| 12: Written on the Prison Walls Mick was snoring soundly, too soundly it seemed for his surroundings. For he was trapped in the recaptured Earthbound Penitentiary, the most infamous prison in Columnia. Bex paced the limited confines of the cell, studying the floor. "Will ya quit that?" asked a chained man with a scar, the famed leMode of the 116th Airborne. "You're driving me nuts." "I... I can't sit still, Scott," explained Bex. "It's been a week... I should KNOW something by now." "Pacing isn't doing a bit of good for Al or the rest of your cell," explained Scott. "If you're bored, study the walls." Bex gave him a quizzical expression, and then shrugged and took a gander. After all, he was right-there was nothing to be done but wait. The walls were dull concrete grey, made duller by the faint fluorescent light of the place that seemed to eat away at one's soul. And by this meager, cheerless light, Bex was able to make out etchings. They were myriad, these etchings-mainly names and hatch marks. Lieutenant 1st Class Ferroxidia Raye, 20th Paranormal. 17 days. Private Nate "Drunken Rabbit" Deutractabilis, 223rd Airborne. 4 days. Commander Mick "Badger" Archer, 63rd Irregular. 82 days. Private Samantha Eitanya, 20th Paranormal. 17 days. Lieutenant 2nd Class Luke Draconnes, 116th Airborne. 72 days. "What are all these?" asked Bex, curious. "These are the names of the fighters throughout the months that have died for Columnia." "Died?" "We can't be sure, but we don't know what else the Empire of Formicus would do with them." "So they could still be out there somewhere..." "This is the most hellish prison in the world, Bex," Scott said. "Only one escape ever succeeded, and any place worse than here they could transfer you to-it would be worse than death." "But where there's still life, there's hope," offered Bex. After hearing that, Scott turned away and stared at the bars. Bex crept up to him, trying to find out what was wrong, but Scott turned his head. "What's wrong, Scott?" "DON'T GIVE ME YOUR PLATITUDES!" he spat. "I've BEEN here, lad, I've SEEN what they've done-did you see the writing on the wall?" "Huh?" "Just let me be." *** The desert town of Musiforme, nestled in the vast expanse of the Praerequez Waste, flew the ancient colors of the Columnian theocracy. Planes were sprawled across the flat landscape, taking off and landing regularly under the open desert night. The town, whose locals had abandoned the town under gunpoint, had left behind a formerly bustling town now occupied by the Underground and the Columnian Air Force. Her Ladyship Vanana Loe had established a provisional military headquarters in the town's old airstrip, and she had called an emergency council of her advisors. Assembled in a corner of a hangar as mechanics repaired a fighter were General Nosferatu, leader of the Air Force since the disappearance (everyone was too in shock to call it "death" yet) of Colonel Tamara. Next to him was Colonel Eric Tehsimian, whose presence at such a high-level conference was unexplained as of yet. The last one to come in was Chronos, leader of the Paranormal Brigades since the defection of Eterniu. "Sorry I'm late, all," he offered. Vanana glowered at him for a second, and then got down to business. "We're gathered her today to discuss a bit of news that just reached my ears today. We received it a week ago at the old headquarters right before the ground attack on Concerdiscuz forced us to evacuate, and in reestablishing our command here it got lost in the commotion for a week." She hit a button and one-third of a blueprint showed on a laptop screen, with the words "Columnian Imperial Skyfleet, Stellemort-Class Skyship" on the top left. "This is one-third of a blueprint file that we dispatched Colonel David's 94th Irregular Battalion to retrieve. That's why he hasn't been present at base as of late, for your information." "It doesn't take long to send these files," pointed out Nosferatu. "Why did we only get one-third of-" Then it clicked in everyone's mind, and a feeling of grief came over them all as all eyes turned to Eric. "That's-" Vanana tried to hold in the emotion, and succeeded for the most part. "That's why Eric is here. He's taking... command of the Underground Army effective immediately." "So what is this beast?" asked Chronos, trying to keep them focused on the meeting. "The blueprints for a new type of warcraft called a skyship. Looking at what little information made it through, we've been able to determine that one of these things alone could take on our entire Air Force and win. It's the size of a small town, and it can go at Mach 6. We know nothing of its full weapons capacity due to the incompleteness of the blueprint, but what little we know is frightening. Its armor plating is heavier and stronger than anything that should have a right to fly... and we know nothing of the engines." "They want to take us down for good," whispered Nosferatu in horror. "Apparently Formicus isn't pleased with our bombing campaigns," Vanana postulated. "The skies are the last holdout of our Theocracy, and the most devastating section of our insurgent military. The Underground Army inflicts damage silently, stealthily... but our planes drop bombs on their factories and military bases at will, and all the propaganda work of Formicus can't stop the people from seeing the Air Force rule the skies." "What can we do about this?" pondered Nos. "What else? We must either destroy their skyship in the yards or hijack it in the skies. But we must not be paralyzed with fear." *** "They're feeding us," noted Bex. "Wake up Badger." "Hey, get up, food's here," Scott told Badger, poking him with his spoon. "Huh-oh? Gruel again..." moaned Badger. Other than that, they ate in silence. Bex tried to catch Scott's glance, but Scott sulkingly avoided him. The last thing he said that night was "I'm sleeping, then," and he closed his eyes and tried to get comfortable in his chains. When he heard him snoring fitfully, Bex turned to Badger and asked him "What's with Scott? He's been sullen ever since we talked about the wall." "The wall... oh, that must be Luke," nodded Badger. "Notice this name, right here." He looked again and saw it: Lieutenant 2nd Class Luke Draconnes, 116th Airborne. 72 days. "The 116th Airborne..." Badger whispered. "The Air Drakes." "Oh my Four," mouthed Bex. "What happened?" "The three of us were in here together, and then they dragged him off one day. We heard screaming-terrible screaming from the room they took him to. And then... nothing. We never saw him again." "That's... that's horrible," Bex declared. "I've been in and out of these prisons, Bex... you learn that a single death is a tragedy, but a million deaths is a statistic. I'm too jaded for it to affect me... and Scott should be as well by now, but he's not." Bex couldn't think of anything to say to that. "Let me show you something else written on these walls, under this cot, in fact." Badger motioned him towards his cot, and then folded it up against the wall so he could see. "What is it?" Bex asked, squinting in the dark to make out the words. "It's... the words of the prophets, written on the prison walls." Bex slowly made out the following: "And lo, a moon past the ascension of Time, there was war in Columnia. And one of the mages of the Four came unto the Holy Place, and drew out two-fifths of the swords of the land, and turned them against the queen of Columnia. The mage was as one of lying light, and deceived many nations with his flatteries. And let the wise deduce his symbol, for it is the wisest creature upon the earth. "And Time came to attend to the queen, and called out her existence with a mighty voice that reached from Praerequez to Concertia. And he and the queen made war against the mage, and overcame him, and threw him down to Paralilium. And there was a voice in Columnia, saying 'Woe unto Paralilium, for the mage has come down to you, and he is exceedingly wrathful, knowing that he has but a short time.'" "Hey... that sounds like one of the writings of the Four." "It's attributed to the Apocalypse of Cale, chapter 16." "The lost chapter..." "I wonder who could have written it here, and how they would have known about it." "Who WAS in our cell before us?" |