Read Online Consortium of Planets: Alien Test by Jack Wells - Free Book Online Page B

and waited for them. His bright blue eyes were in contrast to otherwise normally dark features. His pot belly made him look middle-aged.
    As they came to rest on the surface, Dean had to laugh at the alien’s relatively good attempt at mimicking a Human. “Well, L.T, I’d have to say that your little green man isn’t so green. He looks like one of my old college professors, but they weren’t able to slow me down the way he has.” Dean looked at the alien. “Oh, and by the way, if you want us to think you’re Human, you might want to wear a protective suit when you’re standing in a vacuum on the Moon.”
    The ‘man’ showed no interest in Dean’s observation. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t let you continue toward the Moonbeam. Oh, and I wasn’t sure how much power to use on a Human and didn’t intend for you to float about like one of your birds. I’m not what you expected for an alien? This image is not intended to fool you. It is intended to assist in our communication. If I showed you what I truly look like, our research indicates that effective communication would be problematic. We have found that your species is more comfortable around similar-looking beings.”
    “Colonel, he doesn’t look dangerous. I think I can get a shot at his leg.”
    The alien responded before Beth could react. “Oh, I assure you I am very dangerous and that isn’t really my leg. It’s more of a projection – like a very sophisticated hologram. We’re controlling most of what you see.”
    Things were starting to make sense now, but Dean wanted to confirm his suspicions. “The crater’s murky surface and this base are just facades created by you for our benefit?” Before the alien could respond, Dean asked about the real problem. “What about the Beam headed toward Earth?”
    The alien no longer sounded like an old college professor. It responded like the dangerous alien that he claimed to be with malice in its voice. “Are you asking if the Beam is real? It’s very real. It will test the United Defense Corps and your whole world.” With an arrogant sneer, it challenged them. “Do you think you are ready?”
    No longer acting for the colonel, Beth lost her temper and yelled, “If you’d let go of my legs, I’d like to test how hard your ugly head is with my boot!”
    Sounding even more superior than before, the alien shook his head at her. He looked at Dean and continued. “She doesn’t seem to learn very quickly, does she? This is starting to get tedious. My orders are to detain you so that you don’t interfere with your U.D.C.’s response to this threat. We were counting on your superior to send you up here by yourself, given his history of putting you in harm’s way. You are – how do you say? – A wild card that we do not want to take chances with. As I said, we have been watching you for a while and your reputation precedes you.”
    “That’s a real nice speech,” Beth interrupted angrily. “The colonel isn’t alone – I’m here. And if this is a test then you’re screwing around with the Corps’ most valuable weapon. A real test would include all our weapons, especially Colonel Forge.”
    Beth realized Dean was no longer participating in the conversation. He was letting her distract the alien while he looked for a weakness – some way to escape. In the next instant, everything around her went dark and she felt weightless again. She could sense herself floating forward. Is the colonel still with me? Where are we going?
    Soon, the lights came back on in a holding chamber about six meters square and four meters tall. There was a low orange glow that radiated off most of the objects in the chamber. The glow provided adequate light and a pleasant ambiance to the tense situation. There were no windows or doors. Chairs, tables, and a computer were made out of the same metallic material as the objects outside. This time, everything except the walls stayed solid. The walls flickered out and exposed