sometimes I fulfill promises

As promised, here's a story.  
EDIT 8-25-11: I finally edited it! 


Picture The Wind 
by Alexander Card


     "Picture the wind," said the man in the dark suit. "Picture a soft breeze carrying the scent of summer, of flowers in bloom and fresh earth, rustling trees and tossing kites as children play on the ground below.  Picture great cityscapes inhabited by millions of people whose lives are as complex as your own, and see as well small towns and villages full of the same hope, ambition, love, despair, and desperation that you have known.
"Imagine a world finally rid of the needless hate of war, and greed-driven politics.  In this world sorrow still exists, but it is an uncommon occurrence; charity is the norm and practically no one is left wanting. Man works to support himself and his community, and in turn his community supports him.  Camaraderie and fraternity are not suppressed by boundary of geography or nation.  See this clearly."
"Now picture a darkening sky in the middle of day.  It seems almost as though the sun has faded, and the air is thick with haze.  The haze turns to smoke and the earth begins to reflect the grey of the heavens above; live trees turn to ash and charcoal, the grass wilts and a layer of dust covers everything.  Feel the soot coating your tongue and throat, feel the scorch of flames and the pitiless bite of lead.  Feel this three-billionfold, and again for the countless who are missing.
"Witness the pain of those damned to survive the onslaught, only to be forced into the cruelest forms of servitude.  Theirs is hardly an existence, for they are kept alive in conditions where the air is not fit to breathe, and the water contains an agent which steals more of their will with every sip."  The man paused for a moment, adjusting his tie.
"I know it may be difficult for you to comprehend," he said to the frightened-looking couple before him, "but all of what I have described is yet to come, and all of it -- both joy and suffering -- is due to the work of a single man.  I was sent here to try to reverse his work."  The woman looked to her husband, then back to the man in the suit.
"Even if all of this is true, why are you telling us?" she said.
The man glanced down at his watch impatiently.  "Unfortunately I don't have much time left here.  The code of my people prevents me from directly intervening in these situations, but I can leave you with this."
Both husband and wife tensed as the man in the suit produced a small, sleek-looking handgun from his jacket pocket, and set it carefully on a table to his side.
"Remember," he said, placing his hat back on his head and turning towards the door.  "Every man, no matter how great or cruel, has a mother and father."
A baby boy cooed happily from the next room.