by Paul Phipps
If we do follow them, I want one IGD assigned to my nephew and another assigned to his wife. Just in case they split them up for some reason.“ Admiral Webster directed authoritatively. He then turned to Seeker.
“This reminds me of the old days in the Civil War.” He said with a slight smile.
“I was thinking that too. Unlike then, you have more resources to work with now.” She remarked
“Very true, we’ve come a long way since then, haven’t we?”
“Admiral the UPS van has now cleared the driveway…. Wait…. A white Minivan has just pulled alongside.
My, My, My, that was slick. They didn’t even stop just tossed your nephew into the minivan. Your nephew’s wife appears to still be in UPS Van.” Roland said with some admiration.
“It appears we are dealing with real professionals here doesn’t it?” Seeker murmured.
The minivan is now heading south on the county road. They are doing the correct speed and trying not to bring attention on themselves.” Roland continued to narrate as they kept their attention on the various views being projected.
“Very good, assign an addition five IGD’s to the Minivan watch.” Admiral Webster directed.
“Unless something unusual occurs to the minivan we will ignore that for the moment. I want to see what happens to the UPS Van.” Seeker added.
“The UPS van is headed toward the airport now. It will be intercepted from two directions in 90 seconds by forces on the ground. Analysis of radio nets of local police forces indicates that the original watchers were of a Federal nature. Probably Homeland Security or National Security Agency using Homeland Security as a cover identity.” Roland announced.
The TSN watchers were silent as they watched the UPS van get stopped and surrounded. They could see someone in the van shouting out of a window.
“If the IGDS can hear them, I want to listen in.” He directed.
For a few minutes they listened closely. There were demands to stop and exit the Van with their hands up. Demands being shouted back. But no guns were being pointed in earnest.
“Something isn’t right here,” Admiral Webster said watching intently. “It looks staged, like they are bad actors reading from a script.”
Seeker was quiet but obviously was intent on something else. Roland on the other hand was curious as to why the Admiral was thinking that. “Please tell me why you feel this way?”
“It’s hard to say why, some of it is body language, and some of it is the phraseology being used. It feels fake, like a setup.” He said as he stood up and started to pace glancing at the scene in front of him. “Roland, how far away from them are you right now?”
“I am still over your former farmstead. All video and audio is being acquired by my IGD’s.” he answered.
“And the Mk II’s?”
“They are physically much closer but at least ½ mile from this scene.”
Seeker suddenly announced. “There are numerous sensor sites now coming active in the area. At least five… now seven. IGD #2 at 50,000 feet is reporting a military style reconnaissance aircraft coming into the area.”
“Roland, let’s maneuver out of here. I don’t think they can get past our masking. But let’s not give them any practice either. I think we just triggered a honey trap. And I would like to know who set it.” Admiral Webster said. “Leave an IGD here monitoring the house and property. If an opportunity arises to do so then initiate discrete observation with an emphasis on conversations here on this property, then do so. Keep in mind that the need to avoid detection is paramount.”
He then sat down and collected his thoughts. “What’s going on with that white minivan.”
“It appears to have stopped at a local restaurant named Lou’s BBQ. The occupants have exited the vehicle and have gone inside.” Roland reported with a slight pause.
“Do you have a close up of the occupants?” Seeker asked.
A series of close images appeared on the main viewer. The distance was equivalent to a two foot viewing distance.
“Hmmmph, that answers one of my questions.” Said the Admiral.
“Yes, it does and then asks another.” Seeker Stated, “The man that appeared to be your nephew is not him at all. He is missing the chipped tooth in the lower jaw.”
“I missed that”, Admiral Webster said, “I was looking at his eyes and forehead. He has too many smile and laugh lines. My nephew never smiled at anything, he was a damn stone face. Otherwise he is a good body double for as short a time as they had to make up one.”
Seeker got up from her seat and walked behind Webster and started to massage his shoulders and neck.
“I surmise that once the drama is done at the ‘UPS’ van we will see the same thing. A body double of your nephews wife.” She said calmly. “In any case if this does turn out to be a staged kidnapping, either your nephew or his wife is willingly involved or they are long gone from this location. If the former we will do nothing more. And if the latter we will need to develop more information”
“Frankly Seeker, I am of the mind to think that this is all a government operation, in which case my nephew will be cooperating completely. That was his nature if you do remember.” Admiral Webster said sadly.
“Indeed it was,” She said serenely, ”Let us watch the rest of the play then. We have some time until we are required to be back in Washington.”
* * *
Pentagon – 1330L Tuesday, November 10, 2026
A working lunch had been laid out in secure room #14; Admiral Caparelli and his guests are just finishing eating.
“This is very good Lunch Admiral, did you have it catered in?” Asked Admiral Saunders.
“I’m not really sure, I just asked my steward to set up a lunch for us here. If you would like I’ll ask him after we are done.” Admiral Caparelli answered.
“No need, I was just curious.”
“Very well then, if everyone is finished I would like to get started on why I asked you here.” Admiral Caparelli started out. He then nodded to Captain Eagleton to bring out the Verifier and the Holographic Projector.
The Captain set both the verifier and the projector in the middle of the table and indicated that they were working.
“Ms. Nolans, of us all, you are the only one that doesn’t know what these two items are. I am about to induct you into an exclusive group.” As he spoke the verifier pulsed a cheery little blue glow.
Ms. Nolans kept quiet and looked curiously at the two devices and indicated he should continue.
“These two items are gifts to us here in the Department of the Navy. They came from an organization that calls itself the Terran Space Navy.” He watched her closely as she in turn watched him and the verifier as it continued to glow with a bluish color.
“The pyramid is called a truth verifier. When it glows blue like this it indicates that the speaker is telling the truth as he or she believes it to be.”
“You mean it can detect lies,” she said still staring at it.
“Yes, it can”, the Admiral stated quietly , “Let me demonstrate it to you. I am wearing a dress, you have pink hair and the food was very good.” The verifier glowed red and then eventually turned blue at the end of his statement. “Would you care to try it out?”
She looked at him and then said in a small voice. “It really works…. “ Her voice died out and she looked a bit frightened. “Why are we here?”
“’Why are we here?’ a good question indeed. We are gathered here to garner information from each other that just might save the lives of our men and women that are in service to the Navy. I approached each of you earlier and asked a couple of questions each. The answers you gave me convinced me to go a few steps further. So here we are.” Admiral Caparelli said earnestly looking at her and then the other two in the room.
Admiral Saunders nodded his head and said, “Very well, please continue then.”
“Let’s go on then. Ms. Nolans according to what you’ve told me and your personne
l file you’ve worked here in the Pentagon ever since you graduated from Georgetown. Is that correct?”
“Yes, sir I have with the exception of a six month period when I had Maternity leave.” MS Nolans replied.
And the Verifier indicated that she had told the truth. Then Admiral Caparelli continued.
“I am going to ask the same question of each of you and then I want you to ask me the same question. That way we are all on the same level here.”
“Continue, Admiral”
“Yes, sir”
“Of course, sir”
“Here goes then, Captain Eagleton, Can I trust you with my Life?” Admiral Caparelli asked
“Yes, sir you can.” The Captain replied forcefully and then asked the same question in return. Eventually each person went around the room and asked each of the others until all possible combinations were made. As it got to the end it was almost a game, a serious game but there was a rhythm to the questions and answers.
Finally they were done and then the atmosphere in the room was more relaxed.
“I know it seems like we are plotting. We’re not, but this is intended to prevent such from affecting what needs to be said and investigated. Earlier today I received information that indicates that our advanced munitions have been very subtly sabotaged. They have been sabotaged so that the hostile target can force the weapon to turn and attack formerly friendly forces.”
Admiral Saunders looked at Admiral Caparelli and the verifier and said in a choked voice. “You aren’t lying about that. They really are sabotaged!”
“Yes, Richard they are, every single one.” He looked around and asked, “Do any of you know anything about this?”
Captain Eagleton and Admiral Saunders both denied any knowledge. Ms. Nolans was quiet and very thoughtful and then said.
“I might know something…. Do you remember Admiral Hutchins who was CNO under the President-for-Life?”
“Yes, I remember the back-stabbing SOB.” Admiral Saunders said.
“Well, I was a junior Administrative Assistant then working for Admiral O’Neil who was the chief of NAVWEPS. I overheard the two of them discussing the ‘Traitor Terminator’.
It was a very bad time to be here you know. The atmosphere was poisonous and we were subjected to Loyalty Tests on a regular basis. It paid to keep a low profile and your nose to the Grindstone. I advanced in the Civil Service due to my predecessors being terminated, in some cases, bloodily.
I made sure that each time it happened that I made my superiors know I was totally apolitical and wanted to only handle the civil end and to leave the military stuff to the military. I was here to earn a living and that was that.”
“Thank you Julie, for telling us that. It sounds like a horrible way to live. Please tell us what you heard them talking about.” Admiral Caparelli said encouragingly.
“All I know is that they said they made sure that none of ‘our’ weapons would ever be used against the President-for-Life. And if they tried the ‘Traitors’ would never have a second chance to do so.”
“I see…. Well, that does sound like what was discovered.” Admiral Caparelli said, then “Thank you for telling us this it might have saved the lives of our people. What if an external enemy also found out about the ‘traitor terminator’, they would have used it against us. If they had need to that is.
Ms. Nolans cheered up a bit. “Thank you sir, I had flash backs of that terrible time when I saw that verifier. If the President-for-Life had had access to that sort of technology we would still be living under his thumb.”
“Do you think he’s gone for good?” asked Captain Eagleton of Ms. Nolans.
She was quiet for a bit and then in a small voice. “I hope so Sir, but I don’t know for a fact. The TV said he died in his Bunker in Maryland. But I know there were ways to get out of there in an emergency. And they never found his body you know. He could still be out there plotting his way back to power.
He could make people love him, you know. I saw it happen once….. It happened to me…. You don’t want to listen to negative thoughts about him. They were all liars, the voices in my head would say.”
The Naval officers all looked at each other in surprise and with a little dismay.
“Go on Julie, tell us more. We weren’t here then and we need to know as much as we can. How did you escape the voices in your head?”
“I don’t know how. It just happened one morning after I had my car accident. I was in the Hospital for a few days. I was a valued civil servant you know, so they gave me priority health care. The best medicines and good food too.
I just woke up and I could think clearly again. I hid it when I came back to work and parroted what the others would say and they left me alone to do my job. I think that sometimes the inner circle thought that we are all just peasants at best and automatons at worse. It was best to be ignored and I managed to survive.”
“I wonder how they managed to keep such control over people?” murmured Admiral Saunders
Julie answered him with her own theory, “Admiral, I think it was something they put into the food here in the cafeteria. It was only after a week or so of hospital food that I woke up.”
“Yes, I can see that. You could very well be correct on that, Julie. Would you like to ask any of us a question or three?” Admiral Caparelli said with a smile.
“Actually I would please. Who did you say gave you that truth thingie?” She asked
“I said it was the Terran Space Navy.”
“Terran Space Navy? Sounds like something from the SYFY channel.” She said with a smile.
Admiral Saunders laughed ruefully, “It does, doesn’t it. They are for real though, Very, very real.”
Admiral Caparelli chuckled too and then became serious, “Julie, you have to give me your word of honor not to talk about what we tell you here.”
“Admiral Caparelli, I will not discuss anything that we talk about or that I hear in this room until you say that I can.” And the Verifier agreed with her statement.
“Excellent then, continue with your questions.”
“Who or what is the Terran Space Navy? And why would they give us anything like that?” She asked
And so the rest of the afternoon meeting went. Finally it was time to give up the secure room to the next scheduled meeting.
“Before we go, I need to let you know that President Richardson is going to be giving an address to the nation at 7:00 this evening. I don’t know for certain but I believe that the subject of his address will be our friends the TSN. If it is then tomorrow is going to be a horribly hectic day. So get some rest. It may be the last we get for some time.“ Admiral Caparelli announced.
That was received with thanks by everyone for the advance warning. It was close to quitting time and after a quick check to see that there were no critical e-mails Admiral Caparelli went home to get some rest.
Washington D.C. White House. South Lawn, 1855 EST, Tuesday November 10, 2026
The political commentator on the FOX/CNN News channel is speaking to his Color Commentator who is the Former Speaker of the House who lead the mass resignation of Congress in the final act of the Civil War opening up the possibility of reunification without bitter recriminations of reconstruction as had occurred in the First Civil War.
“Speaker Abbott, do you find this as strange as I do? Speaking to the massed Ambassadors of the Nations accredited to the United States. Especially here in the open on the South Lawn, in November too, It’s a bit chilly out here, let’s see… Its 52 degrees. This is unprecedented isn’t it.?”
“It certainly hasn’t happened in my lifetime. I imagine that the secret service is going quietly nuts over this. It’s such a huge target.” Speaker Abbott said pontifically.
“That’s true too, I was thinking mainly about the protocol being issued that only the Ambassadors will be allowed to question the President and not the White House Press corps.” The Political Commentator said.
“That certain
ly is unprecedented too. It’s like the President needs to speak to the whole world and not just the country at large. In any case the viewer numbers coming in indicate a great deal of interest.”
The Political Commentator said at that point. “Well it’s not like there is any competition for those viewers. The government has claimed all the channels for this time slot. I certainly hope it’s important enough to justify the loss of revenue for the networks. This is going to cost a half a billion dollars at least.”