Zurkerx- The Empire Shall Grow

by Eric William Haluska

  But none of that is on his mind. All he cares about is that he’ll be able to return home soon. He continues his walk, his thoughts drifting to home.

  As he thinks about home, a drone above tries to get a signal on the phone. Yet, its system begins to malfunction, causing it to fall freely from the sky. Desperate, the operator pulls the joystick and the drone flings back, saving itself from being exposed.

  ~

  “Ah, that went great. I hope it went great; the boss would kill me if I screwed this up.”

  Lucas strolls past a few stores. He is smiling, thinking of the deal he has just accomplished for EE. As one of the company’s operations managers, he has helped SOLD become a profitable business, one that has helped employ Zurks.

  But Lucas doesn’t work as an operations manager for EE. He doesn’t have the expertise given he finds the business field to be complex and confusing. Instead, he’s a sergeant in the Red Skulls, serving as a soldier. For months now, Albric has been deceiving the Gewerksma, uncovering their stockpile of armaments and locations of high-ranking leaders and individuals. He is the one putting a dent in their plans.

  “You almost screwed it up, moron,” says Donin.

  Donin looks at the monitor in the control room. He examines the images the drone has taken, pictures of Kelin’s phone and the man himself. Unfortunately, he can’t make out the messages on his phone even when the resolution is improved. Yet, Donin can see it’s a military-grade mobile device known as an ESP[65] that is only used by high-ranking officials in governments across Zentari.

  This concerns him. No ESPs have gone missing; he knows this as all are tracked by the Zentarian governments, and the devices must be accounted for at least five times a day. Even if one goes missing, the government can simply deactivate the device. But it appears this ESP has been modified, causing him even greater concern.

  Next to Donin is the half-awake Sadara. She is too tired to realize what’s happening on the screen. It has been a rough last couple days when nightmares have plagued her, nightmares that still run through her head. In one of those nightmares, Donin is tortured by shadowy figures that force him to confess to some sin, though she isn’t sure what sin he has supposedly committed. Strange symbols of red blood stars, rotting wood crosses, and dim orange lamps hang from above as torturers force him to confess as she hears the screams of pain from Donin.

  In another dream, Albric is slowly backing up at the end of a cliff, smiling as if he’s up to no good. He claims he isn’t going to fall, saying everything will be fine. As he walks back, he falls. His hands wave in the air as he continues to smile. Then the sound of crushing bones rings in her ears. Several long black rocks jab through Albric’s back, killing him. Yet, he still has a smile on his face as his head slumps to the right, blood running from his mouth. She believes her dreams tell her something, a message she has yet to decode.

  Donin had earlier promised her he wouldn’t tell Albric about the sickness that plagues her, that consumes the fiber of her being. Yet, he is only holding that promise begrudgingly because she is his sister, and the fact that Albric tends to get distracted easily, especially when it requires his compassionate side to appear. Otherwise, he would have broken it by now.

  “Nonsense, it went without a hitch. We are going to stop these bitches singlehandedly.”

  “Tell that to your many ex-girlfriends,” mumbles Sadara. “Who kicked your ass every time you hit on them-”

  “Hey! At least I fought back. Damn, they were some tough bitches.”

  “Would both of you focus on the objective here! Does neither one of you have concerns that we can’t even see what’s on his phone?”

  “What do you mean, Donin? I’m sure we can hack it.”

  “All right, tell me how to hack an ESP? Because that is what we are dealing with here.”

  A moment of silence falls among the siblings. It is concerning that Kelin has an ESP, a device that is illegal to sell to private citizens. If he does have one, then it’s possible that the Gewerksma have more. Sadara rubs her head, unable to recognize the severity of the situation. Albric stops his stroll and looks up, staring in disbelief.

  “How- how could that be possible? How could they acquire an ESP?”

  “I’m not sure, Albric,” Donin says, startled. “It just baffles me how he has something like this.”

  “Perhaps someone leaked the technology out?”

  “Those secrets are locked away and hidden. No one knows about them except for a select few.”

  Albric’s stomach turns a bit. Usually, he would make jokes to lighten the mood, to calm everyone down. But this situation is different. No joke can change the fact that a terrorist organization has an ESP and possibly more. I must try to think of something, at least.

  “You seem serious about the matter. That’s not like you.”

  “What can I say, Bro? If the Empire falls, how will I ever be able to pick up the ladies?”

  “Yep, we haven’t lost him,” Donin says happily.

  “Can we get back on track, boys?” Sadara says as she yawns with some sense of urgency. “We need to report this right away.”

  “Sadara is right. We can’t risk those maniacs getting the upper hand. I imagine we couldn’t collect anything?”

  “That is correct, I’m afraid. What confuses me though is the fact that this ESP is able to interfere with the drone’s programming, making hacking impossible. I almost lost control of it earlier.”

  “Wait, the drone almost crashed from a failed hack job? No ESP does that, I believe.”

  “No, they don’t,” he says in amazement. “And that is what is concerning here.”

  “Well, what was he doing? Did we pick up a signal?”

  “It looked like he was texting someone. Unfortunately, when we tried to steal the content from the phone, the drone began to go haywire and went into a freefall. Once I cut the connection from his phone, then I had control of the drone again. I also tried to zone in, but something is distorting his screen on his phone.

  “It has to be someone that has betrayed Zentari,” says Sadara, fatigued.

  “But who, remains the question,” says a feminine voice.

  Donin and Sadara turn around, surprised to see the Black Widow here.

  “General Junimen. How long have you been here?”

  “A while now, and please, call me Scarlet. I promise I won’t bite,” she says teasingly as she stands up and walks towards the siblings.

  “Ain’t that the Black Widow?” asks Albric.

  “You have this hare-brain doing the spying for you? What was Marcus thinking?”

  “He wanted to give the boy a shot. Man, this day has just been dragging.”

  “The more you talk, the less we get done here and the less sleep I get,” moans Sadara.

  “Your sister over there isn’t looking too good. Is she okay?”

  “She’s just tired,” Donin says emotionlessly.

  “Can we see what he was typing at least? Can you zoom in to the picture?”

  “Let me try.”

  Donin zooms in, trying to get a clear picture of the device.

  “No, the drone is too far away. I can’t make out what it says.”

  “Hmm, that’s odd. That’s a 12K camera on there. We should be able to read what’s on his screen even from that distance. Let me see.”

  Scarlet walks up to the screen and places her thumb and pointer finger on it, spreading them open as she zooms in on the man’s phone. She sees the screen is blurry, surprising her. Yet, almost immediately, she knows why.

  “You see, I told you,” Donin says, annoyed.

  “The screen is blurred. That is indeed a surprise. Yet, it does have a screen cover that distorts what appears on the screen if you are far away. The only way around that is to be literally on top of it.”

  She pauses for a moment.

  “I’m amazed by what he has here. Someone most likely gave him that.”

  “Someone has to know. Perha
ps our allies-”

  Sadara stands up, only to fall back into her chair. She grabs hold of the arms, using them as a beam of support. Scarlet runs to the young sergeant and helps her up. She can see she isn’t doing well.

  “I guess you are tired. Let’s get you to your bed.”

  Scarlet lifts her up and walks her away. As she approaches the sliding door, she stops.

  “Has she been having problems lately?” asks Scarlet.

  “She hasn’t been sleeping well lately, just some internal struggles, that’s all.”

  “I see. Some rest can help her. Just make sure all of the information is gathered into a report for the Supreme Commander.”

  “Yes, Madam.”

  Scarlet and Sadara walk out. Donin looks at the screen and begins to organize the data into a file. This information is what the Empire’s elites need to know to make an informed decision on what actions they need to take next.

  “Internal struggles? Is she okay?”

  “She’s fine, it’s just she’s been having night-”

  Donin stops himself, remembering his promise.

  “Nightmares? She has been having nightmares? About what?”

  “Damn it,” grunts Donin, realizing now he can’t hide it. “Yes, it is nightmares and it’s about you dying.”

  Albric looks down, surprised by this revelation. He was unaware of the fact that his sister has been haunted by nightmares. No one has told him anything about them, not even her. This offends him, given she is family and they don’t keep things hidden from each other.

  “So, when was I going to find out about this, Donin?”

  “I guess now.”

  “Now? You should have told me when it first occurred!”

  “She worried about your safety, given you get distracted and ignore your surroundings. She did it to protect you.”

  “Protect me? More like cowering into submission to her fears. We are family, Donin. Family! That takes precedence over anything else.”

  Anger is flowing through Albric’s blood. It is rare that he gets mad and by the tone of his voice, Donin can tell that Albric is fuming and just as Sadara has predicted, he is zoning in on that.

  “Don’t get distracted now. We’ll talk about it later, Albric. Right now, get back to the base. You may look suspicious if you stay out there too long.”

  “Hmph! I only sometimes get distracted.”

  “Right…”

  “Regardless, she needs our comfort.”

  “I know she does. Let me finish up here. You know how Joseph can get with improper preparations.”

  “Isn’t he interrogating Gregori right now?”

  “Not yet. He’s about to soon. Report back to base. We’ll go check up on Sadara after you get back.”

  “Copy that, Bro.”

  Albric makes his way back to Fort Halsen, his heavy feet hitting the ground as he speed-walks back. Anger is coursing through his veins—he’s livid at the fact no one cared to tell him about Sadara’s problems. He’s baffled by the fact that Sadara wouldn’t tell him, but told Donin. This infuriates him, and he wants to find out why she kept her secret to only a select few. However, he’ll deal with that after she’s well-rested. It wouldn’t be wise to confront her in her problematic state.

  Clank. He stops in front of an alleyway. He looks down the alleyway, believing someone is down there. Despite the bright sunny day, he can barely see down its dark depths, the shadows concealing whatever it holds.

  Then he notices something move in the distance, fleeing behind a trash can. He goes for his handgun, ready to shoot the shadowy figure. As he takes aim, a cat comes scurrying out, making him jump.

  “Ha, it was just a cat. Getting paranoid now are we, Albric?”

  Albric’s grip on his gun loosens up. He can’t believe a cat has caused him to jump. He jumps at everything, including when Sadara walks up behind him and intentionally scares him. I need to stop jumping. He slips his pistol back into its holder and walks away, his thoughts returning to why he’s mad at his siblings.

  As he walks away, a figure emerges from the shadows. He walks towards the end of the alleyway and sticks his head out slightly as the light strikes his face. He has a black beard and mahogany-colored eyes that watch the sergeant like a hawk. At one time, he knew Albric on a personal level and enjoyed his jokes, his smile bringing joy to him.

  But now he knows who the mysterious man is, the same man Kelin talks to. He shakes his head, knowing that Albric has been spying on them and telling their secrets. He is tempted to go out there and shoot him, but he doesn’t want to blow his own cover. He slips back into the shadows, knowing that staying in the light would reveal his identity and lead to his capture.

  ~

  Gadget sits at his desk, rubbing his sagging eyes as he tries to stay awake. For the last couple of days, he has been studying the virus, an endeavor he took up on his own. Surprisingly, the virus has a name, Rubella Typhus, in its data codes. But the name doesn’t concern him. In studying the virus, he has made some disturbing discoveries.

  He’s discovered that Rubella Typhus is a juggernaut piranha; meant to dismantle and destroy all it seeks, leaving nothing behind. Its primary purpose is to breach firewalls and damage the software and hardware of any given device, erasing and potentially collecting the data stored on these devices. In addition, it can detect whether a flash drive, the internet, or Wi-Fi signal is connected, triggering it to spread with rapid succession.

  He found this out when trying to upload the virus to his flash drive, where it almost immediately stored itself, telling him that it’s a CBW. Generally, most in Zentari don’t understand why it’s called a Cyber Bio Weapon, specifically the bio part, given it isn’t alive. Yet, the bio part refers to the fact that the computer virus has an AI mind of its own, giving it unique properties by which it can fight and maneuver around security programs.

  However, he has made some promising discoveries that shed some light onto those depressing findings. Despite Rubella Typhus having these distinct features, it appears the CBW can be quarantined, although the security program can’t pierce the multiple firewalls protecting its AI brain; the program leaves it untouched and unharmed. If he can breach these firewalls, then he can use another CBW to destroy it, neutralizing it.

  A big smile comes on his face as he jumps out of his chair and fist pumps the air. He needs to tell Marcus what he has learned. He needs a break. He makes his way out of the lab, staggering out as he tries to stay awake, his excitement helping him to do just that.

  SECRETS

  NOVEMBER 9th, 2060

  03:00 P.M.

  HANGART

  A few rooms from where Donin watches Kelin is the interrogation room. It is a dull gray room with worn-out gray tile floors that are chipping away. A black window covers one side of the room. Behind it is where the observation room sits, where everything is recorded, capturing the confessions of criminals by gathering intel that helps protect society. Inside the interrogation room is a large metal table with a foldable chair on either side, with one person sitting uncomfortably and angrily at the far end.

  Gregori Kurt Stein is getting frustrated. He isn’t happy that the government has caught him. Gregori could have been moving arms and armaments around the Empire. He could have been plotting new attacks to terrorize the Empire. Instead, he is locked up in a box, unable to escape. Only luck could free this man; something that will likely never come to pass.

  Regret fills his mind as he contemplates his decision to join the Gewerksma. Back in the day, he worked as one of five bookkeepers for a large real estate company, inputting data given to him by the departments of accounts payable and payroll. He was married to a woman named Kelly, who stayed at home to watch their three kids. At the time, he embraced Einnerism since he was making six figures, allowing him to take family vacations and buy luxury things to keep the family happy. There wasn’t a damn day he had to worry about.

  Then he and two of the other bookkeepers wer
e laid off, replaced by an accounting software for which the departments inputted the information. This made it easier to keep track and organize the accounting information, meaning the company only needed two bookkeepers to keep track of the books. His layoff forced him to rely on the government’s basic income, helping alleviate the financial pinch a little. He tried to find another bookkeeping job, but soon discovered that other businesses had replaced their bookkeepers altogether, leaving him permanently unemployed.

  This permanent status of his forced him to rethink the ideals of Einnerism, and he came to view it as an ideology that protects the rich while leaving the working class to fend for themselves. Despite the government’s assistance to provide a supplemental wage, Gregori wanted to have an actual, physical job, one that was protected and controlled by the government. This rationale he would come to accept would share many parallels with Neo-Demokrism.

  Initially, he advocated for a peaceful transition to Neo-Demokrism, wishing to take advantage of the democratic process and to lobby their ideals in hopes of getting change. However, like many newly converted Neo-Demokrists, he soon realized that the government couldn’t have cared less about their ideals. Not only that, they had no shot in getting elected into power, their voices drowned out by the huge majority opposed to them.

  Believing that peaceful intentions weren’t working, he soon began to preach violence, recognizing it as the only way to have their voice heard. Yet, his wife didn’t take too kindly to his new ideals. Fearing he had become deranged and a bad influence on their children, she divorced him, fleeing to safety. This broke his heart, but instead of blaming himself, he blamed it on Einnerism, citing that if the government nationalized his industry, he would still have a job, his family.

  However, despite his saddened state, he felt a sense of relief, which he recognized when he joined the Gewerksma as he started his new life as a criminal. In joining the Gewerksma, he abandoned his friends and family, despising them since they continued to cherish the ideology that had destroyed his life. Quickly, he became a proponent member, a leader who organized attacks against businesses and the government to have their voices heard. Yet, his role as a leader led the government to label him as a high-value target. Through perseverance, the government captured him, abruptly ending his tenure with the Gewerksma.