Chapter Twenty-One
OORT CLOUD—OORT STATION PRIME
The news flashed across the Solar System and around Earth after OS-Prime determined that Sol appeared to be the destination of the distant space fleet. Aided by MERT portals, the news arrived at Earth in minutes instead of months. National leaders appeared on holovision across the planet, calming their citizens, explaining that, while the danger was real, it still was several years away. There was plenty of time to prepare, they told their frightened people.
The Federation meeting chamber above the weapons deck on OS-Prime filled rapidly as delegates from many parts of the Solar System and virtually every nation on Earth arrived by portal. In no way did the chamber match the elegance of the U.N. General Assembly or even the Security Counc
