CHAPTER 45 – BURDENS
DATE POINT: UNKNOWN
LOCATION: UNKNOWN
TECHNICAL SERGEANT VANESSA GARDNER
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“Very well then, take me to Osiris.”
They reappeared in a flash before Vanessa had time to ponder the wisdom of her words further. Thoth released her hand as she took in the sights around her. They were standing atop a circular plate inscribed with a Wedjat eye framed between the wings of a scarab beetle at the base of a tall staircase. She fought off a sense of vertigo as she looked behind her and realized they were meters away from a drop off through clouds.
Far below them a series of stone gates could be seen set at regular intervals along a path framed by a pair of twin rivers, one of water and the other of lava. Vanessa shivered and returned her gaze forward. A huge temple with two small doors framing a larger central door amid tall statues of various gods loomed tall overhead.
“You see the valley of the Duat below you and the twelve gates of the afterlife, one for each hour of the sacred night while the sun barque was in transit through the underworld. This is where we once judged the souls of those who sought passage to the field of reeds with challenges testing their bravery and knowledge. Sadly, such days are behind us, and long have we withered without purpose trapped here within this simulation. Follow along closely now, Lord Osiris awaits.”
Thoth beckoned up the staircase and Vanessa followed along behind while pondering his words.
“What happened here?” She asked when the curiosity finally overwhelmed her.
“We were betrayed by one we thought we could trust and by another we should have known we couldn’t.”
“By whom? Who betrayed you? Why?” Vanessa asked.
“We were betrayed first by our own hubris and sense of invulnerability, and after by those who lusted for control over what we had built. So focused were we on the resurgence of various external threats, we missed the rise of ones from within. In the end it was inevitable that those who sat on the fringe of power would desire more of it for themselves. It is a cycle that has been repeated many times before and will continue many times over again. This time the actors were Aten, an aspect of Rah, and Set, a vengeful, chaotic trickster we had thought tamed. We believe they succeeded with the help or possibly under the orders of those... accursed Olympians.”
“How could they have possibly accomplished this? Surely you had to know such a plot was coming? Like you said, this cycle has happened before…”
“Through the wisdom of our time as rulers the world came to know an unprecedented level of peace, prosperity, and of wealth gained from an interconnected system of world trade. We thought we had finally replaced the firm hand of domination with the light hand of cooperation. We truly believed the old cycles to be broken, that trade and a measure of self-determination would be enough to hold the world order together. It was imperfect, yes, but it was based on the reality that we had to share the world with other powerful pantheons. If you had such a system would you be so quick to risk its destruction over old fears that might never come to pass?”
Vanessa took a deep breath as she processed Thoth’s words and felt the deep sadness rolling off the strange bird-headed deity.
“No… I don’t suppose we would either... We had a similar decentralized global trade system unravel violently before we as a species finally embraced a global federalized government. Of course, it took an alien invasion from your estranged cousins in our own timeline to scare us enough to see the common human interests that could bind us together...” Gardner said as they neared the top of the stairs.
“Fascinating, there is so much to unravel in your answer; you have subverted so many of our expectations already. If you mean the forces of Apophis, the situation is far more complicated than mere estranged cousins, but we offer a measure of respect for repelling one of their expeditionary fleets. It’s a shame, had your people not first arrived with sword in hand and plunder in your hearts, conflict may have been avoided altogether considering our common foe. Know that in spite of our hopes for this dialogue, we remain prepared to defend ourselves from scavengers and from the agents of our enemies. Even if that means we must deny you the very opportunity to claim this prize.”
“Deny us the very opportunity… “ Gardner’s eyes bugged open for a moment as the implications hit her. “Surely there has to be a path to cooperation for us, this doesn’t have to be a zero sum game. I know you probably don’t want to die either…. That’s a rather extreme solution.”
“Immortality provides a different perspective on life and death, my child. Perhaps one day your people will be able to experience the gift and the curse that it entails. It is unlikely that before such a day that you will have the capacity to truly understand. We have several aspects of our personality profile that still live, as well as a backup stored away safety. We do not fear death, not in the same way that you do, we fear failure and permanent loss against our objectives far more. When you meet Lord Osiris you will understand a little better, we believe. Have you had formal training in manners and how to comport yourself before a king?”
“I’ve seen enough movies to have an idea, sure, but no formal training. We dispensed with the political need for kings and the nobility long ago and replaced it with representative democracy with checks and balances on power. Any kings left on Earth are strictly figureheads. I’ll pay the proper respects in honor of his station, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to be in a rush to bend the knee either.”
They passed under the main columns and past statues that she barely reached the knees on into a hallway lit by more of the strange floating fires. Colorful painted scenes carved into the walls seemed to tell a story of a city of golden splendor built within three circular canals set amid a verdant paradise. She ran her hands along the wall, trying to parse the meaning of the hieroglyphics.
“Ah, democracy. We tried that in many iterations only for it to always polarize and devolve into conflict as the elite changed the rules in the shadows to grab ever more power and an ever larger share of the wealth while the people were distracted, divided, and set against each other with vicious infighting. This is what happened to Aht’Lantis in its final days after the royal family was overthrown in the name of creating a government that enshrined individual liberty. It ended with the people demanding a powerful leader to take over and resolve their issues as political gridlock showed the weak, corrupt, self-interested politicians were incapable of wise governance. By the time that leader led us to war against the coalition of the seven Rishi cities as a distraction, and the horrid way that it ended. it was already too late. That war ended the experiment forever and cast the world into a dark age. Osiris was the very example of wise kingship that brought an end to the savagery of the interregnum after the flood, and we were his advisor throughout it all, thus we have seen it all. Even on the homeworld, all attempts at Democracy eventually degraded into a tyranny of the majority or into a stalled, decadent society ripe for the taking by agents of the rich and powerful.”
Thoth paused over an image of a God-king wrapped in robes and surrounded by storm clouds and an image of a massive golden ball with wings much like the Ur-Uatchti they had fought. It was shown firing plasma from the tips of its wings into the glaciers of a frozen Earth, unleashing a flood that devastated everything across the following panels.
“Who is that?” Gardner asked as she studied the images in greater detail.
“Enlil, the tyrant, master of storms, and the once and future king. He was the leader that ended the democratic experiment we had cultivated in the later days of Aht’Lantis and he led us down the path of war for the glory of his own power. It was he who used the power of Nii’Baruu to melt the glaciers and flood the world at the end of the ice age. It is his aspect arisen again who now seeks to control the world, this time under the name Zeus, king of the Olympian pantheon. He is the very opposite of Osiris. Only a wise and just immortal king can rule and provide long term stability that provides equally for all while preventing the rise of self-interested parasitic elites. He is the very opposite type of king as Osiris, and in many ways he is even worse than the father he overthrew.”
Gardner reeled for a moment as she processed Thoth’s words and tried to fit it into her admittedly basic understanding of mythology. She channeled her annoyance at the smug monarchist into motivation to pin him down for more substantial information, something she could work with.
“Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely, spare me the monarchist rhetoric. It is far more likely that one gets a tyrant king than a wise one, and the prospect of them being immortal is terrifying. We can debate political systems until we are blue in the face later, don't you think it wise that we keep the conversation a little more focused? At least for now. I thought Enlil was a Sumerian god? That’s down in the middle East, not Greece! Plus, isn’t there like thousands of years of history in the middle you’re just glossing over here? We have a saying; the devil is in the details. Forgive me, but this whole story is at risk of sounding a little too convenient, like propaganda.”
“As we mentioned, there is much to unpack, furthermore we are unfamiliar with these regional names. Perhaps we can spend some time over an orbital map to work out the differences. Suffice to say that Kemet was founded by the survivors of Aht’Lantis who settled in to rule over the natives of the Nile river valley. We are not unfamiliar with the concept of the separation of powers in governance. For this reason, long have we contented ourselves to provide wisdom, correction, and legitimacy to the various shifting dynasties of the Pharaohs. After the flood, we convened a grand council of the Gods and seized control of Nii’Baruu from Enlil in response to our horror at his crimes, and vowed since that time to operate with a lighter touch. The terrible power of Nii'Baruu was locked to the sole control of Ah’Mon Rah with the vow to only use its power to defend the solar system from outside attacks by our true, mutual enemies. It was this very precaution that has left our faction so weak after the betrayal of Aten and Set. Enlil, or…. Zeus… has been spreading his vile corruption of the Pantheon system from the fertile crescent throughout the Northern continent for many thousands of years now, and we have been his great counterbalance in the west. The great civilizations of the dragons and the Naga have checked his expansion to the East. Over time empires and kingdoms under his system have risen and fallen, and for a time we believed peace and trade had finally replaced eternal war between the factions. Now we see he was merely biding his time.”
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
Gardner studied the giant, resisting the urge to put her hand on him out of a confusing feeling of empathy for the odd glimpses of humanity she saw within the strange being.
“I... suppose that makes sense... enough to work with for now. What if I told you we planned on killing Zeus and his Olympians already? We had originally intended to kill all of the Pantheons and to lead mankind into a new golden age free of their manipulations… but the truth is we need allies. We are not so foolish as to believe people will take kindly to newcomers calling their religions and the very foundations of their societies a lie. We know we have a long series of uphill battles ahead of us, and there are so very few of us stranded here in this timeline.”
“Then perhaps we have the fruitful soil from which an alliance may flourish after all.”
A new voice spoke into her mind, causing her to jump for a moment and to turn around. An imposing humanoid giant with sickly green skin and dressed in robes and finery stood in the hallway behind her. Her panicked mind caused her to freeze as she studied his body, with her eyes resting just a bit too long on a jagged stitched scar running all the way across his throat.
“Ah, your Grace, we had almost arrived to your chamber. It seems our instincts were correct with this one. She is of sound mind and good character, if nothing else, Ma’at would approve of her.”
To her side, Thoth bowed respectfully and cleared his throat, which snapped Gardner out of her stupor. She bowed as well, uncomfortably aware that she had no idea how long she needed to hold it for.
“You may rise, young one. Now follow along closely now, we have much to discuss.”
“Yes, Lord Osiris…. Erm… I mean your Majesty!” Gardner said, kicking herself over stumbling over her words like that.
To his credit, Osiris simply chuckled.
“It seems you will do quite nicely, indeed. No need to bow and scrape with such stiff formality. Your Grace is enough along with the basic respect due as befits my station. It is far more important that we act quickly and decisively to hammer out reasonable terms for a ceasefire so that we can begin deeper negotiations. You are correct in your assessment. Judging from your team’s combat performance, you will need allies if you hope to put a stop to the Olympian threat. You are far from ready to face them. It is clear that you will need our help, though be warned, the price of our help may be more than you're willing to pay. Come now, let us talk in my chambers. We owe it to ourselves to find a way together to prevent this conflagration from spreading.”
Gardner took a deep breath and followed behind.
“Yes, your Grace. I’m grateful for the opportunity for a peaceful solution. Now, you mentioned a possible ceasefire? Why don’t we start there…. We need access to the manufacturing capacity of this facility and I know I am eager to find a way we can put a stop to the killing…”
Gardner unconsciously slid her hand down to her belly as she suppressed the horrible memories of her last moments in life.
Nobody else would die today if she did her job right. She found a powerful catharsis in her resolve to save them, no matter the cost. It would be a burden she would be all too happy to shoulder.
MEANWHILE….
DATE POINT: MAY 12th, 7 A.U. (AFTER UNIFICATION)
LOCATION: SOL SYSTEM, GEOSTATIONARY ORBIT 50,000 KM FROM ANOMALOUS STRUCTURE, ABOARD UTRN INDOMITABLE WILL
CAPTAIN HENRY O’TOOLE
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Henry gripped the railing as he watched the IFF medstat feeds update themselves in real time. A sea of yellows, oranges, and reds stood in mute testament to the consequences of his orders. Nine blacked out medstat icons whispered treacherous tales of failure to his primed subconscious. Seven greyed out icons from Team one indicated the loss of IFF telemetry signal . Adding Gardner to the list of the dead was bad enough, but the lack of knowledge as to the fate of the rest of them… that was even worse.
A sympathetic hand covered his white-knuckled grip. Henry could barely bring himself to meet Chantal’s loving gaze. The weak, testing smile she gave seemed to only stoke unfair emotions which broiled under the surface while he endeavored to keep his face a flat mask.
“Team two reports the last of the drones have been mopped up and the LZ is secure. Medevac flights are en route with two drone flights running escort per your orders.” Alvarez reported.
“Thanks for the update. Comms! Get on the line with the hospital and let them know to prep for inbound casualties. After that, have the Fist of the Argonauts recall Ghost for repairs.”
“Aye, captain!”
Henry turned over to Chantal and placed a hand on her shoulder before he flashed her his best smile. She studied him intently with a raised eyebrow before he allowed a halfhearted smile in return.
“Looks like Locust has linked up with HT one. Suit heat levels and ammunition counters are still in the green. The telemetry update from HT one should be coming through Locust’s Q-Comm uplink any moment now.” Alvarez said with an almost robotic calmness as he kept his eyes glued to his console.
Four more IFF medstat icons updated; all green. Driver and gunner plus two passengers it seemed. A small, slight smile curved at the edge of his mouth for just a moment until he glanced again at the remaining three grey icons.
“Looks like Ariana, Jenkins and the Rhino crew are safe… but what are they doing separated from the rest?” Chantal asked in a voice of mixed inflection.
“I don’t know, I’m not liking the implications of HT One’s ammo counter either… They've burned through all of their anti-personnel rounds but only a few armor piercing shells. That's the exact opposite of HT two. They must have found themselves in quite the battle to allow themselves to be split up... If I had to guess they were up against organics instead.” Alvarez said, his voice betraying the mildest hint of concern.
“Get me an update on our reinforcements, its high time we rotate them out. The next wave can secure the rest of the facility.” Henry said.
“I’ll check on them, they should be ready to go by now.” Alvarez nodded and then stepped aside to make the call.
“Look at that! Locust just launched missiles and is burning through railgun ammo, the fighting has got to be desperate in there.” Chantal said, drawing Henry’s attention back to the console.
Henry resisted the urge to call the Fist of the Argonauts for an update. I need to trust them to do their jobs. Just hang on a little longer… reinforcements are coming.
Another IFF icon updated; orange. Shit.
“That’s Estefani… She’s not wounded, thankfully, but look at her medstat report… Poor girl is running on adrenaline and combat stims with nothing left in the tank. How the hell she’s still operating in that condition is beyond me…” Chantal said.
“That’s not a good sign, no, but the fact that she’s not wounded means she’ll recover once we can rotate her out and a good meal and some rest. Now we just need to get Paul and Hamilton’s updates….” Henry left the rest unsaid, meanwhile, the look on Chantal’s face said everything.
“Those two are tough. If anyone can make it through whatever they’ve encountered down there its them.” Chantal said, managing a weak smile.
“Henry. Five gunships with a tank and a squad each kitted out and ready to move in on your orders.” Alvarez interjected. Henry nodded and replied.
“Send them in, assign designations as teams five through nine. Five and six are to replace two through four who are to be recalled. Their orders are to hold that LZ at all costs. Teams seven through nine are to immediately move in to reinforce and relieve team one.”
“Aye Captain.” Alvarez replied before he jumped back on the horn to pass the orders along.
Chantal walked up behind him and squeezed him in a sympathetic hug.
“I don’t know how you handle this so well.” She said quietly. “Having to sit back while all this happens and only having the slimmest of abilities to change the outcome… its nerve-wracking. I’m just so worried about them all out there…”
Henry wrapped his arms over hers across his belly.
“This is the burden of command; ordering these young men and women into danger for an objective we can only hope is worth it. Knowing some of them may not make it back alive, or may come back with life altering injuries. The whole time being in the dark except for small snippets of information that is never enough to satisfy you. All the while you have to be strong for those around you.” Henry said, unsure of whom he was trying to make feel better about the whole situation more.
“I just wanted you to know how impressed I am at how well you're able to handle it. I would be a total wreck if I was in your boots right now. It just… makes me love you that much more. I can see that its hard for you too, in spite of your brave face. Just… oh hell… Just know that I'm here for you.”
Henry clenched his teeth for a moment to suppress an upwelling of emotions before he took in a deep breath to re-center himself.
“Thank you. Truth is I’m a lot more of a wreck than I look. The real mystery here is how the hell Alvarez seems to be so perfectly composed. In my case, having had the examples of some of the admirals and other senior officers to live up to helps. It taught me that my own example will help some of our bridge officers and others handle their own nerves, so that alone aids in the struggle. Truth be told, just between us now, I do wonder if it will ever get any easier.” Henry said in a low voice, trying to keep their conversation more private amidst the controlled chaos below them in the CIC.
"I think you’re doing a fine job. When this is all over I have some ideas of how to show you just how much I… appreciate the example you're setting for the crew.” Chantal said with a wolfish grin.
Henry tried his best to get excited about that promise, but his eyes drifted back to the nine blacked out icons and his mind returned to the task of managing the internal storm and the external mask of peace.
“I’m glad somebody does…. Let’s just hope that this gets easier with time.” Henry said as Chantal gave him one more squeeze.
Alvarez materialized next to them and gave Henry a sympathetic look and a pat on the shoulder.
“Didn't mean to listen in, I just got to say that it never gets easier, you simply get more adept at handling it. Give it time and experience, young pup, you’re giving honor to the role through your effort.”
“Captain! Update from the Fist of the Argonauts! Locust and HT one have cleared the last of the enemies between them and the main chamber and are moving in to reinforce Paul and Hamilton. They've reinstated contact with them! They’re still alive and fighting!”
A cheer rose up amongst the CIC and Henry’s black mood was buoyed ever so slightly. They watched the icons of the outbound gunships crossing the paths of the returning ones on the system map while they waited for the next update.
“Sensors, let’s do another full sweep of local space. Make sure we're still alone out here.” Henry commanded.
“Yes, Captain, I’ll get right on it!”
Finally, after agonizing over the lack of knowledge, the last two medstat icons lit up as Locust began to receive and transmit their suit telemetry. Paul’s heart raced at both icons with one deep in the orange and the other flashing red as their full status readouts came through on screen. His alarm only deepened as he read through the list of injuries on the medstat report.
Just what kind of hell did I order them into?