by R. Chauncey
Son-of-a-bitch is real good, he thought as he started moving quickly and quietly down the stairs one at a time. He knew he was exposed as long as he was on the stairs. But if he moved faster, like jumping three steps at a time, he’d make noise and Karl would hear it and know it was him.
As soon as he reached the bottom, he exhaled, took another breath of air as he moved to the left as fast and as quietly as he could and hid behind the closest cubicle. He hoped Karl thought he was still outside. If he did, he could ambush him from the left. If he could take out Karl, the others wouldn’t be hard. They weren’t as experienced as Karl. He hoped as he moved, making sure he stayed below the edge of the cubicles and making as little noise as possible.
Dorothy entered the center thirty seconds after Dodge, and saw him moving down the stairs to the floor. She knelt down behind the stone banister and covered him till he reached the floor and started moving to the left around the cubicles. She moved just as quietly and quickly as he has done down the stairs – one at a time, and moved to the right when she reached the bottom. She assumed his purpose was to ambush Karl. She decided upon the same strategy, because like Dodge she knew Karl was the real threat.
*
Larson and Marajo entered the room as soon as the door opened and were surprised there was only a plain wooden desk facing the far wall with one computer and a keyboard sitting on it, and a plain wooden chair under the desk. Hanging on the wall two feet above the desk was a four foot long three feet wide screen with a single cable coming from the bottom of it to the computer.
“I expected a room jammed with all sorts of sophisticated computers and servers,” she said. “Not this.”
“This place looks like some computer geek’s idea of a 1980 computer system with an oversize TV screen,” he said, walking over to the desk. He stopped behind it and looked at the computer and said, “There’s no need for a lot of servers or other computers in this room, Marajo.”
“Why not,” she asked.
“This entire place is automated, and the only thing that has value in this center are those servers out there because they hold the information. This computer is here to remove or input information into the servers.”
She understood what he meant. “When a satellite passes overhead information is downloaded into this computer and from it into one of those servers. I wonder what’s the storage capacity of those servers.”
“Probably trillions upon trillions of bites,” he said as he looked at the computer. “This place is amazing.”
“Dust free, too,” she said, looking at the computer and desk. “And the computer’s not on.”
Larson wondered if it was voice activated. He hoped it was. “Computer, turn on.”
The computer instantaneously came on. The word ‘working’ appeared on the screen on the wall in large three inch high black letters in a white rectangle.
“Voice operated,” he said as he pulled out the chair and sat down.
“I’m surprised it isn’t programmed to operate only when a certain voice speaks to it,” Marajo said.
“Computer, how do I download the files of the Hidden Society onto the Internet?”
Nothing happened.
“Oh, Lord,” Marajo moaned. “We’ve come all this way for nothing. We can’t download the files.”
Larson said nothing. He was thinking.
“What are we going to do, Larson?” she asked in a frightened voice as she turned around and looked out the door. She saw three men approaching the office down the center aisle, and she caught a glance of another moving among the stone cubicle. “They’re coming, Larson.”
“Close the door,” he told her.
She rushed to the door and tried to push it close. It wouldn’t move. “It won’t move,” she said.
Derrick saw them and moved into a position to shoot. Just keep that fucking door open and you two are dead, he thought.
Larson without turning around raised his com-cell and typed ‘close door,’ on the com-cell’s keypad.
The door closed just as Derrick raised his weapon and fired.
The volt hit the stone door and did no damage.
“We’re trapped and we can’t download the Society’s files,” she cried in a frightened voice.
“Maybe not,” he said, remembering the three words from the second flash drive that had made no sense to him. Three words he thought about before he went to sleep on January fourth.
“What do you mean maybe not?” she asked, backing away from the door with her semi-automatic in her right hand ready to make a final stand.
“There were three words on the second drive that didn’t make sense to me,” he said.
Marajo turned toward him. “What three words?” she asked.
“Remember Paul Duffy,” he said.
Marajo turned around to face the computer.
“He’s been dead a long -,” she stopped speaking when she saw a question appear on the screen.
‘What do you wish to do?’ appeared in large black letters in a white rectangle on the screen.
Larson smiled and shook his head as he said, “Brilliant, Julian Franks. Just brilliant. Who the hell would have thought Remember Paul Duffy would activate the computer.”
“He knew once we got here we’d need a code to get into the files,” Marajo said.
“So he put a code word in that no one but he and the person who read that second drive would know about and would remember and use. Remember Paul Duffy. Now who the hell would think that was a code?”
‘What do you wish to do?’ flashed a second time on the monitor above the desk.
“Eh, Larson, suppose this place is battery operated?” she asked. “If it is its battery may be too weak to transmit.”
“My limited knowledge of the Society says they wouldn’t have this information center here if it didn’t have an unlimited source of power.”
“Solar power,” Marajo said. “I noticed as we ran through that outer door that sun light shines on the flat face of this mountain.”
“I didn’t,” he mumbled in response.
“There’s probably a camouflage solar panel near the top of that flat face where I fired at,” she said. “I hit the top of the flat face, Larson.”
Larson turned in the chair and looked at her with a concerned expression on his face.
“Computer, what is the condition of the power source for this center?” Marajo asked.
‘Power cells are at one hundred percent.’
They both exhaled in relief as Larson turned around to face the computer.
“Computer, how many files are there in this center?” Larson asked.
‘There are one hundred eighty eight million different files. All of the files are arranged chronologically and alphabetically. Which file do you want?’
“Can all the files be downloaded on the World Internet?” Marajo asked.
‘Yes.’
“You inside,” came from Larson’s com-cell.
He held up his com-cell and looked at it, then turned around and looked at Marajo.
“It’s them outside,” she said, turning toward the door.
“How the hell did he get my com-cell number?” he asked.
‘All com-cell frequencies are made available to anyone in this information center.’ appeared on the screen.
“I don’t know,” Marajo said, turning to face Larson. She saw what was written on the screen. “Look.”
“What?” Larson asked her.
“Look at the screen,” she repeated.
He tu
rned around and looked at the screen. “Well, that answers my question, doesn’t it?”
“The computer automatically monitors all electrical devices brought into the center,” she said. “This may look like some computer set up from the 1980’s, Larson, but that computer is very sophisticated.”
“You inside,” came over Larson’s com-cell again.
“What do you want?” Larson asked into his com-cell.
“I am the Leader of the Society. I can make you rich beyond your wildest imagination. I can give you unlimited power. Anything you wish, and I promise nothing will happen to you. Just open this door.”
“You got a name?” Larson asked him.
“My name is Derrick Franks. Julian Franks was my brother. He was insane when he gave you the information that allowed you to get this far. You must stop what you are doing, or millions of innocent people will suffer.”
“And we should open the door?” Larson asked.
“Yes. I promise you I will keep my promise. You have my word on it.”
Marajo took her com-cell out of her pocket, turned it on, and said, “Do you really think we’re that crazy?”
“No, quite the contrary, Miss, I think both of you are very intelligent. The fact that you’re both in that office proves that,” Derrick said.
“The moment we open that door we’re dead, and you know that, Mr. Franks, as well as we do. Your promises won’t mean a damn thing when that door opens. The history of the Hidden Society proves that,” Marajo replied.
“No, no. I promise you nothing will happen to you,” Derrick said. “I am a man of my word.”
“You’re the leader of a ruthless, greedy society that has been dominating and murdering people, and controlling events on this world for over a thousand years, and Julian knew that if you weren’t stopped the Society would one day take over the world. He sent me that letter and gave me those flash drives so I could come here and download on the World Internet the history of the Society along with all the information in those servers. The world needs to know about the Society, and everything it’s done to achieve its evil ends.”
“No, no,” Derrick said. His voice was calm as if he were politely asking a servant to bring him a bottle of wine. “You’re wrong. The Society for centuries was nothing but a
collection of merchants. In the last five hundred years the Society has used its wealth to do great things for man, and will continue to do great things for mankind.”
“What about women?” Marajo yelled into her com-cell.
“The Society’s always believed in and practiced equality between women and men and the races. From its very beginnings the Society has always been racially and sexually integrated. We’ve never harmed anyone.”
“You lie!” she screamed. “Julian told me about men who were murdered because they stood in the way of the Society’s goals. He told me about them a year before they died. He even told me how they were to die, and they died the way he said they would.”
“They’re not going to fall for it, Leader,” Karl said, standing next to him. “Julian did a good job of preparing them for us.”
“Shut up!” Derrick ordered him. He turned his attention back to his com-cell. “No organization is perfect. You both know that, don’t you? Some people have to suffer for the good of all.”
“Of course, I do,” Larson answered.
“What are you names?” Derrick said, adopting a friendlier tone to his voice.
“So you can send your murderers after our families?” Larson asked him.
“I will make sure that does not happen. Marlene Done, have we harmed your family? They’re alive and well,” he said. “I assure you.”
“You fool!” Karl snapped at him. “Now that she knows we know her real name she knows her family is dead. We’ll have to blast our way into that room and kill them.”
“Eh, that door is two feet thick and made of solid granite,” Lester said.
“And we don’t have any explosives,” Charlie added.
“You’re wasting your time, Mr. Franks,” Larson said. “We know we’re dead, and probably our families, too. The only way to guarantee this doesn’t happen to anyone else is to expose the Society’s files to the world. That means all one hundred and eighty eight million of them here and those files in the Society’s underground centers in Canada and Algeria.”
“He’s in the program,” Lester said.
“How could he be in the program?” Derrick asked him.
“Probably some code word or phrase one of the last leaders put into the program,” Charlie said.
“Can he download the files on the Internet?” Derrick asked Charlie.
“All he has to say is ‘download the files on the Internet’,” Charlie said. “This center controls the other two. All three centers are completely automated. Within less than a minute over three hundred million files will start downloading on the Internet.”
“Everything about the Society will be available to anyone with a computer,” Lester added.
“Or a fucking com-cell,” Karl said. “So much for the modern computerized paperless world I should join, Leader.”
“I don’t need sarcastic remarks, Karl,” Derrick told him without looking at him.
“If everything in this center and the other two were on paper we could seal them up in this information center and walk away,” Karl told him. “They’d be death of thirst in three or four days, and the Society would be safe.”
Derrick ignored Karl and turned to Charlie and Lester and asked, “Is there any way to
open that door?”
“Short of two pounds of high quality TNT,” Lester answered. “There’s no way we’re getting in that room unless they open the door.”
“There must be another computer we can use to override any code they used to close the door,” Derrick said.
“The only computer in this center is in that room, Leader,” Charlie said. “And that gives them access to the servers out here.”
“What about our com-cells?” Karl asked them.
“They’ll see whatever we try to do on that TV screen in there and download the files,” Lester answered.
“Maybe we could disconnect the servers,” Derrick said. “That’s where the information is, isn’t it?”
“Yes, sir,” Lester said. “But the problem is we’d have to up end the servers to disconnect them.”
“And the computer will let them know we’re doing that,” Charlie said. “And all they’d have to do is tell the computer to download everything in the servers in this center and the other two onto the Internet.”
“And in less than three minutes all those files would be on the Internet,” Lester added with the sound of defeat in his voice.
*
Dodge was surprised to see Karl standing next to Derrick and the other two men. It wasn’t like him to be so foolish unless he thought he was safe. He could have killed him easy, but he decided to wait a few seconds to give Dorothy a chance to get into position. He knew she’d follow his moves.
*
Karl looked off to his left and caught sight of Dodge aiming at him over a stone cubicle not more than ten yards away.
“Move!” he screamed as he turned to his right and instinctively push Derrick out of the line of fire toward the door and dived toward the floor.
He was too late.
Dodge squeezed off three quick shots.
One of the volts hit Karl on the left side of his chest and passed through his left lung and his heart before it entered his right lung and dissolved into stray electrons.
; The other two volts missed him by inches.
Karl slammed onto the stone floor knocking out what little air was still left in his lungs. With his remaining strength he crawled to the nearest stone cubicle and turned over on his back with his head propped against the stone cubicle.
Derrick hit the floor hard on his left side. He was reluctantly thankful Karl had pushed him out of the line of fire, before he crawled to a safe place next to the closest stone cubicle and turned around and saw Karl and said, “Get up and kill that bastard.”
Karl was in such pain all he could do was shake his head. He knew he was finished. As he lay dying, he wondered how long it would take the animals and insects around his property to take it over. Probably a few days at the most passed through his mind before he slipped into unconsciousness and died a few seconds later.
Lester, who been standing next to Karl, was wounded in his left side by one of the other two volts Dodge had fired.
Charlie dropped to a crouch and moved to his left to get into firing position. It was the wrong move.
Dorothy, from her position on the right, saw him moving toward Dodge and fired two volts into his back. The two volts cut through his spine two inches apart.
Charlie fell to his right side on the stone floor and dropped his weapon. He was dead.
Lester saw her and started shooting wildly as fast as he could pull the trigger.
“Who is that?” Derrick yelled at him.
“That woman Dorothy,” he said. His voice filled with pain.
“You fucking fat bitch!” Derrick screamed. “I’ll kill you. You whore!”
“But not like you killed the other two leaders and the Council of Twenty, Derrick, Leader of the former Society,” she replied.
All of Lester’s shots had missed her.
“I made you the most important soldier in the Society. How can you do this to me?”
“I was never anything to you, but someone to kill for you, Derrick,” she said. “But to Julian I was a person. To him I was a human with feelings to be respected.”