Gob and Kar were the first ones in the meeting room, 3 cycles had gone by very quickly. Gob was worried if they were prepared enough for the Kom.

“What is our status?” asked Gob

“Everything is proceeding on schedule, we have made several advances in our technology. I also have a project I have been overseeing” replied Kar.

“What side project?” asked Gob

“I would rather not say until we have proof that it works. I dont want to get your hopes up” replied Kar. “What about you? How is your progress coming along?”

“Research on the two objects is coming along nicely” replied Gob “I have more details to present but I’ll save it for later. I’ve been told you do not like to sit through the same briefings twice” joked Gob

Kar looked amused, Gob realised that this was the first time Kar had seemed anything other than serious. This must be more stressful than Gob realised.

Gob was about to say something but was interrupted as the rest of the council entered the room. The Watchers had been doing most of the work regarding research, and Kar was the one presenting today. Gob sat down next to Observer Drak. The Elders entered the room and this time along with Elder Kadd, there were members of their leadership present as well. Most notable of which was Elder Mul, they were an active member of the community and had a lot of influence among the Elders. Mul being here meant that this matter was being taken very seriously.

“For the last 3 cycles the Watchers have been busy analysing the technology present in the two objects the Kom sent. The objective was to understand how their communications eqpuiment worked and to design communication devices capable of intercepting messages between the Kom so that we can listen in and understand the true nature of their mission here. Another, albeit less important, objective was to see if anything component of their technology could be used to boost our own communication systems. In this regard we have been very successful, we built long range communication towers capable of transmitting anywhere on planet very quickly. We shared these designs with the other outposts in the hopes to keep communication about the Kom up to date for the full planet.” said Kar

“How does better communication help us against the Kom?” asked Mul

“On it’s own it doesn’t” replied Kar. “Intercepting messages between the Kom is just to understand what they want, defending our own interests is another matter. We have also made progress on that, we have fortified our settlements to withstand strong weaponry. Due to our extreme weather we already had strong foundations but we also erected walls and energy fields to allow us to defend aggression from space.” explained Kar.

“What about weapons?” asked Kadd

“We have modified the equipment our Rock Hoppers use for mining to design some long range weaponry that can be used. Ammunition is low and it is recommended to consider them as a last resort” replied Kar

“Have the Observers learned anything new?” asked Mul

“We have been studying the two objects and designed communication stations that use the same technology. We have identified several signals that the Kom have been sending since before the first object arrived, they seem to have been trying to find other intelligent life for quite some time.” replied Drak

“We also spent a long time trying to identify differences between the two objects, in the hope that we could understand why the Kom were making this journey. First, the mineral composition of the two objects were different. The first object had minerals that were complex and very well refined, but the second object used more crude resources and was not as resilient. This re-inforced our assumption that either the Kom had lost access to these minerals or had lost the capability and technology to refine complex minerals.” replied Gob. Then continued.

“Second, thanks to the research of the Watchers we know that they use a form of light as a means to communicate over long distances. This was the reason why we did not intercept any of the signals they have been sending over the cycles, it was only after we received the first object that we built devices that use light to communicate. This could explain why the Kom were so quick to make this journey, perhaps over time their species became desperate and finding us was the spark they needed to leave their planet. This could also mean that they will arrive in vast numbers”

Gob paused to allow the information to sink in.

“And finally, the first object was transmitting images and data about space back to the Kom but had not been able to transmit correctly through the belt. But we now know that the Kom have gathered vast amounts of data on space and are more experienced in space exploration then us. It still does not explain why their technology declined however because if they had all this information surely they could have mined space rocks to gain resources the same way we do.” Gob finished and returned to his seat.

“I agree this is strange” said Mul, “Not only have the Kom not explained their purpose here but they have also failed to tell us why their species seems to be in decline. Further any species capable of travelling through the belt, something we are incapable of so far, must be capable enough to solve problems as simple as resource gathering.”

That was a good point, thought Gob. Everyone had focussed on the two objects being different and assumed that their technology was in decline, they never stopped to consider that even with a decline they were capable enough to make this journey. Gob was impressed, perhaps not all Elders were like Kadd, perhaps some of them actually understood. Then it occurred to Gob that the fact that people like Mul were present among the Elders meant that they intentionally did not send capable members to the Stargazer meetings. And the feeling faded.

“All valid points” said Kar, “in that regard I think everyone here should be aware that there is a project that the Watchers have been pursuing under my supervision. The goal of the project…”

Kar was interrupted by sounds of alarms echoing across Stargazer HQ. One of the Observers entered the room and handed a report to Drak, who then handed it to Gob with a stern look. Gob must have been visibly shaken by the report because Kar said “What is it Overseer?”

“Elder Mul and Kadd, Watcher Kar and Observer Drak please join me in the observation lab” said Gob. Including Kadd annoyed Gob was it was a necessity as it would show Mul that the Elders were being respected. Also because Gob wanted Drak to join them and knew that Mul would take offence to it if Kadd was not included.

They all nodded, left the room and followed Drak and Gob to the lab. All the machines in the lab were active, some of them beeping but most of them printing reports. The alarms were still on which gave the room a very ominous look. All the Observers in the room were rushing from station to station, trying to keep things in order. One of them handed a full report to Drak who handed it to Gob without looking at it, they already knew what this meant.

“The automated monitoring station had identified a small object exiting the belt, slowing down and then retreating back into the belt. A few moments later a large capsule shaped object exited and came to rest just outside the belt, with 10 to 12 smaller capsule shaped objects in formation around it.” said Gob

Mul and Kadd looked at each other, with a hint of panic on their faces. Gob could not blame them, this is not a situation anyone can prepare for. Drak looked at the big screen in front of him with awe, the screen showed the capsule shaped objects resting in formation. Kar, expectedly, just looked serious.

Gob said, “The Kom have arrived, and they have sent us a signal”.

Chapter 4

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