*
That autumn, at the age of fourteen, Michael vowed to save mankind from the nuclear conflict. For two years he has been developing the most sophisticated and genius plan. It seemed to be impossible. To change radically the world. To become the first and the only secret suzerain at the club of two leaders of two hundred and fifty countries which have to become his explicit or implicit vassals. Maher was well aware that as soon as it would be the news leak or suspicion to changes in existing world balance of the power, he would get hundreds of the most powerful state institutions and private companies in the whole world, which would want to grind it with its new order quickly into dust. That’s why Skull had never broken his three golden rules. Firstly, he had never done any records and had ever discussed that issue with anyone. Secondly, he, in all ways, has been strengthening thoroughly the legend about the legality of his big business. Thirdly, he had never broken the laws of countries which he worked in. Till the X time.
*
Names of the nearest "colleagues" who were radically changing the world in the history of mankind were known to everybody. The life expectancy of those great people was often inversely proportional to their acts. Most of them couldn’t enjoy the fruits of their great deeds. It was not fair.
He will be the only ruler who, like ancient biblical patriarchs, will be able to drain the cup of divine and earthly pleasures, to realize an unthinkable thing, to see the invisible Tower of Babel of languages synthesis and complete secret signs, concentrated in one person, and to come close to the heavenly beings.
Maher planned to spend huge resources for coding all inhabitants since their birth. In his clinics, by a new way, he was realizing delay of diseases by the timeless technology he was changing diseased human organs to become an angel of life and death.
The Skull was going to pull true knowledge of the ancient Greeks out of the oblivion. His main wonderful hobby was trying to disclose a secret box of the missing fragments codes of chromosomes. In his laboratories there were first experiments on synthesis of the divine nectar, a cloud of love, coition of gods and goddesses, demigods, and first people. He was looking for rare pairs and disclosed the response forms for keys of the universe.
To keep seven billion inhabitants in subjection, for thirty years Maher has been preparing a secret share. A mystery case of super mahers had been gathering piece by piece all around the world. Some of them were born again with the development of cryonics, others suddenly disappeared and were revealed a few years later, and Skull bought some infants, at first days of their birth, at dummies. The difference of the higher caste was lack of the pedigree, memory of the past, absolute confidence in their rightness, receipt and execution of daily instructions by the Maher’s code and a very high salary. After years of hard work, he managed to create a powerful case, million of elite super mahers. They were everywhere, in all power structures of all countries. Each of them was ready to adopt in the short term other hundred ordinary mahers. It was enough to break any boundaries of the most powerful states.
But the most important Michael’s deal, his greatest feat would be principal elimination of the opportunity of the uncontrolled World War. As soon as the opportunity of the greater military conflict risk appeared, there turned on a program. Maher’s people immediately asked a man the Hamlet's question: to live, to die or to become the maher. Managing the mahers was realized due to Skull’s amazing bracelet. The war could be just a fun game of chance, like football with an unknown outcome, cheering up themselves and the inhabitants of the Mount Olympus.
*
Maher rejoiced. He waited for the assault of the citadel. Like a blind puppy, all his opponents were in his trap. Everything was ready. He was a bit boring. He was playing music. There was only one hour left. So, when that weirdo came out again of the oblivion, out of concrete multilevel hell, an unhappy sad aphid, which called itself "the Colonel", amused Michael.
- Let him go!
Having been brought through dozens of massive iron doors, he was thrown on the granite floor, almost naked, bounded hand and foot. Well-trained nurses left.
In a gloomy huge dome, in the rocks of Belgrade, at the very height of the transept, there were flowing divine sounds. For some time, the Colonel gave himself up to calm of the universe floating on islands of the strong heroic music. Dux immediately recognized the author. Having brushed a shroud of pain and sufferings away, he saw as thick hairy Maher’s fingers with numerous diverse manuals were moving incredibly quickly, and his short thick legs in black short leather boots were making incredible steps, muffled clattering the pedals. Ending a fantastic symphony, Skull created a huge live globe, attentively examined the whole situation in lines and figures, extended the globe from the floor to the dome and increased the picture with a radius of fighting in the center of the residence. Everything was going according to his plan.
He went down the side iron stairs and approached Colonel.
"A sorry sight" - thought Maher observing on Dux’ face the lashing bloody insignificance. His calm, pure, bright and placid eyes were shining in unexpected contrast. "Tabula raca!?" surprised a bit the Lord of Heaven.
- You are a pathetic fool - suddenly lisped Colonel. - All the great masters of the world came to a bad end. One was caught with the fever, another one was poisoned, the third one was shot. The exception proves the rules.
Skull, thinking in the posture of Napoleon, did not immediately understand the words of that miserable Pinocchio with an unclear diction.
- The reason is very simple. You exist in a built world, and for some reason, you do not see the whole gallery of creatures, which are your forerunners and the angels above you. Without seeing the beginning and the end, you're a blind man suffer from the slight autism, wishful thinking.
Skull was silent. He was thinking over many nations of the earth and they seemed to be funny caricature insects. They have long ago been addicted to drugs which Maher was creating and selling, earning billions of dollars. People who took the bait, he was not interested in. He rose at an incredible height.
He heard again a deranged speech of that nonentity. "How nice to have nothing common with this gloomy Russian. If I have a clown in the future, he should be always fun and easy. "
Michael for a moment imagined what he would do with a bored clown. For example, as he will be eaten by a giant spiteful locusts.
- Right next to you there is a supreme inaccessible world. If you stay in a real material world, you can not keep a thin veil of reality. It will either slip off or will be covered with rusty spots and holes. Having seen only a piece of patterned fabric, you have to see the crucible of the high society. But you are stubborn, you consciously leave just a piece of your reality iron and then cry about how quickly the metal is becoming eaten away with rust. You are another lord, to build a high tower on the piece of reality which, by the highest standards, is unknown to you. Your desire to build a magnificent building collapses during your life because it is a false building.
- And ..? – Maher, with a miserable look, was listening a primitive morality which he had read when he was sixteen. - "How disgusting that little serial murderer who has been bothering him for the last time. How could he moralize? There wasn’t any place to brand, the little man, who had broken all the Ten Commandments".