The Unofficial Biography Of Kimmay

Book 3: The Nature Of Time

by G. L. Hudson

 

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

 

They were coming up on Kimmay's second Christmas after returning with Linda. This time Kimmay was much better prepared. Thanks to Traci, she had her shopping completed before Christmas Eve. The best part was she had completed a full year with almost no nightmares. She had never realized how sweet it was to have a good night's sleep.

Melissa had invited Kristal and Jennifer to celebrate the holidays at her house, and they had accepted. Kristal celebrated Christmas Day with her own family, then came to Melissa's the following weekend. Tiffany and Traci joined them and they had a very nice time. There was no shoptalk for the entire day (well almost no shop talk).

Kimmay was in much better spirits than normal. After returning to Earth from her sojourn with Linda, Kimmay had turned into a person possessed. She was driven in her many projects and she was driving everyone around her crazy. Her workmates appreciated the relaxed mood as of late. It was no secret to Tiffany as to why Kimmay was so happy. They had proven out their latest theories concerning the passage - or rather the negation - of energy passing through inter-dimensional portals. The ultimate test of the technology would be using it against Linda, but at this point they were confident. Testing the technology against Linda would require an enormous decision because it would probably change everything. It was unlikely that Linda would continue to work with them after she discovered that they could not only monitor her movements, but possibly prevent her from traveling around the planet.

In addition, Kimmay had started three interesting pilot-scale experiments on cleaning waterways. They were already in the process of scaling up their most promising ideas. Kimmay was indeed in a festive mood.

 

Kimmay had another secret reason for being happy. She kept in constant contact with the fertility clinic in Zurich, and things were progressing well. The doctor would be ready in about one month to implant the eggs in their surrogate mothers. Kimmay had been worried about the effect of the 'super genes', but they did not appear to be interfering with the normal cloning process.

During their party at Melissa's, Kristal had asked Tiffany and Kimmay to a meeting after the first of the year. Kristal wanted the girls in Washington for a planning pow-wow. As usual they met at the White House, but unlike normal meetings, she asked Jennifer and Traci to join them as active participants. In addition she asked Kimmay to bring Dr. Drum and Dr. Stevens. "I want all of the input I can get," she explained. "And before I bring in the government experts, I want to hear the opinions of my most trusted friends."

The President welcomed everyone to the White House and enjoyed a bit of gossip and chit-chat with each guest. Eventually she herded everyone to the conference table and called the meeting to order. "I would like to thank everyone for taking time out of their busy schedule to join us today. Unfortunately, these are not the best of times. There are some serious challenges facing us, and some serious decisions are required. I'm afraid that some of those decisions are going to be very difficult; difficult to make and difficult to live with. I have taken the unprecedented step of asking my friends and civilian experts to meet here today and provide me with your counsel. I need to feel comfortable with my decisions before I bring in my cabinet and hash out the nasty details.

"The economy of the United States is worse than you have heard. We are essentially bankrupt. Our debtors have cooperated more than I would have thought possible, and I can ask no more of them. If they gave us more concessions, it is possible that we would start a chain-reaction that would inevitably lead to a worldwide depression. When all the facts of our situation leak out, I expect a massive sell-off of U.S. dollars. The value of the dollar is going to drop in half. When the arbitragers feel the dollar has reached its low, there is a good chance that some of them may attempt to buy massive amounts of our currency and debt, and then force us to trade national equity. In effect, they will buy control of the country."

"Are you going to have to sell Hawaii?" Kimmay asked. Kristal didn't appreciate the levity and she said so. Kimmay apologized, "Sorry, I was just trying to lighten the mood a bit."

"I'm sure that some of the people behind this effort are going to be the same people that put us in this situation in the first place. They robbed this country for twenty years and they weren't happy getting kicked out of power. They're going to make our life as miserable as they can.

"To make matters worse, we have some very sensitive international relationships. During those twenty years of looting, we managed to arrogantly flaunt our military power, turn our friends away from us, and stiffen the resolve of our enemies. We are not in danger of war, but those enemies are going to take away our international options in the business and financial worlds. That is going to make our economic recovery even more difficult.

"I am going to be forced to make some drastic moves to save us. I'm talking about things like the shutdown of massive parts of the federal government. There will be banking holidays, and I envision massive bankruptcies in the banking and insurance industry. People are going to lose their social and economic safety nets. We are going to see tragedies unlike anything we have seen since the Great Depression." Kristal paused to catch her breath, and her composure. The idea of the drastic changes that she was going to propose bothered her deeply.

"I'm sorry to give you all this news today. I've been trying very hard for the last two years to save us from these desperate measures, but I see no alternatives. After we finish today, I will bring in my cabinet and begin the process of destroying the financial lives of millions of innocent families. I am not proud of my failure to prevent this desperate situation.

"Meanwhile, I have a political tsunami rolling towards me. The name of that tsunami is Ginger Winch." Kristal all but spit that name on the floor. Kristal was good at controlling her emotions and remaining impartial, but Ginger Winch disturbed her immensely. "She has talents unlike anything I have ever seen. She can sell snow to an Eskimo, and her organizational abilities are without peer. From a political point of view, she has significantly limited my already meager options to save us. What makes this so extremely frustrating is that she does not belong in this equation. In my opinion, she is the pawn of an off-world conspiracy to destroy us."

That comment raised more than a few eyebrows. "Rather ironic, isn't it? We are here because of an off-world conspiracy ourselves. Do we have the right to claim the moral high-ground? Is there a difference?" She paused for effect.

"This is the main reason that I have asked you here. Any action that I take against her could come back to haunt a few people in this room, myself included. I want to take her out of the equation and I would like to ask for your opinions and suggestions."

Kimmay spoke first, "Kristal, are you finished? Is the floor open?"

"Go ahead Kimmay."

"Kristal, I am not up to speed on your economic problems, but I do agree with you concerning Ginger Winch. I have asked Henry Dunn to direct the Eleven Lights Foundation to make religious organizations one of their top investigative priorities. While you haven't seen much reported yet, you soon will. Mr. Dunn has told me that he is running down numerous financial connections between many of the religious organizations and although it may be preliminary to make bold statements, he is convinced that the majority of the organizations have connections and may even be directed by a single person or group."

Kristal broke in, "Can he speculate as to who that single person might be?"

"He has told me that many of the connections appear to run towards Ginger. But he says he needs a few more concrete facts before he will make that claim in public. I think it would be helpful if he could have access to your people and maybe they could share some of their information."

"My people have made some of the same accusations, Kimmay. I desperately need the public support of your Foundation. Its public credibility will be very important. Let Mr. Dunn know that he can expect a call in the next couple of days."

Tiffany had a question, "Kristal what have you found out about the assassins that Traci and Jennifer captured?" For weeks now, everyone had been speculating that the assassins and their religious group might be tied to Ginger some how.

"Jennifer, can you update us?"

"Sure, it would be my pleasure. The bottom line is the two terrorists that we captured are part of a terrorist group out of Greece. The group appears to have ties to an Islamic terrorist group from Turkey. This group has openly advocated terrorism to support religious demands and they may have been responsible for attacks against police units in Western Turkey. I think the CIA can tie the two groups together."

"Is there any chance that this organization can be tied back to Ginger?" Traci asked the question just a split second ahead of Tiffany.

"You ask good leading questions Traci, just like I taught you," Jennifer smiled. Jennifer had taken a liking to Traci and they were becoming good friends. "That is our thinking, and we are looking into possible connections even as we speak. The rumors say they are tied to both Jewish extremists in Israel and Christians in Lebanon. That part is difficult to understand, but preliminary intelligence says the connections are for real."

Kimmay jumped in, "I think we need to get your people over to see Mr. Dunn and our investigators ASAP. Between you, there may be enough information to make that tie."

"I agree with the urgency," Kristal added. "I'm already involved in a re-election campaign and the sooner we can attack Ginger the better. We have to neutralize her public support."

"Assuming that we can prove that she is connected with, or even better, controlling the terrorist groups, how do you use the information against her?"

"That's the easiest part," Kristal said. "We use the Eleven Lights Foundation for the initial exposure and to build up public opinion against her. Then we nudge a few congressmen to open one of their ubiquitous public hearings. We'll let Congress subpoena the FBI and CIA and they can release all of the damaging information that we can find. My hands will be clean," she smiled.

"I'm sure it would make everything easier for you if you can tie Ginger to terrorist groups, but what about connecting her to an even bigger conspiracy? Will you expose her as a pawn of extra-terrestrials? Can you connect her to the off-worlders?"

"That's a good question," Tiffany interjected. "The last time we talked there was some doubt as to whether or not she was a willing participant with the off-worlders. I mean is she an active participant or just a pawn?"

"It might not matter," Kristal answered. "In one case she is an active subversive to the entire human race, and in the other case she is a naοve pawn. The naοve pawn can be painted as a simplistic little girl who is being manipulated to set up these terrorist cells. Her political capital will evaporate."

"Wait a minute," Kimmay said. "It should be clear to everyone here that this is an off-world attack against humanity." Kimmay emphasized the 'is'. "Whether Ginger is an active participant or a pawn is immaterial. Actions are being taken and they are either being directed or at least protected by aliens. Can there be any other explanation?"

There was silence. Kristal spoke, "Kimmay, sometimes I think all you see are conspiracies, but I think you are correct about this one. We are indeed under attack. That would be a powerful avenue for the media to expose. Ginger would have a very difficult time defending that kind of attack.

"Neutralizing Ginger is going to solve many of my short-term problems, but we also have to think long-term and strategic about this."

"First things first then, is how do you take Ginger out of the picture? Do we know if Ginger travels through the portals?" It was Dr. Jason Drum's first question. "If we can prove she travels that way, then you have your proof."

"Excuse me," interrupted Dr. Stevens, "but don't you people also travel via inter-dimensional portals? What difference is there between Ginger using the portals and you using the portals?"

Kristal answered, "Because we aren't organizing terrorist groups to attack and kill people. That is another reason why we have to neutralize her political popularity and tie her to the terrorists; we have to stop the terrorism. It's destabilizing other governments as well as mine. So I need some ideas as to how we prove that she is connected to an extra-terrestrial conspiracy. Do we expose the existence of the grid and use it to prove her connection?"

Kimmay broke into the conversation, "Before we discuss Ginger any further, I think there are a few other relevant subjects to discuss. I'd like to discuss the entire off-world situation including our options for overtly resisting them. I personally am of the opinion that they represent a much graver threat to humanity than Ginger or the other items that Kristal has discussed." Kimmay looked around the table for agreement. "Ginger will undoubtedly be a subset of the alien problem," she added.

"Does that meet with everyone else's approval?" Kristal asked. "Fine, then let's start with an update on the detection grid."

Kristal called in their first presenter, the Director of the National Security Agency, retired Admiral Vernon Slate. Admiral Slate was the least likely looking man you would pick for the chief of the NSA. He was small and totally unimpressive looking. His head was bald, he wore wire-rimmed glasses and a bow-tie. He brought two aids with him and he introduced neither one of them.

"Admiral Slate, I have assembled a panel of civilians who are going to oversee the technical aspects of Project Orion," the President said. "Everyone has received clearance to see the entire aspects of the project. Can you please give us an update on your situation?"

"Thank you Ms. President," the Admiral began. The lights dimmed and the screen at the end of the conference table came to life. "Our overview will cover the current operational situation including our global coverage. We have installed new software recently and I will touch on that, and then I will give the results of our recent surveillance, including some eye-opening statistics."

Thus began the Admiral's presentation. He showed a slide of the globe with a yellow overlay showing the areas of the present coverage. "Our detectors cover all of North America, a good share of Europe, although we're missing eastern parts of Ukraine, and we also cover a good share of the water mass around Europe. Northern Africa, and the Middle East have come on board in just the last three months. We have some large gaps in eastern Russia and most of China, but then we pick up the Pacific Rim nicely, including New Zealand and Australia. South America is 50% covered with large holes in the western Amazon basin."

Dr. Stevens interrupted, "Admiral, what's the operational efficiency of the chips?"

"Excellent," he paused to read the name tag, 'Dr. Stevens'. "Are you the R&D manager for Eleven Lights?"

"Yes, I am. Admiral can you comment on the range and directional fixing capabilities? I ask because I now believe that I can provide a second generation of the chip with higher energy capacity and greater sensitivity for fluctuation detection."

"Dr. Stevens, it is rare that my agency ever says this, but I don't believe we need an upgrade. The on-line efficiency of your chips is over 99% and as you will see, I think their sensitivity is more than adequate. In fact, in most situations we detect portal openings with five to eight detectors, which is more than adequate for triangulation and verification.

"Recently we have updated our software and we can do a number of interesting things. We can pair an exit with an entrance. That means that we can trace people as they move around the globe. Also with this software we can usually detect when someone leaves the planet and when someone arrives. This isn't as simple as you might think. Delays from exit to entrance vary and there is enough traffic to have over lapping portal openings. But we have determined that the major determinate for time differences is elevation. Taking that into account, we believe that we are 90% accurate in our tracking."

"Is this an on-line system?" Kimmay asked. "If so, can you pinpoint Linda?"

"Yes to both questions. We are set up for a live demonstration," and he nodded to one of his aids. It took about one minute for the projection system to be switched over to the NSA network. A map of the world came up along with a box in the lower corner. The operator answered a couple of questions and a red star popped up in New York City.

"Linda is currently located in New York City. Once we have identified a specific individual we can also put together some interesting statistics. Jensen, let's see her recent history." The aid pulled down a tab and clicked on a couple of items. A serious of lines appeared on the map. "Linda's most recent jumps are in the heavier and brighter lines, and as you go backwards in time, the lines become thinner and lighter. It gives you a graphical representation of her travels over the last 5 days. We can do this for upwards of a couple months. However, these people do so much moving that more than a couple of days and the map looks like it is covered with spaghetti."

"That's very good," Dr. Stevens said. "Can you trace Ginger's protector?"

The aid put up another set of lines. "This is her most active protector. This is where the software becomes interesting. We have used it to identify almost ten different people working with Ginger. And guess where they are located?"

"New York City," Kimmay said.

"Interesting isn't it? New York City seems to be the headquarters for a large share of the off-world visitors. New York City, Hong Kong and Rome appear to be their main locations. It almost like foreigners coming to America, they seem to settle in their own ethnic groups."

"How many of them are there?" Tiffany asked.

"The closest that we can estimate is somewhere between 100 and 250. About one hundred seem to be permanent and the others come and go from off-world."

"How often does Linda leave earth?" Kimmay asked.

"Almost never."

"How many of the visitors have you actually identified?"

"Maybe twenty. That is one of our priorities."

"Can you tell who goes through the portal or how many people go through?" Drum asked.

"No. We can only sense a portal opening. Actually, we can't even be sure that someone goes through. We assume that an upwards fluctuation jump in voltage means the portal opened and someone came through in this direction, and a fluctuation in the opposite direction means the portal was opened for someone to leave."

"But you can tell how long the portal stays open, right?"

"Correct." the Admiral agreed.

"Is it reasonable to assume that the length of time that an outgoing portal stays open is related to how many people have to step through?" Jason Drum was driving at something and Kimmay knew exactly where he was going.

The Admiral looked at one of his aids for an answer. "Sir, I believe that the supposition can be correct, but not necessarily the only reason for time delays. Maybe something is being moved through, such as cargo or maybe the delays are due to innocent conversation. It's also possible that the destination might somehow influence the time span. And of course elevation is a very big determinate of open time."

"All right, do this," Kimmay said. "You've identified Linda. Go back in time and log the time for all of her trips. We will give you a list of the travel times that we can remember. Also, in the next couple of weeks we will try and use Linda as much as possible. We'll send those travel dates and times to you also. You can do a statistical study and determine if the number of people going through the portal correlates with the amount of time that it stays open."

The Admiral looked at his aid and the aid shook his head yes. "We can do it," the Admiral answered.

Kimmay smiled at Drum, "I think we'll find a correlation, don't you?"

"Yea I do, but keep in mind that it won't necessarily prove that Ginger is traveling through the portals. It will only be circumstantial evidence."

"But let's be careful here," Kimmay continued. "Just because we find a statistical correlation that suggests other people are going through the portal with Ginger's protectors, it doesn't mean Ginger is the co-traveler. It could be another alien."

"We build our case brick by brick," Kristal interjected. "You've done a nice job, Admiral. Are there any other questions or comments?" There were no questions and Kristal dismissed him and his aids. "As long as we have started the presentations, we can continue with them. Let's take a fifteen minute break, then we're going to talk high energy weapons."

After their short break, General Turner and several of his aids were present. His presentation was very technical, and several times Kristal asked him to back off the big words. Even Kimmay and Tiffany had trouble following the technical jargon that the General was using. But everyone followed the video clips.

"All of our test firings have been kept underground for security reasons. We have a great many of the details to work out concerning reliability and repeatability. But when it works, it blows holes through everything. We can pump hundreds of terawatts in a nanosecond. I can drill a hole through 5 feet of concrete. And we're still not using the latest generation of your chips, Dr. Stevens. All of the technical problems are on our side of the net."

The videos were interesting, and the general had some video clips from some of the other directed particle weapons that they were working on. The clips and destruction were truly impressive, but the General was the first to admit that they had a long way to go from laboratory to field. The General's presentation lasted a full hour.

After the weapons experts had left, Kristal again turned to the group. "I think that's an update on our situation. Let me explain something before we proceed. Along with Ginger and her guardians, I also see Linda and her people as a threat to our security. Essentially, our borders are open to people who are technically advanced well beyond us. In addition, we still don't know their true intentions. The weapons discussion, while interesting, does not impact on this situation. I started the weapons research on a request from Kimmay. Kimmay believes that long term we are going to have to protect our planet from adversaries. That is based on her experiences with Linda, when she spent fifteen years traveling around the galaxy.

"Short term, our problems are still local with the added twist of off-worlders either controlling or manipulating a major political nemesis."

Kimmay interrupted, "Kristal I have one other thing to add to the discussion. Tiffany and I believe that we have found a way to neutralize Linda's ability to travel through her inter-dimensional portal. The theory we have developed is sound and we have a prototype unit up and working. We've never tried it out so I can't guarantee that it will work."

Kristal smiled, "I always forget to ask you if you have another breakthrough. So tell us what you have."

"There really isn't much to say. Tiffany worked out most of the theory, and Dr. Stevens built our prototype. It's rather small, because we need only a small amount of energy to block the portal. We're confident in the prototype, but like I said, we haven't tried it yet. It's available for use and I think we might want to consider it as we discuss our actions."

Dr. Drum asked Kimmay a question, "When you do use it, can it be done clandestinely or will they know you're using it?"

"If we block Linda or one of the others from opening the portal, I assume they will know that we did it. Their technology level is so far beyond ours, we can't even guess at what they can or cannot do. We should not assume that we can fool or trick them."

Kristal wanted to stay on target and she took over again, "Let me summarize what we have already decided. I will have the CIA and FBI meet with Dr. Dunn at your Foundation and share information concerning Ginger and her contacts with other terrorist groups. We'll try and tie them together into a global conspiracy. Agreed?"

Everyone agreed.

"Second, Admiral Slate will try and determine if we can at least guess as to whether or not Ginger is using the portal to travel. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

"Third, if we can make the connection we expose Ginger and her guardians, irregardless of the blowback. Kimmay?"

"Agreed."

"Tiffany?"

"I agree. I'm willing to go public about everything."

"Anything else Dr. Stevens?"

"Even though no one needs chip upgrades, I will continue pushing forward."

"Thank you doctor. Dr. Drum?"

"I'll contact Mr. Dunn and update him on our decisions. I'll ask him to put this on the top of his priorities."

"Thanks. Jennifer?"

"I'll try and squeeze a bit more information from our prisoners. When you go public, you might want to consider having a large public trial for the two prisoners. It gives you another public venue for exposing their conspiracy."

"Thanks, Jennifer. I like that idea. Traci?"

"Nothing."

"Tiffany, something else?"

"Not specifically, but I will keep you up-to-date on any new technical breakthroughs."

Kristal smiled, "That would be helpful. Do you have more coming?"

Tiffany just smiled and shrugged her shoulders.

Kristal looked at Kimmay. She smiled and asked, "Kimmay?"

"I think we should talk with Linda. I want to test our counter to their portals. If it works, we can use it to close down Ginger's access to her guardians. I'm speculating that she is getting direct and overt help. If we can take away her guardians, she might feel isolated and maybe she'll panic and do something stupid."

"Kimmay I partly agree with your idea, but I want to know up front, is this also personal? Are you trying to throw your new technical breakthrough in Linda's face?"

Kimmay looked at Kristal and then slowly began to smile. "Yes, there is a bit of personal revenge included. But I don't think that invalidates my reasoning."

Kristal looked at the others, "What do you people think?"

Jennifer said, "There is nothing wrong with going on the offensive once in a while. It keeps the opposition off balance."

"Tiffany, you've known Linda the longest, how do you think she will react?"

"Technically, Kimmay has known her for a longer time period. I'm not sure what she will do. To be honest, I have talked with her very little since she has returned. I can't say how she will react, but it would be interesting to see."

"Anyone else?" No one spoke. "My gut tells me this is not a good move, but I'll go along with it under one condition; we have the meeting here at the White House and I'm present and so is Tiffany."

"When?" Kimmay asked.

"Set up another meeting for tomorrow. We can discuss our strategy and then bring Linda here later in the week. Is that acceptable?"

Kimmay smiled.

 

 

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

 

Tiffany, Kimmay and Kristal met and discussed their plan to confront Linda. It wasn't much of a plan, but they agreed on what information they would give Linda and what information they would withhold. Kristal wanted to keep their conversation informal, so she had set four comfortable, wingback chairs in a circle around a coffee table with tea and soft drinks set out. Kimmay's blocking device was very small so she had slid it next to the cushion in her chair. It was the best that they could arrange. Kimmay and Kristal chatted idly and waited for Tiffany to bring Linda to the White House.

Tiffany was at their Milwaukee headquarters when she called for Linda. Linda transported the two of them to the White House and Tiffany thanked Linda for the ride. Kristal quickly invited Linda to stay for a drink and talk with them. Linda refused at first, but upon Kristal's insistence Linda relented and the four of them sat down. Kristal opened the conversation, "Linda, are you aware of the current economic situation that I am facing in the United States?"

Linda responded, "Kristal, I try not to get involved in your local problems, it's better that way."

"Really?" Kristal asked with just a tinge of sarcasm in her voice. "It really is an ugly situation. A great number of individuals are going to suffer because of what I am going to have to do."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Linda commiserated.

"The problem was caused by the last twenty years of corruption in the government. They were so efficient at looting our country that I have very little left to work with." Kristal paused waiting for Linda to respond, but since she had not been asked a direct question Linda chose not to comment. She listened politely but said nothing. "There isn't much I can do about the damage that's all ready been done, but there is a new problem that irritates me. It's something that I don't think I should have to deal with. Do you know what that might be, Linda?"

"No Kristal, what are you referring to?"

"Ginger Winch. She is restricting my options because she is going to stir up terrible public animosity towards my economic solutions. I admit they're not very good options, but they are better than nothing. With Ginger in my way, I have limited options and even more limited chance of success." She paused and waited for a sign from Linda, but Linda was still impassive. "Linda, I would like your help in dealing with Ginger, please."

"Kristal, I think we have already had this discussion. I have nothing more to say."

"How about I speak and you listen then. We have been doing some research on our own. For instance, we know that Ginger is one of us."

Kimmay spoke up, "The three of us had our DNA checked and we learned a couple of interesting things. The three of us have some unique genes, genes that most likely did not originate on this planet."

It was Tiffany's turn, "I was wondering if I should call you mother?"

Linda smiled ever so little, but said nothing.

"Father?" she asked but still got no reaction from Linda. "I have also noticed a nice jump in some of my abilities since I began taking estrogen. My casual interest in theoretical physics has become more like an obsession. It's great having a mentor like Kimmay with whom to discuss some of my ideas. I think we have made some exciting progress."

Linda looked amused, but still said nothing.

"Some of the doctors that did the analysis have been asking where the genes may have come from. They were very interested in them and how they might manifest themselves in adults." It was Kimmay's turn to attack. "They're wondering about how to test the growth and development of cells containing those genes. So far they have come up with only one idea."

This time they pulled a response out of Linda, "Don't even think about it, Kimmay! You have no idea what you're playing with." Linda's demeanor had changed from amusement to serious contention.

It was Kimmay's turn to smile, and it didn't appear as if Linda appreciated the effect.

The ball bounced back to Kristal, "Now we haven't actually checked Ginger's DNA, but we think we know what we will find. I've been wondering what a religious fanatic might do if she were to learn that her very essence had been designed by aliens. Especially, what might her followers think?"

"Since when did you start making idle threats, Kristal? I thought you were the voice of reason here."

"Since my options became so limited." The idea for this attack had come from Tiffany. She still remembered how flustered Linda had become when Amanda was killed. It had been as if Linda was overcome by her emotions and couldn't handle them. That was their intention for this conversation. They wanted to overload Linda's emotions; they wanted to make her angry.

Back to Tiffany, "I have another question, mother. Why does Ginger get ten or so guardians and I only received one?"

Kimmay took over, "Good question, Tiffany. In fact, Kristal and I had to share a guardian. Does Ginger have a larger budget than your people Linda?"

"You have no idea what is going on with Ginger, but nice try," Linda said.

"You're right that we don't know exactly," Kristal said. "What with all of these people jumping on and off-world, but we're fairly confident of that number. But you should know Linda, they live hardly half a mile from you."

"I believe they are just around the corner from your apartment on Sixth Street," Kimmay said.

Finally, they got a visible reaction from Linda. Her face showed just a bit of surprise and she asked, "How would you know that?"

"We've been doing our homework," Kristal said. "And we are going to go after Ginger. We are going to expose her and her connections to the radical religious groups that she is supporting around the world. We're going to explain to every one how she did the angel trick and we're going to expose your people. Having one off-worlder on earth disturbed people enough, but finding out that there are hundreds and hundreds secretly manipulating our lives … that might have an effect on the public."

"They're not my people," Linda said.

"Does that mean we have competing extra-terrestrials fighting to control our world?"

Linda stood up, "I think this conversation is over. Thank you for your hospitality, Kristal." The three girls watched carefully as Linda took her controller from her pocket. Normally, once Linda announced her departure she was gone within one or two seconds, but today she stood in place for much longer than that. At first a slight frown came over her face as she looked at the controller, then a look of pure anger appeared in her eyes. She glared at Kimmay and said, "This has to be your doing, isn't it?"

Kimmay smiled and further infuriated Linda. "Actually, Tiffany contributed the most. Didn't you hear her earlier when she said that she was becoming obsessed with theory? It was her theory that first gave us the idea. Pretty clever isn't it?"

Linda lost her composure. "You arrogant little brat! You've always thought you were so clever! You've always thought that you were so important. You weren't even our first choice! You were an after thought, a back-up and contingency plan. Tiffany never had your attitude. You really could learn something from her."

The plan was working. No one understood what had just happened, but Linda was emotional and she was speaking.

"Will you help us with Ginger?" Kristal asked again.

"Help? You fools have no idea what you have just done. You may have just sealed your fate and the fate of this planet. Your silly little economic crises will look like a walk in the park compared to what is coming now!"

Kristal tired to soothe Linda, "Linda, would you please sit and tell us what we have just done?"

Linda gave a loud sigh and sat down. Kristal handed her a glass of water. "You have no idea how sensitive this situation has become or how dangerous."

"Can you please tell us?" Kristal asked.

"There are more than just two factions interested in your planet. There is upwards of a hundred different species and civilizations watching you. But before your arrogant heads grow any bigger, its not you they're interested in." Linda made a point of glaring at Kimmay when she said arrogant.

"They're interested in your planet. It's your planet that is special, not you. Earth is very important to the rest of the universe because it is a golden cradle of life. Earth has been extremely stable for billions of years. For almost ten million years off -worlders have harvested life from Earth to teleform other planets. Earth has DNA containing bacteria that can live in hydrogen sulfide, methane, extremely hot, extremely cold, and even ammonia environments. The bacteria have proven to be perfect for the planetary conversion of worthless rocks into habitable worlds. Plus, everyone is extremely impressed with earth's diversity of life. There are dozens of planets around the universe that have been turned into zoos for earth creatures. Entire planets have been teleformed to duplicate different eras from Earth for the single purpose of preserving groups of dinosaurs, or early mammals. Even water worlds for preserving early sea flora & fauna have been created.

"And then there is the great contradiction of your planet. It allows genetic mutations at a rate unheard of anywhere else. The diversity of life increases from these mutations and continuously brings forth amazing results. Yet, this high mutation rate doesn't damage or destroy existing ecosystems."

Linda paused and calmed herself. She took a deep breath and lowered her voice, "The other species are concerned that humans are ruining this garden; fouling it with chemical and radioactive waste. Your pollution levels are not abating, but instead they're increasing. The potential for large-scale human wars on earth, and the devastation that could be wrought are too serious to consider. Human expansion is pushing out bio-diversity and it may not be able to survive or recover. Man must be slowed down. We are not the only ones who have come to this conclusion. Several different approaches by competing groups are under way.

"My people and you three have been trying to push science forward and eliminate the need for many of the pollution causing sources, especially oil, coal and chemicals. Kimmay's development of energy and storage chips was to provide pollution free energy. But others don't think it is enough. Your progress has been exasperatingly slow. Your progress towards new pollution controls is simplistic at best," she said to Kimmay directly.

"Others have come to the conclusion that they must slow down or stop progress totally, and religion is the perfect tool for that. Reversion to fundamentalism and religious doctrine is hoped to bring scientific advancement to a halt. Humans will have to revert back to the old ways. The pro-religious group has led the way for over two thousand years to accomplish this. They went back in time to set up the fables, traditions, and folklore to prepare for their ultimate scheme. They have been working at this much longer than my people have been trying to save you. Ginger Winch is their ultimate icon. And they were probably going to succeed."

"Then why won't you help us? Why wouldn't you share any of this with us?" Kristal asked.

"There are too many reasons and complications for you to hope to understand. But thanks to Kimmay here, it probably doesn't matter any longer."

"What do you mean?" Kimmay asked.

"You can thank your little stunt, Kimmay. It won't go unnoticed by the others. It shows that you have progressed too far without solving your critical faults first. Your science and your latest knowledge show that you have too much information about the manipulation that we have all been trying to accomplish. With your first hand knowledge, we can't succeed. Everyone knows that by now. The careful balance that my people have crafted to give you this one last chance will crumble and that leaves only one option; direct intervention.

"Space ships will start showing up soon and they will determine your future. My people will try to salvage what we can. We may be able to save some of you. But for the rest …" Linda again stood and took out her controller. "I hope you're still feeling smug, Kimmay. You may have just signed your death warrant." Linda squeezed the pouch and disappeared.

Tiffany and Kristal looked at Kimmay. For once Kimmay had nothing to say.

 

 

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

 

Linda's threat came true five days later. The first spaceship showed up outside the moon's orbit, and it took almost two full days to maneuver its way to an orbit around Earth. One day after the first spaceship reached orbit, the second ship arrived. It also appeared through a portal, throwing every detector on earth off scale. It slipped into a higher orbit in a mere eighteen hours. And that is where they sat.

Nothing happened for seven days. All efforts to contact the ships failed. The ships were so large that they were easy to see even during mid-day. The first ship was the largest. It was oblong and possibly ten miles in diameter. It was white and crisscrossed with dark lines and grids. The second ship was spherical in shape and slightly smaller than the first. It was as shiny as a mirror, which made it difficult to see any details on the surface.

Tiffany and Kimmay both recognized the first ship. It was the 'moon' in Tiffany's picture. The realization shook Kimmay to her very core. She was having horrible doubts about what she had done. The nightmares were coming back to her, and she was starting to fear that she might have brought the final war to Earth. She could see Tiffany covered in blood every time she closed her eyes. Kimmay started to hide from people. Her high-energy drive to advance all of her business projects ended. There were no more business meetings. What energy she had left was used traveling between Milwaukee and Washington, trying to repair the damage that she had wrought. Without Linda, she could no longer jump around the globe and her international trips ended. Unfortunately, all of Kristal's and Kimmay's attempts to reach Linda ended in failure. Linda apparently had abandoned them.

The people of Earth were becoming worried. Food and consumables were being hoarded, as people feared the worst. There were runs on the grocery stores and banks. The price of gold and other precious metals zoomed off the chart. Lines of cars were moving towards the mountains and wilderness areas. With no contact from the ships, people began making up their own stories and spreading rumors at the speed of the Internet. Everyone knew that Kristal, Kimmay and Tiffany had direct contact with Linda and the off-worlders. The rumors claimed that they were still communicating with Linda. Kristal's denials only fueled more rumors and anxiety.

Ginger Winch was using her organization to spread doom and gloom. God was coming to destroy Earth and it was the fault of Kristal and her worldwide network of secularists. The secularists had to be removed from power as soon as possible. The people needed to join Ginger and her followers and begin praying for mercy. But prayer would not be enough, they would have to take active steps to show God they deserved His mercy. If the secularists would not step out of the way, they would have to be removed by force.

Kristal was continuously receiving calls from world leaders, demanding to know what was going on. They did not believe Kristal's denials of contact with the ships. Threats were starting to be issued, warning Kristal if she tried to sell out the other nations while making a deal for the United States there would be serious repercussions. Military alert levels were raised around the world. The United States military was moved to DEFCON 2 alert level.

NSA's detection grid had collapsed under the enormous inputs generated by the two spaceships. They couldn't track any activity on earth. To make matters worse, the space ships were generating extraordinary levels of electromagnetic radiation and interfering with satellite communications. Whether it was intentional or not didn't matter. The GPS system was down, as were most of the military's spy satellites. This contributed to the general distrust, as countries were essentially blinded.

On the seventh day, Kimmay was at her Milwaukee office talking with Tiffany and Dr. Drum. Without warning Kimmay and Tiffany disappeared simultaneously. A second later they re-appeared in Kristal's office. Kristal was caught by surprise and asked how they came through the portal. "Who brought you?"

"I have no idea," Kimmay answered. "Tiffany and I were meeting with Jason in Milwaukee one minute and the next thing we knew we were here. No one contacted us."

Kristal picked up her phone and called Jennifer. "I want you in my office immediately, and bring the secret service with you."

"That won't be necessary," a voice said. They all turned around to see Linda and a man standing in the room. Kristal cancelled her order.

"Linda!" Kristal exclaimed. "I'm so glad to see you! Can you tell us what is happening?"

"A great deal is happening Kristal. Please sit down, all of you." Linda never offered to introduce the man. She began her explanation, "Things have changed Kristal, and not for the better. As you know, there are two ships in orbit around earth. One belongs to my people, and the other belongs to a competing group. Only two ships have been allowed to enter orbit. We are here to assess the situation and come to an agreement. That agreement will then be passed along to other interested groups for final approval."

Linda folded her hands together and took a defensive body posture. The news was going to be ugly. "Your situation is not good. While my people have technical superiority over the others, they have us vastly outnumbered. We will have to negotiate from weakness, and we will have to accept the group's final decision. Unfortunately, this is bad for you. Believe it or not, my people are trying to help you. The others are not interested in a technically inferior species that has squandered their own planet. Your current credibility and future potential have received low consideration.

"While the negotiations are still proceeding and we are still trying to salvage something, some decisions appear to be finalized. You are going to lose your planet; there is no way to stop that now. The last major question has come down to your species. Our adversaries and many of their backers do not believe that you deserve to survive. They have found nothing that merits any mercy. Your treatment of this planet has made you many enemies. My people have offered to relocate some of you, but that may not be allowed. Even though my people will carry the total cost alone, we have few supporters. It is only our technical strength that has forced the others to negotiate this long, but in the end we may very well lose. And you will lose everything."

"If you do win Linda, what will happen to Earth?"

"Earth will be returned to its pristine condition. It will take several centuries to clean up the mess that you have left behind. As for you humans, we may be allowed to save a few of you. We have offered to transplant several thousand humans to another world and allow you to establish a colony. If we win an agreement, we will have little time to move you. You must start preparing now, just in case.

"You will have to start over in an agrarian environment. You will have no access to industry or manufacturing. Drugs and pharmaceuticals will be limited to what you take with you, and that will include food. You need to start organizing immediately. Decide what experts you will need and have them come up with a list of what you want to take with you. The list had better be short; we will take at most 20 tons of cargo and supplies. I suggest that you take as wide a variety of seeds as you can, since you will not know in advance which crops will survive and which will fail. I also suggest that you take only fertile humans who can reproduce.

"You need to begin planning immediately, as you have at most 3 or 4 days. I'm sorry Kristal, but that will be the very best that we can negotiate on your behalf."

Linda and her male partner popped out of the room. The girls were stunned. The conversation had lasted no more than three or four minutes. Three or four minutes was all the time it had taken to pronounce the end to everything. The situation was utterly ridiculous.

Kimmay complained, "Kristal, I saw worlds far more polluted than earth, and no one 'punished' them for it. They lost a war to another species, but pollution wasn't the cause for the attack. This is insane," she complained

"I'm as shocked as you are Kimmay, but what in the world can we do?"

"We have your new weapons. We can try using them," Tiffany said.

"They aren't ready for battle, they're still in their development phase. I don't think we could even aim them without great effort. What about your device to stop them from coming through the portal? Can you mass produce them in the next couple of days?" Kristal asked.

Tiffany answered, "Can't be done. Their range is too limited and we can't build enough, let alone disburse them around the world in time. Besides, they don't work. When Linda was ready to leave she just left, the device couldn't stop her."

Kristal was still in shock and stared straight ahead for several seconds. "I'd better get the military and state department in here and brief them," she finally said.

"I'd suggest that you get the Secretary of Agriculture also. He will need to start finding experts to put together a plan," Kimmay recommended. Kimmay also was staring ahead. The magnitude of her blunder with Linda was heaping more depression and stress upon her fragile state of mind.

Kristal reached for her AV-phone but it rang before she picked it up. She punched the open button and grunted out, "Yea?"

"Hello Ms. President," a pleasant female voice said. It wasn't Kristal's secretary speaking. "I understand that you are in a bit of difficulty and may have need for some help. May I offer my services?"

"Who's speaking?" Kristal barked.

"A friend. May I come in?"

Kristal looked at the other two girls, then in a resigned voice said, "Sure, why not." Kristal hit the close button and collapsed into her chair. Almost immediately there was a knock on the door. "Come in."

The door opened and a young teenage girl walked in. She was wearing a prom dress! The dress was a strapless lavender gown with a hemline that made it only half way to the young lady's knees. She had three-inch heels in the same color. Her blonde hair was set in a bouffant up-do, with plenty of curls woven around each other. It looked like something Simon created for high school girls going to their first prom. She wore long drop earrings and a simple gold necklace. Her makeup was on the heavy side, with dark eye shadow, thick false eyelashes and bright lipstick. The outfit was finished with short white gloves and a small purse with a gold chain for a handle. She was very pretty, but looked totally out of place.

The three girls looked at each other and Tiffany smirked just a bit. The day was going from unreal to bizarre.

The young girl walked directly over to the front of Kristal's desk and curtseyed. She had a sweet, high pitched voice and said, "Ms. President, it is indeed a pleasure to meet you. We are the Keeper." She extended her hand towards Kristal.

Kristal accepted her hand and they shook. "You may call me Kristal, please."

"The world knows you as Krysallis and we would prefer that name. Does that meet with your approval?"

Her voice was so sweet and young sounding that Kristal had to smile. Her use of the 'royal we' was cute. "That is acceptable."

"We understand that you dress formally in the White House. We hope that we are attired adequately."

Again, Kristal and the other girls couldn't help but smile. There was something about this girl … a presence that just exuded confidence and strength. As silly as she looked, she was starting to lift the dark shroud encompassing the room. She obviously hadn't just walked in from the street. Each girl immediately recognized something totally unusual … even alien about the girl. But she didn't instill fear. She almost appeared as if maybe she could help.

"You look fine," Kristal said.

The girl turned to Tiffany and introduced herself, "You are Tiffany. We are pleased to make your acquaintance," she said. "Our name is the Keeper," and she shook hands with Tiffany who couldn't keep from smirking.

She then turned to Kimmay. "And you are Kimmay, it is a pleasure to see you again."

Kimmay was confused. "Again?"

The young girl froze. She said nothing for several moments as everyone else stared at her. She seemed confused and it took those several moments for her to regain her composure. She turned to Kristal and said, "Ms. Krysallis, we will need to wait a few minutes for someone else to join us. While we are waiting, may we ask a favor?"

"Certainly," Kristal answered. The girl was so perky and upbeat, it would have been impossible to say no.

"Do you serve alcohol in the White House?" Tiffany almost spit out her teeth as she snorted. Kimmay let out a little squeak also.

Kristal wasn't sure what to do. "Are you old enough?" she asked.

"Yes, we assure you that we meet your minimum age requirement."

Kristal had to smile also. This was just too weird. A few minutes ago they had just been told the planet would be taken away from the human race, and most of the race was going to die, and now she was smiling. What was it about this girl? As silly as she looked, there was an aura around her that said she was no joke. There was a power and calmness in her voice that soothed. "What may I get you?"

"We'd like to taste your scotch. We understand that the single malt, unblended variety is the best. Do you have the 30 year old type?"

Kristal was struggling to keep from laughing. "Let me check," and she reached for the AV-phone.

"Oh, and one other thing," the girl said almost as an after thought. "Do you have chocolate? We understand the Swiss variety is the best. We have been told that scotch and chocolate are two of Earth's finest delicacies, and we have also heard that they work well in combination. A synergy, we think you call it."

Kristal shook her head and said, "I will ask." She picked up the handset and began talking with someone. She looked over at the girl and asked, "Would 30 year old Glen Fiddich be acceptable?"

"Yes, of course."

"And how would you like it?"

"How would we like it?" she repeated in a confused tone.

"Neat, on the rocks, with soda …?"

The girl looked at Kimmay with a questioning smile. "Take it straight," Kimmay recommended.

"Take it straight," she repeated.

Kristal completed the order and hung up.

"We have one more request if you would be so kind," the girl asked sheepishly.

"Go ahead," Kristal said.

"We have also heard that your Cuban cigars are excellent. May we try a Cuban cigar?"

Tiffany totally lost control and started laughing out loud. The girl looked at Tiffany and asked, "Did we commit a faux-pas?"

Kristal needed all of her self-control to hold back her smile. "I'm sorry but we do not permit smoking in the White House."

"We apologize for the request," she said.

"There is no need for the apology. This is your first time to the White House. Would you like to sit down?"

"Thank you very much Ms. Krysallis, we would indeed like to sit down."

Everyone took a seat and they sat in silence for almost a minute. "How should I address you?" Kristal said. "You called yourself the Keeper. Is Ms. Keeper correct?"

"Keeper is adequate," she smiled.

"Can you tell us a little about yourself?" Kristal probed.

"No, we are sorry but we can't tell you much about us. But you probably know that this is not our real appearance."

"I assumed that," Kristal said with a smile.

"Can you tell us where you are from?"

"Sorry, but that request for information can not be fullfilled. We can tell you that we are here to help you. And we will give you more information about your current situation as soon as we are ready. We are still waiting for some one else to arrive."

Again they sat silent for a minute or more. It was a very awkward silence for the three girls, but the Keeper seemed totally unfazed. She stared directly ahead as if she were absorbed in thought. After a couple of minutes, there was a knock on the door. Kristal called out and the servant entered with a tray. Kristal pointed to their guest and much to his credit, the servant's expression never changed as he set the scotch and the chocolate on the table next to the Keeper.

The Keeper picked up the glass of scotch and smelled the aroma. She smiled and said, "It smells delightful." She took a sip and a sour disagreeable look crossed over her face. After regaining her composure she said, "It smells better than it tastes." She took another sip and then followed by another. "We think we can understand the attraction of this drink. It does grow on you." She set the glass on the table and picked up the chocolate. It melted slightly in her hand, leaving a bit of brown on her fingers. She smelled the chocolate then licked her fingers. She gave a smile and ate the chocolate. "This is very good!" she said.

She finished the chocolate and drank the rest of the scotch. "May we have another please?"

Kristal was a bit concerned, "You do know the effect of alcohol, right?"

"We do Ms. Krysallis, and we assure you that it will have no effect on us."

Kristal ordered the scotch and said, "When might we convene our discussion? As you can guess, we are very concerned about the current situation."

"We can start now."

There was a slight pop behind them and they turned to see who had joined them. The smiles immediately disappeared. All three girls stood and Kristal said, "You are not welcome here."

"Where am I? What am I doing here?" Ginger Winch demanded.

"Welcome Ms. Winch," the Keeper said while she remained seated and facing Krysallis. "We are the Keeper and we brought you here. Would you be so kind as to join us?" The tension in the room was rising quickly.

"I'm not sure I should be here," she said with obvious animosity.

"You are correct," Kristal retorted.

"Nonsense Ms. Winch," the Keeper said. She looked into Krysallis' eyes and said, "This concerns all of you. You are going to have to drop some of your hatred and work together."

"I don't think that will be possible from our guest."

"You might be surprised as to what can happen. Please, allow her to join us," the Keeper requested.

Kristal pointed to a straight-back chair against the wall, "Sit."

"Excellent," said the Keeper. Speaking to Kristal she said, "Ginger is not as knowledgeable as the three of you. Please indulge us as we bring her up to date.

"Ms. Winch, we're sure you know Kimmay and Tiffany as well as the President," she began. Ginger said nothing. "The four of you have much in common. All of you are genetic mutations, engineered by the Travelers. You were placed in environments that would nurture and enhance your special talents. Ms. Winch, you are an expert in languages and people. You are a natural leader and people willingly follow you. Ms. Krysallis, you are not much different. You were given an appreciation for science before your talents as a leader matured. Kimmay and Tiffany, your talents are also very apparent.

"Ms. Winch, the other three are much more aware of their situation than you are. They have already guessed as to why they were designed to be transsexuals. You all have the inherent aggressiveness of a male, but you were transformed into girls to give you better social acceptance and to insure that you would be infertile. The Travelers wisely made sure that none of you could reproduce and introduce your genes into the human genome.

"The addition of large doses of estrogen to your systems triggered the growth of your secondary sexual attributes as well as your special genes. Tiffany, you noticed this the most because you waited the longest to begin your estrogen treatment.

"The question that you must ask yourselves is why did they do this? Linda told you no lies, but she did not tell you all of the truth." Looking at Ginger, the Keeper explained, "Your planet Earth is very important in this universe. It is highly prolific at creating life and it is very good at allowing constructive mutations to be generated. Ms. Winch, there are microorganisms on this planet that can survive in the harshest environments, and even better, they are built on DNA. These organisms have been collected, grown and used repeatedly to teleform uninhabitable planets into habitable planets. The organisms mutate throughout the teleforming process and in the end they deliver not only a habitable planet, but a planet with DNA bearing micro-organisms that have evolved specifically to that planet's environment.

"In addition, your planet has created some wonderful creatures that have found their way in to some prophecies. That is the part Linda conveniently left out. There is an ancient prophecy that has filtered through the universe for as long as anyone can imagine. The original language used to communicate this prophecy disappeared long ago. Without the original language, no one can be sure what the prophecy actually says. It has passed through so many different languages that the original meaning cannot possibly be determined.

"Yet, this prophecy surfaces throughout the entire universe. It takes many different forms and has different connotations and innuendoes. But in spite of all the differences, there is a core statement to every variation. It is known as the Thirteenth Prophecy and it says that in this galaxy a planet will be found. It will be an exceptionally fruitful planet that will give birth to a great variety of life. From this planet, will come a race of intelligent beings that will eventually develop (or evolve) to the pinnacle of life. These beings will "open" the Universe."

"What does that mean?" asked Kimmay. "Open the universe?"

"No one knows for sure. It has been speculated to concern everything from the wondrous to the apocryphal. In one version, this species will link every species in the universe together for a moment in time. In that moment of time, all knowledge will be shared. No secrets will remain, and complete trust will be born. Some say the linking will even create a god like entity, or promote all species to gods. Much of the wondrous ideas are cloaked with more than a smattering of god-like results.

"On the other end, some believe that it will be the end of the universe. It might possibly result in the enclosure of the universe in a singularity. The event horizon will enclose the entire universe and begin to shrink. The end result will be the shrinkage of the universe to a single black hole – the meta-particle of mass will develop and the universe will erupt forth in the next big bang."

"Is the Prophecy true?" Tiffany asked.

"Is the Prophecy true?" the Keeper repeated. She took a moment to pull her thoughts together. "No one knows. Some things do support the idea. Dinosaurs are believed to be a sign. They fit a part of the Prophecy. In some variations of the Prophecy there is some wording about the 'largest and the smallest'. Your dinosaurs and whales are the largest single organisms in the universe. That is why your dinosaurs and whales have been moved to other planets. They have taken on an aura of mysticism. And their existence is used by some species to elevate the Earth to almost mythical levels. Those species believe that Earth is home to the Thirteenth Prophecy."

"Is it?"

"We certainly do not know. But what we think does not matter. Enough species in the Travelers Consortium do believe that it might be the location of the Prophecy, and that is where your problems begin. The Prophecy has been read many different ways, and as we said, since the original language is long gone no one can be sure what the correct interpretation is. But there is the question of the intelligent beings that will come from this planet. In some variations of the Prophecy, the beings are indigenous to the planet and in other variations that is not required.

"The Travelers are not totally convinced that Earth is the correct planet, but they do not want to take any chances. They are sincere in their desire to protect the planet and its ability to generate new life. But the question of the intelligent inhabitants splits their ranks. Your supporters Ms. Winch are referred to as the Builders, and they control one group of believers. They tried to protect the planet by using religion to control curiosity and scientific advancement. Their fundamentalist version of religion is actually a brilliant ploy. They have used it to develop fanatical followers who will use any measure to advance their control over the population. You are quite ruthless, are you not?" The Keepers words and message were not missed by any of the women, but Ginger acted as if she had not heard.

"The Builders seek to ultimately end all science and return humans to an agrarian existence. Of course the planet cannot support many humans in such a society, and the end result will be a much smaller contingent of humans living in harmony with their planet. Or so they speculate.

"And you Ms. Winch are starting to learn some of the other problems associated with religious fanatics. They're difficult to control and they have no qualms about going to extremes in the name of God; like killing people. Am I correct Ms. Winch?"

Ginger Winch watched and listened but did not react to the Keepers comment. "Am I correct Ms. Winch?" the Keeper asked again. She did not raise her voice or even change the inflection in her question, but there was no doubt that she was demanding an answer.

"Yes."

"Thank you. The other contingent is led by the Seekers," she said as she turned towards Kristal. "The seekers support the three of you." The Keeper motioned towards Kristal, Kimmay and Tiffany. "Their approach has been to aid you in scientific and technical advancement. They hope that they can show you how to use science to solve your problems and save your planet."

The Keeper paused for a few seconds for everyone to absorb her words. "Let me explain a bit about the Travelers to you. It is a group of technically advanced species that have formed a cooperative trading society. They call it the Consortium. It is similar to some of your political organizations. There is some cooperation, disagreement, compromising, maneuvering, and the typical emotions of envy, jealousy, and ambition. One of the more ambitious of the partners is the Builders. They are not only ambitious but aggressive, and if not for the technical superiority of the Seekers, the Builders would control the Traveler Consortium.

"Most of the partners think that there is at least some possibility that Earth might be the planet of the Prophecy. And most agree that your custodianship has been lacking. And up until now, they have been unanimous in trying to fix the problem. But they now believe that intervention is necessary. And that brings us to an interesting aspect that splits the two groups. The Builders contend that the Prophecy does not require the intelligent beings to be indigenous to the planet. They believe that if they eliminate the human race, they can place their own species on this planet under the guise of 'caretakers' and eventually they may evolve into the pinnacle of life. Those are the people who are manipulating you Ms. Winch."

The other three gave Ginger the most disgusting looks they could muster.

"And on the other side of this controversy are the Seekers. The Seekers strongly disagree, and have even called the Builders delusional. The Seekers are the most skeptical of all the partners, but if the Prophecy is possible, they refuse to rule out anything. They don't necessarily believe that humans are the gifted species, and in fact they hold a great amount of contempt for you. But in case the Prophecy requires the indigenous species for fulfillment, they are attempting to save you. As a last resort, they will transport a small contingent of your people to another planet in order to keep you alive.

"Now you at least understand the situation," the Keeper said as she finished her summation.

"So while I thought I was fighting against Linda's control, I was doing exactly what she wanted?" Kimmay asked.

"More or less, Kimmay. There seems to be some extenuating circumstances with you, but we can discuss those at some other time."

"Can you help us?" Kristal asked.

"That is why we are here." She handed Krysallis a perfect cube, about 5 cm per side. It was very hard, metallic and mirror-like on its six sides. "You need to hold the cube in a very specific manner. Hold it only by the corners using both hands."

Kristal did as she was told. The room began to dim and while the cube remained solid in her grasp, a large book opened in front of her. When the book was fully opened the Keeper said, "You may release the memory cube now." Kristal let go of the cube and it stayed perfectly still, levitated above the floor by some invisible power.

"What is it?"

"This is our legacy and purpose. We travel the universe collecting the documents that define life and civilization. Look at this document here. Concentrate on it."

"It's gibberish," Kristal said.

"Concentrate none the less." As Kristal stared at the document an alien melody began to fill the air. It was unpleasant. "That is a document written ten million years ago, in a galaxy far from here. It is a declaration of reproduction. Reproduction is not allowed to all individuals in some societies. This was a very important step forward for this species.

"Now look at this one."

"I can understand it," Kristal marvelled. "It's the Magna Carta."

"Yes, a nice piece of work for your species. Now concentrate on this one here." A very irritating squealing began to fill the room. Just as it was about to become unbearable, the Keeper stopped it. "That document sets forth the rules that the Builders and Seekers must adhere to. The Travelers are planning to take your planet. The Builders believe that they can occupy this planet, and evolve into the Prophecy. The Seekers, believe that you might have a chance of fulfilling the Prophecy. They have agreed to take you to another planet and help you survive and grow. In the Seekers view, you must be from this planet, but not necessarily remain on this planet. It is a stretch of the Prophecy but they are trying to help you. The law stated in this document says that neither group can do any of this. You have protection under this document and they cannot take away your planet or force you to leave."

"By showing them this document, they will have to leave us alone?" A glimmer of hope was spreading across Kristal's face.

"We will do even better than that, now we will give them more reason to believe that you might actually fulfill the prophecy."

"How?"

"Right now, the Seekers truly believe that they have been out maneuvered and defeated by the Builders. We shall change that. The four of you will call for the Builders and Seekers to return to Earth." She handed Kristal two more cubes. "You will present one of these cubes to each delegation. You may keep the one you have."

"That's it? That all we have to do?"

"How can that possibly work?"

"Because you will tell them that these archives come from the Keepers, and their agreement with the other Travelers is recorded in this archive. The Seekers and Builders are technically far advanced beyond your abilities. That difference pales completely between all of the Travelers and the Keepers. They will not continue with their plan. You will have complete immunity from them."

"Then we are saved? We are safe forever?" Kristal was glowing with excitement.

"Hardly. You have limited protection from a limited group of believers. Many things can still happen, including natural disasters or extra-terrestrial invasions. There are many other species in this universe that have never heard of the Prophecy. They have various technical abilities, some being extremely advanced beyond yours. You will still have to deal with these other species. Some are aggressive and others are very friendly. You are now part of the galactic collection of intelligent species. You will have to make your own way. Your success or failure is your own.

"There is no proof that you can fulfill the Prophecy and it can only buy you limited assistance. In fact, in some places the Prophecy may be interpreted to require that no one may interfere on your behalf. You may find it even more difficult to make alliances and obtain help than if you were not part of the Prophecy."

"Will you help us again?"

"Maybe, maybe not. Generally we would not have done this, but you are in a unique position. Whether or not the Prophecy even exists, we thought you should at least know about it. It could be the greatest advantage ever handed to a species … or it could be the worst curse. You will eventually determine which.

"We are going to leave now. The four of you must learn to overcome past differences and work together. You are going to have to make your own way in the galaxy now. You will no longer have any interference from the Travelers. Learn from what you have seen.

"One last thing. Keep that cube and once in a while look at it again. Once it is open, say 'Next'. Periodically there may be some additions to it. You will need to know of them and learn from them."

The Keeper looked at Kimmay and smiled, "Is this goodbye?" she asked. And then she disappeared.

"What did that mean?" Tiffany asked her.

"I have no idea," Kimmay answered.

The three of them looked at Ginger. Kristal offered the olive branch, "Will you work with us now?"

"Yes."

"Good, then you can prove it first with some good faith discussions. You can answer some questions for the FBI and the CIA. You can explain the murder attempt against Kimmay and Tiffany."

Ginger stood proudly and said, "I will act in good faith, but I want to say something first."

Kristal backed down a bit and said, "Go ahead."

"I knew nothing about this manipulation. I honestly thought I was acting in good faith with what I truly believed." Kimmay sneered. Ginger continued, "I have been misled and I will attempt to atone for my mistakes. I will start by answering all of your questions. But before I go, I want to give you one piece of advice. When you confront the Travelers, do it in public. You must convince the world that you are not hiding anything. Since I am guilty of promoting some of that mistrust, I would like to stand behind you when you face the world. I will offer public support if you want, or I will shut my mouth and defer to your office and title if you would prefer that."

Ginger began walking towards the door, "I'll wait in the outer office for your security people." As she reached the door she turned again, "I'm sorry. I offer what I can."

Kristal picked up her sat phone and called Jennifer, "Ginger Winch is in my waiting room. Pick her up and take her to a secure location to be debriefed by both the FBI and CIA. Make both agencies cooperate with each other. Treat her with respect, she is not under arrest and she may leave when she wants. However, I want a full report on what she says and how well she cooperates. Let me know where you take her. Thanks."

The three girls looked at one another with questioning glances. "What do you think?" Tiffany asked. "Is this for real?"

Kristal shrugged her shoulders and said, "I'm not sure, but I'm not going to take any chances."

"What are you going to do?" Kimmay asked.

"I'm going to do what she told us to do. How do we make our presentation of the cubes? Should we go public?"

"I think so," answered Tiffany. Kimmay nodded yes also.

"Do we do it from here?"

"I would suggest the largest public location possible."

"And with the most media and international observers as possible. You will be on the world stage so make it as large and imposing as possible," Kimmay said.

Tiffany thought for a moment and said, "What about the U.N. in New York City?"

"I can't think of a better place. Let me get it set up." Kristal called her Secretary of State and told him that she wanted to make an appearance before the U.N. the following afternoon. It was to be a major speech and all countries should be represented.

"How major is this speech?" asked the Secretary.

"Representatives from the two spaceships will be present, and the speech concerns the future of our planet, I'd say very major. Make sure that the extra-terrestrials have seats in the front of the auditorium, but not on stage. They are to be guests, not participants. How long will it take you to confirm everything?"

"About an hour to contact everyone," he said.

"Make it thirty minutes," Kristal told him and then disconnected.

"What do I say?"

"I'd give essentially the same talk that the Keeper gave us," Kimmay offered.

"Yea," agreed Tiffany. "Talk about the Thirteenth Prophecy and use that to lead into what the Builders and Seekers are each trying to do to us. We'll help you write the speech if you want."

"No, I'm better at that when I work alone. But after I finish the speech, I want you both here to help me review it and clean up details. How do we get Linda and her cohorts to attend?"

"Simple, we just ask them," Kimmay suggested.

"And you think they will show up? I don't think we can insist on anything. We're not much more than ants as far as they're concerned."

"Then tell them about the Keeper," Tiffany said.

"I want to leave the Keeper and the cube as a last minute surprise. I think it will be more effective that way."

Kimmay was staring absent-mindedly out the window. She was thinking about other things, especially her role in reaching this predicament. Without looking at anyone in particular she said, "Tell 'em about the Thirteenth Prophecy. Just say that you will tell them how the Thirteenth Prophecy will affect their futures. That's it, say no more. Their curiosity will bring them."

"That's not much," Tiffany said.

"It's enough," Kimmay answered without thinking.

 

Kristal excused herself while she tended to some other business. A servant brought sandwiches and drinks for Tiffany and Kimmay while they waited. Several times Tiffany tried to engage Kimmay in conversation but Kimmay all but ignored her. Kimmay was lost in her own world, wondering how she had been so stupid. Linda had manipulated her so easily that Kimmay was ashamed. She had hated Ginger for being so stupid that she could not see how the Builders had been using her, and now Kimmay had discovered that she had been no better and probably worse.

Linda's assessment of Kimmay had also hurt. As she took the time to be honest with herself, she had to agree. She was arrogant and she was a brat. She insisted that the world revolve around her, especially after she had returned from 15 years of travel. 'Only I know what is out there. Only I know the truth.' What a stupendous idiot she was. The two spaceships had arrived because of her. There had been no need to try out their blocking device on Linda. It was unnecessary and should have been saved for a more serious or critical situation.

How could she have been so stupid! Linda knew everything that was going on, and there was no way that Kimmay was really going to surprise her. Linda must have been playing with them when she didn't leave immediately. Kimmay had been so proud of herself! What a fool! They had gotten away with a few things and they thought they could continuously fool Linda. Linda had let them do what they were doing – probably because they were of no threat to her. The detector grid around the world was obviously allowed to exist. Linda and her people must have known it was there, but they probably allowed Kimmay and the government to think they were secretly accomplishing something.

Of course Linda knew everything that was happening. That is why she agreed to be their taxi, to be at their beck and call. Linda was watching what they did and laughing behind their back, behind Kimmay's back. How was Kimmay ever going to make this up to Kristal and Tiffany? How could she face Melissa and Valerie when they found out that her midnight screams were more about attention and arrogance, than about truly serving mankind? She was a farce!

 

While Kimmay was kicking herself, Kristal returned. "We're confirmed for tomorrow at two o'clock at U.N. headquarters in New York. We can fly up tomorrow morning on Air Force One. Listen, I'd like you two to stay here in the White House tonight. I'd like to run ideas past you concerning my speech. It will be a late night, but this has to be done just right. Will you help?"

"Of course," said Tiffany.

"I'll help," Kimmay said quietly.

"We need to contact Linda and invite her and the Builders to the press conference tomorrow." Kristal sat down behind her desk and began rubbing her ring. "I'll have the press secretary make a statement as soon as we confirm with Linda. We need to get as many people as possible watching tomorrow." She continued to rub the ring. "I'll call Jennifer and tell her to have Ginger ready to go with us also. I think the story about how she has been used will have more credibility if she is standing there while we expose her connections and ploys. If she is standing there and not denying anything, it will have more power." Kristal continued rubbing her ring, but Linda did not appear. Kristal was becoming concerned.

"What if Linda doesn't come? She never takes this long."

Kimmay was starting to suspect how much Linda really knew about the current situation. "She may not come at all. If she realizes this is a trap she won't show up."

"Do you think she knows we're setting her up?" Tiffany asked.

"I'll bet she does," Kimmay said forlornly. "I think she has played us for chumps. At least me; she's played me like a total fool."

"No she hasn't," said Kristal. "Rub your ring too, let's see if that helps."

"What do we do if she doesn't show up?" Tiffany queried.

"I'm not sure. I suppose we can still proceed with the press conference. I'm sure they will see what we're saying. Hopefully they will realize the situation that they are caught in."

"I'm not sure that will work," Kimmay threw in. "If they want to ignore …"

There was a pop and Linda was standing before them. She smiled, but her voice was cold, "Kristal, what do you want? I'm very busy trying to save your neck. I don't have time to play taxi anymore. This is the last …"

"Linda! Thank you for coming. We know the new situation and we appreciate everything you and the Seekers are doing to save humanity."

Linda stopped her tirade and looked first at Kristal and then Kimmay. "The Seekers?" she asked suspiciously.

"Yes, Linda. We are going to have a press conference tomorrow at two o'clock at the U.N. headquarters in New York City tomorrow. We want representatives from the Seekers and the Builders to be there."

The Builders name registered another surprise in her facial expression. "I compliment your resourcefulness in learning some names. I'm not sure how you obtained that information, but congratulations. However, that changes nothing. My people and I are extremely busy and we don't have time for a self-serving press conference. I don't possibly see how we can make the time to be there. Why should we come? What can you discuss that is possibly of interest to us?"

Kristal played her ace. With no trace of emotion, she calmly and matter-of-factly said, "The Thirteenth Prophecy."

That registered on Linda. Her mouth dropped open and she stared at Linda for several seconds. Then she disappeared.

Kristal smiled and Tiffany looked at her, "What happened? Will she be there?"

Kristal leaned back in her chair and said, "Yeah, she'll be there. Wait a few minutes, I think we're going to get a confirmation in a few minutes. What do you think, Kimmay?"

"I don't know anymore. I've obviously read everything wrong. I hope you're right." Kimmay was digressing into a serious mood problem.

Kristal stood and said, "I'm going to get started on my speech. I'll ask a servant to take you up to your rooms, and you can settle in. It's going to be a late night and I do want your input." Kristal was almost out the door when there was another pop and Linda returned.

"We will be at your conference tomorrow Kristal, and so will the Builders. Please tell me, what do you know? We are trying to help you, and anything you can tell us will help your situation." Linda was almost pleading.

"I'm sorry Linda, but I will no longer play sides between you and the Builders. You will both hear me at the same time tomorrow. Thank you for agreeing to come though. Linda … things have turned out different than I ever would have guessed, but I want you to know one thing. I have always considered you a friend and I always will. Circumstances often transcend and control individual relationships, but that doesn't mean I can't like you. Thanks."

Linda was totally confused. It was obvious in her expression. Kristal's comments either constituted a huge bluff, or Kristal was more confident than she had a right to be. For just a second there looked like some serious doubt crossed over Linda's face. She nodded politely and said, "Well said. Thank you Kristal." She turned to both Tiffany and Kimmay and again nodded politely, then disappeared.

Kimmay said, "Kristal, you are truly gifted. That threw her off her high horse."

"Thanks Kimmay, but I was sincere. I do like her." She said it almost as another lecture to Kimmay. Kristal was so good at using just the tone of her voice to make a statement that it was obvious to everyone why she was such a great leader. Then she changed 180 degrees and pulled Kimmay back to her side, "You two go get settled in and relax. I'll need about two or three hours to write my first draft and then I'll want your help. See ya later."

 

(continued)

  

  

  

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