Alex asked her to marry him. She was convinced Alex was the man she could love unconditionally, they were married in 1980.
Soon after they were married Alex was assigned to Air Force Logistics Command at Wright Patterson AFB in Ohio. Ellen’s career was interrupted, but she didn’t mind. Alex was number two in his graduating class of 1978 and good things were being said about his potential in the Air Force. Occasionally she had to remind Alex he needed to spend a little more time at home rather than at the base. By 1987 he had risen to Major, the same year his only child Curt was born. Now that they had a son Ellen assumed Alex would pay more attention to his home life. Instead, he worked even harder at his assignments…he was in demand as a logistics planner.
In 1991 his A-10 unit was activated for Desert Storm and Alex volunteered for combat duty. Alex distinguished himself in combat and was awarded the Air Force Cross, the second highest medal you could receive, the Air Force Commendation medal, and the Purple Heart…his plane was pummeled by ground fire while providing close air support for a Marine detachment isolated near the Iraqi town of Basra.
After the war he was reassigned to the Pentagon as a Logistics Liaison Officer between joint services and promoted to Lt. Colonel. When Alex was sent to the Middle East during Desert Storm, Ellen was terrified. Curt was only four years old at the time. Upon his return from the Gulf War, she insisted they spend more time together as a family. What she really meant was more quality time. Time just for the two of them to create those special moments they would always remember and cherish.
Ellen hadn’t fared well during her pregnancy, or after Curt’s birth for that matter. Her doctor advised her not to plan on having any more children. Alex was unfazed; he loved her so much and was not at all disappointed. She was the perfect mom, Little League baseball, Pop Warner football, all the way through high school she followed Curt’s successful athletic career. She was always there when he fell and scraped a knee, or didn’t understand why girls acted the way they did. She didn’t baby him though…Alex saw to that. It couldn’t be said they were strict disciplinarians…they simply set rules and expected Curt to follow.
Alex mentally planned vacations for he and Ellen, but something always came up dashing his good intentions. In 1996 while attending the Air War College at Maxwell AFB in Alabama, he flew her and Curt out to meet him and the three of them would either go camping or fishing or head to the Gulf of Mexico. Ellen cherished those times, and she loved Alex for what he gave of himself to her. Alex for his part, couldn’t do enough for her, he was completely devoted to her. But internally he was torn between demands of his job and his love for her.
In late 2007, a routine medical exam revealed a lump in Ellen’s right breast. The biopsy came back positive indicating ductal carcinoma and it was spreading to other parts of her body rapidly. After four months with no sign of improvement, radiation and chemotherapy treatments were discontinued. The cancer had already spread to her liver and kidneys. Curt a sophomore in college at the time, announced he would drop out of school to be with his mom; Ellen would have none of that. She reminded him of all the times she had been there for him while he was growing up, and if he wanted to do something for her in the remaining days…then he would stay in college.
Alex put up a great front; trying to be the tree in the storm she could cling to…internally he was mortally wounded. How could he possibly go on without her? The thought of losing her was ripping him up inside. She sensed Alex was struggling to cope and told him this was the reason why years ago she insisted they set aside the time for just themselves, to build those special memories that would last a lifetime. She reminded him repeatedly that he was a wonderful husband, a decent, honest man, and above all a great father to Curt. She also stated emphatically he was still young and encouraged him to seek another woman deserving of his love and devotion. She gave him her blessing to do whatever his heart told him to do, she would understand. Ellen passed away in May of 2008 and for the first time in Alex’s life he knew what it was like to be totally alone. He couldn’t erase the guilt he felt for not spending more time with the one person he had ever loved.
Alex returned to the Pentagon to address the remaining staff. They had their facility assignments and knew what their orders were. He thanked everyone for their loyalty, many of them could have gone to the media with speculation about what was going on, but all had remained silent.
“Tomorrow at ten a.m. the world will be made aware of a crisis unlike any this planet has ever faced before. I regret there’s nothing more I can do, but pray for each of you and wish you a safe and fruitful life ahead.” Alex shared a holiday drink with everyone.
The day Alex had been dreading arrived; he rose early to prepare for the flight to New York City for his address at the UN. Air Force Two touched down at JFK International Airport where a crowd estimated to be at least one hundred thousand people had gathered even though it was bitterly cold and windy. The crowd hoped to catch a glimpse of the most popular national leader in recent times.
Alex waved to the crowd and they reacted with loud cheers…the guilt crept in; soon he was about to crush people’s hopes and dreams. Little did they know those cheers would soon fade to tears of anguish; a fear of the unknown would grip their very being. Alex was shuttled by helicopter to the UN and quickly escorted to the General Assembly building where he would give his speech. Professor Kumar appeared from a nearby room, greeted him and asked if he would consider meeting the other scientists who had conferred with Professor Kumar on their findings before the announcement was made? Professor Kumar said the group would be seated at a table to Alex’s left facing the assembly. He could reference them at any time to verify their findings. That was the reason they were there, to back him up.
Alex felt it necessary to acknowledge the group of scientists and wanted to thank Professor Kumar and his colleagues for being there to answer any scientific centered questions the assembly members may have that were beyond his knowledge. The assembly clerk appeared at the door; he said the UN Secretary General was ready to introduce General Hanken. Alex took several deep breaths, he wasn’t nervous and felt a strange and unusual calm come over him. He was about to tell the world that an inconceivable disaster was going to befall the peoples of Earth.
“Today at our opening session for the new year we have the distinct honor of presenting the man who engineered the rescue of democracy for his country. He comes before this body with, in his words, a matter of extreme urgency. Ladies and gentlemen of the assembly please welcome General Alex Hanken, of the United States of America,” The UN Secretary General nodded to Alex.
“Mr. Secretary, members of the general assembly, and to all citizens of this planet who you represent, I stand before you today with grim news concerning our world. As you recall, my country just concluded a sad chapter in its history. The conspirators attempting to overthrow our government utilized a rogue computer program tricking our government into thinking a massive asteroid strike was imminent. They used this ruse as cover for their devious plot. The program initially depicted an event that had occurred nearly five years ago. The comet Sedna/Kern p236 for some unexplained reason was thrown out of its then known orbit and hurtled into the asteroid belt. A recording of this event was altered by some very sophisticated computer programmers hoping it would throw our country into chaos, thereby laying the groundwork for the takeover.
“The world space observatories cannot cover the vast expanse of space individually; they must share space with each other and rely on mutual collaboration to disseminate information about events taking place in outer space. This rogue program prevented the observatories from seeing what was actually happening until about a month ago. Seated to my left are nine gentlemen, considered some of the most renowned scientists from around the world, all acknowledged experts in their field. Two weeks ago they approached me with some startling news. Their conclusive calculations show that the comet Sedna/Kern p236 has indeed been knocked out of its original orbit by a massive collision in the asteroid belt. Its original trajectory past the Earth toward the sun, around the sun and passing Earth again has been significantly altered. Ladies and gentlemen I am sorry to tell you this, the comet is heading for an intercept course with Earth; and is expected to strike the planet on or around July 1st of this year.
“Our world will suffer massive damage and regrettably, a significant loss of life. The scientists