Good Judgment

“Who are you and what are you doing here? You aren’t on my calendar. Who let you through the door?”

“What door?”

He laughed. “That door. The double bronze door, handcrafted in Florence in the Renaissance. Get out of here immediately, or I’ll push the button.”

“What button?”

“The button right here on my desk that will summon Security to get rid of you. Yes, permanently. That’s what you deserve for such impertinence. And all those who let you into the compound and past the check points leading to my office will suffer the same fate.” He raised his hand dramatically.

“Are you sure, sir?”

“Sure of what?”

“Sure that that’s the right button?”

“Of course, that’s the only button. Are you blind? The other button was removed after I used it.”

“So you remember doing that, sir?”

“Of course, I remember. That was my decision and only my decision. I had to do it, and I did it. With a single stroke, I eliminated the Nazi capitalist scum, I cleansed the Earth so we can start anew, with Russia, with me in command of the world.”

“And huddled in a bunker, trapped here until Earth is habitable again?”

“A bunker you call this? It’s a city, a vast underground city, with a hundred thousand of people, the best people of our nation, handpicked and trained; a self-sustaining city, with all the pleasures and amenities anyone could dream of. We’re in no hurry to leave. That’s what the western scum never dreamt of. Their precious Earth was rotten, decaying. It would soon become unlivable through climate change. Rather than fight that losing battle, we built this earthly paradise, deep enough underground to be safe from nuclear war. And then we dared to do what to them was unthinkable — to start fresh with a brave new world.”

“So you admit that that was your intent.”

“Of course. You think I destroyed the world by accident? Those who came before me, prepared the way. I improved upon their plan, made the final preparations, and then had the courage of my convictions. Yes, I pushed the button, and I’m proud of it. But why should I tell you? You must know already. Everyone must know. I’m proud of this my greatest accomplishment, the greatest accomplishment of any man in all of time. To create, you must destroy. For hundreds, no thousands of years I’ll be remembered as the savior of mankind.”

“It’s a shame that you won’t be alive thousands of years from now to enjoy that glory and to see what will come from your new world.”

“I thought of trying cryogenics. But that’s not a permanent solution. When you’re revived from frozen hibernation, you are still mortal, with a limited lifespan.”

“That’s why I’m here, sir.”

“You mean you have a purpose here? Someone authorized you to barge in here?”

“Of course, sir. One does not come into the presence of the ruler of the world without good reason.”

“And that reason is?”

“The final solution is ready, sir.”

“And what is that final solution?”

“We can transfer your consciousness and memories to an ultra-secure computer network. There you can live forever.”

“And what needs to happen to make that so?”

“Everything has been prepared. All you need to do is press that button on your desk, the one you thought would summon Security.”

The Ruler of the World laughed and hit the button that would either give him immortality or fetch Security to do away with this intruder.

The lights dimmed and sparks flew. The virtual reality helmet that had created for him the illusion of an underground paradise, fried his brain.

“Mission accomplished,” the intruder announced remotely to an audience of hundreds of millions. “As you saw, it was Putin’s intent to unleash a nuclear holocaust. In his mind, he had done it, and he was proud of it. And he died by his own hand.”