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  Title Page

  TOWBAR’S WORLD — BOOK 4

  MYKAL’S 2nd DEADLY JOURNEY

  By Dave Hazel

  Text copyright © 2016 David F Hazel

  All Rights Reserved, including reproduction

  in whole or in part in any form.

  (3rd+100916)

  Table of Contents

  CHAPTER ONE 01/03/1984

  CHAPTER TWO 01/05/1984

  CHAPTER THREE 01/06/1984

  CHAPTER FOUR 01/07/1984

  CHAPTER FIVE 01/08/1984

  CHAPTER SIX 01/09/1984

  CHAPTER SEVEN 01/10/1984

  CHAPTER EIGHT 01/11/1984

  CHAPTER NINE 01/12/1984

  CHAPTER TEN 01/15/1984

  CHAPTER ELEVEN 01/16/1984

  CHAPTER TWELVE 01/17/1984

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN 01/18/1984

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN 01/19/1984

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN 01/21/1984

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN 01/22/1984

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  This is a continuation of the story in Towbar’s world.

  Book 4 is not meant to be a stand-alone book.

  The author highly recommends reading books 2 and 3 before starting 4.

  And to get the full story Book 1 should be read first.

  Thanks DH

  CHAPTER ONE 01/03/1984

  1. Tuesday, January 3rd 1984

  0911 hours, Home with family, Minot N.D.

  Mykal Graves sat at his kitchen table and looked at the list of phone numbers and the names of the military officers connected to each number. He scanned over the list of desired supplies and equipment that Major Chick helped him put together just before he left the battlefield on New Year’s Eve. His anger started to grow when the phone to his ear rang the fifth time.

  While the phone rang for the sixth time he looked at the new Trimline pushbutton desk phone he had his wife Pam purchase and insisted it have a fifty foot cord. He was ‘allowed’ by Pam to get the fifty foot cord only because he compromised to ‘allow’ her to get the turquoise color. She didn’t want a fifty foot cord and he didn’t want the “sissy” color. He smiled at the thought of compromising with the love of his life, Pam.

  His anger flashed when the phone rang for the seventh time. ‘They don’t wanna screw me over,’ Mykal thought and looked at the gold band of magic on the middle finger of his right hand.

  Mykal felt desperate in trying to reach Percy, formerly known as Jill, who was a secretive government employee directly under President John J. Edmonds. Percy had been the point man and ‘go to guy’ to get anything and everything going with and for the force of Towbar One in support of Operation: Towbar’s Sword that had been put together in order to return to Towbar’s world to rescue people who had disappeared from Washington DC in November. The force was to also recover those who had been left behind when Mykal returned the first time after being lost in Towbar’s world for 37 days.

  Mykal feared Percy in some ways because the man was clearly capable of doing bad things to people to accomplish his tasks for the President or the Government. Percy even had a look of evil with his black eyes and dour expression. He dressed in all black and that could be explained by the fact he had to wear suits all the time and preferred black. But just the presence of Percy gave off a scary sinister vibe. After meeting him for the first time he had wondered if Percy was involved in the occult or Satanism.

  They had their run in just last month where Percy and his eight man team, called the ‘Untouchables’, a paramilitary group used as an ‘enforcer’ mob, planned to kill Mykal in order to keep his silence. Since Mykal had discovered magic items in Towbar’s world he had the ability to turn himself invisible with a special ring. While he was invisible he uncovered their plan to silence him and Mykal disrupted their plot by brutally eliminating the entire ‘Untouchables’ force single handedly. After Mykal killed the eight member team of ‘Untouchables’ he then orchestrated the death of Percy’s personal assistant by having him butchered by Sosos, the ‘bad guys’ in Towbar’s world. Mykal made Percy see they could either work together or he would be next and then he would go on a rampage against those in the government who wanted Mykal silenced.

  Not only did Percy not want to die, but he also found that Mykal, with his special abilities, could be very useful to the government. Percy was able to convince those higher ups, probably up to and including the President, that they needed Mykal on their team. Cooler heads prevailed and the ‘hit’ on Mykal was called off. Mykal agreed to work ‘with and for’ them because they provided the military force to help his giant friend Towbar in his war with the Sosos back in Towbar’s world.

  The President and Percy eagerly wanted to help Towbar win his war so they would be able to capitalize on the natural resources of Towbar’s world that no other nation would have access to. Mykal would concern himself with that after the war was finally over. For now his main concern was to get more resources and men to return to the battle he left. Their permanent military position in Towbar’s world had nearly been over run and he had to get back there right away.

  On the start of the eighth ring the other end answered. “Percy here,” the voice declared in his ear.

  “Percy, this is Myk. What the hell is going on?”

  “Hey Mykal, how are things going?” Percy asked and by the sound of his voice he had to be smiling into the telephone.

  “Whadda ya mean, how are things going? I’m getting friggin pissed off,” Mykal barked and remembered when he first met Percy, Jill at that time, and how he truly feared the man with the black eyes. But since he demonstrated his awesome power to Percy and killed all the members of his private little paramilitary group Percy called his “Untouchables”, he no longer feared the government ‘bad guy’ as much as he had then. Mykal knew not to be foolish with the man because he knew Percy had done evil things to people who crossed him or who ended up on the wrong end of a ‘hit list’. “Where’s my stuff? I got people waiting for me and they could be in a world of shit. You must not have cared when I explained how bad our situation was when I left.”

  “Mykal, I’m working on it. Honest, I am,” Percy said and the smile was gone from his tone. “Be realistic Myk. You came back New Year’s Eve, Sunday was New Year’s Day and everything was essentially shut down yesterday to observe New Year’s Day. It’s been hard getting everything together that quick while it’s a federal holiday and the turn of a new year.”

  “Bullshit, if I woulda brought the ‘Package’ New Year’s Eve all of youse woulda jumped through hoops to get that, but since you guys got what you wanted, I feel like I’m not important to anyone anymore,” he added which was a veiled reference to the President since he accomplished the secret mission inside of the much publicized and publically supported mission of Operation: Towbar’s Sword to rescue those who disappeared in November.

  “That’s not true Myk.”

  “Did you go to the President?” Mykal asked but it sounded like a demand.

  “Yes Myk, I did,” Percy said with a soft sigh. “And for the sixth or seventh time you asked me, yes, I went straight to President Edmonds. He is all for you getting everything you need, but remember, as President of the United States, he has a public roll he has to play and he has to be careful not to make it look like we’re trying to conquer another country, let alone another world.”

  “He’s not gonna jerk me around since he got what he wanted, is he?” Mykal asked and wished he didn’t. Percy wouldn’t tell him the truth if the President was ‘going to jerk him around’.

  “Mykal please, calm down a little and just be patient. You must understand there is a lot going on and there is a great many pieces that need to be maneuvered. On
top of everything else going on the President is very busy. He wants this as much as you, but he and his people are also working on other very important matters that include the timing of his formal announcement to seek a second term. They have to weigh all this and how this may impact his announcement.”

  “Whadda ya mean, how this may impact his announcement of running for a second term?”

  “If you will remember, there were some members of congress who weren’t happy about all we already sent to Towbar’s world.”

  “Are you saying that it might not happen now?” Mykal’s voice rose with his gasp.

  “No, no, no. I did not say that. But with most of DC shut down right now, it’s hard to get in touch with all the members of the House and the Senate that we need on our side in order to ensure this will not become a major problem for the President when the election rolls around in November.”

  “Percy, I’m getting so friggin angry right now,” Mykal huffed and fought not to say some of the things on his mind. He paced back and forth through the house and just demonstrated why he needed the fifty foot phone cord. “Our people are dying and fighting their friggin asses off. We have fifteen hundred of our boys over there while there is anywhere from one to two million Sosos and their damn allies breathing down their necks. I left right in the middle of a frigging big ass battle. Now they also have strange shit we’ve never seen before like flying dragons. Real freaking dragons and who knows what else that Zizmon-Tarl is gonna bring into the fight. I need that stuff and men I requested, now!” He demanded with a raised voice. “They’re waiting on me, but you guys are living it up cuz of the holidays.”

  “It’s not like that. Trust me,” Percy said. “Listen, some of the men and supplies have already been sent to Minot Air Force Base. Don’t breathe a word of that because that is classified as Top Secret. As a matter of fact, those who arrived are on lock down. We just have to make sure we get the okay to release said items so it doesn’t hurt President Edmonds later. Do you understand?”

  “Yeah, I understand that you guys got what you wanted and now I’m being jerked around.”

  “Believe me Myk, you want President Edmonds to be President after the November elections, because I can tell you for a fact that if that damn liberal Senator gets elected, he will shut down this whole operation. This is important. Trust me, we’re working hard here in DC.”

  “Yeah, I understand. His friggin job is more important than all the lives we left behind,” Mykal snarled angrily.

  “Come on Myk. That’s not true. As a matter of fact, just so you know, the President really wants all this to happen and he wants it to be a major success. When I explained the possibilities as you explained them to me, he truly wants to help Towbar’s people. This President is a true friend of what we have going on here, but we have to make sure we don’t give the opposition anything they can use to unseat him.”

  Mykal snickered to himself because he wasn’t about to allow them to rape Towbar’s land as he led Percy to believe. “If you need me to, I can take care of that stupid ass liberal if you want,” Mykal suggested and looked at the gold ring that would turn him invisible. He had desired, rather he desperately craved, to turn himself invisible. He really feared the magic was taking hold of his mind like a bad drug.

  “Don’t even joke around about that,” Percy said in a harsh whisper. “We can’t have bodies of the opposition appearing all over the place,” he added as if in reference to the eight members of his team that Mykal single handedly obliterated during his last visit.

  “It wouldn’t necessarily have to be a bloodbath,” Mykal said with a slight laugh to get one up on the government bad guy. Mykal felt he had to show Percy he wasn’t afraid of him, though Percy caused him more concern than any other person.

  “Stop! No, we’ll do it the proper way. If a desperate need arises, I’ll be sure to let you know. Besides, items and peoples are being sent to Minot. Numerous items and bodies have arrived and more are on the way. But also keep this in mind while you think about President Edmonds. You want him to be President come November. He is all for supporting you and all that you want for various reasons so he can’t jeopardize his chances for his second term. There are others who would like to see everyone come home since you brought back those you rescued and those who had been trapped there from your first visit. They’re calling it a success and it should end now while we’re ahead.”

  “But not everyone is accounted for,” Mykal declared though he knew those still missing wouldn’t be alive. “If I remember correctly, there were still nine who had not been accounted for. Between you and me, I really believe they’re dead, but--”

  “But,” Percy cut him off, “like I just said, there are those who say we should quit while we are ahead and they are the very ones who don’t want to lift a finger to help Towbar’s people. We’re working on those who could be a threat to the President’s re-election. Just be patient Mykal. I, personally, am working my tail off on this. Since you returned this has honestly been my top priority and I haven’t worked on anything else since you returned.”

  “Do I need to go talk to anybody in DC?” Mykal asked while angrily turning his magic ring around his middle finger. “Cuz I’ll gladly visit any of the stone walling, worthless, politicians just like I visited your Untouchables last month,” he added as a reminder to Percy that he too was capable of doing ‘bad things’ to people.

  “No no no no,” Percy gasped and laughed at Mykal’s threat. “You have to be patient. I promise you Myk, we will get a green light. We just have to make sure that all our T’s are crossed and all our I’s are dotted. I’m getting things done. Don’t ruin this by being impatient.”

  “Cuz you remember what I can do, right?” Mykal asked only to taunt Percy

  “Oh yes, I remember and I’ll never forget. Believe me Myk, we’re on the same team. Don’t you forget that. Trust me, I want this to happen more than you can imagine. As I told you before, I really want you to teach me or others the abilities you have. Just don’t mention it out loud. We both know what we’re discussing. Understand this, we are looking forward to having access to Towbar’s world where no other countries would be able to take advantage of the benefits available. And believe this when I tell you, Towbar and his people will be well compensated and their life style will greatly improve, besides just removing the threat they face daily. As a side note, I personally have regrets that we allowed certain nations to go along as a part of Towbar One. But for now, nothing can be done about that, but things will change.”

  “Well, we’ll make sure only those who we deem are ‘desirables’ will have access,” Mykal said to tell Percy what he wanted to hear.

  “Great. That’s what we are all looking forward to,” he replied which had to be a reference to the President and all those who are partnered with the President.

  “Keep in mind Percy, if you guys speed up on your end what needs to be done, and if there are issues that come up with certain politicians come November time frame, I will gladly fix those issues in whatever way you consider to be the right way.”

  “We just don’t want a repeat of the Untouchables with such high profile--”

  “It doesn’t have to be that,” Mykal cut him off and laughed. He pictured Percy getting squeamish at the thought of members of the United States Congress being murdered in horrific ways. But then he figured that probably wouldn’t bother him, rather he would be bothered by having to cover up or explaining away such murders. “I could be a fly on the wall and no one would ever know until secret meetings are exposed, or any secret rendezvous had been videotaped,” he laughed again and knew Percy understood he could easily blackmail anyone once he got dirt on people while being invisible. ‘Damn it, I said I would never take sides in their political bullshit,’ he thought. ‘No, this is about saving Towbar and his people.’

  “Let me think on that Myk,” Percy said. “But I will get this going as fast as I can. Now that you mention it there may need to be som
e house cleaning done, for the ‘Cause’. When I say for the ‘Cause’ I am referring only to Towbar and his people. This will be a term between just you and me.”

  “No problem,” Mykal said with a fake smile and regretted making such an offer to Percy. He suddenly feared Percy would be able to manipulate any of Percy’s or the President’s dirty business as something for the Cause. ‘Damn it, what the hell am I getting myself into now?’

  “Why have you been avoiding the media? There have been a flood of questions as to why you have not made yourself available since you returned with the injured and the rescued?”

  “I did meet with the media when we first got back,” Mykal replied and sounded annoyed. He paused and thought through the many reasons why he didn’t want to spend time with the media. “Where is it written that I have to give them the time of day?” Mykal said and it was clear by the change in his tone he didn’t want to spend time with any media personnel. “When I was in the military and the story broke about our first visit to Towbar’s world I was forced to do those friggin dog and pony shows and I hated it.”

  “As much as you don’t like it, you, and only you, could put a certain positive spin on going back to Towbar’s world with a bigger force.”

  “How? They always ask me the same old dumb ass questions and I give them the same old dumb ass answers. Then it always comes back to the battles and I explain how I blew somebody’s, a Soso’s, brains out,” he scoffed. “It always comes back to the blood and gore which I don’t have a problem doing, but I don’t wanna be on TV bragging how I killed this bad guy and what I did to that bad guy,” he snarled as an old wound surfaced from someone in the past. Staff Sergeant Bradford of the first trip told Mykal that killing and sadism must run deep in his blood. That troubled him every time he realized he enjoyed killing Sosos, Goblins or any other enemy that would threaten to harm him or his friends.