Me, my-selves, and Fluttershy: The Story of the Firestarter

by SMWilde

Chapter 13: ......and the Lie in the Truth.

Elsewhere....

At an undisclosed location somewhere in the Capital....

Around the same time as the previous chapter....

Several important men are preparing for a meeting....

I hate this place.

I hate the walls, I hate the floor, I hate the ceiling, and I hate the air. It's all cold with no color. This whole hallway is like a corridor right into hell. And with one trip of an alarm it could very well be hell for an intruder. But I was not one as I swiped my badge to open the big, sliding glass doors that led into the main entryway to the hallway.

This place is located in a bunker under the ruin of a building that was once called The White House. In our uprising we destroyed it by smashing it with the Washington Memorial Statue. That big pointy thing that always confused the shit out of me as to why it was memorialized to Washington. In the end though, it made one pretty good wrecking tool as it flattened the White House. Everyone inside, including the President, never stood a chance. But that was then....

And this is now...

Now we are facing what could be the same threat that we brought onto the old democracy. This terrorist is actually doing the impossible. He's hurting us and I'm pretty damn sure the chancellor is not going to be happy about that.

As I wait for the doors to finish opening I look to my companion next to me. His name is Charleston, head of the Sound and my cousin on my mother’s side. He's a smart man and a wizard with technology. He's also able to hear the most minuscule of sounds in recordings full of noise. I was the one who talked the chancellor into giving him the position of chairman at the Sound. At first I just wanted to make sure he got a good place here because he's the only family I have left but that doesn't mean I don't feel bad about it.

He's a nervous man and this stressful job isn't for him but so far he's done it ok.

We begin out descent into the bunker and our footsteps echo down the long hallway. Several doors line the sides leading to labs or prisons take your pick. The farther we go the colder it gets and the more my cousin sweats.

"For god’s sake, calm down Charles." I say trying to get him to relax, "It's just a meeting."

"Yes but do you know what's it about? It's about him." He said that last word very quietly and I didn't have to guess as to who he was talking about.

This terrorist was giving everyone a headache and I was pretty sure he was going to give my cousin a stroke, "The chancellor is a-angry at us. He's upset that he was able to silence the Eye and Ear so easily. He's going to yell at us..."

I sighed heavily and turned to him as we finally reached the two big doors to the meeting chamber, "He's not going to yell at anyone. None of what happened was your fault and no one was expecting it. All this meeting is for is to go over what we know and decide on a plan to deal with it."

"If it's a plan you want then I've got a good one?"

The voice that answered from the shadows sent a chill down my spine and caused my cousin to freeze up on the spot. I knew who that cold voice belonged to and I was never happy to see him. He came plodding out of the dark like a shadow and stopped once he was in the full light. His name is Orville Creet and he is head of the Hand and the most evil specimen of a man I have ever met in my life. He is a short and fat little monster with greasy red hair that is rapidly thinning and stuck in a dreadful comb over. He always wears the same three piece suit with a red bow-tie and a wilting rose. He reminds me of this super villain in the comics I would read as a child.......Penguin I think he was called. But Creet makes the Penguin look like the world’s greatest role model.

"Is that so? Well then tell us your wonderful plan, Creet. I'm sure it will be just awe-inspiring." I say with no small amount of sarcasm.

He takes a handkerchief and wipes the sweat from his large forehead and fat lips and double chin (which I swear is about to become a triple) and with a small smile says, "We blow up the entire city of course. He's bound to be in one of those buildings."

Perhaps I should have changed awe-inspiring to fear-inducing.

"B-b-b-but that's an important c-city!" my cousin cries out in a near panic.

"All the more reason to!" Creet says joyfully, always getting a kick out of scaring Charles, "The people would fear us more if they knew we were destroying whole cities!"

I was about to step forward when another voice, loud and deep says, "No one is blowing up any cities."

Relief floods my body as I see my friend Douglas McTavish walking down the hall with Robin Bard in tow. Douglas is head of the organization called the Nose which is basically a detective agency. Experts in all fields of criminal justice work there. Their jobs are to figure out who did it and then point them out to the Hand. Douglas still believes in a fair system though which is why I like him. He is a tall and intimidating man with black hair combed back and a huge beard dominating his face. He has dark eyes under a heavy brow and always wears a dark brown trench coat.

Robin is head of the Voice which is in charge of the television, radio, and Internet. They monitor all of it, film all of it, and decide when it airs. Robin is a mellow and carefree man mostly due to the drugs he partakes in. He is a skinny and pale figure with hair falling down his face and shoulders with large square sunglasses and gold necklaces over a black turtleneck.

"Oh look, the party pooper has arrived." Creet says while slinking back into the shadows.

I shake Douglas's hand and say quietly, "Please tell me you have something so we don't have to use Creet's fall back plan."

"Let's me guess," he said while looking over to where Creet was standing, "He wants to blow up the entire city?"

"And maybe the surrounding state." I add.

He scoffs and says, "Relax Mike. We're not that desperate."

At that moment, the doors to the meeting room open and out steps the man himself, the Chancellor. His intimidating stature immediately hits me and I find myself unable to stare into his eyes. I feel ashamed in myself for failing this great man. He led all of us to where we are and I've failed him.

"Gentlemen," he said in a quiet voice that's usually loud and booming, "Please come in. We have a lot to discuss."

He turned and walked into the dark room and we followed him. The room consisted of red carpet with a big, round table with high back chairs for each of us. The only lights in the room were above these chairs and the Chancellor would sit on the high podium overlooking the table.

Robin scurried over to the Chancellor and began his usual ass-kissing, "Chancellor you look amazing. Did you trim your beard? Pluck your eyebrows?"

"Not now Robin." the Chancellor said in a tense voice.

Robin had stopped, dumbfounded by the amount of stress the Chancellor was containing. He looked over to where Douglas and I were standing with a face that said, "We're dead" and I just nodded with a sigh.

We all took our seats and as usual, I was sitting right across from the podium next to my cousin and, much to my discomfort, Creet. The chancellor took his seat and we waited for him to begin.

"So, gentlemen, let me start by asking one question: How. Did. He. Do it?"

I felt myself flinching with every word.

"So who would like to start?" He asked as he looked around the table, stopping on all of us except for Robin.

"Douglas?"

My friend seemed to stumble over the words he was trying to say.

"Charleston?"

My cousin started to tremble as he stared at his hands.

"Creet?"

Creet just stared up at the Chancellor with a blank look. I'm surprised he isn't trying to talk the Chancellor into going with his horrifying plans.

Finally he turns to me, "How about you, Michelson?"

I decided to actually say something other than sit there in silence, "Well Chancellor...."

He leans forward on the podium waiting for me to begin and I can see his eyes now. Those dark eyes with that pinprick of light that always feel like they're staring into your mind and seeing everything.

"The terrorist managed to do it with a very well thought out plan. He covered every angle and took out our systems quickly and managed to steal and then destroy the bank quick enough to where by the time we noticed it was too late. The equipment he had with him was rather astounding and appeared to be homemade and the explosives he used were complex to say the least."

The Chancellor nodded and asked, "How did he take out our surveillance?"

Charles whimpered and I continued, making sure to keep eye contact with the Chancellor, "He used an EMP device to impair our systems long enough for him to cut the main power unit cutting the bank off from us. He also used an MP3 player to lure the guards into his trap. After taking both of them out and our cameras and security systems, he used a combination of C4 and firebombs to destroy the building after taking a portion of the money in the vault."

The Chancellor began to rub his temples as he tried not to get a headache from all of this.

"And we didn't get a single picture or sound sample of this man?"

I reached into my coat pocket and took out the envelope we found at the scene with the guards.

"The only thing we found was this," I said as I held it up before standing and walking over to the Chancellor. He took it and opened it up and took out the paper that was inside. It was burned around the edges and the emblem that was drawn in the middle looked like it was drawn with charcoal. It was a gas mask. A very intimidating one at that.

"Am I to assume that this is the terrorist's symbol?"

"Yes Chancellor. We believe he wears a mask like that to hide his identity. He is also very fond of fire and after asking some of the citizens we learned that the name they gave him is....."

"Yes?" The Chancellor asked patiently.

I sighed heavily and finally blurted out, "The Firestarter."

The Chancellors reaction was exactly like I had expected. He tensed up and crushed the paper and envelope in his fist before handing it all over to Douglas who took it from him and opened it back up. Both he and Creet took a look at the drawing and Creet's eyebrows raised up in interest.

"I think I like this one. He's very different." He said as he sat back down in his chair with a smile.

Douglas just continued to scan the paper as the Chancellor signaled me to sit back down.

"A Firestarter....we have a Firestarter on our hands gentlemen. Do you know what that means?" he asked to which we just stared.

"It means he intends to start the very kind of fire we started in order to bring down the old democracy. He intends to repeat history and bring us down. He intends to undo everything we have worked so hard to build. Our new government has been met with great success. Through harsh laws and stern hands we have brought forth a time of peace that the old government couldn't even dream of. We have liberated the people from the false hope of freedom and have finally given them a place where they can sleep in peace. We tried to spread this to the rest of the world but they resisted and so we had to destroy them. Anyone who tries to undo us deserves to die. Do you understand what I am saying? This man must die before his sickness spreads to the people and they become infected by the disease of revolution that he is trying to grow."

The Chancellor finished his small speech and took in several deep breaths. I was speechless. Was this man really trying to start a rebellion? But why?

Douglas finally looked up from the paper with a look that hid his emotions and said, "What do you want us to do Chancellor?"

The Chancellor turned to Douglas and said, "I want you to get as many detectives as you can and find out as much as you can about him. You find out where he is and what his plans are. I don't care how you do it or what you need just find him and then you point him out to Creet."

I saw a flash of something across Douglas' face before he said, "Of course."

The Chancellor then turned to Creet, "Creet I want you to send reinforcements to the city where he is hiding."

"Already have." Creet said smugly.

"Then send more! Double the security everywhere and patrol the streets at all times. Set a curfew for the people and lock it all down."

Creet nodded with a smile and an evil glint in his eyes.

"Michelson. Charleston."

I looked up and my cousin slowly followed my lead.

"Make a new system for surveillance in the town and install more hidden cameras and microphones. I want everything updated to its fullest. I want to see the detail in the gravel of the roads and I want to hear bugs sneeze understand? And make it to where he won't be able to take them out with a simple EMP and a wire cutter."

I immediately took out my notebook and wrote down some notes as well as a few places to get what we needed. I looked over to my cousin to see him trying to relax as I put a hand on his shoulder. He looks over and I give him a confident nod. He nods back and takes out his own notebook.

The Chancellor turns to Robin last, "Robin schedule a press conference for tomorrow and keep trying to locate that rebel reporter."

"Y-yes sir." Robin replied as took out his phone.

Before the Chancellor could continue, a phone started ringing. It was Creet's as the head of the Hand took out his cell phone and looked at the I.D.

He looked up to the Chancellor and said, "It's the captain I assigned to the town the terrorist is in. He's only supposed to call me if something goes wrong or they found him."

"Answer it." The Chancellor ordered.

Creet stood and answered the phone, stepping away from the table.

"This is Creet. What have you got?" he answered. I could faintly hear someone speaking on the other end rather quickly.

"Slow down captain!" Creet yelled into the phone, "Now what do you mean they're gone?.............captain an entire squad doesn't just vanish into thin air!..........well find out where they went and where their last location was now! Call me if you find anything."

Creet slammed the phone shut and stomped over to the table.

"What happened?" the Chancellor asked.

"The captain has reported that a squad of my men never returned to base from patrol. They've been gone since this morning. There were six men in that squad and they had an APC with them. I'm sure you will agree with me Chancellor when I say he has struck again."

The Chancellor nodded and said loudly, “Agreed. Go back there at once and find out what happened exactly and try to find him. You all have your orders. Now find this madman. Dismissed!”

The Chancellor then walked away from his podium over to Robin and starts talking to him about future plans. I look over to Creet to see him walking away, mumbling about the things he was going to do to that terrorist.

Boy I would sure hate to be him right about now…..

Author's Note:

OK!
So I know its been awhile and you have college to thank for that. I have been working on this for a while and I almost lost it all so I really hope you enjoy this look at the new government of the usa and I will get the next one ASAP