Chapter 3

Time seemed to fly in some areas, however for Michael time was dragging, as Rory O'Reilly and his team had not returned. Michael knew something was happening as a large housing development appeared around the lake, extending to the right and left of the original town. He guessed there were three or four thousand new homes, so he thought that it would be nice to talk to Architect, the AI that liked to build things. Michael had no sooner had these thoughts when Architect appeared with what an AI considered a smile. After greetings were exchanged, Michael asked him how many new homes had been constructed, and if he had any idea how many people would return with Trish and Rory. Architect had received instructions to build 4,500 new homes, and about 1% needed to be four bedroom homes. Architect's best guess was there could be as many as 20,000 people returning with Trish. The transporter AI had just completed a unit that would accommodate 5,000 people. The night of the return, the AI's would be extremely busy relocating everyone. Michael requested that Architect build an amphitheater that cold seat 30,000 people, to design it in such a manner that the farthest seats were as close to the stage as possible and he wanted it to have the capability of being expanded.

Michael was still getting used to the idea that Tressa O'Hara had replaced his beautiful Adeen, he ask Tressa to come in, then he asked her to get in touch with the Orchestra's Conductor and ask him to put together a concert that would be presented two days after the new people were relocated. He wanted the same type of performance as that first one, starting with Puff the Magic Dragon and proceeding from there. Tressa pointed out that a meeting was scheduled in two hours with his six wives and the Conductor, but Meghan had not told her what it was about, however, it was to be at the concert hall. Michael asked Tressa how she liked the new position and if she needed anything. Tressa had a concerned look on her face, as if she needed to tell Michael something, so she just took the plunge, hoping that he would not replace her. Before she could get started, Adeen walked in the door, took a seat, and told Tressa to tell him. Tressa had a tear forming in her eye as she told Michael that she was pregnant, and wanted to know when he wanted to start looking for her replacement. Michael asked her if she remembered what Colleen had told her regarding this issue before they relocated. Thinking back, Tressa said that Colleen had said that she intended to get pregnant but would not give up her job, and would not expect Tressa to give up a position just because she had children unless she wanted to. Michael asked Tressa if she wanted to stay at home and raise the child. Tressa said she already loved the baby that she and Rory had created, but felt that staying at home all day would make her batty. Looking at Adeen, Michael told Tressa that the reason Adeen was sitting there was that she would fill in for her while she was on maternity leave. Tressa jumped up, giving Michael and Adeen big hugs and she kept saying thank you over and over.

Tressa then told Michael and Adeen it was time to leave for the concert hall, as the conductor had several items he needed to clarify. As they entered the hall the conductor took them to Michael's box, and told them the orchestra had collaborated on several musical compositions and he would like Michael's approval. The first was an anthem they would suggest be adopted as the New Ulster National Anthem, and with a gesture the orchestra began the music. Michael immediately liked the music, and asked if the lyrics had been written, he was handed a sheet of paper with the lyrics. As he studied the lyrics and listened to the music, he realized that it was upbeat, respectful and yet formal. The entire composition took about four minutes, and Michael had it played a couple of more times and then stood clapping and shouting bravo. He turned, saying to the conductor that it was perfect and to consider it so. Next, the Conductor said that the next composition was to be played at formal events when the Ard-Ri entered, Michael was about to object when he felt six hands on his arms and shoulders indicating that he should keep quiet, so he did. The composition opened with John Phillips Sousa's Ruffles and Flourishes played four times, then a composition that the lyrics were handed to Michael and quietly sung by his six wives. Michael was touched, and a lump formed in his throat as he looked at his wives who all had tears in their eyes, along with the Conductor. When the music ended there was quiet, finally broken with a whisper from the Conductor that the lyrics were written by Michael's wives. Michael approved the composition and it was named The Ard-Ri Anthem. Finally, a composition adopted for the military senior officers, Ruffles and Flourishes played twice followed by the Flag Officers March. The orchestra was working on a composition to announce the arrival of one or all of the Queens. Michael then asked the conductor if he remembered the very first concert they played, and it was acknowledged. Michael said that he wanted a similar concert prepared, and his only requirement was that the first song would be Puff the Magic Dragon. The conductor asked how long they had to prepare and was told to be ready by Sunday, but it would depend upon the relocation of a large contingency of new citizens' upon arrival. The Conductor said that it would be no problem.

That night Trish interrupted Michael's sleep, and told him that the relocation would take place on Thursday night, and time would stop as the AI's could not complete the relocation in a four hour period. After a lengthy discussion among the AI's, the decision was made to suspend time and Michael agreed. The final count on people being relocated was 21,254 men, women and children. There could have been about 1,000 more, but they were rejected because of attitude and propensity to cause trouble, or were outright criminals. Of the new citizens there were about 5,000 military people, including navy. Michael ask Trish if the relocation could be delayed until Friday, and that Rory and his team be returned on Thursday, which she agreed to, returning Michael to a dreamless sleep.

Michael had asked for a meeting with Maureen and the manufacturing group, for an update on the facilities and products to be manufactured. One of the highest priorities was clothes and shoes. The decision had been made because of shortage in children's clothes and shoes, as many had misjudged sizes and quantity. Another plant was being set up to manufacture custom work such as parts for a spacecraft. The manufacturing research team was evaluating the data that had been collected on Michael's trip around the planet, and so far they had identified all but a few minerals, however, one was particularly interesting, as it seemed to be some type of a metal of which they had obtained a sample. So far they had not been able to melt it down to be able to mold it, and the attempts to mill it had only broken the cutting tools. Maureen said this might be the metal for the skin of the spacecraft, as at 5,500° C it had not even started to show signs of melting, nor were they able to mold it when pounding it with a hammer. Michael asked an aide to Trish if the AI's knew this metal, the response he heard in his head was that they had never seen anything like it. Michael asked if the deposits of this metal were plentiful or scarce, and how hard it would be to mine. He was told there seemed to be a large quantity at surface level and huge amounts under ground. Michael congratulated everyone on their work, and asked them to try to find a way to form the metal into useful products soon.

Michael decided to drive around the community to see the new homes, and see if he could find the amphitheater after lunch. He told Trish to arrange his drive in the open car, and to take the afternoon off or she could ride along. He was leaving for lunch when Trish and the two receptionists left, with them telling him that they wanted to ride along. As Michael arrived in the kitchen, Meg saw him arrive, and told him he was late as his wives were already eating, so Michael thought he would have a little fun. As he walked into the area they usually ate lunch in, in a loud voice he asked why they could start eating without him. All six of them jumped as if they had been shot, however Meghan recovered the quickest, turning to him and in a reprimanding mother's voice told him if he could not make to lunch on time he would have to do without. His response was she could not tell him that because he was Ard-Ri. Meghan replied she would have to get the strap out to remind him who was in charge. By this time the entire group was doubled over with laughter at their antics. Meg was wiping tears from her eyes she was laughing so hard, as she was recovering she said this should be a TV comedy. Today Meg had one of Michael's favorite lunches, hot pastrami on rye bread with hot mustard and dill pickles on the side, and there were two sandwiches for Michael. After lunch Michael, his wives, Tressa, and the receptionist all went to see the new housing units. Michael noticed that none of the new houses had locks on the doors but had scan pads for the hand, he tried one by placing his hand on the pad, the door released and they were provided entrance. As they toured the house, the first floor was a great room or family room that was very large. On the second floor was the kitchen, dining room, formal living room and reception area. The third floor was four bedrooms, the Master Bedroom with a balcony, two bedrooms that appeared to be for children because each room had two beds, one bedroom for boys and one for girls. The fourth bedroom appeared to be a guest bedroom with a king size bed. The home was very nice by anyone's standards, and Michael thought to Architect that he had done an excellent job. He also asked Architect if there was a family designated for this home, and was informed there was, a young couple with twin boys and twin girls. As Michael and his entourage continued to tour the rest of the new areas, they passed the tunnel that passed through the hill to the theater and sport fields, but there was now a directory sign with arrows pointing the way to each facility and he saw an arrow for the amphitheater. After touring the rest of the residential area, Michael had the driver take them to the amphitheater, and was amazed that before them was an entertainment shell that would seat a 100 person orchestra and have room left over. The seating was a material that appeared very durable and was comfortable to sit in. Michael thought for Architect to meet him here now and standing beside him, Architect stood waiting for his comments. Michael was amazed, as he looked closer and realized that the seating was six tiers high, and the worst seats were within easy viewing of the stage. Michael would have thrown his arms around the AI if he had not been a hologram, instead he told the AI that he had outdone himself, as he had never seen such a beautiful site and constructed so well. There were no steps only inclines, and none were steep. Architect invited Michael to step on the path to an upper level, and as the group started for the top level it seemed in seconds that they were walking to the front of the highest level looking down on the stage. As Michael toured the level he realized that the view from all seats was excellent.

Returning to the castle, dinner was about an hour away, so the family decided for an hour's family bonding and found a grassy area to relax in, as Michael sat on the grass and played with all the kids he could find that wanted to roll a ball. The kids went crazy, as Dad or Uncle Michael was at their level and wanted to play, after about half an hour the kids just wanted to sit and hear a story from Paps. As everyone was settling down, Trish appeared, and the kids seemed to fall into a light slumber, Trish began to talk to the adults about what would happen on Thursday night. As the community slept, the AI's would put everyone into a type of suspended sleep where time would cease to exist for a period of two days. That is how long it would take to relocate all of the new people and get them into their homes and adjust their body clocks. Michael asked if he and his original extend family could be excluded for the sleep process, as he would like to assist in any way he could. He was informed that it was not possible, and in her limited sense of humor Trish said she did not want to be micromanaged. Everyone got a laugh from that and Michael agreed. They were called to dinner and had an excellent roast beef and Yorkshire Pudding. Not surprisingly, within an hour after supper every one felt tired and went to bed.

As requested, Rory and the team had returned home during the night. They had been told to meet Michael for breakfast in the small dining room for a breakfast debriefing. The room had been setup with a large round table, where everyone was visible without anyone having to strain. Rory started off with a high level view of their mission. The interesting thing was that the governments of the world were extremely nervous about the fact that Al-Qaeda was reported to have nuclear weapons. The Russian nuclear agency was reporting that 1,500 warheads were unaccounted for, however they thought it could be a paperwork error. Rory thought that the whole world would be at war within a year. Michael asked what the date was the day they left, and was told July 4, 2012.

One of the team members continued, saying that most of the prospective relocation people were praying for the return of the Ard-Ri to organize a country that would be safe for the Irish people.

When the mission was explained, and that they would be relocated to a planet named Leti, each jumped at the opportunity. The team discussed the possibility of including non Irish people if the profile was right. Rory decided that on a case by case basis it would be considered. About two hundred families from Scotland and Wales were offered the opportunity to relocate. As the reports finished, Michael had the feeling that each member had some reservations about someone that had been relocated, so he implemented an in box on Adeen's computer that would be open for 24 hours, and then all external access to that box would cease and Adeen alone would make decisions on future information as to any follow up. The team members were to forget their concerns and accept everyone as equals and friends. What the team members did not know was that Trish would assist in their forgetting efforts.

Michael then asked what the repercussions were of the disappearance of the initial group of relocated people in 1980.

Rory said he had done some research on the disappearance of 4,900 people in Ireland, UK, and the USA. All he found was that an Irish Clan had held a family reunion in the Azores Island of Terceira in October 1980. There was an earthquake on that island in January 1980, and a lot of damage occurred and was still being cleaned up in October. All newspaper accounts of the Clan reunion said that the leader on the Clan was a Michael Rorke Fearghas, that he had arranged for a tent city to be set up at camp site at the Biscoitos Harbor, and that was all that was ever printed about the reunion. This area is known for its fierce storms, and in October a tropical storm hit the area with high winds and a lot of rain in a short period of time. When the officials checked on the Clan Reunion, they were devastated to find that there were no people to be found. A few remnants of tents and two Land Rovers, but nothing else. It was unsubstantiated reports that 4,900 people were missing and presumed dead.

As for Rathlin Island, many of the residents there were reported to be on holidays in the Azores and never returned. The people who had been in New Zealand had no memory of being in New Zealand, and believed that had been in their homes all of 1979 and 1980. The records in the Azores claimed that there was a group of campers at Biscoitos Harbor that had gone missing in a storm, but never mentioned any numbers or how many campers were missing. Except for the families missing from Rathlin Island, there was no large number of people missing from any one area. As for the members of the Irish Army, a large number of personnel retired or completed their tour and left the military. It appeared that the AI's had covered the relocation in a manner that no major red flags were raised in any country.

As for the group of people they were bringing to Leti this time, they did not know what would happen. Another fact that Rory said was that as the AI's had miscalculated, it might work to their advantage if a war broke out soon. With that the meeting broke up, and everyone went home to spend some quality time with their families.

The day seemed to be a normal day for most of the citizens, but Michael was not happy about being asleep for two days, even though he would not realize it. As Michael slept, Trish joined his dreams because she knew Michael was concerned about the effect on the remaining people of Earth when it was discovered that 20,000 men, women, and children were missing. It was as if he were watching a movie beginning with the front page of the Dublin Irish Times with the date of July 6, 2012, the headline was that Al-Qaeda had targeted major cities with nuclear missiles. The story told of 25 major cities in the world that were hit by nuclear missiles, the cities included London, Paris, Berlin, Moscow, Beijing, Tokyo, Honolulu, San Francisco, Denver, New York, and Washington DC, and 14 other cities. The story went on to say that over 100 missiles from many countries had annihilated the Middle East and from the India Pakistani border to the Straits of Gibraltar. All the Islamic and Jewish countries were gone. With this information, Michael knew that the people that were relocated to Leti would not be missed. Michael returned to a deep sleep.

Waking to Hanna's demand for attention and wanting a dry diaper, Michael got up to change her and send Rorke and Zaira off to the bathroom, he took Hanna to her mom for her first meal of the day. Rorke and Zaira were independent 18 month old toddlers that had a way of letting you know what they wanted and when. As Michael prepared for his morning workout and run, Hanna had completed her first meal of the day and was ready to go. His six wives were in workout clothes and leading the way, as Maureen's mother took charge of the grandchildren. Entering the exercise area, Adeen was tough on everyone, as the Tai Chi had grown and was progressing toward the combative area. After the Tai Chi workout, Michael, his wives, and the three soldiers started their run, with Michael setting the pace and direction. Michael turned right as he left the castle, proceeding to the far end of the residences, then following the boulevard to the opposite end of the residential area and back to the castle, a run of about ten kilometers. He noticed toward the end Meghan and Maureen were working harder than normal for even them, and realized that their pregnancies were starting to take hold and their bodies needed to slow down a bit. As they ran, Michael could see the new residents were starting to look around at their new homes and see the beauty of New Ulster. Michael would ask Tressa to post a welcome to all of the new citizens, and tell them where to look for employment on Monday, but take the time until then to get to know the city and invite them to the concert on Sunday afternoon. After breakfast, Michael and Tressa had their morning meeting to lay out the day and see if Michael had any requests for meetings. Michael started to explain the Welcome posting when Tressa showed the posting almost as he had thought it out, and he thanked Tressa for her forethought. She told him that the receptionist had shown her this when she arrived, and said that it seemed that Michael had talked to her this morning about 7:00 AM, but she knew that he had not as that was when he was on his run.

At 10:30 Michael had a meeting scheduled with Moina O'Callaghan and the administrators of the university. They were looking to expand the science programs, and wanted to find people that could teach advanced courses in the space sciences. In short, they wanted Maureen to teach aerospace engineering, and to see if any of the new the new citizens had been directly involved at NASA and Roscosmos, the Russian Federal Space Agency. Michael dialed Adeen on his speaker telephone giving her the request, and was sent a list of scientists that were in New Ulster and settling in. Michael thanked Adeen and then told the educators to go recruiting, but not before Monday. Then the major request came, as Moina ask for a new space education wing, with special equipment to be provided by the AI's. Michael agreed to the new wing, but said he would meet with Trish and decide if there was any equipment available that did not violate his or the Ancients' restrictions on advanced technology. Moina started to object until she saw Michael look, and heard in her head 'do not go there', which caused her to thank him for his time and stood to leave. Michael asked Gran Moina to stay behind a moment, and when they were alone he told her that the AI's had all the information to allow them to be in space in six months, but unless it was a planet security issue, he or the Ancients would not allow it. If it was handed to them, the populace would become dependent on the AI's much as the Ancients did, and then be on the road to extinction. Moina sat thinking about what Michael was saying, and wanting that technology now, but saw the wisdom in his words but she would talk to Fallon tonight to get his thoughts, until Michael told her she was not to discuss this topic outside of his office. Moina understood that to be a directive from the Ard-Ri and would abide accordingly, even if she did not like it. Michael invited her to join him for lunch with Rory and Fallon, and after lunch they could discuss this with Fallon. Moina was amazed, it was as if Michael was reading her mind. At lunch, Michael asked Rory, Fallon and Moina if they saw any potential problems with any of the new citizens that had been relocated to New Ulster. Fallon, always the intelligence operative, said there are a couple that had potential as they were very ambitious on Earth, and the husband was going to run for Prime Minister of Ireland before he was selected to relocate, and his wife was a social climber, but the reason they were selected was the man was an educator and had a PhD in computer engineering with a specialty in computer aided manufacturing. The wife was a surgical nurse by training, and became the drive behind the husband, however, because of her inability to get pregnant, she had transferred that energy into a social life, and drove her husband to climb the ladder of the social elite, even though he hated it. Michael made a note to have Meghan contact this woman and see if she could get her on Meghan's surgical team as the lead nurse. Rory said there were always potential problem people, and a few had been eliminated at the last moment as Trish had scanned them, she discovered a plot to take over New Ulster and insert themselves as the monarchs with dictatorial powers. Rory said that they would always have to watch for individuals who wanted to become leader without the credentials. Looking at what happened to the Ancients, and they supposedly had the knowledge and ability to prevent takeovers, but became complacent and ignored the signs of unrest. As they finished lunch, Fallon, Moina and Michael had time to discuss Moina's request for technology from the AI's. After she explained her reasons that the advanced technology should be provided, Fallon blew a gasket, asking her if she wanted a planet of people unable to think for themselves, and becoming androids to do the AI's bidding. Michael could see by Fallon's very red face that he was beyond angry and mad, then Fallon said that Moina needed to get her head out of her ass, as all the years they had been together, which was pushing 50 years, she had never let her desires override her logical thinking. Moina had never seen Fallon this angry, and knew she had crossed a line that should not have been crossed, and as that hit her tears begin flowing and she realized the results of her actions if she had got her way on the advanced technology. Meghan and Flanna walked in the door unannounced, looking over the situation, telling Michael he needed to learn to control his telepathy, as she had been interrupted when this conversation started and thru Michael had heard Fallon's explosion. Flanna turned to her dad, saying he was correct in his assessment of the request, but he needed to learn not to blow up and explain himself in reasonable less emotional fashions. Moina patted Flanna on the arm and told her that she had a lot of her father in her, and to calm down, as she and Fallon had some fence mending to do. As the discussion ended, Moina and Fallon left as if there was a tiger on their tails, and as Flanna saw them go she chuckled as she wondered who would be undressed first as they hit the bedroom. With a few words, Michael returned to his office, closing the door keying in the DND code. Aloud, Michael told Trish to come with a commanding voice that left no wiggle room. Trish stood in front of Michael's desk, knowing that there was an issue to be resolved, he did not mince words, asking how the word got out about the advanced technology. Trish checked for a moment, then said one of the AI's had asked one of the research students why he did not access the advanced technology library for the information that would solve his problem. Michael was about to act without thinking and have the AI's program terminated, when he thought again and told Trish to alter all AI's programming, except hers, to pass any thoughts on any advanced technology of any type to Trish, and she would discuss it with him. In addition, she had permission to scan the entire population of New Ulster and remove any knowledge of the advanced technology library, and after completion no AI could enter a human mind without his or Adeen's authorization. The only area that Adeen had the authority for was if people were planning to overthrow the royal family or to remove the monarchy.