Chapter 18

A.D. 2012

The insurgency in Iraq, though it employed some of the techniques of the terrorists, was not properly terrorism. When Will and Tina began looking into what should be done in Iraq, they realized that most of those involved were fighting against the occupation of their country that had gone on since the invasion of Iraq by the second Bush regime in 2003. This was complicated by the age-old conflicts between Shiites and Sunnis, not to mention the conflicting culture of the Kurds to the north.

True, there were outside influences. There were outside influences during the American war of independence, too. Had it not been for the help the Americans got from France, there may not have been a United States.

There were still a few terrorist groups who were using the fighting in Iraq as a training ground, but most of the groups intent on global terrorism had already realized that pitting themselves against the soldiers in Iraq was not really very good training for carrying out acts of terrorism on a civilian population, and it was getting a lot of them killed. Furthermore, the fact that so many of those getting killed by their bombs were civilians - Muslim civilians - was draining their support among Iraqis. The more Muslims they killed, the less sympathy they got from the population, so more and more terrorist organizations were leaving Iraq to fight its own battles. As regrettable as the deaths of British and American soldiers continued to be, Nine and Ten decided that they weren't going to be in the business of supporting the occupation, so they turned their attentions elsewhere.

The conflict between Israel and Palestine had been going on so long that it had become institutionalized. While the Palestinians often made use of terrorist tactics, their war was with Israel. It did create an ideological focus for other terrorist organizations that viewed Israel and the U.S. as working hand in hand, but no matter what feelings this might generate in other parts of the world, as long as it did not become a nuclear war, it was still a conflict that was largely confined to the two interests.

In other countries, such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Syria, Jordan, and many more, their quest repeatedly unearthed small, isolated pockets of burgeoning terrorist sentiment. Without the direction of a global organization such as Al Qaeda, however, they were little more than small groups whose existence represented a potential threat. Still, it seemed, they should make a stab at cleaning them out, lest another Al Qaeda grow from those seeds, so they bounced around the Muslim countries of the world, seeking out the roots of terrorism.

The body of the Imam fell bonelessly to the floor of the mosque, spilling blood from multiple bullet wounds. In the sudden silence, the gathering crowd in the small Saudi Arabian village stared in bewilderment at the two Americans. Without doing anything, they had somehow turned the holy man's followers against him. Surely that must have been it. Stories of the two American demons abounded, and this must be yet another of their demonic tricks.

Anger soon replaced shock and the mob surged forward, murder on their minds. Many were intent on killing the Americans, others the armed men whose minds had been corrupted by the demons. As one, they closed in, only to be stopped as if by a giant hand.

Without words, each of them heard the thoughts of the Americans in a way that bypassed speech and left no doubt as to the meaning, origin, and truth of the thoughts. They conflicted mightily with long-held beliefs, and yet the recipients could see that where what they believed was based on faith, what they were hearing was based on undeniable fact.

You, and these men, have been misled. This 'holy' man deliberately took advantage of the fact that you came to him to interpret the Quran. He lied when he told you that it was good to wage war against women and children. These men, (the images of the shooters intermingled with the other thoughts entering their minds unbidden) are angry, as you should be, because they were encouraged to do horrible things, thinking that Allah was with them, only to discover that they have committed terrible sins in His name. All we did was to show them the truth. You would do well to consider what they know.

As the thoughts filled their heads, the images that Will had stripped from the Imam's mind accompanied them in a way that left no doubt of the truth of his thoughts. He showed them the knowledge, from the Imam's mind, of the true meaning of the words of the Quran, as well as the ways in which the Imam twisted and obscured that truth in his teachings. With those thoughts, he also showed them the Imam's intent. True, he thought he was working for the greater good of the people, but he had used deceit to turn them to his personal cause, and taken advantage of their faith and their ignorance to make them weapons for his vendetta against the West. A great cry arose from the crowd and from the cleric's murders as they realized how they had been duped and used. No one noticed, in their anguish, when the Americans disappeared.

Will slumped tiredly onto his sleeping bag.

Again and again, throughout the Middle East, the scene with the Imam had played out in a similar fashion. Twenty, thirty, fifty, even hundreds of Muslims at a time learned the truth. No matter how many realized that they were being used though, there were millions more who still believed what their religious leaders taught. Those who tried to gainsay the holy men were thought to be demented for speaking against 'the words of the Prophet.'

It did not seem to matter how many of the rogue clerics were killed by their own people. Those who heard the stories also heard how the American Demons had taken over the minds of the faithful and turned them against the will of Allah. The weight of opinion, at least in certain large segments of the Muslim world, still leaned toward the U.S. as the great Satan and terrorism as the Holy War.

Meanwhile, the foreign policies of the U.S. and her allies continued to favor corporate interests over those of the people of those nations, and the people were, understandably, angry.

Will found his thoughts too harsh and confusing to follow and rather than try to pursue the myriad directions in which they wanted to take him, he just let go and allowed his mind to wander. More and more lately, this cave, which had been their home for more than two years, was feeling too small and cramped. There was plenty of room, and though they had added some things and reshaped it to their needs to make it a more comfortable abode, it was still a hole in the ground.

One would think, he mused irritably, that two individuals as powerful as ourselves could find more 'suitable' accommodations.

Tina was still linked with him after they teleported back from Saudi Arabia. From her thoughts, he could tell that she, too, was beginning to feel the futility of their pursuit. U.S. Foreign policy had not changed significantly over the years, and those countries who rode on the coattails of the U.S. still, mostly, went along for the ride. The upshot of the political policymaking was that now, in almost every country that had a poor, downtrodden populace, America was seen as the enemy.

American politicians of both parties still depended upon the large corporations to adequately finance their campaigns. If they wanted corporate money, they had to do their best to favor the corporations when it came to making laws and policies. The only real reason there was any debate at all, apparently, was because not all the corporations agreed with each other.

Until some kind of campaign reform could be realized, as long as there was money to be made in foreign countries the money interests would have a say in the policy making for those countries. Money would also determine, to a large extent, which countries would receive foreign aid, and how much they would receive. Why waste money on a scrap of hardscrabble desert with no natural resources to speak of, when, a couple of borders away lay a country ripe with untapped oil reserves?

It was getting harder and harder for either of them to bring themselves to heap even more ill treatment on the people of those nations, when, misguided or not, it was easy to see that the source of the anger which created such fertile ground for the Jihadist recruiters lay, not in the Middle East, but in the West.

So where do we go from here? Nine asked. It had become easier to communicate mind to mind than to speak, especially when they were tired, and Will answered in the same way.

I don't know, Nine. It doesn't seem to matter how many terrorists we foil, get killed, or convince that they're on the wrong path. More of them pop up every day. Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and all the other 'stans, not to mention Egypt, Syria, Jordan and Iran are just the tip of the iceberg. There's still Malaysia and the African states, not all of which are Muslim, who are churning out mad bombers faster than we can keep up with them. There's got to be a better way.

It's beginning to look like we're not doing the world any favors, Ten, Nine mused. For every terrorist group we get rid of, two more pop up somewhere else. I tell you, as long as the U.S. and its allies are perceived to be trampling on the little countries, there's not going to be any stopping them.

Yeah, well, the governments of those countries aren't helping any either, Will replied. You'd think that with the relief from terrorist threats that we've given 'em they could come up with some social programs that would help alleviate the pressure on the people who feel the need to resort to this kind of thing, but instead they keep doing things as they've always done - lining their own pockets with the money they receive in foreign aid. Crap! I'm not naive enough to think that even if the U.S. and other Western nations suddenly had a change of heart and started acting like citizens of the planet instead of imperialists, all terrorism would suddenly stop. Over time, however, opinions would begin to change and it would become harder for these groups to recruit members.

So what's the answer? Nine asked dejectedly.

I don't know, Tina. Let me think about it some, okay? Will replied. He couldn't hide his feelings from the person who had shared his mind for the last couple of years, but he was damned if he was going to admit defeat just yet.

Silence fell in the dimness of the cave, broken only by the familiar, furtive scurrying of small animals and the occasional drip of water. For long moments the two sat, lost in their own thoughts. Suddenly, as if making up her mind about something, Nine arose and moved to where Will sat on his sleeping bag. She settled beside him, fitting her body to his and wrapped her arms around him.

"Nine? Tina?" Will asked, concerned. "What's going on?"

"I'm a woman, Ten, in case you haven't noticed, you big lug!" She said with a nervous laugh, "and I've had this, like, humongous crush on you ever since you saved me from Eight. I know you've been in mourning for your wife and little girl, and I've tried to respect that, but I think it's about time you moved on, don't you?"

Will, stunned, sat for a moment staring at his partner, unsure of his own feelings. He had been so focused, he realized, that the thought of female companionship had not even occurred to him. Then another thought struck him: Part of the reason it had not become a pressing need was that Nine - Tina - had been there at his side. He had taken her presence and her support more or less for granted. Now he realized that she had been providing him with everything he needed - except...

A once familiar stirring in his pants reminded him of what he had not shared with anyone since Karen's death. Now, the woman who had shared his life and his most intimate thoughts for most of that time was awakening emotions he had not felt for a very long time, and he was not sure what he wanted to do about it.

"Will?" Tina said, in a voice more timid than he had ever heard from her. "Please say something, or at least open up and let me know what you're thinking! I'm dyin' here!"

Sorry, Tina, Will thought to her, realizing he had shut her out in his shock. I've just been so buried in what we were doing that I never realized I was just taking you for granted. You've been a rock, and as for the other part...

She felt it in his mind before she noticed his growing arousal. Somewhere in the back of his thoughts, Will had always known that Tina was an attractive woman, but since that first day, when they met in their room at the underground compound, he had seen her only as a teammate. Now she had cast herself in an entirely new light, and Will was stunned to realize that his attraction to her was more than physical. Now when he looked at her, he saw a strong, handsome woman whose ready smile and womanly curves took on whole new vistas of meaning for him. Looking into her thoughts, he realized that she had harbored similar emotions about him for a long time.

What was he to do? How should he feel? How did he feel? Will's mind was in turmoil. Only one person had been able to elicit such feelings from him, and she had been ripped out of his life by the same bomb that had sent him on this futile quest. Now, here was his partner in that quest dragging from his reluctant heart some of those very same feelings. Still, confused as he was by his emotions, Will could not deny the desires of his body, and when Tina came to him, he drew her to him in a passionate embrace.

Their coupling bore little resemblance to the tender lovemaking he had shared with Karen. It was raw and passionate, all the more so because they could each see, feel, and know what the other was experiencing. There was no need for the awkward hesitation and experimental touching in which lovers normally engage with a new partner. It was exciting and new, yet each knew that this was exactly the right thing to do now and that that would absolutely drive the other crazy, and when it was over, they did it again, and yet a third time, each time a little different, but every time explosive. When, finally, they settled back onto his sleeping bag, Tina's head resting on his shoulder, Will shook his head.

"I quit smoking years ago," he said, "but I could sure use a cigarette now!"

"Not me." Tina replied. "I've got something else in mind..."

"Have mercy on a poor, broken old man, you brazen hussy!" Will laughed, when he realized what she intended to substitute for a cigarette. "I'm out of practice, and even with these enhanced muscles you've worn me out!"

"'Poor, broken old man' my ass!" Tina joined in his laughter. "I'm going to be sore for a week!"

They lay in contented silence for a long time, and Will soon heard Tina's breathing slow and deepen with sleep. His own mind couldn't find peace enough to sleep.

As Tina slept, Will examined his feelings, thinking his insomnia might be because he was harboring some guilt about their lovemaking. He came to the realization, however, that he really had no problems with their tryst. In fact, he felt that Karen would approve. She would never have wanted him to be alone after her death, anymore than he would have wanted that for her.

Upon reflection though, he became conscious of the fact that the previous topic of their conversation still caromed around his consciousness like a wayward billiard ball. Chewing on the problem as he lay there with Tina snoring softly on his shoulder, Will settled on a course of action. He could feel the futility of it even as he decided they had to try anyway. At least he would be able to tell himself that he had given it his best effort.

With the decision made, sleep, eventually, took him, and with the comforting warmth of Tina's body draped over his side, so much like Karen's, but so different, he slept dreamlessly.

Hours later, he awoke dreamily to a wonderful, warm sensation in a very private place. Peering sleepily downward, he watched affectionately as Tina put into practice what she had only joked about before they slept. Their joining this time held none of the passionate urgency of the earlier session, but ended, almost an hour later, with the same explosive fury.

Afterward, they lay there, still mind-linked with each other, as their breathing slowed and they basked in the afterglow of their lovemaking.

You've made up your mind, Tina thought, nestling her dark haired head once again on his shoulder. Oh goody! Pulling the strings of global politics ought to be fun!

I hope you're right! He chuckled. At least, we have to make the effort, but I think we should do some research first.

With time, familiarity, and practice, their abilities had grown. Since he had developed the knack of extrapolating the positional energy characteristics for almost any location on the globe, it had become second nature for Will to send his mind ahead to refine the rough positioning and select a specific location for teleportation, more and more lately, to scan for news media or government officials who might be lying in wait for them. Within seconds he could locate and teleport to anywhere on Earth with pinpoint accuracy. He could also locate and mentally search any such place without moving from where he was.

Nine's powers, too, had grown. She could now teleport several miles at a time, and with Will's help in locating the person, could read a mind anywhere on the globe.

Between the two of them, they infiltrated the hallowed halls of government in Washington D.C. while remaining safely ensconced in their cave.

The task turned out to be even more daunting than he had anticipated. His original idea had been to try to clean up some of the corruption and dependency on corporate money in Washington by coming up with a new way of financing campaigns that relieved the candidates of their dependency on corporate contributions. With that done he could attempt to do something similar in other governments around the world.