He stood there, in the middle of his office, with his back
to the door. Not a movement, not a sound. He was the
President of the greatest nation on the face of the earth.
He was an influential leader, he had the power to destroy
countries and rebuild them piece-by-piece. He was an
intimidating man, his posture revealed his might, and the
blank look in his eyes captured his isolation. No one knew
exactly how he reached his position as the president; he did
not appear to be the right type. However, it seemed as if he
has always been there, and at the same time as if he has
just appeared a second ago, out of nowhere.
He stood there, in the middle of the room, facing the
window. It was hard to tell whether he was looking out or
just staring into space. It did not matter. He was the
President.
"Mr. President, a call for you".
Not a movement, not a sound.
"Mr. President, it is the General, he said that it is
urgent, he must speak with you".
He just stood there, aloof, silent.
"I will take the call, do not worry your pretty little
head" said the President's right hand, his closest advisor.
The secretary giggled and went back to her desk. Dealing
with employees is so easy, he thought.  

2.
"You may be seated" he ordered, "Shall we start?"
He sat serenely in his big chair. It was peculiar only
because they gathered in that gloomy, gray room to make a
life and death decision and they all knew it, but the
President did not seem nervous. He never did.
The General stood up. "Good morning Mr. President,
unfortunately I have some bad news, I am afraid we have a
situation". He pointed to the map, making a few quick lines
near the border of some small country. "They are moving this
way", the General pointed to another country and drew an
additional line "the north-east front is not secure and I'm
afraid they might attack there".
"What is their motivation? I am sure there is a reason for
this sudden attack".
"Mr. President, I must point out that we do not know
whether they are planning to attack, or just moving their
forces for some other reason, perhaps training."
"Give me facts, tell me why. That is all I am looking for"
"As you are well aware, Sir, they have many natural
resources: mines and oil wells- the land is priceless!" the
General sat down, somewhat displeased.
The President looked at the map briefly. "How close to the
border are they?"
"A few hours away."
"Then we have to move fast. Send an air strike, that will
get the message across".
The General stood up instantly. "Mr. President, excuse me
but we should postpone the attack until we know the full
measure of consequences, and the real reason behind their
actions. We should try to approach them diplomatically
first"
A few of the other generals shook their heads in agreement.

The President stayed calm, his voice was steady. "I order
you to send the troops. We have too much at stake, we cannot
take any risks and we cannot let them invade this country."
This time it was another general who stood up. "Sir, I beg
you to reconsider, you are putting our soldiers, our sons
and daughters in great danger."
"Enough, this meeting is over. I have made my final
decision and I expect it to be executed in a matter of
minutes." The President rose from his seat and started
walking towards the door.
"Sir..."
"You heard him, there is no more to be said. The Cabinet
members support his decision one hundred percent". The man
stoop up and followed the President on his way out.
A look of bewilderment spread on the General's face, as he
watched the back of the President's advisor.  He was
appalled and slightly offended, he did not want to think of
what the future had in store for all of them.

3.
A knock on the door, the second one, and then the third. No
answer. The door opened and the General walked in. The
President was standing in the middle of the room, with his
back to the door.
"Mr. President, excuse me, but I was just wondering if I
could talk to you for a few minutes".
He just stood there, not a movement, not a sound.
"Mr. President, this is quite important, it regards this
morning's conference. If you would just listen to me" the
General sounded rather anxious, "I think we have made a
mistake, we are not sure that they are going to invade. We
should not put the lives of our troops on the line, just
because there is a small chance that they will attack. Mr.
President, we have no substantial evidence".
The President's vacant expression did not offer any sign of
understanding.
"There is still time, I can order them to retreat. We
simply cannot harm innocent people.
Mr. President, if they are just training then it is
massacre; there is no excuse for it".
The President did not even blink. It was hard to tell if he
was processing the information or ignoring it.
"Sir..."
"I told you once already and I do not like repeating
myself" the advisor walked into the room, "he has made his
decision and he is not going to change it. And next time you
want to talk to the President, make an appointment. You know
perfectly well that the President wants me present in those
discussions".  

4.
"I do not understand what happened, I need an explanation,
I need a reason, give me something, anything!" The
Ambassador sounded outraged and aggravated. "We have not
done anything wrong, not at all, but you attacked us. All I
am asking for is a justification for your actions!"
The General looked at the big, fat, red face of the
ambassador. He always looked as if he drank a bottle of wine
before the meeting, but today he just looked frightened and
wretched. "I am sorry Mr. Ambassador, I truly am, it was an
error on our part, a misjudgment of your actions" the
General's eyes reflected repentance.
"Actions? We moved the troops a few kilometers towards the
border and this was your excuse for killing them?" His face
flushed, his eyes nearly popping out of his head.
"Unfortunately, there is nothing more that can be said. If
you wait here, I will inform the President. I am certain he
will be devastated to hear the news of your loss." said the
General quietly.
"Whose order was it?"
"Sir, this information is confidential and irrelevant".
"All I have to say is that unless you find some way to make
it up to us we will not be held responsible for the
consequences".
The General stood up, "please, wait here Mr. Ambassador, I
will be back in a few minutes with the President".

5.
The door was closed, and knowing the Presidents nature, he
was almost tempted to just open it without knocking. His
fist stopped in mid air a second before it hit the door.
There were strange sounds coming from inside. He could not
work out exactly what they were. A thump, a struggle. He
considered his options for a second. He could break in or,
as his instinct advised him, wait a few seconds longer. He
opened the door to a tiny crack and peeped in. the sight was
so uncanny that he stepped back for a second, trying to
organize his thoughts and then looked back in.
"It is all tangled, it is going to take forever and someone
is bound to come looking for the President, we have to work
fast".
A group of the President's closest advisors was standing
around him. He was seated on his big leather chair. Empty
expression, eyes wide open (He never seemed to close his
eyes or blink). He seemed lifeless. His arms dangling at his
sides, his legs hanging off the chair. Strings coming out of
every limb.