

### Short Stories written in 2019

Published by Stephen Brandon at Smashwords

Copyright 2020 Stephen Brandon

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revision 2

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Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This E-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This E-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite E-book retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

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Author's Note

This book is a work of fiction. All characters, organizations, incidents, and dialogue are from the authors imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or other persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Real and fictional locations are used for background only.

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Short Stories

Table of Contents

Forward thoughts

Guerrilla's

National Isolation

Lavender Woman

On the Border

The Sleepers

The Spy

The Store Plan

Acknowledgments

About Stephen Brandon

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Forward thoughts.

For those that instantly transition from sleep to being awake, you have my condolences. I wake up slowly and transition that time in a state of awareness that puzzles me. Sometimes I see parts of my plans for that day. Other times I am aware of thoughts or situations that I've been in. Very occasionally I'm aware of situations and thoughts that I know haven't happened, or cannot happen in this politically correct orderly world.

Where exactly do we live? In a three dimensional universe with an awareness of the possible forth dimension called time. In a single universe created by God, an anthropic principle universe, one level of parallel universe, or on one membrane of a brane universe. Have fun figuring that one out, even those smart scientist are stumped.

Anyway back to my point, here are seven short stories written in 2019. Enjoy!

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Guerrilla's

~ ~ ~

"Captain, those morons at headquarters want us to travel half way around Jupiter fifty miles deep in it's atmosphere. That will take us over the spot. I just passed the route to the Navigator."

"Very well LT Anderson. When will will your relief be up. Communications in fifteen minutes Sir."

"Get me the engine room."

"Chief Scott, here Sir."

"Scott, headquarters wants us to take a dip in Jupiter's atmosphere to flank the Eastern Alliance ships attacking the fuel collection stations. I need engineering to be prepared for full power plus whatever else you can give us for shielding."

"Sir, you know we just got that new reactor and engine installed last week. This was supposed to be the shakedown flight. Now they want us to take it into combat! You know that's an invitation for Murphy's Law if I ever heard of one."

"I know Scott. Don't forget the fact that half the crew including most of the marines are on their first flight."

"How long before we go in Sir."

"Two hours Chief."

"I'm going to call third shift down. That will leave only second shift fresh for any problems."

"Do it Chief."

The dive into Jupiter's atmosphere over the south pole was uneventful. When they passed over the red spot the turbulence sucked the ship down almost fifty miles deeper. Angling up they burst from the atmosphere just a few thousand miles from where the orbital fuel stations were located.

Navigation and Weapons both reported no contact, not even debris.

"Navigation, we shouldn't be that far off course. Find those stations."

"Yes Sir.

"Sir, the readings are all wrong. What I mean is the moons aren't where the computer says they should be."

"Communications, any signals from the fleet or headquarters?"

"No Sir, well some weak modulated broadcast from in-system. I'm paging the Chief."

"Weapons, any contact?"

"No Sir, no stations, debris, or even hulls within a thousand miles. I'm warming up the long range radar."

"Get some help up here. I want the targeting and long range manned. Maintain alert status."

"Yes Captain."

"Major Mann, step down your marines one level. If the shit hits the fan we should have a few minutes before we need them."

"WILCO Captain. I'll head below and send the XO up."

"Captain. No signals at all on any of the military or civilian bands. The only radio traffic in the system is voice from Earth."

"That's impossible Johns."

"I know Sir. It is in the kilohertz range. We'll need to get closer to listen, it is so weak that interference is trashing the signal. It seems strongest on 1409 kHz and if I heard right they used the call sign KQV."

"Make a note of that Johns. If we move in-system I want to know everything they say."

"Yes Sir, but it seems to be mostly old music."

"Gator, I want our exact location and time. Make sure OOD gets it in the log immediately.

"TAO, double watch on everything around us.

"COMMO, I want a double watch for any signals, but maintain signal silence.

"Cheng, status of engines and reactors."

"Captain, reactor recorded massive drain while in Jupiter's atmosphere. Drive recordings were all screwed up, but have leveled off within normal parameters. We have power and propulsion."

"XO, you have command, I'm going down to the mess and try to get a quiet meal.

As the Captain entered the mess, two marines were pushing a meal cart out.

"What can I get you Captain?"

"Anything thats hot Corporal Smith."

"Give me five Sir."

As she delivered the tray to the Captain he muttered. "Grab yourself a cup of tea and sit with me.

"Linda, how is it going, any problems?"

"No Sir."

"Linda, when we're alone you can call me dad."

"I know Dad. It's just when they assigned me they also gave me reassignment orders for when we got back."

"Ha ha. Yea I know. This was supposed to be a shakedown for the new engine. What you didn't know is that half the crew and the marines are on their first active flight. Do you still intend to be a chef when you have your military requirement over."

"Yes Dad."

"I've got some bad news for you. We are not where we are supposed to be. Something happened when we were in Jupiter's atmosphere."

"Are we going to be OK Dad?"

"I don't know yet. Don't worry about it. I'll worry enough for both of us."

"What about Mom?"

"She'll hear about the ship missing. I just hope she doesn't feel guilty about the fact that she arranged your assignment so you could see me."

"Oh my!"

"She will be OK. She still has your brother to take care of. By the way, what are his plans when he graduates?"

"Mom told me he is going to be assigned to your ship when we get back. He keeps kept telling me that once he gets out he plans on opening a restaurant for me."

~

Forty hours later the Captain dropped alert status and informed the OOD to move the ship in-system near Mars through the asteroid belt.

A million miles from Mars, COMMO reported no signals at all from Mars. The only radio signals in-system were from several civilian stations in the kHz range.

There was no evidence of any space travel within the system.

~

The Captain ordered the ship moved to Earth and parked behind the moon. One of the launches was ordered to land at night on Earth and gather intelligence.

They reported that the year was 1953. There was no war. There was no Western or Eastern Alliance. They even brought back several newspapers along with their recordings.

The Captain called for a meeting of all senior officers the next shift. "Gentlemen, due to the maneuver that headquarters ordered us to execute, it seems that we've traveled over a hundred years into the past. If it weren't for the professional and stealthy way that our intelligence team slipped on and off Earth, we may have changed history. Now this ship is a military force with more firepower than any on Earth. We could subdue Earth, but at what cost? If we reveal ourselves, what damage would that do to our history? Comments?

"Yes Colonel James."

"Captain, as political and moral officer I demand that we eliminate the treat of the Eastern Alliance before it even gets started. A series of assassinations would prevent it's leadership from ever being born. We can subdue the key countries with a series of attacks."

"Colonel James, I am aware of your position and your job aboard this ship. We will do nothing to interfere with history. Am I understood?"

"Captain, I'm relieving you under the authority of General Order 413."

"No you are not! Major Mann call in one of your marines and have Colonel James escorted to the brig. I'll prefer charges later."

"Captain!"

"Now for the rest of you. Everyone is aware that the XO is a history expert. If we do anything that changes history, and I mean the copy that we have aboard ship in our computers, we might change the outcome of the war with the Eastern Alliance, or even cause a nuclear exchange between the 20th century superpowers. What we do here in the 1950's, will have the same effect as throwing a grenade into the ammunition magazine. This ship is self sufficient, and has supplies to operate for years without docking. Any comments?"

"Is there anyway that we can get back to our own time Captain?"

"Yes, but you nor the crew is going to be happy with the method. TAO and Cheng have started working on the plan. Basically we are going to chase down the generation ship launched eight years ago and follow them to where they are going to set up the second colony. We'll get back to our own time, we'll just be nowhere near Earth."

"Damn Sir, that sucks. We've all got someone we care for on Titan."

"I know LT. Unless you have a time machine in your pocket, we can't get back any closer than a few decades. The disturbance we went through in Jupiter's atmosphere screwed us thoroughly. We've probably already been reported missing in action and the battle for the fuel stations is over in our time."

~

Two weeks later the ship was accelerating to three tenths the speed of light. They'd spent the two weeks in the Oort cloud finding some suitable chunks of ice to build a particle shield over the front of the ship. Chief Scott calculated that eight hundred feet of ice would shield the ship from cosmic rays and other junk while traveling.

The plan was to get up to half the speed of light and then reduce engine output to twenty-five percent. That level would support the necessary functions including the shield. If there were any problems, the engine could be cut off and repaired.

Due to the problem of not being able to shield the rear of the ship when it reversed to decelerate, it was determined that acceleration would be at full throttle. It was hoped that the engine exhaust field would deflect any space debris.

"Well Captain, deceleration will put us in the stars gravitational influence in less than a day."

"Captain, Captain!, unidentified hard target off our port bow. They are generating some kind of power field that is registering, but not identifiable."

Very interesting commandant. The occupants of this vessel appear to be the same as those setting up a settlement on the planet, but we tracked them arriving. They are not from here. Do you want to capture them and test them for the games?

Not a bad idea Ixlor. Proceed.

"Engineering to Captain, something is draining all power from the reactor and engines."

"Gator, where are we."

"Unknown Captain, the computer can't get a fix. The star patterns just changed in an instant."

"Cheng, what is the power status?"

"Reactor and engines operational Captain. However, we are registering something that reads as a black hole nearby."

Over every intercom on the ship, _'Attention occupants of spacecraft. Your survival depends upon you landing on the planet below immediately. If you remain in orbit your ship will be consumed.'_

"TAO, what's out there?"

"Captain, I'm picking up multiple satellites. They are powering up energy weapons."

"Pilot, get us down into the atmosphere."

"Gator find us someplace to land, preferably defensible."

"Captain, there is a valley about a thousand miles off our port. It should enable us to aim our weapons up, and the marines can secure the ground."

The pilot cursed all the way down, but managed to find a level spot in the valley.

"Major Mann, get your marines out there and secure this section of the valley.

"TAO, keep an eye on the sky so we don't get ambushed.

"Attention all personnel, assemble in the mess in ten minutes."

"OK people, we reached the colony planet's star. We detected another spacecraft before we got into orbit, then we were here. Gator can't locate us by any of the star charts; so we are lost on an unknown planet.

"Section chiefs, get with Major Mann and get your sections armed. He can pair you up with a marine for area security.

"Cheng, I want your crew armed for ship defense. Get your people checked out on the shipboard weapons. Keep the engineering room powered up and ready for emergency lift off if need be.

"Any questions anyone?" With that the Captain left and returned to the bridge.

The next morning, a marine reported movement down the valley. As the navigator scanned the area, they opened fire on the perimeter guards.

The attack lasted for over an hour, until the attackers withdrew.

The morning of the next day, the attackers reached the ship and entered the engine room, and wiped out the engineering crew on duty. We found 31 alien bodies after they retreated to the original perimeter, and ours were 18. They attacked again just after dark, but our night vision equipment allowed targeting of the attackers, and they broke off after less than thirty minutes.

The morning of the third day was quiet. Around midday they started with a heavy artillery bombardment. The shift change crew was caught in the open and wiped out along with a third of the perimeter. That evening Cheng reported a power fluctuation in the engine circuits. He was unable to locate the source.

The forth morning a pitched attack started just after sunrise. Major Mann reported that they were attacking, and overwhelming the perimeter by sheer numbers. The captain ordered all hatches sealed. There were four of us left alive on the ship by the time all the attackers that got aboard were eliminated. The Captain died that evening from his wounds.

Report Ixlor.

Commandant, these people are fierce warriors. The survivors are two females and one older male.

Very good, transfer the ship to their original destination and continue observation.

Yes Commandant.

The fifth morning we were awaken by someone pounding on the hull. Turning the exterior cameras down as far as they would pivot, we spotted several humans. We armed ourselves and went to the engine room airlock and opened it.

The man in charge of the people simply asked how we got there. He stated that the ship just appeared at daybreak. Needless to say we were flabbergasted.

They were appalled. Not just the war in the Earth system, but the events that took place on the unknown planet.

~

Weeks later one of the farmers reported that a cow in his herd had been disemboweled. The next night another farmer reported the same. Whatever predator was now stalking their herds, was new. They'd had no problem since their arrival a decade before.

With no predator problems they only had fenced enclosures to keep their herds in. Posting guards did no good. In less than a month one of the armed guards was killed. Turning to technology they built motion sensors and automatic lights.

That worked for one night. One farmer got a look at the giant cat like creature that killed his son. After telling others, the next day he and his older son went tracking the creature. All they had were light hunting rifles. They were never seen again.

Heavier weapons were quickly manufactured. Several baited ambush sites were set up. One lost it's bait, another lost the guard that was on a twenty foot platform. A month later one of the creatures was killed, but second herd had been raided. The learning curve took a quick upswing and two more creatures were killed within another week.

With the loss of a young child snatched from her home, the hunting started in earnest. It was then discovered that several types of predators were present. What surprised us was the fact that the previous surveys had found none of them.

Men, women, and older children quickly became accurate shots and almost psychic in detecting the creatures that now plagued the settlements. We were back on the ship attempting to modify the sensors to detect the creatures when we became aware of the entity living within our computer.

Its story was strange. It was a created entity designed to monitor the games. The games were several advanced species way of waging war without destroying themselves. It had escaped its keeper and taken shelter within our ship. It was tired of the constant destruction and killing of lesser species. It considered us one. Linda asked it if it could help us escape from this cycle. It disappeared within the computer.

A week later when we entered the mess, Linda was sitting there looking at a hologram. It was eerie watching her stick her hand into the hologram and flipping what looked like the pages of a book. Getting us coffee she explained.

"The entity contacted me this morning. It knew if it was detected, it would be destroyed. It outlined a plan that we could implement to help protect the colonist, and it.

We brought in the leader of the colonist, and convinced him to follow our guidance without revealing the entity.

With a crew we started building a new compound wall. It is thirty feet tall, and topped with sensors and sharp objects. The ten foot foundation didn't raise any eyebrows. We got some argument when our design only contained half a dozen residences. They also questioned us when we placed vibration sensors near the top on the outside walls, and hardwired them within the wall and underground to the nearest building.

The next night another type predator climbed the wall, was detected, and killed as it crouched on top looking for someone to spring on.

Four more walled enclosures were started, however only three followed our plans exactly. Two nights after the fourth was completed, a predator made it inside undetected and killed a family. After that our plans were followed with only changes made to the wiring locations. Families in groups of four built their own walled compounds. They even started bringing what was left of their herds inside at night.

The entities next suggestion was universal military, and hunting training for all the teenagers. Everyone was to be trained in weapons from swords to heavy crew served weapons. Successful completion would allow them to vote and begin the path to leadership.

The government took over control over who was allowed to go hunting and when. It was also recommended that children be planned three years apart, and as many children as the women could have be planned for. No women or children under the age of eighteen were allowed outside the compounds unaccompanied. Everyone over the age of sixteen would be armed all the time.

Within another fifteen years we had established planetary leadership in a series of caverns, and moved the ships reactor and computers to that location.

That is when the entity told the leadership exactly what the aliens had planned for us. We were to be their players. Every few planetary years they would contact us and tell us how many players they needed. They would then collect them and furnish them with weapons. Survivors would be returned after the game.

We spent the next thirty five years fighting the predators they unleashed on us. Thirty six years after the ship landed, an apparition appeared telling the villagers that they would be back in three day night cycles to take one hundred fighters for the games. We didn't get the word in time and they took a hundred men, woman, and children emptying four compounds.

They were given single shot long rifles and ten shot pistols. They were also given swords the length of their arm. With no warning they were then transported to a ship. In the ship they saw the same predators that they'd been fighting for over thirty years. They immediately attacked and killed all the predators in the rooms they were in. The survivors were stunned and taken to another larger room where they finally met the aliens that were in charge of them. The aliens were angry and executed half of the survivors before one asked why they'd attacked their allies aboard the ship.

The answer was that they same predators had been killing them and their children on the planet for the last thirty five years. A few of the aliens remembered the predators released as a test to see if we could adapt, because our settlements looked to peaceful.

The man that answered the aliens also told them that without enough time to gather fighters they'd been taken. Also he cursed them for taking young women and children with no training. They had taken their weapons, but that didn't stop him from killing the two nearest aliens with his bare hands before they killed him. One woman on in the corner of the room reported how they activated a beam that went from one person to another knocking them out. After she was stunned, she could still see and hear the aliens talking. She managed to make enough sound that they came over and took her up to the front. There she told them that we had fought the predators for thirty five years and developed an army of adult men and women to hunt the predators. When we were dropped in the room with the predators, we reacted to protect the children and young women that were with us. If you do the same to any group of us the results will be the same. To make it any different, talk to our leaders.

Ten cycles later the citizens were returned. Behind them were three apparitions. A predator was in the compound and managed to kill three of the survivors before the aliens reacted.

They left a device and told the survivors to take it to their leaders and have them contact the commander of the games.

The half dozen survivors were brought to the caverns and told us their story.

~

After discussion the leaders took the device to a training compound and placed it by the divider wall within the arena. That evening the gate was left open with several cows staked out inside. Four predators entered and were trapped when the gates were closed.

The next morning the device was activated. Dozens of aliens appeared, their only problem was that half were outside the divider wall and the predators immediately attacked and started killing them. Those inside the divider wall stood shocked at the violence. One of them turned to our leaders and cried, _"How could you do this. This is supposed to be a peaceful meeting to set guidelines on how we use you."_

"We simply are letting you feel the wrath of the predators you unleashed upon us with no warning. We are a sentient people, we just don't have the technology level you have. If you want to use us, you will pay."

" _That is not how things work. You will serve as our players in the games or die."_

"Then you had better get back to your leaders and inform them that they will have to kill everyone of us. Either that or return with an offer that we can both live with. Now take your dead and leave before we open the gates and let more predators in to eat you."

The alien walked to the machine and pressed several buttons. All but three of the dead aliens vanished along with three of the dead predators.

A few minutes later more aliens in armor appeared and looked around. As soon as the other dead aliens were spotted, they were retrieved. The leader stood and looked at the three leaders still in the arena and stated. _"Those politicians made a mistake, I don't think they will learn from it. My men are soldiers, would you like to attack us."_

The training captain stood up and looked him in the eye and stated. "We don't need to, we'll just open the gate and let your animals do the job. Prepare yourselves.

Then he yelled, "Open the gate."

Immediately several of the predators rushed in and attacked the alien soldiers. Four of the nine remaining soldiers went down before the captain yelled to close the gates and kill the predators. He stood and watched as a platoon of trainees entered the arena with their swords and nets. One by one the predators were killed while another group of trainees dragged the dead and wounded alien soldiers over by the wall. They took all the recognizable weapons.

Then two more men stepped into the arena and shot the remaining predators.

The training captain then turned to the alien soldier. "This is what we have had to deal with every day. You tell your leaders that they will pay us for our services or else. Now take your men and leave."

The shaken alien soldier had his remaining men gather up the wounded and dead, and then he pressed several buttons on his armor suit. They vanished.

Weeks later another group of armored soldiers appeared in the arena. A training session was going on and the trainees simply shoved the armored soldiers out of their way as they killed the predators allowed in.

The training captain ordered them to clean up the area and dump the predators over the wall. Turning he then addressed the alien soldiers. "What are you doing here. Do you want to learn how to kill animals, or talk?"

The closest alien soldier raised his right arm and stated, _"My captain sent this detail to pick up your leaders. Our games master wants to talk to them."_

"Our leaders are not here. This is just a training location. Tell your games master that I will send for some of them, and they will be here in three or four day night cycles."

" _How shall I address you? Are you a master trainer?"_

"No, I am just an experienced hunter." Turning his head he yelled, "Lieutenant, have a messenger detail get ready and another detail to clear the area around the compound.

He watched as men climbed the inside walls and started firing. He flinched almost every time one of the predators screamed in pain as they were shot. He also watched as the detail marched out another gate.

He signaled one of his men to go up the wall and watch as they left. A few minutes later the soldier came down and reported. _They just walked out and into the woods. Only one animal attacked them and they killed it silently, and did not stop. Whatever they used just blew holes in it at a distance. These creatures are dangerous. They bait the animals to them, and kill them to train their young._

"Young soldier, how shall address you? You may call me training leader."

" _Training leader, the closest translation in your language is sergeant null."_

"Then I shall call you sergeant. Are these marking on your armor your rank or standing in your army?"

" _Yes, this one is my position, this one is my station, and this one is my name. My position is sergeant and my station is house guard to leader Zien. My given first name is Null."_

"Well Sergeant Null, if you are going to spend the nights here, we must find you safe rooms. At night the climbing and jumping predators attack. You do not want to be in the arena unless you are training."

Four days later the detail returned. As they marched in Null watched them escort the gray headed man up to him. He leaned on his staff as he approached. _"Are you the leader that has the position to talk to the games master?"_

"Yes I am a local leader, and the others have given me authority to make a deal with compensation. You may call me leader John. That means that your games master will pay us to play in your games. Do you understand the concept?"

" _Yes, I understand. I get paid to work for games master Zien. You are demanding that he pay you like a worker or soldier."_

"That is correct."

" _The only problem is that he and the other leadership consider you no higher than the animals outside your gates. I have seen that it is wrong, but you don't have the technology to prove yourself."_

"So technology is your measure if someone is sentient?"

" _Yes leader."_

"Then I suggest to your detail of soldiers that if we are attacked in any way the ones that attack us will die like the animals we let into our arena. Then you may transport me and my detail."

" _Honorable leader, I was instructed to only return with the leader of this group."_

"Then you shall transfer me and my two assistants."

~

The two men that joined the leader had short staffs slung over their shoulders by cord. They also had long staffs like their leader and metal knives in their belts.

" _Sergeant Null, what took you so long?"_

" _Master Zien, I had to wait while they went and got this leader."_

" _What took so long?"_

" _Master Zien, they walked from where we arrived to where he was, and walked him back."_

" _Sergeant, take their metal weapons. Then you will remove your detail."_

As Null followed his soldiers out another group entered.

"I gather that you are games master Zien. Am I correct?" asked the gray haired man as he leaned upon his staff."

" _Player, you will listen to me and tell your animals what they will do."_

"Games master Zien, I am not as young as you and need to sit down to rest. May I approach and have a chair?"

" _Very well, sit on that side of the table. Why did you bring two younger players with you?"_

"To protect and serve me, of course."

" _Guards, restrain those two."_

As the guards moved, so did the leader and his two men. The leader first knocked master Zien from his chair onto the floor. The two men knocked the guards around with their staffs and then took their weapons and helmets. Master Zien screamed in anger as the humans took control away from him and his guards.

"Master Zien, you will quiet down or I shall bring some of the animals your people plagued us with. I have two dozen trapped that I can release here in your house. Do you understand?

"Guard, you will go to the leader over master Zien and tell him that we have come to deal and master Zien has not been honest or fair with us. We will talk to him in person, or over a communication device. If we are threatened, we will respond.

"Adam, signal base to send one animal with keepers." A few moments later a predator appeared with his head in a loop attached to two poles held by men.

"Guard, I suggest you move now, or I will let the animal taste your blood."

The guard took off at a run.

A few minutes later he stuck his head in the room and pointed at the wall that was flashing. "Guard, get over there and accept the call."

A face appeared and then pulled back to where others were visible. "To whom am I viewing and talking to?"

" _I am games master Oriion. Master Zien's supervisor. What are you doing?"_

"Master Oriion, I am area leader Johns. My supervisor sent me with my assistants to converse with you. Master Zien would not talk politely, so I restrained him and had one of his guards call you."

" _Players have no say so in what they are required to do. We make the rules and order all players to do our bidding."_

"So that means that you refuse to recognize me as a leader."

" _That is correct. Now you will \---"_

"Do you value games master Zien, or any of the persons near this location?"

" _No, I am above them as they are above you."_

"Adam, have you traced that signal?"

"I have a general location."

"Good, then send for a dozen predators and transfer them to that location."

" _You can not do that. It is illegal to threaten the council."_

"Oh master Oriion, I'm sorry. Did I threaten you or just deliver back to you what some of your people plagued my people with. Adam send for some jumpers and climbers. I wouldn't want master Oriion to feel slighted if we didn't return a fair sample of their presents."

"Three dozen delivered leader Johns. What do we do about this one?"

"Guards, when we leave we are leaving master Zien a present. I suggest you secure all the doors to this room. If you need to enter the room you will need some heavy weapons to do so safely. Leave now."

The guards all answered, "Yes leader johns." and scrambled out.

"Now games master Oriion, did my presents arrive? Do I hear people nearby screaming in fear?"

" _Piffle, you can not reach me. I am on the station above your head."_

"Adam, locate the stations and deliver presents to them."

"On it Sir. My mistake. They will need to redo their satellite communications center. Their new pets were delivered there."

"Games master Oriion, if we see any of your people on our planet we will be expecting them to be bringing us gifts before we sit down to talk. We were not interested in other civilizations. Now we shall look around for your friends and enemies. Good by."

"Hey boss, mission partially successful."

"In what way Johns?"

"At least one games master is predator lunch, and we delivered several dozen to other locations. I'm glad that their technology was simple enough to crack in the time we had. Hell, from what a couple of the guys told me, the theories were all in the computer. However, there are several other civilizations around here that we may have problems with."

"Johns, we'll have to deal with them when they show up."

"Sir, I strongly suggest that we send several teams to snatch more of their technology and several of their spacecraft. We may need the ships for planet defense."

"Get some teams together. I'll let you know in the morning if it's a go."

"Also for your information Sir, their society is decadent. The only decent people I met were some of their soldiers, but they're treated more like slaves."

"That's interesting, do you think you can turn a few of them."

"Yes Sir. See you in the morning."

~

The first teams managed to penetrate military areas and stole computers and weapons. They transported predators into the surrounding areas as they left.

With the information gathered they planned more raids.

The second raid got them two warships that were docked on one of the military space stations. After transporting the warships to the colony planet they immediately returned and transported weapons and everything that wasn't locked down. Departing the space station the second time they got a larger warship, and left predators on the station.

The third raid was to the government station. Here they had their first casualty. After grabbing a few computers they left. Captured predators were then transported to the station.

Corporal Linda Smith is promoted to Captain and given the mission to take one of the smaller warships to Earth and contact the Federation. Her orders were to trade technology for ship crews and space marines.

The crew analyzing the retrieved computers discovered several interesting facts. The military space stations were actually capable of moving like spacecraft. Another was that the alien civilization had split into half a dozen rival factions. They used the games to settle disputes over borders, resources, and sometimes just for entertainment. The colony leadership no longer had to worry about committing genocide in their war with the aliens.

Plans were started to contact the games masters of several factions; as possible allies.

# # #

National Isolation

The cabinet will now come to order. The prime minister has a few words from the King. "Ladies and gentlemen, as you well know our monarchy is ceremonial. The last unlimited power was surrendered by the last king over fifty years ago. His grandson was educated in the west, and worked to make a living before assuming his position eight years ago.

"His nine years climbing the corporate ladder gave him experience in the financial world out there. The normal pittance he was given after his schooling was at the poverty level of the countries he lived in. He managed in twelve years to wrestle it into a minor fortune while he worked.

"The world has changed since he returned, but he has kept current with the news and politics. He predicts that within a few years several of the larger countries will apply financial arm twisting to gain the mining rights to our rare earths. He has put together a plan that has low financial risk, but a medium risk of invasion by one of the larger countries. Either submitting to their governments financial blackmail, or falling to an invasion will impoverish our population and reduce our economy to that of a third world country.

"You will notice that only twenty-three of you are present. His Majesty does not consider the other assembly members trustworthy enough to allow them knowledge of this defense plan. If any of you suspect or have knowledge of spies withing your organizations, whether financial or political, he implores you not to discuss or even take your plan packets from this room until you have removed any threats to our country.

"Any questions or comments?"

"Yes Prime Minister. As you well know my mining interest have done extremely well since I took over from my father. My security has identified over a dozen industrial spies, some that are holdovers from my fathers time in the company. He is the one that taught me to keep my friends close and my enemies closer. I and some others are aware that his Majesty has built an intelligence service to monitor our countries security. My intelligence group is aware of their general operations, but mainly after they are complete. There is one member that my people report to me that is a double agent for one of the eastern governments. Shall I name him now or in private to his Majesty?"

Opening a folder the Prime Minister looked directly at Mr Hames and stated, "If you are referring to Mr Thadius, he will have an option presented to him by the king today. The king has usurped one of his grandfathers powers from the laws still on the books. Mr Thadius will spend the decade in isolation, or die.

"Mr Brown, you have a question."

"Yes, what will the king plan do to exports, such as my produce or Mr Hames minerals?"

"That is a damn good and ticklish question. His Majesty is refining his opinions on that at the present time. Basically if the larger countries sanction us financially, it will mean that we won't be paid for our exports. They will seize all funds outside the kingdom. We could be sanctioned on our exports, meaning that we could not make any money by legally exporting anything. That will probably include sanctions on our imports, meaning shortages in consumer and industrial goods that we now import. That is one of the questions the king put in your information packets, and a question that needs to be immediately addressed.

"Yes Mr Green."

"You are probably aware that over half of my mines are outside our borders."

"This is a ticklish political problem. The king is leaving in the morning on a good will tour of countries surrounding our borders. His plan is to strengthen the agreements we have with our allies, and if possible turn those that don't favor us.

"That is all I can comment on for now other than the fact that he is very popular in several of the surrounding countries. I know that you are aware of the immigration problem we have. He is hoping to solve part of that program also."

"Prime Minister, he is aware of the fact that several of the leaders nearby would be extremely happy if he were assassinated."

"Oh yes, he is aware of that fact and taking additional steps to remedy that problem. Now open the packets and read them. Refreshments are available on the sideboard since this room will be sealed until you have completed reading, and any discussion you desire."

~

As they finished reading Mr Brown looked at Mr Jones and commented. "I was wondering why you were invited."

"As you know my father enlarged his fathers jewelry business and added a foundry to make farm implements. He pounded into my head the fact that I must make the industrial parts of the business as safe as possible for my workers."

"Yes, I'm sure we are all aware of that."

"Then you are also aware that I export ceremonial coins worldwide."

"Yes, get on with it."

"Three years ago the king approached me and asked how hard it would be to create a new series of coins. I have a stockpile of coins of various designs using all the same valuable metals that I use in my jewelry business. I originally thought that he just wanted these coins for ceremonial purposes, but now I realize that he calculates that the larger countries will try to ruin our currency. On each series of coins is one of the prior monarchs and on the reverse is the metal and weight. To turn these coins into money would simply be posting the value of each coin in public. All the citizens would then be able to calculate their value and use them for pay or trade. Use of these coins would make our currency inflation proof against any outside currency, not to mention the fact that any attempts to manipulate our currency would backfire because it would increase the value of our coins.

"Does anyone remember the controversial law that the king had the prime minister press to make law last year."

"Mr Brown, Which one are your referring to Mr Jones."

"I am referring to the the one that made it a capitol offense to counterfeit official jewelry and coins. It was deemed inappropriate and unneeded by almost half of the assembly."

"Yes, and I remember some members kept trying to add the word ceremonial into the law. It makes sense now that the king was planning ahead."

"Add that law to the official decree last year that made my family and companies the official manufacturer of official coins and jewelry, you can see that he was planning ahead. In the last year a few pieces of official jewelry presented to visiting dignitaries have been officially contracted out to my competitors. One even boasted that he was going to take the official jewelry business away from me and showed me his contract. It was worded differently than my contracts with the government by indicating it was just for one design and a limited number of pieces with a decree waiver number. Each piece was to be given a specific serial number. Also in the contract was the stipulation that the molds and designs be returned to the government mint upon completion."

"Very interesting. Mr Jones, do you anticipate getting rich from this decree."

"No, not really. My family is comfortable, and I pay my workers well. I have less problems with them and less theft than my competitors, if rumors are accurate."

Sounds like you're doing well.

"That's correct Mr Green. Now I am in need of some extra valuable metals. I'll tell you now that I am enlarging my foundry business. The new one will be just inside our border to the north. I was informed that you found several caverns. I need one. It must be reinforced to support the ceiling. I don't want to have to make repairs when I set up the new foundry."

"Wait a second Jones. What are you getting at?"

"It is simple Mr Green. Manufacturing facilities in the kingdom may become a target. The army has fortified many of the mountains surrounding the kingdoms valleys, but I want to play it safe. In the valley outside the caverns, I intend to house my employees and their families on small primitive looking farms. They won't give Mr Brown's business any competition, but they will be great camouflage."

The prime minister started tapping the table. "I smell burning wood. Mr Wong, the king would have you survey all the roads within the kingdom and any new construction be built so it can be used as a road for trucks, or easily converted to rail system. There are also a few of the tunnels between the valleys that need upgrading."

# # #

Lavender Woman

* * *

Can't let that happen.

The operation briefing was simple and straight forward. Insert into enemy territory, locate the experimental station, observe to confirm the rumors from outside the compound, withdraw, and return with the information. Intel section would make the decision on how to handle it.

A HALO jump at two AM local time is always fun on a cloudy night. Getting hung up in a tree wasn't as much fun. Climbing the shrouds I managed to get into the canopy. All of the main chute could not be retrieved, that meant that anyone flying over, or looking up would know that someone had dropped in. _Well, so much for not being detected. It also meant that I was not at the insertion point._ Cutting everything free that I could, I repelled down to the jungle floor. Checking my compass, I headed north.

At dawn, I was still in jungle. My map indicated that I should have been clear after several hours of walking. Climbing another tree to the canopy, I checked landmarks. I was on a plateau. Mountains to the east and west. Far to the east I could see a reflection off a large body of water, hopefully the ocean.

The next day I was glad I'd retrieved the shrouds. It took all of them tied end to end to get down the plateau cliff.

Four days later I came to the edge of the jungle. Climbing the tallest tree I could find, I checked the terrain against my map. I was northwest of my target.

On the ground again I pulled the ghillie suit and started upgrading the camouflage as I walked.

The compound was similar to the satellite photos I'd seen. Right on the bay with two docks, and a wire fence. Finding a tree, I climbed to near the top where the foliage was dense and build an observation nest. Thinking to myself, _At least this far away from the parachute, no one should connect it with this location. A week hanging around and then up the coast to my pickup point._ Then I saw something interesting. A submarine surfaced by the second dock.

Members of the crew were marching what looked like a young man out and into the compound. Even through my telescopic camera, he looked strange, kinda blue. This was not included in the mission briefing.

That evening I slipped up the bay to the entrance of the river. Throwing out a baited hook, I managed to catch a fish within ten minutes. I always liked sushi, so stream raw fish was great. As I was dropping the bones back into the river, I heard a group of people moving through the woods. I didn't recognize the language.

Trailing them back toward the compound was interesting. They stopped just short of the cleared area around the fence. I then heard the sound of weapons being checked.

_Interesting, if they route the occupants, maybe I could have a chance to slip in and gather paperwork or get pictures of the inside the buildings._ Slipping closer to the bay I removed the ghillie suit and checked my small camera. Swimming down to the second dock, I got in position underneath.

As the sun came up the attack started. First came a few mortar rounds and then they rushed the fence. I got a few good pictures of lab coated individuals running from the closest building, then the blue guy. He was almost naked. Two of the attackers rounded the building and threw him to the ground. As one held him down, the other dropped his pants, and acted like he was going to -- _Damn, the blue guy is a woman_.

Putting my camera in its pouch beside my pistol, I thought, _The hell with watching another woman get raped and then butchered by insurgents._ The first shot took the rapist in the head and the second guy got two in the chest as he reached for his rifle. She rolled over and ran toward me.

Grabbing her arm as she hit the shore I pulled her under the dock. The compound was going up in flames, as I started swimming back up the river. I could feel her hanging on the straps to by pack. Knocking her free and leaving her wasn't an option.

Fifty yards seemed to take forever. Pulling her to the brush where my ghillie suit was hidden, I grabbed the top and pulled it over her head and pulled the bottom half over my soaked camouflage fatigues.

Grabbing her hand I took off at a run to the woods bordering the river.

That evening we were half way to the jungle. I dug a hole under some brush between several trees, and built a small fire. She really looked blue now, cold and exhausted.

Stripping down I quickly hung my fatigues across branches to dry.

She pulled off the top half of the ghillie suit and handed it to me. I knew she was worried about what I had planned, and resigned to her fate. At about five foot tall she looked like a twelve year old child.

Pulling two rations from my pack I kneaded them to start them warming. Opening one I took a sniff, and then handed it to her. I could see the surprise on her face as she dipped her fingers into the bag and put the warm food into her mouth. We both made quick work of the meal.

I pulled a set of camouflage underwear from the pack and handed them to her. As she put them on, I dressed. Pulling the ghillie suit over her head, I adjusted the straps to make it fit better. From the bottom, I pulled the vegetation and handed it to her. As she pulled the trousers up I could see her realize they were way to big. I tied the ankle straps and then reached under the top to pull up the suspenders.

She grabbed the bottom of the top and lifted it. _Crap, she seems to know my next move before I make it._ Adjusting the suspenders over her shoulders and the cross straps was almost easy.

Kicking the dirt into the fire hole, I slung my pack on. Glancing around for any trash, I also looked for anyone following us. Motioning her to follow, I started west to the jungle. She never said a word, all week.

The retrieval point was easy to recognize. Four trees knocked down just inside the border of the jungle. The transmitter was right where it was supposed to be. Pressing the button twice, I felt the vibration of the capacitor being charged, a moment later it started getting warm so I dropped it in the hole I'd scooped out as it melted into a blob of metal and plastic. Now, all I had to do was wait till after dark.

The Osprey dropped in almost silently. I'd shown her how to fire my pistol, so I handed it to her along with the extra ammo. Turning I headed toward the HV-22. As I swung aboard I felt extra weight on my pack. Grabbing a strap I gave a thumbs up and the crew-chief slammed the hatch and we lifted off. As I swung around, I could feel her weight dragging my pack down. Reaching back I grabbed her and put her in a seat, and strapped her in. Then I grabbed the next seat.

The crew-chief simply looked at me for a few seconds. I heard him whisper into his microphone, "We have an extra passenger, notify Aztec." Reaching into an overhead compartment he pulled a set of handcuffs and handed them to me. "Cuff the passenger, we're classified."

Holding out my hand, I motioned her to hand me my pistol. As she pulled it out of the ghillie suit, the crew-chief simply cursed as he clawed for his sidearm. By time he had it in his hand, I had my pistol and was squeezing the cuff loops over her wrist. Reaching into the suit I retrieved my ammo clips.

The crew-chief then commented, "You allowed him to have your weapon and ammo?"

"He is a she, and yes I gave her my weapon and ammo. I thought she understood that she was to head home, but evidently she attached herself to my hip. Sometimes that's what happens when you save a persons life."

"OK, you're responsible for her." he stated.

After picking up another operative we headed east. Landing on a carrier in the dark we were escorted to a briefing room. She sat quietly as we were debriefed. Then the briefer asked me who my prisoner was.

Looking the Colonel straight in the eye I stated, "I could not watch this child get raped and butchered, so I extracted her during an attack on my target by insurgents. So far she hasn't indicated any knowledge of English, nor spoken a word. I'll be responsible for her security until we get back to base."

"Like hell you will, she will be debriefed and then confined." the Colonel stated. Calling for a language expert he glared at me until he arrived.

The interrogator flipped the hood of the ghillie suit back, took a look at her face, and tripped over his feet trying to back off. "It's blue."

"What the hell did you bring aboard?" yelled the Colonel.

I motioned her to stand up and removed the handcuffs. Pulling the top of the ghillie suit over her head, everyone could see that she was the size and shape of a child. "Could you stand by and watch a child be raped by insurgents? That's why I extracted her, she was a prisoner in the target compound."

The Colonel growled, "Sergeant, you went way outside your orders. Is she even human? Look at those eyes.

"Lieutenant, get some security in here to take her to the brig."

As the two gorilla size security men started dragging her out, she started a keen wail before they reached the door. The two security guards dropped her arms and grabbed their ears. I could see the Colonel with his hands over his ears with his mouth open as she ran back over and grab me around the waist.

Before I could get my hand up to her head the lights in the room started blowing out. As I placed my hand on her head she quieted. "Well Colonel, I think that she is afraid to be separated from me. That wail is the first sound she's made in ten days. If you insist that she be placed in the brig, I'll have to have the cell next to hers."

~ ~ ~

The Doctor

The security guards led us down several decks to the brig. They locked her in one cell and I walked into the next cell where she could see me. Turning to the guards I requested two meals be brought down since we hadn't eaten since the day before.

I watched the guard double check her door before bringing my meal over. He locked me in after setting the meal on the chair.

After eating, I slid my tray out the door opening and motioned her to do the same.

Several hours later I lay down and was quickly asleep.

In the morning I woke to hear the guard cursing. Glancing at him in front of her cell, I immediately saw that it was empty. Starting to get up, I realized that someone was in the bunk with me. It was her.

Stepping to the cell door I tried it. It was still locked. Looking at me, he realized that there was still a person in my bunk. "What's your name sergeant?"

"Jones. Why?"

"Unless you and your relief want to sit and watch her all night, I wouldn't mention this. Is her cell door still locked like mine?"

"Yes Sir. How in the hell do you figure she got over there?"

"I have no idea, I was asleep until you started making so much noise. Is breakfast ready?"

"I'll go get it." Turning he walked out.

I could hear her humming to herself as I turned and motioned her to go back to her cell. She rattled my cell door and it opened, then hers. She was seated on her bunk when Jones returned.

Looking at her he almost tripped over his feet. Stepping over to my cell door he slid the tray onto the shelf opening, then rattled my door.

Stepping over to her door, he set her tray on the shelf opening in the door and then jerked on the door to make sure it was locked. He was mumbling to himself as he left.

I got my tray and sat down on the deck by the bars to her cell. She followed suit and we were shoulder to shoulder with only air and bars separating us. Breakfast was nothing to brag about. The coffee was its usual paint peeling foul tasting liquid that could melt a hole in a steel plate. She took one taste and handed me her cup. I yelled for Jones and he was immediately at the door. "She can't drink the coffee, would you get her some water. Thanks."

Minutes later he returned with a canteen. I took it and tasted the water. Then I handed it to her. After taking a sip, she gulped it down and handed the empty back to me.

Jones commented, "Damn, she's thirsty. I'll get another."

After a week, I asked Jones if he would request that we be allowed on deck and in the gym.

Hours later the Colonel entered and pulled a chair in front of my cell. "We have a problem Sergeant Stephens. I've watched her open her cell door each night and enter your cell and crawl into your bunk. I even thought about putting a chain and padlock on her door, but I don't want to find out if she can undo that too. All I want from you is your word that you'll keep her separate from the crew."

"I can do that Sir, except for the mess."

"Good, I'm assigning you a cabin with two bunks. Try to keep her out of yours. Other than that, you can use the gym and take her on deck when no aircraft are scheduled for launch. Just don't let her start wailing again."

Weeks later we landed and I was given a car from the motor pool to drive back to base. She was fascinated by the vehicle, and speed we traveled.

Arriving at the gate, the gate guard simply stated, "You can't bring her on base without identification unless she is a prisoner."

"Call Captain Issac over at the 4th. I believe he can authorize her."

"Sergeant, Captain Issac said she'd have to be cuffed. Sorry, but that's what he said."

"OK, give me a set." Taking her wrist I put them on her. Her face fell, so I patted her hands. I then realized that the seatbelt across her chest was between her arms.

Arriving at the 4th, Captain Issac was waiting for me in the parking lot. Opening her door, he immediately realized that she couldn't get out without uncuffing her or cutting the seatbelt. "Where's the key?"

I replied, "The gate guard didn't give me one." I then got her attention and shook my wrist.

With a smile she shook one wrist and the handcuff fell open.

I got out, popped the trunk, got my gear and walked around to her door. Motioning her to get out, I put her handcuff back on. "Captain, I need to get her an ID so we don't have to play the handcuff game."

"Throw your gear in the day room and we'll go over to personnel. By the way, what's her name and age?"

I replied, "I have no idea, I rescued her from the target compound when it was attacked, and a couple of the attackers decided to rape her."

Rubbing his chin, he commented, "That's what the Colonel from intelligence said. After personnel we'll take her over to medical for a full physical."

He suggested that we call her Lavender Stephens.

At medical they wanted to separate us for her physical. As I stepped out of the examination room she started keening again. The female doctor quickly motioned me back into the room. "I guess she has some separation problems. I'll schedule her for a psychiatric exam also."

"That may not work to well doctor, she hasn't said a word since I rescued her."

"She's not your child sergeant?"

"No ma'am, I rescued her from being raped while on my last mission."

"Well sergeant, she seems to trust you so tell her to remove her clothing and get up on the table."

With hand motions I got the idea across. With no indication of embarrassment she stripped and jumped on the metal table, screeched and jumped off. "Doc, have you been keeping the tables in the freezer again?"

With a laugh she grabbed a couple of blankets and put one on the table, the patted the table. Lavender touched the blanket, then hopped up on the table again.

Doctor Pearman estimated her age closer to eighteen. The lavender coloration of her skin was a puzzle. She finally put it down to a genetic condition. Her larynx was not developed. Her blood test came back O negative with no parasites. "You said she was living in the jungle, she's amazingly healthy. Now it's your turn. Strip."

As I undressed, I noticed the doctor was watching Lavender. Looking at Lavender, I realized she was looking at me like she was trying to memorize every inch of my skin. "Doc, I don't think she's ever seen a male body. What do you think?"

"Stephens, I think you're right. Get quarters on post, I'll expedite the request for medical reasons. As soon as you move in, let me know the address."

Other than a few scrapes, I was good to go.

Outside the Captain drove us to housing. I think he was planning to have to go up the chain of command to get me quarters, but when we walked in the Lieutenant slapped the paperwork down for a two bedroom. "Sign here sergeant. Here are the keys. Furniture will be delivered this afternoon."

Outside the Captain stuttered, "Damn, I've never seen housing move that fast. Who do you know?"

"Captain, the Doctor said she'd expedite me getting quarters for medical reasons. Blame her."

"Where is your car? I'll give you until retreat to clear out of your room."

"Yes Sir."

That evening the Doctor came over and brought pizza. After dinner we sat around and she gave me the third degree. She wanted to know step by step what experiences Lavender had after I rescued her.

Then she pulled a set of handcuffs and snapped them on my wrist. Lavender started to wail, but I stopped her by shaking my wrist in front of her face.

With a sob Lavender reached up and jiggled the handcuffs and they fell open.

The Doctor looked at me and asked, "Did you feel anything, a tingle or warmth?"

"No, nothing. She just shook them open."

The Doctor then stated, "I don't think this child is pure human. Have her come into the bedroom with me. I want to closely examine her again off the record."

I motioned Lavender to go with her. She got to the door and refused to go any further.

"Stephens, come in here. She still won't let you out of her sight. This just makes it a lot more difficult."

"How so Doc."

"You'll see. Strip and tell her to strip."

She prodded and poked me and then Lavender in the same places. After awhile Lavender reached over to her and tugged at her clothes. The Doc looked at me and growled, "Don't get any ideas, it looks like she wants to see a female body too, for comparison."

Naked as a j-bird she put Lavenders hand on her throat and started humming. Then she started talking and pointing out parts of her body, and saying their name. Then she started on me. I'd never been use as a guinea pig before in such a detailed way. Then she started on Lavender.

Lavender was fascinated comparing sounds and the vibrations in the doctors throat as she named each body part. Pulling a medical book from her bag she started pointing out the parts and when she got to the larynx she pointed at the diagram of an immature larynx and pointed at Lavender's throat, a mature larynx and pointed at her throat and then mine. Lavender put her hand on my throat and then I said a few words. Then she put her hand on the Doc's throat and she repeated what I said. Lavender walked over to the bed, sat down, and put her hand on her own throat and started making unintelligible sounds.

The Doctor said, "I think she gets the point. She needs a larynx to talk." Getting dressed, she commented, "I'll be back over to check her in a week or two. If she starts growing breast, call me immediately."

~ ~ ~

The smell test.

It took weeks before Lavender would let me out of her sight. At first it was a few seconds, then minutes, then an hour or more. As she became more secure in the area, she also practiced and tried to imitate my words. One day she surprised me by saying, "Doctor." I realized that she'd been listening to everything and trying. I hadn't done anything beyond naming items around the house.

I immediately made the call and Doc said she'd bring pizza. Doc motioned for Lavender to follow her into the bedroom for an examination.

After half an hour I got curious and called in. "Doc, what's going on in there?"

"Come on in, but don't act surprised."

As I entered the room my eyes were drawn to Lavender. She had more of a waistline and budding breast.

Doc stood there looking at me with her hands on her bare hips. "Looks like she is beginning to mature. You'll have a full grown woman on your hands soon, and have to explain the facts of life to her."

Taking a step back I exclaimed, "Oh shit, I don't know any of that female stuff."

Doc walked over to me and said, "I need a husband, and you'll do. I've let my career get in the way, for far to long."

"But, But, My assignments are dangerous!"

"Call me Linda. How long do you think the Captain can keep you off the roster? Sooner or later you'll have to go and leave this child alone, what then."

"I was planning on getting out in three months."

"Stephens, what is your first name?"

"Jacob."

"I'll change my last name from Pearman to Stephens. You'll also have a few unnamed benefits plus someone to look after Lavender and keep her out of trouble.

"We are not in the same chain of command, so fraternization isn't an issue.

"Talk to your Captain in the morning. I'll bet he gives you his blessing just to get you back on the roster, and reenlisting."

We were married a week later, and didn't take a honeymoon. Lavender got so she could be away from me as long as Linda was nearby.

Then I was back on the roster. My first assignment was to reconnoiter the area where I found Lavender and see if I could locate any more of her people. When I told Linda and Lavender, Lavender bit me on the arm hard enough to draw blood, and then licked it until the bite disappeared. Linda was shocked, and then realized that Lavender had marked me. "Jacob, I think she just marked you as hers in the event you locate any of her people. I think I'd better do the same, although my bite won't heal as fast."

To her surprise Lavender indicated that she should lick her bite too. It began to scab over, then Lavender licked it and it healed in a matter of minutes.

"Should I bite both of you and draw blood."

Linda exclaimed, "Don't you dare."

Lavender just extended her arm.

Linda undid her blouse and whispered, "You know where I like to be bit."

Drawing blood, I licked until I was slobbering. It didn't stop bleeding until Lavender stepped over and gave her a lick.

Then she held out her arm to me. I chomped down and drew blood. After a few licks she stopped bleeding.

Looking at them I stated, "That was painful for me too. I didn't want to hurt either of you. I hope I never have to do that again."

Lavender started laughing and gave both of us a big hug.

I left the next morning for my three month mission.

With two weeks to make it back to the coast, I heard a wail. I knew I looked worse that a hermit, and smelled so bad that the mosquitoes left me alone, so I turned toward the sound. Notching an arrow I crept up on the location where I though I'd heard the wail. There were three scroungy looking individuals standing over a man with a bloody head, and a woman. The first thing I noticed was their pale lavender coloration.

They were so busy arguing who would be first that I had arrows in two of them before they noticed. The woman came up off the ground with a rock in her hand and slammed it into the third guys head. He was still going down when my third arrow pierced his back. I was notching another arrow as I stepped into the clearing and she saw me. Drawing back her arm to throw the rock, she suddenly realized that I was the one that killed her tormentors. I could see her nose wrinkle with distaste as I moved upwind, then her eyes got big. She dropped the stone and rushed over grabbing me. The little wail she was uttering didn't cover the fact that she was sniffing me like a dog.

After a minute she walked back over to the man on the ground and motioned me to help her. I retrieved my arrows and then helped her carry his body back into the mountains.

Two days later we entered a cave and continued down into a cavern. There was a sight for amazed eyes. Two more lavender girls. They huddled against a wall until the woman wailed a few notes and then they rushed over and sniffed me. I could tell that I passed some kind of smell test, because their behavior changed.

After burying his body they packed, and motioned for me to lead the way.

I had to set a blistering pace to make it to the rendezvous location on the coast. We made it with no time to spare. They were uncovering the boat as we arrived.

The sailors started to say something when I interrupted, "They are part of my mission. We all go."

In Hawaii, I made a call as we were transferring to a destroyer for a high speed run to the states.

Arriving in port, the first question Captain Issac asked was, "Did you find any technology to go with the women."

My answer was no, but I think that Lavender can find out more.

He was puzzled for a moment and then said, "Lets go." Then he handed me his cell phone.

Sitting in the back of the truck, I called Linda. "I'm back and will be home in a few hours. I evidently passed a smell test because I have three more lavender women. Get Lavender over to the medical center. I'll tell the Captain that's where we need to stop first."

The truck backed up to the hospital dock and we were ushered up to the third floor. Linda met us at the nurses station. After giving me a kiss and a sniff she turned on the woman and sniffed her.

The woman took one sniff and threw her arms wide. She almost knocked Linda over giving her a hug. Then she backed off and took a good look at Linda and started sobbing.

Without raising her voice Linda said, "Lavender, get out here. Is this your mother?"

Lavender let out a wail that blew several lights as she launched herself at the woman and two girls.

All the Captain did was tap his foot waiting for the family reunion to calm down.

I looked at him and stated, "I hope the woman knows more about her heritage that Lavender does. If she knows anything, Lavender will get it out of her, and then you'll have my report. I didn't find them until I was on my way back to the pickup point."

The next day I was debriefed.

A week later I turned in my after action report. The next morning the Colonel was sitting in the Captains office. "Well, what have you found out from the older woman."

"Not much," I replied, "the man was the pilot. There were twenty couples aboard plus the crew and their wives. Lavender doesn't have that large of a vocabulary yet, but from what I gather, there is a war going on out there. They were fleeing their planet. The ship got hit and knocked off course. They crashed in the mountains after months of uncontrolled flight. They managed to bury the ship before everyone got sick, only six survived. One man died from an accident and the other was killed by the three humans I killed to rescue her. They were just surviving with no hope of rescue. Their language is what you and I would call wailing. The tones are the words, like in a song."

The Colonel stated, "I need results and fast. Do you think that the woman can find where they buried the ship? There are people that would rather dissect them, than wait to find out about their technology."

"I'll do my best as fast as I can."

"Well sergeant, I'm putting together a team of technology experts. They are bitching and raising a big stink about the training I'm putting them through. They don't know it yet, but they'll be landing in the jungle and working there until we get every ounce of information from that spacecraft. You'll be in charge of the ground operation. Here are your promotion orders, Lieutenant."

~ ~

Back-trail ambush.

Two days later Lavender told me that the woman thought she knew where the ship was buried. Bringing out my laptop, I brought up aerial maps of the target area. The woman looked over our shoulder and wailed. Lavender translated, "I only saw the ship on the ground and all those trees."

I asked, "From the cave, which direction?"

Her answer was, "We traveled eight days toward the rising sun. The pilot was hoping to get away from the ship so anyone that followed could not find us. All the passenger ships have marking radios."

I then asked, "Did the men take any weapons from the ship?"

She answered, "Yes they had guns, but they quit working after many days. I brought my husbands. They didn't know I had it."

"Do you have it here?"

With tears in her eyes she wailed for a minute, then left the room. Lavender translated, "She says it is the only thing of her husbands that she still has. She will give it to you if you will protect me."

"Why just you Lavender?"

"She is my mother, the other girls are from other mothers."

The woman walked back into the room, putting her arm around Lavender she started wailing softly. With a shocked look Lavender started translating. "Mother says that this weapon causes things to burn. It doesn't work anymore. Father was an army man, and he got the people together and took the ship. The leaders gave technology to the barbarians and they turned it against us. The main ship crashed on the planet that orbits this one. Only fifty people lived and they took a small ship down to this planet. Mother says that I am thirty orbits of age and she is eighty. The men were going to take us girls to make children. Now there is no hope for our future."

"Linda, come in here please.

"Did you run a DNA compatibility match on Lavender?"

"No dear, but it will be easy to arrange. Why?"

"I think that these girls are the last of their race. If they are compatible, then at least the hybrids can carry on their race."

"That's something I didn't think of. Why is it important?"

"The Colonel told me that there is a group that would rather dissect them, than wait to try and find any technology they brought to Earth."

With venom in her voice she spit out, "That's cold!"

Then I quietly stated, "We need some contacts. The night I leave, you and the girls need to disappear, someplace they can't find you. Otherwise they'll end up like the supposed gray aliens the conspiracy wacko's claim the government has at Area 51. I don't want them there."

My report gave the information, and hinted that another ship had crashed in the Rocky Mountains. He had already seen that they recognized each other by smell, so I suggested that I go because I smelled familiar to them. The chance of me finding them was higher than another team.

The Colonel bit like a hungry fish. He suggested that I take a couple of weeks to follow the lead the woman hinted at.

I pulled my Captain aside and asked him to watch over the women while I was gone.

The next morning I talked to the Colonel again and asked him to watch over the girls and woman because if anything happened to any of them, the woman might balk at leading us to the ship in Africa. He agreed.

That evening I talked to Lavender and had her tell her mother that I was going to try to find a safe place for them. She was to answer no questions until I got back.

Landing in Montana, I started hitting the bars looking for the type individuals that were on their own. Five bars later I gave up for the night. Back in my motel room, someone knocked on the door. The guy that forced his way in at gunpoint simply asked, who I was looking for.

I told him that I needed a safe place for five women where the government could not find them.

He told me, "Go to hell."

I replied, "If I don't find them a safe place, that's where they'll end up, after they get done with them at Area 51."

"Don't get drunk or draw attention to yourself tomorrow evening. There will be a guy that will tell you to bite his gray thing. He'll be your contact."

"Thanks." I replied.

"Don't thank me yet, if you ain't for real, he'll kill you."

His partner took my wallet and dumped me in the mountains with the comment, "We have friends that will check you out. Stay around this area. We'll either be back to pick you up or kill you. Here is a knife. Mind the bears."

Four days later I heard a jeep. Then dogs. Smearing the bear glans on my boots, I circled around to the higher ground overlooking the camp I'd made. Two guys that looked more at home behind a desk, than in the woods, walked into my camp. Their shiny rifles looked out of place. The dogs were going wild tracking around the camp. One of the guys looked inside my lean-to, and backpedaled so fast he dropped his rifle.

There's a bear in there he yelled as he ran back toward the road. His partner was only a few steps behind him.

Slipping into camp I snatched the rifle, and got back up the hill. I had a new 30-30 with five rounds. The scope was worth more that the rifle. _Greenhorns!_ That evening I built another camp on the other side of the fire road in a thorn thicket. Using the front paws I scratched up several trees from four to seven feet off the ground. I used the bears rear feet to leave plenty of tracks to discourage anyone else.

Two days later the contact slipped into my original camp. Flipping my lean-to over he laughed when he saw the bears head. I heard his comment, "Well that part may be true." He yelled, "Stephens, your story checked out. Get your ass down here."

Cupping my hand away from him, I simply said. "Find me."

Looking over where my voice appeared to come from he stated, "I talked to Linda, she's worried. And those purple girls are not from anywhere I've heard about."

While he was talking I slipped around behind him.

When I slammed the bolt home he jumped. "Damn, where'd you get that toy."

"Keep talking." I said.

"She's worried because there are a lot of strangers in suits wandering around that little base you're on. Arrangements are made to get her off and out of the county with only an hours notice."

"Where?"

"You won't find out until you get back. For some reason she insisted on that."

"Good, at least you really talked to her. Now I must have your word that you'll safeguard them."

"He pulled his knife and cut his palm. I'll shake on it."

Nicking my palm I shook his hand and stated, "Our word is our bond. Our blood is forfeit if we lie."

Then he asked, "Are you going to keep that toy?"

Removing the scope, I tossed it over my shoulder against a tree.

Two days later I reported in.

The Colonel wanted to see me immediately. He was disappointed when he heard I'd come up dry. He looked almost amused as I stated the only aliens I could find were the little green men that everyone claimed to have heard about.

He then informed me to get a good nights sleep, the operation would load out in the morning.

That evening Linda made a call. Hours later she called in and told her supervisor she was coming down with something and running a fever. He told her to take the next day off and call that evening.

Several hours later four women slipped in the back door. One told Linda where the van was waiting. She and the girls slipped out without a sound.

Then the older woman said, "Well cowboy, it's us tonight and tomorrow."

The lavender woman stepped up behind me and croaked, "They gone, safe?" I answered with an up and down movement of my head.

The next morning I took the lavender woman and we reported in. Getting her gear for the trip took an hour. My gear was loaded, and we took off to Hawaii. On the flight the crew-chief handed me a dress that could put out anyone's eyes. "Have her put this on before she gets off the plane." It was shapeless and with her wide brim hat, only her chin and boots showed.

We moved directly to the dock and boarded a ship. Several days later we met up with a sub. It dumped us and the rest of the technical team at the mouth of the river where my first operation was.

Headed up the river a young staff sergeant started giving me some shit. Grabbing him by the throat, I commented, "I was a sergeant longer than you've been in. These bars are to make the civilians think I'm important. I'm still an old grisly bear, so step light."

He answered, "Yes Sergeant."

That made me feel better. Finding the cavern was no problem. We found one rusted weapon in the back. The tech team simply looked it over and tossed it. Taking a reading in the morning, I shot a back azimuth. Marking my map, I drew a wedge. The contour map showed the easiest path.

The lavender woman stayed by my side and pointed up some hills and down other paths to creeks. I knew she was trying to remember their path. When we hit the bottom of the first mountain. I let the team rest while we hiked up a little. She turned facing the way we came and moved to the left then right. Finally she motioned for us to go around the north side.

Whistling I indicated the direction for the team to move. We tracked the side of the mountain and she turned and stared back several times. She started up at an angle and I followed. She found a cave and in the back uncovered a grave. Pointing at the bones, she kissed her lips and turned away. We followed a game trail on around.

As we came off the mountain we heard shots. Slipping ahead I spotted the ambush the tech team had walked into. There were only four insurgents. I motioned her down and took a good position. I got two before they realized they were receiving fire from behind. One got up to run and someone nailed him. The last one raised his hands as I pulled the trigger. Making our way down I whistled for the tech team to come up. They buried all seven bodies off the trail. Looking over the remnants of the team I stated, Who was on point? They should have spotted the ambush and avoided it. This ain't a walk in the park. If you screw up, you can get dead like them. Now cross load their gear and be ready to move in fifteen.

My young staff sergeant looked a little green around the gills.

I asked him if this was his first ambush. When he nodded, I said, learn from it or die, it is that simple.

They all looked shocked when I handed lavender woman an extra rifle and showed her how to aim and fire.

On the third day she looked around and headed off the trail. A little way up the mountain she walked into a hidden cave. In the back was a wall of loose dirt. She motioned for us to dig.

I told the sergeant to get his team to work, and probably the easiest area to break through would be at the top.

~ ~

Setting Traps.

Two days of digging allowed us to break into another chamber. Off to the right was a large tunnel that was blocked fifty feet up. When I returned to the main chamber, lavender woman was standing in the back looking at another pile of dirt.

Stepping to her side I motioned back and forth and then made the motion of digging. She walked to the left end of the pile and pointed there.

All I heard from the sergeant's team were groans, but they started digging.

While she cooked our rations, I slipped back outside and rigged two dead drops. Walking around the mountain I located where some brush and some younger trees were growing. Looking closely I could tell that the soil was different from the surrounding soil. Its consistency was more like what you'd find in a river bottom. Clearing my tracks I returned to the cave.

In the morning they hit metal. Two hours later they found the door. It had to be forced open. The inner door to the airlock was dead. It had to be forced also. The smell in the ship chased the first three back out. From where I stood, I could smell the decay inside.

The only way I could think of to move the air inside out was to take hot coals inside and let it heat the air. The air inside should rise out the top of the airlock and draw cool air inside, provided it didn't explode.

After eating I got the technical team together and asked them if they had any ideas. Several wanted to go back to the coast and get fans and hose to move the air.

Looking at them, I explained that if we left the ship intact, someone would follow our trail to it. Think, what resources do we have on hand and how can we use them. After letting them stew in their own overeducated juices for awhile, I asked them if they thought the air inside the ship was flammable. When the agreed that it shouldn't be I suggested a pan of hot coals to heat the air and create a draft.

Several laughed, but one said I was brilliant. Three days later we could walk around close to the entrance without gagging. I told them to continue working their way into the ship, I was going hunting. I took lavender woman with me, and outside I made a primitive bow. I used reeds from the creek for arrows. As I started chipping some rocks for arrowhead she started laughing and walked back into the cave. Shortly she came out with a staff. Grunting she bent it and strung a wire creating a bow.

I managed to knock a bird out of a tree, and quickly made flights for the rest of the reed arrows. Trimming short straight branches, I hollowed out the end of the reeds and inserted the fire hardened sticks into the hollow reeds.

Aiming for another bird, I hit a monkey. As he fell, the rest of the group started screaming and jumping from tree to tree. Grabbing the monkey she headed back to the cave. I followed.

Just inside the entrance she stopped and cupped her hand to her ear and pointed around the valley. Pulling my scope I started looking and soon spotted the smoke from a fire. Laying on the dirt for over an hour, I finally got a decent estimate, six men with guns.

That afternoon another came in waiving a fatigue shirt. The only conclusion I could come to, was that they were following our trail.

Back in the cavern, I pulled the sergeant aside and told him about the probable enemy tracking us. Outside I showed him the two dead-falls I'd constructed, and pointed out several possible ambush locations. _I think he simply wanted to hide and hope they went away._ I sent him back inside to get his team ready.

Down the mountain I set up a few more traps. Half of them were simple snares used for hunting animals, only I upgraded the size to handle humans. As they settled in for the night, I slipped close to their camp and dug a shallow pit and put sharpened bamboo stakes in the bottom. Then I urinated on them to make them more infectious. I knew that if they were wearing good boots, the pit would simply be an irritant, but for sandals or barefoot, they would wound. Taking several large leaves, I tacked them down in the trail with bamboo slivers and sprinkled dirt over them. Satisfied, I retrieved my first attempt at a bow and rigged it at a bend in the trail. The dead vine laying in the path went to a trigger in a bush that aimed down the trail.

Where the trail branched going up the mountain and down toward the stream, I made another spring trap using a flexible branch. The trip vine was ten feet down the trail to the stream. The moon started to peak through the clouds, so I headed back up the mountain, staying off the trails. Almost back to the cave, I heard a scream and then voices yelling back and forth.

Inside the cave the lavender woman handed me a rifle shaped weapon. In the dirt she drew a circle with lines pointed out from it and then pointed at the right side of the weapon where there was a shiny section of the stock. Guessing it was a solar charging panel of some sort, I took it up the mountain and propped it between two boulders with the stock pointing east.

Back in the cave she was smiling and pointed down the valley where we could see the enemy. They'd built up their fire. Through the scope I could see one limping. Handing her the scope, I showed her how to look through it. After a moment, a half wail and half chuckle escaped her lips.

The next morning the sergeant had everyone checking their weapons. I said, "I'll take two men out at a time to show them where the traps are. The rest can get back to work."

I showed them a very simple spring trap. We cut a sapling and tied it between two trees using vines. Bending it back to check its swing, we started running another thin vine around two trees at ground level back to a simple release trigger. On the sapling I showed them how to bore several holes and insert sharpened sticks. Bending back the sapling we hooked the trigger up. Then carefully, outside its swing area, I had them lift a patch of leaves. Then we scooped out a hole about two feet across and two feet deep. The dirt we scattered down toward the stream. Gathering bamboo and dead sticks we sharpened them and drove them into the bottom of the hole. Carefully laying slivers of bamboo over the hole I had them replace the patch of leaves. Quietly I commented, "Anyone want to wander over there to take a piss?"

Both shook their heads sideways. We carefully made our way back down to the stream, traveled west over a hundred yards, and then back up the west side of the mountain to the cave, avoiding the trails. Inside the cave entrance, we stopped. I pulled my scope, and pointed out interesting points in the valley and where there were traps.

~ ~

Digging out.

A week later the of the insurgents left. I tracked them north for three days until they ran into another group. They were so friendly that they shot at each other. The two survivors from the other group stripped all the bodies and left. That night I slipped into their camp and put them out of their misery. I took all their papers and maps and left them for the local wildlife.

Getting back to the cavern only took half the time. As I slipped in I could hear the scientist attempting to convince the sergeant to allow them to return to the coast for more equipment. I slipped in and took a seat on the other side of the fire. She was the only one that noticed me. She got a plate of food and carried it around to me. Everyone was shocked when they saw me.

After a couple of bites, I asked, "Have you got the ship completely explored yet?"

One of the scientist replied, "We've got the environmental system figured out."

"Good, then the next thing is to get the propulsion system figured out. We either need to take enough data back so we can build another, or bring the whole ship."

"That's impossible Lieutenant, it's buried in here."

"That's not problem Mr scientist. You're supposed to be smarter than I am, right? We simply fly it out the same way they originally flew it in."

"We don't have a pilot Lieutenant."

"Ah, but you're wrong. We have a pilot. It was operational when it was flown in here. You boys get it checked out and the tunnel cleared. We'll fly it home, or you can disassemble all the technology and tote it back to the coast."

"That's impossible."

"Then I suggest you get back inside and check out every piece of equipment and make sure you know everything works."

Two months later, the lavender woman shut the airlocks and activated the ship. It lifted a few feet, and dirt poured off it like water. She swung it around until it pointed at the tunnel.

"OK guys, she says the ship will fly. Get the tunnel cleared and we'll make it home for Christmas."

While they started digging out the tunnel, I sat in the cockpit and had the lavender woman show me the controls. One batch she didn't touch. When I reached for one of the controls her eyes got big, and I saw the fear on her face. I quickly realized that they must be weapons, or something just as dangerous.

Making a gun sign I pointed again and she nodded. After a few noises like bangs and hisses, I realized that the panel must control some kind of energy weapon. Firing it in the cavern could bring the roof down, or the energy would reflect back and destroy the ship.

Walking up the tunnel I found that the digging crew had skipped a wall built of boulders that partiality blocked the tunnel. Yelling at the sergeant I told him to get his crew back down to the boulders and move them.

His reply was, "They are to big to move."

My answer was, "If they are to big to move, how do we get the ship around them? How did they get put in place? There were only three adults and three young children when the ship was put here. "

"But Lieutenant ..."

"Don't try to bullshit me, you've got a dozen strong men. Surely some of them know how to make and use a lever. This obstacle needs to be removed before we break the surface."

Several days later as I was checking the valley from the original entrance, I spotted several men sneaking into the valley. One tripped a booby trap. Within an hour a platoon size unit moved in and set up a camp. I could tell by their actions they weren't insurgents. Someone had sent professionals to look for us.

# # #

On The Border

"Sir, Intel is still analyzing the chatter."

"Good, but I need the data now."

"Here is one report. The summary reads that a device is to be smuggled across the border. It's destination is LA. However the summary also references Houston and Dallas."

"What, that would indicate more than one device. Does the report state what kind of device?"

"No Sir, It is only referred to as 'The Wrath'."

"Get the President on the phone. If there is any resistance, just tell them 'Broken Arrow'."

"But Sir, we aren't missing any nukes."

"Major, I'm making a command judgment, someone is missing one."

"Mr President, this is General Smith."

"General, why are you calling me at --- three in the morning?"

"Mr President, one of my jobs is to monitor foreign intelligence communications. I have on my desk a preliminary report that the analysis just finished with. It indicates an active attempt to smuggle something that is referred to as 'The Wrath' across the southern border. Its indicated destination is LA."

"So, what kind of device is it?"

"That is the problem Sir. The name is one that was mentioned last year by an informant in Afghanistan. The report of his death included his last statement about a big bomb and the name The Wrath."

"Sorry you lost another of your men General."

"Hell Mr President, we loose locals monthly. The Wrath was entered in the trip phrase computer in a dozen languages. Tonight the computer caught it and several others. The problem is some of the encryption they're using rivals our own. Only one of the intercepts has been decrypted."

"What do you want me to do General?"

"Mr President, I need your authorization to divert drone flights along the southern border and have them equipped with radiation detectors and air to ground ordnance."

"Uh, General don't you think that is a little extreme?"

"No Sir, if a nuclear device is detected, I want to destroy it before it gets to any populated area."

"No, I won't authorize that. I will authorize notification of the border patrol, and ten drones equipped with radiation detectors along the California border. When you get better information call me back. Good night."

"Good night Mr President."

"Major, get the southern border headquarters on the phone. Then I want you to set up a conference call with Joint Chiefs."

Two nights later. Captain, drone 13 is registering a missile lock. I picked up the heat sources of three vehicles. After the missile lock I lost all contact with the drone."

"Location!"

"22.582 by 116556, Sir."

"Get two operators to divert their drones to that area and warn them about the missile lock."

"Sergeant, who do we have in the area?"

"Only a guard unit Sir."

"Get them on the horn now."

"Lt Johnson, 833 Transportation Company."

"Lieutenant, how many men do you have and what equipment?"

"Who is this?"

"Sorry Lt, this is Captain Strong, 3rd drone detachment, now how many men do you have and what equipment?"

"Sir, myself, two sergeants, and ten drivers. Five hummers and a five ton."

"Lieutenant, are your men armed and do they have ammo?"

"No Sir, just the sergeants and I have our issued weapons. We're just out here to be seen, and raise dust for the border patrol."

"Lt, if your location on my map is correct, fourteen miles south of you are three vehicles. They are armed, and shot down one of my drones with a surface to air missile. Break north immediately. I'll contact someone to intercept you. Keep your radio's on and report anyone that you see, but avoid contact."

"Yes Sir."

"Sergeant, sent a verbal report to the SDO."

"Already done Sir and the Colonel is on his way. He'll be here in fifteen."

"Call HQ and tell them that they need to scramble a reaction force."

"I requested that when I talked to the SDO and he said we needed pictures before he'd alert them."

"What a shit-head. When are other drones due in that area?"

"Jones will have his there in less than five, the other one is ten behind it."

"OK, tell Specialist Jones to go high. At first contact take it to the deck and stream all pictures and other data directly here. Set up the recorders and relays to company HQ, post HQ, and a link to the pentagon. And tell Jones that I don't want to loose that drone, but he'd better get some good pictures first."

"Colonel, sorry to have to disturb you but someone crossing the border shot down one of our drones thirty five minutes ago using a SAM. The drones thermal detectors identified three vehicles before registering a missile lock. Then all contact was lost."

"Colonel, Jones has them. He's on the deck, but can't shake the missile lock."

"Sergeant, tell Jones to overfly the three vehicles. I want to see their faces."

"Sir, approaching the vehicles from the north now. Sir the missile must have caught up, signal lost."

"Sir, FLASH report from detachment 2. The drone they diverted back is reporting high radiation levels. Camera are inoperative after the beginnings of a flash."

"Captain, hand me that phone."

"SDO, set up a conference call with all higher HQ."

"Colonel Anderson, this is lieutenant Franks at post HQ. You are not on a secure line."

"Lt Franks, do you have your recorder on?"

"It is now sir."

"Lt Franks, this is Colonel Anderson. I am located at 3rd Drone Detachment outpost. We have a radiological event in the form of an explosion on the southern border. We have lost two drones after they detected missile locks. We have another drone reporting high levels of radiation. I am ordering you to transmit this recording in the clear to all higher headquarters, NORAD, and the Pentagon." Pulling a card from his wallet he then said, "I authenticate this message, J13654891266. Lt Franks, get this message transmitted now."

Pulling his cell phone he picked up the land-line and started punching in numbers. "Hi James, this is Brad. About five ago you should have detected a nuke exploding along the California southern border."

"We did."

"I'm at the 3rd Drone Detachment site. We lost two drones after they detected missile locks. I have a third up, but blind. I'll have the personnel here waiting for your data call to transmit what they recorded. Do you need my number?"

" No Brad, say HI to your wife Lydia for me."

"James, you are to old for my niece. Anyway she's got a boyfriend."

"Brad, first report mushroom topped out at about 7000 and dirty. Any idea who's broke arrow."

"Unknown, my second drone was on the deck taking pictures when the missile caught up to it."

"My boys are processing the pictures now. Going to have to hang up now, Jack is calling. Out."

*

"Mr Brown. Sorry to disturb you, but El Paso just called."

"Well, spit it out."

"They have two units missing. One near Amistad Reservoir and one near Big Bend."

"Considering the alert I just got from California, this is what I need you to do. Put out an alert to all units in the field that there is probably an armed force on our side of the border. They are to get with their military liaison immediately and notify them. Heavy weapons are authorized for self-defense. Notify band two and three to do a hundred percent stop and identify with a search for bombs. All vehicles are to be reported to their headquarters prior to approaching. Call Austin and tell them we need support. Then call the military liaison and request a fly over from the last know locations of those two units. Got that?"

"Yes Mr Brown."

# # #

The Sleepers

* * *

Eric

Eric knew the family curse would catch up with him. His mother had told him to marry young and have plenty of children, and tell his wife so she could hide him when he slept. By time he'd seen twenty-five winters, he had five girls. That winter he fell asleep for twenty days. When he didn't show up for the second hunt, the chief came looking for him with the Druid priest. The priest had his head cut off, and his body sacrificed at the next full moon to stop the curse.

Eric's wife told each of her daughters about the curse and told them that they'd have to protect any boy child they had. The Romans invaded and left. The Saxons ruled the land for generations before another boy child was born to the family. By then there were over fifty daughters married through out the land. Two were so beautiful that they'd been assigned to the King's court, and a third married to the heir.

Elaina and the prince had three girls when he told her he would have to put her away because she couldn't have a son. She told him about the family curse, and asked him if he really wanted a son. Three son's later she died in childbirth.

When his eldest son fell asleep for a month in the winter, he made arrangements so the royal tomb could be opened from the inside. The second son disappeared on a quest, and his body was never returned. His youngest died in France and was buried there with his wife. He never found out if his youngest son had children.

Two daughters married farmers and emigrated to the new world. Saul's father was overjoyed when his wife finally gave him a son. That was until his wife told him the family curse. As a farmer and trapper, he taught his son everything he'd learned, and insured that Saul built a safe place in the Canadian wilderness to live. Saul's wife and daughters dragged his body home from one of his trapping runs. Saul was forty when he fell asleep and was killed by a bear. His oldest daughter killed the bear and took him home for the last time. Her great grand-daughter married a soldier after the Great War and had several daughters, and more grand-daughters.

The wilderness was no longer pure. Soldiers from the second world war started moving in and married the daughters.

Donna finally broke with the wilderness and moved south. In Wisconsin she met and fell in love with a young man. He was a professor at the university. Both son's, Thomas and Franklin, joined the air-force and became pilots. Both had determined to live their lives to the fullest when they found out about the family curse. Thomas fell asleep on his way back from a tour in tropical Africa. The air-force doctors concluded it was a variation of sleeping sickness from a tsetse fly bite. He was never allowed to fly again, so he continued his education and became a medical researcher.

Five years later his younger brother Franklin fell asleep on a flight back from Alaska. A month later the doctors declared that he had been in a coma, and they couldn't determine the reason. Thomas then remembered the family curse that their mother had told them. Thomas took a sabbatical from his fathers university, and Franklin was medically discharged from the air-force.

~ ~ ~

Unknown Territory

Two weeks travel east of Yellowknife they found the first indications of habitation. The Inuit they met told them about a village of women. A few days later they were met by three at gunpoint. After being disarmed, they were escorted blindfolded to a village.

The women of the village were happy to see two men brought in, but quickly lost their joy when they found out who their mother was.

The council was not happy when they found out what Thomas wanted to do. They'd had local doctors check them out before, and were not pleased when Thomas described the test he wanted to preform, and the samples he wanted to take south with him.

A few weeks later they were blindfolded and moved to a trading post a weeks travel from the village. Franklin met a Scandinavian woman that had moved into the area a few years before. The village women ran the trading post, and had traced the Scandinavian woman's family back a dozen generations. Helga was not related, so they gave Franklin permission to court her. The day Franklin asked her to marry him, she told him she could not because the men in her family were cursed. He finally persisted, and got her to agree to care for him if he fell asleep over the winter. She agreed.

Thomas packed his medical samples a week after Franklin and Helga were married. Several beautiful women escorted him south all the way to the university. His aged mother was overjoyed to meet some of her cousins. One stayed and became his research assistant.

A few years later a student transferred in from Europe. Her major was genetics. A major scandal erupted when Thomas and Hedvig were married about eighteen months after she arrived. When she became with child, she told him that she was Helga's second cousin, and her family carried the curse. She then admitted that Helga had sent for her to make Thomas' life easier. She had two sisters, and they had fought to see who would come.

Together they led the pioneering research on hibernation for long space flights.

All their children continued their research, and became the leading experts in the field. They finally developed a protocol that enabled an astronaut to hibernate for several years with no adverse effects, provided they had a certain genome.

# # #

The Spy

* * *

I don't know where to begin. I guess I'll start when I was recruited.

College was a farce. I knew that after listening to the professors for a week. Half of them were so out of touch with life outside the campus that their spouting showed their ignorance of capitalism, and daily life. Of course most the class was mesmerized and enthralled.

Half a dozen of us slouched in our seats and looked around. I spotted several within the few days. Others were trying to hide their disgust with the crap the professor was spouting in that class. By the end of the week; four of us looked at each other, and headed toward the green area just outside the building. I was considering slamming my Economics book down on the concrete table, but one of the girls beat me to it. "That socialist bastard isn't even trying to disguise his hatred for our country's economic system. My mother told me, but I didn't listen."

Opening my mouth to agree with her, the other girl spouted, "Hell, I graduated two years ago and worked my fingers to the bone to raise tuition for this year. I haven't tasted meat in over six months. Noodles and beans are my main diet. Chemistry is the only class that isn't tilted so far left that I have to walk into the lecture hall holding onto the seats to keep from falling over."

Opening my mouth again the guy with glasses commented, "Girls, I agree with you, but what can we do?"

Evidently my "ugh" along with my mouth open hanging open was all they needed to pick on someone to take their frustrations out on. After a minute or two I managed to get a word in. "What the hell can we do except quit this commie campus and try to get our tuition back?"

They evidently had met and talked before because they nodded and turned as one and said over their shoulders, follow us. Five minutes later, we were off campus sipping coffee in a hole in the wall --- _puke your guts out_ –- hamburger joint that smelled like they used the same grease to cook everything. I mean my stomach churned from the rancid smell emanating from the kitchen. Looking at my coffee, I expected to see globs of grease and oil floating on the surface. The surface was clear and the cup was clean, no grease slick. I'd worked part time for the health department back home checking restaurants. Taking a napkin, I did the first and easiest test. I rubbed it across the table and, then looked at the bottom. No greasy finger prints, not even a layer of discoloration. Then along the side of the table in front of my stomach. It was still clean. Looking up I commented, "Something is wrong here."

They all looked at me and then started laughing. The blond finally said, "I work here, and it's never failed a health inspection. John keeps the rancid smell to keep the drunks out; especially late at night."

"Damn," was the only word I could mutter.

Raising her hand, she wiggled her fingers and the waitress appeared. "We're moving over to the corner. Tell John to come out when he gets a chance."

"OK, I'll ask him."

"Thanks Nancy. Isn't it a little early for the repellent."

"No. We've had incursions Monday and yesterday. The regulars all took the clear seats along the wall."

I opened my mouth and asked, "How can that smell not be over by the wall?"

Nancy looked at me and simply commented, "Professional secret. What's your name?"

"Albert."

"What's you major Albert?"

"Transportation, if I go back. So far ..."

"Don't say it Albert, talk to John first." Then she walked back to the register and greeted a couple that were sniffing the air.

In the silence we all heard, "Nancy, what happened? I finally convinced my girlfriend the best burgers in town were served here. Now the smell."

"Sorry Gill. John turned on the drunk repellent because we've had them coming in early. Follow me and I'll get you a booth out of the main draft."

As we sat in the booth I noticed Nancy flip a couple of light switches before she led the couple over to the booth next to ours. I was surprised as the rancid smell started disappearing. Then I noticed a very slight breeze on my neck. Examining the wall and ceiling; I could see air-conditioning vents above every booth.

A guy in a soiled apron brought out the burgers. Dropping into the empty seat he looked like death warmed over. "That will be $8 dollars or some information."

"This is Albert. His major is transportation."

"Well, well, Albert. I have a few questions in your area of expertise. If you don't know the answers now, you can get them for me. Am I right?"

"I guess so."

"Good, my name is John. I look fairly human, but am not from this planet. My main problem is how close to interstellar flight your world is."

"Huh, we've barely reached the moon and only have a dozen or so satellites out exploring our solar system."

"Damn; Betty, Alice, I need you to find me someone in related fields for rocket fuels, gravitational manipulation, and engineering. It looks like I will have to help them develop the infrastructure so I can go home."

"But that could take a century or more John." stated James.

"No, no, James. If we find promising students, and point them in the right direction some of your corporations will snap them up. Then I will feed them the right questions and they will develop the right equipment, and your world will leap into space with ease."

"Still, it will take decades."

"No James. Not more than twenty years. It can done. The information I need to deliver will no longer be of any use in fifty years. Shortly thereafter, your planet will be conquered. So you see, only if your world has a presence in space are you safe."

"What do you mean?"

"The federation I escaped from has a very strict rule. Any planet bound civilization is open for exploitation. Space faring civilizations are avoided. In their history, they made contact with young space faring civilizations, and their attempts to dominate them resulted in very destructive and costly wars. They quickly realized that unless they could control the space around a planet, they couldn't subdue it. It is a simple matter of logistics."

"Logistics, that doesn't seem logical. Why?"

"Even aggressive species will surrender if they can not reach their opponents, or die trying. If they have a presence in space, it is usually the military that are in control. That means there will be weapons out there. Invasion fleets are expensive, and usually spacecraft aren't completely destroyed. That means technology falls into the locals hands, and the locals usually are out for blood. They can and have launch suicide fleets back at the invaders.

"Scout ships however will slip into a star system, lurk around, and leave with no locals knowing about them. After careful planning a first contact situation will be set up and the federation will make friends with the locals, and peacefully grow larger.

"I however had a bit of bad luck. I discovered that I was not the only scout ship checking out the federation. The other ship was detected. I was swept up in the search for any others, and barely escaped with my ship damaged.

"Your planet has been broadcasting its location for over a hundred years. Every civilization progresses at about the same speed. The standard rates would indicate your world will not have a significant position in space for another hundred to two hundred years, so an invasion in fifty to a hundred years would be successful. It is not my job to keep others from enlarging their federations or empires, but I need to warn my people. Your planet is almost fifty light years out of my direct path home.

"If I help your people and get home, I will be helping my people too. You see the other scout ship I detected belonged to an empire that has an expansionist leadership and has already launched an invasion fleet at the federation I was spying on. Their equipment was slightly less advanced than mine, and I downloaded their plans for invading the federation."

"That's a wild story John."

"Yes, unfortunately it is true. Now you see why I need to get back to my world, and report the problem headed our way."

# # #

The Store Plan

Sir the board of directors is waiting.

Members of the Board. As you know the news media raked us and others over the coals after the third store shooting last month. At the emergency meeting on the fifteenth we banned open carry by customers along with new rules about what ammunition and firearms we would carry and sell. Well it isn't working.

A simple check of sales receipts, not the cash spent, but the number or actual sales has dropped nineteen percent. This reduction of customers is something that can bankrupt us.

Now we listened to the news media, liberal commentators, politicians, and a few of you. The plan developed to answer those concerns isn't working. What do we do now? Close up shop and fire the seventeen thousand employees we have, or come up with a new plan? Lets hear your comments.

Mr Fish, as CEO that's your area.

Alright, I'll take a bite out of that proverbial bullet. Next months meeting is on the seventh of next month at 8 AM. That is two weeks to get yourselves ready for a new plan.

That's mighty early Mr Fish.

That's right ladies and gentlemen. As of right now, all retirement and separation packages are terminated. Those funds will be channeled back into keeping our thirty-nine stores solvent. Also the stock repurchase price is now set at $10 per share.

You can't do that Mr. Fish, several of the board members stated. That is beyond your authority to make such decisions.

WRONG! When my grandfather and his brother started the company they included in the incorporation papers that the company was and will forever be privately owned by the family. Any loss of family ownership will automatically split the corporation into individual stores and ownership will automatically transfer to the employees. The rest of that section is lawyer gobbledygook that I shall not go into here today. In other words, the family, board of directors, and experts we hire are caretakers only. I'll see you Monday next.

Sir, some of the board are here. It's ten after.

Good morning gentlemen. Two days ago I had to hire a young lawyer to counter the three lawsuits that three of your absent friends filed against the company. They will be handled.

Now about the drop in customers. I've personally talked to twenty-seven of the store managers. We've come up with a tentative plan to restore customer confidence in their safety while shopping at our stores. Look at page one of the blue folder. As you can see it will cost about a million dollars per store to implement. Open the red folder and follow along:

    First, all store exits will be equipped with one-way turnstiles that only allow people out. They will be designed so no one can jump or climb over them. I will cover the shipping docks later. The first store modified is here in Monroe, and I've already received approval and permits from the pertinent local and state agencies.
    Second, all entrances will be a lobby type entrance where every customer will be required to read and sign off on each information poster. I'll cover the information posters in detail later.
    Third, one or more armed uniform guards will be visibility placed at each entrance.
    Forth, all entrances will be covered by cameras and plainly marked as actively recording each customer. I am now licensing face recognition software that will include a starting database.
    Fifth, each customer will have to pass either an imaging device, or magnetic detection device. These devices are to detect any customer carrying a weapon. Customers so detected will be shunted to the side for personal interview by a guard, and or law enforcement officer. Potential customers legally carrying a weapon will be issued a store permit.
    Sixth, Potential customers carrying a weapon without the legal paperwork will be detained and law enforcement personnel summoned.
    Seventh, the store managers will determine if the store will resume carrying their previous line of weapons and ammunition. Any customer desiring to purchase will simply be required to prove they have a legal weapons license or have passed the background check required by the local, state, and federal government.

Poster 1:

This shopping area is NOT A WEAPONS FREE AREA.  
Customers and employees may be armed, plus the security guards we have hired for your safety. By entering you agree and will follow the information on all lobby posters.

Poster 2:

These new store policies were put into effect for our customers safety. Malcontents within the population forced us to enact them. The management apologizes for the inconvenience to all law abiding customers.

Poster 3:

If you are carrying a weapon and do not have a legal permit, exit now! Without a legal permit, you will be detained.

Poster 4:

Beyond this point facial recognition recording equipment is active. Persons wanted by law enforcement agencies will be detained.

Poster 5:

Remove your head covering, eyeglasses, and smile. Press your thumb on the fingerprint reader and smile. You will be recorded and identified before allowed past this turnstile. This also indicates that you have read and agree with the rules to enter this private property. If not, happy shopping elsewhere.

Poster 6:

If the equipment detects that you are armed, get your identification ready for verification. Failure to do so will result in your detention until law enforcement personnel can identify or detain you. The the minimum charge is trespassing on private property.

Poster 7:

Inside for your convenience, new help stations were placed, and plainly marked. An employee with a green vest will immediately be dispatched to your location.

Poster 8:

On this property you are a family guest. Please act respectful and enjoy your shopping visit.

As of now, that is the internal security plan. Outside an eight foot fence will be constructed built completely around the property. The parking lot will be redesigned to make it easier to enter and exit. Entrance and exits will have one-way drive through barriers installed and marked.

The entrance will be marked with a large sign indicating that the store and everything within the fence is private property. Unauthorized trespassers will be prosecuted. It will also indicate that armed guards patrol the area.

Those stores that have an attached gasoline station will have the gas station with separate exits.

I've also talked to some local law enforcement agencies, and plans will be designed and implemented to enhance their participation.

We will start one store at a time. Some stores will require relocation. All store managers will be sent a copy of this plan. All store managers will be required to have a one-hundred percent employee meeting to read the plan to them. Addition security guards will be hired for all stores.

Now here is a kicker. Where we cannot get the permits and licenses from the local and state authorities, the stores will be closed. Employees that wish to relocate will be assisted with relocation cost to another store and hired there.

Any questions?

Yes Mr Johns.

What economic impact will this have on the bottom line.

Good question Mr Johns.

Effective at the end of the month, everyone's salary will be reduced to that of a store manager. That includes mine.

Mr Fish, I cannot support my family on a managers salary.

Mrs Green, that is why I am notifying you now. You have three weeks to adjust your style of living, or look for another position. For your information, anyone opposing this plan will be asked to resign, or I will fired them. My family has run this business for over fifty years, and I'm taking the same cuts as you are. My oldest son has already told me to go to hell, and quit. That should point out the seriousness of my commitment to keep the stores open, and protect my employees and customers.

Fish Sales Corporation will survive even if I have to mortgage my property, and return to only a few stores. My grandfather started with only one boat and two hired hands. He had it tough.

* *

Three years later there were only thirty-one of the original stores in four states. Four of those stores had been relocated and rebuilt. Two new stores were in the planning stages.

Sales receipts counts indicated that the number of customer visiting the stores was up twenty-two percent. Store profits were also up nineteen percent.

On every unsold store property that had to be closed, was a billboard stating the reasons the store was closed, and the locations of the nearest stores.

# # #

# Return to Table of Contents #

Acknowledgments

The first group that I acknowledge are the teachers. The good ones cultivate the young minds and start them on a crusade for knowledge.

The second group are the librarians. They are the escort and custodians of knowledge.

The third group, and all are of equal importance, are the readers. Whether for pleasure or in search of knowledge, they are the people that make writing worthwhile.

My wife has put up with me for over forty nine years. Without her support and love I don't know who, what, or where I would be, so I thank her from the bottom of my heart!

# # #

About Stephen Brandon and his other books.

{My claim to fame, written by someone else. Thanks!} "As an earthbound retiree, Stephen writes mostly science fiction and short stories. He is a voracious reader and has written for a few years, publishing his stories on Smashwords."

# # #
