The Time War Ch. 23

The Time War

By Gary LM Martin

Chapter 23: The Highly Unlikely Nation Called "Canada"

The Temporal Social Justice Warriors:

Pablo was beginning to suspect that Joy was having sex with Maria.

He had no conclusive proof, as of yet. It wasn't as if Maria had scooped Joy into his arms after dinner, as he did with the other girls, kiss her publically, and then take her by hand to his bedchamber.

But Pablo noticed that Maria was giving Joy very sly smiles. And when Joy didn't think that Pablo was looking, he saw her giving him the same kind of smiles... like they shared some kind of secret together.

Pablo would not tolerate Joy sleeping with Maria. That crossed a line for him. Pablo was Spanish, and Spanish men had their orgullo, or pride. So he kept a close eye on Maria... and Joy.

Pablo was not the only one ill at ease. Twice now Keith had watched helplessly as his wife Hillary had gone into Maria's bedroom and had sex with him. Each time Hillary had promised him it would be the last. Keith couldn't tolerate Hillary having sex with Maria a third time. He didn't know what he would do.

And then Maria suddenly called him into his study, which was a first.

When Keith entered his study, Maria was sitting on his couch, like a man without a care in the world. Except that his pants was down, and Dana Slotkin, one of his favorites, was sucking on his penis.

Keith half-wondered if he had come at the wrong time, when Maria opened his eyes and called to him. "Ah, Keith, there you are! Come in, come in."

Keith tentatively entered Maria's study. He moved to a chair opposite Maria, but Maria said, in a stern voice, "Sit here," and padded the couch right next to him.

Keith knew what Maria was doing. He was demonstrating his power over him, over them all. He sat next to Keith on the aptly named love sofa. Dana greeted him with her eyes but didn't skip a beat, feeling no difficulty in sucking Maria off with an audience.

"What a good girl," said Maria, gently petting Dana's hair while Dana sucked on his long, hard female sex organ. "Isn't she a good girl, Keith?"

"Yes," said Keith, giving a false smile. "You wanted something, Maria?"

"Of course," said Maria. "It's time to give you some greater responsibility in the Community. You'd like that, wouldn't you, Keith?"

"Of course," said Keith guardedly. Up until now, Keith was at the bottom of the totem pole, an expression he knew Red Bull would not like.

Maria put an arm around Keith's shoulders even as Dana continued to suck him, which made Keith even more uncomfortable. It made him feel like part of the sex act. It was as if Maria was making him part of an intimacy that he wanted no part of. Keith tried not to look down at Dana, whose head was bobbing back and forth as Maria's feminine penis appeared and disappeared inside her mouth, but the slurping sounds were hard to ignore.

"I'm going to put you in charge of the Canada mission," said Maria. "Succeed, and you will find tremendous reward. But if you fail...." He let the thought trail off.

"I won't fail," said Keith quickly.

"Good," said Maria, giving him a quick smile.

Keith got up to go.

"Ooooh," Maria moaned. And then, "Keith! Where are you going? Don't you want to watch her finish? Dana would be very, very offended if you left in the middle."

"Oh, of course. I'll stay," said Keith, biting his lip as he sat back down.

"Good," said Maria, giving him a wholesome smile.

********

"There's something very wrong with this," Keith told Hillary a few minutes later. "Maria never puts anyone in charge of missions. He's the one who's always in charge of missions."

"Why do you think he put you in charge, then?"

"I don't know... maybe he's setting me up to fail," said Keith. They looked at each other, both knowing what the other was thinking. Maria knew that Keith disapproved of Maria's redistributing Hillary's sexual wealth. Maybe this was a plot to get Keith out of the way, permanently. But what else could he do but take the assignment?

********

"My friends," said Maria, "We are about to embark on an exciting new mission. We are going to create a brand new country called... Canada."

He was greeted with blank faces.

"Canada is a series of territories of the United States," said Alyssa Goldenfrau.

"Not any more. Or should I say, not for long," said Maria. "There was a pivotal moment in history, the War of 1812. That's when the United States conquered the territory known as Canada and annexed it from the British. The pivotal moment was the Battle of Toronto in late 1812. A force of Americans under General William Henry Harrison, soon to be President William Henry Harrison, attacked Toronto. The British had a disciplined garrison there, under the command of one Major General Isaac Brock, but they only numbered 1600 men, and were vastly overwhelmed by the American forces."

Maria paused to be sure he had their attention before continuing. "But... if the British had been able to enlist the help of the Native Indian tribes, sorry, I mean, of course, the Superior Americans, the results would have been different. A Shawnee Chief named Tecumseh had 12,000 battle tested warriors, but the British could not persuade him to take sides. We are going to change that. Or, should I say, Keith is going to change that." He put his hands on Keith's shoulder, making him immediately feel uncomfortable.

"Keith, I want you to work with Red Bull and make this happen. Do you think you can do that?"

Keith nodded silently.

"But Maria, how will this help us?" John Cummings, his chief strategist asked. "Instead of having one country run by white people, we'll have two."

"But not all countries run by whites are created equal," said Maria. "Our projections indicate that this new country, call it Canada, if you will, will be much more in tune with the needs of social justice than the United States of America. We predict that Canada will eventually outlaw all private medical care, will enact steep taxes to fight temperature change, will legalize all righteous narcotics, and will have open borders. That will make it a lot more progressive than the good old US of A, won't it?"

Cummings nodded.

"Additionally, it will weaken America to lose all its northern territory, and anything that's bad for America is good for us, isn't it brothers?"

"Right on!" said Elijah Ellison.

"Testify!" said John Cummings.

Everyone was suddenly excited... except Ahmed Ahmad. Maria still hadn't done anything to help the followers of Laquinta. His patience was starting to grow thin.

********

Red Bull, dressed as a 19th century Indian, and Keith, dressed as a British subject from the same era, stood in front of the Binochi Corridor, which was not yet active.

Maria leaned over a visibly nervous Marsha Kalinsky, his captured and tamed scientist. He started to rub her shoulders. "Now Marsha dear, you know exactly what we want, don't you?"

She nodded.

"We want our friends to land on the Canadian side of the border in May 1812," said Maria, enjoying giving Marsha a good massage. She felt tense! "But if you should, by accident, say, put our boys on the American side of the border, and they get caught, well, then it's the closet for sure for you, Marsha. Do you understand me?"

"I do," said Marsha quietly. Every time Keith wanted to assert his control over her, he would lock her in the closet. Except he had trained Marsha to go into the closet herself, and then it locked behind her. She had collectively spent many weeks in that one foot wide by 18 inches long dark closet. She tugged at the circlet around her neck filled with explosives. She didn't want to spend any more time there again. "I'll put them in the right place."

"I'm sure you will," said Maria soothingly. He smiled as Marsha activated the Binochi Corridor.

"Good luck, my friends!" said Maria in a booming voice, to Keith and Red Bull. He turned to Marsha. "Marsha, dear, don't you want to wish them good luck?"

"Good luck," said Marsha quietly, as she saw Keith and Red Bull staring at her.

"I don't think they heard you, dear. Louder," said Maria, intensely rubbing her shoulders now.

"GOOD LUCK!" Marsha fairly screamed.

Keith bit his lip, and suddenly, his chest was tight. "Thanks," he said, and he and Red Bull entered the Binochi Corridor.

********

Sarah never liked it when Commander Strayker stood behind her in the control room. It always made her nervous. But he was doing it now. She could smell the acrid odor of his nuclear cigarette, could hear the tap tapping of his fingers on the back of her chair.

"What is that?" said Strayker, looking at one of the holomonitors. It showed a map of North America. "It's changed!" said Strayker, making a face. "There's now a country named... Canada?" He turned to Sarah. "Is this some kind of bad joke?"

An hour later, Sarah confirmed it. It was no joke. History had been changed to create a country to their north named Canada. Sixty percent of the territory of the United States had been lost.

Two hours after that, John Calle and Daniel Action were in the Control Room, dressed in colonial period costumes, getting ready to step into the Binochi Corridor

"Do you feel you're ready to be in charge of your own mission, Captain?" Strayker asked.

In charge of my own mission.

"I hope so, sir," said Calle.

"I hope so too," said Strayker, glancing over at an Indian woman with long dark hair and large buttocks who was bending over a control console. "Good luck."

********

By now Calle was used to it all; the barely audible whispers inside the Binochi Corridor, the bright lights, the swirling mists, everything. But he also remembered the energy creature who had dragged Lieutenant Simon off the path and into the mists. Could that creature be lurking somewhere to either side of him, waiting for a chance to strike again?

Calle shook his head. He couldn't think that way. He had to stay focused on the mission.

He and Daniel Acton emerged just outside of Detroit in May, 1812. It was just a few weeks before the War of 1812 would begin.

As they stepped out of the gateway, Calle felt a sharp stab of pain in his hand.

"Ow!" he cried, pulling his hand back.

"What happened?" Daniel asked.

"I don't know," said Calle. He looked at his hand. It looked normal, except... his fingernails were long. As if he hadn't cut them in weeks.

Daniel noticed this too, and he started scanning the area in front of them. "Get back," he said, pushing Calle away.

"What is it?"

"A pocket of speeded up time," said Daniel. He kept pushing Calle until he was twenty feet back from where he had stood. "All right, we're clear now."

"Speeded up time?" Calle remembered he had previously encountered a small patch of slowed down time. "What causes it?"

"We don't know," said Daniel dismissively, his tone and eyes suggesting it wasn't a topic to be talked about.

Calle nodded, and checked the map on his Pad. "I think we go this way."

It wasn't long before they found the Shawnee encampment they were looking for. Or rather, the Shawnee found them, four spearmen who suddenly appeared out of the bush. Daniel spoke immediately to them in fluent Shawnee, which he and Calle had both been brainstamped with.

The warriors relaxed, slightly, and nodded.

Calle, who wasn't quite as fluent as Daniel, said, "What did you tell them?"

"Take me to your leader... I think," said Daniel.

********

Tecumseh was an old Indian Chief in his 50's, with a heavily lined brown face and bags under his eyes. In a way, he looked like an Indian version of Doctor Vladek.

Daniel spoke to the Chief, and proposed an alliance with the United States in the war to come with the British.

Tecumseh smiled. "You are not the first to make an offer to us, pale skin." He snapped his fingers, and two newcomers appeared. One of them was an Indian, though from his dress and appearance, was obviously not a member of Tecumseh's tribe. The other was a tall, thin black man.

"These people offer us much for an alliance with the British white skins," said Tecumseh.

Calle and Daniel immediately understood. These were their opposite numbers, operatives of another faction. Temporal Social Justice Warriors, if Sarah's research had been accurate. Red Bull and Keith Ashanti gave Calle and Daniel cold smiles. They each knew who they were.

"What have they promised you?" Calle asked.

"Fire sticks, and strong firewater," said Tecumseh.

Calle and Daniel exchanged glances. "We can offer you fire sticks too, and something much more powerful than firewater." He took a package out of his pocket, and unwrapped it to reveal some plant fiber. "We call it Weed."

An Indian warrior took the Weed and handed it to Tecumseh, who smelled it. "What is done with this... Weed?"

"You smoke it."

Tecumseh gave him a startled glance. "We will try your Weed, and consider." He turned and entered his tent, followed by several of his warriors.

While they waited, Calle said, "I'm a little troubled by the idea of supplying these natives with narcotics."

"As troubled as the idea of the creation of a preposterous nation named Canada?" Daniel asked.

Calle paused, considering. "All right, that bothers me more."

Daniel looked over at Red Bull and Keith, who were staring at them. "I'm wondering what those two are thinking."

"I haven't a clue," said Calle. Keith looked merely unfriendly, while Red Bull looked actively menacing.

"Why don't we find out?" Daniel asked, and before Calle could say anything, he walked over to them.

Red Bull started to reach into his vest, but Daniel held up his hands in the universal signal of Beta Male surrender, causing Red Bull to relax slightly. Calle followed him a moment later.

"We just want to talk," said Daniel. "You guys, you're Temporal Social Justice Warriors, right?"

Red Bull and Keith exchanged inscrutable glances. Keith started to speak, but Red Bull cut him off. "We shouldn't be talking to them."

"I am in charge of this mission," said Keith.

Red Bull nodded. "That you are." For now.

"We don't mean you any harm," said Daniel, giving a gay smile. "We just wonder why you're doing this?"

"The United States is an imperialist nation," said Keith. "The smaller it is, the better."

"But as I understand it, you're concerned with the plight of specific special interest groups--blacks, Hispanics, gays, women, Native Americans-"

Red Bull growled. "Superior Americans! We find the term Native Americans most offensive!"

"Sorry, Superior Americans," said Daniel, raising his hands again in mock surrender. "How will this help any of those groups?"

Red Bull and Keith paused and looked at each other quizzically. It was obvious that they had no answer.

"In fact," said Daniel, "What is your ultimate plan? A world ruled by women? Or blacks? Or Hispanics? Or lesbians? Which identity group will be on top? Tell us, please."

Keith paused again. "We... we do not know. All we know is that we seek social justice."

"Social justice," said Calle. "By murdering Christopher Columbus?"

"He was an imperialist, a capitalist and a racist," said Red Bull.

"How did you ever stop him from being murdered?" Keith asked.

"You don't know?" said Daniel.

"No," said Keith.

"Sorry, can't tell you," said Daniel, with a smile. "By the way, that was a neat trick you did, kidnapping the Founding Fathers and brainwashing them to endorse a social justice agenda. But did you really think the states would ratify a Constitution which outlawed private property and paid for sex change operations?"

Again, Red Bull and Keith exchanged inscrutable glances. "It was the plan," said Keith reluctantly. "And we obey the plan."

"Well, you must have quite a brilliant planner," said Calle. "And that plan of yours to turn California into Vietnam East... how is that working out for you?"

"You thwarted us that time," said Keith. "But you won't win this time."

"Because you have another great plan, I suppose," said Calle, taking the measure of the man. He was clearly scared, and it was not hard for him to guess what he was frightened of. "This leader of yours who makes all these great plans... does he decide everything? Do you obey him... in all things?"

From the look of fear in Keith's eyes, Calle knew he had scored. "Is this what you are fighting for? One man rule?"

"Our ruler is a woman," said Red Bull.

"A woman," said Calle. "Who tells you what to do, I suppose. What plan to execute. What to eat, what to drink... and where to sleep?" From the look in Keith's eyes, he could see that he scored. "We have a better way. If you would only work with us-"

Red Bull knocked Calle back with a sweep of his arm. The Indian warriors, alarmed, raised their spears. "We do not wish to hear more of your words."

At that moment, Tecumseh appeared. He had a wild smile on his face. Evidently, he had been trying the Weed.

"We like this Weed very much," said Tecumseh. "Can you get us more of it?"

"Much more," Daniel assured him. "If you will only join forces with the Americans-"

"Michigan," said Keith.

"What?" said Tecumseh.

"If you join with the British, we will give you Michigan," said Keith. He smiled and waggled his eyebrows at Calle.

Calle wet his lips and thought quickly. "Ontario," he said. "If you join us, we will give you Ontario. Much bigger."

"But much colder," said Red Bull.

Tecumseh shifted from one foot to the other, clearly undecided. Of course, he hated both the Redcoats and the Bluecoats; if it were within his power, he would have scalped all their men and taken their women for sex slaves. But that was not possible and he needed to be realistic; he needed to choose one side, or the other.

And then Keith, seeing Tecumseh teetering on the edge of the fence, decided now was the time to make his grand play. "The chest," he said, snapping his fingers.

Red Bull lifted up a small chest, and dropped it in front of the Indian Chief.

"What is this?" said the Chief. One of his warriors opened the chest, and pulled one of the contents out.

It was a man's scalp. The warrior put it on his head, and chuckled. The other Indians started to laugh.

"There are twenty in there," said Keith. "And if you join with us, we'll give you a hundred more."

"A hundred!" said Tecumseh. He didn't quite know what a hundred was, but it sounded like a lot. Certainly more than ten, which he knew quite well.

From the expression on the Indian's chief's face, Calle suddenly realized that he had been outbid.

********

Colonel Strayker listened quietly to Calle's after-action report. Calle was very fearful. This was the first mission he had been put in charge of, and he had failed!

But when he completed his report, Strayker merely leaned back in his chair, puffing on his nuclear cigarette.

"I did everything I could," said Calle defensively. "I-"

"Quiet, Captain. I need quiet, for a moment," said Strayker.

He puffed and smoked and stared up at the ceiling for a moment. Then he looked at Calle with hard eyes. "Blankets."

"What, sir?"

"Offer the Indians blankets. No, simply bring them blankets as a gift."

"Blankets, sir?" said Calle. "I hardly think the Indians are going to be swayed by blankets."

"Never mind what you think, Captain," said Strayker, with a hard edge to his voice. He blew a few smoke rings. "Just give them blankets. Stores will provide them to you. But first, see Doctor Vladek."

"Doctor Vladek?"

"Just a routine inoculation, one you should have gotten when you joined the Continuity Service. Nothing to be worried about." He saw Calle's hesitation. "That will be all, Captain."