Mackenzie shook his head. “I don’t know,” he said. “I just don’t know. I can see where General Perry is coming from on this, and my head, in the role of President, tells me that to survive we’ve got to act, and act quickly.”
Perry nodded his approval.
“But,” Mackenzie continued. “There’s a part of me as a human being that’s telling me to listen to Stratton here. And sometimes even the President has to act as a human being would.”
Perry’s face dropped. “Mr President, you surely can’t even consider taking the course that they’re suggesting. We’ll all be wiped out within a few days.”
“I’m sure you won’t, General,” said Grady. “You’ll be locked safely away in your bunker with the rest of the White House and the Pentagon.”
“That’s not the point,” Perry countered. “This isn’t about me, this is about the people of the United States, the people of the free world. We have a duty – no, we’re sworn – to protect them, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to go back on my word. And I’ll be damned if I’ll let you go back on yours, Mr President.”
Mackenzie stared Perry in the eye. “Have you forgotten who you’re talking to, General.”
“No, Mr President I haven’t, but you seem to be forgetting who you are and what you’re here to do. This is a democracy we’re defending. Do you think any of the good citizens out there would vote to sit around and let themselves die?”
“Of course they wouldn’t, General. But they voted me capable of making the big decisions for them. They have faith in my judgement and I will not let them down.” He paused. “And before you go off again, just remember that as yet I have not made any decision. All I’m doing is giving all options their due consideration.”
The table went briefly silent while everyone digested all that had been said so far. It was Stratton who started the discussion again. “I can certainly understand your concerns, General,” he said. “And if I was in your position I would probably be saying exactly the same thing. But what you have to understand is that this is no longer just about territoriality, or about the United States or the Middle East or China or Russia defending themselves, this is about humanity as a whole. If you take the route that you’re suggesting then everyone will die. It’ll start off a chain reaction that will destroy the planet. If you choose to stay passive then there’s every chance that the others will as well.”
“And what if they don’t?”
“Then the United States will fall, but humankind will survive.”
Perry grunted. “I’ve never heard such crap in all my life. You expect us to sacrifice ourselves for a bunch of barbarians. What sort of world would it be without us. The whole planet would be back in the Dark Ages within months. Women and children would be terrorized, the civilized society that we’ve created would be gone forever. Nowhere would be safe.”
“I’m sure that your enemies would say similar things about you. But that’s the whole point isn’t it. Everyone thinks that their way is the best and only way. The attitude is that if you’re going to die then the enemy must die too.”
“It’s a natural reaction,” said Perry.
“I know it is,” said Stratton. “And look where natural reactions have brought us…This is time for the human race to rise above its primitive urges and act for the higher good. If you lay down your weapons and get blown to smithereens then at least there’ll be someone left on the planet? They might not share your beliefs, but they’ll be alive – and just maybe they’ll learn from your sacrifice. Perhaps the guilt of slaying an unarmed man will finally show them the futility of it all. If nobody lays down their arms then there’ll be nobody left to learn anything. Well, not on this planet anyway.”
“This is bullshit!” yelled Perry. “I am not going to allow myself and an entire nation to be killed for the small possibility that a few savages might learn a lesson in life!”
“Listen,” said Stratton. “I’m not trying to upset you, General, I’m just trying to make a point. The point is that human life is sacred and no-one’s life is more important than anybody else’s. Just because you think your life is worth more than some lowly Muslim, doesn’t make it so. Just because someone doesn’t agree with you doesn’t make them any less deserving of life than you.” He paused. “Look at it this way, as a General it’s your job to minimize casualties – am I right?”
“It’s one of them.”
“Okay then, let’s say there were two strategies available to you. One of which saved over half your men, and one of which killed them all. Which one would you choose?”
“The first one obviously.”
“Exactly, so would any commander in their right mind. Now take a big leap of imagination and see the universe as a general, and everyone on earth as his men. Which strategy do you think would be most beneficial to him at this present moment – yours or mine? And remember, just like you he doesn’t have any favourites – he just has men, and to him like to you it’s a numbers game.”
“Listen to me you jumped up little shit!” yelled Perry. “You’re not going to trick me with your fancy philosophizing. This is the real world, and my job is to defend my country. And you can talk until you’re blue in the fucking face – it’s not going to change my mind!”
“General!” said Mackenzie. “Please calm down. This is only a discussion. Let the man have his say.”
Stratton thanked the President and continued. “I’m sorry, General, I didn’t mean to upset you, I just wanted to make a point. But that point is only hypothetical anyway because I don’t expect anyone to be bombing anyone else. If you call a ceasefire or a truce then the world will follow, I’m sure of it. Nobody wants to start a nuclear war if they don’t have to.”
“Well, you certainly don’t know the Muslims then,” said Perry.
“I don’t know all of them personally, no. But do you? Have you really tried to make a truce with them? Or has all the negotiating been on your terms?”
“The things they want are ridiculous,” said Perry.
“Ridiculous to you maybe, but not to them. I seem ridiculous to you, but that doesn’t make me wrong – or even right, we just have different points of view.”
“Okay, I accept that. But they don’t want to negotiate anyway. All they want is the destruction of the United States and its allies.”
“Gentlemen,” said Mackenzie. “I think that’s enough. You’ve both made your points well. But this argument could go on forever. I think it’s time I made a decision. General, I appreciate your position, and at any other time I would wholeheartedly agree with you. But you made a point about this being the real world, and that just doesn’t hold true anymore. This is no longer the world we knew, this is something new and dangerous, something we don’t really understand. We need to adapt to this new understanding or I believe we will indeed be heading into oblivion. We are still the most powerful nation in the world, and as such we have a responsibility to lead from the front. I believe that we should follow Stratton’s recommendations and reduce our defence condition to its lowest level.”
“But—” Perry started.
Mackenzie put up his hand. “I’ve made up my mind, General. I’m not just the President of the United States, I’m the leader of the free peoples of the world, and if we can save lives by doing this then I suggest we do it. I don’t want to die, but neither do I want to be responsible for the extinction of mankind. This is time for a dramatic leap of faith. My heart tells me so.”
Perry stood up. “Are you guys just going to sit there and let him do this?!” he shouted to the table. “You’ve got to be out of your minds!”
“Enough!” said Mackenzie. “Let’s put this to the vote. All those in favour of the peaceful solution raise your hands now.”
“We can’t include outsiders in this vote, Mr President,” said Perry.
“We can, and we will,” said Mackenzie. “Have you not listened to a word that’s been said General? This is no longer just about the United States.”
Only three people kept their hands down: Perry, General Johnson and Trent Arthur from the NSA.
“Well that settles it then,” said Mackenzie.
Perry would not give up. “But you can’t do this, Mr President! It’s totally unconstitutional!”
“General!” Mackenzie ordered. “Please be quiet! The decision has been made. You may not like it, and I certainly understand your reasons, but if you had been taken off your feet by an unseen force then you might think quite differently. I’ve been on the receiving end of it, so I know. There is no weapon on earth that can match the power I’m talking about. You saw it yourself with the bullet being stopped. We either pacify this power or we die, it’s as simple as that.”
Stratton felt a huge wave of benign energy pass through his body.
“This is all very well,” said Vittori. “But what are we going to do about Christiano? He has more power at his disposal than any country. There is no telling what he might do if left to his own counsel.”
“Well, what do you suggest?” asked Mackenzie. “The way I see it there’s not much we can do. He doesn’t seem to want to listen to reason and we can’t use force against him, so where does that leave us?”
“We cannot do nothing,” said Vittori. “He is becoming deranged, and the people of the world are hanging on his every word.”
“I suppose we could always tell them the truth,” said Stratton. “I know it probably won’t do any good after that bullet stunt, but we can try. I think the truth is about all we have left to give. Calling off military attacks is just the start, this whole thing needs to be blown wide open. Soldiers can be controlled by orders, but you can’t control the population. People around the world are angry and fearful, and they need to be calmed. We’ve had enough lies and it’s time to be open. You and the other leaders need to tell them exactly what’s happened, and let them know that the only way forward is a peaceful way. It may take a while to filter down through to everybody, but if nothing’s done then a military stand-down won’t be worth a bean, the citizens of the world will have wiped themselves out. I believe that’s what’s already happening in Europe and parts of Asia. And Britain’s totally out of control isn’t it?” He looked to the Prime Minister for conformation.
“Yes,” said Ayres. “It appears so. We seem to have lost control somewhere along the way.”
“I wonder why,” grunted Stella.
“But it’s not just us,” said Ayres defensively. “Like Stratton said, it’s all over Europe and Asia. The whole world’s divided. I’m not sure how feasible it is to reach everybody with words of calm.”
“Fuck feasibility,” said Stratton. “It’s got to be done. And you’re going to be the first to act. You’ve helped get everybody into this bloody mess, and now you’re going to help get us out of it.”
“I’m not sure it’s entirely my fault.”
“No-one said it was, but you’ve played a major part. And now you’re going to play a major part in reversing the flow. The first thing you’re going to do is stop the military from killing any more civilians – I’ve seen the reports and it’s looking dangerously like carnage over there. So pick up the phone and call them off.”
“Who do you think—” Ayres started. His sentence tailed off though when he felt Mackenzie’s glare. “Okay, okay. I’ll do it.” He reached for a phone and dialled London.
“But what about Christiano?” said Vittori. “We have still not come up with a solution for him. What will happen to him? What will happen to the Church?”
“Quite frankly,” said Mackenzie, “I don’t really care what happens to the Church. You’ve led the world a merry dance for nearly two millennia now, and I think it’s about time you were put out to grass. You and the Muslims have caused all this with your lies. I think the world will be a lot better off without either of you.”
“But where will people go for spiritual guidance?”
“I don’t know,” said Mackenzie. “But at the moment that’s the least of our concerns. If we don’t have anybody left to guide then it won’t matter. As far as Christiano’s concerned I don’t know. We’ll have to do something about him, but it’s really not my area of expertise.” He looked over to Stratton for help.
Stratton shook his head. “I really don’t know what to do about him. All I can do is go to Rome and try to reason with him again. I’ve got to be honest though – I think he’s too far gone to listen to anyone. Although his girlfriend might be a useful ally.”
“Okay then,” said Mackenzie. “That’s sorted. You go to Rome and do whatever you can to contain the situation. Let me know if there’s anything you need. In the meantime we’re going to have to get busy communicating with the rest of the world.” He picked up his telephone and began to dial. “Gentlemen, it’s time to start saving the human race.”
Chapter 86
Paul Smith jumped into the back of the Jeep and lit a cigarette. The order to withdraw had come not a moment too soon. Fortunately they had been so reluctant to carry out their duty that no shots had been fired before the retreat. He wondered whether he would have been able to do it anyway. He’d spent his short adult life obeying orders and it had become second nature to do as he was told, but the slaughter of your own people was a different matter. It would have taken a heart and mind of steel to carry out that particular command, and he was no longer sure that he possessed either.
He pulled out his flask and took a large mouthful of brandy, and then handed it to Graham, who accepted gratefully.
“Cheers, mate. I really thought that was it back there. I felt sick to be honest.”
“You’re not the only one, mate. I was a couple of seconds away from puking myself. Thank God they pulled us out of there, that’s all I can say. I wonder what’s happened to make them do it?”
“Fucked if I know,” said Graham. “Whatever it is it’s probably political. They wouldn’t be doing it unless there was something in it for them.”
“You’re too cynical, mate. Maybe they decided killing their own people just wasn’t right.”
“Maybe. But when you’ve been in the army this long you get to be cynical. I’m surprised you’re still so naïve.”
“Not naïve,” said Paul. “I’ve just got faith in human nature.”
“Still?” laughed Graham. “After all we’ve seen? You must be fucking mad, mate!”
“Maybe I am. But without it what have I got left? You’ve got to hang on to something, Graham, otherwise you may as well be dead. We’re soldiers, we’re not robots.”
“But that’s exactly what we are mate – robots. We’re not paid to think or to have faith in humanity. We’re paid to do a job – a fucking horrible job – but just a job. If we started thinking for ourselves then there wouldn’t be an army.”
“And maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing,” said Paul.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake. Don’t start getting conchie on me now, buddy.”
The Jeep pulled up at the Horton Hospital, and they got out and reported back to their commanding officer. After a short debriefing they went to the tented canteen to get some dinner.
“I can’t believe that,” said Graham. “A total military stand-down. What the hell’s going on? What the hell are they thinking?”
Paul dipped a dry piece of bread into his stew. “Perhaps they’ve suddenly seen sense,” he said. “Maybe they’ve learnt that war doesn’t solve anything.”
“What’s wrong with you man? I thought you were a fucking soldier.”
“I am, but I’m a soldier who’s had enough. I’ve been in this fucking army for five years and I’ve never once questioned anything. I’ve killed people without a second thought, and all for what?”
“To protect those that can’t protect themselves,” said Graham. “We’ve done what we had to do to restore law and order where it’s been lost. We haven’t killed without reason, and you know it.”
Paul sighed and finished a mouthful of stew. “Maybe you’re right. B
ut it doesn’t make me feel any better. Christ, I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
“Lack of sleep, mate, I reckon. Go and grab yourself a couple of hours and you’ll be fine.”
Paul mopped up his gravy with the last of the bread and drained his mug of tea. He looked up to see a young woman approaching the table trying to catch his eye. He recognized her as the girl he’d met earlier in smokers’ corner.
“Hi,” she said. “Sorry to bother you, but we met this morning, remember?”
“Yeah, I remember. I didn’t catch your name though.”
“It’s Jenna.”
“Well, I’m Paul, and this is Graham.”
Graham said hello and gave Paul a sideways glance indicating that his mate was ‘in there’.
“Is it alright if I sit down?” she asked. “I just wanted to find out what’s going on in the town. Nobody wants to tell us anything.”
Paul gestured for her to sit down on the bench next to him. Graham gave him a sly wink.
“Sorry to be a bother,” she said.
“It’s no problem,” said Paul.
“So,” said Jenna. “Is it true that the military are standing down? We’ve just seen the Prime Minister and President Mackenzie say so on TV.”
“Yeah, it’s true,” said Paul. “Well, we’ve been asked to withdraw anyway. I don’t know anything about the Americans. It seems you know more than us about it.”
“Only what I saw on the news report. The President made quite a long statement actually. I can’t remember all of the details, but the basic gist was that he had evidence that the Catholic Messiah and the Mahdi were both fakes, and that the people of the world needed to take a step back and calm down before we destroy ourselves. He said that with immediate effect all US forces were standing down, and any planned missile strikes were now aborted. He said that the USA had taken these steps to lead the way for a peaceful solution to our current troubles.”
“He’s fucking mad!” said Graham. “The rag ’eads will be all over them like rash. They’ll bomb the fuck out of them!” He shook his head. “And we’re part of this fucking lunacy as well are we?”
A Sacred Storm Page 37
