Robert and Maria took off; there were wall lights located every fifty yards. We flew down the narrow ancient flight of stairs until a massive iron door stopped us.
The indestructible looking door was locked on the other side to us. So, I merely pushed it opened as I spit a rock out of my mouth. The door surprised me and tried to stop on the spot I slammed my face into the rock wall. The stone was glistering, so I put it in my pocket for Alice.
Robert fixed the door so it would not lock to ensure their escape. The steps straighten out and broaden for about a quarter of mile ended in a small port city with a large weird looking submarine tied up to the dock. There were about ten building on the pier. One could see the mist coming from the fallen river as it slammed into the bay from its long trip from Fort Barlow. To the right of the cave covered port, there was a large body of water. It could be anything from a lake or even an ocean. The Soldiers had to be getting at least electricity from the fallen water.
Robert and Maria walked up and down the small dock, checking out the buildings on the pier. There was a Tavern with food and a medium-sized ocean supply outfit. The rest of the buildings were abandoned.
The first thing I wanted to do was take care of business. The supply store had a small open sign, but I couldn’t see inside the dirty windows. I walked inside, a young kid in dungarees was behind the counter. The shops inside were filthy as the windows. Maria was looking down an aisle growling, the place sold seafaring stuff, such as small and large motors, fishing poles, nets, bait, etc.
The kid said, ‘Nice pet.’
I said, ‘Thanks.’ I need to talk to your dad.
He is in the back, having supper with Ma, said the wide-eyed boy. Can I ask you a question?
Yes, said Robert.
Are you the fighter and do you know the Princess?
Yes, to both questions, my son. Tell your Dad to gather up everything that is important and get on the Sub with the rest of the Soldiers. We can talk about Ms. Bossy later.
Tell him yourself here he is.
I asked the staff sergeant are we, safe sir?
No, sir, the Tavern next store holds many unnatural strangers.
I told the Sarge, take the family and any paperwork and get on the submarine. Tell them I need ten men right now and prepare for departure.
Robert waited for the men to leave the sub before he entered the bar to catch them off guard, which he did.
The ancient wooden door had sturdy locks on it. Robert pushed right through the chains and locks. The screaming mountain lion scared the shit out of everybody, including Robert. He brushed aside two knives before they hit their mark.
The Prince read everyone minds and sent the results to Alice. She may not get them today but, the memories would find their way home. If he dies, she will find the killers.
Right then ten armed Soldiers rushed into the bar to back Robert up by attacking the remaining customers.
Robert told them to seal any exits and set charges, after everyone is out of here, blow it up. Do not touch the dead bodies they have bombs on them. I will take care of the bartender. Make sure everyone upstairs and in the basement is dead.
Robert carrying two wounded Soldiers requested to board the Sub. The bartender who was secured and already in the Soldier’s hands was thrown into a guarded cell.
Robert ate at the officer’s dining room. He asked for food for his pet.
Two young soldiers with smiles on their faces enticed Maria away with something on a plate.
During the meal, Robert asked the fellows what they knew about the Ancient City?
The answer was nothing, except you just captured the first Ancient City resident, congratulations Prince Robert.
Thank you, bring him to the Brooklyn Military Complex and hand him over to a security unit.
The commander said, Robert If you want to see some proud soldiers check this boat, the crew loves their Princess ever since they watched the ‘Friday Night Fights.’ Robert this is the loneliest post for any Soldier on this planet. The crew would like to meet you and ask you a few questions about their Princess.
Robert agreed.
The conversation started after dinner. A Captain said the Ocean they were in has many types of fish. The fish taste about the same but all of them are high in protein.
The bones could be used for fertilizer, I said to myself. I asked the Soldiers to tell me everything he knows about the Ancients. The marine commander said they come from the dark part of our planet. The Ancients always knows when we are coming and will be gone when we get there. They don’t seem to care about anything. That’s about it.
Well, the Soldier said we are a good twenty-five miles from the Earth’s outer crust. Beneath the crust, there are twenty-five miles of lava and various types of burning steel. We are not sure where the light we have comes from it might have something to do with the lava field beneath us. Up here All we can make out so far is a vast ocean.
This is the first assignment for many new Soldiers. We have been out for three long boring cruises.
Robert told the crew that his mind recorded everything he does and Ms. Nosy cannot wait to see what I have been doing. The first thing I will do is get her little head up to date. Alice will be able to watch us (Maria and I) run down the stairwell for ten hours and today’s adventures.
After a beautiful dinner, they forced me to tell stories about the Princess. So, I told them the ‘River’ story without the actual danger. I talked about their childhood, the King’s Banquet and Charlie Chan. About Alice hanging on to him and the Soldiers leg, screaming in baby talk telling me to cut their heads off. Sometimes she would go to sleep in my arms. Right now, she mads at me because she can’t be here.
We laughed and drank for hours as the sub sped off into the Ocean
Robert was sitting in the crew’s room with Maria; she was all excited looking for the two lads that gave her the snack earlier. They showed up with smiles and a bigger plate now. One of them got to tickle her stomach. She fell asleep on Robert’s foot.
Back to the Honeymoon
The Princess was walking picking up seashells, which were unbroken and beautiful. Since there were no waves, therefore, there was nothing to break them up just the tide which came in at night and was gone by the morning.
The couple finished lunch and walked into the town everything looked closed.
A thousand soldiers (invisible) marched around them. Alice kept on talking to them like “Hi Tommy” Hello Timmy how is your father, during the walk into the town.
The liquor store was ready for business? Every shelf was packed the language problem was solved it was Polish. Robert took a pint of Polish rum, and when he went to pay for it, a sign told him to pay for it later.
The Entire world was waiting to see what would happen when Alice saw the mannequin that looked like her. That pending picture glued everyone to their Television set.
Robert walked in first, checked out the shop out with Maria. He kissed Alice’s mannequin. Alice was watching him with one eye and the other eye on a sandwich shop which appeared to be opening across the street.
Just then a small boy around four years old came running out of the back of the store stopped in front of Robert and yelled a few cusses’ words in Polish at him about playing with the doll.
His face turned white when he recognized Alice. He then turned about and looked at me and passed out.
Alice picked up the small boy and went to the back of the shop looking for his parents.
Alice said the boy’s mother looked at me and quivered. She took her son and ran.
Robert said to himself; I think I know what may be wrong with the little goofball. I notice there is a nightclub called ‘Casablanca.’ Every time you watched the movie you ended up sleeping in my arms no matter how mad you were at me.
Alice found the mannequin, laughed
for a while, signed it and kissed it goodbye.
Mother’s call
We were sitting in the nightclub a little-embarrassed because every time we got up to dance everyone else in the place sat down. We had entered the club just as it was getting dark; it looks like nobody did anything in this town until nightfall.
A waiter appeared out of nowhere with a telephone on a silver tray it had a black cord attached to it, which ran across the dance floor causing the dancers to jump over it as they passed. Alice and I were watching the dancers jump over the black cable. There had to be a hundred dancers.
The waiter said in broken English the phone call was for me.
I told him to take a number I can’t hear a thing in this place.
Right away an announcement was made over the club system dictated that all noise and movement must stop while the Princess is on the telephone. It immediately became quiet in the large nightclub. All the dancers stayed in place along with the waiters and dinners.
The soft music continued. The faces were not filled with annoyance but with smiles as they listen to their Princess.
All sound stopped as Alice put down her sandwich and said ‘What?’
I picked up the phone and said ‘Hello.’
A women’s voice who I recognized as my mother-in-law said is that you Robert?
Yes, your Majesty.
What is Alice doing?
She is sitting across from me eating a club sandwich, waiting for a slow dance?
Robert, do you notice anything different about her?
Yes, answered Robert she likes free food and slow dancing.
Robert, Alice, is pregnant and you should plan on bringing her home now, put her on the phone.
I handed the phone to Alice and said its moms.
Alice stood up and jumped up and down, took the phone and said,
‘Hi ma.’
After the phone call Alice stood up and yelled ‘Robert’ I’m pregnant. She jumped up and down for a while and then ran into his arms.
The on-lookers all ran around yelling and screaming for two reasons: Alice’s hour-long phone call was over, and the nightclub customers could talk and move, also, the incredible news the Princess is pregnant.
Trip home
Alice noticed the little animal staring at her when she walked out onto their suite’s balcony. The island did have a five-star hotel. Rosemarie who was packing the Princess’ bag said it’s a gift for you. The tiny thing with big eyes and a burnt red coat was staring at her. It wasn’t afraid it was happy and appeared to be waiting for her.
The Princess picked it up, hugged it and danced around the bedroom, with it in her arms. She told the animal, she was going to have two babies. The little animal was soft and made a tiny cooling sound, but we had so many other pets: two dogs, a Mountain Lion, a baby goat, and two rabbits. Do you think you can get along with them?
A coo was heard.
Alice said, ok then you can come along, we won’t tell Robert.
Chapter Forty-One
At Home
The crowds welcoming home the Prince and the Princess were terrific some people had waited for days. The village surrounding the castle was packed. There was a two-day festival. When the Submarine rose out of the water it was like a giant sea monster; the TV Camera was rolling the announcer was talking about the name on the boat (Princess Alice) Nit and Wit were beside themselves, they have been hanging on to Grandma, Lily for days.
All the families’ babies are born at home. Robert, your bed, is next to mine, but, if I have nightmares, then you can sleep with me. Emily and Janet are nearby and will decide on calling the birth team.
Robert, they have a special team that takes care of all births, so you don’t have to be here.
Alice, I’m sleeping with my wife until you tell me to leave. Maria and Lilly Kemble can stay in the hallway so you can shut up your Doctors.
Honey, I’m worried. Robert if something happens what are you going to do? We are going to have a boy and a girl, I told Janet and Emily.
Stay around and take care of our children and you, Robert said.
Robert, I know they’re twins I can see them, and sometimes I sing lullabies to them. One is a boy, and a big one and the other is a small girl, said the Princess.
Listen, Alice, your babies have two great-grandmothers, two grandmothers, not counting your other mothers and fathers. Also, it looks like everyone is pregnant around here. Our babies have a zillion kids to grow up with and will be happy as a lark. No, I will never remarry. Can we go to sleep now?
No. Robert, I want to know if we are going to Heaven or Hell?
Oh! The big question. It doesn’t look good for me.
Robert, I killed people too, so It doesn’t look good for me.
Robert said listen, Alice! When we were on our honeymoon, by our self in a vast unexploded ocean for days, I had time to think about that. Alice, I believe there is no ‘Hell.’
I got to think about life in general: One, there is no Hell. Yes, there are people who we have met that do belong in hell with horrible pain every second for the entirety. But Alice it may be a chemical imbalance causing the individual in question to act inhuman.
Human beings know what actions are right and which are wrong without being taught. If one doesn’t accept these basic rules of civilization, they belong in ‘Hell.’ That is true, but the people who act this way have some sort of imbalance in their DNA. That is why some people act like monsters.
There is no Hell. Therefore, there is no Heaven.
If you have a problem, with this reasoning, you can consider changing your religion. There are at least 10,000 different spiritual beliefs along with that number of Gods.
They put a chair in the hallway for Robert while the babies were born. The Castle’s Doctor delivery the babies and turned them over to the nannies. Nit and Wit passed out.
Keeping the rush of relatives, friends, pets one husband was too much for the Princess. But things finally slowed down, and life continued. Usually one would see Emily or Janet pushing a baby carriage, with at least one grandmother and five pets, following the Princes and Prince.
After the births, the Princess hosted a banquet for her court and friends. Her class for the blind from Brooklyn now lived and worked in the Castle as lawyers, administrators, and nurses. Ginger and a few of the girls have become members of the Royal Court and are now Princesses. The most sort out woman was Ginger; she was getting engaged.
The babies, Sandra the 5th and Robert the 2nd played all day with their many cousins in a specially built room. Also, Tony and Gloria’s little boy, Teddy the 2nd, Uncle Billy’s and Sarah’s little girl, Lily the 2nd. Yes, Joeann and Steven are still working on it. Add a few Soldier’s babies, and you got the picture. At night the babies all slept together in a high-security room controlled by Soldier nurses. One little Princess got special treatment from a Soldier named Rosemarie who picked her up and sang lullabies until the baby cooed.
Prince Robert and Princess Alice got involved in a few wars which they won. Also, they had to correct a few families.
Suddenly, the Princess’s appetite became demanding, and her goofy personality returned which led to all the pets sitting in the hallway with the husband. The two new babies were beautiful. Except for a little princess named August kept getting out of her crib. Crawling to her mother’s bed and ‘Wail’ until a long arm came out of the blankets and grabbed the little thing and gave it to its mother. The Soldiers knew what the baby was up to, so they just followed it.
Chapter Forty-Two
Second Chance Soldiers
Between 1847-1852, the ‘Potato blight’ in Ireland, killed one million people. Families, including babies, died from exposure, starvation and related diseases including insanity.
In 1848, the landlords evicted ninety thousand families in County Mayo,
Ireland for failure to pay their rent. They threw them out on to the street to die.
A loud clamber woke Mary. She knew it was eviction day. She got her children together and moved them out as fast as possible. Their shack was then immediately thrashed along with their sad belongings.
Mary’s husband died a year earlier from typhus. Each of her children and herself had deep colds. She knew begging for food or shelter was futile. But she had no other choice; Mary gathered her four young girls. They walked thru the muddy road to the local Church. Another heartbreak the Church was overflowing with people pleading for help. They couldn’t even get into the door.
Mary family was forced to huddle under a makeshift shelter (hut) made of a few poles and a ripped blanket, while the family waited for death. She wondered with dread what happened to the past occupants? Mary heard it was going to get colder tonight. Mary’s mind was screaming, you and the babies are going to freeze to death.
There was only one chance to live left, the work-house. This charity institution accepts the homeless. Here you get a miserly place to work and live, but you live.
This was the landlord’s plan on how to get rid of the piss-poor Irish families. The public was told not to worry if a family was evicted from their home, they could always go to a charity workhouse. The newspapers were not aware that the workhouses were packed to capacity and closed to any additional families.
Mary hugged each of her child huddled in the makeshift sheltered, looked into their eyes and said I would see you tonight in a better place. She gave them her worn out overcoat and left. The children watched their mother leave and wondered why mom was walking the wrong way. Mary’s mind had given-up causing her to go insane, she never made it to the workhouse. Within a mile, she passed out and fell into the muddy road and never got up.
Violet, Mary’s sister, learned about the pending Irish’s evictions from a passing relative. Violet booked passage on the first available ship. She planned to bring her sister, Mary, and the four children back home to the States with her.
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