The Gravity of Anti-Gravity II

by Tim Blagge

  The vehicles had been adorned with strange and colorful flowers. Their blooms were large and multi colored covering the entire exterior of the vehicle giving them the look of a small float in the Rose Parade. The oddest thing was that there were two animals harnessed up to the front in an odd attempt to make the vehicles look more like a carriage. These animals were not horses, not camels, not rhinoceroses, but a strange combination of all three!

  “What the hell are those?” I whispered to Brenda. Jerry and Stella were standing nearby.

  “A horcamceros,” offered Jerry.

  “More like rhinorscams,” Brenda said.

  “Whatever they are, we should take a pair back to Earth,” Jerry said. “We’d make a fortune in the petting zoo business!”

  We all were directed to take a seat in one of the vehicles. After they were full of our group and whatever dignitaries would fit in, the driver of the vehicle raised the vehicle off the ground and snapped the reins. I surmised that he animals were never intended to actually pull us along, only to look that way because the driver never did get them fully under control. One animal would go one way and the other another way, jerking our ride from side to side.

  It was fun to watch the struggle between man and beast as the driver carefully maneuvered us through the crowd. And there was a crowd! Standing about twenty deep, the entire mile from the marriage venue to the City Center Square, cheering Veladorians stood throwing single flowers at our transporters turned float as we moved along the route.

  Stella leaned up from the row of seats behind us a whispered to Brenda and me.

  “We sent video of William and Kate’s wedding back to our Producers to show an extreme example of life on Earth. Your ceremony was patterned after theirs and this is as close as we could come on short notice. By Veladorian standards however, this is extremely elaborate and grand.”

  “Tell your Producers they did a great job, Stella.” Brenda commented. “This is certainly more unique than anything we could of done back home; and I mean that in a good way.”

  When we arrived at the City Center, a large stage had been erected. Our wedding party walked up to the elevated platform followed by the Veladorian dignitaries. Several of their politicians spoke of happy topics, taking care not to mention the planetary crisis that loomed in our collective future.

  When the politicians were done, our group including Pops and Grandma walked over to a waiting aircraft and entered. Before we went in, we all waved to the adoring crowd and they cheered our departure. After we sat down and the craft took off, I turned toward Stella and Rolf.

  “That display of adoration was just crazy! Something tells me that your people are assuming or expecting that we will save the planet. Even though we’re certainly trying, the responsibility is more than I want to deal with.”

  “Bill, someone has to take charge and even though the odds of our success are small right now, we must keep trying. Don’t think about it. You and Jerry have a marriage to consummate and that’s where your efforts should be focused right now,” Stella offered.

  “First, another interesting choice of words, Stella,” I responded. “And don’t worry. I’m pretty sure Jerry and I are having trouble focusing on anything but that issue, right now.”

  “And don’t leave me out of that equation,” Brenda added.

  I looked over at Jerry to get his response and agreement to our comments but he didn’t hear me. He and Joanna were kissing passionately.

  -Chapter 14-

  The nice thing about anti-gravity travel is that the aircraft takes off quickly, rises to the edge of space, moves around the globe and lands in a very short period of time. In about twenty minutes, we sat down on a landing pad next to what I could only describe as a castle. It was situated about 200 meters from the ocean and a fabulous looking white sand beach. Palm trees, similar to Earth’s, dotted this beautiful pristine landscape. Brenda and I looked out in utter amazement.

  “Pretty nice, isn’t it Bill?” Stella asked.

  “Are you kidding? This place puts Hawaii to shame and that’s really hard to do!” I answered.

  “Jerry and Joanna heard our comments, reluctantly stopped kissing, and came over to the window and looked out. Judging by their faces, I could tell they loved the scenery but were as anxious to get out of the craft and settled in alone as Brenda and I were.

  We all walked out and said goodbye to Pops and Grandma. They both felt they were needed back at their factories and decided to press on. The new underground facility was in the State of Utah too, but was on the other side of the continent. Pops decided to stop there first and check on their progress before continuing on to his California factories. We all hugged and as the aircraft was leaving we waved to Pops and Grandma and made our way to the compound.

  CEO Blosh greeted us personally, took us into the castle, and escorted us down a long hall to our rooms. Blosh was a close friend of Rolf and at six foot three; he wasn’t quite as tall as the six foot six Rolf but was cut in the same, muscled, body-building mold as Rolf. I figured that these two were probably stars on their high school football team or whatever sport they played here on Velador.

  “I’ll show you around this estate just before dinner as I know you’ve got other business you’d rather attend to right now,” Blosh explained while he showed us to our rooms.

  “Thank you so much for your hospitality, CEO Blosh,” Brenda said impatiently as she shook his hand. “I’ve been waiting twenty-three years for this moment and the anticipation is killing me.” After a short pause, Brenda grabbed my arm, and shoved me through the open door like a linebacker. “C’mon Bill Burton, now you’re mine!”

  After we entered the room, Brenda closed the door behind us, pushed me against the wall and we kissed for a few minutes. She paused, looked into my eyes and said, “Bill, will you join me in prayer please?”

  “Sure Brenda,”

  We walked over toward the bed, knelt down with our elbows on top of the bed, clasped our hands together and Brenda began. “Dear Lord, I’m not sure why you put Bill and me together, but you did. I want to thank you for that. He’s not perfect, but he’s all I want or will ever need. I must confess, our life together recently is simply crazy and totally improbable but I promise to make the best of it. If it is your will, please help us assist the Veladorians in the fight for their planet.”

  “I can hardly wait to see what you have in store for us in the future.” Brenda continued. “If you will forgive me now, I am going to enjoy my new husband and love of my life, Bill. Amen.”

  “Amen.” I said.

  “Bill, let me go into the bathroom and change. I’ll only be a minute.”

  When Brenda came out she was dressed in a mid-thigh length negligee that looked like it was made out of silk. It ran over Brenda’s ample bosom and around under her arms. It showed her great curvy figure and it was obvious; she had nothing on underneath it.

  “Beatrice helped me create this little number and she did it for nothing,” Brenda said proudly, as she did a sexy little wiggle and turned around modeling the clothing.

  “Brenda, get over here now before I explode,” I demanded.

  Brenda came over, pushed me down, sprawled on top of me and began kissing me with an animal-like passion. I tried to take charge, but Brenda would have none of it. She controlled our encounter and I gladly let her do it. That afternoon I discovered something about my new wife that became an everlasting source of joy for me. Brenda enjoyed me as much as I enjoyed her.

  After we finished this first blissful encounter, Brenda and I laid there and caught our breath. After a few minutes, Brenda broke the silence.

  “Bill, don’t think that I’m done with you today. Consider this a break in the action to be continued shortly.”

  “Thank you God,” I said under my breath but loud enough for Brenda to hear. I turned my head to look at her and I saw a cute little devious smile on her face as she stared up at the ceiling.

  Just before dusk, we wer
e summoned for the evening meal. As we left our room, Jerry and Joanna, and Rolf and Stella, were also on their way. We all entered some kind of large drawing room with elaborate furnishings from another age. An attendant took us to the dining room. CEO Blosh welcomed us and began to show us around the mansion.

  “This palace or house was the summer residence for the kings of Utah before the consolidation of States on Velador about 250 years ago. It is over a thousand years old and many of the furnishings were made during its earliest period. Like Earth, we called this our renaissance period and all the elaborate detail stands as a monument to that time. The palace is a source of pride for our State and for three months out of every year, it is open to the public. I, as the current, duly elected CEO of Utah, am allowed to use the estate, as I wish, the other nine months of the year.”

  “If you don’t mind me asking, CEO Blosh, how did you get into politics here on Velador?” Joanna asked.

  “Well Joanna, that’s a long story but my early claim to fame was being a prosecuting attorney in our justice system here. I tried several high profile cases and won all but one. In the one I lost, we discovered that the man we charged actually was innocent so I announced my findings worldwide when we dropped the charges. The people took that to mean I was honorable and honest. I ran for the CEO position here in Utah ten years ago and won. In every election since then, I have received over seventy percent of the vote.”

  After we completed the tour and arrived back at the enormous dining room, CEO Blosh offered us a beverage. We all walked out to a patio style deck and watched the large red Veladorian sun begin to set over the turquoise ocean while palm trees waved in the warm breeze. It was a sight to behold!

  Feeling a little melancholy and more mellow than I’d felt in weeks, I took Brenda’s hand and walked over to Jerry, Joanna, Stella and Rolf. “I’m not sure what tomorrow and the future may hold for us, but I hope our friendship continues for many more years. None of us knows what’s ahead and if we’re successful in saving Velador, we will still have more than a gigantic challenge to overcome back on Earth.”

  “Bill, you six Earthlings here, including Pops and Grandma, are fighters.” Stella commented. “And with your help, the people of Velador are learning that peaceful strength is necessary here too. Tomorrow we will see what the Cromwells do and go over our plan.”

  It was announced that dinner was ready and we all went in to eat. After we finished the meal, Brenda got up, thanked everyone including CEO Blosh, looked at me and announced. “Come on Bill, it’s my wedding night and I want to make the best of it!”

  “But Brenda, we already had a wedding afternoon - twice.” I answered.

  Brenda gave me another devious smile, grabbed the cuff of my shirt collar and started dragging me toward the bedroom. I looked back at the others in the room, shrugged my shoulders with my palms up and said, “You’re killing me Brenda, but don’t misunderstand; I mean that in a good way!”

  -Chapter 15-

  The next morning early we met before breakfast to begin our defense recap and on-going plan. We had the TV screen on in the background so we could monitor any events if they occurred. CEO Blosh sat in and Rolf opened the discussion.

  “In discussions with Pops, he needs more transportation to relocate the machinery required to equip his new plant here in Utah. It needs to be moved from all areas of the planet and much of it will need fixing before it’s operational. Pop’s best engineers have been relocated to the new facility and they are getting things set up now. He has been able to keep the aircraft facility running at top speed too. Bill, your grandfather is doing an amazing job!” Rolf commented

  “Scattered around Utah, I have some surplus heavy transportation equipment available.” CEO Blosh responded. “You tell me where it’s needed and I’ll have it there within the day. Have you been able to manufacture any nuclear weapons yet?”

  “Not yet,” Rolf answered. “All the refined material we are producing has been going into fusion generators to power the new spacecrafts. That’s why we need to get the refinement capabilities functional here in Utah. Old, 200 year old refinement equipment is also being stored underground in Kentucky. We were going to try to restart that equipment there but I believe moving it to Utah would make more sense. That way Pops can oversee most of our operations in one place.”

  Suddenly the announcement we had been dreading came on the TV.

  “The Cromwells have just landed and they are meeting with Chancellor ‘B’,” the announcer stated. The meeting is being held in The Large Room here in Prossfell and as soon as we have an indication of what has been discussed, we’ll get back to you. Now we will go back to our regular programming.”

  CEO Blosh said a few words in the direction of the TV and it changed the feed to The Large Room in Prossfell which was not available to the public. General Boiknest had returned representing the Cromwells and her demeanor was coolly threatening as she laid out her demands.

  “Chancellor ‘B’, this is not a negotiation. I have come here to inform you that on behalf of the people of Cromwell, we are claiming Velador as our possession! We will be moving occupational forces to this planet as soon as possible. As you know, we have weapons you do not possess. Any attempt to resist us will be dealt with in the harshest possible manner. We are aware of your revitalized defense facilities, and your attempts to build new weapons.”

  “Chancellor ‘B’, Velador is now prohibited from producing any aircraft or any other offensive or defensive weapons. Violation of this mandate will be dealt with in the harshest manner. We will begin moving our people to Velador soon. We will be monitoring your response to our mandate while we prepare for the occupation. If you and the people of your planet want to survive this transition, you must comply fully! To show our seriousness, we are currently destroying the defense factories you have recently established. This meeting is ended.”

  I moved away from the group and immediately called Pops. He came on the line.

  “Pops, if you are in your California plant, get yourself and everyone else out of there now!” I screamed into the phone. I just found out the Cromwells are going to disable it so get any completed vehicle out of the building and fly them to any place where they can hide for awhile. Make sure they have their sensor evaders on, but get moving now!” I hung up and went back to my group.

  “What did I miss,” I asked.

  Brenda, who had come into the room, said that a short argument between Chancellor ‘B’ and Boiknest had gone nowhere.

  “Chancellor ‘B’ even threatened to arrest Boiknest and have her thrown in prison.” Brenda explained. “Boiknest said any action like that would trigger the complete annihilation of Velador so Chancellor ‘B’ backed off.”

  Boiknest rose and along with her assistants walked out of the building to their spacecraft and left.

  Within fifteen minutes, Pops had his spacecraft factory evacuated and six vessels that could fly were moved and hidden in a forested area a few miles from the factory. Pops ordered them to remain concealed unless they received orders to the contrary. They were all piloted by young, newly trained crews.

  As these brand new ships remained obscured from vision, a group of three Cromwell vessels approached. They flew directly over the spacecraft complex of buildings and dropped non-nuclear high explosives leveling most of the facility.

  Out of nowhere, two of the new Veladorian spacecrafts emerged from the trees and began to pursue the three Cromwell vessels. When our ships were within range, they fired their upgraded laser cannons. The Cromwell vessel at the rear of the formation was hit and went down. A second was hit and suffered the same fate.

  As the Veladorian vessels were about to shoot at the remaining enemy aircraft, three more Cromwell crafts came out of the sky and took up a position behind the Veladorian ships. As they fired their own laser weapons, the two Veladorian crafts took evasive action. One went quickly vertical and one turned left causing the Cromwell’s lasers cannons to miss. One young
Veladorian pilot looped his craft, ending up on the tail of one of the Cromwell ships and fired. A third Cromwell ship exploded in mid flight.

  Two of the remaining three Cromwell ships fired at another Veladorian ship and it was hit, crippled, crashed into the ground and exploded.

  Suddenly, the remaining four Veladorian ships that were hiding in the forest took off and joined the battle. They took evasive actions on their approach, making sure they never flew in a straight line as they neared the Cromwells. Because they were faster and more maneuverable, they got in position and quickly destroyed the last three remaining Cromwell ships.

  Pops, who had taken up a position at the edge of the forest, witnessed everything. He called Bill.

  “What’s up Pops,” I answered.

  “Bill, I need to tell you about what just happened here and when I’m done, you’ve got to relay the information to Rolf and Stella. I’m not sure what the ramifications are, but here goes.” After he was finished, he said he was going to look over the damage to the manufacturing complex to see if there was anything salvageable.”

  “Where are the remaining ships?” I asked.

  “Hidden back in the forest, but I think we should try to find some kind of underground bunker to better conceal them until the next time we need them. Bill I’ve got to go.” Pops said and hung up.

  I turned to the group and related the story I’d just heard.

  “Rolf! Stella! Everyone; we just had our first inter-galactic dogfight and the score is Velador six, Cromwell one. We lost one aircraft and the Cromwells lost six. We had six new ‘Big Bertha’ spacecrafts that had been completed in the last three days, still in our factory. Fortunately we had enough pilots and crews available. After I called Pops, he ordered the ships flown out of the building and had them hide in the nearby forest and wait for orders. He also evacuated the plant.”