Stephen's Secure Blog #61
These stories about Stephen began was when he was 10 years old, and
moving to a new part of the country to attend a special school for
gifted students, in the 1950's. This was from a time before computers
would fit on a desk, and when people communicated with friends in other
countries by actual letters sent through the postal service. He wrote
225 of them to a friend. He stopped writing to his penpal, but found he
still wanted to record his life, in case he lost his memory again, and
wrote 30 entries in his first logbook. Then he wrote to an artificial
intelligence called Geenee, in the master computer in his school for
gifted students, which he started attending in 2016. Now it's 2018 and
later, and he's continuing to save his memories in a secure blog.
All characters are fictitious, even if some of them might have names
that belong to some actual people, or act like people we know.
The stories may not be posted in chronological order.
Stephen is 13 in this story, in the Summer, after the end of year 3 of
his special school.
Stephen's Secure Blog #61 "Demonstration for Hissssner"
START Page
On the way to the new house I had recently built on Zander's planet,
I asked him, "What do you think our guest's reaction will be when he
sees my new house?" He laughed. I said thoughtfully, "He might." Then
it was in sight, and he saw it and made a strange noise. I said to
Zander, "I think he sees it now." He laughed again. Then we landed on a
familiar driveway, and got out. I said to Hissssner, "What do you think
said "I didn't know any other, for this planet. I didn't want it to
look out of place and so draw too much unwanted attention." He said "A
copy of my own house does capture MY attention." I said "I expect to
give you your attention back in good order when you leave." He laughed.
We went inside, and I said, "There are some changes. Each room
environment can be controlled independently, and there are private room
suites for different species. It has a lower floor for indoor exercise.
There is security protection. If anybody needs to attend to personal
needs, the rooms you need for that are down that hall." All but my team
went. I had ported their food there, too, in case they wanted it. Hawk
said "There wasn't a basement before. Fast work. Oh, it has fighting
gear, too. Nice!" I said "Hawk, please don't ask me to show possible
customers any artwork. Zander and I have a plan, and he is the agent
here, and gets a commission." He said "Oh. Right. Sorry. Marketing." I
said "Before they come back, do you know how I laid that permanent
command on the museum director?" Rose said "No." Hawk said "I think I
might." I said "You connect, AND push your mind deep into his brain,
and speak all three ways very forcefully what you want him to do or not
do. Be very careful to make it exact and logical, so his subconscious
won't get confused, and justifiably fair, for your own sake. Got it?"
They both nodded.
While we waited I said, "Rose, may I examine you for some abilities
which might help you learn something I have in mind?" She said "You
don't have to be so polite with me!" I said "As your teacher and boss,
yes I do." She said "Oh. Yes." I did, and then said, "First, get ready
to receive Hahchet's information." When she was, I pushed it at her,
and she accepted it well. Then I said, "Levitation. Want to try it?"
She grinned. I said "Ready?" And pushed it at her. After a minute of
concentration, she floated up in the air. I motioned her down, and Hawk
and I hugged and kissed her. Then I asked Rose, "Can you use a
Naginata?" She said "I never trained on it, because they don't make it
in my size. I said "Kendo?" She said "With shinai and bokken." I said
"With the shield, you can take full strikes with the bokken?" She said,
"I haven't tried, but it should be no problem." I said "Both of you,
get ready to receive." I sent each of them specifications on what they
should wear with the different weapons. Except for the usual Gi, they
would configure their belt or mind run visible shields to mimic samurai
armor. Hawk said "This is going to be quite a show!" I grinned and
said, "I sure hope so, but keep it safe." They nodded.
Our guests came out, and we went to the basement gym. I told them,
"If you stay in the spectator's area, the environment will be as it is,
and you will be behind a shield. If you come into the demonstration
area, you will be in danger of accidentally getting struck by our
weapons. They can break, and cause pieces to fly all over. And you
won't like our preferred temperature and humidity. We will go change
and come right back." We did, in gi and hakama. I said "This is the
traditional uniform for practicing weapon arts of the culture we will
be demonstrating. Zander, this is of Ichi's heritage. First I will show
you the effectiveness of the sword." I had upright wet rolled tatami
mats there for cutting. I said "What I will be cutting simulates the
thigh of a man the size of Zander." I sliced it in different cuts and
directions. I said "Notice I'm not chopping, I'm slicing. Now I'll show
you the art of drawing the sword. It's fast, so look closely." I
kneeled. Then I exploded into action, drawing the sword and standing
and slicing the tatami in half, and in one fast motion. Then Rose and I
spared with bokken, and whacked each other soundly. I said "This isn't
exactly how it's done, but this is to get the idea. Now I will try
something I've never done before. Like the 3D picture you saw, this
will be a projected illusion of somebody fighting me. I hope it works.
Any blood you see won't be real. I hope." That's what I did. A real
sword fight. Me against my opponent. I sliced him in half a lot. I said
"Much better this way. I can always make him lose, and no real blood to
clean up. Now, multiple opponents." I was attacked by five samurai, and
I won, naturally. I said "Now I will show you another art, which some
consider the most difficult to learn. Aikido. They will be attacking me
for real, and we will not have our shields on, and no special powers
will be used. In fact, except for shields with the weapons, all of this
demonstration is that way. Attack!" They did, and I took them down.
While that was happening, I said "Note that they aren't harmed. They
know how to fall correctly, which is the most important thing to learn
in fighting arts." After a while at that, I said, "Stop! Now I'm going
to demonstrate the naginata. This was used primarily by females,
against mounted warriors. The others haven't trained on this, so I will
show it to you." I did that.
We took off our hakamas, and I said "This is the armor of the people
who used these weapons in battle." We set our shields to show that, and
whacked each other with the weapons. Then we turned off our shields,
and did a synchronized demonstration with nunchakus. Then we did some
karate sparing, with some really fancy kicks. Then we did breaking of
tiles and boards. Then I took over to them some bricks, and had them
see how strong they were. I said "Do you think they can be broken with
a strike of an unprotected hand or foot?" They were sure it couldn't be
done. Almost. Zander said "You wouldn't ask if you couldn't do it." I
said "That's not the proper way an appreciative audience should
behave." They laughed. I held a brick in my hand, and hit with the edge
of my other hand, and it broke in half. I tossed one at Hawk, and he
broke it in mid air with a snap kick. Then I piled a lot of them on a
solid metal platform and said, "Which one shall I break? Choose ANY
one, even if it isn't on top." Zander chose one three bricks down. I
used a palm strike on the top brick over the target, and only the
target brick shattered. I said "These arts evolved over thousands of
years, before scientific principles were formulated, and science still
doesn't know how some of these things are done. There are no tricks.
It's all real. All it takes is intense training and concentration,
which we NEED to develop for our special powers to work reliably and
under our full control. Mr. President, has our demonstration been
effective?" He said "Very! Thank you." I said "Please proceed to the
meeting room, and we will join you in very little time." They did, and
we changed back onto our usual clothes, and full Adept Away Kit.
We sat with them in the living room. I said "What we demonstrated is
only a small part of what we can do. Rose, how long have you been
training in fighting arts? She said "One year." I turned to Hawk, and
he said "Four." I said "For our basic species, what they have already
achieved would take others lifetimes of study. We train VERY hard."
Hissssner said to me, "How long have you trained?" I said "I can't
answer that with any degree of accuracy. My situation is er, unusual.
To say more, would strain your credulity, and probably your beliefs." I
looked at Zander, and he said, "I agree. Better you don't ask for that
confusion right now." We grinned.
I said "Now we will discuss today's action. This is limited to me,
Rose, and Hawk. I might explain some things for the benefit of others,
but probably not to questions. We start. You do remember I said this is
a mission, even before we came here. Right?" They nodded. I said "Did
any of you check the museum and its people, like we are supposed to on
a mission, before entering the building?" They looked embarrassed, and
said no. I said "Why do we need to?" Rose said "Enemy Adepts, and Van
in different bodies." Hawk said "Other kinds of enemies, too." I said
"Why?" Hawk said "Ah, to gather information?" I said "When I visited
Ichi and his parents in Japan, we took a trip to go to visit a Buddhist
Temple. He didn't check ahead. I did, and found a Dark Adept energy
stealer there, BEFORE he could spot our giveaway auras and attack or
run. I warned Ichi, and told him it was his mission to take care of the
problem. Lucky for his feelings, the Dark Adept chose to run, and Ichi
waited until he stopped and then took away his powers, permanently. He
felt very badly, but would have felt much worse if the man and fought,
and Ichi had to kill him. NOW do you understand why we ALWAYS check
ahead?" They were surprised and sorry, and very contrite, and said
"Yes, Master Teacher." I said "Remember, out of our own places, we are
ALWAYS Guardians, in ALL situations. Never forget that."
I said "Next. We always respect peoples' privacy, EXCEPT when that
person acts like an enemy. Why?" Rose said "They could harm others to
get at us?" I nodded, and looked at Hawk, who said, "So we can stop
things before they get worse, and cause us to expose ourselves and what
we can do?" I said "Yes. Did either of you examine the director when he
started to show enmity and irrationality?" They shook their heads no. I
said very gently, "Do you think you should have?" They nodded. I said
"Looking backward is easy. Doing it when you should, like I did, is
different. Didn't you feel his negative emotions?" Rose said "Oh, now I
understand! Species prejudice! He hated us, you mostly, because we were
different, and he thought, better. He was going to make as much trouble
for us as he could. I should have known that!" I said "I was hoping you
would, which is why I chose you for this mission. Your sensitivity for
that." She said "I'm sorry I disappointed you." I said "That's alright.
We use this to learn, and not be sorry. Because of his projected
attitude, and speech, it was obvious he was our enemy, so I was
justified in examining him. I saw he was a violent bully, and had
assaulted museum staff before. It became the duty of the Senior
Guardian present, to delegate the job to somebody else, or fix the
situation himself. Since he was focused on me, I felt it was better
that I take care of it. To do that, I needed to show to the others
present what the real situation was, and why it needed to be fixed, or
what I would have done, would have caused more problems. Therefore, I
er, encouraged the director to do the showing. That also gave me
ethical justification to act against him, with passive resistance, and
then to the next level, personal restraint, and then to the final
level, prohibition. He freely made the choices to do what he did, and I
acted only to minimize the results, and prevent recurrence."
I said, "Now, comments and criticisms about my reasons and actions.
Be honest." Rose said "I'm not clear about why he was so bad." I said
"His official mission was to show the world and the galaxy, the best of
the culture and knowledge of his world and people, and of the other
people and cultures represented in the museum. He not only didn't do
that, he engaged in criminal activity to suppress what he didn't want
to happen. He hurt his staff, and would have hurt me, an honored FORIGN
guest of his planet's President. It is the duty of a world's Guardian
to protect such a guest, when we aren't protecting the world from the
guest. That's what we are for. Being one myself, that's what I did, and
prevented it from happening again. When you fix something, you should
go all the way as much as you can. If you don't, it will likely just
get worse. There is more. Do you realize the harm he could have done to
the future of our world, and our own plans, if he went public with his
accusations? As Master Guardian of Earth, it was my duty to not let
that happen. Did that help?" She smiled and said, "Very much. Thanks."
I said "Anything else?" They had nothing. I said "I wanted you both on
this mission for training. Do you think you received some, and if so,
was it useful?" They both agreed they learned a lot.
I turned to the others and said, "Hissssner, was this what you
expected?" He said "Absolutely NOT! Very impressive, nonetheless.
Zander, did you expect this?" He said "Partly, having been his student.
I find that I still am, and always will be, I think." I said, gently,
"There is no shame in being a student. Only in not being one. We are
all students of each other, and of life, when we are open to learning
to be better." He said "Yes." The others agreed.
I said "Hissssner, you said you were interested in the archer. Was
that true, or were you just being polite?" He grinned and said "Yes." I
said "You said you wanted to see the others in the set. Is that still
true?" He said "It is." I said "Would doing that, cause you to be less
interested in the first one?" He said "I understand. It might." I said
"In good will, I suppose I should ignore good salesmanship and show
them." He said with a grin, "Well, I think so." I went over to the box,
and started to reach in, and then turned around suddenly and took a
fighting position, because Hissssner was out of his chair and straining
for a look. He laughed, and I said, "Please imagine I had better and
more imposing teeth to frighten you with." He and Zander laughed very
very hard. I said "I'm showing the sculpture, NOT the box. Got it?" He
did, and sat back down, with a grin. I pulled out the one with the
sword and put it on the table in front of him. I said to Zander, "I
made these for Ichi's family. They only have the first one so far, and
don't know about the others yet. They er, like my work." He said "I'm
sure of that!" Hissssner said "I can see in the sculpture, that you
have the skill to do what he's doing, or you could not show it so
well." I said "True. Wise of you." He said "Next?" I showed him the one
using the naginata, and then the mounted archer. He said "I want them
all." I said "I'm concerned for you. That would be a large purchase.
Shouldn't you try to spend your money more er, constructively?"
He looked at me strangely and said, "That's not good business
practice." I said "Friendship and caring, is always first with me. I'm
doing this to further my art, and to fund special schools. Not to cause
people to act against their best interests, or rob people of what they
need to live." He said "Zander has told me something of how he feels
about you. I have acquired the same condition. Thank you for your
concern, but it isn't necessary. I was very successful in business,
before I took up politics as a hobby. My investments still earn me more
than I know what to do with, so I give most of it to charity. I will
not harm myself in purchasing your art, or any other art. Unless I sit
on one of them." We all laughed very hard. Me the most. I said with
admiration, "That was very good." He said with a grin, "That is high
praise. Thank you." We bowed. I said "Zander, we don't have proper
packaging for these. I would need to go with you, with my box, to
deliver them. Our friends can stay here until I come back." He nodded.
I put them all in the box, but actually ported them to the gallery room
in the house. We three left in Zander's flyer. On the way, I said to
him in contact, +Come back to my house tomorrow, for some work with
Hahchet before you take him, and we'll see if you can learn to use the
tractor/ pressor ring. I'll also tell you how to do the command skill,
if you would be interested.+ He said +Wow! For everything, actually.
I'll contact ahead, and be there very eagerly!+ I said +I'm not
surprised. Discom.+ We didn't say anything aloud during the flight.
We got out and went inside to the gallery, and I pulled the
sculptures out of the box, feeling like a stage magician with
reproducing rabbits. Then I said, "I'll leave you to your business.
Here's my marker. I'll be in the flier. Farewell." He said farewell,
too, and I went outside and into the filer, and then ported to the
house. We all did our various eating and getting ready for bed things,
and then there was a problem with Rose.
END Page
--
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Grant
|
|