Part I: The Crash

“For centuries humanity has looked up at the stars wondering and believing that they were not alone in the universe. Today after all we have seen, we wish to God that we were wrong.”

-Author unknown

July 15, 2043

It has been a long time my friend. Three decades have come and gone. Years of pain and strife, of peace and war. Much of what we once were has been lost, some has been reclaimed, while others seem long out of reach. I write this now, not so that we remember what has changed, but so that we never forget.

Those thirty years ago we received an answer to a question. A question long sought after. The answer came to us not from science, not from God, nor from war or peace. Instead it came to us with fiery ambivalence.

The craft first entered Earth’s space at approximately 8:00am GMT. It hit our atmosphere hard, entering just over the sea of Japan. Its rough entry sent shock-waves around the globe, and created tremors felt all the way round the world.

Nearly a quarter of a mile wide it flew across our skies at estimated speeds of up to Mach 20, it was unlike anything anyone had ever seen, as as it made it way over North America, electrical systems died, and stopped working. Sending panic spreading around the continent. Humanity was shocked, unprepared for the event. People reached out to their churches and their governments for answers, and as they watched the craft fall across the sky, a strange orange mist trailing behind it. 

The craft's journey ended in the United States where it struck area that used to part of Northern New Jersey. The impact created a crater a mile wide, and the earth shook, toppling buildings, and flooding homes. Dirt and dust were thrown into the air darkening the sky, and the estimated human cost is said to be in the millions.

When the government finally reacted the nations people were already in a panic, and for a while it seemed that a flood of panic, and terror might overtake the nation. Thankfully order would be maintained and the US military would lock the area down, and despite the harsh reality of the situation they minimized the loss of any additional human lives. 

The world did not end.

It was days later, when the shock had faded, that people first asked the question “Who are they?”

The people would not receive their answer, the craft remained silent. People turned on the government, demanding answers they thought were being withheld. This false belief was echoed by the UN who still harbored distrust toward the United States. Together they demanded answers, ones that the American government just didn't have. This distrust would eventually lead to war, as the world tried to take the answers that America just didn't have.