The Cross of Mithras Vol. 1: EOD Operation Welcome to Hell (23 page)

  Before I left to go chase Tsk’llk and Llyysta, I divided my army in two. Two-thirds stayed behind, and was later wiped out of existence, and the rest came with me. Eventually that Half-Wit so-called reinforcements did catch up to us. But that occurred only after Tsk’llk and Llyysta got away. When that Half-Wit army caught up to us, all hell broke lose.  Friend attacked friend. Friend and foe fought along side each other only to fight one another later. On Iraxxan, Half-Wits would not have been so stupid to allow it to get that far out of hand.

  While that battle was going on, I couldn’t tell if it was night or day. I couldn’t tell if was raining or not. I know it did once but... I don’t remember that it did. I couldn’t even go to sleep. If I did I would have been killed. Lost, confused, terrorized, psychically tired and exhausted, I tried my best to find my way out. I was awake for eight days straight. I know that I was because I started to hallucinate.

  Back when I was going through my advanced training as a warrior, during my first test at survival, I stayed awake for eight days straight. I just didn’t have my act together. On the eight day I started to hallucinate. After that I got my act together. And that’s how I know that I was awake for that long in that forest.

  I was lost out of my mind on that day in that forest. I don’t even know how I made it out. I’m just glad that I did. I probably wouldn’t be here today if I didn’t. All I remember was that I ended up in the hands of Tsk’llk and Llyysta. I don’t know why they were there. I don’t even know if they were alone or not. All I know is that they were there, and they were alone.”

  “What did you do?”

  “Nothing. I just couldn’t take it anymore. I was fixing to give them my sword. It was in a way to tell them that I give up. But Llyysta put her hand on mine to lower it, and then she’d knocked me out with the pommel of her sword. When I awoke, I was in their camp suffering from a nervous breakdown. Of course I set the record straight with them about me serving Natas. I told them that I ‘had too much to lose to go after them.’ They ask me why I did. And I told them the truth. They believed me. When I asked them why he hated them so much, they said that they didn’t know.

  Seeing what I was going through, and knowing that I gave up on my religion, combine that with the fact that they now know that I was innocent, they took pity on me. They did forgive me and took me under their wing. I adopted their pagan religion. But it was only in the sense of believing that there is more than one god. And not the rituals.

  My days as a warrior were over. I was just too traumatized by what happened to me in that forest. What’s more, Natas never did give me the chance to recover from that long journey home. So I became an alcoholic. It was Llyysta who gave me the idea to write that book on Natas. There’s not much left to say. So the rest... is history.”

  “I’m sorry to hear all of that Vaistll. I wished I knew what to say. I...“

  “That’s okay Alex. I’m over most of it now. It’s just one reason why I don’t like talking about my past. But I do feel better now. And thanks for listening.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  “I don’t know how I can make it up to you. About you, giving up a whole day just to hear about my trouble past. But...“

  “Vaistll. I didn’t mind. You don’t have to make it up to me. You are my friend. It’s the least that I could do.”

  “Well... at least let me treat you to a drink at some bar.”

  “Okay.”

  Hearing about how troubled her past really was helped him to heal. It also help him to let go of his own troubled past. Knowing what she went through, and knowing that she made it through, gave him the strength in knowing that he too can make it.

  Ramirez knows the EOD well enough to know that Task Force ZH-3C in all likelihood is on a suicide mission. He knows that he will probably die on Golden Hyperion. And that includes most, if not all of the members of Task Force ZH-3C. None of them wants to be captured by the EOD. They all know what happen to Sanchez husband. How could they forget? Everybody in Task Force ZH-3C would rather die than to be captured. But hearing about Vaistll past helped to convince Ramirez that they can survive. It gave him the hope that the EOD can be destroyed. It just takes time. And the willingness to go through the gates of hell... to get to heaven.

(12)

  “Alexander?” A beautiful blonde, blue-eyed woman approached Ramirez. Both Vaistll and Ramirez was playing pool at a local bar, when she approached him. Ramirez knew who it was. It was Maria Sadowayj, the woman that he thought that he lost on Nilosyrtis Prime so long ago.

  They had so much to talk about. She mentioned that she left Nilosyrtis Prime, and went to Roscadia before all the trouble occurred on Nilosyrtis. Although she didn’t mention it, the real reason why she left was because she fell in love with him. She felt lost in knowing that there was only a small chance that he will return. So she left and never looked back. She just wanted to see him. She felt that maybe Roscadia could give her the chance that she was looking for.

  Ramirez was overcome with joy at seeing her again. Being quite grateful that she was still alive, and the fact that she wanted to be with him. It gave him something to live for. He made the decision that he will marry her when he gets back from his mission. He wanted to settle down and start a family, but not on Roscadia. He wanted to put his past behind him. But it bothered him a lot in knowing that he is marked for death.

  While both of them were traveling back to her place, he realized that his feelings are just like Vaistll when she had to confront Zell’tlaxx. And it scared him. But it also reminded him of how much he needed his best friend. If she could survive the brilliant tactics of Zell’tlaxx, then maybe he too could survive what the EOD has in store for him. But that is a big maybe.

(13)

  It was 23:44 hours and Vaistll was back in her room at the Roosevelt. She was quite happy for Ramirez. She could tell that both of them were in love with each other. Like a good friend she wished them all of her best. But she still couldn’t help but to worry about what things may come for both her and Ramirez on Golden Hyperion.

  She spent half of her life fighting the EOD. So she had a rough idea of what to expect from them - the worst. But then again, she knew that calling it that didn’t even come close enough to what they will probably encounter.

  ‘Goddamn it. Too smart to be too ignorant. Not dumb enough not to worry.’ She thought to herself. Yes indeed it would be wise to have been ignorant of the strength of the EOD. But it also would have been stupid. It felt like what the EOD is in all likelihood - an ironic conundrum.

  ‘Goddamn the EOD. Curse you for creating this... new Dark Age. Curse you for being a...‘ She was thinking about the fact that the EOD is some new form of a government. That it was some form of a civilization.

  In the 20
th
and 21
st
century, movie makers underestimated the problems of space travel. They made it appeared that in a couple centuries, humans would travel the galaxy in a short period of time. They also created the false impression that when humans are traveling in space, all communications can travel that distance in an instance. They couldn’t have been more wrong. With the distance being as vast as they are, space colonies will end up declaring their independence sooner or later. There are talks on Roscadia calling for that very thing. It’s no wonder why there is no galactic UN.

  Vaistll is the one who came up with what she called ‘Theoretical Politics,’ back in the early part of the 21
st
century. It is one reason why the EOD probably went into that alternate reality back in the mid-22
nd
century. It is also the possible reason why they killed it off. Of course she knew that somebody, even the EOD, might end up adopting it. But she didn’t care.

  A few years after Theoretical Politics became widely accepted, a Japanese student at the University of Tokyo, solved the space colonial political paradox problem. Or SC-Triple-P for short. The paradox set certain rules that had to be followed. Namely you cannot use technology to solve the problem. No wormholes. No faster than light travel. It can only be solved using administration techniques.

  Here is the paradox: a politician was elected to serve the people of some distance space colony. That space colony lies thirty years from the Earth. Now it must be understood that years do not mean light-years, it means the length of time it takes to travel through space. The colony itself lies more than five light-years away. Now how do you solve the following political paradox?

  If the politician stays in the colony, then how can they vote on a very important bill, when they are needed in the nation’s capital? How does the politician stay in-touch with the people they are supposed to represent, when they stay in the capital? How can any bill get pass, or anything else for that matter, when the quickest way a politician can vote, is to use the limits of space communication and travel?  What if a colony declared its independence? How could any leader be expected to put it down, when the colonists had decades to prepare for when the military arrives? How could any democratic nation maintain itself given those administration problems?

  That student from the University of Tokyo solved it in the most simplistic of ways. Let intelligent machines run the show. Or at least some type of a program. If a machine has only one desire, one purpose, to do its job, and you programmed it to be a good politician, what should you expect from it? If all of the mayors in one sector of space is a machine, and they all have the same program, and they all think alike, then what should you expect from them? Regardless of where they are in the universe, why would all of them reach the same conclusion?

  Despite what people thought about that solution, nobody thought much about what the EOD might think about it. Not even Project 21. The EOD has no problem in removing either a local or national politician from power. They do it all the time. So why should they care if a few politicians lost all of their power to a machine? Especially when they, the EOD, control those machines.

  When it comes to the EOD community they only cared about those politicians who reflected the values of the EOD. Not the values of the people. But at the same time, they also wanted those same politicians to show some level of concern for the people’s needs. The EOD wanted their people to live in a utopian society. Not in a dystopian one.

  When the EOD heard about the solution to that paradox, they wanted to perfect it first, and then adopt it later. And what did that meant for other nations? Not much at first, but with space colonies declaring their independence, it started to mean a lot. For the EOD it meant a lot more control over other nations. The puppet master became far stronger than ever. And it was all because politicians didn’t want to give up their hold on power.

  Because of politicians clinging on to their power, all nation states have been reduced to the equivalent of a tribe. And who is the big powerful evil civilization that will one day dominate them? It is the EOD who have become, or is becoming, a galactic civilization.

  Yes indeed it is a struggle. But only Vaistll have a clear picture of that struggle. It is no longer some struggle with a rogue agency, or some secret society anymore. It is a struggle between noble tribes and a wicked civilization. It is similar to the story about the Noble Warriors.

A New Day

(1)

  Monday, it was a new day for everyone on Roscadia, a day that nobody will ever forget. Two events occurred upon that day that will change everybody lives forever. The first one occurred at 13:19 hours and the second occurred much later in the day. The first created confusion for Mad Dawg, the officers of Task Force ZH-3C and their CO’s. But it was the second event that had the most dramatic effect upon everybody. It would turn out to be the event that would affect people throughout the known galaxy regardless of where they are. It didn’t matter if they are with the EOD, Project 21, neutral, or even an ET civilization. But it effected the human civilization the strongest.

  Because of the limits that outer space imposes upon space communication, the second event actually occurred several months beforehand. And because of that, it made it far worst for Task Force ZH-3C when they learned about it. Its impact upon each member of the team forced them to stand before a crossroad that would ultimately determined their life and death. Regardless of which road that they will take, they still will face a life and death struggle. One road that would lead to an honorable death, and one in which they will live the rest of their life in disgrace.

  People like Sanchez and Choy would choose the right pathway but for all the wrong reasons. For the good people, the second event would turn out to be a major setback. As for the bad people, it would turn out to be a huge opportunity. And yet, it is the EOD who would call it nothing. The EOD would call the second event nothing, not because they didn’t care, but for the same reason why most nations would call an earthquake nothing. People may die, but they will rebuild. Life will continue, but in a new form.

  Although the EOD will recover quite quickly from the event, they are too busy focusing upon their current plans involving Golden Hyperion. The event should be a prime opportunity for Project 21 to strike back on a grand scale. If they did, then it would prove to the EOD that Project 21 is a force to be reckoned with. If Project 21 could get far more support from nations, and then hit the EOD with every thing they got, not only would the EOD be quite shocked and surprised by it, but it would throw their plans into chaos and confusion. And if Project 21 sustained the pressure against the EOD causing them to experience one major setback after another, not only would it prove that they can be beaten, but it would expose all of the EOD weaknesses. People like Ramirez would start to come out from hiding and further weaken it. Although the EOD would not be defeated, let alone destroyed, it would prove that one day, not matter how long that may be, they will be destroyed.

  But sadly none of that will occur. Instead of the EOD having their plans thrown into chaos, confusion and ruins, it is both Project 21 and the nations that support them that will suffer that fate. The thing that will ultimately throw the human race plans into absolute pandemonium is the fact in not knowing what the Necro-Mystics will do. If the EOD could be equated to an anvil, then the Necro-Mystics would be equated to a hammer. And thus, not only Project 21, but the human race is caught between the hammer of forced conversion, and the anvil of evil.

  The human race first encountered the Necro-Mystics in 2267 and four years later went to war went them. It was the behavior of the Necro-Mystics that led to the eight year long war that claimed the lives of at least 100 million humans. During the war the EOD remained neutral, mainly out of fear. Out of everyone that the EOD ever encountered, only the Necro-Mystics struck fear into their hearts. If the EOD was afraid, then the human race was terrified of the Necro-Mystics. Nevertheless, the human race beat the Necro-Mystics into a drawl. Both sides may have claimed a victory, but it came at a high price for both sides.

  When the war was over the EOD did a ten year long tactical analysis of the war. Although they are a year away from completion, their conclusion is something that neither Project 21, nor the human race wants to hear.  When they reach their conclusion sometime in the year 2289 it will state the following: if the EOD went to war with the Necro-Mystics, then in all likelihood the EOD would win that war. The EOD also calculated the odds of being defeated, which is 12.5 %. The only reason why the EOD can claim that is because they are becoming a galactic civilization.

  Whereas the human race is divided, neither the EOD, nor the Necro-Mystics, is not. The human race is not divided by will, but through the notion of nation states and space colonies. Both the EOD and the Necro-Mystics is united by a shared common belief. With the EOD, it is their notion of the struggle between utopia and dystopia. With the Necro-Mystics it is a shared religious belief, and the practice of drugging their adherents. What the EOD and the Necro-Mystics realized about the human race is this: power means far more to those who have it, then the survival of the human race. Before the second event occurred, the survival of the human race was never in any doubt. That is no longer the case. The EOD will not capitalize upon it, but the Necro-Mystics are a horse of a different color.

  Yes indeed it is true that neither the human race nor the Necro-Mystics can afford another war with each other, but that still depends upon whether or not the Necro-Mystics will start another one. The armistice between the two is always in danger of unraveling. Whether it is both sides ignoring the rules that stated that they must return captured lands, bases, etc. Both sides occasionally taking pot shots at each other ships. It tends to make the peace quite fragile At times it seems that there are too many sour grapes, and/or war hawks for peace to become a reality. And then here comes that second event to make things far worse.

  A new day comes for the people of Roscadia and for Task Force ZH-3C, but it brings uncertainly about the future. A future filled with fear and dread preventing them from thinking straight. Too many people are going to get too emotional upon this new day, and when they do, if they don’t make the right decisions, the human race will face its extinction.

(2)

  Monday, a typical working day in a place where the locals would call the place a typical hellhole. Depending upon a person’s lifestyle and/or profession, there were many different reactions to that day. For Task Force ZH-3C and the crew of Galactic Prime it was just a typical day on some moon in some star system. Coming ashore and spending time there, celebrating the weekend, spending time with friends, and hoping that it would not turn out to be their last mission. A scene that has played itself out for them countless of times before.

 
Some of the crew members of Galactic Prime, Task Force ZH-3C and Vaistll, woke up to a hangover. For Ramirez, he woke up in the arms of Maria Sadowayj. As for Caparzo, he woke up in a hospitable bed after he OD at that night club that he was at. Commodore Parker woke up at, some time around 11:30 hours to the sound of someone knocking at his door. Not only did he, not show up for work, but he also missed his photo-op with the mayor. Because of his insubordination he was yelled at by both his CO Admiral Lowenthal, and the mayor. He was then ordered back to Project 21 HQ to debrief Vaistll on Task Force ZH-3C mission. He was also reprimanded for not finishing the “paper” work for the debriefing, which was scheduled at 14:00 hours. He was ordered to “finish it” if he “knew what was good for him.”

  Parker was yelled at in the comfort of his home. He knew that the so-called paper work, including breaks, would take anywhere between 3 ½ to four hours to complete. He did have plenty of time to do the work over the weekend, but he decided to spend the time on his self-indulgence. Now, face with a growing crisis in his life, he had no other choice but to rush back to his office and do his job whether he like it or not. He arrived at his office, sat down at his desk, and began the long tedious work at 12:10 hours. Knowing that he had less than two hours to complete it.

  Parker finished the work with twelve minutes to spare. Five minutes later he got a call from Admiral Lowenthal. Lowenthal is a grandmother with both children and grandchildren who serve in one branch, or another, in the military. Three of her grandchildren serve in the CIA. She is a tough, but fair officer. Choosing to treat those under her command as if they are her grandchildren. She is well like by all those who know her. When she called Parker, he was too stressed out and fatigued by the paper work to care. He just wanted to find out what she wanted, get her off the phone, tell Vaistll about Task Force ZH-3C mission, and then call it a day.

  “Admiral Lowenthal... what can I do for you?”

  “Parker, something has come up that warrant that I should inform Captain Adnrwal of her mission. It is considered mission critical that I should be the one to inform her. Have you completed the mission report yet?”

  “Yes ma’am.”

  “Good job. Now please send it to me.”

  “Ma’am.... How come I’m not the one to deliver it to her?”

  “Never mind about that.... just send me the report.”

  “Ma’am.... I-I just don’t understand why you...”

  “Parker... it is considered... mission critical. So here is a suggestion to you - don’t ask. And don’t go over my head and inform the CCO on this. Got it.”

  “Got it... ma’am.”

  As a Commodore, Parker knew that something was wrong. But what? He didn’t know. He knew what Task Force ZH-3C will face on Golden Hyperion. After all, he spent the last two hours working on the report, not her. So what could be considered mission critical, when the mission itself is critical? What is so important that an Admiral should take over? Why can’t he go to the CCO when an Admiral wants to change something that is considered insignificant and meaningless? With a critical mission like that upon Golden Hyperion he should have the right to go to the CCO.

  Parker should have known better than to think of stuff like that. All Captains know that the limits that space impose upon communications can warrant that an Admiral take over without being approved of by the CCO under certain conditions. The situation that presented itself (less than an hour ago) did in fact give Admiral Lowenthal the right to take over. She is close enough to Roscadia to make quick decisions. With the CCO it will take several weeks for them to be able to make the decision that she can in fact take over. Parker should have known all of that. But for whatever reason he seemed to have forgotten all of that.

  “Now download the report Parker... and I will forgive you of this insubordination.” With that, he then downloaded the report. She didn’t say anything and just hung up on him.

  “Bitch.” He said out loud and shook his head. But what really irked him the most was wasting two hours on that report. And then here comes Admiral Lowenthal taking it over without giving him any reasons why. It would have been different if she did give him some type of a reason. But that wouldn’t have been professional of her. She was right in feeling that Parker is being unprofessional when he didn’t understand what, “is considered mission critical that I should be the one to inform her,” meant. He should have known better that when something is considered mission critical, and an Admiral needs to take over, for him not to push it, and don’t ask stupid questions.

  Parker knew that everything that he did on that Monday will make it that much harder for him to get promoted out of Roscadia. He knew that his grave is getting deeper with the walls collapsing in all around him. He knew that if he doesn’t do something real soon, then he will end up being buried in that god forsaken hellhole. He knew that if he keeps on appearing to be insubordinate in front of his officers then he will be demoted back to Fleet Captain - which is what he would like. But he also knew that he hasn’t been a Fleet Captain in awhile, and that means lack of experience. And therefore in all likelihood, he probably would be demoted back down to a Captain. Being just a Captain was always something that he hated doing. Without Parker realizing it, he is becoming not only a trapped soul, but also someone who is ripe for joining the EOD.

(3)

  Monday 13:19 hours, the Communication Officer on Starbase 231 just alerted Mad Dawg that an EOD scientific vessel Ultra Class M1 was detected entering into the Vegas star system. Typically, any type of an Ultra Class scientific vessel, whenever and wherever it travels, will always be accompanied by one Battle Cruiser and five small attack ships. The M1 Class has 1,500 military personnel, and 150 scientific personnel on board. Each one of the small attack craft has 500 military personnel, and the Battle Cruiser has 8,000 on board. There are 12 thousand military personnel guarding an Ultra Class type of an EOD ship. But this one particular Ultra Class had no protection or battle scars upon it. No matter what the condition of an Ultra Class is in, the EOD would rather turn it into scrap, than to sell it at a handsome profit.

  Since Galactic Prime was the only military vessel that was docked at Starbase 231, they had to be the one to go and investigate. It became quite obvious from the start that Ultra M1 was either unmanned or the crew was dead. The ship stopped before it got to the starbase suggesting that it was on autopilot. But still, the crew of Galactic Prime, and Starbase 231 couldn’t help but to feel on edge in not knowing if it was an EOD trick. If it was a trick then it would be the first. But what type of a trick could it be for the EOD to use an Ultra Class M1 vessel? What horrors waited for the crew as they go on board to investigate? If it is not the EOD, than who is it, and why are they doing this? Who is powerful enough to pull something like that off? Successfully capturing that type of a ship, without leaving any battle scars upon it.