Hello Mr. Robinson Pt. 11

"Of the life forms that achieve sentience to reach an advanced level are less than twenty percent." Watcher replied stoically.

"What do you think our odds are?" Nick asked.

"Your current social dissonance and treatment of your less off citizens indicates a low percentile of success. I fear that if you were to attempt colonizing the two worlds within this solar system you would only succeed in ruining them. You did ask."

"I agree." Nick said his voice flat and emotionless.

"The ship..." the physicist said. "...what can you tell us about it?"

"Nothing, the ship belongs to a race that the Anunnaki either missed or that predates my creators."

"Can you help us capture the ship before it enters our solar system?" Nick asked a new vitality in his voice.

"They ship will not enter your solar system. I have repositioned the gate to your system. The derelict will pass this asteroid but will tumble into interstellar space eventually. I am not programmed to interfere. I am called Watcher for a very good reason. I observed several extinction level events and never interfered. If something was hurtling towards the Earth and would wipe out your race I couldn't help. You are not special in the grand scheme of things. As part of my programming I was allowed to gift information that would help you push beyond your adolescence. One of the crystals will help you safely tap into geothermal vents for abundant clean energy. Your reliance on fossil fuels and fission energy should be a thing of the past."

"Do you have any suggestions for us to survive?" The botanist asked her voice low and emotional.

"Your situation is not unique. You need to bring your tribes together. You need to find something that your race wants more than war or relying on superficial hatreds. Rally your commonality and you might make it."

"I think I have an idea." Nick said and his face was cold and hard. "Okay people it is time to go."

We replaced our helmets after recharging our air tanks. The return trip was a somber one. Were humans facing extinction? All of us passed through the gate to the underground installation beneath the Painted Desert. I handed off the crystal reader as well as the crystals. Once we were cleared after decontamination and our blood was checked for biological contaminates. Nick never spoke and I felt something profound had changed in him. The once light-hearted billionaire was gone. He seemed focused and determined. I would wait and see if he confided in me or not. I would act as if things were business as usual.

Afterward:

Project Solaris was an enormous success. My role returned to normal even as Nick became elusive and withdrew from social life. He worked with experts and began construction of the Yellowstone Project. I was chosen to brief the President on every aspect of Solaris. I read to her the dialogue between Watcher and Nick's team. I saw the pain in her eyes as she pondered her options. She didn't ask for my thoughts and even called the meeting to an end early. It was like watching a wave spread out from the epicenter that was Project Solaris. Everyone that it touched had the wind knocked out of them. I didn't have any answers. How do you bring the entire world together when there were centuries of strife to deal with? How do you tell four billion faithful that there was no god? We were a very egocentric race and the thought of us not rating special was humbling. The weight of history was against us. Could we beat the odds?

A week after the data crystals had been secured by NASA and Numenor I moved back into my home. Part of that decision was clinched when I heard that Eric Blackwater had been arrested for hiring the assassin that murdered my neighbors and tried to kill me. I was still nervous but I refused to live in fear. When we pulled up in front of my house and saw that the lights were on inside. Rhea demanded to go in alone to 'clear' the house. There was no arguing with her so I just nodded. She parked the car and slid out to see who if anyone was in the house. It was a long drawn out ten-minute wait until she reappeared and waved us in. While Isix, Aislinn, and I went through the front door Rhea parked the car in the garage. The smell of hot apple pie filled the air. It reminded me of Thanksgiving when I was a kid. I headed straight for the kitchen to find Bethany and Shelby sipping wine from my best stemware.

"Mom, what the hell are you doing here?" I asked and she just raised her glass and smiled.

"I told you to call me Bethany. I brought pie."

She got to her feet and I hugged her. The psychic noise that erupted when Aislinn and Shelby met was deafening. I drowned it out with a single thought. The two fell silent and stared at me. I walked between them and waited. Shelby looked at my mother, er, Bethany while Aislinn stared at Isix. I wasn't about to ask what the hell was going on but somebody was. It was Rhea that broke the silence.

"It's about god damn time." Rhea said walking to the stove to check the pie. "Talk about time. Do I have to explain it to him? If I do I might not be kind. I hate the fact that you've enjoyed his hospitality and failed to share."

"I am so sorry Greg." Aislinn said as she dropped to her knees and touched her forehead to the floor.

"I am sorry too." Shelby said. "You deserve better."

"That said, just fucking tell him," Bethany said slurring her words horribly.

"We are changelings," Aislinn and Shelby said in a single flawless voice.

"Changelings are related by blood to the J'Nai. They are a sister race you might say. The clear difference is their unique ability to alter their appearance depending upon their current love interest. In Aislinn's case a redheaded Asian. She's like a perfect blend of Akira and me. In Shelby's case, she is everything your mother finds attractive in a woman. They were often taken as slaves and sold to very powerful figures across the galaxy."

"The ring," I said and Aislinn looked up at me in shock. "It hides your nature from me."

"Not just you Master but anyone hunting changelings. I am so sorry for keeping my nature secret from you, please forgive me."

"Pie is done." Rhea said as she removed the delicacy from the oven. "Let's eat."

We gathered around the table together. We opened more wine, cut the pie, and shared a meal together. It was a time for us to come together before things went to hell. We shared memories and I noticed one glaring absence at the table, my daughter Cindy. I wished she could be here. She would have loved this little impromptu get together. Once the pie had been devoured we headed upstairs for bed. Isix, Shelby, and Aislinn shared a bedroom while Rhea and I would be sharing with Bethany. We reached the top of the stairs when mom giggled as she informed me.

"Oh hey, I hope you don't mind that I took some space in your chest of drawers."