John turned towards the monitor behind him and said, “Betty.”
“Yes John, this is Betty Schmitt. We are reporting from a military-run observation station located near downtown Houston. Please note we have no landline or cell phone access. We are using sat phones to speak and stream video.”
“We and the viewer’s understand, Betty, and we will make do. We know it is not yet daylight; but can you describe what is happening right now.”
“Well John, it sounds like a train in the atmosphere outside. We can see the trees in our area bending in half and the rain is so fierce you cannot see three feet.”
“It does sound dangerous there where you are.”
Yes, it is very dangerous, and we are being told that no one can get near the beaches or harbors. This includes Galveston.”
“Another question Betty, I am sure many will want to know, was Houston totally evacuated as was stipulated by the government?”
“No, I don’t think so. The order came too late. Prior to the rain and winds starting about 2:00 AM here, there were some military trucks going door to door in some suburbs. We do know that as of 3:00 AM all the highways leading out of Houston were still packed; and this included I-10, I-49, 290, I-37, and 77 from the Rio Grande Valley south.”
“Do we have any idea how these motorists are faring?”
“No John, not at this time.”
“Okay Betty, it appears it is going to be a long morning. We will check back with you a bit later when it’s daylight and see if we can pinpoint better answers to some of our questions.”
“Thank you, John. This is Betty Schmitt, live from Houston, Texas.”
John turned from the monitor and said, “It appears this storm is going to be a monster. We will be right back.”
After they cut away to commercial, Don came up and handed John a schedule, which was a reduced copy of all the stories they were trying to cover. After looking over them, he said to Don, “Well, looks like a good priority list to me. Of course the hurricane was at this moment the most important. The other news we can use as fill- ins.”
An assistant came up and handed Don a message. He read it and gave it to John. After John read it he said, “I would have thought they had more sense than that. It appears a cruise ship had not made it back to port and had capsized in the gulf about a hundred miles southeast of Galveston. It was feared that all crew and passengers were lost in the Gulf. “See if we can get a manifest from the cruise line of the victims, or an estimated head count. They should have stayed at port in Cozumel,” John said.
Chapter 95
9:00 AM Monday in an RV traveling south on I35 towards Dallas, Texas
Veronica woke him from a nap told him that he needed to pay attention. He shook off the sleep and noticed that they were not moving. He asked where they were.
“A rest stop at the Oklahoma-Texas border,” she replied.
“What is it that couldn’t wait?” Enoch asked her.
“Eden II just sent us this message. I think you need to get a hold of John, immediately.
He read the message then asked, “How did Eden II get this?”
“We hacked into Cain’s and the Justice Department’s computers.”
“Oh, so we can do that too?”
“Well, you saw all the stuff in Eden II. As a prior computer guy I would have assumed that you would figure it out.”
“Do we have a secure phone?”
She handed Enoch her cell phone as she said, “It is ringing.”
He gave her his best angry look, for preempting his actions. She was grinning at him.
Someone answered on the other end. “This is Enoch. I need to speak to John Roddenburg. It is urgent.”
Within a few minutes, John answered, “Enoch?”
“Yes, John. It’s me.”
“Where are you?”
“We are parked in a rest stop on the Oklahoma-Texas border.”
The small talk from John was making Enoch impatient. “Look, John, I need you to get a piece of paper and something to write with.”
“I am at my desk, so I am ready.”
“Write this down, verbatim.” Then Enoch read the communiqué to him.
“The header says EO15136. Effective immediately, all FCC licensed broadcasters, which includes radio, television, satellite, and internet services are now to be placed under government supervision, immediately. The following will apply. Southern California is in a news blackout. All correspondents are to leave immediately. Military transportation will be provided. This also applies to the Gulf Coast and the East Coast. All news programming on hurricanes will cease immediately until said programming has been submitted and approved by a military censor. Until you have the censors in your primary facility, you may only broadcast non-news programming. It is signed, Robert Cain, of course.”
“I suppose we will be getting this soon,” John said.
“I would assume so, John. It appears Cain has had a tantrum and has jumped the gun. We would have thought he would not be so quick with these types of orders, but plans do change. Now remember what I told you the other day regarding this shut down coming eventually and my…well, sort of, offer to you.”
“Yes, I remember.”
“Well, that offer still stands. I need an answer, for we need you broadcasting.”
“What about my crew? Don…his family?”
“Ask them to come, even with their children.”
“Will that be OK?”
“Yes, it will. Now, if you want to broadcast the truth, then let me help you.”
“I just don’t see how you can do this, Enoch.”
“You will have to trust me, John.”
“OK, Enoch.”
“Do not write this down, John. Enoch gave him detailed instructions as to where he was and told him they would wait for him to show up or to call. In either case, they would wait for his answer.
After John hung up, Enoch asked Veronica, “Ready for another Cuban run?”
Chapter 96
9:20 AM Monday Bear News Special Morning Broadcast from Kansas City, Missouri
After he got off the phone with Enoch, John called Don into his office and read the memo he had gotten from Enoch. He then told him of Enoch’s plans and extended the invitation to him. Don said that he needed to call his wife to get her take on the situation.
They both decided to jump ahead before they received the actual memo. John would read what they had on the air and make live comments before they were shut down. If they were leaving, he had to be in Laredo, Texas by tomorrow morning; then meet Veronica and Enoch there.
He went to the anchor desk and looked at where he had spent the past few years of his career. Anger boiled up inside of him for his and this country’s constitutional rights had just been violated. Yes, he would trust Enoch, for he always had the right solutions. Now, he was going to slam the United States government.
He sat down. The camera light was blinking, then turned solid red as a sign that he was live.
He began, “This is a sad day in America for you, me, our country, and our rights. This morning, I received a copy of an Executive Order from President Cain, from unnamed sources. It states that we can no longer broadcast news to you unless approved by a panel of military censors. Here, let me read it to you.
After John had read the memo, he said, “In good conscience, I cannot and will not be a puppet for a corrupt, evil government; a government that has violated everyone’s rights by suspending the United States Constitution, our freedom of the press and our freedom of speech. These Gestapo or Nazi tactics being forced upon Bear News and other news outlets are not what I am willing to participate in. I report the news truthfully and always have. I will not lower myself to lie to the public to satisfy these thugs.”
He paused for a moment. He needed to calm down some. As he put his ‘journalist first’ hat back on, John continued.
“Our viewers watch o
ur broadcast worldwide for they know that what comes across this desk is the truth. Since I have been anchor here at Bear News, we have uncovered countless attempts to undermine our rights. We then put the perpetrators out of business and in some cases, prison.”
“So with regret, I am leaving after this segment. Before I leave, however, there is something I want to leave with you. I am not sure how you will hear the voice of truth from me again. What I do know is it will be soon. Truth eventually has a way of getting past those who hide the truth. Now, a message from me, directly aimed at Cain, Aafre, and your henchmen. This is not over, by any means; this you can be assured of.
“Once again, America, thank you for your support of the entire Bear News team, and God bless each and every one of you.”
The camera light blinked off then, so he knew they were on a commercial break. As he stood, a contingent of military personnel walked into the studio. Just in time, he thought. A female Lt. Colonel walked up to John and read from a paper in her hands.
“I am Lt. Colonel Joyce Winters of the United States Army. You are to cease broadcasting from this location until your programming can be assessed and then approved by these military censors here with me. You will broadcast only under the directives of these executive orders. You will also provide us with office space and access to all future newscasts and schedules. You will also broadcast stories which we will give you under Executive order EO 15133 which you now have a copy of.” She ended by handing him a copy of the order.
The Colonel then walked over and sat in the anchor chair. Her soldiers stood in front of the anchor desk, legs spread apart and hands clasped behind their backs.
John looked at her and laughed, as he waved and said, “Sayonara!”
Chapter 97
11:15 AM Monday, John Roddenburg’s temporary home in Kansas City
As Enoch had suggested, he had only packed one bag of clothing and toiletries. He had been told that they would provide what he needed. He also packed the books he had been reading and his laptop. The rent-a-car people were to be there any minute to bring him a car, which he would drive to Laredo, Texas. Airlines were no longer an option.
As he was looking around to see what else he needed, he heard a knock at his door. He went to see who was there. Looking through the security hole, he saw Don standing there. He opened the door for his producer who was smiling from ear to ear. John looked passed him to the curb and saw that his family was in his SUV.
“Well I can’t have my award winning anchor without his award winning producer, now can I?” Don said.
“Well uh…no, Don; but did your wife agree with this, I mean…?”
“Agree? Heck no! She demanded, John. She even said that maybe she might even be able to help. Yep, she is all in my friend and we are ready to go. And by the way, where are we going?”
“To a place called Eden II.”
“Eden II? That’s a catchy phrase for the times we are in. Where is it?”
“I don’t know. All I know is that we are to meet up with Enoch and Veronica at a rest area right past the Oklahoma border, and then they will lead the way.”
“Trusting aren’t you, John?”
“Yes, I suppose I am.”
“Well call up and cancel your car. We will take mine. It is already packed and ready to go. No sense in driving two vehicles. This way we can share the driving.
Chapter 98
12:40 PM Monday ‘The Network News Corporate Offices
Joe Biggman, president of The Network News, Jonathan Langer, producer and Brad Williams were all seated in Joe’s office. Joe was telling them the status of Bear News and other news outlets.
“As you know, we now have the responsibility of being the primary outlet for the nation’s emergency broadcast system, or as it is called now, National Alert System. This of course, is because President Cain has signed an executive order executing this change in the “nation’s best interest”. He has also declared martial law nationally, not just in the affected areas.”
“What this entails is that all television, radio, satellite, or any over the air networks, and cable news stations including sports or any stations with rights to national broadcast come under this law. The only exceptions to this are sites dedicated to weather. Our understanding is even they will be censored.”
“Now, we have been designated to provide news programming for all these stations. Any and all news will originate here, with you Brad, being the primary anchor.”
“Now, as you all know, John Roddenburg has refused to be a part of this program. Therefore, if America wants news it will come from Brad, not John.”
“That’s good news, Joe, no pun intended about John,” Brad said grinning.
Joe ignored his comment and continued, “Now we need to sugar coat this new rule in our first news cast. We need to word it for the American people so they understand this is in their best interest. We are good at sugar coating stories especially when it comes to political issues. So I would assume our writers will come up with the appropriate story.”
“Are they going to give us the script or any guidelines?” Jonathan asked Joe.
“Well, so far this is what I have. We need to report for example on the hurricane in Houston but unlike Bear was doing, we are going to treat it as a normal activity that occurs normally. There will be no mention of Enoch or Elijah, now or ever, unless it is a negative. We are also going to suppress damage estimates in the loss of lives and damage to infrastructure. If a million people die we will not report it.”
“What’s to keep independent broadcasters like on XM Radio from reporting similar to the way John did?” Brad asked.
“They have been taken off the air, especially that Midwestern pain in the ass ‘comic’, as I call him. In addition, most of the talk shows have been suspended until they can be reprogrammed to tilt in our direction or that of the government’s. Anyone dissenting will be taken off the air, immediately.”
“Oh, you must mean Ronald Regan II, as he calls himself; even though his actual name is Alan Moore,” Brad said.
“Yes, he has been removed from the air waves. So that you know, anyone breaking these rules can and will be picked up by Homeland Security and detained. No habeas corpus for a while. This could be a long detention for dissenters.”
“Now the first breaking news we will air on the evening edition is that the Attorney General is forming a task force to look into the confrontation with Cain and Enoch at Center City. The Secret Service has the right to investigate then make recommendations to the Attorney General.”
“Any indictment coming?” Brad asked.
“Not for now. They just want to start a disinformation campaign about him. The intent is to keep the people from listening and believing him. In addition, no matter what he or Elijah does anywhere, will not be reported. So with all this in mind, Jonathan and Brad, you both need to get to work. The evening edition is only a few hours away.”
Chapter 99
11:00 AM Monday President Cain’s temporary secure office in Cheyenne Mountain
“Well Jamal,” Cain asked, “How, does it feel to finally be rid of Stevenson?”
“That was a tough assignment, Cain. There were times I wanted to strangle him. However, I just acted like the flunky he wanted me to be. But fourteen years…that was a tough…assignment.”
“You did a great job, Jamal. Thanks to you, he never had a chance to do other than as he was told to do. You did very well in obtaining and maintaining his confidence in you.”
Jordan Devon then said, “Cain, I know you don’t want to hear this from me, but in my opinion, you moved a bit too quickly on martial law and instituting the Emergency Broadcast System. We still have three plus years to go before we totally take over after we kill these Witnesses. I realize the incident in Kansas City may have rattled you some, but you may have made a mistake.”
“What difference does it make if it’s today or a year from now
? My intent is to discredit both of them, especially Enoch. Yes, I cannot kill them yet for they are protected but I can try, and maybe their God will slip up. In any event, I needed to get them off the news media, especially in America. There was no other way to do it.”
“Are you planning to try and indict him on trumped up charges similar to what was done to that Governor in Texas?”
“Yes, we are. The Attorney General sent a letter of intent to his attorney Mark Anderson in Chicago. The letter stated that we are bringing charges of threatening a President before a Federal Grand Jury. We will select those seated by the way.”
“So if you get an indictment how are you going to get him to appear?”
“Doubt if he will. It just keeps him off of American soil for the time being.”
“Oh, Cain,” Jordan said shaking his head in a negative manner, “I doubt that will happen. Look at it this way. Remember when I dealt with the council on Job?”
“Yes.”
“Well, that was like a game of chess. I moved this way they moved that way.”
“Yes, but you lost that game, Father!”
“No, I didn’t. There was never any intent on winning or losing. I was proving a point. Moreover, I might add, they interceded and told him that if he made an offering he would be restored to his health and wealth. If they had allowed me to finish he would have renounced them. The point being, this is the way they work. It’s a game.”
“Point is Jordan, you lost.”
“Alright Cain, you don’t want to listen. However, remember we have a goal here and it is a straightforward goal. Ever since Nimrod, the nations have been divided. The plan for the next three plus years is to reverse this and make the world one. Only as one can we ever have a chance of defeating them when they arrive. Only as one; and Enoch and Elijah are here to make that as difficult as possible. Now as you know, when Enoch gets pissed off, like at the hotel, he will destroy even more of our assets. Try and arrest him, and someone will die, I promise you. He is very powerful. You may also note that he now is Enoch and somehow was transformed physically also. You must have noticed his coloring change and voice. He is Gods holy warrior and is very, very powerful. He is no longer timid Jack South. ”