Chapter 36: Decision

President Proctor had called two emergency meetings of the Capitallian National Security Council. Like the old United States National Security Council, the primary stated purpose of the Capitallian National Security Council was to advise the President of the Capitallian Republic on courses of action. Military, law enforcement and diplomatic actions were not the same as in either the old United States of America or the current United States 'Remnant.' Only Capitallia's Congress could make law or declare war. Military options available to the President of the Capitallian Republic (POTCR) were very limited. There were a few existing operations suppressing piracy worldwide, protecting Capitallian trade in cooperation with other governments. Admiral Shields, the first POTCR, declared that the 'War On Terrorism' was a fraud and turned all domestic anti-terrorism operations over to Capitallian law enforcement, specifically the Capitallian Federal Marshal's Service. As much as possible, anti-terrorism was decoupled from military operations. The Office of Military Intelligence was intended to only gather, evaluate and maintain information on Capitallia's foreign enemies. Because Special Operations Command had been stripped of all spies and intelligence structures except for a small staff. There was a strict protocol separating action people (commandos) from information people (informants and intelligence analysts). There may have been deaths resulting from this separation, but liberty and privacy have a high price tag. Police states exact higher price tags--paid in human lives.

The first emergency meeting of President Proctor's National Security Council to decide authorizing Hank Dalton's raids took less than fifteen minutes. Phillip Proctor spent seven minutes outlining Hank Dalton's proposed operations and the potential fallout from those operations. The next six minutes were used to assign a piece of the project to his advisors.

"Sir," General Fred Logan said, "we need two people in here for the next NSC meeting: Ned Saunders and Director Robin Tyson. In fact, I have to recommend that Robin Tyson become a permanent member of this group. Doctor Dalton's work with Goldfish has proven that Capitallia is the subject of more international espionage than anybody thought possible. That USR database on Capitallian citizens--I was given a copy of my own personnel file and I am shocked. I learned things about myself I didn't know. There were some false things in there too--nothing that would be court room proof, but the appearance of impropriety is enough that my military career would end. It isn't always necessary to kill or enslave someone in order to neutralize them."

"We're going over time," Josh Luceno prodded. "President Proctor has another appointment in fifteen minutes. Your next appointment is with Senator Harold."

"Josh, I'm not a slave to my schedule," Phillip Proctor said. "Senator Regina Harold will understand."

"Senator Regina Harold?" General Logan asked. "Phillip, let's bring her aboard for the next meeting."

"Yes," Attorney General Brice Benson said. "We need all the allies we can get, especially with the problem of three million wrongful enslavements."

"Bring the resources you think you need to the next meeting," the president ordered. "We meet in exactly 72 hours at 9:00 PM. That next meeting will last until we have made all the decisions. The most important decision is to authorize Hank Dalton's raid. My best information is that Doctor Dalton will remove those poor people from capitvity in the USR no matter what we decide. So look at the consequences of having a prominent Capitallian citizen privately wage war on the USR. Authorizing Hank Dalton's raids will entail putting the rescued slaves in protective custody as material witnesses to crimes. We will also take custody of 41 foreign nationals under citizen's arrest and Dr. Dalton will probably privately prosecute them if we fail to. Doctor Dalton has enough evidence on them."

"But he will have to be one of the injured parties," AG Benson argued. "How will he prove that he has been injured by the actions of these 41 named people?"

That meeting broke up a moment later as the National Security Council members left to carry out their assigned tasks. Exactly at 9:00 PM three days later the National Security Council met in a larger conference room. The original National Security Council meeting three days ago had been 9 people including Josh Luceno, President Phillip Proctor's personal assistant. Also present was the director of the new Military Intelligence Service, Robin Tyson. All told, the One Fairview Lane conference room was crammed with 33 officials. A small meeting of five or six or even nine could be informal. The larger the meeting, the more rigidly formal it had to be in order to assure some would be heard. President Proctor presided and Josh Luceno served as the secretary for the meeting. A brief introduction explained that this was going to be formal--and slow--because Josh Luceno was going to make sure that everybody was heard. The different members of the permanent National Security Council would present their findings and recommendations. After everyone had made their presentations, bolstered by the additional people brought in for expert advice, A short break for refreshments and then the President would make the decision. The members of the National Security Council would be told first, before Hank Dalton even, because they had to take actions within their departments based on President Proctor's decision. One potential action was the Attorney General obtaining an arrest warrant for Henry James Dalton on charges of treason.

"I hope that doesn't happen," President Proctor said. "It may be necessary to disown Dr. Dalton to avoid war--a war we cannot win, a war we SHOULD not win. State and Defense will detail the consequences of WINNING a war against the USR. Our first speaker will be Robin Tyson, Director of the Military Intelligence Service, with a special report."

"Thank you, Mr. President," Robin limped to the podium. She faced the rest of the Council. Robin Tyson looked into every face. "Three days ago I kept Hank Dalton close to me for his safety. I thought I was making him safe. We were at my townhouse when Hank told me that my entire security team had been compromised.

"There were eight of my bodyguards who had illegal bio digital slave control implants," Robin continued,"and were under the control of a Wayne Tippmond. I had requested and received assistance from the New York Municipal Police, a dozen officers who were patrolling around my townhouse. I was as secure as I could be. Even my housekeeper, Mrs. Carmen Riley, was under Wayne Tippmond's control. The only people I could count on were Hank and a fembot named Ember. Mrs. Riley was with us right after Hank or that robot told me my true situation.

"Ember emerged naked from the back room and handed me a note telling me that the telephone was off. I had made certain that Hank Dalton was disarmed prior to his meeting with the president, My own weapons had been left locked up. I did something stupid--I joked with Mrs Riley that Dr Dalton had lost his mind," Robin drew in a deep, shuddering breath. "Then two of my bodyguards emerged from the kitchen with their stunners out. Hank turned to me and asked if I wanted to surrender or fight. My bodyguards stunned him and were in the process of handcuffing me when Hank Dalton put them both down. Nothing human could have taken a full-power stun bolt and stood up. But Hank Dalton had swapped places with one of his robot creations. Ember and the Hank Bot subdued my bodyguards without alerting the police outside. I'm here today because the two robots were able to out-fight nine people inside my townhouse. I wasn't happy about being played for a fool. I don't know where Doctor Henry James Dalton is right now. Being attacked proved one thing--none of us are safe."

"Where is the Hank Bot now, Robin?" President Proctor asked.

"It and the fembot Ember are working as my housekeeping staff at the moment," Robin replied. "The point, Mr President, is that Hank Dalton gave me the slip and saved me from becoming Wayne Tippmond's slave. We have Tippmond in custody right now and my bodyguards, housekeeper and those twelve members of New York's finest are still recovering from their illegal enslavement. Nobody is safe until we break the back of this Conspiracy of Dreams. Dr Dalton's rescue operation will do just that. Do you have any questions for me?"

"Tippmond?" President Proctor asked. "Who is this Tippmond?"

"Wayne Tippmond is part of a gang that has been secretly and illegally enslaving free non-citizen legal residents," Robin explained, "and his gang has also secretly enslaved several citizens. Tippmond was a sales rep for the Conrad-Steinberg bio digital slave control implant system and he stole the implants and the means to install them in people. He seems to have severed all official ties to the Conrad-Steinberg company, but we won't know without a criminal investigation--something outside of my department's authority. When my bodyguards and the police were freed from their illegal enslavement all twenty pressed charges. Based on those complaints I obtained a federal warrant and used the Federal Marshall's Service to conduct searches of six secret brainwashing clinics located in New York City. New York City's police were not informed because I wasn't sure who could be trusted in that department. Tippmond was arrested in the lab on 42nd Street. Tippmond was the only citizen in the gang. We have a total of nine of the conspirators in custody and have outstanding arrest warrants for the rest."

"I thought that brainwashing took several weeks," President Proctor said. "How did those people go missing for that long?"

"They didn't, Mr. President," Robin responded. "The process takes less than 72 hours. Usually, only 3 hours is enough to gain control of a person, and then that person returns as commanded by the bio digital slave control implants to the brainwashing station every other night for 90 minutes of additional conditioning until under full control. In Florida, Hank Dalton raided a hasty brainwashing station set up in a 'dark ride.' The old term is 'fun house' or 'tunnel of love.' At OrlandoLand someone could vanish for hours and not be missed. The operation in Florida only needed a short time because the subject was fitted with a bio digital control implant, a Conrad-Steinberg, and then instructed to go to another place to finish the process. The victim was then given a synthetic memory that would account for his or her time in the park. Since nobody, not even the victim, realized that any time was missing, there was no suspicion that the person was under control of others. The raid uncovered records of more than ten thousand people processed through that one underground laboratory alone.

"Mr. President," Robin continued, "I have used my authority to have every member of my department checked for bio digital control implants. I found hundreds and they're recovering. I didn't get to check everybody--not everybody reported to work in the last three days. Until my people have been checked and found not implanted, they don't work. Someone may be controlling them."

"Yes," General Logan, Chief of Staff for the Army, stood up. "I lost track of Senior Agent Ned Saunders. Do you have a lead on him? Saunders was assigned to head Operation Bandaid. When that operation captured the assassin and rolled up the network, I told Ned Saunders to take a few days off. Saunders was picked because he had served with Dalton as a Marine Commando during the War of Independence."

"I don't know exactly where Ned Saunders is," Robin replied, "but I know that he is with another of Hank Dalton's old war buddies, a Jim Mackerel. They left on a boat and I don't know anything else. I am not permitted to surveil citizens without a warrant, so I didn't have Jim Mackerel followed. As for conducting surveillance on Ned Saunders, he isn't part of my department. Ned is action people and I'm information people--though with Hank Dalton conducting both Goldfish and Bandaid Dr Dalton fell under dual control. I didn't know at the time that my department had been compromised, that several of my people had been kidnapped and forced into secret slavery."

"My fault, really," General Logan admitted before sitting down.

"Why is that, Fred?" Phillip Proctor asked.

"I failed to insist that Agent Saunders stay in touch," the general said. "I thought Operation Bandaid was over. Ned Saunders needed a vacation, too. This mission was hard on him and he had family problems. He needed a vacation. I'm concerned that he's in danger."

"Jim's dolphins like Ned," Robin said. "Hank insists that Jim and Ned are very dangerous old men. Those dolphins worship Hank and love Jim. They like Ned. General, if Ned is still on Jim's boat, Ned Saunders is safer than I was in my own townhouse. The talking animals Hank Dalton creates are very effective at spotting deception. Ned Saunders is safer than any of us."

"I have Paul," President Proctor said. "My pet Siberian tiger, for those of you who aren't in my inner circle, is Czar John Paul Jones, named for the creator of the Imperial Russian Navy. Paul screened each of you and functions as a lie detector. I need total honesty from all of you because the lives of millions hangs in the balance. The fate of Capitallia depends on us. Paul will tell me if you are holding back and I will ask you pointed questions. It isn't just a question of our own petty lives. The Conspiracy of Dreams destroyed the old United States of America. It can still destroy us. I need your best advice."

"Where is that tiger now?" Robin asked.

"Under the conference table," Josh said. Half the people at the conference table and all but Robin standing behind the table moved back in reflexive fear.

"Paul won't hurt you," Robin said.

"Paul can't hurt you," Josh added.

"Paul is resting his head on my lap," Phillip Proctor announced. "Tigers are shy by nature. There are too many people here and Paul is afraid to show himself. Now if we can get on with the meeting and quit woorying about 200 kilos of house cat..."