“So?” Jim said. “You’re afraid I might start a rival church?”
“It wasn’t the first book we didn’t want known, it was the second he wrote in prison. It was called: ‘Praise the Lord and Fill Your Pockets’. You also had that one. It’s a detailed outline of our entire operations and how we conduct business. It was thought that our predecessors back on Earth destroyed every copy.”
“Business?” Jim laughed. “Your church is a front for a business operation?”
“Business and power. We control mankind. For centuries we’ve controlled history.”
“So, you wanted to kill me before I disillusioned the faithful.”
“You would have interrupted the flow of recruits and money.”
Jim started to laugh. “It looks like I’m toast. Now that I know, you’re going to have to kill me.”
The man smiled. “Not necessarily. You’re one of us now.”
“So, you’re going to use that mind control thing that’s installed in all the beds here.”
“You discovered that? Everything you do amazes me. One thing I’m curious about is that we tracked you to La Raza, you disappeared, then blew yourself up on Hebram. Then you suddenly reappear on La Raza. How did you do that?”
“Old Earth magic,” Jim chuckled. “It involved two rubber bands, three cans of beer and a banana.”
The man laughed. “Old Earth humor, I love it.”
“Now that I’m going to be one of you, tell me about the flow of money thing, do the thousands of people who come through here send you donations?”
“It’s hundreds of thousands and no they don’t. In fact very few have contact with us after they leave here. We’ve implanted in their minds tendencies. We’ve given them handshakes, ways of talking and acting so they subconsciously recognize each other. It’s like a big club where they feel compelled to help each other in business, giving each other advantages while disadvantaging anyone outside the circle. Money slowly flows into the circle and eventually ends up in one of the companies we own.”
“Mutual assistance business clubs were well known in my time,” Jim said. “They should still exist, they’re logical.”
“Not the way we do it. Many of our methods are highly illegal. If you had read the book you would know that. As I said, we control the governments. In the past we’ve started wars and ended them. Caused economic recessions and economic booms all to suit our own agendas.”
“What about the ones who aren’t in business or government, the general workers and employees of other companies?”
“They’re our doers, our ‘hit men’ to quote one of those videos of yours. We only contact them when they’re needed and use mentally implanted triggers to give them a task. You’re not the only one we’ve sent people to kill or assassinate.”
“I heard the way the Huber Beverage Company got to the top was unfortunate accidents involving his competition.”
“Radley Huber is one of our people, and one of our companies supplies him with the gasses for carbonating his soft drinks. Also, the faithful buy and promote his products due to triggers embedded in their advertising, we also own the advertising company.”
“So, you were going to have unfortunate accidents happen in my soft drink company too.”
“No,” the man laughed. “Radley Huber was becoming a liability. The police were getting too close to the facts. We planned for your company to destroy his. Having lost his fortune, he, in a moment of despair, would have ended his life.”
“Then you would’ve infiltrated my company.”
“We’ve already selected the people for your board of directors.”
“What’s stopping the government or police noticing the patterns? The computer system’s very good. They’d find that an inordinate number of assassins had been though this place.”
“It’s simple. They conveniently forget they were ever here and destroy all evidence that they were.”
“So, that mind control thing’s also a men in black neuralizer.”
“A what?”
“Is all of this in Parnell’s book, including that mind control technology? That thing is well beyond any technology I’ve seen since I got here. Where’d it come from?”
“No, just the organization and system is in the book. Parnell’s methods of recruitment and control was old style psychology and mental conditioning. That’s why our front is religion. Put faith into the equation and you can control most people. The mind control technology came later.”
“Did one of your people invent it?”
“No, we found it. The same way your friend Doctor Redmond found that Time Stone thing that got you here. It improved our methods substantially.”
“Well, it looks like you’ll have to conquer the galaxy without me. I’m not interested”
“We already have,” the man said while rocking back and forth on his feet, seemingly enjoying the situation. “I told you, we’ve been in control for over a thousand years. Not the governments directly. We’re the power and money behind them. And you will cooperate and become one of us.”
“Ok Brother Adolf, bring in the thumb screws.”
“We’re not that primitive, and my name is Brother Anthony. We’ll soon be very good friends and you’ll have many fond memories of me.”
“You can implant actual memories with that mind thing?”
Anthony smiled. “Anything else?”
“How did you get to be head man, were you elected?”
“Hardly,” Anthony leaned forward with his face close to Jim’s. “Take a good look; do I appear familiar to you?”
Jim looked closely at the face of the man in front of him. The high cheek bones and slightly receding hairline did look familiar. “Holy shit, you are Elijah Parnell.”
“Not exactly, but you might say we’re related.”
“You’re a descendant?” Jim hesitated while taking a closer look. “Ah, you look too much like him to be a descendant. You’re a clone?”
“Exactly,” the brother said cheerfully waving a hand above his head. “In the past two thousand years there have been fifty seven of us.”
“I should’ve recognized you sooner. I saw your TV show a couple of times.”
“That wasn’t me that was my clone sponsor.”
“Looks like I’m in for an experience. Am I right Brother Adolf?”
“Yes, we’ll be taking a strato to Seattle immediately. It’s our main city on another continent. There, you’ll start your education. You yourself will join us of your own ‘free will’ and desires. As you can see, we cover all the angles.”
“Except one,” Jim said.
Brother Anthony’s face dropped. “What’s that?”
Jim gave a half smile. “That’s for me to know.” It was a bluff, more for his own satisfaction than any tactical move. He just wanted to see if the man was fully convinced of his invulnerability. The brother’s facial expression gave him the answer. There was a hole somewhere. They were worried about something.
Jim braced himself as Anthony swung. The blow caught him on the cheek. The two men either side tightened their grip on his arms as he struggled to fight back.
Anthony was now in a rage. “If you think that the Commonwealth government will come charging to your rescue like in those silly videos you brought, forget it! They don’t have any excuse to intervene here! On that we’re most careful.”
‘There it was,’ Jim thought to himself. ‘Someone in the Commonwealth government is on to their game. Someone powerful.’ He also noted that the brother’s ego could be used. For what, he didn’t know.
Anthony calmed himself and his smile slowly returned. “Anything else you would like to know Jim? Oh... may I call you Jim?”
“Call me what you like.”
Brother Anthony turned to leave the room. Jim was lifted from his chair by the two who had placed him there, then shoved toward the door after him.
They walked the street in the direction the spaceport. The two men p
ushed him ahead of them. Jim looked around and saw several of the faithful out for a midnight stroll and meditation. He considered that calling for help would be useless under the circumstances.
“I believe you’ll like Seattle,” Anthony said. “The opulence and comfort is well beyond any other place in the galaxy. You can not imagine the hedonistic pleasures available to you day and night. If you want a woman, or women, just describe what you want and it’ll be provided.”
“I take it these women have all been mentally altered to suit.”
“Brother Frank! Wait up for me.” Jim recognized the voice of Peter.
Jim and his escorts turned to see the man trotting to catch up.
“Frank, I didn’t see you today. I did want someone to talk with. Where’re you going?”
“Get rid of him,” Tung whispered while the brother to Jim’s right increased the pressure on his grip.
“Peter, I have no time. I’m on important business.”
“Can I come too? I can’t sleep and need something to do.”
“No!” was Jim’s abrupt reply.
“I won’t be a bother. I’ll just follow along and be quiet.”
“Just get lost, will you, you stupid queer!” Jim didn’t want to be cruel but the man’s life was in danger. A deeply hurt expression came over Peter’s face. From the number of conversations they had had he knew the man to be highly sensitive. They continued to walk. Without looking back, Jim could picture the image of his new friend standing, stunned over the unexpected rejection.
* * *
The spaceport waiting room was sparsely populated. Jim sat between the two brothers while Anthony talked to a member of the port’s staff.
“I have to go to the bathroom,” Jim said, looking pained and trying to stand.
“We’ll be on the strato in half an hour, you can wait.” Tung firmly but gently pushed Jim back in his seat.
“No,” Jim stated with conviction.
Tung slapped his side impatiently. “Go.” He pushed Jim in the direction of the bathroom. The second brother grasped the material on the shoulder of Jim’s robe. The third followed.
“There’s no way out, unless you plan to squeeze through the plumbing,” Tung said, his pleasant voice a thing of the past.
“Just give me another month on the food you serve here and I could probably fit,” Jim said.
They entered the bathroom, the cubical in which Jim had deposited his Colt was occupied so he entered another and sat.
“Damn.”
He sat for a while, waiting for the sounds that indicated that the person next door was leaving. Time passed. Jim got up, activated the autosan then left.
Back in the waiting area he sat glancing at the bathroom door until he saw the single occupant exit. “I’ve gotta go again,” Jim said, crossing his legs and leaning forward.
“No, you can wait,” Tung snapped.
“Hey, someone must have stirred that slop they make in the kitchen with their pecker or something. I have the grunge.”
“Brother,” Tung’s tone of voice had now turned sarcastic. “You would be a rarity. No one gets bowel complaints any more, the genetic engineers have seen to that.”
“Brother,” Jim said, mimicking Tung’s tone. “You forget where I’m from. Things haven’t settled down yet.”
“No,” was Tung’s sharp reply.
Jim raised his head and called to Anthony. “Hey Brother Adolf, I’ve gotta go potty. Nutless here won’t let me.”
Anthony returned at a fast walk. “Mr. Young, keep your voice down. There are twenty witnesses in this room who would have to be disposed of if there’s trouble.”
“I have to go.”
Anthony made a flicking motion with his hand toward the bathroom. Tung stood and shoved Jim in that direction a second time.
The cubical was empty. Jim held his breath and reached into the vent. His hand rested on the cold metal of his revolver. It was still there. Flipping out the cylinder he checked his two remaining rounds.
As they re-entered the waiting room, Anthony beckoned and waited for them before leaving through a side door. They were in the open air; the strato was two hundred meters away.
“What, no boarding tunnel? How primitive.”
The brothers made no reply. Jim looked around. There was no fence between the field and the nearby woods. Jim considered making his move on the strato but he couldn’t operate one and had no idea how suicidaly inclined or how fanatic the crew would be. He had to do it now.
“Brother Adolf, are you really the head guy? You seem too stupid to run an operation this size.”
Anthony chuckled. “I can assure you Mr. Young, I am the head guy as you put it.”
“But any idiot could take over. Aren’t you afraid of a knife in the back from another Adolf? One of your trained killers may have delusions of grandeur themselves. I mean, that must be a flaw in your big plan.”
“Few of my followers have ever been in the military, let alone trained killers. We avoid the innately violent types, too unstable.”
“What about one of your enthusiastic amateurs?”
“As the leader, I keep many methods to myself. They all know that if I am eliminated then they’d be at a distinct disadvantage. In that, is the assurance of my safety. I have the knowledge, they don’t.”
“So if you suddenly snuffed it these morons wouldn’t know your plans, one big confusion, eh?”
“Snuff it? I should make a list of your Old Earth expressions, so quaint. I see what you’re getting at. There’s very little chance. I’m in good health and very well protected as you can see.”
“Think again bozo.” Jim raised the Colt and leveled it at Anthony’s head. The hammer clicked back. He saw a look of horror in the second before he pulled the trigger. Anthony’s head jerked back too fast for Jim to see the damage he’d caused. The spray of blood, bits of bone and skin indicated that a great deal of information no longer existed.
The gun was now pointed in Tung’s direction. Tung’s hand made a move toward the laser pistol in his robes then stopped.
“Go ahead. Make my millennia,” Jim spat through clenched teeth.
Tung’s hand moved a fraction further. Jim’s aim lowered to the man’s groin. “You’re going to look awful silly standing around with nothing to do at your Saturday night orgies.”
Jim amused himself by playing out the scene of an old, long gone western movie. “Ok pard’ners, thumb and forefinger; take ‘em out, real slow like and drop ‘em.” They complied with the demand. “Now turn around and start walking.”
Jim thought of taking them hostage but dismissed the idea. The strato could only land him in a place he didn’t know and the shuttle took too long. They’d just wait until he fell asleep. Hostages would be a liability; he had no way of distinguishing between the leaders and the suicidaly inclined faithful. His only chance was to hide out in the woods and see what happened.
“You’re not going to kill us?” Tung commented over his shoulder. “That weapon’s charge must be low. Do you know how to use a hand laser?”
“Sure do,” Jim lied. “First thing they taught me when I got to this time.” He quickly gathered the pistols then ran for the woods.
At his favorite rock, he sat examining the weapons. No matter what he pushed prodded or squeezed, nothing happened. He threw them aside, picked up a large stick and started digging in the soft brown earth. It was almost morning and he needed sleep.
He buried himself laying down up to his chest then pulled a pile of dead branches, leaves and pine needles over his head. Within twenty minutes he was asleep.
* * *
In the early afternoon Jim awoke to the sounds of footsteps and low voices.
“Anything on infrared?”
“No, too many people passed this way. Wait... I’ve got breathing.”
Jim held his breath, opened his mouth wide and quietly panted.
“Human?”
“Don’t think so. This thing�
��s too old and inaccurate to tell exactly. What do you think?”
“Looks like a rabbit.”
The footsteps diminished. Jim relaxed again.
Daylight faded. Jim scooped off the dirt and stood. Dusting off his filthy robes, he sat on the rock looking around.
“Now... inventory. On the plus side: None of them are trained soldiers, I am. None of them are used to racing ‘round the woods, mostly city guys or mechanized farmers; I’ve spent a lot of time in the woods. I’ve done every course I could get into on escape, evasion and survival. They haven’t so they don’t know where to look for me or what I’ll do. Now the negative: I have one bullet left, they have fire power. I’m one person, they have the numbers, but their command would be in chaos. They have electronic search equipment I know little about. So a tactical conclusion. Head for where I can use my advantages, deep into the woods.”
He stood and looked around one more time then started to walk. A hundred meters down a small trail a robed shape walked in the opposite direction. Jim recognized the slow pace. It wasn’t one of a man searching for a fugitive. It was one of meditation.
Jim thought to himself. ‘They haven’t put the woods off limits. Probably cause suspicion. Another advantage.’
He slowed his pace and continued along the path in the direction of the approaching brother.
“Beautiful evening brother, very pleasant for walking.” Jim decided to try for some information while keeping his pistol ready.
The brother looked up with a frown. “Yes it is, but I have to return to my dormitory. Some brothers and sisters out here are too distracting.”
“What’re they doing?”
“Running around, totally disrupting the mood of the place.”
“Where are these brothers?” Jim asked, looking to the right and left trying not to appear anxious.
The man pointed to his right. “There are two close by in that direction. It’s most disturbing for my complete harmony with that going on.”
“Thank you brother, I shall avoid them.”
Jim started walking again, listening for sounds of movement. He heard them crashing like elephants through the underbrush. Jim smiled as he ducked right into a shadow. “If one of my troops had sounded like that in the woods I’d shoot him myself.”
The Time Stone (The Time Stone Trilogy Book 1) Page 37