Kiss My Apocalips
The story of Jacob Jones and the end of the world
CHAPTER SEVEN -- Council of War
It was rapidly approaching nighttime at Hazy Mountain Lodge. I had declared, after the afternoon meal, that I wanted to go back up and break our camp, rather than wait until the morrow. We had enough planned for that day, anyway, since we had to go back down to the valley farm to feed the chickens and check security. Sofia and Sadie joined me, while Wanda, Doriana and Hannah decided to make preparations for the evening at the farm end of the property.We left the dog in the lodge, and all of us walked back to the barn together. Then, while I took the truck back down the mountain with S&S, the other three tackled the feeding chores and getting the farm animals ready for the night.
It was almost six when the tent and sleeping bags, along with the drones and other equipment, were all strapped down in the bed of the pickup. I was pleased that we were leaving the campsite cleaner than we'd found it, and I told the girls so. I'm not sure how we happened to split up for the different jobs this way, but I was very happy I was with the two petite beauties. Again, I marveled that they looked so much alike; and they even dressed alike: in shorts, tee shirts and tennis shoes. Neither wore, nor really needed bras beneath the tops; and I found myself staring at their small breasts and firm nipples through the thin material more than once, while hoping that I wouldn't get caught in the act.
Driving in the mountains at dusk is tricky, transitioning from bright sunlight to near darkness as you navigate hills, valleys and steep curves. But in seemingly no time, we were back; and I was impressed to notice the big steel fence gate slowly close after we'd passed it. It meant, of course, that Hannah was monitoring security cameras from the lodge and activating remote controls to protect the place. I wondered if there were motion sensors planted in the cleared areas around the compound; and if so, how many.
I took the truck up the gravel driveway through the garden area and right up to the lodge. It looked like another rainless night, but I had a tarp in the back seat; and we spread it over the back of the pickup, anyway. Sadie pointed toward the front door and laughed, and it took me a moment to see what she thought was so funny. Someone had taken a piece of paper, written a single word with a marker; and the expression "Private" on that brass sign had been replaced with the word "Welcome."
"Wanda," both Sadie and Sofia said together; and I had to nod my agreement.
It was really too warm for a fire in the fireplace, but we joined the others on the couches in the great room, anyway. Someone had found several candles and put them on the hearth, and the flames lent a warm glow to the place; though, after another half hour, the flickering illumination barely reached the ceiling or walls around us. I suddenly had a brandy snifter in my hand. I'd never had brandy, but this tasted great; and when I asked, I was told it was Cognac. I never really did really understand the difference.
I had plopped down in the center of the couch facing the gaping fireplace, and was a little surprised when Sadie and Sofia had taken places on either side of me. After finishing our drinks, they each sort of squirmed against my shoulders until I finally got the clue and put an arm around each of them so that they could cuddle into my sides and chest. They normally chose to sit next to each other. In point of fact, they usually chose to do everything together.
Wanda sat at one end of the couch to my left, and Hannah, still dressed in her shorty-overall getup, was sprawled across the rest of it, with her head in Wanda's lap. I had trouble deciphering the expression on our newest acquaintance's face. Her hair, face and scalp were being gently stroked by her sitting companion, and she seemed to veritably hum with satisfaction; but she also seemed as if she thought she should be uncomfortable in that situation. Guilty pleasure, I guess.
Doriana sat to our right, sipping a diet soda and she had her feet covered by a thin blanket. "Why is Hannah still here?" she asked.
It was a question easily misconstrued, but Sadie understood and answered immediately. "It was part of the algorithm Doctor Hyphen quoted me that night on our ... um ... date. You see, the REAL problem that faced him was one of data collection and interpretation. There have been great advancements in bio-scanning techniques in recent decades. When a fire department pulls up to a structure fire, they always have the same questions: Are there any people still in there? How many? Where are they? And bio-scanning has helped answer those questions; but it goes far beyond just helping mankind. It can be used to manipulate. Knowing everyone's exact location gives corporations and politicians an idea about what they're doing, where they're going, what their intentions are. Plug that data into AI-driven models, and you can begin to predict the future with uncanny accuracy.
"So, Hyphen developed, purchased and constructed a satellite-driven bio-scanning system that pretty well pinpointed all eight-point-seven billion people on this planet. Then, he had to either accept certain definitions, or make his own. For example, how would you define the town of Acton, where we were a few days ago? I'm willing to bet he simply accepted the definition as given by cartographers. If an individual was on one side of the demarcated city limit, he or she was chosen to be in our new world. If that person was on the other side, he or she was not."
For some odd reason, before continuing, she reached up and interlaced the fingers on my left hand with her own. I wasn't really sure what to make of that, but I can remember thinking that she had a very small hand when compared to the mind her body possessed.
"The ultimate success in Quantum Manipulation would include specific details designed to confuse and misdirect others from drawing accurate conclusions. And some of the things he did were relatively simple when compared to the overall scope of the shifted timeline. For example, when he set his AI-driven parameters that eliminated most human beings, he obviously included an algorithm that encompassed human tissue, but not fabric, leather or synthetic clothing. Pretty simple, actually. I bet I could write the coding necessary to build such a quantum sequence. And, if you examine those piles of clothing carefully, I'm certain you're going to find things like dental fillings, pacemakers and hearing aids. Same for all of those digital monitors that were actively recording when The Event happened. He simply included them in his new universe, but he reset them to time zero." She paused and took a breath while stroking my fingers with her own.
"Hyphen was enthralled by people who lived apart; who lived alone," she continued. "He'd obviously decided that in this new world, he would accept only those people within a very small percentage of towns and cities, and he eliminated everyone else. But if a person was ALONE within a given space, then he or she was included in this new universe. I don't know what that distance was, but I'm assuming it's something very simple, like a hundred square kilometers. Imagine for a moment that number is correct; then Hannah was the only human lifeform within a ten-by-ten-kilometer square. Hyphen liked hermits. THAT'S why Hannah is still here."
That made me think. "How about a person who was alone in a car on a deserted road? Or in a boat on the ocean?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. It all depends on what he fed into the quantum computer that did this. Also, one of the things that alerted both Dr. Gonzales and myself to the possibility that Hyphen was our man is that he's always been an outspoken member of PETA. He probably cares much more about pets and farm animals than he does about people. Looking out for THEIR interests was obviously a big part of his overall algorithm."
"Is there any chance that we're all just part of some computer simulation?" I wondered.
But this time, she laughed. "I don't think so. Why worry about the animals if they're just computer generations? Also, all of us are being bombarded by a myriad of emotions; and computers have never been very good at duplicating those." She let that sink in for a moment. "But if that WAS the case, what difference would it make to us? What would we do differently? How would it change what we do ... or alter what we SHOULD do? That's all in the realm of philosophy, not science."
Sofia snuggled further into the right side of my chest. "I need a shower," she said softly. "That was hard work, taking down the campsite."
Silence stretched on for several long moments, then Hannah suddenly said: "Ouch!"
I looked inquiringly in her direction, and saw that she was rubbing her shoulder, while looking questioningly up at Wanda, who bore an innocent expression. Another several seconds went by. "Oh!" Hannah exclaimed. "Shower! Right! We ... uh ... need to ... um ... conserve water in the evenings! We should shower together! In ... um ... pairs. Or maybe threesomes! The first bedroom upstairs; it has a huge shower! You guys should use that!"
Sofia stood and reached for my right hand. "Oh. Okay then. Good suggestion. We'll do that."
To my left, Sadie was standing, as well, while taking my other hand. "Conserve water. That makes sense."
I struggled to my feet. "But we were talking about ...."
"Showers," Doriana interrupted. "Have a nice one! I think maybe we other three gals might have to conserve some water of our own."
Hannah gave a soft gasp. "I've never ...."
"Conserved water?" Wanda finished for her. "We'll show you how. There's a nice big bathroom in the room next to that, isn't there? And a king-size bed, too. Just think of all the conservation we can achieve!"
Sofia and Sadie were pulling me toward one of the staircases leading to the floor above. Chuckling, I followed meekly. "When did all you ladies practice that?" I asked them. "That little act had everything except choreography."
"We'll try to add dancing for tomorrow's performance," Sadie said quietly. "Thank you for not objecting. I hope we're not coming on too strong."
"I think both of you are way out of my league," I told them seriously. "I've been sleeping with you for a couple nights now, and I considered myself especially lucky just to be around you. I've wanted to touch each of you so much, but I didn't want you to think I was pressing either of you for ... um ... sexual favors. Especially after all the horrors you've been through. I'm terrified that I might do something that would remind you of the other men that ...."
Sofia tugged me to a stop a couple steps shy of the top of the stairs; then, she took another step to bring her face more closely to the level of my own. When she saw that, Sadie did the same. They each kissed a cheek. "There could never be any comparison between you and any of those men," Sofia whispered in my right ear.
"I've never met anyone like you anywhere," Sadie whispered in my left ear. "And I'm dying to find out what it feels like to be with you."
Taking a deep breath, I filled each of my palms with their butts and hoisted both of them a foot off the ground. They squealed simultaneously as I continued mounting the stairs, and they both wrapped their legs around my waist, getting them tangled up with each other's. But after only a few paces on this new floor, I came to a halt. "Wow. It's really dark up here!" I commented.
"Please don't go careening over a banister," Sadie said, giggling.
