Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 17:02:26 -0400 (EDT) From: Brian Willard Subject: A Giant Leap For Mankind - Part Seven Message-Id: <01HBAEZKXGK295N38C@UNCA.EDU> Organization: University of North Carolina at Asheville A Giant Leap for Mankind by Brian Willard Part Seven August 6, 2133 The Prowell Estate Glendale, Colorado When he, Sam and Gooshie finally stopped laughing, Al realized that there must be a reason for his being there. "Sam, why do you think I'm here?" he asked. "Well, probably to let us out of here so I can go talk to Prowell?" "Prowell? What do you want with him?" inquired Anna, "I've refused to talk to him since I got here." "Who is this Prowell guy anyway?" added the Admiral. "Prowell is..." Sam started to say. "...that damn ruthless dictator who only cares for himself!" Anna interrupted, "What are you possibly going to tell him that will get through that thick ugly skull of his?" "I'm going to try to show him that were no different from anyone else and that all we want is equal rights. It's the same problem that's affected different groups of people throughout the history of time, and it's finally a chance to put an end to it!" "You think he'll listen, Sam?" asked Al. "I've got to try...otherwise there was no point for my leaping in here. Hold on...I've got a plan." Dr. Beckett began to pace around his cell, then came back over to Gooshie. "Gooshie, why don't you go back and see what you can find out about Prowell from the guy in the Waiting Room. I need to know how to talk to this guy, plus I haven't a clue where he is." "I'll show you where to find Prowell," said a voice from the other end of the room. Sam turned around to see Lisa, the security guard who had caught him, coming over toward his cell. "Johnson, what the hell's up with you?" she asked Al, "Since when do you converse with prisoners?" "I was listening to their side of the story, and quite frankly I feel a little sorry for them," answered Al. "Good answer, Admiral," said Gooshie, who then opened the Imaging Chamber door and disappeared. "Well, I'm impressed," replied Lisa, "Okay, so what's the plan?" Sam took over from here. He directed Al to take Anna with him and go into town to have the rest of the Crusaders released (Sam did not know that had already been released, as did any of the others.) Lisa and Sam departed to begin their search for Cassius Prowell, and for justice. ---------- Meanwhile, Olin had taken the remaining members of the Crusaders back to their headquarters in Littleton. There they had sat for hours arguing about whether or not Sam and Anna were actually still alive, and then on how they were going to retaliate. Finally, as dusk was approaching, Olin decided he'd heard enough. "Shut up!" he yelled, and everybody in the room fell to a dead silence, "We're getting nowhere here! Sam and Anna are dead, you heard the guard! I say we retaliate - tonight!" "Yeah!" they all shouted. "And I've got a plan!" "Yeah!" once again. "Uh, what are we gonna do, Olin?" asked someone from the back of the crowd. Olin motioned for him to come up to the front of the room. As the short man did so, Olin leaned over and whispered in his ear. As the short man listened, a smile grew on his face. "Do you think it'll work?" he asked. "Yeah," replied Olin, "We'll show them who's the boss." With that, the entire group was on its feet and huddled around Olin, trying to figure their part in this plan that would finally settle the score. ---------- Al and Anna had finally left the multi-acre Prowell estate and were now headed directly into Denver in one of the estate's jeeps. As they drove, Anna filled the Admiral in on the situation at hand, and the underlying motives behind the Crusaders' fight. She in turn asked him many questions about the project and what it was like to travel in time. Finally, they reached the Denver City Jail. They hopped out of the jeep and ran into the building, which was unlike any jail Al had ever seen before. It was decorated more like the lobby of a hotel, with a large front desk. In fact, the only clue Al could see were the uniforms worn by the guards. Aft of the lobby there was a large open center area, where one could look up and see all of the different floors of the building (there were about ten). It looked very much as if they had converted a hotel into a jail. He could see prisoners being escorted down the halls, with thick plexiglass being where there might have once been railings. Anna went over to the front desk. The clerk looked up, and stood up, immediately recognizing her. "You! I was sure they'd finished you off by now! What have you done this time?" "Nothing, damn it! I came here to release my friends!" "They aren't here. We let them go. Figured they wouldn't be able to do much without you or that other guy to lead them. Listen, why don't you just try to stay out of mischief. I'm tired of dealing with you. Now get out of here!" ---------- Back at the palace, Lisa and Sam had finally made it to Prowell's office. They had first tried his bedroom, thinking he might be going to sleep around 10 PM, but he had not been there. "Damn it Gooshie, where are you?" "What?" asked Lisa, puzzled. "Never mind. Just thinking aloud." "Well, this is your one chance to put things right. Good luck. Do you want me to hold him?" she asked, pulling out her stun gun. "No...I don't think it's a good idea. It'd make him nervous. I don't want him to do this because he's under pressure, I want him to make this decision because he wants to." "You think he wants to give you equality? After all the trouble you've caused him, I wouldn't bank on it." "I've got to try, it's..." Suddenly the Imaging Chamber door opens and Gooshie steps out. "I'm afraid I can't tell you much, Dr. Beckett, other than he's a very reasonable man, according to the guy in the Waiting Room. Oh, he's also got polio." "Polio?" asked Sam. "Yes, sir." "How did you know about that?" snapped Lisa, "Nobody's supposed to know about that." "Well, it's a long story. I'll tell you later." "You'd better. Okay, well, are you ready?" "Yeah, I'm ready," replied Sam as Gooshie disappeared again. Lisa opened the door to Prowell's office. Sam saw a very large, strong-looking figure sitting in a wheelchair, looking out the window as the sun's last rays were disappearing behind the Rocky Mountains. He turned his wheelchair around as soon as he heard the door open. "Hello, Lisa." "Mr. President," she replied with a small courtsy. "Who is this that you've brought with you?" said the man, who seemed pleasant enough. "Dr. Sam Beckett, your honor. He's one of the leaders of the Crusaders." "Oh. Well, please come have a seat Dr. Beckett. I've so very much wanted to talk with you." Sam looked over at Lisa, and she nodded to him. Sam slowly walked up to the President's desk. As he approached, Prowell held out his hand. "Am I supposed to kiss your hand?" "Oh, no, Dr. Beckett!" he said laughing, "I'm a very old- fashioned man...I still believe that a handshake is the sign of true gentlemanship." Dr. Beckett reached out and shook the man's hand. His grip was strong, but not overpowering, much like that of a sincere leader's. Sam sat down in one of the two large leather chairs that sat facing Prowell's desk. "Obviously my secret is no more so. I contracted polio at the young age of two. My parents were very poor, and could not afford treatment, and so I lost use of my legs, but I never hated them for it. I suppose you could call me a mutant, too." "All we want is to be treated equally, sir. We don't want to change the way you're running things, and we certainly don't want revenge. But every man, regardless of his skin color, size, shape, or intelligence, is entitled to basic human rights, and it's not right that we should have to go thru what we have just because of some idea differences that span back over a hundred years." "I agree with you completely, Dr. Beckett. All my life I have been looked upon as inferior because I can't use my legs. I don't think people realize that it's only my physical body that's disabled, becasue I have feelings also, and it hurts. I do understand you, Dr. Beckett." "So you can help us?" "Well...I'm afraid I can't. I can't even make it so people accept me the way I am. That's why I lock myself in this great palace, and never make public appearances. When people see me, they see my honest face, my strong chest, but they don't see my crippled legs. That's how I've adapted to my problem, just as you will have to adjust to yours." "Forgive me, sir, but there's nothing physically wrong with us. We are no different from anyone else - we just haven't fine- tuned our genetic structures like the general public. Sure, we've got members who aren't as smart as the average person, but we've also got people who are much smarter than any genetic engineering experiment could ever create. But just because we have come about differently doesn't mean we should have to be treated so. All we want is for you to tell your people to accept us. To tell them we're not mutants...we're humans too. That's all we want." "Public confidence is hard to come by, Dr. Beckett. I've worked hard over the past twenty years to gain the public's approval. And one thing I've learned is that you can't change the way they think, you can only appeal to it. I'm sorry, Sam Beckett, but there is nothing I can do to help you." Sam rose up out of the chair and leaned over the desk, so that he was face-to-face with the President. Lisa cautiously came over and pulled him back a little. She grabbed his arm and tried to lead him from the desk. "If that's what you think," said Sam, "Then you'll never be able to help anybody. You'll just be a picture on the screen. That's fine, somebody's got to do it. I'd rather go into hiding and be called a mutant than be associated with somebody who can't face his own people." Sam turned towards Lisa and she escorted him across the room. Prowell laid his face in his arms on the desk and sighed. "Wait," he said, lifting his head back up again, "Please come..." He was interrupted violently by a large explosion from outside. They all went over to the window as quickly as they could, but there was nothing to be seen, for the explosion had come from the other direction. "What the hell was that!" boomed Prowell, pressing the button on his security intercom. There was no answer. To be continued... ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Brian Willard | "Revenge is mine, thus sayeth the hologram!" UNC-Asheville | Dr. Samuel Beckett, _The Leap Home_ ------------------------------------------------------------------------