Outward Borne (48 page)

“
I am sorry that I am not so
polite or diplomatic as the gentlemen you are accustomed to deal
with, but I do mean to threaten you, as you meant to intimidate me.
I mean to speak to the Council and I mean to win acceptance of the
Charter. It would be a nice cap to your career, Mr. Lorentian, and
for you, Jostelin. Don’t you think that mine is the better
way?”

He maintained the facade of being
shocked by my incivility for a while, but Lorentian had not
maneuvered through the brutal infighting of the EEC without hearing
much worse. At any rate, before he left the table, Lorentian agreed
to sponsor my position. I would no more than a half an
hour.

I had no pretty pictures, no
spectacular videos, no charts, or scientific analyses. I would turn
over the last major piece of ObLaDa knowledge to the people of
Earth and state my terms, and leave them to make their decision. My
appearance was announced without any fanfare, Lorentian’s last
display of petulant authority, but speculation was quick to develop
and interest rose along with it. This time there were no leaks, no
clips or hints appeared online.

There was an unusually large live audience for
the address, most people watched condensed versions of such things
on line, especially when language translation was required, but
this time there seemed to be a keen interest in being part of the
event. I was determined to be very brief and to the point,
hopefully not too blunt, but enough to bludgeon some leaders into
accepting world governance by making it in their self-interest to
do so.

During the salutation, I struggled to get the
quaver out of my voice. I am usually fine with these things, once I
get started, but this had gotten to my nerves.

“
One of the most significant
events in the million-year history of the planet ObLa occurred some
five thousand years ago. It was then that they made contact with an
alien civilization for the first time. ObLa was eventually able to
conduct prolonged communication exchange with several different
planets, long before any space flight was possible or even
envisioned. Since the difficulties in conducting and interstellar
voyage of any kind were so vast and so extreme, none of these alien
planets considered their contacts to be a threat, or even a
competitor. They freely communicated all of their knowledge and
expertise in the hope that it would be of some benefit. The ObLaDas
learned of other worlds, and shared information with them - all of
their science, all their technologies, all of their histories. ObLa
has participated in this exchange through the millennia to the
present day.”

There were a thousand ambassadors
in that audience, men and women from most of the world’s nations.
These were people that spent their lives in meetings such as this,
often without listening to one word being spoken. Now the room had
taken on a strange quiet, even the translators were talking in
whispers.

“
Interplanetary exchange conveyed
a great deal of new and important knowledge. Indeed, the Outward
Voyager could never have been built if it were not for the energy
production, propulsion system, and fabrication technologies that
the ObLaDas received from other planets. I understand that the
people of ObLa considered the translation and interpretation of
alien communications to be their most significant and rewarding
endeavor. Each planet in the network sends forth a constant stream
of information about itself and what it has learned of the world
around it. There is no dialog, but it seems to have worked well
enough. At the time that our people left the Outward Voyager, eight
planets were actively participating in this exchange, and there is
one that listens but does not broadcast. These planets have been in
constant communication for centuries, constant streams of
information crisscrossing the galaxy, and all of this knowledge,
all that had been accumulated on ObLa, was conveyed to the Outward
Voyager during its journey. I am stating here today that I have the
core of that knowledge.”

I held up the Voyager memory cube,
my only prop, although I doubt that anyone could really see what it
was. A growing murmur swept through that large room. I waited for
it to subside.

“
We on Earth are still struggling,
after centuries of effort, to achieve energy production consistent
with a sustainable environment. I can assure you that such
knowledge exists. Proven and effective new techniques for treating
diseases can be adapted for our use. As far as our sciences have
advanced, there is much more that has already been discovered on
other planets. All of this knowledge would be of great value. We
would all benefit, but only if we were able to control
it.

There is more. The network of
alien civilizations that ObLa has established is open to new
members, indeed, they are eagerly sought. We, the people of Earth,
could converse with all of these advanced civilizations and share
directly in their new knowledge and advances. On behalf of the
ObLaDas, the People of the Outward Voyager, and for those Voyagers
who returned to Earth and who have maintained and protected this
knowledge in anticipation of this moment, I offer to make
interplanetary knowledge and communication available to the World
Governance Council. My one condition, a necessary prerequisite, is
that the Global Charter receive unanimous and unconditional
acceptance by all nations of Earth.”

Now the buzz started. It was
electric. I could feel the excitement as people realized what might
be possible.

“
Why this condition?” I continued
when I could. “The knowledge that can be gained by communication
with our fellow beings will make it possible for our species and
our civilization to maintain itself in perpetuity, but that
knowledge will be beneficial only if it is in the hands of a
governing body that is truly working in the interest of all people,
equally, and without bias. For the first time we are on the
doorstep of creating such a responsible body. Now we must take that
step up. We must have world governance. You can all see the
consequences should any one nation monopolize interplanetary
communication and the knowledge that it will bring.”

“
The ObLaDas hoped that the people
of Earth would reach the point where a viable world-wide governing
body might be established, one that could be trusted with this
transformative and enduring potential. In anticipation of such an
outcome, I can tell you that a message was sent from the Outward
Voyager to the communicative planets two hundred and sixty years
ago. By now, those planets will have begun sending their greetings
to a powerful receiving/transmitting station located in deep space.
That station is relaying their communications to Earth. That signal
is now striking our atmosphere, but to receive that signal, you
will need the exact coordinates of the space-borne transmitter, its
frequency, and appropriately designed receiving equipment. Even
with this information, it may take several years to get everything
in place and achieve first contact. If any are considering to go
alone, to attempt to make contact and exploit it rewards for your
individual benefit, you should know that that would be impossible.
It would take centuries to detect the alien transmission, if it
could be found at all, for it is not being sent from any planet or
solar system, but from coordinate in apparently empty space.
Believe me in this, it cannot be done, it is the reason that we
have thus far failed to find any alien signals, in spite of
centuries of continuous effort.”

I waited for some time before continuing. I
hoped to obtain some sense of the mood, but I could not. They were
excited, but it was like a child before a Christmas tree. They were
greedy for the presents, but there must be more.

“
We can all see that the Global
Commissions have been a success over the years, and they will be
even more effective once the Charter is in effect, but you have
heard and debated all of this many times over. Now the ability to
communicate with alien civilizations, to share in their knowledge,
to make our own contributions to the universe, is one more reason
to support the creation of a global government, and move into a new
world dedicated to a better future.”

The Charter did eventually pass,
though not without continued debate and, I understand, considerable
arm-twisting in the form of bribes and concessions. It was not all
I had hoped for, but it was a success in the end. The Charter
Council made itself a permanent administrative body; in effect it
became the head of the global government. Membership was key, as it
could always be corrupted if the selection process was subject to
influence, but they avoided this when they established a rigorous
performance- and accomplishment-driven process for selecting its
members. There were no national quotas or assured representation.
The posts went to the individuals with sustained records of
performance and accomplishment, those who were best fit to look out
for the welfare of the world. I am pleased to see, but not at all
surprised, that nine of the twelve councilors are female. The
ObLaDas would have understood perfectly.

Thank you for reading my book. If
you enjoyed it, won’t you please take a moment to provide a review
were it will do some good.

Novels published by R. J. Weinkam

MEETING ELIZABETH

Pride and Prejudice Inspired

MORE SENSE THAN SENSIBILITY

Shades of the French Revolution

PRIDE AND PERFECTION

A Novel of Jane Austen’s Life and Future

OUTWARD BORNE

Alien Abduction and Return

Coming soon:

A TIMOROUS GIRL

Learn more about R. J. Weinkam novels at
[email protected]