The incessant tick-tock of General Tomlinson's treasured nineteenth century cuckoo-clock was deafening amidst the otherwise suffocating silence of his office. This time, it was Ambassador Butler who found himself subconsciously tapping the weighted end of his friend's sterling silver pen against the mahogany surface of the desk from which his counterpart had served his country -- his world, for the better part of four decades.
A muted buzz sounded out, alerting the heart broken visitor that his leaders were ready to initiate the emergency teleconference he had requested. He took a deep breath, exhaling with it all of the hopes for success that he had tried to foster since he received the late-night call informing him that Polyphemus had landed well off course. The fight conceded in his heart, he flipped open the late General's laptop and started the video feed.
"Is it true, Ambassador?" The leader of The Council Of The Keepers asked immediately. "Is General Tomlinson deceased?"
"He is." Butler replied, choking back the tears that his human form subjected him to.
The Council was clearly as devastated as he was, each of them bowing the heads of the golden glowing forms they assumed in mourning. They held an impromptu moment of silence for their fallen partner, reflecting on the years of impeccable and distinguished service he had given them. While his life had come and gone in what amounted to the blink of an eye when compared against their own life spans, he had set himself apart in the short time during which he graced the universe with his presence.
"He will be greatly missed." The Council leader observed. "Perhaps we can see that his sacrifice will not be in vain? What is the status of Polyphemus?"
"All but lost." Butler replied grimly. "The General --" he paused. "Rich, had determined which of the trucks contained the payload. He was en route to intercept it when he was... killed."
"You have not been able to pick up his trail? The driver remains out of reach?"
"No, I did speak with him -- but after conferring with the rest of Rich's team, it's clear that The Cape is thoroughly compromised. The Phloxans have assumed complete control of Kennedy Space Center and all of the surrounding infrastructure. They've already altered the launch trajectory of the shuttle; looks like they plan to send it off towards The Gale Cluster."
"Targeting The Neephis?"
"We believe so... it makes sense, as their world is the most out of the way on the course towards Parousia. They likely plan to crush Earth themselves, then they'll take out The Knoxians and The Xelliats before they finally come knocking on your doorstep. Polyphemus will take care of The Neephis for them; they'll likely retrieve it, once they're done with us, and press on to meet this race they speak of in the far reaches of the universe."
"Unbelievable." Second Councilman commented. "With one mighty swoop, they'll erase everything that we've done... wipe our influence from the universe like a stain on window glass."
"Yes, that seems to be the goal." Butler concurred. "We determined that the only logical course of action was to send Polyphemus to the Comanche Peak nuclear power plant outside of Dallas. We have -- a project going on there... I'm sure you're aware of it, it was meant as a tool for use against passing Phloxan ships."
"Remnants of Project Excalibur; the nuclear pumped x-ray laser? I believe you called it the Cobalt Beam for our purposes?"
"That's the one..."
"What application does it have that would be applicable to Polyphemus?"
"The plan was to vaporize the Tal-Gashot... erasing all evidence of its DNA so that The Phloxans couldn't pursue their own research. Since we can't save ourselves, the least we could do is spare others from the weapon we've born back unto the universe."
"The Phloxans might also decide it not worth their time to go after The Neephis, if Polyphemus was out of the picture. You could save them, at least..."
"Unfortunately, though, it doesn't appear that we'll be able to make it happen."
"Has the driver been -- compromised, as you say?"
"No, but he's clearly being influenced. When I told him we needed to change the plan and reroute the load, he reacted negatively. He said The Phloxans have his son; then he suggested that I was one. I think they've been playing him against us... my guess, if I know my enemy, is that they've been scaring the life out of him and telling him they wanted the load to be taken elsewhere. In continuing towards The Cape, he thought he was working against them... little does he know, that's exactly what they want now. He's been fooled."
"So -- what do we do?"
"If you're asking me, we still have to shift our focus to doing what we can to protect The Neephis now... they're the only ones with any chance at surviving this invasion."
"How can we hope to do that?" The Council asked. "If you can't get it to Comanche Peak, what means of destroying Polyphemus is still available?"
"None of destroying it, but we do have a means of rendering it inoperable." Butler informed them. "They could still harvest its DNA and do what they will with it, but we can keep this Tal-Gashot out of Phloxan hands."
"How?"
"Tomlinson, in his wisdom, had a device installed in Polyphemus before he shipped it out. He knew that it might come to this, somehow... the device links the Tal-Gashot to this Randy Johnston; the driver of the truck it's on. If Johnston dies, Polyphemus will -- self-destruct, essentially."
"Do you know where this Johnston is?"
"No, but I think I can find him -- we know where he's headed, at least... with your permission, I'll set out for The Cape immediately."
"But --" The leader paused. "Won't you be coming home? Don't you want to -- say goodbye?"
"My mission is incomplete, sir... I wish to see my duty through to the end. If you'll allow it -- of course. My family will -- understand."
"You're sure that this is what you want to do?"
"Yes, sir... I am."
"Then make it so, Ambassador." The Council leader concluded. "Get out in front of this; kill the driver before The Phloxans can get Polyphemus off the planet. We'll make final preparations here -- ready the people for the coming end."
"Very well, leader." Butler replied. "It's been -- a pleasure to work with you, sir."
"And with you... you've served well, Ambassador -- none of us doubt that you've done all that was possible. Be proud; you are a tribute to our kind."
"I don't feel much like a tribute to our kind. Still, will you do something for me, leader?" The Ambassador inquired.
"Of course -- anything... just name it, and it shall be done."
"Can you stop in at my home -- say goodbye to my family for me... tell them that I'm sorry; that I wish I could've been there with them more."
"They know, Ambassador -- your mate has always been a strong woman, and your daughter shares in her fortitude."
"Still -- tell them that I'm sorry I've failed them... I wanted to make it right, I really did. I gave it everything I had -- but sadly, it wasn't enough. Tell them that I needed to stay here... that I had to try to make things better, even if only a little bit."
"You have failed no one, Ambassador... I will go to see them immediately, but I want you to contact them yourself as well. They deserve to hear from you, before it's over."
"I'll call them on the ride, sir... again, thank you for allowing me to be a part of this journey."
"We are in your debt, Ambassador..."
The screen went black, the transmission ended. Butler wondered if he had lied to The Council... he wasn't sure he had the heart to look into the soul of his daughter knowing that her death was at hand.
What would he say? How could he possibly comfort her? What good would it do to prolong her suffering by forcing her to look upon him at such a distance when he belonged at her side in this dark hour?
Maybe he would call... maybe, he wouldn't be able to bare it...
Chapter 23