First contact?

You want to learn about the time when we first met the other members of
our Galaxy? Alright, alright, Ill tell you. I was just a kid back then, only seventeen years
old. I still remember the day when I first heard the transmissions.
!
!
Humanity first learned it was not alone in the universe with shocking speed. The
first sign that we were not the only sentient species was when a satellite picked up
transmissions from thirteen moving sources. Transmissions that were in a language
completely foreign to human ears. After the first realization that we were listening to
alien speech, real alien speech, Humanity moved quickly. The information was quietly
spread to each of the Earths governments, who unanimously agreed to form a
conglomeration, the United Earth Coalition.
The people of Earth soon learned of the transmissions shortly after the founding of the
UEC, and that changed our world. Riots and insurrections rose across the globe,
religious fundamentalists who couldnt take the fact that we were not alone. They
believed it was a trick, a farce by the UEC to take control of the world. So they rose up,
hundreds of small rebellions, spread over the entire Earth. The UEC had to take care of
these rebels by force, the first show of strength by the new Earth government. It was
over in six months, just before the time my parents were going to let me join the fight.
After the dust had settled, we were truly one united Earth.
Apple pie? Oh yes please, thank you my dear. Now you see kids, grandpa needs his
apple pie, or else he doesnt feel too good. Run along now Sarah, and fetch me my
reading glasses, will you?
Where was I? Oh yes, after the rebels. We had been monitoring those transmissions all
those long months, you see, they had been coming from Alpha Centauri, yes that Alpha
Centauri.
Oh, this apple pie is delicious, thank you again dear.
Anyways, we started to beam out transmissions that way, simple calls, indicating that
there was something out here in the void, a civilization that could understand them. We
were ecstatic when the signals changed course and headed our way. However, we were
also cautious, very cautious. We had just established our first colony on Mars, that was
about 2035, three years before we first came across the signals. Mars had rebelled two
years after it was founded, becoming its own independent government. So, eight
months after we learned we were not alone, we extended the olive branch to Mars. Now
we were the United Planets of Sol. However, that didnt last long before we changed the
name. Some company actually sued the government over infringement. The Coalition of
Colonized Planets began production on its first space station the first day it was
created.
This was the Space Station Alamo, how ironic of a name. It was not only a station, it
was also a gunnery platform. The United States had figured out railgun technology only
a few years before, and the largest railgun we had ever made had a space station built

over it. A kilometer long railgun, with a fort armed with missiles, railguns, and a mall was
constructed over the course of five months. During that time, the first space navy,
marines, and army was being trained, from new recruits and veterans of the old armies.
I volunteered for the Navy, and boy what a rush that was. My first assignment was on
the Alamo as a matter of fact. After months of training, I was deemed fit to wash the
floors. Yup, your grandpa used to be a janitor. But I was a Space Janitor goddamnit.
Oh yes, Im sorry dear, Ill try not to swear around the grandkids anymore.
We were ready. Earth was ready. Now all we had to do was wait.