DRAUMRS - Dreamweavers - Book Two

17 - Marching Orders

Jake Brun had never felt this strange and confused in his long life. Over the course of a few minutes, he had to stop being angry, cool down the hot blood rushing in his head, decide not to shoot anybody and put-up with being told what to do by Mikilo Chernoyiv, who was the one he might well have shot. All changes to be accepted simply because his boss is telling him that this is OK.

The explanation had come out in pieces, with most contributions by Gloria Black and Armand Grau. Mikilo wisely stayed silent up until the end. Only when Jake turned to him, did he speak up to confirm what the others were saying.

Jake asked, "So Mikilo, this is what your bad behavior has been about all along?"

Cherry chuckled ever so slightly, then replied, "Well, no, no, my friend; we cannot say the challenge was clear from the beginning. From the beginning, we were just tending our garden around here. Cleaning up corrupt and lazy politicos, that sort of thing. It wasn't until we started cleaning out the little snakes under the little rocks that we could see the tails of the big snakes under the big rocks. Our 'partnership' in the east has raised the stakes to today's life and death threat. Our actions will prevent tomorrow's war, or maybe, cause it, if we don't act precisely today."

Gloria and Armand had told more or less the same story.

Now, he was being told to get to a cot and to sleep quickly in order to help complete a sinister scheme that he had spent the last three weeks trying to disrupt.

Jake wasn't sure that he wasn't already dreaming. Or, maybe he had dreamed the whole convoluted scheme since the beginning and would wake up to just one more boring day at the office.

The dreamscape setting was the Black Sea dacha, where Cherry had already met with Boris Pulisin several times. The process of creating a complex web of beliefs, fears, false knowledge and compelled behaviors had taken some time. During the days that had passed, Boris had recovered most of his faculties from the bear attack, but the fear of that scenario being repeated was useful to Cherry, who referred to it often.

Cherry had also focused on Boris's reaction in order to bring the right mix of influential characters to the table with him. Now, near the end, those characters included Boris's mother, his former KGB boss and a past Soviet president. All, of course, were dead, so their presence played on Boris's fear of dying himself. None ever had a speaking part, but their simple ghostly presence unnerved the living Boris enough to leave him open to accepting Cherry's misinformation and now, his final demand for action.

In this dream, the three Elder Draumrs played the assigned parts, conveniently disguised from any outside observer by Cherry using a Red Clan artefact.

Silent, but watching, and nodding when cued by Cherry. The conversation in Russian was mostly understood by Armand and Jake. Gloria didn't care to know what they were discussing, but enjoyed seeing the vibrant dreamscape Cherry in action. She had to work hard to maintain the death-mask visage of Boris's mother without giggling at Cherry.

"So, comrade President, we are near the time for you to rise up from your sick bed and to lead your country against the terrorists lurking at your borders." Cherry had already built misconceptions of hordes of invaders poised on all sides of Russia. Now, he needed particular focus.

Calmly and quietly Cherry reviewed what was already agreed.

"You have your troops positioned in Georgia; as you know that they will be needed in Syria. The barrier to their engagement is the corrupt and disagreeable leadership in Turkey. Many citizens, poised and ready to step in, will support and praise your help in removing these crooks. But, you must move quickly when the terrorists show their hand or they will steal this golden opportunity from Russia."

"Are you ready for your final orders?" Cherry needed to be sure that the final compulsive responses were locked-in and unassailable, even in the face of contradictory waking information.

Boris glanced at the ghostly specters along the table, but then came back to Cherry. "Yes, comrade Mikilo. I cannot complete what I must do without your direction."

Jake maintained the stony visage of the former KGB head, but felt himself leaning in, in astonishment at the compliant Russian president's response. No-one dealing with Pulisin while awake would ever attempt to give him a direct order.

Pulisin noticed the movement and took it as a further sign that he must comply or face the terrifying wrath of the dead, who were already haunting both his sleeping and waking thoughts.

"What must I do, comrade?"

Cherry now let him breathe just a little.

"Relax my friend. It is nothing so unusual. It is only what is expected. You must simply defend Russia. You must demonstrate to the world that only Russia can end the terrorist threat in the Middle East. And you must help take charge of the streets in Turkey, in your new ally's moment of need. You will order your troops forward when the bombs go off. This is what a great leader would do, when required."

Boris had nodded agreement at each of the suggestions, but stopped nodding at the mention of bombs.

"Bombs?"

Cherry continued, "Yes, comrade, as we have seen, the oil fields will come under attack. This tragedy cannot be prevented. But, you will respond with vengeance, sending your troops where others have feared to go: Across Turkey first; then across Syria."

"Do you understand?"

"Yes, comrade. It will be a glorious path to complete victory over the terrorist caliphate."

Cherry smiled. "Certainly, my dear friend, it is what each of Russia's protectors want."

Cherry nodded to the observing wraiths. Each took their cue, also nodding and slowly smiling at Boris. He closed his eyes and sighed in obvious relief.

It was time for him to wake up.