Mission Origin View (Final Days Trilogy) Read Online Free PDF

turned forty-seven. She had been in the United States Navy since her graduation from Annapolis. She had served on several Earth ocean vessels early in her career and had worked her way up to captain a space combat vessel. She had combat experience on the ocean and in space.
    Marine Captain Rezin Neubauer looked like a typical marine captain. He was average height, muscular, dark-brown eyes, with short light-brown hair. Gideon noticed the captain wore numerous campaign ribbons, several service metal ribbons, and a Purple Heart ribbon with three oak leaf clusters.
     
    ***
     
    By 1000 the conference room held fourteen naval personnel and five marines. They were talking among themselves trying to figure out what was going on. Finally the conference room door opened, and everyone stopped talking.
    Senator Rimms entered , followed by Admiral Frank. The sailors and marines saw the admiral and stood at attention. The senator walked to the podium as Admiral Frank followed.
    “ Please be seated, ladies and gentlemen,” Senator Rimms said.
    Everyone sat.
    “I’m Senator Rimms, Senate Armed Services Chairman, and this is Admiral Frank, your new commander. He’ll now brief you on your new assignment,” the senator said as he stepped aside and allowed Admiral Frank to approach the podium.
    “ Sailors, marines…you are now officially assigned to Mission Origin View. This mission is classified ultra top secret. Your mission is to take a team of scientists safely to a point in space where they’ll use highly advanced long-range optical and sensor devices in an attempt to discover how life originated on Earth,” Admiral Frank said as he looked at the sailors and marines seated at the table. He saw blank stares looking back at him, and he assumed each sailor and marine was trying to grasp the significance of what he or she had just heard.
    Admiral Frank continued . “Over the next two days you’ll be briefed here on your individual and group responsibilities and then be transported to Phobos. You’ll have two days to become familiar with your ship, the SRS Stephen Hawking, and then you’ll embark on the mission.
    “ I know everyone has questions, and that’s why we’ll be briefing you individually and in specific groups. When you arrive at your assigned quarters, you’ll find a briefing schedule loaded on an ATCCS that’s been specially designed for this mission. Your ATCCS will be worn on the forearm of your mission uniform, and you’ll be scheduled for a wireless communications device to be implanted in your ear this afternoon. The implant allows verbal communicates with your ATCCS. Dismissed!”
    Everyone stood at attention as Admiral Frank and Senator Rimms left the room. A few seconds later, everyone slowly left the conference room, and marine guards escorted him or her to his or her quarters.
     
    ***
     
    Gideon arrived at his quarters: one room, a cot, a small desk, a chair, and a locker. Men, women, civilians, officers, and enlisted shared a latrine down the hall.
    Gideon saw one plain, unmarked white jumpsuit and four green mission jumpsuits hanging in his locker. He pulled one of the green mission jumpsuits out and examined it. It was a traditional, lightweight, dark-green marine starship uniform with his last name stenciled above a small pocket on his left chest. Gold second lieutenant bars were stenciled on his collar. Patches were also on his jumpsuit. The patches were attached using micrometal velcro. A ship patch was located above the pocket on the right side of his chest, while a mission emblem patch was attached to his left shoulder. An American flag patch and a marine unit patch were attached to his right shoulder.
    On a shelf above his jumpsuits were standard -issue underwear, socks, a pair of boots, and his new ATCCS.
    Gideon tossed his new jumpsuit on his cot , picked up the ATCCS, and examined it. The ATCCS was wider, had a larger display, and was thinner than the normal wrist version. He also noted