The Lizard Wars

"I was an executive secretary for one of the VP's at an electronics company in Sunnyvale, Ca. That's where I met Frank, my husband was in charge of the military inspection team there. We made radios for the military. It was about 25% of our business." I told Ariel.

"As an executive secretary I assume you typed and did the filing than?" he asked.

"Yes. Plus I arranged meetings, appointments and made reservations for dinners and air trips for business." I informed him.

Ariel seemed to be in deep thought about what I had told him. I think he was making plans as to what job I would do in town and I'm not sure I will like it either.

"Don't worry I'll find a job for you in town I think you'll like and can use your experience too." He told me with a big smile on his face.

Now I'm worried about what he had in mind. Maybe feeding pigs on one of the local farms!

In the middle of the next day the council had been elected, three people had been chosen to bring the food and pass it out to our POW's and half of the people who had to move had been moved with help by trucks the troops brought and some of the troops carrying things out to the trucks. Since I hadn't been to the court house, because of my guards, I only found out later that after some bitter arguing the yes vote passed by over 90%.

The next day we all showed up at 10:00 for the meetings and the commander would take a group of people into the town hall and have them write down all the information on pieces of paper then he would get the next group and so on. Within three days all had been interviewed, but none were interviewed in as personal a manner as I was. Those who were farmers had the same job, but where asked how many people and when they would need them to pick crops or other jobs since it was not likely there would be enough fuel in town to run any machines.

By the end of the week my chair for the meeting was finally at the side of all the others, but most were still afraid to outright talk to me they would just nod their heads to let me know they saw me. The meetings had gotten smaller and smaller as more people started fulltime or even part time jobs. There were 10 people left to receive jobs in what turned out to be the last daytime meeting. When it was dismissed no one there knew it was the last meeting. In the morning the phone in my house rang for the first time since this all started.

"Hello." I said.

"Hello, Tina this is Ariel. There is no regular morning meeting today, but could you come down to my office this morning?" he told me.

"Yes of course I will." I told Ariel.

I left my house 10 minutes early so that I would be there ahead of what had been the 10:00 meeting. I was hoping that maybe he finally had a job for me I was beginning to feel left out. No one was there except the guard at the front door. He let me in with no questions. I went right to Ariel's office and knocked on the door.

"Come in Mrs. Foster." I heard Ariel say.

"Please Tina sit down." He said.

I sat down and waited for Ariel to start.

"Tina I wanted to tell you about the job I would like you to do." He said.

"What about the other 9 people who were at the meeting yesterday?" I asked him.

"Oh, they all have jobs now. They were told about their jobs yesterday or last night by telephone." He said.

"And you couldn't call me to let me know my job!" I said.

"No I couldn't do that. You see unlike the other people in town YOU are the only one who will be allowed to refuse your job?" he said.

"Why would I refuse the job I want to do something to help the town. Is this job so bad that no one would want it?" I asked.

"No it's not bad at all. It is one that you are well qualified for but you still might not want it." He said

"What is the job then?" I questioned.

"You are the only secretary, executive or not, in this town. I need someone here who can type, file, arrange meetings and whatever else is needed to run this office efficiently so I'm not bogged down with paperwork and that's YOU." He explained.

"I can't type in your language?" I said.

"I want this done in English not in my language. Reports from or for the town council, notices for the people, data bases or spreadsheets for many other things for the town. The only real problem I see is what the town's people might say about it. I'm hoping that with the guards you had around you it might make them think I'm just keeping an eye on you. Like an old saying from your world I heard. Keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer." He said.

"I've heard that saying before, but I can't remember where. I will however take that job, but you're going to have to get some more and better computers from one of the stores in town. And maybe even some networking equipment to if you want it to work well. As for the people of the town I think they'll believe that you're just trying to keep an eye on me as a possible trouble maker. I'll make sure anybody who asks me will believe that too. What times would I have to start and would it be five or seven days a week." I asked him.

"I think it will only be five days a week, but it will depend on what's going on in town I think." He answered.

"What hours are others working? I think I should work at least as much as others or even a little more don't you think?" I asked him.

"Some people on the farms have longer hours because it's the nature of that business so I will rotate teams of people there and give the teams more time off. Other jobs I've tried to keep at 8 hours per day for five and sometimes six days. The people working part time jobs times will vary sometimes because of the job and sometimes because of the age or health of the person." He tells me.

"OK in that case I should work a minimum of six days with about 8 to 10 hours each day." I told him.

"Don't you think that might be a little hard on you?" he questioned.

"If I don't do that then the people will think as you felt they might and life for me might be worse. Don't you agree?" I asked him.

"You are likely right and you've proved that my choosing you for the job was correct." He said smiling.

  The Lizard Wars

By Miss Dreamer

Chapter 2

Ariel, the commander, called everyone to tell them there would be a short meeting the next day which was Saturday. He called me and told me that Corporal Lem and Private Shia would pick me up in the morning and bring me to the meeting. Corporal Lem and Private Shia were at the front gate just like the other day. I walked in front of them just like I had before. When we got to the town hall there were no chairs set up this time everyone was standing in front of the grandstand. Corporal Lem led me up on the grandstand and he showed me a chair there. I sat down and shortly later Ariel, the commander came to the grandstand.

"Thank you for coming here today for what should be a short meeting. After reviewing all the interviews I had taken I found that only one person in town was qualified to do a job in my office. That job was to be a secretary who could gather the information needed by the town on things like expected crop yields, actual crop yields, arrange meetings and interface with different committees the town may need for a safe and healthy town. She will also help me to setup a network of computers from my office first to the farms for food needed by the town and later to other places. I know this is a big and time consuming job, so please try to help her as much as possible. This person is Mrs. Foster who had been an executive secretary for an electronics company. That is all I have to tell you today." The commander turned to leave and pointed at me then to the town hall as if it was a silent order. I got up and went inside the door and I was really fuming too.

Ariel came in smiling from ear to ear. "Well I think now the town's people will think that your job is more to keep you from causing problems because you'll be too busy to do anything else don't you agree?"

"HOW DARE YOU POINT YOUR FINGER at me and order me in here." I told Ariel off while waving my finger in his face as I backed him up against the door.

"TINA, I was only trying to prove to the town's people that you were more or less being watched. I meant no disrespect by it." Ariel said in an apologetic way.

"I'm sorry I blew my top but not even my late husband would have tried to do that to me." I said as I started to cool off.

"No apology needed I guess I should have told you what I was going to do first." He explained.

"Lets just forget what happened today and start over again." I said.

"OK. Let me show you what I got for you." He said.

I followed him to the large storeroom and he opened the door. It was full from the floor to the ceiling with every kind of computer and networking equipment.

"Do you think this will be enough?" he asked.

"How many systems do you want me to setup?" I asked more in shock than in reality.

"That I'm not sure of yet, one has to be in the court house for the council, later there are ten main farms outside of town, the hospital we're setting up and the small school for the younger children so it can act as a kind of day care for the younger children. Other things will likely come up as you gather more information on what will be needed around town." Ariel said as if it were so simple.

"I think I should have told you I'd work seven days a week and 16 plus hours a day with that work load you've setup. Or maybe you are just keeping an eye on the trouble maker? I told Ariel.

Ariel smiled at me. "I wouldn't expect you to do it all. I'll try to get you some help. I just have to find people who know and understand computers. Many of the adults I interviewed just seemed to know only the basics of the computer, like how to turn it on or off." He said.

"Have you interviewed any of the teenagers in town? Mostly the ones who are in 7th to 12th grades." I told him.

"Only to getting their names and their grade levels since most would not have any real job experience." He answered.

"Computers are more of their age group because they don't have a job, but many have had a lot of time playing with computers." I explained to Ariel.

"I think I should let you interview them. I might be asking the wrong questions or maybe because I'm not a human?" Ariel said.

"With all the work you've already given me when I'm I going to interview teenagers?" I told him.

"Well the sooner you do the sooner you get help." He said so effortlessly.

"Oh great, just great." I replied.

"Don't worry just do as much as you can, but I'm sorry to say time is not on our side." Ariel reminded me.

"I will. You'd better let me also look at the other interviews too."

"Yes of course. Maybe as you look at them you can make a data base or spreadsheet of all the names, addresses, and other information that might be helpful?" Ariel said adding more work to my workload.

"That is probably a good idea to do now and even make a cross reference to it too." I added.

"Something we may need first is some input from the council and maybe other people outside of the council on what else might be needed in town." Ariel said.

"I could setup a meeting with the council and also a suggestion box at maybe the court house." I said.

"What's a suggestion box?" Ariel asked.

"It's a box in which people put suggestions or ideas in for improvement to something." I replied.

"But if you put it at the court house you or someone will have to go there all the time to pick them up. Why not here?" Ariel asked.

"Here as you must know is to the people of this town, the military headquarters of the ENEMY as they will see it. Besides many would feel their being watched." I told him.

"I get your point." He said.

I spent the rest of the day setting up the first computer and loading the needed software. By 6 o'clock Ariel had given me all the interviews and I started to input the information. At 9 o'clock Ariel rolled in a computer table with another computer that he had setup to my surprise.

"You didn't tell me you understood our computers?" I told Ariel.

"I've learned a little while I been on your planet and I watched you earlier so I did what you did." He told me.

As the computer he'd brought in started up I checked it out and found it was fine even to the correct software.

"You're a fast learner. Now what are you going to do with it?" I asked him.

"I'm going to help you enter some of that information, that's what!" He said.

He sat next to me and took half of the interviews and started entering the data. We didn't stop until nearly 2:00 in the morning.

"I'll have to walk you home Tina." Ariel said.

"I can walk myself home, thank you." I replied.

"Have you forgotten about the curfew? The town patrols would pick you up. So I have to take you home." He told me.

I had forgotten about the curfew. He was right he had to take me home.

"OK, lets go then." I told him.

When we left the building Corporal Lem and Private Shia fell in behind us and we all went to my house. Ariel said good night and the three of them headed back.

The next day I knew that I would have to work today or I would be buried by the time the council met and made their recommendation for what the town might need. When I got there I was surprised to fine Ariel was hard at work on the computers and had gotten 10 systems setup.

"Ariel! When did you start working on these computers?" I asked him.

"I guess about 6:30. I was going to try to setup a network to but I'm not sure how to do that yet." He said.

"Well we have to make a wired or wireless network or even a combination of both, which I think would be best for our needs." I told Ariel.

"I didn't know that an executive secretary had to do all of these things?" he told me.

"They don't. Before I met Frank my boy friend was a computer nerd and networking expert. So I ended up learning it and even helping him on the weekends at work." I told Ariel.

"Then you too are a fast learner Tina." Ariel complemented me.

"Thank you very much, Ariel." I said smiling at him.

"Oh I also got some coffee pots and coffee, but when I made it this morning it didn't taste as good as yours the other day. Maybe I didn't make it right?" he told me.

"Where is it?" I asked.

He brought me back to the large storeroom and showed me about 10 different coffee pots and what looked like one can of every brand of coffee there is on the floor next to the computers in that room. Then he showed me that he had setup a machine in the room next to his office. I then showed him how I made coffee and when it was done we both had some. He however had a puzzled look on his face.

"What's wrong?" I asked him.

"Well, I did everything you just did, but this is good, VERY GOOD, and what I made, well it was not good at all." He told me.

"Before my husband and I got together he always made his own coffee and he liked it. After we were married and I made the coffee, the same way he did, he told me he liked my coffee better and I told him it's a woman's secret on how to make it good." I told Ariel.

"I have a feeling that not even with torture would you give up that secret either?" He joked.

"Never. It's a woman's secret." I laughed as I said this.

At that very moment Private Shia came running in screaming at Ariel.

Ariel spoke to him in a calm voice. Private Shia pointed to the north wall of the building and said something to Ariel.

"TINA, there's a fire in a house about a block away. Get on the phone system over there, press the ALL button and get some people there. NOW." Ariel screamed at me.

I made the call and every phone on the system rang at the same time. I told everyone on the line about the fire and to come quickly then I hung up and headed for the fire myself.

Outside I could see the smoke from the fire so I headed towards it. Ariel was directing about a dozen of his men to fight the fire using buckets and garden hoses. As people showed up they also started to help along side of the lizard troops who were there. I saw the town's one fire truck coming with Mrs. Newton driving it not her husband who was the fire chief.

The fire was completely covering the first floor of the two story building. Then out of the top front window appeared Anna Wilson."SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME! MY MOTHER IS HURT AND I CAN'T PICK HER UP!" Anna shouted at us.

Before anyone could even think about what was said Private Shia jumped up and climbed up the trestle on the side of the house entering the window and within a minute was carrying Anna's mother out the window with Anna following behind on to the porch roof. Shia pointed at the latter some people put up and Anna when down the latter. Just as Shia was about to go to the latter with Mrs. Wilson the fire burst through the roof floor in front of him. He looked at the fire and then jumped off the roof with Mrs. Wilson. He landed on his feet and some people took Mrs. Wilson from him. Shia fell down after they took Mrs. Wilson from him, it was clear he had hurt himself trying to keep Mrs. Wilson safe. It was soon known that he had broken his leg from his jump.

Ariel didn't seem to be very happy with Private Shia as he talked to him when their doctors took him away.

With all our efforts we weren't really able to save the house so that it could ever be used again, even though we finally got the fire out.

Monday morning I was at my new desk in the office next to Ariel's office when Mrs. Newton showed up.

"Good morning Mrs. Foster." She said.

"Oh, good morning to you Mrs. Newton. How may I help you?" I asked a little surprised by her visit.

"The commander asked me to come here today to talk about the fire department he said." Mrs. Newton told me.

"He did? I didn't know about that, but why you and not your husband Mrs. Newton, he's the fire chief?" I said to her.

"Well they've been keeping such a close eye on you most of the people in town are afraid to talk to you. There a bunch of chickens in this town, but I'm not one of them. Since I've only met you once at the town picnic I couldn't have said you were a friend so I had no reason to talk to you before. That's likely why no one had told you what happened the night our army left town." She explained to me.

"What are you talking about Mrs. Newton?"

"Well, our army gathered up all town officials and told them to get their families and not tell anyone in town, so they could be evacuated. They were afraid of what the enemy might do to them since they were officials. My husband told me about it but I said I would stay. I felt I might be needed more here and I pleaded with him to just get our granddaughters out of town. So if you take a good look around town you'll see there are none of the old town officials around Mrs. Foster." She said.

I thought about that for a minute and realized that was what I had felt had been missing from the meetings we had with the commander. No old town officials had been there.

"Ar . The commander won't be here for at least 30 minutes. There's coffee there if you want some Mrs. Newton." I said having almost calling the commander by his first name.

"Yes, thank you Mrs. Foster and please call me Lily." She said.

"I will call you Lily only if you will call me Tina please." I said and smiled at her.

"I will Tina and thank you for the coffee." Lily said.

"It was a shame we couldn't save Mrs. Wilson's house yesterday." I said to Lily.

"Yes it was especially after what her husband did to her." Lily said.

"Her husband? What did he do?" I asked her.

"Well, I brought my husband to where they were going to leave and when I saw him, he was with his secretary not his wife. I ask John my husband and he told me with disgust that he had been having an affair with her for about a year and was leaving his wife here." She said.