Miss Zulu’s wake-up derived from delirious dreams, golden fields, free people, and a life where everyone lived in harmony. These dreams flashed, conflicting with one another, while monsters, destruction, and death appeared in one; their polar opposite would flash immediately. Snake-headed creatures either plowed through the land ruthlessly, stabbing people with pitchforks, or they were farming and building peacefully. These ideas kept on crashing through her brain, but something stayed the same: a creature's head floated in the background, watching deviously in one but peacefully in another, and a man riding his head.
That was what she explained before her inevitable death—shot right there, in the head. A cleanup crew was issued then, and before any of the commanders could arrive so evidence could be quickly discarded, it was all according to plan. That prophecy was interesting, especially to the figure who ordered the cleanup, the death of Miss Zulu, and the death of Commander Zi.
The man in the white mask walked away in his all-white suit and boots. He wiped the brown dust off his knees and tidied up the edges of his suit. Section 2: Commander of Caldera, Cold. His mask hid his emotions, but based on how he talked, he ranged very greatly; some even called him bipolar. He walked away from Miss Zulu’s body; the sirens horned, and he knew it was time to leave. He closed his palm and teleported away, disappearing from any trace of having ever been there.
He appeared then before a wide audience. A colosseum number of seats in a circular area surrounded the middle of this sandlot that covered an immense area. Murmuring and chatter were heard, but the entire audience was masked. Some had clown masks, some had skeleton masks, and some were more minimalistic. Cold clapped his hands, and the murmuring died down in an instant.
"Welcome, gentlemen, ladies, and children. My apologies for running late, but I must congratulate this very fateful community. I applaud you for coming today, as I had come late, to watch another great battle between two sides, sworn enemies who must pulverize the other to live another day. What do you say?" Cold announced loudly into his microphone.
He then teleported to a glass box, overwatching the entire incident as loud claps erupted across the arena, children let out whoops, and the adults continued their claps; some even stood and whistled. The excitement was unmatched.
"Today we have fan favorite CREATURE vs. UP&COMER BURNER.” A new announcer appeared, screaming from his card.
The eruptions became louder, the metal gates cranked upward, and emerging from the dark shadows were two reptilian creatures. The one on the left was a man with a crocodile face; his fangs were as sharp as the other reptilian creatures, the only difference being that his hands were enormous, scaly, and had claws the size of a baby. On the right was a normal human, but as he showed his tongue, it was similar to that of a Komodo dragon, spitting fire from his mouth. The announcer stood in between the two, putting his hands on their chests to hold them back as they stared at each other.
"Creatures, tap your fists, and make sure to never stop fighting; fight to the death; fight for your life; we're going to start soon.” The announcer told them.
The two of them looked nervous and shaky, and a virtual voice announced a countdown starting at 10, and the crowd repeated those numbers. “10…9…8.”
The two fighters sweated heavily, staring at each other in fear.
"7...6…5…4"
The fighters started to breathe heavily, and hot smoke started to appear from the Komodo dragon hybrid mouth as he clutched his chest.
"3…2.”
The two creatures finally found in their hearts what to say as they screamed.
"WE CHALLENGE POLICE COMMANDER COLD OF THE 2ND SECTION OF CALDERA POLICE FORCE TO A DUEL TO THE DEATH, 2V1.”
Everyone stopped; some whispered to each other, but in the end, all eyes went straight to the glass box that had Commander Cold inside. His mask hid his expression, and he was standing in perfect posture, his two arms behind his back.
"Well, interesting turn of events, I see.” The announcer stuttered. His reactions were as surprising as the crowd, never expecting this to have ever happened.
"Well, we know this could never happen.” The announcer laughed, “So no more jokes, let us f-”
Before he could even finish the sentence, his eyes could not process what he saw; their heads were dismembered from their bodies, leaving their bodies still standing in what seemed to be a nanosecond. They were gone; their lifeless bodies fell, while Cold kept standing in his glass box, not uttering a single word. The fight was over the moment it was announced.
–
Pohl sat in his office, his entire body towering over his small desk. He used the small pen in his hand to write notes, wiped his nose, and adjusted his glasses. A knock rang on his door.
"Come in," he said.
The door creaked open, and a shutter of wind blew into Pohl's body. He stuttered for a second, and his eyes grasped the person in front of him. Madam Bourget walked to him; her eyes were bloodshot, and her arm was spouting out electricity.’
"How was the battle?” Commander Pohl asked, looking back at his paper.
"Good, I just need some pills. I had to shut down a tribe of reptiles, and they used some sort of gas, stopping my abilities for a moment.” She winced, her eyes widened, and she squinted repeatedly.
Pohl sighed and opened his drawer.
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
"BourgetI understand you think very highly of yourself; you’re a frontrunner to take my spot, but until then, this sort of recklessness will cost you.” Pohl taught; he tossed the pills to her, and she grabbed them with her palm.
Bourget did not respond to his feedback, only swallowing the pills quickly and crunching them in her mouth.
"You're not perfect.” Pohl looked at her seriously.
"I have to be." Bourget monotone: “I have to kill all my enemies, whether they are my friends allies, or for the good of the world. I will take down every one of my enemies without thought, and you cannot stop me.”
Pohl was going to respond when a beeping noise was heard. Pohl held his index finger up and pressed the beeper, revealing a virtual image of himself talking to him.
"Commander Pohl, Mayor Cruzer has held a meeting and wants you to arrive as a virtual avatar right at this moment.” The man explained that a scar went across his bald head and through his eyes—a miracle of war, they would call him.
Pohl took off his glasses, grabbed a contact lens, and smudged it into his eye.
"See you on the other side, Bourget.” He smiled, and he paused, lying back in his seat with his eyes closed.
Pohl opened his eyes to a wide room. The mayor sat in front of him in an open seat with men next to him and foot soldiers wearing tough armor holding laser guns. It was only the five of them in this room, excluding Pohl.
"Hello Pohl, we need to discuss our current situations with the dead generals. Miss Zulu and Commander Zi have both passed, and with the rampant destruction caused by Joshua and the revolution, the public image has not been going well, and we need help.” The mayor pleaded desperately, his knees shaking in Commander Pohl’s presence.
Pohl's face turned dark, and a rage-filled him. One of his eyes opened, and he glared deep into the mayor's body. Guns charged and pointed toward him as the mayor and his two accomplices next to him sat in place, but only the mayor showed fear.
"Such a fake mayor, you have no power to order me around; remember that.” Pohl was angered by his statement. “While you pronounced around in your fancy dance parties with the elites in Section 2, I DEALT WITH THESE PROBLEMS!” Pohl screamed, and his spit slobbered over the three men. The two by his side neatly wiped it with their handkerchiefs, and the mayor kept shaking in fear.
Pohl started to take deep breaths, staring at the political figures in front of him. They were worthless people, not caring about the strength of Caldera. It was the only city on this entire planet and covered a third of its area, two continents in size. People from this planet even became spatial marines, yet this weakness still existed.
"Remember the strength this city was built from; never forget.” Pohl reminded the mayor. Pohl walked away before saying.
"I am abolishing the sections; we will not divide our people any longer,” Pohl ordered.
"Blasphemy, you cannot hold that much power.” The mayor sweated.
Pohl walked back to him, towering over the three of them, before two spear blades came towards his throat, slightly cutting it and letting blood bleed out. The two bald, scarred men looked emotionless at Pohl.
"I say.” Pohl said reactionlessly, "We leave this land with only three people, Madam Bourget, Madam Birch, and Commander Cold. I will be Head Admiral of the Corps, and I will create a strong force.”
"You cannot do that.” The mayor laughed. His stout body tried standing up, and he pointed his finger at Pohl’s chest.
"No matter what, you are under my rule.” The mayor said confidently, any hits of fear disappeared: “The elites will argue against you; hell, the empire will conquer you before you could have a chance to achieve this goal; their ships are way past the likings of your power; and worst of all, you will start a civil war. I should strike you down for treason.” The mayor chuckled.
"You cannot, because it seems your two assistants agree with me also.” Pohl smiled deviously.
His smile was uncanny, but before The Mayor could question it, his head was cut off. Rolling on the floor, the old bodyguards next to them had accepted a new form of leadership as quickly as Pohl explained his details, leaving the two bald men bowing to their new leader.
"Power reigns over all; that's how Caldera works, and a weak man like you should never have been mayor without my permission.” Pohl scoffed.
His virtual body zapped away, and he appeared before Madam Bourget again, wincing his eye as she rested on the couch in front of him.
She slept peacefully with her eyes closed, and Commander Pohl smiled.
"I will achieve your father’s dream; it is slowly working, and we will win, believe me,” Pohl said to Bourget in her slumber.
He smiled before going to close his own eyes in his chair.
–
The four children are impatient in their seats. Their feet rocked and whipped to the left and right. A virtual board turned on in front of them, and their curiosity only grew. The four of them did not dare to talk amongst each other for fear of grabbing a punishment, but they carefully considered each other’s features, all distinct from one another.
The child on the far left was a humanoid girl; she looked normal with no sense of any external features or abilities brought to her; she had curly hair and dark skin and seemed to be foreign to these lands. Next to her was another girl, but she had no nose, and her features were lizardish and scaly. There were also two boys with purple skin, throwing eraser caps and grabbing each other's collars.
"Will you two stop being childish?” The lizard girl snarled.
The two boys paused for a moment and scoffed at her.
"Alright, boss, whatever plan you guys are making will be useless.”
"It could work if you two worked and tried.” The curly-haired girl shot back.
The two of them seemed more preoccupied with arguing and fighting each other than responding to the two girls.
The door slid open. WHIRR, entering the room was a man, but before the children could grab a clear look, they pinched at their opportunity. Two children jumped from the roof and pounced on him. Dust filled the room quickly, and the two children looked around, noticing that he wasn't in their arms. Then a plastic knife caught the two of their shirts and sent them to the wall. Stuck there, they wiggled to try to escape, but the knife was enhanced to keep them there. The other four summoned their respective weapons, but mid-attack they were grabbed except one, a girl who looked fearfully, darting the area to find the man before she was grabbed and slammed into the floor.
She had a clear look on her face as blood spilled from her nose, his brown hair slightly flowing down his eyes, and his white skin with slight freckles across it.
"My apologies, little lady; I didn't mean to go so hard.” Joshua apologized.