Dawn of Tomorrow

by Kevin Douglas

  “Flattery gets you nowhere with me. I, however, am like you. I do enjoy a challenge and to innovate. You have my attention. You said mesh, what do you mean by that, what form is this in?”

  “That’s for you to decide but I was thinking blades and overall similar in structure to a palm frond. I can’t say anything more about it until we shake on it and I obtain approval from my employer.

  “He won’t have knowledge of your involvement with Mrs. Sullivan, will he? Palm frond huh? Interesting, you don’t have prior approval. Can I see a rendering before I..”

  “No! Sorry. I’m not trying to be rude. I must square this away before we begin. Oddly enough, your involvement is a result of someone’s meddling. I think you know who I mean. If my boss approves he will need a non-Disclosure Agreement signed. Is that going to be a problem?”

  Laughter once again erupted from the strange man. “I’ll keep it under wraps. Don’t worry, Leonard. Mums the word. I’m in. What’s the compensation?”

  “I’ll follow up with the details. I want to get to work ASAP.”

  “Yes, I’m used to a pressed deadline. So, I’m curious to know how did Mrs. Sullivan get you entangled with her? You seem to me innocent, ambitious and uncorrupted.”

  Mrs. Sullivan’s name drew Leo’s attention, he sat up straight, “Well I didn’t seek her out and, from what I hear, she didn’t either. Mr. Sullivan had some plan for me, but I am happily employed. You mentioned a story about your involvement with her but stopped telling it. I’d love to hear it.”

  The man’s generally smiley demeanor changed to a serious one.

  “We’ll talk if your boss agrees, but I thought it was important for you to know something about the Sullivan’s. I didn’t want to tell you over the phone earlier. They have ways of listening. My creation became hers and when confronted I found out Mr. Sullivan held it captive. You don’t want him involved. It’s amazing what fear they can instill in you without a single meeting face to face.”

  Mr. Naublock bounced up, pivoted and quickly walked toward the front of the restaurant.

  “Wait. You’re leaving? What about the pizza?”

  “Call when you hear back. Enjoy your pizza.”

  Confused, Leo watched the strange man exit the restaurant just as the server placed their steaming large pepperoni pizza down in front of him.

  Leo snagged a slice, the aroma making his mouth water. As he satiated himself, he thought about Marty’s reluctance to help in the matter and his fear of the Sullivan’s. His harsh words toward them startled him. What did Marty mean when he said the Sullivan’s have ways of listening in? What else do they know?

  Chapter 43

  Once at a safe distance, Stratus pulled off the road to calm down and to look over his vehicle. He hoped none of Fox Two’s bullets hit his Porsche. The man’s knife had already torn into his car door and still lay buried to the hilt. As always, in the heat of the moment adrenaline had taken over, that’s why he always tried to remain relaxed.

  It did not hurt that his prior training had him prepared for such situations. He was no rookie. He had experience, excelling at just about every combat tactic, hand-to-hand being his favorite. Even with all this experience, he was not sure if he was prepared for what lay ahead.

  While he learned very little raw data, he did learn a few things from his encounter. The location appeared important to those involved, guarded with highly trained men and gated with a powerful electrified fence. He did not know how many guards patrolled, but it was definitely clear the “lady of the house” made the decisions.

  Thanks to Fox Two’s slip up, he now knew Leo was involved with this Mrs. Sullivan. She wrote him checks and it appeared they were not affiliated with New Wave. Was Krueger double dipping by selling his wares to both? The way they had escorted him onto the property seemed odd, and his lack of knowledge of her deposit confused him. All of this put together resulted in a jumbled mass of clues all pointing toward strange and unpredictable activity.

  He would start with the name first. He would have to look it up discreetly, but it would tell him Mrs. Sullivan’s story and how she fit in.

  Maybe he would pressure Leo some more. If he could get the woman Leo was with at the hotel alone, he was confident he could drag out information from her.

  He put his thoughts aside, got out of the vehicle and removed the knife still sticking out of his door panel. He now had a large slot sliced into the door and the window would not roll down. His anger rose a bit at this damage, “Shit.” He rolled back his sleeves to view the sliced leather doorframe, sticking two fingers through the cut, and then checked the remainder of his suit, mud covered each arm and both knees.

  He brushed down his pants, angry he would have to replace this suit completely. The sun was all but gone now and he had to decide what to do next. He required a computer to search for details on the things he learned but remain secure and unknown to those above him.

  Stratus decided he would try a coffee shop and commandeer a computer there. He paused as he opened the driver’s side door. Stratus hoped what he saw was a mud clot, but he knew otherwise. He ran his hand over the front driver’s side fender where he saw a dark spot and slid a finger into a hole in his fender, then noticed a second hole right next to it. Fox Two’s scattering of bullets had hit his car. Stratus’s clenched his fists trying to fight another curse, his adrenaline flowing wildly.

  He slammed his fist down on the damage. “I’m going to kick his ass for this.”

  He could not wait to follow up with Leo. He would not be as polite as he had been previously. These people were funding Leo and they tried to kill him. Stratus made the first move, he would have to paint things differently to his superiors. Lying to himself was easier than admitting he screwed up by visiting Mrs. Sullivan.

  He got back in his Porsche and kicked up rocks across the road as he sped away. He went looking for a coffee house to build his facts. The heat had been turned up and he had no choice now but to hit back hard.

  Chapter 44

  Shortly after Fox One’s tree stakeout, he approached Halaby mansion, hoping for a meeting with Mr. Sullivan. He had not been here since Mr. Sullivan had asked him to be his inside man at Mrs. Sullivan’s data center. As he neared the entrance, a voice came over his comms earbud.

  “Fox One, what a pleasant surprise…at least I hope so. Aren’t you supposed to be on sentry duty for Mrs. Sullivan?”

  The setup here must be like the Pennsylvania home, identification verified ahead of time. He was surprised that Mr. Sullivan would be the one to contact him instead of security.

  “I have some information that needs your input. Some details require your attention.” Fox One said. “Things are different in Pennsylvania.”

  “Well I hope she didn’t scare you off. I’ve spoken with her on prior occasions and she seems to be critical of you.”

  Fox One stopped walking and let out a quick laugh in disbelief. “Well sir that’s why I’m here. I’m not trying to drive a wedge between you two, but things aren’t what she’s telling you. My job’s perimeter security but I feel compelled to inform you of today’s set of events, given you and I have a delicate relationship.”

  “You don’t have to defend yourself. I know something’s off. Say no more. Come in so we can talk where it’s more secure.”

  Fox One continued walking while Mr. Sullivan spoke to him until he reached the front door. He waited for someone to open it but instead it popped open on its own.

  Fox One pushed it open revealing a corridor of wood, floor to ceiling with two sets of doors, one on the ground floor, and the other at the top of the stairs. Fox One waited as patiently as he could and to his surprise, Mr. Sullivan appeared on the upper floor landing in Hologram form.

  “Welcome to Halaby! While I do trust my team, I think it best our conversation happens in a private place. Come upstairs for a moment.”

  Fox One ascended the stairs as he watched Mr. Sullivan’s image disappear into the double d
oors. The Phantom paused before opening the double doors and turned around to view the front door.

  Once he entered upstairs all control was in Mr. Sullivan’s hands. He did trust him, but something seemed different about this visit. He was about to betray some confidences of his employer. Even though he had little respect for Mrs. Sullivan, he almost hated himself for coming here at all. After all, he was just a soldier.

  Compliance and doing the task he had been given was programmed by repetition and expected. Fox One disliked blind obedience without any judgment involved. The human factor was removed if contradictory orders were given and expected to be followed without merit. With no choices, a robot might as well do the job. Even a robot would just sit idle with two contradictory orders. He refused to do that and that’s why he was here.

  The double doors popped open and after his thoughts cleared, he entered without hesitation. Another wooden room lay before him, surprisingly small given the massive size of the house. He stared confused, studying the room, scratching his head. No doors or windows lay in any direction, the expanse of the home seeming inaccessible.

  Mr. Sullivan squatted and, as he did, a chair appeared under him; he leaned back looking very comfortable in the office chair.

  “Well let’s have it. What is it you are here to report? And don’t hold back on account that it may not bode well for Mrs. Sullivan.”

  Relieved, Fox One said, “For starters, Mr. Krueger’s involvement in her activity may be more than she is letting on. After you put the tablet in play, everything escalated and changed. When Leo first arrived, he hadn’t a clue why he was there. He seemed convinced it was for a book. Or so he wanted me to believe.”

  “A book?” Mr. Sullivan asked.

  “Well yes, he said it was for school or class. The Geology book seemed out of place. When he returned, he mentioned he was bringing back a device. The tablet had become unresponsive. He had an attitude that we owed him something and when I informed Mrs. Sullivan of the tablet in his vehicle, she dismissed it with an out of sight out of mind attitude. I informed her of protocol, your protocol, so I kept the tablet at position Twelve. Later, I found Krueger’s girlfriend roaming the grounds. This is when the shit—excuse me, sir—”

  “No apologies necessary. What hit the fan, Fox One?”

  “Mrs. Sullivan’s man servant did, sir. He interfered and wanted to kill the girl. When he raised his weapon, I fired. I was sure I hit him. Fox Two and I were unable to prevent Krueger and the girl from escaping.”

  “So how did the system get taken out if Leonard fled?”

  Fox One nervously paced in the room, hesitant to tell Mr. Sullivan about telling the next sequence of events. “She had me bring Leonard back. There’s more though sir. Furious, after shooting Mrs. Sullivan’s wanna-be hit man, I entered the home to confront her. To my surprise, the servant was unharmed. They had acquired the tablet from my post somehow and when I went to interrupt them they inserted the tablet into a library input terminal.”

  Mr. Sullivan’s face crunched up in displeasure, and he sat up in his chair.

  “What happened next was instinct.” Fox One said. “I fired a round, destroying the tablet. But it was too late. Krueger’s virus had already entered the system, halting it. When Krueger came back, after I retrieved him, it was if no harm no foul, the system was up, and everyone was all smiles. Look it’s not my job to know the inner workings but this other man that showed up at your home to question Leo, can’t be good for business. He doesn’t look friendly. He looks trained. He looks government, black ops perhaps.”

  Mr. Sullivan remained contemplative, “I hold your concerns as well. This Stratus showing up is just what I did not want. I’ve been busy cleaning things up in other places away from home. I’ve left the Sullivan residence with additional support in case he tries to visit there again. I read you correctly from the start Fox One. You’ve done a good job handling this, coming here. Others see you as mindless though.”

  “Thank you. If you’d see me in combat, I am quite the savage.”

  Mr. Sullivan reciprocated Fox One’s smile.

  “I have no doubt about that…You’ll be surprised but I selected you and Fox Two. What was it they said on your final report before we extracted you? I believe it was ‘impeccable in every combat scenario, leader, adaptable, however, un-programmable, stubborn and unorthodox. Recommended he be reassigned or discharged from the Seals. I brought you here and this time I’m keeping you. You are reassigned to Halaby effective now. This location isn’t as rural as the Sullivan house, so I can’t have you roaming wild given your weapons are of a less conventional sort. I do hear you’re as close to a ghost as possible. I need you to remain this way”

  “It’s an honor, sir. When do I get to meet you in person?”

  “The hologram is me.” Mr. Sullivan bounced from the chair and swung his right hand downward, gracefully. “You don’t like?”

  “It is impressive, but nothing replaces a face to face. I don’t doubt your integrity, but some reassurances would be comforting given the set of events.”

  “I feel the mind encompasses the body. It gives life to limbs and animates the otherwise useless appendages. The mind determines whether your hands kill, heal, or create, not the opposite.” Mr. Sullivan’s focus turned to his wrist communicator, tapping his finger to it several times. “Enough of philosophy. I understand your need for assurances. As a token of my trust I’ll show you one of my pets. A side product of our overly creative R&D here. In fact, you met them on the way in.”

  Fox One wondered what this all meant. He had the feeling he was about to find out.

  “Don’t be alarmed he’s under my control, everything here is, and now so are you Fox One.”

  A figure began to pass through the wall Fox One thought was solid. The feet came through first, metallic long toes in the form of paw like phalanges. As the second foot came through so did the rest of the body. Fox One figured the wall must be a projection just like Mr. Sullivan. It moved closer, feet angled outward walking like a bird. The body was not anything like a bird, more a mix between a dog and a cat. The hands were beefy and muscular, resembling a human with metal spiked claws extruding instead of nails.

  The body appeared to be metal plating but gave the illusion of anatomical features of a cat, dog, and human, reminding Fox One of gargoyle. Its face held a menacing scowl, blue glowing orbs as eyes, its ears up at attention.

  Fox One backed up allowing more room and the ‘pet’ collapsed down on all fours looking fierce and ready to pounce. It showed a grin, teeth looking like knives and sat looking at him. The creature’s eyes went dark and it froze like a statue.

  “Meet my new pet.” Mr. Sullivan said.

  Confident the beast sat inactive, Fox One moved closer to it, smiling. “Fuckin’ awesome, sir. That’s one pet I’d love to own!”

  Chapter 45

  Leo eagerly typed out a message to Bartholemeau at New Wave, asking him permission for Marty to be included in the project and a contract for nondisclosure and confidentiality. While he waited for a reply, Leo set out to locate New Wave’s headquarters. The day was still young, the sun hanging low on the horizon. He wanted to see the place and find out what they did there.

  Leo wanted to know what the lab was like and if he needed extra materials for Marty, should Bartholemeau allow his involvement. Leo followed the road he had traveled last night. His GPS led him to a rural wooded landscape. He came to a stop, not a sign in sight or indication of an address, just two dirt roads leading away from the state route in opposite directions. It seemed unlikely either of them led to his destination, but this was the address.

  Leo played eeny, meany, miney, moe in his mind and turned right, the closer of the two roads. He would have bought a truck if he knew he would be going on so many dirt roads. Leo drove awhile wondering what he would find on this road, and finally came to a sign, and an unmanned booth nearby.

  Thick forest surrounded the area, covering it with shade
. The digital sign read NEW WAVE with waves lapping over the top of the name in motion. At least he was in the right place. Beyond the guard shack sat a large empty parking lot. The area was quiet and well-groomed with a large metal arm blocking the entry, the building huge and sparkling, appeared brand new.

  This setting seemed odd to him. A flashy lighted up digital sign, brand new building and an empty parking lot. What was all the show for? No one appeared to commute down this road, not even employees.

  Leo stopped at the booth and studied the small building. It had a loading slot like an ATM machine that read, ID. He didn’t have a New Wave badge. He did not drive all this way just to give up, so he inserted his driver’s license. The machine pulled it in and he waited and hoped the machine would not shred his license. Thirty seconds went by and the machine spit out his license. He extracted it and another card spit out right after.

  “Good morning Mr. Krueger,” came a metallic voice from the direction of the booth.

  He grabbed the second card, which he identified as a New Wave access card and the restrictive arm lifted, allowing entry. So much for the warm welcome from Bartholemeau. Not sure where to go, he parked by what appeared to be the front entrance. His car’s movement scared away a deer eating the flowers and shrubs that decorated the grounds.

  Leo watched the beautiful animal sprint away and disappear into the woods, still chewing on a mouthful of fresh foliage. Leo then popped his door and got out.

  The modern building had glass walls and a dome roof that appeared gray, separated in sections like a pie. From afar, Leo studied the beautiful glass structure. As he approached, the glass seemed to change to the gray shade he saw on the roof, making it impossible to see in. He looked down the length of the building and it gradually went from gray to clear, unobstructed in the distance. Leo thought it must be varied state polarized glass.