be the closest thing you will have to family from this day forward,” said the doctor.
Agitated, Liam stood up, pulled on his shirt, and stalked out. Doctors, nurses, and medical assistants moved quickly out of Liam’s way after one look of his face. Exiting the infirmary, Liam was surprised to find that night had fallen. He hadn’t realized he had spent that much time in the infirmary. Lost in thought, he quietly made his way back to his quarters, thankful he ran into no one he knew.
Once he entered his quarters, he removed his shirt, grabbed a beer out of his refrigerator, and sat in a chair. Sitting there in the dark, he once again thought back to his time spent with Leah. As he sipped at his beer, savoring the flavor, he decided that no matter what, one way or another, he would find a way to say good-bye to her.
July 30, 2012, 8:30 a.m. EST
The White House, Washington, DC
President Sheehan read the latest reports that came to him on the construction and training of the fleet. So far, the training of the pilots had been going quite well. They had exceeded everyone’s best estimates. The governments had also somehow managed to keep everything that had transpired quiet so far, and the public knew nothing of the fate that they were possibly facing. Governments had secretly sabotaged any public or commercial telescopes or radar systems large enough to capture the movements going on in space. The governments had also been slowly shuttling men and women to the site of the shipyards, so it had become necessary for such interventions.
For the most part, Meshtrell robotic technology did the work of constructing the capital ships and fighters of the Earth Defense Force. Once a capital ship was completed, it would need a human crew to man it, and they needed to learn the onboard systems to successfully fight the nightmare known as the Shenkar when they finally came to Earth. Preliminary reports showed two battlecruisers, christened the EDF George Washington and EDF Yamamoto , had been successfully completed. Furthermore, along with roughly one thousand light and heavy fighters, there were also four heavy cruisers: the EDF Atlantis , Paris , Sydney , and Moscow (the last three named at the insistence of the leaders of France, Australia, and Russia, respectively).
A knock at the door made President Sheehan look up; his secretary stuck her head in.
“ Sir, I realize you didn’t want to be disturbed, but General Kelvin is here and he said it is important he speaks with you.”
He wondered what would bring Kelvin here when he was supposed to be heading up the construction of a training facility in Texas.
“ Send him in.”
Setting the reports aside, President Sheehan stood and walked around to the front of his desk as Kelvin came in looking rather grim.
“ Frank, what brings you here? Last I had heard, you were supposed to be in Texas overseeing groundbreaking of the new facility,” asked the President as he offered his hand.
Taking the offered hand, Kelvin shook it as he spoke. “ Sir, we have a situation that has arisen that you will not be pleased about.”
“ And what situation would that be?” asked the
“ But what am I supposed to do then? I can’t get back to training and I can’t leave the base. Am I just supposed to sit in my quarters?”
“ No, you can use this time to study or spend time with your fellow pilots. After all, they will be with you in the end and will be the closest thing you will have to family from this day forward,” said the doctor.
Agitated, Liam stood up, pulled on his shirt, and stalked out. Doctors, nurses, and medical assistants moved quickly out of Liam’s way after one look of his face. Exiting the infirmary, Liam was surprised to find that night had fallen. He hadn’t realized he had spent that much time in the infirmary. Lost in thought, he quietly made his way back to his quarters, thankful he ran into no one he knew.
Once he entered his quarters, he removed his shirt, grabbed a beer out of his refrigerator, and sat in a chair. Sitting there in the dark, he once again thought back to his time spent with Leah. As he sipped at his beer, savoring the flavor, he decided that no matter what, one way or another, he would find a way to say good-bye to her.
July 30, 2012, 8:30 a.m. EST
The White House, Washington, DC
President Sheehan read the latest reports that came to him on the construction and training of the fleet. So far, the training of the pilots had been going quite well. They had exceeded everyone’s best estimates. The governments had also somehow managed to keep everything that had transpired quiet so far, and the public knew nothing of the fate that they were possibly facing. Governments had secretly sabotaged any public or commercial telescopes or radar systems large enough to capture the movements going on in space. The governments had also been slowly shuttling men and women to the site of the shipyards, so it had become necessary for such interventions.
For the most part, Meshtrell robotic technology did the work of constructing the capital ships and fighters of the Earth Defense Force. Once a capital ship was completed, it would need a human crew to man it, and they needed to learn the onboard systems to successfully fight the nightmare known as the Shenkar when they finally came to Earth. Preliminary reports showed two battlecruisers, christened the EDF George Washington and EDF Yamamoto , had been successfully completed. Furthermore, along with roughly one thousand light and heavy fighters, there were also four heavy cruisers: the EDF Atlantis , Paris , Sydney , and Moscow (the last three named at the insistence of the leaders of France, Australia, and Russia, respectively).
A knock at the door made President Sheehan look up; his secretary stuck her head in.
“ Sir, I realize you didn’t want to be disturbed, but General Kelvin is here and he said it is important he speaks with you.”
He wondered what would bring Kelvin here when he was supposed to be heading up the construction of a training facility in Texas.
“ Send him in.”
Setting the reports aside, President Sheehan stood and walked around to the front of his desk as Kelvin came in looking rather grim.
“ Frank, what brings you here? Last I had heard, you were supposed to be in Texas overseeing groundbreaking of the new facility,” asked the President as he offered his hand.
Taking the offered hand, Kelvin shook it as he spoke. “ Sir, we have a situation that has arisen that you will not be pleased about.”
“ And what situation would that be?” asked the
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