Free The Commander by CJ Williams

their kids. Now, we’re going to leave the lights on for a bit so you can get started. We’ll gather the completed forms as soon as you’re done.”
    Luke had no interest in the paperwork; he just wanted to keep the interior lights on bright and everyone busy to forestall anyone from looking outside just a bit longer.
    Luke, Annie, and the flight attendants walked up and down the aisles, answering questions and interrupting anyone who started to look out the windows. Although a few people got up to use the restroom, Ashley’s design omitted windows in the lavatories.
    After twenty minutes, a few faces started to show concern. People were finishing their paperwork and looking outside. Each recruit had a personality profile that included a high level of adaptability to the unknown. Luke was about to find out if they really had that mindset. It’s time for the big reveal.
    He picked up the microphone again. “Okay, everyone.” The passengers turned their attention back to him. “Let’s play a guessing game. Who thinks they know where we’re going?”
    Several passengers raised their hands and a few people called out, “Antarctica.” There were one or two votes for Canada and another for Greenland.
    “Nope. Wrong so far. It’s further away than that. Any other guesses?”
    One teenaged girl stuck up her hand. “The only place on Earth further away from Nevada than Antarctica would be Sri Lanka. But that’s not really a remote environment.”
    Luke pointed at her with a big smile. “Now there’s someone who knows her geography. Good guess, but wrong. Any other guesses? No?” Luke took a deep breath. “Well, we’re going to give you the full story on our location as soon as we land. We would like everyone to hold their questions until then. But for now, if you look out the right side of the aircraft, you can see where we’re headed. Ashley , why don’t you dim the lights.”
    The shock was palpable. A few quiet exclamations could be heard but otherwise, silence filled the aircraft as everyone came to the realization they were seeing the raw grandeur of another celestial planet up close. Luke braced himself for the first reaction.
    An adolescent boy’s loud voice broke through the suspense. “Whoa! We’re gonna be living on the moon . How cool is that !”
    The youngster’s outburst prompted a few chuckles and the rest of the crowd’s uncertainty dissolved. The boy demanded that his parents allow him an early opportunity to “check out” the nearby craters. Wives and husbands began speaking to each other about what it meant and a general murmur of excitement ran through the cabin.
    The aircraft descended toward the surface and lined up to land inside the main hangar. At the back of the hangar Roth and the rest of the moon’s population were waiting and everyone was applauding.
    Ashley ’s wheels touched down and the interior lights popped on. Tammy got on the microphone. “Welcome to Moonbase One, and thank you for flying with us today.”
    As each person descended the aircraft stairs, one of the current residents met them on the tarmac with a handshake and a big smile. After quick introductions the residents led the newcomers into the base for their first orientation. Roth and George had worked on the presentation endlessly during the lead-up. It was an inspiring pitch, it explained why they were here, the nature of the potential alien threat, and what their presence meant to them personally, and mankind in general.
    Luke’s vision included expanding mankind’s knowledge about the universe, the development of an armed force to protect their solar system, the colonization of other planets, and an outward expansion to find systems with whom they could ally. All of it was refined and condensed into a thirty-minute presentation intended to calm and inspire every new arrival.
    Luke and Annie remained on the aircraft. Luke felt it best to stay out of the way to establish that Roth was the number one guy