First Contact Ch. 01

"I know, baby..." Mac comforted his wife. They had been pregnant once before, but not by plan. Annette had lost the baby thirteen weeks in. Both she and Mac had been overwhelmed by the loss and they vowed to try again, but not until their financial situation improved to the point of home ownership. "We're gonna get there, sweetie. And then we'll have little Ernest and Ernestine to complete our family unit!"

The inside joke never failed to elicit a laugh from Annette. Mac had always said that he wanted to have a boy and a girl and name them similarly, but he always came up with goofy, outdated names for the would-be children. "Oh, my poor babies!" Annette said through her chuckling. "We're not naming them THAT!"

Mac smiled, confident that he had changed her sad mood after the thought of losing their first child. "Well, we'll think of something!"

The truck's stereo system let out a loud ding then spoke to the young couple. "Turn left in one hundred feet. Your destination will be on the right." Mac obeyed the directions given by his cellphone's GPS app and followed the next street to the entrance of the failed casino. A few dozen protesters with signs threatened to halt their ingress, but the quickly parted when mac refused to stop the truck from rolling through the archway. Army soldiers in green uniforms with automatic rifles stood at the entrance and commanded all vehicles to stop. One of the soldiers put his hand out to halt Mac's truck before entering the massive parking lot.

"Good morning," the sergeant said to Mac as the pickup's window rolled down. "Do you have your acceptance letter?"

Annette fished the letter from her bag and handed it to Mac who gave it to the fatigue-clad man. The sergeant scanned the barcode at the top of the letter with a handheld RF unit then handed the letter back to Mac. "Follow the driveway up to the next set of sawhorses and wait for someone to direct you to your final destination." The soldier stepped back and motioned Mac to pull up the driveway. When the truck reached the designated spot, another soldier stopped them and once again scanned the letter. They were directed to drive to the east side of the parking lot and shut the vehicle off. There they would hand their keys over to another soldier who would document their information and direct them inside to begin their orientation.

"I can't keep my car keys?!" Mac asked the third green-clad soldier as he and Annette stepped out of the truck into the late May sunshine.

"All personal effects, including keys and cellphones and jewelry must be relinquished before entering the welcoming station, sir." The buck private answered Mac's question matter-of-factly. "All personal effects will be returned at the conclusion of your stay. Please relinquish these items now, folks."

Mac and Annette begrudgingly did as they were asked and handed over their phones and other personal items, including their wedding rings. Mac had a little trouble getting his off his finger, having not removed it for almost six years. When the couple had both complied with the orders the soldier looked at the letter and spoke again.

"Mr. Simmons, you will take your belongings and follow the other men into the west entrance of the building. Mrs. Simmons, please follow the white line on the concrete and enter through the south entrance immediately. Your orientation classes are scheduled to begin in less than ten minutes."

"Just a minute!" Mac protested. "Don't I get to say goodbye? At least give my wife a kiss and a hug?"

""Mr. Simmons, you have exactly ten seconds to do so if you wish, but you must hurry," the private responded. "We have a lot of people to process before we can commence with orientation."

"It's OK, Mac." Annette said, trying to calm her agitated husband. "I'm sure we'll see each other before... you know..." She quickly gave her husband a kiss and an embrace then started down the sidewalk following the white line. "I'll be fine and so will you!" she shouted as she got farther away. Mac watched her walk briskly up the concourse then through the glass double doors until she was gone from his sight.

"Sir," the soldier said as he tapped him lightly on the shoulder, "you have to get moving, Sir. You too have orientation in less than ten minutes."

"Right." Mac exclaimed as he shook out of his stare. He began his walk toward the east entrance, not quite as jauntily as Annette had moved. He still had a bad feeling about all this. He steeled himself for what might be on the other side of the doors he was approaching and vowed to make sure the woman he loved would not be harmed during their visit.

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Annette was directed to a large auditorium and found a seat three rows from the front. When all the female attendees were accounted for, a tall brunette woman in a dark business suit came in through a side door and began to address the women.

"Good morning, ladies. My name is Jeanette Riley-Cossington and I am the Volunteer Liaison for the Nebulans. I'm here to help you feel at home, ease any anxiety you may have, and answer all your questions, which we'll get to in just a few minutes. But first, I'd like to personally thank each and every one of you for your service. The sacrifice you're making and selflessness you and women around the world are showing will propel mankind's knowledge of science and the universe itself ahead tenfold in the coming years."

"Now," the speaker continued, "I'd like to dispel any fears you may have or put to rest any rumors you may have heard about our guests. First, they are not monsters. I have met with many Nebulans and they have shown themselves to be quite peaceful, even charming in certain situations." "There should be no apprehension about any unsavory notions such as world domination or human enslavement." Jeannette spoke further." "This is not their objective. They simply want to continue to exist and humans have shown to be excellent hosts for their reproductive process. Second, this will in no way disrupt your regular cycle or inhibit you from having children with your partner. Those of you on your menstrual cycle now, please come see us after the presentation. Finally, those of you that brought your husbands or partners, please know that they are safe and well provided for and you will see them very soon. Now, let's tackle those questions you have for us."

Many women raised their hands to ask Jeanette questions, but the most prevalent query was: What is it like? How does it work? Is it actual sex? Jeanette's practiced response was the same, "I can assure you it will be painless and most likely an enjoyable experience for you. You will in no way be harmed and you will be no different afterward." After all the questions were answered, the speaker finished her presentation, "Thank you for your attention today, ladies. Please follow our guides and they will show you to your living quarters for the next few weeks. Due to the sheer number of participants, you will be doubling up in rooms but they are spacious and you will have lots of area to yourself. Good luck and enjoy the experience!"

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Mackenzie Simmons orientation on the other side of the defunct casino was not quite as joyous and uplifting as his wife's. There was only about two-thirds the audience in the auditorium where Mac was seated in the fifth row with other husbands and a few homosexual women who had decided not to participate but instead come along with their wives as well. After what Mac observed to be an interminable wait time, a short blading man in a black suit and thick glasses came on stage and began the meeting.

"Good morning, folks," the man began. "My name is Jake Cossington, and right now my wife is speaking to your wives and girlfriends in another section of the building. We were chosen to speak to both groups because twenty-two years ago, my wife was one of the first women to go take part in the initial reproduction procedure with the Nebulans. The powers that be decided that they wanted to have people that went through the procedure relate their experiences to all of you so that you could get a bit of a feeling about what to expect."

"First off," Jake continued, "there is absolutely no reason for any of you here not to feel worry or anguish for your wives or partners. Believe me, I felt both back when my wife participated. I also felt loneliness, fear, anger, and a bunch of other emotions that you may well experience. I will not presume to tell you not to have these feelings. They are absolutely normal and natural. What I can tell you is this: Your wives and partners will come back to you at the end of this journey exactly as you left them."

"Now," the speaker said further, "I won't bore you with technical details of the procedure. You will all be briefed on exactly what's going to take place over the next six weeks here. Nor will I relate to you my own experiences from those days long ago. Each of you must deal with this in your own way. Just know that there will be professionals on hand to help you get through whatever feelings you may have any particular day. I won't answer any questions at this time. That will be taken care of by your Floor Leaders. They are there to help you through and make sure all rules are followed. Thank you for your attention today and good luck!"

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Mac found his way to his assigned room and went inside. Unlike his wife, he was not sharing a room with another guest. All of the husbands/partners had their own private rooms, for "personal reflection time" is how Allen, their Floor Leader, put it. The emotions of having your wife essentially be a brood mare for an alien race could weigh heavily on a soul so, in addition to group therapy get-togethers and private one-on-one sessions with counselors, they also had their own sanctuaries to retreat to for much-needed alone time.

Mac was not a fan of "alone time." He was an explorer. He wanted to see the grounds of the complex and roam the inner workings of the building. But most of all, he wanted to see Annette. When he asked if he would be able to see his wife while they stayed at the old gambling establishment, the best answer he could get was "maybe." Mac missed his wife of nearly six years desperately but that was not the main reason he wanted to see her. He wanted to make sure Annette was safe and not being harmed or coerced by anyone or anything. Mac had heard horror stories about the first round of breeding years ago and although the government and others deemed the procedure safe, there were a few unpleasant experiences and three deaths that were chalked up to "unknown causes."

Mac had no intention of seeing Annette become one of those "unknown causes" in this next round of breedings. He was going to find her and protect her if it meant his own life for hers. But first, he had to get out of the prying eyes of both the floor leaders and those keeping tabs on him, whoever or whatever they may be.