Solomon's Private File #239
These stories about Stephen and Solomon take place starting in
1950's. Stephen wrote about his life in letters to a penpal, and then
in a secure blog, in case he lost his memory again, in the master
computer in his school for gifted students, which he started attending
in 2016 in a new incarnation, until his death. Now his son Solomon is
attending the same school, and is writing in his own secure blog for
his future incarnations.
All characters are fictitious, even if some of them might have names
that belong to some actual people, or act like people we know.
Solomon is 26 in this story, in the Fall of 2052.
Solomon's Private File #239 "Imperial Star"
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I said to Jurk's father in his study, "You'll have to decide how much
of this the circus manager should know." He said, "You'll protect him?"
I said, "Yes. He knows he has to stay on the ship. If he's with the
rest of us, I might have to do more in public than I should, not that I
used that reason with him." He said, "How is that better?" I said,
"Hmm, just is." He accepted that with a nod. He said, "Is the Empress
in danger?" I said, "As part of their plans, yes. The whole family. You
know they won't be allowed to live. She's old. Custom is, in an Empire
wide emergency, she should abdicate, to allow a younger royal to deal
with the situation. The enemy knows that, for sure." He said, "So it's
the Prince who's in the most immediate danger." I said, "Partially. But
if he can be successfully fooled and manipulated?" He sad, "His
that information, or it will interfere with the future. You shouldn't
grinned and nodded.
I sent a coded message to the Empire's Head of Security on the
Imperial planet, Prime. At the scheduled time, he was alone in his
office, late at night. I walked into it, and spouted more code. He
said, "Agent Red. A rare situation, that such is required." I said,
after we shook hands and sat, "Severe danger to the Empire. I can give
you all the information the usual way, but that would take a lot of
time. There is a better way." He said, "Mind to mind?" I said, "Between
Guardians, which we are, that can be useful, but I have a better way.
It's all in this crystal. Instant memorization. Put it to your forehead
to read it." He said, "I must trust you?" I grinned and said, "You
already do." He chuckled. After reading it, he said, "I understand.
Very useful, this." I said, "Only you can read it. Most secure there
is."
He said, "Interesting timeline." I said, "Which we hope isn't noticed
much. Could damage the future, for the public to know somebody like me
exists." He said, "I understand. Now that you're here, noticed
anything?" I said, "Empress and Consort are clean. Prince has been
not as a full member of the conspiracy. She's been lightly conditioned
to help her avoid notice. She has a poison ring, which she will use if
she can't control the Prince, and if all else fails, on herself, too."
He said, "But it doesn't have poison in it now." I said, "Oh, did you
do something?" Chuckles. I said, "A mild acid. Who gets poked with it,
to manage most of the conspiracy things, who is actually their
dangerous of them, and the one most to watch. She likes to hurt people,
just for fun, and hates the royal family with a deadly passion, but
under tight control." He said, "Distant relative?" I said, "Yes." I
gave him the family tree info. I said, "She has communicator implants.
They work differently, now. In use, all they will do is er, shock her
sensibilities. Well, one is in a very delicate place. Talk about mood
swings!" He laughed.
I said, "Now you have to decide what you're going to do about all
this." He said, "We have at least a year before possible fleet action,
and you'll have cleaned the planets of their agents before that time."
I said, "Just those that are there at that time. They'll be er,
replanted." He said, "But a little confused, and so ineffective." I
said, "And so more dangerously unpredictable. More so if they panic."
He said, "Destructive, but in the open, manageable." I said, "Planetary
leaders need to be informed of that. During or after the circus does
its work." He said, "Then you'll have to do that. What if one exposes
it all?" I said, "Then it happens. I can't compel them against their
will, and offering to do it, could be even more harmful to the future."
He said, "Thank you. I wanted to see your imposed limits." I said,
"Yes. We need to know about our tools." He told me who his senior
agents were at each of the places the circus would be.
He said, "We have to decide how much the Empress should be told, and
how." I said, "YOU have to decide." He sighed. He said, "They don't
said, "She defrauded them. Not who she said she was. Hard to prove by
normal means, though." He said, "But you can remove their conditioning
at any time. So they won't be aware of that?" I said, "If I'm directed
to by the boss of the Red Agent, which happens to be you." He said,
"Fortunate!" Grins.
It was decided that I would have to be with him when he told. We
were. He did the talking. She maintained her composure. Then she said
to me, "You've been silent." I said with a grin, "Tough for a circus
clown!" She said, "And a Guardian. Impressive. There were strange gaps
in the presentation. You aren't one of our Guardians." I said, "I've
met with some of them. A few are annoyed with me." She said, with a
smile, "And the rest?" I said, "Don't want to see me ever again." She
laughed. HS said, "That was you!" I said, "Before I chose this form,
yes. I always try to get the local Guardians involved in my missions
time is right, I'll give you a list of child candidates for our
schools." They both said, "Thank you!"
I said, "I will not allow interplanetary war. How to stop that here,
without my er, work being noticed by the public, is a challenge." He
said, "Their new ships. I know you now. Unexplained problems and
delays." I said to him, plaintively, "Don't do that." They laughed. I
said, "Reason for clowns." They nodded. I said, "Any full Guardian
should be able to detect on er, sight, any conditioning that interferes
with psionics, and be able to remove it, with some effort. If they
could ever be motivated to do any of that. Because that ability is
already present in the Empire, I can provide an alternate method. Each
of these crystals will tingle in the holder's hand when it's within
three meters of a person who has been conditioned as the enemy is
capable of, with rising intensity on approach. When applied to any part
of the body of one who is conditioned, that will be removed. There
might be some interesting reactions to that." Smiles. I said, "These
crystals of a different color, will do the same, but also put the
deconditioned to sleep for five minutes, to two hours, depending on the
markings on the crystals. Disappointing not to be able to watch the
histrionics, but might be a little safer for all concerned." He said,
"Very valuable assistance!" She said, "I agree. Thank you very much!" I
said, "You're welcome."
I said, "I've done all I came here to do, but one thing. Here is a
special phone you can use to contact me anywhere in the galaxy. It
can't be investigated or tampered with. Such disappointment!" He
chuckled. I stood and said, "I now offer you my personal love." I
opened my arms. Her heretofore silent husband was the first to receive
my hug with love. I helped him to sit. The Empress was last. I bowed
and shifted out.
Using a different regular gravity form, I shifted to Omricon station.
I walked into the outer offices of the Station Manager, and beat down
all who tried to stop me. In his office, he had his gun ready. I said,
"Don't be a fool, Pinky. Would I come here unprepared?" He said, "How
did you know that name? Who are you?" I said, "I represent some
business interests, here, and in other places. Some of our interests
are in the open. Some, you know what I mean. Some of those support YOU.
Understand me?" He said, "I do. Please have a seat." He told his
damaged bodyguards to stand down. I said, "You needed new ones,
anyway." He chuckled. He said, "Great fighter. Chosen for that?" I
said, "No. Just a hobby with me. I'm the one because I told them to
choose me." He said, "I'm beginning to understand something of who you
are."
I said, "You're planning something against the Circus. Why?" He said,
"They're spies!" I said, "True, in a way. Whose?" His jaw dropped, and
he stared at me. He said, "I never thought of that!" I said, "They send
reports. I see them. Parts of them of interest are sent on to those who
can make the best use of them. There is some profit in that, and more
than the direct. ALL our interests benefit from this. Including yours,
in a round about way." He said, "I understand." I said, "The other side
of this, is if you do anything bad to the Circus at THIS critical time,
the publicity, and let's face it, the outrage, will seriously and very
negatively affect our plans." He said, "I understand that, too. I
should have thought of that one before." I said, "And one more thing. I
have a man there. No, not the two from before." He said, "You know
about them? You must be really high up in the organization." I said
like I was innocent, "What organization?" He chuckled. He said, "Would
you tell me who?" I said, "If you don't interfere by contacting those
other two. Too much risk of exposure." He said, "I agree." I said, "The
new clown, known as Sol." He said, "Good cover. Nobody will suspect
him." I said, "My best man. They do suspect him, might be the last
thing they do." He grinned. I stood, and said, "We alright now?" He
stood, and said, "We are. Thank you!" I said, "Business doesn't always
have to be against each other. Not when we have something bigger to
work for." He said, "Quite right." We shook hands, and I walked out.
They didn't see me shift away.
I said to Jurk's father, in his study, "Crown has been briefed, and
have formulated the plans they will be following there. They have
agreed to our plans. I'm authorized to tell you of things that concern
your area of action, which you already know." He nodded. He said, "Do
they know more of you than I do?" I said in a drawn out way, "A
little." Chuckles. I said, "What they don't know, is I just started the
rumor among the enemy that the Circus should shouldn't be interfered
with. They thought the circus was spying. I gave them the impression
that they might be a little wrong about who the circus actually spied
for." He laughed, and said, "That is just too much!" I said, "Then you
might not want to hear the rest." He said, "Wrong!"
I said, "I also told them, in my different shaped persona then, after
seriously impressing them with my er, treatment of the bodyguards, that
I had a man in the Circus. Er, me." He grinned and said, "Better yet!"
I said, "And they are not to cause me problems by contacting their two
previously planted agents. I did all this to the manager of Omricon
Station, mostly all by innuendo. Well, I can't lie, but they're used to
doing it that way, to avoid surveillance. I expect him to pass it on.
Could be interesting how that plays out." More grins.
I said, "So, for now, I should get back to the station. The more we
capture of them, the more we'll learn about them and their plans." He
said, "Are you going to go to their planet?" I said, "Someday,
probably. As far as I know, their big leaders aren't there. I don't
know who. One of the second from the top level is on Prime, but even
she doesn't know where the big boss is, or even who it is." He said,
"Do you suspect?" I said, "Possibly a planetary leader of some kind.
Not this one, though." He said, "Good to know. I'll arrange for the
shuttle." He made a call. He said to me, "One available in three
hours." I said, "I hope I meet that guard." He said, "What would you do
to him?" I said, "Depends on the situation. Has to be subtle, or we
won't be allowed to get on the shuttle. One thing, though. I'll have to
tell Jurk that I'm faking being on the other side." He said, "May I?" I
grinned and said, "You want to see his reaction." Chuckles.
I brought Jurk in. His father said to him, "Sol's been busy, and with
some connections. With some of what we've learned about the enemy, Sol
has convinced some that he's one of their agents." Jurk laughed, and
said, "That's great! They won't bother the circus then." I said,
"Exactly. Can't have THAT." I said, "You and the manager have to know,
because I might have to do some acting in that role. I'll feel dirty,
but I can always wash up after. Hmm, would be interesting if I could
require them to meet me, dressed as fellow clowns." Chuckles.
We were getting out of the taxi, when I said to Jurk, "Good. He's
here. And not happy." We both said, "Good!" And laughed. I said, after
we were in the secure area, "There's another enemy agent with him. You
need to use the rest room, and call your father." I gave him the info.
He left me. I walked up to the first agent, and whispered in his own
language, "Stop being so obvious! People are noticing." He was so
surprised, he almost fainted. I said, "Tell the other guard here, that,
too. Oh, and I'm senior to you. Got it?" He said, "Yes sir!" I said,
"I'm under cover with the Circus, with two others. I'm the clown. To
make this work better, you should laugh as if I told you a joke. Make
it good. We don't want people to think you're dying." He had to
chuckle. I said, "Worked a little. Yes, I'm very good at ALL my jobs."
He said, "I don't doubt it, sir." I said, "I have to get back to my
companion, and make HIM laugh, which he does very well. He thinks I'm
solidly with the Circus." I walked away.
ON our way to the gate, I told Jurk what happened, word for word,
translated, and he laughed very well. He said, "How did you know their
language?" I said, "You might not believe." He said, "Oh. Please?" I
said, "I copied part of the configuration of the brain's language
center of one of them, into mine. Er, instantly." He said, "Wow!" I
said, "Included." He chuckled. An hour later, after boarding the
shuttle, I said, "There's another enemy agent on board. He's been told
about me, and the idiot can't resist looking at me too much." He said,
"The man up front who's trying to break his neck?" I said, "Yes. I'm
going to fix him." I went up the isle, and whispered to the man, "Stop
looking at me! My companion noticed. You interfere with my work, you
won't want to live after that. Got it?" He gave me a trembling
affirmative hand signal. I said, "Now I'm going to have to tell him a
stupid joke to distract him. Don't do this again." I walked back, and
told Jurk what I said, and he laughed hard. I said, "Right on cue."
Chuckles. He said, "Never a dull moment with you." I said, "Good. If
not, I would have to fix that." He said, "And I want to see that, more
than anything." I said, "I could think of things you want to see more
of. Or person, actually." He said, "So you know." I said, "Your
feelings shout it. Anything more sensitive than a rock, knows all about
it." He was embarrassed, and chuckled. I said, "I wish you all the
best." He said, very seriously, "Thank you."
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Grant
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