Chapter 11 Buster’s Rescue

     Narrator:

     Leah performs her duties by testing environmental conditions across the settlement. Later that evening she gives a daily briefing to Cohort One, which Mr. Buster attends after dinner in the dining hall. Following the briefing, Mr. Buster approaches her and compliments the presentation. 

     Mr. Buster: “Hi Leah. That was a great presentation.” 

     Narrator: Leah blushes slightly. 

     Leah: “Thank you.” 

     Narrator: As a historian, Mr. Buster notices an inconsistency in the environmental data. The reported radiation levels appear to have dissipated faster than expected over a thirty-year period. Based on the records he knows about from prior reviews, the numbers would only make sense if an additional detonations had occurred or if there were more toxins present than previously recorded, or if some other unknown factor, such as temperature changes following the quake, slowed the natural dissipation process. Leah listens with interest as he shared his theory, but dismisses his concern politely. 

     Leah: “The science is quite clear in defining the accuracy of the data. What it does not always explain is the how or the why.” 

     Mr. Buster smiles then says, “Would you like to grab a drink at the bar?” 

     Leah raises an eyebrow and says, “New Earth doesn’t have bars.” (Mr. Buster chuckles). 

     Mr. Buster: “That’s true, but restorationists like me study the history of herbs. I have a pretty good supply of dried leaves and roots. How about some tea?” 

     Narrator: Leah pauses, then gives an accepting nod. They walk together toward Mr. Buster’s quarters. At the door, Leah stops. 

     Leah: “I’m not going to sleep with you.”  (Mr. Buster laughs). 

     Mr. Buster: “Good. The last thing I want is to bore you so much that I end up sleeping on my own couch. The beds they issue us aren’t exactly queen-sized.”  (Leah giggles). 

     Narrator: For a moment the two lock eyes and an unexpected sense of attraction passes between them that neither of them can easily ignore.  Mr. Buster begins preparing tea. 

     Mr. Buster: “Tell me, what led you to love plants?” (Leah smiles). 

     Leah: “When I was a kid, my dad used to take me to gardens and spend hours talking about the plants he introduced me to. He would tell me stories about Earth 1. I couldn’t stop dreaming about open fields that stretched as far as the eye could see.”  

     Leah: “What about your family?”     

     Mr. Buster: “Oh, well… my adoptive parents were great.” 

     Narrator: There is tension in his eyes as he realizes he has revealed that he was orphaned. The moment hangs briefly between them. Leah stands and thanks him for the tea. As Mr. Buster turns his back, she pretends to accidentally knock over her cup to distract from her failed attempt to pour a sedative into his tea.

     Leah: “Oh, sorry. I just remembered I have a reporting deadline. I need to get back to work.” (She moves quickly toward the door). 

     Narrator: As she leaves, Mr. Buster calls after her. 

     Mr. Buster: “Your dad sounds fascinating. Maybe we can continue this another time.” 

(Leah pauses briefly). 

     Leah: “I would like that. See you next time.”  She leaves, and the door closes behind her. 

Narrator:   

     As she catches her breath, Leah sends a quick message to her commanding officer explaining that because of New Earth’s security structure, she needs more time to complete the mission of neutralizing and containing Mr. Buster. Moments later, on a loading dock across from her, Leah overhears the ship’s captain speaking with a raised voice to  a safety inspector about the crash landing findings. 

     Captain: “What are you talking about? How could the landing gear have been damaged in flight? It was inspected before takeoff, and we didn’t see anything on the sensors during the pre-landing equipment checks. Run the diagnostics again.” 

     Narrator:

     Leah begins to suspect that her commander may have another team working to eliminate Mr. Buster, possibly even risking both his life and her own. Until she can determine whether this is true and understand why it might be happening, she decides she must protect Mr. Buster rather than deliver him to the Naturals Resistance.

     Leah places a call to an old friend and quietly gives her coordinates. Their conversation sounds like coded language between lovers. 

     Leah: “Hi, hun. I got that lucky lottery ticket. Time to cash it in. I’ll send you the lucky numbers.” 

     The call ends. Leah receives communication from Lord Arcon, commander of the resistance. 

     Lord Arcon: “Why is the mission taking longer than expected?” 

     Leah: “There’s no need for concern, my lord. The mission’s contingency plans are in motion. The mother ship was damaged during landing, which has significantly limited any possibility of leaving New Earth.” 

     Narrator: The call ends. Still suspicious of Leah, Lord Arcon contacts a backup operative, Leo, the squad leader from AI2, to issue additional orders. 

     Lord Arcon: “And Leah, are plans in place to erase those who are aware of what is being carried out?” 

     Leo: “Yes, my lord. The plans are already in place. I assure you this will be resolved by nightfall.” 

Directors Note: Split Screen 1 

     Narrator: Hours later Leah receives orders on her Psy-Verse from Lord Arcon to report to the mess hall to meet Leo, a squad leader who has been sent in as backup. Leah has worried look on her face, but replies. 

     Leah: “On my way.” 

     Narrator: She ends the communication, pauses, then suddenly turns and runs toward Mr. Buster’s classroom. The order confirms her suspicion that both she and Mr. Buster are now in immediate danger. 

Screen 2 (While running to Mr. Buster)

     Narrator: Leah taps into the camera feed from Mr. Buster’s classroom lens and sees that he is in the middle of a lecture. The sound fades in as the class bell rings and he dismisses the students. 

     She rushes into the room, breathless. At the same moment, the two opposing groups (Naturals and Empirical Guard) enter and surround Mr. Buster and Leah. Time seems to slow. Leah closes her eyes and takes a fighting stance. A martial arts fight breaks out. 

     It becomes clear in the course of the fighting that one group is attempting to capture or eliminate Mr. Buster, while the other appears to be protecting him. 

     Leah (shouts to Mr. Buster): “Trust no one.” 

     Narrator: Leah detonates a small explosive device that knocks several attackers to the ground seemingly putting them to sleep. Mr. Buster, stunned, runs toward the door with Leah close behind him. As they reach the hallway, Leah quickly gives him coordinates. 

     Leah: “Hide there. I’ll come when it’s safe.” 

     Narrator: Mr. Buster runs. Leah turns back to face the attackers. An intense fight unfolds. Despite her skill, she is eventually struck by what appears to be a fatal shot to the heart. As she falls, Leah recognizes at least two of the attackers as members of her own command faction, the Naturals, and two others as Light Knights, an elite security unit of the Empirical Guard. Leah collapses. 

     Her death shocks everyone present. Such an act of violence has not occurred in five hundred years. Everyone retreats in confusion knowing that murder has a mandatory sentence requiring recycling. They scramble to locate Mr. Buster, who escaped during the chaos. 

   Mr. Buster arrives at the coordinates Leah gave him. He looks bewildered and distraught. His Psy-Verse activates. 

     Voice: “I’m Edison. I was sent by the Empirical Guard. I have a secure message on a chip that must be manually installed. It was authorized for delivery to you by your real father.” 

     Mr. Buster frowns. He says,: “Is this some kind of joke? Who is this?” 

     Narrator: Mr. Buster hangs up with frustration. Moments later, another message appears on Mr,. Buster’s screen, this time from Leo, the Naturals Resistance Rebel leader.  Leo’s message read across his psy-verse screen…”we have Leah.  She will die if you do not surrender immediately. The Naturals hacked Mr. Buster’s system and insert data that reads…you have been raised on many lies, including the truth about your own bloodline. 

      After the collapse of 2050, currencies were supposedly abolished. Yet the Empirical Guard secretly hoarded the remaining gold. In the new age, citizens were told that access to responsibility, freedom, and privilege would be determined through merit and intelligence metrics. This is not the truth. These systems exist only to secure cooperation and maintain control. Our resistance seeks to reveal what has been hidden and allow the truth to prevail. The equal voting system is rigged and only the votes of the Universal Council are counted, not the votes of all Nomadians as we were told. End of message”.  

     Narrator: While Leah’s body is being processed, the drug she took to simulate death begins to wear off. She regains consciousness and quietly escapes. She makes her way to the coordinates she had given Mr. Buster. When she arrives, she finds him sitting in a corner, weeping and in shock. Leah approaches and begins to tend to him. 

      Mr. Buster looks up and sees Leah standing there and says, “I thought you were dead. Then they said you were captured. I didn’t know what to do. Who are all these people coming after us?” 

     Narrator: The emotional tension between them breaks as they embrace. What begins as relief quickly turns into a moment of closeness between them. After a kiss, Leah smiles and questioned Mr. Buster,  

     Leah: “Still no queen bed?” 

     Mr. Buster grins and says, “Careful there, tiger. This is a PG-13 scene.” 

     Narrator: Leah’s expression turns serious again. 

     Leah: “We need to get ready. Help is coming.” 

     Mr. Buster pauses: “These people contacted me. They said something about my father. Do you know anything about that?” 

     Leah hesitates: “Yes… but listen. These people are extremely dangerous. We need to get to the coordinates I sent to my backup team. I know this is a lot to process, but please trust me.” 

     Mr. Buster shakes his head: “I’m not going anywhere until you tell me who you really are. Is your name even Leah?” 

     Leah takes a breath: “Yes. My name is Leah, but I was working for a group of Natural Rebels that hired me to contain you. I think they misrepresented the reasons. They tried to kill both of us. You seem like a decent guy… so I quit that job.” (She gives a small, tired smile and continues)…, “now I’m working with you instead and staying true to the mission of the Naturals which requires the protection of human life as our sworn oath.” 

     Mr. Buster: “I didn’t realize I was hiring. So tell me, why do they want me contained…and what do you know about my father?” 

     Leah: “Your father is a very important figure in the Universal Council. He is the chairman of the Empirical Guard. The people I worked for didn’t want you to know that because you may eventually take his seat when he dies. He is presently in critical condition dying a natural death. You are the next in line to inherit that position unless they manage to contain you.” 

     Narrator: Mr. Buster suddenly adopts an exaggerated English accent. 

     Mr. Buster: “Blasted. That sounds a bit Shakespearean, doesn’t it?” 

     Leah looks puzzled and says, “Who? Is that some guy who died three thousand years ago?” 

     Mr. Buster: “Never mind. Let me get this straight. You’re telling me my father is some grand leader in outer space that we’re all supposed to believe in, but never actually see. I, a humble servant, could become some important figure, but only when he dies and I if I manage to stay alive while you were being paid to help contain me? Then you suddenly switched sides? I think you left the happily-ever-after part out.” 

     Leah: “Did you forget the kiss? I don’t believe in fairy tales. But I can tell you this. If you don’t zip up your pants right now, my friend is not going to let you on his ship.” 

     Narrator: Mr. Buster looks down, embarrassed, and quickly zips up his fly. Leah walks toward the door and turns back and says, “Well? Are you coming or not?” She holds the door open. 

     Mr. Buster: “What choice do I have? It looks like you’ve already contained me. Ladies first.” 

Rescue Ship Arrives  

     Narrator:  Leah and Mr. Buster race toward Captain D’s rescue ship. Mr. Buster’s protective gear begins to malfunction, and he collapses. Leah is forced to carry him the final distance, barely making it aboard before the ship lifts off. Once inside, Leah quickly administers first aid. Mr. Buster slowly opens his eyes and sees Leah leaning over him. 

     Mr. Buster: “Were you just giving me mouth to mouth?” Leah: “Yes. You nearly died.” 

     Mr. Buster smiles weakly and said: “Well, I guess there’s an upside to everything. Thanks for saving my life again.”  Leah: “You can thank me later. Right now we need to get somewhere safe.” 

     Mr. Buster: “Maybe you can teach me some of those life-saving moves.” 

     Leah rolls her eyes and says, “Watch it, Buster. Get some rest. I need to plot a course so we can avoid detection.” 

     Narrator: The entire exchange is overheard by Captain D from the cockpit. 

     Captain D (muttering): “Oh boy…” Leah steps into the cockpit. 

     Leah: “Thanks for the rescue.” 

     Captain D: “What’s the story with the schoolteacher?” 

     Narrator: Leah quickly brings Captain D up to speed on the situation and explains why she requested the rescue. Captain D sets a course for Neptune. At light speed the journey would take four hours and twenty-six minutes, but sensors detect a fleet of cyborg destroyers heading in their direction. 

     As Captain D begins the cloaking sequence, a cyborg scout detects them and fires a shot that damages the ship’s force field. Despite the hit, Captain D manages to slip away. 

     To avoid further pursuit, he cloaks the vessel, reduces speed, and changes course. Eventually the ship lands near a remote station on Uranus used as a vacation destination for residents of the Milky Way. The group checks into a luxury suite to regroup and plan their next move. 

     Narrator:  The Empirical Guard Council begins investigating the disappearance of the Naturalist agent Leah and soon learns that Mr. Buster escaped from New Earth with her assistance. 

     On the other side, the Naturalist commanders reach their own conclusion. Their intelligence reports confirm that Leah has failed to deliver Mr. Buster into containment, likely due to defection. 

     Both factions begin analyzing the final communications transmitted before the vessel activated its cloak. Using calculations based on the ship’s capabilities and known locations within the surrounding region, they attempt to predict where Mr. Buster may be located. 

     The Empirical Guard initiates a galaxy-wide facial recognition protocol. Within moments, the system identifies a match at the location where Mr. Buster was last seen. The Naturals leadership is also placed under arrest orders due to the incident of trying to abduct Mr. Buster.

     Almost immediately, a security team stationed on Uranus receives updated orders to locate Mr. Buster, protect him, and ensure his safe passage to Empirical Guard headquarters. 

     Empirical Guard Analysts debate the psychological impact recent events may have had on Mr. Buster while developing a plan for how to explain his true identity to him. Doctors and advisers disagree on the best approach, but eventually a decision is made to attempt contact one more time. 

    A small team of agents is selected and dispatched. Moments later, Mr. Buster hears a knock at the door. Leah immediately signals for him to hide and directs him into a closet. 

     Leah (whispering): “Down. Stay quiet.” She closes the door and moves to answer the knock. 

     Narrator: Outside, the agents deploy small reconnaissance drones that scan the room with visual and heat sensors. The drones confirm that Mr. Buster is hiding in the closet before Leah opens the door. When she does, the agents speak calmly. They explain that they know who she is and that they are aware Mr. Buster is hiding inside. They reassured her that this is a noncombative visit, which is why they knocked rather than forcing entry. 

    After a tense moment, Leah let’s them inside and everyone sits down to talk. The agents explain that, based on the evidence, Leah is not under arrest. However, they have been assigned to provide security and ensure that Mr. Buster reaches the Council Chambers of the Empirical Guard safely. Mr. Buster begins to show signs of stress. 

     Mr. Buster: “How do we know you really are who you say you are?” 

     Narrator: Having encountered this concern before, the agents follow a prepared protocol. One of the agents offers Mr. Buster a small chip disk and says: “Your father asked that this be given to you. It will help you understand who you are and why someone has been trying to capture you. Our responsibility is to ensure your safety.” The agent continues… “We will escort your ship tomorrow morning when you depart. A medical team will also check on the treatment Leah provided. Once you are ready to travel, we will move.” The agents stand and head for the door to exit: “For now, we will remain stationed outside your door.” 

     Leah places a reassuring hand on Mr. Buster’s shoulder and says, “I think they’re legitimate. We should try to get some rest.” 

     Mr. Buster shakes his head and says, “Not until I see what’s on this disc.” 

     Narrator: He inserts the disc into his psych-stream interface. Within seconds, the system begins playing a classified record of the true history behind Earth’s destruction. The message includes a personal recording from his father. 

     In the recording, his father explains why Mr. Buster was raised as an ordinary civilian. He had hoped his son would live a normal and fulfilling life, far removed from the dangers of political power. However, the message also reveals that circumstances have changed. Mr. Buster’s identity has been discovered by opposing forces who intend to capture him in order to prevent him from becoming the successor to the chair of the Empirical Guard. 

     His father explains that assuming the council seat may now be the only way for Mr. Buster to protect himself and preserve the stability of the system. 

E-Tom – Recorded Message For His Son Mr. Buster

     “Dear Son, 

     This message refers to a passage from the Book of Amos. It speaks of a time when the world attempted to unite against terrorism, but ultimately failed. That failure culminated in the war of 2050, which forced the mass exodus from Earth as the planet’s conditions became uninhabitable. 

     The lesson from that time was difficult to accept. No matter how many rules were written or systems created to control violence, destructive technologies continued to find their way into human hands. When such power remains uncontained, it inevitably leads to widespread devastation. 

     The uncomfortable truth is that humanity is not always guided by kindness or compassion. For the sake of stability and peace, much of our history was concealed. Even the memory of the Terror War was deliberately removed so that future generations could live without inheriting the hatred that destroyed the old world originally. 

     For your own protection, I placed you among the general population so you could live as an ordinary citizen. I hoped you might have the chance to live a normal and peaceful life. For that decision, I ask your forgiveness. Even I had to appear distant from this world, in order to keep you safe, but know that I loved you and watched over you as best I could. 

     Now I offer you your rightful place in our galaxy as my successor. With this knowledge, and with the support of the Council, you can help guide and protect the future.”  The recording ends. 

     Mr. Buster looks at Leah and said, “So… does this mean I get a salary adjustment?” 

Leah smiles and replies: “I’m pretty sure it means you won’t be counting beans anymore.” 

The arrest of the Naturals Resistance Coup   

     Narration: Shortly after the Empirical Guard agents leave the suite, they encounter members of the Naturals Rebel coup in the lobby. A brief, but intense confrontation breaks out before the Naturals are subdued and taken into custody. The captured conspirators face an immediate tribunal and are found guilty of treason to set an example and deter future coup attempts and encourage cooperation in locating all defectors that exhibited deviant behavior violating the code of Nomadians. 

     However, Grandfather E-Tom, acting through his security chief Edison, issues diplomatic pardons for the group. He states that although the Naturals acted recklessly, their intentions were ultimately rooted in concern for the future. 

      Edison addresses the council: “Fortunately, no one was seriously harmed, and the plot to obstruct Mr. Busters appointment to the Chair of the Universal Council was stopped largely because of Agent Leah’s quick judgment and decisive actions, which allowed us to reach Mr. Buster first.”