Just as the men were about to begin the negotiation, Bob’s phone rang. It was Jordan, and he seemed to need to speak to Bob very urgently.
“If you’ll excuse me, sir,” said Bob to the General.
Bob walked 100 meters to the east as he answered the phone.
“What is it, Jordan?” demanded Bob, “I’m trying to complete a sale.”
Jordan told Bob, “I’m watching you on a surveillance satellite. Don’t ask me how, just listen. The man you’re talking to right now has no interest in the land. His name is General Rich, and he’s the commander of the army base in Eugene. He wants to bring this whole mission down, and he’s using you as a ruse. You need to make something up about someone else wanting the land.”
Bob said, “What?! Are you kidding me?”
Jordan said, “I wish I was. This man is pure evil. He is the driving force behind the military-industrial complex’s control of all the world’s resources. I used to work directly under him. You need to be careful. Whatever you do, don’t mention anything about me.”
Bob said, “Alright, but now I’m scared out of my mind.”
Jordan said, “You should be. I’ll be keeping an eye on you from here. Be careful.”
Bob hung up the phone and walked back to the General. He told the General that the phone call was another offer for the land.
He said, “I just got an offer of ten million for the same parcel. I see you can’t beat that, so I’m sorry but we’re done here.”
The General said, “Well, I tried. You know that you’ll fail, don’t you?”
Bob said, “What are you talking about?”
Rich said, “Your mission to colonize Mars. You know that you’ll fail, don’t you.”
Bob said, “How do you know about that?” as he became very nervous. He was unsure if his own safety was at risk.
The General said, “I was there at the rally in Portland. I saw the insane man you follow. I saw you there. You will be stopped.”
Bob said, “Well, I hope you’re wrong. This world has nothing left for people like us. We want to create wonderful things for others to use. We want to make the greatest music and art that people have ever made. We want to advance science farther than it can be advanced with the financial system of this planet. We want to discover new medicines and medical techniques that will benefit everyone. We want to discover the universe in a way that money prevents. What could possibly be wrong with any of that?”
The General said, “Don’t you see that money is the only reason people do anything? You will fail because you have no reward for your hard work. There’s no incentive without wealth.”
Bob said, “The incentive is a better society where everyone is equal and has enough to live well.”
The General said, “You’re a fool. We will stop you.”
Bob said, “Then kill me now, because that’s the only way to stop my ideas from coming to fruition.”
Rich said, “I can’t kill you without proper provocation. As of yet, you have not provided me with such.”
Bob said, “Then leave my property.”
The General left and headed back to Oregon. Bob was relieved that he had survived the encounter with this evil man. He continued selling the land piece by piece for the next three and a half months.
Chapter Nine
Jordan
Jordan made a promise to Scout .He promised to make the surface of Mars habitable without any problems. Scout didn’t like Jordan’s method, but it was the only viable solution. Jordan, therefore, had to make good on his promise. He had six million dollars to get a nuclear bomb. He had told Scout that the purchase would take up the whole amount, but his contact was willing to part with the goods for half that amount. Jordan intended to use the money to purchase two bombs.
Jordan thought, “I’ll buy two. That way, if one doesn’t work, we can use the other one. Besides, if it works, we may need to renew the magnetic field at some point. It’s not like we’re going to find much uranium on Mars, and even if we do we’re not going to be able to enrich it to the weapons grade for quite some time.”
A week had passed since the meeting to discuss funding, and Jordan arranged to go to Iran. Iran was by far the most likely nation to sell nuclear weapons for a profit. Decades of sanctions against the nation had caused it to sink into a deep depression, so the government was willing to negotiate the sale of certain valuable assets.
Jordan booked passage on a private plane bound for Alaska. From there, he would go to Russia, and then to Iran. He had chosen that route because it was the one least likely to garner attention from the international police.
Jordan arrived at the airport in Eugene, Oregon around 7:30 in the morning. He boarded an eight passenger private jet bound for Dutch Harbor, Alaska. The journey to Alaska was uneventful, and could have been quite boring. The only entertainment provided was the natural scenery and the crab boats in the Bering Sea. Jordan watched the crab boats and wondered what could make a man do that kind of work. Then he realized the answer was money. Crabbing paid well, and even if one didn’t like crab, the money was too good to ignore. There were, however, no crabs where he was going.
The plane landed smoothly at the landing strip in Dutch Harbor. Jordan walked off the plane and to the terminal to wait for the next plane. The second plane was scheduled to arrive in an hour, so Jordan had to wait. He had his fill of waiting in the army, and he was growing more and more impatient with each passing year.
Jordan said, “I think I’m becoming a crusty old curmudgeon. I’ve got no patience anymore. I don’t like this.”
Jordan realized that there was no one around, so he was talking to himself. He feared being perceived as a crazy person more than anything, so he decided to stop talking until someone else arrived.
He thought, “I hope that wasn’t on tape. The last thing I need is for people to think I’m insane.”
The next hour passed so slowly that Jordan felt like a month had gone by. Every second felt like an hour, and every minute felt like a day. Jordan grew more impatient with each passing moment. He felt anxious waiting, hoping that his schedule wouldn’t be thrown off track. He only had himself to blame for his anxiety, though, as he was the person who made the schedule for all of the planes. When he made the schedule, he had wanted to make sure that he had a small amount of wiggle room in case any leg of the journey was delayed.
The second plane arrived 57 minutes and 58 seconds after Jordan arrived in Dutch Harbor. The pilot had been very conscientious about arriving on time, because he knew that Jordan had a very strong reputation as a “to the dot” kind of leader. In the army, he would dismiss soldiers from his elite units if they were five seconds late. After his military career ended, he still ran his life in the same manner. The pilot knew this, and made every effort to please Jordan by being on time.
The pilot stepped out of the plane and walked toward Jordan. He reached his hand out to shake Jordan’s hand.
He said, “Captain Green, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Jordan replied, “I haven’t been a captain for many years. And drop the formality; I got enough of hearing my last name in the army. It’s just Jordan now.”
The pilot responded, “As you wish, sir.”
Jordan said, “And I especially hate being called sir. It makes me feel old, and it makes me remember all of the junk I saw in the army.”
The pilot apologized, “Sorry, Jordan. I didn’t realize that. I have my own share of junk from the Air Force. It’s probably not the same, but war isn’t pretty for anyone.”
Jordan replied, “It’s alright. War is war, and there is absolutely nothing pretty about it. It’s just a necessary evil in this world’s system.”
The pilot said, “Yeah, usually caused by money.”
Jordan said, “That’s why I joined up with Scout in his dream to start a society without money.”
The pilot said, “I wish I could join your group. That sounds like paradise.”
&nbs
p; Jordan said, “Well, there’s more to it than that. The plan now includes colonizing Mars to start that society.”
The pilot said, “Even better. What a challenge, to go to another planet and start a society fresh from the ground up!”
Jordan said, “Well, here’s Scout’s phone number. Call him when you get back here. Now it’s time to get moving. We have to be in St. Petersburg in twelve hours.”
The pilot said, “Right, tight schedule.”
They boarded the plane and headed to Russia. Jordan felt a wave of excitement at having recruited this pilot. He was sure that he would get to know him better in the future. For now, though, he needed to keep a distance from his pilot. He couldn’t risk letting his secret out to someone who wasn’t already a member of the group. He could test the pilot’s trustworthiness later on, when secrecy wasn’t so important.
The trip to Russia was mostly uneventful, but there was one minor glitch. While flying over the frozen tundra of Siberia, a terrorist group hired by General Rich fired on their plane. The general had hired the terrorists so that he wouldn’t be suspected in the attack. He had intercepted a communication from Jordan to one of the pilots that allowed him to know the flight plan. He could also appear to be a hero when he had the terrorists killed later. The killing of the terrorists actually had been meant to silence them. This was so that no one would ever find out that he had been the one who planned the attack on Jordan’s plane. Fortunately, the plane was triple hulled for just such an occurrence. The plane was made of lightweight titanium, so it was also very strong. Each of the hulls was three inches thick, and between each layer was two inches of bulletproof fibers. The metal itself was coated with a laser resistant glaze. This allowed the plane to take up to 150 bullets and 25 laser shots without significantly impacting its airworthiness. The terrorists, however, were firing rocket-propelled grenades.
The pilot announced, “We are taking fire, but it should be nothing to worry about. This plane is stronger than most military jets.”
Jordan thought, “Great, this is just what I needed. A little attention might cause problems for Scout, and I promised him there wouldn’t be any.”
He privately thought, “The general certainly is persistent. He’ll do anything to stop us.”
The strength of the weapons being fired at the plane was 10 times stronger than any known laser, so the plane took a significant blow and was knocked off course by 2°. The pilot wanted to shake the shooters, so he took a nosedive. He fell 400 meters before veering wildly in the air. Fortunately, this made the terrorists believe they had succeeded, and they gave up the chase. A simple course correction was all that was required to reestablish the previous heading. The effect of the attack on the mission was a sixteen minute and forty second delay due to both the course corrections and evasive maneuvers that the pilot took while the terrorists were firing at them.
Twelve hours, sixteen minutes and forty seconds after they left Dutch Harbor, the plane arrived in St. Petersburg. Russia was a very different place than Jordan was used to. He was born in Albuquerque, and he joined the army when he was 19. The army shipped him off to the war in Mexico, and then to a base in Colombia. He moved to Portland when his military career was over. Most of his life had been spent in the desert or tropics, except for the last two years in Oregon, so he didn’t like cold weather. It was snowing when he stepped off of the plane, and he detested snow.
He thought, “Why did I have to choose a route that included this frozen wasteland of a country?”
The third plane in his journey was waiting on the tarmac for him. The pilot of the third plane was an old acquaintance named Clive Walker. Clive had been a company commander in the war under Jordan. He knew how the former captain hated to be kept waiting, so he had arrived two hours early just in case his old friend decided to show up early.
Jordan exited the second plane and spotted the third immediately. He saw Clive waiting on the ground next to his plane, and ran to him. When he arrived at the plane, he told Clive,
“Nice to see you again,” as he grabbed Clive and spun him in the air.
“Good to see you too,” replied Clive.
Jordan said, “What have you been up to for the last few years?”
Clive responded, “I’ve been flying charters, mostly. That’s pretty much all an old army pilot can do. It’s way different than helicopters, though. Those things are like coffins compared to this luxury box.”
Jordan said, “We’ve got a little bit of time before we have to take off. Let’s get something to eat. I haven’t eaten since I left the states.”
Clive said, “Good idea.”
Jordan and Clive walked into the airport and looked for a place to eat. They spent the next half-hour catching up with what the other had been doing since leaving the army. When the subject of what Jordan was going to do in Iran came up, Jordan had to make up a lie.
Jordan said, “I’m doing research on Muslim culture for a class at the university. I should have my degree next year.”
Clive was suspicious and said, “What are you studying that has you travelling to do research on Muslims?”
Jordan said, “Cultural studies. Everyone in the class has to travel. We all go different places and then write about our experiences.”
Clive seemed satisfied, so the conversation ended. They walked back to the plane, which was still parked on the tarmac. They got on the plane, and flew toward Iran. At this point, Jordan began to feel nervous. His heart rate began to increase, and his breathing became rapid and shallow. Fortunately, Clive wasn’t paying attention to him in the back of the plane. Jordan couldn’t afford for Clive to suspect that anything was wrong. He had to get his hands on those weapons. The success of the plan depended on it. The final leg of the journey was scheduled to take ten hours and forty-five minutes. It actually took eleven hours and six minutes, but since there was no connection waiting at the end of the journey it didn’t matter that he was a little late. His appointment with the Supreme Chancellor of Iran was scheduled for two days after his arrival in Tehran, so his schedule had some leeway.
When Jordan arrived in Tehran, the local chamber of commerce greeted him. Decades of economic sanctions in Iran had led to Iran being extremely hospitable. Every visitor was treated like a sultan, and every dollar spent was treated as if it was a bar of platinum. Jordan liked the star treatment, and had brought enough cash to Iran to make the people he encountered very willing to please him. He did not, however, flash the cash around. That would have been considered pompous and could have created animosity. He couldn’t really be too flashy anyway, as he had to have enough cash to purchase the weapons.
Jordan talked to everyone about his mission to Mars, and to no one about his immediate mission. He wanted to try and recruit anyone who was willing to join the group, no matter where in the world they came from. He wanted no one to find out about the nuclear bombs. While he was in Tehran, he managed to get four new members to join the group. He would have to smuggle them out of the country when he left. Fortunately, he was very good at smuggling.
The two-day break passed so quickly that Jordan nearly forgot about his meeting with the Supreme Chancellor. He had been so busy recruiting that he nearly forgot about his primary mission.
Jordan woke from a nightmare on the day of his meeting. He dreamt that he was caught by American authorities when he returned to America with the weapons.
He said, “Damn, that was intense. Thank God, it wasn’t real, “as he glanced at his watch. He was panting from fear.
Jordan wiped the sweat from his forehead as he realized that his meeting was in less than an hour. He jumped in the shower and quickly cleaned the stench from his body. He was already scared from his dream, but now he was terrified. The chancellor didn’t like to wait.
He ran to the castle, dodging traffic, street preachers and vendors as he approached. He arrived with only six seconds to spare before his scheduled appointment. The assistant to the chancellor sat behind her de
sk.
She said, “Can I help you,” in a thick Iranian accent.
Jordan said, “You knew I spoke English? And you speak English!”
She said, “Yes, I speak English, and you Americans are so obviously Americans that only an idiot wouldn’t know it.”
Jordan said, “I think I should be insulted, but I have an appointment with the chancellor.”
The assistant said, “I don’t care if you’re insulted. Americans are just obvious. Are you Captain Green?”
Jordan said, “I was Captain Green two years ago. Now I’m just Jordan.”
The assistant said, “The Supreme Chancellor will see you now. Go straight through that archway, and then up the stairway. He’s expecting you.”
Jordan asked, “How did you, a woman, get into a position of power in this very Muslim place?”
She replied, “We’re a secular government now. Muslim laws are not allowed to be enforced in government.”
Jordan said, “Well, isn’t that progressive.”
The assistant said, “Yes, now don’t keep the Chancellor waiting.”
As Jordan began to walk toward the chancellor’s chambers, he felt his legs starting to go limp. Every step he took made his heart beat faster, and his pores poured with sweat. His breathing was faster and about halfway to the chamber he had to stop and catch his breath. He was in better shape than 90% of the people on the planet, so this could only have been caused by extreme anxiety. Every step he took made his stomach turn, and Jordan felt like he was going to vomit.
He thought, “I have to power through this, just like I did in the war. I’ve done this stuff before. I know I can do this. I’m very good at covert ops. I just need to calm the hell down.”
He put the negative thoughts out of his mind, and walked confidently to the chancellor’s chambers. He had walked about one hundred meters when he stood in front of the Supreme Chancellor of Iran.
“What can I do for you, Mr. Green?” asked the chancellor.
Jordan was a little upset that the chancellor had called him “Mr. Green,” but he did not want to do or say anything that might jeopardize the deal. So he chose to let it go and continued with the negotiation.
MARS: Renaissance Page 8