Short Story Fiction
The Observers
Scott A. Gese
They were cyborgs, built to see into the future. They would be used to destroy the world.
Photo by Joel Staveley on UnsplashSomewhere in a top secret underground facility, a young man sits in a comfortable leather recliner. His eyes are closed. He is extremely relaxed, almost sleeping. He's not. The intense darting eyes under the thin skin of closed lids give him away. He's working. He's playing an integral part of a very important and groundbreaking experiment.
Several other men in an adjoining room sip fine liquor and smoke expensive cigars as they observe unbelievable images on a large screen.
The year is 2050. The young man is known only as Stephen. He was once fully human. Now he has been implanted with technology so secretive and so advanced only a handful of humans know of it. He is now referred to as a cyborg.
The others in the adjoining room are just as secretive. They're existence is unknown. These men are beyond the general populations current understanding of how the hierarchy of the worlds rich and powerful actually works. These men are not only beyond it, they control its very perception. They are beyond borders. They control whole countries. They want to control the entire world and all the resources thereof.
As a group they have no moniker. Only a select few have heard of them, and no one will acknowledge their existence in public. Only when necessary will they be referenced as the “Obscure Ones.”
Stephen is one of several highly advanced cyborgs used by the Obscure Ones. The cyborgs are known as 'Observers'. Gone are the days when Observers were better known as Remote Viewers. Back when vague impressions and simple scribbles on a piece of paper were crudely deciphered by fully human 'handlers'.
With the exceptional quality and rapid advancements of both information and technology coming from the field of quantum physics, observing has risen to new levels.
This advanced technology takes what Stephen is observing in his mind and with the help of an advanced A.I. system, projects that image onto a screen. The process takes the remote imagery from Stephen's mind and transforms it into a full spectrum observable reality.
What was currently being displayed on the screen was the final outcome of the latest advancement in the field of observation. What these men were looking at was not Stephen's observation of current reality. What they were observing was nothing less than future reality.
Steven was literally showing these men the future.
The Obscure Ones were at the beginning of a planning stage. One that would usher in the worlds next major event. One that would bring the earths growing population down by as much as 80%. This would insure a more manageable population once they achieved their final outcome. The event would also allow them to consolidate a large number of countries into a handful of global states ran by a cooperative puppet they had put into place. In essence, it would give them the one thing that had eluded them for decades. It would give them world control.
The image on the screen was an off planet view looking down on the aftermath caused by a thermal nuclear war. Most of the planet was a smoldering wreck of death and destruction.
The Obscure Ones puffed their cigars as they smiled and congratulated each other over their achievement. To clearly see the board at any point during the game gave them an unprecedented advantage. The ability to clearly see into the future to determine an end result would secure their positions of power forever.
Before the first bomb was to be detonated, much more planning would need to be done. The events would play out like a chess game except they had the advantage of seeing the games end result with each piece they placed into position. They now had the ability to observe their progress after each move and make necessary adjustments to whatever outcome presented itself. In the end, everything they planned would transpire like falling dominoes. The end result would be a world reshaped to their liking.
Everything had to be perfect. The planning was meticulous. They alternated between their cyborgs. With each observation they ran tests and simulations. They triple checked their data in order to insure the correct outcome. No stone was left unturned.
After many months the Obscure Ones had convinced themselves they had a plan in place that would give them the outcome they intended. Nothing was left but to set the date of destruction.
~~~
The Obscure Ones thought they were hidden well enough to be invisible to others. They thought they could see clearly into the future. They thought they had the advantage. They thought they would own the world.
They thought a lot of things. None of them were true. To be so sure of one's self was a fools game. They were playing on a skewed board and they didn't realize it.
Any piece of electronic equipment can be hacked, no matter how sophisticated it is. Such was the case with Stephen and the other observers used by the Obscure Ones.
One of the technicians who had worked on implanting the cyborgs with their latest technology had not been vetted closely enough. Everything is for sale if the price is right. This technicians past had shown him to be weak. It appeared he could be bought... and he was. For the price, he made certain adjustments that would cause the cyborgs to observe something that wasn't totally true. Small details that carried big consequences.
Those who had bribed the technician were as invisible as the Obscure One's. They were the Unknowns. They were not as power hungry as the Obscure One's. They had their own agenda. The two groups were aware of and at odds with one another. Neither group was able to take full control by overpowering the other. That had shown itself to be an impossible task. It was a decades long stalemate. For now it was easier to hold one another in check by thwarting each others plans.
For one group to be able to see into the future would have been devastating to the other. It needed to be stopped and it was to a degree. Although the Obscure Ones could still see into the future, the future they observed was flawed. The fact they didn't know it yet gave the Unknowns a slight advantage. It would give them time to advance their own observation technology. They weren't that far behind.
The Obscure Ones still had control of the world's nuclear stockpile. Their plan to use it in order to achieve world domination needed to be shut down. The Unknowns had a plan in place to remove that deadly control from the Obscure Ones.
The Unknown's had the ability to contact a third group known to them as the Watchers. This group was not of this world. For thousands of years this third group had watched everything happening on the earth. They watched as mankind all but destroyed themselves on several occasions. They did not interfere. More than one hundred years ago they had allowed atomic bombs to be detonated over an inhabited area. They saw the destruction the bombs had caused. Not only to the population but more importantly in their eyes, to the planet itself.
In the past, if the human race was about to destroy itself, they did not stand in the way. This time it was different. The means of self destruction had advanced. This time the humans would destroy the earth along with themselves. They were not about to let that happen. They would not allow the Obscure Ones to implement their plan.
The Unknowns had made contact with the Watchers and verified that fact.
~~~
The Obscure Ones had set a date for destruction and the deadline was at the door. Everything seemed to be in order. The worlds nuclear weapons systems would be fired in sequence which would destroy only certain countries. They would be rebuilt to their liking. At the same time the detonations would eliminate most of the worlds population. After everything was said and done, the inhabitants of countries that remained would put up little resistance. What was left of humankind would be in shock and fearful of what might come next. They could be easily controlled.
Their observer's had confirmed a positive outcome. Tomorrow would be the beginning of total domination.
The following morning as a peaceful dawn broke over the horizon, everything was in order. The Obscure Ones were safe in their underground bunker. There was no ceremony and no countdown. Only anxious anticipation.
The sequence was started. Switches were flipped and buttons were pushed.
Nothing happened. They tried again. Still nothing. The Obscure Ones were highly disappointed.
An unsuspecting world went about its business. 2050 would not be the year of world domination.
The invisible war between the Obscure Ones and the Unknowns would continue on.
© Copyright 2023 by Scott A. Gese All Rights Reserved.
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