The elderly journalist said quietly, "I appreciate your thoughtfulness and hope you are correct. Good luck to you in your new world."
Thank you, Markham Gray, and goodbye.
The set was suddenly quiet again.
Markham Gray stood before the assembled Military Council of the Solar System. He had told his story without interruption to this most powerful body on Earth. They listened to him in silence.
When he had finished, he waited for their questions. The first came from SupSpaceCom Michell. He said, thoughtfully, "You believe their words to be substantially correct, Gray?"
"I believe them to be entirely truthful, your excellency," the journalist told him sincerely.
"Then they are on the verge of leaving the Earth and removing to this other planet in some other star system?"
"That is their plan."
The SupSpaceCom mused aloud. "We'll be able to locate them when they blast off en masse. Their single ships are so small that they missed being observed, but a mass flight we'll be able to detect. Our cruisers will be able to follow them all the way, blasting them as they go. If any get through to their new planet, we'll at least know where they are and can take our time destroying it."