Untitled by Jonathan Jue-Wong
7:03 AM
A remote scientific facility southwest of Chicago
Dr. Cranshire, or Director Cranshire as he preferred to be called, sat in his plush leather chair and sipped his coffee. He gazed across his desk out his office windows at the magnificent view of the thick forest surrounding the compound, and the raging Mittiwapi River which cut the forest in half. It was early autumn and a few of the trees outside his office were already turning golden shades of yellow and scarlet-red hues.
Tearing his eyes off the view, Director Cranshire glanced down at his data-pad. It was the newest edition by Hephaestus Products, the HP 3100. A mere one millimeter thick, weighing 1.5 ounces, and measuring 20 cm by 15 cm, it was a wonder of nanotechnology. Cranshire spoke, “Data-pad. Access Chicago Tribune Newspaper.” Three seconds later, the day’s edition of the Chicago Tribune popped onto the screen. The date read “September 29, 2064.” Touching the editorial icon, he accessed the editorial page, shaking his head in disgust at yet another editorial criticizing cloning research and Doctor (he cringed) Cranshire’s state-of-the-art facility southwest of Chicago. Frustrated, he threw the data-pad at the windows. It fell to the floor without a scratch on the data-pad or the Dupont-manufactured plexiglass windows.
A yellow light blinked on his chair armrest, indicating a person at the door. Cranshire pressed his left thumb to a square panel on his desk and the door slid open into the wall with a low pneumatic hiss. It was the Chief of Security, James Warner.
The tall, elegant, African-American Chief of Security stepped into Cranshire’s office. Once again, he noted with distaste the ultra-modern, spartan decorating, all jet black and polished chrome. His eyes finally came to rest on Dr. Cranshire himself, sitting behind his titanium-alloy desk in his customary grey three-piece suit and white lab-coat (which, of course, was just for show). Cranshire snapped,
“Well?”
Warner stepped into the office. The door slid shut behind him. Warner replied, “Sir, I wanted to bring to your attention a new threat note against the-” Cranshire cut him off, “Well that’s hardly surprising. We receive threats everyday! Did you disturb me for a simple threat?” Warner said nervously “This one was delivered in a...different manner.” Cranshire started. “You mean it wasn’t delivered electronically?”
“No...” Warner said slowly. He held up a simple 8”x 11” sheet of paper. Written on one side was the message “EVACUATE THE
FACILITY AND POWERDOWN THE OUTER DEFENSES THIS EVENING,” in simple capital letters. Warner elaborated. This was
left on my desk, sir. I found it this morning when I came from the dormitory to my office.”
Cranshire narrowed his eyes. Warner continued, “Quite frankly, I question the integrity of the entire staff and also I’ve found several
weak spots in our defenses in several key areas. I believe the security system must be re-evaluated and we could benefit from an increased
number of guards which would-” Cranshire cut him off again. “I know what you’re up to! You want me to increase your security budget!
What a sly trick! I suppose you want a salary increase, also?” Warner replied “No, no! This is a genuine threat and I believe it could be a
credible threat, given it’s... unusual delivery. Please believe that his-” In reply, Cranshire pressed the intercom button on his chair’s armrest console. “Security!” Almost instantly, the door slid open and two security guards, clad in the latest generation of body armor and brandishing automatic weapons sprung into the room. Cranshire spoke irritably “Mr. Warner, for your insolent actions you are hereby
dismissed from the facility. I’m sure, given the circumstances, that the board members will finalize your involuntary resignation. These
guards will escort you off the premises.” One of the guards reached to Mr. Warner’s waist and removed his handgun from its hip holster.
The two guards led the stunned Warner out of the room. The door slid closed while Cranshire smirked.
Cranshire stood and walked to the other side of his office. He picked up the data-pad with his right hand and walked back to his desk.
Reaching over the smooth black surface, he put his left thumb on the small square panel. The door slid open again. Cranshire picked up his
coffee and left his office.
10: 33 AM
Dr. Cranshire had finished his daily inspection of the laboratories and production facilities. He walked casually along a corridor on his
way to the monthly board meeting. It was time to finalize Mr. Warner’s resignation.
1:24 PM
A library in a northern suburb of Chicago
Cate was the first to arrive. She walked through the electronic scanners, went to a table, and sat down. Next Marcus, then Robert, then Mark arrived. Finally, Dan arrived. Mark, being the leader, opened the meeting. “So. Marcus, was the message delivered?” Marcus replied,
“According to my contact, it was.” “Excellent,” Mark said. Mark turned to Dan. “Did you get what I asked you to?” Dan pulled out a set of
five bright yellow and black walkie-talkies. Mark stared at them dubiously. “Those look… decades old.” Dan responded “They are. I’m a step ahead of you, though. I found these in an old pawn shop. These are about sixty years old.” Cate whistled. “They operate at a quite low
frequency, which will be important. The facility’s guards use communicators that have a much higher frequency, which also probably contain sophisticated electronic wave scanners that will pick up and decipher radio chatter. However, most of these communicators must be
calibrated to a very specific wave frequency. By using these old ‘walkie-talkies’ which operate at a frequency of about 15,000 gHz, I doubt
the security guards will be able to pick up our communication.”
Robert picked up one of the units. It was roughly the size of his palm. “It’s so big, though. Does it run on lithium batteries?” Dan pulled out a small box from his shoulder bag and opened it. “Because these devices are so old, I’m afraid they only run on alkaline batteries, which
cost me a fortune!” He took a handful of batteries marked with “AAA” on them and started slipping them into the units.
Mark turned to Cate and Robert. “Did you get what I asked you?” Cate and Robert glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then
zipped open their small duffel bags a little bit to show Mark. Mark peeked inside and saw the stacked sticks of C4 plastic explosives. He let
out a low whistle. Cate said “It’s a long story, but we managed to steal these from that seedy arms dealer in Chicago.” Mark nodded.
Mark cleared his throat and said, “Now that we have the necessary gear, let’s go over the plan one more time.”
2:08 PM
Having discussed the plan, the group left the library and headed their separate ways. Each was nervous and excited in anticipation for the
night ahead.
9:40 PM
A remote scientific facility southwest of Chicago
Cranshire was back in his office. He’d had an excellent dinner earlier. The board meeting in the early afternoon had been uneventful. There
had been no problems finalizing Mr. Warner’s involuntary resignation. Though the premises for Warner’s dismissal were sketchy, the board
members were cowards and Dr. Cranshire knew none of them would dare stand up to him. Cranshire sighed with satisfaction. He stood and
removed his lab-coat, draping it on his chair. He pressed his left thumb to the small square on his desk, and the door slid open. He left his office, exited his executive suite, and started walking to his private apartment on the top floor of the dormitory.
Ever since the facility had opened, there were always protesters at the main gate. It was decided for the safety of the scientists and staff
that during the week, they remain at the facility, safely within the compound. On the weekend, the majority of the staff would return to their
homes. Not many people objected to this situation, especially after the murder of Dr. Aaron Blakely by an overzealous and crazed protester.
9:48 PM
The private apartment of Dr. Cranshire
Cranshire made it back to his apartment with no incident. Like his office, the furnishings of his apartment were ultra-modern, albeit
luxuriously comfortable. He retired to his bedroom, passing a neon-colored original Andy Warhol print and an abstract Picasso cubist piece.
Cranshire’s décor was quite pricey. Staring out his bedroom windows, Cranshire spotted a few tents pitched right outside the main gate.
“Protesters”, he thought, with disgust.
He ran a hand through his thinning grey-brown hair, surveying the outer perimeter. A fifteen-foot high electrified steel fence surrounded the
entire perimeter of the facility. It was topped with razor wire. There was only one entrance in the perimeter. The reinforced steel-iron alloy
was also electrified. The gate could only be opened from the underground sentry bunker, located beneath the ground and ten feet from the
gate. Armed guards patrolled the outer perimeter on two-wheeled Segway vehicles, and armed guards patrolled the facility 24/7.
Cranshire lay on his bed in hand-made silk pajamas. As he drifted off to sleep, he thought he would have a quiet night. He would be wrong.
11:20 PM
The Mittiwapi River
The dim moon shone down on the small, inflatable, jet-black raft bobbing in the churning waters. On board the raft was Mark in front, with
Cate and Robert behind him, and Danny and Marcus in the back. All wore black cargo pants, black turtlenecks, and black ski masks. Their
cheeks were painted black. The powerful but silent Yamaha engine bore them steadily closer to their destination.
The raft arrived at their destination. To their left was a steep hill, mostly rock, with some grassy tufts scattered on the rock face. The hill
was rent with small fissures and had a quite rough and uneven surface. Mark turned around to the group and nodded. Four members of the
group grabbed steel grappling hooks and threw them to the top of the rocky face. The four hooks arced in the sky like graceful herons. Each
hook landed on the edge of the rocky face. The group steadily pulled in their lines, bringing them closer to the steep hill. Dan lifted the heavy
sea anchor and heaved it over the side of the boat. He secured the line taut, and the raft floated in place. The raft was only two feet from the
steep hill. It loomed 50 feet above them. Once again, Mark nodded, and he, Cate, Robert, and Marcus started climbing the steep rocky face.
Dan stayed in the raft and watched as his four fellow group members slowly climbed, using only their lines connected to their grappling
hooks. He was disappointed to not be involved in the “action,” but he knew his part of planning the procedure and coordinating
communication and technology was still extremely important. He saw Mark nearing the edge of the hill, so he quickly pulled out his data-pad
from his bag on the floor. He slid out the control panel and powered the data-pad on. He had hacked the government databank and stolen the
blueprints to the building. He would use the floor plan to coordinate the placement of explosives. Pulling his “walkie-talkie” from his belt, he
turned it on and waited.
Mark, Cate, Robert, and Marcus reached the top of the hill. They gazed nervously at the fifteen-foot high steel fence. They could almost
feel the electricity current crackling through the fence. Almost. Mark remembered his walkie-talkie, and pulled it off his belt, staring at it with
doubt. There was a black wire snaking from the device that led to the earpiece in his ear. All the members of the group had earpieces so they
could keep their hands free. Mark twisted the on knob and the device beeped to life. Depressing the “talk” button, Mark spoke into the
device. “Dan? Dan? Can you hear me?” Mark heard Dan in his earpiece. “Yeah, I’m here.” Mark said to his group, “They work.”
Surprisingly, he thought. Cate, Robert, and Marcus each turned on their walkie-talkies and tested them. All five units were up and running.
Following Dan’s directions, Robert disabled the electrical current on the fence. Using a drill from his backpack, he drilled a hole in one of
the fence-posts, then another five feet along the fence. He inserted a small pin-like device, connected with a single wire, in each hole. Dan
explained, “It’s a portable circuit breaker, of my own devising. Each device contains a tiny battery and a charge emitter that on my command
emits a strong electromagnetic charge into the metal, which breaks the electrical current in the fence. Because the charge emitter directs the
charge into the metal, your electronic devices will not be affected. Oh, and one more thing. Don’t touch the fence on the outsides of the
emitters. Those parts are still electrified, and the current runs through them because of the wire that connects the two portable circuit
breakers. If that wire wasn’t there, the entire circuit would be down and guards would be swarming to this very point.”
Disabling the fence, Robert, Mark, Cate, and Marcus climbed over the fence with ease. Each was equipped with electromagnetic gloves
and shoe-pads which enabled them to adhere to the metal fence. Robert made short work of the razor wire with his wire clippers. Standing on
the inside of the fence, Mark spoke to Dan. “We’re inside the perimeter.”
The four black-clad trespassers ran across the grounds, making it to a dimly lit doorway. There were no handles or knobs on the door. Next
to the door was a card slot. Dan said “Use the green card. That will get you in the building.” Cate pulled out a flat green card that was the size
of a credit card. Dan knew an expert electronic forger who had forged them four sets of two security cards: one for general access and a red
one for laboratory access. The four trespassers each silently hoped the cards would work. Cate slid the green card through the card slot. The
light above the door blinked green and the door slid into the wall. It worked! The four trespassers entered the building and the door slid shut
behind them.
Each of the four trespassers turned on their wrist panels. Each display showed the blueprints for the building and their location. Each
person headed to their destinations; Mark and Cate to the research laboratories, and Robert and Marcus to the manufacturing laboratories.
12:32 AM
The research laboratories
Mark and Cate went into the first research laboratory they found. Sweeping their flashlights across the dark room, they saw tables,
microscopes, Petri dishes, vials, electronic pipettes, vials in incubators with data charts on the wall, and computer monitors on walls. There
were several data-pads, too. They placed several sticks of C4 in that room, and placed several more in the research wing in strategic locations,
directed by Dan. They placed the explosives and remote detonators quickly, and efficiently.
12:34 AM
The manufacturing laboratories
Robert and Marcus made their way to the manufacturing laboratory, which was in an underground wing. There were four manufacturing
laboratories, and each was identical. Robert and Marcus entered the second one on their right. Using their red card, they went into the room
that Dan directed them, too. They were unprepared. What they saw stunned them.
The manufacturing laboratory was a vast, warehouse-like room. It was three stories tall, and probably could have fit a large-capacity
passenger jet plane. Robert and Marcus entered the room through a door on a balcony that ran the entire length of the room. Walking along
the metal gantry, they swept their flashlights across the room.
Inside the room were rows and rows of cloning cylinders. Each cloning cylinder was a tall, stainless-steel cylinder made with a large
rectangular glass window in its side. Each measured about five feet in diameter, and seven feet in height. The top was a hatch-like opening
that could be opened. On top of each cylinder were wires and tubes that fed down to the floor and onto the wall. Inside each cylinder was a
light greenish-white liquid.
There were fifty rows of cylinders, and in each row were thirty cylinders. Making their way along the gantry, Robert gave Dan a description
of the room. Dan said excitedly, “They’re cloning cylinders! When a cloned embryo is produced in the lab, they are taken and placed in a
cloning cylinder. The greenish fluid is artificial amniotic fluids, and those tubes feed necessary nutrients and stuff into the cylinders, like an
umbilical cord would.” Marcus said quietly, “They’re all empty, except for… two.’
They made their way quickly around the room, placing sticks of C4 with detonators on the edge of the room, as directed by Dan. Both
wanted to finish quickly and leave the eerie manufacturing wing. Both stole glances at the two occupied cylinder, which had yellow lights on
the rim of the cylinder. Each was occupied with a developing fetus, which unsurprisingly looked identical in every way. Finishing in that
room, they went to one on the opposite side to place more explosives.
12:45 AM
Research laboratory wing
Mark and Cate had just finished placing their last explosive. Relieved, they started making their way to their door. As they turned a corner,
a guard walked right into them! Before he could react, Cate slammed her knee into his groin, and she and Mark set off at a run. Several
seconds later, alarms started sounding.
12: 46 AM
Manufacturing wing
Robert and Marcus heard the alarms. They froze then ran to the doorway. Too late!
Guards burst into the room and opened fire with their automatic weapons. They were instantly cut
down.
12:48 AM
The outer perimeter
Mark and Cate had made it to the fence. They climbed over, ran to the river, and dove in. Swimming through the frigid waters of the river,
they made it to the boat. They waited with Dan, but Robert and Marcus did not show up. Suddenly, they heard shouts. Guards were on the
edge of the cliff! Mark yelled at Dan, “Detonate the explosives! Detonate!” Dan nervously fired a few commands, and in a few seconds was a
huge BOOM, Followed by several smaller explosions. Smoke rose from the facility, and the facility burst into flames. Dan gunned the engine,
and the three saboteurs escaped along the river, while guards fired down on them. After a while, they could only hear the rushing of the
Mittiwapi River and the quiet engine of the boat. Dan sobbed in nervousness.
1: 23 AM
Cranshire’s private apartment
Cranshire was awoken by alarms. Disoriented, he stood up, looked out the window, and saw the facility in flames! Suddenly, guards burst
into his room. “Sir, you must leave the facility at once. We are evacuating the facility. There were saboteurs in the building tonight.” Stunned,
Cranshire was led out of the room. This can’t be happening. This can’t be happening! He thought.
1:30 AM
The air above the scientific facility
The private jet lifted off of the building, pivoting its engines from vertical position to horizontal position. Cranshire looked mournfully at
the burning and smoking facility. The fire had spread rapidly; there were many flammable materials in the labs. Cranshire saw the destruction
of several billion dollars, amid the acrid black smoke of the facility. Alarms on the ground were flashing everywhere. Smoke drifted lazily into
the dark night sky. As the engines fully pivoted to horizontal position, the jet stopped hovering and shot forward into the night sky. Cranshire
rested his head in his hands and wept. In one night, his life’s work had been destroyed.
Untitled by Aferny Sanchez
Korean war in 1951 the Chinese and American soldiers were fighting for
his village, the best thing in his eyes was the school play ground,
that was brand new and was made out of aluminum that clang when the
little boys and girls played on it. To Yong-yol it was the center of
his world where he and his friends would play. "Mama why do these men
want my play ground" he would ask with Child's innocence. Jea-sik Yi
his mother would laugh at her Childs foolishness. She would tell him
that the soldiers were only jealous. Yong-yol would then pout and
whine that he would not share with the grown me, and they should get
there own play ground. His mother then would only laugh more and
Yong-yol would giggle along with her. Jon hea was Yon-yol's little
brother and had too be the most curious boy in the whole village. He
once tried opening a bee hive to see what was inside, luckily it was
winter and all the bees were dead. Hong-so his father was a minister
at the local Christian church. He was a big man by Korean standards,
he was known for his cool head and kindness. "They just want you
mothers bol-go gi" his father would joke Yong-yol and his brother Jon
hea would laugh and giggle at there fathers jokes and pull at his
beard, he would then laugh from deep from his belly that could shake
the boys off his lap. Hong-so had known violence and oppression almost
his whole life, but he always faced it with non violence and peaceful
words. He was one of the first Korean Christians and helped found the
Christian Korean church.
Every Sunday the family would go to church and that Sunday was no
exception, and the family was walking to church it was the end of
November and the cold Manchurian wind was whispering in the air
secrets to the boys. Yong-yol clutched his mothers legs "its cold
mama" the leaves crunched on the autumn floor. "poor little boy" she
said and picked him into her gentle arms "there little boy now you are
warm" Hong-so was dressed in his finest cloths a, western style suite
with a suede hat. Yong-yol matched his father looking like a western
boy. Although Yon-yol preferred his traditional peasants wear. They
reached the church early the doors creaked open against the hard
floor. Although not old the church used the old Korean wood in the
old Buddhist monastery that used to be where the church was now. "Come
now sons sit with your mother as papa go's to prepare my sermon"
Hong-son said. As the boys played in the pews, Jea-sik Yi sat and
watched her sons smiling at their exuberance and sheer joy at
something so common as church she laughed when Jon hea fell but got up
and giggled "come on Jon lets go before the Chinese come" Yong-yol
teased. The boys had been used to war since they were born after the
Japanese occupation came, this horrendous war, where brother fought
brother. Jea-sik Yi hoped this would not affect her children
negatively. She remembered her days as a child listing to her father
play the Gaygeum, the sound was one that was more beautiful then any
western interments.
As Jea-sik Yi reminisced of her childhood, more people came in to the
church and sat in the pews the boys sullenly returned to there mothers
side they sat still silently teasing amongst each other. Hong-so's
proud mannerisms quieted the congregation of fifty men, women, and
children. " today we gather in the name of god and his son lord Jesus
Christ, let us stay warm and safe as this cold winter arrives, let us
not fall to the weariness of father winter. Watch over our brothers
that fight in this frigid winter." Hong –so started his sermon
Yong-yol soon grew sleepy from the rabble of his father and the
stuffiness of the church. An hour in to the sermon a white man entered
the church and walked up to Hong-so, the Whiteman's mannerisms where
strange to the people and he was very loud and said words only
Hong-so understood "my brothers and sisters we must follow this
American, he tells of Chinese soldiers that are coming and the
Americans are here to help. "There was a mummer of concern in the pews
but if Hong-so said so it must be the will of god. The white man
rushed out of the church. Jea-sik took her boys and went up to the
podium what must we do Hong-so?" asked his wife "take the boys home
wait for me until dark if I am not there take the boys with the
Americans they will protect you do not fear it is the will of god"
Hong-so replied, Hong-so's words were calming to Jea-sik "come boys we
have to leave" she ushered the boys out of the church holding little
Yong-yol in her arms he looked back and saw the others leaving in
panic he saw his father and waved at him "PAPA "he screamed for his
father "why is papa not with us mama he needs to stay with us" Jon
hea asked. Their mother did not respond.
They rushed out of the church when most of the church was out, they
begin hear gun shots and loud explosions from the distant road. Panic
swept through the crowd and caused the children to become scared and
cry and scream. Chaos broke out when a artillery shell whistled into
the town, only a couple houses down from the church. The explosion
rocked the earth and sent fiery debris into the air. The surrounding
people to the building were shot into the sky. Jea-sik Yi covered her
children's faces and screamed to her children to run. Although the
panic in her voice was not heard, the sheer force of the explosive had
dulled the world around the children. They sat on the ground covering
their ears screaming a silent cry. Jea-sik acted quickly she scooped
up her children in both arms and ran as fast as she could, to a safe
distance from where the explosion had happened. She turned around and
saw in horror tanks rumble past the church spiting fire and bullets.
The scene was like a living hell with fire bullets and terrified
people ran from the church. People ran past her and her children
screamed. Everything was a blur except the church where he husband
was. Through the commotion she head another whistling scream went
through the air, she screamed as the church was blown into the air.
There was no playing during the solemn hours in which the family
waited for there husband and father. Jea-sik Yi refused to believe
that her husband was dead. The wind scratched against the windows
blowing cold gusts off northern air into the house's thin windows. Out
side there was a firry glint on the snow that was fresh on the ground.
The hill where the church stood upon was a image of hell the cross
stood alone on fire. Soldiers clashed in the rubble The boys huddled
together keeping warm in the blanket their mother had woven for them.
Jea-sik sat by the window watching for the silhouette of a man she
loved and cared so much. He was a good husband he was always there for
her and the boys he was a man of god and never fell ill he believed it
was the work of god. His boys looked up to him and he cared for them
very much he taught the boys so much about the world about other
countries and far away people and customs there favorite were the
people form America the Indigenous people not the whites the loved
the stories of thunder bird and the story of one thousand moccasins.
It was six 'o clock when gun fire erupted in the distance. The boys
were frightened of the explosions but their mother soothed them with
the story of thunder bird and told them it was only thunder bird. It
was dark but Jea-sik refused to leave the boys had fallen asleep
Jea-sik paced back and forth what could have kept him so long she sat
down again and the floor creaked under the steps she took to reach her
chair suddenly it was silent only the wind howled and the trees swayed
in front of the house.
Across town Hong-so ran from the sound of gun fire when two Chinese
soldiers ran from behind a building "HALT" they screamed he looked at
them then visualized his family and heard the faint giggles and laughs
of his children "leave me I only wish to return to my family, I mean
no harm to you" The two soldiers only being about nineteen years old
hesitated they remembered their families and the ones they loved and
the smell of sweet summer in their villages. But were swept back to
reality as a frigid gust of wind whipped their faces snow began to
collect on the brim of Hong-so's fedora the cold barrel of the rifles
seemed to lower them selves "Thank you" Hong-so whispered and walked
quickly away tears running down his face he felt so relived he broke
into a run towards his family.
Jea-sik was still sitting in her chair almost falling asleep when a
gust of cold air swept in "Hong-so" she cried "I'm here" the children
leaped out of bed "papa your home" they screeched.
The Americans lost the battle and the town of ch'or won is currently
in North Korea. But latter that spring the family escaped the grasp of
the dictatorship of North Korea, from the help of two Chinese boys.
After the war Hong-so spoke out against the division of the Korean
providence because the Korean people should not be split because of
men in power men in power should be split by the people.
1968 Yong-yol moved to America settling in San Antonio Texas where at
the same time a young man had just immigrated from los Panos Negros
Mexico. His name was Raul his father had been shot by police when he
was nine years old, he took care of his ailing mother and young
siblings. Raul made a living farming in Los Panos Negros, soon he
begin to yearn for new life and after his mother died and siblings
were able to watch out for them selves, he ran across the Mexico-Texas
border. Raul married Maria Cruz in 9169 and bore five children.
Yong-yol married Sunsook Chun in 1972 and had two children. Yong-yol
lived the life of an educated wealthy man his children were just as
fortunate. Raul worked every day of his life just barley scraping by
his children though all worked hard in school and live privileged
lives Yong-yol's oldest son married Raul's youngest daughter and had
two children.
Hong-son received the Medal of Honor in 1991 for his contributions for
the independence of Korea he lived to be 112 years of age. He traveled
the world visiting Italy Russia, Israel and the Democratic Republic of
the Congo, and finally settled down in Detroit Michigan.
This story is a fictional story based off the true story of my great
grandfather and both my grandfathers.
