Wesmich University

"…Something is wrong. I can feel it."

"What? What are you talking about."

"The universe… something is wrong with it. There's been a disturbance. Somewhere."

"Do you think it's…no. It can't be! That isn't supposed to happen until centuries from now."

"It is. There is no other explanation, it cannot be. He has done it."

"Impossible."

"He warned us centuries ago and yet we refused to listen!"

"…"

"We must find where they are coming from. And then we must eradicate them before they exterminate us."

"Yes. I agree brother."

"Are we all in agreement?"

"Yes, Brother."

"Indeed."

"Good. We'll stay observant, we'll watch for any intrusion into our world, and we'll deny them the chance to rid themselves of us. If the E'Aethal wants to rebel against our hegemony in this way, then we shall crush them!"

"Agreed."

"Yes, brother."

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Hezekiah lay in his cot, eyes wide open. The lights in the barracks were off, darkness flooded the room. Everybody was supposed to be asleep. So why wasn't he?

He had no interest in sleeping, and whenever he tried, his eyelids would just peel themselves openly. Something was keeping him awake. And he knew exactly what.

The words his commanding officer had spoken to himself, Flint, and his squadmates earlier that day, were haunting.

"You are being redeployed to an experimental battleground to train our troops for the new battlefield," He recalled Buffy telling him earlier. He had no clue what 'experimental battleground' meant, and his mind quickly raced to conclusions. Hezekiah feared that for certain, he was being sent to Korea. To the fucking meatgrinder of all places, where soldiers died in the mountains and were never heard of again. Their lives ended and their stories lost to the void.

Had he fucked up to the point High Command thought it fit for him to be assigned there? Was this some sort of cruel punishment from the military higher-ups? What did he do?

But that wasn't the worst of it. The worst came when his C.O. said that, "Nobody, not even family, is allowed to know about the redeployment."

"Fuck that," Hezekiah thought to himself as his brown eyes peered into the sea of darkness that suffocated him. Not only was he possibly being given an effective death sentence in Korea, but he also wasn't even allowed to tell anybody his whereabouts. How much crueler could this be? Hezekiah didn't have many people to talk to back home, there was his mother, and a long-estranged uncle of his, but even still he had to tell them he was alright.

Hezekiah's body felt numb as he thought about the future. As if he was melting into the darkness that surrounded him. As he drifted away into sleep, he barely noticed the difference between wakefulness and slumber.

He didn't notice that he had fallen asleep until the voice of his inner thoughts became audible.

"What do you see?"

Hezekiah couldn't tell. He looked around, unsure if his eyes were open or if they were still closed. All that he envisioned was darkness. An enveloping, suffocating, almost blinding darkness. One that could only be reproduced with the eyes closed in a dark environment. He could see nothing. As if his eyes were covered. But his eyes were opened, he knew that.

"Nothing."

"Are you sure?"

The disembodied voice asked. Its reptilian-like speech hissed around the 's' and lingered in an almost sing-song pattern. It hung like a glider slipping through the air, breaking at specific intervals as if it were gasping for breath. Hezekiah held no interest in the voice, however. For whatever reason. He thought it was just his imagination. An inner voice. His mind's eye.

"I'm sure," Hezekiah answered. His own voice sounded rather weary and quite faint. The words responded, though his mind hadn't. He spoke but he didn't mean to. What was going on now, was the question on his mind. He must've been dreaming a quite peculiar dream. He had no knowledge of what was going on, only that the voice was asking him questions, and he had to respond.

"Look again."

Hezekiah looked around and saw his arms and legs, his body, attached to himself. Right where they should be. He was standing on a plane of darkness, hovering in the midst of a perpetual void. And behind him was light.

Out of curiosity, he walked closer towards it. He hesitated, at first unsure of whether or not he wanted to know what the light was. A bad feeling harbored inside that something bad was going to happen, that he was going to see something he wasn't meant to see. Hezekiah would be scarred by this. He had dreams before that turned into nightmares at the snap of a finger. Could this be one of them? Hezekiah's legs quaked as he walked towards the light, uneasiness, and apprehension filled him, he could turn back now. He wanted to turn back. He couldn't go further, any closer to the light and he'd surely be burned. He was getting into something he would regret, any deeper and he wouldn't be able to go back.

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Knowing all of this made Hezekiah's inside sink. It made his palms sweaty, his jaw clenched, and his spine felt hollow.

So why did Hezekiah take yet another step?

And another?

And yet another?

Until he was full-on sprinting towards the light. He hadn't run a full five seconds until he stood before it, a large circular ball of energy. His eyes fixated on it, admiring it, wondering at the possibilities, of adventure. A boyish thrill overcame him to discover and admire what was in store. One that overpowered his fear.

He stopped just in front. The light encapsulated him, filling his eyes and his imagination as it stood there. He raised one hand and sunk it into the energy.

It phased through with no resistance. He quickly pulled his arm out, and to his surprise, it was still completely intact. With a jump, he entered inside the light. Leaving behind the void, and entering into a new world.

Before his eyes now lie a world full of plants. He stood on a small hill, overlooking a jungle around him. The thick forest looked…sick. Yellowing leaves, diseased plants, fungus growing on dying trees. It was a rotting forest. The sky was a brown, and the smell of rotten flesh hung in the air.

Hezekiah hated this place, it was sick, downright nasty. He was forced to cover his mouth and nose in a vain attempt to block the stench. Looking around, it looked polluted, almost left for dead. A once beautiful forest now left rotting due to some outside device.

"Oftentimes, a beautiful thing is corrupted, Sergeant Brooks," The voice responded as if it read his mind, "It's unfortunate. However, it is not irreparable. In fact, quite the opposite."

Hezekiah looked behind him, as the hue of orange light caught his eye. Behind him, on the floor, was a series of small fires. Hezekiah wondered how they got there until he took another step. When he lifted his foot, another fire started. His flammable footsteps followed him, spreading fire all over the path. They burned the decaying matter on the floor, the vine on the trees, the leaves themselves. All until Hezekiah realized that they were burning the entire forest. Setting it all ablaze in a hellish show of bright orange light, ash, and heat.

The trees collapsed, the leaves disintegrated, leaving behind nothing in their wake. Darkness filled the area once again until everything was gone. Reduced to nothingness.

And Hezekiah stood there in that nothingness, the destroyer of a world.

"Sometimes, you have to destroy once great things to start anew. To build a better future…" The disembodied voice materialized into a form. A vaguely human form. Wrapped in a black robe, white trousers, and knee-high black boots. Its face and head at large was a giant mirror, showing Hezekiah his reflection back at him.

The creature stood at the same height as Hezekiah and seemed to be human for the most part. Almost. But the way it spoke and conducted itself, as well as the mirror in place of a face which didn't appear to be a mask. It reflected everything, capturing the nothingness and showing it to Hezekiah.

"Who are you?" Hezekiah automatically asked.

The creature shifted its weight as it launched into step, one foot after another. Holding its hand as it began to explain itself, "I am what you see. But that's not important. What is important - Sergeant Brooks - is who you are," The creature said. Clearly, it knew his name, despite Hezekiah not telling him. Who was this… thing?

"You'll find that all out at a later date if you have the strength to continue on," Said the creature.

"What do you mean? I know who I am! Who are you?"

The Mirrorface simply shook its head, sighing, "You may think you know who you are. But you do not. Nobody does until they come in the face of extreme hardship. You can think of me as a messenger, to warn you about the trying times ahead," it walked a full circle around Hezekiah before stopping on its heels right in front of him, "I must tell you I had to go against the wishes of my employers in coming here. They never cared much for Human life in the first place, much less your comfort in the knowledge of their assignment for you."

Hezekiah was now absolutely confused, "Wait… wait, you're telling me that you have a job for me? What is it? Is this some kind of self-fulfilling prophecy?"

"That is for you to decide. The ones who assigned me to you, have made it clear that they are in dire need of almost magical help. They concluded that the destructive nature of humanity would suffice, and you happened to be best suited for the role. However, there are others, no one man could do this alone. If you refuse, or if you fail, you'll be simply discarded."

Hezekiah was still confused, less so now, but still somewhat. His mind had no idea what the Mirrorface was trying to warn him of. And… if he failed? Failed a mission that he doesn't even know the objective of? What did he have to do?

"Don't be fooled, the power of one human mind is enough force to create a wave of difference if it is in the right place," said the being, "Your mission lies in front of you."

The Mirrorface stepped aside, revealing a small brown object. Hezekiah walked closer to it and found that it was a seed. A woody exterior shielded the insides of it, ready to bloom into a plant of some form. Right under his foot was a pile of dirt.

"Plant the seed, and accept the mission. Give it back to me or cast it into the void, and I'll find someone else more suitable for the task. It's your choice, Sergeant Brooks."

Hezekiah knew this was just a dream. Or at least he thought it was. It was a hell of a vivid experience, out of all the dreams he ever had, this one has to be the most memorable. Did it have any impact on his real life? That remained to be seen.

Hezekiah, unsure of the consequences, took the seed. He took a cursory glance at the Mirrorface, who hadn't moved. And then he buried the seed into the ground.

"It is done…" Said the creature. Immediately afterward, the seed shot up as a green stalk erupted from the pile of dirt. Adding color into a world devoid of it. The stalk became a luscious tree, big wide green leaves, dark brown bark, and a crown of tree branches that spread upwards into the air and over the two.

The tree quickly grew flowers, which turned into fruits that matured immediately and burst with seed. Scattering onto the floor, the seeds fell around, creating their own dirt piles and grass. They shot up into other plants, different from the original tree. They filled the world with color, with new life. The sky returned, replacing the dark void with a blue shield. The ground he walked on became full of life, as the dirt turned into grass and hills, streams and rivers. Flowers and trees bloomed all over, the sun shone, and the animals returned. All was restored to what was once lost.

"…But you aren't," said the creature who still stood amidst a meadow in between a valley of mountains and a wall of forest, "You, are just beginning on your marvelous journey!" The creature said. For the first time, Hezekiah could detect a hint of excitement in the creature's voice.

"Open your eyes and see the world for yourself. It's in your hands now. All you have to do is wake up, Sergeant Brooks… Wake up, and light the fire. Wake up," The Mirrorface slowly disintegrated, Hezekiah's vision blurred, and he was pulled from the forest of the living into the real world.

"Hezekiah? Wake up! Wake up, man! Come on! Hey, Brian if he doesn't wake up, get the water, it's gonna be fucking hilarious!"

Hezekiah could hear the voices as he swam to the surface of his consciousness, being propelled upward before breaching the surface in a violent waking event. His eyes shot open.

Light surrounding him now, seeping in through the windows of the barracks. He could feel his limbs, and when he looked up, he saw the face of Flint.

"Bro, you good bro?"

Hezekiah didn't respond as he pulled himself up and rubbed his face with his hands, "You were out like a fucking light dude. Lafayette thought you were dead!"

"I couldn't help it, he wasn't moving!" Said another soldier in his squad.

"Dawg, you sleep like a rock," Flint punched his shoulder playfully.

Hezekiah coughed a little before replying, "I'm good, I'm fine. What's up?"

"What's up?" Flint repeated in a rhetorical manner, "We're getting redeployed, man!"

Hezekiah's face dropped as he was dumbfounded, it hit him like a train, "That's today?"

"Yeah, man!"

"Aw shit! Get your uniforms on, and get Unity together!" He told Flint and Lafayette who hurriedly obeyed. Lafayette was a man with black hair and a thin mustache on his lip, he was a tall and lanky guy, with a strong face and thin build. The squad engineer and mechanic for Unity.

Hezekiah watched the two leave as he himself prepared, he got on his uniform. Any second now, Buffy would begin calling all the squads together to get out and assemble for transport. Hezekiah sent a silent prayer that it wasn't to Korea, anywhere but there. He ignored the strange dream he had, for now, pushing it into the back of his mind as his responsibilities took over for now. He rushed out of the Barracks fully dressed, as he met an assembled Unity Squad.

There were five Marines in Unity. Hezekiah Brooks, Flint Hendrix, Lafayette DuPont, Brian Yale, and Quinn Vulcano. All of them came from their own walks of life, meeting by happenchance in a twist of fate that would see them working with each other, depending on the other, and fighting for each other.

Brian was a rather short man, round face, and a mess of blonde hair. He had pale skin, and glasses on his face that shielded his big eyes. Quinn was almost the exact opposite of Brian since he was a big guy with broad shoulders, jet black hair, and olive skin.

All five of them were here now, together. Ready for the re-assignment.

"Hez, you know what's going on?" Brian asked in his Pacific Northwest accent.

"I wish I did, Brian, I wish I did…" Hezekiah said, "Something about… redeployment?"

"Out of Afghanistan? Shiiiet, I'm down! Put me on the next flight back to the states!" Quinn said with a smile plastered on his face as he leaned back.

"It's a bit short notice that we're going back home, no?" Lafayette asked Hezekiah, an eyebrow raised in thought.

"That's the thing," Hezekiah said as he ran his hand over his short hair, "I have no clue where we are going. Something about an experimental battleground, it doesn't make any sense. And if my fears are correct then…well…" Hezekiah didn't finish his sentence, Unity understood everything he was getting at.

"You think they're sending us to Korea?" Brian asked.

Hezekiah looked at him somberly as he took a seat, "God I hope not. But I don't know, Brian. I don't know."

The five men fell silent until a knocking came on the barracks door. Hezekiah quickly got up, Buffy was there standing. He took a good look at Hezekiah and entered inside, "Gentlemen," He proclaimed as he walked inside.

The five men looked up at him curiously, wondering if- maybe- there was a chance that things would be alright. That they wouldn't be sent to fight in the deadly mountains of the Korean peninsula. The soldiers heard stories of that place… to say that they were scared of the possibility was an understatement. Everything from the brutal winter, the rugged mountains, the guerilla tactics of the Northern Koreans, the wildlife, the landmines buried deep in the ground.

"You are being redeployed. Today," Buffy said looking around at the five men, "Two companies worth of soldiers are currently being redeployed from Afghanistan, ours, of course, is included. Upon arrival, we'll be reorganized with four other companies into a fighting Battalion."

Quinn raised his hand, "Uh, may I ask… where are we going?"

Buffy smiled looking at him.

"Simple. We're going back to the States."