Chapter 3

The next morning, we were up reasonably early. I was sure that many of those who would be at the meeting would need time to recover from the good times that everyone had had yesterday, but I was sure that all of them knew the hangover spell.

As a result of getting a good night’s sleep, we were more than ready when Uncle Aengus arrived at 9:30 that morning.

“Ah, you’re ready, let’s go,” he muttered in a tired voice, and we three disappeared on joining him. We reappeared in a room that I wasn’t familiar with, and I thought that I had been to all of the important locations in our Realm at one time or another. There were no windows or doors visible in the room. It was lit by several Magic powered lamps which revealed the dark wood paneling on the walls as well as the red rug on the floor and the white plaster ceiling. There was a large mahogany table with a dozen chairs around it, and several computer screens, but to my surprise there were only six of my senior Relatives present. In the quiet of the room, my Were aided hearing picked up the whisper of the ventilation system. It was Uncle Aengus who broke the silence.

“This meeting involves just the senior members of the Clan’s action committee, but we didn’t feel it necessary to include the staff people or any of the researchers, so since we are all here, let’s get down to the business at hand,” he told everyone, and the rest took what appeared to be their accustomed seats, while Robert and I were directed to the chairs at the far end of the table.

“The two of you are here for a briefing on what we have learned about the Fourth Reality and what we believe will be happening in the next year there which will be 1907. When we arrived here, it was necessary to determine just how far this Reality differed from the one that we knew. While we found some surprising differences in the past, things seem to be on a track very similar to that of our previous Reality,” he informed us.

“What sort of differences are we talking about in the past?” I asked.

“Well my dear, the most significant difference is that Lincoln wasn’t elected President in 1860. Instead William H. Seward was, and Lincoln was his Vice-President. Seward had been a State Senator in New York before becoming the Governor. Later he was appointed to the U.S. Senate for two terms. He was strongly opposed to slavery, and his election in 1860 led to the Civil War just as Lincoln’s had in our previous Reality.

“The War started out much as it had in our former Reality, but Seward was no Churchill or Eisenhower, and handled things badly. He died of a heart attack in early 1863, and Lincoln became President. He had a lot to correct to bring the Northern States back from near defeat, as the British and the French had been openly assisting the Confederacy with supplies and money. It took until late in 1867 for the North to prevail, and even then it was less than the grand victory that they had in our former Reality. The extended War had been very costly for the North, and they were glad to settle for what they had managed to achieve before it cost them even more.

“Lincoln had been re-elected in 1864 of course, and was assassinated early in 1868 causing another crisis, but it was defused without a resumption of the war, as both sides were exhausted,” Uncle Aengus finished. Both Robert and I were greatly surprised by this news.

“So, getting back to what I was saying, here is a summary of those in positions of power, and the events that we believe will occur in 1907 in this Reality based on what we have observed here and the history of our previous Reality,” Uncle Aengus told us as several of the computer screens lit up presenting a series of facts and events that our Senior Relatives believed would occur in the coming year, which would start in only a few days. The screens had the following information:

Fact Summary

United States:

President: Theodore Roosevelt

Vice President: Charles W. Fairbanks

Speaker of the house: Joseph Gurney Cannon

England:

King: Edward VII

Prime Minister: Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman

Major Events Expected to Occur:

The U.S. under Roosevelt took over work on the Panama Canal from France in 1904. It is expected that that he will appoint Major George Washington Goethals as the Chief Engineer on the project and that the canal will be finished in 1914.

Henry Ford will introduce the Model R automobile in1907 and the Model T in 1908. They will be built on his improved moving assembly line using interchangeable parts.

Oklahoma will be admitted to the Union as the 46th State.

The Great White Fleet will start its voyage around the world this year. It is intended to encourage patriotism in America, and to impress upon the Japanese that we are serious about defending our sphere of interest in the Pacific region. The cruise will bring to light many of the problems associated with extended voyages.

Late in the year, the Panic of 1907 will be averted when several Wall Street financiers create a pool of money to invest in the New York Stock Exchange and end the Panic. Because of the Panic this will lead to the takeover of a number of companies by them.

Labor Unions have already been invaded by the dishonest and the gangsters. Labor Leader Bill Haywood will be found not guilty of murder due to the theatrics of his lawyer, but the crooks will have only begun taking over the Unions.

Some lighter events this coming year will include:

Marconi will introduce transatlantic radio communications between Ireland and Nova Scotia.

By the end of the year, eight percent of U.S. Households will be wired for electricity.

Albert Einstein will be ecstatic when he realizes that the Principle of Relativity can be extended to gravitational fields.

And finally, Florenz Ziegfeld will introduce his Ziegfeld Follies to the world.

The screens went blank following this last point.

“Those are the major and some of the minor things that we expect to occur in the coming year. There will be others, of course, but we don’t expect them to be of any great concern to us,” Uncle Aengus resumed.

“We believe that to be effective in this Reality, we will need a base of operations, and that Savannah is... ,” Uncle Aengus was interrupted then by the appearance of the Eternal Flame above the conference table.

“You have missed several things in your assessment,” It began in less than the booming voice that It often used.

“The Great White Fleet will be obsolete even before it sails, though those in charge won’t realize that for some time yet. The British have built and launched a new all big-gun battleship, which they have named Dreadnought. The keel was laid in 1905 and it was launched just a year later in 1906. It will revolutionize naval thinking, and lead to a naval arms race, as the major navies of the world rush to catch up.

“Secondly, you have underestimated the Japanese. They have already adopted a policy to completely control commerce and industry in the Far East. To accomplish this they will begin construction of a large navy.

“Further, there is great unrest in Eastern Europe which will eventually lead to the First World War. This, coupled with the new designs in warships, is the most eminent danger. The mission that I have for you and your Clan then is to avert the start of the First World War.

“To do that, you will indeed need a base of operations in the Fourth Reality, but it will be in Statesboro and not in Savannah. Katie and Margie O’Connell in this Reality did not go to New Orleans to have their Parents brought back to life, they were not cursed, and never really learned to use the Talent that they possessed. They both died before the end of the last century.

“I have already set in motion a replacement for them in January of next year. They are a couple of young people with strong Talents. They will arrive in Statesboro in late January of 1907 and will purchase the available O’Connell land. There is another piece of land that was previously purchased by a man from South Carolina. He has already donated 300 acres of it to the town of Statesboro for the construction of the First District Agricultural and Mechanical School.

“I will ensure that you will be able to purchase the remaining 400 acres for the construction of the ‘Georgia School of Magic’ which you will establish there. You will also have eight houses constructed along Plantation Lane, which will need to be paved. You will obtain the land for the houses from the pair that I am sending there who are Owen O’Connell and Grace O’Malley. You will also need to arrange their marriage, which shouldn’t be a great problem for you,” It finished.

“But Flame, how are we to afford this?” Uncle Aengus demanded. “We aren’t poor, but what you propose will demand a serious outlay of money.”

“Do not worry, Aengus. There is much gold in the Universe along with other precious metals and jewels where biological entities are unable to go. I will supply the money in the form of American gold and silver coins, plus some paper money where needed.

“There are many in this world who will be glad to exchange the American gold coins they have for raw gold which they can use as they desire without it being traced,” It told us with a rustle of Its flames that could have been a chuckle.

“Margie and Robert will need to be ready to go to the O’Connell property in this Reality on the 12th of February. Until then, both of you enjoy yourselves and get married. I will be delivering other information that you will need before that date as well as certain other items for your trip,” It finished and then vanished. We all sat there for a time considering what we had heard.

“Well, that certainly blows most of our plans out of the water,” Great Aunt Gale said after a time.

“Yes, and you know that it will happen exactly as It directs even if we don’t agree to do it,” Uncle Aengus said with a great sigh. “Somehow It always gets what It wants.”

“When are you two getting married?” one of my other Great Aunts asked.

“Saturday the 12th of January,” Robert told her. He hadn’t said anything since we had arrived, and I could sense that he was uncomfortable with much of what we had read and heard.

“Good, that will give you a month to relax before starting on this new assignment,” my Great Aunt said with a smile. I was sure that I knew what she was thinking.

“Yes, I may even be showing by then,” I told her to a shocked look from her.

“Twins, you know,” I added, and giggled like a young girl.

That afternoon, Robert and I went to visit the Clan jewelry store in our Realm, and picked out an engagement ring set. The engagement ring was made of gold and was wide with a lot of engraving in addition to having a small diamond. The wedding ring was narrower, and the engraving was a match to that on the engagement ring. The cost was charged to my bank account here in our Realm. Later that week, Celeste accompanied me to check on wedding dresses. We looked at a number of dresses before I found one that I liked, and we took it home. I would use the clothing spell to make it fit me before the wedding. Celeste had also picked out a bridesmaid dress to wear to the wedding. We had both gotten shoes to match our dresses.

My Father had taken Robert to select an appropriate suit for our wedding, as well as a second suit for formal dining occasions. Frank already had a nice suit for both occasions.

My Parents spoke to Uncle Seamus to arrange for the ceremony, and they also arranged for the reception and party afterward. Uncle Seamus is an ordained minister, and has been our religious leader for many years. We no longer went to the Otherworld to be married, as there were just too many of us, and they couldn’t afford to host all or even half of our Clan.

New Year’s Eve was on a Monday this year, and many of the women and some of the men of the Clan spent much of the day cooking and setting up the Hall for the celebration. There would be food and dancing plus the usual drinking before the New Year and probably after it, if we didn’t run out of ale, that is. Celeste and I helped out in the kitchen, and Robert helped set up the tables and the ale kegs. A large area had been set aside for dancing, and there was a large mechanical clock set up on the stage.