The Power of Twelve (9 page)

One side of Arnie that others did not always see was that he was extremely competitive and ruthless. Once he set his sights on obtaining a property or lobbying a politician for specific favors, he was unstoppable. He felt that he had a special relationship with God and that any means necessary to obtain his goals were justified. After all, he really did know what was best for others, or so he thought, and he never questioned or doubted himself or his tactics.

Part of the reason Arnie never doubted himself was his role as the leader of the Illuminati. At the age of twelve his father had introduced him to Mackenzie Hardy. Mr. Hardy lived in Ireland but visited the Wheeler family whenever he was in the United States.
Arnie was not sure what Mackenzie did, but he knew that his father treated him with deference during their many business dealings. As was the custom in the Wheeler household, Arnie, along with his two brothers and sister, always ate at an earlier hour in the kitchen, while his parents dined in the elegant dining room, served by the butler and the cook. One evening, Arnie, as the oldest sibling, was invited to join his parents in the dining room for what he was told was a special dinner honoring Mackenzie Hardy. At this dinner Arnie learned who he really was.

The dinner started with a toast to Mr. Hardy. Arnie was poured a glass of red wine along with the adults and, following the lead of his mother, sipped the wine as if he were tasting it to ensure it was aromatic and a “good” bottle.

“Here's to you, Mr. Hardy,” Arnie's father toasted, clinking glasses all around. “I am most grateful to you for your assistance these last several years in helping us build our business in so many ways. I have always felt inadequate in my ability to repay your kindnesses, but at least I can host you for as long as you choose to be doing business with us here in New York and New Jersey.”

“You know I am quite happy staying at the Hotel Pierre in the city, but your hospitality is quite wonderful,” Mackenzie commented as the butler served an exquisitely carved rack of lamb with mint jelly, potatoes au gratin, and Brussels sprouts. “Do not worry about repaying me for my kindnesses. We are linked through the Illuminati, and it is my responsibility to ensure the success of my brothers and sisters who share our cause.”

This was the first time Arnie had ever heard the term“Illuminati,” and he was intrigued. Though he knew he should not have spoken up, he could not help himself and asked his mother, “Are we members of the Illuminati?”

His father spoke before his mother could reply. “Arnie, you are twelve years old,” he said gravely. “Next month you will be thirteen. It is time for you to understand who you are and the responsibilities that come with being a Wheeler.”

Arnie smiled, thinking of the presents he would be receiving on his birthday.

“Yes, Papa. I am very proud to be a Wheeler. Please tell me who we really are,” Arnie asked with excitement in his voice.

His father, however, did not answer, but nodded toward Mackenzie Hardy, who started speaking. “Arnie, my boy, as a Wheeler, you are part of the noble network of families who are responsible for regulating the economic and political destinies of every being on planet Earth. We are known as the Illuminati, and we have been running the world for at least the past three hundred years. Once in a great while, like during World War Two, our plans get off track and incidents take place that should have been avoided, but all in all, we are responsible for all that is good on this planet.”

“But in school they taught us that Hitler was responsible for World War Two,” Arnie interrupted.

“That is what we want people to think, but in reality Hitler was just working for the Illuminati. We misjudged his character and he lost control of his mission. Before we knew it, he had launched a full-scale global war. It could have been avoided had he not been such a fool.”

Mackenzie Hardy stopped to take another bite of lamb and sip of wine.

“Arnie, do you remember when we visited that swampland two years ago and nobody but us even bid to buy those four hundred acres?” Arnie's father interjected.

“Of course I remember. That was the day you let me drive almost half a mile in your Rolls-Royce,” Arnie answered gleefully.

“Well, the reason no one bid was because everyone knew that that land could never be used for anything but as a storage place for industrial waste. That is, until Mr. Hardy used his connections with the Illuminati to change the zoning,” Mr. Wheeler explained, relishing the thought of the tens of millions of dollars he had “earned” in that single transaction.

“Why, just thinking about his kindness I cannot help but offer up another toast to Mr. Mackenzie Hardy and the diligent protection and assistance of the Illuminati,” Mr. Wheeler toasted again with a wide smile on his face.

“Thank you,” Mr. Hardy acknowledged and then turned to Arnie with a kindly but intense stare. “What your father says is true. It is only because of the Illuminati that you have so much wealth. This will never change. You are, as is your father and your mother and as will be your brothers and sister, part of the Illuminati for your entire lives. It is a great privilege to be a member, but it comes with a great deal of responsibility. Do you know what responsibility is?”

“Not really, but I guess it's like taking out the trash if you agree to do a chore like that,” Arnie offered.

“Yes, it is exactly like taking out the trash.” Mackenzie Hardy smiled. “You could not have chosen a more apt example. When you are older you may be asked to take out quite a bit of trash. It may sometimes be human trash, but it will be trash nonetheless. Will you be able to accept this responsibility?”

“Of course I will, if that is what I must do to honor my mother and father,” Arnie responded.

“It is less about honoring us than honoring the Illuminati,” his mother interrupted. “The Illuminati are greater than your father and I. The Illuminati are greater than any single family, any head of state, or any human being you will ever meet. You must promise Mr. Hardy and your father that whatever happens to you in this life you will always honor and obey the commands of the Illuminati.”

“Of course I will, Mother,” Arnie concurred as he returned to eating his lamb.

Mr. Hardy looked again at Arnie and told him, “Arnold, I can tell that you are going to be a great man and a loyal servant to the Illuminati. Who knows? Perhaps one day you will merit my role as the Grand Light and Keeper of the Code of the Illuminati yourself.”

“So that is why my parents are so taken with Mr. Mackenzie Hardy,” Arnold contemplated. “He is the leader of the Illuminati. He must be the most powerful man on Earth. Someday I will be too. I will observe, listen, and learn.”

And that is exactly what Arnie Wheeler did every day for the next thirty-seven years, until by unanimous decree of the inner
circle of the Illuminati he was indeed appointed the Grand Light and Keeper of the Code.

Arnold raised his glass to himself, enjoying the exquisite beauty of his original Picassos and Monets on his living room wall. Outside, the Sun had disappeared completely, and the incoming surf was lit only by the house's security lights. “To the Code!” Arnold toasted out loud. “To the Code that will preserve the power of the Illuminati for the rest of time.”

CHAPTER NINE

CHOCOLATE, CAFFEINE, AND CONSCIOUSNESS

A
BIGAIL WAS ADJUSTING to being in a human body, and Barbara was adjusting to sharing her consciousness with Abigail. Most of the time the two consciousnesses were in harmony, but from time to time Abigail would insist on taking control. In particular, she had developed a fondness for dark chocolate and insisted that Barbara purchase chocolate bars wherever they went. Soon she was consuming two to three large chocolate bars a day.

Barbara tried to slow down Abigail's consumption, but to no avail. Barbara found herself getting jittery from the extra caffeine, waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to get back to sleep. “Abigail, this chocolate craze has got to stop. If we don't sleep through the night we will not have enough energy the next day.”

Abigail responded, “I'm sorry. On planet Naranjada sleeping is optional and not something I do very much.”

“Well, when you have a human body you need to sleep, or the body does not function. How about we limit our chocolate to one bar a day?”

“All right,” Abigail conceded with a sigh, “just one bar. But I sure love chocolate.”

In other aspects of her life, though, Abigail's presence was giving Barbara a big boost. For instance, Eve was amazed at how quickly Barbara was answering the door and almost rushing to pick up phone calls. She assumed the new vitality was simply a response to the ever-increasing probability that Project Wake Up would become a global phenomenon. On the negative side, Eve noticed that Barbara was slow to recognize her neighbors and volunteers from her Foundation for Conscious Evolution. Eve assumed that the occasional forgetfulness was caused by the stress of so much happening at once.

At the meeting at Jack's, Jim had graciously offered to cover Eve's traveling expenses to Mcely so that Barbara would have a traveling companion. Thrilled by the glamorous prospect, Eve spent days researching the area around Mcely. She discovered that, just like Lourdes and Fatima, there had been sightings of the Virgin Mary in the great forest surrounding Mcely. Prelates at the highest levels of the Catholic Church debated whether to recognize these miracles or not, and in the end they decided not to. Their decision was not based on the factual evidence, which included three different reports of the sightings from three separate and reliable witnesses, but rather the political climate in Eastern Europe at that time. Eve's research also found that the area around the Chateau had been settled nearly three thousand years ago and represented one of the oldest and most sacred areas on the planet. She marveled out loud, “How appropriate it is that such an ancient and sacred location is about to become the central communications hub for the grandest human experiment in history.”

Abigail was looking forward to the event as well, but she found the flight to Prague restrictive and confining. She had always been able to teleport herself instantly wherever she chose throughout the universe. Being confined in a human body and having to sit in a confined space for close to fifteen hours was not what she considered a productive use of her time. She found the security precautions of the TSA agents particularly odd.

That was because Abigail/Barbara was randomly selected for a full-body search while going through the TSA line. Abigail was so offended that she called for the TSA supervisor to protest. “I am an eighty-three-year-old great-grandmother. How could I possibly be a security threat? This is ridiculous. You are wasting taxpayer dollars that could be spent educating children.”

The hulking, overweight supervisor did not see her point. “Ma'am, that may be, but we have a job to do, and if you do not let us search you, you will not board your plane.”

Abigail/Barbara looked at Eve. “Well, I really shouldn't allow this. My brother-in-law is Daniel Ellsberg of the Pentagon Papers. He did not risk his career so people like you could abuse innocent citizens for no reason.”

Alarmed, Eve intervened. “Now, Barbara, I have been searched before myself. It takes only a minute and I am sure they will be gentle and respectful. We do not want to miss this plane.”

The supervisor smiled thinly. “Your friend is right. We will not harm you or touch you inappropriately, but if you do not submit to this search, you will not board the plane.”

In the end, Abigail/Barbara did it mainly because she didn't want to spoil Eve's trip. “I will submit, but I am doing so under protest. We have important work to do in Prague or I would really make a scene. This is stupid and un-American, but go ahead and search me.”

After the search Abigail/Barbara finally was allowed to pass through security. It was a good thing that Eve had insisted on arriving an hour early or they would have missed their plane.

“Barbara, how do you allow yourself to be subjected to this intrusive searching and probing?” Abigail complained telepathically. “They must know this security has no real impact on preventing terrorism. I'll bet its real purpose is to train the human masses to let go of their sense of autonomy and freedom.” Abigail seized upon that idea, because it rang so true to her. “In my opinion, the real reason these security precautions have been instituted by the 319 families is to start a process of psychological acceptance and a type of mind control that will enable them to continue to exploit the resources of the planet.”

Abigail was amazed by other small details of human existence. She loved caffeine and was pleased to see Starbucks and other coffee chains wherever she went. In her own universe, consuming nutrients from living plants and animals was unnecessary. Everyone on her planet had learned from birth to just breathe in whatever energy they required from the air. Being in a human body and needing to eat three times a day was both inconvenient and cumbersome. Needing to evacuate the waste from those meals was even odder to her. At first she thought that coffee and chocolate would be all that might be necessary to maintain the physical body, but she soon learned, especially with coaxing from Barbara, that such a diet was impractical.

Abigail's fondness for chocolate enabled her to understand the human addictions to food and drink, and that in turn helped her to understand why Earth 769 was undergoing such a crisis. Every human being, from her perspective, was dependent upon food sources that required cruel and thoughtless behavior. Some humans, including Barbara, were primarily vegetarians and did not require the killing of mammals and fish, but for Abigail, even the consumption of a piece of fruit or a stalk of asparagus was an unsettling and barbaric practice.

By the time Abigail/Barbara arrived in Prague, Abigail had adjusted to some of the basic protocols about food and was ready to attend the inaugural dinner at Chateau Mcely for Project Wake Up without making the type of involuntary grimaces that might give away her true identity.