The Present Read online

  VanWest

  The Present

  Book 2 of VanWest Series

  Kenneth Thomas

  Copyright © 2020 by Kenneth Thomas

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without written permission of the copyright owner except for the use of quotations in a book review. For more information, address:

  [email protected]

  FIRST EDITION

  British English

  www.vanwestbooks.com

  ISBN: 978-1-8380561-2-4

  Cover design by Elementi Studio

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1 The Gambler’s Den

  Chapter 2 A Crate Full of Papini

  Chapter 3 There is Honour Among Enforcers

  Chapter 4 A Free Vote

  Chapter 5 PATH

  Chapter 6 The Red Planet

  Chapter 7 Arcadia Plains and the Magicbox

  Chapter 8 Eradication of Ellsworth and Queen Elizabeth

  Chapter 9 The Mural in the Icy Chamber

  Chapter 10 Universal Law

  Chapter 11 Journal Square Under Attack

  Chapter 12 Schuurman’s Lab

  Chapter 13 VanWest

  Chapter 14 One Warlord

  Chapter 15 Take me to Church

  Chapter 16 Earth’s Resistance

  Chapter 17 A Trip Down Memory Lane

  Chapter 18 Our Energy

  Chapter 19 Red versus Blue

  Chapter 20 Groene Utopie

  Chapter 21 The Present

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  Prologue

  All VanWest knew while growing up was the ‘all-knowing’ Universal Council. As a loyal Enforcer, he blindly obeyed every command - however dark and morally corrupt.

  Commandment 1. To serve without question the Universal Council

  Commandment 2. To work for the progression of man and the Universal

  Commandment 3. To destroy all those who defy the Universal Council

  After being promoted to Captain, VanWest’s world as he knew it was to dramatically change. Injured during his victory at the prestigious Universal Red and Blue Games his unique ability was revealed: a latent psychic sense that allowed him to foresee events. The Universal Council and its leader Dr King, greatly alarmed at seeing his visions via the Schuurman Reporting Monitor (SRM), tasked him with a mission to hunt down the Utopians to prevent them from changing the past. His reward the ultimate dream of many a man, woman and child: to become an Elite.

  The Utopians, a renegade sect led by the Universal Council’s former Head of Science and genius Dr Isaac VonHelmann dubbed ‘Mad Newton’, had figured out how to travel back in time. Their goal to prevent major events in the mid-to-late 20th century coming to pass that they blamed for ruining Earth and ending the dream of a utopian world by the new millennia. Their targets the creation of the European Nuclear Research Agency (CERN) and the launch of the Unity node, forming the second part of the world’s first International Space Station (ISS) - both significant leaps forward in scientific collaboration and technological advancement.

  This challenging mission reunited him with his childhood friend Iris, the daughter of the Utopian leader. She helped him to learn the dark truth about the Universal Council and that of his own origins: a clone of the last Martian President Van der Westhuizen. Having been killed alongside his fellow Martians hundreds of years ago due to the Council’s insatiable thirst for power.

  Daring to break into the Universal Council’s moon base and the notorious Ward B, disguised as Nurse Rose, Iris came to warn that the Council would use him. This would be the first of a series of pivotal meetings that would not only see VanWest change allegiance to save her as he fell in love, but also instigate the citizen uprising now engulfing Queen Elizabeth and many other Antarctic settlements. His Martian psychic ability has matured too, his visions more regular he is able to foresee most, especially imminent, dangers before they occur.

  Following the coordinates given to him by Colonel Cornelius, before his death on the arena’s floor, he now seeks a path to Mars to kill Dr King and weaken the Space Army that amasses. Joining him is LeSouris, a Most Wanted rebel and Utopian, and Iris, his love. The Colonel warned of the ‘evil that resides in there’, so too did Dr VonHelmann. VanWest worries what he will uncover on Mars, in the Universal Council’s hidden base.

  Following the uprising on Judgment Day, a furious Dr King flees to Mars via the SCC-400, joining the Space Army’s commander, Four-star General Vladimir, in preparing the Universal spaceships and Space Soldiers to attack Earth. Commissioner Ming, the Head of the Police, is left behind to suppress the uprisings. His mission: to find the traitor VanWest and inflict as much damage as possible on his enemies. At his disposal is a small detachment of Space Soldiers as he tries to strong-arm the Enforcers to come out of their HQs to help him regain control, clearing a path for Dr King’s return.

  Meanwhile, Dr VonHelmann and Pretoria, the NEA rebel leader, follow VanWest’s advice to try to persuade the Enforcers to join the resistance. With Colonel Cornelius’s rally and Captain Alpha’s death, it has become common knowledge that the Universal Council plans to replace Enforcer with Space Soldier - cyborgs. Captain Kun-lee could be the key as he owes VanWest ‘honour’. VanWest and Barys having rescued him from Pytheas’s Labyrinth during the Universal Red and Blue Games. Dr VonHelmann hopes to invoke the Enforcer’s Code of Honour on VanWest’s behalf. And, by right, obtain an audience with the highest-ranking Enforcers in Antarctica, the remaining Colonels, to get them to join the Earth’s Resistance Army (EaRA).

  Dr VonHelmann’s own Utopian mission to change the past a failure, Utopia as he envisioned impossible to regain, now seeks to restart a new brand of this ‘New Beginning’ in the present, the year 3000. The addition of the Enforcers to Earth’s Resistance (EaR) to recreate a new world under the constructs of Utopianism - led by him. Without their support, it may be impossible to defeat, even a weakened, Space Army.

  VanWest’s best and only means to reach Mars lies in New Jersey’s crooked underworld, with an NEA contact called Method A; a warlord and casino owner, she could help procure them passage as a stowaway on a cargo ship bound for the red planet.

  The stakes could not be higher; if VanWest and Dr VonHelmann are not successful in their missions, millions stand to be massacred.

  Chapter 1 The Gambler’s Den

  One could call the casinos of New Jersey a 30th-century version of Las Vegas, but it is far less glamourous. Its whole existence represents a paradox in this Universal Council ruled world. It serves both as a playground for the Elites, they frequent these casinos for pleasures banned in Antarctica, and a place to negotiate shipments of Papini, a super drug extracted from a mushroom that only grows in its old subway tunnels.

  Papini’s value is high as all who consume it gain a stronger resistance to the highly radioactive particles prevalent on Earth as well as in Space. Thus, the Jerseyans live in a status quo, their existence accepted but not spoken of. Protected under the PATH agreement, no Universal Council force can step foot inside its territory, only unarmed Elites are permitted by invitation.

  The descendants of the first New York mole people, the Jerseyans have lived underground for close to a millennium with little interference from outsiders. Evolving into their own unique homo sapien species during this time, they not only look different but also have an extraordinary resistance to radioactivity, one that no human possesses. Due to their unusual features, including saggy skin, and their general elusiveness many humans derisively refer to them as ‘mutants’.

  Having come to know Method A during his many NEA smuggling operations in New Jersey, LeSouris’s relationship with this warlord will be critical if the trio of VanWest, Ir
is and LeSouris are to reach a deal for a smuggling operation to Mars. His secretive relationship with her has been lucrative for both sides: for the NEA resources to operate not only in the Antarctic settlements but also across the solar system, and for Method A more ‘moolah’, currency needed to hold onto her territory Newark - the westerly ‘exit’ of the PATH network.

  LeSouris’s stealthy spacecraft, Hawkeye, has gotten them all to New Jersey but is not equipped for long-distance space travel. Now closer to Gambler’s Den, VanWest is keen to understand their next steps, anxious about what they will encounter. Having travelled back in time to 1950s Paris and 1990s Florida, only to arrive back in the year 3000 on Judgment Day, he knows to be wary. The Seductress having played both the Universal Council and Utopians for fools as she plotted a ‘New Beginning’ for herself. He must watch and try to understand the motives of those he meets.

  * * * * *

  ‘What’s the plan in New Jersey’? VanWest asks LeSouris.

  ‘To get a better ship for Mars’! Iris half-jokes.

  ‘It is not possible! There no one more sexy than Hawkeye’! LeSouris answers with a smile.

  ‘I understand that, but what’s the plan’? VanWest presses for more detail.

  ‘My love, LeSouris will ask Method A to help smuggle us inside a Jerseyan cargo ship, one that transports Papini and other goods to the colonies’.

  LeSouris adds, ‘It will cost, but no one will see us going to Mars. I promise’.

  ‘This Method A that Pretoria spoke of, she has a ship’?

  LeSouris explains further, ‘My friend, Method A has very big casino, Gambler’s Den. Some say this Method A is underground boss, warlord, but she’s nothing more than wheeler-dealer. Trust… She knows people who smuggle, makes them deal to pay off their gambling debts’. He pauses, giving VanWest a wink, ‘It’s straightforward business transaction’!

  ‘Debts? Gambler’s Den’? VanWest asks curiously. He has only ever read about such places - casinos having long been banned in Antarctic’s settlements.

  LeSouris smiles back as if to say he’ll find out soon enough. As Hawkeye starts its descent, a dim light breaks through the grey and acidic clouds. The outline of this once megacity’s hollow buildings and rooftops appear, prompting a new question from an anxious VanWest, ‘Do we have weapons for this place, surely we can’t go in unarmed’?

  ‘NO! No! My friend! Would be stupid! We meet our end’, LeSouris responds sharply. Iris nodding in agreement.

  Enforcer operations are always meticulously planned, but with New Jersey and Method A there are so many unknowns. VanWest has heard only stories and rumours of New Jersey, a violent and large area stretching the length of its ancient subway network called PATH. However, on first appearance, this place looks a lot less foreboding than Queen Elizabeth. Seemingly unaffected by the chaos that ensues Antarctica, it is eerily quiet. The Jerseyans living and working deep underground, under the ruins on its surface. Hawkeye aligns with the tallest building as it uncloaks to land on its rooftop.

  LeSouris whispers to confirm their arrival, ‘My friends, welcome to Newark’.

  Upon landing, he instructs all to remain still and silent, pressing his index finger against his lips. Through the shutters, VanWest spots someone small and mysterious approaching, dressed in several layers of greyish rags that help it to blend into the surroundings. Its peculiar face stares back at them, its green eyes centred in near-transparent skin that droops from its cheeks to its neck.

  This face is not the feature of a sickly looking human, rather what many refer to as a Jerseyan ‘mutant’. Even as an Enforcer, VanWest has never seen one up close, for they only leave the PATH network to transport goods to places such as trading posts and prisoner colonies. Very infrequently do they come to any Antarctic settlement where the Enforcers operate, and this only if there is an urgent delivery for an Elite that cannot be collected elsewhere.

  LeSouris once again gestures for them to remain silent as he hastily disembarks to greet this Jerseyan. Iris and VanWest though only have to wait a few tense seconds before he returns, now ushering them to follow him out. The Jerseyan waves them all through the rooftop to a stairwell at the other end, where LeSouris pushes open a rusty metal door, with a nameplate Building Eleven in its centre. They enter Level 36 and what marks the start of a long, near-endless spiral staircase.

  Breathing heavily in the mustardy air, they soon enough reach the ground floor to find another Jerseyan waiting for them. Also wrapped in grey rags, this one holds a long-sticked stun gun called an Electrozapper. The smell now more pungent, it causes their eyes to itch and water. Gesturing with his weapon, he instructs them to pass through a small gap in the wall better suited to that of a diminutive Jerseyan, which at their tallest reach a height of five feet and four inches, a tight squeeze for the six-foot-two-inches VanWest.

  VanWest attempts to ask another question, ‘There… ’? But, before he can continue, LeSouris cuts him off by grabbing his arm to lead him inside - keen for them to move on. VanWest ducks as LeSouris again instructs to ‘stay quiet’ and to keep their communications to a minimum, not wanting to draw more attention than needed. News of VanWest’s ‘heroics’ in the Colosseum on Judgment Day likely even here already making news.

  They hurry through a long narrow corridor to a small metal door at its end. It hangs on one hinge and creaks as LeSouris pushes it open; only to reveal yet another spiral staircase to descend. As they continue down, the dark and dingy walls slowly begin to illuminate, and a faint sound, music, grows. A record that weirdly repeats one line, ‘A little less conversation and a little more action’.

  ‘Ladies and Gentlemen, we are entering Vegas. Thank you very much’! LeSouris whispers and gives them a wink, but his smile is unable to hide his trepidation. Having visited many times before, he knows that the warlords, underworld bosses, are erratic and difficult to negotiate with - Method A no different.

  ‘How quaint… King Elvis is alive and well here’! Iris says.

  VanWest returns a puzzled expression. He has never heard of this ‘King Elvis’ and wonders what she means; is this another warlord? His head pounding, sweat dripping down from his brow, he has that instinctive bad feeling but cannot foresee anything. Leaving him unsure if it is: the music, the mustardy smell, or something worse, mortal danger.

  At the bottom of the stairs, they find an illuminated golden arched door, guarded on each side by two stocky bouncers. Both wear oversized black sunglasses that hide their wrinkled faces and are dressed in black suits: like all Jerseyan clothes they are made from mycelium fibres - a fungus extract. They continue to stare straight-ahead as they approach, grinding their pointy, metal-plated teeth.

  The bouncers finally speak, their voices squeaky, ‘Welcome to the Gambler’s Den’! Prompting the door to swing open, they appear to recognise LeSouris immediately, allowing them all to pass through without question.

  They are met by a bright light that momentarily forces them to shield their eyes. It takes a few moments to adjust, but as it does, VanWest’s anxiousness turns to that of wonderment; greeting them is a most unusual and alien spectacle. A large cathedral ceiling room that houses a lavishly decorated and vibrant casino. They proceed along a long red carpet that leads to a group of golden tables with green tops: the casino pit.

  Hunched over the tables is a mix of Jerseyans and lower Elites, also known as ‘the descendants’. Their eyes bloodshot, they nervously count their hologram chips as a giant diamond-encrusted roulette wheel spins round in the centre of the room: inducing the players to place yet more of their hologram chips on rows of numbers in front.

  During his Enforcer academy days on the moon, VanWest learnt about this place as an exercise in ‘identifying deplorable people and activities’. One thing is for sure, their addictive behaviour shows, none of the players look up: mesmerised by the wheel. So much so that these lower Elites do not notice that the Universal Council’s now Most Wanted is standing right across them.


  VanWest marvels at the spectacle, for a moment nearly forgetting why they have come. This place is a hedonist’s paradise. Surrounding the pit are even more games, mainly electronic slot machines with big pull handles, each crank producing a new combination of symbols. On the tables are what appears to be a variety of alcoholic beverages drunken freely as each smokes a pipe linked to a glass vase, Shisha Pipe.

  Ding-ding-ding! A player on the slots celebrates as the symbols stop with three numbers in a row: 7-7-7. The sevens remind him of the tattoo on the wrist of his clone source, the deceased Martian President. A once blocked memory that only returned after inserting into his node Dr VonHelmann’s green hexagon-shaped chip.

  One of the bouncers appears close behind and taps LeSouris on the arm, pointing him to the stairs and a bar that over leans the pit. VanWest and Iris follow; their heads bowed shuffle discreetly a couple of steps behind. At the top of the stairs, they find a flamboyantly dressed Jerseyan waiting, wearing rounded sunglasses, several golden medallions and a purple blouse. This must be Method A! She is sprawled over a similarly coloured semi-circle sofa. Her flabby and wrinkled face greets them, revealing a mouth full of gold and silver, pointy teeth as she grins. Her importance further demarked by several guards that stand nearby, armed with Electrozappers.

  * * * * *

  ‘Mister Sour, where’ve you been’? The Jerseyan warlord greets him, in a squeakier voice than that of her bouncers, she refers to LeSouris by a nickname.

  ‘Warlord Method A, so glad to meet you again! You are looking very well if I may say so’! LeSouris replies in a friendly and respectful manner.

  ‘Bringing me some trouble again, some land dwellers… Who’s that fine skinned thang? A gift, aye’? Method A looks lustfully at Iris, her eyes scanning down from her smooth lips and along her slender body.