CHAPTER 70: Interlude: Phillip Rhodes
“No, dad. For the last time, I’m not coming home!”
Phillip Rhodes hung up the phone. His dad had called every night in the last week telling him, and asking him, to come home. To come back to Jackson. The calls had begun casually, as a request. As the week went by, his dad sounded more concerned with each passing day. What was going on that it would drive his dad like this.
Sure, everyone knew about the supposed invasion date. It was all everyone talked about now. For a few days after the [System] appeared, the faculty had tried to get the students to continue like normal, however the classrooms themselves were empty. There had been gatherings in the auditoriums that were so packed they needed nearly constant sessions. First, they had been run by the teachers, then they gave up and the students organized themselves.
If an invasion was coming, short of a military base, a large college was probably the best place to be. It was consolidated, making it easier to defend. Many sleeping locations would be available to anyone nearby. There were buildings that could contain a large populous while being locked down to protect the people inside. Supplies were plentiful with all the sports programs, the medical program that he was a part of, and stocked cafeterias accustomed to feeding tens of thousands of people for a long time. Not to mention that the students were smart, driven, flexible, and generally fit people. Everything you would want for a force facing a new reality. Even the staff included some of the smartest men and women in the country.
From the start plans had been made. Buildings had been turned into bunkers. The faculty worked with the student leaders to create mobile barricades, reinforce the buildings, and organize the students. As a collective they had created contingency plans. The athletes were taking it upon themselves to help improve the physical conditioning of those with a less physical life path. Colleges and universities all over the country were talking and jointly developing ideas on how best to prepare, because no one knew what would be coming.
Which brought him back to his father. Why would his father prefer him to come back home? There had to be a reason, but he wouldn’t say what it was. His father had always been family oriented, but that wasn’t what these calls were about.
Reasoning had been a staple in their house. As a business lawyer, his dad was more reason based as he focused on negotiations and deals. He would find out what the other person wanted, then start at the edges knowing that they would always meet somewhere in the middle. As long as his boys had a solid argument and had thought through where they wanted, his dad was accepting and often encouraging. That had been fine with Phillip and Darren but hadn’t worked with the con-man and wannabe thug that Tom had turned into.
This situation felt different. He could almost feel the desperation in his father’s voice. His father might get pushy and even forceful, but he was always calm and rational. The calls had devolved from conversations to negotiations, to threats, and finally to the closest that Phillip had even heard his father begging. It was so noticeable that it made Phillip want to come home less, unsure of what he would find that drove his father to this behavior.
“Did he say why he wants you?” asked Winona as she rested her elbows on his shoulders from behind. She had been dating Phillip for two years and was in the same medical program as Phillip. She had met his family numerous times already as well as being familiar with the stories of them that Phillip told.
“No. He said the family is fine, even Tom, and that it was very important I return. He even said that I didn’t have to live with the family, and I could bring as many people as I wanted so long as I came home. All our expenses would be taken care of. It sounds so suspicious. Did he join a cult or something?”
“Weird. Is he the type that would join a cult?” Winona asked.
“Not a chance! It would take some serious mind control to force that man into a cult. It’s all about reason with him.”
“Maybe that means there’s a good reason that he can’t share.”
“It could be,” Phillip acknowledged, not for the first time. This was a conversation they had almost daily. He wasn’t even sure if Winona was pushing for him to leave or wanted to stay here. This time she simply rubbed his tense shoulders. The voice of his father was putting him on edge.
“Could it have to do with your brother Tom?” Winona asked.
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Everyone had seen the news clips. Everyone had watched the videos of Tom and his friends. Phillip had made a mistake in admitting that Tom was his brother. Instantly Phillip had become known to everyone. They wanted information about the alien hunters. The invasion slayers. The only known people to claim to know how to level up and get stronger. His fellow students wanted information on The General.
Phillip told everyone who would listen that it was just a scam. He loved his family, but Tom certainly pushed that. When Tom was a kid, he would borrow money and make up stories why he would do the other person a favor by taking it without repaying it. He would cause trouble and then find ways to blame others. It wasn’t even like he got away with it most of the time. At least half the time Tom would get caught and would laugh at the consequences as if it was all part of his plan, making people question the punishment. So many schemes and scams that would backfire.
Phillip’s greatest fear, prior to the [System] arriving, was Tom showing up once he had a successful career as a doctor. He had no doubt that at some point Tom would show up needing money, or a long-term place to crash. Or more likely someone to post bail.
Now Tom was scamming everyone, and they were buying into it. He had seen the unrealistic videos. He had seen the donation button and news articles with ways to support the Sentinel Army, protectors of Earth. He knew that if a bunch of teenagers could figure out how to level and use the [System] then others would have as well.
Phillip could feel his anger rising as he thought about it. Winona just increased the pressure in her fingers as she tried to calm him down.
“There’s no way. I’ve told you so many times. This is just one more scam from Tom, cashing in on people’s fears. My dad would never go along with it.”
“But the guys in the film program say that the videos don’t look doctored. Even the forensic boys are saying they might be real.”
“There is just no way,” muttered Phillip, right before the phone rang. Winona recognized his mood and answered it for him.
“Hello. Yes, it’s good to talk to you too, Mrs. Rhodes… I think it’s a little awkward right now… Can you tell me why?... And you are sure that’s ok?... Alright, we’ll be ready. Bye.”
Phillip only heard Winona’s side of the conversation. When she hung up, she addressed Phillip with a sigh.
“She said it was very important that you come back and said I should come too. She also said to bring as many people as you want. I don’t think you can ignore this, Phil. Call Jake and let him know you must be with your family. That you can’t help with the defenses anymore. Your dad will be here around 3am.” Then Winona laughed. “Your mom joked that if we didn’t come willingly, he was going to send an army escort to kidnap you.”
Phillip signed and put his head down. “I guess that’s it then.”
***
Winona’s eyes bulged and Phillip stared incredulously as he saw the vehicle that pulled up to his apartment’s front door. A large, yellow school bus, driven by a man that looked like a school bus driver, came to a squeaky stop. The doors hissed as they swung open. It wasn’t the BMW or the Suburban…it was a freaking bus.
His dad rushed out of the bus and scooped him into a tight hug. Even with as much as his dad showed love for them, he wasn’t usually a physically affectionate person. More matter of fact. For him to be this wired at this time of night, well, Phillip was being taken by surprise by everything.
“Thank god you finally agreed!” his father whispered forcefully while squeezing him. After about thirty seconds of holding Phillip as if it was their only chance at life, he let go, breathed in relief, and then turned to Winona. “A pleasure to see you again Winona. The bus will take a bit longer than usually, and won’t be as comfortable, but we should get back in time to get you guys set up.”
“Why a bus?” Phillip blurted, still caught off guard.
“I didn’t know how many people you were bringing and was in a bit of a rush. I would have had to wait on anything bigger,” his father said. Then he grabbed a few of the suitcases and bags and hurried them into the bus.
Phillip looked at Winona, who just shrugged. She had a bemused look on as she picked up her own bags and headed towards the bus. Phillip grabbed his and followed. He had packed light, since he just wanted to find out what was going on and then come back. There were three days left until the invasion date, and he planned to return before then.
***
Their dad was in the front of the bus, talking with Winona. Darren had already been here when the bus had reached Phillip, sitting towards the back. Phillip joined him and they whispered together.
“Do you know what this is about, Darren?” Phillip asked.
“No idea, though something dad said made me think it’s related to Tom’s friends,” Darren whispered.
“Bah! I doubt Tom will ever do anything worthwhile. He’ll either end up in jail or face down in a ditch in the future,” Phillip groused with more emotion than he realized he felt. Maybe it was the late hour or the jostling of the bus, but he knew he was grumpier than he should be.
“Yeah, but what about The General. The news is taking him seriously. Those fights and interviews with martial artists made him look very capable.”
“Those had to have been staged. Why would anyone that good give Tom and his thug friends the time of day?”
“I don’t know, Phil, but dad was quite agitated before we picked you up. Since you got on the bus, he’s felt a lot more relaxed. I think it was really important to him that we come home,” Darren admitted. “Did he threaten you with military kidnapping too?”
“No, mom told that joke to Winona.”
“Anyway, there’s one thing making me feel there is more to this.”
“What’s that, Darren?”
“Did you see dad’s tag? It has a 4.”
Phillip turned his head and went to speak. Then he saw the level and stopped. Anxiety seeped into him as, for the first time, Phillip thought maybe this was serious.