New Earth: Project O.N.E.
by
R.D. Pittman
Copyright © 2011 Two Pitts Publishing LLC
Published in eBook format by eBookIt.com
ISBN-13: 978-1-4566-0352-6
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Fiction Caveat
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used factiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental
Rickard D. Pittman
Acknowledgements
The New Earth Trilogy
These trilogies are a work of fiction; nonetheless, I strived to be as accurate as possible when utilizing facts and figures, to lend more credence to the stories. To that end, I should note that all of the military references were obtained from the official websites of the various armed services. The Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine websites were invaluable in providing detailed information regarding force strengths and mission imperatives, as well as historical perspectives. I would like to thank the Public Affairs office of Nellis Air Force Base for its assistance and input. Much thanks to the US Department of Agriculture and the Bureau of Land Management for their website content that enabled me to provide realistic portrayals of agriculture and mining related issues that formed the basis of a significant part of these books.
My editor, Dave King, of Dave King Editorial Services was no less an important part of this effort than I was as the writer. While his editing was professional, it was also comfortable. His ideas about character and plot development were invaluable, and his patience was greatly appreciated. I can’t imagine what it would have been like without his input and guidance.
No writer can ever freely admit that he or she did it on their own. There are always one or more persons that have a significant impact on the finished novel. Mine continues to be my best friend in life, someone I’ve known for forty-four years, and loved from the beginning…my wife Sharon. There was never a moment that she didn’t praise me, remind me to take a break, rub my neck and back, put drops and warm hand towels on my eyes, and give me those wonderful loving hugs and kisses. Even when she wasn’t there…she was there.
To my very best friend, my soulmate, my wife Sharon,
I lovingly dedicate this book.
Chapter 1
We Are in Crisis Mode
Alex was on his way home to Sacramento after having looked at an investment property in Pasadena. It was in a neighborhood that was already on its way to recovery, but he thought it was still priced low enough to leave room for potential upswing. It wouldn’t make a killing, but at his point in life, he didn’t need to make a killing. A comfortable profit was enough. He tapped the button that woke up the voice-activated phone system in the dash of his rented Smart Car.
“Call Curt” The phone ring seemed odd, like a violin out of tune, and then “That’s right, at Mauna Kea. It was the Keck, last Thursday’s scan.”
That wasn’t his son Curt, unless Curt had picked up the phone without realizing there was an incoming call. But Mauna Kea? The Keck? Why was that familiar?
“Eldon I’m absolutely positive, I got the data yesterday. At least a couple of dozen, maybe more, hitting over six days. They’re coming, and there is nothing we can do about it.”
There was panic in the voice. Whatever he had dropped in on, it was serious.
Then another voice. “Listen, get off this phone, meet me at the office—no meet me at Coco’s at, say, three o’clock.”
“The one in Glendale?”
“Yes.”
“Okay see you at three…This is unbelievable, I just can’t—
“Jeffrey, shut up and get off the phone now.”
The line went dead.
Alex pulled off the highway, turned off the ignition and sat there for a moment. Whatever it was he’d overheard, it had unsettled him so much he couldn’t remember ever feeling this unnerved. Not since Iraq. That was what had gotten him so rattled—he remembered hearing exactly that tone of voice from field commanders who were coming under fire when they didn’t expect it.
After taking several deep breaths he switched his in-dash information center to the Internet and queried Mauna Kea and Keck. The Keck Observatory was part of the Mauna Kea observatories in Hawaii, jointly run by Cal-Tech. He then queried staff at Cal-Tech, the science division, and put in a search for first name Eldon—how many could there be? It came back Eldon Huart, Chair, Astrophysics Department. He then queried Jeffrey, Astrophysics Department and found Jeffrey Macklin, Professor and Director of something called the NEO Project. Alex queried NEO, Astrophysics Department and got NEO or Near Earth Object. The NEO project was a program that scanned for comets and asteroids that crossed the earth’s orbit.
They’re coming, and there’s nothing we can do about it.
Now he wasn’t rattled. He was scared.
It was 2:16 p.m. when Alex started his car, pulled back on to the freeway and looked for the nearest exit to take him to Glendale. As he raced down the Pasadena freeway he saw the sign, —Coco’s next exit. As Alex pulled into the restaurant parking lot, he saw a white four-door hybrid with a Cal-Tech logo on the door pulling into a parking spot.
Alex pulled next to it and shut the car off. He had to compose himself. His heart was pounding again he could feel it in his temples, a level of adrenaline he hadn’t experienced in more than ten years. He glanced at the clock. About fifteen minutes to the meeting. Should he approach these two people and tell them he overheard their entire conversation? But why should he get involved? Also, it could have just been some kind of sick fraternity joke, couldn’t it? Alex wasn’t a man to jump to conclusions, his career in the Air Force had taught him to carefully consider a situation, to weigh all the facts and then make an informed decision.
No, if this is for real he had to know, there were too many loved
