to have in common was their hatred of bathing and clean clothes and their obsession with energy drinks and expensive, chemically-altered coffee and foods.
Cin liked to refer to these people as the non-food addicts. They were literally a slave to the chemicals and drugs put in the fake food being pushed onto society. It was the same tried and true concoctions eventually fed to the slaves in his time, with only a few tweaks made to the vitamin dosages and calories for each slave class.
Without a word, Cin created a portal, grabbed the kid’s arm, and pulled him through. Usually, he enjoyed these little wake-up calls with these morons. Now, he just wanted to hurry up and get back to Lanie and the bigger problem of the elites.
It took another four hours for Cin to finish before getting back to the cabin. When he arrived, Lanie was tapping furiously on the tabletop keyboard, while Bob sat beside her. Cin was already scanning to see what she was doing as he poured a cup of coffee.
“Hey!” Lanie called out without looking. “How was work, honey?”
Cin nearly choked on his coffee and quickly covered it with a cough. “It was fine. What has you so worked up?”
“The forum has been getting spammed non-stop with glowies and agitators trying to bury the gas valve information,” Lanie sighed in frustration. “It’s hard to keep up with them.”
Cin chuckled and headed over to the couch. “Let me show you the fastest way to get rid of them.”
Using only the nanites in his mind and bots he’d embedded in the internet, Cin showed Lanie how to do proxy IP range bans. When he finished, Cin sent dozens of bots back to the agitators' computers and corrupted their systems, rendering them permanently useless.
Cin knew it wouldn’t take long for the idiots to get new computers when the elite was footing the bill for their treacherous activities. But it helped to slow them down, and he’d take whatever wins he could get.
Besides, after Cin deleted all their social media accounts, it would take a while for them to get back up and running among their fellow agitators. Every person not terrorizing innocent people into submission was also a win as far as Cin was concerned.
Lanie sighed. “I have a lot to learn.”
“We all do,” Cin admitted. “It should make you feel better to know that there are more awakened people in this timeline than any of the other six. Don’t lose hope when you’ve just begun the fight.”
Lanie nodded and smiled up at him. If Cin could go through this so many times to save humanity, then she could damn well suck it up and try to do her part.
“I’ll never give up,” Lanie replied with a determination that came from deep inside. “I won’t let them win.”
“We won’t let them win,” Cin agreed with a smile. “Not this time.”
Lanie thought of something and looked over at Cin. “You keep talking about the Emissary coming. Does it happen before or during your time?”
“No.” Cin shook his head. “Nor has it happened in the other six timelines. I think it’s because I keep changing the conditions that must be in place for the return, but I can’t be sure. I do know that if I continue to interfere, at some point, the ability to sift time may be taken from me.”
“Because it’s our fate to be enslaved?” Lanie was horrified at the thought.
“Not at all,” Cin insisted. “Our fate is to be free and join the universal star community. I’d be stopped because humanity must want it bad enough to make it happen. It wouldn’t be the first time humanity was rescued from slavery after learning a harsh lesson in fighting back for our rights. The stories we’re allowed to know of ancient civilizations are riddled with stories and legends of the underdog or slave coming back to win from impossible odds. Perhaps, this is yet another lesson that must be learned in this generation as well. We shall have to watch this future unfold and see.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Cin was standing on the back deck, petting Bob, drinking coffee, and waiting for the sunrise when he noted Dar was in the galaxy, picking up another Earth victim. He was already tracing who was kidnapped and why when Lanie shuffled to the coffee pot.
Smothering a chuckle at her rumpled appearance, Cin held his cup out for a refill when Lanie brought the pot out and offered. She sank into a chair