by Ira Tabankin
A voice he heard from feet hanging out under a workstation, “Yeah, been there, done that too, got the t-shirt.”
Tony laughs, “I assume that’s Todd inside the workstation.”
“Yeah, it’s me inside the cabinet, I got in here to help John re-string some cables, now I can’t get out and the asshole is sitting up there making jokes about me being stuck.”
Tony smiles, “John, why didn’t you help him out?”
“I offered him some Vaseline. He got himself in there, he should be able to get himself out.”
Todd yells, “That’s not funny. I got in here before you sat down, I need you to leave so I can back out. This is a very small room. I need the space to get out. I can’t do it with you sitting in the chair.”
John smiles responding, “I like you down there, you can’t screw around with my settings. I may stay here for a couple of days.”
Todd yells, “John, when I get out of here, I’m going to send you back to the medical lab.”
Tony stands listening to the two of them banter back and forth, “Guys, I have a couple of serious issues that need our attention, that’s if the two of you are done screwing around.”
Todd tries to sit up, smacking his head on the inside of the workstation, “SHIT, that hurts.”
John smiles moving his chair out of the room so Todd can slide out from under the workstation,
“I’m sure it does. Did you change the wiring like I asked?”
“Of course I did.”
“Then let’s take a look at what’s going on at our homes.” John flips some switches and turns a dial, the monitors in the security room show the area around the shelter and Jay’s home, John and Tony lean forward looking into the monitor, “Who do we have here?”
Todd rubs his head while enlarging the image on the monitor, “They look like Army uniforms.”
Tony asks, “What would you know about an army uniform?”
“I own a couple of pairs of the pants, they’re very conformable and wear forever. I think they call them ACU.”
Tony shakes his head, “ACU? Damn military and their abbreviations.”
John laughs saying, “Army Combat Uniform.”
Tony shakes his heads, “So if I were in the Marines, it would be called an MCU?”
John shakes his head, “No, it would be called the Marine Corps Combat Utility Uniform or MCCUU, usually in MARPAT.”
Todd shakes his head, “Who cares what they’re wearing. The questions are, why are they here, where did they come from and what do they want? They must know there’s a camera there, they’re looking right into it. I feel like waving to them.”
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Sergeant Gray smiles at the small camera lens he found in the wall over the desk. “Captain, they’re watching us.”
“How can you be sure?”
“It’s what I would do, no one said they were stupid, plus I found a small lens in the wall.”
“Sarge, can you trace the signal? I want to know where they are.”
“Sir, I can’t, but I know who can.”
“Excellent. Please get your wizard to figure out where they are hiding.”
“Yes, sir.”
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Tony, John and Todd look into the eyes of Sergeant Gray, Tony says, “Well, well lookie here, the Army has arrived. A little late, but they’re here.”
Todd looks into the monitor, “Tony, are you sure that’s really the army?”
“Yeah, I am. Look at the uniforms. A phony won’t go to all the trouble of adding all of the badges, patches and rank tabs to the uniforms. They might wear the uniform, but they wouldn’t get all of the details right. My guess is we’re looking at a real army platoon or company.”
John chews on a ball point pen, “I don’t know if we should open up and greet them or continue to hide from them.”
“Tony, what do you think Jay would say?”
“I don’t know, I know that one of the reasons I came here was to ask John to hack into the doc’s network and tell me Jay’s real condition.”
John spins around in his chair giving Tony an evil look, “Nope, not going to do it.”
“What do you mean, you’re not going to do it?”
“I’m not going to give the doc any reason to run out of pain meds when I need to see him. I have a set of life rules I follow, number twenty-two is never screw with a man who holds a scalpel and knows how to use it. There’s no way I’m going to hack into his system. If you want to know about Jay, I suggest you ask the doc.”
“John, Lacy asked me to find out the real story. I need you to just peek in his files.”
“Tony, I’d give Lacy and Jay my right arm, but I won’t hack the doc’s files. If he ever found out, I know he’d make me pay. I’m more afraid of him than I am of you. I’ll tell you what, I’ll go ask him, but I’m not touching his network.”
“Todd?”
“No way, I too, fear him more than you. Tony, you may kill me, but the doc can hurt me many times. He can withhold drugs if I need them. Plus, Jay’s my father-in-law, he’s like my own dad. Since I’m family, I volunteer to ask him.”
“Todd, thank you. I’ll owe you one.”
“Tony, forget it. I’m doing it for Lacy and Jay. I understand Lacy’s concern. I’d do anything for her. If something happened to Jay, Lacy would be upset, which will flow down and cover all of us in shit. You know what they say if you want a happy life don’t piss off your mother-in-law.”
Tony laughs, “Okay sport have at it. Good luck trying to get the doc to tell you anything. He used to be on my payroll, I most likely bought him a new Porsche every year and paid to keep both his wife and girlfriend happy.”
John ignores the discussion going on around him, he continues to study the monitor, “Tony, what do you think the army wants with us?”
Before he can respond, Fred and Franco knock on the door frame, “Can we come in?”
John yells back, “Don’t think you’ll fit, but you can stick your heads in, what’s up guys?”
“We wanted to know if it was clear up top to send a scout team, we haven’t heard or felt any explosions in a while.” Franco looks at John and Tony, “I got to get working on Mr. Jay’s house, I want to finish it as a gift to him when he’s all better.”
John moves aside so Fred and Franco can look at the monitor, “We have new guests up top.”
Fred bends around the door frame, “The US Army is in Jay’s house? Don’t they know he’s too old to draft?”
Todd laughs so hard he spits up the water he was drinking, “I think we ought to hang a uniform on his bed and tell him he’s been drafted.”
Franco shakes his head saying, “Todd he is going to get angry at you one day. When he does, you won’t like the payback.”
“I can still out run him, after his recent wounds I won’t have to worry about him catching me.”
Fred smiles, saying, “If he’s in a motorized wheelchair you’d better worry, plus can you outrun a bullet?”
“He wouldn’t shoot me.”
John smirks saying, “He might shoot you in the ass just to keep you towing the line.”
The men laugh imagining what John said, the laughter and smirking doesn’t sway them from being concerned there are army troops in Jay’s house.
Todd looks at the monitor, “Tony, John, no bullshit, why do you think they’re here?”
“I don’t know.”
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Captain Black looks up from his tablet, “Sergeant, I think tomorrow at first light you should send a couple of teams equipped with mine detectors and the ground penetrating radar to see what’s under the crops. My gut’s telling me our friends are hiding in plain sight and I think you’re right, they're watching us.”
“Captain, what are my orders if we find something?”
“Try to determine the dimensions of whatever shelter is underground, once we know the size of what we’re dealing with, we’ll be able to estimate the number of people who m
ay be hiding in whatever Mr. Jay Tolson built. You know, I always wondered what I’d do if I won the lottery, we may soon find out what Mr. Tolson did with his winnings.”
“Captain, do you think there are any of his winnings still in the house?”
“There may be. However, I’m not interested in taking what’s legally his, I only want to see what we can do to get this area back on its feet. If we start stealing from the people we’re supposed to help, how does that make us any better than the sheriff?”
“Sir, good point.”
“Sergeant, other than the security patrol, tell the men not to wander tonight, we don’t know what we’re dealing with on this farm. I’d hate to have our people stumble into a friendly minefield.”
“Captain, you’ve made your mind up, these people are friendlies?”
“Yes, judge a person by the enemies. Look at who Mr. Tolson calls his enemies. Anyone who has the sheriff as an enemy can’t be half bad. Look at the residue of the previous battle. I think I’m going to like this Mr. Tolson if we’re able to locate him.”
“Yes, sir, I’m sure the recon team will be able to locate where they’re hiding.”
“I hope so. Sergeant, remind everyone, these people are not our enemies. They’re not going to take our word on anything, we’re going to have prove whatever we say.”
“Yes, sir.”
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Whoever that was has left me alone to consider his offer. When no one is trying to get me to join them, it’s very peaceful here, wherever here is. It's dark and quiet. I don’t hear any other voices. Finally, I think I can just sleep. There doesn’t seem to be anyone around which does seem funny, but, I’ve come to expect these dreams aren’t like the ones I usually have. These dreams seem to be more detailed, I don’t understand why, but I’m dreaming within a dream, but then again, I’ve learned anything is possible. I finally got all of those voices out of my head, do this, do that, join us, turn right, turn left, swim up, go towards the light. Damn, I was getting worn out trying to figure out who was whom. I remember my dad which reinforces I’m dreaming. There’s no way I could have seen him, especially not a young man. He was 75 when he passed on to be with mom. I swear the man I saw sitting in front of me couldn’t have been more than thirty-five. Maybe it was a figment of my dream. I wish I would wake up. I wonder if I’ll remember any of these dreams when I wake.
“Jay, I’m not a figment of your imagination or a dream. You’re not taking instructions well. That doesn’t surprise me, you never took instruction well. You always had to learn at your own pace, if you were told the range was hot, you had to feel it to learn what hot meant. I can tell you now there were times I wondered if you’d make it through your teen years. Your teen years were much worse than you were when you were a terrible two. Your brother came home when you were two and half, that broke your bubble, you weren’t the main person in the house any longer, you had to learn a few lessons very quickly and at a very young age. I didn’t know if you or I would survive your teen years, especially after you got your license. I never wanted to be on the road when you were. Do you remember having to appear in front of the judge for accumulating the most speeding tickets in the state in a single year? You set a state record. I didn’t know if I should be proud of you or kill you. The judge didn’t think it was very funny.”
“You are my father, no one else would know that story, you took me to court and helped save me from the judge.”
“Yes, I’m your father.”
“How can you be here again? How can you be so young? You’re younger than I am. What do you want from me?”
“I’m here to help you.”
“How can you help me, if you’re dead unless I’m dead too! Shit is that why I can see and hear you. I’m dead? I don’t want to be dead! There’s so much I want to do. What’s going to happen to Lacy and the girls? My friends? Isn’t there something you can do? Is there an appeal process?”
“Jay, there’s a lot we have to discuss.”
Chapter 7
The people of Hawaii welcomed the Chinese troops with open arms, they threw flowers as they deplaned, women ran to hug them, children brought them leis. Tens of thousands waved Chinese flags as they lined the route to Honolulu. The cheering along the route drowned out the noise of the soldier’s vehicles. While thousands of Chinese soldiers waved at the people lining the streets others set up mobile kitchens and medical tents to provide food and care for all who needed it. Everyone who asked received hot food and six bottles of water. Chinese troops ensured there was no rioting or looting. Anyone found to be cutting in line or stealing was quickly taken outside of the city where they were put to work on construction projects, most survived only a month of hard physical labor with minimal food and water. The Chinese military began their task to convert Hawaii into an island fortress. One armed with long-range missiles, fighters, and bombers which would allow them to control the Pacific from Hawaii to Midway. The Chinese were turning Midway into another island fortress, another step in their plan to control the Pacific Ocean.
The Chinese planned to turn Pearl Harbor into the world’s largest military base where they were going to base fifty submarines and hundreds of warplanes to attack all Pacific shipping. China planned on controlling the entire Pacific Ocean. China’s next goals were the takeover of California so they had a foothold on the North American continent. Another battle group was dispatched to New Zealand. China would control the entire Pacific Ocean. The west planned in hours or days, China planned in centuries. They planned their current operation for over fifty years, they’re setting up the foundation for Chinese world domination. America was too weak to stop them. America lost her guts, she lost the ability to protect her own. She left her citizens to rot in jails as hostages around the world. The sun set on the once great American Empire.
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Admiral Jefferson, commander of Task Force 66 comprising the only surviving battleship, USS Missouri, six attack submarines, two nuclear cruise missile submarines, eighteen destroyers, five WASP class (LHD, Landing Helicopter Dock) Marine transport ships and four supply ships sits fifty miles outside of Pearl Harbor watching the Chinese through the electronic eyes of six small drones. Marine Brigadier General Murray looks at Admiral Jefferson, “Admiral, we can stop them in their tracks.”
“General, we can give them pause, however, how many civilians will be harmed? I fear the collateral damage bill will be higher than anyone in D.C. is willing to pay. They’re landing planes every five minutes, each of those planes is bringing 250 heavily armed troops to the island. I’ve ordered the entrance to the harbor mined, that should slow down their transport of heavy weapons and vehicles. The President ordered me to slow the Chinese down. The Hawaiian people voted to switch sides, the President doesn’t want to accept it. His problem is he doesn’t want to force the Hawaiians to tow the line because he’s afraid the Tea Party will use it to start a second civil war. My orders are to do as much damage as possible without harming the civilian population. That means we can only fight the Chinese in the air or in the air away from civilians. He doesn’t want any collateral damage.”
Before General Murray can respond, they hear an explosion roaring over the waves. “Admiral, I’d say your mines just scored a hit.”
Jefferson smiles, “I think you’re right. We left behind enough mines you could almost walk across the entrance to the harbor without getting your feet wet. Since the harbor is narrow, a few additional hits and they won’t be able to bring any ship in or out of the harbor.”
“Sir, what about their air bridge?”
“Patience General, you’ll soon see, we left a large number of MANPADS behind with orders they begin taking incoming planes down at 1400 hours, that's just about ten minutes from now. Planes are most vulnerable just as they’re taking off or when they’re on their final approach to land, they can’t maneuver at such times. My goal is to bring down their planes here and at the other airports around the islands to block the runway.
Once the runways are blocked, their air bridge will be closed.”
“I like it.”
“The anti-air teams are using small high powered Jeeps and other off-road vehicles, they’ll fire a couple of MANPADS and disappear, the next team will fire from a different location, the teams should keep the Chinese busy hunting for who’s bringing down their planes. I let them have a couple of days free landing so their security became lax, then boom, their planes begin to fall out of the sky.”
“They’re bound to know we are behind their losses, won’t they come after us?”
Looking at the sixteen inch cannons Admiral Jefferson says, “I hope so.”
“Sir, I’ll be on the WASP if you need me.”
