The Watcher

by Bill Stenlake

  Ricardo presses all the buttons he can find in the dark. Eventually he must hit the right one. A voice comes over the speaker.

  ‘Are you alright in there?’

  ‘Not really’ he replies ‘The lift has stopped and there are no lights on in here.’

  ‘There should be an emergency light.’

  ‘There is no light on in here.’

  ‘How many people are in the lift with you?’

  ‘There is just me in here. Can you get me out of here please?’

  ‘I’ve sent someone up to wind it down to the nearest door.’

  Ricardo does not speak any more. He is already wound up enough and he does not want to start in the hotel here. He closes his eyes and pretends that he is somewhere else. He hasn’t been doing this for long, when he hears a voice close to him. He opens his eyes and sees that the lift is now down, so that he can get out of the door. He marches past the apologetic man who has rescued him and straight out of the front of the hotel. He can feel that he is losing it. He needs to find somewhere calm and quiet, where he can restore what he was feeling the day before. He has actually quite enjoyed doing the normal things. Ricardo is lost in his thoughts and marches straight out into the road. The sound of a couple of horns brings him back to the here and now. If they had just sounded their horns, then he would most likely have been alright. One vehicle does, but the other driver takes it a bit further.

  ‘Guys like you should not be let out on their own’ is what he hears being shouted at him. The other car has driven off, but this one is still stopped. Ricardo walks across towards the car. The driver opens his door and gets out.

  ‘You just walked into the road, as if it belongs to you. What did you think you were doing?’

  Ricardo tries to remain calm.

  ‘I just wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry.’

  That should have been enough to end this scene, but it isn’t enough for the driver.

  ‘If you think that an apology makes it alright, then why doesn’t every one do it?’

  Ricardo shrugs his shoulders and starts to turn away. He really doesn’t need this at the moment. He had been enjoying himself. All this has come about, because the woman wouldn’t take his cash for his ticket. If she had, he wouldn’t be back here by the hotel. He needs to walk away from this guy, before he explodes. The guy just isn’t having it. He must be having a bad day too.

  ‘Don’t just start to walk away from me’ he shouts at Ricardo.

  ‘Why, I can’t undo walking out in front of you. I don’t need this. Just back off now!’

  The guy walks over to him and pushes him in the chest.

  ‘I said not to walk away from me’ he spits in to Ricardo’s face.

  ‘Don’t start what you can’t finish’ Ricardo retorts, feeling his temper ready to explode.

  The guy pushes him again and then again. That is more than enough for Ricardo. In a flash, he swings his fist and hits the man fair and square on the jaw. He puts out his hand and stops the man from falling away from him, so he can punch him again. He has caught the guy on the hop. He obviously wasn’t expecting this reaction from Ricardo, though who knows what he expected Ricardo to do?

  He keeps hold of the guy and hits him again and again, until he becomes a dead weight in his arms. He lets him slide to the ground. He looks around, to see that a small crowd has gathered.

  ‘I walked into the road without looking, but he could have left it at just honking his horn. But no, that wasn’t enough for him.’ He steps over the guy and makes it back to the edge. He walks to the far side of the road and continues on his way. Behind him, he can hear the sirens of a police car. He decides to stop. Rather than stand on the sidewalk to see what is going to happen, he goes into a coffee bar and takes a stool by the window. He orders a coffee, when the girl comes over. He sits and sips it, while he watches what is happening just along the road. The guy is still out on the ground. The policemen are talking to the crowd. Some of them are pointing to where he has come. One of the policemen and a couple of the bystanders walk with him, towards where Ricardo is sat. They reach the doorway and point out Ricardo. Ricardo does not move. He is looking at them.

  After a few minutes’ worth of conversation, Ricardo walks back with the policeman, to the scene of the fracas. By this time the guy has recovered and is standing up by his car. The car has been moved to the edge of the road, to let the traffic flow smoothly again. The crowd has all but dispersed. The guy is not happy to see Ricardo. Ricardo is not particularly happy to be in this situation either. The last thing he wanted was to bring attention to him. Now he will be remembered, probably. Thankfully, some of the bystanders had seen the event unfold. They tell how the driver wouldn’t leave things be and how he had pushed Ricardo in the chest. The policeman sorts it out and gives both of them a warning, that this sort of behavior will not be tolerated. Ricardo has given his address as the hotel; the guy gives another address from somewhere up north. The look he gives Ricardo, as he gets back into his car, makes Ricardo think that the guy is still not happy.

  Ricardo goes back to his room, via the garage. He retrieves his handgun and a supply of ammunition. He thinks that he might feel safer if he has to go out again later, with the comfort of it in his belt. The room has been tidied from where he spilt the drink earlier. He rings down to order some food and a drink too.

  It is about five minutes later there is a knock at the door. It is a bit quick for the room service to be there, but maybe they are trying to please him. He goes over and opens the door. As he does so, the door is slammed open. The guy from the car rushes in and pushes him over onto the floor. He turns and slams the door shut.

  ‘You and me have some sorting out to do.’

  He takes out a pistol and aims it at Ricardo’s chest.’

  Chapter 43 The Watcher

  ‘We are going to make for Malis 2. That is where the Grand Master made his start. That is where he recruited the three that have sided with him. Malis 2 is the most volatile planet in the Universe. It will be an interesting place to start. It will be a good test to see how they manage with their new craft and their new weapons. It is a good place to get a guide, as to how things will turn out. When the Grand Master, Valpar, Grillech & Posdon left Malis 2, they left them with some upgraded weaponry. The three had insisted on that from the Grand Master. The population is still around the 5000 mark. Valpar has left some of his other men in charge. They have also been sent back some of the wealth that has been accumulated on the journey thru space, conquering and pillaging wealth. There is now wealth on the planet, shared between all of its inhabitants. That has brought problems of its own. No one wants to do the menial jobs. They are too wealthy to do that. They have an abundance of wealth, but it doesn’t mean anything. They are the same people, with the same things available to them. They had all that after the civil war and they have wealth to buy more, but there is nothing to buy that they don’t already have. The other thing that is still severely lacking on Malis 2 is intelligence. They have not been able to move forward again, as they do not have the brainpower to achieve that. It would have been far more beneficial if the three had sent back people, instead of some of the wealth. That would have improved the quality of life and given them something to spend their wealth on.

  The result of things being as they are; is that the planet has become even more unruly. It is possibly not the best place for them to start, but they feel that they need to undermine the trio’s home planet, not that they will necessarily find out about it, before they too get a visit from The Watcher and his followers.

  It is a surprise when The Watcher gets close to Malis 2. They are contacted from the surface of the planet. They had not been expecting this.

  ‘We welcome you to Malis 2. Please state who you are and what your business is here.’

  The Watcher replies.

  ‘I am The Watcher. I have come to start to re-establish the Balance.’

  ‘I knew you would come. Some of us are ready t
o change this planet. I have to warn you though that there are others, those who were close with Valpar, who are not. They have not changed. They are not aware that we exist. I will send you a beacon, so that you can locate us, if they allow you to land.’

  ‘We will be landing, whether they think it is up to them to allow us, or not.’

  The communication ends. Only a minute or two after that, they see that there are three craft being launched to meet them. They haven’t even had the time yet to discuss the communication that has come thru.

  ‘To your stations’ The Watcher says and four go to the transport bay, while the other three get into their booths. The Watcher keeps the mother craft on course for Malis 2. The four miniature fighters leave the transport bay and take up their positions, covering the flank of the mother craft. Another three craft are launched from the surface of the planet. The first three are still maybe a minute away from them, allowing for the speed that they are all going at, closing the gap by the second.

  The three front craft from Malis 2 start firing, while they are still out of range. The Watcher sends a transmission, which he knows they are receiving, asking them to cease fire. They ignore his request and keep advancing, firing as they do so. The Watcher tells Cassie, Bluechen and Marlitta to take one craft each and take them out. He doesn’t want to use the small fighters yet, if he can help it. Cassie takes her one out first. One second it is in space in front of her and the next it has gone. She has her goggles on, as they all do, so that she can see where the fighters are. It might not be of use in this battle, but it may well be needed information for future battles. Marlitta and Bluechen are just behind her, in disposing of the other two craft.

  The second trio keeps coming at them. They act in the same way as the first three had. They open fire without communication and soon they are dispatched in the same way as the first three. It is obvious that Valpar, Grillech & Posdon may have given them some craft, but the capability is not that great. They keep advancing on the planet, waiting to see if there are any more craft going to come to greet them, aggressively or not. There are no more craft to send. They had only been given the six. They did not have the capability, to even copy what they have been left, and build some more. It never occurred to them to do that. Well it didn’t occur to the ones who had been left in charge.

  The Watcher notices that a beacon appears on his map. It is on the edge of the built-up area. The communication he expects to follow this does not come. He decides that he will not land near there when the time comes. There is still no more action from the inhabitants now their space craft have been destroyed. The miniature fighters are still out beside the mother craft and he is going to leave them there. He talks to George in his head.

  ‘I think you should stay out there. I am going to go down lower and see what they do. I suspect that they will fire upon us, with their ground based weapons. When they do, then you four lock in on them and fly down to destroy them. They won’t know what has hit them.’

  Sure enough, as the mother craft gets near to the ground, the firing starts from the surface. As soon as they have located the source, the four miniature fighters are on to it. They swoop down and totally pulverize the sites the firing is coming from. To give them their due, they are not quitters. To be honest they don’t have the intelligence to do anything, other than what they are doing. They keep firing and one by one their positions are taken out. Soon enough though, their firepower is taken from them. The Watcher takes the mother craft in to land. Even as they do that, there are a few people come forward and start firing on the ship, with handguns and small weapons. The Watcher uses a loudspeaker to tell them to stop. That their task is impossible and the result isn’t in question. If they don’t stop, then they will die. It appears that is what they want to do. They are dealt with swiftly and firmly.

  Only when all the firing has finished, does the communication come again from the person who contacted them on their approach.

  ‘They would not learn. There are a number of us who have the will to change. There are a number of us, who do not want this lawlessness to continue. There are still 2 robots that they brought back. They will be programmed to attack when they see you.’

  ‘Where are they?’

  ‘They are in the launch center, where the spacecraft were.’

  ‘Are there any of your followers there?’

  ‘No, we are all grouped together, near to where you will see our beacon.’

  The Watcher does not say any more for now. He talks to George and then George tells the other three what they have to do. The launch center is going to be taken out by the four miniature fighters.

  When they get close, they see that the doors are still open. They can’t be seen, so they get very close and look inside. There are not any more craft in there, but there are some land fighting machines. It is odd that they have not been used so far. Two of the machines start up and make for the entrance. At first George thinks that is because they have been spotted, but it isn’t that. It is just the two robots are going to take part in the battle. They leave the launch area and drive away from the town. George reports this to The Watcher, but he has already seen what is happening. He tells George and The Wise Soul to follow them, to see what they are up to. Draton and Elkante are to stay back at the launch area and check it out. They are to stay in their fighters though. If they get attacked, they are to destroy the launch area. But, the Watcher tells them that hopefully they won’t have to do that. He doesn’t think there is anyone left there to pose a threat to them anymore.

  The robots drive their vehicles as fast as they can across the land. They aren’t following any tracks, but they appear to have a destination in mind. George and The Wise Soul keep up with them easily. They are flying quite close. They aren’t in danger of being seen of course. About ten minutes later, the two vehicles come to a stop by the edge of a hill. There doesn’t look like there is an entrance, but there is. A door rolls back and the robots get out of their craft and go inside. This is a bit awkward for George. He has to make a decision. The Watcher leaves him to it. He will know what he should do and more importantly what he shouldn’t do. They don’t have to wait long. A small spacecraft is wheeled out of the hillside. The robots climb in and in less than five seconds, their craft has lifted off. It takes them all a bit by surprise.

  ‘Put a tracker on it’ The Watcher says.

  ‘I already have’ George replies.

  ‘Come back now, we can pick them up later. I wonder where they are aiming for.’

  They return to the mother craft. They do not land as yet, but are hovering about three hundred feet above the surface. The Watcher sees that the beacon is moving. He tells the others to be on their guard. It takes about fifteen minutes before the beacon gets to them. There is a group of maybe 500 people. The Watcher tells them to check round, to see if there are any more survivors. An hour later they have it confirmed to them that there are not. The Watcher and George, who has returned to the mother craft transport bay, decide they will meet them. The three miniature fighters stay out there, watching for any trouble. It does not come. The meeting goes well, in that the people are ready to rebuild their planet. They want to be good people. They want to advance in the right way. They want to start again. They don’t have a leader as such, but there are a number of people who are on a committee. The Watcher asks George what he wants to do.

  ‘I want to give them a chance. They have to do their part in restoring The Balance. I have set it that the others will not be able to return here.’

  ‘Can you do that?’ The Watcher asks him.

  ‘O has told me I can.’

  George then goes round every single one of them and shakes them by the hand. Every man woman and child, he touches with his hands. It is only as The Watcher and George return to the mother craft and take off, that the people on Malis 2 know they have changed. They have been touched by someone very powerful and they have been given a chance to start again.

  Chapter 4
4 Vee & Bar & TZ

  TZ can’t believe what she has just witnessed. Why would Buzz go and do such a thing? It is so nonsensical to do that, suicidal in the extreme. Thinking back, she was wondering what he was up to, when he went to dump the bodies. Now people will definitely know where they came from. People will quickly work out where the three bodes worked; she is sure of that. She needs to get a replacement vehicle, before any of this happens. She also needs to check out exactly what weapons she has left to use.

  She feels a tug within her, when she thinks about weapons. She knows she has to do something. She can’t just stop this now because Buzz has gone. For the first time in a while, she actually turns her thoughts to Mario. She wonders where he is and what he is doing. Is he alive somewhere? She really hopes she is. Surely they are close enough that she would be able to feel if he wasn’t alive any more. They have been together all of their lives. They are close. How did they allow others to come between them and separate them after all these years? After all what number of years is that? The thought goes thru her head that she can’t remember how many years they have been together. She tries, but the thoughts evade her and she gives up on it, as it is starting to give her a headache.

  She rushes round the apartment, trying to erase all evidence of her presence there. She doesn’t bother about any of Buzz’s stuff. He isn’t going to need it any longer and it might throw them off the path of looking for someone else. Once she is done, she checks again before she leaves. She has left most of the shopping there. She doesn’t want it to slow her down. She gets down to the street level and walks as quickly as she can back to the motor shop. Letting herself in, she hunts around for a vehicle that she can use. She doesn’t really want to resort to the one they came in if she can help it. To be honest it would be good for that one to be here when they come. Then it will all fit together and they will stop looking. Unless, of course, they remember that there was someone on the back of the truck and someone else must have been driving. She hasn’t got time to worry about that right now. She needs to get sorted.