by Aman Gupta
Later in the evening, Victor Daulton flew to DC and visited President Thomas Clifford, their second meeting in two weeks.
“Good Evening, Mr. President,” said Victor.
“Victor, please come in,” said Tom.
“How are you today?” asked Victor.
“I’m good,” said Tom.
President Clifford poured a drink for himself and Victor.
“How’s the country? Hope they feel you’ve been able to successfully deliver on your promises these past two years,” said Victor.
“Situation could be better for sure,” said Tom.
“Everyone deals with civil unrest. Show them some shiny object and then take it away. See if that helps. In any case, don’t be so hard on yourself,” said Victor.
“While our enemies continue to breathe down my neck, after what they did to me,” said Tom.
“Time’s a luxury. Let’s treat it that way,” said Victor.
“I’m tired of waiting,” said Tom.
“You haven’t been waiting as patiently as we would’ve liked. Might I suggest a more lenient approach before either you run out of bullets or the walls of your fortress grow a hole,” said Victor.
“You know what they did. What if they did it to you?” asked Tom.
“Lucky for us, Mr. President, that you’re a better man than I,” said Victor.
“I’ve always been meaning to ask something. A man like you, ideally, should’ve hundreds of enemies. Yet there’s no one to tell the tales. How do you do that?” asked Tom.
“What can I say? People love me. You gambled on celebrities, while I stuck with a decent publicist to capture the masses. In spite of what you’ve read, loyalty can be bought. Only the price and the means varies. Sometimes, it takes a bag of gold. Sometimes, it takes a visit to my luxurious private funeral homes. But they always cave in. The alive ones, I mean,” said Victor.
“I met your son one day at Daulton University. He spoke very proudly of you,” remarked Victor.
“Yes, he had told me about it. I appreciate you looking out for him all those years,” said Tom.
“It’s no problem, Mr. President. He loved our magic pills when they worked for him. Wear and tear due to some bad habits can be hard,” said Victor.
“I appreciate it. How can I assist you today?” asked Tom.
“I’m sure you must have heard about the death of Gary Odine,” said Victor.
“Yes, terrible accident. He was a good man. An intelligent man,” said Tom.
“Yes, and men like that, are hard to replace,” said Victor.
“What are you saying?” asked Tom.
“There’s been a change in plans. I think we’ll need to move our timeline,” said Victor.
“How much?” asked Tom.
“Another eight months past the original. Maybe more,” said Victor.
“I don’t think I can keep the heat off your backs for that long,” said Tom. “With what’s already going on, we are almost at the precipice.”
“I’m sure you will find that you can, once you realize it’s our backs, not just me and my company’s,” said Victor.
“You don’t have to remind me. I know it all too well,” said Tom.
“Good. Don’t worry Mr. President. When it’s all over, you’ll come out as a hero,” said Victor.
“I don’t even know what you’re up to, anymore. At this point, I don’t even want to know. It was stupid of me to allow you to put myself in this position,” said Tom.
“We advised caution. You rejected it. You knew what you were getting into, when you asked us to get rid of Simmelman. It served your interests, it served your ambitions,” said Victor.
“I did what I did, to help people,” said Tom.
“So claimed every president that has ever sat on that chair,” said Victor.
“What are you trying to say?” asked Tom.
“You helped yourself by stepping on the shoulders of some powerful men. Now, it’s only fair you offer them yours,” said Victor.
“That’s what I have been doing for quite a while. Ever wonder why no Anti-Trust inquiry has been successful in breaking up Verati? Not to mention the climate board and the human rights commissions,” said Tom.
“Verati isn’t the market leader in 80% of the industries it operates in. We made sure of that,” said Victor.
“But it isn’t just Verati, is it?” said Tom.
“It’s all there will be, soon,” said Victor, with a glare in his eyes.
“Loyalty shouldn’t be a shackle, it shouldn’t strangle the loyal,” said Tom.
“Loyalty is like having a magic noose. Either put it on your neck or someone else’s. An intelligent man, like you, would know the difference I imagine,” said Victor.
“I’ll not sell my soul for you, Victor,” said Tom.
“I don’t want your soul. Apparently, the country does,” said Victor.
“What then?” asked Tom.
“The idea of a country is as imaginary as the lines that separate them. In the end, the idea is powerful and deep enough that it endures with a little push. You and your friends have been assisting with it for hundreds of years. We don’t have to endanger that. We’re just redrawing the lines we see fit,” said Victor.
“What about the lines that Simmelman drew? The ones that started the mess?” asked Tom.
“They drew 2000 curves of ambition. You’ve, or rather, we’ve erased a thousand of them. When the time comes, people will redraw the original lines for us,” said Victor. “Or we will do it for them. Your hands will be clean, regardless.”
“Till then, I’ll take whatever actions that I see fit,” said Tom.
“As long as they don’t force our hand. We’re not ready yet,” said Victor.
“So what do you want me to do?” asked Tom.
“I’m not asking you to talk about Aliens. At this stage, your government cannot do it alone, with the entire world eating itself. For now, you need to inspire devotion. Maybe even play the generation card. Get people to kiss the ring. Condemn those who feel different,” said Victor.
“I don’t care about anything they might think,” said Tom.
“No one does. I don’t even think they do. The crowd craves distraction. Distract them,” said Victor.
“Sometimes, I don’t even recognize myself in the mirror, anymore,” said Tom.
“You ask any kid, they say they love superheroes and hate villains. You ask an adult, they’ll say they empathize with the villains. You ask an awakened man, he’ll say they both are the same, just different times,” said Victor.
“I don’t understand,” said Tom.
“You will, in time. Till that time comes, remember that whatever you do, you’ll find some support. It’s up to you to use it to meet your goals. Wait for us to get in the game, and you won’t have to worry about any of it,” said Victor.
“How so? Anything that happens goes on my record,” said Tom.
“What’s catchier? Secretary of State Victor Daulton or Secretary of Defense Victor Daulton?” said Victor.
Victor looked at Tom and smiled.
“When?” asked Tom.
“Soon, Mr. President,” said Victor.
“I’ll make it happen but don’t try to play me, Victor. Or I swear to God, I’ll bury you in the ground,” said Tom.
“Threats are a coward’s ammunition. For them to work, Tom, either the person in front of you should be weak like you or you should be holding a weapon that can fire this ammunition,” said Victor. “Don’t burn down everything.”
“I won’t,” said Tom.
“My team will be in touch with yours for the minor details to move forward with our plan,” said Victor.
Victor Daulton got up and left.
President Clifford called his secretary.
“Set a meeting with General Hill,” said Tom. “I need to talk to him alone as soon as possible.”
◆◆◆
The next day, Emma, Eric and
Joey left for Morrow Town early in the morning. Joey asked Kate and Vik to return back alive from New Bay, while Emma hugged Kate and kissed Vik on his cheeks.
Later, Vik said farewell to Rick and promised to get Brittany and Ginny back. He returned to find Sam sitting on the couch and Kate putting their stuff in the car.
“Kate, there’s something you should know,” said Vik.
“What?” asked Kate.
“I’m not stopping the car at New Bay,” said Vik.
“I know. We’re going to Atlantis. Why do you think I volunteered to go with you?!” said Kate. “You can’t see past it. I wouldn’t have been able to see beyond it, myself.”
“Thanks,” said Vik.
“I don’t understand why I have to go,” said Sam.
“You aren’t exactly innocent in all of this,” said Vik. “Plus, I need your help in getting into Atlantis.”
“What kind of help?” asked Sam.
“You’ll know soon.”
Vik, Kate and Sam headed to Atlantis through New Bay. Vik briefed Kate and Sam about the level of security he noticed at Atlantis when he had gone there, which surprised both of them. Vik mentioned that the east side of Atlantis looked almost impenetrable and hoped that they would have better luck from the north-west side. Kate picked up more ammunition when they stopped at New Bay Precinct for a quick pit stop. Citing some network connections errors, they made Eric, who was still en route, call them on the landline to avoid any suspicion of their plan. Within the hour, they left for north-west side of Atlantis which was around 50 miles east of New Bay. Almost half way, they noticed a security checkpoint with 2 guards, on the only road that connected New Bay and Atlantis. Vik mentioned that there were no security checkpoints between Atlantis and Stanton, located outside the county, east of New Frontier.
Faced with a dilemma of either abandoning the car and travelling through forests, or turning back, they chose to abandon the car and hid it in the forest. With dense forest and unusually hot evening, they, somehow, made it to an open field around 2 miles from the gate. The field was fenced as far as the eye could see, on each side. They retreated to hide under the cover of trees.
“What do you think? Land mines?” asked Kate.
“Could be. Or Drones,” said Vik, as they looked up.
“How do we get past?” asked Sam.
“We can’t be seen here. The element of surprise is all we have,” said Kate. “We have to go back.”
“You think the roads are monitored too?” asked Vik.
“Yes, I think so. You don’t secure a side of a town and leave the only road couple of miles away from it, go unchecked,” said Kate.
“That would explain why they had a security checkpoint with only couple of guards. To scare off the innocent. They’re already monitoring the rest of the way in,” said Vik.
“But why?” asked Sam. “What’s in there?”
“Good question. Why don’t they want anyone in!” said Kate.
“Or maybe, they don’t want someone to get out,” said Vik.
“Could be,” said Kate.
“So what’s the plan? It’s going to get dark in a few hours, and I’m not a huge fan of sleeping in the jungle,” said Sam.
“We don’t have any choice. We have to go back,” said Vik.
“What’s that over there?” pointed Sam towards their left around 200 meters away.
“Looks like a junction box,” said Vik.
“Let’s check it out,” said Kate.
They headed to the box, around 5 feet high and 3 feet wide, and broke the lock with a rock. They opened it to find electricity breakers, communication boxes and cables, fiber ports as well as strange circuit boards.
“Did we just hit the jackpot?” asked Sam.
“We can’t take out the electricity, they’ll find us,” said Kate.
“I haven’t even seen these circuit systems before. What are these?” said Vik.
“Beats me. Okay, maybe we could get into the system,” said Sam.
“Worth a try, but how? All of these look like secure fiber lines,” said Vik.
“Some of these look old school. These small boxes look like those encryption blackboxes that flooded the market few years ago, though, so we have to find a cable that’s not headed or originating from these,” said Sam.
She got down on her knees and started searching for vacant ports.
“Found one,” said Sam.
Sam took out her laptop, and connected to it using a switch and DCAT 6 cable.
“You always travel with such stuff?” asked Kate.
“Occupational hazard,” said Sam.
“The port is dead or there isn’t any flow of data packets,” said Sam. “I can’t remove any of the live lines or they’ll know.”
“Maybe there aren’t monitoring it,” said Kate.
“It’s too big a risk,” said Vik. “But we don’t have a choice.”
“Are you sure?” asked Kate.
“Worst case, if we see any movement, we blow the entire box. Maybe it takes down their system long enough for us to get in there amidst the chaos,” said Vik.
Sam removed one of the live cables and connected it to her laptop. The packet sniffer program detected a massive amount of data influx for a few seconds and then it stopped.
“What happened?” asked Kate.
“It stopped,” said Sam.
“Could they know someone was in the system?” asked Kate.
“I don’t know. Maybe,” said Sam.
Sam plugged it back on the box’s switch board.
“What now?” asked Sam.
“What’s the data?’ asked Vik.
“Let’s see,” said Sam.
She looked at the data packets to decipher some information.
“Bad news is that the data is encrypted, there’s no way to know what’s in there,” said Sam.
“What’s the good news?” asked Vik.
“The source and the destination headers weren’t wrapped with the data, but rather sent separately. Both of them have different signatures as well as different payload. Also, the source has an identifier next to it but not the destination. Almost as if they are on two different security systems. If you are designing one for yourself, that’s the last thing you want. So most likely, it’s an external line,” said Sam.
“What if you are wrong?” asked Kate.
“Then they’ll be here soon and we get to blow the box,” said Sam.
“Can we intercept it and change it around?” asked Vik.
“Not before the handshake. But I think they’ll know it. Some of these circuits use advanced ICs that I haven’t even seen before,” said Sam.
“I’m almost enticed to blow this entire thing,” said Vik.
“Wait, I got something,” said Sam.
She took out a circular ring shaped device which was attached to a metal box.
“What’s this?” asked Vik.
“Right now, nothing. But you connect this to a wire, and days later, boom,” said Sam.
“You’re kidding?” said Kate.
“Nope. It’s safe and fun,” said Sam.
“Don’t do it,” said Kate.
“Do it,” said Vik.
Sam connected the device to the electric circuit. A red light on the device turned on.
“Done,” said Sam. “I’m evil.” They all smiled.
“Do you see another box anywhere?” asked Kate.
“No,” said Vik, as they all looked around.
They headed back to their car and drove back to New Bay.
Upon reaching New Bay precinct, they found the door unlocked. Kate and Vik carefully stepped in while Sam followed them. It was already dark and there wasn’t any electricity in the station. As Kate and Vik reached the hall, Vik saw Kate go down by a blow on her head by a silhouette figure. As soon as Vik looked down, he got stuck on the back of his head. The two men grabbed Sam, as she kicked and shouted for Vik to help her. The last thing his eyes saw was S
am being gagged, tied up and taken outside by a guy on his shoulder, before he passed out.
Kate woke up several hours later in the morning with massive pain in her head. She saw she had been lying in the pool of her blood, while Vik was still knocked out. She woke him up. Both grabbed their heads, with their bloodied hands, as Vik looked around. He saw that Sam wasn’t there and her bag was also missing. Kate went to the car and saw that the laptop procured by Eric and Joey, was also nowhere to be found. She went back inside as Vik helped himself onto the couch.
“Who were those people?” said Kate.
“No idea. But why did they take Sam?” said Vik.
“The laptop is also missing,” said Kate.
“Maybe Sam’s client had sent them,” said Vik.
“What do we do now?” asked Kate.
“We track her,” said Vik.
“How?” asked Kate.
“I had placed a tracking sticker in her bag while I was checking it. Back then, I didn’t know she was Sam,” said Vik.
“I can track it via my phone.”
Vik took out his phone.
“Where are they?” asked Kate.
“The tracker isn’t responding anymore. Maybe they found it,” said Vik. “But the last known location is..”
“Where?” asked Kate.
“Atlantis,” said Vik.
“So does that mean they saw us messing with the junction box?” asked Kate.
“Could be. But then how did they know we would enter the police station?” said Vik.
“You’re right. So they have been tracking the GPS in the laptop since yesterday and they noticed that we stopped here,” said Kate.
“Then why go to Atlantis? Do they work there? How would they get in, otherwise?” said Vik.