PSDF Transmission ----------------- Time: Era Of War, Age of Initialization. Name: Exodus 1 Author: Senie. ----------------- Okay, people, here's the deal. This story is a trip. It's a bit gruesome, a bit tragic, a LOT mind-fuck. At least my opinion. 'Exodus' is loosely based on a really fucked up dream I had one night that still haunts my (damn Zenoxu). You have to understand I was compelled to write it. But, unlike me, you have a choice. So, consider yourself warned: do not read this unless you REALLY liked Foothold. It's not for the queasy and it's not for the squeamish - live with it. As Rich would say; 'This is war, not a picnic in a park'. ---------------- Apparently, Senie had got hold of a rather large quantity of Jolt and had drunk it all out of curiosity. In the five years she'd been on the base, Senie had never drunk Jolt cola, although she'd heard many interesting things about it. Its effects on humans, Lunarians, and penguins alike were things of legend. But, sitting with a bunch of other people in the ENSS barracks that night; she and Blackbird had gotten into a discussion about why it wasn't a good idea for her to drink it. "I don't even LOOK at that stuff, man! I get buzzed from smelling it." Blackbird, not understanding just how true that statement was, eventually talked her into drinking a bottle of it, only after promising to make sure she didn't do anything stupid while under the influence of the caffeine. The only reason she'd even agreed to drink it at all was because she was dying to find out how would happen. Senie, while not a drinker, was known for going slightly loco when given caffeine. Those who'd ever experienced the woman high on the substance made a concerted effort to keep it away from her. The last time she'd had any, she'd sprinted through the base; desperate to beat the wild alley raptors that she insisted were following her. After she'd lost the raptors, she'd decided to straighten everything in sight, including people. When she'd attempted to fix Tozetre's Ragnarok one plate at a time while laughing hysterically, he'd grabbed her, alarmed by the glassy-eyed 'I wanna play' look in her eyes. He took her to the infirmary, thinking that she was delirious or something, at least judging from the way she was shaking and her heart was racing. The only thing they could find was traces of the twenty ounces of Wild Cherry Pepsi she'd drank earlier that night in her system. That was all they could get out of her before she'd taken a broom and started brushing the ceiling and counters, knocking the boxes of gauze and bandages off as she went and convulsing with laughter. To make a long story short, she'd ended up in the mech hanger, having made the entire area spotless before collapsing. "This is SOOO not a good idea," Senie groaned. "I can't believe I let you talk me into this!" "You can thank me later." Blackbird grinned. "Don't worry, Senie! It's only Jolt." "Easy for YOU to say." she retorted. "You're not the one with ZERO tolerance for caffeine. If Tozetre finds out about this, I'm a dead woman." "Huh?" "Never mind." she sighed. "Well, who wants to live forever, right?" At that Blackbird grinned and they raised their bottles in a toast. The liquid hit her system like a shot. Unlike any other soda she'd ever drank, this one's effects were almost instant. She started to shake and sputter, jabbering about how it tasted like chocolate. That was when Blackbird had first begun to wander if it had been wise to offer her some of his stash. "Um... Senie? Why don't you give me the bottle now?" The thought of handing over her 'choco-shock thingie' didn't seem to sit too well with her, and she took off... literally. Even Blackbird couldn't catch her in time. He just sat staring after her and wishing he'd kept his mouth shut. In the meantime, Senie finished the bottle, her body absorbing the caffeine as best it could while she twitched and looked for something to do with her massive energy reserves. She'd somehow managed to get into the GMW hangar in her stupor. An idea came to mind and she'd found her Odin, recognising it by the 'Senie Gonzales' stencilled on its side.... "YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME," Senie cried. "Asenia, you have GOT to learn to relax. You'll do fine." Fiss answered calmly. "NO, I WON'T," she continued to rage, waving a single sheet of paper for emphasis. The paper, folded and torn in places, was the actual reason for her 'visit'. On it was the assignment for today's attack, scheduled to happen in roughly thirty minutes. These runs were getting to be pretty standard now, provide air cover for the bikers and mecha while they advanced the Penguin hold on the Venezuela. In fact, it just happened to be the same memo that Fiss always used, with a quick adjustment for co-ordinates and time. The GMW tended to stick to a three-pronged attack; the main assault led by the High Armoured Claw himself with two flanking wings, one led by Jacque and the other by Sandra. There had been some talk and speculation as to who would lead the third wing now that Sandra had been killed in the last assault, but no word had come from the Commander or his second-in-command until this morning. Ironically, Senie hadn't even noticed her nomination as the head of MMD squad (lovingly referred to as 'double M D squad' to her eternal delight) herself. As she wandered into the cafeteria, glancing over the assignment absently as her mind struggled to achieve the fabled state of wakefulness, she'd been hailed by a resounding wave of congratulations. She'd smirked and waved her co-workers off, assuming that they were referring to her Jolt-induced Monkey killing spree a week ago. She was still a bit foggy on the details, but from what she'd been able to piece together from different sources, she'd gone out and destroyed a bunch of Monkey outposts for the hell of it while she was 'under the influence' before crashing, first the plane, and then herself. When they'd found her she'd been nearly comatose, and the next few days were a blur. The PDFP operatives in South America were still going nuts trying to figure out what had happened. She hadn't been in to see Tozetre just yet either... a meeting that she was NOT looking forward to at all. As she sat to eat the bowl of cereal she'd had more and more of this good-natured 'ribbing'. At first it was fun, after all, despite all the trouble she was probably about to be in, the whole reason for the PSDF was to kill Monkeys. But after awhile, she began to be annoyed by it. "Look, guys, it's not like I meant to leave the hangar or anything! I mean, JEEZ, give it a rest!" This admonition prompted many strange looks, especially from those in her unit. "But... Senie..." "WHAT? What is the problem here?! I know I shouldn't have been drinking Jolt, and if I could remember what the heck I'd been doing that night, I would have stopped myself from going all 'commando without a cause'. I'm already in enough trouble, and I'm still pretty out of it. Can we just postpone the 'festivities' until I'm a little more... sober.' Indeed, she did feel more than a little hung over from her experience. Maybe I'll talk to Jacque about sitting this one out, she mused. It's just a routine run and- "So, when are we gonna go, Senie?" The woman looked up groggily into the face of Lylea. "Huh?" The Lunarian sighed, figuring that he wasn't speaking clearly enough for her. In the time he'd spent on the base, he'd learned that inebriated humans had a tendency to be a bit hard of hearing the next day. From the way the girl was acting, it was clear that although she had not been drinking, she definitely had a hangover. "For the run today, Senie. We're going to-" "Right. Right. I get that part. Why are you asking me when we're leaving? Jacque or Sandra would know better than me." She thought about that for a second, then added, "Sorry. I'm a bit foggy this morning. Who's taking Sandra's place anyway? Did they ever decide?" At this the Lunarian gaped. "Of course they did, Senie! It's you." She stared at her friend blankly for a moment, processing the new information through the molasses-filled gears of her brain. Then it hit her and she jumped out of her seat, breakfast forgotten. "WHAT?!?!" Lylea flinched at the movement, but answered nonetheless. "You didn't read the memo?" He motioned to the paper crushed in her hand for emphasis. Senie smoothed out the paper slowly as if giving the words on the page time to rearrange themselves so that she could show them to Lylea. But when she looked in the 'squadron leaders' section of the memo, her name was typed next to double MD squad. The fog in her mind cleared at that, all traces of the caffeine fix gone in an instant. She glared at the paper as she crushed it once more and stomped off to find out what kind of joke this was. But it was no joke. "Jacque and I talked this over, Senie. You're one hell of a pilot and you're gonna make an excellent squad leader." "No I'm not," she shot back. "Are you NUTS!! I'm still learning how to-" "No, you're not. You fly just fine. Sandra spoke very highly of you. She was happy you were in her squad." He placed a hand warmly on her shoulder, which the angry woman shrugged off. "You CAN'T do this!! I'll screw up! I A L W A Y S screw up!!" "You can handle this, Senie. You're gonna be just fine-" "But you don't understand," she pleaded. "I have a history of fucking things up when I'm in charge, Fiss! I suck at leading!! I always screw it up." "Like when?" Fiss asked calmly, shuffling through some paperwork with interest. "Like... Like..." She fumbled for an example. "Like back in college I was in charge of-" "Senie, that was years ago," her commander replied soothingly. "You'll be fine, really." "But I CAN'T go," she declared with triumph. "I have to... meet with Tozetre so that he can yell at me for that stunt-" "It's all been taken care of, Senie," Fiss answered smugly. Senie's face fell at that. "What? But I never went to see-" "I know. He and I talked about it, and he's actually quite impressed. Of course, if you ever try that again without his permission, he'll tear you a new asshole..." Senie cringed at the rather disturbing image that popped into her head at that. "But other than that, he said congratulations." "Paperwork," she gulped desperately. "Taken care of. You're new Odin is waiting in the hangar for you." Her shoulders slumped as she realised that he truly meant for her to go through with this. Fiss smiled and approached his subordinate. "Senie, I don't know why you're so upset. You're an excellent pilot, Sandra said so herself. And you were practically her right hand, weren't you?" "Well, yeah," she said dully, addressing a patch of floor directly in front of her feet. "But that was different.." "How is it different, Senie," he prodded, determined to find out why she wasn't excited about her promotion. "I'm good at background work; I don't mind being a worker bee. But I'm not good enough to lead myself, least of all anyone else!" He shook his head and gently lifted her chin so she'd have to face him. "Asenia, you just described how every good leader feels. I want you to head 'Murder Maim Destroy' because I know you won't get over confidant and forget why you're there. Sandra felt that you would do an excellent job and so do I. Will you?" "Did Sandra really say that I was a good pilot?" she asked, smiling tentatively. "Yes." he nodded firmly, breaking into a grin in response to hers. "You'll be fine, trust me. Now, we ship out in a half-hour? Why don't you go and talk to your Mothras before we go?" Her entire body glowed with happiness at that and she just barely caught herself before she could giggle and hug the High Armoured Claw. "Thank you, SIR," she cried enthusiastically. Fiss chuckled as he drew her into a hug. "I'll see you in a bit, okay?" The woman nodded and bounded off, leaving him to his thoughts and paperwork. He marvelled at how her whole face had lit up when he'd told her she could handle her new position. It constantly amazed him that she could still smile like that after all she'd been through. Even after all the bloodshed and tears she still had the ability to laugh with complete abandon at nothing. She was even known to offer words of comfort and compassion when things got rough. Many of the other members of his corps had noticed these traits in her also. "Yeah, she'll make an excellent Squad leader," he remarked to the now empty room, seeing those liquid brown eyes of hers sparkle with life and intelligence in his mind. Making a mental note to make his friend and newly appointed wing leader smile more often, he turned back to his work. Senie passed happily through the knots of Humanity, Penguinity, and Lunarity on her way to the hangar, answering each 'good morning' with one of her own and every resounding 'congratulations' with a hearty 'thank you'. She felt exhilarated. Sandra had been a hard taskmaster, but that was only because she didn't want her people to get dead. That the former wing leader would actually say that she was any good was... Unbelievable to say the VERY least! And if Sandra really felt that she could handle the task at hand, then maybe she really WAS ready. She sighed contentedly and continued on her way, ready to take on her new job. In the hangar, she met up with her charges. Sandra had always insisted that everyone meet for an official 'briefing' fifteen minutes before take-off. These meetings usually consisted of her telling them to fight well and not to do anything stupid out there. It was the same spiel every mission, repeated for the benefit of new recruits when they joined up. But it was a tradition, nonetheless, and just as she'd hoped, every member of MMD squad was assembled and waiting to see what would happen next. Lord, I'm scared, she prayed silently as she looked over her unit and felt her stomach drop out at the sight of a new face. Please help me to do this right. Amen. She closed her eyes briefly and took a deep breath to calm herself, then started to speak. "Let's get one thing straight," she began as if in the middle of a conversation with someone. "You know me. I'm that slightly 'off' girl that hangs around the base and reads a lot. But out in the field, I am your commanding officer. I'm not your friend. I'm not your enemy. But I am the one you have to answer to if you screw up. I'm the one that will sign your death warrant if you die out there today. And I'm the one that will personally rip out your heart and eat it if you make me do that today. I want you sharp out there. But you had better be safe too, or you'll answer to me.' Her eyes made contact with all eight members of her squad, daring any of them to challenge her. Besides the new one who couldn't quite understand Lunarian yet, everyone looked as if they understood and would comply. She nodded approvingly and put on her helmet. "Okay then, lock and load! See y'all on the other side." The rest of her unit followed suit. "That was a good speech, Senie," Della grinned. "Sandra would have been proud." Senie grinned happily. "Well, stick around, hon. I'm just getting started!" With that she jumped into her aircraft and fired out the engines. The following is an excerpt taken from the GMW transmissions on the morning of July 18th. Please note that unless specifically stated, all conversation is in either Penguin or Lunarian, the official language of the PSDF: Senie: So, how's everybody doing out there?! Malcolm: Wuagh! (General laughter over the feed) Senie: That's good, Malc! Just don't get cocky on me, aiight?! Malcolm: Wuaaagh! Wuagh! Theresa: There are more fighters than usual... Rich: Yeah... Those fuckers must be gettin pretty desperate. Senie: ...That's what we're here for, people. Let's give 'em a reason to hate us!! (cheering on the feed) Nancy: They know they can't win! Why do they keep- what the hell... Rich: Senie! Are you seeing- Senie: Yeah, I see it! Watch out, we don't know where it's been!! Lylea: They're coming in fast! Where the hell are they coming from!! Dana: SHIT! It's right on my tail!! I can't shake it! Senie: WATCH IT!! These guys are better than the others!! The Monkeys- Rich: It's' right up my ass!! I can't shake it!! Senie: God dammit!! ROLL LEFT!! ROLL LEFT!!!!! GET OUT OF THERE, RICH!!!!!!! Lisa (in English): I can't understand a word she's saying!! Will somebody please- Malcolm: Wuuuuagh!! Alex: She said get the fuck out of there!!! Senie: Somebody tell Lisa to stay the fuck clear!! She's gonna get hit if she stays there!! NANCY, LOOK OUT!!! Nancy: They're too fast!!! I'm gonna- Dana: Somebody help me!!! PLEASE HE'S- Lylea: What the hell are they! I've never seen- Senie: Of course this shit gotta happen on my watch... ALL UNITS!! ALL UNITS SPEED UP!! DO NOT ENGAGE!!! Rich: Oh God! They're everywhere!! What the fuck are they?!?!?! Malcolm: WUUUUUUAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!! Senie: NO! I want you all to A C C E L E R A T E!!! We need ta find out what these cocksuckers are before we start taking them out!!! Do not destroy unless you run out of options!! Alex: They're pacing us!!! I can't believe it... They're- Senie: Yeah, I see it!! DANA, GET CLEAR NOW!! THAT'S AN ORDER!!! Dana: SENIE, HE'S LOCKED ONTO ME!!!! HE'S GONNA FIRE!!!!!!!! Senie: Oh Jesus... HANG ON!!!!! Lylea: SENIEWHATAREYOU- Nancy: SEEEEENIIIIIEEEEEE!! (loud explosion and the sound of detonation. The rest of Senie's transmission is static-laden and barely intelligible) Theresa: SENIE, COME IN!!! COME IN, GODDAMMIT!!! Malcolm: WUAGH!!! WUAAAGH- Rich: Senie, answer for God's- Senie (barely audible): I'm hit... Lylea: How bad is it?!? SENIE!! Jacque: This is Jacque. I'm getting wild readings over there. What are you people- Lylea: Jacque, some kind of new weapon! It's- Rich: JESUS!! I've got- Jacque: What's going on over there?! Alex: SIR, SENIE'S BEEN HIT!! Nancy (sobbing): I've got crazy readings over here!!! We should have seen- Senie: They shouldn't have been able to get me... Dana: SENIE!! Get out of there!! I'm reading Taint!!! Do you copy!! Alex: SENIE!! WAKE UP!!! Senie (a bit stronger): Oh God... They- they're... GET OUT OF HERE!! I'VE GOT TAINT!!!! Jacque: SENIE!!! HOW BADLY- Lylea: She's hurt pretty badly... In shock from- Theresa: Oh God... SENIE, GET OUT OF THERE!!!! IT'S COMING FROM YOUR ODIN!! Senie: ALL FIGHTERS, REGROUP!! GET TO JACQUE'S POSITION NOW!!! I'M- Dana: Regroup?! Senie, we can't just- Lisa: We've gotta do something!! WE CAN'T JUST TURN TAIL AND RUN!! NOT AFTER- Rich: SEEENIIIIEEEE!!! (multiple gunshots are heard over the feed and wild shouting erupts in double MD squad ) Senie: I'm... Down... Fighters... Out.... Oh... Jesus... Lylea: You're breaking up, Senie!! SAY AGAIN! Senie: said... down... get... asses... hurry... Alex: EJECT!!! EJECT NOW!!!! Senie: Malfunct... Get... Jacque: DOUBLE MD SQUAD, PULL BACK!!! PULL BACK UNTIL- Lylea: SEEEEEEENNNNNNNIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!! Senie: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! (the sound of an explosion, then static from Senie's line) Fiss: PULL BACK!!! ALL UNITS, PULL BACK!!!!!! Nancy: Did anyone see where she- Lisa: Will somebody PLEASE speak English?!? Malcolm: WUUUUAAAAGH?!? Dana: She's gone... Jacque: DOUBLE MD SQUAD!! GET YOUR ASSES BACK- Theresa: ...gotta get her- Nancy: HERE COMES ANOTHER ONE!!! IT'S- (chaos on the feed. Coherent portion of transmission ends here. It should be noted that during the last part of the transmission, multiple 'tone- locks' were heard at any given time.) Her Odin finally ejected her before being consumed by flame. Because of the angle of the plane itself, she was jettisoned to the side and had a near miss with a pretty thick tree trunk. Then the Tainted missile overcame the vehicle and it exploded. She shielded her eyes against the blast, then scanned the sky. The Monkeys had got them good, those new Tainted missiles were good at finding their targets. There was a lot of confusion in the skies from the look of things. Then one of the enemy craft exploded and she grinned. "Good deal, guys. Thanks," she muttered absently, walking away from the wreckage of her own charred plane to get her bearing. She supposed she'd have to flag down one of the bikers and bum a ride back to base when they arrived. "And that's the second time in a week! Stupid Monkeys," she grumbled darkly, leaning against a tree to wait for the mecha and bikers to show up. Then she remembered something and she bolted from her spot, her eyes bulging with realisation. "My God." she choked, pulling out her tattered and battered memo from her plebeian. With numb fingers she unfolded the paper and read the co-ordinates for today's assault. The battle tactic was fairly obvious. The ground forces had been moving east to west, taking land as it went in a steady and unstoppable wave of Monkey death. They were advancing slowly though, in relatively small jumps to confuse their adversaries. Although she'd never been good at finding her position at any given time, it wasn't a hard thing to accomplish in this case. She simply had to look at the sun. Even an amateur navigator knew that the sun set in the west and it being mid-afternoon, it was impossible to not know where the sun was headed. That is, of course, the navigator in question was trying to delude herself. And that was something that she simply couldn't afford to do. No one this deep behind enemy lines could afford the luxury of self-delusion. Her mouth felt impossibly dry. There would be no biker to offer her a ride today, or anytime soon for that matter. She dimly remembered flying over the battlefield as one by one the Odin's systems had begun malfunctioning, pulling desperately at the controls to keep herself from crashing there and possibly killing any of the other PSDFers in the process. Quite vivid imagery flooded her conscious mind of her last few air born minutes and seeing herself crashing into the canopy as the Taint on that weapon vied for control of her mind. She'd overshot any ideal landing area... by a lot. She swallowed back tears, feeling her knees get weak. Crying wouldn't help her now, but it seemed that whatever part of her brain that had won temporary control over her senses didn't understand that. She felt herself sink to the ground and watched in horror/fascination as a drop of moisture fell onto the piece of paper she'd been reading. After a minute or two, she finally got herself under control enough to carefully fold the memo and stick it into her armor. Then she reconsidered and jogged over to the dying fire that used to be her means of transportation. Even the low emissions of Taint radiating from the plane were enough to make her feel violently ill, but this was something that had to be done. She tossed it in the paper and watched it until it finished burning away any written record of her involvement with the PSDF. Just in case. With that done, she found that she could function again. She checked her two GUN-1s to make sure they were loaded and ready, and set off in the opposite direction of the sinking sun. She didn't have any plan, but she knew she needed to put as much distance between her and the downed plane as she could. She'd already wasted ten minutes, now it was time to get on the ball. Otherwise she really would end up deceased. She'd covered no more than twenty-five feet when she first felt it. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and adrenaline pumped into her body as she looked around and saw Monkeys coming out of the underbrush. This was her first time seeing them up close and personal, and they were every bit as ugly as Starr had described them. She swallowed hard as three more entered the clearing and she realized that she was surrounded. It dawned on her that she was about to die here in this steamy jungle, a victim of these flea-bitten primates and she felt sad. Even though she hadn't envisioned going out in a blaze of glory, she'd never thought it would end this way. But then again, she thought smugly, I'll bet this hadn't been in Sandra's plans either. "Very well." she murmured and shrugged her shoulders. She placed her back in close proximity to a tree and squared off with the snarling, filthy animals. Another thought occurred to her and she couldn't help laughing. She mustered up her courage, prayed for the strength to die honourably, and addressed her enemies with a smirk and a calm that many found disquieting coming from a human. "Who wants to live forever, right?" she grinned at the words she'd shared with Blackbird as a toast less than two weeks ago. The seven Monkeys in the clearing stared at her for a moment, trying to figure out what had been said. Then they attacked. The battle didn't take long at all. She managed to drop three of her opponents right off the bat before she ran out of ammo and took off running. One grabbed her from behind and she kicked it away, thanking God she'd taken up those Martial Arts classes Tozetre had pushed all those years ago. She felt around in her pockets for new clips, ejecting her empty shells as she went, her opponents following closely behind. Then she felt it. A strong cord of dark energy slammed into her before she could reload. Every one of her senses jerked and jittered at her first taste of unadulterated Taint. She felt her mouth open as she fell, seemingly in slow motion, to the ground. Strangely, there was no sound. Or maybe there was too much running through her mind to register her blood-curdling cry of agony before she blacked out. Erkan stood over the fallen human, a look of disgust on his face. "How many did we lose?" One of the lower level operatives rushed forward to answer. "Sir, three dead, one wounded." "What!" He spun around angrily to face the cringing underling, his face forming into an impressive snarl. The Monkey trembled but somehow managed to give a full report with a steady voice. "Sir, Hans, Eric, and Saban were shot. The human forced Rongo into a tree. His arm is broken, other than that, there is no damage." "NO DAMAGE," Erkan hoisted the Monkey up until he dangled two feet off the ground and shook him until his teeth rattled. "You call this 'no damage'. One human killed THREE of our men and you say dare to tell me there was 'no damage'?!?" "I misspoke, sir," Ty, sick with fear and dread, stammered. "I meant to say-" His correction was interrupted by the sound of his neck snapping. Erkan threw the carcass to the side with a roar and kicked the unconscious figure lying on the ground in front of him. "You will suffer for this, human," he smiled at the truth of this and dragged her to her feet. He looked at her, hoping that she would open her eyes just then. The sound of her terrified scream would be a great comfort to him right now. However, her eyes remained firmly shut as she grimaced in pain. He spat in her face and dragged her along behind him as he searched out Rongo and Lesia. This thing, this human could be pumped for information if they were careful. The MWG received precious few prisoners of war. He sighed heavily at that, recalling how they all preferred to fight to the death for... whatever this cause of theirs was. Surely they knew that there were too few of them acting too late to make a difference! If only they'd submit... A gunshot to his left broke his train of thought and he remembered himself. Lesia met him in the clearing. He looked her over questioningly and she shrugged. "I do not wish to share credit for this human." He gave her a stern look, then yanked her forward. She stiffened, but quickly resigned herself to him. His teeth clamping onto her tongue hard enough to draw blood confirmed her suspicions. She shouldn't have killed Rongo. He had been her only protection against this. But, what did it matter? If she hadn't killed her lover herself, Erkan would have done it for her and then taken her anyway. It didn't matter. Soon he would be done with her and then he would let her be. So predictable, she thought idly as he forced her back into a thicket, dropping the pain-ridden human as he went. No wonder the humans are winning. She smirked interiorly as he ripped her uniform in his rush to take her. She gasped as he entered her, but did not resist. Even Rongo had begun their relationship this way. He would use her and then he would throw her away. What did it matter? She'd been forced before. They didn't usually hurt you unless you resisted. Something she had no intention of doing. Her first thought upon waking was: I'm not dead. And immediately following that one: I'm gonna wish I was very soon. Her entire body felt as if it had been coated with one of the more disgusting forms of slime. Tainted, her mind whispered. "Aww, FUCK." she breathed to the empty room. Now I'll have to start all over. She began to twitch slightly, testing to see if she was bound and how tightly. Anyone seeing this would assume that she was just beginning to awake up instead of suspecting that she was already fully awake and aware. One of many little tricks Ealf had taught her. She would have to remember to thank him the next time she saw him. All those years of training under him had actually paid off. Her minimal spying skills brought back reports of her bondage and position. She was lying face down on a dirty floor. They didn't believe in air conditioning here, at least not in her room. The place was explosively hot, leading her to suspect that it was midday. I'll have to remember to complain to management, she thought ruefully. This hotel stinks. And as an added 'bonus', she discovered that she was indeed bound. First her wrists and ankles individually, then all four limbs were tied behind her. They must really want me not to escape, she decided. I wonder how long they'll keep me here before they come to question me, she asked herself, noting the complete numbness in her limbs. Question, her mind laughed harshly at the word. If you think they'll do anything less than torture it out of you, you're living in a fantasy world, hon. Her eyes popped open at that, all attempts at 'pretending to sleep' forgotten. What?!!? But I don't know anything, she gibbered silently. Sure you do, her mind answered calmly. The attack plans for Venezuela, the different corps and corps leaders, specifics on weaponry and armour... Hey, weren't you talking to Prime the last week about cornstarch engines? How many civilians are at Spire? What frequency band do we use during attacks? For that matter, what is our army's strength of numbers again? Senie whimpered as she realised that she knew the answers to all of those questions. If you wanted to get technical about it, not only did she know these 'fun facts', but she had dozens more little tidbits of information stored up in her brain that the Monkeys would kill to get their hands on. Or torture for, her mind added helpfully. All they need is a victim- I mean 'volunteer' to tell them all the nifty facts and figures you've been gathering in those brain stores of your all this time... Suddenly every war movie she'd ever seen flashed through her mind, heavy on the POW scenes, and she felt like crying for the second time that day. (Was it the same day?) Being killed in battle upset her greatly, but it didn't frighten her. She knew where her soul would go when her time on Earth was over. In fact, she was reasonably sure that the only real regret she would have would be that she wasn't able to help out more in the fight for survival. But to be made to suffer; to be made nothing... She shuddered, trying to block out the sudden images of herself as a mindless drone, willing to roll in her own filth on the off chance that they might stop hurting her for a while. By then she would tell them anything they wanted to know. She would sing it for them, offering to do a jig while she was at it - if she could still walk by then. And even as she pushed those thoughts away, she couldn't help but wonder how long it would take them to break her. She'd never been much for pain, and she was no hero... it was one thing to die, but quite another to die with no dignity. She didn't want that - her mind railed against it, but she wasn't sure if there was any other way this could end. "So, you're awake," the statement made her jump. A light, blinding after the total darkness, flooded her cell and she closed her eyes against it. Again she wondered how much of her dignity, her sanity, her humanity they would take from her before she died. Her bonds were cut and she lay spread-eagle on the floor, allowing feeling to rush through her body. She was too depressed to open her eyes or even twitch at the pins and needles running rampant through her arms and legs. This is how it starts, she commented to herself dully. They've done something for me and now I'm supposed to do something in return... The shivering, eternally happy psychopath she'd called to life with her imagination grinned and waved at her cheerfully like some postcard for her mind: Howdy, partna! See ya soon!!!! Senie She sighed. Yes, that would be her soon. They would make her- She frowned at the question. That's odd, she thought vaguely. Internal dialogues were nothing new to her. However, internal dialogues that used voices other than her own were rare to non-existent in her mind. She turned her head to the side, mentally reducing the voice above her to a meaningless drone. What he was saying didn't matter. He'd say his piece and then he would begin to hurt her, because she sure as hell wasn't going to- She placed the voice. (Mommie?) (Huh?!? But-) (But-) (BUT I DON'T WANT TO DIE!!!!) She shuddered interiorly, very near tears. Her mother had always been an advocate of extreme realism; she would never intentionally deceive any of her children. Perhaps that was the reason her brain had summoned the voice of her mother, the woman who had been her best friend and mentor for so many years, to give her the news. That way there could be no doubt. She was going to die here. It was only a matter of time. But she did have one choice in the matter. She could choose how she would leave this world. A break in the monologue. She looked up into the expectant face leaning over her. Its mouth was shaped into what she assumed was supposed to be a reassuring grin. To her, it looked like a grimace. And the thing stank to high Heaven. The heat of the room only served to increase the reek of the Monkey. She wanted it to leave. No, she wanted to make it leave. That's when she realised that she had already made her decision: she would fight. She was the original champion of lost causes, how could she NOT fight? She stood up, quieting her racing heart as best she could, and addressed her captor in a clear, strong voice. "My name is Asenia Tamika Lorraine McAllister. I am a member of the organisation that will stop you. I will tell you nothing." The smile faltered a bit. "What?" She sighed and stood up. "My name is Asenia-" "SPEAK ENGLISH!!!" Erkan's eyes narrowed and he backhanded her. He couldn't understand why she was meowing like that, but her tone of voice was clear. This one was a fighter. She would have to be broken before he could use her. He sighed. And the day had been going so well... Senie sat up slowly, holding her hurt cheek in disbelief. No one but her parents had ever hit her outside of the battlefield. She'd grown up knowing that no one except her parents had the right to hit her unless she hit them first. And under that was the realisation of why she'd been struck. She was speaking Lunarian. Since the announcement of Lunarian as the official language four years ago, she'd not only become fluent in it, she'd embraced it as her primary language. Searching through her memory banks, she saw that even her thoughts were in Lunarian. She hadn't spoken anything else in years, though she still understood the others when they spoke. She knew there would be pain now. They would hurt her because they could not understand her. A small part of her gibbered and tried to recall her English from her dusty memory. But for the most part it was a comfort. She could scream what she knew at the top of her lungs and they still wouldn't understand her. No matter what, she would take her secrets to her grave. The image of herself crazed and desperate waved again from the back of her mind. She waved back this time and the figure cringed, it's smile disappearing completely. I'm not you. I will never be you. I'll die first. She stood, anger seeping from every pore. Her eyes narrowed and she spat blood collected from the inside of her cheek on the floor in defiance. "My name is Asenia Tamika Lorraine McAllister. I am a member of the organisation that will stop you. I will tell you nothing." She hit the floor again. 72 HOURS LATER A man rushed through the outpost with purpose. He didn't speak, bowing his head humbly when any Monkey crossed his path, no matter their rank. But he never broke his stride. After all, his master had sent him on a mission. The MWG was extremely interested in knowing Erkan's progress. Shainesh had been sent to find out for them how far along their commander in Venezuela was. It was really quite an honour for Lord Death to choose him over all the others, a fact that prompted much jealousy, especially from his Monkey counterparts. This assignment was considered too important for a mere human. But even at that, no one offered more than token protestations. This particular human had proven a ruthless, dedicated addition to Lord Death's ranks. He hardly spoke, choosing to keep his thoughts to himself, and he had no friends. His exploits over the years had caused even the most stoic Monkeys in his unit to question his motives for fighting as well as his origins. Traces on his file had revealed nothing that the MWG didn't already know, but they provided no answers to his conviction. Whatever it was, it was very personal and it kept him 150% dedicated to the cause. That was all that mattered to the Monkey lords. The young lieutenant hurried on his way, guided by the sounds of screams and shouts coming from the back of the outpost. He didn't even cringe at the sound. They didn't matter. What did matter was the information that must come of them. He paused at the door, listening and waiting to see Erkan. "Why did you betray us, Felicity? We were your family. We can still be your family if you just tell us what you know." The calm, comforting voice belied the sounds of buzzing machinery and cries of pain. The whirling sound stopped and the cries diminished a few seconds later, replaced by... Was that meowing? An angry shout and the restarted equipment in the room was enough of an answer for him. "Hey, what are you doing, human?" Shainesh turned slowly, letting his anger at allowing himself to be taken by surprise drain out of his features before answering the question. "Please inform Lord Erkan that Lord Death's representative is here for a status report on the rebel." Sereth looked the man over, ready to challenge the filthy, hairless creature before him. But something about him made the Monkey hesitate. Instead he nodded and entered the room as the buzzing stopped once more. "Felicity," the voice offered soothingly. "Don't fight us. We're- Yes, what is it, Sereth." the voice barked in annoyance. Meanwhile, the meowing had started again. The man got the distinct impression that these were not just random sounds, but some kind of language. Then the door opened and the two Monkeys emerged, Erkan peeling off blood-soaked rubber gloves. He grimaced as he did so and handed them to Sereth with instructions to bring him a pair of new ones before turning his attention to Shainesh. "Humans. Such vile, disgusting creatures, wouldn't you agree," he began calmly. Silence. "Well, we must protect ourselves against your kind. Wouldn't want to contaminate the superior species, would we?" Nothing, not even a twitch. This human was either very disciplined or excellent at hiding. Either was a possibility. After all, the lieutenant had originally come from New Zealand. He decided to give it one last try. "Generation after generation of idiot human mothers giving birth to idiot human children like yourself," he sighed. "It's so tiresome." No reaction. The man stood tall, staring blankly at the Monkey. "What did you come here for, human?" Erkan growled angrily. "I am Lieutenant Shainesh Patel, my lord. Lord Death has sent me to determine your progress with the girl." "Why would Lord Death send a human for such a job?" Erkan asked, annoyance quickly replacing his anger. The spirit had already been crushed out of this human. He would get no pleasure out of taunting him after all. Silence met the question, but inside Shainesh had already resolved to kill the Monkey standing before him as soon as the opportunity presented itself. Erkan, unaware of the lieutenant's plans for him, sighed and pointed to the door. "Let's go, Patel." Lieutenant Patel followed Erkan, his facial expression and body language conveying complete neutrality as he took in the scene. The filthy room, hot and extremely close, was typical for Monkey interrogations. A single, naked, bulb shed grimy light into the room, illuminating a young woman, the prisoner. She was standing with her arms over her head, shackled with handcuffs suspended from the ceiling. She'd obviously been worked over pretty good, her face and arms sported a patchwork of bruises in varying shades of black and blue. What caught the man's attention though was the woman's stomach and sides. There were several holes in her plebeian there, bloody craters where her flesh showed through. Her head was lowered but the girl was indeed purring, almost aimlessly. Something about that sound made the lieutenant want to smack her himself. It didn't look like she was even aware of the fact that she was purring. The girl was turning into a zombie, and once that happened she would be useless to everybody. He shook his head and turned to Erkan, who was holding a modified electric drill. Instead of a drill head, attached to it was a small rectangular metal rod, with four blood-coated razor blades embedded in it. The considerable chasms in her flesh matched the tool. Thin rivets of blood coursed down her arms, apparently from the palms of her hands where her nails had bitten into flesh. Perhaps once these had been an attempt not to scream, but now it seemed habitual. "It's a primitive weapon, I know. But it has proven quite effective on many occasions." "Only this occasion matters, my lord," Patel stated blandly. "I agree, young human, but it is only a matter of time before we have her." "But how much time, my lord? Lord Death is restless for information about our enemies. You've had the girl for three days! The average human breaking pattern is two at most. The Masters are beginning to question the... effectiveness of your 'toys'. They believe that other methods under a different interrogator may yield faster results." Erkan glared at the human, brandishing his tool. "Are you questioning my ability, you filthy human?!?!" "I only convey the Master's will as given me by my master, Lord Death." "The Masters don't know what the hell they're talking about! They've never interrogated a human. Hell, I seriously doubt if any of them have ever SEEN a human before! I know that the model says two days to break, I HELPED DESIGN IT! But that is ONLY an average estimate. Some humans are stronger willed, some are weaker. They cannot actually believe that replacing me will bring results! I am their best chance to break her!" Patel remained silent at this, which only infuriated the Monkey further. He grabbed the man by his shirt and hauled him forward, spraying him with spittle as he spoke. "And if you EVER question my resolve in this or any other matter, human, I will personally test this model against _your_ will." He pressed the ON button on the drill for emphasis, throwing the lieutenant back against the wall angrily when he didn't so much as flinch at the sound. The girl, however, did stir and lift her head, preparing for her next 'session'. Both figures turned at that, having forgotten that she was there at all. Shainesh gasped and jumped to his feet. "Senie?" The prisoner's eyes widened and searched the room in a panic. How could anyone know her nickname here? That had been her one focus point during her 'visit' so far. No one knew her name so it was pretty easy to block their voices out. But now... she finally located the voice and it was her turn to gasp. "Shainesh," she meowed in disbelief. The second voice, the cold, toneless voice she'd been listening to for the last few (minutes? hours? months?). How could that possibly have come from Starr's old fianc‚? It just wasn't possible! "Senie, what are you doing here?" Even after all this time, he could easily recognize the woman's face under all the cuts and bruises. It was Starr's old roommate. It couldn't be anyone else. The girl shut her eyes firmly, refusing to believe her ears. It's just the torture going to my head, she decided. Of course I don't see Starr's man standing in the middle of this disgusting, stinking pit. It's not possible. But why would you dream of the Kiwi, her mind asked curiously. You've only seen him a few times in your entire life, why bother to bring him to mind so close to death? The woman groped for an answer, but it was becoming steadily harder to focus on anything for long periods of time. The constant agony that had become her body made it impossible to think clearly. Half the time she couldn't remember anything or anyone, and it was rare that she even knew what it was she was saying. Those 'black out' times were becoming more frequent also, something that worried her whenever she bothered to care. "You must be mistaken, Lieutenant Patel," Erkan smirked. "Allow me to introduce Felicity Decker. She and her friend Amy Holloway went missing almost five years ago. She's-" "I want to see her file now," Shainesh interrupted with a sterness that made even Erkan think twice about challenging the order. He turned to Sereth, who was standing silently in the doorway with a clean pair of rubber gloves, and nodded. The Monkey scampered off in search of the appropriate records. "Pull Amy Holloway's file while you're at it," he called after the sentry. He continued to stare at the captive silently until the files arrived, mentally composing himself. The human accepted both files and Sereth stepped away quickly. Patel's blandness had returned a little too quickly for his tastes. The man made him uneasy, that much was certain. The lieutenant opened Felicity Decker's file and stared at Senie's smiling face for what seemed like an eternity. Then he shuffled files and opened the other slowly. It wasn't possible! The MWG couldn't have made such a mistake twice. But even as he opened the fugitive's record, he knew what he would find. His face twitched when he saw those innocent steel-blue eyes of the woman he loved even now. The movement was so subtle that one would only have noticed if they looked closely at the man. Erkan noticed. "What's wrong, Lieutenant?" "This is Asenia McAllister and the other one is Starr Sheilds. They're not fugitives, they were college students," he stated flatly through numb lips. His mind was a whirl of activity, making a series of connections. The girls went missing five years ago, about the same time Decker and Holloway had betrayed and deserted their posts. The MWG would have circulated these pictures everywhere at that time. Starr had been on her way to see him that summer, but her plane had been way-laid in Italy, the last place anyone had seen her. Senie had been in Italy that summer as well, where she'd disappeared after meeting up with Starr. Both files said 'terminate on sight'. If these people, this group of anarchists had gotten to the girls first... "You've made a mistake," he stated flatly. "There has been no mistake," Erkan countered, rapidly losing patience with the man. "We're-" "Using this file won't get you any closer to breaking her, sire. She doesn't know this woman. Senie has a family of her own. Using them will get to her." Erkan closed his eyes. He couldn't believe such a human as this could rise through the ranks of the MWG undetected. By rights he should be long dead, the fact that he'd survived this long was a testimony to his cunning. "You will stay here tonight. Then tomorrow you will return to Lord Death and inform him that the situation with Felicity Decker is well in hand." "Yes, my lord." The man bowed and left the room. Once the man was gone, his footsteps echoing down the hall, Erkan took the gloves from Sereth. "Watch him. If he tries anything, kill him. I will not have that human ruining my work here. If he survives the night, send him back to his master, understand?" "Yes, my lord," Sereth answered before leaving. The orders were a joke, they both knew that. Whoever's mistake this was, Erkan would pay dearly for it. In fact, if he escaped this situation with his life, he would consider himself lucky. Once that human debriefed Lord Death, the files would be investigated and the truth would come out. For the first time, Erkan read over the prisoner's profile. Name: Felicity Decker Caucasian female Ethnicity: Irish Age: 32 Height: 5 foot 8 inches Weight: 175 lbs Eyes: green Hair: red Mother: Elise McClain Father: Andrew Decker His hands shook as he continued to read about her divorced mother and widower father in Northern Ireland. Her eight brothers and sisters, all but two of whom had joined the IRA, had died for their cause. A feeling of dread blanketed him. This wasn't just a mistake, this was a blatant mistake. A mistake worth killing for. His anger boiled over at that and he tore the folder, launching the papers that didn't spill onto the floor against the opposite wall. If he could just get something, some nugget of information from the girl, maybe his life would be spared. Maybe, just maybe he could make them see how valuable he was after all, if he just acted quickly. Imagine! An agent that could break a human without the proper file! He would show that human! He would show them all! A mistake had been made, but it was correctable. All things were correctable in this place, HIS place. He just needed to act before that shit Patel could call any unwanted attention to him. In fact, he might just kill the boy himself after he made this nigger bitch speak. Yeah, he'd do it as an example to any other human that would dare get out of place. Grinning like an idiot and confident that everything was under control, he looked over his 'instruments' and selected a horse tail whip with bits of glass an rusted metal decorating it's many hairs. It was an appropriate utensil in his view. Wasn't this the same tool his own father had used to discipline niggers only a few centuries ago? He thought back to the stories he'd heard as a chimp about the Mid- Passage. Hundreds and hundreds of these ignorant fucks herded into boats bound for the Americas. Shackled and forced into disease- infested holes too small for one man, much less three. Every Monkey seemed to have his or her own favourite time period of human history. Some chose the Spanish Inquisition, others the third and fourth Crusades. Many took a special interest in the Dark Ages, a time when chaos and cruelty reined. But for Erkan of the house of Moor, the Mid- Passage and the slavery that resulted from it would always be a golden age in Monkey society. The spirit of the time is what made it so perfect in his mind. The world would never again be that ripe for pain and sweet suffering. There was just too much 'political correctness' about it now. Even the KKK was losing some of its lustre in this day and age. Though not much, he reflected. But standing with the whip held firmly in his hands, he felt a little of the old power returning to him. Nothing was going to stand in the way of his victory, least of all some nigger, representative of a people his own had raped and plundered openly, once upon a time. She would talk. He would make her tell him everything. Starting with her name. "We are going to have a little chat, you and me," he grinned crazily as he approached the woman. "Why don't you tell me a bit about yourself, Senie was it? Where you're from, what you do, how old you are... oh, and maybe even a little about Antarctica while we're here." When the woman began to meow, he placed a hand over her mouth, giggling as she backed away as best she could. "No, no. You're going to tell me what you know in English. You're going to tell me what you know or so help me I'll beat it out of you like we did in the old days, nigger." Her eyes came alive at that much hated word, and she noticed the whip for the first time. She knew exactly what it was, of course. Even her rapidly degenerating mind could remember her mother's old black history books. More importantly, she knew the damage it was capable of, and she was afraid. But more than that, she was pissed. The two or three strands of dignity she still had railed against that label, and a few of the burned out circuits in her brain came back to life. No one spoke of her people that way. No one called her that and got away with it. And the smug look on his face was only pissing her off further. It was four years into the fucking new millennium, for Christ's sake! Couldn't this pig-Monkey at least come up with an original insult, instead of the same old shit? Apparently not. "I will tell you nothing." Erkan giggled with glee and punched her in the face. "Speak, you fucking nigger slut! You're going to tell me what I want to know!!" He pushed her back as far as her chains would allow and punched her again, this time in the gut, when she swung back into position. "You fucking cunt! Tell me your name!!" Then he stopped and waited. She spat at him. "My name is Asenia Tamika Lorraine McAllister. I am a member of the organization that will stop you. I will tell you nothing." She kicked at him, but he was too fast and she missed him entirely. He circled behind her, wiping his face angrily. "Perhaps opening your back a bit will loosen your tongue, bitch." With that, he began to beat her. Only screams came from the beating as her mind collapsed back onto itself, the briefly rewired circuitry breaking down once again. She grunted and twisted in her bounds, but they were too tight to let her move. Some small part of her, the part that would only stop existing when she was dead, knew that this wasn't just about information. If the girl had been capable of thought, she probably would have pondered just how many of the slave owners had been Monkeys. Or maybe she would have realized that she was taking something back for her people here, for those that died to see America stand, unappreciated, unmourned. Black history, part two. As it was, she screamed out her suffering until blessed unconsciousness finally took her. Erkan stumbled back to his quarters, his arms feeling like jelly. Three hours. Three fucking hours and she hadn't said a single word. What the FUCK? How was he supposed to get out of this now?? Without information he was as good as dead. He banged into his private chambers angrily, not bothering to turn on the lights and inspect the room like he usually did or even remove his gloves this time. It was a moot point now anyway. His bare chest and uniform pants were heavily spattered with human blood. He'd been contaminated, pushed to almost murderous anger... But not a single word, damn her! He would have to try again tomorrow, time was running out. He sighed and dragged himself to the shower he'd never used before, cursing the girl as he went. Then the lights flickered on. "That's odd," he mumbled. I usually turn the lights on when I come in to check for- He whirled around, cursing himself for allowing his anger with the girl to override his paranoia. It might have saved his life this time. He had just enough time to register the gun as standard issue before he was shot through the heart. The force of the blast forced him backwards, his aching muscles clumsy with fatigue. He tripped, but did manage to grab his gun off his desk as he went and fire off a few shots of his own before hitting the floor. He looked up at the assassin and his jaw dropped. "S- Sereth," he gaped before his voice box exited the back of his neck. Then he saw the human standing behind his subordinate. No, he saw the man holding up his long dead subordinate as a shield, the hole in the Monkey's forehead and the fresh one in his chest explained everything. This was a set-up. Patel had killed his second in command and would finish him off soon. Then he would contact Lord Death and explain how the two Monkeys had killed one another, using the information about the switched files to assume command of the base. It was the perfect plan, even down to his hiding in the darkness on account of the camera hidden in the far wall. Had Lord Death sent this rattlesnake to kill him? Given the fact that he knew about the camera, it seemed to be so. Sereth's pistol was aimed at Erkan's head, its owner's cold, dead finger curled around the trigger. With a dull, unimportant bang, the exchange was over. Shainesh dropped Sereth's corpse and crossed to the commander's desk. He sat and typed an access code into the laptop sitting open on the desk, then sat back and waited patiently for the machine to click through the proper channels, absently holding his bleeding side. "Please enter your password." The man typed in his password, marvelling that a species with so much contempt for the human race would choose the dark, seductive voice of a human female to activate their system. If nothing else, they were hypocritical fuckers, but they did prove useful from time to time. Especially now. The woman's voice interrupted his thoughts. "A voice print is necessary for this level clearance." "Lieutenant Shainesh Patel." "Please state your password." "Kiwi Cornflakes," he said, using the two nicknames given to him by his woman so long ago. Most days he said them absently, without being stung by the memory of her soft brown hair or the sound of her laughter. But today her phantom presence hung over him like a wraith. He'd grown stronger over the years, from the days when he could barely muster the will to get out of bed each morning till now. But right now, he felt a slave to his emotions. Just hearing her name again had somehow reduced him to the trembly, despairing mass that he'd been once upon a time... He had to see her again. It was as simple as that. "Yes lieutenant?" "There's a problem, my master," Shainesh said without missing a beat. He held up his bloody hand. "Lord Erkan is dead." "What happened?" Lord Death asked soothingly. Under his calm exterior, he was shaken. Erkan had been an invaluable disciplinary resource in South America, keeping his units there standing strong and confident despite their considerable losses. Replacing him would not be easy. "I'm not sure sir. I came to Lord Erkan's room to be debriefed, and watched Lord Sereth assassinate him. He tried to kill me as well in his final moments, but I managed to finish Lord Erkan's work." "Very well," Lord Death sighed. "Dispose of the bodies." "Yes, my lord." "Were you able to determine Erkan's progress with the girl?" "Yes, my lord." Shainesh stalled. "Well," the high lord rasped impatiently. "My lord, no progress has been made." "What?!" This time the Monkey could not mask his shock and anger. "No progress-" "SILENCE!!" The young lieutenant was silent, careful to maintain a nervous aura. Inside he was shaking with anger and grief. The next few minutes would have to be played just right or he would share the two ill-fated Monkeys' fate. But that didn't concern him very much. After all, he'd done worse than kill a few Monkeys before (relatively speaking) and lived to tell about it. He was much more concerned with the ache that had settled back into his heart. "Tell me what you've discovered, lieutenant," Lord Death stated. "My lord, Lord Erkan captured the human and assumed her to be one of two deserters from a few years back. When in fact, she is a college student that went missing around the same time." "You seem to know much of this situation, Shainesh," the high lord replied, settling back into his chair comfortably. "Please. Enlighten me." The man nodded. This was just too easy. "I knew both girls, my lord. When Erk- when Lord Erkan allowed me to see the file, I pointed out the error." "And how did he react to your... insight?" "He became enraged, my lord. He told me that everything was on schedule and that I was to report as much to you." Probably afraid of discovery, Lord Death concluded. "Did you notice any... tension between Lord Erkan and Lord Sereth, Shainesh," he asked as if addressing a small child. "Yes, my lord. Though I misjudged the seriousness of it." Very well," Lord Death nodded. "With the proper file, do you believe she could be... persuaded to tell us what she knows?" "I may need to call on some other means, my lord. The girl is broken, but she doesn't speak English." "What language then," the high lord asked tiredly. "No one knows, my lord. She purrs when asked any questions. But I have a plan that should force her back to our side of the language barrier if she isn't already too far gone." "Then do it," the Monkey said serenely. The screen went dark a few seconds later. Shainesh remained where he was for a long time after that, silent and thoughtful. Brute force wouldn't get info from this girl. Besides the fact that she seemed catatonic except for whatever phrase she kept meowing, Senie was known for her fanatical loyalty to those she considered friend, something that obviously hadn't changed much over the years. What he needed was to shock the girl out of her 'silence'. And to do that, he would need to find something that she valued even more than her friends, something that could be twisted to his advantage. Her family. If he planned this just right, she would be speaking perfect English again within 48 hours. Then he would make her take him to his precious Starr. The memory of her honey-sweet lips decided him. He typed in his access code once more. "Please state your business," the woman's voice queried. "Request a search." "For whom?" "Asenia McAllister, USA." "Processing. Please wait." Shainesh waited as the computer ran through a list of millions living in the United States of America. Fifteen minutes later, the results come back. "Your search had 135 hits. Arshia Walsh, Native American male, 6' 9", 237 pounds. Born October 15, 1792. Died December 15, 1815. Father-" Shainesh blinked at that. "Computer, narrow search to Philadelphia, PA and no further back than thirty years." "Processing new search. Please wait... Your search had 5 hits-" "Only female, African-American subjects. Spelling of first name A-S-E-N-I-A. Spelling of last name M-C-A-L-L-I-S-T-E-R." "Asenia McAllister, African-American female, 5' 1", 162 pounds. Born April 23, 1979. Declared dead July 23, 2003. Father-" "Who is the regional commander in that area?" "Commander Latook of the House of-" "Put me in touch with him." "A voice print is necessary-" "Lieutenant Shainesh Patel," he huffed. "Please state-" "Kiwi Cornflakes," he stated, trying to remain calm. He would have to remain calm if he truly wanted to reach his goal, especially now that he was so close. He'd always suspected that his beloved was still alive and now he had proof. The girl was his only link to her. He would have to get her to tell him about the rebels in Antarctica and South America, but with his plan that would be the easy part. The rest wouldn't be as simple. He would have to wait until the Monkeys were convinced that she was no longer useful to them. Then somehow he would have to smuggle her away without them suspecting anything. She would take him to see his Starr. But he would have to be careful because- "What do you want human?" "I am Lieutenant Shainesh P-" "I didn't ask for your name you stupid, greasy, fuck. What do you want?" Shainesh gathered his patience reserves and made a very impressive show of being humbled and ashamed. "I apologize, my lord. I need a detainment." "On who's authority," Latook snapped. "On the authority of Lord Death." At this the Monkey sat up a bit straighter. "Where is Lord Death now?" "Regrettably, he isn't here. He has charged me with a mission, however, and given me the authority to carry out that mission by any means necessary." "What is your name, human?" "Lieutenant Shainesh Patel." "Who do you need detained and when, Patel?" ************************************************************************ Author's Notes So there you have it, Exodus: Part 1 of 2. I hope everyone enjoyed it, well, relatively speaking. As I travel deeper into this mysterious universe, I find myself more indebted to those around me. Thank you, God, for a creative spirit and the ability to share that part of myself with the world. To Tozetre, for supporting my decision to breathe some color into my character (no comments from the peanut gallery, please). To my anchor and fountain of support, love, and craziness, the one and only Strike Fiss. Sheldon and Starr also get noble and honorable mentions for this little excursion into madness. Finally, this fiction is humbly submitted in honor of Record, the only survivor of the Monkey attack on Sylaxia. More to come!! I'm outie. ^_^ Senie, GMW 'I am Record. It's what I do.'