The Codex:
Seeing as this is a historical piece, I will introduce myself plainly. My name is Thomas james Maine. I am the Executor of the Office of Secrets, and a former Agent of the Martian people. As of today, the year is XXXX, and I am 94 years old, still in my prime.
I am writing this document, a document which I am writing without holding back, to record my own thoughts, feelings, and input on the last seventy years of war. Thought it is now over I have come to believe that my ideology in the waning days of the war was correct. I was wrong. Mars was wrong.
We were developing weapons even before the war. It was for our own defense. Deep down everybody knew we would need them one day, and when the day came, we refrained from using them… Until our rage won out, and our ideology failed. I’m jsut as guilty. We never meant to wipe out a world… Until it became the sensible thing.
We started as students who wanted to defend our home in this conflict, and what we wound up is a mass of men and women screaming for blood. Perhaps there are limits to the human condition? I really couldn’t say… I can’t call myself human after what I have done.
Below is essentially my confession, so that history my judge with all of the facts. I pray they see what I do, and elect to set aside thier guns. We were too angry to set aside ours.
Chapter 1: The Final Hours of Peace
“Mars does not need any other body to stand. We have the best people, the best military, and the best materials. We built the other worlds back up from nothing. Without us, they are nothing,”- Nadia Menil, Third Commandant of Mars to the Martian Assembly
“The time is-” BAM!
My alarm clock never got to finish it’s informative moment before I whacked it, breaking it… Again.
I sat up from my bed and groaned, already knowing what I had done, but dreading the morning more so than the trouble of having a new clock printed.
“Wretched thing… good morning, my ass,” I grumbled as I slid out of my warm bed and pressed my feet to the tile. I shivered a bit from the temperature and quickly ran across the room into the bathroom, turning on the shower and continuing with, “What the hell is so damn great about the morning? A man is dragged from his perfect dreams into an imperfect reality where he has to deal with sycophants, perverts, annoying people, corruption…” The water turned cold and gritting my teeth I finished, “And there is never enough hot water!”
Were my walls able to talk they would say what I am about to now. I repeated some version of that speech almost every morning of that final year in the academy as I counted down the days until I was an official agent.
The Titan Academy may have been the top school in the Martian Empire, but by that point it was admittedly facing the issue of age. It had seen many graduates, and I can only imagine the other stories my walls could have told, had they been able to speak. My dorm building was rather old as well, and although nice, it was always in need of more and more upkeep.
Climbing out of the shower, and making my way over to the mirror, I heard a small ding at the door. With a sigh I pulled the bathroom door closed, and checked the camera feed on my phone to see who it was.
Standing at the door was a man of oriental descent looking at his phone patriently. I rolled my eyes, and pressed the button to open the door. He stepped in and called, “Tommy! Where are you? I gotta tell you about last night! It was crazy man!”
From behind the closed door I sighed, and cracked the door open to ask, “What happened?” As I continued to dress.
“Well, last night we were all sitting there after you left to go to sleep,” “I have a test today,” I defended, but he batted it aside with, “Right, yeah, but still. Anyways, we were all sitting there, and we got a round of drinks. Eric decided to go try to go talk to some girls from the Science Academy at the bar, and Robert was pretty much just whispering and giggling with Camilla like a little girl.”
I sighed. “That sounds about right. What was Ryan doing?”
“Drinking and singing Irish drinking songs… I don’t think he’s going to be unscathed today. He drank so much he declared to a few people that the IRA was a “necessary and proper revolt against an improper and impious authority”. I don’t think that trip you guys took to Ireland in the VR was your best decision… Especially since you didn’t take me!”
I rolled my eyes.
“Had we taken you, we would’ve never seen you! You would’ve stayed in some Irish brothel, or Pub, or whatever!”
“You were in the pub the whole time!”
With a sigh, I emerged from the bathroom fully clothed and replied, “Yes, but we were singing Irish drinking songs while drinking and playing darts. Your focus lays in what is under one’s clothes.”
My friend laughed and replied, “Riku Ito is nothing if not focused! Now back to the story! We were at the table, and Hannah came over to us and asked if you were around. We told her you weren’t and that you went to bed. When we told her that she got all frustrated and left, we should’ve done that because Rebecca showed up!”
I frowned. “Rebecca, as in your second girlfriend?” “Yes! She showed up and was all over me, and I mean-” I held up a hand.
“I get the idea. Continue.”
“Right, yeah, so that happened and then Silvia showed up-” “Silvia, as in the one you proclaimed love for very loudly last time we were at that same club?” “Yes.”
I rubbed my eyes, knowing already where this was going. “Well the two argued, and they were fighting. Then they got the bouncer to kick all of us out of the club and we’re banned for the next month.”
That last part was a surprise, given everything else we had done in the club, which included me auctioning off dates with Eric for extra Units to get booze(That went very well by the way, and I am very proud of that).
“Right,” I said with a chuckle, “I’ll talk to the owner later and see if we could come to an arrangement about that ban… Provided you guys will cough up the Units. What happened with the girls?”
Riku chuckled. “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about… Can I bunk with you for a bit? I am currently trying to work all of that out.”
I rolled my eyes, and I’m sure that I thought something about my friend being a perverted glutton crossed my mind, but I agreed, “Sure, just don’t ever bring anyone here. You want to spend time with someone? Go spend some time at their place. This is not a-” “Stabbin’ Cabin?” “Sure, whatever. You get the idea. We can talk more later though, but right now I have to go. Robert is supposed to give me some things this morning.”
Riku sighed. “Man, you intelligent guys get the best deal. You can bring your own equipment.”
I nodded. “Yes, but we have to design at least half of it, otherwise we need to cheat really covertly. Besides, all Robert’s doing is tuning the stuff. I already have a fool-proof kit. I’ll see you later.
“Yeah, see ya!”
With that I left the room, the building and took the tram to the academy center, where all of the public science labs were. The buildings I passed were all tall, and I looked out at them with disinterest. I wish I could’ve taken a snapshot of it then, because it would be my last tram ride on Titan.
The morning chatter quieter than usual though, and I was in my own little world when I felt a tap on my shoulder. Turning my head I raised an eyebrow when I saw, “Hannah?”
Grinning at me was an olive skinned girl who was a year my junior, and who had a knack for getting herself into trouble with the wrong people. She also had an odd kind of obsession with me that never seemed to go away no matter how many times I turned her down, which normally put her into the pile of annoyances in my day. Still, sometimes she had good things to hear, and that day was one of them.
“Congratulations!” She said with a smile, sitting down across from me. I frowned. “I haven’t done anything…”
She sighed and handed me her phone which was keyed for the campus announcements page. At the top was a list of students whom the academy was recognizing, and my name was on it for- “Acceptance into the Office of Secrets Science Division?”
She nodded ,and smiled broadly repeating, “Congrats, Agent Maine.”
Handing her back the phone I looked briefly at the floor in disbelief.
“You don’t look as happy as I imagined,” She said with a slight frown. I shook my head and gave a small smile. “No, it’s just… I didn't think I would be accepted. I’m only number 6 on the roster…”
Rolling her eyes Hannah said, “But you are number one in the eyes of the Dean. We all know it. You have a knack for shmoozing and ingratiating that gives you a boost, plus you aren’t half bad in the practical side of things. Plus of the top ten, you are one of the only three that finished their PracOp with any success at all.”
I grimaced slightly at the mention of that. PracOps or “practice operations” were minor intelligence missions handed to the top students of the intelligence academy so that they could build a kind of resume for spies. Of course though, they could become bigger, and often did.
Mine took me to Ceres and to the icier parts of Russia where I had to very quietly handle a Martian looking to sell Earth some of our surplus war tech. It was not a pleasant operation, but I did succeed in shutting down the deal before it could go any further.
The others were not as lucky, with the number one at the time breaking his ankle and shattering his arm after it was crushed by a guy in exo-armor.
That was six months prior though, and I had actually handled two more PracOps since then, but those were more hush-hush so I didn’t correct her.
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“Still,” I said, “There are people who are better than I am on paper… They should’ve gotten this post.”
Hannah shrugged. “They didn’t. Probably for the best though. Your love of toys will be of great help to you there.”
I scowled and crossed my arms. “Technology is useful in the field, and when you live in the most technologically advanced society in the Solar System, it’s a waste not to use it.”
Hannah again shrugged. “Whatever you say, but since you are in such a good mood-” “Here it comes,” I thought, “-Why don’t you come with me to Vino’s tonight?”
I stopped and looked at her suspiciously. Vinos was the upper class place where they had actual chefs. Only students who received large allotments of Units every month from their families could eat there. While my family was plenty well off, they did not send me extra units, saying, “Fine food does not make for regular dining”.
“How can you afford Vino’s?” I asked.
She smirked. “I’m a hacker, remember? Besides, you aren’t the only one who got to go on a PracOp. It’s just a coincidence that mine pays better than yours.”
My scowl deepened at that. It was true that hackers and computer experts were paid more for their PracOps than just the average gun, but it was more annoying knowing that she could afford Vino’s and I would be eating synthesized food… Unless…
“Fine, fine,” I relented, silently hoping I wouldn’t regret it. She smiled and immediately began comparing schedules and we settled on the eighth hour of the evening by the time the tram stopped. She then said her goodbyes and I started walking as I came to the conclusion, “Apparently the quickest way to overcome my objections is dinner… Free dinner. Now I feel sleezy… Whatever, if it turns out poorly, I’ll blame Riku.”
With that decided I was more than ready for anything… Except what I walked in on.
Robert was a good friend of mine. Both of us had attended the same Secondary School, and both of us had entered the Academy with distinguished names. In my case it was because I was a Maine. In Robert’s case it was because he was a bona fide genius who won his entry by creating a photon shield, a shield that was made out of photons solidified by electromagnetic fields, or something along those lines… Maybe. To be incredibly honest, there have been several versions now made of the technology and I am unsure which one specifically is his.
With all of that in mind, I was not prepared to see him standing on a three by three square of solid light, grinning at me from behind his shades.
“Thomas!” He greeted as the square hovered down. I stared up at it as though I was unimpressed, but inside I was absolutely riveted. “Robert… How are you doing that?”
Photon shields or anything like them required immense amounts of power, and so normally they were tied directly to a ship’s main power system. Robert was just wearing his lab coat and a belt.
“It’s experimental, so I can’t say yet. The military is particular like that. I can say though that these won’t be for agents, they will more so be for front line fighters and the like.”
He touched down on the ground, and tapping the belt he let the light fade before walking over to a work table and letting his hand hove over it. It silently verify his identity and opened to reveal an entire set of Martian combat armor, and several silver cases.
“Right-O,” He said, rubbing his hands together, “Today I have for you a fully tuned set of armor. I managed to work all of the bugs out, but nice job overall. The contacts were a nice touch,” he said as he tossed me the smallest of the cases.
I opened it to see that both contacts were present and quickly put them on.
Intelligence Students were allowed certain privileges starting their third year, including custom equipment and augmentations, provided that we design it, or at least covertly pay someone else to design it. More simply put, you could cheat so long as you were not caught. If you were caught, it was just a slap on the wrist really, and a small bump down in your ranking. Unlike most though, I had yet to be caught as my cheating was far more well thought than most people’s. For instance, I would do all of the building of things myself, and let Robert direct me on how to do it, and then he would fine tune it for me.
I settled the contacts on my eyes, and then moved my fingers quickly in a very practiced sequence causing them to flare to life. Data and readouts flooded my vision and with a few quick gestures I dismissed them and began flipping through the different modes.
“I would recommend entering those into the database so you can get military royalties off of them… I think they would be a smashing success,” Robert suggested. I nodded. “I was waiting to do it until after my exam, but I agree. What else were you able to get running?”
Robert smirked. “Well, I fixed those stupid wrist launchers of yours, though I really think you should think of a new idea. I’ve seen comic books with better concepts.”
I frowned. “Comics come in book form?”
Robert sighed and shook his head. “Never mind. The important thing is that the wrist mounted launching system will no longer dislocate your arm, and it will actually fire in the direction it’s supposed to… If anyone asks, I don’t know anything about a broken window down the hall incidentally. Finally there is your new armor.”
He pointed at it and grinned.
“You were brilliant with this. I have no idea where you got the Units to snag this material, but I am amazed. Trinium is rather rare these days.”
I shrugged, and decided not to mention that the armor was originally a collectors item of the arms dealer I mentioned earlier. In my defense, it’s not like he needed it anymore, and Command said it was okay for me to keep it.
“I saw that you did some updates that didn’t go very well, and some of the hardware you swapped wasn’t compatible… So I went ahead and redesigned the whole deal and just kept the plating and your core programming. This armor is far and away superior to most everything save Nexus 7, the new super metal that was just released from Sybil Labs back home. The armor will take in and store kinetic energy, and can apply it in a number of ways, just as you designed. It can turn to thermal energy, or you can discharge it in a more electric fashion. Other than that, it’s pretty light, so you should be able to move freely.”
With a nod I approached the table and looked at the armor briefly before I heard footsteps behind me. I turned to see Camilla, who made people like Riku drool, enter. Her platinum blonde hair and emerald eyes both made her stand out… I think she would’ve stood out a little more if she wasn’t wasting her time constantly with what her boyfriend was doing.
“Hello Thomas,” She greeted pleasantly. I smiled slightly to greet, “Hello Camilla. Don’t mind me too much, I’ll be leaving in a moment… Robert you have the final thing I asked for don’t you?”
He nodded. “Of course. I have it, I have it… Hang on.” He left us for a moment and then came back with a small dark box. “Here they are. Nasty little things, and I didn’t have to modify them at all. You did this very well.”
Taking the box and opening it, I saw a set of ten knives in the box, all double edged combat knives with black handles that looked to be coated in rubber. One could assume those were just grips, but in reality they had a different purpose. “Each of those is packing high yield explosives or thermite. The blue handles are explosives, the green are thermite. I hope you don’t have to use those on any living targets…”
Without missing a beat I answered, “That is need to know information.”
Nodding with understanding, Robert nodded. “Right… Well, good luck. I’ll see you later, but right now I need to take her out.”
Nodding I bid them farewell and arranged to have my new things sent to the testing room. Once they were on their way, I checked my phone and began to walk towards the testing center, but stopped just short of the immense structure and turned towards a set of three waterfalls next to the building.
The three falls were artificial, obviously, as those kinds of features are certainly not naturally occuring on Titan. They were arranged in a triangular pattern and at their center was a circular holopad. I approached it unimpeded as this space was avoided by many of the students for one reason or another. I think for the same reason I was so well regarded from just an introduction. I am a Maine. My forebears founded Mars, fought to keep the worlds free, and built up our Colony to the pinnacle of human progress.
I approached the center and a blue man of light appeared next to me.
“Hello, Thomas Maine, whom would you like to see?”
I took a breath, and with a low voice answered, “James Maine.”
In the center of the pad, a man who could’ve been mistaken for an older version of myself appeared, wearing combat armor and a white and gold cape on his back that came down to roughly his belt level. Under his right arm was a helmet, and on his face was a defiant smile.
“Would you like me to read his biography?”
I shook my head. “I know Dad’s bio… You can leave me for a moment.”
The blue man nodded and disappeared.
Staring up at my father I let the rage of the falls around me fill my ears. Taking a breath, I let out a roar of frustration that was drowned out by the falls, and once my lungs burned, my throat hurt, and my heart was beating with a rapid tempo, I stopped. Once my heart had calmed and my sensibility had returned I looked up and promised him, “I will never let weakness overcome me again… At least not where it matters.”
I then walked away and out of the falls with the fury of a storm. This must’ve been so because people stepped out of my way as I made my way up to the room and I even seemed to intimidate the proctor a bit.
“Mr. Maine!” He greeted as he tried to do something that suspiciously seemed to like shielding himself behind his tablet.
“Lt. Daniels,” I said with a nod. “I assume my gear made it in?”
“Yes, and I just approved it all. You are good to go. Just enter the room, gear up, and hit the button. I’ll be watching from out here.”
I nodded and moved to enter the room. However before I did he said, “Good luck… I’ve heard days like these could be a killer for even the best students.”
I rolled my eyes and entered the room, unafraid of his odd warning.
I walked in to see a locker full of the gear that was just in the other lab, and pulled it on before entering the testing room.
The room was stark and gray. When I entered Lt. Daniels began the brief.
“Thomas James Maine of Mars. In your time you have proven your cunning in your machinations, your determination with a march through the ice of a tundra, and your loyalty by your actions. Your final test will be none of these as they are proven. Instead, your test will be greater… You must prove your strength.”
My eyes widened, and I felt my mouth go slightly dry as a combat robot appeared and the room started to shift into an urban environment. Of every test criteria, this was the one I knew would be the most likely for them to give me. However, I didn’t know that when they did it they would put me against what I was looking up at.
Combat robots were normally human sized. I was looking up at one that had legs like a praying mantis, and was armored from head to toe, the whole ten feet of it. Yes, that was my test. I had to destroy a giant, armored, well armed, ten foot robot with nothing more than a set of fancy knives and a combat pistol.
To be clear, it took my father’s famed squad of the Valiant to take one of these down.
“Son of a Bit-”
I did not get any further with my swearing before I turned tail and darted down a side alley as it moved to stomp me.
Now for those historians who may be curious on why it was I was running away from a giant robot instead of doing the sensible thing and using my fancy new toys to defeat it flat out, let me explain.
The unit chasing me was a SU119 from Sugar Labs. Mr. Sugar, who was a friend of my father’s, was not a sweet man. He also saw similar models like these in the war and thought, “I could build one better!” He did, and that is what was chasing me. A security bot designed to squash, burn, blowup, or eviscerate intruders. Its armor was not going to be damaged in the slightest by my high-yield explosives, and would not be put off by the small dent the thermite would make. The pistol is pretty much useless as well.
So, “How the hell do I take this thing down?” I wondered.
Well the new urban environment around me was not the most structurally sound, and enough weight will drag anything down. “Sadly though,” I thought, “There is not a building large enough. This test is designed to test my strength and was made so I couldn’t outwith it, or overcome it with sheer force of will. No, this was a judgment on my weakest quality: My body.
My father was known as one of the strongest of the Valiant, physically. His commanding officer swore that he could lift a mountain if he wanted to.
I was not strong enough to lift a mountain. I normally outwitted, out maneuvered, or out gunned my enemies. I could outlast, or even out pace, but if it came down to man versus robot, I was not going to win. To be fair, my dad would not have either, but Dad would’ve gone off and tried to do some damage before taking the tactical retreat option.
So how does a small man become a big man? That is the question. I wish I could’ve answered it because as I turned the next corner the floor under me blew up with an inferno of fire and I lost all consciousness.