ALARM CLOCK DAWN (An Original Novel - Episode 24)

In yesterday’s episode Adam made history by being one of the first people ever to time-travel. This was an elaborate scheme of Johann’s Pfizer’s to insure XenTek’s lead in the technology sector (thereby insuring the continued upwards-growth of XenTek company stock) by harvesting technology from the future and bringing it back to their own time.

Today we will find out the end result of this first jump forward in time. Also, Johann shares some incredible information with his second in command at XenTek, Seth Busby.

I decided to continue this giveaway for one more day…

Who’s your favorite character so far and why? A random commenter who answers this question will receive 5 Steem dollars upon the close of voting. Thanks everyone!

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Did you miss Episode 23 of Alarm Clock Dawn? If so click here to catch up.

Are you new to Alarm Clock Dawn? If so click here to start at the beginning.

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Adam was stunned by the desperation of these news headlines. He looked up at the bank of monitors that displayed the video feeds from the different security team members' helmet cams, their faces appeared in a smaller screen to the bottom left of each of the five video feeds. Suddenly he noticed that three of the five feeds went blank, quickly one right after another.

Adam spoke into the microphone of his headset, “Hey, are you guys all right?” he asked, speaking into the microphone of his headset. Silence was all he heard in return.

Only two screens were still active. Adam looked carefully at the events unfolding before his eyes. At first he thought he saw a member of his own security team, but the uniform was slightly different, sleeker, and the officer wore a gray lens that was hanging from a thin metal arm and came over one eye. Suddenly only two thoughts rushed into the forefront of his mind—the UNIFORM and the LENS.

Adam quickly leaned forward in his chair and reluctantly uttered the words that just came to him into the microphone. “The uniform and the lens!”

Quickly he saw the remaining two personnel move in closer to the guard. As the guard threw a lightning quick punch, another of the helmet cams went blank. There was so much commotion in the last active screen that Adam couldn't tell what was going on.

Adam was then startled as he saw a familiar face standing in front of the craft's door in the video monitor. It was the crew leader. He blinked three times, just as planned. Adam opened the hatch and was confused as the large man with the square jaw came walking up the ramp with his hands bound behind his back. Following closely behind him was an equally large XenTek security guard with the very same single tinted lens over his eye as the “World Wise” news anchor Adam had seen on his Holo.

“Jump,” the crew chief whispered with a wild look in his eyes.

Adam panicked. “But the rest—”

“Jump. Now!”

Adam reached over the console and flipped the switch. As he did so, he heard the craft’s engines begin to hum.

“Step away from those controls!” the security guard screamed as he leapt across the craft at Adam. Adam stretched for the red button, barely reaching it with the tip of his finger before the security guard tackled him to the ground.

Immediately there was a pop and a slight vibration as an electrostatic charge again filled the air. Adam felt a thud and searing pain as his forehead hit the edge of the craft's stainless steel console, and the world at once faded to black.

CHAPTER 8

“Mr. Pfizer, sir,” Busby said as he noticed a half empty crystal decanter of whiskey and a pair of matching lowball glasses in the middle of the director's desk. Johann was slouched in his burgundy leather chair, staring out the window at the swirling gray sky. The rich leather of the chair creaked as he swiveled just enough for Busby to see his profile.

“Hmmpf. What is it?” the director slurred.

Busby was concerned as he never had seen this boss even tipsy before. “Are you okay, sir?”
Johann laughed as he struggled to pull himself together and rock himself out of the overstuffed chair. “Oh, Seth, of course I'm fine. Jusss feeling a liddle mela-melancholy, hpmph, that's all.” He pulled himself to his unsteady feet.

For a moment Busby was speechless. This was the first time in over twenty years of working for Johann that he called him by his first name.

“I have some exciting news for you, sir.”

“Please, Seth, when we're here in this office alone call me Johann. There'll be time for your news later. I have something to get ovv of ma chest.” He slurred.

“Okay, sir—I mean, Johann,” he said, catching himself. Calling him anything other than sir or director felt unnatural.

Johann braced himself on the corner of his desk as he swayed slightly back and forth. “Thisss place Seth, well, it's my life . . . all I have. You see, I have no children, no wife, no real friends. It seems,” Johann chuckled, “people feel about me one of two ways. I’m either hated or I’m feared.”

“That's not true, sir.” Seth said, resting his hand lightly on Johann's shoulder.

“Don't bullssshit me!” Johann’s voice boomed. Seth quickly pulled away and squinted, fanning away the eye-stinging cloud of whiskey vapors.

Johann reigned in his temper and took a long deep breath. “I'm sorry, Seth. You are, sshall we say, differrrnt but a damn good man. Honest, loyal. One of the few people . . . I feel I can trust. In your next paycheck, you will see the first of many subshtantial increases,” Johann said, waving his finger wildly in the air.

“Thank you, Johann. I appreciate that, but it's really not necessary.”

“It is necess-necessary, and stop being so damned accommodating. I have eyes everywhere, you know. I've been watching you for years. The way you conduct yourself with the team, despite your, umm how should we say, your sexual preferences, it took me years to come to terms with this. Despite this, I believe you haf whad it takes to . . . to . . . .” Johann seemed to lose his train of thought for a second.

“I'm sorry? I have what it takes for what, Johann?”

The director forcefully patted Seth twice on the cheek. “You have what it takes to sit in this chair!” Johann pointed toward his chair and nodded in encouragement. “Go ahead, give it a try and see how it feels.”

Seth slowly made his way around the desk and sunk into the buttery soft leather of Johann’s executive chair.

“But you're going to have to toughen up!” Johann barked.

The look on Seth's face registered true bewilderment. “But sir, I mean, Johann. I could never . . .”

Johann smiled as he looked at Seth across the desk and chuckled. “Oh son, you can and you will. I will have it no other way. Let me share with you a secret that took me nearly ten years of mistakes and hardship to discover.”

Busby leaned in close, transfixed as Johann's mood became noticeably somber. Johann straightened his pocket square and took a deep breath. “The most difficult lesson for me to learn was the need to graduate beyond the comfortable world of moral absolutes. As messy and confusing as it makes things at first, reality just isn't black and white.” Johann sat on the edge of his desk to steady himself.

“When you sit in this chair, you'll be measured by only one thing: the rate of return you provide to the shareholders. In the end, this is all that matters. The faster you come to terms with this, the easier it will be. If you want to be a success and sleep well at night, you must learn that in the world in which we operate there are only shades of gray. The truth is so much more complex than you could even comprehend right now, but the time will come soon when you will find out.”

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Alarm Clock Dawn is the first novel of a trilogy. The sequel entitled, Truth Is Stranger, will be published in the Spring of 2017.

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