The Leaves in Winter (17 page)

Chapter 16

The Boathouse

Bright Hope Farms

Knockout Mouse made himself at home. He kicked off wet sneakers and left them to dry over a floor heating vent. He moved through the space as if he lived there. Shedding his jacket, he set to work in the kitchenette making coffee. Janis could see he was on edge and needed something to do with his energy. He spoke to himself at first, a stream of consciousness sounding as much wounded as enflamed. Janis caught only a part of it.

“...Everyday, something new for the wicked, while paradise is always the same. Some would rather have pride in hell than share in heaven’s shame...”

Janis took a folded blanket from the couch and wrapped it over her shoulders. She stepped to the edge of the carpet where the kitchenette began and watched as Knockout Mouse gripped and re-gripped a kitchen rag as absentminded relief.

“‘Millions long for immortality who do not know what to do with themselves on a rainy Sunday afternoon.’ I wonder if Susan Ertz would have wanted GenLET.”

“Who is Susan Ertz?”

“A British author you haven’t read. Doesn’t matter. Tell me what you know about 3rd Protocol.”

“You came to me. You first.”

“Is that the way it’s gonna be? Show me yours or I won’t show you mine?”

“You work for this Group, this thing called 8-Ball. I know for a fact 3rd Protocol is based on their work. For me, that makes you complicit with
Mass.
”

“Mass left The Group years ago, before he bought NovoSenectus.”

“He was one of them?”

“Nine members minus one – 8-Ball.”

“It doesn’t matter when he left. The policy work done by The Group calls for population collapse. Don’t try to deny it.”

“The Group’s plan calls for
Phased
Population Reduction – not collapse.”

“That’s not what I read.”

“It’s not what it seems. Nothing is. A year before 9/11, the Pentagon conducted a training simulation called MASCAL. They trained for a passenger jet flying into the Pentagon. That doesn’t mean the military had advance knowledge of 9/11.”

“Some people think so.”

“All right. Bad example.”

“Why did Mass leave The Group?”

“Progress was too slow. Group successes were minimal. He thought the
inconvenient truth
about what was happening to the planet was a call to action – not education or legislation. Mass was the one who came up with the idea of Protocols to begin with. It was his compromise between unacceptable extremes – doing nothing or mass murder.”

“Killing six billion people is not a compromise!”

“The 3rd Protocol is pure Mass – unrestrained by The Group.”

“Admit it – 3rd Protocol is no surprise to you.”

“The Group always knew the worst-case scenario was possible. But Mass was so worried he wouldn’t live long enough to finish his work, The Group thought his pursuit of life extension had kept him fully occupied. It was always wishful thinking on their part. As years went by, it became easier to believe.”

“So what are the Protocols?”

“I told you. Phased Population Reduction. They’re targeted changes to the human genome to stop the world’s population from doubling every fifty years. That trend is clearly unsustainable.”

“What kind of targeted changes?”

Knockout Mouse clutched the washrag one last time then tossed it in the sink. “Gradual. Explainable. Acceptable without panic. Natural looking if possible.”

“Such as?”

“It took a lot of think-tank study before anyone felt comfortable giving the green light to anything. Mass hated the endless analysis. In the end, The Group agreed the safest way was to target young and old first. People in the prime of life had the clout and awareness to resist – even when it was for their own good.”

“Young and old. I don’t understand.”

“Attack the problem from both ends. Delay fertility in the young and put a cap on lifespan for the old. 1st Protocol would delay fertility until age 25. The 2nd Protocol would cap lifespan at 70.”

“Unbelievable! How could they take it on themselves to do such a thing! Who do they think they are?”

“The voice of reason. The answer to the
Tragedy of the Commons
. The wise ones who have chartered a course between animal ethics and Armageddon.”

“They think it’s reasonable to limit a human life to 70 years?”

Knockout Mouse shrugged. “It was that or go with Mass and do it his way.”

“There
are
other choices!”

“Oh, really? What? Mess with people’s cherished reproductive rights? Hand out condoms to the
Third World
? Teach abstinence to poor people in countries with high infant mortality rates, people who reproduce like rabbits because they’re worried there won’t be anyone to take care of them in their old age? Mass got fed up with half measures.”

“What about The Group?”

“In their plan, the 2nd Protocol would be reversible – once the world’s population reduced to its optimum level.”

“And who gets to set that?”

“The Group believes reason and logic should determine it. There have been many studies of MVP, the Minimum Viable Population size. A lot has to be considered. What is critical mass to ensure the common welfare and exclude inequality? What level preserves cultural and bio-diversity? What standard of living should be expected? At what average per-capital energy use would human society and the natural planet both be able to thrive?”

“It’s as simple as that, huh? Crunch the numbers, come up with a formula, dispense the logical remedy. No qualms. No debate.”

“When your jet is going down, don’t quibble over the shape of your parachute.”

“So what MVP did they come up with?”

“The Group never agreed on a number. For Mass, it was five hundred million.”

Under her blanket, Janis shivered. “
Maintain humanity under 500,000,000 in perpetual balance with nature
…the first principle on the Georgia Guidestones.”

“Whatever. Like minds come to similar conclusions. University professors have published articles saying the same thing.”

A wave of deep feeling swept through Janis. It was a grief-like sinkhole of pain for all that could happen. She had to retreat to the main room and sit on the couch.

“Just the thought that someone could plan all of this…”

Knockout Mouse followed her. “Oh, they did more than plan it.”

A dagger of disbelief pinned Janis in place. “They went through with it?”

A nod from Knockout Mouse. “1st Protocol’s complete.”

Janis’ mind raced into denial. “But there’s no sign of it.”

“Funny you should say that. Shadow research funded by The Group is about to be released from independent sources in
Japan
and
Germany
. Didn’t you know that animal studies have confirmed that a cocktail of chemicals in the environment are responsible for the drop in teenage pregnancies around the world?”

“What do you mean,
shadow research
?”

“The Group knew 15 years ago this day would come. When it did, society would need plausible science to explain and temper the blow. They planned these studies as untraceable yet ready to be released at the proper time. That time is now.”

“Why now?”

“Because 27% of the world’s population is below the age of 15. All of them have parents who were exposed to the 1st Protocol. None of those children will be fertile until the age of 25.”

Janis bolted from the couch. The blanket dropped from her shoulders. She lunged at him. “You mean that’s it! The bastards actually did this?”

Taken back by the power of Janis’ approach, Knockout Mouse could only nod.

“All the children…my Alyssa!” The certainty hit her. He was serious.

Knockout Mouse was stone-cold. “Fait accompli.”

In a fit of shock and rage and a mother’s terror, Janis slapped him across the face. “How dare you! How could you!” She slapped him again and sobbed openly. “This can’t be happening! No! Who in the hell do you people think you are!”

Knockout Mouse stood by, restrained but jittery. Janis paced like a caged animal. She shook her head over and over and searched for answers at her feet. “All of humanity! The future of everything!”

He rubbed away the sting from the side of his face. “It was released fourteen years ago. In all that time, there have been no bad side effects.”

“The whole fucking thing is a bad side effect! It’s nothing but stupidity and somebody’s outrageous arrogance! They probably don’t believe in God but they damned well want to be one, don’t they!” Janis could no longer stand. She sat on the edge of the couch with her knees together, hugging herself. “How does it work?”

“The key change is made in the parents, by viral infection. The process completes before the children are born. Fetal germ cells are modified. From then on, the trait is inherited.”

The final blow hit Janis. She looked up at him with a fatalistic stare. “It’s passed on…to all generations?”

Knockout Mouse was mute and motionless. He could see Janis was on the edge of losing it again. He waited in silence while the full weight of her awareness settled around her. This time he could see a profound sadness overtake her.

“You did it to the children!”

“The children grow up knowing no other way. The parents will live their lives and eventually die off. Affecting the parents would have increased the possibility of public resistance. This way, the Protocols will be in place before anyone realizes what’s happened. It’s the Boiling Frog Syndrome. In The Group’s position papers, it’s referred to as
an application of the doctrine of the inevitability of gradualism
.”

“The 2nd Protocol. Have they done that too?”

“They’re about to. That’s why I’m here. That’s why you’re so important.”

“Me?” Janis was a limp rag, ready to be grasped.

As Knockout Mouse sat down next to her on the couch, his attitude shifted. A pure and determined sincerity blunted the sarcastic edge. “I was just a kid in college when my father got me a job doing research for this new think tank. Back then I thought we were the vanguard of real change. I remember the first Earth Day and the national contest to come up with a recycling symbol. Everyone now knows what that green triple arrow means. It’s universal. It’s ironic because
triple green
has always been the go-code for anything done by The Group.”

“So what’s changed?”

“That’s just it – not much. I thought progress was that simple. The Group did too. A lot has happened, not much of it good. Everyone’s become someone else. Over twenty years my faith in the process drained away. I see it clearly now – The Group is no better than
Mass.
They’ve stolen
GenLET
. They’re ready to implement the 2nd Protocol for everyone else, capping the lifespan, while they live 300 years and lead the
New Class Order
. The only difference between Mass and them is Mass doesn’t hide behind altruistic rhetoric and euphemisms. They are diplomats with a velvet glove and secret timetable. Mass is an insect that knows to abandon the hive when it means survival.”

“Why don’t you leave them?”

“Why don’t people leave bad marriages? Commitment and fear. I know nothing else and I’m afraid of what might happen if I ran off the ranch.”

“They’d kill you if you quit your job?”

“Oh, I’m sure it wouldn’t be a Group decision. One or two of the more paranoid ones would meet in a corner; they’d want to be sure. Leave no loose ends. Who knows. It’s more likely than not. I definitely know too much about them and what they’ve done.”

“Why are you telling me all of this?”

“Whatever happens, I have a sense it’s all coming to an end. Whether that applies personally or globally, I don’t know. Face it, humanity is the
Incredible
Wobbly
Tower
. We all suspect it’s about to fall. It’s too far gone to stop it, but there are still things we can do to soften the blow.”