by Saxon Andrew
• • •
AG settled into college life and discovered that history was a subject he was intrigued with and made it his major. His professors were amazed at his insights and memory of small details of events that were monumental in the creation of the modern world. After a year, AG decided to add economics as a dual major.
Cynthia graduated and began work in the medical school. Their time together was greatly reduced due to her work load but they made the time they did have count. Jerry began his studies at MIT but found time to be with Lydia who was happier than she had ever been. Both couples were married during Lydia’s senior year. Life became a moment away from the real world and a place to grow.
• • •
AG was sitting with Cynthia in the student center on a Saturday afternoon when he suddenly stood up. He ran across the room and put a quarter in the pay phone. Cynthia followed him and heard him say, “I’ll be there. Please make it as fast as possible.”
“What’s going on!?!”
“The clan is in danger.”
Cynthia grabbed her throat and said, “What are you going to do?”
“I don’t have time to explain; I’m going to see if I can save them. I’ll be back as soon as possible.”
“Can I go with you?”
“No! This time there is too much danger. I couldn’t protect you.” AG ran out of the student center and Cynthia felt her fear. Something terrible was happening.
• • •
The Kahn of the Wang-dao sat among the gathered clan leaders and watched as the champion of the Jung Clan killed the Kahn of the Jow-len Clan. He had been forced to attend the conference or his clan would have been attacked by the others. There was no way he could have refused to attend the gathering. The Jung champion had systematically killed all the other clan champions and the Jung Kahn was now the absolute ruler of all but the Wang-dao. He knew he would be next. He looked over at Tao and saw that he realized he was no match for the Jung Champion. There was no doubt he would fight but the Kahn knew he would lose the contest. The Kahn of the Jung looked at the Kahn and said, “I now challenge you to the right to lead the Wang-dao.”
The Kahn started to respond but a loud noise exploded from the giant doors at the entry of the gathering room. Everyone looked and saw the huge bamboo rods used to bar the door fall to the floor. The six of them had been cut through the center and they fell out of the u-joints holding them. The two huge doors flew open and a young man walked through them with a sword in his hand. He said, “I would think that a great clan like the Jung would follow the meeting rules of the Khans.”
The Jung Kahn yelled, “Only the leaders of the clans are allowed entry. You are the one breaking our rules.”
The Wang-dao Kahn stood and said, “He is the Kahn of the Wang-dao; I am only serving in his absence.”
The Jung Kahn said, “You should have informed us of this before the gathering. Kill that trespasser.”
Ten Jung Warriors drew their swords and rushed the lone intruder. Everyone in the room was stunned with how quickly the ten were cut apart. All ten were dead on the floor in less than four seconds. The young man said, “If you show such discourtesy to my clan again, I will kill every Jung Warrior in this building.”
The Jung Kahn looked up at the upper level and four arrows zoomed out at the young man. The young man cut the arrows out of the air and all four archers fell from the upper level with a knife sticking out of their right eyes. The young man strode forward until he was directly in front of the Jung Kahn, “You know that any Clan Leader is to be admitted at any time of the gathering.”
The Jung Kahn was frightened. This warrior had killed faster than he could see. He said, “Take your place with your clan.”
AG walked over and the Kahn stood to welcome him, “I wondered if you were going to arrive in time.”
“I was slowed up by traffic.”
“Is now the time?”
AG took off his shirt and raised his arm. Everyone in the room saw the blue and green tattoo. The mark of Wang-dao’s chosen. The Kahn bowed and sat down. Tao stood and said, “It’s good to see you again. Their champion reminds me a lot of how you fight.”
AG looked at the huge warrior standing next to the Jung Kahn and smiled. The huge warrior saw his expression and Tao saw his instant tension. “It appears he knows who you are.”
AG looked at Tao, “He’s only just realizing his destiny.” AG turned to the Jung Kahn and said, “I am the champion of my clan and I will fight for their honor.”
The Jung gave a sigh of relief. Now things were back to normal. He was scared the warrior was going to kill him on his throne but now he could be eliminated by Kong. He turned to the huge warrior and said, “Kill him.”
Kong possessed the ability for things to move in very slow motion. He was able to see everything happening and respond in time to defeat his opponents. He had watched the intruder and saw everyone moving slowly but him. He moved at what looked like normal speed and he knew there was no possibility of defeating the new Kahn of the Wang-dao. Kong looked at the Jung Kahn and said, “I will not fight this warrior.”
The Jung Kahn’s smile disappeared and he roared, “You will kill this man now.”
Kong looked at his Kahn and said, “I will not do as you order. Do you choose to challenge me on this?”
The Kahn was frozen on his chair. If he chose another champion he knew they would lose to the Wang-dao Kahn. He turned back to the room and everyone present saw his fear. AG walked forward and everyone heard a sound of something moving through the air. The Jung Kahn’s features turned slack and then his head rolled off his shoulders. AG looked at Kong, “Who is your Kahn?”
“You are.” Kong bowed and laid his sword at AG’s feet.
“Why have you killed the champions?”
“I was ordered to do so and I firmly believe we are stronger united than separate.”
“Then why did you not fight me?”
“Because I could not defeat you and it is clear to me that you are a better leader than any present.”
Kong stood and looked out at the angry Jung Warriors. “You should know that he was not boasting when he said he would kill every one of you in this room. It would happen faster than you can imagine and he’d finish with me first. I have no chance against this brave warrior. Every one of you knows the ego of our former Kahn. He placed himself ahead of those he ruled. This Kahn is not like that. You will welcome him into our clan and give him the honor he deserves.”
Suddenly everyone heard a tapping from the entry doors. A very old man using a cane moved into the room and he was immediately recognized by everyone present. The former Kahn of the Wang-dao rushed forward and embraced the old man. Tao arrived directly behind the Kahn and bowed to the floor. “Where have you been, my Kahn?”
“Why, looking for my chosen successor. You know it had to be done.” The old man looked down at Tao and said, “Rise my son. You have finally made me proud of you.”
Tao stood and hugged the man that had pulled him from the garbage dumpster and saved his life as a small boy those many years ago. Tao’s tears were from his heart and the old man said, “You have become what I’ve always known you could be.”
Wang-dao was assisted forward by Tao and the Kahn and AG met them at the throne in front of the room. “Please take your throne, Kahn.”
The old man smiled and said, “Did you not hear me say you are my successor. You are the Great Khan and I am counting on you to save my children.”
AG hugged Wang-dao and looked out at the huge gathering. He sat on the throne and said, “Kong, you are now the leader of the Jung. Tao, you will replace the Kahn of the Jow-len and lead them.”
Tao bowed and moved over to the front of the Jow-len leaders. The leaders saw the giant warrior approaching and all of them were frightened. Tao arrived and said, “You should never fear me. I am here to protect our clan and you will assist me in that effort. I need all of you to make our clan what it should be.
”
The leaders saw the huge warrior meant what he was saying. They all bowed to him and he told them to rise.
AG watched the Jung Warriors and they were frightened of Kong but they also respected him. He knew respect would make the difference. He said, “All Khans will remain and everyone else will return to their clans.”
Twenty five Khans remained in the room and AG said, “Gather around me and listen to what I have to tell you.” They all moved forward and AG told them what was coming. Most of them didn’t believe him at first but after the former Khan of the Wang-dao told them about his first meeting with AG they started listening. What finally convinced them was when Wang-dao himself said, “He has the power of vision. He is being honest with you.”
The meeting lasted ten hours and at the end AG said, “I will not order any of you to join me in my efforts. However, if you refuse, I will not be responsible for your safety.”
The Khan of the New York Clan said, “So if we choose not to follow your vision, all of us will die.” AG nodded. “And if we choose to follow your vision our lives will become extremely hard and difficult.” AG nodded again.
Wang-dao said, “The choice is whether or not you are willing to suffer for the survival of your children.”
“So we will have to give up being warriors?”
“By no means, you will be following the first law of being a warrior.”
The Khans discussed the choice for more than four hours and then all of them agreed to accept the new path given to them.
AG said, “Do not force any of your clan members to follow this course. Any that chose to stay will be allowed to remain behind. Only those that are willing to struggle to make this vision happen should be a part of it.”
“What is the first thing we must do, Great Kahn?”
AG smiled, “I am going to need all of our clans to provide two hundred of our members to be accepted for admission to the Air Force and Naval Academies every year starting six years from this moment.”
The Khans all looked at each other and then nodded.
• • •
AG returned to Harvard and met with Cynthia, Lydia, and Jerry and told them what was going to happen. Lydia looked at Jerry and then said to AG, “Is there nothing we can do to avoid this?”
“If we try, then our only chance of saving anyone will be prevented. This is a vision that has slowly come to me over the years and has just come to a point where I can see all the details. Much of what I’ve done in the past was driven by what is coming. I haven’t understood many of the things I’ve done until now. One thing I know, any other path will be lead to disaster.”
Jerry said, “Are you absolutely sure about this?”
AG took a deep breath and blew it out slowly, “I am. And you are going to have the most important tasks to do in order for this to be successful.”
Cynthia looked at him and AG saw her sorrow, “Cynthia, you are also going to have to provide the ones that we must have for our future survival.”
“I will make sure they are there when we need them.”
Lydia lowered her head and said, “When do we start this process?”
“Ten years from now. The structure must be in place before we can make it happen.”
The four put their hands in the middle and grasped them. AG said, “Our goal is to make the world a better place. Never forget that.”
• • •
The District Attorney from the City of New York looked at the Attorney General and said, “I need your help in finding a place. We can’t let this opportunity go to waste.”
The Attorney General said, “You are not the only one asking for a place to send these gangs. It appears more than twenty of these street thugs have requested the same thing in other major cities.”
“I haven’t heard that. I don’t understand their reasoning but this could be monumental in getting a grip on the illegal activities being done by these hoodlums.”
The Attorney General leaned his chair back, “What is it they are asking you to do?”
“They are requesting that they be given land to farm. They say that the cities are no longer safe and they want to go back to a simpler life.”
“Does that make sense to you? Those gangs aren’t farmers and I’ll bet none of them know anything about farming. They must have a hidden agenda.”
“You’re probably right but I would prefer them to have an agenda as far away as possible from the city. If they fail, that’s just their bad luck.”
“The farming machinery would be extremely expensive.”
“They’re not asking for any. They only ask for the land and the seeds to plant. They say they will purchase whatever they need as far as farm equipment. They also ask for temporary structures they can live in while they get settled in and food until they can start their crops.”
“I am not going to send more than twenty gangs out into the heartland to start their trouble.”
“You don’t have to do that. Just find a place that’s far removed from any cities and put them all in the same place. We might get lucky and they kill each other off. At least no innocent civilians will be hurt.” The Attorney General narrowed his eyes and was going to say no until the District Attorney said, “Can you imagine the boost the President will get when it becomes known that twenty street gangs have been removed from our major cities. The cities would cheer him and it will certainly help his re-election this year.”
“Come see me the day after tomorrow.”
• • •
Two days later the Attorney General said, “I think we can help you.”
“What have you found?”
“We have found an area of private land located in the unsettled land between Nebraska and Missouri. The Land Bureau will purchase this land and turn the deeds over to the Gangs. They will all be located within twenty miles of each other.”
The District Attorney looked at the map and said, “There aren’t any paved roads.”
“There is a small one that’s hard to see on the map, however, they won’t need to travel. This will make sure they stay where they live. There are some unpaved roads through the area but not much more than that.”
“I see there is enough water flowing through the region.”
“It’s perfect for farming.”
“How big an area will this cover?”
“A little over six thousand square miles of empty land; it’s a square eighty miles wide on each side.”
“I’ll take this back to the gang and see if they keep their word about moving. What about the structures for them to live in?”
“We have thousands of portable barracks in storage that we’ve slated for destruction. It won’t cost anything to set them up. We’ll also send them food until their crops are done.”
“How will you get the food in?”
“We’re going to pave a two lane road from the interstate and build a small airfield at the edge of their lands. That should be enough. The initial food shipments will be brought in by helicopter. The taxpayers will pay for the water treatment plants.”
The District Attorney stuck his hand out and they shook, “There are no losers here.”
“Those gangs are going to learn what back breaking work is all about. I don’t think they are coming out winners here.”
“That’s true, but they are there and we are here.”
The Attorney General laughed and said, “That is true.”
A year later, twenty five gangs were moved to the wilderness and dropped off at their new homes. Law enforcement in the cities they left laughed at their good fortune. Six months later when their violent crime rates had tripled, they started to understand what value the clans had provided to their cities. But now they were there, and the police were here.
• • •
AG graduated from Harvard with a PhD in History. The Vietnam War had ended and his rank was changed to a reserve commission. He knew he would never serve in the Army again. He accepted a profes
sor’s position and taught for four years and then called Edward Bingham and requested a meeting. He also contacted Robert Adams and asked him to be present. Robert was elected to the House of Representatives and was one of the youngest ever elected.
He arrived at Bingham’s office and found Edward Bingham, junior and senior, along with Robert Adams waiting for him to arrive. The younger Bingham had been updating Robert on all that had happened in Vietnam. Robert found most of the stories hard to believe but Bingham senior had pulled documents from the military to prove Ed’s narrative.
AG entered the room and said, “Thank you for this meeting, Sir.”
“I’ll meet with you any time you want Doctor Gardner.”
“I have something to share with you and I am going to ask for your help and a promise to keep this information secret. Please hold your questions until I finish.” Everyone nodded and AG began. Eight hours later the three were staring at AG and he could see their distress. “Surely this can be avoided?”
“It cannot. If we attempt to get around this event, a worst one will happen and the results will be totally catastrophic. You are going to have to trust me that I know this as a truth.”
Ed junior looked at AG and said, “You’re psychic, aren’t you?
“I am. However, I’ve learned that some things I’ve done happened without me knowing why. The reasons only appeared much later.” AG looked at Ed junior and said, “Taking you out of the Black Witch’s camp was one of those things. That had to happen in order for us to be discussing this today. I only sensed that I had to do it originally. I didn’t know why.”
Ed senior said, “Well, we’re both thankful that you did it.”
“Will you help me?”
Robert said, “What do I need to do?”
ED senior said, “You must become the ranking member on the Defense Appropriations Committee.”
“Why is that?”
“Because we are nowhere near wealthy enough to create what Gardner is describing here. We’re going to need government funds to make this happen.”
Robert thought a moment and said, “That means I will have to be re-elected quite a few times for that to happen.”