The monastery sits on the side of the rolling forested hills overlooking the small village and agricultural valley. For almost 500 years this Spanish monastery has maintained its role as the head of the spiritual and academic life for both its members and the surrounding communities. The stone monastery walls are connected directly to the small university and the majority of the university professors are monks of the abbey. Brother Simon has lived and worked at the monastery for 22 years. The Rule of St. Benedict guides his life, and it gives him the freedom to contemplate the mysteries of genetics. His studies of genetics involve actual visualization of the three-dimensional characteristics of the DNA structure. He relies on his innate ability to visualize this structure to characterize the probable function of specific genes. He uses technology as a supplement rather than a primary tool in his studies. This remarkable ability has propelled an obscure monk to the forefront of theoretical genetics despite his isolated location and limited research budget.
Brother Simon was enjoying the simple evening meal in the monastery dining room. His almost bald head and dark brown habit made him inconspicuous amongst the other balding heads and brown habits. The calmness of Vespers still enveloped him and the rule of silence added to his sense of peace and contentment.
In contrast to this scene of peace, the citizens of Seoul, South Korea, were awakened to the blaring sounds of the air sirens. Only a few minutes of warning were provided. It was a crude rocket, but it was sufficient to deliver the weapon. The nuclear warhead was a uranium 235 device that was slightly larger than the weapon which devastated Hiroshima. The warhead exploded at 500 meters of elevation over the center of Seoul. The nuclear reaction produced an initial temperature of several million degrees Celsius. The fireball expanded rapidly producing a shock wave and very destructive winds. The temperature of the fireball still exceeded 5000 degrees Celsius when it struck the city. Everything organic, including the people, within 2 km. of the center was immediately vaporized. They were the lucky ones. People three km. from the center who looked up at the rocket received massive burns to their faces destroying all of the skin and non-bony tissue. The heat melted their eyeballs which drained out of their sockets, creating the appearance of living skeletons. As the characteristic mushroom cloud continued to rise and spread, almost 100,000 lives were consumed by the initial explosion and the resulting fires. An equal number of people would die over the next several weeks from complications of the burns and radiation poisoning. It was impossible to provide any semblance of modern medical care to the multitudes of injured. Minimal first aid was the best the surviving physicians and nurses could do. This horror was quickly replicated in North Korea and China as South Korea retaliated.
The pocket computer that Brother Simon kept in his large habit pocket began vibrating, signaling an incoming emergency message. The signal was ignored until the Abbott offered the closing prayer and officially ended the meal. As the other monks began visiting, Brother Simon removed the computer and accessed the message. As he read the message from a research colleague in South Korea, he turned pale. He made his way to the side of the room where the Abbott was visiting. Tapping the Abbot on the shoulder Brother Simon motioned him to the side. He read the message to the Abbott. The message was short. It simply said, "Seoul has been struck by a nuclear weapon."
The Abbott asked, "How did they send the message if communications have been disrupted by the nuclear explosion?"
Brother Simon explained how the monastery had adapted short wave radio and a computer to access the Internet without utilizing the standard telephone system or the satellite cellular system. This system was slower but allowed worldwide access to information, even from the Order's most remote monasteries. The Abbott announced to those remaining that there was an emergency in Seoul and everyone involved with communication was to report to their emergency stations. The remaining monks were asked to offer prayers.
The Abbey's worldwide communication network began to gather a reasonably accurate picture of the crisis in Asia. Long before the news media had collected enough information to make an announcement, the isolated Abbey had obtained the pertinent information from its monasteries in Korea and China. The horror that the earth faced soon became evident to everyone as government statements and news reports came out.
Within 48 hours of the nuclear weapon discharge, an amateur astronomer announced on the internet that she had discovered a new radio signal near Jupiter. She was participating in the SETI program (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence). Instantly the whole world was involved. When professional astronomers began to study the newly discovered signal they plotted its course and realized that it was a powered object which was headed for earth. This news was taken off of the Internet and made headlines across the world. The end of the world announcements became even more common. The world stock markets were all but closed, not because of a selling panic, but because nobody was paying them any attention.
As The Visitor from Jupiter came closer to the earth, traditions at the monastery continued as always. The times of prayer and silence continued. The daily routine was followed and only during free time and conference periods was The Visitor discussed. Speculation as to the nature and intent of The Visitor became the primary focus of the media, churches, schools and government. Brother Simon stayed abreast of the developments using his network of scientists scattered across the planet. His work in genetics slowed as the theological and philosophical consequences of The Visitor dominated the discussions and free time at the monastery. The religious community was as divided as the rest of society as to the meaning of The Visitor. Brother Simon viewed the event both as a scientist and a deeply religious man. He did not view The Visitor as a threat nor as the second coming of his Christ. The possibility that a society developed to the point of interstellar travel would present danger to earth was not reasonable. He felt that the timing of the appearance following almost immediately the exchange of nuclear warheads was significant. He was sure that the intense radio signals produced by the explosions had been monitored and triggered the appearance of The Visitor.
When The Visitor closed to within the orbit of the moon it slowed dramatically and entered a spiral orbit around the earth. Standard radio signals began to radiate from The Visitor. The radio signals tracked the regional languages and as if The Visitor spoke in "tongues" people heard The Visitor in their own language. The narrow beam radio signal rotated with the orbiting spacecraft, keeping the native language active in each region. The message was repeated continuously and did not change. The message was quite simple: "We come in peace. Cease all hostilities immediately!"