Committed

COMMITTED by A.R. Kirby Episode 27 The Bachelor Pad of Doom S till grinning slyly, and his headache now a fleeting memory, Christian stepped out of the stairwell and into the elevator lobby of the lowest level of the secret underground facility. The room served as the entrance to Christian’s private quarters, an area unlike any other in the complex. It was, as Anna once told Christian, “the Bachelor Pad of Doom.” To the casual observer (although there were none, and never would be; access to this level was restricted solely to Christian, Anna, and one housekeeping bot), it would be simple to understand why she called it that. The level evoked a sense of danger, but danger mixed with swinger flair. The floor housing the quarters was the most technologically advanced section of the entire McKennaMontenegro facility (hidden or otherwise), and was designed to be a combination luxury apartment, panic room, control center and fallout shelter. It also included Committed by A.R. Kirby a movie theater, bar, and gymnasium, with the entire section constructed of pure Seamantium in a honeycombshaped layout. The quarters could be sealed in case of an attack or other disaster, and a self-contained advanced environmental system provided fresh air and water. It was designed and stocked so that the occupant and one other person could live on the level in plush comfort for up to three years -- with absolutely no contact with the outside world. This anteroom where Christian entered was six-sided, and each of the exactly 15-foot-long and 12-foot-high walls was covered with a floor-to-ceiling mirror. Deep shag carpet, thick and brilliant white, covered the floors, and recessed lighting in the ceiling provided pleasant yet effective illumination. The stairwell door where Christian entered was on the western wall, flanked to the right by the door for the (ever-so-freaking-slow) lift. Standing atop white cubiststyle pedestals at the northern and southern ends of the room, where the walls angled together, were two giant marble busts -- one of Christian and one of Seamus, both double life-size. Torches in Seamantium sconces on the angled walls framed each bust and cast flickering shadows across the statuary as the facsimiles of the two McKenna men gazed at each other in rapt attention. Inset into the center of the eastern wall of the lobby, directly opposite the lift and the stairwell, stood a single black-glass door with a small matching control pad to its right. Behind the door lay the rest of the complex-withinthe-complex, each room decorated in the same mirrored 2 Episode 27 black-and-white cubist theme. The first time Anna saw it, she told Christian, “it is like ze set of a porno for the... oh what do you call them, from the ‘Star Wars’... ah! For the Imperial Stormtroopers, da?” He wasn’t certain if she meant it as a compliment, but he didn’t bother that day to use his telepathy to find out if it was or not. Sometimes it is better not to know. Nonetheless, Christian liked the way he had decorated the space. It was clean, efficient, and orderly, although he had to admit that all the mirrors made finding doors sometimes difficult. It was almost like living in a hall of mirrors at a carnival, and Christian actually got lost more than once during his first couple of days in the quarters. An infinite number of reflections mimicked Christian’s hand as he gestured at the control panel to the right of the door. As it slid open, Christian was assaulted with a wall of thudding bass from inside the quarters. It didn’t take Christian long to figure out what was playing; Discovery by Daft Punk, specifically the song “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger”. Not his favorite, but Anna liked it, and if she was in a Daft Punk mood, well... This afternoon just keeps getting better, he thought as the door slid to a close behind him. He made his way across the living room and past the sunken conversation pit with its white leather sectional sofa, and stopped at the bar on the opposite wall. He grabbed a glass from the set on the counter, dropped in a handful of ice from the matching bucket, and poured himself a stiff vodka. He took one long drink, feeling the vodka warm his throat as 3 Committed by A.R. Kirby it went down. After his second swallow, Christian started toward the bedroom, swaying slightly with the beat and smiling. As he entered the bedroom, he sensed that Anna was nearby; the open door to the adjoining bathroom confirmed it. A large, circular bed dominated the room, but what caught Christian’s attention was the tuxedo laying neatly across its foot. He took a seat on the end of the bed, picked up one of the legs of the tuxedo pants with his free hand, and inspected the cuff as a jeweler might appraise a faulty diamond. Now what was it we’re supposed to do tonight? As he examined the material in his hand, Christian’s mind raced, trying to remember where they were supposed to go and who they were supposed to see. Not that it mattered, in the grand scheme of things. This was just another chance to play the benefactor, the kind, eager young man who is doing so very much for his country, his people. He relished the role. Not that I’ll be playing it that much longer, he thought. Once we implement The Plan, the poor fools will never know what hit them. It was true. If everything went as Christian envisioned (it had so far, and there was no reason to think it wouldn’t continue), no one on earth would be able to figure out exactly what happened when The Plan was implemented. In fact, the majority of The Plan was already in place and ready to go, simply awaiting action on Christian’s part. Sure, there were a few loose ends to be cleared 4 Episode 27 up, as well as a few more pissbots to put into place, but everything was just about ready. The Bathroom Buddy™ was the cornerstone of The Plan. Millions of the bathroom maintenance robots had been purchased and were keeping bathrooms sparkling clean all over the globe. But beneath the gleaming Seamantium construction, the pissbots had a secret. Each and every one of the robots was a miniature nanovirus factory, and for months the robots had been infecting every person with whom they came into contact. Every time a pissbot gave someone a mint or some mouthwash, millions of the nanoviruses were passed onto the recipient. In turn, these nanoviruses replicated themselves and spread to every person the host contacted. For the time being, however, the nanoviruses were inert, content to spread from person to person, causing no harm and remaining undetected. But when they were activated, it would be a different story. The nanoviruses could be activated in two different ways. The first way was for someone to compromise the security systems of the Bathroom Buddy™. In that case, the nanoviruses would alter their programming to become a flesh-eating monstrosity, leaving no trace of the person responsible for the security breach. Once the intruder was disposed of, the nanoviruses would enter an inert phase once again. The second method for activating the nanoviruses was a large red button housed under a clear plexiglass cover on a console in the Control Center adjoining Christian’s 5 Committed by A.R. Kirby bedroom. When pressed, a signal would go out to all the nanoviruses across the globe, activating their primary function. The nanoviruses would feed on the psychic energy of their hosts, starting by draining the mental acuity of the infected person and eventually absorbing all the person’s mental energy. Anyone infected by the virus would be brain-dead within 24 hours. I wonder how many people I’ll charm tonight who will be brainless husks a month from now? he thought to himself. In any case, Christian thought it best that he know whose guests they would be for the evening, and The Professor would be just the woman to have the information. Not wanting to shout to Anna in the bathroom, he decided to turn down the stereo and gestured at a panel next to the bed. The music dropped to conversational level, just in time for him to hear the tail end of a rather loud and lengthy expulsion of intestinal gas. After a beat, Anna’s disembodied voice quietly followed the fart out of the bathroom. “Ah... hello?” Christian thought she sounded embarrassed, and he chuckled. “Good afternoon, my dainty Russian flower,” he said as bent over to unlace his shoe. “Everything come out all right in there?” “Damn it,” muttered Anna, still out of sight. Then her voice again, less embarrassed than before. “You were not supposed to hear that. I should have closed the door, 6 Episode 27 but you were not here... I apologize, but I suppose you should know that even sexy Russian super-scientists have to poop sometimes. I’ll be out in a minute, and then you can have the bathroom for your shower.” “Not so sure I want it right now,” Christian said under his breath as he levitated his shoes into their slots in the walk-in closet and continued to undress. “So tell me,” he said, changing the subject, “what is it we’re doing tonight?” “It’s a cocktail party with the Minister of Finance,” Anna called, still hidden inside the bathroom. “It is a fundraiser for Prime Minister Djukanovic, so I am sure they will expect you to make a donation to his re-election campaign, but I imagine they also want to get a measure of you.” Christian took another sip of his vodka while his dress shirt and trousers floated into the dirty laundry. “Measure of me? Whatever for?” “To see what kind of political rival you would make,” came The Professor’s reply. “You are a very popular man. The people love you. I think you make them nervous.” “I bloody should,” Christian said, easing himself onto the head of the bed. He swirled the ice around in his drink, pausing to think about what he had just said. His grin returned, even bigger than before, and he laughed aloud. “I damn well bloody should make them nervous!” “You sound very happy tonight, Godspodin McKenna,” 7 Committed by A.R. Kirby The Professor called, using his Croatian title. She had been doing that quite a bit lately, and although Christian couldn’t explain why, he liked it. “What has you in such a good mood?” “I figured something out this afternoon,” he said, settling back into the pillows, his drink resting on his bare chest. “Something had been bothering me, giving me one of my headaches, and I couldn’t figure out what it was. But on the way down here, I got it. I finally figured out what it will be like after we initiate The Plan.” “What about it?” Christian heard the faucet turn on in the bathroom, and it sounded like Anna was brushing her teeth. “Well, I had never much thought about it,” he said. “How do you mean? What did you not think about?” Anna, even from inside the bathroom, sounded incredulous. “I mean, I never really thought about what it meant to execute The Plan, and what would happen after,” he said. “I never did put two and two together. And today I did.” The faucet stopped. “How could you not?” she asked. “’After’ is the most important part, no?” Christian clinked the ice inside his glass lazily. “Now, I see that, yes,” he said. “But not until just a few minutes ago. I’ve been so damned busy putting everything into 8 Episode 27 place that I never saw it before. I think I was too close to it. I was so busy trying to get everything to work with The Plan that I never stopped to think about the consequences.” “Tell me something, Godspodin McKenna,” Anna said, her voice breathy. “Did you ever wonder why you were chosen?” “I did once,” he said as his socks flew gently toward the waiting laundry hamper. “It gave me a headache that lasted all of six days before it finally went away. I couldn’t figure it out. I didn’t get an answer when all of this started, and I guess I never will.” “I guess it is best not to worry about things you will never be able to know,” Anna said, and came to the doorway into the bedroom. “But this is what I want to know. How do I look?” Christian’s eyes widened as he stared at the woman in the bathroom doorway. Gone were the lab coat and glasses, along with any other trace of The Professor. Instead, Christian saw a woman of flawless, timeless beauty and smoldering sexulaity. The gown he had gotten for her from Paris was black, low-cut, and backless, with a slit in front that stopped just shy of indecency. It fit like a glove, emphasizing her shapely figure, and left just enough to the imagination to be incredibly intriguing. Together with a matching pair of strappy stiletto heels and enough diamonds to finance a border war in the Third World, Anna looked every bit the femme fatale. 9 Committed by A.R. Kirby Anna turned a small pirouette in the door so Christian could get the full effect of the dress. As he sat on the bed in his silk boxer shorts, something stirred in Christian that was definitely not the result of telekinesis. “You look fantastic, my dear,” Christian said. Anna smiled and her cheeks flushed slightly. “Why, thank you,” she replied, and turned back toward the sink to touch up her makeup. “Now, don’t you think you need to start getting ready?” Christian didn’t answer, nor did he really hear anything Anna had said. He was mesmerized by the way the new dress hugged Anna’s backside as she leaned over the sink. He concentrated, and the hem of Anna’s dress started rising, moving slowly and inexorably up her thigh. An impish grin crossed Christian’s face as the dress rose ever higher. It wasn’t until most of Anna’s left cheek was exposed that she finally noticed what was happening. “Christian McKenna!” Her voice was full of mock consternation as she pulled the bottom of her dress back into place. “Just what do you think you are doing? We don’t have time for that.” Oh yes we do, came Christian’s voice in her head. And her own thoughts agreeing. Da, we have time... “Stop zat right now,” Anna said, turning to Christian and pointing her lipstick at him accusingly. “I don’t like it when you are in my head. In fact, I think we need to have a talk.” 10 Episode 27 We don’t need to have a talk. Who was that? Anna squinted and shook her head, then looked seriously at Christian. Her eyes were steely. The lipstick pointed like a cattle prod toward Christian. “Zat is exactly the thing I am talking about,” she said, walking over and taking a seat on the bed next to Christian. She put a hand on his and looked him in the eye. “I am a grown, responsible woman. I can make my own decisions. I don’t want to be a mindless slave; there will be plenty of those soon enough. “I want... I need to be able to trust you,” she went on. “And I need to be able to trust myself. I can’t do that if you are constantly filling my head with your thoughts and telling me what to do. “You are a most special man,” she said. “I’ve never met anyone like you in my life. Soon, you will be the man the entire world looks up to. I want to be by your side when it happens. And for the rest of your life as well. You love me, no?” Christian nodded dumbly. As much as he had liked his playboy lifestyle before, it was with Anna where he felt he belonged. He really did love this woman. “And I love you too, Christian,” she said, satisfied with Christian’s nonverbal answer. “Together, you and I can make the world the place it is supposed to be; we’ll ‘fix it’, just like you told me. But for that to happen, I have to trust you. I can’t trust you if you keep putting ideas in my head. It’s not fair, to either of us. And if I can’t trust 11 Committed by A.R. Kirby you... if I can’t trust you, I cannot be with you.” The conversation had taken a serious turn Christian had not anticipated. He was, almost unbelievably, frightened. He could not stand the thought of possibly losing this woman who meant so much to him. “So what would you have me do?” he asked, his eyes still wide, but now as a result of concern rather than stimulation. Anna leaned in and placed a soft kiss on the corner of Christian’s mouth. “Trust me like I want to trust you,” she purred into his ear. “Don’t use your powers on me. Let me speak my mind, let me be honest with you, let me tell you things you might not want to hear. Let us have discussions, let us decide things together.” Christian brightened. That was all there was to it? Just stop using powers on Anna? “I... I think I can do that,” he said. “Promise?” “Promise.” Christian made a small X across his chest. “Cross my heart and hope to die. I won’t use my powers on you ever again.” Anna smiled and kissed Christian deeply. When she broke off the embrace, she looked into his eyes and spoke again. 12 Episode 27 “Well, darling, just don’t use the telepathy,” she said. “Some of the telekinesis I like...” At that moment, an ear-splitting alarm sounded from the Control Center in the room next door. To be continued... 13