Akronis

There was an explosion. Blurred visions of fervent fighting flowed through Marcus. Screams, gunfire, and the whir of ECS suits echoed through his ears. It all felt distant; like a half-remembered dream. He couldn’t get up. His body was paralyzed, and his own ECS suit unobliging. All he could hear were the mechanical sounds of the pumps still injecting more Red into his body.

He stared up at the green Akronian sky, as his breathing became increasingly laboured. Out of instinct, he reached for the pocket over his chest and felt it. The picture was still there. Reaching inside, he pulled it out, unaware his hand was now painted a dark crimson. He stared at the photo he was holding: A slim figure dressed in a flowing black gown, with her diploma proudly in her hand. He looked back up at the sky. There was a distant spark above the mountains that started to grow larger. He saw the rocket trail behind it and deduced it must be an atomic. Still paralyzed on the ground, he could do nothing but watch the missile guide itself towards him.

He wondered if she saw it coming that day. If she died while panicked or frightened. He pictured her outside with her friends, spotting the smoky streak across the sky, their eyes widening at the inconceivable truth. She must have been shopping. He trusted her to make her own decisions, yet she still made him read over her itinerary before she left. Was that the day she went to explore the Grand Square? Or perhaps that was the day she would be at the Eastside Mall. He decided that she was at the mall that day. That she was exploring the boutiques with a smile on her face, her last thoughts spent on what colour dress looked best on her—before she was incinerated in an instant.

He felt a slight breeze blow across his face before the green sky suddenly turned into a blinding white. The nuke had detonated.

***

Marcus was awoken by a sudden jolt of the omnibird. His eyes were blurry as he blinked a couple of times. Slowly, the metal mesh of the ground started to come into focus.

“Bad dream Anders?”

He looked up to see Corporal Caine wide awake sitting across from him. He was hunched over with his elbows on his knees, hiding the extended stomach guard of his ECS suit. Countering his larger gut, he had large, muscular arms and legs that were visible even through their uniforms. The only thing that wasn’t quite round was his square-shaped bald head and defined jaw.

“How’d you know?”

Caine pointed at the photo in Marcus’s hands. “You were gripping that photo there mighty hard.”

Marcus looked down at this hand. Up to this point, he wasn’t even aware that he had taken it out of its usual place in his uniform’s breast pocket.

“Who’s in the photo?”asked Caine.

“Why should you care?”

Caine shrugged. “Just curious is all. Haven’t gotten the chance to talk to you much since you joined the platoon.”

Marcus thought for a moment, then spoke. “My daughter. During her high school graduation. It’s the last photo I took of her.”

“Was she at the capital on the day of the attack?”asked Caine.

Marcus nodded.

“Sorry to hear that.”

There was a brief silence between the two as Marcus put the photo back into his uniform breast pocket. Caine spoke again.

“I reckon that’s why you’re here then right?”

Marcus nodded again. “Same reason for you?”

“Me? Nah, didn’t have anyone to mourn after the attack. Just felt like joining you know? Free Red and the thrill of combat. Not like I’ve got anything better to do.

Marcus noticed the stim gauge on Caine’s ECS suit read lower than it should be.

“Christ, are you on Red right now?”

Caine gave a lopsided smile. “Can barely feel it now, I gotta have some in me to keep me going.”

Fucking junkie thought Marcus. “You don’t care about the lives lost that day? The safety of our home? Of the rest of the eight moons?

Caine laughed. “Oh yes, what grave danger we’re all in now because of the attack. What tragedy it was to lose all those millions and our historic capital. Heard it all from Virel, that psycho. I’ll tell you what, I’m sure he’s happy those millions died just because it gave him an excuse to strong-arm the other chancellors into control of all eight moons now.

“Supreme Chancellor Virel was unanimously voted in to temporarily govern the eight moons while this crisis unfolded. He launched this campaign so we could uncover who led the attack.”

“It’s Supreme Chancellor now?”Caine let out another wheezing laugh. “Fucker felt that just chancellor wasn’t grand enough for him. Nearly 500 years of wisdom just so that we could end up in war, hoping from moon to moon, shooting up everyone in sight.”

Marcus gritted his teeth. “We only shoot when they resist. And when they resist, they’re terrorists. Virel spent those 500 years bringing the eight moons into prosperity. He was the first to unite the moons in partnership after the Great Silence. He knows best how to get us through this.”

“Unite? He just made the other seven moons serve Cerulea. Have you seen him now? He’s got more wires coming out of him than I’ve got hair on my body. He’s more machine than man Anders. He’s got to have lost his humanity.”

“How do you know that?”

“I guess I don’t know for sure. But it’s something about his cold gaze. The way he speaks. I can sense it y’know”

“Can you still sense it when you’re not taking Red?”

Caine laughed again. “Guess I’ll never find out.”

Marcus glared at him. Caine started to sense the tension in the air. He smiled and threw his hands back. “Hey, no hard feelings alright? Just wanted to have some fun with political banter. We’re still all here to shoot terrorists and find that fuck who launched the atomic right?”

The omnibird shook again. Commander Yu opened the door from the cockpit.

“Ready up! Thirty minutes until landing approach!”

More soldiers started to wake up. Marcus’gaze softened again and he clapped his hand on Caine’s shoulder.

“So long as you help me shoot them”

Caine grinned. “You don’t gotta worry about that.”

***

They landed in a small clearing. Around them stood the vast blue forest that wrapped the base of Mount Kiron. Their target was an industrial village near the south side of the peak. It sat below a uranium processing plant that harvested the rich ores from within the mountain. The plant had already been bombed. An evacuation and displacement order had been issued to the village long before. Their mission now was to clear the village and interrogate anyone who stayed behind.

Mount Kiron was one of many mountains scattered through the Akronian landscape. Mining industries bloomed alongside them and cemented Akronis as the primary exporter of ore among the eight moons. It was also why Akronis fell under special scrutiny after the attack—It was the biggest supplier of uranium ore.

Marcus started into the forest with his platoon. The hike towards the village was long, but their ECS suits did most of the legwork. There were no roads. The natives of Akronis believed in staunch environmentalism—contrary to the main industry that their livelihoods revolved around.

The ground was soft and mushy. Rainfall was quite common around the mountains of Akronis. Their heavy ECS suits and equipment sunk into the ground with each step, the drone of outboard motors straining to lift their bodies filled the air. Marcus saw a mountain hopper leap from a tree in front of him, its tiny legs outstretched as it glided effortlessly to another branch. He gazed up for a moment at the green sky. Beyond it lay the dominating red image of Rubion, rising from the horizon. It looked different than it did from Cerulea. Marcus felt it was bigger and more imposing, ready to expand and engulf the heavens. Beyond Rubion, there were distant stars, barely visible as dusk started to turn into dawn. He thought about what could be lying behind those stars—distant civilizations, pockets of humanity still filling the universe with life. Or perhaps there was nothing left out there. Perhaps something ended it all.

No one knew after the Great Silence. Marcus had learned about it through textbooks and speeches. It was a day when suddenly all contact with interstellar colonies ceased. At the time the eight moons were primarily inhabited as outposts of a much larger human empire, still dependent on resources shipped from other stars. During the weeks following the silence, there was panic among the moons. Many wanted to abandon the slowly dying outpost cities and try to reach the next closest colony. Many started to fight over resources. Through the chaos, a leader emerged who managed to unite the moons. It was Virel. He realized among the moons there would be enough untapped resources to support their dwindling bastion of civilization. He saw purpose in every moon. At the time Virel was a governor of Cerulea. He then rose to be chancellor and formed the council of the eight moons. He chose to extend his life indefinitely, gifting his wisdom to all future generations. Marcus remembered the reverence he felt hearing Virel’s speeches and the stories of how the eight moons rose to prosperity.

Marcus trudged on through the forest. It seemed to be getting even more dense as they approached closer to the village. It was a stark difference from the environment in Cerulea: Vast swaths of flat and stable ground made it much easier to build large cities. Non-violent weather and stable geological activity made it safe as well. Cerulea stood as the main population cluster among the eight moons—until the day of the attack.

They reached the village at midday with the dull red glow of Rubion starting to cast faint shadows. The journey there had been mostly silent. The whir of their ECS suits and the squelching of the ground was only intermittently interrupted by an ill-thought-out joke from Caine, and the chorus of grumbling that followed promptly after.

***

There was an eerie silence in the village as they started to scout each house. It looked abandoned, as expected, but Marcus had heard stories of sudden ambushes from Akronian terrorists. They paired up and fanned out into the houses.

As his partner swept the lower floor, Markus started upstairs. The floorboards creaked under the weight of his suit. Dust particles floated in the cone of his headlamp, as he looked around. It was clear whoever lived in the house had fled quickly; there were still pictures on the wall and items scattered across the rooms. Marcus cleared the first two rooms and moved on to the third. The doors were all still ajar. Below him, he could hear his partner moving carefully across the lower floor.

Marcus slowly moved into the final room. He slowly swept his rifle across the space, listening for any movement. Along the wall were framed pictures above a dresser and next to it was a tall wooden wardrobe. The wardrobe doors were closed. Marcus raised his rifle again and kicked in the doors. The wood splintered and gave in to an empty space. Dust flurried upwards, illuminated by his headlamp. Marcus breathed out and put down his rifle. He started out the room, but something caught his eye. A picture on the wall oddly looked like Caine. The eyes and smile almost matched identically, but the full head of luscious hair was anything but. Marcus chuckled to himself and shook his head. Even when that loud bastard wasn’t around, he was still being reminded of him.

Marcus walked out of the room and shouted down to his partner.

“Clear!”

There was a pause and he heard his partner shout back.

“All clear!”

Marcus started back down the stairs and his partner followed him out of the house. They started to walk towards the village entrance to report to Commander Yu until they suddenly heard the sound of gunfire.

Marcus and his partner exchanged glances and both started to run towards the sound. Marcus’ECS suit detected the increased adrenaline level in his body and automatically started to pump Red into him. They made it over a hill overlooking the main square of the village and saw Caine being restrained by two other soldiers. Before Marcus could process what was happening, he caught something out of the corner of his eye. A man and a young girl were running from behind the house across from Caine. Marcus raised his rifle at them, his eyes narrowing down in between his sights. He saw the man’s terrified and desperate expression and his white-knuckled hand holding the little girl running beside him. The Red was starting to take effect as his awareness was heightened and instinct took over.

Marcus couldn’t pull the trigger.

He relaxed his eyes from the sights of his rifle and suddenly spotted another soldier, taking aim at the man and little girl. Before he could think, he switched his rifle to its concussive mode and fired a blast at the soldier, the concentrated shockwave sending him flying through the stone wall of a house.

His partner yelled at him.

“Anders what the hell are you doing!?”

Time started to move in slow motion. Everyone at the village square looked up to see where the sound of the blast came from. In that moment of distraction, Caine used a surge of strength to burst free from the soldiers restraining him. Marcus saw him knock one to the ground before slamming the butt of his rifle into another. His vision started to sweep towards the sky as he was tackled to the ground by his partner. He saw a fist raise up and suddenly block the view of Rubion in the sky. It started down towards his face. Marcus blocked it with his forearm and kicked his partner in the groin, loosening his grip. He rolled out of his hold and reached for his rifle on the ground. Before his partner could move to pin him again, Marcus fired another concussive blast, sending him flying back-first through a tree.

Marcus got up, breathing heavily. He felt frozen in shock, watching the unconscious body on the ground. He heard more yelling and looked down towards the village square. There were bodies scattered all around the area. He watched as Caine brawled the last soldier, connecting a punch that sent them through a house window.

He suddenly saw a rifle raised at him. Caine yelled out.

“You fired that shot earlier didn’t you?”

Marcus nodded.

Caine put down his rifle and motioned for him to come over. He walked towards him, feeling uneasy. Marcus looked around at the carnage. He spotted Commander Yu lying on a rooftop.

“Who are you?”Marcus asked.

Caine smiled. “Same person as I’ve always been Anders,”he tapped the stim gauge on his ECS suit. “Although you might be surprised I’m off the Red.”

Marcus opened his mouth but was silent.

Caine spoke again. “I get it, you’re probably mighty confused right now aren’t you?”

Marcus was still silent.

Caine continued. “I’ll start with why I gave the rest of our platoon an early retirement. There’s something in this village that’s very important to me. Something I can’t let any Ceruleans get their hands on.”

Marcus finally spoke. “You’re not Cerulean?”

“Nope, not even the slightest. This village we’re in? This is where I grew up.”

“Then, why haven’t you shot me yet?”

Caine laughed. “I might’ve, but you saved my ass back there. You wanted to protect those Akronians didn’t you? You’re not just here to mindlessly kill, and that means you might be a Cerulean I can trust.”

“Trust with what?”

“The truth. You lost someone and you joined this war to find the person who took them from you. I’ve known who that person is from the very start.”

“Who?”

“The same person you Ceruleans have been idolizing for 500 years.”

Marcus was stunned. Caine read his expression.

“You don’t believe it, do you?”

“Back on the ride here, when you told me what you thought of Virel. Were you testing me?”

Caine laughed again. “Well, not exactly. I was just rambling while high on Red. But who would think twice about the bumbling junkie secretly being an undercover Akronian right?”

“How do you know it was Virel?”

“I saw the order from him. I used to work in the factories next to the uranium mines. One day, we were given a new assignment for some secret initiative. We were told to start producing atomics, for the protection of the eight moons. To ensure that humanity here could defend itself should anything emerge out of the Great Silence.”

“But Virel just wanted them for himself”

Caine nodded.

“The morning after the manufacturing work was done, Cerulean Elites came into the factories. Shot up everyone in sight. They then burned the place down and blamed the deaths on a freak fire accident. I got lucky. When they were shooting, I got grazed by a round and played dead. During the fire, I made it to the plant manager’s office. Found a letter from Virel himself. It was a bribe, telling that fucker to go to Erimos after ‘the Cerulean capital is no more’”

“Why would he do such a thing?”

“Because of why he does anything. Power. My best guess is he waited until the chancellors were the least critical of him and took the opportunity to bend them all to his will after his own attack on Cerulea”

“You’ve kept this to yourself until now?”

“I need to time it right. The campaign on Akronis is almost coming to an end with nothing to show for it. People will be demanding answers soon enough. And I will give it to them.”

“How?”

“There’s a communications array right here in this village.”

“If you send that letter out there, they’ll track it to this village. They’ll know we’re missing and hunt us”

“Oh yes, we’ll be hunted like a bleeding fish in a sea of sharks”

“So I’ll be joining you as a fugitive?”

“Well, not just me.”

Caine looked toward the forest outside the village, with Mount Kiron’s towering peak dominating the horizon.

“Do you want to meet that man and child you saved?”

“Where did they go?”
Caine grinned at Marcus. “Come. Let me show you something.”