Book One: Chapter Five: iv
Cillian turned up to look at the sky, shielding his eyes with his hands as he did so. He was scanning the horizon for any signs of incoming ships.
“In any case, we digress,” said Cillian. We will continue the discussion about your condition of pica — ha I bet you did not know that I knew that word did you mister smarty pants — another time. What is the ETA on the Bohemian military arriving?”
“Pica is a psychological disorder whereby a person has cravings to consume substances with no nutritional value. In my case,” said Reginald pointing to himself, “pica would likely not be the appropriate term because… I am made of metal and also happen to use oil. Therefore, I actually benefit from consuming and melting down metals and lubricating oils. But as you said, we digress, I have completed a scan and note that several Bohemian military ships are en route to this destination. Approximate arrival time for the first ships will be ten minutes.”
“Hmm. We have less time than I thought. I want to question this Ustur before they arrive.”
“Why, sir?”
“Because something is not right here,” said Cillian bending down on one knee to look the Ustur in the face. “How were the Ustur able to jam us on the emergency military frequency? Only officers in the Bohemian National Military have the authorisation codes to access or jam that channel. I suspect that someone in the National Military has been assisting them in their mission. They also must have received help in entering Bohemia as well. Customs and the border authorities would never have let what are quite clearly Ustur mercenary soldiers into Bohemian airspace. Not unless they had been ordered to let them through or turn a blind eye. So at this stage, I do not know who I can trust or whether the forces coming are working with the Ustur or not.”
“Sir, your deductive faculties never cease to amaze me.”
“Why, thank you, Reggy boy. That is quite the compliment. Now, to the task at hand. I need to interrogate this brute. Problem is, I do not seem to be able to wake the damn bugger. I fear I walloped him a little harder than intended.”
After several more slaps to the Ustur’s face failed to wake them, Cillian sighed and sat back on his haunches.
“Reg, can you kindly assist me with waking the Ustur?”
“Very good, sir,” said Reginald as he gave up chasing Luna.
Reginald walked back to Cillian and placed a metal hand on the face of the comatose Ustur. A moment later and the Ustur’s whole body spasmed as a surge of electricity was discharged from Reginald’s hand.
The Ustur’s eyes snapped open.
“Wakey, wakey, sunshine. No time for sleeping now. I have some questions. Now. I really do not have much time, so I am going to skip all the pleasantries and get straight into the unpleasantries. Reg, please begin to administer the motivational therapy.”
“What motivational therapy, sir?”
“Electromagnetic induction.”
On hearing this, the Ustur’s eyes widened in fear, but before he could speak out against it, Reginald once again placed his hand on the side of the head of the Ustur. Reginald began to raise the body temperature of the Ustur via induction heating.
It only took a few seconds before the Ustur began to scream. In many ways, the psychological impact of this form of torture was far worse than the physical pain. The dissonance it caused in the psyche of an Ustur led to sheer, unrelenting horror.
“Okay, I think it has had enough for now, Reg.”
Reginald removed his hand from the Ustur, but the screaming continued for a further three seconds before the Ustur finally quieted.
“Right, well now that I have your attention, you demon-spawn creature from the plains of hell, let us get on with the interrogation. What was your mission?”
The Ustur’s wild eyes were wide like saucers. They made to begin to speak, but then halted abruptly, a hardness returning to their eyes. Instead, they spat at Reginald’s hovering hand.
“Oh, how fun. We have a recalcitrant one here, Reg. Please assist them with finding the motivation to answer my questions.”
Reginald returned his hand to the Ustur’s face, and it was not long before the screaming began again. This time, however, Cillian did not stop Reginald until a full ten seconds had passed.
“Now, if you persist with your obstinately uncooperative attitude, then we will have to continue to discipline you. I suspect that you do not want that. So, what was your mission?”
This time, the Ustur did not hesitate in answering. “We… we,” said the Ustur in a stuttering manner between gasps. “We were hired to sabotage a Bohemian botanical research facility. To… to blow it up with explosives.”
“Well done, you infernal offspring, well done. Next question, who hired you?”
“I was approached by an agent of the Fimbul ECOS manufacturer.”
Cillian was surprised by this response but made sure not to show any emotional reaction.
“How do you know they represented the Fimbul ECOS company?”
“Well, for starters, their uniform had the Fimbul ECOS logo and branding on it. They also arrived in a Fimbul ECOS ship. Finally, the job contract I had to sign was on a Fimbul ECOS letterhead. They were not exactly trying to hide their identity. They were either extremely confident the mission would be a success or they just didn’t care if their identity was discovered.”
Cillian stroked his beard as he processed this information. If true, then this would be very concerning indeed, thought Cillian to himself. Bohemia and the Fimbul ECOS company had never exactly been friendly with each other due to significant differences in ideology. Whilst they shared many of the same values, the Boheme did not approve of the Fimbul ECOS methods of achieving their goals and their tendency to revert to terrorism when diplomacy failed. For this reason they had never directly conducted business together, however, times were changing and Cillian happened to know that work had been underway over the past two years regarding a major business contract, which if settled would allow Bohemia the rights to begin manufacturing Fimbul ECOS ships. Significant developments had been made towards this of late and apparently the business contract was close to being finalised. Which was why what the Ustur had said did not make any sense to Cillian.
“Why would they want to jeopardise the business deal at such a critical juncture?” he mused aloud. “It seems almost too obvious. Possibly a red herring. Maybe someone is trying to set them up and make it appear that it is the Fimbul ECOS. The real question is, who would benefit from the business deal falling through? Hmm… okay, so let us return then to the mission. How did you get into Bohemian airspace without being turned away at the supra atmospheric border? Who assisted you to bypass our customs checkpoint?”
“I do not know who they were. All I know is that we were told to fly down into the atmospheric space of the planet after arriving via warp drive jump. We were told that we would not be stopped. So that is what we did, and we were not stopped.”
“Okay, who gave you the authorisation codes to jam the emergency military frequency?”
“Once again,” said the Ustur in a frustrated voice. “I do not know who they were. The codes were just messaged to me.”
“What was the code?” asked Cillian. The response to this question was what would really help the Bohemian authorities identify who the mole was in the Bohemian Military. Each officer in the Bohemian National Military had their own unique authorisation code used for accessing certain classified systems, such as the emergency military frequency. If Cillian could find out what the code was, then he would be able to provide this information to his superiors so that they would, in turn, be able to identify which officer the code related to.
“Star divinity sixty-five opal newtown.”
Cillian froze and felt a chill run down his spine. This was his unique authorisation code. Is this a coincidence? Am I being set up here? And if so, by whom? thought Cillian to himself.
“Sir,” interrupted Reginald. “I just thought you should know. The ETA for the first ship to arrive is now less than six minutes.”
“Okay, thanks for that, Reg,” said Cillian as he regained his composure. “Now, foul fiend, you said you were going to blow up a botanical research facility. Where did you get the explosives from? Did you bring them with you on the ships?”
“No, we met up with a local who gave them to us.”
“Describe them to me.”
“They had a helmet on so I could not see their face. The exchange was very brief, and the lighting was poor. I cannot recall any details of what they looked like other than the fact that they had a Bohemian military combat suit and helmet on, and they were short.”
“Short by your standards or short by ours?”
“Both.”
“Okay, and talk me through what happened at the botanical research facility. Why did your mission fail?”
The Ustur spat at the ground before speaking, their words heavy with anger. “We had been told that the research facility would be empty and unguarded. We had the access codes to gain entrance, but once we got inside, we realised that someone was in there. A Bohemian soldier. I do not think she expected to see us, as she looked just as shocked as we were when we walked in. I don’t know what she was doing there.
“In any case, we immediately opened fire on her, but she had ducked behind cover. A big fire fight began between us, but during the battle, she managed to kill one of my soldiers, the one who had been carrying the explosives. We tried to recover the explosives, but that stupid bitch would not let us get close to it. She would light us up with her armour penetrating ammunition whenever we emerged from cover. She was tearing us to pieces, and we were running out of ammunition, so we decided to abandon the mission. We also knew that she would have contacted the authorities for backup, so we knew we didn’t have much time. We escaped instead.”
“Hmm… armour penetrating bullets, you said. She was definitely a special forces soldier it would appear. Reg, make a note of this. I would like to meet this efficacious girl soldier that was able to overwhelm and beat off a whole squad of Ustur mercenaries. We do have an opening in the team at present. We may have found our new teammate.”
“Yes, sir. Noted. Also, three minutes and forty seconds before the ships arrive, sir.”
The growing sound of ship engines could now be heard as several Fimbul BYOS Earps raced towards them from the south-west.
“Very good. Very good. Now, next question. What was so special about that botanical research facility? Why go to such lengths to blow up a research facility in the heart of Bohemia?”
“We are mercenaries. Our employers don’t share that kind of information with us. We are just there to do a job. That’s it.”
“Mmm, true, true,” said Cillian stroking his bear. “But they may have told you something about this specific research facility. Some piece of information which may assist me in understanding all this. What did they tell you about this facility. Tell me everything they told you regarding it.”
The Ustur grunted noncommittally but began speaking after a few seconds of silence. “Look they didn’t give us much. Location details. Access codes. Oh and they told us to take the lift down to level B147. They were quite specific on that command. It was repeated several times. We were to set up the explosives on level B147 and then set a five minute timer.”
Cillian stopped stroking his beard, a look of excitement on his face as he turned to Reginald.
“Reg, it has been a long time since I was in a public botanical research facility but from memory they typically did not have that many subterranean levels. The ones I had visited had possibly ten at most.”
“You are correct, sir. Most public Bohemian research facilities follow a similar design and structure. Whilst some of the larger facilities may have up to twenty subterranean levels I have never heard of a facility with one-hundred forty seven levels below ground. The only structures that go that deep underground are military facilities.”
“Precisely! So the botanical research facility may have been a front for an access point to a secret military facility. And that would explain what our special forces heroine was doing at the facility. She was likely guarding the entrance to the restricted areas. I am sorry to say it,” said Cillian, once again addressing the Ustur, “but I think you have been used as a sacrificial pawn. I am getting the distinct feeling that your mission was never meant to succeed. The real mystery is what the real mission was then. Which leads me to my last and final questions. Why did you stop me and seek to take me as your hostage? Did you know who I was?”
The Ustur growled before responding. “I still don’t know who the fuck you are. Other than some madman. Why did we stop you? Well, it was not a coincidence if that is what you are asking. After we escaped, we received a message from the same anonymous person who had sent us the authorisation codes. They told us to go to this location and then await a ship, your ship. They said the ship would be driven by some rich playboy who we would need to take as a hostage. They said that you would be the leverage in negotiating with the authorities. They said it would be the only way for us to get off this planet alive. Trading your life for our opportunity to exit Bohemian airspace. We were told that you would be unarmed and not a threat. So much for that advice. They told us to simply take you as hostage and then contact the Bohemian authorities to broker our escape. We were to kill you if you resisted in any way. In hindsight, we would have been better off just risking the extra-atmospheric border defences and making a run for it. Instead, my entire team is now dead and I am the only survivor.” The Ustur spat again in Cillian’s direction, their shattered face contorting in pain afterwards at the effort.
“Oh no, my dear hell-born progeny of a demonic chimera. What on Bohemia makes you think that you will survive this encounter?”
“What?” snapped the Ustur. “I am a prisoner of war. You cannot kill me when I have surrendered, and I am bound and unarmed. You have already committed a war crime by torturing me, which you know the Council of Peace has outlawed as an illegal practice. And now you say you would kill an unarmed prisoner? You are a madman!”
“Says the mercenary criminal, who was willing to blow up one of our research facilities. No, no, you see for us Bohemian Special Forces, which you have now no doubt realised I am a member of, we have been granted, how would you say,” said Cillian as he tapped his face with one finger. “Special privileges. One of which is unconditional amnesty as it relates to the use of excessive and lethal force when dealing with Ustur, who you should know are our most hated racial enemy. In fact, not only are your kind banned from entering Bohemian airspace, all Bohemian military soldiers are legally permitted to neutralise any resisting Ustur they encounter within our sovereign space who do not immediately surrender. On-site execution! No judge. No jury. No diplomats or negotiations and certainly no care for what the Council of the Peace considers an illegal practice. Such is the depth of our antipathy for you and your demonic kind. Did you do no research before you took on this mercenary work. You have come willingly into the wolves den and you must understand our hunger knows no end. Do you know so little of the history between us?”
“I, I,” stuttered the Ustur. “I admittedly do not know much of you people but I had heard some things.”
“You had heard some things you say. Evidently you require a history lesson then,” said Cillian as he clasped his hands behind his back and began to pace. “Fifteen years ago one of our ships, a civilian research ship to be precise, entered the Ustur faction region. They had obtained all the requisite clearances from the relevant Ustur authorities for entry into Ustur space. It was after all simply a civilian research ship conducting peaceful research. The Bohemian military escort stopped, as preordained and agreed to, at the border between Mud and Ustur space and a hand-over was made with an Ustur military escort. Everything appeared to be going to plan and after the hand-over had been made, with the Ustur escort taking up flanking positions around the research vessel, the Bohemian military escort began to warp out of the region until but one of the Bohemian escort remained. Due to a technical malfunction in one of their sub-systems they had to delay their warp but it was not long after this that the event we have come to call Eirleach occurred.”
Cillian had stopped pacing back and forth and was now crouched down in front of the bound Ustur, his stare filled with hatred. “Eirleach in our native language means carnage or slaughter, for that was precisely what it was. The final Bohemian escort ship watched on in horror from the other side of the border as, without warning and without provocation, the entire Ustur escort suddenly unleashed a barrage of gunfire at the Bohemian civilian research ship they were supposed to be protecting. The ship’s defensive shields did not last long under such an intense and unanticipated assault. The entire ordeal was over within a minute,” said Cillian, before lowering his voice as he continued in a whisper. “All four hundred and eighty two innocent Bohemian civilians were massacred during the Eirleach.”
“You may have heard of this tale,” he resumed in his normal tone, “no doubt twisted by Ustur propaganda to make it seem like we were the aggressors. But we have the video and radio evidence from the remaining Bohemian escort ship that would prove otherwise. We know the truth of what occurred that day. It was the ultimate betrayal. The slaughter of the brightest minds of Bohemia; botanists, geologists, physicists, chemists, engineers of all kinds, for they had all been brought together by one powerful and charismatic individual. The leader of that mission, the commander of that O’Tuathail Industries flagship, and the most beloved person in all of Bohemia, who also happened to be my grandfather.”
Cillian now began to shout as his eyes burned with unbridled rage. “Yes, your malign darkspawn kin murdered my grandfather and the hero of Bohemia in cold blood! And for that reason I sentence you as guilty for the highest crime that your kind can commit… existing!”
Cillian was by now face to face with the Ustur, his stare boring into the skull of the Ustur mercenary leader who was by now legitimately terrified by what he had heard.
After a few long drawn out seconds, Cillian abruptly straightened up.
“Reg, time check please.
“Ten seconds to the arrival of the first Bohemian military ships, sir.”
“Very good.”
“Now where were we. Before I send you to hell, I wanted to correct you on something you said earlier,” continued Cillian. “You see, the Council of Peace has indeed forbidden the use of torture and has made the killing of unarmed prisoners of war illegal. This is all true.But these Galactic laws only apply to sentient living beings. Whilst I would grudgingly admit that you may well be sentient, we have already established that you are not living, so these laws do not really apply in this scenario. It is also true that according to Bohemian law I am not supposed to kill an Ustur who has surrendered and who is no longer resisting. But I have never been one for following rules all too well.”
The first Fimbul BYOS Earp ship had now landed and its main door opened fully, allowing two Bohemian special forces soldiers to come charging out.
“And finally, as for the ‘don’t kill me I am unarmed and am not resisting’ speech, well…” said Cillian as he picked up the Ustur’s empty assault rifle from the ground with his right hand and proceeded to quickly lob the assault rifle at the Ustur’s head. The mercenary leader instinctually reached up with their bound hands and awkwardly caught the weapon to avoid being hit in the head.
“…oh and look! You are no longer unarmed, in fact I would go so far as to say you are resisting,” said Cillian loudly enough for the approaching soldiers to hear. He then quickly brought his fists together to activate the rings.
The Ustur blinked a few times uncomprehendingly as they stared at the rifle that had somehow appeared in their hands. The running Bohemian special forces soldiers were now shouting out whilst waving their arms at Cillian, ordering him to stand down. But the blood lust had risen up within him, muting out all other sounds and senses.
Cillian raised both fists, which were now glowing red, into the air before saying, “And the gods have cast judgement upon thee and found you sorely lacking. I am therefore here in their stead on this mortal plain, charged with the duty of dealing out their righteous wrath. They are offended that such an abomination like you has somehow been allowed to exist. I will now send you back to the hell hole whence you came.”
The Ustur soldier looked up in terror as both of Cillian’s fists came crashing into the Ustur’s face, buckling the skull inwards in an explosion of fluid and splintering exoskeleton.