AmEarth

Peter and Sergio were still in the middle of their exchange at the former US embassy, now the AmEarth embassy, in Canberra.

“Marianne is okay and so is Scott. Let me talk to you downstairs,” Peter spoke gently and motioned for Robbie to stay out of things by pointing to the room and then placing his finger on his lips. Like two kids, he and Sergio tiptoed down to the living room, where Peter poured a pair of whiskies on the rocks. A servant arrived, but Peter gestured for him to leave.

“And close the door behind you,” Peter said quietly to the servant.

Then he began to explain what had happened.

“Marianne and Scott went to the South Island after sneaking away from Scott’s Secret Service detail. They also ditched his wafer, but not hers, so we tracked them with her wafer and his microchip.”

“But they went sightseeing. Scott wanted to see New Zealand, and she offered to guide him…it was harmless,” Sergio said, confused.

“I don’t know why, but they went straight to the rebel holdout in the mountains, a place that belongs to an astronomer named Oliver Cook.”

“What?”

“We have learned that Marianne and Robbie are friends with Professor Cook, and that he is the leader of the strongest opposition group to AmEarth here in New Zealand. They know that the alien race was designed by you.”

“I know…Robbie told me, but she didn’t mention being a part of any rebel group.”

“In their defense, most of New Zealand felt the same as they did. Even the prime minister shared thoughts to that effect. It seems that you’re famous after all,” Peter remarked ironically.

“My fifteen minutes of fame are only known to the guerrilla population? Great,” Sergio joked. “Where are the kids now?”

“I was following them with a security satellite, and its path crossed with a military satellite that was already preparing an operation to neutralize the rebels.”

“An attack! So what happened?”

“Relax…I ordered the operation to be nonlethal. I did not want anything to go wrong while Scott and your daughter were nearby. I gave the order to continue when—and only when—Scott and Marianne had left the area.”

“Thank you.”

“We extracted them safely on the outskirts of the rebel camp.”

“Where are they now?”

“On the AES Reagan.”

“But we were there just a few hours ago. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Too complicated. I didn’t know when we would be there or what time they would be arriving,” Peter’s words rang untrue even to his own ears.

“You could have told her. Are you trying to scare her?” Sergio’s voice filled with a father’s rage.

“Not at all, Sergio. I promise. I think that the entire experience was enough of a scare, but we will need to be on the same page when we talk to them, which is why I need you here.”

“I don’t know what to say…”

“Take Robbie and Marianne back with you to America. Only through you can they be safe, and I don’t mean from AmEarth, but from the same rebels that we apprehended and released. At this point, they might see Marianne and Robbie as the cause of the attack. The rebels can’t know why they brought Scott there, and coincidence is not going to cut it as an explanation. She is in danger anywhere in New Zealand. The rebels were micro-chipped, and they will be monitored for the rest of their lives, but any of them not at the camp during the raid might retaliate. Even a chipped rebel could move too fast for AmEarth forces to intercede.”

“She’ll hate me for this,” Sergio said, clearly troubled.

“It was not your doing. AmEarth personnel have already told Marianne that she saved the rebels. Nonlethal force was used, and the rebels scattered. You can also tell her that she actually saved her friends’ lives, if that is any comfort to her…In any event, we need to know what to do with Marianne.”

“Maybe she would like to go to New York. I have no idea. I barely know her.”

“Well, she can’t stay here. If she associates with the rebels, she could face treason charges. You should explain this to her in the clearest way possible. Please, be candid, and remind her that AmEarth is estimated to last for centuries. Don’t you remember Essie’s projection?”

“One thousand years…Will she believe Essie? It’s like faith. Believing Essie is like believing in a new religion.”

“Let’s not overdramatize it, Sergio! For heaven’s sake…religion! It’s all numbers and probabilities—nothing like a religion. If anything is a religion, it’s those March-Sevenites who stand outside the alien museums preaching that we should let the aliens in, as though the aliens are our salvation.”

“What if Essie is wrong?”

Peter ignored the question.

“Do you want to encourage your daughter into a fight that Essie says is a lost cause? Has she been wrong in the past?”

They both paused and let that statement sink in.

“Even if there is huge opposition, AmEarth is likely to survive for ten centuries or—as a high estimate—indefinitely. So please, make sure that she understands,” Peter finished.

“I’ll do my best.”

Sergio and Peter drank from their tumblers in silence and sat looking at the garden and the baby kangaroos in the Canberra ambassador’s residence. It was surreal. Behind them was a large painting of a huge desert with Australian cowboys galloping on horseback. The yellow tones of the huge canvas spilled onto the glass walls that faced the garden and made the kangaroos look even stranger and wilder.

“Let’s get the hell out of here,” Sergio said.

“Absolutely.” Peter laughed.

Peter waited while the whiskey kicked in then spoke again.

“Sergio. I think that I’ll need one more pair of contacts from you.”

“What? You lost them?” Sergio panicked.

“No.”

“Then why do you need more? Do you have any idea how hard it is to make those? I used a special electron microscope to inlay the various veins in your retina. It’s grueling!”

“And I appreciate it! Obviously. Our entire position is dependent on these. And no, I haven’t lost them, but I need a pair for someone else.”

“Who else?”

“Do you know how you and Robbie are able to share everything? Even the hoax?”

“Yes…” Sergio agreed, guessing where this was going.

“Well, I need to have that with my wife. I can’t live without her knowing the truth. It’s killing me.”

“But what if she reacts in the wrong way?”

“She won’t. In fact, she might just kill me for not confessing earlier. She truly lives in fear, but Scott can help me there.”

“Scott?”

“I never told you this, but it was Scott who actually figured out the hoax. He’s the one who opened my eyes. The truth is, I haven’t been lying to her for as long as she will assume. I believed the alien threat, hook, line, and sinker…”

“So she needs contacts…why?” Sergio asked.

“She’s doing all sorts of charity and AmEarth work, so she is constantly in the public eye. All they need is two or three feeds, and they will be able to tell that she’s lying—once she knows, of course. I can’t have her afraid to speak whenever she is out in public.”

“But the whole world is afraid.”

“She’s my family. I can’t keep her living in fear while I know. You understand, don’t you?”

“I do. I certainly do…”

“It was okay when we both believed in the same reality, but this is killing me.”

They sat there, silently pondering this dilemma. Evidently, if a couple shared the same fears and were in the same boat, then it was somehow all right. However, if that equation was lopsided, then it was morally objectionable. Peter needed to comfort Barbara, and Scott already knew. Brianna, on the other hand, would be a different matter entirely. Maybe she would understand when she got into college in a few years.

Barbara needed those contacts, as she was officiating many of the alien museum openings around the world. Sergio’s company would make these lower quality imitations of the higher quality pieces placed at the Smithsonian Museum. Rockets, computer chips, and sculptural statues made in factories were designed to convince the population of their existence. After all, “seeing is believing.” New openings were scheduled in Costa Rica, Bolivia, and New Zealand; inevitably, she was interviewed at many of these events. Her score in the lying scale was always in the single digits, and he wanted it to remain that way.

“I’m going to call her right now.” Peter said.

“Carpe diem, my friend.” Sergio said standing up and leaving Peter to it.

“Honey?” Peter said into his phone.

“Yes?”

“Where are you?”

“I’m at the Hotel in La Paz, exhausted.”

“Are you alone?”

“Yes! You are scaring me, what is the matter?” She stammered.

“Nothing bad, relax. I just need to know no one is listening to us.”

“I am alone Peter. Is there a threat? What is it?”

“That is exactly why I am calling you. I need you to know something I found out recently. It is very important you know that what I about to tell you is the truth. It is also very important that you not tell a single soul about this.” Peter was talking slowly and thinking he should do this in person and not by phone.

“Is this anything to do with the Aliens?” She asked.

“Yes.”

“What is it Peter?”

“There has never been any contact with any alien species by man. Ever.”

“Are you mad?!”

“Barb, listen to me. I found out all the truth about AmEarth. Its an elaborate hoax to unite and rule the Earth before it self-destructed. It is really important that you know we are not in any danger, but humankind needs an enemy to unite and be motivated so AmEarth was designed to control the population through fear.”

“But, but isn’t that disgusting?”

“Perhaps, but maybe less so than creating a real fear of mutual elimination through nuclear weapons. That is a real fear.”

“Fear is fear. I have been paralyzed by fear and now it is all a lie?”

Peter knew this was a delicate moment, he needed all the help he could get.

“Honey, I believed in AmEarth and Chen and all the lies, but it was Scott that opened my eyes. He found the evidence about Kepl…”

“Scott! What has he to do with this? Don’t get him involved in this!”

“Barb, Barb, listen. Scott got me involved, not the other way around. He had a teacher that had connections in New Zealand and knew about the Kepler planet not being able to sustain life, also they knew about the human that created the alien life forms...”

“Peter, if this is true then AmEarth is doomed. As soon as people find out the whole system will collapse.”

“It won’t, they can’t? AmEarth now controls all the telescopes on earth. They also have total military power to quell any dissent. It is not something that can be stopped even by the truth.”

“That is scarier than the aliens.”

“Not if the government is benevolent.”

“When has a dictatorship been benevolent? I can’t think of a time when power wasn’t abused.”

“I am having contact lenses made for you.”

“What? What in heaven’s name are you talking about?!!”

Peter explained the entire situation for hours. Barbara became calm and regained her trust in Peter finally acknowledging that the hoax was a brilliant plot to dominate the Earth. She agreed to stay quiet and cancel all her speeches until her lenses where crafted by Sergio. Bri would have to live in fear a few more years and then they would ease her into the new reality the miniscule ruling elite shared.

Peter now had developed a new fear. The fear oft— – havihehis cont lens trick discovered. To prevent this, he decided that he would have a ritual before every new speech or event with public questions. This ritual would give him and Barbara the time to insert the contacts and would also remind them to do it. Strangely, he felt like many other emperors must have done in the past when they became superstitious and crafted silly ceremonies. A new solemn ceremony would make their lives foolproof, and they needed foolproof measures if the Johansen presidency was toocontinue. Peter called Sergio in his room.

“Hey, come back down.” Peter said.

“How did she take it? Sergio answered.

“OK, I guess. Come.”

Sergio re-entered the living room and sat right next to where he had left his drink. The ice had melted and he drank scotch-flavored water. Peter walked up to him and poured more scotch into his glass from an elegant glass decanter.

“I was thinking…” Peter started.

“Oh really?”

“Stop it. I was thinking that your knowledge can’t die with you, should that ever happen. AmEarth needs to operate well, and a president who does not know about the hoax is a constant danger as he gets closer to the inner truth. After all, there are various agencies that know about the reality. The computer is right in wanting the president to be truthful to the public on the whole, but now that this is corrected, I think that we have a formidable solution. There will be no need for a constant succession.”

“So, what are you saying? You want me to teach you how to make the lenses?”

“Not me! I can’t draw, and I don’t want to take you out of the equation. You’re reading this wrong.”

“Then what is it you’re actually saying?”

“I want you to teach Robbie and Marianne. They will be your successors and the ones who will provide my successor with these lenses.”

“And your successor will be…?”

“Could be Scott. Who knows?”

“A new monarchy! Do you have any idea how much humanity has suffered from monarchies?”

“Or it could be Barbara. What if I die? After that, it could be Scott or Brianna. Heck, I don’t know, but this system is just so strange to work within. There is no precedent.”

“Obviously!”

“AmEarth and its structure requires top-down rule. This system is benign as long as the parameters of Essie are basically structured to benefit the majority of the population. The president has no say on these settings, and the committee ensures that it is kept that way. You’re a voting member of the committee, and that is where true power lies. Think of this: I’m happy with the salary I have, and if I remain president, then I really have no expenses, so I will be set for retirement. All we need to do is ensure the responsibilities of the presidency are limited as they are today. This way, the office is only a communication service. The president is, after all, a public servant that should be incorruptible and beholden to no private interests. We need to keep this a trade secret, and this seems like the best way.”

“I can teach my girls, although I don’t know if they’ll be interested.”

“I know that there are many options, but if we play this right, we could be ensuring that our families are taken care of for generations. Isn’t that what a parent truly wants? To provide for his family?”

“I’m beginning to see why history repeats itself,” Sergio said ominously.

“Mh mm…” Peter agreed.

Both men were content, but Peter was beginning to feel the ruthlessness that power offers. He was not prepared for it, and it started as just a thought, but suddenly it grew.

“One last thing…” Peter began.

“What is it?”

“Chen.”

“I thought you sent him back into house arrest. What are you thinking?”

“I just don’t think he is going to go quietly. His nature is to fight, and he will do anything that he can to undermine this presidency. We need to hit him hard ,nough to neutralize him for good.”

“What do you have in mind?” Sergio was wary, seeing a dangerous glint in the president’s eye.

“I want Essie to remove the noncompetition clauses on his industry.”

“That will hurt him, but he’s already ridiculously wealthy. He could still use the money he has to hurt you,” Sergio argued.

“I’m afraid you’re missing a vital aspect of human nature. Chen is like all businessmen; he wants a safe bet and hates to speculate with his own money. He will be hurt, just like a child whose favorite toy has been taken away. He won’t part from the fortune he has left, not if the golden goose is killed.”

“All right. And you want me to…?”

“Present a noncompetition resolution before he lands. You have twenty hours to do it.”

“But he’ll be notified. He’ll object.”

“Not if his plane coincidentally needs its wireless communications repaired.”

“You sent him on a plane without any wireless communications?”

“There are none in the cabin.”

“That’s brilliant, but there’s one problem. The quorum needs to vote against Chen’s economic power, and that will look like direct payback. They’ll see right through it.”

“I know, which is why I have a plan. It will still look like payback, but they’ll vote in our favor.”

“How?”

Peter motioned to Sergio, and they moved from the large living room with the glass garden-facing wall to a library that shared the same view. Peter had a computer there and opened a document he had been working on. Sergio read the resolution that Peter had written.

“This might work,” Sergio muttered under his breath after reading it.

“I need you to take this and rework it on your journey. You can pick up Marianne at the AES Reagan and sail back to the States. Don’t forget that before Chen lands, you need to call the meeting. Chen will be absent, and hopefully you can pass the resolution as is. Then, when Chen arrives, I will inform him of the developments personally. I’ll enjoy that.”

Peter clicked a few times on the laptop and sent the document to Sergio’s email. Sergio was pleased to see that not only were ex-president Chen’s industries being stripped of their noncompetition clauses, but Peter had also removed them from all industries that had unfair advantages in place. Now that AmEarth was global, it no longer needed to protect the founding families that had helped it reach its current place.