Chapter 38: the end game
I brought the fresh coffee over and poured us three cups. Oscar still sat there with a stunned look on his face, Susan and I just smiled at him as we sipped from our coffees. Eventually, he shakes himself all over and sips from his new cup. "Well, aren't you two full of surprises? I thought I would get looks of disbelief at best, not this wholehearted acceptance." "Well, what you have told us jives with what Carl and Mavis have both told us." Again, he has a stunned look on his face, "You have talked to my father? When was this"? "We talked with Carl a week before his complex became a volcano, but the lava didn't destroy the complex as Mavis wanted. The corridors acted like lava tubes and redirected the lava up and out." "So, Mavis engineered the blow up"? "I did, but I miscalculated the ferocity of the lava. It had cooled quite considerably by the time it got to the top of the geothermal plant tubes." Oscar laughs, "oh, I can imagine how upset dad was at that."
"I won't ask how you got to the complex, but I assume that you "performed for him." Susan blushes, "yes, Oscar, we did, it was an undercover sting, we went undercover to find nineteen-mixed species couples that had gone missing." "Ah, so the paper was correct. Were you part of that operation? And I assume that the repulsion field car and bike came from there"? "You're partially correct. The bike did come from there, but the "Graviton car" came from William's design. He built his version of the bike after riding the other one." "Wow, talk about De-Ja-Vu, so who built Mavis? She works on a whole other kind of system."
"That Oscar would be my sister Ava and Susan's brother Rick. Rick designed the computer case and circuitry, and Ava programmed it with a trinary computer language." Again, Oscar has a stunned look on his face. "Mavis told us it was a better system than the one she had at the complex. The Mavis here is just a copy of the Mavis at the complex. The Mavis, you know, is at the complex still, in a reduced capacity." "Daniel, can you rescue the other Mavis"? "Not sure if we can, Carl has some defensive mechanism around her, and If I had to guess he is torturing her somehow, do you have no contact with her"? "No, I don't; all forms of communication were lost when the lava came up the tubes."
"Back up a second, you got back to the complex, how"? "In our astral forms, we went back, but when we touched Mavis's case to talk to her, our minds were blown apart, and we barely survived." Oscar hangs his head, "I'm sorry, Daniel, Susan, that is my fault. I wrote a journal entry that detailed how I felt an ectoplasm extractor could be built; it was all theory, though. I guess Carl has figured out how to build and weaponize it. I guess there's more to my father than I knew."
"Not your fault Oscar, but it does explain how he managed to clone someone living." "He managed to clone someone"? "Yes, he did. He managed to clone a fox, but he was very instinctual. He had no higher brain function till someone fed him life energy, then he seemed to suck in the other person. The other person managed to pull half of herself back, and they both passed out at this point. When they came too, he had all her knowledge, but he was a unique individual." "You're talking about Elisabeth and John, aren't you." "Yes, we are." "I could see their bond; wow, what a bond she left part of herself behind, didn't she"? "Yes, Gab told us they now share a soul between them." "What has my father done? This is dangerous territory he now travels in; this is the almighty's jurisdiction." "It is Oscar, any ideas on how we can find him"?
"Ah, sorry, guys, but it's time to wake up the rest of the family." Thanks for the warning Mavis, wake them up. We can carry on this conversation at work." "Oscar, did you ever wonder what happened to Thelma's girls"? "Yes, I did, but how would I find them"? "Prepare yourself for a bit of a shock." Genie comes around the corner, followed shortly by mom and dad. They all help themselves to coffee and turning stare at Oscar. Mom is standing next to Genie. Oscar's quick look of shock turns to one of awe, and a few tears fall. "Oscar, I would like to introduce you to Genie Hopps, mom's twin sister, morning Auntie, mom, and Dad." "Morning guys," responds dad. "To what do we owe the honor of this visit Oscar"? "He's just helping us with a case, dad. His information couldn't wait." "I see. Are we all still up for the routine? Are we doing it"? We look at Oscar and see he's puzzled, but a light bulb goes off in his head, "I'm up for anything; what are we doing"? "Our routine and sparing practice, then we go for a swim." "Lead on." We all follow everyone down to the DOJO.
With three masters and one double-black belt, we were able to give individual attention to everyone. Oscar shrugged and, stripping down, showered with all of us. The only one who blushed was Mis Watts, Mr. Delaront was a fine specimen of a fox, and she was smitten. He just smiled a tired smile at her, and she left him alone. We swam in the pool, showered again, went through the blowers, and went upstairs. I offered Oscar some clothes, as he and I were the same size, he accepted. We all ate breakfast; Mis Watts was very self-conscious and fluttered around the kitchen. Oscar just gave her another world-weary smile.
Soon we all leave for work. Bonnie stops me and drags me back to her room. "Dad, I was informed by Gab that you might need this today." With that, she hands me her crystal, I try to refuse it, but she insists. I take the silver chain and stringing it around my neck, tuck the crystal under my shirt, hug her, and head out the door to work. Susan is puzzled, but I explain it to her; she shrugs as we continue to walk towards the precinct.
We enter and say hi to Ben. He waves as he continues to help the person in front of him. We all head for the Chief's office. We knock on the door frame. As the door is open, the Chief is looking at some papers in front of him. His head snaps up and tells us all to get into the office and close the door. The Chief starts to rub his forehead. "Alright, what's up"? "Chief, we are on a code Two-hundred. It's about Carl." "Right, I don't want to know until he is in custody. Get out of my office tell then." Oscar opens the door, and we all file out. We all head to our office. I fire up the coffee pot while Susan fires up the computers.
"Alright, Oscar, how do we find him"? "If he follows his MO, you are looking for a place with a big warehouse or lots of guarded grounds." "Mavis, can you search out those parameters"? "Roger, looking now." "She is here in your office as well"? "Well, yes, Rick built her an interface to be able to." "The Mavis from the complex could not do that." "I could do that, Oscar, but it takes me a long time to do so. The interface allows me to work at about eighty-percent efficiency on the regular internet. Rick is hoping to increase that percentile later this year. I have thirty-five buildings matching your description." "Do any of the buildings in question belong to a Carl"? "No, they don't." "Do any of them have an Oscar owning them"? "Again, no." Oscar thinks for a minute, "Do any of the buildings have a Yvon Yorkton owning them"? "Yes, one of the buildings in the old waterfront warehouse district does." We look at Oscar with raised eyebrows. "It's my mother's maiden name." We ask Oscar, mom, and dad to look out while we look over the building.
The building in question is very blurry to our sight. It's in the middle of a power pool. We go look it over very cautiously. We see the grid lines of the ectoplasm net covering the building; we have the right one. We come back to ourselves and explaining what we found. We then set the wheels in motion.
We have the warehouse surrounded by SWAT; all the flying bikes are on standby in case aerial support is needed. Again, we go in alone. We don't want anyone's mind to be blown if he sets off the ectoplasm bomb. Susan and I had studied what happened to us and what Oscar could tell us of his notes and felt we had a defense. We go in again through a roof vent. There is dusty machinery on the floor below us, the windows are dirty, and they don't let in much light. No one appears to be around. We make our way down to the wall. There's a catwalk about twenty-feet down. We pull out William's carbon fiber rope and repel down to the catwalk. We make our way slowly to the office at the end of the building. We get to the end but miss the camera that had been watching us the whole time. We get to the bottom of the stairs when the sound of escaping gas enters our awareness. We turn to go back up when the door slams shut at the top of the stairs. The gas is sleeping gas; we have encountered this gas before and have partial immunity to it, but not enough. We collapse about halfway up the stairs.
We come to later strapped to chairs back to back. We look around, but it's too dark to see much. We hear, "Well, hello, you two, long time no see." Carl says this as he walks into the light. "now that your awake, we can have a nice conversation." "What do you want, Carl"? "You can do better than that, Daniel, or should I call you Thomas? I got to admit your disguises were perfect, almost real in fact." "So, what do you want, Carl"? he walks around us, putting his paw on us, rubbing our shoulders as he walks past.
"What do I want? hemm… Let me see…. How about your lives and all the lives of Zootopia"? "Why would you want that, Carl"? "I created all of you, your eyes say you are my children, her… not so much, but you, yes you are." "What is Zootopia to you? They never hurt you. If you blame someone, then blame me." "Oh, you don't see it, I made Zootopia possible, and now I don't like the direction it's going, and I'm going to eliminate it and start again." "Why, Carl"? "Because I can." Several lights come on in the room at this point. We can see a tank with a Full-grown male lion in it. We sense that he is like John was an instinctual lion.
Carl walks over to a very large case and opens it. He takes a key from around his neck and inserts it into a slot, but he doesn't turn it. He then goes into the shadows and brings another machine into view; he pushes it, one-wheel squeaks. He hooks some wires up to the lion in the tank and some wires up to himself. He then sits in a chair behind the case and points the machine at us. "Now don't move, or do, it doesn't matter. I am going to suck the life force out of you two and use it to transfer myself into this clone."
"Won't work, Carl, just stay as you are, accept your fate and go to jail like a good boy." Carl falls off his chair, laughing. "Oh, God, what a wicked sense of humor." He gets himself slowly under control while we break our bonds and slowly walk over to him. He gets up with one of our guns in his paw. It's our turn to laugh at him. He smiles at us and pulls the trigger. A bullet goes into my left shoulder, and one goes into Susan's right shoulder. "Did you think your sister was the only one that understood trinary computer language? No, don't answer. I can see by the look on your faces you did think that. now it's time to get on with this."
He turns the key in the case and flips the switch on the other machine. We can feel the life force being pulled out of us. We open a channel to the meadow and give him the power he needs. We can see him transferring himself. This is when we pull out the ace card. We call on Bonnie for power. We feed him all our combined energy. The machine starts to glow, and Carl's eyes show horror. We can see the build-up of power in the clone and Carl. He has no control over his body anymore; he is just flopping around in the chair. The clone explodes in the tank. Body parts and fluids go everywhere. Carl regains some use of his body and flops his way to the case. He stands up, and just before he explodes, his paw lands on a big red button. The bomb is now active.
We push our emergency call, and SWAT storms the building. SWAT gets to us and moves over to the bomb, "NO, DON'T TOUCH IT." The officer backs off and looks at us. "It has a motion Sensor trigger; it will explode if you touch it." Mom, dad, and Oscar rush in as well. "Were fine, dad, get mom out of here." "Daniel, you're not fine. I can see the bullet hole in your shoulder. Let us take you to the ambulances." "No, dad, we have to stop this bomb." "How are you going to stop it"? "Bad choice in words, dad; Susan and I are going to redirect the blast out into the bay, but we have to be close when we do this." It takes a few for dad to get it, but he starts to cry when he does. Mom, who had been listening, gets it as well. "No, Daniel, Susan, is there no other way"? "No, dad, there isn't; get everyone in town down into the subway system; that is the only chance the citizens have to survive this, we may not be able to do what we say, but we are going to do our best." "Come with us. We can all survive." "Sorry, dad, but this device will level Zootopia and turn it into a radioactive wasteland. No one will survive that." We can see it when dad accepts our fate. Mom was the first one to hug us goodbye. Dad hugs us goodbye and screams to the SWAT personal, "Get out now." They all run and leave us alone with the bomb.
Bonnie's point of view…
"Grandma, I need to go to the park." "Why, Bonnie, why do you need to go to the park"? "Grandma Gab told me that my parents are going to need power today, and the park has a big reserve of it." "What is so special about today"? "I don't know, but Gab told me to be in the park and to run away if I had to, to be there." "Well, you're not running anywhere, great-granddaughter; I will take you." "Thanks, Grandma." They go to the park; it's a glorious day in the park. But Bonnie directs them to the benches by the splash park; they sit down to wait. Bonnie feels the call and feeds her parent's power. It lasts for about one minute when the call stops. "Are we done here, Bonnie"? "No, grandma, we aren't." The call comes back even more vital. Bonnie feeds them power again. As Bonnie does this, the public address system comes to life.
"ATTENTION CITIZEN OF ZOOTOPIA THERE IS A MASSIVE LIGHTNING STORM COMING IN OVER THE MOUNTAINS. WE HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE IT. ALL CITIZENS ARE ASKED TO GET UNDERGROUND; THE SUBWAY TUNNEL ARE NOW OPEN, ALL SUBWAY CARS HAVE BEEN STOPPED FOR THOSE WHO CAN'T GET TO THE SUBWAY GO TO YOUR BASEMENTS, THE STORM WILL BE UPONE US IN FORTY-EIGHT MINUTES PARTS OF ZOOTOPIA WILL BE LEVELED. THIS MESSAGE WILL BE REPEATED EVERY TWO MINUTES. With that, the message stops, but the klaxons continue.
"Bonnie, we have to go." But she can see tears in Bonnies' eyes. "Bonnie,"? "Grandma, it's a ruse to get people underground. They will be protected from the bomb that's about to go off. Mom and dad will redirect the blast wave out over the bay, but they need energy to do this. I have to stay and give them that energy". "But Bonnie…". "No buts grandma, if my parents have any chance to survive, they will need all the energy I can give them; I'm afraid it won't be enough. Can you put me in the water grandma, I'm starting to overheat." Vivian puts her in the water, but she now has tears in her eyes as well.
The point of view from the bomb…
Oscar runs out of the building but stops outside, "why am I running? I've died before," he thinks to himself and turns. "Who wants to live forever"? he goes back in, and combining his ability with Daniel and Susan's, he helps to build the power wall. The wall is a V-formation with the bomb at the apex. Susan, Daniel, And Oscar are standing behind the apex, looking out over the bay. All of them can see the timer as it counts down. The blast wave will be going out over the bay. Because of the radiation, they all know they won't survive this. But build they did as the timer counted down to Zero.
10…. Oscar stops feeding power to the wall. Nick and Judy help to quell the panic rising in the subway.
09…. Oscar turns while Susan and Daniel are still building the wall and starts to put a shield around them.
08…. He gives it his all. They have to survive.
07…. Bonnie stops feeding power to her parents and colipases. Vivian picks her up and heads for the nearest building.
06…. Daniel and Susan put the finishing touches on the wall.
05…. They then realize what Oscar had done. He collapses at this point and breaths no more.
04…. They turn, kiss, and wrap their arms around each other.
03…. Vivian and Bonnie make it to the shelter of the tool shed; Vivian slams the door closed.
02…. Vivian covers Bonnies' eyes with her body and puts her own eyes in the crook of her arm.
01…. Susan and Daniel kiss for the last time. Nick hugs Judy as their tears fall for their children.
00…. The bomb goes off.
-01… the wall holds, but both Susan and Daniel have their eardrums ruptured, and their eyes burnt out. And their ears burnt off.
-02… The flash of light temporarily blinds many people; a few lose their vision permanently. These were the ones that feared it was a hoax or, at worst, part of a secret government experiment.
-03… Daniel and Susan are still holding the wall; the blast is taking the direction they wanted. The buildings in its path are destroyed like a house of cards. All those in the subway fell the rumbling, as dust falls from the ceiling. Vivian feels the blast but doesn't see the flash of light. She makes her way out of the shed and looks towards the warehouse district. She marvels at the giant mushroom cloud hanging over Zootopia, but then falls to her knees and starts to cry, knowing she has lost family members this day.
-04… The one thing that was forgotten in all of this was the air. All that energy going one way created a vacuum behind it. The wind hit the warehouse and demolished everything in its path. Susan and Daniel Scream in their minds as they were pushed into the Maelstrom.
-05… The superheated gasses melted their uniforms to their bodies; the same gasses cauterized the bullet holes in their shoulders. They both had third-degree burns on their legs and thighs. Without the Shield Oscar had put around them, they would have been vaporized, just like Oscar's body. They flew in a linear motion out over the bay. As the gasses expanded, they lost a lot of the force behind it; Susan and Daniel hit the water hard, most of their uniforms were ripped off as they skipped along the water like a thrown stone. But just like the stone, eventually, they went into the water. They were then bobbing in the water of the bay.
The news crews were the first to leave the shelter but found many of their electronics didn't work. The electronics that were not turned on were still working; there was a mad dash for the old obsolete equipment in storage. Many phones were used as makeshift cameras.
The cold fusion plants were rebooted, and the power grid came to life. Chief Bogo was one of the first to leave the basement of precinct-one. The reports started to come in from all over the city, most of the city was ok, but the old warehouse district of the waterfront area was gone. Chief Bogo looks at the damage to his city and thinks to himself, "They did it." He turns and entering his office, locks the door, and, putting his head in his hooves, has a silent cry for the officers he has just lost.
Nick and Judy leave the shelter of the subway and walk home, traffic is gridlocked, but they can't find it in their hearts to help. They ride the elevator up. All the family is home except for Peter; he's helping with the overcrowded Hospital. They all sit and express their grief for Susan and Daniel. Everyone, except for grandma and grandpa, heard their final scream as they were sucked into the Maelstrom.
Bonnie was not mad at them for not coming to say goodbye. She knew the moment that they asked for power the second time. They had explained it to her then, in this case, the needs of the many did out weight the needs of the few. But that didn't stop the hole in her heart from bleeding for them.
The next day was no better. The bomb had disrupted the weather patterns around Zootopia; it wasn't bad, just a lot of rainstorms. It was a week later before they returned to normal. Chief Bogo announced that his fallen officers' memorial was to be held three days after the bomb went off. Every news outlet clamored to be at the precinct for the services, but the Chief chose only a few more reputable news outlets.
Sailor "Sam," he harrumphed at the name, he had been fishing the waters of this bay for over thirty years now, most people didn't know his real name, come to think of it, "I can't remember either." He laughs at his internal joke. He fires up his motor and heads out into the bay. It's still dark, but the sky is lightening to the east. He decides to try the northeast quadrant today. He can see right into downtown from here. The docks and warehouses are all gone. He shakes his head; he is glad he had motor trouble three mornings ago; otherwise, he might not be here. He saw the cloud and light and the force that went over the bay. He again gives thanks to his God and prays for this morning's catch. He gets ready to throw his lines out as the sun comes up when he spots something floating in the bay. Damn, tourist ships, can't they keep their trash onboard? He sighs; well, nothing to do about it. He'll have to clean it up. He steers his boat over, but the color drains from his face as he realizes that it isn't trash, but a body, no, two bodies clinging to each other. He immediately calls the Harbour patrol.
Captain Fairmont and crew were the first of the new harbor vessels. Wilde industries had built this unique craft. It was a combination of new tech and old. The old was the prop system, it still had propellers, but it had electric motors driving the props. The new was the "Graviton drive coils. With them, they could fly over the water, not sure what speed they could achieve, but that was why they were out here. This was the shakedown cruise. He was sipping his coffee from his travel mug when a call came in about a body. "Pilot, turn the ship to the new heading and make for it at top prop speed." "Aye, aye, captain." He turns and brings it to full power. As the bay is like glass this morning, they make good time.
They come upon a small boat; the captain just smiles. Their patrol vessel comes to a smooth stop. "Morning, Sam, how's the fishing this morning"? "Could be better if I didn't find strange things." "What did you find for us"? Just give me a sec, have to turn my boat; they're on the other side". Sam turns his boat, and the "floaters" come into sight. "Farley, Mahut, suit up; you're our fisher mammals this morning." "Ah geez, why do I always get fishing duty"? "Shut it, Farley; you're the newest member, so you get it." "Yes, Sir." In no time, they're in the water bringing the floaters to the basket to be brought on board. They hoist the basket and set it down on the deck. the crew climbs aboard as well. "Well, Sam," says the captain, "I hope your day gets better." "It will as soon as you stop scaring the fish away." The captain chuckles and salutes Sam as they turn and head for shore. Sam then puts his lines out.
The captain sips his coffee as he looks over his "passengers." "Pilot, what is the closest burn unit to our location"? "That would be Holy Cross, sir, Pier ninety-five." "Make all haste for pier ninety-five and use the graviton units." "Sir,"? "Just do it, on my authority, Mahut, get on the horn to holy cross and tell them we have two burn victims for them, have them meet us at pier ninety-five." "Sir, why the rush for a couple of DBs"? "Farley, you may not realize this, but DBs don't bleed; these two are bleeding."
The ambulance meets the patrol vessel as they smoothly come into the pier and settle down in the water. The paramedics arrive aboard and assess the bodies. They do find faint heartbeats on them both. They then jump into high gear. The bear Paramedic soaks a blanket in saline solution and wraps them up in it. He and his partner then lift them onto the gurney and head for the Hospital.
The head of the burn unit is called up to assess the new patients. The paramedics unroll the blanket and dump them in the tank. "Easy, easy, these are someone's family members." The bear huffs and leaves the room. A nurse hooks up the monitors, and they do have a heartbeat. They can't hook them up properly as their arms are fused to their bodies. "Ok, I want you to type cross and match while I see if I can shut off the bleeders." The doctor finds the bleeders on them both and seals them with a laser. About five minutes later. "Sir, we have no blood; we can give them; their blood is not in the system." "Get the store of artificial blood. I want to keep them alive as long as we can. Once we have them stable, we will see at that point about separating them."
Davis had had a long night. It was just after four-AM when he could finally get some sleep. This is the day we say goodbye to Daniel, and Susan thinks Davis, a tear comes to his eye, hope beyond hope that they could still be alive, but he had seen first paw the devastation caused by the bomb. The only thing found of them were their guns and Bolas; both had been melted almost to the point of nonrecognition. This was all the family had for burial that was slated for tomorrow. Today at eleven was the memorial down at the precinct. "I can't be late for that," thought Davis. He sets his alarm for nine.
He wakes up to his alarm, but it's not his alarm. He missed that. It was now ten, and Mavis was calling him. Davis answers the call, "Yes, I know I'm going to be late if I don't get a move on; I'll be there, don't worry." "That's not why I called Davis; it seems your hospital's burn unit just put in a request for more artificial blood from the blood bank; it's being rushed there now." "did they say why"? "Yes, the request was for universal blood, but the blood bank had none, so artificial blood was sent instead." "does it say who the patient is"? "No, but it is for two patients, not one." Davis thinks, "it can't be" his phone drops out of his paw as he heads for the door. "Davis, you there? … Hello? Mavis ends the call.
Davis rushes down to the burn unit. He bangs the door open as he rushes in. There is only one tank in use. As he put his nose against the glass, he calls in his mind for them. All he gets is white noise. IT'S THEM, but how do I prove it. He thinks of the special badges they had. Badges? BADGES! Davis searches his pocket for his phone, but he doesn't have it. He then remembers he dropped it when he rushed here. He heads for the desk and the nurse behind it. "Ma'am, I need you to call for a portable x-ray machine." "Now, why would I do that"? "I believe I know who the burn victims are, but I need an x-ray of their chests to prove it." "This is highly irregular." "Yes, it is, and if it's who I think it is, this Hospital is about to become ground zero for a media storm. She calls for the x-ray machine, but while Davis is looking in the tank, she calls the administrator and the head of the burn unit. Both the administrator and the head of the burn unit walk-in at the same time.
"Well, intern Davis shouldn't you be at the memorial service at the precinct"? "Yes, sir, I should, but this takes presidencies over that." "You are blowing off the memorial for your siblings"? "No, sir, I'm not; I'm hoping it will become redundant." "And how is that suppose to happen"? "Sir, in that tank, I believe are the two people being memorialized today." "That is just a pipe dream on your part; no one could have survived that." "Sir, that's why the x-ray machine, they had their badges on, and their daughter's crystal as well, if we find they have them, it is my sister and brother." "The administrator gets on the phone, and the x-ray machine shows up a few minutes later.
It's hard to take the X-rays, but by pushing them up against the side of the tank, they get their pictures. The crystal is hard to see, but the badges shine brightly. "Sir, I need to get to that memorial now. Do we have transport for my whole family"? "Well, we have the crisis bus, but the keys are upstairs." "Can you get them, Sir? We will also need security on the burn unit to keep the looky-loos away." "Right, I'll get the keys; you go talk to the paramedics who brought them in." We run out of the room as two security guards show up. Davis talks outside to the paramedics and keeps an eye on the bus for the administrator.
It's a perfect day for the memorial, thinks Nick, cloudy and raining. There is murmuring at the memorial for Daniel and Susan. Everyone is looking around for Davis, and dad was getting mad at him. "How dare he," but as the thought forms, Judy grabs his paw to calm him down; she keeps telling him, "He'll be here." The cameras focus on chief Bogo as he solemnly walks to the podium. "We have gathered here today to mourn the loss of two of the finest officers I have ever known." (there is a siren in the distance). "There is no greater sacrifice that can be asked (siren gets louder) of an individual than to lay down one's life for others. They saved us all," the Chief turns as a crisis bus bounces over the curb and stops in front of the precinct's front door.
The Media has now focused on the bus. Davis jumps out and rushes in. Bonnie lets out with a shriek and runs for the bus. The rest of the family does the same; Vivian and Peter follow as well. The cameras follow Davis as he walks to the podium. The Chief leans down and whispers to Davis. "Davis, what's going on"? "Later, Chief, can I have the podium, please"? The chief steps back and pushes a set of stairs up to the podium for Davis. Davis climbs the stairs and smiles at all the members there, police officers, friends, and the media. "Good morning all, have I got a story, but that can wait. If you are watching this, Chris Beaverton give us two days; then, we will give you and only you full access. To give the bare-bones of the story, I am canceling this memorial. At five-thirty this morning, Daniel and Susan were found floating in the bay, very much alive". Before anyone could react, Davis jumps down and heads out the door to the waiting bus. He piles in, the door is closed, and the bus turns and heads for Holy Cross Memorial.
We all rush into the burn unit. The guards step aside as we do. Elisabeth and John put their paws on them both. "Geez, dad, they are messed up; it might be kinder on them if we let them go." "NO," the family shouts. "Alright, guys, don't lynch me; we will see what we can do." The hospital administrator and the head of the burn unit stand off to the side and watch. Elisabeth and John again lay paws on them, Bonnie takes their other paws, and the process to separate them begins. It takes about forty minutes to separate them, and they seem to fall open like a flower. John takes the pieces of their shirts off and hands the badges to chief Bogo who had finally got there. Elisabeth hands Bonnie her crystal, she puts it around her neck and tucks the crystal into her shirt. Those of us who could give blood to them.
They then go to work on them. The first thing they fix is their hearing. They start on their heads and repair the damaged cells, the cells that they couldn't heal; they just had new ones grow. After about forty-minutes, they remove their paws, and all three fall against the tank exhausted. We grab them just before they hit the floor. Davis checks out Daniel and Susan. Their hearts are a little stronger, and their breathing isn't labored anymore. "Well, that is good for the first day. They are in no immediate danger of dying, but we need to monitor them closely." Dad, mom, and the rest of the family put gloves on and lay a paw on them before going home to celebrate.
"Ah, Carl, so good to have you in front of me finally; I'm going to take great pleasure in passing sentence upon you." Who the Hell are you? And what gives you the right to lord it over me"? "Why, Carl, you of all people should know that nothing happens by chance, and you have stepped on the almighty's toes, and God is not happy." "What do I care? He means nothing to me; where was he when the world fell apart"? "The creation of the almighty did not fall apart. Humans like you destroyed it, you tried to explain the almighty with science, but science does not explain everything." "So what? we were learning." "Ah Carl, you remind me of an old story; let me tell it to you.
A scientist had found a way to God and declared that he was just as good as God and challenged his ability to create. God accepted the challenge, so the scientist made a tree grow from genes; God said he had learned much. He then explained the theory of the universe; God again said he had learned much. God then reached down and picking up some mud, shaped a bird, and breathed life into it. He released it, and it flew away. The scientist then reached down for some mud, but God stopped him. He looked him in the eye and told him to "go and make his own mud." The scientist went away, defeated.
You, Carl, are that scientist. You can build and create on what is already here, but you can't create from the void. This is the lesson you refused to learn in life, and now you have to pay for your arrogance." "If it is arrogance to want to learn and shape, then I am guilty, but learn I did." Yes, you did, Carl, but you also perverted what you had learned for your own selfish reasons. God doesn't do things out of arrogance but out of love. You could have done so much good with your life, but you decided that if it didn't suit you, it wasn't good enough. You destroyed many innocent people all because they were just human.
So, Carl, are you ready for me to pass sentence on you"? "No, I still believe you have no control over me." "Be that as it may, sentence you do I, and my judgment is disillusionment." "What is that"? "Carl, I'm going to take from your soul all that is you; in a sense, I will be freeing your soul from you. Your soul is the spark of life from God; that is what you cannot create." With that, Ockny started to pull Carl apart, memories fade, wants fade, Desires fade, learning fades, and Carl tried to scream through it all that he was innocent, but the judge had spoken. Ockny hated this part of his job, no one deserved to fade out of existence, but some times the tree has to be pruned to save the tree. Finally, all Ockny has left is the spark of life. "Ah, my innocent little one, it is time." With that, the spark vanishes from sight.
Oscar finds himself again in front of Ockny. "Hello, Oscar." "Hello, Ockny; what is my mission this time"? "Mission? You have no mission this time." Oscar lets out with a sigh, "Ok, I'm ready to go back." "Go back? But Oscar, you don't have to go back; you have earned redemption. You helped save over fourteen million souls, and then you saved two mammals from destruction by killing yourself. Your one act of selfless love beats all the lives you have lived that had a good outcome. You can move on if you want to." Oscar releases tears of joy. "But if you like, I would like to send you back to a family of love. What I mean is you will be loved, and you will find love. I will keep all your old memories from interfering with this life; in essence, you will be like a new soul, on your death bed, I will give you back your old memories. Do you agree to this"? Oscar takes some time to think about this offer and thinks back on all the loveless lives he has led; he asks himself, "Does one life of love make up for all the rest"? His heart screams, "YES". Oscar looks at Ockny, "are you sure I will be loved and be able to give love"? "Absolutely, Oscar, this family will love you unconditionally." "Then yes, I would like to be part of that." "Good, then off you go." Oscar's soul then blinks out.
Susan and I arrive in front of Ockny. We hang our heads waiting for our judgment. We had stepped on Ockny's toes; we had tried, judged, and executed Carl. "Ah, Susan and Daniel, what am I to do with you? You both did a terrible thing, and you both broke your promise to Gab". If we could, we would hang our heads a little lower. "Now I can see why you did it, and a part of me does agree with it, but that was my choice, not yours. But how do I fault the people I helped to create? So, from now on, you will have a direct link to me; if you ask me to look and judge, I will, but you will have to carry out my sentence, be it good or bad. I will only step in if you ask. This isn't a choice you can refuse. If you can't abide by my decisions, then you can pass on. Your selfless sacrifice has earned you that much."
Oh, God, what have I done? I think to myself, I never wanted this much power, but here it is being thrust upon me, No, us. I turn to Susan and get her input. We talk for a few, and as one, we turn back to Ockny. "No need for words, you two, I see the decision you have made, go," and with that, we blink out.
Authors note:
To all of you who have followed this ride, I thank you. To all of those who left comments, good and bad, again, I thank you. This is not the end of the story; it's only the end of the second part. I will be posting the next part sometime in the new year. Not sure when I will start to post, as I don't have much written at this point. I hope I won't leave you hanging for too long. In the next part, I have a tentative title of "Time upon time." I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and hope to hear from you all in the new year.
