FanStory.com - The Best Laid Plansby michaelcahill

I used to love going to the beach. The sand stretched out like a spongy white blanket leading to another world. The ocean threatened the shore, but always playfully, roaring like a favorite uncle as it rushed up to its favorite nephew. Then, all at once, the threat would end with tickled feet and laughter. The ocean always remained in its place and the beach always remained a place to nap in peace and safety.

There was no beach here to flop down on for a relaxing afternoon. The ocean could no longer be trusted. It roared with its approach and had no comfort in its voice. It made us tremble with its hunger. It had no respect for mankind just as we had never respected it. Our puny structures disappeared beneath its relentless approach. I could see dwellings staring back at me, peeking over the surface helplessly. I could almost hear them whisper, "Go back, go back".

I thought about beaches no longer there. Santa Monica Pier, Malibu, Long Beach and so many that were almost in my backyard growing up. All of those exotic locales that one day I would visit if I ever became rich, the Bahamas, Hawaii, Cabo…was there even a Hawaii in existence? There were no beaches on earth. There were no glaciers or frozen wonderlands.

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth… I always wondered why. Why would he? More to the point, after seeing it and deciding that it was good, why put something as destructive as mankind on it. Looking out at this angry ocean a sense of lonely despair came over me. That must be the answer. Create something beautiful and share it. That is the nature of the spirit.

Well, that would have to wait. This was not a time for reflection. Christine? I'm here Johnny.

The armada was not in sight, yet. "What's out status, Nikolai?"

"You,re looking at a couple hours until visual. Okay, let me speak English. You should be able to see them in a couple of hours, Johnny. They are a few miles still from your position. The military vessels have completely separated from the civilians now. I'd say abandoned would be a better word. There's no one friendly coming. Our back up is still up in the air, Johnny, no pun intended. The general said if they can get off the ground, they're coming. Communications with any of the ships or subs is spotty and we don't want to tip off the enemy. That's an unknown. The enemy has subs. There's an unmanned station still operating out there reporting activity. This channels open, Johnny, and it will stay open."

My new friend, Ricky, had control over coordinating our response here to whatever came our way. I had the utmost confidence in him. I motioned him over to fill him in on the latest.

"I wanted to give you the latest from Nikolai. We're a couple hours from seeing them. The military has broken away from the armada and stands alone know. Nikolai says we've detected subs. The general at Edwards is going to give it his best shot and not too much to say about possible help on the water."

Ricky didn't look like a decorated war hero except for a couple scars. That smile of his could launch a ship, it didn't seem like it could sink one. I knew different. "Okay, Johnny, it sounds like victory to me. We've got some great toys for them. There's some pretty high tech gizmos stashed at that bunker. We'll see if they work. Don't forget, I was stationed in Guam for over a year. You'll notice that you never heard a peep out of them, right?"

Ricky went chuckling back to his troops, obviously delighted with his little joke. I considered it up to Yosemite standards and laughed accordingly.

I could hear seals barking nearby. I couldn't see them, but once you've heard them, it is unmistakable. It sounded so out of place, but everything looked and sounded out of place. I wanted to say it was out of place, but it was in the place it was and that would not change. I wondered what else might be out there. It would be just my luck to see bigfoot. I bet there's no reward anymore.

Talk about awakened from my reverie! The water exploded right before my half-open, day dreaming eyes.

Ricky yelled out at the top of his lungs, "Whoooo HOOOO! That is what the hell I am talking the hell a bout! Oh yeah!" Then he started singing, "Oh Canada, your subs are kicking aaaaaaassssss!"

"What's going on Ricky? What the hell is blowing up? It's a good thing, right?"

He did some kind of a dance. I would have to call it a victory dance. "The Canadian Navy is kicking ass, that's all folks. Kicking ass in an efficient military manner. Hells yesssss! They came to the party, Johnny boy. Surprise, surprise, surprise!"

He did a perfect Gomer Pyle. Gomer was a T.V. character from back in the day, a good old boy, very lovable and harmless. If you knew who it was, you'd split a side laughing. The combination of the thrilling first strike and the great humor had me doing some kind of dance. It wasn't the same dance as Ricky's, but it was a victory dance too!

"Transmit the signal, Nikolai, everything you've got! Any word from Edward's?"

Nikolai could have been standing next to me. "No news. Snowing in Mojave. If they can go, they'll go. You'll see them. If not, you're on your own. Good luck, my friend! Transmitting full force."

Within seconds, the wave of thought ran through us with great force. We expected it too and it still came through us with surprising strength. We had felt the message of rescue from the enemy for quite some time, but they had no effect. The deceit engendered nothing but irritation. The thought of how the force of a completely fresh perspective bombarding the minds of those approaching thrilled me. This would be the first time any of them had ever received a different message. A message of hope and a new life would enter the hearts and souls of people that knew only despair. I prayed it would have a miraculous effect.

It didn't affect the fast approaching convoy of military vessels. Vehicles filled with troops were launched and approached rapidly. Our response awaited. It would be a surprise. Would it be enough? There were a lot of men coming. We stood on the beach pretending to wait for rescue. We waved and looked as happy as people about to be rescued could be. We hoped the submarine activity wouldn't be connected to us. Ricky, Carlos, Linda, Jen and a heavily armed contingent of Yosemite's best waited in the wings. They held our weapons just out of sight.

The battleships stopped in the water off shore poised with turrets pointed. The troops on transports approached rapidly. The rest of the armada closed the gap rapidly. We waited. The signal continued to be transmitted full force from the bunker.

We could see a fleet of vessels bearing down from the north. Some help had arrived. Would it be in time and would it be enough? Vessels of every shape and size, some military some commercial. I looked up to the empty skies. They didn't remain empty for long. Aircraft launched from the enemy position began to fill the sky. No cavalry this time it seemed.

Our ruse ended and we fell back to retrieve our weapons. Whatever tricks Ricky had up his sleeve were about to be made known. Missiles hit the air from our position headed towards the incoming enemy aircraft.

The armada was coming up on the military vessels now making targeting more difficult. We certainly didn't want to hit innocent citizens. The signal had to be clear. They should be steering clear and heading towards shore. They appeared to be heading straight towards the enemy. It appeared as though the signal had failed. They must have blocked it.

I felt the end coming. I had no intention of surrendering. I'd prefer to die in freedom.