Inside the conference room, absolute silence reigned. Everyone was stunned by the news, rendered entirely speechless by shock.
What did humanity actually possess right now?
No superweapons!
No sub-light engines!
Aside from their crude nuclear arsenal, they didn't have a single reliable space-combat weapon! In this state, confronting an advanced alien civilization head-on was a guaranteed death sentence.
Their minds went blank, paralyzed by the sheer gravity of the situation. Even the most brilliant scientists sat in grim, frowning silence.
The news was terrifying. A signal from an extraterrestrial civilization originating from outside the Solar System. Was it related to the alien wreck buried on Mars? Were they just passing through, or had they come specifically for this star system? Why did they broadcast a signal at all?
