The Power of Twelve (4 page)

Gayle could hardly contain herself as she raised her voice. “Surely you are jesting. Or maybe you are just trying to get a rise out of me. You cannot possibly be serious!”

“I rarely jest when discussing the importance of power,” Arnold responded, surprised by the passion in Gayle's voice. “Yet I apologize if I have offended you.”

Gayle made an effort to modulate her voice. After all, she was trying to win converts, even smug, self-satisfied ones. “I agree that power is nothing to take lightly. I have heard that 319 families control the destiny of our planet. They think they have been acting responsibly, but it is my belief that they are hurting and not helping this planet.

Gayle's forthrightness seemed destined to escalate emotions all over again, but then Randall intervened.

“Thank you for that apology, Mr. Wheeler. Gayle has put a great deal of thought into her new book, and she is just learning not to take criticism of her ideas personally.”

Realizing that Randall was trying to make peace so they could have an enjoyable breakfast, Gayle decided to turn the conversation in a more pleasant direction. She acknowledged, “Yes, thank you for that apology, Mr. Wheeler. Clearly, we do not agree on the issue of feminine power, but hopefully we will find other topics on which we do agree. How is it that you happen to be here at Chateau Mcely?”

“Jim and Inéz are old friends, as are Prince Charles and Camilla,” Arnold boasted, pleased by the new subject. “I often attend their events, especially those related to environmental issues. I am a great believer in the importance of controlling global warming. My companies own a great deal of the country's agricultural production, and climate control is an issue of extreme importance,” Arnold explained.

“Gayle is a great believer in the importance of environmental sustainability. I think the protection of the environment is an issue where her concepts of Authentic Feminine Power may be more aligned with your own thinking,” Randall interjected smoothly.

“Yes, I am sure that is true,” Arnold agreed as he swallowed a sip of champagne and downed a toast point loaded a quarter-inch thick with caviar. “You really should try this beluga, by the way. It goes so well with Dom Perignon.” Seeing their looks of surprise, he added, “I know not everyone is ready for such delicacies first thing in the morning, but I'll have you know that caviar and champagne has been my staple breakfast for close to thirty years. It truly is a great way to start the day.”

Arnold lifted the bottle of Dom from its ice bucket to pour himself another glass. Turning to Gayle and Randall, he asked, “Might I interest you?”

“Thank you, but no,” Randall responded, without a hint of what Gayle knew were his true feelings. “Though both Gayle and I enjoy a good glass of champagne from time to time, we have a busy
schedule ahead of us today and we prefer our champagne in the evening.”

“As you like.” Arnold smiled, pouring himself another full glass of sparkling bubbles.

After breakfast, when Randall and Gayle were alone, Gayle could not contain herself.

“How could you be so polite to that beastly man?”

“Darling, we are guests here, and if Arnold is a friend of Jim and Inéz's, then he must have some good qualities,” Randall answered. “Besides, I have heard that he is extremely wealthy. He could be of great assistance with Project Wake Up.”

“Him? Help?” Gayle rolled her eyes. “I'll believe that when I see it. Even if he did, I'll bet he manages to benefit his own private interests from whatever support he gives.” She laid a hand on his wrist. “Trust me, I know the type. This Arnold Wheeler is not someone who is ever going to truly help. He is part of the old energy, and at best we can hope he will not oppose us.”

ARNOLD WAS JUST FINISHING BREAKFAST when Jim and Inéz entered with their daughter Nely.

Arnold smiled and greeted the girl, “And what is your name, young lady?”

“My name is Nely Cusumano. What is your name?”

“My name is Arnold Wheeler. My friends call me Arnie and so can you.”

“Nice to meet you, Arnie,” Nely said in her most polite and grownup voice.

“Nely,” her mother told her, “right after breakfast we are going into town to finish our Christmas shopping. Tomorrow is Christmas Eve and we will be exchanging gifts. Go to your room and get your list of what you think we should purchase for your cousins.”

“Oh, this is going to be so much fun. I love shopping with you, Mommy,” Nely squealed as she ran off to her room.

Eugene Green was coming down the stairs as Nely raced by him. He could not help but smile at the little girl's excitement as she bounded up the stairs two at a time. Nely reminded him of his own daughter when she was younger. He loved his daughter, but his work as a Secret Service agent at the White House and later his even more demanding responsibilities as personal bodyguard to Arnold Wheeler had prevented him from spending as much time with her as he would have liked. Too many Christmases he was on duty, away from his family. It looked like this Christmas would be no different. Arnold had told Eugene to be ready to accompany him to California to check on wind farms and agricultural holdings outside Paso Robles. It seemed unlikely he would be back home in Connecticut until after the holidays.

Arnold looked up from the table as Eugene entered the dining room. “Ah, just on time. The plane is waiting. Is the limo ready?”

“Yes, sir. The bags are already stowed and we can leave whenever you like,” Eugene confirmed.

“Excellent.” Arnold stood up and marched toward the main entrance to the mansion. Outside, a BMW was waiting with the door already opened for him.

Once seated, Arnold turned to Eugene and asked, “Did you listen last night to those speeches from those California goofballs?”

“Not really, sir. I was in the kitchen for most of the evening, catching up with Prince Charles's bodyguard. We have been friends for years, and I did not think it important that I attend the talk,” Eugene apologized.

“No need to be sorry, Eugene,” Arnold reassured him. “What they were saying was not important in the slightest. But they are going to become a problem if they continue to pour such crap in the ears of other members of the Illuminati. That message of the woman of Full Feminine Power Now could injure our efforts going forward. I may need you to monitor her activities in the future,” Arnold explained.

“We have dealt with more formidable foes, sir. I am sure she will not be a problem.”

“Of course not.” Arnold chuckled as he relaxed back into the leather of the BMW. “No doubt one woman with some crazy ideas
is not really much of a threat, but we can never be too cautious,” he concluded.

Arnold Wheeler had learned as a child that success depended upon paying attention to details, no matter how trivial they might seem at the time. He would see how other women responded to these notions. If it looked like Gayle caused even the slightest of groundswells, he would be calling every head of every media outlet in the world to broadcast his own message.

CHAPTER FOUR

NARANJADA

N
ARANJADA

J
ANUARY
9, 2013

A
DEEP, INTENSE ORANGE, not just a color but a feeling also. A feeling of constant euphoria, combined with a calm knowingness that kept the joy permanent but at the same time stimulating. That was the color and the feeling that the Thirteenth Apostle experienced when he visited Naranjada, his home planet. The sensations were not quite human, but something beyond that realm. Naranjada was unlike any other planet the Thirteenth Apostle had experienced.

Naranjada was home not just for the Thirteenth Apostle but for the Council of Twelve and most of the highly advanced beings who had evolved to states of higher consciousness and complete release of karma from past lives. Naranjada was as near as possible to a physical location representing heaven. Unlike descriptions of heaven in the Bible and other religious texts, Naranjada was not a place of sameness, but a dynamic environment in which change was constantly taking place, with spirits coming and going, taking on projects, celebrating triumphs, and commiserating over failures as well.

Among the other unique qualities of Naranjada was the vibrancy of the fauna, including the lower creatures. The variety was beyond that of any other planet in all the multi-universes. It was as if Noah's Ark had been a trillion times larger and contained every known species in the universe and had then landed on Naranjada. There were a million different kinds of beetles, hundreds of unique cats, tigers, lions, foxes, and furry clawed animals of beauty and strength. They were all orange, but all different hues, as if a rainbow of colors existed within the deep orange. And because the color was so intense it carried emotions of warmth, pleasure, and satisfaction that were palpable in every breath every citizen of Naranjada breathed. Whenever guests from other galaxies visited, they were awed by the color and the emotions and would remember that visit as one of the most dominating experiences of their lifetime. After all, to inhabit Naranjada was to experience pure bliss.

However, the denizens of Naranjada did not consider their planet to be heaven, just a place they enjoyed being and to which they would return for recharging as they went about their business of overseeing the evolution of the multi-universes that were expanding under the direction of Max as The One. The Council of Twelve had shown some consternation when The One made his unprecedented experiment of taking on human form as Max and forgetting who he truly was. Despite the all-knowingness of the members of the Council and other elite groups, there was some speculation that Max's experiment might not work and that all the multi-universes would be destroyed, including Naranjada. With great relief the beings of Naranjada welcomed back the Thirteenth Apostle on December 22, 2012, and congratulated him upon his success.

“Way to go, Number Two!!!” (“Number Two” was the Thirteenth Apostle's nickname on Naranjada.) “We would have never made it without you! What was The One thinking when he put you in this predicament? Good on you!” These and other compliments were offered—telepathically, of course—to the Thirteenth Apostle upon his return and even for days and weeks after. In fact, he was still receiving these positive vibrations when a small matter was
brought to his attention by his loyal scribe and assistant, William the Pen.

“Boss, I know you don't like to be bothered with the minutiae of obscure planetary anomalies, but I have been informed by the Grand Collector of Data that Universe 769 is leaking toxic vibrations that could, because of a unique and highly unusual unraveling in the weave of time, start polluting other worlds.”

The Thirteenth Apostle reared back sharply in his chair. “We've been at this job for trillions of years and nothing like this has ever happened. Are you sure the Grand Collector of Data has not made an error?”

“I have had him check and double-check his data. He is convinced it is correct. He attributes the negative vibrations to events occurring on Earth 769 in Universe 769,” William the Pen confirmed.

“Wouldn't you know it?” the Thirteenth Apostle commented rather tersely. “Always a problem with one of the Earths, no matter what universe you travel to. We just cleaned up that mess on Earth in Primary Galaxy Number Twelve, where I had to personally descend, and now we have this Earth 769 creating additional chaos? Seems our tasks never end.”

“Yes, those Earth planets, with all their emphasis on ‘free will,' are always problematic,” William the Pen concurred. “Normally we can contain or even ignore their shenanigans, but this time I think you will have to get The One involved. All signs indicate that we could be headed for a multi-universe meltdown.”

The Thirteenth Apostle was reluctant to go that route. “The One has taken an extended leave to experience fully what it is like to be Max on planet Earth. He has made it clear I am only to contact him in the case of an emergency.”

“Well, if this is not an emergency, I don't know what is,” William the Pen continued. “According to the Grand Collector of Data, things have really gone awry on Earth 769. They have had their birth 2012 experience, just like in the other universes, but in their case a small group of elite families has gathered together to seize all the resources of the entire planet. They are claiming that the White Brotherhood is directing their activities and that they are
operating for the good of the universe.” His voice had been gathering strength as he went on. “If successful, their plan will turn the seven billion people living on Earth 769 into little more than slaves and zombies.”

The Thirteenth Apostle was shocked by this conclusion. “Well, this truly is a worst-case scenario.” He sat back to think over what to do next. “We have learned from past experience that whenever the people with the highest consciousness on a planet behave badly, they send vibrations throughout that particular universe that set back all evolution on all levels in that universe.” He looked up to see William the Pen nodding in affirmation. “We have had similar situations in the past, and we have been able to contain the outflow of negative vibrations to limited devolution in that universe. Were it not for the leak of the vibrations into other universes, we could just let them go down that path and eventually destroy themselves. But if what you say about the leak is correct, then we might have to address the situation directly, or, alternatively, find a way to stop the leak.”

“Precisely what I have been thinking,” William the Pen concurred. He had a methodical way of speaking that showed his brilliant grasp of numbers and abstract concepts. “I cannot overstate the gravity of the situation. At the present time all of the universes are conjoined in a way that is allowing all energies to disperse indiscriminately. This may be related to the recent turning of the 26,000-year cycle happening in so many galaxies at the same time,” he pointed out. “But whatever the cause of this leakage, we are all in danger, not just the inhabitants of Earth 769. I am glad that this is a responsibility that falls to you and The One and not me. I'm not sure even what the first step toward correcting this situation should be, but I know you, together with The One, will find a solution.”