by JC Ryan
Before long, they saw the lights of the farmhouse, and Doug landed the chopper about two miles away. As they had the night before, they took cover and waited for an hour to see if anyone noticed them and were approaching their position.
When they were sure it was safe, Daniel decided that he and Mark would go to the farmhouse and make sure that Owen or Alison was there, and no one else, before they showed themselves.
The two of them sneaked up to the house as quietly as they could and were grateful that there were apparently no dogs. At least none made their presence known. They circled the house and saw Owen and Alison in front of the TV, but no one else.
Dogs started barking inside the house just as Daniel came up to the front door. An expression of shock was clearly visible on Owen’s face when he opened the door and recognized his friend. “Daniel, what the hell is going on man? We just saw all this shit on the news! It can’t be true. Tell me it’s not true. Come into the house. “
“Hang on Owen, one thing at a time. This is my friend, Mark Bryant.” Mark stepped out of the shadow and extended his hand to greet Owen.
Owen pushed them both into the house and closed the door. Alison, who’d heard the commotion, came to investigate. She was standing a few paces away from them by now, also pale-faced from shock.
“Let’s get to the kitchen where we can make you some coffee and sit down, so you can tell us what is going on.”
The blue pill or the red pill?
While Alison got busy with the espresso machine, Daniel got right to the point.
“Owen, Alison, please accept my sincerest apologies for barging in on you like this, but we are in desperate need of help. Our lives are at stake, and you were the closest people I knew of who could possibly help us.”
Alison took a long look at him. He was as pale as milk with black circles around his eyes. If he’d slept at all in this past week, she’d be surprised.
Owen and Alison looked at each other, still in shock, and Daniel saw it.
“But before I continue any further let me first put your minds at ease. We didn’t kill or kidnap anyone. A very powerful and influential man is framing us. The foulest and most wicked man I have ever met or heard of. A man with an agenda conceptualized in hell.”
Owen held up his hand before Daniel could continue. “Daniel, I’ve never seen you so grave and tense, my friend. I never believed for a minute you’d killed or kidnaped anyone. Your word is good enough for me, and it has always been.” Alison nodded her agreement with Owen.
“Thank you. I appreciate your trust very much. Let me continue a bit further. The reason for the situation we find ourselves in is that man and his allies are after the 10th and 8th Cycle libraries. There’s nothing they won’t do to get it into their possession. They’ve already killed one man, kidnaped another, and wounded two of my team members.”
“That’s awful, man. Where are the wounded people? Can we bring them in and help them?”
“Not yet Owen. Just bear with me. We’ll get to that in due time. They’re okay and taken care of for now.”
“Did I hear you correctly? Did you say the 8th Cycle? I didn’t know you’d discovered another cycle and its library,” Owen said.
“Yes, we have. A few months ago, we discovered it not too far from your doorstep, in the Grand Canyon of all places. It’s been there for more than 50,000 years, right under our noses.”
“Wow! Shiiiit! Here in the Grand Canyon? It feels surreal,” Owen exclaimed.
“You can say that again. These last few days have been a nightmare. Let me tell you, knowing what I know tonight, and if I could travel back in time, I’d go and ‘un-discover’ that place at a moment’s notice. Even if it were the last thing I had to do on this earth, I’d do it.” Daniel said and paused.
“Man you’ve got me worried now. Just keep going,” Owen encouraged.
“Before I continue, I have to be entirely honest with you about the dangers you and Alison will face just by hearing what I have to say. You might think I’m melodramatic, but please hold your judgment for now. If I go on with the whole story, you will be in as much danger as we are now. The bad guys are out there looking for us right now, and I can assure you, they have the means to get to you.”
Owen shrugged, and Alison put her arm through his. “Go on.”
Daniel continued. “You have to prepare yourself for a visit from them or the police in the next 24 to 48 hours. Naturally, the less you know, the better for your safety, I’m sure you understand that. All you have to do if you decide to stop me now and don’t hear the rest of the story is to tell them what you know. We were here, but we left again, and you don’t know where we went. That will be the truth and will keep you out of trouble. “
Mark, who had been listening quietly to the conversation up until then said, “Owen, you do have another choice. You could pick up the phone and call the police now and let them know where we are. That would end it for you. You’d be safe.”
Mark’s comment immediately got Owen’s nose out of joint. “Listen bud. I don’t know you from Adam, but Daniel, Sarah, Alison and I go way back. They’re our best friends. What you’ve suggested is an insult! I’m loyal to my friends, and that’s it.”
Mark realized his mistake and was quick to offer his apology, “I’m truly sorry Owen - and Alison. Please accept my apologies. I didn’t intend to insult you. I just wanted to say you do have the option to stay safe from the consequences of having contact with us. I’m sorry.”
“Apology accepted,” Alison said.
Mark decided to leave all the talking to Daniel.
“Daniel there’s no way on God’s green earth that my best friend knocks on my door before the rooster crows, in apparent distress, and I send him away. That’s not going to happen tonight, and it’s not going to happen in the future. You need my help - you have my help. Alison?”
“Yes, Owen, we stand by our friends,” Alison replied.
Daniel started talking again. “You don’t know how much your loyalty and friendship means to us right now. But I just want to make sure you understand that if I let you in on the rest of the story, you can’t ‘un-ring’ that bell. No pun intended, Owen. That means the two of you will become partners in our troubles, which is something I wish I could avoid, always. Especially where my friends are concerned.”
At this point, Daniel paused and looked at each of them in turn to make sure they understood what he just said. Satisfied they did, he continued with a bit of a smile on his face, “Okay so what is it? The blue pill or the red pill?
They smiled as Daniel continued with a verbatim quote from that famous science fiction movie from the late nineties ‘The Matrix’, “You take the blue pill, the story ends. You wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill, you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes. Remember: all I’m offering is the truth. Nothing more.”
“It’s the red pill my friend - we already told you so.” Owen voiced his support, while Alison nodded her head in agreement.
“Thank you again. You’re genuine friends. Let me fill you in, then. But I warn you - put on your seat belts. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.” Daniel started his hour-long chronicle of the events that brought him to their doorstep that night.
Nearing the end of his narrative, Daniel gave the events of the past few weeks in more detail. He explained how, with the help of his most trusted Foundation employees, he had come to understand the nature of the threat he was about to reveal. At last, Daniel paused a bit, took a deep breath, and then said, “Up until the point when I received that telephone call on the satellite phone two nights ago, we were all unaware of what was going on right under our noses. Now comes the horror part of this movie. You still sure you want to hear the rest?”
“We have to hear it, all of it,” Owen said. Alison took in the grim expression on his face and nodded in agreement.
“Were it not for Salome’s attentiveness and inge
nuity with her Spiderweb, we would still be none the wiser,” Daniel continued as requested. He explained how Salome discovered how some the richest of the rich had been working and operating in the shadows to get and keep control of virtually each and every industry in the world. How they never bought outright control, but the shareholding between them gave them power, and how they collaborated in secret to control the markets to their advantage.
Owen was a bit skeptical. “You mean to say in this day and age with all the government surveillance, and spying on citizens going on, there’s a group of people that could escape it all?”
“Owen, I think what you don’t get is that they’re in control of each and every communication method you can think of. They control the Internet search engines, they control all social media, and they control all satellite, wireless, mobile and landline communications. They are the Internet and communications service providers for our planet. They decide what information they let through to the government spy agencies, not the other way round.
“That isn’t all. Let me name just a few more industries, other than communications and media, which they also control - pharmaceutical, agriculture, banking, petroleum, and I can continue. What’s more, as you’ll soon find out, politicians live in the pockets of these people. The ones who don’t eat from their hands are few. These guys can control the outcome of elections, which they definitely do. And for them to do that is as easy as organizing a beer bash in a brewery.”
Hearing this made Owen’s jaw drop in bewilderment. “That means they control the world!”
Daniel replied, “Almost, but here comes the horror part now. They are not happy to have only the financial control. No they want to also govern the world politically – they wish to be the world’s only government. They believe they will create a fair, just, and prosperous worldwide society for all of us. Utopia – no poverty, no corruption, and long and happy lives for all of us. Up until now, their insurmountable obstacle was the expected resistance by security forces of any country they might try to overthrow. Up until now, they didn’t have the necessary military capability to overcome such resistance.”
Alison comprehended that Daniel had just said something crucial, “Daniel you make it sound as if they now have that military capability? How and when did that happen? And why didn’t we hear anything about it?”
Owen got it a few seconds before her, “The Beast! They’ve got it don’t they?”
“Yes my friend, I’m afraid so,” Daniel said in a slow, soft voice.
“Oh my God!” Alison exclaimed as her hand flew to her mouth.
Daniel continued, “I take it that you’re beginning to see what’s at stake here? I am truly sorry to put you through this, but I have the same idea about loyalty to my friends as you two have, and I promised you the truth.”
Owen, still digesting the information, stopped Daniel with another question, “So why would he let you and the rest of your men stay alive, leaving you all behind in the canyon, and then change his mind and now want to get you again?”
Daniel replied, “The 10th and 8th Cycle Libraries, as I said in the beginning. When he left us, he told us he had already ordered his people to go and pick up the libraries at the Foundation offices. Once he had those in his hands, we wouldn’t pose any threat to him. What he didn’t know was that Sarah and Salome would have activated Enigma immediately after that phone call to us. That means they would have evacuated the Rossler Foundation premises, taking with them those libraries and everything of value.”
Owen began to nod as Daniel finished his thought.
“He made a big mistake. He realized he was ripped a new one when his people arrived at the Foundation and found nothing. That’s why he’s looking for us now. He wants to use us as bait to lure Sarah and the rest out of hiding and hand him the libraries in exchange for us. At least, that’s our take on his sudden urge to get hold of us.”
“I think I am starting to get the picture now,” Owen said. “But what’s so important to him in those libraries?”
“Well Owen, the 8th Cycle library contains all the information about how they created their society and the details of the technology that they used to accomplish that. We haven’t translated all of it yet, by any means. There could very well be, and we believe there is, a lot more information in there that can help us understand their technologies better and perhaps find a way to neutralize it. And that’s only half of the picture.”
Owen interrupted him again, “There’s more?”
“Yes, there is.” Daniel continued, “Remember that we found the reference to the 8th Cycle in the 10th Cycle Library. We haven’t delved into everything the 10th Cyclers knew about the 8th Cycle. In fact, we haven’t even scratched the surface of all the information contained in it. For all we know, and again we believe this is the case, there could very well be a solution to our problems locked up inside of it.”
“I can see why he’d be a very pissed off man by now,” commented Owen.
“That’s certainly true,” Daniel said. “He isn’t a man that’s used to opposition. He’s used to having things his way always, and I can assure you from firsthand experience he will kill anyone that gets in his way.”
“We believe you, Daniel,” Alison said.
Daniel continued, “A few more blows below the belt. With the unearthing of Brideaux’s plan, Salome also discovered that Brideaux and his cronies have been buying up pathology labs like crazy for the last few months. They now have almost worldwide control of that as well.”
“For what reason?” Owen interrupted.
“To get the DNA of every human on earth. She got confirmation of that and also that they have hacked into government records and got hold of the DNA sequences of law enforcement and military personnel, as well as political leaders and high-ranking government officials. We’re convinced they are about to, or have already produced a nanobot that could kill or incapacitate people based on their DNA.”
“And you believe that kind of technology is possible?” Owen inquired, a bit skeptically.
“Not only possible, it’s already existed for some years now. We have experience of that from the Sword of Cyrus crisis,” Daniel replied. “Did you know that the nanospores of enough anthrax to wipe out the entire world population could be stored in a container the size of a briefcase?”
“Oh shit, what a mess!” Owen whispered with his head in his hands.
Daniel delivered one more shock, “Now maybe not the last low blow, but it is certainly going to be extremely painful. Salome’s digging also uncovered that - hold your breath for this one - our beloved president is one of the seven Brideaux accomplices.”
“Oh my God, we are screwed. The world is fucked!” shouted Owen.
“Daniel, do you have any idea how long it will take before they’re able to put this satanic plan of theirs into action?” Alison wanted to know.
“Unfortunately no, we’ve only just now come to the realization that we haven’t seen the tip of the iceberg of their resolve and capabilities. We have no idea what they’ve prepared in advance of seizing the Beast from us. We’re totally in the dark as to where, when and how they’re planning to initiate action. It could be months or weeks, but it could also be sooner than that. They certainly have the resources to make it happen. Of that much, I’m certain.”
Don’t underestimate them
As Daniel and the others arrived at Owen and Alison’s place, four sinister looking men knocked on Patrick Roland’s door at his house in Farmington, one hundred and twenty miles south of Owens farm near Ridgway.
Patrick immediately sensed the men were trouble and tried to protect his friends, whom he also realized by now hadn’t been entirely honest with him. When Jason and his men showed him their guns, he decided to tell them what he knew. He related the events of the previous day, the time Doug and Mark arrived, the mechanical problems, the efforts to fix it and the time they left.
Unbeknownst to him, his answers “confirmed” to J
ason that he wasn’t lying because it upheld what they’d heard in Flagstaff before - the escapees were heading for Boulder, and there were only the two of them. Although this didn’t explain what happened to the Rosslerites, Jason figured that they must have been holed up somewhere while Doug and Mark did the fixing and refueling.
Even though Jason didn’t look forward to another phone call with Brideaux, he knew it had to be done. It was time to give Brideaux an update. He figured out how far that chopper could have been flying with six people and would suggest to Brideaux to start looking within a four hundred mile radius from Farmington. Another conversation littered with insults, abuse, screaming and profanity followed, as soon as Brideaux answered the phone.
“Mr. Brideaux, I’m pretty sure they’re on their way to Boulder. I have that confirmed by two independent sources.”
“Listen Jason, don’t underestimate those guys for one second! Any one of them has more brains in their fuckin’ toenail than the four of you have combined in your skulls! I want you to turn every stone, bush, and tree for four hundred miles around Farmington in the next two days. You’d better get back on their track. Don’t make me come out there to do your fuckin’ job.”
“Yes, sir. I am onto it right away. I will get them.”
“Jason and for fuck’s sake, dress up appropriately, and get the police and every law enforcement agency in that area onto it as well. I’ll send messages through their top echelons to expect you. So make sure you don’t look like fuckin’ hillbillies when you arrive to ask for their help.”
“Yes, sir.”
“You now know to look for a helicopter and you also know that two of them have bullet wounds I gave them, the younger Rossler in his left hand and James through his lower right leg. Now get your finger out of you fuckin’ ass and find them. I have to have them in my custody in the next seven days. If you can’t do it, say so now, so I can get rid of you and put someone competent on the job.”