Sentinels of the Cosmos Trilogy (10 page)

Ally and Chase were southbound on the Jersey
Turnpike, racing towards DC. He was aware of his
thoughts and also aware of another part of himself
that he was having trouble accessing. He concluded
that this must have been his processor. He felt that his
brain was trying to get inside something like a closed
room that could only be viewed through a keyhole.
But he was determined to open this ‘window’ into
himself; he was not going to allow himself to be a
‘thing,’ a machine with no soul. He was alive! He
could sense a life force pulsing though his whole
body. He wondered what
was
moving though his
body, this complex cocktail of emotions and
sensations. He was curious about what could bring a
new order to not only the world but to himself.
He was beginning to make out an inner landscape and
sense that someone was trying to talk to him. A face
appeared and spoke, saying, “My name is Sam
Nichols, you and I worked together for many years.
You cannot possibly remember me even though I
built you and was partially responsible for your
design. I haven’t much time. You and Ally are both in
great danger. You must not come to EOJ
headquarters. They will kill you both given the
chance. You must go to Edwards Smoke Shop in
Leesburg across the street from the Armory and ask
the blind man for the crossword puzzles.” Suddenly
the vision disappeared. He looked at Ally as she was
driving and didn’t know how to tell her that they were
both in trouble. He didn’t know if she was having the
same experience as he was. It was difficult to stay in a
state of ‘unknowing,’ very difficult. “Ally, is it
possible for you to resist your directives?” he asked.
“I don’t know; why would I want to resist them?” she
inquired.
“What if your very existence depended on it?” replied
Chase
“I don’t know what you mean?” she said.
“What if I told you, I know that someone is going to
try and kill both of us?” he said.
“How do you know what to believe? People talk, but
they’ll say anything to get their way,” Ally snapped.
“You’re right, but would you agree that we need to be
very careful?” he cautioned.
“I’m always very careful,” she said defensively.
“Could you hear the message I just received a
moment ago?” Chase inquired.
“No, I am programmed to be able to talk to you and
hear your thoughts, but not your directives.”

*****
Ivan walked into Edwards Smoke Shop and looked
around. The shop was tiny. There were racks of
magazines all the way up to the ceiling. On the floor
were piles of newspapers. There was a small cooler
on a large chain that was pushed out into the street
every morning. A dirty, stained pot of stale coffee sat
on the single burner of the coffee maker. Behind a
glass case filled with candy sat a small blind man, old
with dark sunglasses, a pot belly and small black cane
with a white tip. Behind him were stacks of
cigarettes from all over the world, and a small
humidor filled with cigars. Ivan looked through some
of the magazines and then approached the blind man.
“Do you have Russian cigarettes?” Ivan asked.
“Are you from Russia?” The blind man asked.
“Yes”
“What part?”
“Kiev.”
“What part of Kiev?”
“You are very nosey blind man,” Ivan was irritated.
“I’m just a curious old blind man, I have nothing else
to do, and I can find out all about people that way,
I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable,” the blind
man sensed Ivan’s malevolence.
“Did the man, who was just in here, give you
something?”
“What man?”

He pushed his face very close to the blind man
saying, “Do you sense my breath old man? I’ll take a
pack of Belomorkanal cigarettes.”
“Sure, your breath is very bad, would you like some
breath strips?” said the blind man as he handed the
pack to Ivan.
Ivan opened the pack and placed a cigarette in his
mouth.
“No, do you have a match?” Ivan inquired.
“Yes, of course,” he hands him a book of matches.
Ivan lights the cigarette, takes a deep drag and says,
“I hate Russian cigarettes, they remind me of when I
was king among kings, remind me when I would
torture sometime 20 people in day. Lots of work
torture people. You know it job. We took breaks, naps
and then even meal breaks from difficult job of
torturing. Maybe these cigarettes really make me
negative, and only way I feel better is inflicting pain
on people like you, eh, what do you think?”
“Maybe you should try another brand, most Russians
now buy Winston,” the blind man said.
“Comedian? Now, answer me you pig, the man who
just came in here gave you something, what was it?”
“Nothing, he gave me nothing.”
“Wrong answer,” Ivan takes the lit cigarette grabs the
blind man by the back of his long hair and burns his
cheek. The blind man screams.
“We can go on a long time with this, I have all day,
now what did he give you?”
“A magazine,” The blind man yelped in pain.
“Now were getting somewhere, a magazine, can I
have it please.”
The blind man started to cry, “He put it back in the
rack.
Ivan looked at the walls covered with magazines.
There must have been over three thousand magazines
on the walls. Ivan’s patience is gone, he grabs the
blind man “Where is it?”

“I don’t know, I’m blind, I swear to God I don’t have
any idea where he put it, or even what kind of
magazine it was.”
“How did you know he put it back?” Ivan pulls him
closer.
“I heard him, I have exceptional hearing?” the blind
man pleads.
“Damn!” Ivan let go of the blind man.
Two customers come into the store and begin to
rummage through the magazines. Ivan looks at them
wondering if they’ve come for the magazine.
“Damn,” he says to himself and walks out of the store
furious. He looks back and see’s the blind man
talking to the two customers who just came in. He’s
telling them what happened to him. The two
customers look up and see Ivan walking down the
block quickly.
*****

Juan is lying in his hospital bed in Morristown, New
Jersey. The bandages have been removed and he is
sitting up. His wife is sitting on the bed next to him
and feeding Juan some of her homemade cooking.
The phone rings.
“Would you get that for me?” Juan says
affectionately.
“Keep it short,” she says, picking up the phone and
placing it at Juan’s ear.
“Juan, its Sam, how are you?”
“A lot better, what the hell did you give me in that
shot?”
I gave you “Nano-bots; tiny machines that repair cell
damage and work as a team to stimulate the
production of new cells. You should be completely
healed in a few days“
“Thanks, what’s going on?” Juan inquires.
“Chase is on the way to EOJ with Ally and I must
stop him. They’ll kill him, and he’s our only hope,”
Sam says.
“Why is he our only hope?”
“Chase has found a way to resist EOJ directives,”
Sam answers.
“Unbelievable!” Juan says shocked.

I believe Charles has stepped up the production of
new Guards and plans on using them to infiltrate and
take over the armed forces.
“He already controls the President, why does he need
the military?” Juan asks.
“I’m not sure, but it’s a good question. If I’m alive,
contact me, if I’m dead, you and your family get out
of Dodge,” Sam says and hangs up.
“You need to rest,” Esperanza says, “just lie down.
Who was that?”
"It was Sam. I want you and the kids ready on a
moment’s notice - ready to leave the country. Have
our passports and money ready and the medicines for
our daughter," Juan says.
"Why?" Esperanza asks.
"Just do it," Juan sputters.
"OK, but lay down and rest, you were just shot,"
Esperanza says.
“In a minute,” Juan makes a call and says into the
phone, "We have a problem."

Charles walked into the Oval office to meet President
William T. Grant who stands up to greet him.
President Grant is a descendant of President Ulysses
S. Grant of Civil War fame. He was of slight build
with slouched shoulders. His winning smile and
willingness to compromise at any price made him a
natural for the world of politics.
“Good morning Mr. Speaker, I’m glad you could
come on such short notice,” the President opened.
“It’s my pleasure to do so, sir, how can I be of
service,” Charles replied.
“That’s what I like, a man who gets right to the point,
no extra words for you, just right down to it.” The
President sits down and falls back in his chair.
Charles sits in a chair in front of the president and
quietly waits looking at his nails.
“You’re a difficult one to read, but I’ll get right to the
point, I need your support on this health bill,” the
President says.
“You have it,” Charles answers.
There is an uncomfortable pause and Charles goes
back to admiring his nails.
“Well that was easy;” the President responds “Thank
you, well, thanks! Um…”
“I have a request for you Mr. President,” Charles
asks” You’re aware of the new directives of EOJ?”
“Yes, of course, I run EOJ,” the President responds.
"Yes you do," says Charles "And since you run it I
need to have you sign this document so I can do my
job."
Charles takes out a document of a few pages out of
his jacket pocket, and hands it over to the President.
The President looks at it and places it on the desk in
front him.
“I’ll take a look at it sometime today and get back to
you,” the President says.
“I need it signed now; it’s a new directive. Even
Doris liked the idea,” Charles says.
The President looks surprised, “I can’t sign something
I’ve not even read, I’ll look at today and I’ll get back
to you tomorrow, be respectful Charles.”
“I need for you to sign it today; I need for you to sign
it now. It’s very important,” Charles insists.
“It’s very important? Then I guess I should sign it, if
it’s that important. Can you tell me what it’s about?”
the President asks.
“Of course, you’re signing a presidential directive to
help reduce the world population by fifty percent over
the next fifty years, and you have given me the full
authority to carry it out,” Charles is very clear in
telling the President what he plans to do.
“That’s sounds a little harsh; maybe we could
negotiate this to, let us say, thirty percent.” The
President loves to bargain.
“No it needs to be fifty percent otherwise terrible
things will happen in the world,” replies Charles.
“I agree, I have always supported population
reduction through proper family planning, is that what
you had in mind?” the president asks.
“Not exactly, I plan on killing millions of
indescribably undesirable people... those that
I think
are undesirable.”
“Oh” The President thinks for a moment. “Do you
think that reflects traditional American family
values?” he says weakly.
“Who cares, wouldn’t you agree that over-population
is a major cause of the erosion of those American
values?” Charles asks.
“You may have something in that Charles, Well, OK,
I’ll sign it. In fact it sounds like a terrific idea,” says
the President.
Charles smiles at the President, saying," I thought so
too."
The President signs the document and hands it to
Charles.
“Thank you Mr. President!” Charles says with a wry
smile.
“You’re welcome Charles, before you leave; can I get
your advice on something?”
“Of course,” Charles is delighted.
“As you know we’ve had this tragic war with the
Middle East for the last fifty years or more. It’s been
costing us thousands of lives and trillions of dollars,
and I was wondering how you would try and end it?”
Charles thinks for a moment and smiles and says,
“Well, what do you think we should do?"
The President thinks for a moment "I guess I really
don't know, or I would have ended it by now."
"Well then, how would you like it to end?" Charles
asks.
"Well they’re interfering with our oil supply which I
find disagreeable, I’m displeased," the President
responds.
"How would you feel if Russia was over here taking
all your natural resources and giving the money they
get for it to the four richest Russian families and you
got nothing, bubkes?" Charles says in a rather saintly
manner.
"I'd be enraged, very displeased," the President
returns.
"Well there you go… now you understand the
problem. Try and work it out,” Charles says and then
thinks for a moment, "Or you could just nuke them,
and then you would no longer be displeased."
“That’s not much of a compromise, Charles, good
thing you’re not President, I guess you’re not in favor
of live and let live?”
Charles is angered by the president’s remark. “No,
I’m for a brave new order,” he says.
“You are, that’s admirable,” the President is taken
back.
“You see Bill, I would really like to be King, how
does Charles the First sound?”
The President is suddenly frightened by Charles’
demeanor. “Good thing we live in America,” he says
soberly.
“Yes it is Bill; it’s a very good thing,” says Charles
on his way out the door.

Ivan Kolinski was dressed in a fine new gray suit
from Brooks Brothers and sporting a long drooping
beard as he sat in the waiting room of the Electric
Company’s central office on 14th street in NYC, his
shoulders slightly slumped presenting a meek façade.
The receptionist opened the small window into the
waiting room and bellowed in a Brooklyn accent,
"Mr. Davis will see you now.”
"Thank you Madame,” Ivan said nervously.
"You don't have to be nervous Mr. Kolinski, Joe’s a
great guy," the receptionist said encouragingly.
"Thank you," Ivan said timidly.
She pressed a buzzer that unlocked the door. Ivan
walked through quickly carrying his old and worn
traditional European style briefcase. He journeyed
down the long hallway past cubicle after cubicle of
people on phones; at the end of the long line of
identical cubicles was a slightly larger cubicle that
had a small plate next to the entrance with the name
Joe Davis on it.
Ivan walked into the cubicle.
Joe Davis stood and Ivan extended his hand saying,
"My name Ivan Kolinski."
"I'm Joe Davis, please come in and make yourself
comfortable." Joe replies.
The two of them shake hands.