by Toker, Dor
“The second thing?” Elizabeth was momentarily confused.
“You said you have two things to tell me.”
Ellie marveled over the boy’s equanimity and his voice froze the blood in her veins. The boy was angry and it was a good sign that the information had been assimilated by him and immediately transformed into pure emotions. He needed to be angry, but Elizabeth was missing the sorrow that should have accompanied the anger. His reaction had been too balanced and restrained. “Your parents,” Elizabeth began, then stopped.
“What about my parents?” asked the boy, “they’re dead.”
“I know,” said Ellie. “I don’t know what you know about the circumstances of their death, and it is important that you know everything. Your mother and father did not accidentally die. They were murdered.” She examined Adam, seeking a reaction to her words, but not even a trace was seen on his face to indicate he had heard her words. Adam directed a cold and indifferent gaze at her. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“Really?” asked Adam because that was all he was able to utter at that moment. He had been busy for so long in blaming his parents for neglecting him and leaving him by himself. He was angry at them and the anger had clouded his senses, but it had also guided him and directed his way. The knowledge that someone else was responsible for their death and his condition, even though Amir Lev had already raised similar suspicions, shocked him and pulled the rug from under his feet. He was flooded with guilt and his eyes watered. He turned around from Elizabeth and stared at the white, barren wall. Ellie approached him and extended her hand toward him, but half way, she stopped herself, hesitating. Her hand was almost placed on his shoulder, then she lowered it and stood still next to the youth. Finally, she gave up, turned around and left the room, leaving behind an angry boy who had become a man all at once by this new revelation.
Chapter 10
The prime minister of autonomous Australia, James Chapalcharie, first and foremost among the ‘Dreaming People’ had navigated his country with impressive elegance within the political thicket of the major superpowers for many years. He managed to establish Australia as a neutral zone, in which the United World Parliament was located, as well as the deputations of the largest commercial corporations. Even though his authority had been limited by the Central Government Committee, in actuality, Chapalcharie was one of the most influential people on the face of the Earth due to the fact that he was the ultimate authority, which allowed entry and exit from the space port.
In the political-geographical division that the Mumbai treaty had outlined, Australia became a type of testing ground for the super powers’ ability to cooperate with one another. The small continent remained a kind of autonomy, headed by a committee composed of delegates from all six superpowers and delegates of the local citizens. It had no armed forces and its police force did its best not to be too prominent. The only part of the country in which military presence could be felt was the central desert of the continent that had become, over the years, the main launch base for private space shuttles. The ASP Corporation (Australian’s Space Port Inc.) offered both private people as well as government and public companies such inexpensive flights that there was no justification for any organization to maintain its own landing strip. The Great Victoria Desert in the southern and western parts of the continent, with its arid salt water lakes, became the giant space shuttles’ home port, the sole civilian arrivals and departures site on the globe. The location allowed the most economical takeoff and landing angles, as well as greater precision and higher acceleration rates. Upon their return to Earth, the space shuttles, carrying quarried substances from Mars and Jupiter’s moons, docked in a station outside the atmosphere, above the ‘Australia One’ port, taking care not to cross the misty climate control strip that wrapped the blue planet and regulated its climate. Small navigation hovercrafts attached themselves and led them down toward the space docks on the face of the Earth. Immediately as they landed, their merchandise was unloaded and transported to their destination on the Southern Time Rings (STR © Southern Time Ring). The Time Rings were gigantic buoyancy rings that circled the Earth and served as a monument of humanity’s ability to join as one in order to accomplish a single task. All major superpowers had joined forces to accomplish this floating project as a gesture of good will, indicating a common striving for world peace. The Buoyancy Rings that circled the Earth were supposed to be the fastest, most economical transportation means humanity had yet known.
The idea behind the construction of the rings was to utilize the rotational speed of the Earth in order to move from one place to another. The width of the rings was exactly one hundred and fifty feet, and they circled the Earth in orbits that were devoid of mountain obstacles, about a mile above sea level. One was constructed next to the equator, the central ring, the other, the northern one, above Northern Europe, North America and large parts of Asia, the third, the southern, floated in the air above Australia, South America and the southern part of Africa. The use of the rings was supposed to be perfectly simple and significantly cheaper that other means of transportation. A ground hovercraft would rise in the air, connect to the static Buoyancy Ring and allow the Earth to continue with its rotation until its destination would reveal itself below. The hovercraft would disengage itself from the ring and glide down with a speed appropriated to the spinning of the Earth until it would land. Of course, the direction of the Earth’s rotation dictated the transit time from place to place and whoever needed to travel in the opposite direction had to continue and use traditional transportation means.
It was an ambitious project whose cost was beyond imagination and whose construction continued for almost thirty years. But when the work was done, the rings significantly shortened the amount of time it took to move from one continent to another.
Five years later, the Norwegian corporation Kraftig announced a new invention, curled air holes (Curly Wind Tunnels CWT ©) that stretched like tunnels throughout the planet’s atmosphere, an invention that rendered the use of the Buoyancy Rings useless.
Since the technique of the curly wind tunnels had been put in use, the rings were mainly used for the transportation of merchandise and cargo. Today, the only ones who still use the Buoyancy Rings are the ones traveling to space or returning from it.
The two additional time rings, other than the southern one, have long been rendered inactive, and only the one that connects Australia still operates regularly and serves as the main route leading to the world space port.
Just like every morning, the prime minister had begun his day with dream practice, like his fathers and forefathers had done for centuries. He clung to the vision of the running boy that accompanied him since he had come of age. It seemed as though the dream possessed its own rhythm. He was never able to advance more than a few miles, he was always dressed the same and his pursuers with their black suits, were always remote and unidentifiable. And always, every night, every dream, he felt the hand of the great goddess, turned to her and was swallowed in her black eyes that made him feel more Aborigine, yet also a part of the family of nations.
A sharp knock on his room’s door interrupted his concentration and he was drawn out of the dream before its regular ending, which he could never recall. He knew the frustration that accompanied the inability to finish the process of the dreaming will burden his heart throughout the day, and yet he called, “Come in,” and invited whoever had knocked on his door with an official tone.
Into the room entered his personal bodyguard, Don Manialock. “They’re here,” he announced, “should I tell them to wait?”
“Yes,” answered Chapalcharie, “I’ll see them in the orange office.” Manialock straightened up in reply to the command, turned around and left. The prime minister headed to the bathroom, shoved the Flash tooth cleaner (Tooth Care Flash OMD ©) into his mouth and waited for the light in the instrument to turn green and indicate his teeth to be in perfect condition. He went into the entrance hall and opened the door
leading to the orange office. Chapalcharie sat in his chair and held the traditional dream-power stick that had passed in his family for generations. A soft knock on the door preceded the entry of his distinguished guests.
Manialock led the two men who arrived from New York at the request of their employers, to meet the Australian Chief and discuss a sensitive matter with him, at least that was what the message sent to him two days earlier had stated. Even a prime minister could not refuse the demands of the Skil Corporation. Manialock waited until the guests were seated, then immediately left the office. Chapalcharie activated the shielding and encoding measures (Shield & Encoding ©) and at the same time turned on the ancient recording device. He was certain that the office was scanned that very moment by subcutaneous detectors, implanted in his guest’s bodies and assumed that the old technology of the recording device would not allow its identification. He cleared his throat and flashed them a polite smile. “To what do I owe the pleasure of hosting both of you in my humble abode?” he chose to open with formalities. The two connectors maintained polite expressions, but Chapalcharie felt that beneath the perfect formality they demonstrated, the two were tense and serious.
“The pleasure is ours, Prime Minister,” answered the older of the two, “greetings from my bosses.” The two men nodded simultaneously and Chapalcharie nodded back. John Wooden was the name of the older man and Chapalcharie knew he held a very high position in the corporation’s management. He had never met him and was extremely curious to learn the reasons that’d brought the senior manager to his office. The second man, even though he was younger than Wooden, demonstrated such tranquility and disinterest that he made the prime minister feel uncomfortable. He was not identified by Chapalcharie’s people. If not for Wooden’s rank and importance, he would never have gained access to a face-to-face meeting with the Prime Minister. “Skil would like to thank you for your assistance in the matter of the private hovercraft pilots. Thanks to you, space merchandise now reaches their destinations more quickly.”
Chapalcharie smiles politely. “It was the least I could do…,” he said and did not finish the sentence. The aggressive methods of the corporation have infiltrated the Australian port. The corporation demanded to stop all private takeoffs from the central docks and transfer them to the outer, smaller docks. At the same time, the super-conglomerate threatened all private pilots that provided cheaper and faster delivery services. Shortly before the confrontation would become violent, the Australian prime minister solved the problem by initiating the opening of a new landing site, intended solely for the use of private customers. Chapalcharie was very careful to hide the revulsion he felt toward the large corporation and its belligerent methods. “How can I help you, gentlemen?” he asked, implying with his question that his time was short.
“In the course of the next few months, perhaps by the end of the year, a certain man will attempt to sneak his way through the port and into the solar system,” said Wooden. “He is extremely dangerous, a criminal according to the general constitution, threatening to harm the corporation and human beings everywhere. We are not requesting that you will arrest him or openly act against him. Our only request is this: let us know when he arrives.”
‘That was straight and to the point’, thought Chapalcharie, maintaining a dignified appearance. “Surely you know that this falls outside of our jurisdiction,” he said, “our laws and policies do not allow us to report a person without receiving a warrant from the World Border Patrol Police (WBPP).” Wooden fished a document out of his briefcase and handed it to Chapalcharie who examined it closely. He hid his excitement as he recognized the photo of the boy from his dream, attached to the formal warrant of extradition. In his dream, he could never clearly see the face of the running boy, but the moment he saw the picture, he knew it was him. Adam First, he read the name of the wanted person, no longer a child, but not yet a man, young and handsome. This was the man who endangered the Skil Empire? “Am I allowed to know what he’s done to earn such a dubious reputation?”
“Surely you understand I can’t answer that,” said Wooden and Chapalcharie nodded, feigning understanding.
“I’ll do whatever I can to assist you,” the prime minister summarized and turned his head to the screen that glittered behind his guests, “now you’ll have to excuse me, I have a tight schedule.”
Both connectors rose from their seats. He shook their hands and accompanied them outside his chamber. Just before he closed the door, Wooden said, “Skil will be more than grateful for your assistance in the matter of the escaped criminal.” He did not respond to his words and closed the door, careful not to reveal his anger. ‘Are they trying to bribe me?’ he thought, ‘how dare they? Someone didn’t do his homework.’ He was very proud of the fact he had never taken any bribe and always conducted himself without favoritism, acted with decency and earned a reputation as one of the world’s most honest men. The dreams had taught him humility and humanity, and he did his best to implement them in his relationship with the ‘unreal world’ as the people of the dream called what the rest of humankind referred to as reality. He tapped his middle finger to establish contact and once he received approval for a secure line, he said, “Ellie? Chapalcharie. Wooden was just here.”
Once he had finished speaking with Elizabeth, he turned to his assistant who was standing beside him: “I have a mission for you, Don.”
“I’m at your service,” answered Don Manialock and straightened his back.
“We need to keep an eye on this boy when he gets here,” the prime minister instructed, “he’s important.” Manialock nodded.
“When is he supposed to arrive?” asked Don.
“It’ll take some time,” answered Chapalcharie, “but he will arrive and when that happens, we need to be ready to receive him.” Don nodded again, turned around and exited the orange office. Chapalcharie waited another moment, then sat in his armchair behind the desk. He knew that Don would do everything he could to fulfill his request.
Chapter 11
Elizabeth sat behind her table in the spacious office located next to her living quarters. She gazed at the large window that composed most of the office walls. Beyond the window, the depths of the Northern Sea were revealed. She could not stop thinking of the boy she had left, lost and alone, in the white room. She knew she must allow him to digest everything she had told him and that he must do that by himself. More than once, she found herself fighting the urge to return to the room and embrace him. She didn’t have children of her own and knew that people were talking behind her back about the fact she was an old bachelorette and that she’d been married to her work most of her life. She didn’t care. She had led the organization almost from the day it had been established, after John Barnes had been killed in an attack that forced them to go underground. Today, under her leadership, the organization was so secret that Ellie had often suspected the leaders of the superpowers and the organizations did not remember it at all. To her great joy, the only time it was discovered turned out to be a blessing. Joseph was a significant addition to their strength. And now the youth. She knew she had no other choice but order his rescue, but she also assumed that the rescue mission would hurt their secrecy and may even force them to find another hiding place. She was sorry that they may soon be forced to leave Lower Amsterdam, but staying was even more dangerous. The sound of a soft knock on the door awoke her from her reflections. The door opened and a young warrior was standing at the entrance. She nodded at him and he moved aside and cleared the way to Adam.
“He demanded to see you,” said the sentry.
“I understand,” said Ellie with an expressionless face and signaled to the guard that he was relieved. The soldier nodded and turned back. The door closed and they remained by themselves. Ellie led the boy to a chair in front of her table, and she sat in hers. She examined his face and saw in it a startling level of toughness and indifference. “I know how difficult it is to accept the loss of loved ones,” she said softl
y.
“You don’t know anything,” hissed Adam with restrained anger.
“I do,” whispered Ellie.
The boy ignored her answer, “who killed my parents?” he snapped, “and Naomi?” he added, connecting the two events in his mind.
“First of all, I would like to help you stay alive,” said Ellie.
“Then what?” the boy interrogated her, “suppose you succeed and I stay alive, what then? Will you tell me who killed them?”
“Yes,” Ellie agreed, “on the condition that you won’t try to locate the killers by yourself. That’ll be suicide and I’m not willing to take responsibility for such a futile action.”
“I want to catch them,” the boy almost screamed, “they deserve to be harmed.”
“That’s not an emotional place you want to be in,” Ellie tried to calm him down, “sometimes you need to let bygones be bygones,” she sounded pathetic even to her own ears, but couldn’t think of a better suggestion, “besides, you need to wait until the implant is ready and in the meantime I’ll prepare you for its hatching.”
“Implant?” Adam asked, momentarily confused, “what implant?”
“The head implant,” Ellie replied with what was obvious to her, “didn’t they teach you anything in the Jewish reservation?” She was both surprised and embarrassed by his ignorance about the subject. She had never met anyone who did not know what the implants were. Everyone was familiar with the head implants. “Almost every child in the world receives their head implant slightly before they are a year old, just before the fontanel closes in their heads,” she began to explain, “the implant is attached to the baby’s brain, sends tiny bulbs of nerves to both the right and the left lobes, and develops along with its adoptive host. It is a passive development process in which the implant gathers information and prepares for its designated role.” She felt like a schoolteacher reciting a textbook and hated herself for it, but the boy lacked a lot of information and time was of the essence.