Dr. Coker took a deep breath before addressing the group in front of her that included Dr. Stephen Holland, Gus Lebanchek, Maddy Wilheim, Zyot Melkaan, and Raizor Quintavius.

"Thank you all for coming to Rigel on such short notice. What I'm about to disclose to you may come as a shock. We have managed to keep a highly guarded secret on Rigel for the better part of a Terran century. For decades, Dr. Holland and I have led a small but highly dedicated research team on a complex bioengineering project that is finally complete and ready for its ultimate application...the complete eradication of the Zeta species."

Coker briefly paused and scanned the gathering before continuing.

Everyone in the room save for Quintavius and Melkaan displayed expressions of genuine surprise and/or apprehension.

Wait. How did they know? Her team had gone to extraordinary lengths to keep every aspect of their highly classified efforts hidden. So much so that even the usually paranoid Holland had told her many times that she needed to relax.

"Excuse me, but your lack of an external response was unexpected. May we attribute this to the fact that your people rarely show emotion or that you're somehow already aware of the research we've been conducting?

In typical Zyok Melkaan fashion, he answered (audibly) without the use of any superfluous syllables.

"Yes," he said.

"Yes to what?" asked Coker, who was getting more annoyed by the second.

"Yes to everything," Melkaan blurted out almost immediately.

No. You're not getting off that easy, she thought.

"Look, we have incredibly tight security protocols in place and while you may think you know– "

"We know," Melkaan immediately interrupted.

Coker was now visibly perturbed. Quintavius decided to step in, telepathically.

"My dear, please excuse my good friend's well-meaning, but impolite method of communicating with you. After one hundred of your years, he still is learning the finer nuances of Human communication protocol. Perhaps I can explain...

"We are aware that Dr. Holland's father transported 1000's of Zeta embryos to Rigel from the New Mexico subterranean research base over 100 years ago. Please do not be upset by that fact. We are in no way spying on you. You must understand that we have some level of intelligence on almost every single inhabited world within Sektor V. Our civilization has been in existence for over a thousand millennia," he said with a genuine smile.

"I have also been Chairman of this part of the galaxy for several of your centuries. And as Chairman, I do not like surprises of any sort...good or bad."

"And yes, you are correct Doctor, we do not know the intimate details of the experimentation your skilled team has conducted over the past several decades. All we know is that you have studied and tested many Zeta embryos and laboratory clone individuals. We also have heard that you have made significant advancements in recent years. We do not know much more than that. Please, I ask that you continue..."

He held his hand out towards her and maintained a genuine but somewhat nervous smile.

Coker looked up directly towards the Chairman. For now, she was willing to accept his partial explanation and pseudo-apology.

"Based on the detailed documentation from the gruesome gulag days at the New Mexico Down Under facility we knew that these creatures could self-monitor and self-modify their biology. Given this, we also knew it would be difficult for us to inflict similar bio-atrocities that they willfully perpetrated on Humankind. Despite the technical difficulties, we chose to persevere since we knew it was a path they would never see coming. Not from the useless, worthless, hapless Humans. Their arrogance would be their downfall. It would be a downfall that all Humans would fully embrace. Despite the passage of time, many on Rigel still believe that Humanity is at war. A war that we will ultimately win once we reclaim the planet that was forcibly taken from us over a century ago."

It was clear that Coker was speaking from a powerful, dark place in her heart. For her, this wasn't a mission that softened over the generations. Her father, not her great, great grandfather directly experienced the horrific pain and suffering that the Greys inflicted upon Humanity. His open wounds were still with her. As Coker looked out at them, she saw fear and concern in their eyes. This was not her intent, but her inner vitriol for the Zeta race came through loud and clear for those who were listening and watching. Was it fear of what she would say next? Was it fear of how far she was willing to go to satiate the need for revenge and justice? Maddy and Gus were staring at her intently, likely wondering what she would say or do next.

After a moment, Coker calmly continued.

"As noted by the Chairman, we have done extensive testing spanning decades using purebred Zeta biological specimens. In the end, we have managed to create an elegant, species-specific, and highly efficient bioweapon that dare I say would even bring a tear to the callous eye of a Zeta bio geneticist. Our team, led by Dr. Holland, has perfected a pathogen that targets the unique attributes of the Zeta digestive tract. Essentially, it prevents the organism from absorbing water. Naturally, for it to work the bio weapon had to be completely undetectable to the host. This requirement was, by far, the most challenging aspect of the research effort. Finally, after decades of trial and error, recent live testing on mature, purebred test subjects has confirmed that we have met this objective."

Before continuing, she looked to her immediate left where Dr. Holland was seated.

"Since I am merely a virologist by training, I will now leave the detailed discussion to my close friend and expert gastroenterologist, Dr. Steven Holland."

"Thank you, Allison. I'll try to keep this simple even though that's not the best word to use in this instance. The fact of the matter is that it took many people many years to get us where we are now. In a nutshell, this is how it works..."

"The bacteria that naturally reside in the Zeta upper GI tract produce a specific waste product that is consumed by a second bacteria located in the lower GI tract. Through a complex series of interactions, this symbiotic one-celled organism is an essential component that enables water absorption within the lower GI tract of the Zeta species. After many failed attempts, we synthesized a nearly-identical upper GI bacteria that could survive and operate within the Zeta gastrointestinal environment. This particular variant however also produces a highly toxic waste byproduct that once consumed, decimates the water-absorbing bacteria found in the lower GI system. Only very small quantities of this byproduct are required to initiate the deleterious chain of events. As a 'bonus', the toxic waste that is not consumed acts to slowly dissolve the outer lining of the primary stomach. Our extensive testing depicts repeatable results that produce host expiration within 18-24 hours after initial pathogen ingestion. If conditions warrant, the lag period can be increased or decreased by altering the initial pathogen concentration levels. The cause of death in all cases was found to be a combination of severe dehydration and irreversible, widespread intestinal bleeding."

As he finished, Maddy asked, "Dr. Holland, even with a several hour gestation period, you found no cases where the subjects knew what was going on"?

"No. For the final variant sample population, there were zero instances where self-awareness was observed. We believe that this is likely due to the extreme genetic similarity between the host's natural bacteria and the strain we ultimately implemented."

Minkon Blees, Triugha's Global Secretariat, followed up with a question of his own.

"Are you sure it works...all the time?" He asked.

"Well, we conducted experiments on 213 subjects and we obtained 213 confirmed deaths that averaged 21.2 hours with a standard deviation of 2.8 hours. It's also worth noting that no successful "reversals" were obtained for the 32 cases where this action was attempted."

Maddy couldn't believe her ears. The advanced biology was incredible but what struck her even more was how Coker and Holland placed little to no intrinsic value on the "test subjects" that were "experimented on" for decades. Given her experience with unspeakable loss at the hands of Human and ET forces, the absence of any empathy whatsoever for the well being of countless innocent sentient beings from doctors who had (presumably) taken the Hippocratic oath, was difficult to listen to especially when described in such a cavalier and unapologetic manner.

Apparently, Gus felt the same way.

"Wait aren't you both doctors? You sound more like Nazi Gulag experimentalists."

"Excuse me?" she said with a piercing stare in Lebanchek's direction.

"These beings nearly eradicated our species. And at this very moment, they are torturing the few Earth-born Humans that remain. And somehow you suddenly feel sorrow for these invaders and planetary rapists? As far as hypocrisy goes Mr. Lebanchek, you may have just set a Sektor V record. I'm guessing you may have forgotten the massacre your Ministry inflicted on 10s of thousands of innocent fellow Human Beings prior to the ET invasion? If so, I am fairly certain your newfound soulmate can remind you, unless of course, she has forgotten as well."

Instantly, the room went pin-drop silent.

Brutal, thought Maddy. Coker was within her rights to call him out...and herself for that matter. While Maddy would never fully get past the guilt and grief from that fateful night, she also accepted the fact that Gus did not personally orchestrate the Massacre and did try, albeit fruitlessly, to mitigate the actions that were rapidly unfolding around him. Even more importantly, the Gus she now knew and loved, was simply not that same man. Fatherhood and the Zeta invasion had permanently changed him. It was a prism that Coker could never understand.

"Hold on, doctor," Maddy said, breaking the silence. "Are you saying the race itself...literally all the beings residing on Zeta Reticulon, and while we are at it, any Hybrids that currently exist on Earth are not worthy of survival? For me, and I hope others in this room, that simply can't happen. I'm sorry but your designer gastro-killer is a bit too Hitler-esque for my liking."

Coker was visibly distraught. Maddy swore she could see steam starting to come out of her ears.

Holland, coming to her rescue, interjected. "We have designed a weapon that we think will work flawlessly against the aggressor that has flung us across the galaxy. We do not apologize for using all means at our disposal to rectify this century-long travesty of Nature. If you cannot or will not see that, then you are the one who has questionable judgment. Now...am I advocating that we go to Zeta Reticulon and sprinkle this stuff all over their homeworld in the hope of eradicating as many of their kind as possible? No. Mostly because we do not have sufficient resources to accomplish anything close to that. For now, at least, we must attack their leaders and the military complex that has effectively suppressed and repressed Mankind for more than a century. Make no mistake however, I fundamentally agree with my esteemed colleague that revenge is indeed the justice of war."

"Well that's fantastic to hear, doctor," Gus quipped sarcastically. "You're nearly as frightening as your esteemed colleague, but I suppose we should be thankful, at least for the time being, that your unabashed vitriol is trumped by pragmatism."

"Do you all always get along so wonderfully?" asked Nokus Rikulii who had been sitting quietly as the verbal volleys flew around him.

"Please Nokus," Minkon Blees retorted, "as if our Alpha Centauri interests have ever lined up in recent years?" he said.

Finally, Quintavius spoke.

"I hope each of you will forgive me due to my advanced relative age, but from where I am sitting you are all acting like adolescents. We have come here to unite and bring action, not to waste time bickering over outcomes from the past. We must now look forward. Which brings me to a discussion we must have."

Quintavius' calming presence quieted the room.

"You all should be aware that Earth is not the only global experiment where the Zetas are attempting to solve their reproductive failings. Five additional unenlightened worlds within Sektor V are similarly under attack. In each case, and not unlike Terra, the dominant planetary species is being hybridized in some unspeakable fashion. Our sources suggest however that the Terran occupation, from a Zeta standpoint, is producing the most promising outcomes relative to ongoing experimentation occurring elsewhere. Furthermore, our infiltration network currently on Terra has informed us that the Zeta end goal of a reproduction-capable 63/64 Hybrid is getting dangerously close to fruition."

"What exactly do you mean by a 63/64 Hybrid?" Maddy asked.

"Just what it sounds like, my dear. They want a being that looks identical to a "purebred" Zeta but has just enough Human genome to remove the infertility issues that have plagued their species for centuries. Fifteen years ago, they successfully bioengineered a 15/16Hybrid that was capable of reproduction. Even though these early Hybrids were nearly physically indistinguishable from so-called purebred Zetas, the Zeta Elite were unwilling to accept a 6% Human contribution to their final genome. In fact, a 3% contribution (31/32) was also deemed unacceptable. Thankfully, our surveillance over the past decade suggests that they have yet to get past the 31/32 threshold.

Gus looked visibly disgusted.

"I'm sorry Chairman, maybe it's your use of the spoken word that is making this come off so ugly but are you sure you want to use words like 'threshold' and say that continued testing on Humans, in any fashion, is something to be 'thankful' for? The occupying forces are continuing to thin the "purebred" Human population while simultaneously killing countless Human-Zeta Hybrids that are not "pure enough". How in any way is any of this a "good thing"?

Before Quintavius could respond, Allison Coker jumped in.

"More importantly, why didn't you tell us about this never-ending fractional Hybrid travesty decades ago?" We would have made additional sacrifices to accelerate our efforts had we known any of this."

Quintavius smiled.

"As I mentioned previously, we have our eyes and ears everywhere. And in the case of Earth, we have resources in play in many key areas. We began establishing this network soon after the Zeta occupation commenced over 100 years ago. We did not inform you Dr. Coker because it was not time to do so. You were developing your response and we were doing our due diligence and making sure no immediate action was necessary. As to your commentary Mr. Lebanchek, we are 'thankful' that it has taken this long for Zeta forces to reach the 31/32 'threshold' because once they reach their self-proclaimed end game of 63/64, they will have no interest in maintaining any level of Human existence on Earth or anywhere in the galaxy for that matter. Your species will have helped the Zetas solve their age-old problem and now you would be of little use to them. As things currently stand, they are one step away from this potential end game. It may have taken them the better part of two decades to reach 31/32 but they may be able to progress to the final stage much sooner. And once this 'threshold' is reached it would also mark the end for the other five occupied Hybrid farm worlds within Sektor V. We would be looking at the potential eradication of 50-100 billion sentient beings in short order. Mass extinctions on such a scale would be wholly unprecedented."

The room went silent again.

"However, " Quintavius continued, "after listening to Drs. Coker and Holland today I have some newfound hope. Your bioweapon, if used judiciously and surgically could change these potentially devastating outcomes in our favor. I only wished I had waited a bit longer before acting..."

What did that mean? Maddy thought. She looked over at Gus as well as the Rigel and Alpha Centauri contingent who appeared to be equally confused by the Chairman's comment. Of course Quintavius "heard" their thoughts and replied, albeit slowly and with some sadness in his voice.

"Given the information of a successful reproducing 31/32 Hybrid coupled with recent hyper-aggressive Zeta attacks on Triugha and Rigel, our people felt that it would be prudent to insert an advance scout team on Earth in order to obtain new intelligence. We need to know just how close they are to attaining a 63/64 reproduction-capable Hybrid. In our estimation, continuing to wait represented an unacceptable risk given how many potential lives were at stake.

"Wait, I'm confused," said Nokus Rikulii. "If the Zetas only recently were able to create a 31/32 reproducing Hybrid, that means that none of the 31/32 Hybrids can be close to reproductive age. Unless of course, my understanding of the Human reproduction process is greatly mistaken."

"No Mr. Rikulii, you bring up a fair point," responded the Chairman. "Over the past few decades, the Zetas have managed to perfect a process whereby Zeta-Human Hybrids age at an accelerated rate of 5:1 from birth to approximately age 15. After fertility is reached, the Hybrids age normally going forward. Without this capability, the Zetas would have to wait for generations, which of course is an unacceptable timeline for a very desperate, and highly impatient species. Our intelligence suggests that the first reproductive-capable 31/32 Zeta-Human Hybrids came into existence 2-3 Earth years ago. If this is correct, then fertility testing using 31/32 Hybrids with purebred Zeta subjects may have already begun. Given this potential timeline, it is clear we must act now."

"Remarkable," commented Maddy.

"Remarkable? Sorry, but I believe that vile, massacre-happy creatures should not be admired or commended in any way," quipped Coker.

"Ok, can we move past the obvious anger and begin working on a forward-looking solution?" Gus asked impatiently.

The Chairman agreed.

"Yes, that is exactly what we must do. In fact, we have already taken the first steps in that regard."

Holland didn't particularly like the sound of that last comment.

"What exactly do you mean by that?" he asked.

This time, perhaps to avoid any chance of misinterpretation due to verbal conversion, the Chairman reverted to responding telepathically.

"An Arcturian intelligence-seeking scout team was sent to Earth a few days after Zeta forces attacked Rigel and Triugha. Their unfettered aggression and clear dismissive behavior concerning any potential Sektor V-led retaliatory response concerned us."

"Since when is such behavior surprising for this worthless species?" asked Coker. "Have you already forgotten the brutal, near-extinction level attacks that were waged on a defenseless Earth a century ago? Or perhaps you missed the countless other outpost annihilations that these worthless beings have mercilessly inflicted on multiple innocent species in more recent times."