Parallel Missions - the Journey Begins
Parallel Challenges
Parallel in Jeopardy
Parallel Promises
Me and Jesse-Me and Danny
Friday, February 15, 2019
PARALLEL MISSIONS
Parallel Missions - the Journey Begins
Parallel Challenges
Parallel in Jeopardy
Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Prequel to PARALLEL MISSIONS - The Journey Begins
Parallel Missions
Larry
L. Sydow
Part One – The Plan Takes Shape
“I perceive an escalating problem,
my Lord,” the Helpmate said. “It appears
to be like the first infection with which we were forced to intervene.”
The
Helpmate and the Creator hovered over multiple holographic images of multiple
parallel universes. Their attention was
drawn to a “hot spot” in an insignificant galaxy, often overlooked. Together, they had labored six ages of time,
as they reckoned time, like loving parents nurturing their young.
“It
has been causing us anguish,” Creator replied.
“All creatures in all worlds are our creatures. Sadly, the infection has caused some to turn
away and become something other than what we created them to be.”
Helpmate added, “It appears the
first infection has only gotten worse.
Our interventions, as painful and costly as they were, provided only
temporary relief.”
“We
have seen some progress, but our patience is running thin.”
“What
shall we do?” Helpmate mourned, “There are no infection-free worlds. All have fallen short of our intentions. Our infusion of interplanetary genetics
brought some improvement, but only temporarily.”
Creator
added, “That was so promising. I still
think giving them independence of will was a foolish move.”
“You
know,” Helpmate insisted, “I totally disagree, and You said so Yourself! What
would we do with worlds and universes full of automatons that are basically
mindless?”
“I
know,” Creator agreed. “The Anunnaki
tried that for selfish purposes and we had to do a cleansing wash that still
has me weeping when I remember. There
has to be a better way.”
“There
was!” Offspring agreed. “But even I was
rejected by those with power to make the necessary changes! And we weep in unison
in remembrance of our suffering, but we also celebrate the new beginning.”
“I
still think there has to be a better way,” Helpmate insisted, “… another way.”
“There
is!” Creator declared. “We will find
it!”
Offspring
agreed, “We will! I know we will.”
“Where
do we start?” asked Helpmate.
As
One, they embraced and merged their thoughts for what may have seemed to an
observer, had there been one, to have lasted an eternity. When they refrained from embracing, they smiled, a new light appeared to engulf them,
and a glorious choir of the most amazing symphonic voices greeted a new day. They knew what they would do.
“There
is that planet they call Earth,” Creator said, pointing to it. “We’ve always
had a special thing for Earth and all of its parallels. Let’s begin there … again.”
“I
agree,” Offspring sang in harmony with the symphonic voices, “but to do that,
we need to find the best parallel for incubating our plans for renewal.”
They
observed dozens of Earth parallels before settling on one with the most
potential for bringing about the needed changes, without resorting to total
destruction and annihilation. What drew
them to this parallel, was a small child with a heart and a spirit full of
potential.
“He
reminds me of our Offspring at that age,” Helpmate said. “He is full of hope and promise ... and just
enough mischief to keep him from being dull.”
“Mischief?”
Offspring asked with a quirky little smile? “Are you saying I was mischievious
when I was that age?”
“Do
cherry trees, water jars, and water walks remind you of anything?”
“Oh,
yes, I suppose I had a little fun with those things.”
Creator
said, “Do we want to subject this child to the horrors Offspring endured for
that world?”
“Why
not encourage a spreading of the responsibility,” Offspring suggested, “and
thus, the sharing of the suffering, so he doesn’t have to endure it alone. We will never leave him without our support
and the help of others.”
Helpmate
pointed out, “It will be an ongoing challenge for us.”
Creator
agreed, “He follows well in the big footprints of his own father, who has been
guiding him well. As long as he
continues to rely on our guidance to increase his wisdom, I believe he will do
fine.”
“This
world is centuries ahead of the Earth parallel,” Helpmate noted. “Our Universal Law of Non-interference may
inhibit the work that needs to be done.”
Creator
said, “Agreed, but part of the infection has already caused a breaking of the
Law in some places. If the child uses
the wisdom we believe he possesses, those he sends will be able to work within
that Law without violating it.”
“There
are many in many worlds who listen to us,” Offspring insisted. “But the child’s father seems to be the most
open at this time. We can begin with by
planting the seeds with him and the boy’s mother.”
Helpmate
chimed, “Agreed! We have a good new
beginning. So, the journey begins again.”
Creator
and Offspring sang in unison in deep resonant voices, “The journey begins again!”
Part Two – The Seeds are Sown
Creator
gave full attention to the Parallel where Qualto is the common native language. Some, therefore, referred to this Parallel by
the language name, “Qualto”. It was technologically
and scientifically several centuries ahead of Earth, but its inhabitants were
most in tune with those of Earth, of all parallels and all planets. Dadelos Gompton, the father of the child on
whom their attention was focused, was the most open of all beings to Creator’s
voice.
The
Dadelos awoke early with an idea that just would not dissipate. The scientists of Parallel had reported to the
Advisory Council on which he sat, that they had discovered a method of
traveling to the Earth Parallel and back.
They had studied earth history and learned that certain events on Earth
over the centuries had adversely impacted the history of Parallel’s past, which
in turn caused problems in the present and presumably would cause more in its
future. The mantra of some of these
scientists was becoming louder and more insistent: “As on Earth, so in Qualto. As in Qualto, so
throughout creation.”
Events
in the Qualto Parallel were reaching catastrophic levels which, if the course
of events was not changed, could bring about the total annihilation of this and
several other parallels. There were two
schools of thought. Both groups were
adamant, and some individuals were even violently insistent that their way was
the only way.
One
group, the AHI (the Adherents to Historical Integrity), was demanding strict
adherence to the Law of Non-interference.
“Let the natural flow of history do what it will. If that means we die, we die! To interfere would be to mess with Creator’s
plan. The natural order of things will
take care of itself, and we must absolutely prevent any disruption in that
order. Though they would never admit it,
the AHI was willing to break that Law in order to prevent any other
interference.
The
other group, the HCC (the Historical Corrections Committee) was insisting that
interference in Earth’s history could save many of the worlds in linked
parallels, by preventing the death and destruction that started it all. There would be some upheaval of the histories
of some parallels, including Qualto, but those changes would be in the best
interests of the future of all living things, of every associated parallel. Those interferences, if Creator permitted
them or encouraged them, would be blessed by Creator. At least, they argued, they would be
attempting to do something positive instead of accepting the fall of all.
The
Dadelos was caught in the crossfire of both groups. As he woke up, a plan began to formulate in
his mind. Both groups had powerful and
wealthy leaders preaching their causes.
The anti-interference group had the more vocal and violent members who, the
Dadelos had verified evidence, ironically enough, were already interfering with
those native groups on Earth attempting to prevent violence and warfare. He considered the AHI to be the most
dangerous and radical of the two groups, even more so since they knew the
possibility for historical intervention was now possible.
Therefore,
whatever he decided to do would have to be done in utmost secrecy, with only a
few highly trusted scientists involved.
The list of the HCC inner circle would be called in, one at a time, to
help formulate a plan. He would also
call in the leading scientists of the AHI, the opposition leaders, for informal
discussions to discover what he could of their plans, alternating them between
the two groups, to keep the AHI from discovering his own plans.
Since
he was the spiritual advisor to Supreme Leader of the GLA (the Governmental
Legislative Authority for the whole planet), he was able to have funding
channeled to the “Historical Corrections Committee,” of which he was the
chair. The AHI was a great supporter of
that fund, but thought of it as being responsible for renovations of historical
sites throughout the planet, and nothing more.
While they were opposed to messing with history, they had little
interest in restoring historical sites, and showed no interest in participating
on that committee. Thus the Dadelos and
his hand-picked committee had free reign over a sizeable fund. Superficial improvements to historical sites
satisfied the yearly review of the work of the committee.
Months
turned to years as people and resources were gathered, and a secret location was
obtained. For complete secrecy and
anonymity, the location for the main laboratory was actually in another undisclosed
parallel one of the younger scientists discovered and recommended in an
interview. It was easily accessible from
this Parallel, but only from a specific location in the Dadelos’ compound. How the young man had accomplished that feat,
Dadelos Gompton had no idea. The
mathematics and quantum physics of the process was beyond his
comprehension.
The
recruitment of trusted leaders for the effort, and determining exactly what
they would do, and how they would carry it out, involved a great deal of study
and discussion. The Dadelos set the
inner circle to work answering those questions.
As
trusted scientists in many and various world-wide locations, they had access to
planetary data bases. Their numerous
searches narrowed the field of potential candidates for the assignment.
Young
married couples were interviewed over the following year for support positions
in various Earth countries, to determine their interest in visiting and even
living in a backward world such as Earth.
On the surface, the AHI and the HCC cooperated with the understanding
that these people were being sent for historical research only. They were only sent for brief periods because
of the time differences which would make them miss too much of what was
happening in their own families and villages.
After
spending time in Earth Parallel, the AHI believed these volunteers were no
longer viable candidates for visits to Earth and dismissed them. However, the HCC secretly interviewed them to
discover if they had any interest or desire for becoming permanent support
personnel for the missions being planned for the future.
Using
techniques for “reading” the truth of the prospects, the HCC was able to narrow
the field and send them back to live as permanent citizens of Earth. Paperwork and identity concerns were a
problem at first, but a subcommittee of HCC solved the problem by training a small
contingency of support staff for that specific purpose. They then sent them to Earth to plant the
necessary backgrounds in official records in each country.
Another
group of scientists produced permanent language chips which could be surgically
implanted near the hypothalamus of each support member which made it possible
for them to read, write, and speak the appropriate Earth language. Other useful skills given to support team
members made the new residents in every community welcome additions. In every case, they were able to tie in to
the history of a family that had moved away (and died) years before, whom at
least two or three old-timers in the town or village remembered.
The
final plans were submitted in secret to the Dadelos, who had already agreed to
sign the documents and initiate the program.
One problem remained to be answered:
“Who will lead the Mission Team?”
It was agreed that one couple from Qualto would need to be established
as residents of Earth, but an established Earth person or couple would need to
be recruited, trained, and equipped. It
was agreed by the HCC that the Earth couple could legally interfere with Earth
events on Earth under the guidance and supervision of a Parallel Team leader
without violating the “Non Interference Law.”
After
days of computer searches, Dryxxl and Vdelechy Grobbbfriched were chosen. They
were a young married couple of childbearing age who could establish themselves
and raise a family like typical Earth inhabitants, before beginning the mission
project. It was agreed, their Earth names
would be Tomas and Judith Talbert.
Tomas
and Judith Talbert established themselves in Baltimore, Maryland. Tomas joined the state police force,
developing a reputation as a tough and reliable officer, and a thorough
investigator. He was recruited by the
FBI and in subsequent years by the CIA and then the NSA, before “retiring” at a
young afrom law enforcement to move his family to California. There, he became a building contractor, but
occasionally carried out investigative and covert work for the FBI, the CIA,
and the NSA.
His wife Judith had been trained as a
medical doctor in the Qualto Parallel.
Attending Johns Hopkins to obtain a degree, a license, and a reputation
as a topnotch surgeon, seemed to be a natural fit.
While
in Baltimore, they had two children, Stephanie and Constantine. Because of
Tomas’ connections with governmental agency it was agreed that the family
should to California, where their children grew up and both established
themselves in their respective occupations.
Once
Constantine, the last of their children to marry had left home, the master plan
of the Parallel Missions was set in motion.
Tomas and Judith both returned to Parallel for upgrades to their
training and equipment. Judith returned
via a portal to set things in order for their move from California for the
“good life” and the slower pace of Nebraska.
Tomas
was given additional training and was sent back in a prototype ship to scout
out the area in Nebraska where they would establish themselves and recruit a
team to carry out the proposed missions.
Tomas
had been trained to fly the ship and use a wormhole to enter the Earth parallel
at the proper time. However, the science
was new enough that not all of the kinks were worked out before the first
traverse. As a result, Tomas’ ship’s
entrance through that wormhole alerted an alien ship. With very little warning, an attack
commenced.
Tomas
attempted to ellude his attacker by entering a huge storm cloud. He thought he was making progress as the
lightning strikes were deflected by the ship’s defenses. Then an enormous jolt created a gaping hole
in the side of the ship. He could feel
the ship shudder and begin to slowly fall.
The hatch flew open with a bang and he had to choose between going down
with the ship or taking a chance he might survive a fall from the ship.
He
disengaged himself from the restraints of the pilot’s seat, grabbed his
backpack, and fought his way to the gaping hatch opening. He could see the ground below slowly coming
to meet the ship through flashes of lightning.
At the last minute, he jumped, landing in a muddy depression filled with
rainwater, and rolling to a stop. It
took his breath away, but when he looked back he saw a gigantic bolt of
white-hot light strike the ship and literally vaporize it.
His
Undersuit had saved his life, but water in the depression in which he landed
and the impact of the landing had shorted out most of the power the Suit
provided. He watched as the alien ship
began searching for him. In a flash of
lightning, he saw that the contents of his backpack had scattered across the
field in which he had landed. In a flash
of another kind, he saw his favorite cap struck and vaporized by the pursuing
ship. It dawned on him that they were
zeroing in on his cloths, and the strikes were getting closer to him. He began to run and strip as he ran, looking
back to see some of the cloths he tossed away vaporize.
By
the time he had stripped down to his Undersuit, the strikes had returned to his
landing site. He ran toward a road he
could only see when lightning flashed.
It took him some time to climb over a barbed wire fence, through a muddy
ditch, and up onto the road. By the time
he reached the gravel road, he was near exhaustion, but he thought he was safe.
When he thought the worst was over,
bright lights came over the hill in the pouring rain. He ran until he stumbled over the edge of the
road…. Wet darkness engulfed him.***************************
To order Parallel Missions-The Journey Begins, check with Amazon or email me direct at: larry.sydow@gmail.com
Wednesday, December 28, 2016
PARALLEL MISSIONS - 1
This post is the first chapter of my first attempt at writing a science fiction book. If you are interested in reading more, let me know and I'll add more chapters. (larry.sydow@gmail.com)
PARALLEL MISSIONS
Larry L. Sydow - 2014
Chapter One
MISSION ONE
“Good morning, Sleeping Beauty. Time to wake up. Approximately 5,000 miles from target location. We’ll be entering the earth’s gravitational field in a few minutes.”
The voice of the computer interrupted Derek’s brief nap in the weightlessness of space. The ship’s artificial gravity could have kept him grounded, but he found that he enjoyed the feeling of weightlessness for naps.
This was to be his first official solo mission in his own Parallel. While somewhat anxious, his anxiety gave way to automatic responses for which he had been trained. Like breathing, there were actions he would take, commands he would give without having to think them through.
In a short time gravity would start to claim his body again. Grasping the support that kept him from banging around while floating in the cabin, he replied, “Thanks, Bart. I could have used a little more sleep. Begin cloaking and prepare for landing. How much time until touch-down?”
“Ten minutes. Time to suit up and prepare power-packs. The color will be blue, the language will be Portugese, your name for this mission will be Mateus, and the level of danger will be 8.4.”
“Thanks for the info!” Mateus replied as he stripped off all of his street clothes and placed them in a storage compartment. As gravity began to pull him to the floor of the ship, he opened another storage compartment, withdrew a blue container, opened it and began to don his uniform. “The people at Parallel Command said it was urgent, but they were too busy getting me into the ship before the clock struck midnight and my chariot turned into a pumpkin! Can you fill me in on some of the details as I’m suiting up?”
“I believe you were joking about your chariot turning into a pumpkin. If the chariot is this ship, that would be quite an impossible feat,” Bart replied. “As for the briefing, Captain Horace Tomlinson was taken prisoner by a Brazilian terrorist group three weeks ago. They threatened to start cutting off parts of his body every day until their demands are met, keeping him alive until the last part to be severed is his head. In exactly three hour and fourteen minutes, the mutilations will begin. As you know, as goes this world, so will go Parallel. His child, still to be conceived, will be critical to the future development of a serum which will prevent a hyper virus infestation and world-wide pandemic, which in turn will prevent the birth of another child who will be instrumental in....”
“I get the point,” Mateus interrupted.
“I was merely answering your question.”
“I understand. I didn’t mean to insult you. I just don’t think I have time to hear the whole story. Please check my suit systems.”
“All systems are functioning at maximum capacity. You are good to go.”
Mateus snapped the last of the clips connecting his face mask to the rest of the system. The suit he put on included skin-tight body underwear. From the looks of it, it was a nice Spandex-like suit which contoured itself to every part of the body, almost like a second skin made of fine cloth. The only thing this suit didn’t cover was his head. The under suit was powered by paper-thin battery-like strips along the inside of each leg and along either side of the backbone. Each power strip contained enough power to light an entire city block for two to three weeks without recharging.
Both the outer and inner gloves were detachable. The controls for both the inner and outer suits were in the fingertips of the gloves of the inner suit. The thumbs of each hand activated the “triggers” found in the four digits on each hand. The pinky of the right hand, when touched by the thumb of that hand, caused the suit to seal itself from the buttocks, up the back to the neck. Applying the thumb of the left hand to the pinky of that hand, caused the sealing connectors of the under suit to deactivate so that the wearer was released in reverse order making it possible to remove the suit.
The other finger controls that were active were the index finger, which activated the deadly “reflecting” action of the under suit. When touched, it surrounded the wearer with a two foot bubble of protection and would cause whatever missile or object fired at the wearer to literally “return to sender” at twice the speed at which it was fired. The result would be lethal. With the gloves, hood and goggles of the outer suit on, the radius of protection increased to four feet. Everything and everyone within that bubble was safe from outside projectiles.
The right middle finger was responsible for “deflecting” objects from the body. It was used if the wearer did not want to injure the person firing the weapon. It was a safety switch against killing the very person they were sent to save, should that person gain access to a weapon, think the operator was the enemy, and fire on them. The right ring finger controlled the heat, raising it if it was too cold. The left ring finger, controlled the cooling, if things got too hot.
The index finger of the left hand activated a powerful light on the mask for illuminating a dark room; or with a second or third press of the thumb, would increase the intensity of the light and could temporarily blind the opponent. The left middle finger activated a microphone and speaker on the mask so that the operator could be clearly heard. It also activated the sound and video recording. The video cameras, microphones and speakers were located on the front of the mask and at the base of the neck where the mask attached to the outer suit. This provided a view of what was happening in front of and behind the person wearing it.
The underwear, the coveralls, the mask, and the gloves each carried its own power supply on various parts of the body. Each item could function independently, but was interfaced with the other parts, and could serve as backup in an emergency. The power packs on the outer suit were more than one hundred times as powerful as that contained in the underwear, since they powered internal life-support and filtration systems and increased the power and radius of the “Deflector/Reflector” unit.
The outer suit, made of even stronger and more powerful materials than the inner suit, looked very much like an ordinary pair of coveralls, except that it completely covered everything, except eyes, nose, mouth and hands. The eyes, nose, and mouth were covered by a mirrored glass-like mask made of an impenetrable substance. The mask was to be worn for all missions and was not removed until only team members were present.
Every part of the complete suit was the same color, and was color-coded for various missions, countries, and nations, so that the rescued, their captors, and any other observers would believe the person wearing them came from their own country or the country with which they associated.
Every coverall, no matter the color, had a circular emblem about two inches in diameter. Within a circle of laurel leaves were the words in Latin: “Vim enim parit vis – Pacem videlicet pacis“ (Violence begets Violence – Peace begets Peace”). Those words circled the earth as seen from space.
“Sixty seconds to touch down,” the computer announced.
Cloaked from radar and all outside watchers, the ship gently and noiselessly touched down.
“Give me a visual, please.”
The screen on the exit panel lit up with a view of the building in which Captain Horace Tomlinson was kept prisoner. It was a typical Brazilian box-shaped, two story house, painted an aging and peeling white. One guard, in his mid-twenties, wearing street clothes and a ball cap turned backward, sat in the dark shadows, on a stoop, outside the front door. His automatic weapon rested on his lap. The cigarette glowed in the dark as he inhaled, and the smoke he exhaled escaped the shadows into the faint moon light. There were no other lights to be seen, inside or outside of the house. The house itself was isolated by empty lots overgrown with weeds, brush, and trash. Neighboring houses were quiet and only dimly lighted. Their occupants were most likely deep into their two A.M. dreams, not even thinking of getting up to start their day.
Mateus did another systems check on his suit. Then touching his thumb to the index of his right hand to activate the “Reflector” system, the middle finger of his left hand to activate the audio, video, and recording functions on his mask, he began the mission to save Captain Tomlinson.
“The ship’s recorders are functioning and all systems are armed.” Bart reported.
“Drop the cloak, open the hatch, and maintain security,” Mateus commanded. “Allow only Captain Tomlinson and me to enter.”
The ship had landed unnoticed on the front lawn of the house, less than twenty feet from the door. When the ship uncloaked, the cigarette fell from between the guard’s lips, he stood up quickly in shock, almost dropping his gun. Mateus stepped onto the exit ramp and walked purposely toward the house, illuminated by light from the ship. The guard quickly raised his weapon, prepared to fire.
Speaking in fluent Portugese, Mateus warned, “I am unarmed and mean you no harm. However, do not fire your weapon at me or my ship. To do so will endanger your life. I have come to collect your prisoner and take him to safety.”
Before the words were all out of his mouth, he heard the guard’s automatic weapon fire several rapid shots. There was a brief moment of silence, the moan of the guard, the clatter of the weapon as he dropped it, and the thud of his body thrown back and slammed into the stoop on which he had been sitting. After hitting the wall, his body slid to the walkway. The sight of the guard was not pretty. Every bullet he fired came back to rip through him without mercy. “I think I need to work on my presentation a little. He obviously didn’t like it.”
The door was locked from the outside with three dead bolt locks and a steel bar padlocked to its bracket. As Mateus moved the guard’s lifeless body from the path between the door and his ship, the keys dangled from the dead man’s belt. Reaching down, Mateus extracted the key ring, unlocked the padlock, removed the bar, found the key for each of the deadbolts, and opened the door. The sensors in his mask informed him of the smell of a decaying human body, human excrement, human body odor, and infection which wafted out of the dark opening. “So thankful for the pure air this mask provides,” he mused to himself. “Those aromas would probably make me lose my stomach. Touching his thumb to the index finger of his left hand Mateus turned on his mask-light and scanned the interior. In the far corner lay a bloated decaying corpse, still bound hand and foot as if it were going to get up and try to escape. The room was devoid of any furnishings. There were three windows with steel bars, visible through tattered curtains.
The only other occupant lay on a thin filthy mat and was partially covered with a filthy, ragged looking blanket. On hearing the door open and seeing the light, the prisoner jerked at the chain attached to the wall and half turned to see what was happening. Weakly blinking his deep-set darkened eyes, he spoke as though he wanted to scream, but had no strength to do so. “Is this it? Are you going to start cutting me up? Cut off my damn leg first, will you? I can’t stand the pain!”
Mateus was impressed that he had strength to speak at all. It was obvious at first glance that he had been beaten multiple times. The blanket he had wrapped around his shoulders did not cover the gaping infected wound in his left thigh. The sight of it was enough to turn most peoples’ stomachs. Mateus took a deep breath, swallowed, and reminded himself of the mission he had to accomplish. Losing his stomach contents wouldn’t help anyone. The wound was badly infected. His captors had not bothered to wash or dress it, probably not wanting to waste time on it since the U.S. government didn’t negotiate with kidnappers. They would keep him alive, let the “Butcher of Sao Paulo” have his fun, and send the body parts one at a time just to make their point. Why bother fixing what the “Butcher” would just cut off anyway?!
“What’s going on down there?!” The Portugese voice came from a narrow stairway leading up to the second floor.
Switching to “Deflector” with his thumb and the middle finger of his right hand, and kneeling beside the Captain, Mateus spoke again in Portugese, announcing, “I am unarmed and mean you no harm. However, do not fire your weapon at me. To do so may be hazardous to your life.”
A man in a nightshirt appeared on the stairs with an old rifle. When his eyes saw Mateus his finger pulled the trigger and a bullet ricocheted off the shield Mateus had established. The bullet struck the wall an inch from the guard’s head.
“I am protected by a shield. Your bullets will not harm me or the Captain, but they could do great harm to you.”
Another bullet ricocheted, this time clipping the guard’s left shoulder.
“Please! Stop! You are only harming yourself! The guard outside the door did not listen to me. He is lying outside - dead by his own bullets. Put your weapon down! Now!”
The weapon slid to the floor as the guard grasped his bleeding shoulder and turned to beat a rapid retreat.
Before he could take the first step, Mateus spoke, “Tell your superiors that kidnaping will not be tolerated. Have them check the bullets in your friend to discover that what I told you is true. I have no weapons. The bullets that wound and kill are from your own weapons. Should your group continue its kidnaping, torture and killing spree, I will find your leaders and exact payment from them. Am I understood?”
Cringing, holding his wounded shoulder, and nodding his head, he raced up the stairs two at a time. A door slammed and a scraping sound gave proof that the guard was blocking the door and would not be causing any further trouble.
“Who are you?” the Captain moaned.
“My name is Mateus,” he answered in English, with a heavy Portugese accent. “Do not be afraid Captain. I have come to take you to safety. As long as you are with me, no one can harm you in any way.”
Searching the key ring he had taken from the guard to open the door, he found a key that fit the locks on the Captain’s swollen, red, chafed wrists and ankles. He released them, one by one. Carefully removing the tattered dirty blanket, Mateus threw it in the corner by the rotting corpse. “Do you know who the corpse was?” he asked the Captain.
“I have no idea. They told me that would be me if I gave them any trouble.”
Mateus steeled himself for a closer look at the body. There appeared to be dog-tags imbedded in the decaying flesh of the victim’s neck. Mateus removed them, went over to the blanket he had just discard, and wiped as much of the gore from them as he could. Reluctantly he returned to see what else there might be. In a vest pocket, he withdrew a picture of a family, supposedly the family that would be mourning the man’s death. Checking further, he noted that the man’s fingers had been removed, along with his ears and his right foot. With the camera in his mask sending images to the ship’s computer, he recorded as many of the details as he could in a short time. He knew he needed to move quickly before neighbors, kidnappers, or police came to investigate the shots that had been fired.
Returning to the Captain, who seemed to have passed out, Mateus gently reached under the captain’s legs, carefully avoiding his left thigh, to pick him up and carry him to the waiting ship. The Captain’s emaciated body made the task easier. His wounds and starvation diet over the past several weeks had taken their toll on his muscle mass and body weight.
As Mateus exited the door, he heard an engine roar to life in the distance and tires screaming on the asphalt street. It was time to make as much haste as possible before the “big guns” arrived. Walking carefully over the pool of blood left by the guard, Mateus pressed the thumb and index finger of his right hand to switch from “Deflector” to “Reflector”. These people would shoot before he could give them any kind of warning. The pickup truck, loaded with six heavily armed men, screeched to a stop as Mateus and his burden reached the ramp leading to the ship’s entry door. Before Mateus could turn to speak, multiple gun shots struck both his and the ship’s shields. Mateus stepped into the ship and laid the unconscious Captain on the rubber-like mat in a man-sized “tub” with six inch tall sides surrounding the mat.
When he stepped outside again, the sight that greeted him was sad and gruesome. The four men who fired at him lay in pools of their own blood. “Please do not fire your weapons!” he pleaded with the remaining two. “I have no weapons. Those who lay dead, died by their own bullets. Your bullets will not kill me, but they will kill you. Violence begets violence! Peace begets peace!”
Just then, the second floor guard emerged from the door of the house, took aim and fired. When his own bullet tore into him, it pushed him into the door frame. A look of shocked surprise crossed his face as he dropped his weapon, fell to his knees, and landed face down on the walkway.
The men from the pickup were as surprised as Mateus at the interruption. The one giving orders shouted, “We will see!” And see he did, as he fired, and his own bullets ripped through his chest. The remaining gunman seemed to be paralyzed with shock and fear for a few seconds, before he slowly laid down his gun and fell to his knees. Holding up his hands, he begged, “Please! For the sake of my family.... Please!”
“Look at me!” Mateus ordered. When the man failed to look up, Mateus shouted again, “Look at me!”
The terrified man slowly lifted his head to look at the one he was sure would kill him. Mateus quietly explained, almost sympathetically, “As you see, I am unarmed. I could not hurt you if I wanted to. Those who are dead died because they would not listen. Their own bullets killed them. Your life was spared because you did not fire your weapon. Had you done so, you too would be face down in a pool of your own blood. I want you to pass on a message to your superiors. Will you do that?”
The response was instant. Nodding his head vigorously he replied, “Yes! Before God, I promise!”
Mateus spoke in simple terms so the message would be clear, “Describe to your bosses what you have seen and heard this night. Tell them everything. My name is Mateus. I am one of many who are commissioned to put a stop to kidnaping and violence. Violence begets violence and peace begets peace! Those who continue on this violent path are given this one warning. Their leaders will answer to me, and the cost will be very high.”
Mateus then drew a copy of his message from his pocket, walked over to the still shaking man, and handed it to him. It read:
“Kidnaping, torture, and terrorism against any of the Creator’s sons or daughters, even infidels, are opposed to the Creator’s will and commands. They will not be tolerated. We came in peace, unarmed, to rescue one of the Creator’s own. The bullets that wound and kill are your own. Violence begets violence. Peace begets peace!”
He then told the man, “If you do not change occupations, you will not live long. If you walk the way of peace, you will find your reward.”
Mateus returned to his ship. Before closing the entry door, he turned for one last look at the message-bearer. The man seemed to have fainted dead away, grasping the message as if it were a life-line.
“Close the hatch. Do a systems check. Cloak the ship, ascend to 50,000 feet, and hold position.”
“All systems are go!” Bart announced. “As for Captain Tomlinson, my sensors indicate serious and life-threatening conditions need to be dealt with ASAP. Shall I contact Parallel Command to inform them of our situation?”
“Yes, thank you,” Mateus replied as he deactivated the controls and removed his gloves. He would keep the rest of his uniform on and would not remove it until the Captain was no longer with them. He would also continue to be Mateus for that period of time.
To both captives and captors, Mateus had been a Portugese speaking stranger dressed head to toe in blue, who also spoke broken English, had use of advanced technology, and was no one to mess with. This was the persona designed by Parallel scientists who had recruited him. The microscopic chip they had inserted near his hypothalmus made it possible for him to learn and retain almost three dozen languages, allowing him to read, write, and speak each language as if he had grown up with the it.
The moan from the Captain brought Mateus back to the business at hand. His face mask had informed him that the odors from the Captain’s body and the infection in his leg wound were pretty strong. The filtration system of his mask was helping immensely. The first order of business was to clean the Captain up. Any movement of his left leg sent the semi-conscious soldier into spasms of pain. There was only one thing he could do to get him out of his filthy clothes without undue suffering. Mateus knelt and lightly touched the fingertips of both hands. He concentrated on his fingertips as he had been taught, centering the energy he wanted to pass on. When satisfied that the balance was right, Mateus placed his right hand on the Captain’s forehead, and using his left hand to cradle his head, Mateus closed his eyes and concentrated again, this time on the thought of painless sleep. Within second, his patient relaxed and fell peacefully, painlessly, and blissfully into a deep, restful sleep.
With care not to cause further injury, Mateus began removing what was left of the Captain’s tattered uniform. The clothes, except for his boots, were all placed in a mesh-like bag. The bag was then dropped into a chute, where its contents would be thoroughly washed and sterilized.
Mateus placed the dog tags from the dead man into another bag with the piece of blanket in which he had wrapped them after wiping off most of the gore. This bag would ride with the Captain and his clothes into Parallel.
The Captain looked to be between twenty and thirty. He was covered with welts, bruises, numerous superficial knife wounds, and had badly bruised and swollen testicles the size of large oranges. He also had an ugly looking, badly infected wound to his left thigh. Mateus could only imagine the cause of many of the wounds.
Mateus then filled the “tub” with warm water from the ship’s storage tanks. The process of bathing the sleeping Captain took three changes of water. Each change involved the addition of different solutions which cleansed and rejuvenated damaged tissue. The water from each change was recycled and distilled to avoid waste.
Mateus drained the last of the water from the tub using a vacuum tube. Once that was done, he deflated the walls of the “tub” and dried his patient. He then placed four circular sensors on the Captain’s back, four more on his chest, and two each on his wrists. He then wrapped him in fresh, warm towels.
“Vital signs are dangerously weak,” Bart reported.
“Thank you, Bart,” Mateus had cleaned the wounded thigh, but it still oozed a smelly puss. He had enough medical training to know he needed help with that wound. In addition, the Captains testicles, most likely swollen from repeated kicks to his groin would need professional care or the Captain would never father the child his wife was to have. “His wounds are far more extensive than I can handle by myself.”
By the time the thigh was dressed with minimal dressings, the contents of the mesh bags were ready to be transported with the Captain. Mateus placed them between the Captain’s legs and covered them and his patient with large towels for the trip.
“Blood pressure and heart rate are reaching critical levels,” Bart reported. “I recommend immediate action to save his life.”
“Bart,” he commanded, “take us to the nearest Port of Entry as quickly as possible.”
Mateus felt the acceleration and change in direction as the last word left his mouth. In a matter of thirty seconds, Bart announced, “Approaching the Port of Entry. Docking will be complete in sixty seconds.”
A minute later, Mateus felt the connection and prepared to transfer the Captain to the Parallel Port where he would receive the treatments he needed. He had been there himself once and knew the Captain would be well cared for. Parallel was medically and scientifically several hundred years advanced over his own world. The Captain would be gone a couple of hours, Mateus’s time, but most likely a year or more in the world to which he was to be transferred. Chronologically he would age by that time period, but physically he would be healed and rejuvenated so that when he returned, he would look and feel better than he had on his eighteenth birthday.
“Pressure equalization complete,” Bart reported. “The hatch will open in fifteen seconds.”
Fifteen seconds later, the hatch opened. Mateus gently slid the mat on which the Captain slept through the dark opening where he seemed to be absorbed into the Portal opening. As Mateus stepped back, the hatch closed with a quiet click. Now he would wait for the Captain’s return.
PARALLEL MISSIONS
Larry L. Sydow - 2014
Chapter One
MISSION ONE
“Good morning, Sleeping Beauty. Time to wake up. Approximately 5,000 miles from target location. We’ll be entering the earth’s gravitational field in a few minutes.”
The voice of the computer interrupted Derek’s brief nap in the weightlessness of space. The ship’s artificial gravity could have kept him grounded, but he found that he enjoyed the feeling of weightlessness for naps.
This was to be his first official solo mission in his own Parallel. While somewhat anxious, his anxiety gave way to automatic responses for which he had been trained. Like breathing, there were actions he would take, commands he would give without having to think them through.
In a short time gravity would start to claim his body again. Grasping the support that kept him from banging around while floating in the cabin, he replied, “Thanks, Bart. I could have used a little more sleep. Begin cloaking and prepare for landing. How much time until touch-down?”
“Ten minutes. Time to suit up and prepare power-packs. The color will be blue, the language will be Portugese, your name for this mission will be Mateus, and the level of danger will be 8.4.”
“Thanks for the info!” Mateus replied as he stripped off all of his street clothes and placed them in a storage compartment. As gravity began to pull him to the floor of the ship, he opened another storage compartment, withdrew a blue container, opened it and began to don his uniform. “The people at Parallel Command said it was urgent, but they were too busy getting me into the ship before the clock struck midnight and my chariot turned into a pumpkin! Can you fill me in on some of the details as I’m suiting up?”
“I believe you were joking about your chariot turning into a pumpkin. If the chariot is this ship, that would be quite an impossible feat,” Bart replied. “As for the briefing, Captain Horace Tomlinson was taken prisoner by a Brazilian terrorist group three weeks ago. They threatened to start cutting off parts of his body every day until their demands are met, keeping him alive until the last part to be severed is his head. In exactly three hour and fourteen minutes, the mutilations will begin. As you know, as goes this world, so will go Parallel. His child, still to be conceived, will be critical to the future development of a serum which will prevent a hyper virus infestation and world-wide pandemic, which in turn will prevent the birth of another child who will be instrumental in....”
“I get the point,” Mateus interrupted.
“I was merely answering your question.”
“I understand. I didn’t mean to insult you. I just don’t think I have time to hear the whole story. Please check my suit systems.”
“All systems are functioning at maximum capacity. You are good to go.”
Mateus snapped the last of the clips connecting his face mask to the rest of the system. The suit he put on included skin-tight body underwear. From the looks of it, it was a nice Spandex-like suit which contoured itself to every part of the body, almost like a second skin made of fine cloth. The only thing this suit didn’t cover was his head. The under suit was powered by paper-thin battery-like strips along the inside of each leg and along either side of the backbone. Each power strip contained enough power to light an entire city block for two to three weeks without recharging.
Both the outer and inner gloves were detachable. The controls for both the inner and outer suits were in the fingertips of the gloves of the inner suit. The thumbs of each hand activated the “triggers” found in the four digits on each hand. The pinky of the right hand, when touched by the thumb of that hand, caused the suit to seal itself from the buttocks, up the back to the neck. Applying the thumb of the left hand to the pinky of that hand, caused the sealing connectors of the under suit to deactivate so that the wearer was released in reverse order making it possible to remove the suit.
The other finger controls that were active were the index finger, which activated the deadly “reflecting” action of the under suit. When touched, it surrounded the wearer with a two foot bubble of protection and would cause whatever missile or object fired at the wearer to literally “return to sender” at twice the speed at which it was fired. The result would be lethal. With the gloves, hood and goggles of the outer suit on, the radius of protection increased to four feet. Everything and everyone within that bubble was safe from outside projectiles.
The right middle finger was responsible for “deflecting” objects from the body. It was used if the wearer did not want to injure the person firing the weapon. It was a safety switch against killing the very person they were sent to save, should that person gain access to a weapon, think the operator was the enemy, and fire on them. The right ring finger controlled the heat, raising it if it was too cold. The left ring finger, controlled the cooling, if things got too hot.
The index finger of the left hand activated a powerful light on the mask for illuminating a dark room; or with a second or third press of the thumb, would increase the intensity of the light and could temporarily blind the opponent. The left middle finger activated a microphone and speaker on the mask so that the operator could be clearly heard. It also activated the sound and video recording. The video cameras, microphones and speakers were located on the front of the mask and at the base of the neck where the mask attached to the outer suit. This provided a view of what was happening in front of and behind the person wearing it.
The underwear, the coveralls, the mask, and the gloves each carried its own power supply on various parts of the body. Each item could function independently, but was interfaced with the other parts, and could serve as backup in an emergency. The power packs on the outer suit were more than one hundred times as powerful as that contained in the underwear, since they powered internal life-support and filtration systems and increased the power and radius of the “Deflector/Reflector” unit.
The outer suit, made of even stronger and more powerful materials than the inner suit, looked very much like an ordinary pair of coveralls, except that it completely covered everything, except eyes, nose, mouth and hands. The eyes, nose, and mouth were covered by a mirrored glass-like mask made of an impenetrable substance. The mask was to be worn for all missions and was not removed until only team members were present.
Every part of the complete suit was the same color, and was color-coded for various missions, countries, and nations, so that the rescued, their captors, and any other observers would believe the person wearing them came from their own country or the country with which they associated.
Every coverall, no matter the color, had a circular emblem about two inches in diameter. Within a circle of laurel leaves were the words in Latin: “Vim enim parit vis – Pacem videlicet pacis“ (Violence begets Violence – Peace begets Peace”). Those words circled the earth as seen from space.
“Sixty seconds to touch down,” the computer announced.
Cloaked from radar and all outside watchers, the ship gently and noiselessly touched down.
“Give me a visual, please.”
The screen on the exit panel lit up with a view of the building in which Captain Horace Tomlinson was kept prisoner. It was a typical Brazilian box-shaped, two story house, painted an aging and peeling white. One guard, in his mid-twenties, wearing street clothes and a ball cap turned backward, sat in the dark shadows, on a stoop, outside the front door. His automatic weapon rested on his lap. The cigarette glowed in the dark as he inhaled, and the smoke he exhaled escaped the shadows into the faint moon light. There were no other lights to be seen, inside or outside of the house. The house itself was isolated by empty lots overgrown with weeds, brush, and trash. Neighboring houses were quiet and only dimly lighted. Their occupants were most likely deep into their two A.M. dreams, not even thinking of getting up to start their day.
Mateus did another systems check on his suit. Then touching his thumb to the index of his right hand to activate the “Reflector” system, the middle finger of his left hand to activate the audio, video, and recording functions on his mask, he began the mission to save Captain Tomlinson.
“The ship’s recorders are functioning and all systems are armed.” Bart reported.
“Drop the cloak, open the hatch, and maintain security,” Mateus commanded. “Allow only Captain Tomlinson and me to enter.”
The ship had landed unnoticed on the front lawn of the house, less than twenty feet from the door. When the ship uncloaked, the cigarette fell from between the guard’s lips, he stood up quickly in shock, almost dropping his gun. Mateus stepped onto the exit ramp and walked purposely toward the house, illuminated by light from the ship. The guard quickly raised his weapon, prepared to fire.
Speaking in fluent Portugese, Mateus warned, “I am unarmed and mean you no harm. However, do not fire your weapon at me or my ship. To do so will endanger your life. I have come to collect your prisoner and take him to safety.”
Before the words were all out of his mouth, he heard the guard’s automatic weapon fire several rapid shots. There was a brief moment of silence, the moan of the guard, the clatter of the weapon as he dropped it, and the thud of his body thrown back and slammed into the stoop on which he had been sitting. After hitting the wall, his body slid to the walkway. The sight of the guard was not pretty. Every bullet he fired came back to rip through him without mercy. “I think I need to work on my presentation a little. He obviously didn’t like it.”
The door was locked from the outside with three dead bolt locks and a steel bar padlocked to its bracket. As Mateus moved the guard’s lifeless body from the path between the door and his ship, the keys dangled from the dead man’s belt. Reaching down, Mateus extracted the key ring, unlocked the padlock, removed the bar, found the key for each of the deadbolts, and opened the door. The sensors in his mask informed him of the smell of a decaying human body, human excrement, human body odor, and infection which wafted out of the dark opening. “So thankful for the pure air this mask provides,” he mused to himself. “Those aromas would probably make me lose my stomach. Touching his thumb to the index finger of his left hand Mateus turned on his mask-light and scanned the interior. In the far corner lay a bloated decaying corpse, still bound hand and foot as if it were going to get up and try to escape. The room was devoid of any furnishings. There were three windows with steel bars, visible through tattered curtains.
The only other occupant lay on a thin filthy mat and was partially covered with a filthy, ragged looking blanket. On hearing the door open and seeing the light, the prisoner jerked at the chain attached to the wall and half turned to see what was happening. Weakly blinking his deep-set darkened eyes, he spoke as though he wanted to scream, but had no strength to do so. “Is this it? Are you going to start cutting me up? Cut off my damn leg first, will you? I can’t stand the pain!”
Mateus was impressed that he had strength to speak at all. It was obvious at first glance that he had been beaten multiple times. The blanket he had wrapped around his shoulders did not cover the gaping infected wound in his left thigh. The sight of it was enough to turn most peoples’ stomachs. Mateus took a deep breath, swallowed, and reminded himself of the mission he had to accomplish. Losing his stomach contents wouldn’t help anyone. The wound was badly infected. His captors had not bothered to wash or dress it, probably not wanting to waste time on it since the U.S. government didn’t negotiate with kidnappers. They would keep him alive, let the “Butcher of Sao Paulo” have his fun, and send the body parts one at a time just to make their point. Why bother fixing what the “Butcher” would just cut off anyway?!
“What’s going on down there?!” The Portugese voice came from a narrow stairway leading up to the second floor.
Switching to “Deflector” with his thumb and the middle finger of his right hand, and kneeling beside the Captain, Mateus spoke again in Portugese, announcing, “I am unarmed and mean you no harm. However, do not fire your weapon at me. To do so may be hazardous to your life.”
A man in a nightshirt appeared on the stairs with an old rifle. When his eyes saw Mateus his finger pulled the trigger and a bullet ricocheted off the shield Mateus had established. The bullet struck the wall an inch from the guard’s head.
“I am protected by a shield. Your bullets will not harm me or the Captain, but they could do great harm to you.”
Another bullet ricocheted, this time clipping the guard’s left shoulder.
“Please! Stop! You are only harming yourself! The guard outside the door did not listen to me. He is lying outside - dead by his own bullets. Put your weapon down! Now!”
The weapon slid to the floor as the guard grasped his bleeding shoulder and turned to beat a rapid retreat.
Before he could take the first step, Mateus spoke, “Tell your superiors that kidnaping will not be tolerated. Have them check the bullets in your friend to discover that what I told you is true. I have no weapons. The bullets that wound and kill are from your own weapons. Should your group continue its kidnaping, torture and killing spree, I will find your leaders and exact payment from them. Am I understood?”
Cringing, holding his wounded shoulder, and nodding his head, he raced up the stairs two at a time. A door slammed and a scraping sound gave proof that the guard was blocking the door and would not be causing any further trouble.
“Who are you?” the Captain moaned.
“My name is Mateus,” he answered in English, with a heavy Portugese accent. “Do not be afraid Captain. I have come to take you to safety. As long as you are with me, no one can harm you in any way.”
Searching the key ring he had taken from the guard to open the door, he found a key that fit the locks on the Captain’s swollen, red, chafed wrists and ankles. He released them, one by one. Carefully removing the tattered dirty blanket, Mateus threw it in the corner by the rotting corpse. “Do you know who the corpse was?” he asked the Captain.
“I have no idea. They told me that would be me if I gave them any trouble.”
Mateus steeled himself for a closer look at the body. There appeared to be dog-tags imbedded in the decaying flesh of the victim’s neck. Mateus removed them, went over to the blanket he had just discard, and wiped as much of the gore from them as he could. Reluctantly he returned to see what else there might be. In a vest pocket, he withdrew a picture of a family, supposedly the family that would be mourning the man’s death. Checking further, he noted that the man’s fingers had been removed, along with his ears and his right foot. With the camera in his mask sending images to the ship’s computer, he recorded as many of the details as he could in a short time. He knew he needed to move quickly before neighbors, kidnappers, or police came to investigate the shots that had been fired.
Returning to the Captain, who seemed to have passed out, Mateus gently reached under the captain’s legs, carefully avoiding his left thigh, to pick him up and carry him to the waiting ship. The Captain’s emaciated body made the task easier. His wounds and starvation diet over the past several weeks had taken their toll on his muscle mass and body weight.
As Mateus exited the door, he heard an engine roar to life in the distance and tires screaming on the asphalt street. It was time to make as much haste as possible before the “big guns” arrived. Walking carefully over the pool of blood left by the guard, Mateus pressed the thumb and index finger of his right hand to switch from “Deflector” to “Reflector”. These people would shoot before he could give them any kind of warning. The pickup truck, loaded with six heavily armed men, screeched to a stop as Mateus and his burden reached the ramp leading to the ship’s entry door. Before Mateus could turn to speak, multiple gun shots struck both his and the ship’s shields. Mateus stepped into the ship and laid the unconscious Captain on the rubber-like mat in a man-sized “tub” with six inch tall sides surrounding the mat.
When he stepped outside again, the sight that greeted him was sad and gruesome. The four men who fired at him lay in pools of their own blood. “Please do not fire your weapons!” he pleaded with the remaining two. “I have no weapons. Those who lay dead, died by their own bullets. Your bullets will not kill me, but they will kill you. Violence begets violence! Peace begets peace!”
Just then, the second floor guard emerged from the door of the house, took aim and fired. When his own bullet tore into him, it pushed him into the door frame. A look of shocked surprise crossed his face as he dropped his weapon, fell to his knees, and landed face down on the walkway.
The men from the pickup were as surprised as Mateus at the interruption. The one giving orders shouted, “We will see!” And see he did, as he fired, and his own bullets ripped through his chest. The remaining gunman seemed to be paralyzed with shock and fear for a few seconds, before he slowly laid down his gun and fell to his knees. Holding up his hands, he begged, “Please! For the sake of my family.... Please!”
“Look at me!” Mateus ordered. When the man failed to look up, Mateus shouted again, “Look at me!”
The terrified man slowly lifted his head to look at the one he was sure would kill him. Mateus quietly explained, almost sympathetically, “As you see, I am unarmed. I could not hurt you if I wanted to. Those who are dead died because they would not listen. Their own bullets killed them. Your life was spared because you did not fire your weapon. Had you done so, you too would be face down in a pool of your own blood. I want you to pass on a message to your superiors. Will you do that?”
The response was instant. Nodding his head vigorously he replied, “Yes! Before God, I promise!”
Mateus spoke in simple terms so the message would be clear, “Describe to your bosses what you have seen and heard this night. Tell them everything. My name is Mateus. I am one of many who are commissioned to put a stop to kidnaping and violence. Violence begets violence and peace begets peace! Those who continue on this violent path are given this one warning. Their leaders will answer to me, and the cost will be very high.”
Mateus then drew a copy of his message from his pocket, walked over to the still shaking man, and handed it to him. It read:
“Kidnaping, torture, and terrorism against any of the Creator’s sons or daughters, even infidels, are opposed to the Creator’s will and commands. They will not be tolerated. We came in peace, unarmed, to rescue one of the Creator’s own. The bullets that wound and kill are your own. Violence begets violence. Peace begets peace!”
He then told the man, “If you do not change occupations, you will not live long. If you walk the way of peace, you will find your reward.”
Mateus returned to his ship. Before closing the entry door, he turned for one last look at the message-bearer. The man seemed to have fainted dead away, grasping the message as if it were a life-line.
“Close the hatch. Do a systems check. Cloak the ship, ascend to 50,000 feet, and hold position.”
“All systems are go!” Bart announced. “As for Captain Tomlinson, my sensors indicate serious and life-threatening conditions need to be dealt with ASAP. Shall I contact Parallel Command to inform them of our situation?”
“Yes, thank you,” Mateus replied as he deactivated the controls and removed his gloves. He would keep the rest of his uniform on and would not remove it until the Captain was no longer with them. He would also continue to be Mateus for that period of time.
To both captives and captors, Mateus had been a Portugese speaking stranger dressed head to toe in blue, who also spoke broken English, had use of advanced technology, and was no one to mess with. This was the persona designed by Parallel scientists who had recruited him. The microscopic chip they had inserted near his hypothalmus made it possible for him to learn and retain almost three dozen languages, allowing him to read, write, and speak each language as if he had grown up with the it.
The moan from the Captain brought Mateus back to the business at hand. His face mask had informed him that the odors from the Captain’s body and the infection in his leg wound were pretty strong. The filtration system of his mask was helping immensely. The first order of business was to clean the Captain up. Any movement of his left leg sent the semi-conscious soldier into spasms of pain. There was only one thing he could do to get him out of his filthy clothes without undue suffering. Mateus knelt and lightly touched the fingertips of both hands. He concentrated on his fingertips as he had been taught, centering the energy he wanted to pass on. When satisfied that the balance was right, Mateus placed his right hand on the Captain’s forehead, and using his left hand to cradle his head, Mateus closed his eyes and concentrated again, this time on the thought of painless sleep. Within second, his patient relaxed and fell peacefully, painlessly, and blissfully into a deep, restful sleep.
With care not to cause further injury, Mateus began removing what was left of the Captain’s tattered uniform. The clothes, except for his boots, were all placed in a mesh-like bag. The bag was then dropped into a chute, where its contents would be thoroughly washed and sterilized.
Mateus placed the dog tags from the dead man into another bag with the piece of blanket in which he had wrapped them after wiping off most of the gore. This bag would ride with the Captain and his clothes into Parallel.
The Captain looked to be between twenty and thirty. He was covered with welts, bruises, numerous superficial knife wounds, and had badly bruised and swollen testicles the size of large oranges. He also had an ugly looking, badly infected wound to his left thigh. Mateus could only imagine the cause of many of the wounds.
Mateus then filled the “tub” with warm water from the ship’s storage tanks. The process of bathing the sleeping Captain took three changes of water. Each change involved the addition of different solutions which cleansed and rejuvenated damaged tissue. The water from each change was recycled and distilled to avoid waste.
Mateus drained the last of the water from the tub using a vacuum tube. Once that was done, he deflated the walls of the “tub” and dried his patient. He then placed four circular sensors on the Captain’s back, four more on his chest, and two each on his wrists. He then wrapped him in fresh, warm towels.
“Vital signs are dangerously weak,” Bart reported.
“Thank you, Bart,” Mateus had cleaned the wounded thigh, but it still oozed a smelly puss. He had enough medical training to know he needed help with that wound. In addition, the Captains testicles, most likely swollen from repeated kicks to his groin would need professional care or the Captain would never father the child his wife was to have. “His wounds are far more extensive than I can handle by myself.”
By the time the thigh was dressed with minimal dressings, the contents of the mesh bags were ready to be transported with the Captain. Mateus placed them between the Captain’s legs and covered them and his patient with large towels for the trip.
“Blood pressure and heart rate are reaching critical levels,” Bart reported. “I recommend immediate action to save his life.”
“Bart,” he commanded, “take us to the nearest Port of Entry as quickly as possible.”
Mateus felt the acceleration and change in direction as the last word left his mouth. In a matter of thirty seconds, Bart announced, “Approaching the Port of Entry. Docking will be complete in sixty seconds.”
A minute later, Mateus felt the connection and prepared to transfer the Captain to the Parallel Port where he would receive the treatments he needed. He had been there himself once and knew the Captain would be well cared for. Parallel was medically and scientifically several hundred years advanced over his own world. The Captain would be gone a couple of hours, Mateus’s time, but most likely a year or more in the world to which he was to be transferred. Chronologically he would age by that time period, but physically he would be healed and rejuvenated so that when he returned, he would look and feel better than he had on his eighteenth birthday.
“Pressure equalization complete,” Bart reported. “The hatch will open in fifteen seconds.”
Fifteen seconds later, the hatch opened. Mateus gently slid the mat on which the Captain slept through the dark opening where he seemed to be absorbed into the Portal opening. As Mateus stepped back, the hatch closed with a quiet click. Now he would wait for the Captain’s return.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Herblore about Roses
ROSE — Rosa rugosa
Queen of Flowers, "Mean-Old-Lady-She-Sticks-You", Meadow Rose, Sweet Briar
There are about 300 species and over 1600 varieties of rose.
The rose is known world-wide.
The rose comes from the Greek "rodon" meaning red.
Legends and Superstitions:
– The Greeks claim that the rose sprang from the blood of Adonis, the handsome young man who was killed by a wild boar.
+Aphrodite, who had fallen in love with Adonis, in her sorrow, changed his blood into a rose*.
+(*Some story tellers say it was the anemone or windflower.)
– The Roman believed that the red rose came from the blood of Venus when her foot got stuck on a thorn as she was helping Adonis.
+Venus loved Adonis better than the warrior Mars, even though Adonis was younger than Mars.
+Mars loved Venus intensely, but perceived that venus loved Adonis better than him.
+He killed Adonis, thinking it would cause Venus to return to him and forget Adonis.
+However, when Venus heard of his plans she quickly ran to rescue Adonis.
+In her rush to save him she fell in a bed of white roses which pricked and wounded her tender feet.
+She bled profusely and the roses all became red with her blood permanently in remembrance of the beautiful Venus and her love for Adonis.
– Venus threw her tender body into the rose thicket willingly to spoil its beauty out of spite for what Mars had done to her fair Adonis.
– Roses became red when Cupid was teasing the goddess at a banquet.
+The undisciplined Cupid knocked over the pot of heavenly Nectar with his wings, causing it to fall to earth and gave its color to the red rose.
+Thus the red rose is called "Cupid’s flower".
– The rose did not develop thorns until after Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden.
– To pre-Christian people the rose suggested divinity.
– Fairies are attracted to gardens where roses are planted.
– Stolen roses grow best.
– Roses were found in Egyptian tombs.
+They were offered to the soul of their dead pharaohs.
– Cleopatra seduced Marc Anthony by covering the floor of her palace knee deep in roses.
– About 1000 BC the ancient Greeks made cakes out of rose hips which were called the "Food of the Gods".
– The Greeks and Romans used roses in garlands.
– The Romans were especially appreciative of the rose, using it to decorate their banquets, float in their wine, and wear in crowns.
+Brides and grooms were crowned with roses in the same way that the images of Cupid, Venus, and Bacchus were adorned.
– Roses were strewn on the floor and even scattered in the paths of victors or beneath their chariots.
+Roman victors wore roses to feasts believing that they would prevent drunkeness.
+The rose was a sign of pleasure and the companion of mirth and wine.
+Roses were also used at funerals.
– Sappho, the Greek poetess (ca. 600BC) called the rose the "Queen of Flowers".
– The Rose of Sharon mentioned in the Bible was probably a crocus or narcissus.
– The Rose of Jericho in the Bible was not related to the rose either.
+A rose of Jericho sprang up marking every place that Joseph and the Babe rested as they fled from Herod.
– The Arabic name for rose is "gulab" meaning "Queen of the Garden" or "Queen of Paradise".
– The Turks said that the red rose was stained by the blood of Muhammad.
– Saladin, the Muslim conqueror had the Omar mosque washed in rosewater to purify it in 1187 when he entered Jerusalem.
– An Islamic tradition teaches that the first thing God made in creation was the soul of prophecy.
+The soul was so bright and burning that it began to perspire, and from the first drop, God created the essence of the rose.
– In the Middle Ages, Roger Bacon created the first conserve of roses as a drink.
– The Church reconsecrated the rose to the Virgin Mary in one of many attempts to do away with anything that was associated with sorcery or pagan practices.
+St. Dominic recognized the rose when he instituted the rosary, symbolized as roses.
– A lord’s man had gathered a considerable amount of goods for his lord.
+He had to pass through a woods with his treasure.
+Thieves were waiting for him in the woods.
+After entering the woods he remembered that he had not said the rosary that day.
+As he knelt to pray the Virgin came and placed a garland on his head.
+At each "ave" she placed a rose in the garland that was so bright that they lit up the whole woods.
+While he himself was not aware it was happening the thieves were, and allowed him to pass unharmed.
– Hanging a rose over the table was once a sign that all conversations would be held in sacred confidence.
+The plaster ornament in the center of a ceiling in some older homes is a remnant of that tradition and is known as "the rose".
– Herbalists in the 16th century recommended that "Dry roses pu to the nose to smell, do comfort the brain and the heart."
– Rosewater was called "the gift of angels" and considered one of the safest healing agents available.
– Rose oil was discovered sometime in the 16th century by two persian lovers.
+The Emperor Dijihanguyr, of the Moguls, had a canal dug around his gardens and filled with rose water.
+As he and the princess Nour-Dijihan were rowing in the fragrant canal on their wedding day, they noticed how the heat of the sun had separated the water from the essential oil of the rose.
+It was skimmed off and found to be an exquisite perfume which was called "Otto of Roses" or "Attar of roses".
– In the 17th century the use of rose water was as common as present day use of vanilla.
– Rose hips and rose petals were used for rose pudding, rose syrup, and rose conserves.
– English maidens used to pluck a rose on Midsummer’s Eve to determine the faithfulness of their lovers.
+If the rose hadn’t faded by the beginning of the next month they could be certain their lover was true to them.
– A love potion can be made which will insure the love of the opposite sex.
+A certain number of red and white rose petals and forget-me-nots were to be boiled in 385 drops of water for one sixteenth of an hour.
+Three drops of the resulting elixir were to be place in something for the person to drink.
– William Penn brought 18 rose bushes with him to the new colonies when he returned from England in 1699.
– George Washington (1st president) and Thomas Jefferson (3rd president) both liked roses and grew them on their estates.
– John Adams (2nd president) planted the first roses at the White House.
– The Aztecs boiled rose water to drink as a purgative.
– Rose hips were used to produce a vitamin C substitute for children in England during Word War II because of a shortage of oranges.
– A handful of rose hips contains 60 times more vitamin C than an orange.
Medicinal uses:
Arteriosclerosis – Emphysema – Lungs – Bites – Fever – Round worms – Bruises
Fever blisters – Sore eyes – Circulation – Heart – Sore throat – Colds
Infections – Stings – Contagious diseases – Influenza – Stomach – Diarrhea
Kidneys – Stress – Eczema – Liver – Yellow jaundice
Queen of Flowers, "Mean-Old-Lady-She-Sticks-You", Meadow Rose, Sweet Briar
There are about 300 species and over 1600 varieties of rose.
The rose is known world-wide.
The rose comes from the Greek "rodon" meaning red.
Legends and Superstitions:
– The Greeks claim that the rose sprang from the blood of Adonis, the handsome young man who was killed by a wild boar.
+(*Some story tellers say it was the anemone or windflower.)
– The Roman believed that the red rose came from the blood of Venus when her foot got stuck on a thorn as she was helping Adonis.
+Mars loved Venus intensely, but perceived that venus loved Adonis better than him.
+He killed Adonis, thinking it would cause Venus to return to him and forget Adonis.
+However, when Venus heard of his plans she quickly ran to rescue Adonis.
+In her rush to save him she fell in a bed of white roses which pricked and wounded her tender feet.
+She bled profusely and the roses all became red with her blood permanently in remembrance of the beautiful Venus and her love for Adonis.
– Venus threw her tender body into the rose thicket willingly to spoil its beauty out of spite for what Mars had done to her fair Adonis.
– Roses became red when Cupid was teasing the goddess at a banquet.
+Thus the red rose is called "Cupid’s flower".
– The rose did not develop thorns until after Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden.
– To pre-Christian people the rose suggested divinity.
– Fairies are attracted to gardens where roses are planted.
– Stolen roses grow best.
– Roses were found in Egyptian tombs.
– Cleopatra seduced Marc Anthony by covering the floor of her palace knee deep in roses.
– About 1000 BC the ancient Greeks made cakes out of rose hips which were called the "Food of the Gods".
– The Greeks and Romans used roses in garlands.
– The Romans were especially appreciative of the rose, using it to decorate their banquets, float in their wine, and wear in crowns.
– Roses were strewn on the floor and even scattered in the paths of victors or beneath their chariots.
+The rose was a sign of pleasure and the companion of mirth and wine.
+Roses were also used at funerals.
– Sappho, the Greek poetess (ca. 600BC) called the rose the "Queen of Flowers".
– The Rose of Sharon mentioned in the Bible was probably a crocus or narcissus.
– The Rose of Jericho in the Bible was not related to the rose either.
– The Arabic name for rose is "gulab" meaning "Queen of the Garden" or "Queen of Paradise".
– The Turks said that the red rose was stained by the blood of Muhammad.
– Saladin, the Muslim conqueror had the Omar mosque washed in rosewater to purify it in 1187 when he entered Jerusalem.
– An Islamic tradition teaches that the first thing God made in creation was the soul of prophecy.
– In the Middle Ages, Roger Bacon created the first conserve of roses as a drink.
– The Church reconsecrated the rose to the Virgin Mary in one of many attempts to do away with anything that was associated with sorcery or pagan practices.
– A lord’s man had gathered a considerable amount of goods for his lord.
+Thieves were waiting for him in the woods.
+After entering the woods he remembered that he had not said the rosary that day.
+As he knelt to pray the Virgin came and placed a garland on his head.
+At each "ave" she placed a rose in the garland that was so bright that they lit up the whole woods.
+While he himself was not aware it was happening the thieves were, and allowed him to pass unharmed.
– Hanging a rose over the table was once a sign that all conversations would be held in sacred confidence.
– Herbalists in the 16th century recommended that "Dry roses pu to the nose to smell, do comfort the brain and the heart."
– Rosewater was called "the gift of angels" and considered one of the safest healing agents available.
– Rose oil was discovered sometime in the 16th century by two persian lovers.
+As he and the princess Nour-Dijihan were rowing in the fragrant canal on their wedding day, they noticed how the heat of the sun had separated the water from the essential oil of the rose.
+It was skimmed off and found to be an exquisite perfume which was called "Otto of Roses" or "Attar of roses".
– In the 17th century the use of rose water was as common as present day use of vanilla.
– Rose hips and rose petals were used for rose pudding, rose syrup, and rose conserves.
– English maidens used to pluck a rose on Midsummer’s Eve to determine the faithfulness of their lovers.
– A love potion can be made which will insure the love of the opposite sex.
+Three drops of the resulting elixir were to be place in something for the person to drink.
– William Penn brought 18 rose bushes with him to the new colonies when he returned from England in 1699.
– George Washington (1st president) and Thomas Jefferson (3rd president) both liked roses and grew them on their estates.
– John Adams (2nd president) planted the first roses at the White House.
– The Aztecs boiled rose water to drink as a purgative.
– Rose hips were used to produce a vitamin C substitute for children in England during Word War II because of a shortage of oranges.
– A handful of rose hips contains 60 times more vitamin C than an orange.
Medicinal uses:
Arteriosclerosis – Emphysema – Lungs – Bites – Fever – Round worms – Bruises
Fever blisters – Sore eyes – Circulation – Heart – Sore throat – Colds
Infections – Stings – Contagious diseases – Influenza – Stomach – Diarrhea
Kidneys – Stress – Eczema – Liver – Yellow jaundice
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Cinnamon and Honey
Honey is the only food on the planet that will not spoil or rot. What it will do is what some call 'turning to sugar'. In reality, honey is always honey. However, when left in a cool dark place for a long time it will "crystallize". When this happens loosen the lid, boil some water and sit the honey container in the hot water, but turn off the heat and let it liquefy naturally. It is then as good as it ever was. Never boil honey or put it in a microwave. This will kill the enzymes in the honey.
CINNAMON AND HONEY
Facts on honey and cinnamon:
It is found that a mixture of honey and cinnamon cures most diseases.
Honey is produced in most of the countries of the world. Scientists of today also accept honey as a 'Ram Ban' (very effective) medicine for all kinds of diseases. Honey can be used without any side effects for any kind of diseases.
Today's science says that even though honey is sweet, if taken in the right dosage as a medicine, it does not harm diabetic patients. Weekly World News, a magazine in Canada, in it's issue dated 17 January, 1995 has given the following list of diseases that can be cured by honey and cinnamon as researched by western scientists:
HEART DISEASES: Make a paste of honey and cinnamon powder, apply on bread, instead of jelly and jam, and eat it regularly for breakfast. It reduces the cholesterol in the arteries and saves the patient from heart attack. Also those who have already had an attack, if they do this process daily, they are kept miles away from the next attack. Regular use of the above process relieves loss of breath and strengthens the heart beat. In America and Canada, various nursing homes have treated patients successfully and have found that as you age, the arteries and veins lose their flexibility and get clogged; honey and cinnamon revitalize the arteries and veins.
ARTHRITIS: Arthritis patients may take daily, morning, and night, one cup of hot water with two spoons of honey and one small teaspoon of cinnamon powder. If taken regularly even chronic arthritis can be cured. In a recent research conducted at the Copenhagen University, it was found that when the doctors treated their patients with a mixture of one tablespoon Honey and half teaspoon Cinnamon powder before breakfast, they found that within a week, out of the 200 people so treated, practically 73 patients were totally relieved of pain, and within a month, mostly all the patients who could not walk or move around because of arthritis started walking without pain.
BLADDER INFECTIONS: Take two tablespoons of cinnamon powder and one teaspoon of honey in a glass of lukewarm water and drink it. It destroys the germs in the bladder.
TOOTHACHE: Make a paste of one teaspoon of cinnamon powder and five teaspoons of honey and apply on the aching tooth. This may be applied three times a day until the tooth stops aching.
CHOLESTEROL: Two tablespoons of honey and three teaspoons of Cinnamon Powder mixed in 16 ounces of tea water, given to a cholesterol patient, was found to reduce the level of cholesterol in the blood by 10 percent within two hours. As mentioned for arthritic patients, if taken three times a day, any chronic cholesterol is cured. According to information received in the said journal, pure honey taken with food daily relieves complaints of cholesterol.
COLDS: Those suffering from common or severe colds should take one tablespoon lukewarm honey with 1/4 spoon cinnamon powder daily for three days. This process will cure most chronic cough, cold, and clear the sinuses.
UPSET STOMACH: Honey taken with cinnamon powder cures stomach ache and also clears stomach ulcers from the root.
GAS: According to the studies done in India and Japan, it is revealed that if honey is taken with cinnamon powder the stomach is relieved of gas.
IMMUNE SYSTEM: Daily use of honey and cinnamon powder strengthens the immune system and protects the body from bacteria and viral attacks. Scientists have found that honey has various vitamins and iron in large amounts. Constant use of honey strengthens the white blood corpuscles to fight bacteria and viral diseases.
INDIGESTION: Cinnamon powder sprinkled on two tablespoons of honey taken before food relieves acidity and digests the heaviest of meals.
INFLUENZA: A scientist in Spain has proved that honey contains a natural Ingredient which kills the influenza germs and saves the patient from flu.
LONGEVITY: Tea made with honey and cinnamon powder, when taken regularly, arrests the ravages of old age. Take four spoons of honey, one spoon of cinnamon powder and three cups of water and boil to make like tea. Drink 1/4 cup, three to four times a day. It keeps the skin fresh and soft and arrests old age. Life spans also increases and even a 100 year old, starts performing the chores of a 20-year-old.
PIMPLES: Three tablespoons of honey and one teaspoon of cinnamon powder paste. Apply this paste on the pimples before sleeping and wash it next morning with warm water. If done daily for two weeks, it removes pimples from the root.
SKIN INFECTIONS: Applying honey and cinnamon powder in equal parts on the affected parts cures eczema, ringworm and all types of skin infections.
WEIGHT LOSS: Daily in the morning one half hour before breakfast on an empty stomach and at night before sleeping, drink honey and cinnamon powder boiled in one cup of water. If taken regularly, it reduces the weight of even the most obese person. Also, drinking this mixture regularly does not allow the fat to accumulate in the body even though the person may eat a high calorie diet.
CANCER: Recent research in Japan and Australia has revealed that advanced cancer of the stomach and bones have been cured successfully. Patients suffering from these kinds of cancer should daily take one tablespoon of honey with one teaspoon of cinnamon powder for one month three times a day.
FATIGUE: Recent studies have shown that the sugar content of honey is more helpful rather than being detrimental to the strength of the body. Senior citizens, who take honey and cinnamon powder in equal parts, are more alert and flexible. Dr. Milton, who has done research, says that a half tablespoon of honey taken in a glass of water and sprinkled with cinnamon powder, taken daily after brushing and in the afternoon at about 3:00 P.M. when the vitality of the body starts to decrease, increases the vitality of the body within a week.
BAD BREATH: People of South America, first thing in the morning, gargle with one teaspoon of honey and cinnamon powder mixed in hot water, so their breath stays fresh throughout the day.
HEARING LOSS: Daily morning and night honey and cinnamon powder, taken in equal parts restore hearing.
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