It was 2012. Princess Heather Macbeth, 1,000,000 and the Prince of Milan, Matt Torcino, were all in
Hong Kong
for the annual People's Revolution Conference. The topic this year was ILO labor standards in
Asia
. 1,000,000 and Princess Heather Macbeth, the Face of Scotland, had been arguing vociferously all week, but it was not about ILO labor standards in
Asia
. It was about Heather being a princess and a British princess at that. 1,000,000, the Filipino revolutionary leader of the People's Movement, spoke brutally to Princess Heather Macbeth of
Scotland
. He knew she was the heir to the
British Empire
. The
British Empire
had ravaged
Asia
in only the last century, and Heather, even if apologetic for its abuses, was still the carrier of its legacy in
Asia
. He and Heather were both attending a conference on labor rights in
Hong Kong
. The labor movement was trying to negotiate important ILO labor standards for the workers in
Hong Kong
, and Heather and 1,000,000 were both there to help. But 1,000,000 thought Heather had no place there as the heir to the
British Empire
and bluntly told her so.
Hong Kong
had just been returned to
China
in 1997. It was too soon for Princess Heather, a future queen and an empress of the
British Empire
to be in
Hong Kong
, and 1,000,000 bluntly told her so.
Still 1,000,000 knew Heather was a Communist, and that she had been a Communist since she was 16. Now in her late 30s, Heather was one of the most important Communists in the world. She was the hand-picked successor to Professor Robert Brenner, the greatest Marxist scholar since Vladimir Lenin himself, who was a professor at UCLA at the Center for Social Theory and Comparative History. Professor Brenner had been so impressed by Heather's reexamination of the Communist Manifesto that she had spent five years on Wall Street perfecting herself in a personal sociological experiment that he had hand-picked her to be his protégé out of all the young Communists in the world even if she was royalty. Heather's reexamination of the Communist Manifesto in 1998, 150 years after its first publication, had been ground-breaking work, and all the senior scholars in Marxism had been impressed by the young royal princess' dedication to the Communist movement and her reexamination of its most critical treatise through her own personal sociological study. Heather was now studying with Professor Brenner to get a PHD in Marxist history at UCLA, and all the young Marxists in the world were jealous with her.
It was not everyone who got to study personally with the great Robert Brenner. Robert Brenner was the most important historian in the world, even if he was a Communist scholar, and his Brenner Debate, about the transition of feudalism to capitalism, was the most important historical debate of the 20th century. He was a reclusive professor, and he was very selective with who he worked with. Even the more bourgeoisie Marxist professors had been surprised that he had allowed the young royal princess to study with him as his protégé.
Still 1,000,000 did not care about Heather's importance to the Communist movement, class was class, and Communism was all about class war and class revolution. Even if he appreciated Heather's help with improving labor rights in
Asia
, it did not make a difference, he did not want her to help with the People's Movement in
Asia
. The People's Movement or People's Revolution in
Asia
was started by Gary Ray in 1991 as a follow-up and successor to the People's Power Revolution started by Corazon and Benigno Acquino, Jr. in 1983. However, nobody knew who Gary Ray was, and his second in command, 1,000,000, led the movement in his absence. Gary's identity was a secret as the leader of the People's Revolution because he was in hiding from the U.S. government who targeted him for assassination as a leader for the Filipino people and the secret leader of the People's Revolution in the Philippines which sought to protect the independence of the Philippines from takeover by the U.S. government in its policies of Manifest Destiny in Asia.
Gary
was a hero in the
Philippines
, the greatest hero to emerge in the
Philippines
after Benigno Acquino and following in the tradition of great Filipino national heroes, Jose Rizal and Andres Bonificio. Gary had been targeted for assassination by the U.S. government for leading the Philippines “rebellion” against the U.S. policies of Manifest Destiny in the Philippines that sought to regain a U.S. foothold in Asia as the U.S. government tried to regain control of the Philippines, one of America's most important former colonies, if not it's most important former colony.
But in
Gary
's absence, his second in command, 1,000,000, led the People's Movement, the largest populist movement in the world which had originated in
Asia
in the
Philippines
by Gary Ray. As a result, 1,000,000 called the shots in the People's Movement in
Gary
's absence, especially in regard to the involvement of one of the most important royals in the world, Princess Heather Macbeth of
Scotland
, future queen of
Scotland
and heir to the
British Empire
, the most hated force in
Asia
. After a thorough review, 1,000,000 refused to let Heather in the People's Movement for much longer, though he had allowed her involvement in the beginning. Heather knew
Gary
would have acted differently. Heather actually knew who
Gary
was. One of the few people who did. They had been friends in
New York City
, where
Gary
lived in hiding, but Heather did not tell anyone of
Gary
's identity. He was too important as the secret leader of the largest people's movement on the planet, the People's Revolution. Everyone thought that 1,000,000 led the People's Movement instead of Gary, the real leader, and Heather did not tell anyone. She could not expose
Gary
, and 1,000,000 guided the People's Movement in
Gary
's absence, even if
Gary
was the real leader. Thus, it was 1,000,000 who made the decision to kick Heather out of the People's Movement, not Gary. Heather knew
Gary
would never have done that.
Gary
was all heart, and he and Heather were good friends.
In his decision, 1,000,000 explained to Heather that the bottom line was that she was a royal, not to mention the fact that she was one of the most important royals in the world, and that he had no choice but to kick her out of the People's Movement, which was a social and political movement for the people and led by the people, not by royalty. In 1,000,000's eyes, there was no way Heather could help with the People's Movement, much less be a part of it because of her royal status. She was a royal through and through, and a royal had no place in the People's Movement, a movement that was strictly for the people and which did not involve the royal class, much less even the bourgeoisie class that much. 1,000,000 told Heather that in no uncertain terms, though his heart broke when he saw how Heather's face fell when he spoke to her. Still 1,000,000 was strict. He was the leader of the People's Movement as long as
Gary
was in hiding, which could be indefinitely knowing the
U.S.
government's obsession with gaining control of the
Philippines
according to its policies of Manifest Destiny, and he was the one who made the decisions for the movement, not Gary in his absence. As the public leader and the second in command for the People's Revolution, he had to hold to principle to lead the largest populist movement in the world, a movement that was fastly becoming the most important political force in the world. 1,000,000 was not going to be guided by his heart like
Gary
. His parents, who had been part of the People's Power Revolution with Benigno and Corazon Aquino, had taught him that that always spelled trouble for the Filipinos. 1,000,000 had grown up with the Aquinos, and he still remembered the day on
August 21, 1983
when Benigno Acquino had been assassinated at the Manila International airport under the policies of Ferdinand Marco and Ronald Reagan in the
Philippines
. It had been the worst day of his life. Benigno Acquino's assassination had destroyed the
Philippines
. Everyone said that, even Ronald Reagan and his cronies who were blamed for his assassination even in the
U.S.
After hearing 1,000,000's harsh decision, Heather realized that she had known that this day would come. She had known her whole life, even when she was little, that the day would come when the people would not accept her, especially people like 1,000,000. It was not their fault, and it was not Heather's fault. 1,000,000 was right. Communism was nothing if not a class war. Royalty had no place in it. Still all the senior Communists, the Old Guard, have loved Heather since she first emerged on the Communist scene when she was 16. Even the most anti-monarchist Communist scholars such as Peter Gran and Eugene Genovese had been won over by the hard-working, dedicated Communist princess over the years. And Heather had successfully authored one of the most important works in her generation — a reexamination and a personal sociological study of the Communist Manifesto. All the Old Guard had kicked themselves for not thinking of it themselves, and being outdone by a royal Communist no less, as well as by a woman scholar. There were still very few female Communist scholars. Now mostly close to entering retirement, the Old Guard had grudgingly accepted the young royal Communist and had even looked to her as a leader in the new generation of Communist leaders, the New Guard, despite the fact that she was a royal and a woman. In the Communist movement, Heather had two counts against her.
Still Heather had to admit that she was upset. Kicked out of the People's Revolution, Heather had no place in this world. She screamed that she was a royal, not for the first time in her life. Despite what people think, being royalty was not a privilege, especially when you wanted to be a Communist more than anything. It held you back time and again. Heather had to work for ages just to get permission to be able to write a people's history from the world's foremost social historian, the Communist Peter Gran. He also had not trusted her because she was a royal. But Heather proved herself with her dedication, and after years of delay, Peter Gran had given Heather permission to be a social historian. She had known him since she was 16. She had not received permission to be a social historian and to write social history until she was 29!
Because she was a royal, Heather had to work twice as hard as other Communists, and even then she was never accepted at face value. After hearing 1,000,000's harsh words, Heather wondered if she would ever make it as a Communist. She thought what good was it if she could not even join the People's Movement? Communism was all about the advancement of labor rights. If she could not even partake in that one exercise, could she even call herself a Communist at all?
Heather was beside herself with grief. She had worked all her life to be a Communist, and Heather wondered if she would ever make it. Even being royalty was not this difficult, and Heather was Scottish royalty as the future queen of
Scotland
. She did not even have her own country, which had lost its independence to
England
with the Acts of Union in 1707. And she did not even have her own monarchy, even if she was the future queen of
Scotland
, she was still subject to the English monarchy in
England
. Thus, even being the heir to a country that you could not even call your own and being a queen that was subject to another foreign monarchy were not as difficult as trying to be a Communist if you were royalty and if you were a woman. Being the future queen of Scotland under the English monarchy and under English rule was a piece of cake compared to the struggles Heather had to go through to be able to be a Communist as a woman and a royal - what she most wanted in the world.
After hearing 1,000,000's harsh words, Heather knew she would never make it as a Communist. She felt decades of hard labor, research and study falling down all around her. Heather felt her life as a Communist breaking apart. Not being able to hold it together, Heather ran, tears streaming down her face. She was heartbroken. There was nothing that Heather wanted more than to help the people, and to be part of the people. Even if she was royal, she wished what all royals wished, even Prince William and Prince Harry, that she could be with the people. She ran out of the conference room and ran out of the hotel. She ran, and ran, and ran. 1,000,000 saw Heather run away and knew that she had been gravely hurt. He was sorry that he had been the one to hurt her. He was not without a heart. But then he remembered what his parents had told him, ever since he was little. Filipinos had been killed by the Americans for centuries because they had too much heart. Over 1,000,000 Filipinos had died, killed by the Americans in a covered-up, hidden genocide in the Philippine-American War of 1899-1902. If he was going to be a leader for the people, if he was not going to let the people down, he had to do what was right, not necessary what felt the best. Still he felt his heart hurting. 1,000,000 was not blind to his emotions. As he blinked backed his tears, he knew he had destroyed one of the great leaders for the people, and a leader the People's Movement greatly needed. He wished he knew what to do. Being a leader for an entire movement was difficult and rife with conflicts. He was in a quandary, and for the first time, 1,000,000 questioned what his parents had taught him.
Matt Torcino, the Prince of Milan and Heather's best friend, saw Heather run out of the room. He came over to 1,000,000 and asked him what was wrong. Despite being taught by his parents to be strong, 1,000,000 did what his heart told him to do. He confessed and told Matt everything. Everyone, especially all the workers, respected Matt, who was a leader for workers everywhere, even if Matt was the Prince of Milan. Matt was the spare to
Milan
and came from
Milan
's oldest royal family. His brother Scott, the heir, lived in
Arizona
. Their younger brother, Brad, the third in line to the throne, lived in
New York City
and was a model and a ballerina. 1,000,000 who had so much respect for Matt, who was a great Communist worker, relayed everything he had said to Heather.
Matt, since he graduated from M.I.T. with a PHD in Physics, had voluntarily placed himself in a gulag, signing up for twenty years of hard labor, so he could reexamine the Cultural Revolution. He had spent twenty years in hard labor out of his love for workers. Even the most hateful anti-monarchists Communists looked to him with respect because Matt had not complained even a single day.
After 1,000,000 had finished telling him everything, Matt ran after Heather to find her. He knew Communism was her life, and that 1,000,000's words had crushed Heather. Heather was very sensitive. And unlike Matt, she always looked to the people to accept her into their movements. Matt was more realistic. He was a man. He knew that the people would never accept him as one of their own as the Prince of Milan, but he never let it stop him. He knew he still needed to do what he needed to do, for Communism, and for the people. Heather was different though. She did not have Matt's confidence. She always asked the people's permission to advocate on their behalf. She was like that even in
Scotland
where she was the future queen. Plus unlike Matt's father who was a Communist, Heather had not been raised Communist. It was more difficult for her. Matt ran looking for Heather everywhere. She was not back at the hotel. He wondered where she was. He looked and looked for her everywhere.
Heather had run away from 1,000,000 with tears running down her face. It did not matter if she was one of the most important Communists in the world as Robert Brenner's protégé she would never make it as one of the people. Even if the world thought royalty had it so lucky with all their privileges and entitlement, the truth was that royalty just wanted to be normal and to be part of the people, the one thing that would always be excluded from them because of all their titles and their privileges. She knew Matt would find her in no time, and crushed, she wanted to be alone.
Heather was also a Constellation, a Constellation who had descended to Earth under God's command after World War II to restore the Earth after the devastation of the world's first global war. Heather was the Big Dipper and had cosmic powers, the most cosmic powers out of all the Constellations. Heather starting running to the one place Matt would not look for her — Outer Space. She ran and she ran into the Earth's Outer Atmosphere before breaking through the ozone layer into Outer Space. As one of the most powerful Constellations, Heather quickly flew past the planets who noticed her crying and exited the Universe quickly, in tears. She wanted to be alone and to go where no one else could find her. She had a lot she had to think about. Heather's cosmic powers had grown so much that she flashed past all the planets at the speed of light. Even Saturn, the most powerful of the planets, was impressed by how quickly Heather had flown out of the Universe.
Heather's powers were growing extremely powerful, even as powerful as Saturn, the most powerful of all the planets. He knew something was wrong by the way she ran past him so quickly. Saturn was Heather's favorite planet, and she usually had a kind look or smile for Saturn whenever she went by. This time she had been oblivious. She had been oblivious to anything but her own tears. She flew by him in a blur. Saturn wondered what was wrong.
Matt felt Heather leaving the Universe, and he knew something was wrong. Though not a Constellation, Matt was still royalty. Through force of his sheer will, he followed Heather's footsteps and ran out of the Earth's Atmosphere and raced to find Heather in Outer Space. He knew he only had limited time on his hands. He hoped Heather would not hurt herself. She was so distraught anything could happen! Matt ran fast and hard. He was breathing hard as he sprinted after Heather. He had unbelievable strength after spending twenty years in hard labor. He was quickly able to catch up with Heather and closed the distance in half the time. He knew Heather needed him now more than ever.
Ioan, who was the Constellation Orion, kept track of all the traffic in and out of the Universe. He felt Matt and Heather both fly out of the Universe at lightning speed. He knew something was wrong. He rushed to
Hong Kong
from
Wales
where he lived where he knew Matt and Heather were attending the People's Conference. He knew Matt and Heather had both been at the People's Conference from their social media posts with 1,000,000 and that something must have happened. He rushed to 1,000,000 to find out what had happened and what had caused Heather and Matt to race out of the Universe.
Back in
Hong Kong
, 1,000,000's conscience was bothering him, and he knew he had been wrong to kick Heather out of the People's Movement. When he saw Ioan arrive in
Hong Kong
, he knew Heather was missing, and he told Ioan everything. Ioan as Orion was responsible for the safety of all the Constellations. He was only third in command after Heather who as the Big Dipper was second in command and after Cepheus who was first in command and the de facto King of the Universe. Cepheus was responsible for the safety of the Universe as the King of the Universe and as the best soldier in the Universe. As soon as Ioan had heard what had happened, he knew Heather was long gone. Heather always disappeared when she was crestfallen. Ioan immediately called up the rest of the Face Club members over Moonbeam, the Constellations' personal communication system, and they quickly raced into Outer Space to look for Heather.
Christopher, the Second Sun, the baby son of the Sun, was playing in Uranus. He was only five years old, but he saw the Face Club members all race out of the Universe. They were the guardians of the Universe and were not supposed to leave so they could protect him and his father, the Sun. His little solar light, that was not yet powerful enough to be the Sun, blinked innocently as he watched the powerful Constellations race out of the Universe. Like Saturn, he wondered what was wrong.
Michael, the Constellation Perseus, the Face of France, ran the fastest. He was the quickest out of the Face Club members, and he had a winged horse, Pegasus. He flew on his horse, Pegasus, after Heather. He was also the most empathetic out of all the Face Club members and was anxious to reach Heather. He could feel her pain. He knew she was crying, and Heather never cried. She had not even cried after 9/11 even after 343 firefighters had been killed at the World Trade Centers where she had been a FDNY manager under the 9/11 Commanders in Chief, Chief Daniel Nigro of the FDNY and Chief Eric McCracken of EMS, who were both good friends of Heather, since she was 24 and had worked for them since 1997. Even if Michael was one of the last of the Face Club members to be a Communist, he knew how much it meant to Heather. He flew faster and faster as he felt Heather's tears. Michael knew it was serious. Heather never cried.
Heather knew that Matt and the Face Club members would be on her tail. 1,000,000 had a big mouth. Unlike Hansel and Gretel who left a trail of crumbs when they went into the forest, Heather made sure she could not be found. She ran in a zigzagged path and made sure to cover her tracks. Heather was the Big Dipper. If she did not want to be found, no one could find her. She had the most cosmic weaponry out of all the Constellations. Not even Orion had the quality and quantity of Cosmic Tools that she did. Also Heather was a runner unlike the rest of the Face Club members. She ran marathons and competed in the New York City Marathon every year. She could outrun all the Face Club members. Still Heather ran as fast as she could. With tears running down her face, she was embarrassed. She did not want the rest of the Face Club members to see her crying. Heather was a strong queen, and she never let anyone see her cry.
Matt secretly cursed Heather as he ran after her. He had to use all of his intuition to find out how she ran. She was crisscrossing her paths so Matt could not follow her. As Matt traced Heather's steps, he realized that Heather was so hurt she was doing everything she could to not be found. It only meant that Matt had to find her all the more!
The Face Club members had almost caught up with Matt. Matt could see Michael, the Face of France, who was the fastest out of the Face Club members behind him. Matt cursed to himself. He knew Heather really did not want to see the Face Club members right now. He ran faster so he could catch up with Heather before they did. Matt was known as the strongest prince in
Europe
. Even though he was a Communist, none of the other princes in
Europe
challenged him, even Peter Burgundy, the Prince of Portugal and the Face of Portugal, a noted anti-Communist. Matt used all of his strength to catch up with Heather. He ran quickly out of sight of the Face Club members.
Heather was racing at light speed. She saw out of the corner of her eye that Matt was catching up with her. She cursed to herself. Why did she have to be a girl? She could never run as fast as a man. Heather did the only thing she knew would get her away from Matt as quickly as possible. She broke through the Space Floor. She used her strong feet to break through the Space Floor and broke out the deepest, sharpest Space Canyon through the Space Floor that she could possible make with her strong, supernatural feet that she got from the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
Heather had led the Fire Department of New York City during the 9/11 attacks in 2001 as a FDNY manager under the 9/11 Commanders in Chief, Chief Daniel Nigro of the FDNY and Chief Eric McCracken of the
EMS
. She had been Chief Nigro's driver since she was 24 when she first joined the Fire Department of New York City as a FDNY firefighter in 1997. When Heather's boss, the second in command at the Fire Department of New York City, Chief Daniel Nigro took over after the Chief of Department Pete Ganci died in the morning of the attacks, Heather assisted Chief Daniel Nigro and served as his assistant at Ground Zero on 9/11, fulfilling essentially her role and duties as his driver, as his second-in-command. After the 9/11 attacks, the men and women at the Fire Department had all gained supernatural powers because of the extraordinary pressures they had faced in their rescue operations. Their supernatural powers did not come from God, but were earned from their own merit. They were called siddhas.
One of the powers that they had gained were super strong feet that could leap to any height as well as fall to any depth, as well as break any surface. Heather used these powers now in Outer Space. None of the other Face Club members had these powers to leap and fall except for Heather. Even Saturn marveled at Heather's powers to jump from any height. Heather used her strong feet to crash through the Space Canyon that she had created, falling deeper and deeper into the depths of Space, using her feet to propel her faster and faster. She could use her feet to accelerate as well as to keep from crashing through the Space Floor, and Heather fell deeper and deeper into the depths of Space. She knew none of the Face Club members could find her now.
When Matt got to where he had last seen Heather, all he saw was a cataclysmic
Space
Canyon
. It was so deep he could not see the bottom. He knew he could not fall through Space like Heather and land safely. He would simply fall to his death. Unlike Heather, he was privy to gravity, and he would crash to his death. He would not land gracefully at the end of his fall like Heather could, as well as the other 9/11 FDNY firefighters. He cursed to himself again. But he did not have time to waste. He needed to get to Heather, and now! Matt just leapt, not caring if he fell to his death. The only thing that mattered was that he did not let Heather down and that he be there for her! That was all Matt thought about as he took his fatal leap.
In all of
Europe
, Matt had not let a single royal down when they had needed him the most, and he was not going to start now, especially when it was his best friend Heather! He had been there for Peter at Ekaterinburg. He had been there for Ioan after his father's suicide. He was going to be there for Heather. It was who Matt was. Matt was a saint, and all the princes and princesses of
Europe
knew it. There had never been a saint like Matt previously in the history of
Europe
, especially among the royalty.
Heather heard Matt fall through the
Space
Canyon
behind her. She was shocked and stopped for a second in her wild run to look back. Matt would die! He did not know how to fall like she did. But Heather knew. She controlled Matt's speed so he would not be killed and braced his fall to the Space Canyon Floor. Matt breathed a sigh of relief as he landed safely on the Space Canyon Floor. Heather had saved his life!
Heather saw Matt land on the Space Canyon Floor and breathed easier. She did not want to lose Matt! Matt was the one friend she had in a lonely, lonely world. Still Heather ran only faster. She did not want Matt to catch up with her. She heard the Face Club members reach the top of the
Space
Canyon
and heard them cursing. They did not know how to fall through the bottomless
Space
Canyon
. Heather was glad to have her 9/11 superpowers. They allowed her to outrun the other Face Club members and Constellations, even if she was already one of the most powerful Face Club members and Constellation as the Big Dipper. Out of all the Constellations, only Cepheus, the King of the Constellations and the King of the Universe, was more powerful than her, and Orion sometimes, though not often.
Heather knew she had to act fast. She started to leap and fly, rather than run. She was grateful that she had been practicing flying in Outer Space lately. She really, really needed it right then! Only 1,000,000 had previously known how to fly in Outer Space, and God only knew how he had that power. Still Heather had been practicing, and even if she was clumsy, she was able to get ahead of Matt and put some distance between them.
Paul, the Prince of
Florence
, a Medici, and the Face of Florence, Italy, was already down on the Space Canyon Floor. He was Heather's other best friend. She trusted no one better than him, except for Matt. He cursed to himself when he saw Heather flying. He knew he would not be able to catch up with her. Only 1,000,000 could fly, and only God knew how Heather was able to learn.
Matt saw Heather flying, and he knew he had to catch up with her. She would be out of earshot soon. “Heather!” he called. “Let me come with you!” he yelled at the top of his lungs. God knows where Heather was flying to! Heather heard Matt and stopped. Her anger and fury had dissipated by now. Heather had a fierce temper, but it dissipated quickly. She was no longer as upset as she had been only ten minutes ago back in
Hong Kong
. Heather stopped. She looked back at Matt and held out her hand. Matt had caught up to her by now and grabbed her hand with all his might. He held on to her for dear life! He was not going to lose Heather! Heather buried her head deep in Matt's strong chest and sobbed. She had been terribly hurt by 1,000,000's harsh words. Matt held her close and kissed her all over. Matt was secretly in love with Heather, and he told her that now. Matt asked Heather to trust her, and she agreed. She shook her head yes, and Matt knew that he had not lost Heather.
Heather knew that Matt would do anything for her. It had always been like that ever since they met at M.I.T. at a leftist newspaper conference when they were just college undergraduates. Matt had written for the leftist newspaper at M.I.T., and Heather had written for the leftist newspaper at Wesleyan, Hermes. Since Heather first laid eyes on Matt at the M.I.T. student center at their student newspaper conference, he had always been there for her.
Heather sobbed into Matt's strong chest. “I didn't know what to do so I just ran,” Heather cried. Matt held her close. “The others are coming, we need to run,” Matt whispered to her. He knew Heather did not want the rest of the Face Club members to see her in tears.
Heather took Matt's hand, and they both started flying. Heather held Matt so he would not fall. They were able to put some distance between them and the Face Club. As soon as they got some distance between them and the Face Club, Heather began to look around. She had been so busy running that she had not noticed where she was going. She just had wanted to put as much distance between herself and the Face Club as possible. But because she was a Constellation, she knew how to perfectly orient herself. She knew where she was in Space, and she began to look for a section of the Cosmos where she and Matt could rest for the night, away from the Face Club.
But before Heather could do that she had to put the Face Club off track. However, that was hard to do because Ioan, Orion, could find anyone in Outer Space. Heather began to set Space Wall Traps for them. She built a huge Space Wall Trap that was impossible to penetrate without knowing the proper Space Codes. She set impossible Space Codes for all the Face Club members except for Peter. Peter was a challenge. He was so smart that he could easily solve the most impossible Space Codes in a split second. He was close to being a genius, and he was a genius especially in Math which he was especially good at and his best subject. He had been the top student at
Columbia
's The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science where he had gone for his undergraduate degree. The only way to slow Peter down was to set an obviously easy puzzle. Peter would get so insulted by the easy puzzle that he would take longer to solve the easy puzzle than an intricate Space Code he had to break. Still Heather was an expert in setting Space Codes. She set all the Space Codes for the Face Club members in no time flat and took Matt's hand and they were off. One Space Wall down, several to go before they were all alone.
Heather felt her mood lighten considerably with Matt there. The worst way to be upset was to be by yourself. She thanked Matt for being there with her. She did not know what she would do without him. Heather was smiling by the time they reached their destination. It was the most remote corner of the Universe. It was where they could spend the night. Heather knew she would figure out what to do by the morning. Then she could face the Face Club. But still she and Matt needed the night alone. She needed some peace and quiet to sit alone with her thoughts after being kicked out of the People's Movement. Heather picked out her remote corner of the Cosmos and set out to build a Universe. They could spend the night in the Universe Heather built and go back home in the morning.
Heather set several more Space Wall Traps for the Face Club members. She did not have to set many Space Wall Traps. She just needed just the right amount of time to build her Universe. Once her Universe was built, none of the Face Club members could enter it. Each of the Constellations had the ability to build their own Universes that the other Constellations could not enter when they wanted to. It was necessary in case the Constellations ever were at war with each other. It was their only way to protect themselves against each others' onslaughts during a war.
Heather stood in the center of her corner and turned around for a 360 degree circumference. She outlined with her index finger a perfect oval in which to build her Universe. The Cosmos understood her command and created the boundaries of Heather's Universe using Heather's own cosmic powers. Matt stood behind Heather and watched her create the most perfect and magical Universe he had ever seen. He was in awe of Heather's majesty in Outer Space. Just like on Earth, in Outer Space, Heather was in complete command. She was a royal through and through. Heather instructed the Cosmos to build the strongest cage for her Universe. The cage covers the outside of your Universe so that no one or thing could enter.
Since Heather and Matt were already inside her Universe, she did not instruct the Cosmos to build a door. She did not want any of the Face Club members using the door to come into their Universe. She and Matt needed to talk that night. She and Matt could just break out of the Universe from the inside when they needed to leave. It was impossible to break the cage of a Universe from the outside. And if any Constellation did, they would get called before the Executive Space Council and be stripped of their Cosmic Powers. She knew none of the Face Club members would try to break the cage of her Universe.
Plus, Heather had calmed down by now. It had been half an hour since 1,000,000's strong words. She was no longer crying. Heather had an ebullient personality. Even if she had been crushed, and today had been the hardest day of her entire life she recovered quickly. The royalty of Europe had marveled at how quickly Heather had recovered even from the 9/11 terrorist attacks when she and the Fire Department of New York City had suffered devastating losses, losing 343 firefighters including the Chief of Department, Pete Ganci, a friend of Heather's and her boss, Chief Daniel Nigro. Heather had grown up with Chief Ganci at the Fire Department of New York City, being the youngest manager ever at the Fire Department of New York at only the age of 24 and one of the few woman managers, and she still missed him terribly. Matt noticed that Heather had a joyful, ebullient personality. Nothing could keep her down, even from the bad news like she got today.
After her Universe was built with the strongest cage ever before seen in Space, Heather collapsed. She was beat. She had been running at top speed and building the Universe had used up all her powers. She caught her breath. She and Matt sat down to take a breather. They had just caught their breath when the Face Club reached Heather's first Space Wall Trap she had set. Heather looked out of her Universe, and she could see the Face Club members racing to break their Space Codes to get through the first Space Wall Trap. By this time, they were all frantic to get to Heather. Heather motioned for Matt to be quiet. Only sound could give them away. Heather had made their Universe invisible. Only Peter was taking his time. He just stared at Heather's code dumbfounded. Sometimes he did not know if he loved Heather or wanted to kill her!
“What's wrong?” Jennifer, the Face of Israel, said as soon as she had finished breaking her Space Code quickly and saw that Peter was not near finished on his. Jennifer was the best Space Code breaker among the Face Club members. But she was also Heather's best friend, and she knew Heather's mind better than anyone else. It was easy to break Heather's Space Code. Peter was furious, if not livid. He could hardly talk. He just said “Look what Heather did. I'm really going to kill her, if she did not feel like dying already,” was all he said.
Jennifer looked over at Peter's Space Code. Unlike the other Face Club members who all had Space Codes that required the most complicated knowledge available and tasked their every mental muscle, for Peter's Space Code, Heather had just required him to count from one to five and to order the numbers correctly in his Space Puzzle. Peter loved breaking Space Codes, and he thought he was the best at it. He wanted to see what intricate Space Code Heather would set for him since she was the only Constellation and Face Club member who was as smart as him. They had been students together at
Columbia
and
Cambridge
, and they had always competed together. And even if Peter always won, he enjoyed the challenge. Thus, he was ready to kill Heather for giving him such an easy Space Code and just making him count from one to five to break his Space Code.
That was how Heather teased Peter, by refusing to challenge him. That was Peter's least favorite part of Heather — when she would purposely act stupid just to tease his extraordinary intelligence, just to annoy and aggravate him. Peter knew Heather was smart. They had been students at
Cambridge
together, and she had almost beat him for the top prize in history in their department. Heather knew that Peter knew that she was literally the only royal in
Europe
who was almost as smart as he was, and that was one of the things he liked about Heather the most. Hence, why she would act stupid sometimes just to tease and annoy him, like now.
Still Heather had set a tease for Peter as well as an insult. Heather was constantly insulting Peter because he was her greatest rival as the heir to the Portuguese Empire. He hated that about her the most. Peter was the best in Math among the Face Club members and was the best mathematician on Earth if not in the entire Cosmos. Instead of placing the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 for him to reorder on his Space Code, she had replaced the number 3 with the number Pi, 3.14. It was not a proper integer progression, and Heather knew it. She was not just insulting Math, but Peter's extraordinary mathematical ability. Peter was proud, especially about his mathematical ability which everyone said, especially all his
Columbia
professors, was the greatest in the world.
Thus, there was no way Peter was going to count from one to five incorrectly, not even using a proper integer progression, even if it was to save Heather's life. He had his pride to think about. Even if he might manage to save Heather's life, he would be a laughing stock not only on Earth but in Outer Space as well, and especially at Columbia's Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science where he received his undergraduate degree.
The Portuguese were the best navigators in the world, and it was because they were the best mathematicians in the world. There was simply no other reason for it. It was the Portuguese who started and commanded the Age of Discovery in the 1500s. The Age of Discovery was a Portuguese Age. Heather was always insulting the achievements and successes of the Portuguese Empire as the heir to the
British Empire
. The successes and greatness of the Portuguese Empire was the butt of constant jokes to Heather as his rival as the heir to the
British Empire
. However, there was no royal house in
Europe
that could compete with the House of Burgundy in terms of mathematical ability. They were simply the best in the world, if not the entire Cosmos. Peter knew this and was proud of the history of his House. If Heather was not dead already, Peter was seriously contemplating killing her. Peter's pride smarted just thinking about how she teased his extraordinary mathematical ability with her stupid and incorrect mathematical Space Puzzle. He would never live it down. He had been the best engineering student to ever go through
Columbia
's Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, one of the best engineering schools in the world. It was not fair what Heather was doing to him and how she teased him!
And Heather even knew that, because she had been a visiting student at
Columbia
for one semester in her junior year, and he had been her T.A. in Discrete Mathematics. Thus, she had no excuses for her behavior. Heather was horrible in Math, but she said it was because she was half-French. That was always her excuse for everything — that she was half-French. But she was better in history and pretty good at it. That had been her major at Wesleyan and at
Cambridge
in the Master's program. Peter could barely beat Heather in history for the top history prize at
Cambridge
in the Master's program because she was so good in history. Good thing that Heather only cared about Communist history, so she had not cared much for the top history prize, and he was able to win it. Still he would have to give back his undergraduate engineering degree if he solved Heather's Space Puzzle. He knew it. His
Columbia
professors would make him for not even being able to count to 1 to 5 correctly. It did not matter that he was in Outer Space. In Outer Space, it was more important that you knew how to count to 1 to 5 correctly, not less so, and Heather knew that. She had had the same professors as him when she had been a visiting student at
Columbia
.
There was no excuse, simply no excuse, for Heather's mathematical incompetence. She should know how to count from one to five by the time she was almost in her 40s Peter thought, no matter how horrible she was in Math or the fact that she was half-French. Even the French knew how to count to one to five correctly by the time they were in their forties even if Heather was right in that the French was literally the worst country in the European Union when it came to their mathematical abilities. The subject as a whole was derided by the entire country, not like in
Portugal
where it was its foremost subject because of the ruling family's extraordinary mathematical ability.
The rest of the Face Club members had finished breaking their Space Codes in record time and came over to see why Peter was refusing to solve his Space Puzzle. Peter was usually lightning quick when it came to any Space Puzzle. Jennifer explained quietly “It's a matter of principle. Peter is not going to count to five incorrectly.” Paul was exasperated, “Can you just solve the puzzle? You know what the answer is, even if it's not a correct one. We're not going to be able to catch up with her. You know how fast Heather is. Her Universe is built by now, and we are not allowed to break cages you know that. There probably is not even a door we can break in through. Please hurry!” Paul was desperately worried about Heather. It was like Peter's breakdown at Ekaterinburg. Heather was suffering from a horrible, horrible psychological crisis. She should not be alone. Paul urged Peter to quickly solve his puzzle. It was the only Space Code that was preventing them from going through the Space Wall Trap.
Peter saw how worried Paul was and decided in this one instant Heather's life was more important than his pride. Still he took so long ordering the numbers 1, 2, 3.14, 4, and 5, that the rest of the Face Club members thought they would scream bloody murder at him. Peter's kingly muscles resisted moving the stupid numbers which were not even a proper integer progression, and which Peter was going to tell the more mathematically challenged Heather made no sense whatsoever. Pi was Peter's favorite number, and he took the insult personally. And when he finished, all he said was “Fucking bitch,” cursing at Heather.
It was the first time the rest of the Face Club members heard the quiet and restrained Peter ever curse. If anyone knew how to get under Peter's skin it was Heather. They had always been rivals, on Earth, and in Outer Space. Still it did not mean that they were not there for each other. It was Heather who had saved Peter's life at Ekaterinburg when he had his nervous breakdown and had gotten Matt to be there for him when he was having his nervous breakdown at Ekaterinburg. Now, Peter knew, even if his pride hurt, that it was his turn to be there for Heather. Inside, deep down, he knew she needed them all right now, more than ever.
“We have to go,” Jennifer said, pulling at Peter. Peter broke out of his reverie. Peter was the most powerful Constellation Pyxis (Compass). He and the others raced through the other Space Wall Traps, broke the Space Codes in record time, and got to Heather's outer cage of her Universe in no time. Ioan, Orion, examined Heather's cage. He was in utter awe of the majesty of Heather's cosmic powers. He said quietly “Do you know this is the most powerful cage in Space? It's made of the highest grade star matter. And Heather built it in only five minutes.” It would have taken Ioan more than a hundred years to build such a cage, much less contemplate its design.
Paul ran around the circumference of the Universe. He spoke urgently. “There is no door. I was right. We can't get in,” he said. He spoke quietly. He was listening. Even if they could not get in, they could still hear through the cage. He wondered if Heather was all right. Thankfully he did not hear tears. It made him feel a lot better. Apparently, Heather was not as upset as they had thought. His creased lines of worry disappeared from his forehead.
All of the Face Club members were extremely close. They were always there for each other. Paul let out his breath. He had not realized that he had been holding his breath since they left
Hong Kong
. Heather was going to be all right! Paul let out a huge sigh of relief. Out of all the Face Club members, it was Paul with his tender heart and his great love for Heather who always worried about her the most. Sometimes he felt like her Dad.
Michael, the Face of Poland, listened intently through the cage. He had the best senses of all the Face Club members. He could hear two sets of breathing, even if Heather and Matt had both slowed down their breathing so much that it was barely audible. It was another power Heather had gotten after the 9/11 attacks — the ability to slow down your breath so that you are barely breathing. Michael was relieved. He was glad Matt was there with Heather and was looking after her. But Michael did not say anything. He knew Heather wanted her privacy. Hence her strong cage. He started to walk back home.
Michael of France saw Michael of Poland walk away. “What is it?” he said, as he saw Michael of
Poland
walk away. “I'm leaving,” Michael of Poland said. “She's all right. If she needs us, she'll ask for help,” he said as he walked away. Sometimes, he got tired for the Face Club members always bothering him. He liked to be independent as he was a loner, and sometimes it was hard to do that being in such an important club as the Face Club. The rest of the Face Club members saw Michael of Poland walking away and going back home to
San Francisco
, and they all calmed down immediately. They knew Heather was okay.
Heather had shielded the Universe so they could not see in. They did not know Matt was there. The Face Club members did not know that Matt had survived the
Space
Canyon
jump and were all horribly upset. They thought Matt was still falling through the seemingly bottomless
Space
Canyon
. They did not know what they were going to tell Heather. Heather and Matt kept as still as possible so the Face Club members could not hear or see them. Ioan was checking the cage of the Universe to see if they could enter but Paul was right Heather had not even made a door! “It is impossible to get in,” he said finally. “There isn't even a door. How did she get inside?” he wondered.
“Well then, we should go. Seeing as how we can't get inside and all,” Jennifer said. She then added, “I think she wants to be alone, and we should leave her.” Jennifer knew Heather would be okay. She was Heather's best friend and knew her implicitly. If Heather was in crisis or in danger, Jennifer was always the first to know. They were as close as sisters. “I think Matt's inside,” Peter said, gently, touching Heather's cage. “I'm sure of it,” he responded. “How could that have happened?” he wondered. “It's a miracle,” he simply stated.
“It's not a miracle,” Jennifer laughed uneasily. She said matter of factly, “there are no miracles in Outer Space, okay. Just the Cosmos, that's it. There are only miracles on Earth,” Jennifer instructed. The Face Club members returned to Earth. They all went to Heather's apartment to wait for her there in case she needed them. Everyone except Jennifer. She went home. She was Heather's best friend, and she did not think it was such a crisis. Heather always called her when she needed her. She and Heather had an implicit trust with each other. Out of all the Face Club members they trusted each other the most. They knew when to help each other, and when the other just needed their space. Jennifer knew that this was a time when Heather just needed her space. Plus Jennifer was tired of the Face Club members interrupting her life.
Heather watched them go back to Earth. She had been holding her breath. “All gone,” she said to Matt, turning to him and falling into his arms. The Universe Heather had made was beautiful. It was dark and mysterious. It had a wondrous beauty just like her. Matt loved it. It was so special just like Heather. It had Heather's special quality - mysteriousness. Only Heather as the Big Dipper was capable of building mysterious Universes, no one else. Heather was looking out at the Stars in her new Universe. Every Star Constellation had a meaning and told a story. She wanted to find out what was the story behind her new hiding spot.
Heather whispered to Matt. “Do you know what Universes are?” she asked him. “What?” Matt responded, gently, taking Heather's hand. He did not care if his younger brother, Brad, the uber-rational, would think that he was crazy. “They're hiding spots,” Heather said. “Otherwise, Space would just be one big force field and that's too dangerous. People can get decimated. Universes are hiding spots for people to inhabit. That's why they are surrounded by a cage,” she said, pointing to her cage. “See, it's holding out Space,” she said. “It's in case Space falls,” she said matter-of-factly. “Space can be defeated,” she counseled Matt. Not even Ioan, Orion, knew that.
Matt listened. He was not going to be like his younger brother, Brad, and fight with Heather and tell her that not only was that crazy, but that it was mathematically impossible. He just accepted what she said. Heather continued, “The Suns are kind and benevolent. The most kind and benevolent beings get to be Suns. You can ask the Suns for anything. They instantly bestow blessings. They're unstinting in generosity. The Suns knew that if Space fell, people could get hurt. They created the Universes so that the people would not get hurt. They still would have somewhere to live. The Suns cannot be defeated. They cannot fall.” “Well, they can,” she added, “but it takes a very, very, very long time.” Matt liked to hear Heather talk about the Universe. He realized that when Heather talked she was not being obnoxious. She was just trying to explain things to him. Brad always insisted on the opposite. He and Heather got in the most vehement fights.
“I have a surprise,” Matt said. “What?” Heather asked, pleased. She loved surprises. Matt pulled out of his back pocket the reexamination of the Communist Manifesto that Heather had written when she was only twenty-five. Matt remember