by Kurt Winans
President Harwell attempted to explain to those citizens and the nation at large during a televised speech that much of what had been damaged at Annapolis, Colorado Springs, and West Point, had been on land defined as military bases. Therefore the refurbishing of those facilities fell into the category of the defense budget. Unfortunately his assessment of the situation and firm stance on sending aid to Syria met with some ill feelings, so the three states could not be counted on for support. Fortunately Colorado had been the one to side with the President, but that was influenced by having their Governor as the Vice Presidential running mate. Maryland was lost as a result of not receiving aid, but not by much. As for New York, President Harwell never expected to win it.
What really removed any lingering doubt as to the final outcome was how the four neighboring states of Texas responded. The President won their hearts and votes long before the election by diminishing the size of Texas and annexing portions of the land to them. In addition he postponed the Texas reinstatement until after the election.
The latter of the two also impacted Puerto Rico in a negative way. There had been, and still was, the intent of admitting both states on the same day. However the postponement from the original date of October fifteenth until mid-November meant that none of the citizens from the islands of Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands could vote in the election. The flipside of that result was a positive for President Harwell though, as Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, and Oklahoma all delivered him a landslide victory. In addition, no angry souls still residing within the confines of Texas who carried a grudge could vote against him in what would be his final election. When all was said and done it was a tradeoff that the President could live with, even if it cost him the faith and trust of those from the new Caribbean state.
President Harwell showed tremendous satisfaction and pride in that the United States was unveiling a new version of her flag for the entire world to see. The fact that it came just one week after he had been elected to his second term as the leader of the free world made it all the sweeter. As the official date of change for the number of states, and thus the stars on the flag, November fourteenth had been suggested by the President several weeks prior. He put forth the motion as a respectful tribute to those who were slain during the terrorist attacks of two years earlier, and the date was quickly confirmed by Congress.
Old glory would now display fifty-one stars, as although the conditions surrounding each were vastly different, there had been the addition of two states. In employing the same system which had been used in 1912 for Arizona and New Mexico as the 47th & 48th, and then again for Alaska and Hawaii as the 49th & 50th in 1959, the simultaneous admission of states was officially done alphabetically. Therefore based on the withdrawal of Texas, the former territories of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands of St. Croix, St. Johns, and St. Thomas were admitted as the new 50th under the combined name of Puerto Rico. In addition, Texas with its newly defined perimeter and significantly reduced land area would be readmitted into the union as the 51st state.
As precursors to the latest rendition, the three most recent versions of the American flag had been rather easy to design. Based on the number of stars which were required upon it, which for more than a century had been forty-eight, fifty, or most recently forty-nine, a simple mathematical pattern could be adopted. First, with the aforementioned admission of Arizona and New Mexico in 1912, eight horizontal rows of six stars had been arranged in the top left corner field of blue. When Alaska and Hawaii morphed from their territorial status to that of statehood in 1959, that pattern required alteration to reflect the change. Accordingly, nine rows of stars with an alternating pattern of six and five became visible upon the flag. The five rows of six equaled thirty, while the four rows comprised of five each made twenty more. When the two were added together, the total of fifty was achieved. Then when Texas declared its independence from the United States, albeit brief and under unsavory means, the most recent version of forty-nine stars was formulated by employing seven rows of seven. Now that fifty-one were needed, no simple pattern of math could be used without a little artistic creativity.
Concepts of how to arrange fifty-one stars on the flag came in from all directions, but many of them were not worthy of serious consideration. However one concept, submitted for viewing from a man in Nevada, had an appealing look to it.
His explanation, packaged with the concept design, stated a belief that the most logical way to break down fifty-one was by dividing the number in the only way that it could be done. With that in mind he based his concept on patterns which contained seventeen groups of three stars. He confessed that there had been a period of trial and error from that point forward as different arrangements were attempted, but eventually he came up with the design which had been submitted. His final rendition placed a total of nine stars in each corner of the field which totaled thirty-six. Then with five groups of three remaining, he positioned the fifteen into a larger five pointed star pattern within the center portion of blue. The result was something that was not only symmetrical, but easy on the eye. It also brought the size of the corner blue field back to what it was before the most recent version, as the forth horizontal white stripe from the top was no longer encroached upon.
When the President was presented with the concept design he immediately liked the appearance of the flag, and as he had already viewed other less attractive versions, saw no need to view any more. Therefore he had the rendering presented to Congress for approval, and it was met with minimal objection.
With the hour approaching noon in Washington D.C. on the fourteenth of November, President Harwell waited for the change to occur. Standing with him on the south lawn of the White House was the Governor of Puerto Rico and the newly elected Governor of Texas. Several members of the press stood at the ready, and many cameras were poised on a fixed location atop the Presidential mansion. A moment later the Marine Corps band that was on hand began to play and the well-orchestrated ceremony ensued. President Harwell snapped to attention when the old flag was lowered, and remained in that respectful posture until the new one was raised. Canon fire followed to commemorate the occasion, and it was then official. The legacy of President Harwell would remain intact and reflect that while under his watch the United States of America had overcome the adversity of losing a state and had not only regained it but added another.
At that moment Vice Admiral Rutherford stood on the bridge of the USS George H.W. Bush. The watch from his sister Maria read eleven o’clock, which coincided with the current time in Texas as opposed to that of Washington D.C.
Turning to his old friend he said, “Captain Wilkes.”
“Yes Admiral.”
“Order the fleet to raise the new colors and lift the blockade. Texas is once again part of the United States, so our job here is done.”
“Yes sir Admiral.”
Tony Rutherford looked down at the watch again and then gently kissed it, as now he could rest in knowing that his sister and her family had been properly avenged. Moving a few steps forward to gaze upon the flight deck below and the waves beyond, he realized that he should probably retire in the near future.
Then he turned to say, “And Captain Wilkes, there is one more thing.”
“Yes Admiral.”
“Inform the fleet and support vessels to make for Norfolk. It’s time to go home.”
The Colonel in command of Fort Wainwright looked out the window of his office to view the beauty of nearly all white which surrounded the base. As it was only a few days after the winter solstice of the northern hemisphere, there was very few hours of daylight as the position of Fairbanks Alaska was not far from the Arctic Circle. Turning on the holographic screen in his office, he snapped to attention when President Harwell came into view and listened to the instructions that followed.
Then the Colonel responded by stating, “Yes sir Mr. President, I have the disk in my possession. It’s right here on my desk, and I fully comprehend your o
rders for tomorrow morning. The prisoner will be forced to view and listen to the contents of the disk while inside his cell, as it will run on a continuous loop until I receive orders to cease. And yes sir, I too believe that it will make a suitable Christmas present for the man.”
At seven the following morning, the Colonel entered the prison complex of the base, and descended several levels to the underground maximum security wing. Then in the company of six guards, he descended another level to where the specially built cells were located.
After knocking on the clear Plexiglas which was a full foot thick, the Colonel pushed the intercom button and said, “Good Morning prisoner. I wanted to be the first to wish you a Merry Christmas, while also providing you with a gift.”
From the thin mattress on the floor, Samuel Tillman rose to a standing position and moved toward the front of his cell.
Looking at the Colonel he replied, “Thank you sir, Merry Christmas to you as well.”
With a nod the master of the facility added, “I have a present for you today. It comes from Washington D.C., and it has been made especially for your entertainment.”
A moment later the ten minute loop recorded onto the disk began to play. It showed clips from various news feeds detailing a series of important events which had transpired throughout the previous six months. Leading off was the moment that President Harwell graciously accepted the nomination of his party for a chance at a second term in office, and the gathering of a few other people on the convention stage with him. Then there was a description of how the former rogue Independent Republic of Texas would be readmitted into the union. That was immediately followed by the view of a map which clearly defined which portions of the Lone Star State would be annexed to the four neighboring states as a condition for the reinstatement. Moving forward the recording showed Electoral College and popular vote counts from throughout the United States for the recent election, and how President Harwell won both in resounding fashion. Next a clip from his comments of that evening were showed, as he revealed to those around him that he had received a call from his opponent accepting defeat. Finally the loop concluded with the unveiling of the new fifty-one star flag as it was raised over the White House. Although Samuel had been unaware until that moment, that event apparently took place one week after the election at noon eastern standard time on the fourteenth of November. The narrator of the film expressed that the date of admitting Puerto Rico and Texas as the fiftieth and fifty-first states had been chosen to coincide with the two year anniversary of the terrorist attacks upon the military academies. It was viewed by the President as a fitting tribute to those who had been lost, and Congress had agreed with the sentiment.
After the loop began to repeat itself the Colonel said, “Well, that was a nice little movie packed with useful information, don’t you think?”
Samuel Tillman had his eyes fixated on the film, and the question needed to be repeated before he returned his gaze toward the Colonel and replied, “Yes sir. Indeed it was.”
“That’s good prisoner. And fortunately I will know where to come should I want to view those clips again, as that loop will continue to play on that screen directly in front of your cell until the President orders me to turn it off. Now I can’t be sure of the duration, but it could be as long as four years from now.”
With that the Colonel and the guards moved toward the stairs and ascended to leave their prisoner in solitude with the video. Samuel waited until the beginning of the loop came around again, as the scene showed President Harwell triumphantly clasping the hand of Colorado Governor Damian Flynn high overhead. If this was indeed Christmas day, then that man would be the Vice President in less than a month.
With a smile Samuel uttered, “Well done number forty-three, very well done.”
The University of Washington quarterback took the snap from center and touched a knee to the ground so that the final twenty seconds of the game could run out. Victory was assured after the closely fought contest, as their opponent, the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers, had no remaining timeouts. The game clock reached all zeros with his beloved Husky team on the winning side of a 28-23 score, and President Harwell beamed with delight.
Looking at his two guests seated on the adjacent couch he said, “Well, that was a great game! And made all the better with my alma mater emerging victorious.”
Christopher Westin responded simply, “Yes sir, it’s a great way to begin the New Year on a positive note.”
Then his soon to be sworn in Vice President, Damian Flynn, added a similar statement with the caveat that he wished his Colorado Buffaloes had been good enough in recent seasons to have played in the Rose Bowl game.
From his typical standing position nearby, Heath offered congratulations as well. However the President could tell that his most trusted protectorate was preoccupied with something else. Jordan Harwell had a pretty good idea as to what that distraction might be, and felt that he could ease the mind of his troubled friend with some reassurance.
While pouring himself a celebratory victory drink, the President said, “Heath, you should be happy. Today is much better for you than a year ago when you had a knife wound in your back and we had to smuggle you into the basement.”
“Yes sir. I agree, but that’s not what I’m thinking about.”
“Well what’s on your mind? You seem distracted.”
“Sorry about that sir. I was just thinking about the organization.”
“Well you should try to put that behind you and be proud of what was accomplished. You played a significant role in exposing and bringing down the organization that was behind the terrorist acts upon this country, and in so doing, helped our nation defeat a dreadful enemy within. The Independent Republic of Texas has also been dissolved as a result, and justice has been partially served in that assets belonging to members of the organization will be used toward the cost of rebuilding Syria. Now I realize that the project won’t be a complete atonement, but the funding and manpower will help to serve as an apology for what was mistakenly done to Syria by our military forces.”
“Yes sir. And thank you for saying so Mr. President. But there are still some unanswered questions about the organization.”
“I think I understand Heath. Samuel Tillman had developed an extensive organization, and you are concerned that we haven’t identified all of the operatives.”
“Yes sir.”
“Well that’s understandable based on certain numbers that are missing from the natural progression. So how many more of them do you think are out there?”
“That’s hard to say sir, but I do feel quite certain that several remain.”
“You’re speaking of number nine and fifteen to name a few?”
“No sir, I don’t believe that there ever was a number nine or fifteen.”
“You don’t? Well that’s news to me. With the exception of Samuel Tillman as number two, all the numbered operatives within his organization used odd designations.”
“That’s true Mr. President, but they weren’t just odd numbers. I’m sorry that it took me so long to recognize the actual pattern, but I just figured it out at the beginning of the game when the huge new flag was unfurled across the Rose Bowl field. Each of the numbered designations within the organization, including three and seventeen which were used to develop the star pattern on the flag, are prime numbers. The same is true for number two which identified Samuel Tillman, as it’s the only even number that is divisible by one and itself.”
The newly elected Vice President, as one of the unknown prime numbered operatives within the organization, listened with keen interest as the three men with him in the oval office verbally reviewed the list of killed or captured and arrested operatives. That list included twelve of the prime numbers, and several other operatives including the two surviving sons and one grandson of Samuel Tillman who were not designated by number.
At the conclusion of the review Christopher Westin stated, “It would appear that A
gent Bishop is correct Mr. President. The numbers two, three, five, seven, eleven, thirteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty-three, twenty-nine, thirty-one, and forty-seven are all prime numbers.”
The President replied, “Well, that could be a positive from our perspective. Using that pattern, only the prime numbers between two and fifty of thirty-seven, forty-one, and forty-three would be unaccounted for. So Heath, in following the logic of your theory, wouldn’t that imply that there are fewer operatives out there to hunt down.”
“Yes sir it would, and although we do know the identity of number thirty-seven as Courtney Tillman, we unfortunately have no leads on where to locate her. As for the other two, we may never be able to identify who they are or where they might be located within Texas or other parts of the country. And if I may carry it another step further sir, there is something else about the organization that still bothers me.”
“And what would that be?”
“Well Mr. President, In spite of the cooperative efforts between multiple agencies, and each of the lengthy and thorough interrogations of those operatives which are now in custody, we still could have a problem.”
“What do you mean Heath?”
“Sir, I must point out that number one is the first prime number of the set. If each prime number up through fifty was used by an operative as a designator, then number one must have been as well. Unfortunately Mr. President, we don’t have a clue or a single lead as to the identity of who that most powerful operative of the enemy within might be.”
