by C. G. Cooper
The president stepped in, rightly sensing that father and son would have come to blows, if that were physically possible.
“Listen to me, Ryker. I understand how you feel.”
“I doubt that very much,” I said.
He shook his head sadly.
“You think you’re the only one who’s seen death, experienced pain and suffering? Well, let me tell you what your father hasn’t told you. When The Collapse first happened, when we were still located in Washington, and prior to the formation of The Zones, we opened our doors to the public. We allowed state leadership in and anyone they brought with them. It was our duty, like you said. We gave them food and shelter. We protected them. We gave them medical attention. We did what we were supposed to do.” He paused, his eyes pained now. “You were gone by then, and you didn’t get to see what happened. We went from relative order to outright chaos. Their leaders demanded more, and then opposing factions started pushing others out. We couldn’t keep up. They squandered their opportunity. It snowballed until we finally had to flee, and we gave power back to The Zones. Once we relocated here, and your father and I had a chance to plan for the future, we came to the conclusion that The Zones and their citizens had to earn their way back in. That led to The Patriot Protocol. Like it or not, it’s fair.”
“Sounds more like a feudal system composed of a lord and his peasants,” I said.
“That’s actually not a bad analogy,” my father cut in. “Similar to the lords and their fiefdoms, we’ve promised food and protection to those who prove themselves, much like the peasants of the medieval era pledged themselves to their lord’s service.”
The president looked like he was going to disagree, but he didn’t. Instead he asked me, “What do you think would happen if we opened our doors again? Do you think they would share with one another? Do you think they would unite and work together?”
I didn’t answer. Maybe I had a slightly better view of humanity than they did, but I also couldn’t disagree with their argument. There had to be a better way.
“This is not the perfect answer,” the president continued. “We know there is room for improvement. That’s why we need you and the rest of the five. For this plan to work, we need people who have been out there, and who possess something your father and I don’t.”
“What is he talking about?” Gregor whispered. I’d almost forgotten he was there.
“My father thinks I’m some sort of “super patriot”, and that I should rule the world or something,” I said, my words dripping with sarcasm.
“I’d vote for you,” Gregor said.
“What?”
“I said I’d vote for you. There aren’t many better than you, Ryker. You’ve proven that.”
I didn’t know what to say, and I grimaced when I saw the “I told you so” look on my father’s face.
“With respect,” I said more to the president than to my father, “this is my decision. You can’t make me take a place on the throne if I don’t want to.”
“Of course not,” the president said quickly before my father could chime in. “Take some time to think about it. We know what this means for you.”
I laughed out loud and said, “I’m not sure you do, Mr. President.”
Chapter 36
The president walked back into the circular room lost in thought.
“What do you think?” the image now pacing next to the president asked.
“I’m not sure. He doesn’t seem convinced.”
The image chuckled. “Oh he’ll come around. It just takes him a little longer when I’m involved.”
“Do you think it was a good idea to let him go?” the president asked.
“We didn’t have a choice. Besides, my boy now knows what’s at stake. He’s moral to the core, and he’ll come around to our way of thinking.”
“And the clansmen? What will you tell them?”
The image shrugged. “Now they know not to come here ever again. I suspect they lost half their fleet today.”
The president nodded, still not convinced. There were days that he wondered if he ever should have gone along with the brilliant scientist whose body was now entombed ten feet away. He could have left. He could still leave, really. But without the resources of The Fed, he would be helpless, and he couldn’t leave Scarlett.
No, it was better to stay and see the thing out.
Then he thought of something. “Do you think Ryker knows that you baited the clansmen?”
Another chuckle, this one darker somehow. “Does it matter? We leaked sensitive information to the clans, people my son doesn’t even know. The important thing is that he knows the power he could wield, or rather, the power he could employ should the need arise, which I predict will happen.”
The president shook his head.
“I hope you’re right.”
“Don’t worry old friend, my son will return sooner than you think.”
Epilogue
We returned to Gregor’s hobbit home without further incident. Before we left The Fed, I ensured the device my father had surreptitiously implanted was extracted. For the procedure, I had to be sedated, but I insisted that Gregor was allowed to observe. Now, my body was once again tech free.
It was a moonless night when we arrived at Gregor’s abode, and the door was barely visible as we approached. Without warning, the door burst open and all three kids ran out of the bright doorway. I knelt on the ground and gathered them in my arms.
“I love you, Daddy,” Sybil whispered in my ear.
“Hi, Dad. Did you miss me? I missed you!” Andrew asked.
“Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!” Charlie squealed.
I didn’t want to let them go. Had it only been one day since I’d last seen them? So much had happened. So many things were left to decide.
With Charlie on my shoulders and Sybil and Andrew each holding a hand, we walked to the doorway where Jane stood waiting.
“Hi,” she said, reaching out to stroke my face.
“Hi,” I said, leaning in to kiss her.
“Ew, gross!” Andrew wailed.
Jane and I laughed. For a brief moment, there was a state of normalcy.
+++
It took some time to get the kids to bed. Each one had to fill me in on everything that I’d missed. To them, Gregor’s hillside compound was like a castle, built specifically for them. There were rooms to explore and plenty of places to hide. It was funny to hear their separate recollections. I loved the way their minds worked with colorful images and thoughts that were consistently optimistic.
By the time Jane and I retreated to bed it was well past midnight. I didn’t bother taking a shower. I was too tired.
My eyes had just closed when Jane laid down next to me, the smell of mint toothpaste fresh on her breath.
“How did it go?” she implored.
I was glad she hadn’t asked me that question before. I’d needed the time to ponder the possibilities of telling her what occurred, without telling her the truth. While I didn’t like lying to my wife, I agreed with my father and the president that the knowledge I now held had to be kept from the outside world. There were a lot of people who would kill for the information that was firmly embedded in my brain. I saw no reason to burden Jane with the same pressure.
“I saw my father,” I said.
“What? Your father? I thought he was dead.” She gripped my arm like she expected a flood of emotion.
“I thought so too. It was kind of a surprise.”
“Kind of? Honey, what’s wrong?”
I shook my head, not really wanting to talk about him. But I knew she’d keep pressing, not because she was nosy, but because she sensed I was in some sort of pain. We’d made it a habit not to go to sleep with emotions high.
“Let’s just say it wasn’t the reunion you might have expected.” I wasn’t going to tell Jane that my dad was nothing more than an A.I.-enhanced body floating in a jar of goo.
“I don’t understand.”
“It’s complicated.”
She squeezed my arm to get my full attention.
“I can see that you’re upset. Please tell me what happened.”
I exhaled and then said, “Well, he kind of offered me a job.”
“A job? What’s wrong with that?”
“I don’t know. I mean, it could help a lot of people, and it could do a lot of good.” I imagined the endless fields within The Ark—all that food.
“That’s good.”
“Sure, I guess. But there’s a catch.”
“Don’t all jobs have a catch?” she asked.
“Yeah, but this one could take me away from you guys for unknown periods of time, and you know how I feel about that.”
“But, you said it could do a lot of good. How much good?”
I turned over onto my side and looked at her. She was so beautiful. My Jane. I couldn’t lie to her, not about everything.
“What if I told you that I could fix it all?”
“Fix what all?”
“Everything. I could return the world to what it had been, or at least, what it could be with the people who are left.”
For at least a minute, she didn’t say anything. I could see that she comprehended the gravity of the situation now. Then she smiled.
“Do you want to know what I think?” she asked, kissing the tip of my nose.
“Of course.”
“I think you should go take a shower before I change my mind.”
“Change your mind about what?” I asked, before thinking.
She gave me that look. You know, that look.
“Oh, right,” I said, suddenly very much awake and slipping out from under the sheets. “Give me five minutes.”
Jane draped her naked leg over the sheet and said, “I’ll give you three.”
I grinned and ran for the door.
+++
I went to sleep that night and dreamt of two mighty beings playing tug-of-war with my unconscious body. One was righteous. It was streaked in silver with a massive hand, soft and gentle. I knew it represented my family, the shining beacon in my life. That which kept me centered.
And then there was the steel-encased knight, composed of hard metal with sharp edges. Its gauntleted hand dug into mine painfully. It represented duty. Duty to serve my fellow humans, and my country, what was left of it.
On and on, they pulled until it felt like my arms would pop out of their sockets. My body screamed in pain. Neither being paid me any mind; both just kept pulling and pulling. And, then they appeared just like earlier that day. There was a swarm of them. The cybots came to my rescue, each giant being letting go at the sight of the flying things. The cybots swept me away on cold hands, racing quickly, deeper into my dreams. Faster and faster. Faster and faster, until I finally had to close my eyes in my dream and trust that they knew where they were going.
+++++
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