SECTION III: A UNIVERSE REVEALED
CNN SPECIAL REPORT: A UNIVERSE REVEALED
CNN CENTER, ATLANTA, GEORGIA
MAY 14, 2012
The footage behind Anderson Cooper had been replayed so many times during the previous week that most Americans could recognise every terrible moment before it arrived.
The blue portal opened above Stark Tower, the clouds folded inward, and the first wave of Chitauri soldiers descended into Manhattan beneath a sky that no longer belonged entirely to humanity.
The recording shifted to a montage of the Avengers fighting on the streets of New York City, before focusing on Thor standing above Grand Central Station, silver armour reflecting the fires below while lightning gathered around the hammer raised above his head.
Then came Loki in Munich, dressed in green and gold while frightened civilians knelt before him beneath the curved horns of his helmet.
The final image showed Green Lantern suspended above Stark Tower, holding an emerald barrier across the portal while an extraterrestrial army battered against it from another region of space.
Anderson turned from the screen and faced the camera.
“One week ago, humanity stopped debating whether intelligent life existed beyond Earth, because intelligent life arrived above our largest city carrying an invasion force.”
The words A UNIVERSE REVEALED appeared behind him while the four guests seated around the curved glass table prepared themselves for the discussion.
“We now possess empirical evidence that multiple non-human civilisations exist beyond our recognised borders, and that at least some have visited Earth before. One visitor, Loki, commanded the force that attacked New York, while another, Thor, fought beside the Avengers and helped defend the city, we have also witnessed technology capable of opening gateways across space, weapons exceeding anything held by modern governments, tonight, we will examine what those discoveries mean for science, religion, human evolution, and the future of civilization beyond Earth.”
Anderson turned toward the panel seated around the curved glass table beside him.
“Joining us tonight is Doctor Jane Foster, an astrophysicist whose work focuses upon gravitational anomalies, atmospheric disturbances, Einstein–Rosen bridges, and the possibility of using naturally occurring distortions in spacetime to travel across astronomical distances. Her research into unusual auroral events and electromagnetic patterns led her to New Mexico last year, where she recorded the first measurable evidence of a stable bridge connecting Earth with the extraterrestrial realm known as Asgard.”
Jane offered Anderson a polite nod, although the exhaustion of the previous week remained visible beneath her professional composure.
“Thank you for having me, Anderson, and for finally giving us an opportunity to discuss the science behind these events openly.”
“Doctor Reed Richards is a theoretical physicist and engineer best known for his groundbreaking paper, Dimensional Displacement and Macro-Quantum Super-Strings, which proposed that Earth-built particle accelerators could fold spacetime and open gateways into alternate dimensions. an idea the Tesseract has now demonstrated on a terrifyingly practical scale. Doctor Richards is also preparing to lead a privately funded orbital mission alongside a multidisciplinary research team aboard an experimental spacecraft of his own design. The mission, currently scheduled for later next year, will carry the team beyond Earth’s protective magnetosphere to study an unusually powerful wave of cosmic radiation predicted to pass through near-Earth space, Doctor Richards, thank you for joining us, particularly with what I imagine must be a remarkably busy launch schedule ahead of you.”
“Thank you for having me, Anderson, although recent events have given my team considerably more variables to consider before we leave the atmosphere.”
“Doctor Henry McCoy is a geneticist, evolutionary biologist, biochemist, physician, and one of the world’s foremost authorities on mutation and adaptive human physiology. His research focuses upon the X-gene, hereditary mutation, accelerated evolutionary development, and the biological relationship between baseline humanity and emerging mutant populations. Doctor McCoy has also published extensively on mutant medicine, genetic discrimination, and the dangers of treating biological variation as evidence of criminality or social inferiority. As a mutant himself, his work combines decades of laboratory research with personal experience navigating the medical, political, and ethical consequences surrounding the X-gene.”
Hank smiled warmly, and one enormous blue-furred hand adjusted the small reading glasses resting across the bridge of his nose.
“It is a pleasure to be here, Anderson, and I appreciate the opportunity to approach these events through evidence rather than fear.”
“Reverend Doctor Matthew Hargrove is a professor of systematic theology, author, ordained minister, and senior fellow at the conservative American Covenant Institute. His academic work examines the relationship between religious doctrine, scientific discovery, bioethics, and the moral limits of emerging technologies. He has written extensively on creation, human exceptionalism, genetic engineering, and the theological consequences of enhanced individuals whose abilities challenge traditional understandings of humanity. Doctor Hargrove has also served as an adviser to several congressional committees considering religious liberty, mutant registration proposals, and the regulation of technologies capable of permanently altering the human body.”
Hargrove straightened slightly in his chair and offered Anderson the restrained, practised smile of someone accustomed to defending unpopular positions beneath television lights.
“Thank you for inviting me, Anderson, because the questions raised by these events reach far beyond laboratories and scientific institutions.”
Anderson allowed the introductions to settle before turning toward Jane, whose research had placed her closer to these questions than almost anyone else on Earth.
“For generations, scientists have searched the skies for evidence that humanity is not alone, relying upon distant signals, mathematical probability, and observations gathered across almost unimaginable distances, you encountered that evidence personally in New Mexico, long before the rest of the world watched an extraterrestrial army descend over Manhattan. Doctor Foster, the events in New York appear to have provided definitive proof that intelligent life exists beyond Earth, but they have also raised another question being asked across the world tonight. Why are you only coming forward with this research now, and why was evidence this important kept from the public until after the invasion?”
Jane folded her hands together before answering, her expression carrying the fatigue of someone who had spent the previous week repeating conclusions she had reached more than a year earlier.
“The simple answer is that I was not permitted to come forward, because everything my team recorded in New Mexico was confiscated and classified by S.H.I.E.L.D., our equipment, research notes, atmospheric readings, and every piece of data connected to Thor’s arrival were placed under watch before we could publish or submit them for independent review. I objected repeatedly, and I spent months trying to argue my case for work that belonged to my team, but S.H.I.E.L.D. considered the existence of Asgard a matter of global security, their position was that confirming extraterrestrial contact without understanding Asgard’s intentions could create panic, political instability, and international competition over technology nobody was prepared to control. I did not agree with that decision, but there was very little I could do against an intelligence agency capable of classifying the evidence and denying the event ever occurred, I was glad they even let me continue my research.”
Jane glanced toward the image of Thor standing above Grand Central Station, lightning spreading across the burning skyline behind him.
“After New York, secrecy stopped being practical, billions of people had already watched the evidence unfold in real time. S.H.I.E.L.D. approached me afterward and asked that I explain what we currently understand, because they believe honest information is now the first step toward reducing public fear, people are frightened because the universe suddenly feels much larger and more dangerous than it did one week ago.”
Anderson nodded toward the images of Thor and Loki now displayed beside one another.
“Many people have described this as contact with two opposing alien civilizations, one represented by Loki attacking Earth and another represented by Thor defending it, is that an accurate interpretation of what occurred?” Find the original chapter at g.com.
“No, and that distinction is more important than it might initially sound.” Jane gestured toward Loki’s image.
“Thor and Loki were raised within the same civilization, belonged to the same royal household, and appear to have operated within the same political system for most of their lives, Loki led the attack, but the Chitauri were a separate military force whose precise relationship with him remains unclear.”
She turned back to Anderson.
“They may have been allies, mercenaries, subjects, or troops provided by another power that expected something from Loki in return, what humanity encountered was not one alien species attacking while another species arrived heroically to save us. We witnessed an individual from one civilization use the military forces of another civilization to invade Earth, while his own brother opposed him.”
Reed leaned forward slightly and added on.
“That makes the wider implication considerably more complicated, because it shows the universe already contains political relationships that we might have to learn to properly navigate.” He suggested.
“There must be alliances, rivalries, armies, royal families, technological exchanges, and probably disputes over territory that we have not even begun identifying.”
“Exactly so.” Jane agreed.
Anderson turned toward Jane again.
“Thor and Loki both appear within Norse mythology, which raises a question many religious communities have spent the week struggling to answer, were the Norse gods actually extraterrestrial beings who visited early human societies?”
Jane considered the question carefully before responding.
“Thor has identified himself as the same individual preserved within Norse traditions, and the available evidence supports repeated contact between Asgard and human societies during antiquity. He possesses personal knowledge of events preserved within Norse mythology, an extraordinarily long lifespan, and abilities that early human witnesses would reasonably have understood as divine, and while that does not mean every surviving story should be treated as a completely accurate historical record, because oral traditions naturally change as they pass between cultures and generations, however, the available evidence strongly suggests that at least some Norse myths contain distorted memories of genuine contact between ancient humanity and non-human visitors.”
She cleared her throat before continuing on.
“The question we cannot avoid now is whether that explanation applies exclusively to the Norse traditions, or whether similar encounters influenced other mythologies throughout human history.”
Anderson nodded slowly while the screen behind them changed, displaying images of Egyptian, Greek, Mayan, and Hindu deities beside the footage of Thor and Loki.
“That leads directly into the question being asked by historians, scientists, and religious communities across the world tonight…if the beings remembered as Thor and Loki were long-lived extraterrestrial visitors, then how many other ancient religions could have begun as misunderstood accounts of first contact? Were the gods of Egypt visitors from another world, were the Mayan deities based upon similar encounters, and could the Greek pantheon represent another civilization entirely? Forgive the bluntness of the question, Reverend, but does this possibility extend even to the central figures of Chri–”
“No, Anderson, and I must stop you before we casually place Jesus Christ within the same category as an extraterrestrial warlord wearing a horned helmet.”