Punishment

by Guerin Zand

  When we reached the cafeteria, or mess as Katie called it, the whole team was there. Maria saw Steve by the food replicator and she rushed over to him. He held her in his arms as she broke down once again.

  I leaned over to Katie and whispered in her ear. “Is there something going on between Steve and my daughter?”

  Katie shook her head. “My God, you’re such an idiot. She’s had a crush on Steve since she was a little girl, you moron. There’s nothing physical going on if that’s what you’re worried about. Steve has always discouraged her advances.”

  “I wasn’t worried about it. I was just surprised at how she ran into Steve’s arms. I was curious. It doesn’t matter to me one way or the other.”

  Steve showed Maria how to use the replicator and she whipped up a fruit bowl and a cup of coffee. Now I was even more curious. She hadn’t been to medical, not that I knew of, so how could she operate the replicator? I walked over to Stella.

  “How are you doing, Guerin?”

  “I’m fine, Stella. Don’t worry about me. Did Maria go to medical for the implant?”

  “No.”

  “Then how can she be operating the replicator?”

  “She’s your daughter. I guess you passed on enough enhancements that she doesn’t need an implant. When things settle down we probably should have her checked out to see just what she’s made of, so to speak.”

  We all sat down to breakfast. Maria sat next to Steve and it hurt that she felt more comfortable with him than me. I sat next to Katie and she simply looked over at me and smiled. No one really talked while we all ate breakfast. When most of us had finished Roger looked over at Maria.

  “I updated your father before breakfast and he’s asked me to update you as well. Diane is safe and she’s here with us, but she’s resting right now.” Maria nodded. “We rescued her late last night. She’s physically fine, but emotionally she’s been through a lot. Her fiancé was murdered in front of her, so you can imagine what she’s going through. The attacks at the Chinese consulate and the JFK terminal are estimated to have killed maybe a thousand people. Publicly it’s being attributed to a terrorist attack, but the American government is aware it was the Chinese government behind it. There are a lot in our government who want to take military action directly against China. Your father is trying to stop that.”

  “Why? You should let the Americans teach those bastards a lesson.” Maria looked at me. “Why would you let them get away with this?”

  I couldn’t answer my daughter, so Roger did it for me. “American military action could result in World War III, that’s why. You father has a plan to avoid that and the millions of deaths that would result from such a war.”

  “Like his plan to protect my mother? How did that work out, Dad?”

  Again, I had no response. Stella got angry. “That’s not fair, Maria. Your father has been trying to protect you and your mother for years. Your mother wouldn’t leave so he did the best he could.”

  “Well, I guess it wasn’t good enough!” She kicked out her chair and stormed out.

  “Maria,” I called after her. Katie stopped me from getting up and following her.

  “She’s just angry, Guerin. She didn’t mean any of that. Just give her some time.”

  “I know she’s angry, Katie, but she’s not wrong. I failed to protect her mother and we all know it.” I shoved my plate of food that I had barely touched away. I knew nothing would ever be the same between me and my daughter. “Roger, we’re going to war. Not against China, we’re going to war against the MSS.”

  “Just how are we going to do that, Guerin?”

  “Cindy, we need you to provide us a list of all the MSS agents. First, sort them by which are active in the field and which aren’t. Then sort the active ones by the country they’re currently deployed in and include their location the best you can. Also go through their files to see what actions, current, past, and future, they have planned. Sort it by the targeted countries.”

  “Ok.”

  “Roger, when Cindy gets these lists to you release it to the interested countries. I want as many of the MSS agents and operations we can find reported to the target countries, then it will be open season on the MSS.”

  Cindy started to leave. Sammy held up his hand to stop her. “Wait, Cindy. Guerin, you’re asking us to help you escalate this conflict. I don’t think that this is what the Collective would advise.”

  “Sammy, I was promised whatever resources I needed to do this job. If the Collective, or the Council want to override me then they can, but you’re just here to assist me. I’m sure you’ll keep them informed so if they want to step in they can. Until then, Cindy will do as I ask.”

  I nodded to Cindy and she left to get started. “The situation is already escalating, Sammy, and I’m sure it’s going to get worse. I have to convince the American government to show some restraint. Using our resources to go after the MSS will show them we are not just going to shrug this aggression off.”

  “China is going to know it was us, Guerin. You know that they see us as America, so they might respond. You’ll just be hurrying us to war.”

  “Possibly, Roger, but we’re already heading down that road. I’m trying to slow us all down. I think if they were to respond they wouldn’t do it themselves, they’d use their client, North Korea. They’ve been trying to hide their involvement in all of this and I think they would continue to act that way.”

  “You may be right, Guerin, but what would be the difference?”

  “I’m getting to that.”

  “Sammy, I assume that you can find and track every nuclear weapon on Earth if you aren’t already doing that. Weapons-grade fissile material should provide a unique signature you could detect. Correct?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then if you’re not already tracking them, start now and don’t stop until this is over. Also, I assume you could render the fissile material and chemical rockets inert?”

  “Guerin, you’re asking for me to reveal information to you that the Collective has not seen to make available to you. I don’t know that I can help you.”

  “Sammy, you’re going to help me. If you need to talk to your masters first then do it. Otherwise, we don’t have the time to waste!”

  “Guerin, I’m not comfortable with where I think you’re going with this. Tell me now exactly what you plan to do so we can decide if we’re going to support you or not.”

  “Ok, Sammy. When we release the data on the MSS, you’re going to disable the North Korean nuclear arsenal. We’ll monitor them closely, and should they try to launch, they’ll be in for a surprise. It should cause them and China to think twice.”

  “If that happens, the North Koreans will attack with their conventional forces. They’ve never acted rationally in the past.”

  “And if they do, Roger, we will use our resources to shut them down. I’m sure Sammy and friends can knock out the power to all North Korea as well as disable their navigation and comms so that their military is blind, and they’re planes can’t fly.”

  “And if China decides to take direct action?”

  “Then we’ll do the same to them. Will disable their nuclear arsenal then escalate just as I stated for North Korea. That is why we need America and its allies to sit back and let us handle it, or we’ll have to do the same to them. We’ll prevent the war, but we’ll all still lose. Don’t tell them our plans, Roger. They can raise the alert status, but they cannot make any offensive moves. They can push back the North Koreans with conventional forces if they’re dumb enough to try and attack the South. Hopefully, when the Americans see what we’re capable of, they’ll realize they can stand down.”

  That’s when it happened. I was no longer on Sammy’s shuttle. I’m not sure where I was but I had that detached feeling so familiar from portal transits. It wasn’t a temporary feeling, it felt more permanent, which didn’t make sense since time didn’t exist in the void. In front of me stood thirteen men and women, inc
luding Julie, dressed in long flowing jackets. Their cloaks reminded me of Neo’s trench coat from the Matrix. They were made of some material that shimmered and appeared to me to be something similar to silk. Wherever we were, it was pitch black all around us, yet I could see them. There was no light source that I could see, but still I could see them. I raised my hand to look at it and I could see my hand as well. I touched my face, and I felt my hand on my cheek, but was I physically there, or anywhere?

  They were just looking at me and said nothing. It was starting to creep me out a little bit, like a nightmare or bad dream. I was angry, I knew that much.

  “So, the Bree Council finally decides I’m worthy of their attention, Julie?”

  “Guerin, this is serious.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry, Julie. I didn’t know I wasn’t taking my wife’s murder seriously enough for you. Perhaps I’m not taking the fact that you, and your grand plan, have my world on the brink of doomsday seriously enough. I’ll try to work on that.”

  “Still the attitude, Guerin?”

  “It’s about all I have left thanks to you.”

  “Guerin, you have to know how sorry we all were to hear what happened to your wife.”

  “Gee, thanks. That helps. So where are we, the void?” I didn’t want to discuss my wife with Julie, so I just changed the subject.

  “Yes.”

  “I was right about you Bree. Your powers are more than you’ve shown me, a lot more. I’ve forced you to reveal more than you wanted I bet. You pulled me here, nowhere, from across the universe and you probably didn’t even break a sweat. I would assume that even though it appears that time is passing, it really isn’t? It’s just my simple monkey brain trying to make sense of all this.”

  “You still seem to have your wits about you, so please explain how you can possibly think we would help with this plan of yours.”

  “Well, first, from this dramatic little display of power, which I am duly impressed by, I know I was right about what you are actually capable of. That means what I’m asking Sammy to do is not going to be difficult for him in the least. It’s just a matter of whether you keep your promise.”

  “My promise?”

  “Please, Julie. Playing dumb is my specialty. You suck at it.”

  “Tell us why your little plan should not concern us. You’ve just lost your wife, so you’re looking for revenge, are you not?”

  “Of course I am.”

  “If we were to tell Sammy to give you whatever you ask for, what is to stop you from taking out that revenge on China? You are asking him to leave China defenseless, so what would stop the Americans from unleashing their arsenal?”

  “Well, I guess you’re going to just have to trust me, Julie. I mean, after all, I’m the chosen one. I’m special, right? You wouldn’t just pick some random idiot for this job.”

  “Guerin, it’s not a matter of trust. You’ve just lost your wife and we’re concerned your judgment may be affected by that.”

  “Fuck you, Julie. The fact that you don’t trust my judgment just means you don’t trust me. Fine. Send me back to Sammy’s shuttle. I’ll make some popcorn and we can all sit back and watch the end of the world on a viewer.”

  “Guerin, your smartass attitude is not doing anything to help your case.”

  “Sorry again. I’m just trying to piss you off so you might have a small understanding of how I feel. If I was going to take out my vengeance on anyone it would be you, and this council, for causing this mess and my wife’s death. I just haven’t figured out how to do that yet, but give me time.”

  “Guerin…”

  “I’m not done, Julie. You asked me to explain myself and I will. You just need to shut up and listen for a change.”

  “Go ahead.”

  “I don’t blame the Chinese people so why would I want to see America wipe them out? I’m trying to keep the Americans from taking any action if you bothered to pay attention. I’m going after the security services who were responsible, and in the future, we’ll go after any politicians who backed the operation. Stella’s examination of the one we have in custody shows he has some alien alterations of his own, Trogan science. We got the Trogan agents off the planet, but they had already infiltrated the security services in China. We don’t know yet how many of these super spies are out there. I’d bet my life that this is all still part of the Trogan plan.”

  “Be careful, Guerin. Your life isn’t the only one your putting at risk. You’re asking us to take direct action.”

  “No, I’m not technically. According to the same rule book, if such a book actually exists, that says it’s ok if I pass on information from you to Earth because it’s me doing it, then it’s ok because I’m the one taking the action. I have a shuttle and a crew at my disposal and I’m the one deciding how to use it, not you.”

  “You’re simply playing word games, Guerin.”

  “And you haven’t been?”

  “Guerin!’

  “Look, Julie, you and the Trogans have been using Earth as your little chess piece in this cosmic game of universal domination or whatever. Let’s just stop lying to each other about that. Direct interference in the affairs of Earth has been going on by both sides far longer than I’ve been around. Don’t go throwing your bullshit rule book in my face. Either honor your promise to me or don’t, Julie, but quit wasting my time. Ok, maybe we’re not wasting my time since here time doesn’t exist, but you get my point. So, either send me back to do my job and fix this shit storm you created, or hit me with your best shot and put me out of my misery. Frankly, I’m tired of explaining myself to you.”

  The men and women of the council disappeared leaving me standing there all alone. I sure hoped this wasn’t their response. The idea of being nowhere never and forever really was not what I was thinking. A simple blaster shot, or I don’t know, whatever alien form of execution they could come up with, would be more to my liking. It seemed like forever, which was one of the problems with being in the void, that I was just standing there alone. I raised my left arm and looked at my alien digital watch, which of course was just spitting out random digits, and I started to whistle and tap my foot. Not much else to do in the void.

  Julie reappeared in front of me, alone this time. “Do you have somewhere more important to be, Guerin?”

  “Who me? No. I’m sure the whole doomsday, end of the world thing can wait. Why? Do you want to go grab a bite?”

  “Well, maybe you have matured a bit. I was expecting some crude blowjob reference instead.”

  “I was getting to that. My bad. I’ve been married for a while and my pickup skills are a little rusty.” I gave her a little smirk so she would have no doubt that I was still an asshole.

  Julie rolled her eyes and looked up at the, well there was nothing up to look at and now that I think about it there probably wasn’t even an up. I think they enjoyed confusing me with this whole void shit.

  “The council will honor the promise. Good luck.”

  “Good luck?” I thought to myself. Really? No words of encouragement like, “We trust you, Guerin.”, or, “We know you can do it.” Just fucking “Good luck?” As I was about to make a comment on this less than uplifting little response I noticed I was right back where I had been, or was, on Sammy’s shuttle. I looked around to make sure. Then I wondered if I had been in the middle of saying something but I wasn’t sure. I touched my lips to see if my mouth was open, but it wasn’t. I assumed that before I was so rudely interrupted, I had finished what I had been saying.

  “If you can give us a little more detail of what you need from us, Guerin, I’ll get the crew started.”

  “Thanks, Sammy.” I proceeded to explain the whole scenario from the movie The Day the Earth Stood Still, the original, not that total piece of shit remake. I made it clear we didn’t want commercial planes crashing into the ground or any other unnecessary loss of life. We were just going to do this on a limited scale, expanding the countries we included as needed. I really
wished these fucking aliens would do some research before coming to our world. If they had, I could have just referenced the movie and skipped the lengthy explanation.

  Now, I know some of you are probably thinking this moron is using the script from a movie, one even older than himself, as the basis for his plan to save the world, right? Ok, I admit it, maybe it wasn’t the most original plan one could come up with. It’s not like you have a lot of time to come up with a plan when the whole world could go boom in a matter of minutes. I was winging it a bit, but everyone said my best plans were ones I didn’t spend too much time thinking about. The only thing that could have ruined my plan was if the aliens weren’t as skilled as the ones in the movie.

  Roger looked over at me after Sammy left. Confused would be an understatement. “Ok, Guerin. What just happened. They’re going to do it?”

  “Nothing actually happened, I mean, technically. The Council sucked my pathetic little ass up to the void, or something, and we had it out. But since it was outside of our spacetime, it actually never really happened, since time doesn’t exist there. I think? Anyways, I bitched them up and down and called them all sorts of names until they gave in and said they’d honor the promise.”

  “Really?”

  “Well, more or less. They did wish me good luck.”

  “Good luck?”

  “Exactly what I was thinking. Not much when it comes to motivational speaking, huh? I need you to get with Sammy and his crew. Get the dirt out on the MSS and I want you to lead the response as we just spelled out.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “Well, they thought I might be a little too emotional and my lust for vengeance might just get the better of me. I promised I wouldn’t wipe out China, and they decided to trust me, but perhaps it would be better if you handle the details. They weren’t totally wrong about my need for vengeance, so Katie, Stella, and I are going to spend a little time with our buddy Wang. Whatever you do, don’t let Maria know we have him onboard. Pass that on to everyone. She’s a nineteen-year-old girl with my attitude, whose mother was just killed. We don’t want her anywhere near him.”