Flashback - Parallel Lives

"READY"...Emit stands ready with his fellow soldiers, stern faced but conflicted. Trained not to look into the eyes of the enemy, he cannot shake the image of their last massacre.

Most of his cold-blooded comrades do not question or second guess their orders. They feel little to no remorse for the lives they have taken and continue to take in mass proportions. On the contrary, they are honored to be serving their leader. Emit's trained mind kicks back into gear reminding him why he's here. Destroy the enemy, feel no mercy or pain.

This is what Emit signed up for but he had been to naïve to grasp the magnitude of raw war. Lock, stock and barrel - aimed and awaiting the command.

His hands are getting clammy, as the seconds feel like minutes. His conscience mind reeling. He knows their enemy is a victim of circumstance but his training and duty will him to act. "AIM"...Trying not to shake, the faces of those he has killed flash before his eyes. He blinks forcefully as he tries to regain focus. His finger slips off the trigger..."FIRE"...

Time to Emit has no meaning anymore. He is unable to return from a war so raw.

"Darling, you missed the fireworks," Eve said to her husband. "I thought you were staying in to work, not sleep." The First Lady kisses her husband before sitting next to him on their bed. She wonders what current issue is weighing on his mind.

"I was reading the latest news from the Middle East and dozed off. Did you all enjoy the fireworks?" President Drocca asked before yawning.

"They were fabulous, but would have been spectacular if you had been by my side," she replied. "You're having those dreams again, aren't you?" Eve inquired with concern.

Tom took a deep breath. "Yes. Perhaps it was the booming of fireworks along with my angst to find the answer for world peacethat triggered Emit's visit tonight."

He sighed heavily before continuing. "Presently, I live to create accord but in a parallel life I lived to advocate a devil."

"You will find the answer, my love. You're not known as the Peacemaker for nothin'." She smiles reassuringly before taking him into her loving arms. "I wonder what parallel life I led that brought me to you."

Tom smells Eve's hair, kisses her lips, her cheek and nibbles at her ear. "Sweetheart, I think you are the answer. If everyone in the world were lucky enough to have someone like you by their side, utopia would be realized."