Three Minutes Until the Conclusion

Advisory: the following short story contains descriptions of violence, scariness, and thematic issues.

The success of his lecture was pictured in their eyes. The people fixated upon him and their ears' reception of each sound wave of his words. The speech of famed scientist-environmentalist Terrance Secreto held his audience's attention. In his heart, the drums rolled after a quick glance at his pocket watch; 6:56 p.m., almost three minutes until his conclusion.

For over 50 minutes, Secreto updated his listeners about the advanced alarms of climate control and its ravages upon the earth and sky. He explained the failures of human governments and environmental agencies and the debacles of their solutions. Artfully stirring their emotions, Terrance presented grave warnings if climate control isn't efficiently and adequately addressed.

The speaker asked the question, proceeding to his conclusion; "What are the ultimate solutions to preserve our beautiful home and ourselves?"

Terrance saw how they anticipated his response to his inquiry.

"Listen to me, there is hope; my colleagues and I spent years researching and testing, we have found the answers, and you are part of it."

A roar of clapping erupted to vibrate the walls of the lecture hall. Mr. Secreto motioned them to quiet.

"Takes notes, hear me precisely. You shall take back what you learn from me to your local administrations and communities. Become my disciplines and teach them. Save the world with me."

Another round of clapping disbursed from the agreeable crowd.

As if a rain bomb bombarded an entire metropolis, a sudden stab of silence pierced the area.

He only hears his voice for a while, not a single mumble, cough, or whisper, a genuinely odd quietude among hundreds in attendance. Terrance, as he spoke, spans his view, re-establishing eye contact with certain people.

He searched for her, the red-haired girl who constantly smiled at him and changed positions in her seat. He found her in a frozen place, checking her phone. She was not moving a bit, nor was her guardian seated next to her. Terrance then discovered the entire audience was still as statues.

His eyes widened, and Terrance stopped speaking. He turned to the hall staffers who served in the background and on the stage sides; they were as lifeless as the people in the seating sections, frozen-framed in their activities. He glanced longer at his pocket watch; at 6:57 p.m., the red second hand ceased circling, and time halted.

"What just happened?" he said.

Terrance stepped forward from the podium to study the motionless individuals, countenances by unique features. The fluids of anxiety filled him in, and panic was rising. Then fear gripped him as he saw whitish movements in the darkness in the rear seating sections. Striding up in the aisles between the rows of seats were persons dressed in white suits. They were coming toward Terrance. The men in white were faceless with semi-clear translucent hairs and fleshly skins but no eyes, lips, or mouths. And their nostrils have no openings for breathing in or out. The follicles of their hairs reflected streaming colors in the blub light reflections.

Mr. Secreto probably entertained a rash escape to the rear exit. The men in white cemented in him the sufficient abject terror Terrance could handle without his medication. When he reversed, Terrance was inches from another man in white facing him.

"Where are you going, Mr. Secreto?" asked the man. "You have not finished your discourse."

"I'm about to freak out to the mental institution," cried Terrance. "Tell me what you want from me."

"We want you to listen to us." Said the man, "please calm yourself, do not be afraid of us. We won't harm you."

The man raised his hands as so a stopping gesture. Sky blue ripples of lumination pulsated from his palms into Secreto's chest. Terrance heard his rapid heartbeat audible as it was played by the hall's speaker system. Within seconds the exertion of his heart lessened. The beats of it soon became undetected by Terrance's ear drums. He felt remarkable sedation.

"Do you feel better?"

Terrance answered, "Alright, that's proof you won't hurt me physically." He spanned around him to see if the other two men in white were approaching. They had left the premises or vanished. "Where did they go?"

Secreto addressed the man, "What is the story here? What do you have to say to me?"

The man said, "The desired answers you sought, the lasting solutions you craved against your concerns for your habitation sphere. You are correct; there is hope, but not by your design."

For his public talk, Secreto installed a temporary panoramic curvature monitor he created. Every member of the audience could view his visual images and videos. The man guided Terrance to watch at his vast device. All the damaged environment photos shown to the audience reappeared in a sequence until the screen displayed the starry universe in motion.

"Finally, you are showing me something I didn't produce." Terrance teased.

"You produced none of it except your carbon footprint," the man replied. "The photos were created by other people using equipment made with chemicals that appeared in the same images."

He continued, "the factories manufacturing your inventions, health and medical products generate tons of waste annually affecting the earth, land, atmosphere, and waters."

Secreto retorted, "You say I fancied to hear this finger-pointing? I get enough trash talk from my critics."

The man answered, "why isn't it interesting to you after your efforts to highlight the faults, failures, and wrongdoings of others?"

He continued, "it isn't 'trash talk'" if it's true, correct?"

Terrance paused in thought. He examined the waxed wood panel flooring at his feet.

"Look at the screen, Mr. Secreto," said the man. "It is an organic video of the great heavenly heights where I dwell."

"Impossible."

"You doubt me, Professor?" Asked the man. "By the powers invested in me, I can reveal to you anyplace in the world at any time."

Terrance thrust his finger at the screen, "show me Canal Street in Manhattan."

Before Secreto finished speaking his demand, an active image in brilliant colors appeared in the motion picture. The New York City residents and visitors were active on Canal Street.

"Is this a history movie? You're playing games with me?" Terrance wondered. "It is so realistic, the actors so natural."

"You didn't specify a time; this is Canal Street a century ago on this same date and moment. It is a time window." The man explained. "You are seeing actual history, not a film production. If you like, I can point out one of your ancestors."

Terrance insisted, "No, I like to see Canal Street now, this time."

Before Secreto finished his expression, the screen had changed to what appeared to be a live cam of Canal Street, the exact camera position as was the previous visual. The man lifted his hand to the screen and spread his fingers. The live picture was magnified on a physically healthy elderly woman sweeping the front of her variety store. A cellular phone rang inside her apron pocket while Terrance's phone was alerting him from inside his brazer.

Mr. Secreto answered, "Hello?"

The elderly woman said, "Hello. Janet's Discount Store, can I help you, sir."

Terrance realized it was the lady on the live screen speaking to him.

"Are you checking on a particular COD order? What is it, please?"

"Madam, are you wearing an apron over a blue blouse under a red button sweater today?" Asked Terrance.

"Are you some kind of magician?" She said in a surprised reaction. "My mother created the sweater, and my grandaughter sewed my shirt. We do not sell those items here; anything else?"

"Ah, no. Thank you, have a good day."

"You, too, don't forget every Wednesday is our Big Apple Bonanza sale, up to 60 percent reduced store-wide."

The man returned the screen to the great heavenly heights in an abundance of stars. Astonished, Terrance was held in profound thought. Maybe his doubts about the man were dismissed.

"What you want to hear is what we can do for you." Said the man, "all the abuses against the earth can be undone. It will be cleansed and transformed into a global paradise."

Secreto's expression emitted an immediate sourness. He turned away from the man swaying his hands in rejection.

"I heard that song and dance on my doorstep from well-dressed cults whistling a future fantasyland of peace and security." Terrance complained, "If the United Nations can't accomplish it, who else is there but false prophets, missionaries, and dreamers?"

Mr. Secreto walked to the edge of the stage to view the unthawed audience. He noticed the red-haired youngster who was fixated on her smartphone was not present.

"Where did she go?" Asked Terrance.

The man spoke, "I am a representative from the most extraordinary governmental arrangement established in the towering peaks of the universe. Let me explain what we can do for you, for humanity."

The screen transmitted a wildly disruptive scene. Frightened, exasperated people of various ages were being slaughtered by natural elements; lighting strikes, wind storms, massive hail stones, and tornados.

Some persons, like citizens, army, and police officers, were shooting their projectile weapons into the air or at each other. The standing survivors were killed in hideous ways by invisible forces. Other unfortunate individuals fell inward with crumbling buildings that toppled on fleeing people. The innumerable, crazed noises created enough potency to cause Terrance's heart to jump.

For any person in the scene, staying alive was impossible, with no escape. Yet amid all the mayhem were illuminating, transparent domes of medium room sizes. In them were undisturbed people shielded from every sort of destruction. In one of the domes was the red-haired girl holding the hand of her guardian, smiling, waving with eye contact at Mr. Secreto. He couldn't estimate what he was seeing.

Terrance thought, who is deciding to kill and preserve people?

The man said, "you are viewing the near future. It will be when my government takes action. Uncooperative people against our arrangement, particularly malicious individuals, will be eliminated from every nation."

Terrance said, "change this scene; it is wholesale murder, senseless slaughter. What kind of monsters are you?"

"Incorrect, sir," said the man. "what you saw was a beginning process of preservation. Among that slaughter are supposedly your opponents, careless persons promoting the ruination of your home planet, stubborn individuals."

"It's inhumane," said Terrance, "give people a chance to change, to see what is best for their communities, and become good people."

The man held his hand to the screen to switch to another future scene, an orderly parklike society in a gorgeous paradise. Mr. Secreto's jaw dropped in awe. The visual was the most authentic ever, with no flaws, simply perfect harmony of nature, animal life, and humankind. In it, he saw the extinct Dodo bird attended by a young man. A child rubbed his hands over the skin of a cobra. It seemed to enjoy it. In the background, new homes were in construction.

Terrance peered to the lower bottom corner; he saw the red-haired girl petting a resting saber tiger with its paws on a lamb in slumber.

"No pollution or environmental ills, every threatening and damaging vice against right-hearted people and nature will be forever extracted." Said the man. "You can be a part of it."

Terrance looked away from the scene, then to the wood-grained flooring. "What do you want from me?"

Mr. Secreto turned to the man for an answer, who held his hand toward Terrance's head. Steamy lights of purple, blues, reds, and orange ribbons shot forth from the man's palms into Secreto's forehead, causing him to stumble a little.

Terrance regained his posture and shook his head a bit. "What did you do to me?"

The man in white changed the screen scene to his live universe residence.

"I gave you a gift, precious knowledge that is being distributed to billions earth-wide. Each conscious person is given a choice with an opportunity to comprehend the facts about our arrangement."

The man continued to explain. "You obtain the instantaneous edition. Think on it for a moment."

It was not long before Terrance's face brightened as if he had heard the best news in his entire life.

"Thank you, this is what everyone should hear. A solution to all our problems. And all you require of me is to live in agreement with this knowledge. I can do that, yes." Said Terrance.

The man asked, "You understand you'll be making significant adjustments and sacrifices, accepting tremendous losses in your life to be among those safeguarded under the domes?"

"It will be a little hurt. I want this future and help save people, for them to share in it — forever." Terrance declared. "I will give up my fame and wealth for no more hate, corruption, and destruction."

The man paused in silence for some moments.

"So, where do we go from here?" Terrance inquired.

The man paused in tranquility for a few additional moments.

"Trust is the next step." Said the man. "Tell your audience what you absorbed and send them in the right direction on how to obtain more life-saving education. We'll support you."

"Hey, I'm with you; count on me," said Terrance. "From the information you sent me, I should no longer consider you an alien."

Large, feathered wings spread from the back of the man. His white suit transforms into a glistening body-length linen garment with a silver sash around his waist. The curative screen dissolved into white, blanked of any imagery.

"Correct. I am an angel." The man began to ascend upward. "Count your minutes well. Only a short time remains until our administration acts on its promises."

The man disappeared into the air before reaching the ceiling. A flash moment; Terrance, without the slightest movement, glanced briefly at his pocket watch; it was 6:56 p.m., and the red second hand was moving clockwise. He noticed they were observing him in question as if Terrance had stopped speaking for a while, stuck in thought.

"Pardon me, folks, you are so patient. Thank you." Terrance restarted. "We reach the conclusion of our discussion. What can you do to help resolve the inflections of climate control and global warming?"

Mr. Secreto was eye-spanning his listeners, taking note of their attentiveness. They thirsted for his answer. He sees the red-haired girl who placed her phone aside, her eyes focused on him. Landing in clearance in his mind was the special knowledge he miraculously obtained from his visitor.

"I tell you about a vision I received of a beautiful future vision of peace and security, earth cleaned bright from every environmental ailment you could imagine." Terrance shared.

He checked how his audience was reacting and continued. Good, he thought. They were not laughing.

"In this perfect world, there will be no more badness, the ruination of our home planet, or anything to cause us misery and unhappiness. Is this a future you desire?"

He managed to get them to think about what they desired. Now, Terrance was about to serve the verbal ace.

"If you find my vision hard to believe — good for you! You are fools to take it seriously. We can't dream of a solution. We have to make it. For your sakes, follow the plan my colleagues, students, and I have been developing for years."

Many in the audience applauded, a few cheered, and some individuals excused themselves with displeased facial signage. One man shook his head in disbelief.

Mr. Secreto observed to note how the red-haired girl was hearing him. She appeared tearful and angry, staring at him with her arms folded.

Terrance's self-confidence surfaced similar to past discourses; Too bad, I do not care; she was merely a child.

Terrance peered down at his notes and gaped at the girl. Her seat was empty, and so too was the guardian gone. As if they never occupied those maroon-colored fabric cushioned seatings. The thought swept across him soulfully; were they here or envisioned by me? A weird feeling disbursed like sprayed sand within his body that disseminated a weight of irritable doom with his conscious pushing aside guilt and accountability. Terrance refused his counterarguments and reasoning.

Professor Secreto continued. "Let me tell you, do not listen to anyone speaking nonsense about a brand new world or global paradise. I have done the listening for you. Now, please, take notes; the foremost steps are…."