31 years before John Smith started the wars that killed 95 percent of human life on earth
prefab hospital Texas
A scream echoed out like the wail of the dammed. The man who would change his name to John smith looked on as a old man fell to his knees screaming. “No”
Looking at his girlfriend Sara who was trying to comfort the her boyfriend ran over to find out what had happened.
Tom a massive black nurse stopped him. “Leave it alone.”
“Why?”
“Jack might be listening in. He was the guy who drove Bart's grandchildren to the opioid pill mill. When they came back they overdosed. ”
The man who would launch the worse massacre in human history stayed silent. Several of friends had warned him about this. The drug dealers no longer killed with guns. They sold drugs after all it was easy to give someone a stronger dose. After all a drug addict would not care his dose was stronger or laced with rat poison.
Tom looked beaten “Listen I can not complain about the level of drugs they are giving out. Last week a girl came in with a broken toe they gave her enough pain killers to kill a elephant.
I want to complain but the new nurse manager was given a new Jaguar last month by the drug rep.
I just can not be fired with abortion illegal the number of kids we have its too high. Without me they will only have a few of the older kids to help them out. ”
The Great Butcher as he would be known nodded “I heard about you coming in even during the weekend to make sure they do not starve to death. I am sorry there is nothing I can do to help.
Listen I am getting out of here and heading to Poland. There is a manager of a company that are building the latest interstellar space ships who will hire me. Can you help me get Sara to agree?”
Tom nodded “Sure I can let the nurse manager know that Sara will not pressure patients to take opioids. She will fire her but I need your help. The older kids need a computer to attend online school courses.
But change your name to John Smith. There are a lot of those. He can track you with your current name.”
30 years before John Smith started the wars that killed 95 percent of human life on earth
John Smith looked at his wife Sara a nurse and tried again to talk her into moving with him to one of the new moon bases.
“Honey my company is doing great. We can go up and claim a homestead everyone is moving to the moon. The gravity is a issue when we want to start a family but with the new fusion reactor coming online there will be a solution”
Sara shook her head. “How can we move the refugees need me. The famines are getting worse as is the ”
“Honey its a new start away from the threat of nuclear war. I will be the general manager of the entire factory.”
A tear ran down Sara's face “They are feeding dead children to dogs. We have to stay and help”
“Honey the crops failed in India again the stream of refugees its going to be hundreds of millions not a few thousands.
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Last week that drug addict attacked you to stop you ruining his dying friends high. We need to go and we need to go now.”
Sara shook her head again. “I can not they need help”
28 years before John Smith started the wars that killed 95 percent of human life on earth
Moonbase
A screen on John Smiths wall showed the earth from the top of the moon base John was in. He felt a buckle from the tracks that spun his office to keep the gravity at earth normal and cursed.
Jack a big shot was coming and he needed to impress him. The buckle on the track was not going to help his case.
John reviewed Jack was a self made billionaire. He was Texas which was a plus. He had made his fortune growing crops in what had been Texan desert before the weather changed. When the grain belt turned into a dust bowl he had made billions.
John wanted this deal with a couple of hundred million he could buy out a new production line. Or maybe even see about taking a contract to build one of the new space ark's.
Jack burst into John's pulling a frightened mouse of a girl aged around 18 behind him. Jack was a muscular older man with the beginning of a bulge on his stomach. His beard was grey and he looked like a typical hillbilly.
Jack smiled “Son I have a offer for you. I want you to run the Chinese moon base I just bought.”
“Which one of them did you buy? The Chinese have several which are in less than stellar repair.”
“Why son I bought them all.”
John starred at Jake. “The Chinese have three times more tones of equipment than everyone else combined on the moon. If you took their bases you would be able to control the moon. Your not that rich.”
“Son I offered them something they needed food. With the grain belt gone the change in Texas weather means its one of the biggest food production area's in the world.”
John starred hard at Jake. “Without that food a lot of Americans will starve right? Your selling it in preference to China”
“Son as the king John Wayne in that greatest of movies the undefeated no I am selling it for more to the Chinese.”
Jake grinned “Do you know what the inheritance tax is like in America? The Chinese are planning on developing a bunch of factories in orbit leaving the entire of what they have on the moon to us”
Jake pushed the girl he had brought with him forward. “I think we both know the development of space station technology its just not there yet. So here is the deal you marry my daughter Paula here and I will sign the entire Chinese moon bases to you”
John starred at Paula. “Listen I might have just divorced my wife Sara but that was because she was beaten up again by one of her junkie patients after she saved their life. I still want to see if it can work”
“Well son family is everything and next year I do not know if a tornado or flash flood will bankrupt me. So I need this done yesterday their are plenty who would jump at a chance like this
The lawyers say I put the money in a trust and even if I am sued over the couple of million Americans that might stave over me selling to China I am golden.”
John nodded “You want a family member to control the moon. Ok a couple of points there is talk of the moon splitting away from the earth setting up as a separate country. With the Chinese base in my hands I can do that. ”
Jake looked at john and his eyes seemed to glow “Son your not stretching the truth a bit?”
“There are always complains about the cost of earth to the space stations. With no real atmosphere we can simply use a modified Rail gun to shoot the supplies to the space stations. ”
Jake laughed pushing Paula forward “A couple of my buddies wanted to drop a couple of asteroids on the moon. Plenty of water and metals in them.”
Jake winked at John “Son the day my daughter Paula here gives me a grandchild the moon is yours. Until the child grows up of course.”
John looked conflicted for a second but then nodded. “Water is the key we have enough we can grow crops and we are not dependent on earth any more.”
“Paula say hello to your new husband. Now you obey him you hear.
Son I have only one request I want you to treat my little girl right. If she ends up with a broken bones she had better have deserved it.”
24 years before John Smith started the wars that killed 95 percent of human life on earth
Moonbase
Jake was looking a lot older and beaten down he looked at John and nodded.
“The hurricanes just smashed up most of my building again. With the levels of water falling the crops for this year are gone.”
John nodded “Well the moon is now self sufficient and we are past the point where China can send enough supplies to their space stations without us.
Is it worth buying up the land they are going to take off you again? ”
Jake shook his head “We can try next year once the carbon filters have been tested. If they can reduce the greenhouse gasses in the air by enough it might be worth a shot”
Jake sighed as the ground seemed to jump under his feet. “Son it's been years you still have not fixed that bump”
“I will fix it some day. Today I have bigger fish to fry they are sending out another ark this time from Europe.
Their going to give me their mining belt in exchange for me building the craft.
Once the asteroids hit the moon in a few years I can own every part of space.”
“Son you never cease to amaze me. I have other daughters you want to marry them as well. I hear you had a couple of kids with your ex Sara as well how did you convince her to join you”
“Simple her parents wanted her away from the war zones she was volunteering. I asked them to phone her and tell her they were broke. Then I swooped in and offered to pay for their medical care. ”