//------------------------------//
// 3 - Reactions 
// Story: Universal Language 
// by David Silver 
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"Good evening, Citizens of America." He placed his hands on either side of his podium, his eyes locked on the cameras and the millions behind them, watching. "We face a new day. As most of you know, we have established communication with an intelligence not of this world. Before I continue, I wish to make it clear."

He raised a finger at America as a whole, behind that camera. "These beings are not of Earth." He pointed a finger to the ground for emphasis. "They have made no attempt to threaten us in any capacity. They have been curious, yes. They have asked questions, about our world, even some about ourselves. They have come with peace. We have no reason, at this time to doubt this."

He took a slow breath. "But know that we are prepared. I announced shortly ago to military advisors, after thorough consultation, that the armed forces are now at Defcon 2. We hope this will be for nothing, but we are prepared. America will not be undefended as we step through this door for the first time. I am in contact with our allies and other global powers. This is a matter for all of humanity, not any one nation."

Not that he had a choice. Many were battering his door, asking about it long before he got the media prepared. "We will face it, together."





Robert slammed his fist on his podium. "It has begun! They come for us! They are here! Our time is at hand!" He held his hand out towards the sky in his sermon. "Have you ever felt a greater sense of awe? Have you ever felt more alive in this very moment?" He paused a moment, heaving with the power of the event. "They are upon us. No gentle rapture, but a fiery test of our resolve to serve God and to prove we are worthy! And we will!"

He threw up his arms as he thundered through his pulpit. "The president, a false prophet, is already bowing his head to these demons! He kneels before them, and tells us all to prepare to receive them, as if it is an honor, but I know it for what it is, brothers and sisters!" He leaned forward, pressing a hand into the wooden pulpit, scowling hard at the crowd gathered. "Brothers. Sisters." His voice lowered, only audible thanks to the microphone he wore. "I know you."

"I love you. I will stand by you and I will die by you if that's what it takes! You are strong. You are brave. You are not afraid, no. Not even the devil himself will take this world from us, because you. Are. Unbroken! Unbowed! UNBENT!" He boomed at the top of his lungs. "They call me a preacher, well, it's time to stop preaching. It's time to act!" He stepped back with a smile and his hand outstretched to the crowd. "Do you know what time it is?"

He lifted his other hand up, clicking his fingers for the choir that was waiting patiently. "Hallelujah! The good lord has given us a chance to prove ourselves to Him. In this dark and muddled world, finally, we have a chance to prove ourselves clean and ready for the glory of Heaven!"

The choir burst into song behind him, praising their god. "Behold!" Robert strode across the stage, smiling all the way, arms outstretched. "Behold! We are in the presence of the devil himself, and we will prevail!"





"This is Barbara Smith, reporting in. Ponies have arrived." A window popped in to her upper right as she faced the camera. In that window, an outline of a horse in profile as just a big outline with nothing inside. "Only a handful of people have actually seen them, but they've hit the entire planet like a shockwave." She gestured to the image next to her, a panorama of several cities in a row, all showing varying stages of chaos and outcry as the public reacted.

She turned back to the camera. "Military authorities have remained tight lipped, but in an earlier address to the nation, President Wilson explained the situation was under control, and we would see an update within the next twenty four hours. Some people have reacted positively to these new developments." Another window popped up beside her, showing an image of a circle of smiling people with fake horse ears and tails. They held signs with slogans encouraging the aliens with messages of friendship and love.

She motioned to it again. "But for many, the appearance of alien life has raised concerns with government handling of the issue, and even the morality of it all. The idea that humanity is not alone is not sitting well. To speak about that, we've brought some experts in the field, from Harvard, Dr. Theodore Peterson, who will explain just what the arrival of aliens may mean to the future of our species. Thank you for coming on short notice."

"No trouble at all." He chuckled politely to the host. "Thank you for having me. The president, and all members of his branch we've been able to get any words out of, seem to agree that the aliens aren't here to kill us, or take our world. If you were worried about that, cross that off your doomsday list." He made a slashing motion with a finger. "But that doesn't mean humanity doesn't face some existential questions."

He adjusted his tie. "From the start, enlightened man has gazed on the stars as being his. The universe was a large sandbox with only one resident, and we imagined ourselves playing in it as we pleased. The arrival of a new child, even if they've come with a smile, throws those preconceptions of who we are into disarray, as you've seen with the disquiet gripping the globe." 

He waved a hand broadly. "We are not alone. In some ways, if they had arrived with weapons bared, that would have made things simpler. We would know, to the last man, what we need to do. To fight is easy. To live in peace? We haven't even mastered that trick amongst ourselves."

He tilted his head from side to side, squinting at the camera. "So, they may come with guns, or they may come with an embrace, but this new development means we all need to decide how to see it. It's happened, not in a theory, but right in front of us. First, the song."

The song played, that alien melody with its undecipherable singing produced by throats that were not human in design. "They sent this, quite on purpose. They said hello, then came to actually shake our hands. As potential aliens go, we couldn't have asked for a more polite one. Perhaps their first gesture is a sign that their intentions are pure, but that's just the opening move."

He tapped at a watch on his wrist idly. "They say hello, and then we say hello. Only once that exchange is made will we be able to tell if it was genuine or not." He took a slow breath. "Can we even speak with them? The president insists they've made no hostile moves, but not hostile and friendly interaction are quite a gulf apart."

Barbara returned to the screen, at her desk. "That's a question many have been asking. Will the aliens be giving their own announcements? When will they be spoken to, if that's even possible?" She tapped a stack of papers on the desk. "The questions are piling up, and answers are slow in coming. We live in interesting times. Next on the news."





"Sir." The ranking soldier was listening intently to his headset. "Sir, you're certain? Right." He turned to the assembled scientists and engineers and soldiers. "We have permission to proceed."

The scientists looked thrilled, the engineers leapt into action, checking things and inspecting machinery from the top to the bottom. It was the soldiers who went tense. One of them sighed. "We're playing host to an actual alien?" He shook his head at the idea. "I can't believe we're doing this. This is stupid."

One of the scientists glared at the soldier. "This is a chance of a lifetime. We'll get a chance to study a lifeform that underwent an entirely divorced evolution.  So many of our notions were built with a sample size of just one. We may prove, or disprove, so many things I can't even count them." He marched off, scribbling on his clipboard. "This will be a moment for history."

The soldier huffed through his nose, looking to the engineer at his side. "I'll bet they've done tests and everything, but I think they're forgetting a pretty big thing."

The engineer didn't look away from the machine in front of her. "Which would be?" She adjusted one of the bolts on the metal housing.

The soldier waved a hand in a sweeping gesture, taking in the whole laboratory that was busying itself for the visit. "It's the classic question, Docs. Just because we can do something doesn't mean we should. How do you plan to make sure this doesn't explode in our face?" He scoffed at the room that was moving in front of his eyes. "None of this is ready for actual contact with an alien."

She frowned, still looking at her machine, though she had stopped working. "We're working on that. We will bring the alien here, and put them in isolation. Fortunately for everyone involved, they are carbon based, and their oxygen requirements are not too different from ours. The air won't kill them, if they don't die from a random disease."

She grabbed the next bolt, loosening it and applying new lubricant before screwing it back into place. "But it will keep us all safe. If something happens, the worst that can happen is we lose a specimen of unknown value." She sighed gently. "I hate calling them that. Each of them has a name, even if I can't pronounce it. They're people."

The soldier arched a brow, "And, what? If they break out and slaughter us all, that's okay? Because they're people? Listen to yourself. You sound crazy. This isn't a movie." He adjusted the grip on his rifle. "Fine, whatever. You focus on your science, that's your job. We'll make sure you don't die doing it."

The scientist watched him go, shrugging to herself before returning to her work, "It's a shame we can't know where they're from." She shook her head. "Imagine getting to see what their world." She looked up to one of her peers. "We should ask them, when we get them in here. They may have some stories to share, if they're willing."

"They're being friendly so far, right? I don't see why they wouldn't. It's been a lot of questions, some photos, and more media attention than I've ever seen on one thing since the Ukraine war." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I feel like a damn baby. Here we are, still squabbling with each other when they've traveled the stars just to greet us." He laughed sardonically. "It's like having a friend over and your place is still a mess, you know?"

The woman next to him nodded with a tiny smile. "Yeah, I get that. Still, I think we'll manage to do a good enough job hosting for our guests." She shook her head. "I don't get why we couldn't have a proper reception set up for them, though."

Her peer shrugged, still leaning on the table in front of him. "Some people think it's too much of a risk, and, well, there is a lot we don't know. Even if they can handle breathing our air, maybe they'll die. I don't like bringing that up, but we have an entirely alien immune system." She hiked a thumb at the big metal container they were working on. "This will be kept sterile, but they still have to make it inside. At best I still imagine them getting an alien flu for a few days. If they survive that, good, they're on the way to getting used to Earth life."

She tapped her pen to her chin. "At worst? We make them sick. They die. Not only is it tragic, we'd also have to explain to their friends why they're gone, which wouldn't end well. So, I'm fine with waiting in the labs to see our guests." Her eyes rose up to the clock on the wall. "In fact, it should be happening any time now."