Clarence (part 2 of 3)

Clarence

"But they were heavily armed, is that correct?"

Nancy, anchorwoman from Channel 8 Newtopian Update.

“I’ll get on it,” Clarence said. "But can I write you in as a consultant; it is just not realistic for you to leave now." The elevator opened in Clarence continued after ensuring there could be no one to overhear them. A few assistants were herded towards a TV likely following the news about Ambassador Grant. "I mean they can take you off point but I still, we still need you."

"Okay,” Coarse said. "Ask your people and I'll stay on but this isn't going to go away you want, they won't want my name anywhere near this anymore."

Then Clarence asked something he never thought he would," tell me something you know, the story, to make sense of all this fat mess."

Coarse scrunched his face and nodded, "okay, you help me clean up my stuff I've got a good one for you." Clarence followed course towards his desk but paused in front of the TV.

"Ambassador Seamus Grant continued his vow of silence against his home country Cretan Officials disputed yesterday, although still refusing any public interview.” A news reporter said urgently.

“If he doesn’t want to speak, we won’t make him.” A man in a uniform with a thick Mediterranean accent said to the microphone in front of him during the 5 second video clip.

The screen returned to the reporter, “Back to our continued coverage of the Scare in Sam’s Town.”  A few graphics zoomed onto the screen. Brief subsequent images of a silhouette of a soldier, a gun, and a tearful woman introduced the section before returning to the reporter again. “It seems the fighting stopped only hours earlier just south of the small southern town, here in Newtopia.  The late night clash between national officials and armed World Worshipers ended this morning with eight casualties and ten injured.  It is not yet clear if the Worshipers were attacking the town or if officials were running a mission or training that encroached on the worshipers territory.  With new insight we are now speaking to the second in command over at Dormitories of Finances and Armistice, Norman Oakland. Hi, Norman how are you.”

Geese, I didn’t realize he was second in command over there, Clarence thought remembering Oakland who had given him this detail in Sam’s Town in the first place. “Hi, Nancy, thanks for having me.”

“What, Norm, what do you think happened here? What was going on? Can you say anything official?”

“No, I am here on my own account not on behalf of the Dorms- ” He said.

“Well I don’t want to get you in trouble with your bosses.” She said in a high genial tone.

Oakland chuckled, “No, Nancy, it’s alright. This is not the official statement by our office but what some of us here believe is that there was indeed a training going on by one of the other departments although we don’t know which one.  What we do know is that the Worshipers were not attacking Sam’s Town as part of some tactical plot to gain territory in Newtopia. Our data does not indicate that they are that heavily armed or well funded.  Neither do we believed they are centralized.”

That’s not what the manila folder you gave to me suggested, Clarence thought.

“But they were heavily armed is that correct?” Nancy asked.  Right on Nancy.

“True,” Oakland answered alertly. “But we believe, at this time, they were a rogue group of extremists.”

“So they were a rogue group of extremists?” Nancy repeated.

Oakland paused appearing confused and then said, “Yes, um, yes we do believe that to be the case.”

“Thanks Norm. That was Norm from the Dormitories of Finances and Armistice.”

Clarence left to Coarse's desk scared by the thought that Norman Oakland was second in command and what the ‘Scare in Sam’s Town’ really meant.