"At the End"
by Mark L. Stinson
INTRODUCTION
The United States and Britain were islands in a sea of communist madness. The shadow of communism had begun to finally win the Cold War in 1992 when they launched a major invasion force into Europe. America was very isolationist at this time because of the Great Floods. Sea level had risen 20 feet between 1989 and 1990. The U.N. building being underwater caused chaos among U.N. members. This chaos allowed the USSR, the center of communism, to be able to invade Eastern Europe. Because of the great isolationist movement in the U.S., we did nothing but withdraw all American forces out of Europe and into Great Britain.
Now the U.S. and the U.K. were the only true Republics that were left.
Now everything from fuel to food was running out. With riots left and right and huge local government upheavals, the national governments in the U.S. and the U.K. fell. Small organizations became governments of huge areas of land. The two nations eventually became lawless because of the weakness of most of these organizations.
Morale dropped and at the same tie morals dropped. Terrorists captured A-bombs and H-bombs and set them off in their silos randomly. This caused deaths, chaos, and huge areas in the United States not usable because of radiation. Teh general condition of the U.S and the U.K. was so bad that people lost spirit and started to study the Russian language and hang Soviet flags on their doors.
Only one hope rose out of all this. An organization called NMCC. It set up safety areas, set armed guards on the perimeters, invited people to live there in peace, and charged them nothing...set up schools, grew food, expanded, and became, eventually the only organized democracy in the world. Their small size of 100 square miles never lessened their determination. They were winning.
But now the year was 1999, and their strong leader John Phineous was dying, the Soviets were within 100 miles of their walls, and the world was feeling the effects of what happens with total communist domination.
The future depended on one man...Richard Spencer Phineous.
CHAPTER ONE
Richard was not your everyday boy. He was the heir to the overall leadership of the NMCC, but he was too wild to rule...and he knew it. So he was training himself to disappear. He took every survival course given in the NMCC colony. Now finally he had found a way to disappear and at the same time do it honorably. A NMCC spy found out that at midnight, the beginning of the year 2000, an army of 4 million, using conventional weapons and a few tactical one kiloton A-bombs, was going to attach the NMCC colony. A force this large would be too big for the NMCC to handle. So if anything was to be done, it had to be done within nine months...it being April and all.
John Phineous asked for a committee to be formed to find an answer. A plan was made. It needed only one man to succeed. The problem was, it was a suicide mission and the first to volunteer was Richard Phineous...the only heir to the throne of a dying man.
CHAPTER TWO
"Dad, why is this colony called NMCC?" asked a blond haired, blue eyed, 16-year-old named Richard.
"I don't know, son. I was reading some old military reports and one said that the NMCC would be democracy's only hope. AFter reading this ad looking at the reactions of my neighbors to the war in Europe, I decided to form an organization called NMCC and try and save democracy as we know it. But back to your your question...I don't really know, but I bet if we knew we could save ourselves from being slaughtered this January," answered the once powerful, but now sickly leader of NMCC.
"Tomorrow I shall go and complete the mission that the NMCC committee has set up...you know, the one about stopping the invasion. They want me to fly a transport plane with five cobalt encased missles into the major military complex of the communists," said Richard proudly.
Then replied John Phineous, "Richard, I am sorry you volunteered for this job. It will not stop the invasion, you realize. It will only delay it. But within the precious few months you give the colony, we may come up with a final answer."
"I knew you would understand. I only wonder who will take your place when you eventually die, since I...your only heir...now forfeits his life tomorrow," said Richard, even more proudly than before.
" I have a feeling that when I die, the people of this colony will need no leader. Now go. You need sleep." These were the last words Richard ever heard his father say.
As Richard walked down the hall that led away from his father's quarters, he smiled. He had no intention of dying. He was going to stop the invasion, but not by sacrificing himself.
CHAPTER THREE
Richard woke up just in time to see the servant leave. She had brought breakfast in bed to him every morning for at least eight years. She had always stayed to talk, but this morning Mary had been grieving too much to stay and talk. For today was the day of the suicide mission.
Richard ate his breakfast alone.
As Richard walked out of his house, he saw that the streets were lined with people wanting to see him for the last time. Richard climbed on his air car and hovered to the airport with only the applauding crowd to keep him company.
When Richard arrived at the airport, he was quickly ushered to "ground check" by five men dressed in white coveralls. There he was checked for physical problems and other things that might cause the mission to fail. The men in white said nothing to cheer up Richard, and didn't notice when he stole some string and a security gun from them.
At the briefing, Commander Cunningham, leader ot this project, told Richard, "You will be flying a very old transport plane. You will be shot at by enemy anti-aircraft guns. Never put the plane on auto-pilot for this reason. Fly low, get in position, put her into a dive, and ride her in boy."
And so Richard again had no real comfort given to him.
On the airfield, Richard managed to hide a parachute among his payload before take-off.
The tower came on the radio, "You are cleared for take-off...we'll miss you. You're a hero, like no other hero since world began."
And Richard answered, "I know." And so the mission started.
CHAPTER FOUR
Richard flew for what seemed like days. Finally he reached his destination. He brought the plane in low. Then he tied the string from the seat to the stick so the plane would follow its correct path without using the auto-pilot. Richard put the plane into a dive, went to the cargo hatch, and jumped.
As he fell through the air he remembered that he had forgotten his parachute on board...then an anti-aircraft shell hit near him, ripping and tearing his body and causing him to fall into unconsciousness.
CHAPTER FIVE
Richard awoke in an air car. A very young lady of 17 was driving.
"What the hell is going on!?!" screamed Richard, as he noticed his body was covered with blood and his left arm was missing. Then he again passed out.
He awoke on a mat of straw. As he looked around he noticed that he was surrounded by computers. The young girl was staring at him in wonder. He had a full beard, he had no left arm, and that his watch said the date was December 30th, 1999.
Richard jumped to his feet and exclaimed, "I only have one day! Who are you? Where am I? Where have I been? And why the hell are you staring at me?"
The girl answered, "I am called Evelyn. You are in NMCC, Nuclear Missle Computer Control. You have been in a coma for nine months. I a staring at you because you are democracy's only hope."
"I saw you falling, so I caught you in my air car. I looked at your identification and found out who you are. If you can operate these computers, you can destroy the communists!"
Richard looked at the computers, nodded, and accepted the challenge.
Richard walked up to the computer control board, took a look at the missle flight path program, made a few changes, then hit the red button with the "X" on it.
Then he walked over to the damage printout and read what he had feared: "The entire world, as we know it is too contaminated for human life. Every one is dead but the people in this bunker. As long as you are in the bunker the computer will provide food, warmth, and shelter...GOOD LUCK!"
CHAPTER SIX
And so Richard Spencer Phineous and his newly found bride began a new era. The true Golden Age....