It was just before dawn. The sky was slowly starting to lose its nightly deep darkness. A diffuse and almost imperceptible light was beginning to brighten the city. The buildings were still but heavy shadows, but some portions of the sky were gradually changing from a dark, mysterious purple to a shade of light and joyful pink.
It was very early, but Marvin was already in the driver's seat of his car, heading towards the office. It was Monday morning. Because of all the current events, he wasn't feeling too much like going to work; but it was still his duty. He realized he was driving on an almost empty highway.
Now, there was already a touch of calm gold in the eastern sky behind the skyscrapers.
When Marvin entered the office, it was all plunged in the dark.
He turned on the switch button, and the neon lights emitted a soft twinkle, before fully illuminating the empty open space. It was early, but he wasn't usually the first employee to arrive at the office in the morning.
Marvin went and sat at his desk. He checked his e-mail. Quite few messages; nothing important. He looked around him. No one was entering in the office.
Usually, each Monday at 9 AM, there was a short team meeting with the department's director to get the week started and everyone properly motivated. It was now 8:55 and there was still no one.
Maybe it was just like with all these other jobs which people did not care to take any more in the stores and the restaurants. Why should it be any different here? Especially after the alleged attack on the Norwegian oil platform.
Marvin started a video call with his boss to know what was going on. The boss took the call, but he appeared quite neglected, unshaved, not ready for a week of work. He was probably still at home.
"Look, Marvin, nothing is going on" he started "But with the current events… It might slightly affect the way in which we operate… No, no… Look… I don't have much time for this today… We'll speak about it some other day… I've got to go… Yeah, yeah, sure… I need you to take good care of that project…"
The boss was about to hang up, but he hesitated for a short moment.
"Marvin… Why don't you go back home? Your wife, I believe she's pregnant, right? She certainly needs you… Good luck."
Now he hung up.
Marvin rubbed his face. "What the hell? Do they all really think that we're all going to die in no time ?"
He felt discouraged, and also a bit amused. It was funny to see everyone freaking out while he knew — at least partially — that what was going on was more complex than what they were all thinking.
"Anyway. I need a coffee."
He got up, walked across the empty workspace, and took the elevator to the next floor.
There, in front of the coffee machine, he felt a jolt of surprise. There was someone. It was Stu, the guy from Accounts.
"Hey, Marv!" he started when he saw him.
"Hey Stu, how you doing ?"
"It's good to see someone at last. I was about to think there would be no one to talk to. Terrible news here…"
"Hum yeah… The attacks. Terrible…"
"No, there's worse than that. There's no coffee anymore."
"Oh, kill me."
"Yeah, I know. Monday mornings without coffee should be forbidden by the Geneva Conventions. But, yeah. They haven't done the maintenance."
"It sucks."
"Yeah. They're all gone."
"What about you? Aren't you freaking out? I thought you'd prefer to spend your last days on Earth on a boat, maybe fishing in the middle of a lake, rather than staring at a dysfunctional coffee machine in an empty office."
"Nah, I'm not that worried."
"Why is that?"
"Haven't you seen the speech of this UN guy ? Elias Nordheim. Man, it gave me goosebumps! All mankind finally united in one people. No more divisions, we're all playing for the same team now. So, if it takes an alien threat to come to that result, then so be it! If we are united, I think that no one can beat us. We're clever." (He tapped the tip of his finger on his temple)
"Oh yeah?" Marvin chuckled a bit. "But if they travelled across the universe and came all the way down to Earth, it means they certainly have a far more advanced technology than ours. I would tend to think we don't stand a chance against them."
"I said we're clever. Not necessarily stronger than them. Have you read that book by the good master Sun Tzu? Says that the best won battles are the ones you don't have to fight. You know, there is this other guy, Nate Maxwell."
"Nate Maxwell, you said ?"
"Yeah, the billionaire. He is the CEO of Gaia Inc. They are working on artificial intelligence. And now they have invented a machine, or a tool, that could be used — they claim — to communicate with the Exolibs. I don't know exactly how this thing is supposed to work. But it could use some kind of waves to send a message in the very language of the Exolibs. Or at least a code they could easily decipher, based on universal constants and stuff like that. Told you. There are some smart guys out there doing the job."
"Impressive. In such a short time… And why exactly is it such a good news ?"
"Oh, I can sense a bit of sarcasm here. One becomes sarcastic when there is no hope left. But you shouldn't despair. Our leaders certainly know what they're doing."
"They're doing something?"
"Yes, they certainly will. There's this machine I told you about. It will maybe allow us to discuss with the Exolibs. And understand what they finally want from us. I tend to think there's no dispute that can't be solved with a good discussion."
"Yeah, let's hope you are right, Stu. I've got to go back. See you later."
"Really? Ok then, see you, Marv."
Marvin started to walk away.
"You'll see. It's gonna be fine. And you'll remember then that old Stu was right!"
"Sure…"
Marvin got back to his desk. He sat down, tried to work for a little while, watched the ceiling a lot. And since he wasn't too much in the mood for all that, he left earlier than usually.
When he opened the door of his apartment, he couldn't step in, because some sort of big fluffy bullet whooshed through the air just in front of him and ran across the hallway.
"What the… ?!"
"Sorry!" said Angie "I'm just throwing some cat treats for Fluffy. She likes so much to hunt them."
Marvin was a bit puzzled.
"Really? Even after she revealed to us that she's in fact a goddess from another galaxy, she's still after those cat treats?"
"Well, I guess she's still a cat as well. Right, Fluffy?"
"Mmmph…" answered Fluffy chewing on a treat she caught. "I don't know what they put in these biscuits. But they're so addictive!"
Marvin shrugged.
"Have you had a good day at work?" asked Angie.
"Yeah, not too many interactions… There was just this guy, Stu. He's quite enthusiastic about some kind of worldwide plan to handle the aliens. By the way, Fluffy, do you know something about Elias Nordheim, and, hum… Nate Maxwell? Are they involved in all this?"
"Yes, they are."
"Can you elaborate on this? Maybe it's about time you give us some insight about what's going on. I'm fed up with understanding nothing about all this."
"You shouldn't demand anything from me in this way. I do what I please. And I give information only if it doesn't bore me excessively."
"Well, sure. You're a goddess, and all that. On the other hand, we are the ones who provide your biscuits."
"…"
"So?"
"All right… These guys, they have some powerful AI which handles the whole imagery that everyone saw in the sky. They will pretend eventually that they can speak to the aliens by means of some advanced technology. They'll pretend that they have the ear of the aliens. So of course, only they will be able to understand what the aliens want from the earthlings. And they'll convince everyone to listen to them, as they'll be the only mediators and the only source of possible salvation. This is how they are planning to obtain and wield enormous power."
"Oh, I see." said Angie. "They will have everyone obeying them, thinking they obey the Exolibs. That's smart. But what about the attacks that took place? Are they real?"
"Yes, they are. It's part of their design. There will probably be other attacks in the near future. They target oil production facilities and industrial plants. They'll pretend that the aliens are here to punish the humans for their environmental destructive activities."
"Oh, wow!" exclaimed Marvin. "That sounds just like another crazy conspiracy theory…"
"You asked me for information. I'm not asking for your opinion."
"All right, all right. I guess conspiracy theories are nothing as unbelievable as speaking cat deities…"
"So, if I understand well…" added Angie "the only way to appease the aliens would then be… to give full powers to these guys who will pretend they can implement the policies expected by the Exolibs."
"Correct." answered Fluffy. "Can I have another biscuit now? Don't make me beg for them…"
"Sure!" replied Angie. "Here you go."
At that moment, Marvin's phone rang. He took the call.
"Mister, hum… Marvin? I'm sorry, I don't know your last name…"
The voice sounded familiar.
"Yes, this is me…"
"All right. This is Mr. Gropius speaking…"