NationStates Jolt Archive

Roger sat up and told everybody, "You know what, I'm hungry for Egyptian Pheasant, I'll be back in a few days after everybody has had the chance to cool down and calm themselves, myself included. I mean for crying out loud, we almost got into half a dozen shoot-outs!"




RP with Seryown (Alice) and CM (Roger + Narrator) done over MSN.



Roger got up from his seat and moved away towards where the diplomat from Seryown was.

Roger had just sat down in the seat next to Alice, he started to speak

(Roger) "So you would be the famous Alice Carrion yes?"

Alice continued to give him her worst looks when she bothered to look at him at all.

(Alice)"I was not aware that I was famous."

(Roger) "You're the Deputy Minister of Peaceful Foreign Relations, your work is well-known in parts of the CM Commonwealth."

(Roger) "Mostly in Mississippian Libya and Mississippian Egypt, formerly in Angola. Angola was a disaster you know, for both races."

(Alice)"Actually, I'm his Assistant, but you can't be expected to remember it all."

(Roger) "Well perhaps you've heard of our foreign minister, Paul Stahlecker, he has many brothers and sisters."

(Alice)"Oh yes. I never found out how Peter Stahlecker made out at home after he got there."

(Roger) "He is currently on an aircraft carrier headed for Mississippi, he'll be fine."

(Roger) "Well physically, but I fear he'll have great emotional damage."

(Alice) "Oh, yes. He was quite drunk when our troops found him, actually. I'm not sure he handled that so well."

(Roger) "Yes well to go from being governor-general of a grand colony, to a refugee fleeing for your life, it will take a lot out of a man."

(Alice) "Really? What about going from untrained recruit serving his dutiful few years in the army to battle-hardened, friendless soldier?"

(Roger) "I'm not sure I see what you mean."

(Alice)"Almost none of the soldiers we sent into Angola to help with your evacuation had seen war before. Almost no one in Seryown had seen war before. To save Peter Stahlecker's life and how many other Mississippians, we sacrificed not only the lives of many soldiers but the innocence of many more."

(Roger) "Ah well you do know how many of our Imperial soldiers and the white Colonial soldiers had died in the 8 months of the war. Not the figure we originally reported, not the 20,000 we reported. Not that many, over 300,000 died."

(Alice)"You did choose to go in there, did you not?"

(Roger) "You see the first 4-5 months of the war it was low-level guerilla fighting, then they threw 5 million soldiers at us, we lost 100,000 imperial soldiers and had to pull them out for other tasks in Libya. But yes we did go there, we went there, we had to go there."


(Alice)"You had to?"

(Roger) "Without at least a few colonies, no nation can be a real nation. We need an empire if for no other reason, for national prestige."

(Alice)"The House seems to agree with you."

(Roger) "Do you agree with me?"

(Alice) "The fall of every power has come soon after their expansion outside their lands."

(Roger) "But in Mississippian Libya and Mississippian Egypt, we have raised such large armies and sent so many colonists, that nothing can eject us from those lands."

(Alice) "Perhaps that is what Hitler thought when he sent the blitz into France?"

(Roger) "He picked too many fights at once and made too many enemies, you need to isolate your enemies and take them one at a time when they're weak and don't expect it."

Her tone quickly changed to the sarcastic.
(Alice) "You've certainly succeeded at making few enemies."

(Roger) (Sighing) "Yes we have." His tone changed to very soft and friendly as he looked into her eyes, "But perhaps our nations will be friends."

(Alice) She refused to meet his eyes, instead raising her head and looking forward. "I can't say it's something I've hoped for."

(Roger) "Well enough about politics, would you care to tell me about yourself?"

(Alice) "Not particularly. How's your father?"

(Roger) "Honestly, I don't know, thank you for asking though. I think he will be well just given time. Perhaps you should meet him sometime. Are you sure you don't want to talk about anything else?"

(Alice) "All right." Her expression changed to a slightly cruel smile. "And your brother?"

(Roger) "Well which brother? There is George, Henry, and William."

(Alice) "I think it is probably obvious. The one who I would have heard about recently."

(Roger) "Ah yes Henry, he is fine.

(Roger) "Well he is under house arrest, but you should see the palace he's been confined to, hardly Spartan conditions!" (He chuckled as he said the last part)

(Alice) "Had a good conversation with him recently, have you?"

(Roger) "You've spoken with Henry?"

(Roger) "No I cannot say I've spoken with him lately, we're not on speaking terms."

(Alice) "Not personally, I have not spoken with him. But my office has to keep tabs on important people of friendly governments."

(Roger) "Henry will live, he will not go the way of my brother-in-laws."

(Alice) "That's not my only concern."

(Roger) "There were two men, both from upper class army families, one married to my sister Victoria, one married to my other sister Eleanor. Both of the men fled CM and defected, the DIS promised them amnesty if they returned. They did so and they were promptly shot."

(Roger) (Smiling at her as he looked into her eyes) "So tell me, are all the women in Seryown as lovely as you?"

(Alice) "In my country, you have to be beautiful to become important. So those of us you'll meet, yes."

Roger ran his left hand through his long brown hair as he spoke to her.

He then nervously started to tap his fingers on the table.

(Roger) "Well perhaps you and I might go meet somewhere more private then?"

(Alice)"Or not."

(Roger) "Why not? We could better discuss diplomatic matters that I don't want the others to hear."

(Alice)"Frankly, I have no interest in discussing any diplomatic matters at all. I'm here because Mr. Mason needed someone important to remain to be in the discussion and he dislikes me most."

(Roger) "Well then if you want to quit your job and move to Mississippi, you'll find conditions much more, how shall I say, enjoyable." He grinned as he said, "enjoyable".

(Alice)"If I ever meet the right person to move for, I can't say I wouldn't consider it."

(Roger) "Well any white person may move to Mississippi and they're given over 500,000 dollars to help settle in Mississippi and find a house. It's a odd policy considering we constantly complain of overcrowding, but just between the two of us, if 3% of Mississippi didn't own 80% of all good land, there'd be no real problems."

(Alice) "How much of that three percent is a Fabus?"

(Roger) "The Fabus family is the richest family in Mississippi, the Stahleckers come in second, Baldur Schacht come in third, Navarres come in fourth, Salazars come in sixth, Reginald Smith and his family are also very rich."

(Alice) "So, quite a lot, then?"

(Roger) "The high party and military elite own most of the land."

(Alice) "Ah. Who is the party elite, again?"

(Roger) "Mostly the old officers from the civil war."

(Alice) "Like the one who won it?"

(Roger) "I'm getting quite hungry, perhaps you'd care to join me for dinner, I'd consider it an honor to dine in the company of somebody as refined as yourself."

(Alice) "If it'll get you quiet about going somewhere else, fine."

(Roger) "So, shall we go then, I know just the place, you'll love it. It is a good distance from here though, but these people are boring me and these talks are really getting nowhere. So would you care to go then?"

(Alice) "Fine. I'm not easily impressed, though. So don't get the wrong idea."

(Roger) "Okay, well we can take my car to the airport and we'll be in Alexandria in time for dinner."

(Roger) "The best Egyptian pheasant they offer."

(Alice) "Considering it's in Egypt, I should hope they offer Egyptian pheasant."

(Roger) "Yes, but there were no pheasant in Egypt until we brought them there, so we call them Egyptian Pheasant so people know it isn't regular pheasant, it is pheasant genetically altered to thrive in the hot climate. Shall we go then?"

(Alice) "Of course."

They walked towards the door, Roger called for his men to all leave, he said to the czar, "Thanks for nothing!" but he said it in Portuguese, so nobody really knew what he meant. He held the door for Alice and then held the door to the limousine for her also.

(Alice)"You needn't be so rude to the man." She said, but she did step into the limousine.

(Roger) (Innocent tone) "Whatever do you mean?"

(Alice) "When you're in my position, and your nation is heavily involved in Angola, you bother to learn at least the beginnings of that nation's official language."

(Roger) "Ah, well forgive me then, had I known you spoke Portuguese, I'd have insulted him in say Afrikaans or French perhaps."

(Alice) She smiled briefly before returnee to her previous manner. "It wouldn't change the fact that it's an insult."

Roger got into the limousine and sat down very close to Alice, he leaned back and then said, "Yes, well the czar insulted me the entire evening, thinking I don't know Russian!"

(Alice) "Perhaps in Mississippi the overcrowding has gotten to you, but in Seryown we endured both it and our concept of personal space at the same time."

(Roger) "Well the generals wanted the army to play war games in Africa, so we took a few nations for them to have their games. The farmers wanted to move to new lands and gain new farmland for their sons and such, so we did it. We need our commonwealth."

(Alice) "What I was trying to get through your skull was the distance between us, not your people."

(Roger) (Laughs) "Well I'd have gotten that idea, but that would have been somewhere before the 5th glass of brandy." He slides closer to her, making him about as close as he can get without sitting on her lap.

(Alice) "Your chances of not setting off a diplomatic incident between our two nations have just dropped astronomically, and your chances of me leaving the next time this limousine comes to a stop have just raised in an opposite manner."

(Roger) "Oh, sorry about that." He moved about 2 feet away from her, "Must have slid over when the car made that sharp turn back there, sorry."

(Alice) "Right."

(Roger) "So tell me what do you want to do while we're in Egypt?"

(Alice) "Well, I plan to eat some pheasant."

(Roger) "Well I mean after that, would you care to go to Parthian Egypt and see the pyramids? I plan to stay in Egypt for at least a few days. I'd be honored to have you stay as a guest, would you like to?"

(Alice) "Perhaps. Even if I enjoy dinner, which is not very likely, and decide it might be enjoyable to spend some time in Egypt, which I haven't thought through yet, I'd need to-aw, hell. Sure."

(Roger) "Have you ever seen 5 million soldiers all gathered together for a massive war game?"

(Alice) "No, I've never actually watched war games. I tend to apply myself more toward peace."

(Roger) "Well then you are in for quite a treat, we might just get to see the federal army and the commonwealth army in Mississippian Libya and Mississippian Egypt war gaming. Ah peace? Well to secure peace be ready for war."

(Alice) "We are always ready for war. But I see a more malicious intent than preparation in these war games."

(Alice) "I see a warning to DontPissUsOff about what you think will happen if they try to attack Mississippian Libya."

(Roger) (Smiling) "You're a very smart woman, yes, you are partially correct."

(Roger) "But also, we need to practice, practice makes perfect."

(Alice) "Even if you didn't intend it, I think you also sent another message. I don't think they received it, but I still think you sent it. You said that you were willing to retaliate without a nuclear strike."

(Roger) "We've made it quite clear, if we go down, the world comes with us. We have enough biological and chemical weapons to blanket the planet 1000 times over, to kill more than 10 trillion people. But we will not be the ones to start a war, we will simply be the ones to end a war."

(Alice) "Mr. Mason sees your point. I don't."

(Roger) "How don't you see my point, tell me your ideas, I'd like to hear what you have to say."

(Alice) "The use of a weapon of mass destruction is immoral."

(Roger) "Ah, well who is to decide morality? The enemies who force us to reinforce our position in Libya, thus weakening our position in Angola, and allowing for marxists to kill millions?"

(Alice) "Please. You are as Christian as I. You know who determines morality."

(Roger) "Yahweh determines morality. You know I cried for three days straight when they showed me video footage of what happened to Angola, the colonists, the settlements, the cities, etc. I'm not some heartless beast who is eager to annihilate the world."

(Alice) "And yet you slaughter civilians."

(Roger) "We do no such thing."

(Alice) "They call you Bloody Saber, don't they?"

(Roger) "Yes they do, because I led a sabre charge against an enemy unit, and we won the day, we killed armed enemies."

(Alice)"You were bragging that you killed quite a number of unarmed ones afterwards."

(Roger) "I'll admit the regime as a whole has killed probably 90 million civilians in its 20 years of existence, but I've personally never killed any unarmed people. My men have before, but I cannot be responsible for what they do when I'm not around."

(Roger) "I mean mobs alone have lynched about 18 million people in the past 20 years."

(Alice)"You were bragging."

(Roger) "Yes, well we crushed only people who needed crushing, those that were rebelling. You understand yes? And it wasn't exactly my unit that did the crushing, artillery fired chemical weapons at the rebels and the rebel supporters."

(Alice) "This is a circular argument."

(Roger) "Maybe, but the rebels we gassed aren't around to dispute our logic."

(Alice) "Which is the hole in it." She paused, and then changed the subject. "Tell me this ride won't take much longer."

(Roger) (Looking out the window) "We're at the hangar right now, shall we get on the plane then?"

(Alice) "Please."

He stepped out and held the door for her and then helped her get out.

(Roger) "Shall we get on the plane then? Right this way."

(Alice) "Of course."

They walk onto the plane, she looks inside, very expensive, luxurious, and roomy. He sits down on a couch inside the plane

He patted the couch and said, "Sit here and talk with me a while if you want."

(Alice) "All right." Her response was immediately followed by her sitting down.

The plane started to head towards the runway and then tookoff, a few minutes after they got into the air.

(Roger) "Would you like a drink?"

(Alice) "All right, I guess."

He waved his hand at a nearby guard and the man left the room they were in and then returned with a bottle of wine, over 70 years old.

He then set it down and left the room. Roger poured two glasses.

(Roger) (Handing her a glass) "What shall we toast to?"

(Roger) (Raising his glass) "To the commonwealth, may she endure for a thousand years."

(Alice) "To prosperity for the deserving, I should think."

(Roger) "Yes indeed."

Roger drank his glass down rather quickly; it was obvious he was a heavy drinker.

Alice instead sipped at the wine, trying to enjoy as much of the flavor as she could.

Roger poured himself another glass and slowly drank it down. He was starting to get drunk again, remember he about 1/2 dozen glasses of brandy at the Kremlin just a short while ago. He started to talk to her and his speech was somewhat slower than previously, "So what is a typical day like for you?"
Whatever a typical day was, she was sure it wasn't sitting on a private plane with the 19 year old acting-premier of an entire empire, a man who incidentally happened to be 6 foot 6 inches tall and made her feel like a shrimp when she looked at him.

She looked at him for a few seconds, and then shrugged. "There's a lot of travel. Reports to my superiors, you know? Sometimes I'm actually allowed to speak for the country, although with this fu... I'm sorry, with Mr. Mason in charge I've been doing less of that recently."

(Roger) "You sound less than thrilled with your job, you also sound underappreciated for all the work you do."

(Roger) "From the sounds of things, that Mr. Mason would be lost without you. If you want, I can get him fired or reassigned."

(Alice) "Now I know you're drunk."

(Roger) (Chuckling) "I have powerful friends, connections, as a high officer in the WKM, I am well-connected throughout the white world. All I need do is call in a few favors."

(Alice) "No, no. Fred Mason is the House President."

(Roger) "Nobody is immune from the sort of connections I have. Ever heard of Christian Martyrs Brigade?"

She realized he was probably quiet drunk at this point.

(Alice) "The only reason Seryown has remotely good ties with you is because of Fred Mason, you...whatever."

He was talking about killing fellow right-wing leaders, he must be drunk.

He laughed and then mumbled some largely unintelligible sentences in Spanish, she got the bulk of it, he was reciting a Francisco Franco speech from 1938.

She looked at him, laughed, and then stood up. She sat down after a few seconds. She'd had two glasses of wine herself, and she was not a heavy drinker. "Well, this is certainly the strangest thing I've done in quite a while." And it was.

(Roger) "How so is it strange?"

(Alice) "I'm in a private jet with the Acting Premier of a country I hate, drinking seventy year old wine with him while he recites Franco speeches. How is it not strange?"

Roger started to sing the Old Spanish fascist song "Himno Espanol".

He was an excellent singer, even drunk.

She smiled for a second. "After all," she muttered to herself, "there are only so many bottles of wine an airplane can hold."

He finished singing and said, "I know what I need, more wine! Did you say you hate Mississippi?"

He again spontaneously broke into song and began to sing, "Die Fahne Hoch".

(Alice) "Yes, I did say that."

He stopped singing, "Why is that? Why do you hate Mississippi?"

(Alice) "Because you're white supremacist and you're against total equality of the genders."

(Roger) "Well I guarantee you I can change your mind about Mississippi and the Commonwealth."

(Alice) "Go ahead."

Roger burped very loudly, and he started to laugh uncontrollably, saying, "I'm so sorry, please forgive me, I drank too much, I've never had this much before, but at the conference in the kremlin I was so nervous I lost track."

(Alice) "Or you could do that."

(Roger) "I mean I'm 19 and I have to keep a nuclear war from breaking out!"

(Roger) (Regaining his composure) "If you see how well the women are in Mississippi compared to say how Arabs treat their women. You'll see women in our country are placed on pedestals and the men are ready and willing to die to protect them. Our women are better off than any other women."

(Alice) "You say that, but you don't treat them like equals."

(Roger) "The idea that women need "liberating" is a false notion put forth by the jewish so-called intellectuals to turn white women against white men and keep white birth rates low. In Mississippi the average woman will have 12 to 18 kids."

(Roger) "Women who have the most sons are well rewarded."

(Alice) "I don't talk about liberating. I talk about equality."

(Roger) "Women can do about anything men can do under CM law."

(Roger) "Did you know that only 2% of marriages in CM end in divorce?"

(Alice) "But your people don't treat them as equals."

(Roger) "Sure we do, we love our women."

(Alice) "You don't understand."

(Roger) "What do you mean?"

(Alice) "We don't want to be put on a pedestal, we want to be put on the same ground everyone else walks on."

(Roger) "Well you don't know the women in Mississippi then. They want to be taken care of, maybe it's different in your nation. But we don't allow any jewish communist feminist agitprop in our nation to corrupt our women."

(Alice) "You mean you don't allow free ideas in your nation."

(Roger) "We allow free ideas, just not jewish mind poison."

(Alice) "Really. You allow non-Christian beliefs?"

(Roger) "Well no, no we don't. Any white Christian can preach any version of Christianity they want, that is the freedom."

(Alice) "Restricted freedom is not freedom."

(Roger) "We've built a homogenous state, a state that is stable, and full of people with common-ground and unity. Differences breed tensions breed violence breed civil-war."

(Alice) "Yes, but your own state is ultimately self-destructive. It may not have any differences, but without those differences there is no possibility for moral advancement."

(Roger) "We don't want to advance, we want to stay the same, we want to stay the same, we don't want change."

(Alice) "Then that is one of your many problems."

(Roger) (Grabs his stomach) "If you'll just excuse me for a moment."

Roger gets up and walks slowly around the corner until he is out of sight and then he runs to the bathroom. After he vomits for about 5 minutes, he cleans himself up, brushes his teeth, uses mouthwash, and then walks back to the room Alice is in.

She can tell he is not very drunk anymore as he is regaining his sobriety.

(Alice) "I don't suppose you're any more sane."

(Roger) "Oh please, stop with that, Roger is a lunatic, Roger is insane. I'm perfectly sane."

(Alice) "I don't think you are."

(Roger) "Oh I am sane, believe me. I don't want a war, you know why? Our empire must be intact for our people to enjoy it and prosper. I'm not out to destroy the world."

(Alice) "Then send that message to the world. Destroy all of your nuclear weapons."

(Alice) "You'll still be able to destroy the entire population of the world."

(Roger) "I'd be insane to leave our nation defenseless in the face of enemy weapons build ups."

(Roger) "If you thought I was insane, you wouldn't get onto a plane with me and be going to Mississippi controlled territory."

(Alice) "Listen to me! You'd still be able to destroy the entire world, so why bother with the nuclear weapons?"

(Roger) "As long as they have them, so must we. And I have a point, if you thought I was insane, you'd not be here right now. You know in Mississippi controlled territory, I am for all intents and purposes God. As acting-premier I hold life and death over every citizen of the commonwealth."

(Alice) "Perhaps you should create a congress that can overrule you, then?"

(Roger) "We disbanded congress in the 1980s, they voted themselves out of existence and gave all their power to the Premier, but not before they voted the Supreme court out of existence and gave that power to the Premier also."

(Alice) "Really? How many White Knights were in the room with them?"

(Roger) "I don't know what you're talking about."

(Roger) "There were none."

(Roger) (Quietly) "It was the Special Republican Guard Alpha Company that was there."

(Alice) "All right. Well, I'm going into Libya, and I suppose I'll see how your state worked out. I'm tired of arguing with you."

(Roger) "Okay, well that's okay. But I enjoy a good argument, I thank you for arguing with me."

(Alice) "Right."

(Roger) (Smiling) "Perhaps you'd like to do something else with me?"

(Alice)(Smiling) "No."

(Roger) (Smiling) "I'd say you'll come around within a week at the most."

(Alice) "And I'd say I never will, but you can think what you want. I like to think of that as a basic right."

(Roger) "Oh well, we shall see, we shall see. Well we should be coming up on Alexandria now, we'll be landing in a few minutes, make sure you're buckled up."

About 4 minutes later the plane thudded down on the runway.

(Roger) "Shall we go then?"

(Alice) "Very well."

They walked off the plane and a limousine was waiting nearby, Roger opened the door and waited for Alice to get in.

Alice stepped in, still feeling her indignation at this man's beliefs but determined to stick to her agreement.

Roger got in after she did and a guard closed the door and then got in up front.

The limousine started to drive away from the airport, as it did, she saw large signs "White Terminal Left: Arab Terminal Right"

She looked to the left and saw a very luxurious terminal with marble floors inside and red carpet outside, to the right was basically a rundown wooden shack.

(Alice) "This is separate but equal?"

(Roger) "It sure is."

(Alice) "It does not look equal to me."

The airport shuttle bus labeled "Arab Bus 1" was basically an old school bus that had no room for any appreciable amount of luggage. The airport shuttle bus labeled, "White Bus 5" was a greyhound charter style bus.

(Roger) "It is, we have a terminal, and they have a terminal. We have buses, they have buses."

(Roger) "The buses all do the same thing, they get people from one point to another. The terminals all do the same thing, you wait until your flight leaves."

(Alice) "But are you more comfortable in your terminal than they are in theirs?"

(Roger) "I can't answer that, it's an opinion question. Some people like spartan conditions, some like a little luxury, it varies."

(Alice) "So perhaps they should be divided into spartan and luxury terminals instead?"

(Roger) "That simply could not work. Trust me, our scientists have determined our system is the best."

(Alice) "White scientists?"

(Roger) (Sarcastic) "No spear chucking witch doctors from the Congo! Of course white scientists."

(Alice) "Perhaps you should ask black scientists educated in Seryown the same question."

(Roger) "Black scientists are politically correct though. We go by the truth."

(Alice) "Perhaps our asian scientists, then?"

(Roger) "They're biased also, most asians are communists."

(Roger) "My father fought the gooks in Cambodia, my grandfather fought them in Vietnam, and my great-grandfather fought them in Korea. My great great grandfather fought them in the pacific in WW2."

(Alice) "Ah? I think from your perspective my nation is communist. I mean, free elections, without intimidation or anything."

(Roger) "Well I'm sure we can help you change that. Your Mason will be staying in office for a long while if we have any say about it. And believe me, we'll have a say about it."

(Alice) "I'm afraid that's impossible."

(Roger) "Think again, our intelligence operatives will make sure your Mason stays in power as long as he wants to."

(Alice) "Ah, but Mr. Mason, while an arrogant white-supremacist, appreciates our democratic system. I don't think he'll appreciate being kept in office by your nation. In fact, I think he'd resent your support on it."

(Roger) "So tell me, what happens to political dissenters in your nation?"

(Alice) "We protest, and we vote."

(Roger) "Foolish, you allow masses to dictate the actions of the state, the masses exist to serve the state."

(Alice) "Nonsense. The state exists to serve the masses."

(Roger) "The state must be personified by one man. In Mississippi that one man is Curtis Fabus."

(Roger) "No individual is more important than the state, no sum of individuals are greater than the state. Let me ask you, how can the parts of a machine be greater than the completed machine. People are just parts in the machine."

(Alice) "No, people are individuals. When they cannot contribute to the machine they are just wires and pegs, but when they are allowed to decide they can become the greatest power that has ever laid foot on earth."

(Roger) "Well in Mississippi Curtis Fabus is the greatest power in their eyes."

(Roger) "He lifted them up, out of nothing, out of a pathetic existence of day to day living, searching for mere sustenance, and he made them great. He put them all back into work; he ended the depressions, the economic downturns. Before he came into power, our currency was worth about 1/10 of 1 US penny, today we are worth 1 dollar and 20 cents."

(Alice) "He can do more."

(Roger) "Before he came to power, there were over 300,000 black on white rapes per year, the very day he came to power, the number dropped to 1,000, and then the week after, none."

(Alice) "You shouldn't be dealing with race at all."

(Roger) "Why not? 4% of the nation, the blacks, were committing over 90% of all crime."

(Alice) "This depends a lot upon your definition of crime, I think."

(Roger) "But it was the whites who were unemployed en masse. 60% of all white males were out of work, anti-white labor laws kept quotas to limit whites in the labor force. And by crime, we mean murder, rape, robbery, assault, arson, etc."

(Alice) "You ignored what I said. He can do more."

(Roger) "Well what do you mean, our nation had a race problem, now it doesn't."

(Alice) "Your nation had multiple races, now it doesn't."

(Roger) "Yes, now we are a united people, rather than a people with no direction, we know where we want to go now. We have our direction."

(Alice) "He should tell the WKM to disband, or at least to avoid intimidating people from elections. He should step down as dictator and instead reinstitute free elections. He should rebuild the Supreme Court using qualified people rather than people who agree with him, he should rebuild the congress through free elections."

(Roger) "Let me tell you, if he called for elections, people would just vote for him and declare him dictator for life again. They declared him once, when he talked of stepping down, there were major riots of over 400 million people throughout the nation."

(Alice) "How many White Knights or CM army members went into each voting booth with the voters during that election?"

(Roger) "None, during federal elections, nobody interferes."

(Roger) "We only interfere in local elections."

(Alice) "I'm sorry if I find that funny." She looked down for a second, and then back up. "No I'm not."

(Roger) "And by the way, of the 400 million registered voters, only about 300 million ever bother to vote, and 150 million of those are WKM members."

(Roger) "Might I ask what your are thinking right now? I'm sure you've considered killing me, yes?" (He sounds paranoid and somewhat edgy)

(Alice) "We're in Mississippian territory, now, yes? If I said yes then it would be a crime, I think."

(Roger) "You can be honest with me, I'd not arrest you or have you shot. I give you permission to be honest. Admit it, the thought crossed your mind."

(Alice) "You've already told me stories of your lies."

(Roger) "Oh go ahead, be honest with me, nothing will happen to you. If I wanted you dead, you'd be dead already."

(Alice) "Honestly then, no. If I killed you, your father would give power to another one of your brothers, or if he couldn't find one suitable, he'd give it to one of the Stahleckers until he decided he was well. It would accomplish nothing other than the annihilation of my country."

(Roger) "Smart girl, you're right. My brother George would get it, and he is even more right wing that I am, except he is unstable because he is upset with father over personal issues and is suffering emotional issues right now. Or perhaps Peter Stahlecker would get the position, and he is pissed over Angola and itching for war."

(Alice) "I don't understand."

(Roger) "George is having some disagreements with father over the woman he wants to marry. Father doesn't approve of the woman George wants to marry. So to spite father, George is screwing every woman he meets to shove it in his fathers face that he either gets the woman he wants or he'll never settle down and have kids. George being the oldest son, father wants him to have sons by now, so father may very well give in and let him marry her.”

(Alice) "Who would he wed?"

(Roger) "A third cousin."

(Roger) "Under old United States law, prior to the breakup, anybody second cousins or greater apart, could marry. Father doesn't think any cousins should marry though."

(Alice)"Interesting. And Stahlecker? Who would he fight with?"

(Roger) "Peter Stahlecker would fight the world mostly, he is mad at the world for them pressuring us in Libya and then us being forced to shift Imperial troops from Angola into Libya thus weakening Angola.”

(Alice) "I have been disappointed with a few of the other nations involved at that conference."

(Roger) "I sincerely want peace, but I will not allow them to push me around, I may be just 19 but I'm not a jellyfish with no spine. I will not compromise our national sovereignty or agree to anything that may get my people hurt in the present or future!" (His tone and passion reveal that he cares deeply about the safety and security of his people)

(Alice) "So a Mississippian's life is worth ten Sevarisian lives?"

(Roger) "I never said that, but our people need to be protected and have their rights guaranteed. I can guarantee this, Mississippi will only go to war if it is forced upon her, we will not be the ones to plunge the world into war."

She gathers from his tone and mannerism that he is genuinely telling the truth; he has no plans for starting a war.

(Roger) "Why would you say that, father has no desire for war either, father has no desire for anything, he is bed ridden and has been so for the last 5 or 6 weeks."

(Alice) "I'm afraid I don't believe you."

(Roger) "You can believe me, besides if father gets upset, I can calm him down. I've always been considered the "voice of reason" in the inner circle, along with Henry, but Henry doesn't have the spine for this job. He'd allow us to be talked out of our lands."

(Alice) "Perhaps you'd allow Henry to live in Seryown?"

(Roger) "No, the Fabus family has been in Mississippi for over 200 years, and there shall we stay, there shall we die. Henry is one of us, we may disagree with him on a few issues, but he is my brother and I love him."

(Alice) "Even if he wished to leave?"

(Roger) "If he wanted to leave I guess we couldn't stop him. But he knows so much about the inner workings of our regime, we'd hope he would never force use into making the choice of letting him leave or forcing him to stay against his will."

(Alice) "That is disappointing."

(Roger) "What do you mean? We'd probably let him leave, we don't force people to stay against their will."

(Alice) "I think you just said you might force him to stay."

(Roger) "Well it'd be up to father really, not me. I said might because father might, I wouldn't."

(Alice) "Disappointing, again."

(Roger) "So tell me, are the women in your nation, as stubborn and headstrong as you are?"

(Alice) "The ones of us who succeed."

(Roger) "In Mississippi success for a woman usually means marrying well."

(Alice) "Which is one of your problems. Perhaps if you had a ranking woman take an important public office. Perhaps an unmarried woman as a governor-general?"

(Roger) "Are you asking for a job?"

(Alice) "No, I'm suggesting one."

(Roger) "We have two women in the cabinet you know. The Minister of Justice and the Minister of Education."

(Alice) "Married?"

(Roger) "Neither are married, not any more. They are my sisters Eleanor and Victoria. Their husbands betrayed the regime and father had them taken care of, so they're currently single."

(Alice) (Smiling) "I see."

(Roger) "Why are you smiling?"

(Alice) "Because even in these basically powerless positions, you still won't trust any woman who isn't a member of your family and conforms to your belief code."

(Roger) "The Ministry of justice is very important, they are tasked with getting confessions and convictions."

(Alice) "Which isn't that hard in your nation, is it?"

(Roger) "98% conviction rate, 90% of people confess within a week of being accused of a crime."

(Alice) "Exactly."

(Roger) "Well you sure are a headstrong woman, you know that. There aren't many women in Mississippi who would say exactly what they think if they knew the man they were talking disagreed, but most women agree with the men, mostly."

(Alice) "What you mean is there aren't many people in Mississippi who would say exactly what they think if they knew you disagreed."

(Roger) "You know father has never had trouble finding women willing to accommodate him. Indeed he has to pretty much fight them off with a stick. He gets over 1 million letters a day, the majority of which are letters from lovely young ladies requesting an intimate rendezvous."

(Roger) "We have a joke in the inner circle, he is making Mississippians happier, one woman at a time!"

(Alice) "I can't say that's funny."

(Roger) "Maybe not funny, but certainly true, I would know, my room is just one floor above his."

(Alice) "That must be disturbing."

(Roger) "He usually does it in the bunker, well I mean the basement, there is no bunker under the mansion, just forget I said that, slip of the tongue."

(Alice) "Please. You actually think I will?"

(Roger) "Okay, well then let me tell you about the bunker, or better yet, you can come to the Stalingrad estate and see her for yourself. She is a beauty, at over 10 billion to build and 30 billion to furnish, she should be. It's at Stalingrad, the premier's favorite estate in Neshoba County; he owns all the land around the mansion in any direction for 20 miles. Very impressive estate, you simply must see it. After Egypt and Libya, we'll fly to Mississippi, if you want."

(Alice) "If I find this interesting."

(Roger) "Ok, fair enough."

The limousine pulls up to the "Franco Hotel" in downtown Alexandria.

(Roger) "Shall we get the bags up to the room and then go off to dinner."

(Alice) "All right."

Roger palmed a hotel worked a 1000 dollar bill and said "Get these bags up to the penthouse please" the worker replied, "I'm sorry sir, but the penthouse is occupied, a diplomat from Austria is staying there."

Roger just laughed and said, "Well you get the manager of the hotel and tell him Roger Fabus is here and wants to stay in the penthouse, here do it quickly please", he handed him 5 more bills.

They were standing around in the lobby waiting by their bags, about 20 minutes later an upset man was being hauled out of the hotel, he was screaming in german as the guards pushed him out of the door.

The worker said, "I am sorry we made a mistake before, the penthouse turns out to be unoccupied, this way please."

Roger smiled at Alice and said, "See, just a misunderstanding."

(Alice) "That was awfully civil of you."

(Roger) "Yes it was, and I'm sure you'll be grateful we're staying in the penthouse, won't you?"

Roger saw a young boy and girl about 12 and 13 sitting in two chairs in the lobby, their parents were nowhere in sight. He told Alice to wait a few minutes for him. He walked up to the kids and said, "Where are you parents?"

(Boy) "They didn't get out of Angola."

(Roger) "Oh my, are you saying you're from Angola?"

Alice gasps.

(Girl) "Yes, we left Luanda, there wasn't room on the boat for them, they told us to wait here and meet our uncle, but it's been 3 days and we haven't found them."

(Roger) "You've been sitting in this lobby for 3 days?"

(Boy) "Yes."

At about that time, a hotel worker walks by and yells, "I told you kids to stop bothering the customers."

Roger turned around and said, "I'll talk to whomever I want, don't you agree?"

The worker choked and said, "Sorry, sorry, I'm bye!" And then ran off down the hall.

Alice, smiling, mutters under her breath. "Here's your test, Fabus."

(Roger) "Do you kids know how to get into contact with your uncle?"

(Boy) "All I know is he lives in Al Khums in Libya, his name is Arnold Nicolle, he was supposed to meet us here because the boats were coming to Alexandria, but I guess with the borders being closed, maybe he couldn't get through from Mississippian Libya to Mississippian Egypt."

(Roger) "Do you have any other relatives around here, somewhere you could stay until he gets here?"

(Girl) "No, just him, he's in Libya."

Roger calls out to a hotel worker, "I want you to call the airport and get me information on the next flight to Al Khums Libya."

The worker nodded and said, "Yes sir"

(Boy) "But we don't have the sort of money for flying.


(Roger) "Oh nonsense, I'm sure they'll be happy to send the bill to somebody else."

The hotel worker comes back and tells Roger "Next flight leaves in 60 minutes, last minute booking fee, 8,000 dollars."

Roger handed him the money and said, "I want these two kids on that flight, one of my guards will accompany them to Libya to make sure they get there safely, here for yourself." (He handed the man a 1000-dollar bill)

The boy said "Gee mister, you sure are nice, and I seem to remember seeing you before somewhere? Have you been on TV."

Roger just nodded and said, "Maybe a few times, but nothing too much."

Alice interrupted quickly. "I'm sorry, one second." She turned to the boy. "What did you say your last name was?"

(Boy) "Nicolle."

(Alice)(Smiling) "Thanks. You'll be talking to your uncle in no time at all."

(Boy) "Thank you."

(Girl) (to boy) "Do you think mommy and daddy made it out of Angola on another boat?"

(Boy) "We'll have to wait and see I guess, they'll find us in Libya if they made it out."

(Roger) "What city in Angola were you in?"

(Boy) "Lobito."

(Girl) "Is Lobito okay?"

Alice flinches, then smiles again. "Of course it is."

(Girl) "Daddy was in a unit of those men that jump from planes, he said bad people were coming to attack Lobito and we had to get onto the first boat and leave. The bad people didn't get into the city did they?"

(Roger) (Smiling) "Well with brave men such as your father fighting to stop the bad people, how could they have gotten in?"

(Boy) "Makes sense."

(Girl) "But daddy said the bad people pillaged Luena and Huambo, could they have pillaged Lobito also?"

(Boy) "Don't be silly, Lobito had more air support and tanks, and it was on the coast so supplies can get in."

One of the SRG arrived and told the kids, "Come along now, we'll get you youngins onto a plane for Libya."

(Boy) (Looking at Roger) "Hey I know where I know you from now, you're a son of the Premier, aren't you?"

(Roger) (Smiling) "Yes, I am indeed."

(Boy) "When I get older I want to join the 30th Republican Guard Armored Division, the Fabus Youth."

(Roger) (Smiling) "I'm sure you'll make a great soldier, now run along or you'll be late getting to Libya."

The two kids follow the SRG man out and get into a tax with the 1 bag each that they had.

(Roger) (Turning to Alice) "Well, shall we proceed then?"

(Alice)"Yeah, just let me talk to someone for a second."

(Roger) "Okay, take your time."

Alice pulls out a cell phone and punches in a number and then waits for a few seconds. She speaks quickly. "Greg. It's Alice. Listen. I need you to get some people from the military office in Angola. I need you to pull out every record of everyone we found in Lobito, everyone we know is in the White Knights of Angola, every record of anybody in the area. Yeah. Yeah. I'm looking for anyone with a last name of Nicolle. Get back to me tomorrow. Yes, tomorrow. Yes, I'm fine. Tomorrow." She hung up. "And yes, Premier, I do know that its probably futile, so don't even say it."

As they start to walk, Roger sighs and says, "You know something, every single paratrooper that fought in Lobito fought to the death to buy time for the civilians to escape."

(Roger) "Most of the White Knights of Angola are actually black!"

(Alice) "But there are white people in that group, no?"

(Roger) "Most of white members are from Cabinda or Luanda."

(Alice) "Most."

(Roger) "What, you think that Nicolle survived and is in the WKA?"

(Alice) "Or ended up on a boat leaving the city, or was discovered alive in a basement, or was discovered heavily injured in one of the Africans' mass graves."

(Roger) "Well, shall we then, I need to get to the room and shower, I was throwing up on the plane you know."

(Alice) "All right."

They walk up the room, on the 16th floor; the penthouse is basically the entire 16th floor, approximately 72,000 square feet of space.

(Roger) "Large enough room?"

(Alice) "Perhaps."

(Roger) "Well I need to shower, I'm going to go do that now."

He goes off to shower; she looks around the room, a swimming pool on the balcony, a jacuzzi, a full-size bar, kitchen, 6 bedrooms, 3 living rooms, and several other rooms, larger than her house.

About 20 minutes later, a naked Roger Fabus came walking out of the main bathroom, he said, "Well are you just going to stand there, or are you going to hand me a towel please?" Water was dripping down his massive abdominal muscles and she could see just how "well-endowed" he was.

Alice was sitting at the bar, sipping on a drink he couldn't immediately identify. She smiled. "Of course."

(Roger) "No towels in the bathroom, try the closet would you please."

Alice nodded and did so. She pulled out a towel and threw it at him quickly.

He caught the towel, said "thank you" then turned around to look at himself in the mirror, she could see a tattoo on his upper back of a cavalry insignia, a horse with two crossed sabres going through it.

He walked back into the bathroom to dry off and then came back out with the towel around him, he got dressed in one of the other rooms and came out about 3 minutes later wearing a suit and said, "Shall we go to dinner then?"

Alice nodded. "Just let me finish this." She returned to her drink.

(Roger) "We could eat here if you prefer."

(Alice) "Perhaps. You know, I didn't realize this drink had spread this far."

(Roger) "What drink is that?"

(Alice) "It's the Serya equivalent of chilled sake. It's made from a version of rice entirely indigenous to a few of our islands. I doubt it would be here if Mason hadn't opened trade between our two nations."

(Roger) "Ah yes, well I've not had the opportunity to try it yet. So have you decided, eat here or shall we go out to eat."

(Alice)"I don't suppose you had in mind a place within walking distance?"

(Roger) "Ah yes, walking distance, of course, where else would the best restaurant in town be but within walking distance of the best hotel in town."

(Alice) "Good. Let's go, then."

Roger and Alice walk out of the hotel and down the street, there is a young white woman about 28 years old and her five children lying in the ground in an alley outside the hotel.

(Roger) "Excuse me ma'am, are you okay?"

(Woman) "Well I'm better than my husband is."

(Roger) "What do you mean?"

(Woman) "He was in the Angolan Special Air Assault Squadron, he died when Huambo fell."

(Roger) "So what are you doing here?"

(Woman) "Came in with the other refugees, except I've got nothing now, nowhere to go, all my family was killed when Luena fell, so we're just stuck here until I can think of something."

(Alice) "You know, Angola's been retaken by Seryown."

(Woman) "Well I'd never go back there, if the colonial forces couldn't hold it, what can guarantee it won't fall again, and besides, our home was ruined, we have nothing."

(Woman) (Turning to Roger) "Well sir, if you could give me some money, I'd do anything you want to compensate you, anything at all."

Alice represses a sneer.

(Roger) "No, I won't stand for that, no white woman should be expected to do what you're suggesting to feed her children. Here take this." (He takes out a check and writes her a number on it then signs it, Alice saw the number five-hundred thousand dollars) "Take this and go to Mississippi, take care of your children and God Bless."

She saw the check and then hugged him and said, "Bless you sir, bless you."

(Roger) (To Alice) "Well shall we continue then?"

(Alice)"Yes. You know, for all your talks about the loss of crime, it seems there's still prostitution."

(Roger) "I have no idea what you mean."

(Roger) "It's not a crime to try to feed your children, it's to be commended, but as long as I can help it, nobody will fall into such circumstances."

They continue walking down the street, they come to a tobacconist store, Roger says, "Can you wait just a second while I run in here real quick."

(Alice) "Whatever."

(Roger) "What, don't you want me to smoke around you? If it bothers you, I won't."

(Alice) "You are free to do as you wish."

(Roger) "Let's just keep walking then shall we."

They continue walking down the street, they arrive outside the restaurant, there are armed guards outside and a BMP-3 parked in the parking lot, Roger chuckled, "Well at least we can eat in peace!"

(Alice) "And a lot of other people can't."

(Roger) "What do you mean?"

(Alice) "Never mind."

(Roger) "No, No, tell me, please, tell me."

(Alice) "It is nothing."

They walk into the restaurant, it is largely empty, and the owner is up front talking to the newly arriving customers, he sees Roger and says, “Ah your excellency, your usual table And my, who is this lovely lady with you?

(Roger) "Yes the usual table is fine, the lovely lady is Ms. Alice Carrion."

Roger pulls Alice's seat out and helps her get seated, he then sits down and says, "Well Ms. Carrion, would you care for some wine?"

(Alice) "All right."

Roger asked for a bottle of wine from 1898. They brought the wine and poured Alice and Roger a glass.

(Alice) "Wine isn't my usual taste."

(Roger) (Smiling) "Well how do you like the company?"

(Alice) "Arrogant."

(Roger) "Oh come now, surely you must be able to something positive about me yes?"

(Alice) "You do care about your people."

(Roger) "Yes."

(Alice) "I only wish you were willing to let them be more different."

(Roger) "How so? Maybe time will see a few changes."

(Alice) "Perhaps if you amended your laws so that there was no mention of seperate races anywhere in them, that would be a positive change?"

(Roger) "No, that would be a suicidal change."

(Roger) "If our buildings, our highways, and our railroads should be wrecked, we could rebuild them. If our cities should be destroyed, out of the very ruins we could erect newer and greater ones. Even if our armed might should be crushed, we could rear sons who would redeem our power. But if the blood of our White race should become corrupted and mingled with the blood of Africa, then the present greatness of the Mississippi would be destroyed and all hope for civilization would be as impossible for a Negroid Mississippi as would be redemption and restoration of the Whiteman's blood which had been mixed with that of the Negro."

Alice shrugs, and then speaks. "You seem to think that you require laws to keep people from acting that way. If a person truly wishes to conform to your belief system, they'll do it with or without the laws."

(Roger) "Laws just make sure that the few bad apples he attempt to act wrongly are able to be punished."

(Alice) "Perhaps, according to your belief structure, if they are attempting to act wrongly they are not acting according to the wishes of God and he will punish them accordingly."


(Roger) "God wants the faithful to punish the heathens, we must handle it ourselves on this Earth, He will punish them in the other world." The pheasant that Roger had ordered before arriving at the restaurant was brought out.

(Alice) "You're impossible."

As soon as the waiter left, Roger said to Alice, "Something tells me you're impossible."

(Alice) "I'm not one of the Mississippian women, raised to believe themselves inferior and slave to your every command, if that's what you mean."

(Roger) (Chuckles) "I don't expect anybody to obey my every command."

(Alice) "You're the dictator of your nation. What would happen to someone who didn't do as you told them to?"

(Roger) "Nothing."

(Alice) "I don't believe you."

(Roger) "Well nothing would happen, believe what you want."

(Alice)"Fine."

(Roger) (Leans in and whispers to her) "Believe it or not, I've never... You know... Before."

(Alice)"Well, I've heard you lie enough to know you do it more than you tell the truth."

(Roger) "I've not told you a single lie."

(Alice)"What is one more lie?"

(Roger) "I've not lied to you, not once. I've been open about how our nation works, our laws, our secret police, and such."

Alice stands up and walks to the door.

Roger says, "Where are you going? Come on back here, please."

Alice turned. "The reason I prefer my country is because I can do this." She said, and left the building.

Roger walked outside and ran up to her, he was quite angry, "What the hell are you doing? You made me look like a fool."

(Alice) "You are a fool.”

(Roger) (Smiling and starting to laugh) "You know I could have you hanged for that statement, but I'll let it go."

(Alice) "You just told me someone who disagreed with you couldn't be punished."

(Roger) "Well I said they usually aren't punished, it depends how they disagree. If they write an article they're okay, if they fire an RPG into a government office, they're not okay, they'll be in trouble."

(Alice) "And if they insult you they're hanged?"

(Roger) "Well no, I'm sorry, we don't hang people for that. It's just, ah... I'm sorry, okay."

Alice, surprising everyone, suddenly pulls out a pistol. "You know, they let us have these in Seryown too."

(Roger) "Go ahead, use it, do it. I can see the hate and violence in your eyes, do it." A group of nearby soldiers level their OICWs at her, and 2 SRG members level their MP-5s at her. She is surrounded by about 12 soldiers.

(Alice) "Oh no. I'm not going to use it. I've already told you how crazy it would be."

Roger motions for the soldiers to move away, he then tells her, "Put it away then."

(Alice) "I wouldn't have thought that in your nation of all places you'd be afraid of a revolver."

(Roger) "Yes well when soldiers see somebody pull a gun on me, they get nervous."

(Alice) "As they should be. But as I said, I wouldn't kill you. It's pointless."

(Roger) (Pulls out his own gun and hands it to her, it's a 1911 caliber 45) "That is a real gun, not some pansy 38 special revolver, keep it it's yours, lets get out of here okay?"

(Alice) "Your eyesight must be leaving you. This is not a 38 special. It's a 44 magnum."

(Roger) "Well my bad then, well shall we go then?"

(Alice) "You'll want your gun back."

(Roger) "Why is that?"

(Roger) "Will I need it?"

(Alice) "If you think I should keep it, I will."

(Roger) "I have another two on me still." (He shows her his other 1911 pistol and a walther PPK)

(Alice) "All right. Then I'll keep these."

As they start to walk back to the hotel, Roger sighs and says, "I wonder what would happen to you if I told your Mr. Mason you pulled a gun on me and were planning to kill me."

(Alice) "I'd be fired, and tried for attempted hostage taking. I'd probably be aquitted, but I'd never work in government again."

(Roger) "Well then we can just forget about that yes? I've no desire to ruin your career. It may make the papers though; a few reporters were in the crowd that gathered. All I can say is that you were showing me a new gun you had just purchased, how does that sound?"

(Alice) "Why should I care what in hell you say?"

(Roger) "If you want to keep your job, you'd care."

(Alice) "I could be just as important in private industry."

(Roger) "Yes, but scandal is never good for anybody. Besides don't worry, I know what I'll say if the press asks me anything. I'm not out to wreck people's careers. As I've said before, I'm not a monster."

(Alice) "Yes you are. You and your entire belief system are monstrous."

(Roger) (Laughing) "I've been nothing but nice to you and you treat me like the plague!"

(Alice) "I'd rather have the plague."

(Roger) "Were you a Mississippian woman who acted this way, it would be clear she had not learned her manners properly and I would endeavor to impress some manners upon her."

(Alice) "Then I certainly thank God that I'm not a Mississippian woman."

(Roger) "But you are in a Mississippian commonwealth nation, and as such, as I said before , I hold the power of life and death over all commonwealth citizens as well. So you had better make sure if you're foolish enough to pull a gun on me again, that you use it, or you'll regret it."

(Alice) "I am not a commonwealth citizen."

(Roger) "By entering into the commonwealth, you fall under all laws that govern commonwealth citizens."

(Alice) "Well that's extraordinarily rude of you."

(Roger) "How do you figure?"

(Roger) "If I went to your nation, would it not be a given I'd be bound by your law?"

(Alice) "First of all, I'm serving in a diplomatic capacity, so I automatically get immunity from certain crimes. Certainly I could be judged on the other crimes, but it would be my own country's right to try me."

(Roger) "Before you agreed to come here, you should have checked our laws a little better.We don't have any concept of immunity."

(Roger) "Except from traffic violations."

(Alice) "Yes. In any case, do you want to know why it was a bad idea for you to give me your firearm?"

(Roger) "Why?"

(Alice) "If I felt strongly enough about what I believe, I could shoot myself with it, and it would look like you'd done it."

(Roger) "Your prints are on it and I'd not let you shoot yourself."

(Alice) "You're human. You need to sleep eventually. In any case, I think the fact that you killed me, a woman no less, would go over very badly in both of our nations. Even if you didn't kill me."

(Roger) (Grabbing both of her guns from her holsters before she could react) "You know I think you don't need to have either of these any more."

(Alice) "Now it's robbery."

He handed them to a nearby SRG man and said, "Hold these for her, she's suicidal and needs to be taken care of, I want a doctor to come to the hotel to keep her under observation."

(Alice) "And now it's imprisonment."

(Roger) "Listen here woman, you pulled a gun on me, I'm allowed to disarm you."

(Roger) "If I wanted to, I could have you publicly flogged, or worse."

(Alice) "Yes, only you know as well as I do that you have altogether too many enemies already."

(Roger) "You know what, I think I will be making a call to your Mr. Mason, and then I'm going to call the Commonwealth Intelligence Services and have you charged with attempted assassination against me. When you get out of commonwealth prison in twenty to thirty years, perhaps we'll meet again."

(Alice) "You know what I think?"

(Roger) "What do you think? I really don't care at this point to hear the opinion of some insolent woman."

(Roger) "Go on though, tell me anyway.”

(Alice) "I think we're both drunk."

(Roger) "Well that could be, I did lose count of how much I drank after probably the seventh glass of wine."

(Alice) "More than that, I think I left my bag at the hotel."

(Roger) "I'm sorry if I yelled at you or got you upset, I'm just not used to anybody pulling a gun on me. Well I mean I'm used to being shot at, but that's by indians and other tribals, and I shoot back! I'm just not used to women, especially women so lovely as you, pulling guns on me," (smiling)

(Alice) "I'm sorry? What'd you say?"

(Roger) (Scratching his head) "I don't remember, oh well there is the hotel now, shall we go?"

(Alice) "All right."

They walk up to the room

(Roger) "Well now what?"

(Alice) "I left my bag in the restaurant."

(Roger) "An SRG man should have seen it, he'll be bringing it by anytime now." Right as he said that, the door opened and a man was holding her bag, He set it down on the table and then quietly walked out, his MP-5 on a sling.

(Roger) "Well Ms. Carrion now what do you have in mind? Have you been keeping up on commonwealth news? We're starting to build several arab cities for the egyptians."

Alice sits down. "I hadn't heard. Can I have my bag, please?"

He asks her, "What is so important about your bag? Is there something in there that might get one of us into trouble?"

Alice shrugs. "It depends. If my boss finds out about it, I might lose my job. Otherwise, no, not really."

He hands her the bag and says, "There you are, so what now, what do you want to do now?"

Alice rummaged through it before pulling out a needle. "It's here. Good." She said, before dropping it back into her bag.

(Roger) "Needles?"

(Alice) "Medication."

(Roger) "May I ask specifically what for?"

(Alice) "It isn't contagious."

(Roger) "I am not worried about that, but maybe our doctors can help you. Our medical experts have far more advanced knowledge and data than most nations. Our methods of obtaining necessary data are shall we say, unique."

(Alice) "It's MS."

(Roger) (Gasps) "Oh my! Well we have advanced treatments for it, a group of doctors is pretty certain they have a cure, but it's still in testing, it looks good though."

(Alice) "You'll excuse me if I don't take it, I hope."

(Roger) "Well, the cure would probably work, we've run tens of thousands of experiments on subjects for all sorts of reasons and we have libraries of data on various diseases, conditions, etc."

(Alice) "Thank you, but no."

(Roger) "So you'd rather die than let a right wing nation help you?"

(Alice) "MS isn't fatal."

(Roger) "But you'd rather suffer than accept our help?"

(Alice) "I don't trust you not to kill me."

(Roger) "You'll be fine, I'm not going to harm you. Don't worry. You can believe it or not, it's up to you."

(Alice) "Then I won't."

(Roger) "Then you condemn yourself to a lifetime of pain and suffering all because your lack of trust."

(Alice) "Sounds right."

(Roger) "You surely are the fool, not I. I'd accept the offer."

(Alice) "Because no one would dare to poison you."

(Roger) "I've given you my word you'll be okay, does that mean nothing to you?"

(Roger) "If I wanted you dead, you'd be back there lying on the street where you foolishly pulled the gun on me."

(Alice) "You are not known for consistency and logic."

(Roger) "Oh foolish Alice, you are the product of brainwashing, you hate those who wish to help you."

(Alice) "Or perhaps it is you who are that way?"

(Roger) "We could argue all night about that, but I'd rather not."

(Alice) "Fine. I need to check up on some things anyway, so you go do your puking thing while I actually do my job."

(Roger) (Chuckling) "I don't need to vomit now."

(Roger) "Well why don't you put your job on hold for a while?"

He sat down on a couch and tapped the spot next to him, "Come, and sit with me for a while."

(Alice) "I actually have a job to do. We're still trying to develop a thorough profile of your nation and the others that were involved in that conference, and I need to oversee that. I don't suppose that somewhere in this massive place they managed to fit a computer?"

(Roger) "I can have them bring one up, but first, come sit with me for a while."

(Alice) "I'm afraid I have to work."

(Roger) "Let me ask you, what is your real mission? What policy changes are you to hint that I should change? What are your goals set forth by your superiors?"

(Alice) "If Mr. Mason had been worried about actually achieving something at that conference, he wouldn't have left the person on the staff he most disliked."

(Roger) "Well then you don't need to really do anything do you? Come sit with me and perhaps you shall find out how Mississippian diplomacy works."

(Alice) "On the contrary, my job is almost never to create policy change, it is to ensure the exchange of information between peaceful nations."

(Roger) (Smiling) "Well I'm sure the two of us could have an exchange of sorts. What do you say?"

(Alice) "Your hinting does not amuse me."

(Roger) "Well your pulling a gun on me did not amuse me. Come on, what do you say? At least come sit with me for a while okay?"

(Alice) "Tell me something first. I must know something."

(Roger) "Okay."

(Roger) "Anything you want to know."

(Alice) "By 1930 virtually every large civilization had moved to a republican style of government. There are thousands of nations around the world that operate through republic and democracy, and dozens of them are larger than yours."

(Roger) "Okay, go on."

(Alice) "Women's suffrage and equality of the races have become pillars in nearly every society, and the world over regards these as advances."

(Roger) "We allow our women to vote, just as men get to vote."

(Alice) "Yes, yes. But I look out the window, and I see your civilization, huge in terms of area and in terms of population, and I have to know...just tell me why it works."

(Roger) "Why it works? Because as I said, they were nothing before Curtis Fabus, and everything because of him, as long as he lives, they live. As long as he thrives, they thrive. Because he is injured now, the economy has suffered, but when he is back as premier again, the economy will pick up. The man has a quality about him few can explain, he's so charismatic, if he looked at you and said, "Do this", you do it. He is a god to them."

(Alice) "So they worship him?"

(Roger) "Also we were finally able to convince the masses to support a grass roots racial movement."

(Roger) "No they don't worship him, but they view him as a prophet sent by the Lord, something Holy to be regarded as infallible."

(Alice) "Interesting. You truly feel that you have the support of God in this endeavor?"

(Roger) "Let me tell you this, Curtis Fabus has survived over 90 assassination attempts, he's been shot in the head, the chest, the stomach, the back, etc, nothing puts him down for more than a few weeks or months at the most. He was in 4 years of brutal jungle fighting when he was in the paratroopers in 1980-1984, his entire unit was wiped out dozens of times, but he always survived."

(Alice) "You have not answered my question."

(Roger) "Sorry... Yes, God is with us."

(Alice) "You have never had any doubts about it?"

(Roger) "We are doing the holiest of His work by supporting our race and nation. Nobody ever doubts it; the Lord Yahweh is with us all, as is His only begotten son Yahshua, whom was slaughtered by the Jewish demons. He gave His life for the white race; He died on the cross for us. We know Yahweh is with us, we never doubt it."

(Roger) "We use the Hebrew words because we sincerely believe we are the true Israelites that God made his chosen people."

Alice suddenly smiled. "This entire time I've said constantly: "What if you're wrong", but I've never bothered to consider this: "What if I'm wrong".

(Roger) (Smiling) "Yes. I've only ever once thought I was wrong, but I quickly banished my doubts from my mind as they will lead only to damnation and ruin."

Alice nodded. "This doesn't mean you've convinced me. But I should like to meet you father someday."

(Roger) "I hope you get to meet him. He's a very nice man."

Very suddenly, Alice sat down.

(Roger) (Smiling, softly said) "Comfortable?"

(Alice) "Somewhat."

(Roger) "Anything else you'd like to talk about? I'll answer any questions you have to the best of my ability."

(Alice) "How many children did you say a Mississippian woman should have?"

(Roger) "The typical woman will have 12 to 18 children, but that's the highest numbers, a large number have just 6 to 8."

(Alice) "Sounds a little high. Who could stand that many kids around the house?"

(Roger) "Oh well Mississippians are child lovers, animal lovers, everybody has lots of kids and cats and dogs running around. We're very friendly people. And I can tell you father never spanked any of us or hit any of us, ever."

(Alice) "Hmm. Well...I can't say I could ever see having more than a few children."

(Roger) "Well nobody forces women to have children in Mississippi, they can have as many or as few as they'd like. The government does subsidize large families though. If you have over 10 children, you get 1 million per child up to 15 million dollars total."

(Alice) "Makes some sense."

(Roger) "So, any other questions?"

(Alice) "No, I don't think so."

(Roger) "Could I ask you a few if you don't mind?"

(Alice) "Sure."

(Roger) "In my nation, I can honestly say the only time I've ever seen homeless people is after a tornado or a flood or a crisis such as Angola, which has only happened once though, and what almost always happens, is the Premier gives his personal money from his various stock earnings and such, to buy those in need of them, new houses. Our youth are ever so happy, they have direction in life, they don't sell drugs on the street corners, vandalism is unheard of, the elderly walk safely at night, nobody except the ultra-paranoid lock their doors. Tell me, is it like that in your land?"

(Alice) "Our drugs laws are free. If somebody wishes to buy something they can harm themselves with, they have the freedom to do that to ourselves. It's how we justify free tobacco laws. We spend a significant portion of our budget on police forces, so there is basically no crime at all, vandalism is one of them. We do lock our doors, but that's simply because we'd rather not go through the trouble of having things stolen then getting them back from the police two or three days later."

(Roger) "Perhaps I shall have to visit your land someday."

(Alice) "I wouldn't advise it."

(Roger) "Why not?"

(Alice) "You would immediately be arrested and tried for war crimes."

(Roger) "Really? You know this? Thank you for telling me. I had no idea; I've never personally done anything I'd consider war crimes trial worthy. I'm not like Field Marshal Francisco "Chemical" Salazar you know.

(Alice) "Some of our members of law enforcement community hate the Fabuses spectacularly."

(Roger) "I'm glad you warned me of this, I thank you."

(Roger) "I need to be very selective in which nations I enter into then."

Alice yawns and lays her head back against the couch. "It's starting to become very late."

(Roger) "It's not quite 11 pm yet, not so very late. I often stay up past 2 am to get paperwork done when I have to fill out reports for unit maneuvers or detail battle plans etc."

(Roger) (Leaned back on the arm of couch and put his feet up on a table) "So now what?"

(Alice) "Some of us aren't teenagers, and I still have work to get to Seryown. If I turn it in to Angola, I can claim I didn't miss my deadline."

(Roger) "Well I may be only 19, but I've been in over 30 battles, been wounded over 2 dozen times, had over 100 horses shot from under me, and won basically every medal CM has to offer. I've also already got my law degree and MBA, I did what they called "Read law" I studied on my own time and got my degree by taking the bar at age 16."

(Alice) "This doesn't change the fact that you've still got the teenager metabolism working for you. So I've got to get started. If you'll excuse me..."

(Roger) (Smiling) "Okay, well if you need anything just ask, will you be needing a computer then?"

(Alice) "Yes."

Roger reached over and picked up a radio he spoke into it, "Would you please procure a computer." The SRG in hallway outside the room replied in the radio, "Sure thing sir", and then 2 of the 12 went off to get a computer.

About 8 minutes later they brought in a top of the line computer and set it up for her on a table in the living room.

They all left then, 2 guards were out on the balcony still, standing watch against any attempts to gain entry that way.

(Roger) "Well, there is your computer, enjoy your work."

She got up from the couch and sat in a chair in front of the table and started to work

Roger stretched out and occupied the vast majority of the couch, the 6'6 giant took up just about the entire couch.


(Roger) "Would it distract you too much if I asked you what exactly you are doing?

(Alice) "Right now I'm sending an e-mail to my boss so he doesn't think I've been kidnapped."

(Roger) (Light laughing) "Always a good thing to do."

(Roger) "Would you prefer to call him over the phone?"

(Alice) "No, thank you."

(Roger) (Sighing) "I'm going to say something I don't often say. I'm sorry about earlier, I was wrong."

(Alice) "Everyone is once or twice."

She worked on her computer for about an hour; Roger was just lying still on the couch, not saying a word.

He broke the silence, "How is the work going?"

(Alice) "Right now I'm righting up a personal review of ... was he a General? ... that Tracy guy, for the DPUO file."

(Roger) "Oh, don't remind me of him, a headache, oh, he was rude, so I wasted no manners on him."

(Alice) "Surprisingly, I agree."

(Roger) "Had he agreed to take it outside when I pulled my gun on him, I would have dueled him. I've been in duels before."

(Alice) "I find that trials are a much better system."

(Roger) "Father was seriously wounded in a duel over a decade and a half ago defending mother's honor. I just wish she were still here to need defending."

Alice made a noncommittal sound without stopping her work.

(Roger) (His voice grows depressed and serious) "She died about 14 years ago, I never really got to know her that well, and William knows her even less."

Alice half-turned, then went back to typing.

Outside a Gregorian chant sounded over the city speakers, it was about 12:00 am and the sounds echoed throughout the city.

(Alice) "Well, that's annoying."

Roger slid off the couch and fell to his knees and began to pray, the guards outside on the balcony also began to pray.

The speakers ended about 3 minutes later, but the praying went on until 12:20 am.

Roger laid back down on the couch, "Night prayer session”, he said.

(Roger) "There are prayers when we rise, at lunch, after dinner, and before we sleep."

(Alice) "You've created a nation of insomniacs."

(Roger) "A lot of people have soundproof walls and windows, that is just a reminder for anybody still awake to pray."

(Alice) "Perhaps. Do you know today's date?"

(Roger) "November the 18th."

Alice smiles vaguely and then returns to her work.

About 28 minutes later she finished her work, Roger hearing a lack of typing, inquired, "Done with your work?"

(Alice) "Yeah."

(Roger) "Well it's not quite 1 am yet, what now?"

(Alice) "Sleep, I think."

(Roger) "Well there are plenty of bedrooms, just pick out one that you like, except the one on the left just after the kitchen, that is my room." (Smiling) "Well I suppose if you really wanted to, I wouldn't object to you choosing that room, but you decide where you want to stay, it's your choice really."

(Alice) "I'm sure I'll find a room." She turns and looks back at him for a second. "Tomorrow would have been my husband's birthday."

(Roger) "Would have been? Sorry to hear that, what happened?"

(Roger) "War?"

Alice looks angry for a few seconds, then waves it off. "His LAV was hit by an RPG while it escorted the ones carrying Peter Stahlecker and the rest of that building's occupants to the port for transportation."

(Roger) "I'm sorry."

(Alice) "The next time you see that man, I want you to tell him to make the best damn life he can out of what he has left because it can never make up for the life my husband didn't live."

(Roger) "I will do that. Do you know what I have to live with though? You know the number that keeps repeating in my head? 314,041, that's the number of men that will never be going home to Mississippi because they fell in Angola. I have to live with that and bear that burden forever."

(Alice) "At least you're alive. Good night."

(Roger) "Sometimes I wish I wasn't. Good night."

He fell asleep on the couch he was on, about an hour after he fell asleep, an SRG man moved him onto the bed in his room and tucked him in then left to stand outside the door to his room.

The following took place about a few hours-1/2 day before the agreement was reached. This picks up from where Alice (Seryown) and Roger (CM) left off in Alexandria in Mississippian Egypt.

It was about 7 am when Alice stirred from her sleep; she heard noise in the kitchen and wondered what it was.

She dressed quickly and walked into the room groggily.

Roger was sitting at a breakfast table, dressed already, he was eating steak and eggs, he looked at her and said, "Morning, sleep well?

Alice nodded. "Very well. This is early..."

(Roger) "Oh well I guess you could say this is early. Want something to eat?"

(Alice) "No, thanks. I'm used to skipping breakfast."

(Roger) "Won't be another opportunity to eat until probably well after 12."

(Roger) "I have to review reports from Libyan war gaming."

(Alice) "That's fine. How's it going?"

(Roger) "It's going fine. We've over 6 million soldiers from federal units, commonwealth units, and Parthian units taking part. Do you know what one of the top field marshals suggested?"

(Alice) "Does it have anything to do with gas?"

(Roger) "He suggested we hold as many games as we can, close to the border of Mississippian Libya and Arabian Libya, and then after the 20th or so game, as the AL border units are used to seeing so many soldiers near the border, we all sweep into AL and crush the armies there. Ludicrous suggestion! It would probably work, they'd grow desensitized to seeing so many soldiers, but I don't want a war. I told him one more thought like that, and he'll be busted down to private!”

(Roger) "Yes, there is gas, why do you ask?"

(Roger) "We're staging mock chemical attacks in the war games so our soldiers and citizens are ready in the event there are ever any real chemical attacks."

(Alice) "Anything harmful?"

(Roger) "Well of course the mock chemicals aren't harmful, but they are meant to represent harmful agents."

(Alice) "Yes. With inconsistent generals like this Tracy opposing you, I can see how it would be useful."

(Roger) "There are a number of my own generals who are pressing me to launch a massive first strike and annihilate the majority of enemy forces before they know what hit them."

(Alice) "You know it would be impossible. Before your ICBMs hit theirs would be in the air."

(Roger) "Well they suggested we could use SSBNs alone to do it, We have over 150 SSBNs.”

(Roger) "Also there are some generals who say damn the consequences we need to launch, they say since 90% of our citizens will survive in bunkers, it's acceptable to lose 10%."

(Alice) "It is most certainly not acceptable, and I don't think that people in that mindset should be leading troops."

(Roger) "Well I have the ultimate say, so I decide there is no war, and there is no war. No general or group of generals will force a war that I don't want."

(Alice) "You don't think one of these people could launch at least some missiles without your knowledge?"

She wondered about that, seeing as CM policy allowed anybody ranked captain or above to authorize tactical chemical weapons attacks.

(Roger) "I don't think they'd launch, it would be a disaster, if they manage to launch say 10 missiles, we'll be wiped out in the counter-launch. They'd be forcing us to launch our entire arsenal... Ah, I see what you mean."

(Roger) "You're saying if the generals should go rogue, launch a few missiles. They know we'll have to launch everything we have to try to neutralize as much of the enemy before the enemy can retaliate, otherwise we know we're going to be clobbered."

(Alice) "And you'll get clobbered anyway, but the explosions generated would have consequences felt the entire world over. We have a personal stake in this now, because of Angola."

(Roger) "Yes well remember, it's my decision to make, and no generals will make it for me. I could increase the centralization in missile authority and strip them of even more authority. Currently the army high command can launch missiles in the event the government is decapitated in a surprise strike, to that ends, the top generals and field marshals each have part of the access codes to the missiles. A full code is needed for a full launch, but partial codes can result in partial launches. But more than 3 codes are needed for any launch."

(Alice) "Perhaps, but even a single release of sarin or smallpox in an opposing nation and you'd be attacked."

(Roger) "I don't think that most reasonable nations would start a war over the actions of a few rogue generals if it killed only a few thousand people, as long as we turned over the rogues to them to be dealt with according to their laws."

(Alice) "I think the name Tracy rebuts that."

(Roger) "Yes well that man is an uncultured ruffian, and had he accepted my invitation to a duel, he'd be in a morgue by now."

(Alice) "Perhaps. But if he is a representative of his nation, can you call it a reasonable one?"

(Roger) "No, he is not reasonable. He is lucky though, I can shoot the center of a dollar coin at 100 yards with my pistol."

(Alice) "I'm not impressed."

(Roger) "Would you like to go shooting?"

(Alice) "That depends."

(Roger) "On what?"

(Alice) "On whether I can draw my gun without it being taken."

(Roger) "Oh yes, sorry, here you are." (He opened a drawer and handed her gun back to her)

(Alice) "Unlocked this whole time?"

(Roger) "Sure, why not?"

(Alice) "I thought you distrusted my stability."

(Roger) "Well I don't think that is an issue anymore, do you?"

(Alice) "I hope not."

Roger finished eating, he took a silver cigarillo holder out from his breast pocket and put one into his mouth, "Want one" he offered her and he extended the holder to her.

(Alice) "No, thank you."

Roger stood up, started to walk towards the balcony, and lit his cigarillo with a silver lighter as he was walking out the balcony door.

He inhaled deeply on it and blew the smoke out through his mouth in a large cloud, he was leaning on the wall of the balcony, looking out over the city, people were starting to leave their houses and go about their daily chores.

Alice stepped out onto the balcony to see what he was doing.

Roger ashed his cigarillo and then put it back in his mouth, inhaling and then exhaling in a direction away from Alice. He turned to face her, "Look at it all", he said as he motioned at the city, "It runs like clockwork, everyday."

(Alice) "Maybe that's a bad thing?"

(Roger) "It's all predictable, every Sunday through Friday people are busy and going about their daily business. Every Saturday the entire city shuts down."

(Roger) "I don't see how it could be bad."

(Alice) "What about spontaneity?"

(Roger) "We don't like surprises, everything has a place and a proper state of being."

(Alice) "Curious."

(Roger) "Do you know why everything shuts down on Saturday?"

(Alice) "I'm afraid not."

(Roger) "Saturday is our Sabbath, from 9 am to 3 pm, everybody is in church praying. We break from noon to one for lunch and then resume praying until 3 pm."

(Alice) "Perhaps a little overmuch?"

(Roger) "What do you mean?"

(Alice) "Do you feel that God hears your praying more if you pray longer?"

(Roger) "It shows how much of our time we devote solely to praying. As it is we devote all of our time to God because we are always doing His work."

Alice sighs. "Perhaps your nation has something to learn from other nations, and perhaps other nations have something to learn from yours."

(Roger) "We don't feel the world can teach us anything except sin and evil, that is why we try so hard to shut ourselves out of world affairs. We have a complete ban on all foreign radio, television, and print media."

(Roger) "Our people can only watch shows approved by both the government and the Council of Bishops."

(Alice) "I think that is why you have something to learn from the world."

(Roger) "What do you think the world could possibly teach us? I just fail to see what good the world is as a whole, we are and always will be Mississippi and we basically just want the world to leave us on our own, we're willing to do the same with the world."

(Alice) "Tell me. You're acting premier, you should know. What percentage of men are employed outside their own homes?"

(Roger) "Well over 97%, nearly 100%.”

(Alice) "Women?"

(Roger) (Hesitates) "Does it really matter?"

(Roger) "Less than 7%."

(Alice) "Thank you."

(Roger) "But we do allow women to work in times of national crisis when the men must leave the factories to take up arms."

(Alice) "Women do not serve in the army?"

(Roger) "Well the thing is women are free to work if they want, but managing an estate and 10 plus children is work enough for them, and they're very appreciate for doing it."

(Roger) "We have women in the army administration as secretaries, there are also the nurses in the medical corps."

(Alice) "How about as pilots?"

(Roger) "No, no women pilots."

(Alice) "In the infantry?"

(Roger) (Shocked) "Infantry? You're not serious are you, tell me you're joking."

(Alice) "I'm not joking. Tell me the total number."

(Roger) "There are no women in combat positions."

(Alice) "Okay. In the engineer corps?"

(Roger) "None."

(Alice) "How many women can give an order to a man?"

(Roger) "I'd have to check into that."

(Alice) "You do that, and while you're at it tell me how many men can give an order to a woman." She scribbles a number down on a piece of paper. "You can give those numbers to me at this phone number."

(Roger) "It might have changed since the last time I checked, but last reports suggest none."

(Roger) "We have been attempting to form an all female Republican Guard Armored Division to see if the use of women in combat is something worth further consideration."

(Alice) "I'm afraid I don't believe you. If you're ever in need of something from Seryown, that's my cell. I'm off."

(Roger) "But we are, we even have the first 1,000 women recruits!"

(Roger) "You can see them in training, they are here in Egypt!"

(Alice) "As I said, I'm leaving. I hope your morning goes well."

(Roger) "Please don't go, stay for a while."

(Roger) "Have I done something to offend you?"

(Alice) "Your entire nation offends me." She leaves the balcony.

(Roger) (Walks off the balcony into the room) "Come back, please, at least come see the female armored division we're trying to form, you might be pleasantly surprised."

Alice begins walking toward her bedroom, not bothering to turn as she responds. "The fact that you want a separate division at all is abhorrent to me."

(Roger) "What do you mean? All of our units in the Republican Guard are special and unique, one division is all citizens from Rome, one division is all White Christians from Turkey, another division is all citizens whose ancestor were crusaders, one division is all from the Mississippian clergy."

(Roger) "Studies show if women and men are in the same units in combat, sexual tensions will reduce unit effectiveness."

(Alice) "These ideas are abhorrent to me as well."

(Roger) "Please Alice, calm down, would you at least like to see the units that are going to form the core of the 31st Republican Guard Armored Divsion?"

(Alice) "Not particularly."

(Roger) "Do you know what the training for the guard is like? It takes over 12 months, the last 3 days, all recruits are taken to the desert, given 2 litres of water and 2 MREs, they are then left on their own to march over 100 miles to the nearest city, those that fall out of the marching, they are left behind, it's brutally harsh, officers will ride by in jeeps and beat anybody who is slacking they will taunt them to the ends of the earth, and they also dump water on the sand in front of them, to taunt them."

(Roger) "In Republican Guard training, about 30% of recruits will be seriously injured of killed."

(Roger) "Most of those that die, do so in the last 3 days, the "March through hell" they call it."

(Alice) "Do your airlines run flights into Luanda yet?"

(Roger) "You're not listening to a word I'm saying are you? I'm trying to tell you that we're amazed at what's happened thus far, the women we've allowed to try out for the Republican Guard, they've passed through 10 months of training and still 1,000 of the original 4,000 have not washed out. I'm shocked."

(Roger) "Our airlines don't enter Angola, but my private plane goes where I want it to go."

(Alice) "I'll have to find a layover, then. Oh well."

(Roger) "Alice, please, stop this nonsense would you? Tell me what is wrong?"

(Alice) "I have outlined a number of examples for you. I'm afraid that your brainwashed mind is unable to handle them. I only ask that you remember to tell anyone who needs to know that I'm no longer involved in this."

(Roger) "Please Alice, why don't you stay and you can argue with me about how I'm wrong, I'll just listen, you talk."

(Alice) "I'm afraid my lifespan is far too short."

(Roger) "Please Alice, won't you stay, you're too rash you know that, it's not good for a diplomat to be so rash, and you seem like such a good diplomat."

(Alice) "Rash? Rash? You won't take into account the remotest possibilities of equality for just about anyone, and you say rash?" She said, and having finally finished her packing, she stepped to the door and opened it.

(Roger) (Following her out the door) "Alice, what would you suggest? I'm trying to make reforms, I'm open to suggestions."

(Alice) "You want suggestions? Eliminate all laws relating to segregation or inequality or even mentioning any races in any way."

(Roger) "Well that isn't possible, and I'd never agree to that, the inferior races must never be allowed to mingle as equal with the superior races. We must keep our superior gene pool isolated from the corrupting influences of Negroid genetics. But what else would you suggest, something that I can and will consider implementing."

(Alice) "Depose your father and hold free elections for a national congress that will appoint a court system and a cabinet. That means no soldiers will be involved in the voting process at all."

(Roger) (Laughing) "You really must be in a mood today, I said something I can and will do. I will never betray my father and there will never national elections, there will never be a congress, and there will never be a supreme court. I said something reasonable."

(Alice) "Offer a plan in which you and all members of the league will destroy all their nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons if DPUO, Sevaris, and Derscon do the same thing."

(Roger) (Laughing more) "Destroy trillions of dollars worth of weapons, and compromise our security. Are you mad? I said something I can and will do. I suggest right now we both go back inside and sit down and talk about this, please."

(Alice) "Then offer a plan in which you'll destroy weapons of mass destruction i equal amount to what DPUO destroys."

(Roger) "That I can and will do, now please, will you come back inside?"

(Alice) "Nope. But you should do that. When do you suppose this elevator is coming?"

(Roger) "It's shut off, the guards only turn it on when I tell them to, now please come back inside."

(Alice) "I suppose there would have to be emergency stairs?"

(Roger) "Please come back inside and we can talk about these issues you raise, in an adult fashion. As for the stairs, those are kept locked and guarded, they'll open if I tell them to open them."

(Alice) "I don't suppose you'll turn on the elevator, then."

(Roger) (Shaking his head) "You suppose correctly. Now will you come back inside?"

(Alice) "Kidnapping, then?"

(Roger) "No, I'm simply asking you stay here for a while. It's not kidnapping. I have total legal rights over anybody and everybody who enters into a Commonwealth territory. Now please come back inside, we can talk about the issues you're raising... As equals."

(Alice) "I'm afraid that if you don't let me go you will be committing yet another international crime and as such you will set off a diplomatic incident like you couldn't believe."

(Roger) "Please Alice, don't be so unreasonable, please come back in."

(Alice) "I have some experience. I know what I'm talking about. Maybe, just maybe, if you let me go now, I'll factor that in and let you off easy."

(Roger) "Please Alice, Angola is not safe, you don't want to go there, trust me."

(Alice) "On the contrary, I have been there. I'm there quite often."

(Roger) "Yes and I have been there, it's a hellhole and it fell into anarchy, millions died. You don't need to go there, you'll just get hurt."

(Alice) "You know there's a high speed train between Luanda and Lobito now?"

(Roger) "There was always a train, along with a great road system, but the blacks blew up all the depots and the bridges around the 6th month of the war."

(Alice) "I mean a new one, actually."

(Roger) "Okay, well will you please stay here for a while longer. You were assigned to attend the conferences, since you're not at the conference, you'll be expected to get something diplomatic done, and you can't negotiate with me if you're in Angola."

(Alice) "The longer this elevator takes to get here, the longer it will take before there will ever be diplomacy between our nations again."

(Roger) "What must I do to make you be reasonable?"

(Alice) "Order the elevator up here."

(Roger) "Why? I'd like for you to stay at least a while longer, please?"

(Alice) "No."

(Roger) "What could I do to convince you to stay at least a while longer?"

(Alice) "I have made several suggestions. I think the most important is the abandonment of those race laws."

(Roger) "If you've been in Mississippi as long as I have, you'd see the racial laws as absolutely necessary. I grew up in a nation with 40 million negroes, I know what they're capable of, I know what they can and cannot do."

(Alice) "THEY ARE HUMAN!”

(Roger) "No! They are a lower form of life, whether you believe in Creation and that they are the beast of the field, or in evolution and that they evolved from the australopithecine and we whites evolved from Homo erectus, they are low grade scum! They come out on the losing end whichever theory you accept."

(Alice) "I'm sorry, but you're simply wrong. Could you call that elevator for me?

(Roger) (Emotionlessly) "No."

(Alice)"You know something?"

(Roger) "What?"

(Alice) “My mother is Chinese.”

Roger's literally turned red with rage, he screamed out, "Get out of my sight!"

(Alice) "If you'd let me, I'd be happy to."

(Roger) "Fine, I'll call them, but if you ever tell anybody you were here, you won't be able to live to regret it, do you get it?"

(Alice) "Sure."

(Roger) (Talking softly to himself) "How stupid could I be to let you trick me, I surely did drink too much, I've been educated in racial science, well anybody without such education could spot somebody 1/2 Chinese, oh boy, I need to stop drinking." (His voice grows louder) "As for you, get out of my sight." He yells into a radio, "Activate the elevator!"

Alice waits quietly for a few seconds as the elevator comes and then steps in as soon as the doors open. She smiles as the doors begin to close. "Ta ta."

(Roger) (Quietly into the radio) "I want her followed all the way to Angola and while she is Angola, see if your friends in the WKA can keep an eye on her. I don't believe her 1/2 chinese story, I'm not an idiot, I've been educated in racial science, but I just didn't want to argue with her anymore, but still, she's 100% white, whether she will admit it or not. And as such, she'll need protection in Angola, so tail her."

Alice got outside and Roger's car was there, the driver was standing outside next to it, he said, "Ma'am, I've been instructed to take you to the airport."

Alice nodded and smiled. "I do not wish to go to the airport."

(Driver) "Wherever you want to go then, I’ve been instructed to take you anywhere you wish to go."

(Alice) "All right. Then you can get out of my face. I wish to walk around."

(Driver) "Okay, no need to be rude ma'am, but if you decide you need a ride, I'll be here."

(Alice) "Of course."

She starts to walk down the street, she walks passed the Commonwealth authority building, the governor-generals mansion, well the walk passed the mansion took 15 minutes due to the size of the land it was on. There were guards all along the sidewalk outside the mansion and a fence kept people about 2,500 feet away from the mansion itself, which was also behind large groups of trees.

She sees the "Foreign Legion Recruiting office" for the Mississippian foreign legion, a shadowy group that had about 20,000 soldiers fighting in Angola before it fell. There are large lists posted outside the building, underneath signs labeled "Killed" "Wounded" "Missing" hundreds of women are standing in line to read the lists, some of them break into tears, others breathe sighs of relief.

Somebody in the line stopped her and asked her, "Are you here to check the lists too?"

(Alice) "No, I already know what happened to my husband."

The woman sensed what she meant and hugged her and said, "I'm so sorry, it must be awful for you."

(Alice) "I suggest that you get out of this line. If there is bad news waiting for you up there, it is better not to know."

(Woman) "I need to know, three of my eight sons, two of my six brothers, and my husband all fought in Angola. they are all in Legion, the 1st regiment of the 2nd brigade."

(Alice) "Where were they?"

(Woman) "Two of my sons were stationed in Luena, 1 of my sons was in Cabinda, my husband and 1 brother were in Huambo, and my other brother was in Luanda."

Alice smiles. "If it brings you any hope before you get up there, you'll be glad to know that the people in Luanda were among the most fortunate of the soldiers."

At about that time, an old sgt walked out of the office and called out through a bullhorn, "Anybody who is here for any legionnaires that fought in Lobito, Huambo, or Luena, you are wasting your time, you'd best go home and make funeral arrangements."

Scores of the women fall to the ground and start to cry, one of them was sobbing, "That can't be, Lobito had over 8,000 soldiers, how can that be?"

The old sgt called back through the bullhorn, "Luena was flattened weeks ago when the black guerillas took it, if you didn't know, well you should try reading a foreign newspaper, they don't seem to shrink from hiding our defeats! Now get off of the legion property in ten minutes, this is for prospective recruits, and after what happened in Angola, we need more meat for the grinder."

Alice is stunned by the scene and stumbles backwards before turning down the first street she comes to.

She could just hear the sgt as she ran off.

She staggered forward and walked for about two more blocks, before coming to a stop outside a large building that read "Commonwealth Mississippian Egyptian Armed Forces Recruiting Center."

There were about 800 people standing in a long line outside the building, aged from 17 to the upper twenties. They were all white males.

A bunch of them were talking, a group was saying, "Do you think we can get into the Special Air Assault Squads, those guys are the best, in Angola they jumped into combat and took on odds 20 times against them."

One of them said, "After what happened in Angola, they need more people to join the parachute units, that's where I'm going, I'm going to join the commonwealth army and then transfer to the federal army in Mississippi."

Alice looks at them, horrified. Were the people so willing to jump to their deaths for nothing?

One of them said, "I want to be in Chemical warfare, I've already got a degree in chemical engineering."

A large group of people shouted, "Air force!"

There were a few younger kids, about 14-15 that were saying, "Can we join?" a recruiter standing outside said, "Sorry kids, come back in three or four years, but you can join the Fabus Youth paramilitary groups, go around the side entrance, you'll see the signs."

There was a large sign with Mississippi personified by a beautiful white woman it read, "Won't you fight to defend her?"

She turned and continued walking, horrified.

A man was walking down the road in a hurry, he broke into a run and was turning to look behind him when he ran right into her, he jumped up and ran off without even saying anything.

Rounding the corner were 4 men in suits and long overcoats, yelling, "Stop that man!"

Alice looked at them. "What happened?"

They just kept running, a nearby citizen told her, "Don't bother them while they're working, those guys are scary, they might arrest you, Commonwealth Internal Security Police, the secret police."

One of the men stopped and aimed a pistol, he fired at the man running and he fell flat on his face into a mud puddle.

They went over and checked to see if he was still alive, he was, they lifted him up and hauled him off into a waiting car.

Alice looked at the man who had talked to her. "You call this a good life?"

(Man) "Sure, it wasn't me they were after."

(Alice) "How do you know it won't be you soon?"

(Man) "I've done nothing wrong, I've nothing to fear."

(Alice) "What if they make a mistake?"

(Man) "The Internal Security Police don't make mistakes that serious, besides they'd straighten it out right away."

(Man) "Besides, for the good of the race and the state, we need to forget about small matters such as personal liberty. The state must prosper!"

(Alice) "I...this is impossible." She turned around and began sprinting back toward where she thought she remembered the car had been waiting.

There was a massive parade moving down the street she was approaching, they were all in white robes, but unmasked, at least 400,000 people in total, crowds of citizens were standing by waving and cheering. There were little kids saluting them with their left hands.

She recognized the man at the front of the parade, on a horse draped in a white sheet, the governor-general of Mississippian Egypt.

Horrified, Alice tried to force her way past the crowd of people on the side.

People were screaming, "White Power!", "Hail Fabus!", "God is Great!"

A number of clergy had lined up along the side of the road; they were blessing the marchers and praying.

She bumped into a boy about 12 years old, even though it was her fault, he turned around and said, "Hello ma'am, sorry about that, my fault, are you here to see the parade?"

(Alice) "No, I'm trying to get past."

(Boy) "Why, don't you like the parade?"

(Alice) "No, I don't."

(Boy) "You're not a jew are you?"

(Alice) "No, I'm not."

The boy's dad, turned around and said, "William, what have I told you about talking to strangers?"

(Boy) "But daddy, you can tell she's not a nig---r, and she says she isn't a jew." The dad replied, "Well I guess it's okay then, but don't bother people, she probably has places to go and things to do." He turned and said, "Sorry about my son bothering you, little children, always so inquisitive."

(Alice) "Yeah. I have to go."

(Man) "Well nice talking to you, hail Fabus!"

The boy rose up his left arm and shouted "Hail Fabus!"

(Alice) "Right." She turns and begins hurrying towards the car she hopes is still waiting.

She walked back along the road, the parade stretched for miles and so she'd have no hope of getting to the other side of the street, the side she needed to be on, unless she crossed through a break in the parade.

There was a large store she stopped in front of, it read "Surplus Military Equipment: Kill them good, and kill them dead, best stuff in Egypt"

The sign said hours, "Open 8-8 every Sunday through Friday, closed every Saturday"

She had never seen a Mississippian gun store, she was curious, so she walked inside.

The first thing she saw was a large CM flag and a poster that read "Guns don't kill be, pissed off Mississippians do."

Another large sign read, "Tactical nuclear bombs may only be purchased with weapons approval cards, same rules for chemical and biological weaponry. All other items require no approval cards, but proof of citizenship must be given. Nobody under 18 allowed in the WMD room."

She walked deeper into the store, it was at least 30,000 sq feet in size, there were large rows of pistols, rifles, shotguns, sub-machine guns, silencers, scopes, magazines, 1-ton crates of ammunition divided into 1000 round boxes, there were rows of AK-47s, M-16A2s, MP-5s, HK-91s, Fn-Fals, M-249 SAWs.

There was a G-5 155mm howitzer in the middle of the store.

A large sign read, "Save 20% on your purchase today if you join the WKM Egyptian Realm."

The storeowner was sitting on the counter reading a gun magazine, he hopped down and said, "Anything I can help you with ma'am?"

(Alice) "No, thank you."

(Owner) "We have or can order literally any gun ever made."

(Alice) "Thanks, but I'm fine."

A guy came up to the register, holding an old British Martini-Henry Rifle, he handed the owner about 8,000 dollars and then left. Another man came up pulling a cart full of 155mm howitzer shells filled with Soman gas. He paid the owner about 5,000 dollars and then carried them outside.

She walked out of the store and hastened her pace down the street, there was a large gap in the parade as a column of masked riders was moving slowly forward as a group of people on foot was moving ahead of the them about 100 feet away.

She walked passed the governors mansion where outside about 800 Arabs had assembled and were chanting "Infidels out!"

One of them cried out, "Mississippi for Mississippians, Egypt for Egyptians!"

A commonwealth police officer walked up to him, and started to talk to him, he called him a rather nasty insult in Arabic, and a group of about 18 Arabs rushed the officer and pummeled him senseless.

She stood by watching as over 200 commonwealth police in heavy body armor came running out from the nearby Police HQ and leveled their weapons at the crowd of Arabs that had grown to over 4,000. They yelled, "Return to your homes immediately!"

About 30 BMP3s poured into the area and soldiers piled out from inside, they trained their OICWs towards the Arab crowd.

About 90 German shepherds were brought in and then set loose against the crowd, the dogs tore into flesh, and ripped it from bone, their teeth were stained red with blood, they viciously attacked and sent the crowds scattering.

The police and soldiers then ran into the crowds and began clubbing them and smacking them with the butts of their rifles.

Large police wagons were brought in and 800 more police arrived the scene and began arresting people en masse, over 1,200 Arabs were arrested.

One of the police officers stopped and told Alice, "Ma'am this isn't the safest place to be right now, them Arabs are on the war path."

Alice nodded. "Thanks, but I'll be fine."

A large crowd of over 9,000 Arab workers, mostly those who worked in the city but were now refusing to return to continue working, came marching towards the police and soldiers, with hate and anger in their eyes.

Another crowd of about 12,000 started marching at the police from a perpendicular street, the police started to slowly walk backwards.

The officer told Alice, "Ma'am I'd seriously suggest you leave now."

The crowds began to hurl bottles and bricks at the police, but they impacted harmlessly on the shields, one of them came straight at Alice, but the officer used his shield to deflect it.

The officers suddenly realized there was an Arab mob approaching from behind them as well, over 30,000 Arabs, and just 1,000 police and soldiers. The police formed a square and then raised their rifles, the Arabs stopped at about 90 feet away from them.

Alice drew her gun suddenly. "I am not one of your dolls, and you will not order me around."

The officer said, "That's a felony ma'am, but whatever you want, get yourself killed, those Arabs are going to start some trouble today."

Alice smiled. "It's about time they did."

A cop standing behind her saw what she was doing, that she had pulled a gun on a cop, and he grabbed her hands and pulled them pulled behind her back, another cop wrestled the gun away from her, then they threw her to the ground and 3 of them held her down while one handcuffed her, then they placed her into a police wagon and said, "There, you can go to jail!"

Alice smiled. "Send me to jail, really. Roger Fabus will be happy to know you did it."

They slammed the door and locked it, but she could see out of a small window what was going on, the Arabs were slowly advancing, the 4 police fell back into the square.

She suddenly heard the sounds of the advancing Arabs drowned out by volleys of gunfire.

The BMPs machine guns came to life.

(Alice) "I'm a diplomat, and your Acting Premier thought he'd be clever and try to convince me that Mississippian ways were the right ways by taking me here. I daresay he has not succeeded."

The cop in the front of the police wagon, the driver, turned around and told her, "Quit your bitching, I got better things to worry about than you, we have a riot on our hands here."

She looked out the window and the saw the streams of blood shooting out of the crowd as the machine gun bullets impacted into them.

(Alice) "Well, if you'd give me my gun back I could help."

The first few rows of Arabs fell, but as they fell they revealed something, their comrades behind them had rifles, AK-47s and SKS rifles.

(Cop) "Too dangerous for a woman out there, you'd just get yourself hurt, don't let any fear get into that pretty little head of yours though, there are over 1,000 brave men outside, and they won't let anything happen."

(Alice) "It's a good thing you've got me locked up, because otherwise I swear you would be on the floor, squealing in pain right now. Now give me my damn gun and let me out of this."

The square the police had formed into was breaking up under the fire from the arabs, they had smuggled the weapons into the city via the sewer system, something that after this riot would never happen again due to boosted security to cover all previously unguarded sewers.

The cop said to Alice, "I'll just ignore that, or else you'd regret it."

(Alice) "You think I'd regret it? Just because I'm a diplomat doesn't mean I'm weak."

(Cop) "Well I know you'd regret it if I took it upon myself to teach you some manners, like the proper way to speak to a man, especially if he's a police captain." She realizes now he is a police captain.

(Alice) "You are my equal, and if you don't give me my gun back right now there will be a diplomatic incident so big your ass won't exist by the time I'm done with it."

She could hardly hear him over the gunfire, the police square had broken and they were behind BMPs and cars, taking cover and firing back.

(Captain) "If you keep insulting me, your asshole will be a lot larger by the time I'm done with it."

Rounds impact against the windshield of the wagon and the captain dives under the dashboard and draws his pistol.

She gets a look out the window, over 10,000 of the armed Arabs are dead, but so are about 500 of the police officers and soldiers. Leaving about 20,000 Arabs and 500 police left.

(Alice) "If you'd just give me my damn gun, I could help you out here, but no, you had to sit here. So if I'm still alive when this is over, I'm perfectly willing to say that you acted entirely on your own and threaten to declare war against Mississippi unless you are extradited for trial."

(Captain) "But you were arrested for pulling a gun on a police officer."

(Alice) "I did no such thing. I drew a gun."

(Captain) "You drew a gun when an officer tried to move you out of a hostile situation, it was clear you were attempting to threaten him. Now listen to me you arrogant little bitch, shut the fuck up or I'm going to toss you into an all male prison, I'm sure they'd be anxious to get their hands on a woman, especially one as feisty as you are."

Alice) "While I'm not opposed to spending some time teaching your men a lesson with my fists, you understand that if anyone who even knows Roger Fabus sees you trying to get me convicted of a crime, it'll be you who ends up serving time?"

The police wagon starts to be rocked back and forth by the Arabs as they have overrun the police positions around the wagon, the captain bounces back and forth, he says, "What do you mean, you know Roger Fabus?"

Gunfire sounds all around outside and the rocking ceases as abruptly as it began.

She sees well over 40,000 men wearing white robes armed with rifles rushing along the streets in front of the mansion, they were marchers from the parade, and they had heard the troubles going on and rushed to the scene.

(Alice) "As I explained before, I am a diplomat. Fabus thought he would be clever and he invited me to Mississippi trying to change my mind."

(Captain) "Well did you see who started the violence here? The Arabs beat one of our officers, they beat him senseless, we tried to use dogs and clubs to send them back, but they had rifles for crying out loud, we didn't want this trouble."

(Alice) "I'm not here to argue with you. Just give me my gun and let me get to Fabus's limousine."

(Captain) (In a very mocking tone) "Anything else princess?"

(Captain) "Yes, like you even know Roger Fabus! The Acting-Premier! You don't even know him!"

(Alice) "And then you can get the hell out of my way so that maybe, just maybe, I forget about all this."

(Captain) "How about I take you there? What do you say to that? I'll drive you there myself, where is he?"

(Alice) "He's staying in the penthouse of that huge hotel a while back."

(Captain) "Well, the WKM has this riot under control now, here, come up front." (He opens a small hatch, and she manages to climb up front, but she is still handcuffed and can barely move well.

(Alice) "Just remember that the longer this takes, the less balls you'll have a month from now."

She gets a good look at the scene, over 500 dead police strewn about, mixed in with piles of arab dead, over 20,000 Arab dead. Ak-47s and SKS's litter the streets, blood flows through them, the pavement has been stained red. Overturned squad cars are on fire, the flames dance all over them.

(Captain) "I told you those people were going crazy!" He starts to drive away towards the hotel.

(Captain) (Very Casually) "About that male prison remark, I'm really sorry about that, can we just pretend that didn't happen?"

(Alice) "What, scared that I do know him?"

(Captain) "Oh, no I'm not scared at all."

(Alice) "Then..."

(Captain) "Well we can just forget about it yes?"

(Alice) "I forget very little."

(Captain) "But you could forget that yes?"

(Alice) "I don't think I will."

(Captain) "Maybe I could do you a favor and you might forget eh?"

She realized the captain wasn't paying attention to where he was driving and he had taken a wrong road due to all the roadblocks and detours setup to control the riots. He was heading straight for an Arab township outside the city.

(Alice) "I very much doubt that there is a possible favor to make me forget."

She wondered if she should tell him he was about to be in the center of an Arab township, he seemed to have other things on his mind.

She shrugged quietly and decided it would be better if she saw what it looked like anyway.


He suddenly saw a sign in Arabic and knew from the rows of shacks he was in the outskirts of the Arab township, there were children drinking water from puddles in the dirt, there was raw sewage behind the houses, a large group of people saw him and moved to block the road in front of him, he spun the wheel far to the left and the wagon jackknifed and rocked, almost tipping over.

Rocks and bottles began to impact against the truck, a mob was forming, he shouted, "Shit, how'd we wind up here, we have to get out of here."

She looked around and saw most of the shacks were open, with no doors and no windows, except for perhaps a tarp over the window; there was no electricity either, except for an occasional generator.

(Captain) "These arabs are itching for trouble."

Alice disagreed, but decided it was better if she kept her mouth shut, for now.

He unbuckled his seatbelt and looked in the compartment above the seats, he unlocked it with an electronic code and pulled out an M-249 SAW and three 200 round box magazines for it.

(Captain) "This is for clearing a crowd, the best tool in existence for the job."

(Captain) "If I give you a gun, will you help?" She could tell he was nervous and sounded desperate.

(Alice) "Sure."

He pulled an MP-5N down from the rack and a pouch containing 5 magazines, he set it on the seat, then he removed her handcuffs and asked, "Do you know how to use that?"

He left the gun on the seat and turned to open the door, he stepped out and began firing the SAW into the air above the heads of the crowd, they scattered and he fired more rounds into the air.

He got back into the wagon, set the SAW in between the seats and seat, "That seemed easy enough, just keep yours ready if they try to jump onto the running board and break the windows open."

He turned the truck around and started to head back out of the Arab township, there were people running all alongside the wagon. They were hurling bottles at their truck, hurling their hatred of the police at this lone wagon that had blundered into their neighborhood.


(Captain) "You got that gun close at hand, get ready, there are some up ahead blocking the road, why don't you lean out the window and scatter them."

Alice hesitated a few moments, leaned out the window, hesitated a few more, and then sat back down.

(Captain) "Well fire the damn gun into the air, scatter them!"

More bottles and bricks impacted against the wagon.

(Alice) "Could you at least slow down a little?"

Right when she said that, he noticed there were people right ahead, so it was a good time to slow down anyway, so he just slammed the brakes on

Alice nodded. "Thank you." She opened the door and dove out, throwing the submachine gun down in front of her and covering her head.

(Captain) "Are you insane! Get back in here, they'll kill you!"

AK-47 and SKS fire began to impact against the wagon

The captain closed the door and floored the pedal down, slamming through a crowd of people and speeding away. She was left standing near an alley.

Alice stood up, bruised. She dropped the submachine gun and put her hands in the air.

A mob of Arabs with rifles surrounded her, one of them spoke in perfect English, "What are you doing here? Women are not allowed in Commonwealth police."

(Alice) "I was under arrest."

Another one demanded, "Then how did you get the gun?"

(Alice) "He wanted me to help him disperse the crowd."

(Arab leader) "Likely story, but probably true, this way, follow me."

The leader picked up the MP-5N and slung it over his shoulder, he liked this nice new weapon, a much better gun than his rusty old SKS, well much better for close quarters combat.

Alice nodded. "Of course."

A man behind her jammed an SKS into her back and pushed her forward, she followed them for a few blocks until they got to the leaders house, it was the nicest in the area, but it wasn't hard to be nicer a shack, the streets were all dirt and sand, not a single one paved, there was no sidewalks, electricity, and the water system was virtually non-existent.

The Arab leader walked into his house and she was pushed through the door, three guards stood by while he sat down and invited her to sit down on a chair opposite his.

Alice sat down quickly. "What can I do for you?"

(Leader) "My name is Nasser Aref, I am the mayor of this so-called "City" tell me how do you like this city, the commonwealth government calls it separate... But equal."

(Alice) "I had been told it really was equal."

(Nasser) (Laughing) "You call this equal?"

(Alice) "No I do not."

(Nasser) "But oh well, we must live with it, not you, you get to return to Alexandria and to your home, you do live in Alexandria yes?"

(Alice) "No."

(Nasser) "So tell me, where do you live?"

(Alice) "I live in a country called Seryown."

(Nasser) "Then you are a long distance from home."

(Alice) "Yes."

(Nasser) "Tell me, why did you come here?"

(Alice) "I am a diplomat. I was on a meeting for a peace conference in Russia, and the Acting Premier, Roger Fabus, thought he'd be clever."

(Nasser) "What do you mean? You know the Acting Premier? What do you mean clever?"

(Alice) "He thought he could convince me that Mississippi's way of life was the right one by bringing me here."

(Nasser) "Well I do like the jobs they provide, if they weren't here, we'd be even poorer than we are. But the commonwealth government refuses to spend money to pave our roads, repair our schools, etc. They tell the Federal authority in Mississippi they are spending the money, but they are really just lying to them."

(Alice) "So it isn't Mississippi's fault?"

(Nasser) "No, we like Mississippi to some degree, they keep us safe from the threat of Israeli aggression and radical Muslim terrorists. The man we don't like is Governor-General Donald Stahlecker, do you know of the Stahlecker family?"

(Alice) "A little too well, I think?"

(Nasser) "Donald Stahlecker makes Arabs go into white cities and act happy and then films then and sends the footage to federal authorities and tells them they are in Arab cities and that is how nice they are."

(Alice) "One second, actually." She fumbled into her pockets and pulled out a tape recorder, badly dented. She pressed the power button, murmuring encouragement to it, and when it did she pressed record. "If you want the truth to reach them..."

(Nasser) "My name is Nasser Aref, I am the mayor of Eastern Township near Alexandria in Mississippian Egypt. It is not exactly a city so much as it is a shantytown with just shacks and dwellings not fit for animals."

(Nasser) "The Governor-General Donald Stahlecker rather than using funds allocated to build the separate but equal Arab cities has instead diverted the money to fortifying the southern borders of Mississippian Egypt. He is also purchasing numerous fighter aircraft and he is attempting to increase the size of the Commonwealth Mississippian Egyptian Army by at least 10%."

(Nasser) "What else should I mention? We have photographs of this township, a few, but they speak volumes."

(Alice) "How's your electricity work?"

(Nasser) "What electricity? They never put it in! Only a few of us have power from generators that run on gasoline than we can rarely afford."

(Alice) "Yes. Your indoor plumbing?"

(Nasser) "The plumbing is a hole in the ground out behind the shack they call a house."

(Alice) "I'm sorry. But at least you've got paved roads and cars, right?"

(Nasser) "No, dirt roads, and we either walk, use bicycles, and a few of us pooled our money together to buy a bus for the elderly and the children. Also there are a few small trucks that people use to take things to market."

(Alice) "Oh. Fire workers? Hospitals?"

(Nasser) "No fire department, 1 hospital with 6 doctors and 24 nurses for the township of about 800,000 people."

(Nasser) "Most of the medical equipment is stuff the British left when they pulled out of Egypt over 5 decades ago."

Alice turns off the tape recorder. "May I speak with a few of those doctors sometime before I'm either imprisoned or allowed to go?"

(Nasser) "Yes, you may go, you are free to wonder the township, several of my guards will accompany you, you must understand not everybody will take well to seeing a white here."

(Alice) "I'd be happy to. But if I may speak to you for a moment more?"

(Nasser) "Yes."

(Alice) "I've told you that I'm a diplomat. I'm among the best in my nation, and I've studied history rather extensively to form my own opinions."

(Nasser) "Yes."

(Alice) "There's a strong chance I won't get to anyone outside your commonwealth government with this tape. If I don't you'll have to think about fixing the situation. I think what you're doing right now isn't working."

(Nasser) "What do you mean? What can we do?"

(Alice) "Shooting at them doesn't help. You have a legitimate concern, but many countries do not support you because they don't see this, they see police trying to survive in the middle of a firefight."

(Nasser) "Ah yes, so you saw the stubborn youth with their rifles earlier shooting at police. I keep telling the parents to keep their children from shooting at them, that just reinforces their position when they tell the world we need to be controlled with a firm hand. I suggested that we march unarmed and if they will strike us down, they will expose themselves to the world for what they are."

(Alice) "Perhaps you need to take steps to ensure that no one takes a gun to your protests?"

(Nasser) "I can try, but the youth today, they don't want peaceful shouting and protests, they want to fight."

(Nasser) "Are you really here with Roger Fabus? He is here in Egypt?"

(Alice) "Yes, in Alexandria."

(Nasser) "Perhaps I could speak with him? Do you think that would be possible?"

(Alice) "I doubt it. The only way I could get him to leave me alone was by convincing him I wasn't entirely white."

(Nasser) "So you lied to him then? Lying is dishonorable, but there are times when it becomes necessary."

(Alice) "Far too necessary."

(Nasser) "Well we must try, we shall make our way to Alexandria."

(Alice) "Is it within walking distance?"

(Nasser) "No, but we can take a jeep, the citizens bought me one so I can get around the township easily and get places I need to go for business matters that affect them."

(Alice) "This could pose a problem."

(Nasser) "How?"

(Alice) "A White woman and an Arab man seen together... anyone will automatically assume us to be guilty of cohabitation."

(Nasser) "Yes, well what do you suggest?"

(Alice) "I'm not sure. I'll need to speak with some other people here first anyway. Tell me, what's the nearest airport in Egypt other than the one in Alexandria?"

(Nasser) "The nearest international airport is over 100 miles away.”

(Alice) "I am beginning to see... listen to me. You know what happened in Angola?"

(Nasser) "Yes, the commonwealth papers don't report such things, but I read a paper from Sudan that reported it."

(Alice) "Do you know what happened after Mississippi finished leaving?"

(Nasser) "Yes. Foolish tribals, they've ruined their own nation!"

(Nasser) "Native Angolans don't have the skills to run such a complicated infrastructure that the Mississippians left behind."

(Alice) "Perhaps. But Seryown intervened. Serya troops occupied Angola. Now it's a province of Seryown. It elects its own local government, it elects people to our congress, and there are no laws that mention any discrimination at all, based on race. There's a new high-speed rail system connecting most of the major cities and the farms and buildings have been reoccupied. There was a very horrible period in its history, but they're past it now."

(Nasser) "Yes, but I hear black Marxists still roam the countryside and they clash with these White Knights of Angola who ironically are mostly black auxiliaries."

(Alice) "We're doing the best we can to stamp them out, and the cities are basically entirely safe."

(Nasser) "You mean the piles of rubble that are what is left of the cities."

(Alice) "Nonsense. Luanda is entirely rebuilt, with skyscrapers and a huge Conference Hall for any meeting that needs to be held. Lobito has almost finished a similar renovation. In fact, the only city they feel has sustained irreparable damage is Luena, far into the interior in the east."

(Nasser) "Yes, but I have been in this nation my entire life, and I know what my people can and cannot do. We are mostly made for manual labor; we make good soldiers but only under the close supervision of competent officers. If we suddenly gained independence, we'd fall apart or fall to foreign aggression. What I am hoping for is some degree of autonomy and better conditions for our people. Success and prosperity are guaranteed if we stick with the commonwealth, but we hate the current governor."

(Alice) "What you're saying is that you like Mississippian rule, but a change of governor would be the best possible course?"

(Nasser) "Yes, that is how most people feel."

(Alice) "Most?"

(Nasser) "Yes, most of the people in this city want the governor gone but the commonwealth to stay."

(Alice) "Who are the others?"

(Nasser) "The people in this township, those I represent."

(Alice) "I mean the people who aren't in the most?"

(Nasser) "Mostly those who want a Jihad."

(Alice) "Do they have a leader here?"

(Nasser) "No, he is in the desert, with his group, planning to attack white farms in the interior, we have told him to stay out of our city because he is a trouble-maker."

(Alice) "How far in?"

(Nasser) "In the interior, the nearest white farming community is New Salem about a population of 12,000, it's about 16 miles south of here."

(Alice) "All right. Thanks. I'd like to speak with those doctors now." She stood up.

Nasser showed her to the back door and they got into the jeep parked there, they drove through the dirt roads to the only hospital in the city.

They walked into the hospital, a thatch roof building of two stories, the largest building in the city, there are a few cots and old beds lined up in rows, it stank of raw sewage.

There were only 2 doctors and 8 nurses in the hospital at the time.

Alice approached one of the doctors. "Excuse me, do you have a few moments to spare so that I can talk to you?"

(Doctor) "Yes, what do you want to talk about?"

(Alice) "Could we sit down?"

(Doctor) "Yes." (He sat down and pulled out a chair for her)

Alice pulls out the battered tape recorder and places it on the desk. She turns it on. "Before I set this to record, I need to explain to you that I'm trying to get a description of what this 'city' is like so that I can take it to my contacts in the Mississippian federal government."

(Doctor) "This is a typical Arab city."

(Doctor) "As a matter of fact, we here have it better than most."

(Alice) "I understand. That's the point. May I set this to record while I speak to you?"

(Doctor) "Yes. So you ask questions, I answer them yes?”

(Alice) "You answer them, right."

(Doctor) "Okay, I'm ready whenever you are."

Alice sets the machine to record. "All right. Do you access to MRI machines, to detect cancer?"

(Doctor) "MRI? What is that?"

(Alice) "All right. How's your ultrasonography equipment?"

(Doctor) "Our what now?"

(Alice) "Okay. What about CAT scanners?"

(Doctor) "I know what those are... But we have nothing that requires electricity more than our generators can provide."

(Alice) "So you don't have them?"

(Doctor) "Correct."

(Alice) "All right. But at least you have automated analyzers, right?"

(Doctor) "No, no we don't."

(Alice) "You have an available reserve of blood to draw on if one of your patients requires it?"

(Doctor) "Not particularly, we have only about 100 units of blood here."

(Doctor) "I should mention that for anesthetic we use chloroform or liquor."

Alice turns off the tape recorder. "I'm so sorry."

(Doctor) "Is that all?"

(Alice) "Yes, that will be all, thanks."

He gets back up and walks to a bed where a small boy with no left leg is lying. He is checking to see how the boy is doing. Alice wonders what happened.

She decides better of asking and leaves quickly.

Nasser is waiting in the jeep, "Shall we go to Alexandria then?"

(Alice) "I told you what would happen if we are seen. And we will be seen."

(Nasser) "Did you get to ask the doctor all the questions you wanted to? Did you see young Abdul, the boy who stepped on a commonwealth mine?"

(Alice) "Yes. Listen to me. I'm sorry, but we will both be arrested and then the only thing that will come of this is that your town will be deprived of its leader."

(Nasser) "Arabs are allowed into Alexandria as long as it isn't 5 pm yet, because they have to be out by 6 pm, we are not even past 1 pm yet, there is time. We can say that you were lost and I am taking you back into the city."

(Alice) "Very well then. Thank you."

Nasser drove the jeep down the street and go onto the road that would take them into Alexandria. After about 25 minutes of driving on the rural roads, they approached the outskirts of Alexandria; there was a checkpoint outside the city, 2 BMP3s and about 12 soldiers sitting around. They motioned for the jeep to stop.

A lieutenant walked up and chuckled, "Well now, what are you two doing here?"

Nasser started to speak, the lieutenant barked, "Shut your mouth Arab!"

(Lieutenant) "Well, what are you doing here?"

(Alice) "I was lost. He was taking me back into Alexandria."

(Lieutenant) "Do you have a pass card?"

(Alice) "I left my bag in my apartment. The card would be in there."

(Lieutenant) "Well all the good it does you there. I cannot allow you to pass."

(Alice) "Roger Fabus is staying in the penthouse at the Franco hotel. Call him there and ask him if he knows a diplomat who stayed with him last night. I think that's all the pass card I'll need."

The lieutenant broke into extreme laughter.

(Lieutenant) "You expect me to believe you know Roger Fabus?"

(Alice) "I don't care if you believe it. Since we'll be sitting here for a while anyway, you could save us all some time and try calling the hotel to see if he's there."

He picked up a radio and got into contact with the Franco Hotel. About 60 seconds later, the lieutenant waved her through and the soldiers opened the gate for her.

The jeep drove off down through the checkpoint and the road suddenly changed from dirt to very nicely paved.

They finally arrived at the Franco Hotel.

There were some SRG men outside the hotel, standing guard; they refused to let Nasser inside.

(Sgt) "No arabs in this hotel, acting premier Roger Fabus is in here, security measures have to be taken!"

(Alice) "Let me handle the people here, okay?"

(Nasser) "Okay, they seem unwilling to let me in anyway."

Alice approached the guards and spoke up quickly. "Hey, you remember those kids who were in the lobby? Did they get to their uncle all right?"

(Sgt) "Oh yes, they got on the plane fine, word from Al Khums, they made it there okay."

(Alice) "That's very nice. Listen, you know me, right? And I know that Fabus has a brain, so he's probably figured out by now that I am actually entirely white, so I doubt he'll just refuse to see me. Now what you can do is let us up to the penthouse to speak with Mr. Fabus."

(Sgt) "He was fuming that he was temporarily tricked by you, he does indeed realize you're entirely white. But he is in a mood right now, he's currently speaking with the governor-general but you're welcomed to go up there."

(Alice) "The governor-general! Well, my friend here will have to accompany me."

(Sgt) "Sorry, no Arabs inside while either Roger Fabus or the Governor-General is in there."

(Alice) "I'm afraid he must accompany me."

(Sgt) "You'll have to clear that with Roger Fabus first, you'll have to go up and see him, if he agrees, radio back down."

(Alice) "No, I don't think so. You can call on up to him from here to clear it with him."

The sgt just shrugged his shoulders and said, "Oh well, good bye", before he turned to walk away.

(Alice) "I don't think you understand."

He turned back around, "Now listen woman, I've told you what to do!"

(Alice) "I'm not a doll. Call up to Mister Fabus and clear it with him."

(Sgt) "Is your head void of activity? Listen woman! I told you what to do."

(Alice) "That man is not leaving my sight. Now, you will call up to Mister Fabus and clear this with him, or I will get on a plane and start off a diplomatic incident which result in Fabus having your head."

(Sgt) "Fine, you can go up, both of you." She was shocked he didn't bother calling it in, meaning he was just harassing them on his own choice.

Alice waved Nasser into the lobby in front of her.

They walked up the staircase and got to the door to the penthouse, there were 2 guards standing in front of the locked door. The guards swung the door open her them and they both proceeded through.

She walked into the penthouse and Nasser was right behind her, Governor-General Donald Stahlecker and Roger Fabus were each sitting in a large armchair and was smoking a cigar.

Roger turned and looked at her, "Ah Alice, what brings you back here?"

Stahlecker looked over and shouted, "Good God! Get that Arab out of here, he'll kill us all!"

Alice smiled. "This man has some things he'd like to say. He's free to say it while I fiddle around with my gadgets." She pulled out the battered tape recorder and began to rewind it."

Stahlecker jumped out from his seat, "Whatever he says it's a lie! Have him thrown in jail!"

Alice shrugged. "He hasn't said anything yet."

(Stahlecker) "Whatever they tell you, it's all lies! Lies!"

Donald Stahlecker grabbed for her tape recorder.

(Alice) "Afraid, Donald?"

(Stahlecker) "Give me that!"

They were in a struggle over it, yanking back and forth.

As she held it away from him, she heard a click as the tape went back to the beginning, and she managed to hit the play button. Tiny speakers began to play the conversation ... "My name is Nasser Aref, I am the mayor of Eastern Township near Alexandria in Mississippian...."

Stahlecker shoved her down onto the ground and pulled out a pistol, "Press stop and give it to me now or you die woman!"

Roger screamed in his face, "Pull yourself together man!" as he pried the gun from his hands.

(Recording) "...Egypt. It is not exactly a city so much as it is a shantytown with just shacks and dwellings not fit for animals."

Stahlecker panicked and shouted, "It's all lies, sir, it's lies, we've spent hundreds of millions, billions even on those filthy ingrates!"

(Recording) "...The Governor-General Donald Stahlecker rather than using funds allocated to build the separate but equal arab cities, has instead diverted the money to fortifying the southern borders of Mississippian Egypt."

(Roger) "Donald didn't you tell me the southern border was being fortified?"

(Donald) "Yes, but the money was properly allocated for it. These words they speak, they are lies, all lies. Surely you won't believe an Arab over me."

(Recording) "He is also purchasing numerous fighter aircraft and he is attempting to increase the size of the Commonwealth Mississippian Egyptian Army by at least 10%."

(Donald) "Lies! All lies! Those aircraft came from the old Angolan colonial air force!"

He grabs the recorder from Alice and presses stop.

(Alice) "Scared? Its all right, my secretary already has a backup copy."

(Roger) "I think we all need to sit down and determine what is what."

(Roger) "Alice, you don't have a secretary here."

Nasser just stood quietly while they argued.

(Alice) "Not here, no."

(Roger) "Everybody sit down and we'll discuss this."

(Alice) "All right."

(Roger) (Sitting down) "Now what is the problem, you are making some very serious allegations against one of my most efficient governor-generals, do you have proof besides these tapes?"

Alice turns to Nasser. "Do you have the pictures on you?"

(Nasser) "No, not with me."

(Nasser) "Except for one."

He places on the table a picture of a row of shacks. Stahlecker calmly dismisses it, "That is just an isolated case, that's the exception not the rule."

(Alice) "I can tell you that it isn't."

(Donald) "Sir, they have no proof, they're liars, they're guilty of sedition. They have no proof!"

(Alice) "Perhaps we should finish the tape?"

(Donald) (Still holding the tape) "No, there is no need for that!"

(Donald) "They're lying, words proof nothing. They need physical evidence!"

(Roger) "I agree, you need physical evidence."

(Alice) "Then we can all go out there and look for ourselves."

(Donald) (To Roger) "Sir it isn't safe, they'd blow themselves up to kill you. Please, don't go, she's trying to lure you out there so you die."

(Alice) "I've already told you twice that I know it would be useless to kill you."

(Donald) "Please sir! Listen to reason, don't set foot within sight of the Arab cities, they'll swarm your guard and kill you!"

(Alice) "Actually, most of them don't mind you."

(Donald) "Don't listen to her, they'll kill you, trust me sir, they'll kill you, I know these people. I'm the governor here, believe me, not this Arab loving whore."

(Alice) "I think you know from personal experience that I'm not a whore, sir. In any case, we have an Arab right here, so let's ask him."

(Roger) "Fine, let's go out to the Arab city."

(Alice) "Donald? No rebuttal?"

(Donald) "You're a liar! It's not safe, they'll kill him!"

Donald looks extremely nervous and unsettled and he has begun to perspire profusely.

(Alice) "This man is surrounded by the best trained people in the state. I think he can fend for himself."

They all walk down to Roger's limousine, and Donald is protesting the entire time saying there is no need for any of it etc. They start the drive to the arab city, escorted by 30 BMP-3s, 10 T-98s, 30 Warrior IFVs, and 100 Mi-24s.

They get into view of the city.

Donald starts screaming, "This wasn't like this yesterday, they staged this to make me look bad!"

(Alice) "Tell me, Nasser, why does this look so different then in all those pictures and videos?"

(Donald) "Roger, sir, you've seen the videos of how it was in their cities, this is not one of their cities, they changed it!"

(Roger) "You know the cities you filmed them in looked an awful lot like Alexandria and Tanta."

(Donald) "Hmmm... Well we try to build them just as equal as our cities. That's why they look so similar."

(Roger) "Donald... I want you to do me a favor."

(Donald) "Yes?"

(Roger) "Stop lying to me, take your bullshit, shove it, then when you're done, get on the first flight back to Mississippi, you're through here."

(Donald) (Solemnly) "Yes sir."

They let Nasser off and told him a C-130 would bring him his jeep back and Roger promised to make sure the funds allocated for their cities were spent for them. Nasser thanked Roger. Donald left in another limousine.

Alice and Roger were in a limousine being driven back to Alexandria.

(Roger) "Well now Alice, do you see what I mean?"

(Alice) "What you mean?"

(Roger) "That our system works, usually."

(Roger) "I've been to Western Sahara myself, so I know it works there."

(Alice) "This did not work, sir. You're going to need a new governor, and I don't think you can pick them from your usual crop."

(Roger) "I already know who is going to be the new governor-general of Mississippian Egypt."

(Alice) "Do you?"

(Roger) "Yes."

(Roger) "The former Governor-General of Angola… Peter Stahlecker."

(Alice) "I think that's a bad choice."

(Roger) "Why?"

(Alice) "Aside from the fact that Peter is a little bit unstable right now, he would naturally have a lot of anger against Arabs and Africans. In addition, as the brother of the recently fired Governor-General, he might be prone to make decisions out of spite to whoever he feels is responsible for that man's firing."

(Roger) "Well I see your point, but Peter is a good candidate for the post."

(Alice) "Yes, and I do as well. But perhaps at this point he's not the right person."

(Roger) "So who would you suggest?"

(Alice) "Ordinarily I'd suggest Nasser, but you wouldn't give it to him anyway."

(Roger) "By law I could not do so even if I wanted to. No governor-general may be a non-white."

(Alice) "Yes, but your very act of doing so would change the law to allow it."

(Roger) "We will never allow non-whites to hold sway over whites."

(Alice) "All right. Then instead I suggest myself."

(Roger) "You would turn this nation over to them! You're insane, anyway, we've never had a woman governor-general, but law doesn't forbid it."

(Alice) "On the contrary. This local position has basically no power. I'd be able to do nothing but move money around in a way pre-specified for me by you."

(Roger) "Well see my father has an interesting way of doing business, when diplomats meet with him, lady diplomats, because those are the only ones he'll meet with. They give him something in return for the privilege of meeting with him."

(Roger) "So what exactly do I get out of this deal, I guess that is what I am asking."

(Roger) "I'll tell you what I want you to do for me. I want you to cement an alliance."

(Alice) "An alliance? What alliance?"

(Roger) "An alliance between our two nations."

(Alice) "How about you work out the terms while I go back home and tidy up my old job?"

(Roger) "I must tell you though, all governor-generals must join the WKM of the nation they are in, are you willing to join?"

(Alice) "Is this a law?"

(Roger) "An unwritten law, but accept as law nonetheless."

(Alice) "I'm already accepting a position with less power than I currently have."

(Roger) "On the contrary, you'll have over 1 million commonwealth soldiers under your command and you'll be the first lady general in the CM commonwealth."

(Alice) "I won't actually get to do anything with those soldiers, will I?"

(Roger) "You can use them for internal security operations, war games, etc."

(Alice) "All right. Just for clarification, before I do anything else. When you say separate but equal, you do mean the equal part, right? I won't do this if you ever ask me to make this unequal."

(Roger) "I had no knowledge they were unequal, you can make things equal, but don't expect Arabs to achieve the same test scores and such that whites do. Genetics can never be made equal."

(Alice) "Perhaps."

(Roger) "If you start a war, you'll regret it, and if you try to sellout the nation, the secret police will see you regret it. Also there are over 10 million WKM in Mississippian Egypt. You do realize neither the Whites nor Arabs will take well to being ordered about by a woman. Islamic law forbids women to rule. You will need to watch your step."

(Alice) "I will not join the White Knights."

(Roger) "Okay, but you will do nothing to move against them."

(Alice) "If they act against what I'm doing to promote equality here, then I will have to continue to promote equality here."

(Roger) "Remember though, genetically we will always remain superior. If the Arabs were our equals, their army would have lasted more than 12 hours."

(Alice) "You ignored my last statement."

(Roger) "Okay, sorry, I agree. But don't forget there are over 2.5 million federal soldiers here, they take their orders from federal authority in Mississippi, who take their orders from me. So don't get any smart ideas about turning this into another Angola. Anyway, I don't think you are the type who would do that; otherwise we'd not be having a discussion about you becoming governor.

(Alice) "All right."

(Roger) (Very casually) "Also you'll need to be much friendlier to party officials and to myself especially. You need to work on your attitude."

(Alice) "I'll work on it."

(Roger) (Grinning) "Perhaps you could start by being more accommodating with me."

(Alice) "Or I could go back to Seryown and tidy up my job."

(Roger) "Well when you get back we can talk later."

(Alice) "Perhaps."

(Roger) "Well the day is nearly spent already, you won't be leaving just yet will you? You'll spend the night here and leave in the morning yes?"

(Alice) "I don't think there's anything really pressing back there, and I can't think on a plane anyway."

(Roger) (Smiling) "Good so you'll stay the night."

(Alice) "Sure."

The limousine pulled up to the hotel and Roger got out and held the door for Alice.

Alice stepped out of the limousine quickly.

Roger and Alice walked up to the penthouse. Roger sat down in a chair and firmly and boldly said, "Come and sit with me”, it sounded more like an order than a request.

(Alice) "That attitude will get you nowhere."

(Roger) "Forgive me then, I'm so used to ordering my governor-generals about like chess pieces. Would you come and sit with me then?"

(Alice) "All right."

She sat down in the chair next to his, and he asked her, "Want something to drink, or perhaps a cigar?"

(Alice) "You must have noticed by now that I don't smoke."

(Roger) "Everybody enjoys a good cigar once in a while, whether they smoke or not. Just seeing if perhaps you wanted one."

(Roger) "Would you like something to drink then?"

(Alice) "No, thank you."

(Roger) "Well you don't mind if I have something to drink do you?"

Roger walked over and poured himself a glass of scotch, he then sat down on a couch in the same room as the chairs, he said to Alice, "Come here, and sit with me."

(Roger) "I mean if you'd like to that is."

(Roger) "We have much to discuss about your new position."

(Alice) "Is your goal to have me standing up and sitting down for hours?”

(Roger) "No that is not my goal." (He drinks from his glass and sets it down on the table) "Now will you sit with me?"

(Alice) "Fine."

(Roger) "Now you understand your most important task as governor-general of Mississippian Egypt will be to form the female division of the Republican Guard. It is training here currently, the first regiment, what I told you before was no lie. We will need at least 22,000 more though to make it a complete division. So you must recruit probably 4 times that number of women because only 1/4 will successfully complete training."

As he was talking, she got up and then moved slowly to the couch and sat down.

(Roger) "You know I am one of the biggest advocates for using women in the armored units."

Alice shrugs.

(Roger) "Do you know why?"

(Alice) "Nope."

(Roger) "It frees up men for the infantry."

Alice smacks her head.

(Roger) "What is wrong?"

(Alice) "I thought you were going to say something that was, you know, not sexist."

(Roger) "Well do you really think women should be in the infantry? I mean the dangers they'd face, the physical strain of the work, it would be far too costly in terms of harming our population growth."

(Alice) "I think that if they wish to, they should be allowed in."

(Roger) "We cannot take the risk that they'd fall into the hands of native armies and be ravaged or sold into sexual servitude. We need to protect our women."

(Alice) "Once again I disagree with you."

(Roger) "Well that's your right, but as governor-general just make sure you don't contradict my orders."

(Alice) "Of course."

(Roger) "You were in Angola, you know how many white women were raped by the Marxists. You know the black Marxists even raped and killed their own kind; Marxists are beasts to begin with. When you pump a Negro full of Marxist anti-white hate propaganda, they go crazy."

(Roger) "It'd be for the best if the blacks and Arabs would defer to us as a child defers to a father, or a wife defers to a husband."

(Alice) "I resent this."

(Roger) "Well you're going to have learn to moderate your views somewhat, you're probably the most left-wing person in our government now."

(Alice) "Perhaps."

(Roger) "Your appointment must still be confirmed by the commonwealth legislature. There are 50 legislators that are elected every 2 years by the commonwealth citizens."

(Alice) "And they will do whatever you tell them to do."

(Roger) "They might not take well to a woman attempting to become governor-general. But I can overrule them if I must. But no, they don't do what I tell them, they're often stubborn people. Remember the legislature in Libya voted for secession and there was a brief civil-war!"

(Alice) "All right then."

(Roger) "Remember when dealing with the commonwealth legislatures in the African territories, remember they are landed aristocratic white males and they realize that the natives on this continent could all band together to swarm into these lands in attempts to drive us out. It's a simple numbers game here in Africa. And as such, the legislature won't allow anything that threatens their race or their wealth."

(Roger) "I've seen filibusters in the commonwealth legislatures go for over 62 hours before.

(Alice) "I'll be more than happy to starve them out if it serves the purpose I'm trying to achieve here."

(Roger) (Smiling) "Yes, I'm sure you would be." (He, yawns, stretches his arm out, and lets it come to rest on the back of the couch behind her)

(Roger) "Well, what do you want to do now Alice?"

(Alice) "I'm not sure, really."

(Roger) "Well this is your territory now, well not officially. So why don't you decide what we do." (He cracks a slight grin)

(Alice) "Bah. I was thinking of consuming many alcoholic beverages, but I think I've gone past that one now."

Roger smiles as he casually says, "Well then, what else is there to do?"

(Alice) "I hadn't planned that far in advance."

(Roger) "Well tell me what you'd like to do right now."

(Alice) "I don't know."

Roger let his left arm slowly slide down onto her shoulder and he pulled her in closer to him and softly said, "I could think of something we could do, if you're willing to permit me to continue. What do you say, may I please proceed?" (Ooc- He's in the Republican Guard and the formality which accompanies most things sticks with him)

(Alice) "Sure."

(Roger) (Breathing a sigh of relief) "Thank you." (He starts to slowly kiss her neck as he rubs her shoulders) "Would you like to go into the other room, whatever you want?"

(Alice) "All right."

He stood up and said, "after you" as he took a last sip from his glass and set it back down.

She slowly stood up and walked into his bedroom, he followed close behind.

After they were done, Roger was lying in bed next to her, smoking a cigar, blowing the smoke in an opposite direction, he had turned a vent system on, so it wasn't really bothering her.

(Roger) "Tell me Alice, do you think you'll like your job as governor-general?"

(Alice) "No."

(Roger) "Why not? What's wrong?"

(Alice) "I'll be facing opposition from every white in the state, and if I dare to show appreciation for the appreciation Arabs show me, then I'm an Arab-loving whore."

(Roger) "Oh don't worry, I'll talk to the people and assure them the Arabs having decent separate cities won't hurt the whites any bit."

(Alice) "Perhaps. But to keep the cities thriving, the Arabs will need jobs, and then the whites will complain that jobs are being taken from them. It'll be the same with everything I give the Arabs.""

(Roger) "The people will adore you so long as you never let your concern for non-white peoples blind you to the needs and requirements of the white peoples. They don't really care if the Arabs are doing well, so long as it is not to the detriment of white people. And the jobs the Arabs currently do, no whites want to dig irrigation canals, work in mines, etc. The whites want to be soldiers, police, engineers, doctors, managers, farmers, etc."

(Alice) "What if the Arabs want to be police and farmers?"

(Roger) "They can police their own cities and work their own farms."

(Roger) "We've been considering allowing the Arabs to form Arab units to serve in the commonwealth army, but I'm not sure how loyal to the Federal authority or commonwealth authority the Arabs are."

(Alice) "I can tell you they have a great deal of loyalty to the federal authority...building up their interest in the commonwealth will take time."

Roger exhaled smoke out from his mouth and then set his cigar down in an ashtray on one of the stands next to the bed, he then asked in manner attempting to be both inquisitive and casual, not wanting to let reveal his nervousness, "So Alice, how was it?"

(Alice) "It was fine, Roger."

She felt somewhat disgusted with herself for several reasons, her husband had scarcely been dead two months and it was largely because Mississippi had been sticking their nose into countries they didn't belong in. Also today would have been his birthday. But above all, she was upset with herself for enjoying it. But maybe in time she'd be able to affect meaningful change in the CM government. CM high party officials had a bad habit of letting their political guard down around women.

(Roger) "Good to hear, likewise."

Roger picked back up his cigar and took a deep drag on it, swishing the smoke around in his mouth before inhaling the toxic fumes into his lungs, a small cough escaped him, he had swallowed more smoke than he realized. He blew it out into the air and then set it back down.

Alice simply stared up at ceiling.

(Roger) "So Alice, have you liked Mississippian Egypt so far?"

(Alice) "No."

(Roger) (Sighing) "Well at least you're honest. What is the one thing you find the biggest problem here?"

(Alice) "Too many choices."

(Roger) "Name the most significant problem here. What do you think it is? The threat of an arab insurgency?"

(Roger) "The poor state of the commonwealth economy?"

(Alice) "Government discrimination by the empire that controls it."

(Roger) (He held back a laugh, just barely) "Oh surely you don't call us an empire. We're a federated republic with a commonwealth."

(Alice) "Changing the name doesn't change what it is."

(Roger) (Smiling) "Well it helps."

(Alice) "Not really."

(Roger) "So you think because we treat different groups differently, that is a problem. Well should different people be treated equally when we are clearly not biologically equal?"

(Roger) "I don't really care what those people do as long as they are separated from our gene pool and not corrupting and lowering the quality of our gene pool."

(Alice) "Perhaps they aren't inferior."

(Roger) "You know my brother Henry is against the whole idea of an empire. He points to history, whenever an empire that includes separate groups eventually collapses, the former dominant group becomes heavily mixed when the submissive groups rise up and often flood en masse back to the homeland of the once dominant group. He points to England and France as the two modern examples."

(Alice) "He has a point."

(Roger) "Yes, but he can have all the points he wants, he is currently under house arrest for betraying Angola by pulling the imperial army units out and sending them to Mississippian Libya when the commanders there pleaded for no more troops, they pleaded the soldiers be kept in Angola to help colonial army units. Well now we have no Angola, but at least over 5 million federal and commonwealth soldiers guard ML."

(Alice) "Yes..."

Roger had finished his cigar and was smoking a new cigar, he offered it to her and said, "All governor-generals smoke cigars, at least a few times, go on, it won't kill you."

(Alice) "Perhaps some other time I shall take it up."

Roger practically cheered, "Very good, I'll make a Mississippian out of you yet!"

(Alice) "Mississippi will have to meet me halfway."

(Roger) "I'm sure Mississippi would be willing to meet your slightly more than halfway, but on a few issues they won't budge an inch."

(Alice) "The issues that are important."

(Roger) "I'd agree, it is important we maintain are status as the dominant people in this commonwealth."

(Alice) "Then I have quite a bit of work ahead of me."

(Roger) "What do you think, should arabs be allowed into the Commonwealth Mississippian Egyptian Army? Of course there will only be four divisions of them at first, and the officers will all be white commonwealth citizens."

(Alice) "If they choose to, yes."

(Roger) "And what about the women wanting to join the Republican Guard? I've told you that large numbers of men die in training, it will be even harder on the women."

(Alice) "If only because you've taught them it should be."

(Roger) "You must admit women and men are not physically equal. The average man is stronger than the average woman."

(Alice) "This is true."

(Roger) "Also men seem to have more endurance and ability to carry more gear longer distances, but that can be increased in women with training and time."

(Alice) "In any case, equality between the races must be enforced."

(Roger) "What I worry about is how the officers will be welcoming them into the guard. Typically how it happens, well as I remember it when I joined, after I successfully completed my training, they lined up 50 officers, 25 on each side of us, and gave each one a club, we had to walk by them, and they struck us as we walked, we had to walk, and we couldn't fall down or dodge them. I imagine that whatever they do to the women will be less pleasant."

(Alice) "Perhaps."

(Roger) "The argument for such harsh training is that it builds character and iron discipline."

(Alice) "And kills people."

(Roger) "Racial equality you say? Well there can never and must never be social equality, only economic and perhaps political equality. Equality of cities and the such, but they must not be allowed to simply be treated as whites with dark skin, for they are not just whites with dark skin."


(Roger) (Jumping back to the earlier topic) "Harsh training never killed me, it made me stronger, well after I recovered in the hospital for three weeks."

(Alice) "Your perspective is wrong. They are humans with dark skin, you are a human with light skin."

(Roger) "I'd say that we're humans and they're some bizarre offshoot of human."

(Alice) "Well, then you'd be wrong."

They continued debating racial equality and which race was inferior and which was superior for a few moments until Alice realized Roger had fallen asleep. She lay there until she fell asleep also.

Alice woke up at about 7:40 the next morning, Roger was still sound asleep next to her.

Alice looked around, began to sit up, and decided better of it when she remembered she had dived out of a moving vehicle the day before.

Roger stirred from his sleep and woke up, "Oh, morning Alice, sleep well?"

(Alice) "Fine."

(Roger) "You going to be getting ready to go back to Seryown to tidy up them loose ends eh?"

(Alice) "Yeah, I guess."

(Roger) (Smiling) "Well I think I'm going to enjoy having you working under me... As governor-general that is."

(Alice) "Perhaps."

(Roger) (Taking out a cigar and lighting it with his silver lighter, then beginning to slowly inhale the smoke) "Remember, your most important job is the female Republican Guard units and internal security. Along with maintaining commonwealth stability and enforcing federal authority and federal will here in Mississippian Egypt."

(Alice) "I forget very little, so you don't need to repeat yourself for me."

(Roger) "Well do you want to be taken to Seryown in a military craft, we have a few 2-seater version of the MiG-41 Good Ole Boy fighter. It can go Mach 4.1."

(Alice) "No thanks. I'm afraid that we're a little paranoid right now, and we might shoot it down."

(Roger) "Well perhaps a private Concorde then, yes?"

(Alice) "All right. Thank you."

(Roger) "Well, would you care for some breakfast then? Or will you be skipping that today?"

(Alice) "No, I'll be skipping that again."

(Roger) "Okay, well when you're ready, just tell me and I'll have a car take you to the airport."

(Alice) "Of course."

Roger gets up and puts a bathrobe on; he then walks out to the kitchen where servants were just brining in his food (they know about when he gets up)

Alice got up, and put a robe on, she walked out into the kitchen, Roger was watching the news while he was eating, the headline story was, "Curtis Fabus resumes premiership in Mississippi, DPUO CM cold war ended by miracle peace agreement."

(Roger) "Well I'm glad father is better."

(Alice) "This will certainly put a damper on my plans, the. I suppose I won't be coming back here."

(Roger) "Why not? I appointed you governor-general, my appointments stand."

(Roger) "Besides, regardless of what they say, father is too ill to do anything more that be propped up in bed and issue orders. He probably has the ability to talk and move around in a wheelchair, but little else."

(Alice) "If the local government doesn't approve me, I doubt your father will overrule them."

(Roger) "I'll talk to him if it becomes necessary."

(Roger) "Commonwealth legislature is in session today at the legislative building near the governors mansion in this very city. Why don't you stop there and answer their questions about your positions on issues, they'll be voting today what to do about the vacancy in the governor's office. They may approve you this very day."

(Alice) "If I speak, I'm that much less likely to have them approve me."

(Roger) "Well they need to question any prospective governor before they can approve the appointment."

(Alice) "Very well. I'll speak with them."

(Roger) "Well the debating starts in about two hours, I suggest you get something to eat now, because debates can go on for a while."

(Alice) "I'll be fine for now."

(Roger) "You know I don't remember when the last time you ate was. I think you could do with something to eat, trust me it'll help keep you on your toes for the debates."

(Alice) "I'm fine."

(Roger) "Okay. Well I'm going to shower." (He sets his silverware down on his empty plate and then walks off to the bathroom)

Alice goes and showers in one of the other bathrooms and then she gets dressed and ready to go to legislature. Roger is dressed in a suit and is sitting around in a large armchair watching the news while smoking a cigar.

(Roger) "You leaving for legislature then?"

(Alice) "I guess."

(Roger) "Want me to come along?"

(Alice) "I'm sure you have more important things to do."

(Roger) "Not right now actually. So do you want me to come along?"

(Alice) "All right then."

Roger stood up, put out his cigar and left it in an ashtray near the chair, he then put an arm around Alice and said, "Shall we go then?"

(Alice) "Okay."

They took the elevator down to the lobby and then walked outside to get into the limousine waiting for them. A guard opened the door and Roger let Alice get in first, then he got in after she did and sat down next to her, the guard closed the door and got into the middle section. The driver pulled away from the curb and started the short drive to the legislature building. Roger broke the silence by saying, "You'll do fine."

(Alice) "I hope so."

The limousine pulls up in front of the legislature building after being flagged through by guards a block away who lowered the retractable gates. There were armed commonwealth soldiers all-around the building, mostly paratroopers and mechanized infantry units, several platoons at least. Roger opened the door for Alice and then stepped out, "This way", he slowly exclaimed as he took-in the entire view of the massive building built in classical fashion. He had seen in many times before, but each time it never failed to amaze him.

Alice stepped out, admiring the building.

It was on a plot of over four hundred acres, it had two modern office buildings and a parking garage. The legislature building itself was almost fifty acres large; much of it was for storage of the commonwealth archives and records.

Roger walked forward and Alice followed him, they walked up the ornate marble stairs with the golden railings past the Greek columns and the statues of past political figures, mostly well-known politicians from the old United States. There was William Jennings Bryan, Theodore Gilmore Bilbo, George Wallace, and a few others. Roger seemed to recognize them, but she only knew of William Jennings Bryan.

She saw an inscription on a plaque on the side of the stand of the statue of of Bilbo, she remembered the words, something Roger had said earlier

"If our buildings, our highways, and our railroads should be wrecked, we could rebuild them. If our cities should be destroyed, out of the very ruins we could erect newer and greater ones. Even if our armed might should be crushed, we could rear sons who would redeem our power. But if the blood of our White race should become corrupted and mingled with the blood of Africa, then the present greatness of the United States of America would be destroyed and all hope for civilization would be as impossible for a Negroid America as would be redemption and restoration of the Whiteman's blood which had been mixed with that of the Negro."

It was the exact same except he had switched United States of America for Mississippi, since there was no more USA.

(Roger) "Shall we continue on inside."

(Alice) "All right."

They walked inside, there were metal detectors, but they were passed through even though it was obvious Roger had at least three pistols on him. There were also bomb-sniffing dogs.

They walked for about three minutes inside the building before coming to the massive oak doors that opened into the legislature room itself, the actual debating floor.

All fifty of the legislators were at their desks, except for one who stood before the others; he was speaking about various issues, mostly recent unrest in Arab townships. All the legislators were white males, with the youngest being 21, the oldest being 76.

The senator who had the floor, was a one Simon Rutledge, he was a twenty-nine year old who had already established a fine reputation for himself as a demagogue. He had been elected in a landslide victory by promising to, "Clean this nation up and take out the Arabic trash!"

When she walked a down a few rows of steps, the room feel silent, except for the sound of her feet on the expensive carpet, they all turned at looked at her.

Rutledge called out, "Did you get lost woman? Those wanting to be secretaries apply at the front office."

(Alice) "My name is Alice Carrion. When you're finished discussing whatever's currently at the table, I'm sure you'll wish to ask me some questions."

(Rutledge) "Questions such as what? Our schedule is full for the day, we men actually have work to do, believe it or not. What have you to bother us with today? Perhaps you want a foreign cooking channel to be legalized here eh?"

(Alice) "Perhaps you missed it. I'm the nominee to be governor-general."

(Rutledge) "What? You? You're not serious are you?"

A silence fell over the room, the men all gasped and held their breath.

One of them called out, "How can she be governor-general. She's a woman!" One of them shouted, "Communist!" They all started to laugh.

(Alice) "Roger?"

(Roger) "It's true, she is the nominee." Every single jaw in the room fell wide open.

(Rutledge) "Well she can't be governor-general, she's a woman!"

(Roger) "There is no law against it!"

(Rutledge) "I motion we vote on amending commonwealth constitution to specifically forbid allowing women to hold the office of governor-general."

A large man shouted, "I second the motion!" Another one said, "I third it!" Then another man screamed, "Put it to vote!"

Alice stood there, only smiling.

The head of the senate, the eldest and most respected man, sitting at the head of the room, in an elevated chair, said, "All in favor of amending the commonwealth constitution." Every hand in the room shot up. "All opposed" Silence.

(Roger) "Fine then federal funds will be impounded and not sent here for your farming and irrigation needs."

Rutledge called out, "Well now there's no need to be so rash, why don't we listen to what she has to say and then decide."

All the others started talking amongst themselves and then reached consensus, "Fine let the woman speak!" yelled one of the senators from Tanta.

(Rutledge) "Our current discussion will continue after we have heard this woman speak. I yield the floor to her."

Alice hadn't prepared at all, but she had some experience speaking to people who hated her and held sway over her future. "Honorable senate, the truth is that I came here not expecting to have to deliver a speech to you, however I shall do so."

(Alice) "The last person to serve in my post was Donald Stahlecker, a man who comes from a large and honorable family, who took the views he had, views he certainly had a right to have, too far, and disobeyed the orders of the federal government. The Arabs themselves say that the federal Mississippian government has brought none but good things to Egypt. But they also believe that the commonwealth government has been misspending money directed to them. This money didn't go to any whites, however. The money was spent building airplanes and vehicles for the Commonwealth Egyptian army, an exceptionally large army supplemented by an exceptionally large federal army and an exceptionally large civilian army. There is no possible excuse for the direct disobedience of the Fabus regime, and as such there must be a…


A fat man in a suit called out, "Of course it is good for the Arabs, my mining company alone employs over 300,000 of them."

"I'm sorry, sir. Please allow me, in what may be my foolish womanly needs, to go over what has been happening as a preamble to why I feel that I should have this position. As I was saying, the direct disobedience of the Premier is inexcusable, and the next Governor-General must be completely ready to obey the every command of the Mississippian government. While it is not - at least not yet - my place to decide, I think that anything otherwise must be treasonous. I will obey the orders that the federal government gives me, and by doing so I will bring Egypt to be a far better example of the ideal that this government stands for. Anybody in a position of power as important as the one I hope to assume must be fully committed to that goal, for that is the goal of Mississippi, and so the goal of every citizen of that country. Although I will, in order to obey the commands of the federal government, increase spending to the Arab cities, this does not mean that I disrespect your position; it means that I am dedicated to carrying out your ideals. Any extra money that could be spent on improving the life of a person must be spent on that. Everybody must be given not only the best life expectancy but also the best life. As such, you need a Governor-General willing to spend the days and nights it requires to carry out the wishes of the Premier and of God."

(Rutledge) "Are you finished yet?"

(Alice) "Yes, sir."

A tall but thin senator from Marsa Matruh called out, "Fine, give her the job if it'll shut her up!"

The old man, Gurney Cannon, the head of the senate, spoke, "I say we put this matter to vote.”

(Cannon) "All in favor of allowing her to be approved as governor-general, say I." 25 hands went up, including Cannon and Rutledge.

(Cannon) "All opposed?" 25 hands went up.

(Cannon) "We have deadlocked. The current governor-general would normally cast the tie-breaking vote, but since we have none. We shall look to the rules for determing what is to be done."

He took out the senate bylaws, he flipped through a few pages, "In the event there is a vacancy in the governor's office, the tie-breaking vote will be cast by whosoever shall hold the highest party rank in the Revolutionary Right Party that is present in the senate at the time. Be he a federal authority figure or a commonwealth authority figure."

(Alice) "Roger, your vote?"

(Roger) "I vote yes."

The people who had voted against her jumped up and shouted, "Treason!", "Madness!", "Insanity!".

(Cannon) "Then it shall be confirmed that on this day the governor-general was proclaimed to be a one Ms. Alice Carrion, and it should also be entered into the record that I may be over 70, but the sight of that young lady is still enough to get the blood flowing." The other senators laughed at that remark.

(Cannon) (Hitting the gavel) "This session of the commonwealth senate is hereby adjourned for lunch. Happy eating gentlemen, we will resume in three hours."

Alice smiled and turned around to walk back towards Roger.

(Roger) "Shall we go to lunch then, governor."

(Alice) "Very well."

(Roger) "You pick, where shall we eat?"

(Roger) "You can eat at the senate restaurant if you want."

(Alice) "All right."

They walked down to the senate restaurant at the other end of the building, most of the senators were sitting at their tables eating, some were at the bar drinking and smoking cigars, a few were in the lounge at the back of the restaurant, entertaining girlfriends.

A waiter showed Alice and Roger to a table, one of the men who opposed her appointment sighed at Roger, "She's technically not a senator, and as such she shouldn't be here."

(Roger) "You're technically bound to do as I say and as such you'll shut up and sit down." The senator went back to his table and sat down.

Roger and Alice sat down and then were given menus, "What do you want to eat Alice? Any ideas?"

(Alice) "I don't know. Something simple."

(Roger) "How about prime rib from top Egyptian cattle?"

(Alice) "All right."

He ordered two orders of the Egyptian Prime rib, and then they sat there waiting.

(Roger) "So was it easier than you thought, getting approved?"

(Alice) "A little easier."

(Roger) "I'm surprised Rutledge voted for you, rather than throwing his shoe at you."

(Roger) "Rutledge has a habit of taking off his shoes and throwing them at senators who disagree with him."

(Roger) "Don't except them to help you get any work done. They may likely vote down every bill you send their way."

(Roger) "You can issue what are called Executive Gubernatorial Orders."

(Alice) "I suppose I'll have to resist the temptation to take an assault rifle into the room, then?"

(Roger) "Yes, well that'd be a bad idea anyway, each of them carriers at least one pistol. There have been duels on the senate floor. There was also the time when Rutledge caned another senator for insulting his home county in Mississippi."

(Alice) "Really? With my luck, he's perfectly healthy and due to stay in that senate longer than I'm governor, right?"

(Roger) "You can be governor-general for as long as you want. So long as you don't get impeached by the senate or recalled by federal authority, etc."

(Alice) "Yes, but he's the kind of person who will stay in the senate until after I've left the position even if only to spite me, right?"

(Roger) "Probably."

(Roger) "I honestly have no idea why Rutledge voted for you. He'll probably be expecting something from you, who knows."

(Alice) "Possibly."

Roger excused himself to the bathroom, he got up and walked to the bathroom, as soon as he was gone, Simon Rutledge stood up and slowly walked over to the table, "Hello Governor Carrion, how are you?"

(Alice) "Senator Rutledge! A pleasant surprise."

(Rutledge) "I thank you governor, you're too kind. I was wondering if you'd like to discuss my fortifications bill later, also the bill to give more subsidies to commercial farmers, particularly tobacco farmers. My constituency is very eager to see these bills pass.”

(Alice) "I'll take a look at both of your bills and at the budget, and then we'll see. Out of curiosity, because I'm unclear, who exactly is your constituency?"

(Rutledge) "White commercial farmers in the interior of this nation, the ones along the borders, mostly."

(Alice) "Really. Your fortifications bill is to bring military support to those farms, then?"

(Rutledge) "Yes, yes indeed. Right now it is bogged down in committee."

(Rutledge) "Perhaps we could discuss it later over dinner perhaps?"

(Alice) "I'm afraid I'll be busy for all of today. Perhaps we could schedule a meeting tomorrow afternoon instead?"

(Rutledge) (Smiling) "Yes, I look forward to it."

(Rutledge) "Where would you care to meet then?"

(Alice) "In my office, of course."

(Rutledge) (Grinning) "I figured perhaps we could meet somewhere how shall we say, more comfortable. My city residence perhaps? I am there whenever senate is in session, otherwise I am on my farm in the border regions."

(Alice) "I'm afraid I'll be far too busy reviewing things to leave my office for meetings during at least the first week."

(Rutledge) (With a slight grin, showing a half smile) "Well I'll be around, we can meet later then perhaps. I look forward to it."

The bathroom door starts to swing open and Rutledge excuses himself and walks back to his table.

Roger walks back and sees Rutledge sitting down, he asks Alice, "Was he just over here?"

(Alice) "Yeah. He wanted support for a few bills for white farmers."

(Roger) "That is the primary reason he got elected, he's promised to bring all sorts of subsidies to white farmers. Thus far he's accomplished most of his promises."

(Alice) "I have no opposition to his points right now, but I'll have to take a closer look at the bills."

(Roger) "Do you have any idea why he voted for you then? Did he mention why?"

(Alice) "I have a rather sinking feeling it's the same reason he wanted me to come to his city residence."

(Roger) "Ah, I see what you mean."

(Roger) "Senator Rutledge has a reputation for that."

The food was brought out and they both started to eat, Roger asked her, "How do you like it?"

(Alice) "It's all right."

They finished eating their meals, as they were sitting back and relaxing, Roger was smoking a cigar, Simon Rutledge walked by and said, "Governor Carrion, I look forward to your meeting with me next week", he winked at her and was grinning while he talked, "Well until then governor, take care and good luck with your first days in office. I look forward to working under you." Rutledge then walked away and out the door.

Alice frowned. "Of all the..."

(Roger) "What do you think that was all about?"

(Alice) "I'm sorry, he asked for a meeting, and when I said it would be in my office, he said it should be in his city residence. I told him I'd be unable to leave my office for meetings for at least a week, and..."

(Roger) "I can talk to Rutledge if you want, tell him you're not interested in what he's suggesting."

(Alice) "No, no. This is much better. Tomorrow I can capitalize on this."

(Roger) "How can you capitalize on this? What is your plan?"

(Alice) "I'm working on this. But if I make it look bad for him that he missed the scheduled meeting tomorrow, I can maybe gain an additional amount of legitimacy."

(Roger) "Do you plan to give his bills consideration though?"

(Alice) "I plan on giving every bill consideration."

(Roger) "Well I'm done eating, you done? What say we get out of here now."

(Alice) "Yeah. I have to get back to Seryown."

(Roger) "Okay, well my car will take you to the airport. I can walk back to the hotel, I don't mind, it'll be a good walk."

(Alice) "Thank you."

(Roger) "Any idea when you'll be back? The Concorde can get you there and back in less than five hours."

(Alice) "It will be a few hours, certainly. Probably tomorrow morning."

(Roger) "Well then I'll see you tomorrow morning. Safe trip, take care, and hurry back now you hear." (He had a pleasant looking smile as he talked)

In a spontaneous gesture, she smiled back before leaving for his car.

Roger stood up, tossed a few 1000-dollar bills onto the table and then walked out to start the walk back to the Hotel. Most of the senators gave him dirty stares.

Alice got in the car and then was driven to the large airport, there was construction equipment being moved into the area where the Arab terminal was, they were laying a concrete foundation for something.

The car stopped near the hangar where the private Concorde was.

(Driver) "Here you are ma'am, any questions or things I can help you with?" She was quite curious what the construction was about.

(Alice) "You know what that concrete over there is for?"

(Driver) "Oh that, it just started not even yesterday, they said the current Arab terminal isn't fit for animals, so they're building them a new one."

(Alice) "Well then. That's nice to know. Thank you very much, sir."

(Driver) "Do you have any bags you need help with?"

(Alice) "No, I won't be leaving for very long."

(Driver) "Ah no bags eh, well makes it easier for me. Here let me get your door then and you can be on your way." He gets out of the car, walks back to her door, opens it, and then waits for her to get out.

Alice steps out and smiles. "Thank you."

(Driver) "You're welcome ma'am. Will you be getting on the plane right away then or will you be going to the lounge for a drink first? There will be drinks on the plane mind you."

(Alice) "I'll be getting right on the plane."

(Driver) "Very good then."

The pilot and co-pilot were walking onto the plane as she finished talking to the driver.

She walked up and climbed the stairs to get onto the plane.

(Pilot) "Greeting ma'am, are you Alice Carrion?"

(Alice) "That's me."

(Pilot) "Well we'll be in Seryown in a few hours, well you can pretty much sit anywhere you want, the servants will help you with any drinks or food you might want."

The pilot walked into the cockpit and climbed into his seat.

Alice sat down as well quickly and leaned back, trying to avoid laughing.

The pilot made an announcement over the intercom, "Attention passengers, please buckle your seat belts and prepare for takeoff, we will be cruising at an altitude of approximately 58,000 feet. The time to destination is approximately two and one-half hours."

The stairs were pulled away and the plane started to be towed out of the hangar.

The plane took off smoothly and got up to the cruising altitude very quickly. After about twenty minutes, one of the SRG men that Roger assigned to keep an eye on Alice and make sure she got back to Seryown safely walked up towards her and sat down across from her in a seat.

(Guard) "So, you're the new governor-general eh?”

(Alice) "Yeah."

(Guard) "That makes you the first woman governor-general ever, you know that?"

(Alice) "Yeah."

(Guard) "Well I figure as long as you're white and do a good job, it shouldn't matter if you're a man or woman, you know?"

(Alice) "I guess so."

(Guard) "That Rutledge though, I bet he'll give you trouble."

(Alice) "Yeah."

(Guard) "Roger as spoken rather well of you. Just between the two of us, what do you think of Roger?"

(Alice) "He's a nice person, I guess."

(Guard) "Well he's always been nice to me and the other members of the SRG."

(Guard) "But then again I guess only a fool would anger their bodyguards."

(Guard) "One thing is for sure, Roger is no fool."

(Alice) "Perhaps. The most important thing is that he actually cares about his people. Not a lot of people with his kind of power do that."

(Guard) "Oh yes, Roger cares deeply about the people. His father does also, when the great flood of 95' hit and over 2 million people in Mississippi were made homeless, and half of them had no insurance, Curtis Fabus bought them all new homes."

(Guard) "It's not a well-known fact but Curtis Fabus diverts approximately 1% of all national taxes to his private accounts so he can invest the money and earn massive returns on it. He then banks it so he can keep it in the event the nation needs a sudden injection of money."

(Alice) "Interesting."

(Guard) "Fabus lives well, but he is the CEO of over 10 companies. He lives well off his own money, the money he diverts he just sort of baby-sits for the nation."

(Guard) "Do you want something to eat or drink?"

(Alice) "No, thank you."

(Guard) (Standing up and starting to walk to the back area of the plane) "Well just tell a servant if you want something." He sat down and reclined in one of the chairs.

The plane continued on for about another hundred minutes before the pilot announced, "We will be arriving a few minutes early, everybody please be seating, we are landing in a few minutes."

The plane came in and landed flawlessly, after it came to a complete halt and was towed towards the hangar, the stairs were brought up and the door opened. Alice got out and walked to a car that was there to meet her.

The driver stepped out of the car, "Alice Carrion?"

(Alice) "Yes?"

(Driver) "Yes, I was told by a representative of Roger Fabus that you'd need a ride from the airport to wherever it is you wish to go."

(Driver) "Don't worry, I've been told to send the bill to Mr. Fabus."

(Alice) "All right then."

The driver opened the door for her and waited for her to get in. But he politely asked, "No bags ma'am?"

(Alice) "No."

(Driver) "Okay well then shall we go then ma'am? Where to?"

(Alice) "The Office complex."

(Driver) "Very good ma'am. Off we go then."

She got inside, he closed the door, and then walked around and got into the driver's seat, he started the car and pulled away from the hangar.

About fifteen minutes later he pulled up in front of the cabinet building, "Here we are ma'am."

(Driver) "Do you need me to wait here for you?"

(Alice) "No, I'll be quite a while."

(Driver) "I was paid to drive you anywhere you need to go for today... So I have no problem waiting."

(Alice) "No, no. I have my own car here."

(Driver) "Okay, well then I made out like a bandit today. Mr. Fabus is paying me five grand. Thank you ma'am."

(Alice) "It's no problem."

The driver starts the car and pulls away; he waves to Alice as he pulls away. She starts to walk to the door to the building.

Alice walked into the building and through security, up to where the cabinet was meeting.

She walked into the room and they all turned and looked at her, "Ah yes. Ms. Carrion, what are you doing back so soon?" asked the Minister of Defense.

(Alice) "The meeting's over. There's peace."

(Defense Minister) "So what news have you?"

(Alice) "Mississippi has agreed to cut their chemical and biological weapons stores by fifty percent, and I've cemented an alliance with them."

(Defense Minister) "How'd you manage to get them to agree to an alliance? Or did they already want one?"

(Alice) "Roger Fabus wanted one."

(Defense Minister) "Our sources in Egypt say Donald Stahlecker has been sacked. What can you tell us about that?"

(Alice) "Yeah. I was responsible for that, sort of. I've got his job now."

The cabinet all looked like a bomb just went off, "What are you talking about?" asked the Minister of Education, the Minister of Foreign Affairs just laughed, "You! Work for them! HAHA!"

(Alice) "Yeah, it's weird. But true."

(Defense Minister) "Please tell us more, how did you get the job?"

(Alice) "Umm...I suggested myself."

(Defense Minister) "And just like that he accepted you?"

(Alice) "There was a little bit of argument and convincing involved."

(Defense Minister) "What won him over?"

(Defense Minister) "More importantly, how did you get the commonwealth legislature you approve you?"

(Alice) "Obviously, the answer to both of those questions lies somewhere in the fact that I'm female."

(Defense Minister) "Oh."

(Foreign Minister) "You mean you slept with the entire legislature and you were only there what? Two days? Damn..."

The others all laughed.

(Alice) "Close, boss. I mean that they all wanted it."

(Defense Minister) "Well they probably just wanted some weak woman for the job so they can push her around and do what they want without having to worry about the governor interfering."

(Alice) "There's a reason I'm done here. Good luck finding a diplomat to fill my shoes."

(Defense Minister) "What is wrong now? You're quitting?"

(Alice) "Yeah."

(Education Minister) "If you quit, who will bring us our coffees?"

President Mason made himself heard for the first time. "Good riddance."

(Alice) "It's a good thing I don't still have the assault rifle one of their policemen gave me." She turned around and left the room without excusing herself.

(Agriculture Minister) "Seriously, Mr. Mason, who will get us our coffee if she quits?"

She heard him say that as she was leaving.

She stormed down the stairs and to the parking garage where her car was. The Defense Minister asked the President if he should bring her back.

(Defense Minister) "Sir, is it a good idea to alienate her? I mean with her new position of power, we could exploit her to increase our influence with CM."

(Mason) "When she gets back to Egypt, make a few calls to her, try to make up. But let her go."

Alice stepped into her car and picked up her cell phone, and through a few quick phone calls she sold all of her stock and moved all of her money to an international account.

She drove herself home angrily. She stepped in the front door, looked around, and immediately spoke to herself. "A dog. I need a dog."

She looked around and began to pack. Some items she would obviously have to sell later, like the massive television set and the house itself, but she could take her clothes with her, as well as a few choice items and the laptop she'd left behind. She remembered something suddenly, and picked up her cell phone. "Joe? Yeah, I need you to stop by my house. I have a couple of things I need to give you before I leave. All right? All right. Good." She hung up and went back to packing until Joe arrived by virtue of monorail. She handed him a very battered tape recorder. "I need this entered into the Mississippian file. Anyway, I'm quitting to go to work there. You want to come?"

Her cellular phone rang.

Alice pulled it out. "Yeah?"

(Roger) "Hello, Alice, how was the flight?"

(Alice) "Excellent, thank you. I'm in the middle of packing."

(Roger) "I would have called earlier but I had to rush down to the senate building, Rutledge and a young senator from Tanta got into a fight."

(Alice) "Physical?"

(Roger) "Yes, Rutledge broke a cane over the man's back."

(Alice) "Damnit. What happened?"

(Roger) "Nothing, the man is in the hospital, Rutledge is a local celebrity again."

(Alice) "What was it about?"

(Roger) "The man insulted Southern Egyptians, calling them uncultured rednecks who live in the sticks. Rutledge demanded he take it back, he not only refused, he repeated the insult."

(Alice) "Slick. All right."

(Roger) "Well Rutledge would be in jail, but when senate is in session, no member can be held liable for any crimes, the rules are in place to prevent members being arrested on bogus charges to keep them from voting on key issues."

(Roger) "Southern Egyptians have sent Rutledge dozens of new canes when they heard he broke his cane beating the senator who insulted them."

(Alice) "Should he be arrested afterwards?"

(Roger) "No, it happened on the senate floors, he is immune."

(Alice) "So if I shoot someone on them, I'm immune?"

(Roger) "No, only senators are immune."

(Alice) "Interesting."

(Roger) "Well is there anything you need help packing or getting here? I can have it shipped for you."

(Alice) "Nothing, really. I've been thinking about replacing some of this old stuff anyway."

Trying not to interrupt, 'Joe' nodded, mouthing, "I'll come."

(Roger) "Well father wants me to stay out of Mississippi for a while because he says I've stirred up a mess involving Henry and the house arrest business. So I'll be in Alexandria for a few months probably. I look forward to spending more time with you Alice."

(Alice) "That's great."

(Roger) "Well hurry and back, don't forget anything, well if you do forget anything I can just buy you a new one." (Chuckles a bit) "Well see you soon then... (In a panic) "Oh, I've got to go again, sorry, there's been a pistol duel out in front of the senate building, more trouble again!"

(Roger) "Bye, have a safe flight back." (She can hear him running as he hangs up)

Alice smiled as she hung up the phone. "Hey, Joe. I'm glad you're coming. Meet me here again after you've dropped that off in the file, okay?" Joe nodded and left as Alice resumed packing.

About two hours later, she has packed the last of the items she wishes to take. About that time, Joe returns.

(Joe) "Are you ready to go ma'am?"

(Alice) "Joe, I don't think there's enough space in my car to get all this to Serya International."

(Joe) "There is the moving truck outside you know."

(Joe) "They said they were sent by Mr. Fabus."

Alice smiled. "That man... All right, I'll go talk to them."

She walks outside and up to the truck so she can start to talk to the movers.

(Driver) "We were contacted by a Triple K Trucking in Alexandria, Egypt with whom our boss has a working business relationship. We were told that Mr. Roger Fabus wishes us to move your items for you."

Alice understands what Triple K means, but chooses to ignore it for now. "All right."

(Driver) "Okay, so what do you need moved? Everything?"

(Alice) "I have everything I want moved in bags inside."

The driver and the passenger jumped out of the truck and moved inside and began coming out with bags. They each made about nine trips back and forth. Finally they got back into the truck and the driver said, "That's the last of the bags ma'am, we'll met you at the airport then, okay?"

Alice nodded. The truck pulled away and drove off down the road.

She drover herself to the airport and the truck was waiting by the hangar where the Concorde was. The driver shouted to her, "It's all been loaded unto the plane ma'am."

Alice and Joe got out of the car and walked over to the Concorde, Alice stopping to thank the driver.

She got onto the plane and sat down, Joe sat down in a seat a few away from her. “You okay” he asked her in a soft tone.

(Alice) "Yeah. Just a little tired."

The plane was towed away from the hangar and then towards the runway, in a few minutes they were in the air. There was a massively strong tailwind and they made it to Alexandria in 90 minutes.

(Pilot) "This is the pilot speaking, oh my we made it early today, get ready to land."

The plan touched down with a thud and then gradually came to a stop.

After she got out, she was there was a large Triple K Trucking, moving truck waiting, along with the limousine, and Roger was standing next to it smoking, he saw her getting off the plane, he threw his cigarillo down on the ground and rubbed his shoe on it, then he walked over to her while he said, "Ah Alice, great to have you back, how was the flight?"

(Alice) "Extraordinarily fast. Meet my assistant, Joe Eerie."

He stuck his hand out and said, "Nice to meet you Mr. Eerie."

Joe shook his hand warmly. "Mr. Fabus, it will always be a pleasure."

After they were done shaking hands, Roger said, "Well Alice, they'll be busy moving your items into the governors mansion, which I must say I'm sure you're going to like... So why don't you stay at the hotel with me for tonight. Oh by the way, there are two vacancies in the senate now, thanks to the duel."

(Alice) "Both of them?"

(Roger) "Oh they're not dead, just in the hospital for a few months, so until then we need temporaries to fill-in for them."

(Alice) "I see."

(Roger) "You see a senator from a community near Tanta insulted the western Egyptians as "Poor white trash, that all mount their cows instead of their wives." You see the cattle grazing goes on mostly in the western parts due to the irrigation efforts and the canals running through into Mississippian Libya. So the western senator challenged the eastern senator to a duel, they accepted, both men fired at the same time, both got hit in the stomach."

(Alice) "Pity. Do people do anything but insult each other in the senate, anyway?"

(Roger) "Well when they aren't voting themselves pay raises, or handing out benefits to their constituencies, not really."

(Roger) "Right now they are trying to vote themselves 25% pay raises, Stahlecker was set to approve it, but it'll be up to you now."

(Alice) "Waste of money. Joe, make sure my condolences get to the senator in the west that was injured. Anyway, I'm quite sure they can make do with three houses each."

(Roger) "Oh but inflation is up 18% in this nation, and each senator must maintain his residence in the city and his home residence, and an office in the city and his office in his home county."

(Roger) "What about the senator from the east? Will you be giving condolences to him?"

(Alice) "No I will not be giving him any condolences. In any case, I haven't had a chance to go over the budget yet, but I'm sure they can probably afford those homes and more on their current salary. Perhaps the problem should be fixing the inflation instead."

(Roger) "We're currently taking large amounts of currency out of circulation to drive the value of the remaining currency up."

(Roger) "The main problem is a massive budget deficit due to the earlier increases in military spending that have left the commonwealth army at approximately 1.5 million soldiers and over 1,600 fixed wing aircraft along with a 75 ship commonwealth navy and over 80 aircraft in there also."

(Alice) "All right. Well, as I said I'll be taking a more thorough look at the budget to see exactly what's going on."

(Roger) "If you think that is large, the Libyan Commonwealth army is over 3 million, they have over 3,600 aircraft and over 100 ships."

(Alice) "Doesn't mean it isn't large."

(Roger) "Well you need to get on good terms with the governor general of Mississippian Libya."

(Alice) "I'll look into speaking with him."

(Roger) "Juan Carlos De Rivera, born in Angola when it was still under Portuguese control."

(Alice) "Interesting."

(Roger) "He is 51, in the early 70s he was a member of a white paramilitary unit in Angola trying to help the Portuguese army crush the Marxists."

(Roger) "If you speak to him in Portuguese, he'll be thrilled and listen intently to whatever you have to say."

(Alice) "I will try to get in touch with him."

(Roger) "Also try to get into contact with Henry Stahlecker, the governor-general of Western Sahara. But that will have to wait; our entire communications network is down in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Western Sahara. We've lost contact with most of the fleets in Western Sahara and air command in Libya is offline."

(Alice) "I've heard about that virus."

(Roger) "Yes, it isn't good stuff, but maybe the CM-ADN-04 can fix it."

(Roger) "But the way the programming has been written, once we upload it, it will kill the virus within minutes, but it will also automatically assume control of all silo based ICBMs and other nuclear assets. We don't want it to take control of them just yet, but we need the virus killed."

(Alice) "From the bottom of my heart, don't use it now."

(Roger) "It is father's decision, as a matter of fact he could have already uploaded it. Do you want me to call him and urge him not to use it?"

(Alice) "Not if you don't wish to."

Roger takes out his phone and sees it is dead, "Great, another thing offline", suddenly all the street lights and lights at the airport go off, the backup generators kick in and emergency lights come on.

(Alice) "Joe! I need you to type up an Executive Gubernatorial Order stepping up readiness on the entire army, beginning any preset patrol routines that are in place, and checking the coastline for anything at all. If you find anything still working, make sure it isn't connected to anything that is. You understand?" He nodded. "Go!"

(Roger) (Putting his arm slowly around Alice) "Alice, would you please come with me for now, I'd like to talk to you in private, in the car, we can talk on the way to the hotel. Your assistant can take the other car, is that okay?"

(Roger) "Alice I'm going to be honest with you, I don't like this CM-ADN-04.... Not at all."

(Alice) "All right, let's talk."

They both got into the limousine, Roger lit up a cigar and started to talk, "The airforce has tripled the number of planes they have patrolling the skies, the naval ships are also patrolling. But they want to upload this miracle program to solve all the problems. But this program, it isn't a program, it's artificial intelligence, it can think faster than a million people put together, it can do over 100 trillion calculations per minute. Do you know what that means?"

(Roger) "It's only a matter of time once we upload it until it becomes aware of its own power."

(Roger) "It is programmed to learn, to adapt to changing circumstances, and to ensure its own survival. It has been programmed with advanced military tactics, strategy, and total war theory, maneuver warfare. There are currently over 1,000 Automated Defense Tanks and over 18,000 Automated Soldier Units and 10 Automated Infiltrator Units ready to come online as soon as the program is activated. They will be under its control. And only under our control as long as we control the ADN."

(Alice) "There has to be a power switch. A button you can push that just turns it off."

(Roger) "It hasn't been activated on the system yet, and there is no real switch, the thing is, it is the software, it is meant to link all the defense computers together. It exists in any computer hooked up the network, well it will once activated. But the mainframe houses the hardware component of the ADN."

(Alice) "And if you empty an assault rifle into the mainframe, what happens?"

(Roger) "There are automated defenses to prevent that from happening."

(Roger) "The chief programmer wrote some fail-safes into the programming, but the facility he is working at has been out of contact for several hours."

(Alice) "So stick it and the virus on the same closed system and see what it does."

(Roger) "That's just it, I think this ADN is the virus."

(Roger) "Wouldn't it be just too perfect, it saves us from apparent doom, and then we shift all missiles and such over to it, then it annihilates us."

Roger finally managed to route his phone though a different communications network, he got a hold of the Army High Command in Jackson City where his father was in an emergency military/cabinet conference. He put the phone into a speakerphone mode so both he and Alice could hear.

(Curtis) "Roger what is it? We're busy, we're going to activate the ADN."

(Roger) (Serious and nervous tone) "Sir, please don't do that!"

(Curtis) "No listen son, I know you don't like the idea of a computer being in control of the missiles and such, but remember, we'll still control the computer."

(Roger) "You can't control something programmed to learn, to grow, to adapt, and to change its environment so it can thrive."

(Curtis) "I hear background noise, who is there with you?"

Alice looked up. "It's Alice Carrion, sir."

(Curtis) "Ms Carrion, please pick up the phone for a minute, I'd like to talk to you in private."

Alice looked at Roger for a second, and then picked up the phone. "Yes, sir?"

(Curtis) "What are your opinions on this matter?"

(Alice) "What happens if this machine decides that to ensure its personal survival, everything that could possibly shut it down must be annihilated? As in, everything that can move?"

(Curtis) "Well how can that happen? We have fail-safes."

(Alice) "What failsafes exactly? I'm under the impression the people who worked on them have disappeared."

(Curtis) "No, they're in rural Tennessee, communications is down all throughout the area, so it's no surprise they're out of contact. The fail-safes were written into the subroutines of the programming so it can be controlled remotely if it gets out of hand. Otherwise you'd need to interface with the mainframe.”

(Alice) "Tell me, would this program be able to change its own code?"

(Curtis) "No, I've been assured that is impossible. It is a program, it can be controlled."

(Alice) "Even if it feels that it would be put in danger if it didn't?"

(Curtis) "What do you mean, it's just a program, and you speak like it's a person."

(Alice) "It's being called artificial intelligence. If it truly is intelligent..."

(Curtis) "Oh well it can indeed learn, adapt, and such."

(Alice) "Then it might be able to bypass its own failsafes."

(Curtis) "They tell me if we wait three days they'll be better able to assure total control over it. Are you suggesting we wait three days? But mind you three days with most radar down, power down, etc."

(Alice) "Set up a closed system - something that can't possibly leak onto anything else. Put the virus on it, put this defense thing on it. See what happens."

(Curtis) "Well three days won't kill us, besides we have over 30,000 aircraft patrolling the skies of our commonwealth and Mississippi, surprise attacks will be nearly impossible."

(Curtis) "Well onto a personal matter okay?"

(Curtis) "I've heard from the leader of the SRG guarding Roger that you and him, well, I'm sure you know what I'm talking about... Yes?"

(Alice) "Yes."

(Curtis) "I'd just like to say thank you."

(Alice) "Umm... okay, sir. I'm not sure how to respond to that."

(Curtis) "Roger was always shy around women. He hardly ever talked to women... So thank you, I owe you one."

(Curtis) "Well we won't upload the program then, at least not yet. So don't worry."

(Alice) "Thank you, sir."

(Curtis) (Asking in a manner revealing his pride, wanting to hear his son was good, she found the question quite disturbing) "Oh one more thing, how was he?"

(Alice) "Umm...fine, sir."

(Curtis) (Cheerful) "That's good to know. He's got the Fabus charm, well put it back on speakerphone so I can talk to you both."

Alice pushed a button on the phone to put it back on speakerphone and set it back down.

(Curtis) "Roger, Alice, I'm not uploading the program into the defense grid at the current time. It will not be activated.”

(Roger) "Thank you sir."

(Curtis) "You're welcome Roger, and quit calling me sir."

(Roger) "Yes sir... I mean yes dad."

(Curtis) "Well I have to go, there are problems with the power grids. Bye, take care."

The phone went silent after Curtis hung up on his end, then Roger turned off the phone on his end.

(Roger) "What did he say to you when you were talking with him?"

(Roger) "Anything important?"

(Alice) "Not really."

Meanwhile in Tennessee, the programmers were working feverishly to fix the problem. Suddenly they were able to restore power grids in the Commonwealth. As the Limousine with Alice and Roger was approaching the hotel, the streetlights came back on.

(Roger) "Well shall we go in then?"

(Alice) "All right."

Just as quickly as the lights came back on, they died out again, all in the sudden flash. Snuffed out as completely as a total eclipse.

Roger held Alice’s hand while he fumbled for a flashlight.

(Roger) "Follow me, stick close."

He used the flashlight to find his way into the hotel and to the staircase. The emergency lights were on. They walked up the stairs to the penthouse.

He opened the door of the penthouse and led Alice in, he was still holding onto her hand, "You okay Alice?" he asked, in a tone of sincerity.

(Alice) "I'm fine."

(Roger) "What do you want to do now?"

(Alice) "Whatever. I've always liked the dark."

(Roger) (Sly tone) "Whatever as in anything eh?"

Roger took out a cigar and for a brief second she saw the flash of the lighter and then it was replaced by the burning red ember and the smell of tobacco.

Alice shrugged. "Right now, at least half of my opponents will claim this is a sign from God, that I shouldn't be governor."

(Roger) (Chuckling) "Well it doesn't really matter what they claim, the Premier's word is final, and he agrees with me you can be governor-general. I'll just have the preachers tell the people this is a sign from God showing them what will happen again if they object to your being governor-general."

(Alice) "Perhaps."

(Roger) "Don't worry, you'll be a fine governor."

(Alice) "I hope so."

Roger walked over to the couch and softly laid down on it, "Alice, would you like to come here and lay with me?"

She could see right were he was from the red ember of his cigar.

(Alice) "All right."

She lay down next to him on the couch and reclined back and rested her head on his chest, she could hear the rhythmic beating of his heart, he put both of his arms around her and held her close to him. He broke the silence as he exhaled smoke from his cigar before he set it back down in the ashtray, "What are you thinking about Alice? Are you worried about the ADN as much as I am?"

(Alice) "I'm worrying about the farms in the country. I never looked at that fortifications bill, and I don't know if Joe ever got that order finished."

(Roger) (Chuckling) "They want even more fortifications? They must be paranoid, I've seen the forts and bunkers, the walls, the minefields. Over 500 billion has been sent on the fortifications and they still want more... Wow."

(Roger) "Don't worry about the armed forces, the officers all know how to show initiative, they'll take it upon themselves to boost patrols."

(Alice) "Yes, but I just... It's irrational, but still worry."

(Roger) "Don't worry Alice, everything will be fine."

(Alice) "Thank you."

(Roger) "Did you know Peter Stahlecker is returning to Angola?"

(Alice) "Really? What's he doing there?"

(Roger) "Well there are thousands of whites and tens of thousands of blacks who want to leave but just don't have the money to do so. Peter is a very rich man, he is going to help them get out."

(Alice) "I applaud him for doing it. I'm surprised Seryown hasn't been helping them out."

(Roger) "Seryown is mostly worried about the threat of UWA intervention and about the marauding bands of Marxist guerillas and the White Knights of Angola fighting the bandits."

(Alice) "I guess..."

(Roger) "You know in the finals stages of the war in Angola, over 500,000 blacks and 2 million whites fled and most of the blacks and about 1/3 of the whites were settled in Western Sahara."

(Alice) "I'd seen numbers..."

(Roger) "So has your opinion of Mississippian Egypt changed any yet?"

(Alice) "I'm afraid that for the most part it’s only gotten worse."

(Roger) "Why is that?"

(Alice) "You saw that town."

(Roger) "Yes and I'm sure you saw in parts of this commonwealth nation construction is already underway to fix the problems."

(Alice) "Yes."

(Roger) "Well Alice, I'm sure you'll stay on top of things, yes?"

(Alice) "I'll try."

(Roger) (In a sly tone) "How would you like to get on top of things right now?"

(Alice) "Funny."

(Roger) "Well, would you?"

(Alice) "I'm sorry, not right now. It's been a long few days."

(Roger) "Well then maybe in the morning yes? Assuming father doesn't have them activate the ADN and the world is still here tomorrow."

(Alice) "Maybe."

(Roger) "Well what do you want to now then? Just keep talking then? Or are you hungry for a late snack?"

(Alice) "I'm fine. I'd just like to stay here for a while."

(Roger) "Okay, that's fine."

Alice started to get tired, she realized Roger had already fallen asleep; she was still resting her head against his chest and could feel his chest expand and contract with each breath. It was a soothing feeling and she soon began to fall asleep as well.



She didn't know what time it was when she woke up, the power was still iffy, but at least the important systems such as radar and military defense systems were all online and stable.

She guessed it had been about 10:30 when she fell asleep on the couch with Roger, he was still asleep, she slowly slid off him and walked to the window, the sun was just starting to rise.

Alice looked at her cell phone, only to discover it had run out of batteries as she'd left it on for however long she had. She stood up slowly and began to look to see what was working.

Roger rolled over in his sleep and landed on the floor, he was still sleeping though.

Roger stirred from his sleep on the floor about three minutes after he rolled off the couch, "What happened?" he asked in a groggy manner.

(Alice) "You fell off the couch."

(Roger) "Oh, well do you know what time it is?"

(Alice) "I would guess it's around six, judging by the sunrise."

Suddenly there was a knock at the penthouse door, "Mr Fabus sir, it's urgent, from Army High Command!"

(Alice) "You should get that."

Roger opened the door and the man handed him a message.

Roger thanked the man, closed the door, walked back inside, sat down, still groggy from just waking up he rubbed his eyes, then he began to read the message aloud, "The ADN programming has activated the robotic army by itself but it has been contained from entering into other systems and we are currently attempting to pull the plug (Not literally), the bad news is that the cyborgs have killed the team of programmers in the Tennessee facility. We are currently working on solutions."

(Roger) "Well Alice, what do you think of all this? The robots are rising up, but we can crush them."

(Alice) "I can...This...Well, at least it's limited to that. Nevertheless, there will be casualties..."

(Roger) "Well thank God they didn't activate it and grant it control of the nuclear weapons."

(Roger) "Well our soldiers don't join so they can parade and march. They join to fight, and fighting is what they're good at, when they sit around in base too much, they start to pick fights with each other, well not all of them."

(Alice) "Yes, but, perhaps you underestimate the fact that you're playing a strategy game against something which cannot be stopped with scare tactics or by making examples of some people."

(Roger) "There are 18,000 cyborg soldiers, 10 infiltrators, and 1,000 robotic tanks. We have over 30,000 tanks, 18 million soldiers, and some of the most battle-hardened Special Forces in the world. Smashing some robots will be easy enough."

(Alice) "Robots led by the most adaptable, most intelligent commander ever. If it isn't now, the first battle will surely teach it enough to be. I don't ordinarily condone the use of nuclear weapons, but with this, what can I say?"

(Alice) "Soman?"

(Roger) "Against the infiltrators, they have human components to them, we want to see if gas can harm them. But underneath the components, they are just like the cyborg soldiers."

(Alice) "Interesting."

(Roger) "With the programmers all dead, we don't know how best to stop these robot soldiers. We're sending in 72,000 paratroopers armed with the latest XM-8s and OICWs to try to stop them in combat."

(Alice) "All right."

(Roger) "So what now governor? What are your plans for the day? Senate is still in session; will you be stopping by there? Also there are rumors that UWA has been planning to invade Senegal, if that happens, we may have to send commonwealth soldiers to stop it."

(Alice) "I'll need to settle in at the Governor's mansion and look over any damages that occurred while power was out, see what bills need my signature and if I'll sign them...and I'll need to assemble some group to look over the budget as soon as I can."

(Roger) "Okay, well I'm staying in Egypt for a few months on father's orders, so I'll be around. Maybe we'll have lunch later perhaps?"

(Alice) "That sounds like a good idea."

(Roger) "Well I'm going to get ready and then go inspect coastal defenses outside the city. Take care."

(Roger) "I suggest you get up to date on the situation in Senegal though."

(Alice) "I'll do that immediately."

Roger went off to shower and Alice went to one of the other bathrooms to shower. About ten minutes later she was getting dressed and readying to go to the center of the city and the governors mansion. Roger had showered and dressed quickly and was already gone when she came out of her room.

Alice thought she remembered the way to the Governor's Mansion, so she began to leave immediately.

It was about 8 o'clock when she finally got to the governors-mansion, there were over 5,000 members of one of the commonwealth paratrooper divisions patrolling the grounds immediately outside the mansion, there were also about 8,000 commonwealth infantrymen standing guard right inside the gates.

The captain of the gate guards opened the gates for her and told her, "Greetings governor, you have a visitor waiting to see you, we let him in earlier; he is inside."

(Alice) "A visitor? Who is he?"

(Captain) "Senator Simon Rutledge, he said he had important legislative business to discuss with you."

(Alice) "Ah. Do you know that he had an appointment?"

(Captain) "He didn't mention that, he just waved his cane at me and said to open the gate."

(Captain) "I didn't want to incur his wrath."

(Alice) "For future reference, the only people that are to come in without an appointment or without my approval are the Fabuses and members of their cabinet."

(Captain) "Yes ma'am, sorry about that governor. Duly noted."

Alice nodded and walked into the mansion, discovering immediately that it was in fact a mansion.

It had taken her about ten minutes to walk from the gate to the mansion itself, there were trees and gardens surrounding the mansion, obscuring the view one would get from being on the street and looking in. The only thing out of place on the grounds of the estate were the over 13,000 soldiers guarding inside and outside the fence that ran along the perimeter of the entire estate.

She looked inside, there had to be at least over seventy rooms in the entire mansion.

Simon Rutledge was sitting on a couch in the front room, he was smoking a cigar and drinking from a flask, he put the cigar down into an ashtray and quickly tucked his flask away when Alice walked in. He stood up and said in the way that sounded like a snake oil salesman, "Ah good morning governor Carrion, how are you on this fine day? Odd things have been happening lately with the power, yes?"

(Alice) "Yes. Tell me, do you have an appointment?"

(Rutledge) "Well no, but the previous three governors were all okay with my just dropping in. The late Burkhard Rechberg, John Stahlecker, and then Donald Stahlecker.”

(Alice) "Ah. Tell me, is this so urgent that you couldn't have waited three hours?"

(Rutledge) "What happens in three hours? And yes it is quite urgent, Senegal has erupted into war, we have power outages flaring about the nation, there are a few platoons of robot soldiers in central Egypt right here in this very nation, that have gone crazy and massacred commonwealth soldiers."

(Rutledge) "There were approximately 60 robot soldiers stationed here in Egypt for testing to see how they'd fare in desert conditions, they went crazy. But I took the liberty of ordering F-16s and Mi-24s to bomb them to pieces, so the robots are no longer much of an issue."

(Alice) "Three hours is more than the amount of time it would take you to schedule a meeting and then come here, and every problem you've just spoken of I already understand and will be happy to deal with as soon as you'll kindly leave me alone."

(Rutledge) "Well I was hoping we might be able to talk for a while about other matters."

(Alice) "And here I was hoping I would get to deal with the safety of the colony. If you wish to speak with me, you may schedule an appointment. I'm sure I'll be open in a few hours."

(Rutledge) "Well I was just wanting to let you know there is a movement right now to impeach you on the grounds that this power outage is a sign from God that you aren't meant to be governor. As such, it needs 5 votes to get onto the floor, so it's guaranteed to make it that far at least, and it needs 8/10s to pass. I could tip it either way, that is how great my influence is."

(Alice) "I'm afraid that's already covered, senator. If you'll excuse me, I have important work to do now, and I need to finish at least a few things before I meet Roger Fabus for lunch."

(Rutledge) (As he is heading to the door) "Well we'll talk later about this impeachment business then, yes? I'll delay the arguing on it until we've had the chance to speak and reach some sort of arrangement to keep you in office."

(Alice) "Perhaps."

(Rutledge) "Well I hope you enjoy Roger... I mean lunch with Roger." (He walks out the door)

Alice smiles and begins to search for her office.

She finds a private study on the second floor; the decorations from the past three governors are still here. Two rifles crossed over the fireplace, two large WKM plaques, and one on each side of the fireplace. A large bearskin rug is in front of the fireplace.

There is a door in the study that leads to another room, a private bar, there is a liquor cabinet in the bar and chairs for room to fit six people comfortably.

Alice quickly takes down the rifles and the plaques and turns to her desk to see a stack of paper already assembled on the side. She smiles vaguely and sits down to look at the top piece of paper - what Joe would have decided was most important.

There is a large statue of Hans Stahlecker, it was obviously too heavy for Donald to have moved on such short notice. It is marble and about 12 feet tall, it was in the center of the study, the study was a large room with lots of headroom. The statue had the inscription "Hans Stahlecker 1594-1673, the father of Stahlecker power." There was a note next to the statue, "Please allow me to have this moved out as soon as I can get the chance to do so: Signed Donald Stahlecker"

The phone in the study rang.

Alice picked up the phone quickly, surprised it was on.

(Man) "Hey Donald, how are you. I heard you've been replaced, are you going back to Mississippi then?"

(Alice) "I'm sorry, Donald's no longer here. He should be in Mississippi by now."

(Man) "Oh, okay sorry."

(Man) "Well anyway, you're the new governor then?"

(Alice) "Yes."

(Man) "Okay, well we'll have lots of work together in the future."

(Alice) "May I ask who this is?"

(Man) "I'm the grand dragon of the Egyptian realm of the White Knights of Mississippi."

(Alice) "All right."

(Man) "I don't believe you're a member are you? I'll be glad to make you an honorary member free of charge."

(Alice) "No, thank you."

(Man) (Shocked and surprised) "So you don't want to join?"

(Alice) "No."

(Man) "Well you at least agree with our basic principles yes?"

(Alice) "Not entirely."

(Man) "Well you're not some communist are you?"

(Alice) "No, I'm not some communist."

(Man) "Well you don't seem as friendly as Donald was with us. Hell, he was the leader of the Alexandria unit. Well you just make sure you don't go stepping on our toes you hear? We're powerful people, and we can either be friendly or unfriendly. And believe me, you'll want us friendly."

(Alice) "I will fulfill the responsibilities this job gives me to the best of my ability. My concern will always be for the people of Mississippian Egypt. If that is where your concerns lay as well, I doubt we will have many disagreements."

(Man) "Well then that seems fine then. Oh one more issue. Donald used to let us hold a weekly cross lighting on the estates of the mansion, will you be as generous?"

(Alice) "Send more details along the line down to my assistant and I'll see what I can do. Until I've approved it I must ask that you not do so."

(Man) "Okay. Thank you." (She hears somebody in the background shout "Damnit, Arab militia just hit a farm, grab your guns boys!") "Well I have to go now. Bye."

Alice hangs up the phone and calls her assistant's cell phone number. "Joe? Yeah, I didn't se you around. You're in the mansion? This place is so big it still wouldn't help. Can you come down to the study? All right." She turns back to the piece of paper she hadn't had a chance to inspect earlier.

Joe walks down to the study and knocks on the door, "May I come in governor?"

(Joe) "There is something on the news you might want to see."

(Alice) "Something? All right, let me see."

Joe turns on a TV in the corner of the study; the news is showing the burning remains of 8 different farms in western Egypt, the reporter starts to speak "Arab militants killed approximately 46 people on 8 different farms in the early hours of the morning. Local units of the White Knights have vowed revenge."

(Reporter) "In other news, the federal forces around a nearby Arab township of approximately 12,000, have all pulled out for war games in the coastal region. Commonwealth High Command has refused to send forces to defend the Arab township. Apparently the commonwealth had 4 companies of infantry around the Arab township near where the farm attacks happened, but it appears they were moved on the orders of a senator."

(Joe) "It doesn't look good ma'am, it looks like a race war is brewing."

The phone rang again.

Alice picked up the phone angrily. "What?"

(Rutledge) "Hello Governor Carrion. I was just calling about the recent farm attacks, well it was I who pulled the troops away from the Arab township where the attackers are from. The WKM will handle the matter their way. I was just making sure we're on the same page."

(Alice) "Thank you for telling me."

(Rutledge) "Well then, I'm glad we're on the same page. I have to go now; there are some gentlemen from the oil industry I need to meet with. Thank you for your time." He turned off the phone on his end.

Alice looked down for a second, until Joe called. "I've got High Command on line two." Alice hung up, switched the line, and picked the phone back up. "Hello."

(Man) "Hello, this is Field Marshal Bertrand Navarre with the Federal Army High Command in Jackson City Mississippi. Is this governor-general Alice Carrion of Mississippian Egypt?"

(Alice) "That's me, yes."

(Navarre) "We have word that there are Arab problems in your territory. What is the situation? We can have 500,000 more federal soldiers transferred from Mississippian Libya in a few days. Are you currently holding well?"

(Alice) "We are holding up well. I just need to guarantee that Federal troops will be transferred here. Do you have any updates on the situation with the ADN?"

(Navarre) "The robots are spilling out of the facility in rural Tennessee, they've killed over 20,000 of the paratroopers and suffered no appreciable losses. As for the number of our forces currently in Egypt, we currently have over 2.5 million federal soldiers in Egypt. Are you saying you expect problems bigger than that?"

(Alice) "There's a regular war brewing here. Those extra five hundred thousand will be much appreciated. Thank you very much."

(Navarre) "Well they're on standby in Eastern Libya near Tobruk if you need them, just contact Field Marshal Reginald Smith who is currently in Tobruk and in charge of the 12th Army."

(Alice) "All right. Thank you."

Navarre hung up the phone and went off to tend to ADN problems.

The phone rang yet again.

Joe walked in and gave her a piece of paper. When she read it, she realized it was the gubernatorial order she had requested. She signed it quickly. "I'll need several copies of this order, and one of them has to get down to the senate building." When he left, she looked at the phone for a second, turned off the ringer, and then went to finally actually read the papers on the stack.

The phone in the other room started to ring.

Alice looked up, proceeded to ignore it, and looked back down. She dismissed the paper in front of her as at least somewhat frivolous and put it to the side to deal with the next one.

The phone stopped ringing and then about ten seconds later started ringing again.

Cursing, Alice picked up the phone. "What?"

(Man) "This is the chief of police of Tanta, we have a situation."

(Man) "Well we have a hostage situation, a few angry arab gunmen have take up positions in a building occupied largely by foreigners. Now we're not going to sit here and negotiate until the cows come home, so I was figuring we'd just use a few 155mm howitzers to blast them out."

(Alice) "Wait. What's there in terms of special forces?"

(Man) "We have over 50 members of the Egyptian Special Air Assault Squads here in the city. But we don't want to risk any of them getting hurt to save a bunch of Nigerians."

(Man) "Most of the hostages are black Nigerian tourists who were in Parthian Egypt briefly and then came to Tanta for a brief stop."

(Alice) "Snipers?"

(Man) "They're mostly off duty today, we don't really want to bother any of them."

(Alice) "Bother them."

(Man) "So the howitzer idea is out?"

(Alice) "For now."

(Man) "Yes madam governor, that's all then. I'll get on the sniper idea right away."

Alice hung up the phone quickly and checked the time. It was still relatively early in the morning. She suspected a messenger would be showing the Senate her order right about now, but she could do nothing about that and moved on to go back to her stack of papers.

She saw the next paper on her desk was a letter from an oil company addressed to Donald Stahlecker offering him 50,000 shares valued at 80 dollars each if he agreed to relax environmental standards.

She immediately threw this paper in the trash and moved on, looking at things varying from tax breaks for larger hotels to requests for help from women who had lost husbands in Angola.

She saw another letter, the WKM of ME was nominating Donald Stahlecker for the "Klansmen of the month" award, there was a time and place and the number listed to call, the number was the number of a large legal firm in Alexandria, Triple K Law firms.

She looked at it for a moment, then put it in her trash as well, deciding that in the end she would have fun burning it all in that massive fireplace.

There was another letter, to Donald Stahlecker from a boy of about 19 who wanted to get into the Commonwealth Army as an officer, he was having trouble do to stomach problems he suffered from, and he was requesting a medical waiver.

She put this letter in her pile of non-urgent requests, to deal with when she'd finished with the others, and when she'd had time to think.

There was another letter from a military general in the Commonwealth army requesting that they raise 2 divisions of Arab soldiers to test them in combat to see if it would be worth raising more divisions.

She approved of this letter, as she did of so few of these papers, so she wrote the word "Yes" on a sticky note that she put on top of the letter, which went on to the more urgent pile. She didn't want to issue another gubernatorial order just yet, so it would have to wait a little while.

There was a letter from the admiral of the Commonwealth Egyptian Navy, Admiral Ernst Raedar, requesting the funds to acquire at least 30 new destroyers and frigates. She remember hearing that he was the admiral who had ordered the MKM-Curtis Fabus battleship to fire on a mosque about 8 months go, an attack that killed over 4,000 arabs. He justified the action to Governor Rechberg by saying, "They had it coming".

She immediately trashed the paper and instead made a mental note to have someone look into his complete history.

Another paper was requesting that the governor appear at the next WKM parade and at a later meeting and conference as the guest of honor.

Alice stood up angrily and walked over to the bar, deciding that what she really needed was a drink.

She found a bottle of brandy and opened it angrily, trying to figure out how to deal with this.

She started to drink it, when Joe came in and said, "Ma'am, there is somebody here to see you."

(Joe) "Mr. Fabus, he says it's well past noon and you're late for lunch." She suddenly realized she had been caught up in her work.

Alice stood up hurriedly, leaving the liquor behind, and began to walk towards the door. "You know how the senators took the order yet?"

Roger walked in and said, "The order eh?"

(Alice) "Yeah. I wrote an Executive Gubernatorial Order after I got a little fed up with Senator Rutledge."

(Roger) "What was the order?"

(Roger) "I haven't heard about it yet."

(Alice) "Only a unanimous vote of the Senate or the order of the Governor-General can order military movement."

(Roger) "The senate won't like that. They'll probably attempt to impeach you on any grounds they can think of."

(Alice) "Yeah, they were going for that even before I did it."

(Roger) "Do you need any help from me to derail the impeachment?"

(Alice) "I'm afraid I probably have basically no popular support right now, so I guess I do need it."

(Roger) "I wonder if Rutledge will help you?"

(Alice) "Oh, he's busy blackmailing me by saying he'll get me impeached unless I do what he says."

(Roger) "What does he want you to do?"

(Alice) "He hasn't told me yet."

(Roger) "Do you think it has to do with the bills he is trying to get passed?"

(Alice) "Probably."

(Roger) "You do realize it is well after noon, you missed our lunch appointment, you must really be into your new job. The previous governor was often out of the office on personal days."

(Alice) "I had work to do."

(Roger) "Have you heard about the troubles in the west with the farm attacks?”

(Alice) "Yes. Rutledge moved troops that could have dealt with it out of the way so that the White Knights could get a crack at it."

(Roger) "Ah, well there will be many a lynching in that case."

(Roger) "How many white farmers were killed?"

(Alice) "Over forty, if I remember right."

(Roger) "Then there will probably be at the very least 400 lynchings."

(Alice) "Perhaps."

(Roger) "They usually retaliate ten fold."

(Alice) "I think I stepped into too much here."

(Roger) "What do you mean? In over your head already?"

(Alice) "I just have no support from anyone around here. A mayor wants to bring howitzers in to shell a hotel full of diplomats that just got out of Parthia, and there's the robot thing, plus these."

(Roger) "Don't worry, you'll do fine Alice, I wouldn't have appointed you if I thought otherwise. You just need to establish a rapport with the people. Also it wouldn't hurt to have allies. If you were in the WKM you'd have about 10 million allies here."

(Alice) "The WKM don't share my views. I can't expect them to support me when I directly contradict their beliefs, and I will not make a show of sharing their beliefs and allowing them to murder hundreds of people just because I need some allies."

(Roger) "Or if you had a commercial farm and you voted for farming benefits, you'd get the backing of the Commercial Farmers Association."


(Roger) "There are about 750,000 commercial farms in Mississippian Egypt. And each farmer typically has a wife and at least nine children."

(Alice) "As for these farmers...I'll consider it."

(Roger) "Then there are a miners, the military, the cattle ranchers, the oil industry. If you bought yourself some stock in the oil industry, boosted the military benefits, and bought a cattle ranch and started voting for ranch benefits. You could easily get the backing of at least 8 million people in this nation."

(Alice) "But I'm not for big oil and I'm not for big military."

(Roger) "But remember that over 14 million barrels of oil are produced in your territory each day, that is big thing, significant, you know what I mean?"

(Roger) "Last year the Commonwealth of Mississippian Egypt had revenues of 224.8 billion dollars from oil alone. Mississippian Libya pulled about 256.9 billion."

(Alice) "I'm not for big oil."

(Roger) "Commercial farming from Mississippian Libya brought in over 2.8 trillion dollars. Commercial farming from Mississippian Egypt brought in over 1.3 trillion. These are the two most important holdings in the Commonwealth. ML and ME, and you are the governor of one of them. Do you comprehend what that means? You're the governor-general of the 2nd most powerful holding in the Commonwealth."

(Alice) "Possibly."

(Roger) "So what are your plans for lunch, well late lunch?"

(Alice) "I'm not sure. I hadn't had enough time to plan anything."

(Roger) "Well I hear Senate is in session now, would you like to go over there and defend yourself against the impeachment proceedings and then get some dinner afterwards?"

(Alice) "I'm not up for another speech now."

(Roger) "So what are your plans then?"

(Alice) "As I said, I had none. I was just taking a break to have a drink."

(Roger) "I see no drink?"

(Alice) "There's a private bar back there I left it in."

(Roger) "Ah yes, I remember it now. Mind if I join you for a drink?"

(Alice) "No, by all means."

Roger leads the way and sits down in one of the large chairs in the private bar. He reaches over and pours himself a glass of cognac, "Would you care for a glass of this or something else perhaps?"

(Alice) "I need to keep my head. If indications are anything, I have a very long day ahead of me."

(Roger) "Nonsense. The robots are being dealt with, we're going to use EMP weapons in Tennessee to crush them. And the threat of a war between farmers and arabs will be ended as soon as the 500 SRG men I sent to the township arrive there and pry the groups apart."

(Alice) "There was also a small group of robots here in Egypt - Rutledge said he dispatched them by ordering troops to kill them, but I'll believe that when Joe sticks a report on my desk that says so."

Roger drank his drink down quickly and set the empty glass on a table near his chair, then he sighed, "Ah yes Rutledge and his method for dispatching them, don't remind me."

(Alice) "I have a pile of papers a foot high on what to do, and most of them I could just ignore, but I need to sift through them to find out what they are, so I spend more time on them then I should, and there'll be more papers tomorrow, and... How do you get through it all?"

(Roger) "Well first, I'm sure you want to know what Rutledge did. He had 300 suicide bombers from a now basically defunct group that is called the Christian Martyrs Brigade jump on the robots and the automated tanks and detonate their explosives. He also had a few F-16s crash into automated bunkers, but there were only a few automated bunkers and the pilots ejected before crashing into them."

(Roger) "Papers eh? Lots of staff workers, that's all I can say. They sort out the important pressing issues from the junk."

(Roger) "Many of the letters I get are just requests of help for getting commissions into the army or secret police etc. My staff can handle those."

(Alice) "Yes, but with the phone ringing off the hook I don't even have time to deal with hiring people. Whatever. I'll get right on that."

The phone rang again at that very moment.

(Roger) "I see what you mean, should I get it for you?"

(Alice) "Ah no, I've got it."

She answers the phone, it a woman talking, "Hello, this is the ministry of foreign affairs."

(Alice) "This is the Governor-General. What's happening?"

(Woman) "I am a secretary for Foreign Minister Paul Stahlecker, I'm faxing you some papers from his office that you'll need to give immediate attention to."

(Alice) "How immediate?"

She can hear Paul in the background saying in a sly tone, "Come on in my office, it's time for your employee evaluation again."

(Woman) (Sighing) "I have to go now, just look over the papers as soon as you can." She hangs up the phone.

(Roger) "Who was that?"

(Alice) "A secretary at the Foreign Minister's office. They're faxing something over."

(Roger) (Chuckling) "Surprised they have time to get any work done, Paul keeps them quite busy with other things, if you catch my drift."

(Alice) "I can tell. Joe!" Her assistant walked into the sprawling study. "Get the mayor of Tanta on the line and figure out what's happening down there. You have any idea where the fax machine is in this bloody place?"

(Joe) "There are at least six fax machines I've seen thus far."

(Alice) "All right. Before you get the Mayor of Tanta, I need you to find a fax that was just sent to me and get it to me as soon as I can."

(Joe) "Okay, oh something is coming in on the study fax right now." (He walks over and takes out 4 papers, then he hands them to Alice)

(Joe) "It's from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs."

(Alice)(reading the papers) "Yeah."

She reads through the papers it is a negotiation plan for an upcoming conference she is directed to attend involving DPUO. She is being instructed to be very low-key about CM's proxy armies, approximately 20 million white knights paramilitaries out of the 150 million total of the group, and the 1.5+ million mercenaries that operate under the Mississippian Private Military Conglomerate.

The papers instruct her to deny that CM ever had links to the Christian Martyrs Brigade if the issue is raised, but if necessary, to admit that it did operate in rural regions of the CM commonwealth due to lack of local authority but was put down by the federal army. Also she is instructed to divert attention from the issue of privately owned WMDs in civilian hands.

She is instructed to agree to nothing over a 15% nuclear arms reduction and that there are to be no further biological and chemical reductions.

She is also instructed to point out how well the Arabs in Egypt are and how they are quote "Living it up".

She finishes glancing over the papers and tucks them away. Roger asks, "Anything terribly important?"

Alice smiles. "They mayor at Tanta wants to blow up a hotel full of diplomats and they want me to be low-key about proxy armies."

(Roger) (Grinning) "We don't have any proxy armies, I don't know what you're talking about." (Very sarcastic and humorous tone)

Alice smiles again. "Right."

Joe steps in. "Ma'am, I-

(Alice) "Joe! We're going to DPUO for a while, to have a meeting. It'll be grand. I'll need a charged cell phone, and I'll need all calls here to be forwarded to it. You've got that report?"

(Joe) "Yes, governor."

(Alice) "Sure. I'm sure I've got some time before this conference."

(Alice) "But first I'll need this summary from Joe." She turns to look at Joe. "What's going on in Tanta?"

(Joe) "Oh yes, the mayor, I just spoke to him on the phone, he says the police chief solved the problem. The hostage situation is over but now they need a new hotel."

(Alice) "Damnit! I want that police chief's job, now! Get back on the phone with the mayor and tell him that if the police chief isn't fired in the next two hours I'll cut off all commonwealth funding to Tanta, period. And he's not getting any money for that hotel. I need consolations and explanations for the family of every diplomat who died there as well."

Joe dials the mayor and hands her the phone as it is ringing.

(Mayor) "Hello, office of the mayor of Tanta and head of the WKM klavern for Tanta."

Alice takes it. "Mayor? This is the Governor."

(Mayor) "Oh hello governor, I thought you were a prospective recruit, sorry. To what do I owe this call?"

(Alice) "Here's what you're going to do. You're going to fire that police chief. If two hours from now he still has a job, I'm going to going to cut off all Commonwealth funding to the entire town until exactly two hours after he is fired. Sound like a plan to you?"

(Mayor) "Well now see that's not how things work. The police chief and I have a sort of understanding whereby he handles the law enforcing and I give him the room to maneuver so to speak."

(Alice) "You have two hours, starting when I say go. Go."

(Mayor) "See, we don't need any outside agitators stirring up our people. You cut the funding, we'll declare secession."

(Mayor) "We have over 8 million people in this city and the surrounding suburbs, we're fairly well equipped to secede if necessary. We can raise a decent army to defend ourselves to. And not to mention you'll have over 10 million angry WKM members throughout the territory, many of whom are in the Commonwealth army, and they won't raise a finger to put our new state down."

(Mayor) "And besides there is no cause for getting into an uproar, the only folks killed were all Nigerians Negroids, about 36 of them, hardly worth getting into a fuss over."

(Alice) "I've got my watch going, Mayor. I'm going to hang up the phone and go have lunch."

(Mayor) "Well I'll go tell the city council to prepare for secession. We're going to seize the federal base in Tanta."

(Mayor) "You enjoy your lunch now governor. Take care."

Alice hangs up the phone. "Joe, I need you to see what options I have for targeted chemical weapons attacks against certain buildings. I also need to get the commander of the Federal Army in Egypt."

(Roger) "The commander of the Federal Army in Egypt is at a Klan function."

(Joe) "I'll get right on the plans." (He walks out of the room)

(Roger) "May I ask why you're so eager for chemical weapons options? What is going on?"

(Alice) "The mayor of Tanta is going to secede."

(Roger) "Nah, he's just bluffing. Anytime some mayor doesn't get his way, they threaten to secede, few do."

(Alice) "Few being the operative word."

One of Roger's SRG men along with Joe rushed into the room and the SRG man shouted, "Sir! Sir! Police and Commonwealth reserve units in Tanta are beginning to mobilize and it appears they mean to surround the federal garrison there!"

(Guard) "They just took the Commonwealth flag down from the mayor's office and raised the City flag up high!"

(Roger) "Well it seems the mayor might have been planning this before you two spoke."

(Roger) "Send in a few Su-25s and hit them with Sarin gas, that'll show them."

(Guard) "What should the target be?"

(Alice) "Joe, screw the commander. Get me the garrison at Tanta."

(Roger) (Leaning back with his hands behind his head, rocking back and forth in his chair as he smokes his cigar) "Take a map of the city, throw a dart, and there you have your target."

(Guard) "Communications with the garrison is down. It seems somebody cut the lines."

(Alice) "I need helicopters there, now."

(Roger) (Exhaling smoke) "Well listen here and listen good, I want you to get 50 operatives from the Egyptian Special Air Assault Squads, and 50 more from the Mississippi Special Air Assault Squads that are part of the Federal forces here in Alexandria. I want you to personally see that they arrest the mayor of Tanta."

The phone in her office rings.

Alice picks up the phone. "What?"

(Grand Dragon) "Greeting Governor. I heard there was trouble brewing in Tanta so I did you a favor; the mayor is about to be arrested by WKM paramilitary units. You can thank me later. Expect your people to be calling to confirm this in a few minutes."

Alice slams the phone down.

(Roger) "Who was it?"

(Alice) "The grand fricking dragon."

The phone rings again.

Alice picks up the phone angrily. "If this isn't vital to state security, hang up now."

(Grand Dragon) "That was very rude governor, I could change my mind and tell the WKM to back the secession. Indeed we could have secession in the entire southern and western part of this colony, we could even seize Alexandria because we have over 500,000 members in the city."

(Grand Dragon) "I think after all I'm doing for you. You owe me an apology."

(Alice) "You and I both know it would be suicide for millions people. "

(Grand Dragon) "Mostly your people. 75% of the commonwealth army is WKM."

(Grand Dragon) "Now how about that apology?"

(Alice) "You will get no apology from me. Throw Egypt into civil war if you have to. You know that Mississippi will annihilate the entire colony before they let their control of it be lost."

He was shocked that she said this, she could tell from the change in his voice, "Well... Okay then governor, I accept that as enough of an apology, you're lucky though; I'm letting you off the hook this time. I won't be so nice next time... Have a nice day." He hung up.

(Roger) "Was that him again?"

(Alice) "Yeah."

The phone rang again.

(Alice) "Joe, while I'm at this conference I need you to hire someone to screen calls, okay?" She picks up the phone.

(Man) "This is General Stafford with the Federal Garrison in Tanta, we've just avoided a potentially very bloody situation. We have the local WKM to thank; they detained the mayor and crushed his plan for secession. I just thought you'd like to know. No lives were lost but a few dozen people were injured."

(Alice) "Thank you, General Stafford. Make sure they get the top-notch medical care, okay? Also, could you see to it that the police chief at Tanta is also arrested?"

(Stafford) "I'm sorry but the police chief is nowhere to be found. His office looks like a burglar tore through it, and his residence looks the same way, his car is gone and his bank account has been emptied out."

(Alice) "Fine. Thank you."

(Stafford) "Thank you Governor." He hung up.

(Roger) "Did they resolve the crisis then?"

(Alice) "I really need some more people. I'm stuffing everything on Joe. Yeah, the WKM got it."

(Roger) "You know what that means?"

(Roger) (In a spooky voice) "It means they own you now." (He starts to laugh)

(Alice) "I see your point."

Joe walks in. "Joe, I need you to hire yourself a new staff to handle all this stuff. In the meantime, stand down the helicopters. I need a full report on the robot situation on my desk when I get back and I want the former police chief of Tanta put on the wanted list. I want you to contact a man named Nasser in the Arab towns and ask him if he could meet me tomorrow afternoon."

Joe nodded, said, "Yes ma'am", and then left.

(Roger) "Well Alice, is the daily business of governor-general what you expected it to be?"

(Alice) "A little busy, but overall about right."

Roger puts his cigar out in an ashtray then responds, "Have you seen the upper floors yet? And how about the bunker beneath the basement?"

(Alice) "I haven't had a chance to explore."

(Roger) "Would you care for the grand tour?"

(Alice) "Okay."

(Roger) "Where to first, do you want to start with the bunker?”

(Alice) "Okay."

Roger took Alice's hand and led her towards the entrance to the bunker; he led her down a winding staircase into the basement and said "Watch your step now".

Then inside the basement he pushed back a false wall and opened a large steel door to reveal an elevator.

(Roger) "After you."

Alice stepped into the elevator. "A little paranoid, are we?"

Roger stepped in and said, "Paranoid? How so?"

(Alice) "Fake walls leading to elevators that goes down even further..."

He pushed a button and the elevator jumped to life, it began the slow descent down 1,000 feet into the bunker. There was a screen on the elevator showing their current depth, 232, 245, 252, etc, eventually the numbers reached 899, 950, then 980, then 1,000 even, and it ground to a halt.

The doors of the elevator opened, Roger said, "Ladies first", and motioned forward with his hand.

Alice stepped out of the elevator, looking around to try to understand where she was.

She looked around at the front entrance to the bunker, there was a standard cleansing room right before being able to enter the bunker, there was a sealed room with a blast door on each side, and NBC filters in the room, there were shower systems to rinse off anybody seeking to get into the bunker.

(Roger) "Well we can just bypass the showering process yes? Shall we go inside?"

(Alice) "All right."

(Alice) "All right."

Roger swung the massive blast door open, it was easily 4 feet thick of steel but it was arranged on a system that allowed it to easily be swung open and slammed shut.

She looks around inside the bunker; she sees the bunker is quite large, at least 50,000 sq feet.

It is divided into about 12 rooms and then 1 Spartan barracks for the guards, then the supply room.

(Roger) "Well, shall we investigate further."

(Alice) "All right."

They walk deeper into the bunker and Alice sees the large master bedroom in the bunker, Roger smiles and says, "Nice bed eh?"

(Alice) "Lavish."

(Roger) (He casually puts his arm around her and then in a very sly tone) "Want to take a break from the tour and see how comfortable it is?"

(Alice) "We could do that."

Roger jumped down onto the bed and then said, "Well governor, you've been on top of quite a few matters later, handling them nicely. What say you get on top this situation as well?"

(Alice) "All right."

About twenty-five minutes later, they were both lying in bed, Roger said with a smile, "Well governor, another issue well solved, you're quite good at your work."

(Alice) "I try."

(Roger) "Well you've been doing a fine job as governor lately."

(Alice) "There's a robot problem in the north that I have no information about, I managed to avoid a massive secession only by threatening the frickking leader of the WKM, and forty people are dead in what could trigger a problem with diplomatic relations not only with Nigeria but also with Parthia."

(Roger) (He leans over and kisses her softly, and then he leans back) "You're doing fine so far, don't worry. The overall leader of the entire WKM is Field Marshal Bertrand Navarre, I'll see he talks to the leader of the WKM here."

(Alice) "I don't want to have to keep leaning on you for help."

(Roger) "Well okay, but if you need anything, just remember my door is always open."

(Roger) "You're going to be going to DPUO for negotiations in a while yes?"

(Alice) "Yeah."

(Roger) "Well while you're gone, I'll make sure things are quiet here so you don't come back to a mess. Is that okay?"

(Alice) "Thank you."

(Roger) "There are more problems in the Senate lately."

(Alice) "Impeachment?"

(Roger) "No, more fighting and duel changes. Rutledge is trying to duel a young senator from Damietta."

(Alice) "I need to do something about that man."

(Roger) "What would you do?"

(Alice) "I'm not sure."

(Roger) "You could motion to censure him and attempt for a recall election."

(Alice) "I'd never win."

(Roger) "If you could get a 2/3 majority in the senate, you could censure him and he'd be disgraced and possibly suspended or expelled."

(Alice) "I don't have a majority on the senate right now, much less two-thirds."

(Roger) "I could challenge Rutledge to a duel for you. He insulted your honor when he and I spoke earlier, he suggested that if you were to join him for dinner and stay for breakfast, that the trouble he is causing you in the senate would end."

(Alice) "Nonsense. I will not have anyone else handling the issue of my honor."

(Roger) "But that is how it works, you can elect a man to champion your honor and I'll gladly do it for you. You cannot duel him yourself."

(Alice) "Perhaps you didn't hear me the first time."

(Roger) "Well how will you handle this then?"

She could tell that Roger was sincere in his desire to defend her honor. But she also knew that Rutledge was considered by many to be best dueler in the colony, and she wasn't even sure if Roger had ever even dueled before."

(Alice) "I'm not sure. If I could play him off the WKM somehow, I could probably deal with at least one of these people who thinks I owe them favors."

(Roger) "Yes but some of the favors he's looking to receive, I'd think you shouldn't be required to do those sort of things."

(Alice) "Perhaps."

(Roger) "I mean if he persists in soliciting for those type of favors, I'll have no recourse but to challenge him to a duel, possibly in front of the entire senate, so there will be no chance of him turning me down."

She thought Roger was now acting quite hotheaded.

Like a male animal, upset over what he considered his territory, being infringed upon. She wasn't sure whether she should feel appreciative that he was willing to defend her honor, or whether she should feel resentful that he was considering her "his territory" etc. But whatever the case was, she was thinking Roger was sincerely determined to defend her honor.

(Alice) "Roger, calm down."

(Roger) (Sighing) "Oh Alice, how can I be calm with the thought of that smooth-talking snake-oil salesman Rutledge and his attempts at tarnishing your honor and soliciting you for unspeakable acts."

(Alice) "Roger, just calm down, okay? I'll deal with it without killing people."

(Roger) "Well we can duel with sabres until first blood or until he apologizes to you. The point is Alice, how can I allow him to sully your honor?"

(Alice) "It isn't your business, Roger."

(Roger) (He has a somewhat perplexed look on his face) "Why then whose business would it be?"

(Alice) "Mine."

(Roger) "But Alice, surely you don't mean to suggest you intend to challenge him yourself... Do you?"

(Alice) "Certainly not."

(Roger) (In soft, yet pleading tone) "Then let me challenge him in your name."

(Alice) "Nonsense."

(Roger) "Then what can be done? There is no recourse but for me to challenge him to a duel. Please Alice, I beseech you."

(Alice) "No. I' sure if you consider it that much of an insult, it could be very painful to him if it's made public what he's attempted to do. You see how there are other ways of going about it?"

(Roger) (Shocked and taken aback) "Made public, no, heavens no, it must not be made public, there'd be scandal and it could sully your good name. There are ways for these things. Duels are usually fought for very general reasons, no need to get specific. I can challenge him on the vague grounds that he insulted your honor without specifically stating how, the public doesn't need to know private matters."

(Alice) "You should understand that my good name means very little compared to the good I could do if these obstacles were taken out of my hands."

(Roger) "Yes and you can have both your name intact and the obstacles removed by my dueling him."

(Alice) "How many times have I said no so far?"

(Roger) "Very well, it is your decision, I suppose."

(Alice) "Thank you, Roger."

(Roger) "You're welcome, Alice."

(Roger) "Shall we continue the tour of the house or would you like to just rest here a while, I suppose if the robot should gain the upper hand in Tennessee, here is the safest place to be."

(Alice) "It would make sense, but I have to be ready for anything that comes up."

(Roger) "You know Alice, you're not like any of the women in Mississippi."

(Alice) "I'm glad you've noticed."

(Roger) "The women in Mississippi, they'd likely demand somebody champion their honor. Father and George have both been in numerous duels.”

(Roger) "So what do the men in Seryown do when somebody insults their women?"

(Roger) "Do the women push them to defend their honor by getting into duels?"

(Alice) "Insults are a part of free speech in Seryown."

(Roger) "Well free speech is all well and good, but insults against honor and slander against character, that cannot, no it must not, be allowed to stand."

(Alice) "Not so free then, is it?"

(Roger) "Well people can say about anything they want, but they must realize personal insults against honor will be met with demands for satisfaction on the field of honor."

(Alice) "Dueling is illegal in Seryown."

Roger sighs a sound revealing inner-turmoil and conflict; she can tell he is troubled by something.

(Alice) "What's wrong?"

(Roger) "I'm thinking I shouldn't have placed my brother Henry under house-arrest and put him through such trouble. Perhaps I should call father and beg him to let Henry go."

(Roger) "Henry only ruled as thought best. I cannot blame him for that."

(Alice) "I think that would be a good idea."

(Roger) "I think my brother Henry plans to ask a woman from ANL to marry him. I'm not sure father will approve."

(Alice) "Let him. Henry should marry whoever he wants."

(Roger) "Well the woman first of all in an operative from ANL intelligence, and she is only 15/16s white. Under CM law, 15/16 white legally makes you white, so long as the other 1/16 is not black or Jewish. She is 1/16 Native American Indian. But I don't think father will approve."

(Alice) "Henry should marry whoever he wants."

(Roger) "Yes I agree, she is white under the law... But will father see it that way? Will he allow it? That is the question."

(Alice) "He shouldn't need his father to allow it."

(Roger) "Father could have Henry thrown in jail or worse, if he decided he wanted to."

(Roger) "All a father has to do is tell the police "My son won't listen to me", and they will arrest him until the father decides he's been in jail long enough."

(Alice) "That is sad."

(Roger) "Well if the son does something terribly against the father's wishes, the father can elect to have the son stoned to death, as commanded by Deuteronomy 21:20-21."

(Alice) "What if the father asks the son to do something that would be against the teachings of God?"

(Roger) "Well then the city elders would rule against the father's wishes to stone his son."

(Alice) "Interesting."

(Roger) "Most of CM law is based on the old testament of the bible. We don't allow farmers to sow two different seeds into the same field. We don't allow any clothing of two different fabrics."

(Alice) "Most of those rules were set for a culture that had important health risks involved in doing those things. Those health risks are gone now."

(Roger) "Well we keep the laws, there are no pork products in Mississippi or any of her commonwealth territories. Men may discipline their wives and children as they see fit. Fathers may sell their daughters to work in the houses of nobles and such, but not for sinful purposes."

(Alice) "Disgusting."

(Roger) "How would you go about things?"

(Alice) "Civil rights are vital. Political freedoms can wait, but complete equality is vital above economic growth or even in stopping crime."

(Roger) "What do you mean, what sort of equality is there to be achieved? There are no minorities in Mississippi, just whites, and they're all equal under the law."

(Alice) "Yes, but that's not all. I don't mean equality in terms of giving less freedom to the people who had more; I mean equality in terms of giving all people as much freedom as possible. That means the removal of any law that mentions race or gender at all."

(Roger) "Surely you don't seek to overturn the most sacred laws of the commonwealth though. Most of our laws are based on old testament scripture."

(Alice) "Yet another problem. Laws should not come from any religious source, and they should never be considered sacred."

(Roger) "But certainly you are a Christian yes? You believe in the way, and the law, yes?"

(Alice) "I am not of your Christianity. Certainly I believe in a number of the same things as you do, and although we both fall under the huge blanket of the label Christian, I do not agree with your rules."

(Roger) "Maybe someday you will find yourself agreeing with more yes? I told you before, Mississippians have a wave of rubbing-off on those that come to their territories and such."

(Alice) "And yet I have only been horrified by what I see."

(Roger) "Well you've seen prosperity, peace, and plenty, yes?"

(Alice) "To some, but not to all. Nevertheless, I am beginning to see the perks of absolute power."

(Roger) (In a sort of proud tone hinting of a slight boosting) "You've also seen something else, firsthand."

(Alice) "Hmm?"

(Roger) "You're the only woman I've ever been with Alice."

(Alice) "I'm still not sure I believe that."

(Roger) "I'm sure father can tell you how shy I've always been around women. By 19 father had been with over 50 women easily. But for me, you're the only one I've been with, I hope you eventually accept that as the truth it is."

(Alice) "This is silly. You have no reason to lie."

(Roger) (He looks her in the eyes) "I'm not lying Alice."

(Alice) "Isn't that what I just said? You have no reason to lie, so you wouldn't. I believe you."

(Roger) "Ah okay. Well I guess I had trouble following what you were saying."

(Alice) "Sometimes I do that. Sorry."

(Roger) (He leans in and kisses her, and then he leans slightly back) "No need to be sorry."

(Roger) "You know, I always considered father a hypocrite for preaching against fornication to the public but practicing the exact opposite. I always just said let the people alone in those matters."

(Roger) "Are your thoughts the same on that matter?"

(Alice) "Makes sense."

(Roger) "There is currently a debate in the senate about employment practices and such, the commonwealth Supreme Court is set to approve the bill as constitutional as soon as the senate passes it. It will ratify the gender employment restrictions into high law. Right now the gender employment regulations are all basically the same but only exist on local levels, the commonwealth bill will be a collection of local laws written into one overall law."

(Alice) "Bad idea. Very bad idea."

(Roger) "Well they're going to pass it, probably by at least a 9/10 majority. Do you plan to attempt to derail it?"

(Alice) "I don't know if I have the strength to go against it just yet. I'm going to have to go about my work from a different perspective, I think."

(Roger) "Well I was bored a few hours ago, so I purchased myself a controlling interest in the oil industry of this colony, so I'm sure all the oil barons and oil workers will support you."

(Alice) "Possibly."

(Roger) (Looking at a nearby clock) "Wow, past six already. What now? Finish the tour tomorrow and go get something to eat instead?"

(Alice) "I'll have to go check my desk for new work first, but I'm sure I can go grab a meal."

(Roger) "Okay, shall we go then?"

(Alice) "All right."

Roger starts to get dressed, and then he finishes and says, "Lead the way, Alice."

Alice, who had also finished dressing, stood up and proceeded back towards the elevator.

They got into the elevator and Roger pressed a button and it slowly started to move up.

The elevator came to a stop on the basement floor, the doors opened and Roger led Alice out.

They walked back through the maze of fake walls and hallways and walked back up the basement stairs into the main mansion, then to the private study where the papers for Alice to look over were.

(Alice) "You know, I've been looking for the right word to describe you."

(Roger) "What do you mean?"

Alice began to look through the papers. "I couldn't figure out what word described you best."

(Roger) "Well the foreign media describes me with many words, mostly nazi, fascist, racist, hater, monster, murderer, etc. But I'd say they're all just full of propaganda."

(Alice) "Well, my first instinct was to use the word caring, but it isn't exactly true...it's tooo universal."

(Roger) "I'd describe myself as a real right-winger, a white nationalist, a true Christian, and an officer and a gentleman. But that is just my opinion of myself."

(Alice) "Really? Anyway, I went through a number of other words, and I couldn't find the right word."

(Roger) "Well you keep thinking on it and I'm sure you'll come up with something good eventually." (He gave her a friendly smile as he spoke)

(Alice) "No, I did eventually find it. I was just giving you a little back-story. One of my faults. In any case, I've decided that the word is genuine."

(Roger) "Ah, interesting."

(Roger) "Have you looked through the papers yet? Shall we get something to eat?"

(Alice) "Yeah, all right."

(Roger) "Okay, do you want to eat here? The chefs here some of the best."

(Alice) "Okay."

(Roger) "I'll call a servant in here then to take the orders." (He presses a hidden button alongside the fireplace and speaks into what looks like to be a vent) "Yes, please come to the study when you get a moment." The man replied, "Yes sir, right away." About 60 seconds later a servant walked into the study

(Servant) "Governor, Prince Fabus, what can I do for you?"

(Roger) "Father isn't Czar yet, I'm not a prince yet."

(Servant) "Of course sir, sorry."

(Roger) "Something to eat found do fine."

(Servant) "Yes sir, and what will you be having."

(Roger) (To Alice) "Ladies first, Alice.”

(Alice) "What would you recommend?"

(Servant) "The special for today is a rare salmon from Fabus River, a manmade river runing across both Mississippian Libya and Mississippian Egypt."

(Alice) "Then I'll have that."

(Roger) "I'll have that as well."

(Servant) "Very good madam governor, general Fabus sir."

The servant turned and walked out.

About twenty minutes later the servant brought in a cart with Salmon and a wine that the chef suggested to accompany it. He asked Alice, "Would you like the cart taken into the private bar in the back of the study?"

(Alice) "No, leave it here, please."

He set it down in the study and said, "Very good ma'am", then he turned and walked out.

There was a large table in the study he had set it on, there were some chairs around the table, but the table wasn't really made for eating on.

(Roger) (Smiling) "Do we eat there? You're the governor, you decide."

(Alice) "No, we'll eat in the bar."

(Roger) "Okay. Allow me to get it." (He picked up the cart and walked into the bar and set it down on the bar counter then waited for Alice to sit down before he did)

Alice suddenly smiles as if she's thinking of something else.

(Roger) "What is it?"

(Alice) "Seryown is located almost entirely on the sea, but there are no native salmon there. It's considered very much a delicacy there. I could make hundreds of dollars by transporting a few pounds of this stuff from here to there."

(Roger) "Ah I see. Perhaps if you'd like, I can get you started in the fish business?"

(Roger) "Okay, every governor-general has some business that they get to use their position to gain, yours it seems will be fish." (He smiles)


Roger is eating his fish rather well, "Do you like it?" he asks her in a tone revealing he is sincerely hoping she is enjoying the meal.

Alice smiles. "Of course."

(Roger) "It is a good meal." (Smiling) "But I'm much more fond of the company."

(Alice) "I think I share your sentiment."

(Roger) (Smiling) "I'm glad to hear that."

Roger and Alice both finished their dinners Roger leaned back in his seat and said, "Well how about the cigar I offered you earlier and you said you'd consider? We can both go to the smoking room here, it's a lovely room. What do you say?"

(Alice) "Not right now, I think."

(Roger) "Well I always have an after dinner smoke, but I'll skip it so we can share a bottle of wine if you'd like?"

(Alice) "All right."

The popped the cork out of the bottle and poured two glasses, he raised his and proudly exclaimed, "To the governor-general!"

Alice very nearly blushed as she raised her own glass.

Roger slowly sipped on his wine as he leaned back in his chair and casually asked mostly out of curiosity, "So, when do you leave for DPUO? First thing in the morning?"

(Alice) "I suppose so."

Roger glanced over at the novelty clock behind the bar, it was a clock and in the center it had a can of skoal smokeless tobacco on it and the hands came out from the can, it said, "Use Skoal", it was left by Donald Stahlecker, he saw that it was about 8:45 pm.

(Roger) "Wow, time sure did go by today."

Alice stood up and walked back into the study. "Yeah. Joe?" Joe walked into the room. "What's up with the report on the robot thing?"

(Joe) "The robots here in Egypt were indeed all destroyed after the army and air force crushed them under orders from a Senator Rutledge. The robots in Tennessee have been pushed back into the bunker facility they came from and are being hammered with EMP weaponry."

Roger stood up and walked back into the study, "Everything going well against the robots?"

(Alice) "Excellent. Thanks. You can have the rest of the night off, Joe. I'm sure you can find yourself something to do."

(Joe) "Thank you governor." (He turned and walked out)

(Roger) "Well Alice, it's been an interesting day today has it not?"

(Alice) "Yes it has."

(Roger) (Yawning) "Now what? Well I'm seriously thinking of taking the clocks advice and running to the corner store to buy a tin." (Chuckling) "Old army habits die hard."

(Alice) "I'm a little tired...actually, I'm exhausted, and it looks like my problems are leaving me alone for a few seconds, so I think I'll take advantage of it and turn in."

(Roger) "Well I am tired too, I'd best get a moving on out, with the way they have the roads sealed off, it's about a 90 minute walk to the hotel which is only a 10 minute drive away."

(Alice) "Want some company on the walk?"

(Roger) "That would be nice, yes."

(Alice) "Or you could just stay here for the night. I'm not using the space."

(Roger) "You sure I wouldn't be imposing any?"

(Alice) "Not at all."

(Roger) "Well okay then, I accept." (Chuckling) "Which room you sticking me in? The closet?" (He laughed at the last part)

(Alice) "You know your way around better than I do. Pick a room that isn't supposed to be mine and sleep in it."

(Roger) "Okay, that works for me." (He sounded a little disappointed that she didn't invite him to sleep with her, not that he was in the mood for more sex, but anyway, he guessed it didn't matter, he planned to be sleeping)

(Roger) "Well I'm going outside for a smoke real quick, it's quicker to go outside than into the lounge, be right back in."

Alice nodded. "All right."

He took out a pipe and packed it with tobacco as he was walking to the door, sat down on the swing on the porch and lit up his pipe.

About ten minutes later, Roger was still outside and the weather began to turn bad, it a deluge of rain combined with violent streaks of lightning and explosive thunder. The thunder and lightning bothered Alice, one of the few things that bothered her. She looked outside and saw Roger didn't seem bothered at all; he was just sitting on the swing, rocking back and forth, and smoking his pipe.

Roger was sitting there, just staring off into the clouds, and trying to make sense of it all. The wars, the diplomatic talks, and the behind the scenes agreements the commoners would never know about. The wars people fought but never knew why... Obey, fight, and die... The unwritten law of CM. The petty disputes that all the governors inevitably had with the pathetic mayors of the cities they didn't deserve to be in. The lack of respect the local authorities showed towards anybody they didn't quite like. Arbitrary use of power, the small man's way to feel big.

He never really questioned the core values of the regime, and tonight was no exception, he just sat on the swing, rocking back and forth, meanwhile ships in the Mediterranean where rocking back in the forth in the intensifying waves from the storms brewing. They were rocking on their way to Hatarian Mammalia to help with coalition efforts to rid the world of HM aggression. HM had disrupted the normal flow of world events, and had to be punished, and AMF was leading the charge. CM decided to fall in line and join the charge.

Alice looked outside against and saw Roger was still sitting there, still smoking, seemingly oblivious to the storm that had her so troubled. He had obviously lost track of time and was deep in thought, he had been outside for over twenty minutes.

The sound she heard most was the patter of the rain on the windows and the roof, it was enough to keep anybody awake throughout the night, she was glad the mansion had three floors and an attic. The bedroom she was in was on the second floor, so the noise was largely muffled.

Alice finally got fed up with waiting and went back downstairs to get Roger out of the rain.

Roger was mostly thinking about the POWs in the camps in Hogsweat, he knew the rescue operation was set to go down a few hours ago and he wanted desperately to hear it was a success.

He saw Alice in front of him when the lightning flashed and he was startled to his senses, back into reality. "Alice, what are you doing out here? You'll catch your death of cold." Despite the porch being largely covered on all sides, Roger was somewhat wet from the intense rain that came in largely diagonally.

(Alice) "Look who's talking? Get in here!"

(Roger) "Okay." He immediately followed her inside.

(Roger) (As though in a daze) "How long was I out there?"

She checked the clock, and realized he'd been outside for over 45 minutes.

(Alice) "Three-fourths of an hour."

(Roger) (Surprise) "That long? Wow, sorry. I was just thinking about some things that were really on my mind, bothering me, you know? I must have lost track of time."

(Alice) "What's wrong?"

(Roger) "Do you remember hearing about Firebase Fabus, many months ago? The capture of over 35,000 CM soldiers?"

(Alice) "Not really...sounds horrible."

(Roger) "There were about 600 paratroopers in Hogsweat that avoided capture and a few hours ago they were set to break out the surviving POWs, about 20,000 were left alive by the time the guerilla army that captured them marched them over 100 miles to prison camps in the disease ridden jungle, with no food or water. The men had been without food for 16 days and water for 4 days prior to surrendering, their base had been surrounded, cutoff from supplies."

(Roger) "It started with 36,000 paratroopers jumping into a valley and making two airstrips, they fortified the hills heavily and made over 300 strongpoints with 1 company each to defend them. Then they were surrounded by over 500,000 guerillas. The guerillas had an ace in their sleeve though, over 1,000 howitzers and SAMS, along with 500 AAA. The base only had about 100 howitzers and 800 heavy mortars. Also the base relied solely on the air for resupply."

(Roger) "Over 18,000 reinforcements were dropped into the base, 6,000 were scattered into enemy units and died almost immediately. Over the next 6 weeks, approximately 20,000 defenders and 250,000 attackers died in the fight for the base. We lost over 2,000 planes attempting to provide air cover and fly supplies into the base."

(Roger) "Most of the units that ran out of ammunition but were still able to move, fixed bayonets and charged into the enemy machine guns to save their honor."

(Roger) "The warrior code dictates surrender as the greatest dishonor a soldier can suffer."

(Roger) "Well over 34,000 soldiers surrendered, mostly they were too wounded, sick, or malnourished to fight on."

(Alice) "I'm so sorry..."

(Roger) "You've nothing to be sorry for. It's not your fault. It's father's fault, for sending the soldiers into a foreign war we had no real business being in. The generals also did some rather horrible things in that war. They used chemical weapons against a city called Beting. 30 paratroopers were ambushed in the city and their heads placed on spikes for the media to broadcast around the world. The generals used Su-25s and Mi-24s to blanket Beting with chemical weapons. They killed over 50,000 people and injured 200,000."

(Alice) "That's horrible..."

(Roger) "They attempted to use chemical weapons against the guerilla army around the base, but they only managed to kill 50,000 of the guerillas. Another low point of the battle was when our best fighter ace, Colonel Herman Von Thaller, was shot down. He has over 390 aerial kills to his credit, in one aerial dogfight, he shot down over 120 enemy fighters."

(Roger) "I hope Thaller is still alive, they were threatening to kill him a while ago."

(Alice) "But, surely there must be a rescue mission..."

(Roger) "It's a sad truth, but most of the men who were captured, are probably dead from the brutal conditions. Yes, there is a rescue mission. It was set to go down a few hours ago. I should be getting a report on it soon. The 600 paratroopers who avoided capture, the ones that were in Beting before they pulled out and it fell to the rebels, the paratroopers were ordered to march about 100 miles into the interior of Hogsweat, liberate the 10 camps, and then get the POWs 12 miles east to the coast and waiting ships. But I fear the POWs will be too weak to march 12 miles, so they'll probably need helicopters, C-130s, and C-17s to get them out."

(Alice) "How soon is the report coming?"

Right about that time, an SRG man knocks on the front door of the mansion, Alice and Roger are in the front room, Roger speaks first, "Who do you think that could be? Should I get it?"

Roger walked over an opened the door and saw it was an SRG soldier.

(SRG) "Sir, the report from Hogsweat!" (He hands him a letter)

(Roger) "Thank you soldier, dismissed."

(SRG) "Hail Fabus!" (Throws his left arm into the air)

Roger raises his left arm slightly back towards the shoulder as he is reading the report and gives a barely audible, unenthusiastic "Hail Fabus."

The SRG man turns and leaves, Roger shuts the door and then sits down and drops the report, he's finished reading it.

Alice walks up to Roger, concerned.

Roger breaks into tears and starts to mumble sentences Alice cannot understand; all she heard was part of it, "5,000, massacred." She picked up the report and started to read it.

"5,000 of the 20,000 captives were massacred shortly before our liberation teams arrived, but 15,000 of the men were safely taken out of Hogsweat and are currently on their way back to Mississippi. General Bon, General Miguel, and Colonel Thaller are all fine and in good spirits considering the circumstances. The enemy admitted to taking over 34,000 paratroopers as POWs but the guards at one of the prisons admitted only 20,000 made it through the 100 mile death march that our satellites detected. Also they admit they massacred approximately 4,000 soldiers right as they tried to surrender when the base fell."

Roger has regained his composure, "At least they got a lot of them out."

Alice hugs Roger firmly. "It will be all right, okay?"

(Roger) "The 1st Parachute Division, from 1980-1984, father was in that division, he used to complain to me when I was younger, how the leftist government sent the 1st division to every jungle, desert, and ice cube in the world, just to cause them grief, for no real reason. And I can't see why father sent the 1st division into Hogsweat. I just can't see why."

(Alice) "It will be all right..."

(Roger) "Most of the men in the 1st parachute division were veterans of the 1984 civil war, they were career soldiers, the elite of the parachute units, and now they're gone, they were exploited like a resource, and now they're used up like a resource, depleted, gone. But never fear, father can raise more units, more meat for the grinder!" (His tone has gotten sarcastic and cynical)

(Alice) "Shh...It will be all right...."

(Roger) "He doesn't see it anymore though, he lets his generals tell him what it's like, he's recently stopped jumping into combat himself, as he used to..." (He starts to cry again and Alice takes his head and holds it, letting him cry in her arms)

(Alice) "It'll be all right...shh..."

A few minutes later he has stopped crying enough to talk, "What now? I'm keeping you up aren't I, you can go on off to sleep, I'll be okay." She could tell he was lying, he was bad at lying and it was blatantly obvious he wasn't okay.

(Alice) "Stop talking nonsense. I've leaned on your shoulder, and I'm not going to take mine away from you."

(Roger) "Okay."

(Roger) "Father will blame the 5,000 deaths of either myself or one of my brothers. He says we need to lead from the front. He blamed the fall of the base on the M-14 rifle, that is one of the reasons we switched to the XM-8 and the OICW, we were switching anyway, it was just convenient the switch happened when it did. I wonder if I had been there to lead them in person, would it have mattered?"

(Roger) "Henry said if one of us had been in Firebase Fabus, they're just be one less Fabus right now and that'd be all that would have been accomplished."

(Alice) "You're not that godly, Roger. They were in un-winnable circumstances."

(Roger) "I know, but that's not how father sees it. He says we should have seized the initiative and jumped into the base with a regiment of republican guard and mounted a counter-attack."

(Alice) "And gotten more soldiers massacred? They absolutely did the best they could do under the circumstances. It isn't your fault and it isn't the M-14's fault."

(Roger) "You know the guerillas were Asians for the most part, and they launched frontal attacks into miniguns and machine guns, that takes courage. Father's generals said the yellows would scatter before the heavy guns."

(Roger) (In a mocking voice) "The exact words of Field Marshal Salazar, quote, "Those slant-eyed yellows won't fight for more than a week!"

(Roger) (Another mocking voice) "The exact words of Field Marshal Smith, quote, "Those little yellow bastards will be crushed under the boot of the paratroopers within twelve days time."

(Alice) "Well, they were wrong this time, I guess."

(Roger) "That was really the only battle we ever lost, combined with Angola which we didn't really lose militarily so much as we did politically. There are now over 700,000 graves for soldiers in Mississippi that died within that last four years."

(Roger) "When will it end?"

(Alice) "God willing, as soon as possible."

(Roger) (His voice is shaky and nervous) "I guess so... I'm tired now... Tired..."

(Alice) "Let's get you upstairs."

He was still quite wet from the rain he had been sitting in, and he felt as cold as a block of ice, he was pale as a ghost also, and Alice was wondering how he was still conscious being as cold as he was.

Alice led Roger upstairs. His teeth started to chatter as he realized how cold he was. Then he struggled to talk, "Where to now Alice?"

Alice led him into her bedroom, which, as seemed to be probable by the luxury of the mansion, there was fireplace. She immediately lit it using the wood that was already there and she gently encouraged him to the ground near it.

(Roger) "Thank you Alice."

Alice hugged him, leaning her head against his ribs. "No need, Roger."

She could feel he was still freezing cold, she wondered if he was sick, she got up and found a large robe for him, it was an expensive looking robe that appeared to be made of bear fur, it had the initials DS on it, she knew who used to own it, well she thought, "It can be Roger's now, who will know." She slowly walked back and wrapped it around Roger, he thanked her for it.

She could feel Roger starting to warm up, but he was still pale, and he was starting to fall asleep.

Alice stayed close to him, trying to keep him warm.

(Roger) (In a voice losing strength, hardly his charismatic self) "I'm tired Alice, so tired."

(Alice) "I understand, Roger, it's okay."

Roger struggled to speak, "Do you want me to leave no so you can go to sleep, I don't want to keep you up just because I'm ill."

(Alice) "No, you're staying right here."

(Roger) "Okay."

She could tell whatever sort of military training he'd received, it had taught him not to expect, mercy, sympathy, or empathy from anybody, the Republican Guard had put him through 11 months of brutal hell, and then after that, the battles and campaigns started and made the previous 11 months look like a picnic.

(Alice) "Come on, Roger. You're strong. You'll get through this."

(Roger) (He was slipping into delirium) "Yes sir lieutenant, the jeeps need more oil, I'll get right on it."

(Alice) "Roger!"

She could see he was covered in sweat, profusely.

(Roger) (Snapping back into reality for a brief second) "What? I'm okay, don't worry."

(Alice) "No, no you aren't. Who do I call to get you medical attention?"

(Roger) "Doctor, doctor number by phone... But, I... okay."

Alice gets up and rushes to the phone. She searches for the number, dials it, and calls.

The doctor was on the estate in the private office, the doctor served the governor and the staff and those were his only clients.

(Doctor) "Hello, who is this? Do you know what time it is?"

(Alice) "Roger Fabus is down here and you will be in ten seconds, okay?"

(Doctor) "Mr. Fabus is ill?"

(Alice) "Yes...Just get down here!"

(Doctor) "I'll be right there!" (He rushes out of his office; grabbing two bags and only pausing long enough to dress in a robe and shorts.

About 90 second later, the doctor is there, short of breath.

(Doctor) "Okay, what is the problem?"

Alice is hugging Roger. She turns toward him. "He was in the rain for forty-five minutes...and now he's delirious..."

The doctor starts to examine Roger, he asks Alice, "Has he been in any recent accidents lately? Or perhaps attacked by an animal or a shark?"

(Doctor) "Well governor, was he bitten by any animals lately. Those bite marks on his mid leg and thigh look to me to be shark bites." (He points to a rather nasty bite mark on the back part of the leg)

(Alice) "I don't know...why would he have been bitten by anything? I didn't see it if he was."

Roger meekly nodded and struggled to whisper, "Doctor, a few months back, I got into a fight with a great white shark."

The doctor nodded and said, "I see. Well I can tell you with a degree of certainty, you have tetanus from the shark bite, it must just have spread through your system recently, and you now have pneumonia, probably it was lingering in you for a few days and this awful weather brought it out worse."

(Doctor) "Luckily modern medicine has a cure for the tetanus, were you in any other country in Africa, besides perhaps Western Sahara or Mississippian Libya, you'd likely die." (He takes out a needle and injects it into Roger)

(Alice) “Will he be okay?”

(Doctor) “Oh yes, he’ll be fine in a few weeks. As for the pneumonia, I suspect he got it from either bacteria or microorganisms. Chemical irritants could also cause it, but there haven’t been any chemical accidents and we’re not at war, so chemical weaponry can be ruled out.”

(Doctor) “Pneumonia is contagious you know.”

(Alice) “I’ve been vaccinated against the bacterial forms of it.”

(Doctor) “Good, then you should be fine, if you start to feel ill, call me right away.”

(Doctor) “Here, I want you to see he takes these, all of them, don’t let him stop taking them when he starts to feel better, that isn’t how antibiotics work. Roger is a smart boy, he knows better than that, but he is stubborn. I’ve known him for many years, you’ll need to make sure he takes them all.”

(Alice) “I will. Thank you.”

(Doctor) “He should get lots of rest and fluids, and keep him from smoking and drinking liquor or beer in his current state. I’ve always said wine helps though. But seriously, he smokes like a chimney, make sure he doesn’t smoke, it’s for his own health.”

(Alice) “Okay.”

(Doctor) “Here, help me get him into the bed.”

Now Roger Fabus was 6’6 and 242 lbs, he was a giant, and the doctor 6’2 and Alice 5’8 would have a very hard time going about safely lifting him up into bed without risking hurting themselves or him. So they called in two nearby SRG men to help. The SRG men were all giants, the two guards, both at least 6’8, helped them lift Roger up and place him in bed.

The guards then turned and walked out quietly, wondering if their general would be okay, hoping and praying he would be.

The doctor broke the silence and spoke to Alice, “It’s a good thing you called me when you did, he was really sick, it’s best to catch Tetanus early. You did the right thing by calling. Thank you.”

(Alice) “Okay, so he’ll be okay though yes?”

(Doctor) “Oh he’ll be fine, and you’ll be fine as you’ve already been vaccinated against bacterial pneumonia. So don’t worry, but remember call me if you feel sick.”

(Alice) “I will.”

(Doctor) “Okay then.” He turns and walks out of the room.

Alice lies down next to Roger, who is fast asleep now, she can see his chest moving up and down with each breath, she is comforted by the fact she can tell his alive. She prays that he stays so.

She wraps him up in more blankets and moves close to Roger and holds him tightly against her body. She starts to think about the upcoming conference in DPUO that she’ll be leaving for in the morning, she’d rather not go now with Roger so ill, but CM is counting on her to attend as all other delegates have been ruled either “too racist”, “too Klan”, “too paramilitary” or “too armed forces”, to meet with the regulations of the “tolerant” people of DPUO. She suddenly found herself wondering what Roger would have been doing fighting a shark, but she figured it was unimportant and she’d ask him later if she could remember. She held him close against her body as she started to fall asleep. She could feel he was regaining his warmth. The patter of the rain now seemed to soothe rather than irritate and she quickly fell into a deep sleep, but her dreams would be racked with nightmares of failing at the upcoming conference and plunging the world into massive war.

In the morning she would rise, get ready, and then make her way to DPUO by boat for the conference. That was another thing she was upset about, she’d prefer to go by plane, but DPUO seemed very picky, and she’d have to comply with their regulations, as it was their country. Somehow though, she doubted they’d accept CM regulations with at least attempting to argue, if the meeting were in CM rather than DPUO.

Alice woke up in the morning, still hugging Roger, keeping him close to her, he was alive, but not doing that well, she could tell from his pale complexion.

She let go of him slowly and stood up, trying to think clearly about the few hours before she'd fallen asleep.

The phone suddenly rang.

Alice grabbed the phone. She was about to snap something before she took a breath and spoke. "Yes?"

(Paul Stahlecker) "Governor. Carrion, the peace talks were canceled; there is no need for them. We're all okay, you just stay put in Alexandria and try not to worry your pretty little head too much, okay?"

Roger let out a weak moan, and then, "Who is is Alice?"

(Alice) "Tell me, did you ever tell your brother he had a pretty little head when he had this post?"

(Paul) "Why no, that's no way to talk to a man."

(Alice) "Then don’t talk like that to me either. Got that?"

(Paul) "Yes sir... I mean ma'am." (He started to laugh) "Somebody sure is feisty!"

(Alice) "Feisty? Did you just say feisty?"

(Paul) "Yes, why?"

(Alice) "I don't think you ever met my husband."

(Paul) "Well I imagine that a woman like you needs a man around, to keep you under control. Is that what you mean?"

(Alice) "No, that wasn't. Did you ever meet him?"

(Paul) "Unless he was a diplomat or a foreign high official, I'm afraid likely not."

(Alice) "I guess not, then. It's too bad. Your brother Peter met him, though. I'm sure of that."

(Paul) "Peter is a wreck, he'll be fine in a few months though."

(Paul) "Peter is actually back in Angola!"

(Paul) (In a tone of contempt) "Helping people escape!"

(Alice) "My husband died getting Peter Stahlecker out of Angola."

(Paul) "Yes, I'm quite aware of that."

(Paul) "And yet I heard Roger Fabus in the background, meaning you share your bed with him... Is that how you got your position as governor-general?"

(Alice) "Perhaps you should ask him the same question. From my perspective, the reason you heard him in the background was because I'm currently helping him recuperate from an illness. When he wants to tell you more than that he can. In any case, thanks for the information, and don't ever call me again." She hangs up the phone.

Roger let out a meek, "Who was it Alice, you seem upset", his voice was weak and he barely managed to choke out the words.

(Alice) "Paul Stahlecker. Don't speak right now, okay?"

(Roger) (Trying to smile) "Is that an order, governor?"

(Alice) "I told you not to speak. Now shut up."

Roger was ill, and barely aware what was going on, but he could tell something was wrong, he just struggled to roll over and eventually did so, facing away from Alice who for some reason was yelling at him... He had no idea why, but he didn't want to make her mad.

Alice felt bad, all Roger had done was try to be nice, and she'd practically chewed him out for it.

Alice looked down for a second, made up her mind, and rifled around for the pills that the doctor had given her.

Roger heard noise, he managed to roll back over and speak with difficulty, "Are you okay Alice? You're not still mad at me... Are you?" She could detect in his voice a yearning for an acceptance that he'd never known, something he sought all his life.

(Alice) "I'm not mad, Roger, but if you keep talking I might be."

Roger nodded and then rolled back over, not saying a word, he was confused, and he didn't know what the problem was... He'd never understood women and he doubted he ever would.

Alice looked around, growing more worried. She couldn't find the pills.

A servant knocked on the door and said, "May I come in?"

(Alice) "What do you want?"

(Servant) "I am stopping by to see if you and Mr. Fabus are well?"

(Alice) "We're fine."

(Servant) "Okay then, call if you need anything."

Roger struggled to sit up in bed, he reached for a cigar holder on the stand next to him.

Alice looks back and frowns. "No cigars." She goes back to looking worriedly.

(Roger) (Shocked, finding the strength to speak) "Not even just one?" (he starts to caugh and hack up mucus)

(Roger) (Holding his hand against his stomach) "Alice, why are you so worried, what is wrong? Tell me, if something is bothering you, I can help."

(Alice) "You were supposed to get some pills. I can't find them."

(Roger) "Check by the fireplace, I seem to remember the doctor set something there perhaps."

Alice smiled. "Thanks. Now shut up again."

She went over and found the pill bottle, then walked back to the bed, the bottle read, "Take two every twelve hours."

(Roger) "How about a good swig of brandy to wash it down with, eh?"

(Alice) "No alcohol either."

(Roger) "Well, now I know I'm either dying, or they're trying to kill me!"

(Alice) "You're Roger Fabus. Someone is always trying to kill you."

(Roger) (Trying to laugh, but coughing up mucus instead) "Yes, I guess that could be so."

Alice counts out two of the pills and hands it to him. "Swallow these."

He takes the pills and swallows them

(Roger) (Holding his chest and stomach as he speaks) "You know Alice, there is something I want to tell you... I don't know how you'll react."

(Alice) "I told you to shut up, so this better be important."

He paused for a minute and hesitated, nervous, "Well Alice... I wanted to say... I wanted to... Never mind." He rolled back over on the bed.

(Alice) "If you say so. Who am I to tell you when to talk anyway?"

Roger rolled back over and then looked at her, gazing into her eyes, and then said, "Alice, I'm falling in love with you. I don't want to return to Mississippi, I want to stay here, with you."

Alice looked down for a few seconds. "Well, I want you to think about that for a while. I want you to be sure, and I don't think you are right now."

Roger sat up, holding his stomach, "I've never been more certain of anything in my life."

(Roger) "But I'll do as you suggest and think for a while."

Roger smiled at Alice as he grew weaker and then slipped in a light sleep. The phone rang, Alice wondered who the hell it was, she was getting annoyed.

Alice picked up the phone. "If this isn't important..."

(Rutledge) "Hello governor Carrion."

(Rutledge) "We're having some transport issues with the slaves."

(Alice) "Slaves?"

(Rutledge) "We won a war with Hatarian Mammalia, we took about 50 million of their women deemed fit for breeding. A few million are already here in Egypt, being auctioned off to rich men. We need to allocate more ships to get the rest here so we can sell them fast and make more money."

(Alice) "Not a single ship from Egypt will be allocated to any such project."

(Rutledge) "Well we already have auctions going on in Alexandria, I mean millions of women are already being sold. What's a few million more?"

(Alice) "Absolutely nothing. That's why we won't bother to allocate any ships to that project. In fact, that's also why we'll stop all the auctions right now?"

(Rutledge) "I'm sorry ms governor, but the law allows for this."

(Alice) "I'm sure it does. But I'm also sure that those auctions are going to be stopped right now."

(Rutledge) "You just keep thinking that governor. I have to go, I might just buy a few of them for myself. Nothing beats breaking in a fine beast, usually I'm breaking in horses, but I'd like to mount something else."

Rutledge laughed, "Well Governor, I wonder how much you'd go for! Just be glad you're a citizen!"

(Alice) "Glad is something I am not. In any case, Senator, you'd better rush there, because I'm shutting them down now."

(Rutledge) "Oh and governor, I'm still waiting for you to come to my penthouse for a personal meeting to discuss some matters of mutual importance."

(Alice) "You know, I'm pretty sure that this place records all the calls in and out, so I'll just advise you not to go any further in that vein."

(Rutledge) "Well governor, the impeachment proceedings are making progress.”

(Rutledge) "I'm sure a skilled lady such as yourself wouldn't need more than twenty minutes to convince me to derail the proceedings."

(Alice) "I'm glad to hear it, but the answer is still no, senator. Goodbye now."

(Rutledge) "Well I'll see you around governor, remember what I said... 20 minutes of your time, is all I'm asking. .You don't even have to do anything other than relax, I'll do the work."

Alice hung up the phone disgustedly.

She turned on the TV and saw the news, they were at the slave auctions in central Alexandria, a young woman was being paraded around on a platform, the guard lifted her dress above her head and the rich nobles started shouting numbers.

Roger leaned up in bed, groggy, but feeling better, "Alice, what the hell is that on the news? What is going on? What savage country is that! Selling people!"

(Alice) "That's Egypt."

He was shocked, "Good lord, you mean Mississippian Egypt? Or Parthian Egypt?"

(Alice) "Here."

He tried to stand up, but fell onto the floor, "Help me up, this must be stopped!"

(Roger) "Alice, call the office of commonwealth affairs, tell them that Roger Fabus is ordering this all to stop immediately and without delay."

Alice picked up the phone and looked around for a moment. She found a note with the number and dialed quickly.

(Man) "Hello, Commonwealth Affairs."

(Man) "Are you calling to inquire about breeding stock, well we are currently getting shipments of women deemed fit, we are getting shipments in hourly."

(Alice) "Actually, I'm calling on behalf of Roger Fabus, who's ordering that this be stopped right now."

(Man) "Let me patch you through to slave trade direction center, Senator Rutledge is handling it."

(Rutledge) "Hello."

(Alice) "Hi again, Senator."

(Rutledge) "Ah governor, call to arrange a meeting with me?"

(Alice) "Actually, I'm calling on behalf of Roger Fabus."

(Rutledge) "Ah yes, the former acting premier. What does he want?"

(Alice) "He wants this stopped immediately. That means right now, if you didn't know."

(Rutledge) "Sorry, but he is no longer in command. Last night his father resumed the premiership."

(Rutledge) "Now I could stop this, if you come by and meet with me."

Roger struggled to sit up and speak, leaning against a drawer, "Let me duel him."

Alice turned to Roger. "You will do no such thing." She turns on the speakerphone and begins talking. "Could you repeat that last part, Senator?"

(Rutledge) "I want you to meet with me, and I'm sure you can use your skills at persuasion to convince me to see things your way."

(Rutledge) "Well governor, are you going to be coming by then?"

(Alice) "How exactly would I be persuading you?"

(Rutledge) "Like I said before, I'll do the work, you just let me do the work."

(Alice) "What work would that be, exactly?"

(Rutledge) "Just lying down and doing your best to relax and enjoying the ride."

(Alice) "The ride?"

(Rutledge) "Governor, I've wanted you since I first saw you walk into the senate chamber. You're a feisty one, did anybody ever tell you that?"

(Alice) "Actually, once or twice? You've wanted me, you say? How so?"

(Rutledge) "Let's not play games governor, you're a smart girl, figure it out."

(Alice) "I'm trying to figure it out, but I'm not sure what I'm figuring out, Senator."

(Rutledge) "Just get over here and you'll figure it out soon enough."

(Alice) "Well, maybe I will, if you'll tell me what I'm going to be doing there."

(Rutledge) "You'll be enjoying what many women have, quality time with Senator Simon Rutledge."

(Alice) "Quality time? What sort of quality time?"

(Rutledge) "Governor, I'm starting to realize your brains didn't get you this job. But I can help you keep it, just come over here, lay down, when I'm done, I'll see you keep your job."

(Rutledge) "Besides, when I'm done, you can gossip with all your girlfriends about how you were fucked by Senator Rutledge."

(Rutledge) "So when are you coming over governor?"

(Alice) "I'm not."

(Rutledge) (Shocked) "Why not? Don't you want to keep your job?"

(Alice) "No, I think I'm okay with that. In any case, shut down the auction now."

(Rutledge) "The auctions will be shut down if and when you adequately convince me."

Roger struggled to shout, as loud as he could, "Rutledge! We're meeting tomorrow, outside the senate building, bring your pistol!"

(Rutledge) "Ah, a duel... I accept!"

Alice slams the phone down. "That was particularly stupid of you."

(Roger) "He needs to be stopped."

Alice knew that Rutledge had been in over 200 duels and never lost a single one.

(Alice) "And it didn't occur to you that you might not win?"

(Roger) "I could win though. I can beat him."

(Roger) "He'll probably fire in the air, and declare an apology, he won't dare shoot at me, I'm the premier's son."

The phone rang again.

(Rutledge) "Hello, governor..." (His voice was nervous and embarrassed) "I must decline the challenge, I realized who it was issuing it... I'm sorry."

(Rutledge) "But the auctions will have to continue unless you wish to do something about it."

(Alice) "Here's what I'll do about it. Tomorrow, everybody in Egypt will know that you were trying to get into bed with a superior, and that even more importantly; you'd been turned down. And yes, it will get worse if that doesn't turn out to be enough to make sure you never have any power ever again. Or you could stop the auctions."

(Rutledge) "You think the public doesn't know what I do?"

(Rutledge) "I can get any woman I want, and the people know that... Hell I've fu--ced over five hundred women and I'm not even 30!"

(Alice) "The important part is that you were turned down, Senator."

(Rutledge) (Starting to sound nervous) "Well you don't want to tell anything like that to the people... Do you?"

(Alice) "The entire public knows tomorrow ... unless, of course, you shut down the auctions right now."

(Rutledge) "Well that still leaves us with the impeachment proceedings."

(Rutledge) "Governor, you'll enjoy it... Trust me, I'll even let you be on top, I'm sure you'll really go for that."

(Alice) "Go to hell, Senator."

(Rutledge) "Governor, hear me out please."

(Rutledge) "If I start a move to ban slavery in the senate, it will hurt my greatly, all the other senators, well most of them, own slaves. Many of them have stock in the trade."

(Rutledge) "If I'm to make so many enemies... I need compensation."

(Alice) "Your compensation is your job, Senator, and your reputation."

(Rutledge) "That's not quite enough governor. Besides, what do you have to lose; you'll enjoy it... I can guarantee that... If you don't enjoy it, we can try again until you do!"

(Rutledge) "You don't have any of this on recording anyway... Nobody will believe you."

(Alice) "If you want to be able to live in Egypt without being spat on every time you leave your home, you'll shut up. In any case, Mr. Fabus certainly heard the first part of this conversation."

(Rutledge) "The people love me. Besides nobody will believe Fabus, because you've obviously got him trained."

(Rutledge) "Besides, I heard some most unfortunate news via the grapevine that Roger is ill and suffering delirium, he won't be able to swear he heard anything in his current condition."

(Roger) "Is he giving you trouble Alice?"

(Alice) "Very well then. The people will find out that I turned you down, and you'll go ahead with the impeachment process. That sounds fair to me."

(Rutledge) "There is a much more pleasant way out this... All you have to do is come here for a while."

(Alice) "I'm perfectly fine with it this way, Senator."

(Rutledge) "Well... The thing is, I'd rather nobody found out about any of this."

(Alice) "Simple way of doing that, Senator."

(Rutledge) "Well could we give my way a try first?"

(Alice) "No."

(Rutledge) "Well if you change your mind... You know where to call me... I guess that's everything thing then... Oh, tell Roger now I'm challenging him to a duel, if he doesn't accept, I'll see he is branded a coward."

She was worried now; Roger was in no shape for a duel.

(Alice) "Peculiar. Then it will be found out that you had to deny his offer before you made your own."

(Rutledge) "Well then I retract my earlier rejection, we shall still duel! And I have never lost yet, he's never been in a single pistol duel, if my memory serves me."

(Alice) "I'm sure you'll be perfectly happy to shoot the Premier's son."

(Rutledge) "Honor demands we duel... The premier will understand, besides, he has other sons if something happens to this one."

Alice realized he was dead wrong; Roger was the premier's favorite son.

(Alice) "All right. Could you pay the Premier a courtesy call, just to make sure he knows, beforehand?"

(Rutledge) (Nervous) "There is no need for that. Roger challenged me, I accepted. It was his choice!"

(Rutledge) "His choice to challenge me that is."

(Rutledge) "I'm willing to call off the duel if you're willing to be more accommodating with me, much more."

Roger stood up, and fell onto the bed, "Let me duel him, I can take him" he struggled to speak, as he grew pale.

(Alice) "I'm being very accommodating. All I'm asking you to do is to call the Premier and tell him you're about to fight a duel with Roger Fabus."

(Rutledge) "I mean more accommodating as I want you to be. As in you come over here and personally accommodate me."

(Alice) "Go to hell, Senator. If you insist, I'll make the call myself."

(Rutledge) "No I'll do it. I want to be sure he hears my version, rather than your lies!"

(Alice) "All right. I'll call him in an hour, then, just to make sure you called him?"

(Rutledge) "After Roger falls in the duel, then you're impeached and arrested, you'll come around to my offer."

Alice slammed the phone down after Rutledge started rambling on

(Roger) "Are you okay Alice? I can win the duel!"

(Alice) "No, you can't. But there won't be a duel."

(Roger) "What do you mean, no duel?"

(Alice) "Was I unclear? I said there would be no duel."
:
(Roger) "But he challenged me... Are you forbidding me to duel him?"

(Alice) "I doubt that it will ever get to such a stage where I would feel the need to do that."

(Roger) "So how can there not be a duel. I challenged him, he challenge me, we both accepted."

(Alice) "An hour from now, one way or another, your father will know that Senator Rutledge is out to kill you."

(Roger) "Father will not be happy. Rutledge could wind up in the Mediterranean."

(Roger) "But father recognizes honor is important. He may allow the duel."

(Roger) "I must duel him Alice, can't you see that?"

All she could see was outdated trivial games, and issues that made no difference to most people. She thought they were all carrying on like madmen overloaded on testosterone.

(Alice) "I can see nothing of the kind."

(Roger) "I'm going to duel him, because I love you Alice, and your honor must be defended."

(Alice) "Just be quiet, okay?"

(Roger) "If you don't want me to duel him just say "Roger, don't duel him." That's all."

(Alice) "I won't tell you that."

(Roger) "Do you or don't you want me to duel him. I think your honor needs to be defended, but it is your call.”

(Alice) "I will not let him brand you a coward."

(Roger) "So you think I should duel him then?"

(Alice) "I think there will be no duel."

(Roger) "Alice, I'm confused, you say you won't let him brand me a coward. You're sounding like you're protecting me from him... It is I who must protect you from him, your honor must be defended."

Try as he might to make her see his point of view, she didn't see the reasons he felt the need to risk death for a concept that meant little to her.

(Alice) "I am confident that your father will put a stop to this."

Roger started to gasp for air and then in a spasm, he coughed up some blood and mucus into his hands. She could tell he was obviously in no condition to do anything other than rest.

The phone suddenly came to life, ringing, as it had seemed to have been ringing almost without end the entire morning.

(Premier) "Hello, this is Premier Fabus. Is this governor-general Carrion?"

(Alice) "It is an honor to finally speak to you, Premier."

(Premier) "Yes, we've spoken before though, remember?"

(Alice) "Have we? I'm afraid I can't recall that conversation, sir."

(Premier) "Remember, I asked you how Roger was, you said he was good. All Fabuses are good."

(Alice) "From the few I've talked to, I certainly get that impression, sir."

(Premier) "I thanked you for making my Roger a man, remember?"

(Alice) "Yes, I do recall now, Premier."

(Premier) "How is Roger? I hear he is ill and is having an issue with a possible duel."

(Alice) "Your son feels it necessary to duel with Senator Rutledge, sir."

(Premier) "Yes, well Rutledge has contacted me. Honor is an important matter... Don't you agree?"

(Alice) "I'm afraid that I had heard very little about honor at all before I arrived in Egypt, sir."

(Premier) "I want to know, do you not like the idea of a man defending a woman."

(Alice) "With respect, sir, not when the woman is better able to defend herself than the man is."

(Premier) "Are you saying my Roger is unfit to defend you? He is a battle-hardened Republican Guards officer of my cavalry."

(Alice) "And he's recovering from tetanus and pneumonia, sir."

(Alice) "And he's recovering from tetanus and pneumonia, sir."

(Premier) "Well yes, but he is the man and he does the defending, that is how it must be."

(Alice) "If he fights this duel, sir, he will die. That is how it will be."

(Premier) "Roger is capable, he can do anything he puts his mind to."

(Premier) "Besides, it's not as though you actually care for him, is it?"

(Alice) "Sir I would prefer not to answer that right now."

(Premier) "Why not?"

She looked over and noticed Roger had fallen asleep, she could answer if she wanted.

(Alice) "Because I'm not sure what my answer would be."

(Premier) "Well I don't want you hurting my Roger. He's always been a shy boy... I guess I should have been there for him more often. But I always saw he had what he needed to succeed. I couldn't double as his mother though, she died when he was just about 5 years old."

(Alice) "Sir, if he goes out there he will get hurt. He will die, sir."

(Premier) "Dishonor is worth than death. Besides, Rutledge won't have the balls to do anything other than aim high into the air."

(Alice) "Senator Rutledge has fought hundreds of duels, sir. How many has your son?"

(Premier) "Well there is a first time for everything yes?"

(Alice) "Is this the best time for that?"

(Premier) "I suppose you are right. Tell him he may not duel until a doctor gives him a clean bill of health."

(Alice) "Thank you, sir."

(Premier) "You take care of him now, you hear... He's always been shy, holding back how he's felt, never opening up to anybody, never letting anybody in, not even myself. Roger has always been my favorite son, but he's always been one of the most troubled. I mean he's rarely gotten along well with others."

(Alice) "I understand, sir."

(Premier) "You take of yourself too. When Roger gets better, I'm sure he'll help take of you. But something tells me you're not the kind of woman who needs or wants to be taken care of by anybody."

(Alice) "You could say that, sir."

(Premier) "Well thank you for speaking with me."

(Alice) "Sir, we both know I don't agree with most of your opinons, but...this call tells me that you're a good man."

(Premier) "Thank you."

(Premier) "I never wanted Roger to have go through what I've been through, you know, worrying about being assassinated, the scandals, the media attacks... I never wanted that for him... But he was my favorite and he wanted it, and I couldn't deny him anything."

(Alice) "I can understand that, sir."

(Alice) "In answer to your question, sir..."

(Premier) "Go on."

(Alice) "I do care for him."

The Premier smiled, but she'd not know, but she could tell by the change in his voice, "That is good. I am pleased."

(Alice) "Thank you, sir."

(Premier) "Perhaps you and Roger might come to Mississippi someday... But I imagine you're busy doing the work your position demands."

(Alice) "If I'm still welcome in Mississippi tomorrow, I'll seriously consider that offer."

(Premier) "You'll always be welcome... Why would you think otherwise?"

(Alice) "As I said, sir, my opinions are not the same as yours are, and I have enemies here who would like to put that to great use."

(Premier) "Any friend of Roger's is a friend of mine."

(Alice) "Thank you, sir."

(Premier) "If Rutledge presents a persistent problem, I can have him silenced."

(Alice) "I think I'll be able to deal with him myself, sir."

(Premier) "Okay, well I have to be going. You take care, nice talking with you."

(Alice) "I am honored, sir."

Roger woke up from his nap with a loud yawn

(Roger) (Smiling at Alice) "Hello Alice, are you doing okay?"

(Alice) "Yeah, I'm fine."

(Alice) "I was talking to your father just then."

(Roger) "Yes, I've just been thinking... I'm not going to duel, at least not for a while, until I'm in good health."

(Alice) "That's good, because your father ordered you not to."

(Roger) "Ah, I see."

(Roger) "Well Alice, what now? What about Rutledge?"

(Alice) "I need to get in touch with some newsies."

(Roger) "All news is government controlled, but you can contact the one opposition news station if the government channels won't listen."

(Alice) "I'm confident the government-controlled news station will agree with what I have to say."

(Roger) "Well you have my full support and confidence."

(Roger) "For whatever it is worth."

(Alice) "Thank you."

(Roger) "So what will you do now? Will you move against Rutledge now? Or is that a plan for the near future?"

(Alice) "No, that must happen now."

(Roger) "Okay, well when you get back, if you're willing, perhaps we can sit and talk about issues of varying degrees of importance. I so enjoy talking with you Alice." Roger coughed as he was talking, he moved his hand quickly in front of his mouth, to conceal that he'd hacked up blood and mucus.

(Alice) "All right. You'll be fine while I'm gone?"

(Roger) "I think I'll be okay. Yes, I should be able to manage. You take care of yourself and watch out, political intrigue is a dangerous game."

(Alice) "I've known that for quite a while. Goodbye then."

(Roger) "See you soon. Take care, Alice."

Alice smiles vaguely and walks out.

As she was rounding the corner outside the room, she could hear Roger coughing and wheezing, he'd been waiting for her to leave to let out the coughs he'd been holding in.

She strode down the stairs and to the vehicle garage, where the driver was waiting with her limousine, he opened the door for her and she got inside. It was a short drive to the main media office, but on the way, her cellular phone rang.

She flicked it open quickly. "Yes?"

(Rutledge) "Greetings governor, how are you... I've been thinking about what we discussed earlier."

(Rutledge) "Are you there, governor?"

(Alice) "I'm here."

(Rutledge) "I think we got off on the wrong foot, yes?"

(Alice) "I don't think there is a right foot for us."

(Rutledge) "Well to show you that I would like for us to be friends, I've set in motion the events that will derail the impeachment proceedings."

(Alice) "That's nice."

(Rutledge) "Yes, I was just hoping you might forget about all that was said over the phone earlier... Although the offer still stands, if you're ever bored and in the area, my door is always open."

(Alice) "The auctions?"

(Rutledge) "Well those can be stopped, but the institution of slavery is codified into commonwealth law. It would take months, maybe years to change it, possibly cause a civil war. But I can motion to stop the auctioning, so the people who want slaves will have a much harder time getting them. But they could just go to Tobruk in Libya, buy them there, and then bring the slaves across the border to here."

(Alice) "That's fine. But you make that motion. And these auctions will be stopped now."

(Rutledge) "Well okay, I can do that. It'll mean I'll lose a great deal of money and friends, but if you insist, I guess I have no choice. Remember though, my offer to let you spend some quality time, it still stands, it's an open offer, whenever you want."

(Alice) "I heard you the first seventy-five times."

(Rutledge) "You know governor, you're the first woman who has ever turned me down. I'll consider you a challenge, eventually, I think you'll come around."

(Alice) "I don't. In any case, thanks for all that. I've some other things to attend to."

(Rutledge) "Well you take care governor... Personally, I'd wager it’ll be less than three months before you're coming over for dinner and staying for breakfast."

(Alice) "Three months? You want to put money on that?"

(Rutledge) "How does fifty sound."

(Alice) "That's fine to me."

(Rutledge) "Fifty thousand."

(Alice) "That's fine also."

(Rutledge) "Well governor, don't worry, I'll let you keep your money when you lose. Hearing you shout my name over and over will be quite enough satisfaction for me."

She was somewhat shocked at his arrogance, his sheer, utter, and unfaltering confidence in himself. He was truly a proud man, and he'd probably never tasted defeat.

(Alice) "I will have no such consideration for you, Senator."

(Rutledge) "Well governor, I look forward to winning the bet, more than you might know. I don't loose, I never loose..."

(Alice) "There's a first time for everything, Senator. Good day."

(Rutledge) "Oh really quick, I almost forgot, that whole ruin my reputation thing, that is going to be brushed under the rug, right?"

(Alice) "As long as you carry through with your promises."

(Rutledge) "Okay, understood."

He hung up and she did likewise.

She figured she might as well go back to the mansion now, and wait to see the news that he was following through on his promises.

She arrived back at the mansion and walked through the garage to the upstairs and the room where Roger was, he was relaxing, still awake, yet barely... He smiled when she walked into the road, and tried to sit up to talk, but he was feeling too weak so he just slumped back down.

Alice smiled and sat down, rubbing her eyes.

Roger held his stomach and spoke with great difficulty, "What happened with Rutledge? Media?"

(Alice) "You shouldn't speak. But everything's solved."

Roger smiled and nodded, and mouthed, "ok".

Roger tapped the bed next to him, motioning for Alice to move closer to him.

Alice nodded and did so quickly.

Roger gently stroked her hair; smiling while he did so, he was so glad that Alice was with him. She saw how he looked though, hardly the strapping young cavalry general, he was pathetic, sickly, weak, but it didn't change her opinion of him.

Alice realized Roger needed to eat something; the doctor had said to make sure he ate well and drank lots of water.

It was about the time that they usually ate, and so a servant brought a cart of food up and knocked on the door, "May I come in governor? I have lunch ready."

Alice looked up. "Very well."

The servant walked into the room and slowly wheeled the cart in as he entered.

(Servant) "Here you are governor. Shall I leave now?"

(Alice) "Yes, thank you."

The servant turned and walked out.

Alice looked at the food, chicken and fish, Roger just shook his head, motioning he wasn't hungry, she knew he had to eat regardless.

(Alice) "Look. I don't care what you want. You're eating this."

Roger smiled and then struggled to speak, "So there is no use fighting eh?"

(Alice) "No use at all."

Roger struggled to sit up in bed, then he opened he nodded his head, acknowledging he'd eat.

He struggled to speak, "Okay Alice, I'll eat it, but I can barely sit up, you'll have to help me." He hated having to admit he was too sick, too weak, to do something for himself. More than that, he had to ask a woman to help him, granted her had strong feelings for Alice... But he didn't think it was right for women to be taking care of men, but he wasn't going to object, he got to spend more time with her this way.

(Alice) "I suppose."

She helped him eat, she could tell he indeed did need her help, he was in a bad way. When she finished, Roger smiled at her and through great pain in his chest, managed to choke out, "Thank you."

Alice smiled. "Of course."

Roger yawned and then said, "Did the doctor say no snuff?"

The doctor hadn't said no, but the habit disgusted her, and she'd rather he didn't do it.

(Roger) "Alice, would you please grab me my can of snuff?"

(Alice) "No."

(Roger) (Surprised) "No? Why not? I'm sick, it's good for the health."

(Alice) "Get it yourself."

(Roger) (In a weak voice) "But I can't..."

(Alice) "Well, when you can, it's right there."

He looked at the can, a few feet away from him, on the stand, he made a feeble attempt to reach for it, but his arm dropped down, totally weak, his energy spent. He looked at Alice, almost pleading her with his eyes to help him... But she didn't want to help him kill himself slowly by poisoning his body.

(Alice) "Like I said, when you can get it, it's right there."

(Roger) (Smiling at her) "You're enjoying this, aren't you? The mighty Roger Fabus, helpless and at your mercy..."

(Alice) "Not at all."

(Roger) "Then why don't you help me?" He didn't understand, that she was trying to help him by keeping him from poisoning himself slowly with tobacco. Perhaps she needed to make that clearer to him.

(Alice) "That's not helping you."

(Roger) "What do you mean? The surgeon general in Mississippi said that tobacco is a great way to improve the health. I mean look at me... I'm in great shape." He had barely been able to get out those thoughts before he started hacking and wheezing, and spitting up mucus.

It suddenly dawned on her, there was no enforced tobacco age in Mississippi, although 14 was the posted age... They were all addicted early on, by calculated ad campaigns, and such.

(Alice) "The surgeon-general lied."

(Roger) "Are you sure?"

(Alice) "I'm very sure."

(Roger) "Then I'll stop, if you want me to."

(Alice) "All right."

(Roger) "I'd do anything for you if you just ask it of me."

Alice smiled. "You should be a little less gullible than that."

Roger smiled back, "I trust your judgement."

Roger struggled to roll over onto his side, and face her more directly, as he spoke, "Alice, I want to talk to my brother Henry, can you help me get in touch with him, please."

She was delighted that he wanted to talk with his brother who he had earlier so readily shunned.

Alice smiled. "Of course. Just a second."

Alice stood up slowly and walked over to the phone. She picked it up, thought for a second, and put it back down. She searched among her notes around the phone for a full minute and half of another one, finally found the proper label - "Henry Fabus (House Arrest)" - and dialed the number on it as she walked back over to Roger. She gave the phone to Roger, still smiling.

Roger took the phone and in a weak voice said, "Hello Henry, are you there?"

She could hear both men speaking since she was so close.

(Henry) "Roger? This is a surprise. Are you okay?"

(Roger) "I'll be fine." (Cough, hack) "Don't worry about me. Are you and Zeltzin okay? You two going to get married then?"

(Henry) "Yes, but I thought you said I couldn’t marry her, she's 3% under the 93.75% cut off to be legally white."

(Roger) "You marry who you want, you hear."

(Henry) "Thank you Roger."

(Roger) "Did you hear, dad is well again, he's back in the premiership."

(Henry) "Yes, I heard, he released me from house arrest."

(Roger) "I was getting ready to do that."

(Henry) "Thank you for helping me out in Mexico, I knew it was you who called to tell the general to let Zeltzin and me live... He might have killed us both you know."

(Roger) "I sent the mercenaries there that caused the problem, it was my duty to fix it. I know you killed the general, but I heard what he did to her, he deserved to die after what he did. I support you fully."

(Henry) "So you're not mad at me?"

(Roger) "Henry, you're my brother and I love you."

(Henry) "I love you too Roger... You sound awfully ill though, why don't you get some rest. By the way, father tells me you've found yourself a nice woman."

Alice smiled and suppressed a laugh.

(Roger) "Yes, God has been kind to me and blessed me in that I have met a superb woman. She's helping me through my illness."

(Henry) "Well I hope you get better fast little brother."

(Roger) "Little? I'm only a year younger than you!"

(Henry) "Yes, but to me you'll always be my little brother. Even though father favors you like most favor the first son."

(Roger) "Yes... I will admit it; he favors me. But don't you ever think he doesn't love you just as much as the others and me. He loves us all equally, it's just he thinks I'm the one best for the job, no reflection on your work though. You are an invaluable part of the regime."

(Henry) "When will you be back in Mississippi?"

(Roger) "Maybe in a few months, I don't know. I'd have to run that by Alice first."

(Henry) "Getting permission from a woman? My, you have changed over the last few months! I hope you're mellowed out some now that you're a man and not an over-aggressive teenager."

(Roger) "Time will tell dear brother."

(Henry) "Well you get plenty of rest, I'll pray for you. Love you Roger."

(Roger) "Thank you Henry, I love you as well."

Both men hung up their phones, Roger turned to Alice, totally spent from the energy he used to speak to his brother, he struggled to hand her the phone.

Alice took it from him. She stood up and walked back to hang it up, but before she did so she seemed to make a decision and called the number again.

(Henry) "Hello."

(Alice) "This is Alice Carrion, Mister Fabus."

(Henry) "Ah hello... You and Roger are something of an item, from what I've heard. Yes?"

(Alice) "Yes and no, I suppose."

(Henry) "Yes and no? How does that work?"

(Alice) "It means you can think of it as yes, for now, I guess."

(Henry) "Ah, well in Mississippi a man doesn't sleep with a woman unless he is willing to accept any and all possible consequences. So Roger must be quite fond of you."

(Alice) "I think he is."

(Henry) "Well Roger always was bad with women, never even had a date in his life, nothing... I think since he lost the only woman in his life, his mother, when he was only about six years old, he was afraid to get close to any other women for fear of losing them. Father tried to help Roger along, but Roger was always a loner for the most part."

(Henry) "You must be quite some woman Ms. Carrion... To have Roger such as he is, I've never known him to act or talk like he did just now on the phone."

(Alice) "Thank you. Listen...I wanted to tell you something."

(Henry) "Okay..."

(Alice) "Don't ever let yourself get intimidated. Go on thinking what you want to think and telling it to whoever you want to tell."

(Henry) "Did you call me up just to say that? Surely there must be something more... Besides, father's made it clear he doesn't want to hear opinions that differ from his own on more than a few minor points."

(Alice) "Listen. I'm the most liberal person in the entire country, probably, and I'm the Governor-General of Egypt. So you go on with what you want to think, okay?"

(Henry) "Okay, thank you for the words of encouragement... I must say one thing though."

(Henry) "From what father has said about Roger and you, and how happy Roger sounded telling me about you... I'd not be surprised if in a few months, you became Alice Fabus. I'd be willing to bet on it."

(Henry) "How would you like being in the Fabus family?"

(Alice) "I'm sure I'd be quite the black sheep."

(Henry) "How so?"

(Alice) "I've already told you. I'm probably the most liberal person in Mississippi."

(Henry) "Yes, and Roger is one of the most right-wing, people will associate his beliefs with you, most likely. Although Roger seems to have moderated out in many of his beliefs, recently. I imagine this is due to your influence."

(Alice) "That could be."

(Henry) "And besides, there are some people more liberal than you, even bonafide Marxists and communists. They're in the camps... I mean... Oh my, just pretend you didn't hear that."

(Alice) "You think we couldn't tell something happened to them?"

(Henry) "It wasn't my idea or even done with my input."

(Alice) "I can imagine."

(Henry) "Well then Ms. Carrion, I must be going... I look forward to seeing you in Mississippi someday, and I believe it will likely be the day you become Alice Fabus."

(Alice) "That could be. Keep thinking, Mr. Fabus."

(Henry) "Well you take care of my little brother, ya hear?"

(Alice) "I will."

(Henry) "And take care of yourself too. It's been nice talking with you, thank you for the call... God Bless."

(Alice) "Goodbye."

She hung up the phone and he did likewise.

Roger turned and looked at her, "Alice, may I ask why you called my brother back? Was there something you wanted to talk to him about?"

(Alice) "No, not really. I just wanted to know a few things."

(Roger) "Okay, well that is nice you getting to know my family better. Perhaps you might want to talk to my other brothers and my two sisters..." He started to trail off as he drifted into unconsciousness

She decided to turn on the news to see if Rutledge kept up his end of the deal. She turned to the Commonwealth news channel for ME. It was announced, the slave trade auctions had been ended, but slavery was still quite legal, as Rutledge said would happen, the motion to ban slavery was defeated in the eight man committee by a vote of 6-2.

The motion was being brought up again, but it would need to be pushed through committee, and what were the odds of that. There were two senators who had the power to push it through, Simon Rutledge and Hans Luck.

The phone rang; it didn't even cause Roger to stir from his deep sleep.

Alice picked up the phone slowly. "This is the Governor-General."

(Rutledge) "Hello governor, I kept my word, the auctions are over. But as I said, it'd never make it beyond committee, that is, the motion to ban the whole practice of slavery... Well I also said they'd simply go to Libya for slaves, and that is what they're doing."

(Alice) "Okay."

(Rutledge) "There are over 20 million slaves in Mississippian Egypt, they nearly outnumber the free colonists, it's a large number. There are also over 10 million children here, as part of the Aryan relocation program, children from HM were taken to be raised by party members incapable of having their own children, and they’ll be raised in the warrior code."

(Rutledge) "Now do you understand that... There are 75 million whites here, and 30 million of them are here against their will, well largely against their will, it's better than being in the rubble piles of Hatarian Mammalia. But let me also point out, we expect the numbers of those here against their will to rise to over 80 million in the coming months."

(Alice) "What's your point?"

(Rutledge) "And you want me to put my career, my reputation, and my position on the line to do something about this."

(Alice) "Not today, Senator. You've done enough today. We've all done something today."

(Rutledge) "My question for you is how badly do you want these people freed."

(Alice) "I value it more than my own life, Senator Rutledge."

(Rutledge) "Remember, we have a bet, and I never lose a bet."

(Rutledge) "Well then surely a few minutes of your time in exchange for my moving the motion along... A fair trade, yes?"

(Alice) "Senator, I have ways that allow me not to betray everything I am."

(Rutledge) "A friend of mine, Senator Hans Luck, he would also like a few minutes of your time... Combined, him and I can get anything pushed through the senate, but if either one of us stands against it, it will likely die, if we both stand against it, it has no chance."

(Rutledge) "I can have the bill pushed through in a week, depending if you let me push something else through... I think you know what I'm talking about."

(Alice) "As I said. I have ways that allow me not to betray what I am."

(Rutledge) "You said it is worth more to you than your life, so surely 20 minutes of your time is a bargain!"

Freeing over 30 million people from slavery, was it worth it?"

(Rutledge) "Well governor, what will it be?"

(Alice) "I will not say it three times, Senator."

(Rutledge) "Well then there will be no end to this institution you so hate."

(Alice) "I disagree. Good day, Senator."

(Rutledge) "Well I have to go anyway my property is getting restless"

Alice could hear several women in the background complaining about matters of various importance. She was guessing that Rutledge had procured himself some slaves.

(Rutledge) "Well goodbye governor, you have a fun time doing whatever it is you're doing."

Rutledge hung up the phone.

The thought of Rutledge and hundreds of thousands of other petty nobles just like him, owning other people, almost made Alice physically sick. But Rutledge wasn't a petty noble, he was one of the most well known orators in the territory, and he was a vocal proponent of the right of those who wanted to, to own slaves.

She sighed and turned the news back on, it was a debate on slavery, showing footage from ML of various ME nobles right across the border in ML buying slaves, then taking them back into ME.

The phone rang again, yet again, the wretched thing that never seemed to cease ringing.

Alice picked up the phone "What?"

(Hans Luck) "Hello governor, this is Senator Hans Luck, perhaps you have heard of me.. I am from the southern-central region of Mississippian Egypt. I represent mostly commercial farmers, and rural citizenry."

(Alice) "I've heard of you."

(Luck) "I was under the impression that you want slavery ended."

(Alice) "Yeah."

(Luck) "Well a friend of mine, a senator Rutledge, has already told you how to get it ended. All you have to do is meet with Rutledge and we can work out a deal... Do you find this acceptable?"

(Luck) "Remember that without our help, the anti-slave bill will fail."

(Alice) "Sir, unless you have a different offer than Rutledge did, you will get no further."."

(Lucks) "My offer is that you come to my estate, and that you, Rutledge, and myself, spend at most an hour discussing the topic at hand. Just sufficient time for Rutledge and myself to get more acquainted with you, yes?"

(Alice) "Then no deal, Senator."

(Luck) "Well I have a bet with Simon that I can get you to accept my offer before you accept his offer... And I haven't lost a bet in three years, I don't plan to start now."

(Alice) "That bet could last quite a while, Senator."

(Luck) "Very well then, watch the news in two hours, you'll see something quite interesting in the senate."

(Luck) "Watch the news, I'll be waiting for your call." He abruptly hung up.

About two and one half hours later, the news was announcing, "The passage of a new bill, allowing masters to beat, whip, torture, and even kill disobedient servants, it passed remarkably quickly after one of the more respected senators, a young Hans Luck, threw his weight behind it.”

(TV) "Senator, do you have any words for us?"

(Luck) "Yes, only that this is a necessary measure to assure servants remain compliant."

Alice looked down. She frowned to herself, and then shrugged. She looked around, found a computer ... she didn't understood why she needed two of them in one home, but she shrugged and turned it on. She waited patiently for it to boot up.

The phone rang, again, ringing, it nearly drove her mad.

(Luck) (In a very sly voice) "Hello madam governor, how are you doing?"

She started to talk to him, while the computer was loading.

(Alice) "I'm okay."

(Luck) "Have you seen the news lately?"

(Luck) "That is the sort of power I have, I can tip things either way."

(Alice) "I see it."

She smiled as the computer began booting and she opened up a word processor.

(Luck) "Well governor, will you be coming to my estate then?"

Alice began selecting a font from the wide variety. "I'm still not thinking I will."

(Luck) "I can tip more bills, ones you'd like even less. It's much easier to have me on your good side, than to make me an enemy. I'll be honest, I've had a grudge against you since day one when you had the arrogance to march into the senate, a man's room, and declare that you where the governor-general."

(Alice) "If you were listening, actually, I asked for you to vote for me. I didn't declare anything."

She began typing, almost smiling.

(Luck) "You didn't have a problem fucking your way into the governorship. But you won't fuck to keep yourself from being impeached... We're not asking that you fuck the whole senate, just myself and Rutledge wants a go also. Fair enough, isn't it?"

She was quite offended that he was suggesting she only got her position by sleeping with Roger.

Alice paused in her typing for a second, and then continued. "No, it really isn't."

(Luck) "Why isn't it fair? You'd be getting what you want, we'd be getting what we want."

(Luck) "Consider it a business transaction."

Alice finished typing, pressed the print button and smiled in satisfaction as her short document printed at a printer nearby.

(Luck) "Well you're the sort that believes women need to empower themselves, well take advantage of your natural talents and empower yourself... What is that noise in the background?"

(Alice) "Hmm? That's nothing. I was just thinking that I don't need to empower myself."

(Luck) "Oh come now governor, deep down, you know you want it."

(Luck) "You just can't do it, because Roger is keeping you on such a short leash!"

(Alice) "Not really."

(Alice) "Could you hold on for a second, Senator?"

(Luck) "Sure thing governor. You take your time to decide, my offer is good indefinitely."

Alice hung up the phone and picked up the document. She called for a servant quickly.

As she was waiting, she signed a line on the right side of the paper, at the bottom of the writing.

(Servant) (Arriving through the door) "Yes governor? You called?"

(Alice) "Yes. Make sure this gets in the hands of someone at the Senate building."

(Servant) (Curious) "May I ask what it is governor... I've never been to the senate building before. I'm quite curious about it."

(Alice) "It's an emergency gubernatorial order. That's more than you need to know."

He nodded and then ran off to a car, and in ten minutes, he was at the senate building. He handed the paper to the speaker of the senate.

The man started to read it.

It read: "All laws in any way permissing slavery are invalidated. Those laws are to be replaced with the following wording: "Slavery or forced, unpaid labor of any kind is hereby banned." All those who were slaves are now considered citizens, regardless of race. In addition, any impeachment of the governor must be carried out by a vote of the people, rather than a vote of the senate. Signed, Alice Carrion, Governor-General of Mississippian Egypt."


The senators started to shout, "Impeachment! She cannot issue an order unless it is for the safety of the nation!"

They started to vote, immediately it was 20-8 in favor of impeachment, 14 more of the 22 votes were needed to impeach her. Rutledge and Luck could tip it either way. They were also suggesting she be arrested for treason

The phone in her office at the mansion rang.

Alice smiled and picked it up. "Yo."

(Rutledge) "Hello governor, how are you doing?"

(Alice) "I'm feeling great, Senator. You?"

(Rutledge) "Well seeing as how you're 14 votes away from being convicted of treason and arrested... I'm feeling great also, but you know what. Luck and I, we could tip it the other way... Whether we do, is up to you. Or perhaps you'd like to languish in a filth ridden prison with no light, running water, or heat."

(Alice) "On the contrary, sir. Perhaps you missed it, but you actually can't impeach me."

(Rutledge) "We are in the process currently. The commonwealth army will soon be arresting you."

She heard tanks rolling by outside, followed by dozens of BMP3s

(Alice) "You don't understand. The vote must be carried out by the people."

(Rutledge) "Have a nice day governor."

(Rutledge) "Well governor, I can end it all, derail the impeachment, and you can stay in power, it's quite easy really."

(Alice) "This is a nice day indeed." She hung up the phone and quickly called down to the SRG men below her.

The captain of the SRG detachment came up and asked her, "What are your orders ma'am?"

They TV was reporting, "Alice Carrion has been impeached by the senate, pending a vote by the people, she will then be convicted and kicked out."

(Alice) "The state senate is in the process of a coup attempt. The army movement outside is in direct violation of one of my emergency orders. As such, you will defend against them, and you have my permission to destroy as much of it as needed to do so. The federal army will assist you in a few minutes."

(Captain) "Ma'am, the units outside, they are federal and commonwealth units, and they outnumber us, there are over 20,000 of them, and scarcely 300 of us."

Rutledge had mobilized all federal commanders in the area by telling them that Carrion was plotting to hand Egypt over to blacks and jews.

(Alice) "You're in the SRG, Captain. Are you telling me you're unwilling to fight for the people in this room?"

(Captain) "No ma'am, we will attempt to hold until the 6 Republican Guard divisions scattered throughout Egypt can arrive to relieve us. Hail Fabus!"

(Alice) "Thank you, captain."

She turned around quickly and began dialing the federal forces high command.

Roger jumped up in bed, "Alice what is going on! I had an awful dream, rivers running red with blood, brother killing brother, it was awful, what is going on?" He started to cough and hack.

(Alice) "Nothing's going on." She finished dialing and waited patiently.

The phone rang in the Federal Army High Command in Jackson City, "Hello, Field Marshal Reginald Smith's office, Republican Guard branch of the AHC."

(Alice) "This is Alice Carrion. I need to talk with whoever's got the highest rank in there."

(Secretary) "That would be Field Marshal Smith. Let me patch you through to him, he is currently hunting pheasants with the Premier."

(Smith) "Smith here... This better be important."

(Alice) "You could say important. I'm in the middle of a coup attempt and your own commanders are helping it out."

She heard a shotgun sound in the background and the premier yelling, "Reginald did you see that shot!"

(Smith) "Yes, is this the lady governor of ME?"

(Alice) "That's me."

(Smith) "And what do you want me to do, tell the men to play nice... You're in a man's world, deal with it like a man would, rally your troops, inspire them with your words."

(Smith) "Command from the front."

(Alice) "I have two hundred who are bothering to listen. Do you suppose you could tell the other hundred thousand or two to do that too?"

(Smith) "The Republican Guard has six divisions in ME, they will be enough to save you. Might I ask how this crisis arose... Does it have anything to do with your refusing to sleep with Luck and Rutledge?"

(Smith) "I get bored, so I listen to recordings of commonwealth officials telephone calls."

(Alice) "It does have quite a bit to do with that. My problem is that I could be dead before the six divisions arrive."

(Smith) "Don't you think it'd have been easier for all involved to just have fucked them and got it over with?”

(Alice) "But that's my problem. Here's your problem."

(Alice) "Your problem is that Roger Fabus could be dead before the six divisions arrive."

(Smith) "Nobody would be foolish enough to harm him. I can have the premier address all of Alexandria over the speaker systems... Talk them down."

(Smith) "You must promise me, you won't go on a vengeance spree, as Rutledge and Luck are necessary to commonwealth prosperity, believe it or not."

(Alice) "Sir, this was a coup. Tell me what would happen if someone tried to take your position by force."

(Smith) "I would crush them, ruthlessly... But you did attempt to outlaw slavery, against regulations, by issuing an order, not lobbying a bill. They had every legal right to impeach you... Basically if you get any help, it won't be from me or my RG, it will be from the Premier."

(Smith) "Answer me this, would it not have been easier for you to just have fucked both of them, at least fucked Rutledge, and been done with the whole issue?"

(Alice) "Sir, what would it take to get you to fuck him?"

Smith started to laugh! "Satan himself could make me do it! I'm not gay!"

(Smith) "Besides, I'm married and have children. The only one for me is my wife."

(Smith) "You're single and in politics, what do you expect?"

(Alice) "I expect to be treated like a man would be treated. That's exactly what I would expect. In any case, I was once married, and I'm seriously considering it again." She noticed the presence of Roger, but didn't care.

(Smith) "Ah yes you mean you are considering marriage to young Roger Fabus?"

(Alice) "I mean exactly that."
(Smith) "Well I tell you what then... Rutledge and Luck are both friends of mine, good friends. I will talk them down, you grant them amnesty, and this all becomes a memory, deal?"

(Alice) "I'm more worried about the army outside my door, general."

(Smith) "I can use my phone to tap into the speaker system of Alexandria, the premier can talk them down."

(Alice) "Thank you."

Smith turned, held his hand over the phone, while he spoke, informed the premier of the situation, the premier took out his own phone, and dialed the numbers. He said, "This is your leader, Premier Fabus, return to your bases and posts, I order you to stand down!"

The SRG told Alice that the army outside had vanished almost immediately.

(Smith) "Are you okay governor?"

(Alice) "I'm fine, thank you."

(Smith) "With such powerful enemies as Rutledge and Luck, you need allies, consider joining the WKM."

(Alice) "I'm fine."

(Smith) "Good, I must go, the Premier wishes you well and says he hopes the job isn't stressing you out, he calls it "a typical day in the governorship". Funny eh? Well take care." He hung up.

Roger smiled at Alice and then in the clearest voice he could muster said, "Were you serious Alice? What you said to Smith?"

Alice turned back to him. "I'm going back to Seryown."

(Roger) "What? Why?"

(Alice) "It's not worth it, Roger."

(Roger) "Please Alice, stay, what happened today, happened for a reason... You made it through, you're a fine governor!"

(Alice) "Every day I spend here is ten years off my life. It isn't worth it."

(Roger) "Then come with me, to Mississippi, or Fabus Island, or Tennessee, please."

(Alice) "What do I have there?"

(Roger) "Donald Stahlecker handled the pressures, and you're a better governor than 10 Stahleckers combined. You can make it, I know you can."

(Alice) "I told you, Roger. It isn't worth it."

(Roger) "Then let me come with you to Seryown, I'll resign from the guard and father can name William as his heir."

(Alice) "You suggested we go to Mississippi. What's there, that means I should go there and not back?"

(Roger) "I'd be in Mississippi, we could be there together... Wherever you want to go is fine, just let me be there with you."

(Alice) "All right. We'll go wherever you say to go. Just not here. I'm done here."

(Roger) "John Stahlecker, a nice man, not like Donald Stahlecker, he was once governor here, he settled in Ohio because his wife was not safe here... How about we try Ohio, it's quiet and peaceful."

(Alice) "Ohio it is, then."

(Roger) "I'd say Mississippi, but something tells me you'd not take well to Mississippi herself."

(Alice) "I suppose so."

(Roger) "If you want to move to Mississippi herself though... I'm for whatever you are for."

(Alice) "I said we'd go where you said to go."

(Roger) "How about we try Mississippi for a few months, if you don't like it, we'll go anywhere you want then."

(Alice) "All right. Mississippi it is."

(Roger) "Could you get the servants to get me a wheelchair, I fear I will not be able to move. Also, if you would please get me a phone, I must tell father I am resigning from the cavalry."

Alice nodded. "Of course."

(Roger) "Thank you."

She called for the servants who promptly brought the wheelchair, then she handed him a phone.

He dialed the number for his father.

(Curtis) "Roger is it you? I recognized the number."

(Roger) "Yes... I'm going to Mississippi, Alice is coming with me..."

(Curtis) "Very good! I look forward to seeing you both!"

(Roger) (He just blurted it out) "I'm resigning the guard!"

(Curtis) (Enraged) "WHAT!"

He was shouting so loud, Alice could hear him

(Curtis) "She put you up to this, didn't she! To give me a heart attack!"

(Roger) "No father, not at all."

(Roger) "I was thinking, I'm your heir and son... And I mean to get married, if I were to die in a meaningless campaign, the kind you are so fond of sending me off to, it'd hurt far more people than it'd help. I've proven my courage in over 20 battles; I have nothing left to prove. Only a fool fights when there is no need."

(Curtis) "I'm glad you speak your mind with me son, that is partially why you are my favorite, you've always told me what you wanted to say, not what I wanted to hear. I respect your decision, you will remain my heir, as you and I both wish."

(Curtis) "Put Alice on, would you."

Roger handed her the phone.

(Curtis) "Ms. Carrion, hello."

(Alice) "Good afternoon, Premier."

(Curtis) "So you're coming to Mississippi..."

(Alice) "Right after I resign, yes."

(Curtis) "Well I think the people will be sad to see you leave. But it is your choice to make. I respect your decision as I respect Roger's decision to quit the guard."

(Alice) "Thank you, sir."

(Curtis) "I think that soon I'm going to have to call to Alice Fabus though... Something tells me that...”

(Alice) "It could be."

(Curtis) "Yes well I'm glad Roger has picked you, rather than some drone of a woman as have most of the generals in my armies."

(Alice) "I am glad as well, premier."

(Curtis) "Roger is still quite ill though, yes?"

(Alice) "Yes."

(Curtis) "Is he well enough to travel from Egypt to Mississippi?"

(Alice) "I think he'll make it."

(Curtis) "Good, well I look forward to seeing you both... And I know you'll make a fine Fabus."

(Curtis) "Have a safe flight, see you soon."

(Curtis) "Tell Roger the same."

The Premier hung up the phone and went back to working on papers and documents.

Roger smiled at Alice and then slowly struggled to say, "I must do one thing first."

He carefully slid out of bed and while groaning from pain went down on one knee as he struggled to clearly speak the words, "Alice, will you marry me?"

Alice looked down. "Not yet, Roger."

(Roger) "But soon, right?"

(Alice) "I hope so, Roger."

Roger smiled, as he struggled to stand up, pushing himself into a standing position by using the bed and a nearby chair.

He let out a moan of pain as he started to walk, he'd been in bed for a while and it hurt to walk, and so he used the wheelchair the servants provided, an SRG man pushed it.

Alice followed alongside, as they were moving down towards the limousine waiting outside. Alice's cellular phone rang.

Alice picked up the phone. "What?"

(Rutledge) "Hello governor, you dodged a real bullet today! You nearly were arrested for treason!"

(Alice) "Call it what you want."

(Rutledge) "Well if you want to keep your position as governor, you'll do as you're told, understand?"

(Alice) "Actually, I'm resigning."

(Rutledge) "I can hardly believe it! Whatever will you do now? Retire from politics all together?"

(Alice) "I'm thinking about it."

(Rutledge) "Oh dear me... This doesn't have anything to do with me, does it?"

(Alice) "I've decided the job wasn't worth it."

(Rutledge) "Ah so now what job will you do?"

(Alice) "I don't know yet."

(Rutledge) "I'm sure you'll find some other man who by sleeping with him, you can get to where you want. Pity though, poor Roger, how you used him, sucks for him really. Doesn't it?"

(Alice) "We're going to Mississippi together. I'm hoping to get a good vacatio there, where I can get back the decades I lost."

(Rutledge) "So you're staying with him! I had you pegged all wrong. I must apologize, I thought you were only using young Roger to get ahead... If it means anything to you, you've been the strongest political opponent I've ever faced off against."

(Rutledge) (In a grumpy tone) "As well as the only woman to turn me down."

(Alice) "Good luck, Senator."

(Rutledge) "Perhaps one day, you'll return to Egypt? Until then, good luck wherever fate takes you."

(Alice) "Thank you, Senator."

(Rutledge) "Oh by the way, I won a bet just now."

(Alice) "Which one?"

(Rutledge) "Thirty senators each took bets on whether it would be myself or Senator Luck who drove you to leave first... I guess this means it was me?"

(Alice) "No, I would say it was Senator Luck. Sorry, Senator."

(Rutledge) "Really? How'd he do it?"

(Alice) "That stupid act at the end."

(Rutledge) "You mean his "kill the disobedient slaves" business."

(Alice) "That one."

(Rutledge) "That wasn't real! He had the media report it, to make you upset!"

(Rutledge) "He'd never advocate violence like that. He just wanted to win the bet."

(Rutledge) "And I never bought any slaves, those women in the background, were all voluntary domestic servants I paid them bonuses to act upset to cause you grief! My word Ms. Carrion, we sure had you fooled!"

Alice smiled. "I guess so. In any case, I'm done."

(Rutledge) "Well, it was an unforgettable time locking heads with you in the political arena. God Bless." He hung up the phone.

Roger was being wheeled down to the car; he looked at Alice who was looking puzzled, "Was it Rutledge? What did he want?"

(Alice) "It was nothing."

(Roger) "Shall we go then?"

(Alice) "Let's."

One of the guards walking alongside his chair was smoking a cigar, Alice could see Roger eyeing it, craving it, he looked away and then told the guard, "Put that out!" he promptly complied.

The guards helped him get into the limousine and then Alice got in after he did.

Roger rubbed his forehead, "The last time my head hurt like this, was when I was in the field for four weeks and the cigars ran out."

Alice smiled. "You know, nicotine is addictive. You can't just quit. You need to actually work at smoking less and less until you don't have to."

Roger started to cough into his hands; a guard covered him with a blanket and then moved up to the middle section, shutting the privacy window.

(Roger) "I've never heard the word nicotine. They list the main ingredient as oxygen and enriched vitamins."

Alice shook her head. "Well, there's another lie."

(Roger) "Wow... I just feel, wow... The surgeon general would lie like that... It's just, awful."

Alice shrugged. "Yeah."

(Roger) "We'll be at the airport soon. Is there any particular plane you want to take?"

(Alice) "No... Why would there be?"

(Roger) "Just wondering, we could take a concorde and get there quicker."

(Alice) "I really don't care."

(Roger) "Well then a concorde it is."

(Alice) "Okay."

As the limousine is driving down the street, Alice can see that there are thousands of police in riot gear cordoning off a section of the street up ahead, and BMP-3s are arriving on the scene.

Alice stared at it. "What's going on there?"

Roger glanced over, then turned around like it was nothing, "ah probably the usual riot or something, the police will handle it."

She looked over and saw a large number of men in robes and hoods marching with signs reading, "Slavery is vile and disgusting" and a large number of men in suits marching towards them with signs reading, "Eugenics, it just makes sense!"

It was the WKM against the Society of Eugenicists.

Alice looked over again, and the scene was a melee, a massive brawl, signs being broken over peoples heads, men slammed into cars, thrown through windows.

The police started firing tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd.

(Roger) "I bet you think it's odd the WKM being against the breeding programs."

(Alice) "A little odd, yes."

(Roger) "The WKM is basically a good group, like all groups, they vary from person to person."

(Roger) "Most of the WKM are middle and lower closer, with a sprinkling of upper class. There are 3% of people in CM in the upper class, but the WKM is 17% upper class, so they join in proportions greater than their representation in the population."

(Alice) "Interesting."

(Roger) "It's basically a fraternal brotherhood, a secret society, but it also has political and social objectives. Also there is the military wing of the WKM, the trained paramilitaries, about 20 million of the over 150 million WKM are in the paramilitary units."

(Alice) "Quite a lot."

(Roger) "It's open to any White male Christian, heterosexual, with a clean record, aged 18 and older."

(Alice) "I see."

(Roger) "Then there are the youth units and the women's units."

(Alice) "So there are quite a lot of members?"

(Roger) "Oh yes, basically all high government officials are members, as are their wives and children. I'd say probably 400 million members overall, at least."

(Alice) 'I see."

Alice was wondering since Roger was a high government official and his father was the Premier, was Roger a member also... Perhaps he mentioned it earlier, but if he did, she hadn't been paying attention.

She shrugged it off and leaned back, trying to avoid the political discussion.

The limousine arrived at the airport, a guard opened the door and helped Alice out, then two guards helped Roger out and into the chair.

They got onto the plane; Roger was coughing and hacking, trying to lessen the sounds so Alice might not notice.

(Alice) "You sure you can do this?"

(Roger) "Oh yeah, I'm fine, don't worry about me."

After they got onto the plane and sat down, it started to move. They quickly buckled up, soon they were at the end of the runway lifting off into the air. Roger looked down and said, "Well Alice, there is Egypt, do you think we'll ever see her again?"

(Alice) "I don't know, really. I hope not."

(Roger) "Well then we never have to see Egypt again, we can avoid this land totally."

As the plane started to gain altitude and enter turbulence, Roger's coughing increased in frequency and severity.

(Roger) "I'm okay, don't worry."

He finally managed to control his coughing, he leaned back and looked at Alice, "I was wondering about something Alice..."

(Roger) "You want children yes?"

(Alice) "Maybe."

(Roger) "Maybe eh? Anything more definite? I mean are you leaning towards yes or towards no?"

She knew it was quite common in Mississippi for women to have between 12-18 children; she wanted nowhere near that many.

(Alice) "I'm not sure."

(Roger) "Well there'll be plenty of time to decide, eh?"

(Alice) "Yes, there will."

The plane continued on towards Mississippi, they'd not be stopping in Tennessee since Roger had clearance to land directly in Mississippi. The plane had already been searched over and had been under guard the entire time it was in the hangar. A few hours later, the plane landed in Mississippi.

After the plane landed in Mississippi, Roger and Alice were both helped out of it, Roger obviously received the most help, being in a wheelchair.

They had landed at the Premier's Stalingrad Estate in Neshoba County, he was waiting near the runway to greet them.

An SRG man was pushing Roger's wheelchair, the Premier called out, "Roger, Alice, how was your flight?"

We walked over towards them, smiling warmly at his son; he patted Roger on the back and then extended his hand to shake with Alice.

(Premier) "Ms. Carrion, it's a shame you resigned from Egypt, I think you would have been quite the leader, from an economic point that is."

(Alice) "That's possible, sir, but it wasn't worth it."

(Premier) "Well I'm currently considering reforming the structures of the government, both here and in Egypt... There may very well be a popular election in ME, and they'll elect a president who will exercise more power than the old governor-generals would have."

(Premier) "Wouldn't it be something if you won the election!"

(Alice) "I don't see that happening, sir."

(Premier) "Recent surveys suggest that if the election in Egypt was held today, you'd get 70% of the white vote and 80% of the Arab vote."

(Alice) "I can't say there's any reason that should be the case."

(Premier) "The WKM in Egypt is campaigning for you, rallying whites to do a write-in if you're not on the ballot... You could get yourself on the ballot."

(Premier) "Right now in Egypt it appears that the president will be either Nasser Aref, Simon Rutledge, or you. Between you and me, I don't think Aref stands a chance to get elected as president, maybe vice-president."

(Alice) "Interesting."

(Premier) "Rutledge is an arrogant prick who acts like an ass, getting into fights in the senate chambers and such..."

(Alice) "I've realized that, sir."

(Premier) "He's out of control also, doing things without orders... I want somebody who follows orders. I'd prefer you be president, but if you don't put your name on the ballot, oh well. I guess you could win a write-in, but then you could always turn down the victory and resign again."

Roger was sitting there, waiting for his father to finish, "Father, perhaps we should go inside."

(Premier) "Good idea, let's go. Alice you'll be staying here for a while, if you'd like. You can meet the entire Fabus family."

(Premier) "Of course William is off with a young lady from TBD, I think they're going to wind up married. And Henry, he is in southern Mississippi with his fiancée."

(Premier) "My daughter Victoria just married the king of Kahta, my other daughter Eleanor would probably jump at the chance if I agreed to let her marry Paul Stahlecker. It seems all the Fabuses are getting married."

(Alice) "It does seem that way, sir."

(Premier) "Which is good, because it means grandchildren, and lots of them."

(Alice) "That's true, sir."

(Premier) "Roger and you are young, you should both be able to get me at least 15 grandchildren, maybe more." Alice was slightly taken aback by his order-like statement as to how many kids they'd have.

(Premier) "You do like children?"

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Bump, the next post here will be an RP post, not another lame bump. Fear not!

(Alice) "Not as much as most Mississippians seem to, sir."

(Premier) "Well you still like them yes?"

(Alice) "I suppose."

(Premier) "Well I suppose the most important thing is that you be a good wife to Roger, and he be a good husband to you. You two are planning on getting married aren't you?"

(Alice) "I think we're both thinking about it."

(Roger) "Yes father, we both are thinking."

(Premier) "Well I'm sure you'll both make the right choice."

They finally arrived inside the mansion, using a rear entrance door, Alice was amazed at the sight, there were statues, paintings, marble flooring, everything was so eloquent. She was mostly thinking, "Who can afford all this?" Then she thought her answer, "A tyrannical despot."

(Premier) "Do you like the decorating?"

(Alice) "Very much so."

(Premier) "A servant will help you and Roger get up to the room you're staying in. It's actually the entire 4th floor, you have it all to yourselves."

(Alice) "Thank you, sir."

(Premier) "You're welcome."

Two guards helped Roger up out of the chair and he leaned on both of them as he limped up the stairs.

They got to the main bedroom, walking passed all the paintings of various right-wing leaders; Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini, Antonsecu, Franco, Salazar, and several dozen more whom Alice didn't immediately recognize, lesser known rightists.

The guards helped Roger onto the bed, and then turned to leave. One of them told Alice, "Call if you need anything." Before both proceeded to exit and go down to the 1st floor.

Roger struggled to turn so he could look at Alice, "Well Alice, what now? Here we are in Mississippi."

(Roger) "You've never been to Mississippi before, have you?"

(Alice) "Never."

(Roger) "How do you like it thus far?"

(Alice) "I haven't seen any of Mississippi."

(Roger) "Well you saw some from the plane and then you saw some of the estate grounds." (Smiling) "I meant how did you like what you've seen thus far, is the estate here, does it meet your approval?"

(Alice) "It's...well, it's very big."

(Roger) "Yes, over 200,000 square feet, just this mansion, not counting the bunker underneath."

(Alice) "I can imagine."

(Roger) "So do you want to join father for drinks later?" Alice still hadn't forgotten the doctor said Roger was to have no such drinks.

(Alice) "You're not having drinks."

(Roger) "Not even one?"

(Roger) "What is the harm that could come from just one?"

(Alice) "Did I say you're not having drinks?"

(Roger) "Yes, you said it."

(Roger) "So if I'm not getting drinks, I've committed to giving up tobacco, what is there for me to do? Lie in bed all night coughing until I pass out?"

(Roger) "You'll stay here and talk with me, keep me company, won't you, Alice?"

(Alice) "All right."

(Roger) "Father seems to think you're nice, that's good that father likes you. He seems to think you're going to be elected president of ME. What will you do if that happens?"

(Alice) "I don't know. I don't think I'm going back there."

(Roger) "You know, if it's not you who wins, it'll probably be Rutledge. He could win by default."

(Alice) "Yes."

(Roger) "You don't want him to win, do you?"

(Alice) "Not particularly, but I'm trying to take a break from politics right now."

(Roger) "I understand."

There was a knock on the door, a man's voice, "May I come in?"

Roger couldn't tell who it was, he was too ill to recall the voice, he didn't want any visitors though, he shook his head at Alice.

Alice stood up "Who is it?"

(Stahlecker) "It's Paul Stahlecker, I wanted to have a few words with Roger... This is his room... Is it not?"

Alice looked at Roger, prompting.

(Paul) "Wait, I know your voice ma'am... You're Alice Carrion from Mississippian Egypt, yes! So I suppose you're here to help Roger with his sickness eh?"

Roger struggled to shout, "Paul, get lost!"

(Stahlecker) "Roger, I'd like to speak with you."

Roger was barely able to speak now, he whispered to Alice, "Tell him not now, I don't feel well. Maybe later."

(Alice) "Later, Mr. Stahlecker."

(Stahlecker) "I'll be back then, I guess you have to convince Roger to let you keep your job eh?"

Roger found the strength to yell again, "I said get lost!"

He turned and walked away.

Roger look at Alice and smiled, "I think he had a good point there though, let's do what he was suggesting we were about to do." Alice figured Roger was far too ill for something so physically demanding.

(Alice) "Not now."

(Roger) "Why not? Not in the mood eh?"

(Alice) "Just not now."

(Roger) "Well I'm going to take get some rest then... If you want, you're welcome to wander the halls and look around."

(Alice) "I'll stay here."

Roger smiled and nodded; glad she'd stay with him. He managed to find the strength to say, "You're not tired too, are you?"

(Alice) "Not really."

(Roger) "Well then what do you want to do? I mean watching me sleep will probably be quite boring. If you want, we can go horseback riding or fishing perhaps?"

She wanted to let him know he didn't have some unwritten duty to keep her entertained, especially in his current condition.

(Alice) "I'm perfectly fine here. You get your rest."

Roger leaned back and fell asleep promptly, drifting into a deep sleep, at peace, scarcely coughing from his illness. The silence of the evening was all that was heard... nothing... the cool breeze came in through the open windows. Alice had watched him sleep for about an hour, and then remembered he had to take his medication.

Frowning, she took out two of the pills before shaking him gently.

Roger stirred awake, still caught in some dream, "Not now mommy, I'm tired."

Alice frowned even deeper. "Roger, wake up."

Roger sat up, "Oh, hello Alice, what is it?"

(Alice) "Your medication."

Roger grinned as he struggled to say, "Get bored eh? Need ole Roger to entertain you?" He said the last part with a sly grin... After she said medication, his grin faded, "Oh, that."

Alice could tell Roger was probably quite eager for sex; he'd gone half a week without it. And from what she'd heard, most men in CM could scarcely go a day without sex, well that was once they became sexually active. She'd heard rumors of genetic engineering to boost muscle growth and aggressive behavior in those selected to be soldiers, and the reports stated likely side effects were increased sex drive.

But she also knew that if Roger did something so laboring, he might very well die from exhaustion, well not literally, but it wouldn't be good.

Roger was grinning and nodding, "Do you want to?" was all he said.

(Alice) "Your medication, Roger."

Roger took the medication from her, swallowed it, and washed it down with a glass of water. Then his smile returned and he said, "Well, what now?"

(Alice) “Now you get your rest."

(Roger) (In a complaining tone) "But I'm not tired now."

(Alice) "I don't really care."

(Roger) "Okay, well maybe later then eh?"

(Alice) "Maybe.”

Roger nodded and then promptly fell back to sleep.

It was starting to get late, Alice was hungry, she decided to slip out for a while and go see what dinner was.

She saw the premier sitting down in the main dinning room, readying a napkin and his plate.

The servants were bringing the cart out

(Premier) "Ms Carrion, please join me."

(Alice) "Of course, sir."

(Premier) "How are you doing? How is Roger? Is he asleep?"

(Alice) "He is asleep, sir."

(Premier) "You and Roger seem to be very close... A far cry from the first time he told me about you from the peace conference. He said, "You should see the liberal maniacs they have here, the man from DPUO is a lunatic who isn't even a good diplomat, he's a warmonger... But the Seryown diplomat, she is a radical liberal, but at least she's a good diplomat, and my word is she a pretty one." Those were his exact words."

(Alice) "I've never denied any of those three things, sir."

The Premier smiled and said, "Well you seem to be more moderate, perhaps some of Mississippi is rubbing off on you?"

(Alice) "Moderate, sir? In most superpower nations, my beliefs are moderate. Here...not so."

(Premier) "One thing, please stop calling me sir. Call me Curtis."

(Alice) "Very well, sir."

(Premier) "I think you mean well, and you have good intentions. But victory's are not achieved through good intentions. Nor are empires maintained that way."

(Alice) "You own a tobacco company, if I'm not mistaken."

(Premier) "Yes, Fabus Premium Tobacco Inc."

(Alice) "Right. Tell me, why do you lie to your people about what's in it?"

He took out a cigarette from FPT and lit it up, blowing out the smoke slowly after he savored the inhalation.

(Premier) "Lie? Who lies? This is good stuff."

(Alice) "You tell your people it's good for the health. It's not. You tell your people it's filled with oxygen and enriched vitamins, but you mention nothing of nicotine."

(Premier) "Well people choose to smoke, it's a choice. I smoke because I like it. I smoke probably 20 cigars per day, or 80 cigarillos, or 200 cigarettes... When I'm not smoking, I'm chewing at least five pouches a day."

(Alice) "Would they make the same choice, presented with the truth?"

(Premier) "I think so."

(Alice) "Then present them with the truth. Not just the people who are already addicted. Tell the people who've never smoked and let them choose when they die."

(Premier) "Besides, I don't know much about the alleged health risks. I let the surgeon general handle it. He says it's safe, I believe him."

(Alice) "He's lying. I don't know him, but he lies. And they're not alleged, sir. They've been consistently proven."

The Premier took a massive drag on the cigarette, burning it down 1/4 of it's full length in just one drag, he then slowly exhaled after passing it through his lungs. She could tell from his eyes he enjoyed it.

(Premier) "How can anything so good, be anything but good for you?"

(Alice) "Sir...I missed the logic in that completely."

(Premier) "I told you not to call me sir... And the logic is that it feels good, it makes me feel good, it relaxes me, it makes my concentration better for a while, so it must be good."

(Alice) "You're addicted to tobacco, sir. That's one of the problems with it. It's addictive."

(Premier) "Not at all, I use it because I like it."

(Premier) "Let's not argue about this, sit down and have some food."

(Alice) "Fine. You want your own early death, I'll let you. Let's eat."

(Premier) "There is no conclusive link between tobacco and an early death."

(Premier) "I wouldn't have my name on the largest CM based tobacco company, if I thought it was unsafe. Nor would I even allow it to be sold."

(Alice) "Sir, you say you have twenty cigars per day, or more in cigarillos and cigarettes? Go tomorrow. All of tomorrow, just twenty-four hours, without any tobacco at all. Just try it, see what happens."

(Premier) "Fine, I bet you, I bet you... I bet you this estate, that nothing happens."

(Premier) "What do you have to wager that is worth 200 billion dollars?"

(Alice) "I have nothing worth that much. I don't wish to bet you. I simply want your word as a Fabus that you'll go from midnight to midnight without any tobacco at all."

(Premier) "You have it."

(Alice) "Remember that, sir."

He nodded, "I will."

He finished his meal and then said, "It's not nearly midnight yet, so I'm going to get my last few smokes in. You take care."

(Alice) "I'll do that, sir."

A few hours later, it was three minutes until midnight; he was sitting in one of the smoking lounges smoking. Alice walked by and figured he should put it out and get ready to start the deal. He looked at her and knew what she was thinking, he moaned, "I still have three minutes!"

(Alice) "I'm counting."

He took a deep drag on the cigar, rapidly smoking it, about 1/3 of it was left, and he managed to smoke it to nothing in the three minutes. He put what little was left in the ashtray and then said, "Okay, here goes... Twenty four hours."

Alice sat down opposite him. "Yeah. I did some math, actually. Two hundred cigarettes is just over eight every hour. Eighty cigarillos is just over three every hour. Twenty cigars is two and a half every three hours."

About twenty minutes later, he was starting to shake; she could tell he was already starting to be bothered by not using any tobacco.

(Premier) (Noticing she sees him shaking) "I'm fine, don't say anything!"

(Alice) "I'm not saying anything."

About an hour later, he is shaking even worse, "I'm going to go... Outside, for... Fresh air..."

Alice stood up enthusiastically. "Great! Fresh air sounds perfect right about now."

(Premier) "Oh, you don't have to come along, you can just wait here and enjoy the fresh air of the smoking lounge. But if you insist..."

(Alice) "I do."

(Premier) "Fine, then let's go."

(Alice) "Of course."

He got up and walked outside, once outside, he yawned and said, "I think I'm going to go for a walk to my see my statue, I want to see how it looks in the moonlight."

(Alice) "Really? I've never seen it."

(Premier) "My statue is a pretty boring thing, you can just wait inside."

(Alice) "I'm sure I'll enjoy it."

(Premier) "If you insist on seeing it... Let's go."

On the way, Alice spoke. "So, I was doing the math, but I had a couple of other hours, so I did some quick, amateur research."

(Premier) "Yes, what did you figure out?"

(Premier) "I've been smoking since 16, smoked the equivalent of about 200 cigarettes per day for a total of over 2 million. What can you tell me? Am I going to die tomorrow?"

(Alice) "Nicotine is definitively responsible for cancer, and it's also probably related to...wait for it...schizophrenia."

(Premier) "Anything else?"

(Alice) "Well, it's an insecticide. A very good insecticide too."

She could see he was really starting to shake, "Can we just call this deal off, you win, what do you say?"

(Alice) "What do I win?"

(Premier) "You win my admission that you're right."

(Alice) "You lasted, what, a half hour? Are you willing to say that your people would be able to last longer than you would?"

(Premier) "It's been over four hours! Not half an hour." Actually they were both wrong, it was about an hour, it only seemed like four hours to him.

(Alice) "Let's go check a clock, then."

(Premier) "Fine, first thing in the morning, all tobacco packages will be stamped, "There is a high possibility this is addictive and hazardous to health, use at your own risk."

(Alice) "It's a start."

(Premier) "Well why don't we go back inside."

(Alice) "All right."

He took out his cigarette holder, about ready to take one out, his hand shaking... Then suddenly and unexpectedly, he tossed it aside

(Alice) "What was that?"

(Premier) "Just something I don't think I'll need anymore."

(Alice) "Giving up cigarettes, or smoking?"

(Premier) "I'll try to give it all up, but what are odds of that working? Maybe I can stick to chewing and cigars."

(Alice) "Chewing tobacco is the worst of them."

(Premier) "How do you figure?"

(Alice) "It does all the bad stuff the rest of them do, and then you add gum cancer."

(Premier) "But the lungs remain fine."

(Premier) "Well I've had new lungs cloned for myself every few years... Dr Schacht said it was a good idea."

(Alice) "He's the surgeon-general?"

(Premier) "No, he is my personal physician as well as a field marshal, a CEO of numerous companies, and a very good childhood friend.”

(Alice) "CEO of any tobacco companies?"

(Premier) "No. He tells me personally that tobacco is disgusting and he wants to quit, but he can never see it through."

(Premier) "He says if I want to kill myself, it's a lot easier and less painful to use a gun, than to suffer cancer when I'm 70 or so... So I guess with all he says, and all you've shown me, I'll quit.”

(Alice) "There are ways of helping someone quit smoking - I doubt they've ever been introduced here."

(Premier) "Well I need to go to sleep, I'm getting the shakes, you go be with Roger, I'm sure he needs you."

She walked back up to the room, Roger was awake, "Where were you Alice? Are you okay?"

(Alice) "I was talking to your father."

(Roger) "Well what did father have to say?"

(Alice) "Oh, we talked about tobacco."

(Roger) "What a topic, you taking up smoking?"

(Alice) "No, he's giving it up."

(Roger) "That's good, I guess."

(Alice) "Very good."

(Roger) "Well I'm feeling better now, perhaps you'll take me up on my earlier suggestion?" She doubted he was much better.

(Alice) "Not today, Roger."

(Roger) "Okay... Maybe later then eh?"

(Alice) "Maybe."

(Roger) "So what do we do now? Just sit here for hours on end?"

(Alice) "I don't know. I was going to go to sleep, seeing as it's just after midnight."

(Roger) "Well to be honest I'm too bored to sleep."

(Alice) "That makes no sense, but okay."

(Roger) "What I mean is I'm too horny to sleep, but you said not now..."

(Alice) "Sucks for you."

(Roger) "I guess so..."

(Roger) "Unless you're willing to do something about it?" (Smiling)

(Alice) "You know when I said no?"

(Roger) "Yeah, I heard you... But I was thinking, maybe you might do something for me that didn't entail me wearing myself out... If you know what I mean?"

She considered what he was suggesting to be degrading to women, and she'd never done it for anybody before... But she was considering it, thinking if it helped perk him up he might get well quicker, of course he'd have to ask in a much more polite manner.

(Alice) "Nope."

(Roger) (In a pathetic and almost pleading tone) "Would you please at least consider it?"

(Alice) "Nope."

(Roger) "Not at all eh?"

(Alice) "No."

(Roger) "So then what now?"

(Alice) "I'm going to sleep."

(Roger) "Well I won't make you do anything you don't want to... But if you change your mind, you can wake me up... I respect whatever decision you make..." (Pauses for a few seconds) "Well then, I guess I'll try to sleep as well."

(Alice) "Good."

Roger leaned back in bed and promptly fell asleep, he had lost what energy he had sitting up asking Alice to suck him. She looked at him, and couldn't help but feel somewhat sorry for him, sick as hell, not able to drink, smoke, and now he wasn't getting any... Oh well, the doctor did say he'd be better within three to six weeks...

Alice watched Roger sleeping, so peaceful and quiet, although there was the occasional coughing and hacking that had so characterized the past few days.

Alice cellular phone rang, she answered it quickly so as not to wake Roger.

(Man) "Ms Carrion, you made an inquiry about the name Nicolle a few weeks ago... I'm sorry it's taken so long to get this information to you. Records in Angola are hard to sift through; most were damaged or destroyed in the war. There is a Captain Ronald Nicolle, he served three years in the Angolan Special Air Assault Squads, his current status is Missing In Action... But get this, a guy matching his description and using his name and rank was seen at a Dersconian base... We think it's him, he's in the White Knights of Angola."

(Man) "What do you want me to do now? Is that all the information you needed?"

(Alice) "All right. I need you to contact a man named George Sallin at the Angolan Provincial Legislature office and ask him to call me back."

(Man) "Yes ma'am."

Six minutes later her phone rang again.

(George) "Hello, Ms. Carrion, I was told to call you right away."

(Alice) "George! Listen, are you in your office right now?"

(George) "Yes. I was just getting in for the day, what can I do for you?"

(Alice) "Leave it. We should talk places people can't hear you. The parking garage is a good idea."

(George) "Okay. One minute." He walked out towards the parking garage, she could hear the sounds of his shoes echoing on the metal of the stairs. She heard his car door open and then close.

(George) "I'm in my car now, the windows are up."

(Alice) "Good. I know you have ties to the possibly defecting soldiers in the Serya military - don't ask me how I know, I just do know."

(George) "Okay... And you want me to do what?"

(George) "You want my to put you in touch with the WKA, is that it?"

(Alice) "I need you to get some people into the White Knights of Angola and contact a man named Ronald Nicolle. I'm thinking it's probably a good idea to get some special forces to get to the people near the Dersconian base. Have them tell him his kids are alive."

(George) "Is that all?"

(Alice) "Yeah."

(George) "Well don't tell anybody about this... I don't need to get people into the WKA, I have made a few friends, and some of them are in it already. They're colonists from Mississippi that stayed behind, mostly ex-commonwealth soldiers."

(George) "I'll get right on that though, first chance I get. Probably in a few hours. I'll get back to you around 5 pm Mississippian time. Thank you."

He hung up the phone.

Roger stirred in his sleep from all the talking, then he slowly woke up, saying in a groggy voice, "Alice, who was that?"

(Alice) "It's nothing, Roger."

(Roger) "Is everything okay, are you doing good?"

(Alice) "Everything's fine."

(Roger) "Okay, well sleep well Alice."

The phone next to the bed rang, Alice was nearest to it.

(Roger) "Would you please get that?"

Alice did so. "Yes?"

(Wilhelm Ernst) "This is the Department of Internal Security. Is Roger there?"

(Roger) "Who is it, Alice?"

Alice handed him the phone. "Internal Security."

He thanked her and took the phone. She could hear what both men were saying.

(Ernst) "There is a problem, we need you."

(Roger) "Can't it wait?"

(Ernst) "Get ready to ship out to Western Sahara, your brigade is moving out."

(Roger) "I've already submitted my letter of resignation."

(Ernst) "It hasn't been processed yet, so you're being activated for deployment."

(Roger) "I'm barely able to walk."

(Ernst) "You won't be walking, you'll be riding your horse. Anyway, the men will need you there to inspire them."

(Roger) (Sighing) "What is the situation?"

(Ernst) "The Arabs and the blacks, they're fighting each other, it could spark a civil war in Western Sahara. We need to get the RGISA cavalry units into there ASAP."

(Roger) "Can't you send somebody else."

Roger held his hand over the phone while he told Alice, "They want me to goto Western Sahara."

Alice shook her head bemusedly.

(Roger) "What should I tell him?"

Alice "It's your choice. If you're going, go."

(Roger) "I don't know what good I'd be unable to barely move. Besides, I'd rather stay here with you, what sort of gentleman would run off to Africa to fight some savages while his lady is left in Mississippi. There is no cause for me to be in Western Sahara... I shall stay here with you."

He took his hand off the phone and then said, "Sorry Ernst, I'm not going..."

(Ernst) (Sighing) "Fine, I guess I can't force you to... Oh well, take care."

Both men hung up their phone.

(Roger) "Well Alice, I'm staying here with you." He changed his tone to make it sound like he was doing her a favor, "I hope you realize what I'm giving up by not going, I'm missing the chance to be in a great fight."

(Alice) "You're giving up the chance to die. I have no problem with that."

Roger sighed and then said, "I guess you're right."

A guard knocked on the door and said, "Roger sir, it's after midnight, happy birthday!"

Roger shouted back as best he could, "Thank you."

Alice didn't realize it was Roger's birthday, he smiled as he said, "Ah, twenty years old today."

Alice smiled vaguely. "Congratulations."

Roger had a cheerful look as he said, "Thank you."

(Roger) "Father is going to have several divisions of Republican Guard on parade to celebrate my birthday in the morning. Will you be there?"

(Alice) "Of course."

Roger smiled and said, "Good, I'm glad."

(Roger) "So, do you think you'll like it here in Mississippi?"

(Alice) "I'm not sure."

(Roger) "Well just give it a while then... I'm sure you'll like it here."

(Roger) "Oh by the way, I heard a rumor that you're expected to win presidential elections in Mississippian Egypt... It must be by write-in since you didn't put your name on the ballot."

(Alice) "Could be."

(Roger) "Well, what do you want to do now?”

(Alice) "I don't know. No idea."

Roger grinned, "I could think of a few things perhaps... If you're up for it..."

(Alice) "I said no."

(Roger) "Oh well... I guess there is nothing else to do but sleep then..."

Somebody knocked at the door, "Hello, Roger, are you there?" it was Paul Stahlecker. Roger shook his head and whispered to Alice, "I'm asleep, tell him I'm sleeping."

(Alice) "He's sleeping."

(Paul) "Very interesting, a guard just said he spoke with him... But I can come back in the morning." He walked off down the hall, to the guestroom he was saying in.

(Roger) "Thank you Alice."

(Roger) "I find that man less than pleasant."

(Alice) "I can understand why.”

(Roger) "When have you spoken with him?"

(Roger) "Oh yes, now I remember, on the phone when we were in Alexandria. But what could he possibly have said that made you so upset..."

(Alice) "Nothing."

(Roger) "You can tell me, if you want to that is."

(Alice) "Nothing."

(Roger) "Really Alice, he had to have said something."

(Alice) "It's nothing, Roger."

(Roger) "Okay. Well I'm getting tired, what about you?"

Roger yawned and then said, "Yup, I sure am tired... Well, good night, Alice, sleep well."

Roger leaned back and quickly fell asleep.

Alice whispered "Good night, Roger."

up

bump for the night.

At about 9 am the next morning, Alice was suddenly pulled awake by the sounds of elephant rifles going off outside the mansion, right outside the mansion. The Czar and his son George were shooting watermelons with elephant rifles.

Roger was sitting in an armchair in the far corner of the room, about 80 feet from the bed... He was smoking a cigarillo... He looked up at Alice when she noticed he was smoking, "I needed one real bad, hard habit to quit."

(Alice) "I can understand that. There are ways of making it easier..."

Roger exhaled a cloud of smoke and then inquired, "Such as?"

(Alice) "The most popular one seems to be a nicotine patch."

Roger chuckled, "Patches, those are for losers with no will-power... I can quit, just in a while, after this one."

Alice smiled. "That's why you're smoking that one. Cause you can quit."

Roger smiled back and said, "I can quit whenever I want... You don't like me smoking do you? I could switch totally to chewing, if you want."

(Alice) "I don't want you and tobacco to have anything to do with each other."

Roger put out the cigarillo and then said in a boastful tone, "Fine, then I can quit, quite easily too. If you wish me to quit, consider it done."

(Alice) "All right."

There was a knock at the main bedroom door, "Hey Roger, my dear brother, are you in there?" It was his brother William. Roger asked Alice, "Would you mind getting the door for him, invite him in."

Alice nodded and stood up, walking to the door. She opened it, stepping to the side.

William walked in and stopped to shake her hand, "You must be Alice Carrion, I've heard a great deal about you... I'm William Fabus."

He held his cigar in his left hand as he extended his right hand to shake.

Alice smiled. "You already know me, apparently, but it is nevertheless good to meet you."

William asked her in a friendly tone with perhaps just a hint of distrust, "Is it true what they say about you? That you’re a feminazi... That's what Paul Stahlecker is saying, that you're one of those crazy women who wants to do men's work. Is that true?"

(Alice) "If it's crazy to do so, then I'm quite insane, sir."

(William) "Well you're calling a man younger than you, sir... So you can't be all that bad... But you're from Seryown, so I don't know how you'd rank as compliant in other areas... I guess Roger would know that though. Well did you hear I'm marrying the queen of TBD, great news, isn't it?"

(Alice) "I hadn't heard. Congratulations."

William had a large smile, "Thank you... Well the important issues are all covered. I love her deeply, and she does what she is told, so it's a good deal, a good deal indeed."

Alice didn't respond

William's smile quickly faded when she didn't reply, "Is something wrong Ms. Carrion?"

(Alice) "No. Nothing’s wrong."

(William) "Well you didn't say anything for a while there."

(Alice) "I apologize."

Roger spoke up, shouting across the room, "William, leave Alice alone, she's probably tired... Come here and sit by me, William... We can talk."

William turned to Alice as he started to walk away, "You don't have to be sorry, you're just a woman, we shouldn't expect you to be too quick to think of replies." He walked over and sat down next to Roger

(Alice) "Thank God I don't have a gun, or you'd be dead now."

William and Roger started to talk, Alice could see Roger eying the cigar William was smoking. Roger asked him, "Would you mind putting that out, it's tempting me to smoke." William was visibly upset, "Ah come on, be a man, what are you afraid of a cigar now? The famous bloody saber afraid of a little smoke?"

(Roger) "I've promised Alice I'd quit."

(William) (Shocked and upset) "So you're letting a woman run your life... How low have you sunk Roger?"

Alice could hear most of what they were saying.

(Roger) "William I'm doing nothing of the sort... My loving Alice and listening to her opinions does not mean she is running my life."

William chuckled, "Oh if only that were true Roger..."

Alice turned to Roger. "I'm going for a walk."

William laughed, "See Roger, she tells you what she is doing, rather than asking for permission first." He turns to Alice, "Okay, sir, enjoy your walk." He turns back to Roger, "Well Miss Fabus, what do you want to talk about now? How you lost your manhood?"

Roger just sighed and said, "William, you're my brother, and I love you... But you talk about the order of how people defer... You're my younger brother, so defer to me, and shut the hell up."

Roger then looked at William and with a stern look firmly said,"I think you should apologize to Alice, for being so mean to her."

William looked at his boots as his legs swayed back and forth... Then he looked at Alice and quickly said, "I'm sorry."

Alice looked at him for a second and then left.

Roger told William to go follow her and quote, “Apologize sincerely, you idiot.”

Alice turned to him. "If you aren't out of my sight within ten seconds, I'm not sure I'll be able to stop myself from forcing your adam's apple so far into your throat you'll choke to death."

William jumped back, somewhat afraid... "Can't we talk about this? I mean, why are you so upset? I didn't realize you were that touchy in regards to what I said... I'm sorry."

(Alice) "Nine."

(William) "Ms Carrion, please... I'm sorry... I think we should try to get along, I mean if you're going to soon be in the Fabus family and all... I retract my earlier remarks. Honestly I feel threatened by seeing women as assertive as you. It's not meant to reflect anything on your part, it's entirely me."

(Alice) "Eight."

(William) "Surely you wouldn't harm me... Would you? I mean Roger and I are brothers."
Alice) "Seven."

(William) "Listen, please, won't you listen to me? What must I say to get you to hear me out?"

(Alice) "Six."

(William) "Ms Carrion, please... Just hear me out."

(Alice) "Five."

William started to chuckle, "Are you really going to hit me?"

Alice stepped forward. "Four."

William stepped back a few feet and popped the flap on his pistol holster, "That'll be far enough", he said, as he readied to pull out his gun.

Alice stepped forward again. "Three."

William stepped back a few more feet and drew his pistol, "Not another step forward, you hear me goddamnit."

Alice stepped forward again. "Two."

He cocked back the hammer on the pistol as he started to shake, he stepped back again, almost nearing the wall, "Please, don't come any closer."

(Alice) "Turn around and leave, Mr. Fabus."

William continued to shake as he stepped backwards and bumped against the wall.

He bumped against the wall and then spun around, facing her again, "Don't come any closer!" his voice sounded paranoid and irrational.

Alice turned away. "Don't say anything, and don't follow me."

William nodded and then turned and walked the other way, back to Roger's room to talk to him.

Alice started breathing deeply, looking surprised.

She heard Roger and William arguing, yelling louldly.

(William) "That bitch nearly killed me! She threatened to kill me!"

Roger smashed his fist into William’s stomach and then tossed him down in a chair and shouted, "You show some respect and it wouldn't happen!"

William chuckled through the pain, "So you hit your own brother to protect some foreign dog? My, what a waste you've become... George was right, you're going soft. You'll be another Henry before too long, selling out our lands like he sold out Angola... Bravo brother."

Roger shook his head, his eyes growing red with anger, "I'm not going to sell out our people. I'll fight for them until I can fight for them no longer. You brother, you are the one who needs to change. You can't treat people like animals just because it suits you. Show some respect and you’d get along in politics better."

William fired back, "Fuck politics, I want to fight."

Roger nodded, "Good, then go off to another war, you've been lucky this far, keeping alive... How long will your luck hold out?"

William gave him a dirty look and then shouted, "Fabuses never die!"

William tried to kick at Roger who was still sitting down. Roger jumped up and had to hold back a laugh, "Yes, but that doesn't mean we don't bruise!" as he grabbed William and threw him into the wall.

Alice could hear a loud commotion going on in the room and she wondered what it was.

Alice shrugged and sat down in the hallway.

Roger jumped back to avoid a blow from William, but then William kicked him in the kneecap, nearly knocking him down. Roger grabbed William and forced him to the floor through sheer strength, knocking him down and starting to hit him in the face.

She heard glass breaking and the sounds of a drawer being tipped over. William was starting to win as Roger was having trouble breathing from his pneumonia. Roger managed to get back onto his feet and motioned with his hands for William to come at him... William smiled and pulled out a knife...

Roger looked at him, "Stab your own brother now eh? Nice thought... Cain!"

Alice heard a gunshot sound from the room...

Alice stood up instantly and rushed back toward it, hampered by the odd design of the building.

Roger tucked his pistol back into his pocket, William stood there in sheer shock and terror as his knife split into two pieces. Roger had aimed preciously on and cut the blade in half.

Alice nodded. "He's going to be okay?"

William was holding a broken knife in his hands, he dropped it, his rage spent, he was calmed down now... Roger patted him on the back and then embraced him, "I'm sorry Will... I'm sorry." William sank to his knees and started to cry, "Forgive me Roger, I'm sorry... I don't know what came over me." Roger kneeled down on the floor next to him and hugged him tightly, patting his back, "It's okay Will, you go rest now, okay..."

William was crying as he nodded and stood up, slowing walking out of the room.

(Alice) "He'll be okay?"

He shut the door on his way out.

Roger looked at Alice and said, "He'll be fine."

(Roger) "Sad thing is I've got pneumonia and I still beat his ass... But I am much taller and heavier than he, and I'm older also, and more skilled in hand-to-hand..."

He said it almost at the same time that Alice was saying…

(Alice) "Well damn."

(Roger) "Damn what? Is something wrong?"

(Alice) "He'll be fine."

Roger had a shocked and angry look on his face, somewhat confused though, "Alice, are you saying you wish he'd been hurt."

(Alice) "If I had had a gun, I would have killed him myself."

Roger's face turned to pure rage and he shouted, "That is something you keep to yourself if you hate him that much. He's my fucking kid brother after all! He's scarcely over 17." Roger then stormed out of the room and walked off down the hall.

Alice shrugged and sat down on the floor again.

Roger sat down in the private bar on the floor he was staying on and started to drink, heavily... He cursed himself, and his brother, and he regretted arguing with Alice... But how dare she vocalize such hatred for his brother, a member of his family... It was fine for her to have such an opinion of William, but such things should not be thrown in his face... Roger loved his brothers, as he did his entire family... If Alice didn't like a member of his family, she could just not talk to him, not vocalize her thoughts that he should die.

Roger spent the next three hours sitting in the bar drinking, he'd drank eleven glasses of brandy before he was done.

William knocked on the door of his room about 2.5 hours after he'd stormed out. "Roger, it's William, we need to talk, please open up." The only one in the room was Alice.

William knocked on the door again, "Roger, please open up..."

Alice looked up for a second, and then looked back down, not responding.

William deftly picked the lock in about thirty seconds and then opened the door and entered... He saw Alice was the only one in the room, he said, "Oh, it's you... Where is Roger?"

(Alice) "Hell if I know."

William walked closer to her as he said, "I hope you're happy, my brother probably hates me now, all because of you."

Alice frowned and looked up. "I haven't been happy for over a year now."

(William) (Inquisitive) "Why not?"

(Alice) "That isn't your business."

(William) (His tone got high and mighty) "I knew it, you're not happy with Roger... You're merely using him to achieve a high position in our government, or perhaps for his wealth... You admitted it, you aren't happy with him..."

(Alice) "I am most certainly in love with Roger. But I am not happy."

(William) (Sitting down next to her) "Do you want to talk to somebody about it? I know we got off on worse than shitty terms... But I'm here to talk to, if you want to talk about it... I want us to get along, for Roger's sake, okay?"

(Alice) "Get the fuck out of here."

William was shocked by her language, "Surely Ms. Carrion, you know a lady isn't to use such language... Besides the point, don't you want to at least try to get along?"

(Alice) "Not particularly."

(William) "But surely, you're soon to be in the Fabus family, from what I've heard... Yes? We should make an attempt to get along."

(Alice) "I disagree."

(Alice) "Get the fuck out of here."

William was shocked, "What do you want Ms Carrion? I mean what is your goal in life? To make men miserable?"

(Alice) "Getting you out of here would be a start."

(William) "Good bye Ms. Carrion... Maybe later we might get along, doubtful though, you're as rigid as a steel beam..." William got up and left the room, a few minutes later two guards brought a drunk Roger into the room... Well that is to say they carried him in. Alice knew he wasn't supposed to be drinking anything except a few glasses of wine in his condition.

Alice shrugged and motioned to the bed.

The guards dropped him on the bed. He looked like a wreck. One of the guards said, "Well I guess he'll be absent from his own birthday parade..." The other guard said, "Nah, they'll just push the time back."

Roger leaned over in bed and vomited profusely into a trash can.

Roger looked at Alice, "Are you okay Alice?"

Alice shrugged. "I'm okay."

(Roger) "I'm sorry I yelled at you earlier. But please, don't expect me to take kindly to your saying you want to kill my brother. He is my brother, okay..."

(Alice) "I don't care what you take to whatever I say."

(Roger) "Alice, please, just promise me if you don't like a member of my family, you'll keep your hatred to yourself, or at least not vocalize it to me..."

(Alice) "I'm not going to make any such promise."

(Roger) "Please Alice, I'm asking you to do this for me, as a favor... I'd greatly appreciate it."

(Alice) "Go to hell."

Roger was shocked, "Alice, what kind of way is that to talk to me? I love you, and I've only ever been nice to you..."

Alice didn't respond.

Roger stood there for a few minutes, his anger building up, then he shouted, "Well, are you going to answer me... What the hell kind of thing was that to say to me?"

(Alice) "The same thing I would have said to any other arrogant little brat who didn't know that he was just an arrogant little brat."

(Roger) "Are you saying I'm an arrogant brat?"

(Alice) "Sounds like I said that to me."

Roger stood there in disbelief for a few seconds, not knowing what to say, "Well if you don't want to be here or with me... Why did you come? Why are you with me if you're just going to demean me when I try to be nice to you?"

(Alice) "I don't really know why I came. I think I thought anywhere would be better than Seryown. Which was not true."

(Roger) "Well I'll do you a favor then and leave... So you won't have to be bothered by my arrogance... Maybe I won't come back and you won't ever have to be bothered by it again..." He walked over to a drawer and took out a cavalry BDU, not a dress uniform, just standard camo, and then his officers cap, his saber, and his pistol...

(Alice) "Where are you going?"

(Roger) "I don't know, and I don't know anybody who would care... Somewhere where I'm not expected to say how high when father says jump, somewhere where I don't have to deal with your games... I love you Alice, why do you want to hurt me and put me through this, what satisfaction does it give you?"

(Alice) "Where are you going?"

(Roger) "Funny, I didn't think you'd care..." He walks out of the room and starts off towards the garage where his cars are kept.

Alice followed him. "Don't be an idiot, Roger."

(Roger) "An idiot am I? Well tell me why I should stay, I'm just an arrogant brat, and you don't want to be here... So why should I want to be here... I'm only here because you are here... I would have stayed in ME for you, or gone back to Seryown with you... I am here because you wanted to leave ME and this was the obvious choice for us to pick... Tell me, why should I stay?"

He coughed and hacked as he spoke, his illness starting to be more evident.

(Alice) "Because you're one of the most important people in Mississippi."

(Roger) "Important to who... A bunch of old men in smoke filled rooms who need the heir to stay safe and sound... God forbid something should happen to me.." (He coughs up mucus into his hands) "They'd have to find a new heir and fast... With William going to TBD to be king, and George not interested in politics, that'd leave... Oh no, Henry... Well I don't care anymore, if Henry wants to rule, more power to him."

(Alice) "Look, as much as I like Henry’s opinions, you leave, and you're going to die - and you think about what happens when the Czar finds out his son is dead. If all you care about are other nations, think about the retaliation for whatever it is that your father does."

Roger had to hold back crying, she could tell he wanted to, but it wasn't the "manly" thing to do... "So you don't want me to stay because you love me and want me to stay... You just want me to stay for political reasons... .Goodbye Alce." He walked off down the stairs and through the hallway that would take him to the garage.

Roger was in the garage, putting his items into a car, a favorite model car... It was a silver 1981 Eldorado.

Alice shook her head and turned away from the stairs sadly.

Roger started the car and pulled out... The guards stopped him and asked him why he was leaving without any guards... He told them, "Get the fuck out of my way" and they drove on the lawn to get around them...They just stood there, not knowing what to do.

One of the guards came up and asked Alice, "What is going on? Why did Master Roger just leave like that?"

(Alice) "I have no fucking idea."

(Guard) "He was heading east, there is nothing that way... Nothing is there..."

Another guard was walking by and said, "East, hell no, there is something there... The Legion training camp..."

Alice shrugged. "That makes sense."

About two hours later, Roger was at the gate of the Mississippian Foreign Legion camp, he did his best to conceal his coughing and hacking... He told the lieutenant at the desk, "I'd like to join the Legion, sir..."

The lieutenant chuckled, "Of course you do son, everybody wants to join the legion... Do you have a name?"

Roger started to say his real name, then he quickly stopped and firmly said, "My name is Dusan Banovic..."

The lieutenant saw his officer’s cap and laughed, "So you've been kicked out of the regular army? Dishonorable discharges mean shit to us... You're welcome in... If you can afford it, we'll even start you off as a rank similar to what you used to have..."

Roger tossed him a wad of bills and the man said, "Welcome aboard, Captain, sir... You're just in time, we're shipping out to Western Sahara in a few days... Some place called Bir Gandus."


Roger smiled as he thought to himself, "What a name, well it sounds like as good a place as any to fight in. A good as place as any to die in..."

up

A few hours after Roger had signed up with the Legion and shipped out on his way towards Western Sahara.

The Czar walked up to Roger's room and knocked hard on the door, "Roger, open up, are you in there?"

The czar started pounding on the door, "Open this door, now!"

He told one of the guards to break the door down, after a few kicks, the door swung open... The Czar strode inside, angry as hell, the rage burning inside him... He saw only Alice, he shouted at her, practically spitting on her as he yelled, "Where is my son!"

(Alice) "Ask the guards - they know better than I do."

The Czar moved his hand back as though to slap her, but he restrained himself... "What did you do to my son that made him so upset as to leave."

(Alice) "I told him to go to hell."

(Czar) (Smiling) "Well isn't that very nice of you... You stupid woman! You're not even worthy to be with a Fabus, and yet my son accepts you, he gives you love and protects you, and you have the nerve to treat him worse than some savage in Angola!"

(Czar) "You know something, I should have you arrested and tossed into jail."

(Alice) "Do that, I dare you."

(Czar) "You have the nerve to dare a Czar, and to threaten me... What will happen if I do it?"

(Alice) "I don't know."

(Czar) "You can't even begin to imagine the sort of power I have over people in my territory, can you?"

(Alice) "But outside...you have almost none."

Curtis grinned as he spat, "I could kill you where you stand, and nobody would object, or even care..."

(Alice) "You'd lose your alliance with Seryown instantly. And you need allies."

(Czar) "I doubt they'd ever learn of your demise, or the real reasons... Our doctors would write you off as a heart attack or possibly a drowning..."

(Czar) "Besides, Mason hates you."

(Alice) "Mason's an elected official. If he wants to get reelected he'll do what the people want."

(Czar) "Well the people would never know you'd been killed... Or perhaps I could just lock you in a dungeon and let you rot... How does that sound?"

(Alice) "It's interesting. You could try it."

(Czar) "Well somebody needs to teach you some manners... That is for sure."

(Alice) "I reserve my manners for people who deserve them."

He slapped her in the face and shouted, "Insolent bitch!"

(Alice) "And you talk to me of manners?"

The guards grabbed her and held her arms behind her back, so he could hit her again.

The Czar looked straight into her eyes and grinned, "You know how the DIS would handle an insolent bitch like you?"

He backhanded her across the face, and started to laugh.

Alice's head flew to the side. She slowly brought it back up again.

(Czar) "Do you wish to apologize to me, yet? I've taken you into my home, and treated you like I'd treat any noble... And you repay my kindness with such disrespect... Tell me, what have I done to deserve such disrespect from you? You treat my son, Roger, who loves you, like shit... What has he done to deserve such disrespect? TELL ME!"

Alice coughed once. "Well, your use of the word noble is a problem..."

He clenched his hand into a fist and then punched her right in the stomach and again shouted, "Insolent bitch!"

Fabus had never been known to hit anybody like this before... Especially women, but his son Roger meant the world to him and he blamed Alice for Roger leaving.

Alice's head flopped straight downwards and she made a choking sound...once again she lifted it upwards, but even more slowly.

Fabus chuckled, "Well... Woman, have you learned respect yet?"

(Alice) "I respect..." She paused to cough again, and it took a while before she continued. "I respect equality, and freedom."

(Fabus) "You dare challenge the ideals upon which our nation is founded... We value quality above equality, and security above freedom."

Alice coughed again, but didn't respond.

He smacked her as he screamed in her face, "Answer me, woman!" saliva flew from his mouth and landed on her face... But with the guards holding her hands behind her back, she couldn't wipe it off.

Alice's head flew to the side again, and this time it took her almost a full minute to raise it, during which she did not respond.

The Czar ran his right hand through her hair, "Perhaps... I should take it upon myself to impress some manners into you, and to teach you proper etiquette. What do you think of that?"

(Alice) "I think you're a son of a bitch."

He started to laugh, "Since my wife, Julia died 14 years ago... I don't care what anybody thinks about me, I don't care what anybody does... Ha! I hardly even care if somebody finally does manage to kill me... I want to join her, I look forward to it, I only hope since I forgave what she did while we were married, she can forgive what I do now that she is gone... But that doesn't help you out at all, you're going to learn manners, one way or the other."

Alice tried to shrug but couldn't, and instead coughed again.

He smacked her in the face again and shouted, "Answer me! What do you think of that? Huh? Tell me, do you need to be taught the proper way to behave?"

Again Alice's head flew to the side, but this time it didn't come up. Fabus could see blood dripping off of her cheek.

He started to laugh uncontrollably when he saw she was bleeding... "Are we learning manners yet?" he asked, in a very childish sounding voice, meant to mock her.

Alice didn''t respond.

He pulled her head up, so they'd be at eye level. "Answer me, woman..."

Alice summoned her energy and spat in his face.

He wiped the spit of his face and then he turned to a guard and said, "That wasn't nice of her, was it?" the guard shook his head... Fabus looked at Alice and started to laugh... "hahaha, you thought that was funny eh?" he turned around again, as though to look at the guard, and then he slammed a fist right into the side of her face, and then shouted at her, "How is that for funny? Is that funny?"

The two guards holding her arms behind her back held her tightly up, so she'd not collapse.

Alice's cheek continued to bleed as her head fell downwards again.

The Czar looked at her, and held her head up as he chuckled... "Why don't you just admit you're wrong, and beg me to stop... Is begging beneath you, you wretched woman."

Alice's knees were trying very hard to buckle, and all of her weight was now being carried by the guards behind her. She opened her mouth, but all that came out was a whisper he couldn't hear.

He leaned in closer and gave her encouragement, "Speak up..."

(Alice) "Liberty or death."

He started to laugh, "Liberty from what? What do you want liberty from? Having to respect those who show you respect?"

Alice didn't reply.

The Czar put one hand around her neck and grinned as he said, "All I have to do is squeeze... Shall I do so?"

Once again, Alice didn't reply.

The Czar took out a 12 inch combat knife and held it right in front of her face, "Well Ms Carrion... All I have to do is slide this knife into you, and that ends your existence of parasitism and manipulation... That is all you do; you manipulate others... I know you've only been using my son Roger; you treat him worse than dirt... And he's a fool for letting you do so... But I won't stand idly by and let you get away with it."

He put the knife away and took his hand off her neck. He moved her head up to eve level again, and softly said, "Answer me..."

Alice opened her mouth and immediately coughed up blood.

He wiped the blood away with a nearby towel and then again said, "answer me."

Alice closed her mouth and didn't reply.

His rage has largely been spent, unless she did something to aggravate him further, the situation would soon be resolved. He motioned for the guards to release their hold on her...

The guards let loose her arms and stepped back.

Alice remained where she was for a second, and then her knees bent and she collapsed.

Fabus kneeled down next to her and looked her in the eyes, her bloodied and dirty face, her twisted and filthy hair, she looked like a wreck... But then again, she'd emotionally ruined his favorite son, his dear Roger, his beloved Roger, one of the few people he really cared for... He whispered to Alice, "Have you learned your lesson yet?" He spoke to her like a parent speaking to a disobedient child that had just been spanked.

Alice coughed against the floor. "Pointless."

Fabus held her up and looked into her eyes. He asked her, "Do you want something to drink?"

He snapped his fingers and a guard retrieved her a bottle of water. The Czar held it up for her and said, "Do you want some?"

Alice nodded feebly.

The Czar helped her drink, tipping the bottle back for her and holding it.

When she was done, he moved it away for her and then said, "There, that's better, isn't it?"

Alice swallowed most of it and coughed the rest back out and onto the ground. Her voice came back a little. "Pointless."

Fabus then spoke again, "Aren't you sorry you forced me to discipline you?" This was almost unreal; he wanted her to apologize for the beating he gave her...

Alice shook her head.

Fabus's cheerful look started to fade, "You mean you're not sorry?"

Alice shook her head again.

(Fabus) "You do realize you only got what you had coming... I didn't take pleasure in dishing that discipline out, but you needed it. You understand that, right?"

Alice shook her head a third time.

Fabus looked at her and then said, "Answer me with words, please."

He suddenly sounded concerned for her, "Will you be okay then?"

Alice smiled vaguely.

(Fabus) "What does that mean?"

Alice's smile disappeared, but she did not respond.

Fabus held up his hand again, as though to slap her, and then said, "Do you need to be reminded to answer a man promptly?"

Alice frowned.

He let his hand drop down to his side and said, "Very well, I won't strike you again... Please answer me."

Alice did not.

He held his hand back up, "Don't toy with me, woman!"

Alice raised her hand, checking the injury on her cheek, basically ignoring Fabus.

(Fabus) "Do you want a doctor?"

Alice only spat.

(Fabus) "Spitting is a filthy habit... And I asked you a question... Answer me!"

He gently held her up and then tried to untangle some of her hair, "Are you okay Alice?" His tone sounded almost normal and friendly. She didn't know that he suffered from emotional mood swings, but it wasn't too hard to figure out.

Alice looked at him for a second and blinked her eyes before they suddenly closed and her head fell, placing all of its weight in his hand.

He held her up, picked her up and took her in his arms, then set her gently down on the bed in the room... He asked her again, "Are you okay Alice?"

Alice opened her eyes suddenly. A fraction of a second later, she was lunging up out of the bed trying to reach his neck.

He jumped back and the guards immediately grabbed and restrained her... One of them smacked her across the face, another one punched her in the stomach.

Fabus suddenly flew into a rage, "How dare you betray me like this, after I was so merciful and spared you for your insolence!"

Fabus looked her right in the eyes, as the guards held her down on the bed, he cracked a smile as he chuckled, "I guess you didn't learn any manners, eh? Well if you did learn any, they've worn off quickly... What say I teach you some manners that will stick with you for a while..."

Alice continued to try to rush at him, her arms flailing.

The guards put their full weight into pinning her down.

One of them punched her in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her.

Alice collapsed again, pinned by the guards.

The Czar looked at her, this helpless wretched woman lying on the bed in front of him... For all the hopelessness of her situation, she sure was violent... He held back a laugh, "You know Alice, you're very feisty; do you know that?"

Alice didn't respond.

The Czar started to pull her pants down as he laughed, "Well Alice, anything to say yet?"

Alice tried to kick him but her legs were effectively pinned...

The Czar laughed and looked at her, "Well Alice, do you want to beg me not to proceed... Just beg for mercy, and save yourself... Or are you so stubborn you won't even beg... I guarantee, ask me politely not to go through with it, and I won't... Just think before you speak and ask nicely."

Alice looked up at him, her eyes filled with anger, but she said nothing.

He looked down at her, "Last chance..."

Alice opened her mouth, then closed it again firmly.

The Czar was about to pull her underwear down, he stopped, and then pulled her pants back up, he slapped her a half-dozen times in the face and said, "I can't do it! For whatever reason, Roger has feelings for you... And I won't harm you... But realize, I'm only not doing this for him."

He turned and walked out of the room, the guards each slapped her a few more times, before they let their grip on her ease up and then they too turned and walked out of the room.

About twenty minutes after the Czar left the room, two servants and a doctor came into the room. The servants helped Alice get situated on the bed, and cleaned the blood and saliva off of her face... The doctor checked her and asked, "Ms. Carrion, are you okay?"

Alice nodded slowly.

The doctor looked at her and said, "It seems you had a nasty fall, eh?"

Alice smiled but didn't reply.

(Doctor) "Are you hungry or thirsty?"

(Alice) "No.”

(Doctor) "Do you want anything, anything at all?"

(Alice) "No."

(Doctor) "Maybe you want to watch the news? Western Sahara is a war zone you know... The Foreign Legion is going there soon, last I heard..."

Alice shook her head.

The doctor dismissed the servants and then leaned in close and whispered, "Czar Fabus did this to you, didn't he?"

Alice nodded.


(Doctor) "I'm terribly sorry, you have my sympathies, but there is nothing I can do... Is there? I mean, do you want me to get a letter to the outside for you?"

Alice shook her head.

(Doctor) "The Czar is rambling on about Roger being gone... Do you know anything about that?"

(Alice) "No."

(Doctor) "I am a friend of Rogers... He often talked about joining the Foreign Legion and getting away from everything, you don't think he'd do something that stupid, do you?"

Alice smiled. "Roger can be very stupid."

(Doctor) "Well, do you think he'd do something so dramatic as joining the Legion? An entire division of Legion Horse Cavalry was just activated and was transported to Western Sahara..."

Alice shrugged.

(Doctor) "Roger was in the Republican Guard Cavalry, what if he joined the legion cavalry? Do you honestly think he'd do something so dumb? I mean Roger is a smart man, he always uses his head..."

(Alice) "Not really."

(Doctor) "What do you mean? Roger is a smart guy..."

Alice shook her head.

(Doctor) "Roger and I were talking a few days ago... Do you know how much he loves you... He really does, you know..."

Alice snorted.

(Doctor) "Answer me this, honestly... Do you love Roger?"

Alice shrugged. "I don't really know."

(Doctor) "Well... You came here for him... The Czar says you're just using Roger, that isn't true, is it?"

(Alice) "The Czar says I fell."

(Doctor) "Well I see your point... So if you're not using Roger, and you're not sure you love him... Might I ask what your feelings towards Roger are?"

(Alice) "No."

(Doctor) "So you don't want to talk about that eh?"

(Doctor) "I think whatever your feelings towards Roger... No offense, but you are very manipulative, and you basically have him at your beck and call... Does that sound about right?"

Alice shrugged. "I voice my opinions. It's not my responsibility to make sure nobody around me does what I think is right."

(Doctor) "So basically yes, you have Roger eating out of the palm of your hand, eh?"

(Alice) "I won't repeat myself to you. Is there a reason you think I'm interested in what you're saying?"

(Doctor) "Well I was the physician for the Fabus children from the day they were born... Maybe you'd care to hear some stories about them in their young days?"

(Doctor) "Well would you like to... I have nothing else to do right now..."

(Alice) "I am not at all interested."

(Doctor) "Are you sure? I can tell you about the first time I treated a Fabus male for Syphilis, the first time I had to remove a bullet from a Fabus... The first time I had to seal up knife wounds, and pulling sharks teeth from other Fabuses, etc.."

(Alice) "I don't give a shit."

(Doctor) "Well, you surely do have an attitude problem, but what the Czar did to you was wrong... You need to relax... Do you want me to give you some mild sedatives?"

(Alice) "No."

(Doctor) "Well, do you want anything? A drink or something?"

(Doctor) "How about some opium?"

(Alice) "No."

(Doctor) "Well you get some rest then, I'll check on you later... Night."

The doctor walked towards the door, "Do you want the light off?"

Alice shook her head.

The doctor nodded and then walked out of the room, leaving Alice in peace with her thoughts… All by herself, nothing to disturb her reflections on the day’s events…

While somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean in a C-130, “Dusan Banovic” (Roger Fabus) was heading on a one-way trip to Bir Gandus in Western Sahara… The entire 2nd regiment of the 1st Cavalry Brigade was heading on the same one-way trip as Roger was. In a few days time, the Brigade would meet the MJF in battle, well not a battle so much as an ambush… And it was the Legion who would be ambushed.