Personal Expressions & Blog Stories

LOCATION: Phoenix, Arizona (downtown)

Tommy wakes up around 6am from his long restful night and reaches over to his right with his right arm and feels nothing but sheets.  He moves his arm up and down to feel for Sandra, but nothing but cool sheets brushes along his palms.  He opens his eyes and turns his head towards her last location in the bed and doesn’t see her there.  He gets up and has one leg hanging out of the bed and starts to wonder where she could be.  He reaches over to his dresser next to his bed and grabs the remote control for the television and turns it on.  The channel and time shows up on the screen for a few seconds and then they both disappear.  He suddenly gets a cold chill running through his body and rushes over to the air conditioning unit to turn it off.  Then he sees the bathroom door closed and the light on and figures she might be in there, but she has been in there for a while.  The light turns off and the door opens and they meet at the door with Sandra in uniform ready for work.

Tommy looks at her and glances her up and down and begins to form his mouth to ask a question, but she seem to realize what was going to be said so she cuts him off at the verbal path.

SANDRA: I know what you are going to say Tommy.  Why am I working on a Saturday?  Well, if you must know I am being looked at as a new team leader so I need to go in today to be up to date on policy and other important things for the job.

TOMMY: Well, okay, but its been a long time since I’ve seen you in uniform or in anyone’s uniform for that matter.

SANDRA: She glances down and sees a tent forming through his boxers and has the quick idea of teasing him before she exits.  She walks up closer and rubs his bare chest and stomach down to his waist.  I remember that you like seeing me in a cheerleading outfit.  Just before you walked up to me in the cafeteria I saw you rearranging yourself.  It was quite cute I must say.

TOMMY: Don’t start anything that you can’t finish right now.  We’ve both been under enormous amount of stress and it has been a while since we both have, ummm….done that.

SANDRA: Oh Tommy are you getting a little frustrated? She smiles up at him in his brown eyes.  It has been a while hasn’t it, but when the world changes in front of your eyes that is the last thing on your mind.

TOMMY: Well, then I may have to take you up on that later when you get back from work.  I have other things to keep me occupied here until I see you later.

SANDRA: Okay I will remember you said that to me later on.  See you later Tommy.  Have a good day sweetie.

Tommy watches her as she walks away in her white Nike sneakers, with pink and black outlining the stitches, black stockings showing the athletic form of her legs, a black skirt that goes down to her knees, and a white and red stripe blouse that has ‘Gross-Out’ embroidered on the right upper chest, and her name on the left side.  Poor Tommy watches her all the way to the door until she leaves and is out of sight.  He walks over to the bed and sits down and leans back on the pillows stacked behind him.  Pulls the covers up to his waist and begins to watch television, which is the first time he has been able to see television in many months.  Then he starts to think about the people he once knew at the military base back in Maryland and how they are coping with a new society and new life.  His thoughts go on them for a few minutes and then he brings himself back to reality of the current times.  The sun is beginning to rise in the sky and the suns rays are beaming through the blinds that are closed, but they are closed in such a fashion that the rays beam down directly on the bed.  Tommy watches the beams of sunlight radiate down on to the sheets and he can feel the warm of the sunlight going through the sheets.  He smiles at first as the warmth of the sunlight brings him joy and calmness, but that was distracted quickly.

When he turned the television on just moments earlier he didn’t realize that the news was on.  He turns his attention towards the news and turns up the volume so he can hear the news anchor.

NEWS ANCHOR: Good morning Phoenix and welcome to Channel 11 news.  I’m Dean Mitchell, Andrea Newman is off today.  Today our top story is about the constant protest that continues in downtown Phoenix this morning over the debate of establishing a new territory in the west.  Brian Wilson has the details.

Tommy sits up and begins to pay more attention to the news and what they are reporting on.  He wants to see if he can find out why this is going on and if he wants to be involved in it.

BRIAN WILSON: Dean, I’ve been out here in downtown Phoenix since about four this morning and I did have the opportunity to speak to a few individuals on why they are here.

FEMALE INTERVIEWEE #1: This is insane of what they are proposing to do here.  That goes against the United States Constitution and I don’t think the president would go for that.

MALE INTERVIEWEE #1: The president of the United States needs to step in and stop this madness!  I know the states are independent, but this just goes too far.  Where are you Mr. President Ford?

FEMALE INTERVIEWEE #2: We are living in the times where wrong is right and right is wrong.  This is definitely wrong, but they are trying to make it right.  God help us.

MALE INTERVIEWEE #2: I’m a non-commissioned officer in the military and if this succeeds then this will open up a door that we all don’t want to walk through.  Trial and tribulations will be the death of us all.

BRIAN WILSON: As you can see, Dean, that many more than just those four people that I spoke to are very much against this proposal and would like to see the federal government step in and stop it completely.  However, I did speak to some that were for this proposal and they elected not to be shown on camera.  I spoke to a John Noble and he has been living here in the Phoenix area for about 10 years and he basically said that the federal government has betrayed its people and that they lack the ability to protect them.  He also goes on and says that the state governments that are proposing this change have seen the light finally and those against it must be dealt with accordingly.

DEAN MITCHELL: Brian, how many people are they expecting to be down there today in front of city hall?

BRIAN WILSON: The authorities are expecting anywhere between five to ten thousand people here in the streets and all over the city protesting this change.

DEAN MITCHELL: Okay, thanks Brian and you stay safe out there.

Tommy turns off the television and sits there staring at a blank screen looking at his reflection.  He gets up a few seconds later and goes into the bathroom to take a shower and has the idea of going downtown to see what the big fuss is all about.  Once he showered and got dressed he went downstairs and saw the new friend he met in the lobby as he was walking out the door.  Tommy walks up to him and taps him on the shoulder to gain his attention.

TOMMY: Hey, Jake how you doing?

JAKE: Tommy, what’s up, man?

TOMMY: Nothing much just finished watching the news.

JAKE: You heard about the protest going on downtown and the mass arrests that’s occurring?  It’s insane bro.

TOMMY: Yeah, about that incident going on downtown I was thinking about going down there and see what’s going on.

JAKE: You sure that’s a good idea, man?  It’s heavily policed and anyone caught down there can be arrested.

TOMMY: I’m aware of that, but I feel like I need to stand for something.  My dad was preparing himself to run for mayor in our town just before the attacks.  So I would like to make him proud knowing that I am fighting with a side.

JAKE: What side are you speaking about joining?  There’s only two.

TOMMY: I don’t know that’s why I wanted to go down and maybe speak to a few people and get the story that way.

JAKE: Listen, I may know someone who can give us a ride downtown, but he doesn’t give many people rides if he doesn’t know you.  Get with me in five minutes outside.

TOMMY: Okay, bet.

Tommy goes to the bathroom to wash his hands and prepare himself for going out even though he will be with two other dudes.  He walks out of the bathroom and into the career center near the lobby and sees a military policeman in the center.  He walks in and starts staring at him and looking at him in uniform and sees his Military Police brassard on his left shoulder.  The Pacific West Territories flag above the letters “MP” and the rest of his uniform in the grey and black camouflage type design.  The military policeman is at the end of the center next to a computer speaking to another guy, which looks like he is helping him navigate through the screen.  Tommy is then distracted from his stare by some noise in the hallway behind him and he rushes to go figure it out.  By the time he gets outside the center in the lobby it is a dozen or so people breaking up a fight between two middle aged looking males.  The one on his right hand side being held by most of the people looked stronger and had blood on his shirt.  He looked at the guy on his left and the man was bleeding from his nose, mouth, and one of his eyes.

Jake walks into the building and yells to Tommy across the lobby to gain his attention.  Tommy looks and waves his hand and starts walking towards the front door.  Once he exits the building he asks Jake does he knows what happen.  Jake responded in a way to say that is none of your business and if you want to stay alive and out of people’s way you won’t start getting into other people’s business.  Tommy took that to heart for a few seconds and wonders if that man who is all bloody was being nosy then he will remain the same and just pay attention to his surroundings.  He follows Jake around the corner slightly down the hill from the front door and he sees a black mustang convertible with dual exhaust with chrome tips.  The engine was running so he could hear the horsepower just purring through the exhaust system.  Jake walks up to the guy who is standing at the passenger side of the car with his arms crossed.  Tommy can’t hear what is being said, but the guy looks at him and Tommy knows that they are obviously talking about him.  The guy kind of rolls his eyes and unfolds his arms and takes a deep breath and sighs.  A few more words are exchanged and the guy finally agrees to speak to Tommy.  Tommy is just standing adjacent to them about ten feet away and sees the conversation coming to an end.

The guy looks at Tommy and Jake stands off to the side with his hands in his pockets.  The guy is wearing a tight blue short-sleeve shirt, blue jeans, and white sneakers and starts approaching Tommy.  Tommy stands there wanting to show that he is not scared, but he takes a deep gulp of saliva with him a few steps away.  Then the guy walks up on him and stops just inches away practically violating Tommy’s personal space.

JEROME BUTLER: I’m Jerome and I am a black man.

TOMMY: Hello, I’m Tommy and I’m a white man. Not knowing what to say he is hoping that type of comment doesn’t get his ass beat.

JEROME BUTLER: Where are you from, Tommy?

TOMMY: I’m from New Jersey.

JEROME BUTLER: What part of New Jersey?

TOMMY: Wellington, New Jersey, which is north about 30 minutes from New York.

JEROME BUTLER: How in the hell get out here to Phoenix?  You wouldn’t have made it through the Midwest states.  The way people are dying out there.

TOMMY: My girlfriend and I were detained at a military base in Maryland after the attacks.  Once our time was up we were shipped out here by the military for whatever reason.

JAKE: I’ve heard of people being held in military camps just being shipped out to random parts of the country for no rhyme or reason.  They just so happened to be here in Phoenix.

JEROME BUTLER: I guess that’s good enough for me.  Just remember, Tommy, that I don’t know you and if you want stay alive and don’t get fucked up, you won’t piss me off.  Understood there white man?

TOMMY: I understand complete, Jerome. He dared not to say black man since he didn’t want to piss this guy off who looks like a linebacker and wearing his little brother’s t-shirt.

He gets in the car with Jake and Jerome and the top goes down on a cool 70 degrees day.  It is about eight in the morning and now they are off to downtown Phoenix to see what is going on.  Before they even get close to the site of the protest they hit roadblock after roadblock.  Police directing them in different directions away from the protest, but pedestrians carrying signs and chanting are being let through.  So after a few minutes of being diverted constantly they decided to find a parking space and walk.  Jerome finds a parking garage about 10 blocks away from city hall and drove around for a good ten minutes before seeing someone backing out.  They find themselves on the top floor of the garage and he puts on his turn signal then another vehicle opposite of the driving lane stops and puts on their turn signal as well.  The car backing out doesn’t pay attention to the stand off that is occurring for her parking space.  Once the car backs out and leaves both Jerome and the other car continues to stare at each other for a few more seconds.  Then Jerome steps on the gas and so does the other vehicle and they both go for the parking space.  Jerome’s quick surge of the gas pedal gets him a slight advantage and he was able to pull into the parking space, but his back tires were not in the space.  His Mustang got hit by the vehicle that was attempting to get into the space as well.

Jerome immediately jumps out once the collision occurred and Tommy had to pick himself up from the back floor.  The collision was hard enough to throw him to the floor and causing Jerome’s car to hit another vehicle on his left.  So now the mustang has damages on both rear fenders due to the collision of the other vehicle.  When Jerome exited the vehicle he was extremely mad and had to climb over the driver and rear seats and then had to step on his trunk before making contact with the pavement with his feet.  Jake was moaning in the passenger seat and holding his neck as if he was shot, but only slightly had pain.  Tommy was able to pick himself up off the floor and leaned forward to check on Jake.  Jake advised Tommy that he was okay and pointed behind them at Jerome as he was engaged in a verbal altercation with the driver through the window.  Tommy turned around and saw Jerome reach in and grab the driver and attempted to pull him through the driver side window.  Tommy got himself together real quick and attempted to help Jerome or maybe even pull him back away from the vehicle, but it was too late.

Two other occupants of the other vehicle exited from the backseat on both sides and the one behind the driver charged Jerome.  It was like hitting a brick wall and Jerome turned around and struck the guy with a left hook and knocked him out on the ground.  Tommy was shocked by the punch like he was hit with the massive force and power of that punch.  The other guy from the other side grabbed a baseball bat that was in the backseat and ran around the rear of the vehicle towards Jerome.  After Jerome knocked out the other guy his attention went back towards the driver and he had him pulled out halfway through the window.  Tommy saw the other guy charging with the baseball bat and yelled at Jerome as he was charging himself to cut off the guy.  The guy had the baseball bat cocked back over his head and for a split second Tommy saw the sun glistening off of the tip of the bat and made the assumption that it was an aluminum bat.  Jerome turned around while he had the driver in his grip and saw the bat, but was in a position that made it difficult to counter act the attacker.  Tommy dipped his shoulder and tackled the guy into the vehicle and the bat came out of the hands of the attacker.

Jerome saw that Tommy had his back and dragged the driver out of the vehicle completely.  Once the attacker was on the ground from the tackle Tommy got back up and kicked the bat away and proceeded to continuously kick the guy in the stomach over and over.  The guy was attempting to get up, but each kick knocked him back down and finally incapacitated him.  Fortunately, for the incident no witnesses drove by to see any of this going down.  Once Jerome got the driver out he picked him up off the ground by the throat and slammed him down on the hood of his own car.  Tommy yelled at Jerome and attempted to release Jerome’s grip from the guy’s neck, but struggled tremendously.  Jake finally was able to come and help and assisted Tommy in releasing Jerome’s grip from the guy’s neck.  Once they did the guy began to cough and gasp for air and slid off of the hood and on the ground at the feet of Jerome.  They guy got up holding his neck and Jerome got in his face, which struck fear in him.

Soon enough the police came by and was just on routine patrol and saw the vehicles in an abnormal position.  By that time the other two guys on the ground got up and the bat was kicked underneath other vehicle.  Once police arrived on scene the story given was exactly what happened, but the physical contents of the statements were left out by both parties.  Fear of going to jail and facing charges was not an option for either party.  Once insurance information was exchanged and the other vehicle left the scene the police also left the scene and continued on routine patrol.  Jerome repositioned his vehicle in the proper spot and put the top up and they proceeded to walk down to the street below.  Once on ground level they exited the garage and began walking towards the direction of city hall.  They began talking to each other as they walked towards the protesting zone.

JEROME: Hey, Tommy I want to thank you for your help back there.

TOMMY: No problem.  I saw that you had it at first, but that guy with the bat had the advantage for a moment.  So I did what was best to keep you from getting fucked up.

JEROME: Word.  Where were you Jake?

TOMMY: He was in the car holding his neck from the accident.

JAKE: I’m sorry Jerome, but that hit made my neck go in an unusual position.  I had to make sure my neck wasn’t sprained or anything.

JEROME: You okay now?  My man here, Tommy, had my back.

JAKE: Yeah I’m good thanks for asking.

They continued to walk down the street and found themselves about five blocks away from city hall by seeing the police presence increasing.  They stopped at one intersection waiting to cross as traffic was being redirected away from the location when they saw an altercation in front of them on the other side of the street.  Two groups, one that was against the proposal and one that was for the proposal who out numbered the group against it, began to get loud at each other.  The police officers in the area were being drawn towards the noise of the yelling and screaming.  Both were shaking their home made signs at each other and some were reciting Bible scriptures as others were beginning to shove each other.  One sign from the other side was grabbed and thrown to the ground and stomped on, which escalated the situation.  Police officers rushed the area and had their batons drawn from their belts ready for use.  A few people were struck by the batons and some were taken to the ground because of them fighting the police and the other protesters.  A few were told to leave the scene once the situation was diffused.  The three guys were still waiting to cross the street, but saw this middle age white guy stumbling across the street away from the situation holding a sign in his hand.  He passes Tommy and continues on and stops in front of a coffee shop assessing himself and talking to himself about the situation.

Tommy approaches as curiosity got the better of him, but Jake turns around and tries to get Tommy to come across the street.  Tommy tells Jake to hold on and he approaches the white guy and starts talking to him.

TOMMY: You okay, sir?

WHITE GUY: I’m okay kid.  What are you doing down here?

TOMMY: My friends and I are down here to see what’s going on.

WHITE GUY: You see what’s going on down here.  Mayhem that’s what’s going on down here.  You shouldn’t be down here you might get hurt.

TOMMY: What side are you on?

WHITE GUY: I’m on the side that is against the proposal of making the Pacific West Territories a reality.  Lot of us are against the proposal for many reasons.

JEROME: The other guys you got in the fight with I assume are for this?

WHITE GUY: Most of them are white supremacist and you also have a few black and Hispanic groups for this as well.  The community is tearing apart and the politicians don’t seem to take notice.

JAKE: Maybe they do, but have other agenda’s in mind.  I can’t believe this is going down.

WHITE GUY: Better believe it son, this reality you are in might change forever. The guy walks over and doesn’t turn around to look at them at all.  He left his sign on the ground and Tommy picks it up and reads it. The sign reads ‘UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL!’  Jake and Jerome gets Tommy’s attention to continue on he drops the sign back on the ground.  Once they crossed the street they start making their way through crowds of people and find an opening to stand in.  The scene is overwhelming to them and they start looking around as people around them are chanting and yelling.  They can see another group across the street to their right that is separated by police in riot gear from the group of people they are standing in the midst of.  Tommy looks around and sees nothing but people everywhere protesting the proposal and can’t make out what people are saying since it is an ocean of them.

Tommy hears a commotion behind him and sees that a few protesters have charged the police line to get to the other side.  The police officers in riot gear along with some military personnel in riot gear as well stop the protesters in their tracks and detain them.  Tommy also wonders with numerous people around how can the police be sure no one has a weapon strapped to them.  Well, soon enough his answer to his question will satisfy that curiosity of his.  Jerome and Jake tap Tommy on his chest and they continue through the crowd passing city hall and as they approach in front the building shots ring out from their right.  Suddenly people begin to yell and screams fill the air as people run and duck for cover.  Tommy heard a few bullets whiz pass his head as he ducked down and in that instant second it reminded him of his encounter with the New White Order militia several months ago.  He wondered for a brief second if they had caught up to him for killing their elected leader for his escape.  Then he figured in the crowd of people they would not have known his location unless someone on this inside made them aware.

After a few seconds of shots being fired Tommy turned around while on the ground next to Jake and saw the police subduing the gunman.  All he could see was a see of black and green as they surrounded him and took him into custody.  The gunman was yelling something as he was being taken away and some protesters were wounded in the few seconds of the incident.  Tommy turns to Jake to see if he was okay and he was, but when they looked at Jerome he didn’t get up.  Jake rolls over Jerome and could see a bullet in his chest and blood around his mouth.  Jerome laid there on his back lifeless with his eyes open as they both look at him as if this couldn’t have happened.  People were still yelling and screaming, but mostly for the medical attention that was needed.  Medics eventually got to Jerome a few minutes later and took him away on a stretcher, but they knew he was dead.  Tommy gets up and so does Jake and they look at each other wondering what to do now.  Tommy begins to walk back in the direction they came from through the crowd of wounded people and police personnel pushing people out of the area.  Jake runs up behind Tommy and grabs his arm.

JAKE: Where are you going now?

TOMMY: I’ve seen what I needed to see Jake.  This is crazy.  I’m heading back home.

JAKE: This is your opportunity to join the revolution against the opposition.  Isn’t this why you came down here?

TOMMY: Is that what you think, Jake?  I came down here because I wanted to see what the big issue was about.  Now I have seen enough and must decide for myself what is best.

JAKE: Tommy, your decision has been made already.  You just don’t know it yet.

TOMMY: The only thing I know is that my life is completely different from years before.  Now, I’m ready to make a change and make a difference.  I think I know what I need to do for myself now.

JAKE: What’s that?

TOMMY: He looks at the military personnel unloading the truck in front of them.

JAKE: You can’t be serious, Tommy? That’s a whole different world in it’s self.  Think about Sandra and the life you two can half together.

TOMMY: Jake, I have to think about myself also.  The life we are trying to live has not been all roses and we’ve seen things that no one here has probably seen.

JAKE: So you want to be selfish and only consider what’s best for you?

TOMMY: It’s not being selfish Jake.  For months after the attacks I wanted to do something with my life to make it feel like I can make a change.  I want to serve a purpose that can make me proud and others proud of me.

JAKE: What about Sandra?  Do you think she will be proud of you for the decision you’re making?

TOMMY: Right now her opinion is not my concern.  I need to follow my heart and I think this is the decision that needs to be made. He walks away from Jake as he hears police sirens and ambulances arriving and leaving the scene.  Jake watches Tommy walk away from him for a block and a half and the proceeds to follow him.  Life has been altered and now things must change for the better.

LOCATION: President’s Hideout

Just a few days after the President of the United States had his meeting with the Joint Chiefs of Staff and other members of the cabinet he gets another surprise coming his way.

WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: Mr. President, I have a phone call for you from Washington.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: Who’s calling me from Washington?

WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: Takes a deep swallow and then answers the question.  According to the person calling from Washington the United Nations Security Council is calling for you.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: Have the phone call forwarded to my office. He gets up from the location he was at with his wife and kids outside and sets off to his office down the hall.  The chief of staff goes back to the phone and has the call forwarded to the president.

The president gets to his office and as soon as he sits down the phone rings and it blinks on the secured line, which he knows it is official.  He watches it blink for a few seconds before he picks up the phone and answers it.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: This is President Ford, how may I help you?

U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL: Mr. President, good afternoon you know this is Chairman Lee, Head of the U.N. Security Council.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: Mr. Lee, what do I owe the pleasure of your call?

CHAIRMAN LEE: We have been monitoring the situation there in the United States and the effects all around the world.  We haven’t contacted you in months after the attacks simply because we wanted your government to focus on the task at hand.  How are things going there so far?

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: Things here are slowly getting back to normal.  We still have a few things to tie up and a few things to take care before we are fully operational.  This has in no way weakened the United States to the world.

CHAIRMAN LEE: Well, I’m curious to know about this situation we are hearing about in the western region.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: Western region?

CHAIRMAN LEE: The Pacific West Territories have applied to our office for assistance and to be recognized as a separate union.  Well, this was given to us in a several page correspondence and to narrow the explanation down that is what they are saying to the council.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: Well, to make things clear for you and the council is that the Pacific West Territories is not a separate nation and that we are not recognizing it as such.  That violates our constitution and whoever is responsible to establishing a nation within our borders will be charged with treason.

CHAIRMAN LEE: I understand the position you and your government stands on this.  However, I wouldn’t be so very concerned if I didn’t know about their situation and how they plan on going about it.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: What information do you have on that?

CHAIRMAN LEE: Well, you are aware of the senators and congressman who represent the states that make up that region are pushing for this, right?

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: Yes, I am aware of that and that they are also trying to explain that it is still part of the United States.  Their reasoning for this is that the state governments are extremely unhappy of our response to assist them.  They want to be a separate territory of the U.S., but still part of this country.

CHAIRMAN LEE: So they want to be independent like Puerto Rico and Guam and other territories of the U.S.?

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: That’s my understanding of it.  We are fighting that along with other members of Congress who represent the states in the south.  That situation is well more handled and far less along than the situation in the west.

CHAIRMAN LEE: You might want to focus more on the western region than the southern states.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: We have intelligence people on the ground reporting to us periodically on the situation at hand.  So for the most part we have everything under control.

CHAIRMAN LEE: Well, if you have intelligence in place than you should know that other states are being secretly contacted to join their cause.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: What the hell are you talking about Mr. Lee?

CHAIRMAN LEE: The Phoenix government is in negotiations with Colorado, Utah, Alaska, and Montana.  Several other states remain neutral and under the order of your authority.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: Oh my god! I’m assuming you have people here monitoring the situation as well?

CHAIRMAN LEE: We’ve had people there almost immediately after the attacks happened.  The word is that someone or the information you need to know about the attacks is in Sacramento, California.  Nothing has confirmed that, but so far our team is investigating this and reporting to us.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: It would have been nice for you and U.N. to let us know what was going on.  How do you think I feel to know I have foreign operatives operating in my country without my knowledge?

CHAIRMAN LEE: I’m sorry Mr. President, but it was a necessary action and we felt as the situation was being investigated we would let you know of the issues brewing.  Right now, I am asking that you allow us to operate and we will coordinate with your people to help solve this massive confusion.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: I will allow your organization to operate on U.S. soil, but everything from this point on needs to come through me first.

CHAIRMAN LEE: I completely understand and I apologize for our inconsiderate behavior.  We also need to solve this quickly because the world’s economy has seriously taken a hit.  So with that in mind you surely understand why we acted the way we did?

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: I understand Mr. Lee.  We shall work together and bring this situation to a halt immediately. They hang up and continue on with their respective business with their members of their organization.

Almost immediately after his meeting with the chairman of the U.N. Security Council President Ford meets with his chief of staff in his office.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: Emanuel I need to speak to you for a brief moment.

WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: Sure, Mr. President.  What do you need?

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: I just finished my meeting with Chairman Lee and apparently he has intelligence people in our country monitoring our handling of this crisis.

WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: What? Do you want me to file a motion to have them cease operation immediately and turn over all information gathered to us?

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: That won’t be necessary Emanuel.  What I do need you to do is contact the Joint Chiefs and alert them of the situation.  Then have them gather a joint intelligence team to go in and figure out the weakness of this whole mess.  I want information on who is responsible, what the west intend to do once they complete their task, and what are our options to stop this from happening.

WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: Well one way to cease this from happening is to order sanctions and state that anyone going along with this plan will be charged with treason.

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: Ordering sanctions on our own people will just exacerbate the situation and cause more people to just join their cause.  Whatever that cause maybe.  We need to succeed in this issue and failure is not an option.

WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: Yes, sir I will get on that immediately.  How soon do you want this team to be on the ground?

PRESIDENT OF THE U.S.: As soon as possible.  Also I was thinking that no cities on the west were hit to our knowledge.  So why would they want to cause division within our unification?  The 64 million dollar question needs to be answered and time is running out.

The White House Chief of Staff gets his orders from the president and calls up the Joint Chiefs for an emergency meeting.  They meet Emanuel in the room where the last meeting was held.

EMANUEL: Thank you gentlemen for meeting me for this emergency action that the president is calling for.

ARMY GENERAL: What’s going on Emanuel?

EMANUEL: The president wants all of you to form a joint intelligence team to have on the ground within the next couple of days.

MARINE GENERAL: That needs to be cleared through the Department of Homeland Security Secretary.  Besides we can’t use federal troops on the ground because it violates the Posse Comitatus Act.

EMANUEL: You can’t use them for any reason that enforces the federal and state laws of the country.  However, you can use them for gathering intelligence on the enemy. The Joint Chiefs look at each other with somewhat of a perplexed look on their faces.  The United Nations has foreign operatives operating in this country monitoring our handling of this crisis.  They are gathering intelligence on the ground and they would like to coordinate with us in doing so.

AIR FORCE GENERAL: That’s insane!  How long have they been here?

EMANUEL: Almost immediately after the attacks happened.  I offered to file a motion with the U.N. heads, but the president told me not too.

NAVY ADMIRAL: You telling me we have foreign operatives in this country without permission from the president?

EMANUEL: That’s exactly what I’m saying to you Admiral.

ARMY GENERAL: These bastards want our cooperation on the ground after they practically invaded us?!  I can’t believe this!  I can’t believe that the president is willing to work with them side by side.

EMANUEL: I understand your concern and your opinion on this, but this is the order of the president and he needs to know immediately.

MARINE GENERAL: What does the president need from us?

EMANUEL: A number of individuals that will be involved in the joint intelligence operation.

AIR FORCE GENERAL: You mean a counter-intelligence operation on the Pacific West Territories.

EMANUEL: Call it what you want to call it, but the fact remains that this is what the president wants.  He’s still waiting for the information from the troops on the ground in Afghanistan and Iraq.

MARINE GENERAL: I have it on my computer and I will forward it to you.

ARMY GENERAL: I have it on my computer as well and will send it to you.

EMANUEL: Good.  When you figure out how to set up your operation let me know ASAP.  Also since we have military bases there in the western region what is happening to them?

MARINE GENERAL: Most of the base commanders were arrested and many of the authorities there were involved in a fierce fire fight.

EMANUEL: So what are you telling me general?

ARMY GENERAL: Most of the base commanders of all military bases were either arrested or forced to change over.  Anyone resisting would face swift action.

EMANUEL: So this is looked at an attack on the United States?

NAVY ADMIRAL: I’ve got some ships that were hijacked and now under operation of this so called territory.  This is unacceptable and our swift action is needed.

EMANUEL: What you are asking for is a military strike on our own people?

MARINE GENERAL: They sure didn’t think about that before they started committing treason on our troops and all federal buildings.

EMANUEL: The president is not going to go for it.  Besides the information we need to know about all of this is supposedly located in Sacramento.  I overheard the president’s conversation with the United Nations Security Council.

ARMY GENERAL: Sacramento, California?  Oh my god.

EMANUEL: What general?

ARMY GENERAL: There is an abandon warehouse about 10-15 minutes outside of the city heading north on the Pacific Coast Highway.  That warehouse is secured by locks, codes, and constantly secured by armed guards.

EMANUEL: Okay, well what’s in it?

ARMY GENERAL: I didn’t think about this before, but that warehouse contains chemicals such as mustard gas, anthrax, and other biological and chemical agents.

EMANUEL: Oh no, are you telling me that is where the terrorists got the stuff from to raise an attack on the cities?

ARMY GENERAL: No, I know that location was not hit because if it was we would have known and action would have been coordinated immediately.

EMANUEL: Okay, then what is the big issue?

MARINE GENERAL: There is a tunnel inside the warehouse that leads to a silo that controls at least half a dozen ICBM’s in California, Nevada, and Oregon.

EMANUEL: This just gets worse by the day.

Homeless Shelter, Phoenix, Arizona

SANDRA: Tommy? I’m getting ready to leave for my interview.

TOMMY: Who are you going to work for again?

SANDRA: Gross-Out.  It’s a company that specializes in special effects and Halloween make-up.  I’m going to be a cashier there that is if everything goes well at the interview.

TOMMY: I wish you luck. He walks over to her from the window and gives her a hug.  Once they exchanged hugs she kissed him on the cheek and grabbed her new purse and left the room.

It has been at least one week since their arrival at the building and already Sandra has an interview with a company located somewhere in downtown Phoenix.  Tommy on the other hand has been looking and right now so such luck, well at least not today.  He goes downstairs to eat lunch and sees that on the menu is something he hasn’t had since his last days at home back in New Jersey.  As he approaches the cafeteria entrance he walks up to the whiteboard that is placed just outside the doors.  He stares at it and begins to think back about home and having lasagna with salad and garlic bread with a tall glass of ginger ale.  The ginger ale was to help prevent gas from him eating so much of the dish, which appears to be his favorite.  He finally snaps out of his daydream about home and enters the cafeteria and grabs a tray.  As he makes his way down the line he glances around and of course he sees no one that he recognizes.  He gets his food and gives the cashier his meal ticket and she stamps it and he moves on.  He makes his way over to the beverage center and gets bumped by a heavy set white male who didn’t even acknowledge his presence.  Tommy stands there and watches the man cut in front of him to the beverage center.  Tommy can see the white male has big arms, but no define muscles can be seen and only one tattoo on his right arm of a red horse with no rider.

TOMMY: Excuse me, sir, but I was next.

WHITE MALE: Turns his head and looks at Tommy with his mouth twisted up in the corner and one eye partially squinted.  You can wait!

TOMMY: I was next in line for my drink.  How can you just bump in line and think that you can do what you want?

WHITE MALE: Oh, and what are you gonna do about it?

TOMMY: Before he answered he thought better of it and looked down at his food and thought would it be worth getting in trouble for.  Nothing, I’ll just wait until you are finished.

The white male finished getting his two cups of beverages and then Tommy gets his and finds a seat.  He says his grace over his food and starts to eat when another male came down and sat next to him.

JAKE: I wouldn’t worry about that fat slob of a man.

TOMMY: It’s not worth me getting in trouble for.

JAKE: His name is John Masters and he is considered the bully here at the Homeless Shelter.

TOMMY: Why is he still here?

JAKE: He’s been following the rules of looking for a job and stuff, but apparently his mother works here.  So you know that gives him a little more immunity than others.

TOMMY: Really?  That doesn’t seem fair at all.  What’s his deal?

JAKE: He’s from Los Angeles, California and once the attacks happened his neighborhood along with most of the city was destroyed.  His mom was working here anyway when the attacks happened so she just invited him in.

TOMMY: Lucky him.  I’m Tommy.

JAKE: I’m Jake, nice to meet you.  Where are you from?

TOMMY: I’m from North New Jersey, which is where I was when all this happened.  Do you know exactly what happened?

JAKE: No.  I’m still trying to find out answers myself, but it appears that it is a secret.  Less than a year after all this happened we are now considered residents of the Pacific West Territories?

TOMMY: When did that happen?  My girlfriend and I were shipped from Maryland to Phoenix from some military base.

JAKE: All I know is that about a week after the attacks happen each senator from California, Nevada, Arizona, Washington, and Oregon came on radio and declared a state of emergency for the pacific west region.  Then right after that things just took a turn in another direction.

TOMMY: Go on.

JAKE: You would see the military out in the streets, but no US flag was seen on the uniform.  The portion of the uniform that would say the country’s name was missing until a few weeks ago.  They say we are still part of the United States, but considered a territory.  Think about that one.

TOMMY: What about the President?

JAKE: The President of the United States has been in negotiations with many states to be patient and wait for federal aid, but apparently that is beginning to fall through the cracks.

TOMMY: How many more states are considering going their separate ways?

JAKE: I don’t know anything about states trying to secede, but I do know that it is said that the president is hiding somewhere in the Midwest.

TOMMY: How do you know all of this in the first place?

JAKE: Let’s just say I have connections outside trying to give me information to better equip myself.

TOMMY: What are you planning to do?

JAKE: Take a look around, Tommy.  Do you still see a democracy in control?  I see an anarchy government attempting to take over and run things in a way that gives us fewer rights.

TOMMY: How so?

JAKE: Looks at Tommy as if he is for real.  Remember the Constitution, which the government is in fear of its people.  Not the other way around.  We heard that the east part of the country suffered worse damage than us here in the west.  You would know that.

TOMMY: What I know is that Baltimore is completely destroyed and militia groups all over the place out there.  I know that our nation’s capitol is surrounded by military and police and under restricted access.

JAKE: How’d you and your girlfriend get here then?

TOMMY: We were just walking looking for anyone to help us and we encountered a military base that was housing other civilians as well.  We had no radio or television, except for a few moments.

JAKE: Your part of the mystery brother.  Everyone has been acting like it’s all good and nothing happened.  Some of us are trying to find out the truth and see who is responsible for alternating our lives in an instant.

TOMMY: Knowing how the government is I can almost guarantee that what you are looking for is sealed under lock and key and probably under some code.

JAKE: Not everything is under secret codes.  Apparently, there is a building in Sacramento that houses some of the government documents.

TOMMY: How do you know that this building exists and contain such things?

JAKE: My fiancée works there in Sacramento and visits me here at least twice a week.  Once I’m cleared I can join up with her and work part-time for the government.

TOMMY: Okay, I think I’m following you here.  How do you plan on exposing this government conspiracy or this plan of yours in exposing this out to the public?

JAKE: I never said I had a plan, Tommy.  You assumed I had a plan.  I’m just telling you what I know and where the information is. He finishes his food and leaves the dining hall.

Tommy sits there watching Jake disappear around the corner and then gets up himself.  He goes to the career center and waits for a computer to open up so he can begin to apply for jobs.

The injuries that Tommy suffered in the short altercation with those two strange men were not as bad as it looked at the moment it happened.  All he needed was a few stitches to close up the wound and a long piece gauze to cover the wound from irritation.  Just as the inspector instructed one of his subordinates once they were cleared through medical they were transported to his office for further questioning.  Once they arrived at the inspector’s office they were directed into take a seat.  Just as they entered the office, Tommy was in front of Sandra, the first thing he saw was all the awards and certificates posted on the wall in the office.  He was amazed at the amount of awards he saw and looked to his left toward the inspector’s desk and saw trophies standing tall behind his chair on a shelf hanging from the wall.  Sandra was also amazed and had her eyes posted on a figurine that was standing on a shelf that was just behind the door.  It was a red figurine of a woman on her knees with her hands together as if she was praying to God in the sky through the ceiling.

The two uniformed officers left the office and closed the door once Tommy and Sandra took a seat.  Tommy and Sandra continued to look around the office and didn’t say a word to each other during this alone period.  Tommy then leaned back in his chair, kind of slouching, with his hands on his knees and let out a big sigh.  Sandra was still amazed at the amount of stuff in the office and glanced at the huge stack of papers on the desk, with some in files and some loose all around.  Again, her attention drew towards the red figurine on the shelf behind the door and stared at it for a few seconds before removing her eyes from it.  She then leaned back in her chair and almost repeated what Tommy did, but got curious when she saw a police report on the desk directly in front of her.  She leaned back forward to look at it and she then picked it up to read it and a few lines down the paper she decided to share it with Tommy.  She read halfway down the page and then Tommy took it from her and made a face as to say to himself what in the world was he reading.  Sandra continues to look around the desk, but careful not to move anything that would let the inspector know that his desk was compromised.

Tommy gets discussed with the report he is reading about a woman and her baby being kidnapped from the airport two days prior and throws it back on the inspector’s desk.  He follows the paper as it floats through the air for a few seconds and watches it land on top of a newspaper.  He sees that the newspaper is folded under the report he just read, but something about it is different from any other newspapers he has seen.  He leans forward and sees that the date of the paper was just showing above the police report and sees that the article written is in red, not black ink.  He looks at the door and Sandra, who is not paying attention to what he is doing because she keeps looking at that same figurine.  Tommy reaches over on the desk and picks up the newspaper to further investigate it and to his amazement he is surprised to see what is printed on it.  The title across the top of the newspaper, after he unfolded it, stated “NEW CURRENCY, WESTERN REGION” in big bold font.  He continues to read the newspaper, with his mouth open wide in astonishment.  He looks down at the article printed in red and glances at it’s title named “U.S. Currency Phasing Out?”  Once he gets about halfway down the article he taps Sandra on the shoulder and whispers her name, but she doesn’t budge.  He attempts to gain her attention two more times by saying her name louder in a whisper, but by the time she turns around the door knob turns and Tommy quickly throws the paper on the floor at his feet.

The inspector walks in with a cup of coffee in his hand and another newspaper in his other hand.  He smiles at them as he enters the room and goes over to his desk and sits in his chair letting out a sigh.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Takes a sip of his coffee and starts talking to them after he is done.  I hope my officers and staff alike have treated you with respect and decency?

SANDRA: Yes, they have sir.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Good, good that is what I like to hear about our people.  Before hand we had issues with witnesses and victims being treated as if it was their fault for being involved in crimes against them.  Has anyone offered you two anything to drink?

TOMMY & SANDRA: Both shake their heads side to side saying no.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Oh, would you both like anything to drink as we talk?

SANDRA: I would like to have some soda.

TOMMY: Water is good for me, thanks.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Smiles and pushes a button on his phone to inform the secretary of their requests and she acknowledges.  He leans back putting on his glasses and grabs a police report out of a folder that was on his desk.  How are you feeling now, Mr. Harrison?

TOMMY: I’m feeling fine, sir.  Thanks for asking.

POLICE INSPECTOR: I imagine you was quite terrified that you was going to be injured a lot worse when those men began pursuing you?

TOMMY: I didn’t know what they were going to do to us and who they were.  Apparently, we needed documentation to enter or to leave the airport and we thought they were there for that.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Ah, I see.  Why didn’t you have your documents to enter?

SANDRA: We never received them from our last location.  We were just given an invoice to travel with.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Do you have the invoice with you now?

TOMMY: Yes, I have it.

POLICE INSPECTOR: May I see it please?

TOMMY: He pulls out the invoice from his back pocket and hands it to the inspector all wrinkled up with fold creases in it.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Ahh.  You didn’t get it stamped at the immigration desk.

SANDRA: The officer there wouldn’t do anything, but kept saying that we needed to fill out these documents to enter pass him. She hands the documents to the inspector as if he doesn’t know what she is referring to.

POLICE INSPECTOR: I see what occurred now.  Those two strange men you was running from prey on people that are not from this area and they have been known to attack and kill young adults.

TOMMY: So those two men were trying to kill us?

POLICE INSPECTOR: We suspect that they had a motivation in doing things like that and we have been suspecting for some time that they have an inside contact working with immigration.

SANDRA: I have a question about that.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Takes a couple of sips from his warm coffee and gulps deeply.  Sure, what is your question?

SANDRA: Before we were able to travel with just a driver’s license or some type of ID.  Now we need to have documentation, such like an immigration visa.  Why was things changed?

POLICE INSPECTOR: He looks at both of them as to say with his eyes where are you from.  He catches himself and retracts his look.  You are definitely not from here with that question.

TOMMY: We have been held on a military base away from society for several months and we didn’t have type of media coverage for anything.  So please give us an idea of what happened.

POLICE INSPECTOR: He sighs slowly and leans forward with his hands interlocked on the desk.  Looks at them in the eyes and responds.  Most of what happened no one really knows, but we all know that life was different from the moment the attacks happened.  Martial Law was declared in all the pacific west states and it just slowly spread throughout the nation.  Soon the Midwest, such as Missouri and Kansas were considered disaster areas and the military was sent in to squash any opposition.

TOMMY: We have no clue who coordinated the attacks?

POLICE INSPECTOR: We don’t have the answer, but somewhere in California, maybe Los Angeles or Sacramento, there is an agency that keeps everything pertaining to the attacks under lock and key.

SANDRA: How do you know that they are keeping this a secret?

POLICE INSPECTOR: There was a protest one day in front of the main gate to the installation.  Some were arrested and put in federal prison away from the general population.

TOMMY: Leans forward to get closer to the inspector.  Who is this agency?  Why do they exist?

POLICE INSPECTOR: Before he could answer the door opens after a quick knock.  It was a police officer bringing them their beverages.  Once they received their beverages the inspector answered the question kind of evasively.  This agency controls all the media and what goes out to the public on a daily basis.  That’s all I can give you at the moment.

TOMMY: Leans back and looks at Sandra in a disappointment look.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Goes back to the report that was written about them being pursued and attacked.  You have never seen these men before?

SANDRA: No, we have never seen them before.

TOMMY: We just got here and new to the area so obviously we don’t know them.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Ignores the sarcastic comment from Tommy.  Did the men say anything to you from the time you saw them up until we showed up?

TOMMY: No.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Did you see them on the plane or did anything seem suspicious during your travels?

SANDRA: No, sir.  We saw nothing that would spark our attention.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Okay. Puts the report back in his folder and puts the folder on his desk.  Do you two have a place to stay?

TOMMY: We were going to stay in the airport and take residence there.  No, we have no place to stay, sir.

POLICE INSPECTOR: Once again ignores the sarcastic comment from Tommy and saw Sandra stomping on Tommy’s foot.  Well, my officers will take you to a hotel on the other end of the airport and I will take care of your documents.  We welcome you to the Pacific West Terroritories. The inspector gets up and walks towards the door.

Tommy quickly reaches down and grab the newspaper, he dropped, off the floor and tucked it inside his pants and pulled his shirt over it.  The inspector led them outside and called over two police officers to escort them to a hotel on the other side of the airport.  Once the officers took Tommy and Sandra and started walking down the stairs, the inspector walked over to the secretary and handed her their invoice.  Tommy could hear and read his lips that they will get their invoice back later at the hotel.  The secretary stamps it and at that point Tommy lost sight of the secretary since he was going down the steps towards the front of the police station.  A police vehicle was awaiting them and another one behind that one with their luggage placed in the back.  Tommy was kind of thrown off by the almost VIP service they were getting from the authorities and they were just teenagers.

On their way to the hotel Tommy and Sandra engage in a brief, but serious conversation.

SANDRA: You can be an ass, you know that?

TOMMY: What are you talking about?

SANDRA: Your smart ass comments to the police that’s what.

TOMMY: Sandra, I have been trying to figure what is going on since all of this happened.  I don’t see you taking the initiative in trying to figure out what happened.

SANDRA: This situation is a hell of a lot bigger than us trying to figure out.  Let all of this be investigated by the authorities, that’s their job.

TOMMY: What are you scared of?  The truth?  I’m sorry that I am aggressive in trying to know what happened, but that seems to be the only way for us to even get answers around here.

SANDRA: You think you can be a little bit more respectful in doing so.  Maybe I have accepted this new life we are in and I think it is time you do as well.

TOMMY: Not until I find out what happened.

SANDRA: Oh yea?  What happened with you and that guy when you two disappeared for a period of time?  What happened there?

TOMMY: He turns his head looking outside the window of their rear seat of the cruiser.  I don’t want to talk about that. He answered her in a voice of disappointment and as if she offended his sensibility.

Sandra looks at him as he is looking out the window and sighs quietly.  She turns her head back towards her window and looks out watching the airplanes taking off and landing.  They finally arrive at the hotel and the police officers open the back doors for them to get out.  Tommy gets out and looks up at the name of the hotel and sees that it is called the ‘International Hotel’.  They attempt to gain possession of their bags, but the police officer with them lets them know that they will carry the bags for them.  All they have to do is go to the front desk and give their name and get their room key.  Once that was done they get on the elevator and arrive to the tenth floor of the hotel.  Once they got off the elevator Tommy went directly to the room, which was 10100, but Sandra was looking out the window that was directly down the hall shining in the bright sunlight on to the carpeted floor.  Tommy entered the room and one of the police officers got her attention and guided her into the room and turned on the lights.

Tommy saw two queen size beds with complimentary gift baskets that contained chocolate and other goodies inside.  He goes over closer and picks one up and shows Sandra and she smiles and grabs the other off the other bed.  Then the other police officers came up with their bags and informed Tommy and Sandra of the arrangements.

POLICE OFFICER: Welcome to the Pacific West Terroritories.  I am to brief you on the arrangements that was set-up for your stay.  You are to stay in this hotel for at least three days while things are being worked out for your residence here in our commonwealth.  Since you was a victim of a crime and visitors we will have a police officer stationed in the hotel in the lobby at all times.  One will also be on the floor at all times to make sure your safety is our concern.  Once you check-out of the hotel later this week you will then be given information for first time visitors and residence in this great land.  Again, we apologize for your troubles and you are currently under police watch until you are suitable to be on your own with no danger.

SANDRA: Do you do this to everyone that this happens too?

POLICE OFFICER: No, ma’am we don’t do this to everyone, but for some reason the inspector wanted to make sure that your safety here is protected.

The police officer leaves the hotel room and closes the door behind him.  Sandra turns around and looks at Tommy and walks up to him to give him a hug.  He wraps his arms around her and hold her tight in his arms as if he was not going to see her for a very long time.  They stand their in the middle of the room in each others arms saying no words.

NEXT PUBLICATION:  April 1, 2010