The Prometheus Effect

by David Fleming

“I’ll let you be the judge of that,” Dr. Lee replied.

  The first thing James saw in the envelope was a lock of black hair bundled tightly by strong white thread. It still carried a hint of jasmine. He felt dizzy with the emotion it elicited. The letter had a barely legible column of writing that took concentration to read. As he finished deciphering the last sentence, he brought a hand to his mouth and sat in a chair. She did know him. She truly did.

  He squeezed his eyes shut to contain the moisture welling within. “You’re evil, Dr. Lee.”

  “Call me Cindy.”

  “You could have given me this before I saw her, but it wouldn’t have had near the same impact. You did that on purpose.”

  “Yep. Us girls have to stick together. And, she knows a good man when she sees one. So to speak. I wanted to make sure you knew what you were fighting for. On that note, I believe Jack is waiting for you at the Operations Center. Take a cart. And you might want to run a comb through that crazy hair, too.”

  “Thank you, Cindy,” James said, rising to leave. “I know you’ll take good care of her.”

  Outside again, under the artificial sun, James took a moment to reread Dawn’s letter:

  My James

  A withheld kiss

  A moment lost

  So soon we miss

  But not forgot

  No more hiding

  My time is gone

  It’s always coldest

  Before the dawn

  Please don’t leave

  My soul to freeze

  I’ll need your warmth

  To bring me peace

  Dawn

  PS. You owe me another kiss!

  CHAPTER 49

  Jessica had spent the last few hours alone in contemplative reflection, dissecting everything she’d learned about the City’s technology. They had yet to fully sink in when Jack arrived.

  “Still bored?” he asked, surprising her.

  “‘Overwhelmed into a stunned silence’ would be a better way to put it,” Jessica said.

  “Mykl divulged all of our secrets then?”

  “We ran out of time, but I especially like the secret fish food dispenser.”

  Jack laughed.

  Jessica continued, “Actually, I’ve been sitting here thinking. You have technologies that can remedy almost all the world’s problems. Virtually unlimited energy via fusion. Manufacturing of almost anything imaginable with no waste and one hundred percent recyclability. Pollution managed on a scale that actually reverses the damage done to the environment. Farming and food production without fear of weather or pestilence. Transportation. Space travel. Mineral mining of asteroids…”

  “Did Mykl tell you anything more about asteroids?” Jack interrupted.

  “No, but it’s not hard to imagine how easy they would be to mine with your technology. So, add unlimited resources to the list. It baffled me as to why you haven’t shared all of this when it’s so desperately needed. Then I imagined how one would have to go about releasing this technology.” She shifted her position on the bench to face Jack more directly. “You couldn’t put it out in individual bits. It’s inextricably tied together—all or nothing. And if you made everything public knowledge, it would devastate the world economy.” Jack nodded slightly in affirmation. “All utility companies would instantly be obsolete. The same with the professions of building, manufacturing, and transportation. Governments would destabilize. Wars would start all over the world as nations raced to take advantage of the situation. And… They would have all this new technology to make their war machines better and more powerful. So a worldwide release of this technology is out of the question.”

  She paused before adding, “Not to mention, the fountain of youth?” She waited to see if Jack would deny it.

  “Your suppositions are correct. Keep going,” Jack said.

  “That last thing is enough to start a war all by itself. So, what if it were only America that received the benefit—with the rest of the world starving for energy, food, and resources? Even if America shared its new abundant energy and resources, it wouldn’t be enough. Foreign governments that have always been at odds with us won’t suddenly change long-standing cultural beliefs and ‘adjust to’ or subjugate themselves to American domination. They would likely band together and declare war under the theme, ‘If we can’t have it, then neither can they.’

  “Every scenario I can think of leads to someone ending up at war. But I guess these are all problems for you to figure out. You have all the tests and tricks. And now I have been brought here, and for the life of me, I can’t figure out why you need me.”

  “It’s very simple,” Jack said in a serious tone. “I need you to help me start a war.”

  Jessica stared at Jack, trying to determine if he was joking.

  Behind him, a cart pulled in and parked next to hers. A tall athletic young man ran toward them. His hair was damp and flattened as if he had just showered and had hurried to get here. He gave her a polite nod as Jack turned to address him.

  “Good afternoon, James. Glad you could join us. Please, take a seat. This is Jessica. She arrived last night.”

  Jessica accepted James’s offered hand from across the table. “And what do you do here?” she asked.

  “Well, I’ve only been here two days, and up until yesterday, I was the village idiot.”

  Jessica arched an eyebrow at him.

  “I’m much better now,” James added.

  She raked the younger man with a scrutinizing gaze. “You must be a friend of Mykl’s.”

  James straightened his posture in mock indignation. “Why do you say that?” he asked with a suppressed grin and a twinkle in his eyes.

  “Mykl has interesting friends,” she replied.

  “Oh? How many have you met?”

  “Four.”

  “Four?” Jack and James responded together.

  Jessica pointed at Jack. “You, your wife, James, and Noah.”

  “Noah?” James asked with an inquiring look at Jack.

  “Noah is complicated, but in short, he is responsible for making Dawn’s treatment possible.”

  “Oh,” James said, his eyes taking on a distant look.

  “Which brings us back to the business at hand,” Jack said, looking expectantly at Jessica.

  “You want me—to start—a war,” Jessica said.

  James fell still. Jack nodded once.

  “With what country?” Jessica asked.

  “All of them,” Jack said.

  Jessica closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. She held it a moment before forcing the air out of her lungs. Flustered and shaken, she said, “I don’t understand how a global war is going to solve anything. And I really don’t understand how I could possibly start one.”

  “You have already aided immensely by preparing the fuse. Now all I need you to do is light it.”

  Jessica crossed her arms and leaned on the edge of the clear crystal picnic table. No sweetness filled her caramel-colored eyes when, under lowered brows, she said in a demanding tone, “Explain.”

  Jack made a few rapid taps and finger swipes on the tabletop, turning its surface glossy black. Jessica pulled her arms back in surprise. James sat motionless, his eyes following the choreography of Jack’s hands. A large graph with country names and data filled the table.

  “This shows real-time and forecasted oil usage for the world. A few major powers recently discovered evidence that suggests there may be less than two hundred years’ worth of consumable oil.”

  “I thought scientists determined that several hundred years’ worth still existed?” Jessica said.

  “That’s the number thrown out to prevent a panic—or, more accurately, a lie to buy time. Each country has a plan to deal with the problem. The United States bought foreign oil for almost a century instead of using the reserves on their own soil. When the rest of the world runs dry, they will have the last reserves to themselves. And war will come to the United States.”r />
  “But the other technologies…” Jessica started.

  “It’s too late.” Jack updated the graphs. “This is the actual amount of oil left. At current consumption rates, it won’t last two hundred years; it will last less than twenty years. If the outside world knew of this, the war would start today. A very messy war.”

  Jessica shivered and wrapped her arms around her middle.

  “At the other extreme, China has opted for a more creative but direct approach to the problem.”

  Jack’s fingers danced across the table. A representation of the inner solar system rotated in the glossy blackness. Multiple colored lines traced from Earth to the asteroid belt.

  Jack indicated the lines. “As far as the media and the rest of the world know, these were exploratory space missions launched by China. They were, in actuality, efforts to move asteroids of appropriate size into new orbital paths to impact the Earth at predetermined locations.” Jack enlarged the Earth to show the continental United States. Flashing red target symbols marked impact sites, and affected areas painted the continent from coast to coast. “None of these missions succeeded—yet. Because of actions taken by the City.” Jack paused to let his words sink in. “If the US government knew of this, we would be at war within hours. If any one of these missions had been successful, it would have devastated the US economy, infrastructure, and military—and that’s entirely apart from the massive cost in human lives. There would be no stopping China from taking over and dictating a new world order. Unless… the rest of the world went to war against them.”

  Jack blanked the table, causing humanity’s home to disappear. “So, as you already reasoned out, the coming war is inevitable. I can’t keep it from happening. But, if I start it—my way—I can control it. I can put an end to this, once and for all.

  “I know this is asking a lot of you. From what I know, based on our testing and your past, I have decided you can be trusted. Now you have to decide whether you can trust me. Our window to make a difference is closing rapidly. You need to make a choice before leaving this table.

  “There are basically three options available to you. One: stay here, safely in the comfort of the City. No one will think any less of you for not putting your life at risk. Believe me, you will be in great danger if you leave this place. Two: you can run out and tell the world about me and our secret lair… though you may not enjoy the company of those who claim to believe you.

  “I have contingency plans in place, should you choose either of these options. However, those plans will not save the lives of the millions of people who will be killed outright in the next few weeks—nor will they prevent entire cities from being eradicated.”

  Jessica found it difficult to breathe, let alone speak. She closed her eyes to satisfy an instinctive desire to hide as Jack laid out her choices.

  “Three, if you are willing: stay here and help me. Success will trigger events resulting in the deaths of thousands—but will allow uncounted millions to live, and the majority of our planet to remain habitable.”

  Jessica’s stomach surfed waves of nausea. She had gotten herself involved in this whole mess because she wanted a job. No. A meaningful job.

  Be careful what you ask for, girl. It doesn’t get any more meaningful than this.

  Jack had kindly tried to convince her that she had freedom of choice. But she knew there was no choice. The rails forming the moral track of her conscience allowed only one direction. The question remaining was whether or not her sanity could survive crossing a bridge over a river of blood. Alternatively, she could forever carry the weight of an ocean of bodies within her soul.

  “So, I have to start a war. It can’t get any worse than that. What do you need me to do?”

  “I need you to be the woman that people now think you are.”

  “Huh?”

  “Sebastian left that rooftop thinking you were selling me the secret to fusion technology.”

  “You set me up!”

  “Yes. From the moment you chose not to cheat on that civil service test, you came onto our radar and were carefully screened for this mission. Your own moral code, ‘the desire to do the right thing,’ is what makes you the person you are. Knowing what the stakes are and how perfectly you have been ‘set up’ for the job, is there anyone else you would trust to do it?”

  She looked into the eyes of the two men watching her before answering, “No, I would not.”

  “Then I need you to be the woman who sold the secret of fusion.” Jack leaned away from her slightly. “And I need you to work with Sebastian.”

  “That fu—” Jessica yelled, biting her lower lip. “He’s a piece of shit!”

  “Sebastian is a tool,” Jack agreed, easing the tension. “And his motivations will be his undoing. But for now, we need him in the picture to do what he has been so carefully groomed to do.”

  Jessica’s skin crawled at the thought of spending another moment near Sebastian. To actually work with him was unthinkable. If given a choice between starting a war or working with that smarmy sleaze, she would choose war. Now Jack had saddled her with both!

  “Fine,” she said, though she didn’t feel fine about it at all.

  Jack reached inside his coat pocket and withdrew two envelopes. One he presented to Jessica, the other to James. “In your envelope, Jessica, there are details of what you may and may not discuss with Sebastian, or with any parties he may bring to the bargaining table. In addition, it’s almost a guarantee that he will aspire to enlist the aid of China in his quest, but if he proves to be too dimwitted to figure that out, please encourage him.”

  “What happens if Sebastian fails to come through?” Jessica asked.

  “China will retain enough military strength to maintain a war effort for decades to come.”

  Jessica sighed. She handled her envelope with distaste. “Is it going to self-destruct after I read it?” She wondered if the same fate could be arranged for Sebastian.

  “No. That would be silly. Memorize the details, then toss it in the trash before you leave.”

  Jessica frowned in disappointment.

  “You will also be provided a casino credit line and a bank account with funds appropriate for the sale you made. Your new residence is the Grand Suite of the E Pluribus Unum, conveniently located one floor below the Chinese diplomatic couriers, who are your number one priority. You are now rich. Act like it. Spend money. Gamble.”

  “Do I need to keep receipts?”

  Jack chuckled. “No, we can absorb any monetary losses. Just keep in mind the bigger picture. This isn’t about money; it’s about survival.”

  James touched Jack on the arm to get his attention. “Um, my envelope is addressed to ‘Linda,’” he said.

  “That’s right; its contents are not for you. All you need to know is that I want you to assist Jessica in gathering information—and to watch her back.”

  “You’ve obviously invested a great deal of time observing Jessica—so you know you can trust her,” James said. “But me? I’m a nobody that got to come here due to Mykl’s intellectual prowess and charisma. Why would you want me to participate in this when so many lives are at risk? Aren’t there others to choose from? Someone who’s better trained?”

  “You’re right. Normally, you would be subjected to rigorous screening to evaluate what morals motivate you. But I’ve discovered that a person’s free choices are even more predictive of his or her character. And the tests you took—tests you self-imposed—you passed. I ordered a thorough search of your history in our video archives. That search corroborated everything you revealed to us. You told me the complete truth, without knowing I already had proof of your actions. You’re not a nobody, James. You are the rare type of individual the world needs right now: an honest man. I’ve been around a long time. I know when I can trust someone.

  “As for other trained agents, there weren’t that many to begin with. Maintaining secrets requires a very small talent pool. Everyone else who could do
your job has already been placed in more critical positions. We only have a small window of opportunity to make a difference, and you two are our best chance.

  “But,” said James, “I don’t know anything about being a spy, or an agent, or whatever you want to call it.”

  “How many years did you fool people with your other persona?” Jack asked.

  “Well, that was easy. I just played dumb.”

  Jack raised his eyebrows and gave the young man a wink.

  James quickly caught on. “Ah, you want the old James back?”

  “It will be your best defense; it will allow you to assimilate into your new role without suspicion. You will be returning to the asylum while you are not at work. The letter in that envelope explains everything Linda needs to know to get you back in. As for your job, you will be the room service caterer’s third assistant. There are a few long-established agents at the hotel who will be apprised of your mission.”

  “Which is?”

  “Keep your ears open. Once you’ve been vetted by the people around you, they’ll be more apt to speak freely. Especially in other languages,” he emphasized. “Use extreme discretion in communicating with Jessica. Your targets are vicious people. Do not let your guard down.

  “I would like you both to be ready to leave in an hour. Tony will pick you up and convey you to the appropriate portals.”

  “Portals?” James asked.

  “Entrance and exit points.”

  “Oh. With all the high-end tech around here, I thought you might have meant some kind of instantaneous matter transference device.”

  Jack wore a curious smile and replied, “One step at a time, James. One step at a time.”

  “How are we getting back to…” Jessica wanted to say civilization, but considering where she was, that would be an insult to the beautiful city around her. “… to the outside world?”

  “You will be flown by military helicopter from your portal to a remote landing pad. From there, you will transfer to a luxury civilian helicopter befitting your new lifestyle. It will drop you off on the executive roof landing pad of the E Pluribus Unum. Hotel personnel will meet you there. The rest is on you—though I suggest a trip to the dress boutique, followed by a quick round at the tables to announce your presence to those who may be looking for you.”