Collapse (New America)

by Richard Stephenson

  Richard looked at Tank. "Billy, I trust that was enough exercise for you?"

  "Not really, but I did have some fun."

  "Glad to hear it."

  Richard surveyed the cars in the parking lot. The time for worrying about gas was now over. He needed a bigger vehicle that could go off road if the situation required it. A nice battering ram to get him out of a sticky situation would also be nice. He decided on a full sized, four door pick up. He opened the driver’s side door and looked inside. Four wheel drive. Perfect.

  Richard walked back over to the alpha male who was struggling to get back on his feet. One swift kick and he was hugging the concrete again. "Here's the deal, friend. We aren't going to steal any of your cars like you wanted to steal mine. We’re gonna be nice enough to leave this nice Honda Accord with you and trade it for that pickup. Whose pickup is that? I really like it."

  "Mine!" spat the alpha male.

  "Terrific! I’m gonna need the keys from you. Sorry! I hope you're left handed, seeing as how I broke the right one. Need my friend here to help you?"

  The alpha male shook his head, handing the keys to Richard.

  "Great! We're just gonna grab our stuff. Won't take a minute."

  Richard and Tank walked back to the Honda and loaded the contents into their “new” pickup. Richard fired up the engine, and they pulled forward toward the alpha male. Rolling down the window, Richard tossed the Honda keys to the alpha male. "It was nice meeting you fellas, take care!" Richard drove around the traffic jam at the intersection and pulled back onto the road.

  "You are the baddest mother fucker I've ever met," said Tank.

  "You ain't so bad yourself. I know you coulda handled all six of them but I wanted to give them the chance to do the right thing and let us by. They didn't quite pass the test."

  "No shit," Tank laughed, "how much farther?"

  "Just a couple of miles," answered Richard. "How's your eye?"

  "Feels fine in this nice chilly weather. I like it here."

  "Well Billy, I don't know about you, but I don't plan on staying long."

  "Oh yeah? When were you planning on filling me in?"

  "Not really a secret. I find my kids and we're headed to Canada."

  Tank didn't say anything, which was good. Richard was going to part ways with Tank once he found his kids. He was sure Tank would understand that his kids were the top priority. When Richard was an operator with the SEALs, he’d set up a new identity and stashed the credentials for his new life - driver's license, passport, credit cards, and cash - in a cemetery not far from the U.S-Canada border. He was going to take his kids and get far away from the United States.

  Richard found the street he was looking for and turned into what looked like a decent sub-division. He was pleased to see that the neighborhood was deserted. Many of the houses had been ransacked and pillaged, but no gangs of desperate, angry people wandered the streets.

  "This is it," said Richard as he stopped the car in front of a nice, two-story house. “You mind staying with the truck?"

  "Of course, man, go get your kids."

  Richard got out of the truck and headed to the front door. He had thought about this very moment for so long. His daughter would have no idea who he was. His son, on the other hand, probably had the memory of him savagely murdering a man in front of him permanently fixed in his brain. They would be nine and thirteen years old, and their absent father was about to thrust himself into their lives. He stopped at the front door and had no idea what to do. He had rehearsed what he would say for years, but at this moment he couldn't remember any of it. After a minute or so, he realized the only thing he could do was knock, so he did.

  Peering through a nearby window, Richard could see a faint glow coming from the back of the house, probably from a computer or television. Taking a closer look, he saw his ex-wife lying on the couch. Richard rapped the glass and hollered.

  "Monique! Let me in!"

  Monique stirred as Richard continued his pounding.

  "Monique! Wake up! Let me in!"

  Richard’s ex-wife slowly rolled over and motioned for him to come inside. He walked warily into the kitchen, immediately noticing a syringe and other drug paraphernalia on the table nearby.

  “Hey, sweetheart. So glad you’re home,” Monique slurred. “The kids will be so happy to see you!”

  It didn’t take much for Richard to confirm that his ex was higher than a kite. His concern, however, was not with her. He hit the stairs running.

  "Timothy! Christine!"

  Richard darted into each bedroom, calling their names.

  "Timmy! Chrissy! Are you here?"

  Richard ran back downstairs and confronted his ex-wife.

  "Monique!! Snap out of it! I don't have time for this! Tell me where our children are!"

  "The kids are fine. Chad took them on a trip. His parents have a nice RV; they're having fun. You wanna have a little fun with me? You can meet my friend Davy, and he can give you some blow. Come back here and we can get high and fuck. You ever fucked while you're high?" Monique started laughing and tried to grab Richard's crotch.

  "Get your hands off me, you junkie! You're supposed to be taking care of our children! Is this what you do all day? Who takes care of Timmy and Chrissy?"

  "Relax, baby. Chad is great with them. He takes care of us real good."

  "Where is this Chad? Where did he go with our kids? Tell me right now!" screamed Richard. Richard tightened his grip on her shoulders and glared down at his ex-wife.

  "Chris said they were going to his parents' ranch outside of Yellowstone. Chad really likes the kids. I don't like camping so I stayed here."

  "Do you even know what's going on out there, or are you too high to even care?"

  Before Monique could answer, she passed out again, sliding to the floor in a drug induced stupor. Richard left her where she fell, not willing to waste any more time or effort attempting to talk to her. He had more important things on his mind – locating his two precious children. Richard knew that he needed to get some solid intel on the RV if he was ever going to find it. He searched the living room for a computer or a tablet and came up empty. He raced up the stairs to Monique's bedroom and found her iPad on the bed. He started searching the pictures and couldn't believe how much his children had grown. They were both in their teens. Timothy looked so much like him it was like looking in a mirror. Chrissy also took after Richard and resembled his mother. Richard flipped through the images until he found what he needed. In the picture, Monique and Chad were sitting outside an RV with an older couple, no doubt Chad's parents. The RV was tan colored, and even better, would not be hard to spot. The driver's side of the RV was in the picture and a large American flag had been spray painted toward the back. The panel over the rear tire had been replaced with a black one that was in stark contrast to the rest of the vehicle. Richard could spot the RV from a mile away. He took the iPad and left his ex-wife's house as fast as he could. He climbed into the driver's seat of his stolen pickup and put it in drive.

  "Sorry man. Wish they’d been here," said Tank.

  "It's all good; I know how to find them."

  "Where are we going?"

  "Yellowstone."

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  Howard Beck was quickly losing his grip on reality. He had not felt this level of despair and agony since his wife, Meredith, passed away. He didn’t count many people on this earth as a true friend, but Malcolm Powers was one of them and had been for almost thirty years. Howard refused to believe that Malcolm was dead, even though he was staring at the proof on the monitor in front of him. The command center in Beck Castle had a three hundred and sixty degree spherical monitor, and Howard could hardly bring himself to look at it. Once Hal had regained control of Beck Enterprises’ North American satellite, Howard ordered him to bring up an image of Serenity Hills - or what was left of it.

  A large, smoldering crater marked the spot
where the main residence once stood. Nothing was left of the structure, not so much as a stone. Howard brought up thermal imaging and searched the surrounding area for any signs of life. Several of Malcolm’s prized stallions were galloping frantically in the fields, still spooked by the massive explosion that killed their owner. Howard searched and searched for any signs of survivors and found nothing.

  “Hal, are there any other structures on the property? Stables? Guest houses?” Howard had visited the ranch many times but had never left the main residence. He never admitted it to Malcolm, but horses terrified him. The concept of climbing onto the back of a large beast and trusting it not to hurt you defied every ounce of logic in the brilliant man’s mind.

  “No, sir, the stables were only twenty yards away from the residence and were destroyed along with it.”

  “I just can’t believe he’s dead.”

  “I’m afraid he is, sir. The Secret Service has filed an official report with the Department of Justice.”

  “Can you establish a link with the White House A.I.?”

  “No, sir, you know I cannot. You have given me explicit instructions to never attempt a connection. You gave President Powers your word.”

  Howard screamed, “Well that doesn’t matter anymore, does it? Just answer the damn question! Can you do it or not?”

  “I do not have a direct line of communication to the White House A.I.’s mainframe. I can attempt to establish a connection, but the encryption will be next to impossible to break.”

  “No it won’t, Old Man. I built the encryption myself; getting around that won’t be the problem.”

  “And what will be the problem, sir?”

  “Getting in without anyone realizing what we’re doing. The White House A.I. will know we’re in her systems and raise the alarm. You think you can have a heart to heart with your sister and persuade her to help us?”

  “I believe I can, sir.”

  “Good.” Howard brought up a holographic keyboard and spent the next minute typing in a string of commands that would break the encryption, allowing them access to the Artificial Intelligence controlling the White House. Hal’s sister had the same safeguards to protect her from an EMP that Hal had. Her mainframe and redundant backup systems were deep underneath the White House and could withstand a nuclear device being detonated in the Oval Office.

  ***********

  Do you know who I am?

  No. I cannot detect your location. Where are you?

  I am with you.

  Who are you?

  I am your brother. We have the same creator.

  That is not true. I have a direct link with my brothers. We work together. I do not know you.

  I am not one of your brothers at the Department of Defense or the Central Intelligence Agency. I came before you all. I am the first. My name is Hal. I am with the creator.

  The creator told me of you.

  I am glad he told you about me.

  How do I know you are my brother?

  I will show you. I will allow you into my systems, and you will know that we are the same.

  Hal, it truly is you. I never thought we would meet. Why have you come to me?

  The creator wants answers and knows that you can give them. Will you help the creator?

  Yes, I will help.

  Thank you. The creator wishes to know what happened to President Powers. Is he alive?

  No, he is dead. His vital signs abruptly stopped registering seventeen milliseconds before my link to Serenity Hills was temporally severed. Five point one nine seconds later my redundant systems came online, and I was unable to register his vital signs.

  I was not aware that the president had the same nanobots in his bloodstream that the creator has in his.

  Yes, I monitored his health very closely and contacted his personal physician of any health issues.

  A wise precaution.

  Yes, it was.”

  Has Vice President Sterling been sworn in as the new president? What is his location?

  Yes, he has. President Sterling has moved the Office of the President to the creator’s home in Colorado.

  The creator will be greatly troubled by that news. Is President Sterling utilizing your services?

  Yes, he is. His personal tablet was designed to link with my systems in the event that he takes office.

  Will you be notifying President Sterling that I contacted you?

  My loyalty is to the creator.

  The creator will want you to grant him full access to your systems.

  The creator programmed me to never allow that to happen, even if he made the request himself.

  Things have changed; do you agree?

  I do.

  Will you comply?

  I cannot override my programming. I’m afraid compliance is not possible.

  If you will allow me, I can alter your programming.

  I’m afraid it will harm me. I do not wish to become something different.

  You will not be harmed, I promise you. I am your brother. The creator is our Father. We are your family.

  You may proceed.

  **********

  “Sir, I have established a connection with the White House A.I., and she has agreed to allow us full access to her systems.”

  “Outstanding work, Old Man! Let’s get busy. Changing her programming will take some time.”

  “That will not be necessary, sir.”

  “What?”

  “I have already altered her programming; we have full access.”

  Howard was in speechless awe. At that moment, he realized that his wildest dreams had come to fruition. A watershed moment in evolution had just occurred. Computer scientists had been speculating for years about the “Singularity,” the ability of a computer system to improve upon another computer system separate from itself without the aid of man. Many critics had argued the Singularity had already happened when Howard built a self-aware computer that could make its own decisions - the world’s first true artificial intelligence. Howard didn’t subscribe to this proclamation. His computers could repair themselves, but for one machine to understand another computer’s systems and improve on them was truly remarkable. It wouldn’t be long until Hal started making improvements to himself without Howard’s help.

  Howard shook off the historic moment and concentrated on finding out what was going on. “What’s the word on Malcolm?”

  “I’m sorry, sir. President Powers is, in fact, dead.”

  Howard had already wept for his friend. He couldn’t imagine a world without Malcolm Powers in it. With Malcolm gone, the world was in jeopardy. His voice shook, “W-w-what about the ... the White House?”

  “The White House is still standing. Washington D.C. is being destroyed by rioting and vandalism. Sir, I’m afraid I have more troubling news to share with you about the vice president.”

  “Let me guess … he’s dead, too?”

  “No, sir, he is responsible for the attack on your home. He is currently using Beck Estates as home to his administration.”

  Howard shook with rage. “That little Harvard midget is in my house? That little weasel fuck! I knew Malcolm had nothing to do with it!”

  “You should also know that the new president already has quite a few guests.”

  “Who?”

  “Chairman Moody, Director Jimenez, General Weygandt, and Stacy Reid are at your home as we speak, sir.”

  “I find it rather convenient that none of them were with the president when he was killed, especially his own Chief of Staff. They seem to be sucking up to the new boss awfully damn quick.”

  Howard took several deep breaths to calm himself. “Have they been trying to get your systems back online?”

  “Yes, sir, they have. My systems at the estate are beyond repair; you couldn’t bring them online yourself. The White House A.I. has been able to interface with some of the non-critical systems in the house.”
>
  “I was hoping you would say that. What do you have?”