Next day when I got to the office and saw Larry there, I saw him…well, quite worried. "Hey, what's wrong?" I said to him.

He looked at me. "You remember how I said we were going to test the force field today?"

I nodded. "Yeah?"

"Well, we're going to have to change our plans."

"What?"

"We're going to set up the force field. Not just test it. And we're going to keep it on as long as possible."

"Whoa, whoa! Larry calm down! What are you talking about? What's wrong?"

He sighed. "Sit down."

I sat down at my desk. "What's the trouble?"

He shook his head. "We're in huge problems. Or should I say, you are."

"Could you please explain?"

He started pacing back and forth. "The US, Canada, and the entire European Union are joining forces."

"To do what?"

He sighed. "They don't like our stance on LGBT rights and abortion." I should mention a little about this, since these are delicate and controversial matters. Here in Amarkia, we try to live by high morals. The kind of morals that don't exist today and that people make fun of.

As for gay marriage and LGBT rights…well, how can I say it? Well, we are not, I repeat, are not prejudiced against those people. And we do not infringe on their rights. They can have jobs, and a good education and all that. But, we don't allow them to have government positions and they can't adopt or have custody of minors.

And if they want to get married, they have to go do it in another country, because we're against that. We view gay marriage as grossly immoral. I mean, think about it. Animals are all male and female, right? Why should humans, who are superior to animals, be different?

And besides, most common people in Amarkia look down on gay marriage.

And as for abortion…

We view it as murder. That's it. It's murder. Never mind all that talk of the woman having rights. If she didn't want to get pregnant, she shouldn't have gotten pregnant in the first place. And even though it's not a conscious being and it feels no pain, it's still a living human. And it's still murder. Abortion in Amarkia is punishable by death.

However, sometimes the woman suffers a spontaneous abortion. We understand that it wasn't of her will, and we forgive her. Or sometimes, her husband, boyfriend or partner attacks her in order to kill the baby. If he doesn't succeed, he has to pay the damages. If he does succeed, he receives the death penalty.

So now you know not only our view on those two areas, but also my own personal view.

Anyways, I said, "Well, not everyone likes us completely, you know."

"Yeah, I know but this time it's different."

"What do you mean?"

"They're giving you one last chance. If you don't change the laws, they're going to take you to the UN Court of International Justice."

My heart leapt up to my throat and started hammering like crazy. My voice croaked. "What?!"

He nodded. "Yeah."

"They can't do that! They have no right!"

"Well, in a sense, you're legally obliged to go. And since we're not in the UN, we really don't have a say in the matter. That's the one and only disadvantage of not being part of the UN. They can arrest you and take you far away."

I gulped. I suddenly saw my whole life go before me. "Is that why you said that you were going to put the force field on permanently?"

"As long as I can. I mean, we can't have the force field on forever, you know."

I sighed and put my hands in my pockets. "That's true."

He walked back to his chair. "What do you think the worst-case scenario is?"

"The worst? Well, the worst would be that I get arrested, dethroned, and my family is also taken away. The monarchy is dissolved. They turn Amarkia into a republic with highly liberal laws, make a purge of all the military and civilian government leaders, destroy the constitution, burn the Palace, seize all of our riches, sell the cancer cure at high prices, take over the military, drill for oil and other fossil fuels, discovery the super powers…"

"Okay, okay! Please don't go on! That gives me a pretty good idea. And I must say, that is scary."

"I know."

"But you know what? I think that's not the worst thing that can happen."

"Really? Well, what could be worse?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I just have a feeling that something could be worse."

We went back to our desks and continued our work. The huge tension in the air was not unnoticeable. It was like the calm before the storm. The eye of the hurricane. The moment before the bomb explodes. The lightning before the thunder.

Larry suddenly shot up and shrieked. And I mean, shrieked! He actually squealed. That was no ordinary scream.

Naturally, being under those circumstances, I got scared. "What? What is it?"

Larry turned on the TV that we have in the office. He turned to the news. "Breaking News of the last minute! We have just confirmed that three airplanes with UN officials and UN peacekeeping troops have landed in Amarkia. A search will begin to arrest the King and take him to the UN Court of Justice in The Netherlands."

Larry and I both stared at each other in shock. I screamed. I couldn't help it. "What do we do?!"

"Uh…uh…uh…uh…I'm activating the force field right now!" He ran over to the secret closet we have in the back. He opened it and ran in. A little while later he came out. "Okay, it's on. Now, we have to get you on a helicopter and take you somewhere…somewhere…I know! We'll go to the Great Chasm that's in the desert and hide in one of the caverns."

"Helicopters? Hide in the caverns? What are you, crazy?" I exclaimed. I guess I was so nervous that I didn't know what I was saying.

"Just go! Just go! Come on, let's go!"

"Okay, okay!" We both ran out the office and took the elevator to the roof of the building. The yellow chopper was waiting there on the helipad. We ran in and closed the doors behind us. The pilot and co-pilot started the engine and we floated in the air. We turned towards the northeast and headed in that direction.

"I hope no one sees us," I said to Larry over the noise of the blades.

"Well, we are a yellow helicopter," he said.

"Yeah, but we're a helicopter. We could be flying for any reason!"

Larry looked out the window behind us. "Yeah, just like that black helicopter behind us with the UN symbol on it."

My heart stopped beating. I whirled around in my chair. Sure enough a black, menacing-looking helicopter was hot on our trail.