Verron_Birth of a Nation

by Douglas Varnell

  They allowed the Governor and General to be present while they discussed some of the other aspects of the treaty. When they understood that people would have to travel to Southern Mississippi in order to go to Verron, they quickly realized that the economic boom would rub off on the Casinos and other aspects of tourism as well. It would also impact the universities in the area. When the discussion switched to the $1500 per acre price for half of the 378,538 acres and close to $300,000,000 that King Verron planned to pay for the land, environmentalist became a moot point as far as the Governor was concerned.

  In five other countries there were meetings, summits, special sessions at almost every level. Prime Minister William Camber called for a special session of Parliament to discuss both military and economic issues concerning the Nation of Verron. Most of the other Nations felt slighted by the much bigger deal being offered the United States and were hoping to negotiate deals for their own countries defense and business sectors. Germany was excited about King Verron personally selecting BMW to partner with his flying transport business. Israel was more interested in the King’s proposal to eliminate terrorists and his ability to defend against missile attacks. Australia had become more and more concerned about the aggressive behavior of China in the seas around their Nation. They wanted to be in a strong military position in case of future conflicts. The countries were excited about the possibility of having an oil pipeline directly to their soil. NATO Ambassador Harold Braun had been given a portfolio for him to present to the United Nations outlining King Verron’s intentions. He looked it over the first time and then contacted one of his fellow UN Ambassadors and longtime friend from Algeria, His Excellency Mr. Mousad Benmedi. He wanted to get a Muslim perspective from his friend who tended to be a bit more liberal that most Muslims in Africa. They reviewed the documents together and agreed; this King Verron was not giving them a proposal for their approval; he had given them an outline of what he intended to do in Africa. He had no intentions of seeking the approval of the leaders of the countries where he proposed to intervene; in most countries he saw the leaders as the source of the problem. Neither man could, however, find fault with his intentions to rid the continent of terrorism, stabilize the government, make cheap energy and clean water available to everyone, terraform the parched and unproductive lands in order to make food readily available for the millions of starving citizens. He also included a box of Verron cereal bars for them to taste and evaluate, claiming that two bars per day would provide 100% of the daily requirement of protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals required by a 180 pound adult. He intended to provide these food-bars until the people could grow their own crops and raise their own meats.

  What made them the most excited was King Verron’s claim that he could completely eliminate AIDS, Ebola, Malaria and even Legionnaires Disease from the face of the Earth. It sounded too good to be true when Benmedi read it, but Ambassador Braun then told him about what he had seen on Verron and his friend from Algeria began to envision a new Africa; a healthy, productive, prosperous and peaceful Africa. He prayed that it would one day become more than a vision.

  The last couple of weeks had been the worst weeks since the Nation of Verron was founded for Paul; visiting the families of those killed who lived on Verron, then meeting with the leaders of his allies and attending memorial services, then more meetings to determine what could be done to reduce the number of fatalities the next time there was a battle to be fought. He was proud of Cali and Hon IV. They were growing into truly great leaders and the men and women in their armies truly respected and loved them. It was agreed that after Princess Amber returned from the Air Force Academy, that she would assume Dalhia’s position. Dalhia and Bhlani would then be the first of the Xhondarians to return home from Verron. Paul would hate to see them go, but knew they were needed back on Xhondar I, where Dalhia would be the Commanding General of the three Xhondar planets and begin to grow their military and Bhlani would manage the Paul Verron investments and businesses on Xhondar. Paul teased him about it, saying; “Well we are already partners in many of the businesses, the only difference is now you’ll actually have to work. I think we need to take a look at making arrangements to now ship our merchandise direct from the manufacturer to Xhondar, and that should include both our soft-drink business the bikes. We’ll keep the Earth dealerships, but I believe after our friends at BMW, Triumph, Artic Cat, and Ducati see what we can do to expand in a new market, we will be able to negotiate partnerships to build plants here, and I see no reason why we can’t approach Coca Cola about opening a bottling plant in partnership with us. What about approaching one of the motorcycle companies with a Verron Crotch Rocket, the youngsters on Verron are now racing them. My brother Kary and some of his Veteran buddies have a thriving business manufacturing those things. I have one myself, they really are a hoot. I actually believe they should be something we export ourselves and set-up dealerships on Earth. I’m sure Kary and his friends would love to increase production and sell them on other planets.” Bhlani was counting the cronz in his head. He already had more money than he could spend, but he truly enjoyed doing new things; especially if they made money.

  When Paul finally returned home, he asked Michael and Renee, “What ever happened with the crimson people? I hope I didn’t run them off.” Renee explained, “They stayed on Verron for three days and were treated like VIPs. They completely understood your situation and would like for you to come visit their planet and their Supreme Commander as soon as possible.” Paul thought a moment and stated, “Alpha Centauri could end up being a very strategic location. Does it look like it would be a one way relationship or do they have anything to offer us?” Michael quickly spoke out, “It seems they have one thing we have little of, and I now find that is becoming a bit rare on Xhondar I, II and III as well.” Paul knew he would have to ask what it was, Michael always made him ask. “What exactly is that?” Michael smiled at his minor triumph and answered, “Salt.” We have some, but nowhere near enough to handle increased demands if we begin to grow. The Xhondarians actually ration it on II and III. The Grnardo have a lot of it but seem to have very little use for it; their biological systems function a bit differently than ours. Salt actually makes them sick. We found out when they visited. They actually turn purple, almost like a kid with peanut butter allergies.”

  Renee quickly added, “Everything they have is a copy of what they have seen broadcast on Earth’s television, except they are a few decades behind actual Earth technology. Their weapons and vehicles look like they came from the 1950s. They have very few trees large enough to build anything, so everything is built from stone and steel. They are very productive agriculturally and even fish their oceans, which they actively restock from fish farms along their coasts. Every vehicle on their planet is powered by a turbine; cars, planes, machinery – it’s the only engine technology they have. There are 4 billion of them on Grnardo and they are very interested in developing better defenses. Paul smiled and replied, “Earth first, then Grnardo.” He turned to leave and stopped. Turning around he said, “I know I don’t tell you this very often; in fact I’m not so sure I’ve ever told you at all, but I do appreciate everything you two do around here. I could never run this place without you.” In unison they replied, “We know.” Renee added, “It’s going to get even more involved as we add more allies. Earth and Grnardo alone will add another 12 billion people. You think I could hire a few more folks?” Paul smiled and walked away, saying, “Do whatever you think you need to do, just don’t ask me for a raise.”

  Paul spent a few days working out with the Dragon Guard, meeting with Marcus and General Zarman, holding staff meetings to be sure everything was in order to move swiftly on the Earth project and hiding away with his two brothers to play guitar together. The three of them decided they wanted to get away for a couple of days. Paul knew of a place he had been meaning to go and had not yet had a chance to check it out up close. At the last minute both brothers had a change of plans; they both
had wives and large families. Paul found himself once again alone. He took a small transport to an island he had flown over numerous times, but much too fast and too high to really get a good look. He loaded the transport with camping gear and food for a couple of days and headed out. The island was located almost dead center of Verron’s equator; in the middle of what they simply called the Western Sea. It was about 2000 miles south of the island where the Sea Eagles nest and nearly half the size of Australia, or approximately 1.5 million square miles of the lushest, greenest, mountainous and beautiful terrain on Verron. Paul approached from the northern coast. It was almost entirely covered with high cliffs that shot over 10,000 feet straight-up from the ocean surface. There were waterfalls pouring from the rocky face into the ocean below and deep fiords with rivers and bays cut into the mountains. The southern coast was lower and had miles and miles of white sand beaches and what looked to Paul like a great place to surf. The entire island was triple canopy jungle and never touched by human hands. In the center there was a range of mountains reaching 30,000 feet then falling away gradually to the southern coast. Paul flew around for another couple of hours to get a closer look at what he decided now to be his island. He found a small grassy area on top of a 5000 foot mountain overlooking the white sand and jungles to the south and a waterfall, lake and thick forests of the valley between his mountain and the higher range in the center. He was in love with this location; mountains on one side and ocean on the other; it seemed to be his preferred choice in locating his residences. He decided that instead of pitching his tent, he would simply open the back loading bay of the Chinook sized transport and camp in it.

  It was early yet and Paul kept looking at the mile wide lake at the bottom of the waterfall just below where he was camping. He headed for a swim. As he slowly negotiated the steep slopes down to the lake he saw all kinds of birds and other wildlife he had never seen anyplace else on Verron. There were also wild fruits, berries and flowers. He wasn’t about to sample any of them, but decided that before he headed back he would collect samples for Desiree to test. The water was cold, but not ice cold like the mountain lakes in the Robert’s Range. It was so clear that the 100 foot bottom looked like he could stand on it. There were fish a plenty. He realized he brought no fishing gear, laughing at the fact that he hated fishing, so they were all safe. He laid on a rock and let the sun dry him then headed back up the slope to eat some of the sandwiches he had packed for supper. By the time he climbed to the top of the steep mountain he was hungry enough to eat everything he brought with him. As he approached the back of his transport he discovered baggies that were supposed to hold sandwiches and suddenly heard noises inside his camping spot. He hurried to the transport; reaching it just in time to find the last of his sandwiches being eaten by the strangest looking creature he had ever seen.

  Standing just under four feet tall, the creature had a face that looked almost like that of a Tasmanian Devil, it had curved horns like a mountain ram and thick muscular arms and legs with five fingered hands much like a humans; except with very large claws. When it saw Paul enter the ship and corner him, it spread its wings and fiercely exposed its large teeth. Paul decided that this was either a gargoyle or another one of the Xhondarian experiments like 99. When it realized that Paul was not afraid of his fiercest roar, he tucked his wings and began to slowly attempt to sneak past Paul. Paul looked down at his last sandwich and picked it up, offering it to the creature. He also picked up an apple and added it to the offering. Hesitantly the thing accepted the two items and immediately began to eat them. Paul then picked up a couple of cereal bars and took a seat on the ramp at the back of the ship to enjoy the view while he ate his least favorite meal. He had finished the first bar and was about to peel open the next when he felt more than heard the creature beside him. It squatted down beside him and offered him half of the last sandwich on the ship; corned beef on rye with Dijon mustard and thin sliced kosher dills. Paul accepted the gift and proceeded to eat it and offered the other cereal bar to his new friend; who took one bite of the cereal bar and spit it out. Paul laughed and said, “Yeah, I know. We really need to work on that flavor. It tastes like cardboard.” To his shock the creature smiled back. It was even uglier than 99s grin; probably because his teeth were much bigger.

  Paul reached behind him and retrieved his backpack that contained what was left of his food. He found a couple of bananas, three oranges and a zip-lock full of grapes. He sat and shared it with the grim looking creature. By the time they finished the contents of his pack he decided that he actually liked this thing. He spoke to him in English at first but seemed to get a little bit of responsive looks when he spoke Xhondarian. Half joking he commented in Xhondarian, “Now I wish I had brought a fishing pole; probably wouldn’t have done me much good, I really know nothing about fishing. One of those big fish in the lake would sure taste good about now.” Paul almost fell backwards as the muscle-bound creature spread his wings and in one leap with his strong legs was instantly ten feet above Paul and flying away. Paul grinned and mumbled, “Hate to eat run. Come again when you can stay longer.” As he watched the thing fly, it climbed higher and higher and then gradually began to circle the lake below. In one swift motion the thing dove like a Peregrine Falcon, at a speed that defied his imagination, sweeping the surface of the lake and snagging a three foot fish. He flew from the lake directly to Paul’s transport and landed on the ramp, dropped the fish then waddled back up the ramp to Paul’s side. Paul couldn’t believe what had just happened. He smiled at the Gargoyle and responded in Xhondarian once again, “Care to join me for dinner?” He grabbed his backpack with a fire starter kit and proceeded to build a fire from surrounding dry limbs and sticks. He pulled his double edged stiletto out of his boot and began to clean the fish, throwing the guts and skin into the woods. He was expecting his friend to go after it; he didn’t. He patiently waited right where he was until the fish was cooked. Just before it finished cooking Paul retrieved two mess kits used by the Marines that normally used the transport. He cut the fish in half and handed half to the creature. While Paul carefully filleted his fish to avoid the few bones that were in it, his new friend was not so particular, eating bones and all. He finished with a good burp of pure pleasure.

  Paul finished his fish, which was really better than anything he had eaten in a long time and once again thanked his companion in Xhondarian. He then asked, “Do you eat fish a lot my friend?” He almost fell over when a voice came back in a gravelly bass that said, “No fire.” To shocked at first to respond he paused a moment to think. The creature ate his sandwiches and his fruit, but had nothing to do with the raw fish parts he had thrown into the woods. He suddenly realized this thing didn’t eat fish because he had no way of cooking fish. He evidently knew the difference. He now knew for certain that this had to have been another of the genetic experiments, but unlike 99, he had wings and could fly away from the civilization in the vicinity of Mountain City and the research lab. Paul asked, “Do you have a name? You remind me of that character in Oz the Great and Powerful” He paused to think, “Finley; yeah that was it. He was a good flying monkey. If you don’t object, I think that’s what I’ll call you.” Paul pointed to himself and said, “Paul – I am named Paul.” He then pointed at the creature beside him and said, “Finley – you are named Finley.” Paul felt incredibly stupid having a conversation with a flying monkey and sat silent a few minute about to decide to get his sleeping bag and go to sleep. Then he heard the thing begin to mumble, “Ffff, Ffff, inli, Ffffinli.” Paul laughed with excitement and turned to his fishing buddy, pointing at his self and saying, “That’s great. I’m Paul and your Finley.” He heard a soft, “Pppp, Pppp, all, Ppppall.” He couldn’t help but be amused by a stuttering flying baboon. He thought a moment and decided that sounded better than a Gargoyle. Then he decided, while thinking to himself out loud, “Naw, flying monkey seems much less offensive. You may not look much like a monkey but that’s what I’ll call you; my friend the
flying monkey.” More excited and louder now Finley actually replied, “ffffrind, fffling mmmonky!” Paul was excited now and told Finley, “You’re wonderful. I bet you’re the smartest flying monkey on Verron” Findley grinned so big you could plainly see teeth all the way back to his tonsils. He then pointed at himself and said, “Ffffinli sssmmmarrrttt.” Paul decided to reach over and touch the leathery skin as he said, “Yes, Finley is very smart.” Finley did not pull away from the touch on his arm. He instead touched Paul’s arm with his clawed fingers and said, “Fffinli vvvry sssmmarrtt. Pppal fffrrindd.” Paul thought to himself, “Wonder where I can find a speech therapist for a flying monkey.”

  Paul was beginning to nod off and yawn. He noticed that Finley actually imitated him and yawned as well. He finally doused the camp fire and climbed into his sleeping back, with Finley curled up a few feet away. He woke the next morning to find his new acquaintance gone. He straightened up the inside of the ship and was about to decide on heading back to Mountain City, since he no longer had any food. He stepped out of the cargo ramp and saw Finley waddling toward him carrying an armful of fruits he had seen growing in the valley below. They sat down on the ramp and enjoyed some of the best fruits he had eaten in a while. He then turned to Finley and asked, “Where do you live my friend? You must have a place close by here. Finley got up and started walking. Paul decided to follow. They traversed the steep mountainside to a point about halfway down the slope. Finely began to walk through the dense forest towards the waterfall. The mist from the waterfall kept everything around it well watered, including Paul and Finley. By the time they walked another fifty yards, Paul was soaked and Finley looked like an oil slick. Then Paul saw it; an opening in the side of the mountain about 12 feet high and five or six feet wide. Finley headed into the opening and Paul quickly activated his night-vision implant. They wound around and down for several hundred feet and it became much brighter; he could now hear the roar of the waterfall echoing off the cave walls. The two of them stepped into a huge cavern with a 200 foot wide wall of water at one end and five hundred yards of cave behind them. It was big enough to park a Light Destroyer, maybe even two. Finley led the way toward the back of the huge cavern and to another smaller tunnel running off to one side. They once again wound around and down until they stopped at a small room; about 15 by 20 and 10 feet high. It was Finley’s home. Paul looked around and observed a pile of furs and leaves to make a bed. There was a pile of some kind of nuts and another of dried fruit. His wall was decorated with things he had found in the woods; odd shaped pieces of wood, a few skulls of the local animal life, even some dried out sea creatures that had washed up on the shore. But what really got his attention was the shiny broken ankle restraint making a crown on one of the dead animal. Paul picked it up for a closer inspection. Engraved in the shiny metal, written in Xhondarian, were the words, “Illinasos Xhondar: Specimen 321.” Paul now knew where the little creature had come from; the same Genetic Research lab as 99. He knew that this flying monkey had survived alone on this island for at least as long as 99 had survived in the forests and mountains around mountain city. Paul turned to Finley and asked, “How would you like to go meet your cousin?”