A furry witch, a fluffy fairy and a Kitsune wearing a pumpkin t-shirt are staring at an Air Force officer...what's wrong with this picture? I'll tell you what's wrong....he's not smiling.

"Thank you for returning so quickly."

"What's going on, sir?"

"It seems we were a bit premature with our celebrations. Our radio telescopes have been probing the oceans but also the skies ever since recent events. Guess what?"

"Our friends are back?" Maybe the now friendly Phantoms want to stay here?

"We're not sure, Essie, but it doesn't look like that. Something big is coming this way. It's still far away, but definitely moving towards Earth....relatively fast too, compared to our tech that is. At its current speed it will be here in 24 to 36 hours. Can you try your mind-space thing again?"

"Are you serious? Or is this a joke?"

"Am I laughing, Essie? I'm dead serious."

"Oh. Could it be a comet?"

"No, Essie. This one is changing course occasionally."

"Fuck. Okay....give me a minute." I asked Oscar, but apparently not even the Phantoms know what's going on. "Sir, I tried to connect to whatever it is, but I've got nothing. Oscar too, no idea."

Suddenly my necklace lights up again. I swear the thing is broken!

"I want you to try meditating again tonight."

"Yes, Colonel." I said, sounding disappointed because more misery seems to be on its way.

"How does that gem work anyway? I never understood why it lights up?" Hayes asked.

"No bloody idea, sir. I think the thing is a bust. It's pretty, so let's keep it at that. Sorry, Nanako, I know it's expensive and really pretty, but that's basically all it is."

"Don't worry, Essie, I'm not offended. A gem can be replaced."

"Thank you for understanding. Sir, with your permission I'll go meditating now."

"Granted. Dismissed."

 

And like that I retreated to the VIP room, joined by Kara and Nanako. They removed any remaining Halloween parts from their uniforms, but also the make-up, while I tried to find out what's going on. But after half an hour....still nothing. Only sandy beaches and beautiful forests. A Phantom occasionally walked into my mind-space but was only curious and left when I didn't say anything.

After a meditation with unsatisfying results, I made sure to look presentable as well, and rushed back to Hayes with my friends.

"Sir, my meditation revealed nothing out of the ordinary. It only made me sleepy."

Without replying he shoved a coffee cup towards me and pointed at a chair. Okay, gotcha. But I'm not going to drink coffee this late.

"While you were meditating, we managed to point the Hubble and the James-Webb telescopes at the location. The Arecibo radio-telescope filled in some missing spots as well. Have a look at this." He turns his laptop screen towards us.

After we three had stared at the little white dot in the middle of the screen, he closed the laptop's lid.

"Colonel, I only saw a .....white blob....?"

"Exactly, nothing but a white blob. But this white blob happens to be about 2 miles wide and is currently slowing down to about 80,000 mph, which means we need to investigate."

"Do you think...aliens?"

"At this point I'll believe anything. Our attempts at communication have failed. No communication whatsoever."

"I could ask one of our friends to take a look?"

"My idea exactly. Do it."

"Done. Oscar says it will take at least half an hour. These Phantoms will take every precaution."

"Smart guy. Okay, then we shall wait."

 

"I'm tired." Nanako said while yawning five times in a row.

"Then go to bed, we'll take it from here, Nanako." Hayes said.

"But I want to know!"

"You are not helping, Nanako. This is serious. Go get some sleep and join us in the morning. All of us are lacking sleep from last night, and we won't be getting enough this night either. Seriously, Nanako, go sleep and take Kara with you. No offense, I can't be distracted right now." I said.

"Of course....I understand." Nanako bows to Hayes.

Kara squeezes my hand for a moment, telling me good luck. Then she leaves us as well, but quickly returns to kiss my forehead, then rushes out.

 

 

After waiting for about half an hour, the Phantom reports back.

"Sir, the Phantom returned."

"Finally. What's the news?"

"You're not gonna like it. It said........it's a Queen. But this time it's a mature one."

Hayes blinked a few times.
"Wait.....are you telling me that the things from hell we fought weren't even mature?"

"Em...yeah? Looks like it? At least we have an early warning this time and know what we're up against?"

"Essie, I need ideas, anything."

"Sir, I think I understand now. Remember when I said that our satellite transmissions were harming her conversations?"

"Yes? What's your point?"

"Point is...we tried to jam her communications with our transmissions, but failed. What if....she meant the long-distance communications to far away Queens in space? And that's a skill I don't have."

"I see what you mean. So you can't speak to her from this distance?"

"Exactly. I'm only speculating, but I might get a better reception, for lack of a better word, beyond the satellites who disturb the connection."

"Then that's exactly what we need to do."

"Uhhhh.....not sure what you meant with that. Why don't you just shut down the satellites for an hour or so?"

"Because we need them, Essie. Besides, it's not like there's an off-switch for those. Even when satellites don't transmit TV or internet signals, they still regularly need to make minute course adjustments, time corrections, and other technical stuff. Point being, I can't shut them down completely. Think about shutting down GPS just like that, it would cause instant accidents. And we don't even have the time to try."

"So.....now what, sir?" It's not like I can beam up and fly to her, right?

"Can't you try talking through other Phantoms who are closer to her?"

"Eh...let me check....nope. They simply refuse to go near her, sir. I was told that they appreciate their newfound freedom, and don't want to risk losing it. I guess they are serious about this."

"Understood, Essie. That doesn't leave us many options. Alright, I want you to join the others and get some sleep. At all costs, get some sleep. Earth will still be here in the morning. I will call the General and discuss options with him. Then it's up to the Pentagon. I'll see you in the morning, or if it's urgent, I'll wake you myself."

"Yes, sir. I'll be there if you need me. Excuse me." I left his office and joined Kara and Nanako who were surprised to see me. It didn't take much time for us to fall asleep. We were dead tired.....and cuddling helped me relax. Kara's head scratching worked miracles for my mind...because it just shut down without any resistance.

 

 

 

"Essie. Wake up. Essie." Hayes is gently whispering my name and since I'm a light sleeper it didn't take long for me to register this.

It's 4.30 am according to the alarm clock I had forgotten to unplug. Still night, and it seems I'm needed. I give him a thumbs up, but he shakes his head, pointing at the door. In other words "no....NOW."

I carefully leave my comfy sleeper, still wearing my uniform, and am jealous to see that the other two are still fast asleep. At least they didn't notice me leaving. Kara is sleeping on Nanako's arm and Nanako's tail is hanging over the sleeper's edge. It's quite the sight, making me truly jealous to leave that fluff behind.

 

Five minutes later I'm already drinking my second cup of coffee in his office.

"Awake?" Hayes said.

"Yes, sir. I'm ready now."

"Good. What do you know about the Space Force?"

"The eh....okay? It's the newest addition to the armed forces. Next to the Army, Air Force, Navy and...I don't know what else."

"Exactly, let's not go there. All you need to know is that they are every bit as important as the others. While still relatively new to the club, they have shown some remarkable initiative. They usually don't share their latest projects with a mere Air Force Colonel, and yet, now I know, and in a few minutes so will you.

You see, the problem is that we need to get you physically in orbit....closer to that Queen, since we have exhausted any other means of contacting her. Assuming it really is a Queen, we should make her turn around. Warn her the other two are dead and the same fate will await her. At the moment it's all we got, while preparing our defenses for a new attack. We're at defcon 2 now. Do you know what that means?" He pours fresh coffee in his cup, which probably means that he didn't sleep at all. His eyes look tired, but somehow he can still focus and do his job.

"Yeah, defense condition. Defcon 1 means WW III and nukes flying everywhere."

"Exactly, glad you understand the gravity of the situation. If that thing is going to attack us, we will go to defcon 1, and an all out nuclear attack might just happen."

"Okaaaay. But that will probably mean game over for all life on Earth, won't it?"

"Not probably. Definitely."

"So what do you want me to do?"

"Glad you asked. While you were sleeping, they sent what they call an A1 Interceptor, all the way from California, to Andrews AFB. That's an Air Force Base next door in D.C. in case you didn't know. It took less than twenty minutes for it to get here, which should give you an indication of its performance."

"Wow....that....sounds like sci-fi!" I'm now munching on a fresh sandwich, which I only now noticed lying there, wrapped in plastic. 

"My thoughts exactly, now listen closely since you're gonna love this. The A1 is basically an extended, structurally reinforced version of the F-35 fighter jet. It is capable of reaching Earth's orbit all on its own. It's designed to reach any place on Earth within only two hours by using its experimental high-altitude engine, combined with Earth's gravity for a speed boost."

"Okay...call me impressed, the future for jet fighters looks bright. What is....oh no...no no no....please don't tell me you want me in the back seat?" Somehow I can't finish my sandwich anymore. 

"Glad you're catching on. Yes, you will be flying in the co-pilot's seat behind the pilot. As soon as you reach high orbit, you should be close enough to attempt a communication. Try to find out about its intentions, then get back here. If it has good ones, we're gonna party. If it doesn't, we need every second to start launching nuclear warheads into space as a warm welcome."

My head is resting on the table now...this sucks.
"My god....this is soooooo not happening."

"And yet it very much is, and we're wasting precious time. Pull yourself together, the A1 is waiting for you. Essie, it's the only thing capable of reaching orbit within the hour. You will board a helicopter any minute now and will be briefed on the details while en route. Any questions?"

"Fuck...." I lean backwards in my chair, making eye contact with Hayes. He's serious, no doubt about it.

"Essie, focus! You're all that stands between THAT, and Earth. Go talk to it. Do what you can to buy us some time. Every minute counts. GO!"

I salute, while probably still half asleep and rush out, then stop.

"What, Essie?"

"Gotta, pee first."

He facepalms, but I ignore it. Can't fly on a full bladder, sorry.

 

"Hayes?" He didn't expect me to be still standing there. "Please tell Kara and Nanako to go home?"

He nodded once. "Of course, I understand. I promise, now go."

 

 

Five minutes later...I swear, only five minutes later....they already put me in a helicopter. No doubt about it, people in Purcellville are going to complain about the noise again. And Kara and Nanako must be wide awake by now. Fuck. This is sooooo not happening. And yet, no matter how many times I pinch myself...I'm still not waking up from this nightmare.

While still being airlifted to Andrews AFB, they changed me into a flight suit. It's basically the same as what astronauts wear...including a diaper. No matter how hard I tried to avoid wearing that, in the end they made me, by ordering me. Seems even these people can pull ranks on me.

 

So here I am, walking in a spacesuit on the runway like I already did a number two. It's still dark, and of course it needs to start raining right now. My helmet's visor isn't closed yet, but it still manages to keep the rain from entering the suit.

And yes, before you ask...my tail is strapped to my back with duct tape, and my ears barely fit inside the helmet. It's quiet all around me, since all air traffic seems to have been suspended.

 

And there it is....a rather sizable jet fighter is waiting for me. Its navigation lights are blinking, meaning that everyone's probably waiting for me to get aboard. The white colored contraption is basically an F-35 but on its aft I see what look like three large rocket boosters. Simply put, it resembles a space shuttle, but is much more aerodynamic looking, meaning it really seems to be built for speed.

The vertical stabilizer shows the letters X-A1 in black, together with a triangular silver logo. I also see the letters "NASA" in red, meaning it's probably a joint project. Red and yellow striping on the wings probably indicate that this is an experimental aircraft.

Now that I'm standing right next to it, I honestly have to admit that it's really, really freakin' huge.

 

While contemplating how I'm supposed to climb aboard, I notice a security car approaching. Another space suit wearing poor soul exited the car, and is now walking towards me. Also approaching me now is a mobile car ladder for boarding the aircraft.

The man who's wearing the same type of space suit now stops in front of me.
"Sergeant Whitfield, I presume? I'm Lieutenant Liam Jenkins, Space Force." 

"Yep, you found me, Lieutenant." I saluted him, and he returned the gesture.

"Are you ready for departure?"

"Yes, I'm ready, but I still can't believe this is happening."

"It's happening, alright. This beauty will take us to Low Earth Orbit in ten minutes, then half an hour more to stabilize our trajectory slightly beyond High Earth Orbit. It's as far out as this baby can go."

"Wow...don't tell me you guys equipped that thing with a warp drive as well?"

He grins for a moment. "Afraid not, but let's climb aboard and I'll give you some details when we're inside."

"Sure, by all means, lead the way. I have no idea how this works."

I follow him, climbing onboard the plane and taking a seat behind him. We're far up from the ground, so I'd better watch my step.

A few technicians are walking around the plane, checking if everything is safe. They seem to be ignoring us completely.

The Lieutenant is now seated in front of me, since he's the pilot. After a few checks, the technicians leave us and the canopy above me closes with a hydraulic sound until we hear a few "clicks."

"Are you okay there, in the back?"

"Yes, all is fine. Can we speak informally here?" I asked.

"Considering what we're about to undertake, by all means. Call me Liam."

"Great, then call me Essie. This is much better already."

"Yup, have to agree with that. So let's have a quick chat before they start the pre-flight checks. The radio is now on mute."

"Perfect, thanks. First I should warn you that I didn't get much sleep last night, so I already apologize if I sound cranky at some point."

"Ha ha ha...that makes two of us. I received my orders in the middle of the night."

"Yeah, same here. So....just checking....you know what they want me to do?" I hope they at least took the time to brief him properly.

"Yes, I received the full briefing. I'm taking you up, beyond the satellites orbiting Earth, then get us in a stable orbit. That should hopefully be high enough to let you talk to that Space-Queen."

"Space-Queen? Is that what you guys call her? It's accurate, so might as well call her that. But yes, I'm supposed to contact her and see what her intentions are, but something tells me we already know. I mean, assuming that the Phantoms were right about it being a Queen in the first place."

"Well, whatever it is, we still need to give it our best and try to reason with it. I don't want to put you under additional pressure, but the Pentagon is expecting much from you."

"Yeah....I know, what else is new? So how are you getting us there?"

"That's the simple part. The A1 will get us up to about 35,000 feet with a mostly standard F-35 engine, after which the modified Aerospike engines will give us a speed boost until we reach orbit. We will then switch to thrusters for maneuvering and the ion-engine will take us to our destination.

Unfortunately there are two downsides to using this particular type of ion-engine. One, it's still considered experimental hardware, so we can't go full throttle. It means the thing is relatively slow for now, so we'll need about half an hour to reach our destination. Our fuel reserves are limited, so I can't take us any further than slightly beyond the High Earth Orbit. 

The other downside is that the ion-engine wasn't designed to be shut down during space flight. This means that once you confirm that we can return home, we first need to warm it up. All in all, our return trip will take about two to three hours, which includes the warm-up sequence.

Since we're not carrying any weapons, we used the extra space for fuel but also to give us fresh air, food and heating for 5 days."

"Okaaaaay, sounds like you guys know what to do. So, let me guess....you already tested this many times and there's nothing that could possibly go wrong?"

"Try again. No, seriously. This is her maiden voyage. Sure, we tested her like any other jet fighter, but we never took her all the way up to a low earth orbit....let alone beyond. The orbital test wasn't scheduled for another few months, but the hardware was already finished a while back. Will it work? It had better work, Essie."

"Great, just great. But what if we don't make it?"

"The way I see it, you will either be successful and talk to the Queen, saving Earth in the process......or we'll have front row seats to armageddon."

"Sure, no pressure, got it. Just know that I can't guarantee that the Space-Queen will even allow me to talk to her."

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there."

"Right. Just out of curiosity, since when do you even have these space fighter things?"

"You're sitting in the very first one. The experimental X-A1, but we call her the A1. Our callsign is also A1."

But before I could ask him another question, they called him on the radio. At least they don't have to say "over" after each sentence, since the radio adds a short beep after each message.

 

 

"A1, Control, start pre-flight checks."

Liam asked me not to disturb him, and I didn't. The whole pre-flight check didn't take more than a few minutes. And when I look outside the canopy, I can already see us taxiing to the proper starting position. 

"Liam?"

"Yes, Essie. I'm busy right now."

"I know. Good luck."

"Oh, of course. Right back at ya."

 

 

"A1, we see a pressure warning on the boosters. Confirm."

"Control, copy that....we're all in the green here. Probably faulty telemetry."

"A1, standby we're checking the sensors."

"Control, copy that."

 

 

"Essie, it doesn't happen often for them to sound so worried. Give them a minute."

"Sure....the Queen is still approaching, so we have all the time. Sorry...tired."

"I know. Just hang in there."

 

 

"A1, Control. We confirm a sensor malfunction. Backup shows no issue, you're good to go. You're cleared for departure."

"Control, acknowledged, cleared for departure. Lights are green across the board."

"Copy, same here. Any last words?" What? Excuse me?! Is Control expecting us to die?!

"Yeah....tell my CO I want one of these babies for Christmas." Liam said while laughing. "Essie, and you?"

"Em.... Control, please tell my CO, Colonel Hayes, Air Force, that he still owes me a cold beer."

"Message understood, godspeed, A1."

 

 

Here in the back I'm surrounded by displays, little green LEDs and buttons. It's like they compressed the enormous cockpit of a commercial Boeing 777 into this tight space. I have never, and I mean never seen so many buttons in such a relatively small area.

Finally the A1 starts rolling. Call me impressed that it doesn't even need the whole runway. We're already climbing and I can feel the gravity pushing me back in my seat. We're climbing at about a 45 degree angle when I hear the gears retracting.

Soon I hear Liam's voice, but I don't know if he's talking to me or to Control. "Angels 10." Which means that we're at 10,000 feet already.

"Leveling off....and...we're at Angels 35. This is as high up as our conventional engines will take us."

"Understood," I replied. I mean, not that I can change anything about it.

 

"A1, Control. You're at Angels 35. Proceed with stage 2."

"Control, A1, copy. Proceeding to stage 2...now."

Liam flips a few switches and the sound behind me increases in loudness until the whole craft starts to vibrate. My god, I did not sign up for this! Please don't explode!

"Essie, hold on, Aerospikes are kicking in....now." Liam said, helping me understand what's going on.

BAM!

A loud explosion behind me increased our speed considerably. I feel like an elephant is sitting on top of me....this is not funny!

"Mach 3...........Mach 4.......stabilizing....holding at mach 4."

I couldn't reply to him, even if my life depended on it!

 

 

The clouds are making way for more and more stars...until I can see that we're leaving Earth's atmosphere below us.

After another minute Liam said "standard orbit, now switching to thrusters and ion-engine." 

The loud noise of the engines behind me died out really fast and the weightlessness of space made me feel dizzy for a few seconds. Small jets of compressed air are adjusting our heading while the A1 keeps moving in the original direction due to inertia. 

Below me I can see the continents moving...really fast. We already passed Europe, moving further east. 

The ion-engine surprisingly didn't produce much noise at all, and took us to our final coordinates in about half an hour.

 

 

"Essie, we have now reached our sweet spot. Killing ion-engine now, and maneuvering thrusters in 30 seconds."

And sure enough, after half a minute, even the thrusters went dead silent.

"Control, A1. Burn successful. Initiating radio silence in 1 minute."

"A1, Control. Acknowledged. Radio silence. Control...out."

 

 

"Essie, we have now gained a stable orbit, so from here on out it's up to you. The radio is off, which means that nobody will bother you. Nor will I."

"Thank you, Liam. This will take me at least a few minutes. I need to concentrate, so I won't speak. Starting now."

It's so incredibly quiet now. And I feel the weightlessness of space. In any other scenario, this would have been fun...and so relaxing. How would my tail react to fluffing in space? Ah...focus!

 

FLASH

A whole new kind of mind-space just opened up for me. Instead of seeing forests and lakes, I now see random planets flashing before my mind's eye. One appears, and is replaced by yet another one, all within a split second.

Planets with rings, without rings, blue ones, white ones, and I think I even saw one with weird artificial satellites just now. All of this happened in less than a second. These planets could be anywhere, and even if more of them should sustain intelligent life, they might be located on the other side of the universe. It's not like I have a map in my head right now, and I'm seriously missing the Phantoms who could "dumb" things down for me.

 

Finally, after focusing on these images for another minute, I see the approaching blob. It is still very far away, but definitely heading our way. In my mind I try to contact her.

"Greetings. Hello there. Are you able to speak?" I asked as politely as I could.

"YOU killed my children. I will show you NO MERCY. Your species is about to end. My Unity will replace your chaos. Get out of my mind!"

 

FLASH

"What the fuck? She kicked me out?!" I said out loud.

"Did you make contact?" Liam asked.

"Yeah, you can say that again. She's definitely a Queen, but so immensely more powerful. We're sitting ducks here, Liam."

"Can I contact Control now?"

"Yes, and please allow me to speak."

"Of course. Radio is now on."

 

 

"Control, this is A1, Sergeant Whitfield speaking."

"Control here, proceed."

"Emmm....bad news. The Space-Queen's presence has been confirmed, and she's really pissed. Her intentions are hostile..repeat...hostile. You could say that she hung up on me."

"A1, acknowledged. Do you want to declare mission failure?"

"Control, that's a negative. Can you please let me speak to Air Force Colonel Hayes? I'm working on a backup plan. He's assigned to Vanguard Base."

"A1, copy that, standby."

"Control, A1, roger." I said. Well, the message was clear. She's as hostile as they come, and I need Hayes' help for what I'm planning.

 

 

"What's your backup plan?" Liam asked.

"To save humanity....Swarm-style. I guess my plan is a bit like this A1...it's experimental too."

"Sounds interesting, can hardly wait to hear the details. So....while we're waiting....everyone talks about the Queens, but nobody mentioned a King before. Any views on that?"

"A King? Liam, for god's sake, don't jinx it! It took all we had to kill these bitches! Sorry...I didn't mean to curse....tired."

"I know, same here. Alright, I won't jinx it. For the record, I never even mentioned the word." This put a smile on my face. "You know, from all the meetings I have had so far....not even a single person mentioned that.....word before. Anything else you want to share?"

"Nope.....only that I just received a telemetry update from the deep-space tracking stations. The Space-Queen passed Mars a minute ago, and she's still slowing down."

"Great...more good news. The bitch has arrived."

Before Liam could reply, we received another message from Earth.
"A1, Control, we have patched Colonel Hayes into this channel. Proceed when ready."

"Colonel Hayes?" I asked carefully.

"Yes, Essie, I'm here. Give me a sitrep." Yup, that's him alright.

"Sir...this one came straight from hell. She kicked me out before I could start a proper dialogue. Her mind is incredibly vast. I'm like a fly on the windshield, call it kindness that she didn't pull the lever on me already. She blamed me for killing her children and she's determined to wipe out humanity."

"Understood. What are our options?"

"Sir.....we have two options, and I suggest you deploy them both."

"Let's have them, Essie."

"First one should be common sense. Switch to Defcon1 and launch everything you got at her while she's still heading down into the oceans. Once she reaches a mana vein, we're dead."

"Understood. What is the other one?"

"We could theoretically create a Swarm of humans. Billions of human minds connected to me, might be enough to give her a serious headache. She thinks we're sitting ducks right now. Time to set the record straight."

"Are you fucking serious? How?!!" Hayes doesn't usually curse, so I need to find a way to convince him.

"Simple, a press conference. You could......no, let me do it. Liam, is there a camera onboard?"

"Yes, we have a camera onboard." Liam said matter of factly.

"Excellent! Sir, put me on every global news network and let me address humanity while we still can. I got this!"

I can hear him taking a deep breath. "You're walking a fine line, Essie. Give us five minutes to contact CNN. They can relay the signal or whatever they call it."

"Yes, sir!"

 

For the next five minutes it felt like the weight of the whole wide world sat on my shoulder. And I think it still does. This had better work, or it's game over for humanity. And the Queen is almost here.....we're running out of time.

"Essie, we have a linkup with CNN. You are now live on TV. Start whenever you are ready." Hayes confirmed that it was showtime.

"Copy that. Alright. People on Earth...everyone who is listening to me right now. Earth is in grave danger once more. I'm speaking to you from inside a space shuttle in orbit around Earth." No need to tell them that this is an experimental craft, or Hayes will shoot me.

"We managed to kill two Queens recently, but now another one is approaching us, this time from outer space. This one however is many, many times bigger and more dangerous than the ones we killed.

There is no way for us to kill this one with conventional or even nuclear weapons. You see, the Queens were so strong because they had so many Phantoms to help them. They were joined in a Swarm as it is called.

We humans unfortunately don't have a Swarm. It is however my proposal to form the first human Swarm ever. Let me explain what that means. I will soon invite everyone on Earth to join my thoughts up here, in space. Your thoughts alone will help me to grow stronger so I can kick her butt back to where it came from."

When I first started using mind-space, I needed to touch people to invite them. But ever since fighting the ALPHA-Queen, I know that I can reach out to Hayes and connect with him from a distance. He doesn't know that, and I was hoping to keep it that way.

So I'm hoping that Hayes will act as a relay to other nearby people, who in turn will connect to more people and so on. Will it work? Well...if it fails, I won't have much time left to worry about it.

 

"If you are ill, don't do this. If you are worried....don't join me. If you would rather pray....do that instead. But every other soul on the planet.....simply think of me with the intention to join me, and you will be doing exactly that. 

More people means more safety for everyone, so please spread the word to your neighbors.

There is no language barrier in the Swarm, only friendship and cooperation. If at any point you feel hesitant, you can simply disconnect from me. Think about doing your work or doing the laundry...and you will be disconnected. 

I know this requires trust and I hope that I have shown you that you can trust me during our press conferences. Those were very difficult for me, but you...the public were still very nice to me. Please be nice now as well...and help me. Help me fight this thing.

I will now disconnect this transmission and hope for you to join me. It's really easy for you to do, so just get comfortable. The sooner you will join me, the sooner we can get this over with.

I am Essie Whitfield....and I trust you to help me. End of message."

 

 

"Essie, I confirm that the link has been severed. We're back to Control." Liam said.

"Copy that. Liam, please.....keep the radio off. I need to concentrate."

"Understood. It's now off. I will join you now too."

Since I never made a connection to Liam before, I touched his shoulder...since every mind counts.

 

 

FLASH

I'm floating in space now....but this is mind-space, so I can breathe perfectly fine without the protective spacesuit. 

"Wow....this is new." Liam said, floating right next to me, also without a spacesuit.

"Welcome, Liam. I'm waiting for Colonel Hayes to join us.....ah, there he is. Welcome, Colonel."

"Essie...I hope you know what you are doing?" Hayes is looking around and doesn't seem all too happy to be here.

"Yes, sir. Look! More people are joining!" 

 

Earth is down there, beneath our feet. A beautiful blue marble. And from up here, there are no borders, no wars, no disputes, only oceans, lands, lakes and forests. I can even see the Aurora from up here, and it's beautiful! 

Even after all this time experimenting with mind-space, I still don't know how it works. How can I even see this? It's like I'm really floating here... in reality. I always assumed that other beings shared their eyesight with me, but this....this is simply amazing!

 

One at a time, more people join me, hovering in space next to me.

"Hello everyone. Welcome. You are the brave first souls to join me. Let's wait for the others."

"This is so amazing!" People said, while more and more of them appeared from nowhere. More and more people are joining, their numbers going up exponentially. 

 

Then I see Phantoms joining in too! "Essie, may we also join your new Swarm?"

"Of course my friends! Oh, and Oscar! Thanks for always helping me, buddy!"

"It is the least we can do to thank you for freeing us." Oscar replied, after which he raced off into the distance. He must have been looking forward to seeing space again. Well, it's only mind-space, but I guess it really feels the same.

In the distance I can now see the infamous white blob approaching us....but before I can take a closer look...she has already arrived.

She slows down and looks at me with that single huge horrific eye of hers. I feel like an ant who's looking up at a giant human, about to be squashed underneath a shoe. She's surrounded by hundreds of thousands of Phantoms! Who knows how many more Phantoms are still traveling to Earth?

When she finally speaks, it's nothing more than an insult. "What is this supposed to be, a pitiful attempt from a would-be Queen to form a Swarm of her own? How do you even dare to block my approach?" 

"Can we find a way to coexist?" I know it won't help, but I have to try reasoning with her. At this point I have to admit...things are not looking so great. She's big, strong and her mind is incredibly powerful.

"No, I will not allow disharmony to exist beside my Unity. Your pitiful Swarm amused me for a moment, or I would have already ended your race upon arrival."

Suddenly I felt her strong mind intruding into mine, intending to convert me to nothing less than a mere tool....a being without free will.

Right at that moment something unusual happened inside of me. It's like my brain decided on its own that now was the time to block her intrusion attempts...at all costs. 

There are still humans and Phantoms joining me, but I can't focus on them anymore.....I'm starting to feel dizzy.

 

Without warning, my perspective changed from that of an ant, to Godzilla looking down at a tiny Queen. I feel lots and lots of mana rushing through me, probably Oscar's idea.

My thoughts however....are gone. I can only see....no longer think. I am not in control anymore. Whatever I have become, I seem to start speaking now.

I hear a single voice speaking. Words formed by a single consciousness formed by billions of individual humans and Phantoms.

"We are Earth. We are ONE. We are one Swarm. We are the Swarm. We are the true harmony, many minds.....willingly united as ONE. You shall not pass. Your reign of terror is over. Judgment day has come. We have reached consensus...your execution is imminent."

Whatever I have become, I now see my hand reaching out for the Queen, scooping her up in my palm and raising her to my eyes so I can take a good look at her. "So you were about to torment us? To end our existence? Called us pitiful? No desire to show us mercy?"

"Noooo......too powerful.....noooooo.. stop this! I can't..." The Queen is begging...us.

After a few moments I feel myself exhaling with gale force winds over the Queen's body.....she's gone....her mind destroyed by a mana surge. She's dead....her mind destroyed by the combined billions of minds in our Swarm. 

"It has been done, the false Queen has died. Listen to us, Phantoms who have previously served her, join our Swarm now or you shall die as well."

"We will gladly join your Swarm, my Queen! You have freed us!" All Phantoms who had guarded the Space-Queen spoke as one and have now joined our Swarm as well.

"So shall it be. May you find peace where she offered you none. You are free to go.

To all humans.....we are Earth. We exist because you exist. We are truly ONE. Today we have achieved the impossible...a truly remarkable day for us. Our minds have matured....but we are still so young. One day we shall become ONE again, when we are truly ready."

At this point our Swarm disconnected and I saw many people hovering around me again, until they started to disappear, one by one.

I quickly shout "we won! You can go home now! Thank you so much!"

 

FLASH

When I open my eyelids, returning to reality.....I look outside the A1's canopy and see a gigantic white, dead body floating in space. She's truly dead! And many Phantoms suddenly change course for the sun.....and FLASH......leave us at light speed!

"Wooow, look at them go! ......Liam? Please take us home."

"Gladly. And well done, Essie. Essie?"

But I didn't hear anything he said....because I lost consciousness.

 

 

 

"Beep.....beep......beep......beep......beep......beep......beep." 

When I wake up, I seem to be lying in a warm and soft hospital bed once more. Ugh....my whole body feels weird....slow...unfocused. Well...at least we made it back to Earth.

"Beep.....beep......beep......beep......beep......beep......beep."  My heart rate is way too fast. Man, I hate these things.

But then the annoying sound stops without a click. When I finally manage to force my heavy eyelids to stay open, I notice that I'm not lying in a hospital bed, but in my sleeper. And the sound wasn't a heart rate monitor, but a truck reversing.

"Deja vu." I said when I noticed Hayes sitting there again.

"Deja vu, indeed," he said, with a smile. "Good morning, Essie. Are you feeling better?"

"Still morning? Em....I'm fine. No, that's a lie....I feel weird....like slow and...yeah, just plain weird. Oh, and hungry too. How long was I out?"

"No, it's morning again. As expected your return trip to Earth took quite some time. When they pulled you out of the A1 yesterday, you were so exhausted that they decided to keep you sedated. They only transferred you here an hour ago. I've been waiting here for you to wake up ever since, in case I needed to alert our medical officer."

"Thanks, I appreciate that. So...Kara and Nanako went to Negawa?"

"Yes, they returned to the Palace, but we first showed Kara how to use the radio. I already contacted her this morning, and both should be returning here soon. So let me talk to you first, before they join us. You did great, Essie."

"No....we did. Teamwork like in the old times." I gave him a thumbs up.

"Yep, no doubt about it. What are your thoughts about it...or us....or whatever it was that killed the Space-Queen? Did you decide to execute her on the spot? I mean, not that I mind."

"No, it was decided by our collective consciousness. I was like everyone else, only watching. Maybe it was some sort of a majority vote? Most of us wanted them dead, so we killed her. I guess a large part of the majority vote was cast by Phantoms. At some point I felt millions of them connecting to us from far away places. Don't ask me how this works, it's probably going to take our scientists decades to even form a theory about that."

"Incredible. Well, I hope it means that those things from hell now know that Essie the Queen-slayer is living here. Making them think twice before visiting us."

"Ha ha ha....is that my new rank? Queen-slayer?"

"Sure, you've earned it. Not one, not two, but three Queens. That's got to be a world record!"

 

Ever so carefully I see the VIP room's door behind him opening, after which I see two fluffy blurs rushing over to me.

"Essie!" Kara shouted, but she was already hugging me before I could reply. 

"Kara...."

"No! Don't you ever dare to send me away again!" She looked at Hayes, then at me. Oops, that's right, I asked Hayes to send them home. Fortunately he doesn't seem to be offended, understanding that she didn't mean it like that.

I hug her tightly, feeling somewhat guilty, and then say "Kara, I'm sorry...I love you."

"Don't try to change the subject!"

"Please forgive me, things really looked bad for a while. I only wanted the two of you out of harm's way. That's why I asked him to send you both to Negawa."

"I...I know! I know that you wanted us to stay safe. So....I forgive you...........but still........"

I really should make the time to properly reward her forgiving nature, and soon too. "I know....it's okay...It's going to be okay. It's over now." I take her tail in my right hand and gently fluff it once, then let go.

Kara releases her hug and sits down next to me, wiping a tear from her eye. After a few moments she nods...telling me she really forgave me....and that she got the message.

 

Nanako now joins me as well. But instead of hugging me, she taps my arm. "Well done, Essie. Hayes told us on the radio what you did. I'm not sure I completely understand, but that can wait for now.

Make sure to rest well, because you're going to need it. Somehow the idea of fluffing got out to the general public, causing quite a stir. Wherever you go, everyone is talking about it, even the nobles.

In a special decree, my father had to temporarily ban the act of fluffing until a teacher would properly demonstrate the process to the public. This created an uprising, where people demanded in front of the Palace to be allowed their birth rights as Kitsune. Never before have we seen people, both commoners and nobles alike, so.....determined, so father promised that a teacher would arrive in a matter of days. For now this has calmed down the masses, but we're running out of time.

It didn't take much time before fluffing became the official term in our Kingdom, and the first reports of fluffing outside our Kingdom have also been received. You are needed soon, Liaison......or should I say....teacher?"

"Oops....ha ha ha...I'd love to, Nanako. But first let's only fluff the three of us, agreed?"

She smiled. "Not only agreed.....I insist."

"Ha ha ha...." We all had to laugh, because we know the personal pleasurable reasons Nanako has.

 

 

Nanako joins Kara in the sleeper and both let me talk to Hayes. 

"Essie, before you leave for BETA..." Hayes tried to speak, but was interrupted by Nanako.

"NE...GA...WAAAA, Hayes. Our world has a name. Try it!" Nanako said, shaking her head.

"I stand corrected. Before you leave for NE...GA...WAAAA.." He said that in the same agitated way as Nanako did, "...know that the President has asked you to pay him a visit in the White House. It has something to do with thanking you for saving the world. Again. You know, naming high schools after you, that sort of mundane thing." He grinned.

"Ha ha ha....looking forward to that, sir."

"BUT....before you go to either NE GA WAAAAAA...or to the White House.... I'll buy us a nice cool beer." He gestured that Kara and Nanako were invited as well.

"Looking forward to that, Colonel. I usually don't drink beer, but I'll gladly make an exception this time. I'm just glad that we survived."

"About that." Hayes said. "Someone sent you a get well soon card." He motions Nanako to give it to me.

Nanako gives me the card and I study it for a moment. I read out loud the text on the front "get well soon." Someone wrote "Essie" above that text, making it a bit more personal. A picture of flowers with smiley faces, makes me smile as well.

"Wait! Before you open the card, Essie. Do you think that the not-lazy gods helped us?" Nanako said while grinning.

"Em....yeah....I guess they're not as lazy after all?" I said. Why is she grinning like that?

Kara was grinning too. Very suspicious if you ask me. "Now read the inside!" Kara demanded.

And on the inside it reads .... "Thank you for admitting that we aren't lazy. It takes courage to admit that you were wrong. For the record, we are NOT lazy!"

I look at Hayes while blinking, until he can't hold in the laugh anymore. And neither can the others. "Ha ha ha! Essie, it's just a joke from me!" Hayes said. "It was sooo worth it to see your face. Ha ha ha, I finally beat Essie!"

He leans forward and puts his hat on my head for a moment. "I have no idea how you can pull so many rabbits out of your hat, you can use my hat next time if you want? Ha ha ha!"

After a few seconds, he removes it again.

"Sir, your hat just gave me an idea."

"It did?" He said, sounding serious suddenly.

"Yeah...I didn't know that the Phantoms have built-in warp drives. Maybe we should dissect the Queen and a few dead Phantoms? You know? Reverse engineer one?"

"See? Didn't I say it? Just like that, she pulled another one out. Essie, we are already planning to do that of course. The A1 pilot mentioned seeing them move towards the sun at incredible speeds. A few corpses are already being dissected. The Space-Queen however will have to wait. They are planning to do that from orbit, since it is perfectly preserved in the vacuum of space."

"Nice. So...just checking..what's the current Defcon?"

"We are at Defcon 4, Essie."

"Only 4? Aren't there 5?"

"Yes, but it's only a precaution to keep our defenses ready, nothing to worry about."

"Ahhh.....okay. Thanks. Oh.....em.......I just had an emotional moment with Oscar. He basically said goodbye. All remaining Phantoms on both worlds will be leaving in a matter of hours. He said that he would return someday. But.....not for a while....since his wife is...pregnant. Yeah, don't ask."

"Awwwww...." Kara said, now leaning against me.

 

"Do you think that there are more of those evil Queens, hidden out there somewhere?" Nanako asked.

"Well...if there are....they should know by now to avoid Earth at all costs. And it's only a matter of time before the people on Negawa will learn the Swarm thing as well." I grinned. Yeah, that's my next fun project as a teacher. The fluffiest Swarm ever!

"Well said, Sergeant." Hayes said. "Oh, before I forget...your mom called. She has this big brown storage box in the attic. She wants to know if you want it in your cottage. Any idea what that is about?"

I facepalmed. "Yeah. Those are my plushies. As if I want to bring those to another world."

"Well...maybe you should, Essie." Nanako said. "Isn't that cultural exchange?"

"Good point, Nanako. I'd say bring those with you." Hayes is grinning again.

Time to change topics. "So......how about we drink that beer today? Last time I forgot, and another Queen approached us. I don't want to tempt fate again."

"Sure, by all means, Essie. Do you like beer too, Kara, Nanako?" Hayes said.

"What is a beer?" Nanako said. "Is it another potion?"

Huh? I facepalmed. Didn't I explain that to them already?

Hayes smiles and then says in a serious tone of voice "the beer can wait. First I will share one of our most sacred traditions with you three. It's called a happy meal." 

"Oooohhh...that sounds important." Nanako said. Poor girl, Hayes will probably tell some kind of silly story about McDonald's, just to annoy Nanako.

"Essie, when you're ready, find us in my office. My car is parked right outside today. We'll first order some lunch, then find some nice cool beer."

"Lunch? I thought it was breakfast time?" For some strange reason my head tilted in that weird way that only Kitsune can accomplish.

"Don't give me that look, Essie! You are the sleeping beauty, not me!" Hayes said with a smile.

 

And just like that they left me. They are good friends, all of them. I can't wait to see Nanako eating at a McDonald's. At least she's going to see more of the real Earth now. It's probably going to be a culture shock, especially when humans will be taking pictures of us. Yep, we're not gonna hide the fluff ever again!