The Journey of Atlantis- The Children of Earth

The Probe

Setting up the guardians took a little over a year. The Te'Hat still needed a lot of help recovering from the meteor strike. The work went faster now Atlantis arrived in the neighborhood. Even so, it had been an ambitious project. Neither humans nor Te'Hat had ever seen a guardian before. Sonny just pulled this out like a recipe for a cake, and the Atlantis and her companions followed the recipe. After the project had been completed, it needed to be tested.

"Sonny, how are these things going to know the difference between a meteor and a ship? A beam that powerful would severely damage or potentially destroy an incoming craft."

Sonny used graphics and data like a presentation as he explained. "The guardians are really much like the laser cannons we used back on Earth. Except it uses mesons. So, the construction of those components is very similar. The other function of the guardian is analyzing a moving body within its scanning range."

"How far is its range?" Levi queried.

"One point one light years. The equipment will study many aspects of the object; its radiation output, any power signatures, trajectory, speed and the like. If it determines that an object is approaching Searth, it will notify both the humans and the Te'Hat if it has a worrisome trajectory. It will continue to track the object and give it a nudge at the proper time, if it is an asteroid, and give further notifications of its approach if it is not."

"I'm a little afraid of what it will make of two or three dozen craft in one light year radius. Is it going to freak out and start shooting at us because of our proximity to Searth?"

"No. It will detect two or three dozen power signatures and one or two that do not and monitor them. There will be notification of all objects upon startup, so people will need to standby to address the notifications when the startup is complete."

"Just the same, I think we need to be on our toes."

"Why?" Sonny asked.

Levi was a little confused. "Why, what?"

"Why is it necessary to stand on your toes?"

Sonny has been with the humans and studied them for decades, and even now, a stray phrase or idiom would completely stump the smartest machine in the known universe. "It is an expression meant to convey a sense of alertness or readiness," Levi explained.

"Acknowledged. The guardians will be ready for testing in four hours as the final checks and setups are completed."

"Thanks, Sonny. It gives me time for a little preparation of my own." The captain needed to make sure the Te'Hat and the humans planet-side were prepared for the startup. It also gave him time to check in with Alex. Levi had been focused on this project and had been neglecting her. He checked her schedule and found that Alex got off-shift in a few minutes. Levi summoned an auto and took the short hop from his quarters to her office. As he approached the building, he had a nostalgic thought and smiled to himself. The captain would sometimes drop by here to pick Alex up for some wining, dining and other things. Levi thought of her smile and the way her eyes also smiled at him. But it was more than that. Even before Alex became an E-human, those eyes were like a physical connection which conducted the love she had for him, and it made him feel warm inside.

His timing had been perfect. Levi had walked into the building to the reception area, and Alex stepped out of the elevator. "I saw you heading my way. I would have asked you through our connection, but I could see you had a plan. I've finished up here, so I'm ready to go." Alex said with that smile.

One of the things more difficult about E-human relationships is you could almost never surprise someone. Using the camera feeds and direct connections, it was almost impossible not to tip the other person off. Levi smiled warmly, "Well, I thought it would be nice to go for a stroll and talk. Maybe get a bite if you are hungry."