Sheldon flew down until he was hovering behind one of the sets of light standards, just to the side of the scoreboard. A few seconds later, two F-16s roared over the ballpark, far lower than any civilian aircraft would ever venture. The crowds froze in place and tens of thousands of heads turned in unison, forming a human wave of sorts. The effect was probably similar to what pilots had described during the Falklands War, when they’d flown over beaches covered end-to-end with penguins.

“They are coming around for another pass,” Sheldon said. “I doubt we are in any real danger, but is there any point in remaining?”

“Not really,” I replied. “Get us out of here at your discretion.”

“Acknowledged.”

Without any kind of transition or feeling of acceleration, we were suddenly several thousand feet above the city, and accelerating. In a few more seconds, the Earth began to show a perceptible curve.

“I will put us in a low orbit for the moment, so you can discuss next steps.”

“Thanks, Sheldon. So, what now, guys?”

Patrick took a deep breath and slowly let it out before replying. “Let’s wait to see how the news cycle handles this. We’re going to have to play it by ear, though. It’s not like there’s a manual for this kind of shit-disturbing.”

Nat got up. “I’m going to grab my tablet and make a list of suggestions for more appearances. That was fun!”

I followed her toward the door. “Now that sounds like a plan.”

Sheldon had put up several different network feeds on the display wall, as well as video streams from CNN, MSNBC, and Fox. We certainly had people’s attention. And in the age of smartphones, there was no shortage of pictures and videos.

As Nat had intimated, though, the event was being explained away as a marketing campaign whose blimp had accidentally drifted over the field. They even had a company identified as a sacrificial goat. The president of the beer company had already been interviewed, then apologized and resigned.

“I’ve never heard of that particular brand of beer,” Patrick commented. “And I like to think I know beer.”

“A real conno-soo-er,” Nat opined, favoring him with a smirk.

“I’m impressed by how quickly the Loranna were able to line it up,” I said. “I wonder if they bought the CEO or if they already owned the company. Or if the company even existed twenty-four hours ago. It might be an interesting bit of side research to find out which. Sheldon, any info on that?”

“Sorry, Jack. I didn’t get even a quarter of the files before we were cut off. There’s nothing specifically relating to this in what I have.”

Nat gritted her teeth, looking increasingly frustrated. “Fine. So what about another appearance?”

“Let’s see, it’s midday in Japan,” I said. “Want to buzz some skyscrapers?”