Micronauts - Chapter 1

Mininauts
Serial Story

Chapter 1

"Agent Kyle?" asked the receptionist.

She sat in her hard plastic chair in deep thought.

Agent Kyle was called to this remote island in the Bahamas with little notice. The small boat that left West Palm Beach took seven hours to reach this small, almost deserted island. Palm trees, sea birds, and sand littered the island of 800 people. More than half of them are WSA employees.

The small electric car picked her up at the docks and drove her down the only paved road on this island. It dropped her off at one of the biggest buildings on Moore's Island, housing the pinnacle of modernization and space travel. She wondered why she had agreed to come here.

"Agent Kyle?" repeated the receptionist as she tapped the Agent's shoulder.

"Yes, I'm here to see Ti Gibson," said Agent Kyle.

"Of course, we've been expecting you. Go right in," said the receptionist, pointing at the door. The sign on the receptionist's desk said Martha Stewart.

"Thank you, Martha," said Agent Kyle as she stood to walk through the door. She was called away from a rather drab assignment, chasing little green men around the woods. 50-megapixel cameras were on everyone's phones, and yet nobody took pictures. It was the third false call this week. Everyone wants the reward money the government is giving out for proof of alien species, even if they must make it up. There is no harm in trying, they always say. What about my wasted time?

She walked into a room that looked like an old war movie scene. Everyone was sitting around a large holo table, multiple LCD screens over all the walls displaying information, and big shots yelling over each other. All the heads from all the space agencies were here. She knew a lot of them from working with them. She was known as the UFO lady. Her division was the Transmedium Objects Department of the Pentagon. Basically, it's a joke department of one that she takes seriously.

"Agent Kyle, have a seat over here," said Dr. Gibson, head of WSA, World Space Agency.

The people sat back down as smiles came over their faces. Agent Kyle was a beautiful woman who commanded attention from men and women. She was easy on the eyes with her smoky green eyes and curly blonde hair. They would be sorely disappointed if they knew she never mixes work with pleasure.

"You know everyone here," said Dr Gibson, pointing around the table at the other six people.

"Oh, yes, we have all met in one capacity or another," said Agent Kyle.

"Any credible little green men found yet?" asked Dr Ginger Skyx with a big grin from cheek to cheek.

"Has anyone won that billion-dollar award yet?" asked Lt. Huey Dong. Yes, that's his name, but everyone calls him Hue.

Last year, a retired official announced that the government was hiding information about aliens away from the public. The president denied the story and then went too far and signed an executive order offering a billion dollars for any proof. That's how my division was created.

"No, Hue, so far, nothing," said Agent Kyle as she pursed her lips. She didn't know if they were teasing her or being serious.

"Hue, Ginger, leave her alone," said Dr. Gibson.

"They are only asking because we like to sign up," said Sarah Kemp from the ESA.

"Sign up? The agency doesn't have a big enough budget for more agents," said Agent Kyle.

"No, you misunderstood us. We want to sign up to win the money. We have something here you need to look at," said Dr. Gibson.

He pointed the remote at one of the myriad television screens on the wall, and a picture of a smashed spaceship appeared.

She walked up to the screen and looked it over. It was a metal object that had crashed on some sandy surface. Skeletons in little spacesuits littered the ground. The most significant part of the ship had straight edges and little windows. The ship must have been giant. Bigger than anything they had.

"The skeletons are weird-looking. Almost squat, short in nature, but wide," said Agent Kyle.

"The ship would have to be a thousand feet long at least," she added.

She scrutinized the picture closely. Then she saw it and turned around.

"You're joking, right? It's a fake," said Agent Kyle as she pointed at the artificial, white plastic boot in the lower left of the picture. The boot was giant compared to the small skeletons and spaceship. It was at least twelve skeletons big.

"Next time you take a picture of your little model, keep your boot out of the picture," said Agent Kyle with little apathy.

Lt. Dong laughed loudly and asked, "So, no money?"

"It doesn't matter if it's fake. Dr. Arbent wants someone to investigate the crash site, and we are all too busy, so we called your boss," said Dr. Gibson.

"Dr. Arbent? The Dr. Arbent. The genius behind hyper-ion propulsion?" asked Agent Kyle.

"Yes. Dr. Arbent is adamant about getting this looked at. He won't let it drop. So we need someone to go there and appease him," said Sarah Kemp.

Agent Kyle looked at Sarah Kemp with disdain. They made her drop all her other projects and hastily travel to this desolate island for another fake mission.

"We will pay for your trip and expenses," said Dr. Gibson.

Well, that is a first. She turned around and looked at the picture. Something else didn't look right. She couldn't put her finger on it.

She turned around and let out a breath loudly. She picked up the information file folder and said, "Fine. Where am I going?"

Hue Dong pointed up to the sky.

"The ceiling of this building?" said Agent Kyle.

"Nope, a little farther than that," said Dr. Gibson.

She opened the dossier and read the location —Sea of Tranquility, Moon.

"Oh," said Agent Kyle.