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- Story Listed as: Fiction For Teens
- Theme: Science Fiction
- Subject: War & Peace
- Published: 06/02/2011
Kid Army 23: Wide Open
Born 1997, M, from Mercer, PA, United States.jpg)
Chapter One: Awakening
Location: Unknown
Time: Unknown
When you awake from a deep sleep it is like being slugged by a hammer. At first your like, where am I? Then you realize that you are in your bed. When I awoke, I wasn't in my own bed. I was in a medical bay on what looked like aboard a space cruiser. Nothing too advanced, but nothing cheap either. The room was empty from people except for a doctor on the other side of the room. They were going through files. I saw only their back and the iconic white lab coat.
My vision was extremely blurred. I glanced to the bed stand table and grabbed my glasses. I put them on. The room was much clearer. The doctor turned. She looked about 15 and she was quite pretty. She looked directly at me.
“Commander Garing, your awake…” She picked up a clipboard and walked over to me, “Ease up, your safe now.”
“Safe? From what?” I wondered aloud.
“Everything will be explained soon, Commander. Rest now.”
I laid back down the rest of the way and closed my eyes. I tried to bring back past memories but I couldn’t. Everything was a distant haze. It was like the only memory I had was waking up in this strange new place, like a newborn infant. The strangest feeling I had was that this place, this lab, what this thing was, wasn’t Kid Army. Maybe it was Cobra. No, it couldn’t have been… The Cobra’s were ruthless fighters that would spare no one. They were not known to spare the Commander of their archenemies, but I wasn’t the Commander of KA. Command Circle had decided to throw me out and out Major Ryley in. What if the Cobra’s need me?
-----------------------------------FLASHBACK----------------------------
-------------------------------(Several years ago)----------------------
“What in God’s name is THAT?” yelled Nathan Davis. A deformed human, with blood rolling out of its mouth, charged forward.
“Run! Let’s get to the EVAC point,” I ordered. Nathan wouldn’t budge.
Oh my God. Colt, that thing is JARED!” he exclaimed. Jared was another kid in line for the rank of Commander. He was a strongly built kid but now he was a bloodthirsty zombie.
“What do we do?” Nathan asked.
“We have to save him,” he continued. Nathan looked closely at Jared. I could feel the sorrow dripping off him like sweat. I pulled up my handgun.
-----------------------------END FLASHBACK-----------------------------------
--------------------------(Present Day)--------------------------------
My memory died to the sound of super sonic explosions. My eyes shot open. I was face first on the ground. A massive headache over took my body. Some one pushed me and gently kicked me.
“COMMANDER! COMMANDER GARING!” the voice yelled loudly into my ear. I quickly got to my legs, but another explosion rocked the hull, causing me to fall back on my back. I got back to my standing position.
“What the ---- is going on here, soldier?” I yelled at the unit standing near me. My head was still throbbing with intense pain. The soldier was a young looking male, probably about 13 or 14.
He started talking, “Commander Garing, the orbital station is under attack. Hostile forces are closing in using assault pods. We need to get you out of here. Follow me, sir, now!”
“Can you explain anything?” I shot out.
“Sir, please trust me. Time is short. We must hurry,” the soldier said to me. The station was racked by yet another explosion. I WAS running out of time. I guess I had no choice. I nodded to the boy. He turned and jogged for the bulkhead door. I followed him. While crossing through the door he turned and threw and sidearm pistol in my direction. I reached up and grabbed it from the air. The sleek weapon fit firmly against my hand. I wrapped my fingers around the trigger and grip. I pulled back the cocking lever and let it fly forward. This was a Cobra sidearm, but not just any, it was an EGD-44 shot blast pistol to be exact. These legendary pistols were extremely powerful and exceptionally accurate. Now that was my kind of weapon.
“Eight rounds, sir! And don’t bother putting a round in the back of my skull. These Sordin are a pain to kill,” he warned.
Cobra weapons? Orbital Space Station? Sordin? What was going on here? No time to ask any questions, but to my assumptions I was aboard a Cobra base in space that was being attacked by the Sordin, whatever the Sordin were. This was messed up. We rounded a corner and several security soldiers in Cobra Special Forces armor equipped with heavy assault rifle looking weapons were running forward. One stopped and turned toward us.
“The shuttle is that way, sir!” the soldier pointed in the opposite direction. The boy guiding me tugged on my arm and then took off in the direction the other soldier had pointed to. I followed close behind, being careful not to fall over. Another explosion went off and a pipe next to me, shooting flames down to the floor, turning the metal into boiling liquid.
We rounded a corner and the boy yelled, “The shuttle is right there, at the end of the hall, sir!”
As we neared the escape shuttle, a strange accented voice yelled from behind us, “Filthy Cobras!” The boy guiding me stopped dead in his tracks. We both turned to the voice.
Two semi-tall creatures with thick brown and gray scale skin looked at us. They somewhat resembled dinosaurs. They looked like a Tyrannosaurus Rex to be exact. They held large energy emitting, rifle looking weapons in their hands.
“COBRA SCUM!” the one creature exclaimed.
“That’s the Sordin, Commander,” the boy said.
My eyes narrowed, “Better to me dead.” I aimed the shot blast pistol up and took one quick shot at the Sordin on the left. The bullet left the chamber and entered the Sordin’s skull with complete precision. The shot took the Sordin’s whole entire skull off. Blue blood splattered on the wall behind the alien. The remaining Sordin screamed a battle call and threw his gun down onto the ground. He charged forward, much like the creature in my dream, but he wasn’t the same thing. The boy shoved me back into the pod hatch. Then he slammed his fist down onto the lock panel. The door slammed shut, leaving the soldier unarmed and outgunned, to his death. His screams echoed throughout my head as the pod left its docking zone.
Chapter Two: Hidden Jack
Location: Emergency shuttle, exact coordinates unknown.
Time: Space-no exact time.
I peered through the porthole. I watched the destruction of the space station. I noticed at least a dozen pod launches, for shuttles like mine, had black shuttles that were layered thick with armor. These shuttles were probably the Sordin’s. The Sordin were extremely advanced aliens from what I had seen. They definitely were battle hardened. I couldn’t take all this info in at once. Space travel wasn’t new. Kid Army and Cobra forces had long since discovered that, but aliens? The Sordin were no doubt just another being out there in the universe, but how come Kid Army never knew about these ‘things’? Surely the Cobras hadn’t been at war with them the whole time. There was one other thing that didn’t make any sense at all; was I in Cobra hands? I didn’t have time to process any of the details because a holo-display activated and an 18-year-old male in a chair in the middle of an empty room appeared. This was strange.
“Commander Garing, pleasure to finally meet you,” he started.
I walked towards the display, “May I ask who I’m talking to?”
“I am Hidden Jack. The true leader of the Cobra forces,” he nodded.
As confused as I was, I kept a straight face, “So I’m in Cobra hands then?”
“Indeed you are, Commander,” he continued.
This was messed up. I leaned against the side of the ship, “What do you want to do with me? Aren’t I worth more dead?”
He stared directly into my eyes, “You could’ve been executed by Major Ryley and Kid Army, but I ordered my ground teams in Pittsburgh to find you and EVAC you before you entered Kennywood, but your stealth kept you hidden. They still got you out before capture. I’m sorry about your loss with Private Rose.”
I shook my head, “Why?”
He chuckled, “You may have seen a glimpse of the Sordin, correct? They are ruthless creatures that will stop at nothing to kill every human and being in this galaxy and universe and beyond. There leader, Rala Al’ Maundamn, is power hungry and wants the human race gone. I need your marksman skills and tactical abilities to advance a stealth mission to eliminate him from existence. I need you to lead a team, Commander.”
I crossed my arms, “So I’m supposed to trust you, do what you say, kill a being I DON’T know and you’ll do what for me?”
He avoided the question, “Just listen to me, Commander. This shuttle is taking you to another Cobra cruiser. Actually it is a flagship of a fleet. The flagship Chamber of Omega fleet was what it was to be exact. There you will be briefed and reequipped.”
“And what if I don’t want to assist you?” I asked.
He smiled, “What choice do you have, Commander? Your wanted by Kid Army, the infection is raging throughout Earth, and if Rala isn’t stopped there will be no home, Earth, or life. So tell me; do you want to fight or spend the war in a prison cell?”
Jack had a point. I was wanted and Earth wasn’t safe. There was only one thing wrong here; my original theory about KA’s corruption was that Ryley was really working for the Cobra’s. Now if that was true, why would Jack save me? Unless Ryley went too far, nothing made any sense at all, but Jack was right. I had no choice.
“Alright I’ll talk to you when I get there, Jack,” I said.
Jack slowly spun around in his chair, “Good choice, Commander. When you land guides will be there to escort you to communications deck. You can rest for now, Commander.”
The hologram faded out. I took a long deep breath and took a seat on a bench on the side of the small ship. I buried my face into my hands and took a long deep breath. If I wasn’t being cheated, this was going to be one hell of a mission. I drifted off into a light sleep.
Chapter Three: Deployment Orders
Location: Cobra Fleet Omega, Flagship Chamber
Time: Space- no exact time.
Chamber was an extremely large space cruiser. The fleet it was assigned with was large too. Thirty-four variously sized ships were in the fleet. I realized something after looking at the fleet for a few minutes; the Cobra’s were actually a bigger threat than I, or KA had imagined. The only reason we hadn’t had any trouble with them was because they were also at war with the Sordin. That meant their forces were split half and half. The shuttle settled down and the back ramp came down. I walked down into the cargo bay of the flagship. I was impressed. This bay was huge. I was astonished.
“Commander!” a Cobra soldier went to attention and saluted. I returned his salute. He immediately exited attention.
“We are to take you to Hidden Jack, sir. Please follow us,” he said. I followed and started analyzing the new details. Why did his soldiers call him Hidden Jack? Did they not even see him? Impossible, I was going to see him… was he human? YES! He HAD to be human, no doubt about that.
The troops stopped. I had not noticed we were already at our destination.
“Hidden Jack is through here, Commander,” the previously speaking soldier said. I nodded and thanked him.
It was a large bulkhead designed door with Communications Center Advanced Personal ONLY Beyond This Point painted on it. I waved my hand over a holo-lock module and the door slid open. I walked forward and into the center of the room. There was a large 4 by 6 rectangle in the center of the room. It was black and looked like it had hundreds of some sensors on it. I stepped into it. Immediately the atmosphere changed and I was in front of Jack. This time I was in a hologram device.
“Commander,” he nodded, still in the same chair and empty room.
“Jack, I should’ve known I wouldn’t be meeting you in person,” I chuckled.
He backs himself up, “Precautions, Garing. Please don’t take offense to that."
I ignored his remark, “Alright Jack, I will fight for you Jack, but I need some really straight answers.”
“Anything, Commander,” Jack folded his hands.
“Where and what is happening to the rest of my rogue team?” I started.
Jack sat up in his chair, “General Schimp has rogue Raptor team holed up at your ranch house. Why? I do not know. They are doing well and are not listed as spotted in any files that I know of. I have instructed that all Cobra forces stay out of his AO so he is uninterrupted in his operations. So far he is stressed with your disappearance, but he is keeping the team motivated. Although I believe the US military has a fix on their location.”
My eyes widened, “US military?”
Jack nodded solemnly, “With you gone, Ryley had no trouble getting the top Generals on his side. Many KA and US forces remain loyal to you but are forced to follow orders.”
“How about the spreading of the infection?” I asked.
Jack took a deep breath, “Every continent except Antarctica and Africa has high infection levels. Data collected shows the climate and land of the two continents keeps them safe. All remaining civilian forces around the planet are located at Africa. The continent is overloaded and has too large a population on it. Food is also scarce here and almost every civilian is living in poverty. Currency is used less since most people are just trading anything they can find. The only forces left in the US are it’s military recon teams and KA security teams.”
“Can I use my team for your mission?” I folded my arms.
Jack sighed, “I knew you would ask that, Commander. Sadly I will not allow that due to the fact that it will disturb the KA forces near the area of General Schimp if we go to pick him up. Lets try to keep KA out of this, Garing.”
I thought for a minute, “Alright Jack, give me a team. BUT remember, I’m working with you, not for you!”
Jack nodded, “Ready for briefing?”
I dropped my sloppy posture, “Ready.”
Jack finally stood up from his chair, “As I saved you for your leadership and marksmanship, you will remain a Commander in the Cobra branch and you will be the primary marksman for the mission. You will prep with your team in the Special Forces bay while the ship moves the Sordin’s home world, Sordinia. Then you will move to the ground and eliminate Rala Al’ Maundamn. He is located at the Sordin Citadel, where he conducts diplomacy. Kill him. When that is complete, radio me your exact coordinates. Rala must be stopped at all costs. Remember; he will try to deceive you. Don’t let his appearance trick you. Alright, Commander?”
Roger that, we will set a course immediately,” I said.
Jack nodded and sat back down in his chair while I exited the range of the sensors. It was time to prepare.
Chapter Four: Fishy Remarks
Location: Flagship Chamber, Planet Sordinia Orbit
Time: 10:37 A.M. (Sordinia Local)
Sordinia was at least ten times the size of Earth. The cities were much bigger too. You could actually make the size of the city and the shape of it as a whole. It was stunning.
I was in a small Special Forces bay prepping for deployment with the soldiers that Hidden Jack had selected for me.
(F) LIEUTENANT COLONEL (LTC) Allison: Back-up sniper
(M) SERGEANT MAJOR (SGM) Johnson: Security
(M) CORPORAL (CPL) Owen: Security
I was the primary sniper for the mission.
I sensed immediately that Allison took a liking to me. She was a sparkly young girl, probably about 15, with long curly blonde hair. Her body was extremely mature for her age. While the security soldiers kept to themselves, Allison talked about how she yearned to go back to her home world, Ailious. After talking for a while I discovered that the Cobra’s had a civil population too. She went on and on about her planet. I was astonished about the history she had. She lost her mom when she was young and almost never saw her dad who worked for the Cobra’s. It was sad. All of a sudden another memory flooded into me.
----------------------------------FLASHBACK----------------------------------
-----------------------(SEVERAL YEARS AGO)--------------------------
“I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU SHOT HIM!” Nathan shoved me to the ground. He started slamming his fists into my chest, over and over again. I gasped for breath then shoved him off of me and kicked him down. I got up. Nathan did the same and shoved me again.
He was yelling again, “You son of a-” I cut him off by pushing him into a tree.
“I had no choice,” I shot.
“That was our friend you idiot!” Nathan charged forward. I ducked down and brought up a swift uppercut. He staggered back. His body eased up.
“You killed him,” he sobbed. I never saw Nathan cry before. He was a rough individual.
“No Nathan, I shot it. That wasn’t Jared. That thing wasn’t even human. It was an it,” I said. Nathan didn’t respond.
I changed the subject, “Look man, we got the data! Let’s get to the EVAC.”
Nathan looked at me, “Let’s move.”
------------------------------ END FLASHBACK ------------------------------
------------------------------(Present Day)-----------------------------
Allison was still talking about Aileous. The security soldiers had gotten up and walked over to the ship in the SF cargo bay.
“Whenever your ready, Commander,” Corporal Owen said. The ship was unarmed. Corporal Owen saw me eyeing it.
“It's what the locals use for trading,” he said. I nodded slowly but something didn’t seem right. If the Sordin’s were war-going peoples, why did they worry about trade? The Sordin I met before spoke very fluent English. Something was fishy.
I nodded, “Let’s move.”
Chapter Five: Betrayed
Location: Planet Sordinia, Citadel Outskirts
Time: 12:03 (Sordinia Local)
It was a quick trek from our landing zone to the sniping vantage point we would use to take down Rala Al’ Maundamn. This planet was exactly the opposite I thought it would be. I imagined huge war factories and bases. The actual planet had little to no pollution, untouched forests and mountains as far as the eye could see, and much wildlife. The planet was very natural.
We were on an overlook that gave a completely perfect view of the citadel. It looked beautiful. In fact it almost looked religious. No, it was religious. It was very strange for a war torn species to be engulfed in a religion that much.
I got down on the ground with my rifle. Allison got to a crouched position three feet to my right. We were both equipped with the same sniper rifle. I peered through my scope and immediately found Rala. He had a distinctive blue face. Something wasn’t right though. Rala was dressed like a priest, not like a war hero. He was smiling and looked cheerful. He was also talking to humans. Was this possible?
One of the security soldiers yelled at me, “Did you find him, Commander?”
Something didn’t sound right so I lied, “No.”
“Well make it quick,” he snapped. Behind me I heard two shotguns slam close. I noticed Allison tense up.
“Commander?” he asked a third time. Right then I knew what was going to happen? A shotgun exploded as I barrel rolled to my right. The corporal was re-cocking his shotgun. I ran up and grabbed the sergeant from behind; he swung his elbow back and slammed into my skull. I fell to the ground.
“Sergeant, no!” Allison screamed. They were planning to kill me all along. The corporal jumped from my left and pinned my body to the ground. I struggled but he kept me down.
“YOU COWARD!” I yelled.
“Calm down, Commander,” he snickered. The sergeant walked up with his shotgun. He made a quick salute for respect. I was used to betrayal. A gun exploded, but it wasn’t a shotgun. The sergeant’s body was now a crumpled heap over a pool of blood. The corporal jumped off of me.
“Allison, what are you doing?” he exclaimed. She said nothing but fired her rifle at Owen. He was instantly killed.
I got off the ground, “Allison?”
She stared crying, “I’m sorry Colt! I deceived you. I’m sorry!”
I took her in my arms, “You saved me.”
She started to explain herself, “The Sordin are really peaceful people. It is the Cobra’s who are the evil ones! I’m sorry for not telling you sooner… I wanted to, honestly I did! But I didn’t know how to say it.”
I thought about everything that had happened. I had bad luck when it came to girls, in my past. I decided to live this moment as long as I could and just leave everything bad around me behind. I reached near her face and brushed her silky hair over her ear. Then I kissed her. Every other problem in this galaxy was just going to have to wait its turn because after being set up and betrayed, all I wanted was this girl.
This is Commander Garing, signing off.
Kid Army 23: Wide Open(Colt Garing)
Chapter One: Awakening
Location: Unknown
Time: Unknown
When you awake from a deep sleep it is like being slugged by a hammer. At first your like, where am I? Then you realize that you are in your bed. When I awoke, I wasn't in my own bed. I was in a medical bay on what looked like aboard a space cruiser. Nothing too advanced, but nothing cheap either. The room was empty from people except for a doctor on the other side of the room. They were going through files. I saw only their back and the iconic white lab coat.
My vision was extremely blurred. I glanced to the bed stand table and grabbed my glasses. I put them on. The room was much clearer. The doctor turned. She looked about 15 and she was quite pretty. She looked directly at me.
“Commander Garing, your awake…” She picked up a clipboard and walked over to me, “Ease up, your safe now.”
“Safe? From what?” I wondered aloud.
“Everything will be explained soon, Commander. Rest now.”
I laid back down the rest of the way and closed my eyes. I tried to bring back past memories but I couldn’t. Everything was a distant haze. It was like the only memory I had was waking up in this strange new place, like a newborn infant. The strangest feeling I had was that this place, this lab, what this thing was, wasn’t Kid Army. Maybe it was Cobra. No, it couldn’t have been… The Cobra’s were ruthless fighters that would spare no one. They were not known to spare the Commander of their archenemies, but I wasn’t the Commander of KA. Command Circle had decided to throw me out and out Major Ryley in. What if the Cobra’s need me?
-----------------------------------FLASHBACK----------------------------
-------------------------------(Several years ago)----------------------
“What in God’s name is THAT?” yelled Nathan Davis. A deformed human, with blood rolling out of its mouth, charged forward.
“Run! Let’s get to the EVAC point,” I ordered. Nathan wouldn’t budge.
Oh my God. Colt, that thing is JARED!” he exclaimed. Jared was another kid in line for the rank of Commander. He was a strongly built kid but now he was a bloodthirsty zombie.
“What do we do?” Nathan asked.
“We have to save him,” he continued. Nathan looked closely at Jared. I could feel the sorrow dripping off him like sweat. I pulled up my handgun.
-----------------------------END FLASHBACK-----------------------------------
--------------------------(Present Day)--------------------------------
My memory died to the sound of super sonic explosions. My eyes shot open. I was face first on the ground. A massive headache over took my body. Some one pushed me and gently kicked me.
“COMMANDER! COMMANDER GARING!” the voice yelled loudly into my ear. I quickly got to my legs, but another explosion rocked the hull, causing me to fall back on my back. I got back to my standing position.
“What the ---- is going on here, soldier?” I yelled at the unit standing near me. My head was still throbbing with intense pain. The soldier was a young looking male, probably about 13 or 14.
He started talking, “Commander Garing, the orbital station is under attack. Hostile forces are closing in using assault pods. We need to get you out of here. Follow me, sir, now!”
“Can you explain anything?” I shot out.
“Sir, please trust me. Time is short. We must hurry,” the soldier said to me. The station was racked by yet another explosion. I WAS running out of time. I guess I had no choice. I nodded to the boy. He turned and jogged for the bulkhead door. I followed him. While crossing through the door he turned and threw and sidearm pistol in my direction. I reached up and grabbed it from the air. The sleek weapon fit firmly against my hand. I wrapped my fingers around the trigger and grip. I pulled back the cocking lever and let it fly forward. This was a Cobra sidearm, but not just any, it was an EGD-44 shot blast pistol to be exact. These legendary pistols were extremely powerful and exceptionally accurate. Now that was my kind of weapon.
“Eight rounds, sir! And don’t bother putting a round in the back of my skull. These Sordin are a pain to kill,” he warned.
Cobra weapons? Orbital Space Station? Sordin? What was going on here? No time to ask any questions, but to my assumptions I was aboard a Cobra base in space that was being attacked by the Sordin, whatever the Sordin were. This was messed up. We rounded a corner and several security soldiers in Cobra Special Forces armor equipped with heavy assault rifle looking weapons were running forward. One stopped and turned toward us.
“The shuttle is that way, sir!” the soldier pointed in the opposite direction. The boy guiding me tugged on my arm and then took off in the direction the other soldier had pointed to. I followed close behind, being careful not to fall over. Another explosion went off and a pipe next to me, shooting flames down to the floor, turning the metal into boiling liquid.
We rounded a corner and the boy yelled, “The shuttle is right there, at the end of the hall, sir!”
As we neared the escape shuttle, a strange accented voice yelled from behind us, “Filthy Cobras!” The boy guiding me stopped dead in his tracks. We both turned to the voice.
Two semi-tall creatures with thick brown and gray scale skin looked at us. They somewhat resembled dinosaurs. They looked like a Tyrannosaurus Rex to be exact. They held large energy emitting, rifle looking weapons in their hands.
“COBRA SCUM!” the one creature exclaimed.
“That’s the Sordin, Commander,” the boy said.
My eyes narrowed, “Better to me dead.” I aimed the shot blast pistol up and took one quick shot at the Sordin on the left. The bullet left the chamber and entered the Sordin’s skull with complete precision. The shot took the Sordin’s whole entire skull off. Blue blood splattered on the wall behind the alien. The remaining Sordin screamed a battle call and threw his gun down onto the ground. He charged forward, much like the creature in my dream, but he wasn’t the same thing. The boy shoved me back into the pod hatch. Then he slammed his fist down onto the lock panel. The door slammed shut, leaving the soldier unarmed and outgunned, to his death. His screams echoed throughout my head as the pod left its docking zone.
Chapter Two: Hidden Jack
Location: Emergency shuttle, exact coordinates unknown.
Time: Space-no exact time.
I peered through the porthole. I watched the destruction of the space station. I noticed at least a dozen pod launches, for shuttles like mine, had black shuttles that were layered thick with armor. These shuttles were probably the Sordin’s. The Sordin were extremely advanced aliens from what I had seen. They definitely were battle hardened. I couldn’t take all this info in at once. Space travel wasn’t new. Kid Army and Cobra forces had long since discovered that, but aliens? The Sordin were no doubt just another being out there in the universe, but how come Kid Army never knew about these ‘things’? Surely the Cobras hadn’t been at war with them the whole time. There was one other thing that didn’t make any sense at all; was I in Cobra hands? I didn’t have time to process any of the details because a holo-display activated and an 18-year-old male in a chair in the middle of an empty room appeared. This was strange.
“Commander Garing, pleasure to finally meet you,” he started.
I walked towards the display, “May I ask who I’m talking to?”
“I am Hidden Jack. The true leader of the Cobra forces,” he nodded.
As confused as I was, I kept a straight face, “So I’m in Cobra hands then?”
“Indeed you are, Commander,” he continued.
This was messed up. I leaned against the side of the ship, “What do you want to do with me? Aren’t I worth more dead?”
He stared directly into my eyes, “You could’ve been executed by Major Ryley and Kid Army, but I ordered my ground teams in Pittsburgh to find you and EVAC you before you entered Kennywood, but your stealth kept you hidden. They still got you out before capture. I’m sorry about your loss with Private Rose.”
I shook my head, “Why?”
He chuckled, “You may have seen a glimpse of the Sordin, correct? They are ruthless creatures that will stop at nothing to kill every human and being in this galaxy and universe and beyond. There leader, Rala Al’ Maundamn, is power hungry and wants the human race gone. I need your marksman skills and tactical abilities to advance a stealth mission to eliminate him from existence. I need you to lead a team, Commander.”
I crossed my arms, “So I’m supposed to trust you, do what you say, kill a being I DON’T know and you’ll do what for me?”
He avoided the question, “Just listen to me, Commander. This shuttle is taking you to another Cobra cruiser. Actually it is a flagship of a fleet. The flagship Chamber of Omega fleet was what it was to be exact. There you will be briefed and reequipped.”
“And what if I don’t want to assist you?” I asked.
He smiled, “What choice do you have, Commander? Your wanted by Kid Army, the infection is raging throughout Earth, and if Rala isn’t stopped there will be no home, Earth, or life. So tell me; do you want to fight or spend the war in a prison cell?”
Jack had a point. I was wanted and Earth wasn’t safe. There was only one thing wrong here; my original theory about KA’s corruption was that Ryley was really working for the Cobra’s. Now if that was true, why would Jack save me? Unless Ryley went too far, nothing made any sense at all, but Jack was right. I had no choice.
“Alright I’ll talk to you when I get there, Jack,” I said.
Jack slowly spun around in his chair, “Good choice, Commander. When you land guides will be there to escort you to communications deck. You can rest for now, Commander.”
The hologram faded out. I took a long deep breath and took a seat on a bench on the side of the small ship. I buried my face into my hands and took a long deep breath. If I wasn’t being cheated, this was going to be one hell of a mission. I drifted off into a light sleep.
Chapter Three: Deployment Orders
Location: Cobra Fleet Omega, Flagship Chamber
Time: Space- no exact time.
Chamber was an extremely large space cruiser. The fleet it was assigned with was large too. Thirty-four variously sized ships were in the fleet. I realized something after looking at the fleet for a few minutes; the Cobra’s were actually a bigger threat than I, or KA had imagined. The only reason we hadn’t had any trouble with them was because they were also at war with the Sordin. That meant their forces were split half and half. The shuttle settled down and the back ramp came down. I walked down into the cargo bay of the flagship. I was impressed. This bay was huge. I was astonished.
“Commander!” a Cobra soldier went to attention and saluted. I returned his salute. He immediately exited attention.
“We are to take you to Hidden Jack, sir. Please follow us,” he said. I followed and started analyzing the new details. Why did his soldiers call him Hidden Jack? Did they not even see him? Impossible, I was going to see him… was he human? YES! He HAD to be human, no doubt about that.
The troops stopped. I had not noticed we were already at our destination.
“Hidden Jack is through here, Commander,” the previously speaking soldier said. I nodded and thanked him.
It was a large bulkhead designed door with Communications Center Advanced Personal ONLY Beyond This Point painted on it. I waved my hand over a holo-lock module and the door slid open. I walked forward and into the center of the room. There was a large 4 by 6 rectangle in the center of the room. It was black and looked like it had hundreds of some sensors on it. I stepped into it. Immediately the atmosphere changed and I was in front of Jack. This time I was in a hologram device.
“Commander,” he nodded, still in the same chair and empty room.
“Jack, I should’ve known I wouldn’t be meeting you in person,” I chuckled.
He backs himself up, “Precautions, Garing. Please don’t take offense to that."
I ignored his remark, “Alright Jack, I will fight for you Jack, but I need some really straight answers.”
“Anything, Commander,” Jack folded his hands.
“Where and what is happening to the rest of my rogue team?” I started.
Jack sat up in his chair, “General Schimp has rogue Raptor team holed up at your ranch house. Why? I do not know. They are doing well and are not listed as spotted in any files that I know of. I have instructed that all Cobra forces stay out of his AO so he is uninterrupted in his operations. So far he is stressed with your disappearance, but he is keeping the team motivated. Although I believe the US military has a fix on their location.”
My eyes widened, “US military?”
Jack nodded solemnly, “With you gone, Ryley had no trouble getting the top Generals on his side. Many KA and US forces remain loyal to you but are forced to follow orders.”
“How about the spreading of the infection?” I asked.
Jack took a deep breath, “Every continent except Antarctica and Africa has high infection levels. Data collected shows the climate and land of the two continents keeps them safe. All remaining civilian forces around the planet are located at Africa. The continent is overloaded and has too large a population on it. Food is also scarce here and almost every civilian is living in poverty. Currency is used less since most people are just trading anything they can find. The only forces left in the US are it’s military recon teams and KA security teams.”
“Can I use my team for your mission?” I folded my arms.
Jack sighed, “I knew you would ask that, Commander. Sadly I will not allow that due to the fact that it will disturb the KA forces near the area of General Schimp if we go to pick him up. Lets try to keep KA out of this, Garing.”
I thought for a minute, “Alright Jack, give me a team. BUT remember, I’m working with you, not for you!”
Jack nodded, “Ready for briefing?”
I dropped my sloppy posture, “Ready.”
Jack finally stood up from his chair, “As I saved you for your leadership and marksmanship, you will remain a Commander in the Cobra branch and you will be the primary marksman for the mission. You will prep with your team in the Special Forces bay while the ship moves the Sordin’s home world, Sordinia. Then you will move to the ground and eliminate Rala Al’ Maundamn. He is located at the Sordin Citadel, where he conducts diplomacy. Kill him. When that is complete, radio me your exact coordinates. Rala must be stopped at all costs. Remember; he will try to deceive you. Don’t let his appearance trick you. Alright, Commander?”
Roger that, we will set a course immediately,” I said.
Jack nodded and sat back down in his chair while I exited the range of the sensors. It was time to prepare.
Chapter Four: Fishy Remarks
Location: Flagship Chamber, Planet Sordinia Orbit
Time: 10:37 A.M. (Sordinia Local)
Sordinia was at least ten times the size of Earth. The cities were much bigger too. You could actually make the size of the city and the shape of it as a whole. It was stunning.
I was in a small Special Forces bay prepping for deployment with the soldiers that Hidden Jack had selected for me.
(F) LIEUTENANT COLONEL (LTC) Allison: Back-up sniper
(M) SERGEANT MAJOR (SGM) Johnson: Security
(M) CORPORAL (CPL) Owen: Security
I was the primary sniper for the mission.
I sensed immediately that Allison took a liking to me. She was a sparkly young girl, probably about 15, with long curly blonde hair. Her body was extremely mature for her age. While the security soldiers kept to themselves, Allison talked about how she yearned to go back to her home world, Ailious. After talking for a while I discovered that the Cobra’s had a civil population too. She went on and on about her planet. I was astonished about the history she had. She lost her mom when she was young and almost never saw her dad who worked for the Cobra’s. It was sad. All of a sudden another memory flooded into me.
----------------------------------FLASHBACK----------------------------------
-----------------------(SEVERAL YEARS AGO)--------------------------
“I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU SHOT HIM!” Nathan shoved me to the ground. He started slamming his fists into my chest, over and over again. I gasped for breath then shoved him off of me and kicked him down. I got up. Nathan did the same and shoved me again.
He was yelling again, “You son of a-” I cut him off by pushing him into a tree.
“I had no choice,” I shot.
“That was our friend you idiot!” Nathan charged forward. I ducked down and brought up a swift uppercut. He staggered back. His body eased up.
“You killed him,” he sobbed. I never saw Nathan cry before. He was a rough individual.
“No Nathan, I shot it. That wasn’t Jared. That thing wasn’t even human. It was an it,” I said. Nathan didn’t respond.
I changed the subject, “Look man, we got the data! Let’s get to the EVAC.”
Nathan looked at me, “Let’s move.”
------------------------------ END FLASHBACK ------------------------------
------------------------------(Present Day)-----------------------------
Allison was still talking about Aileous. The security soldiers had gotten up and walked over to the ship in the SF cargo bay.
“Whenever your ready, Commander,” Corporal Owen said. The ship was unarmed. Corporal Owen saw me eyeing it.
“It's what the locals use for trading,” he said. I nodded slowly but something didn’t seem right. If the Sordin’s were war-going peoples, why did they worry about trade? The Sordin I met before spoke very fluent English. Something was fishy.
I nodded, “Let’s move.”
Chapter Five: Betrayed
Location: Planet Sordinia, Citadel Outskirts
Time: 12:03 (Sordinia Local)
It was a quick trek from our landing zone to the sniping vantage point we would use to take down Rala Al’ Maundamn. This planet was exactly the opposite I thought it would be. I imagined huge war factories and bases. The actual planet had little to no pollution, untouched forests and mountains as far as the eye could see, and much wildlife. The planet was very natural.
We were on an overlook that gave a completely perfect view of the citadel. It looked beautiful. In fact it almost looked religious. No, it was religious. It was very strange for a war torn species to be engulfed in a religion that much.
I got down on the ground with my rifle. Allison got to a crouched position three feet to my right. We were both equipped with the same sniper rifle. I peered through my scope and immediately found Rala. He had a distinctive blue face. Something wasn’t right though. Rala was dressed like a priest, not like a war hero. He was smiling and looked cheerful. He was also talking to humans. Was this possible?
One of the security soldiers yelled at me, “Did you find him, Commander?”
Something didn’t sound right so I lied, “No.”
“Well make it quick,” he snapped. Behind me I heard two shotguns slam close. I noticed Allison tense up.
“Commander?” he asked a third time. Right then I knew what was going to happen? A shotgun exploded as I barrel rolled to my right. The corporal was re-cocking his shotgun. I ran up and grabbed the sergeant from behind; he swung his elbow back and slammed into my skull. I fell to the ground.
“Sergeant, no!” Allison screamed. They were planning to kill me all along. The corporal jumped from my left and pinned my body to the ground. I struggled but he kept me down.
“YOU COWARD!” I yelled.
“Calm down, Commander,” he snickered. The sergeant walked up with his shotgun. He made a quick salute for respect. I was used to betrayal. A gun exploded, but it wasn’t a shotgun. The sergeant’s body was now a crumpled heap over a pool of blood. The corporal jumped off of me.
“Allison, what are you doing?” he exclaimed. She said nothing but fired her rifle at Owen. He was instantly killed.
I got off the ground, “Allison?”
She stared crying, “I’m sorry Colt! I deceived you. I’m sorry!”
I took her in my arms, “You saved me.”
She started to explain herself, “The Sordin are really peaceful people. It is the Cobra’s who are the evil ones! I’m sorry for not telling you sooner… I wanted to, honestly I did! But I didn’t know how to say it.”
I thought about everything that had happened. I had bad luck when it came to girls, in my past. I decided to live this moment as long as I could and just leave everything bad around me behind. I reached near her face and brushed her silky hair over her ear. Then I kissed her. Every other problem in this galaxy was just going to have to wait its turn because after being set up and betrayed, all I wanted was this girl.
This is Commander Garing, signing off.
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