Chapter 7

Malissa went looking for Richard Baylor since she new that the fuel for the Mississippi was on the way to Initium Novum and within a few weeks or a month they may have unlimited power. Benson said that the current generator was beginning to show some strain as more people were added to the island. She found Richard returning from his morning run looking like he needed something to do. As Malissa approached him she asked him if he needed a project to keep him out of trouble. Laughing, he said he thought she would be around soon and was ready for anything she could throw at him. Malissa took him to the pier and showed him the USS Mississippi, telling him as soon as the ship could be fueled and made ready it was going to be the main generating plant for the foreseeable future.

Richard climbed aboard and went midship looking for the external shore power connection box. It was right where it should be, and surprisingly there was a connector that had been cutoff instead of unplugged. He reached in unscrewing the wing nuts and pulling the connector free. Richard was concerned that the cables would not be large enough to carry the required electrical load, he would have to do some investigation. Richard was asked to look at the current generators and see how much farther they could be pushed and how much longer they would last.

After his evaluation of the electrical plant, he found that there was a backup generator that could be brought on line and double their electrical power output. That would take half the load off the generator that had been running and extend its life a few years. Richard then pulled some cables from the main distribution panel in the cave to the Mississippi and connected shore power. Richard was having a drink with Walter Wilson, telling his problems with the electrical system on the Mississippi. Walter said he was an Electricians Mate in the Navy on board a carrier. The shore power setups were similar on all ships. Tomorrow he would go with Richard and they would get some lights on in the lady.

Richard, Walter and Benson were in the generating building bringing the second generator on line. The original owner had installed equipment that would match phases of the two generators so the output would be almost doubled. The three of them then went to a distribution center inside the door of the underground, looking toward the pier. Benson had some large four conductor power cable they laid between the ship and the distribution center. By the Navy making things idiot proof, the four conductors were quickly connected, and then the connections were made at the distribution center. The trio then made their way to the ship's power distribution panels to insure all breakers were open. Benson went to the shore distribution panel and closed the 500 amp breaker.

Richard and Walter saw the shore power indicator light, and knew that the connections were correct so far. Walter had been reading the labels on the switches and began flipping breakers. The first breaker provided light in the compartment they were in. One of the breakers Walter flipped immediately kicked off with Walter saying oops. Richard asked him if he needed to run. Laughing, Walter said no, he had just tried to power one of the missile launchers and the power system did not like it. The lights were available through out the ship, so they would be able to begin fueling the reactors. Walter looked over the gauges and determined that the current draw was only about sixty amps.

The two men were attacked by Elizabeth and Julie, their wives, thanking them for powering the ship. It would make their work so much easier and the refurbishment of the reactor would go much faster. A large group of nuclear power specialists appeared, telling Elizabeth and Julie that the truck with the nuclear fuel would be there in a few hours. Julie, a retired Naval Captain that seemed to be in charge of the whole operation, said that they needed to start looking over the reactor to see what would be needed before the fuel rods could be installed. Richard and Walter decided their work was completed here, so they could look for other opportunities.

Brad found Walter looking for a room to set up a dentist practice. They went to the medical area and found several offices and Walter selected one. He said he would do both regular dentistry and orthodontics, and believed he could take care of everyone on the island unless they needed major dental surgery. Walter asked Brad if he knew how he could get the equipment from his old office to the island, as he had most everything needed, and supplies could be purchased and stored in the warehouse until needed. Brad told him to see Tom or Lenora Fitzgerald, as they had a handle on bringing all kinds of things over.

Robert was talking with Evania Taylor trying to find out what happened to her parents. All Evania knew was that she and her mother were talking when she heard what she thought were firecrackers. Her mother never returned to the telephone, but she heard someone say that they would not have to pay any royalties any more when they found the bitch daughter and she was shipped to the middle east never to be heard from again. Robert asked her if there was any way that she may have recorded this, as that was the only way they could go to the authorities. Evania said she had been receiving harassing calls and had purchased a cell phone that could record all calls. She had set it to record all calls, and at night would erase any that were not harassing. The two of them listened to the call that Evania and her mother had. The voice after the shots was clear, and a voice print could be easily made.

When Mr. Black received the cell phone he made a digital recording of the conversation and then called his friend at the SFPD. When the Lieutenant heard the recording he went crazy, as he could see there were still more people connected to the white female slavery case he thought he had closed. Evania gave him the phone and signed a statement that the phone had never been out of her possession until she had handed it to Lieutenant Carl Myers. Carl had three of the men that had been arrested in the fraud case at Evania's father's old company, and two of the men's voices matched the cell phone recording perfectly. Carl had the men that did not seem to be in charge brought to an interrogation room. When he played the recording for him all the color drained from his face. His lawyer spoke with his client a moment, then telling Carl he would tell the whole story if the death penalty were removed from the charges. Carl left the room to speak with the ADA.

When Carl returned with the ADA the conversation went something like if corroborating evidence were given right now he would recommend a life sentence. The Assistant CFO said the whole thing was thought up by the CFO of the company, and when the owner was eliminated they could strip the corporation of all profits and then sell it off in pieces and leave the country. He said if they were to go to his old office and take out the right side bottom drawer, taped to the back there was a recorder and the activation switch was attached to the desk top in the top left hand drawer. The gun used to kill the Taylors was in a safe in the office of the corporate lawyer.

After obtaining the recorder and the conversations were heard, the only thing was to confirm that both of the Taylors were shot with the same gun. Finally the CFO was brought to an interrogation room and asked if he wanted to say anything about the Taylors' murder. He denied knowing about the murders and stated he did not know where they lived. The ADA and DA then read him his rights and charged him with premeditated murder, premeditated conspiracy to commit murder added to the other charges against him. He was then asked where the money from the company was kept and where his wife and son were. He just sat and stared at the floor. Finally he slumped over. A paramedic was called and he was pronounced dead, later an autopsy showed he died of a major heart attack. The conspirators that were in jail all plead guilty to embezzlement and conspiracy charges, and were handed life sentences with no possibility for parole.

Robert asked Sarah and Vicky to get a status for the island build out. The two women decided to set up a weekly update session and start tracking what was going on. Malissa would report on construction, Tom Fitzgerald on purchasing, Brad O'Connor on medical, Julie Wilson on nuclear power plants, and Benson on security. They decided that Evania Taylor would coordinate project tracking, and chair the meetings along with Robert.

The first session was scheduled, with Evania's efficiency to detail that everyone knew what was expected of them. Nine months had passed since the first materials for the pier had arrived on the island, and Robert felt that he had not done a proper job of tracking progress.

Malissa started with the construction status. The second and third levels for storage were completed and the remaining building material were to be moved to the first level as soon as the floor of that level could be completed. They had all the utilities for the homes laid out, and the electrical and communications cables installed in conduit. The plumbing was in place with the stubs rising in the proper places. The next phase was to cover it with 6 inches of something so the housing construction could begin. Bags of a mixture that appeared to be concrete were located in a back corner of the fourth level. When Mac examined the pallets he found 500,000 cubic feet of this mix, and a booklet on how to mix it and that the setting time was forty minutes. The first housing units were scheduled to begin construction the next day. Robert's home was to be the first, and a replica of this house.

Tom Fitzgerald started by saying he was glad the second and third floor storage areas were complete, as they were expecting the first shipment of paper products by the end of the week. He had gone looking for a couple to manage the stores. He remembered a supply officer that he had under his command on the last ship. The Ensign was quietly asked to leave the Navy as two other Ensigns were reported to be having an affair with him. The two female Ensigns both said they were dating the male Ensign, but that was all anyone would say until both of the women became pregnant and both admitted that he was the father of their children. What really caused the Navy to ask for his resignation was the fact that they were living in a polyamory relationship. One of the women's parents immigrated to the USA from Myanmar, so the three took shore leave to visit relatives. When they returned they had found a relative of Suu Kyi that had legally married the three of them in Myanmar. When they returned to the USA, the two women changed their last names to Davis and that is when the USN became aware of their relationship, and the name on the birth certificates of their children listed the father as Terrance Davis.

They were presented as a family to the committee at the last session, and were accepted as citizen candidates. They would be approached by Sheila Fitzgerald, as she knew Suu Kyi from her Navy days when she had been the OIC of Bupers and Supply aboard one of the ships she had served on.

Brad said that the medical facilities at surface level were complete, with operating rooms equipped and staffed. The design of the underground facility was complete with the addition of a mental health clinic and a disease and biological germ control research center. There was still a need for medical support staff and technical people, but they had time on their side to locate those people.

Julie gave the update on the power system and the fueling of the reactor on board the Mississippi. Since the reactor has been decontaminated, actually the refueling would be quite easy. They already had the core chamber open, and would start the refuel as soon as the enriched plutonium arrived. Some one had left all the radiation protection aboard, which would keep the refueling personnel safe. They expected electrical power within two weeks.

Security was almost a non-issue, as the Navy was keeping a close watch on the seas around the island. The USA did not want an unfriendly country or terrorist group invading the island. The sonar buoys were very good, as the people in the control center were having a great time with the whales and dolphins. The fighter bombers were patrolling daily at random hours and finding nothing. As for the Condo Building in Palo Alto, Mr. Black and team had it well in hand and guaranteed nothing could infiltrate short of an ICBM.

Sheila walked into reception of Davis Import and requested to see Suu Kyi Davis. Sheila was informed that Ms. Davis was not available, and she could make an appointment for her next week. Sheila said to tell Suu, that Captain Sheila Cummings USN Ret. was here and she had better report ASAP. The unflappable receptionist started to tell Sheila that Mrs. Davis was not available when Sheila opened her cell and punched a bunch of numbers that connected to nothing. Then loud enough so the receptionist could hear, asked for Admiral Fitzgerald. After a pause she told the Admiral to send the FBI and ATF in to shut this place down. The panic on the receptionist's face as all color drained, she picked up her phone pressing a number telling Mr. Davis that a Captain Cummings had just called some one, and had requested the FBI and ATF come here and close them down. Terrance laughed, hanging up his phone and started for reception, waving at Suu Kyi and Angela to follow.

The trio entered reception and heard the call to attention, however they laughed, telling Sheila to frig off as they were not in the canoe club and they forgot how. Sheila laughed, telling them she was glad that all three were together as what she had to say was confidential. Sheila asked how many people were in the building and how long it would take to clear it. Suu Kyi said six people were there now, and four delivery people were on the road. Sheila handed Suu Kyi a check for fifteen thousand dollars and asked if that would cover salaries for the next three days. Looking at Terrance and showing him the check, he nodded yes. Angela picked up a phone, telling someone to clear the building as they were getting three days paid holiday that would not count against their vacation time, and to call the drivers and tell them the same thing. Turning to the receptionist she told her little sister to take off and have fun.

Sheila then took the trio to the Orange County Airport and they boarded a G650. After they were airborne, Terrance asked Captain Cummings what this was all about. First, Sheila said her name was Sheila and to drop all that Navy shit. She then asked them if they were interested in living in a country where their marriage would be recognized as legitimate and they could live openly. All three said yes. Sheila then asked them if the three of them could manage both cold and dry stores in areas exceeding four million square feet of floor space, but could not tell anyone about it. Terrance asked what type of software they were operating, Sheila told him what ever he wanted. They were starting to descend as they were looking out the windows on a lovely green area, with a large house and three condo buildings all facing the ocean.

Sheila took them to the third level storage where the shelves had been built, and told them that this was the same configuration one level above them and one level below them. Below that was a cold storage area that was maintained at -30° Celsius. Could they handle the job, not physically, but administratively? Suu Kyi said they could with two other people with them. The first was the little bull dog they had met in reception who was just filling in, as the woman who had that job had just married and left. Aggie is Angela's sister and Terrance's right hand software designer. The other was the floor manager in their current warehouse that was an ex US Marine Quarter Master and one of the best in the business.

A voice behind them said done, as Tom and Lenora walked up. Terrance recognized him asking if this was his operation. Tom told him he was not the head of the group, but led purchasing and warehousing. Lenora and Sheila would be doing most of the purchasing, while Terrance would be responsible for the warehouses here and around the world. Continuing, Tom said they would need enough of everything to last five hundred adults and a bunch of children for ten years.

Angela then said she had a dream about the human population becoming extinct and the world returning to an uninhabited state. Tom told her that was almost correct, but for the leader of the nation of Initium Novum. They were just over three hundred miles from the nautical boundaries of the USA, and the nation was recognized by the United Nations and the USA. Tom said that they could run their business and take care of the warehouses for four more years, and then they would have to move to the island.

Angela told Tom that they were not financially strapped, but due to the economic downturn, times could be tough in the near future. The three of them asked how they were going to tell their employees that they were going to close the business. Tom suggested that they sell shares in the business to their employees for one thousand dollars each, and let them take over the day to day operations. Tom asked Terrance how long it would take to be ready to move to Initium Novum and start to set up the stocking system. The trio looked at each other, and then Terrance and Suu Kyi started writing, continuing for about ten minutes. Finally they handed Tom a list of equipment, telling him that as soon as that equipment was available they would start. Tom dialed Robert's number, asking him to join them for a moment.

Robert joined them, meeting Terrance and his wives, and then was handed the list they compiled. As he looked the list over he started talking, saying that the computers were three generations old and would be upgraded. The monitors should be linked with wall screens so the supply quantities could be easily seen, and a mapping program linked to the floor plan to show the location of the items down to the shelf. Terrance said that system would cost a fortune and years to implement. Grinning, Robert said no, only about three days, as the system was ordered by a client that went broke just as they were putting it on line. Robert was able to recover the equipment before the bankruptcy trustee could gain control. And the equipment would be here tomorrow along with the technicians to install it.

Robert decided it was time to travel to the past, as there were several areas of knowledge needed so they would not make the same mistakes as their ancestors that will almost destroy humanity. He did hot tell anyone he was going as he planned to leave in the middle of the night and return before morning. Robert listed the following places he wanted to locate for future funding if required. Robert decided to try and be with the people who buried the treasures. His list was Blackbeard's Silver, Captain Kidd's treasure, Maximillian, Emperor of Mexico, Lost Dutchman Mine, Montezuma's Treasure, the Samtissima Conceptcion Treasure, Lima Gold, and the Treasure of Agrinan Island. He knew that sometime in the future gold and silver would be needed for coins and trading. The other thing that Robert wanted to do was locate all the Royal Treasures of all the countries, so they could be gathered and held as a part of history. He knew where the Crown Jewels of England and the Jewels of Iran were, but the many other jewels of countries like Russia, China, India, Egypt, and many others would have to be located and recovered. This trip into the past was to try and locate the people that hid these treasures, and travel with them as they buried them for locations. As for the Royal Jewels, he felt the hardest ones would be those of Czar Nicholas II, as they were scattered around the world.

Robert's first visit was to Queen Elizabeth II EIIR, to plant a thought in her mind that she should attempt to gather all the Romanov Jewels in London for an exhibition at the anniversary of Nicholas and Alix of Hesse wedding on November 26. She changed her name to Alexandra Fedorovna to be accepted by the Russian people. If Queen Elizabeth could pull it off, the British Crown Jewels and Romanov Crown jewels would be in one city at one time in four years, and could be collected at the same time. Robert was determined to collect all the crown jewels of the world and have them on exhibit for all future generations.

Robert then was able, with the help of Nancy, to locate those that buried or lost track of mines and hoards of gold and silver, and be with them when their treasurers were last touched. He had locations for each treasure or mine.

On Thanksgiving evening, Robert and a few others were sitting around just chatting when Charlene Watson asked if there was anything that they could do about the crew on the International Space Station (ISS). They would be stranded there, and would starve to death as their food and water supplies were exhausted. The whole group had not thought about those people. Sophia Agostino said that the people at the South Pole would survive also, because the extreme cold would freeze the biological germ and they would not be affected. The group was unable to resolve the issue.

That night Robert met with Nancy, presenting the problem to her. Nancy felt that the people in the ISS would not be a problem, as the Virgin Galactic commercial passenger spacecraft with modifications could be used as a crew rescue vehicle, and when the biological germ was released, the astronauts could see the devastation as it occurred. The wives and families of the astronauts could be brought to the island so that would remain intact. As for the people on the South Pole, they could remain there for a longer period of time, and a nuclear submarine could be sent to resupply them until the germ started to subside. If the construction crew had the time, a dome could be built over the Initium Novum harbor that extended into the sea, and within the dome people could move freely in the harbor area.

Nancy would scan the minds of all the people in both areas, and insure that there were no troublemakers or dissidents. Somehow they would find their way home before the germ was released.

Robert met with Malissa asking her to look at designing an airtight dome that would cover the harbor and extend far into the water. Breathable air would have to be supplied by the underground.

Robert then met with Tom, Lenora and Sheila for some hard question about submarines. Do submarines really need fourteen officers, eighteen chief petty officers, and one hundred enlisted men? Tom asked what the mission would be. Robert told him rescue missions. Tom then said almost all of the weapons department could be eliminated. Only the sonar people would be needed, and those could be reduced as anti submarine warfare teams would be unnecessary. The supply department could be reduced to two or three people. Administration could be eliminated. The main groups that needed to be kept at full strength were Engineering, Navigation, and operations. Between Supply and Operations, cooks, cleaners and support staff would be supplied. Sheila thought with fifty people a sub could go on rescue missions successfully. All the armament could be removed and bunk rooms installed. The rescued people could assist with cooking and cleaning laundry, etc. The actual crew could be as low as forty crew persons. Depending on supplies, a hundred or more rescued people could be returned to the island. Robert asked Admiral Tom Fitzgerald (Ret.) how they could obtain an Ohio class submarine before the biological germs were released. Tom said the Ohio Class Submarines were not scheduled for decommissioning before 2024 and their successor was due to come on line.

However the fourth Seawolf class submarine was launched just before the US Navy reduced the purchase to three boats. SSN-21, 22, and 23, the last being the Jimmy Carter, was commissioned in 2005. The fourth was scheduled for commissioning in late 2005. It stood to reason that the boat must have been fairly well into the cycle before all work stopped. Since Sheila was the CEO of GD Gulfstream, perhaps she could find the status of the boat and a cost to complete and purchase.

Sheila said there might be a better way to proceed, and that was to obtain the TK-17 Arkhangelsk. It was a nuclear boat that was in reserve, and had been modified to be a cargo submarine. All the armament had been removed, and new reactors installed but never fueled. The Typhoon Class Russian boats are the largest submarines in the world, and could be purchased from the Russian Navy as they were very strapped for cash. Sheila had a counterpart in the Russian Navy that might be able to assist. Counter Admiral Larisa Masorin was at a NATO committee meeting just before she resigned, and they had kept in contact over the years. Larisa was the youngest female to make Counter Admiral, and had just turned thirty-nine. If Nancy could assist them in the same manner she had with the Mississippi, they could have a very large passenger submarine at a very low price. Robert told them to make it happen by the beginning of 2012.

Robert asked Nancy to give him the date of the arrival of whichever submarine the supply group obtained. Robert traveled to February 12, 2012, to the pier to find the TK-17 tied alongside the Mississippi. He made himself invisible and followed Sheila, Tom, Lenora and Julie onto the submarine.

They were startled when they saw a young redheaded lady with gold braid and bands on her sleeve. Sheila shouted "Larisa, what the hell are you doing here, and who are theses people." Larisa told Sheila that when they visited about the sale of the TK-17, she started thinking that Sheila would not want such a boat unless there was a major disaster about to happen. "So I gathered my family and taught them how to operate this boat. I did the navigation, my sister handled the helm, my husband ran the reactors, and my brother and his wife handled the turbines. On January 1 there was a terrible blizzard at the naval ships reserve base, and no-one could see one meter. The electronics worked very well, as I was able to see exactly where we were going, and as soon as we were in deep water we submerged and were gone forever. Now Sheila, tell me what is going on, as I have been having nightmares about a world with no people, and by the way can you feed us, as our food ran out at supper last night." Robert returned to the time he started from.

The construction crew was becoming concerned about all the sawdust they were creating, as they were beginning to cough a lot. When Brad noticed, he ran some tests and found a lot of cedar sawdust in their lungs. Malissa and Mac built a room for cutting lumber, and installed a major ventilation system. When cutting was preformed the ventilation system kicked on and there were suction pipes at each cutting station. There was so much air moving it was cool, and if a person was sweating they felt cold. The framing on Robert's home was completed, and the interior crafts people were hard at work. Mac, Daniel, and Malcolm's homes were being famed, while the footings and utilities for Rod, Barry, Jorge, and Mike's were completed. Jorge said it reminded him of Mexico, as all the houses were almost connected together.

Robert and his wives returned to Palo Alto to catch up on business there, and to look for people to take to the island. Robert went to see Ed Cunningham and was amazed to find him neck deep in knowledge collection data. Robert asked how the process was proceeding, and was told that everything out there was on a server they controlled somewhere. By the end of the week their task should be complete, and Ed would need a new challenge. Robert told him his next challenge would be to take control of all satellites orbiting the earth. Robert wanted him to accomplish this without the owners knowing that they had taken control. Ed smiled, stating he had just the locksmith for the challenge.

Next, Robert had Nancy look at all the diamonds they had recovered from the stash of the Nazi's again, and compare the twenty identical 3 ct. diamonds, and fifty 1 ct. diamonds, totally flawless and brilliantly clear with the ones she had already given him. All of the diamonds were to be very high quality. Robert then went to Harry Winston on Rodeo Drive in Hollywood, and asked for the best designer on staff. Robert described the ring he had in mind, and the stones that would surround the center stones. The very center stone would be a two ct. Sapphire with a diamond at the top and bottom. The stone on the right would be a ruby, and on the left an emerald. The gemstones must have a color grade between 3 and 1, with the tone between an 85 and 90, the clarity an LI1 or F1, the cutting/finish must be a 1, and a certificate stating the gems had not been heat treated. Robert then handed the designer an envelope with fifty 1 ct diamonds that he said would exceed the gem stone gradings. He wanted stones surrounding the five center stones to alternate in a heart shaped pattern. He wanted the pattern with a diamond between each birthstone and a different birthstone at the upper indention where the two halves meet. He said he wanted twelve rings made like that as a lady's ring, and one made as a man's ring. Four of the rings would be made without stones in the heart, only the settings ready for the stones to be mounted. Robert then gave the designer a check for one hundred thousand dollars and said he would pay the balance when he received the rings.