Francis Orion Carruthers - Outskirts of the Imani Empire

Three suns worked in tandem, trying to cast light across a greenish cloud of death finally dispersed over the horizon. No one made it. The sweepers took twelve days and thirteen hours to make the atmosphere breathable again. Not a single soul survived. Melted buildings, abandoned lanes, a planet of debris. One of the most inventive places in the galaxy vaporized. Their kindness no longer a refugee that I could turn to. Not anymore.

Agent Silvana peered into my eyes. The reflection on the visor of her helmet painting the eerie scene that I struggled to believe in. Her hazmat suit showed just how deadly of a concoction somebody managed to create. Pieces from the outer layer of her protective equipment peeling off even after the gas was neutralized. The crew had to go through several of those special suits in order to contain the deadly toxin.

“No new findings, sir. The rehabilitated environment will be certified as hospitable in twenty two hours.” I could hear the sadness in her voice as she said hospitable. Squeezing my shoulder, she did her best to convey how sorry she felt. Her gesture moved me. Out of all the branches in The Company, the Sweeping Crew was the only one completely dedicated to improving the Galaxy. Their votes were always unanimous when it came to fighting for life.

Cedric granted her permission to leave as he crouched down in front of me, taking a second sample of the soil with a flask and putting it inside of his pocket. It is not like he distrusted their team, but the man was thorough. Having a corrupted agent on the inside schewing results was rare, but it happened.

“You think this was Mike’s doing?” his deep voice resounded into the empty space.

“Who else could it be? Griffin set my veto in every single channel available to the firm. The only one that could land here and do this...” I sighed. “It was one of us, Cedric. It had to be.”

“Vetto was issued three hundred milliseconds after the order. No outside interference detected. No reply broadcasted as of yet.”

“I appreciate it, Griffin.”

“Is he brave enough to go to war?” Cedric asked.

“That’s not the question we should be asking right now.” I took my glasses off. There was no reading from this desolate place anymore. Nothing we could use. “The question is can we?”

“He can’t stroll through here with his people, kill everybody and get away with it, Frank. No matter how many worlds the Pax manages to occupy.”

“You know their Branch can do better than that. When pressed, they will come with a plausible explanation. The burden of proof won’t be on them, it will be on us. This will never result in direct conflict. They won’t take the initiative. Think about it Cedric, do you really want to engage in war gridless?”

Over the slope, I saw some of the cleaning crew moving the last pieces of machinery from the wasteland that now stood in front of us. Gigantic spider-like robotic arms retracted and twisted until they formed a compact metal cube. One by one, the green sign appeared on their lids, giving permission for our tech people to pack and go home. Just like that, like everything was okay.

“We wouldn’t last a minute,” he dipped his smooth head in acknowledgment.

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“They are growing Cedric. Slavery, trafficking, illegal weapons... It is all part of their plan. To grow in numbers by conscripting as many as they possibly can.”

“Do you think this was because of Earth?”

“It was part of it. When we bought shares on Earth, we got our hands on something they wanted. Now we’re playing this cold war and the first one that flinches gets the noose.” I said, moving my finger across my neck.

“We could always involve the Ancients of one the Protectorates. We are the only few that have close ties with most of them.”

“We go to the board, set up a precedent. That’s what we need to do. If they make a mistake which they will, we go for an amendment. There is no better peace treaty than everlasting soul binding legislation.”

“Yeah, but they might defect.”

Clenching my fists, I felt something wicked stir inside of me. A boiling anger that I didn’t feel in a long time. Kalyke was the first thing that came to mind. A single encounter reaping half of my people. My world shattered in fourteen point six hours. I still had flashbacks of that day. People screaming and running, getting picked apart like cattle. The first time I felt afraid of using this black suit. It was a good thing that I didn’t have to sleep anymore.

“That might be the case. But then we’ll hunt them. Every single one of them will have their day in my court.”

“Can we bring Ern along?”

“Not yet. I don’t think he will be ready in time.”

“The readings were good. You saw what he should be capable of. Time is on his side.

“Time will always be on his side. He can wait. I don’t want to bring him on this unless I’m sure. He has a difficult path ahead of him. Transforming the Legionnaires will be a slow and painful endeavor.”

“Are you sure? He might not be the man you think he is.”

“You saw him looking into the mirror. That kind of frustration, that kind of passion… It doesn’t go away. Let him get used to his new body, and then we put one of Pascal’s boys with him. That will probably be enough to push him over the edge.”

“Speaking of fire…”

An earthquake shook our surroundings. Tents went flying, the crew personnel following protocol diligently. Their capsules popping with an audible hiss, leaving them protected against the aftermath that such a creature would surely ensue.

“Threat spotted. Graytail Gorgonyte activity was detected in our vicinity. Order issued… Capture is recommended, extermination is acceptable.

Specimen widely known. Updating parameters. Order updated… Extermination is recommended. Capture is unnecessary.”

...

“Frank? No grenades when dealing with this Gorgon. In one of my realities you threw a [CF25-broad range] and one of our portable labs went up in smoke.”

“Understood.”

On the top of the hill only Cedric and I remained. Four hundred and twenty five meters of one of the nastiest Gorgons in the Universe crawled out of the earth. Pointy teeth showed what type of predator he was, his dozen mostard eyes almost useless now that he was out in the open. The creature probably didn’t have anything to do with the tragedy that took place, simply being awakened by all the commotion that happened right next to his lair. It made no difference to me. He was a high level threat and I had a duty to fulfil.

I pulled my new rifle, another exquisite piece of tech made by Vivian Ward herself. Several mirrors coordinated to form a single image who worked as a dynamic type of aim. The curly-haired weaponsmith was one of my greatest assets.

However, before I could take a shot, Cedric motioned me to stop.

“Too impersonal. Sometimes we have to bloody our hands. It is the only way that counts.”

“Are you thinking knives?”

“Swords.” Cedric unsheathed his Katana. I still had mine from the Kawasaki empire, so I followed suit, jumping into the flames. The orange blade hissed as the temperature rose. The Universe going still as we dived into the creatures’ maw.

Our blades sang into the pitless stomach of the Devourer of Giants. The mighty curse in his belly made useless against the blood of the Gods.

My sorrow wouldn’t end with his demise, but it was enough to focus my anger on. The only way I could relax was with my life on the line. It said something about me. It said something about the things I had to do.