The Regime

by Andrew Iddon

  Fleischer stopped the combat for a brief second before straightening himself out, and then reached for something on his chest. He pressed what seemed to be a button confusing Karaliskos. Fleischer’s eyes radiated yellow once more before he chuckled and took one more swing at Karaliskos who parried as usual but his blade shattered under the pressure. Karaliskos’ eyes turned purple showing fear for the first time. Fleischer then grabbed Karaliskos by the neck and threw him clear across the battlefield.

  Carlin saw this and abandoned his post running through the chaos of the battle still ensuing towards his wounded friend. Carlin was stopped however as three SS clones came into view and stood in front of Karaliskos’ wounded body with their wrist blades ejected. Carlin stopped and got to his knees as he looked around noticing that the Imperial soldiers under his command were naught but bodies and blood strewn about the port. Fleischer stomped with victory in front of him and kneeled down to his level.

  “Game over, you lose,” he whispered.

  CHAPTER 24

  Both men groaned, and cursed, in their own languages, and tried to sit up to survey their surroundings. Greg stood up, and gazed across the horizon; the planet, or wherever they were, was strangely plain. No trees, a few hills with no grass, no sign of life, and the soil was an odd dull purple colour.

  He turned towards Friedrich, who looked as puzzled as he did, trying to see through the terrifying mask that encased his head. Friedrich stood up, brushed off his freshly ironed Nazi uniform, fluffed his hat, and straightened his Iron Cross crest. He began to press different parts of the side of his head, which Greg suspected were either different vision modes, or perhaps a radio.

  Greg himself tried to open his com link headset, but received no answer, not even static. Greg cleaned himself off, and turned once again towards Friedrich, and, regrettably, tried to strike up a conversation.

  “I don’t know if you understand me, but do you know where the fuck we are?” he asked.

  “You think me a naive fool? It is imperative to know the language of your enemy, and, no, I do not know where the fuck we are”, replied Friedrich.

  “Shit, can you believe this? I am trapped in the middle of God knows where, with the one man I have sworn to kill.”

  “If God knew where this was, he would have sent a man to discover it. And, as much as it may shock you, I am not happy to be here with an Imperial dog such as yourself, but it will do neither of us any good killing each other here. I have an invasion to run, and you have an invasion to stop. Or try to, at least”, said Richthofen.

  “Damn, I’m not getting any radio signals. What about you? That crazy helmet got any signals out here?” asked Greg.

  “My protective mask is not a helmet; it keeps my face from crumbling to dust, and, no, I’m not. With a glitch in the teleporter, who knows where we might have ended up. We could be in another dimension, for all we know. It unfortunately seems we may have to become allies in this situation, as difficult, and as wrong as it seems.”

  “Well, I can honestly say this is the last thing I expected to happen. But we seriously need to find out where we are. Let’s go check out that clearing over there. Maybe there is a hill, or something we can climb, to get a better look”, said Greg.

  The two of them began their trek through the seemingly abandoned landscape. Walking for what seemed to be hours, and yet not arriving anywhere, the hills they passed seemed to repeat. They realized that they were trapped in an endless void, and had no way of escaping. They stopped walking, and tried to think of what to do, before something happened.

  Suddenly, mist began to form around their feet, clouding their view. They stood back to back, and lowered themselves into a ready stance, not knowing what matter of creature could jump out at them.

  Before long, a figure appeared in front of Greg. It was a boy, a young man of around seventeen years of age. He looked at him puzzled; he looked incredibly familiar, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. He called out to him, asking him who he was.

  “Who are you? What is going on here?” he yelled.

  The figure walked a few steps closer. He was wearing a football jersey, a high school football jersey. Greg read the name of the team, and lowered his fists, returning to a relaxed position. He recognized the name; it said Lincolnsville High school, the school he attended back on Earth, before the Russian Admiral, Gerard Fedorov, and his FEC took over the United States. He looked closer at the face of the young man, trying so hard to remember, before he finally spoke.

  “Hey, man, don’t you remember me? It’s your old buddy, Freddy Rickson, remember? Cheesy name, I know, but my dad thought it fit. How you been dude?” asked the boy.

  “Freddy? Jesus Christ, I didn’t recognize you. But this is impossible; this makes no sense. What are you doing here? This cannot be real; you would be in your thirties like me, and this place doesn’t seem real”, replied Greg.

  “It isn’t, man; it’s a part of the void, a place in between universes and dimensions. I am not real; I am a figment of your imagination, being portrayed in front of you. I am a piece of your past that you have forgotten, and left incomplete, here to confront you, and settle your past, just like the Cerebronians want”, said Freddy.

  “Cerebronians?” asked Greg.

  “Yes, they are the watchers, the guardians of this place. They make this artificial place for you to explore, while they probe your mind, gathering missing links, and helping you. They think its fun to play with human’s minds; humans are so interesting”, stated Freddy.

  “This is insane. So, what part of my past includes you, and is incomplete? You’re dead, and it was your own fault. You cannot even defend yourself, because you are not real, and you haven’t experienced it. You’re an illusion that the, what, Cerebronians, made up”, said Greg, angrily.

  “You underestimate their powers Greg. I did indeed die. I was recreated to speak to you here today”, replied Fred.

  “Fine, let’s get this over with, if it means I can go back home.”

  “Home? Your home, along with mine, is gone; the Russians destroyed it long ago after you killed me”, said Fred.

  “I killed you? You’re full of shit; I didn’t kill you. I was your best friend. I would never kill you. You joined the FEC. You got killed by the same people you swore to defend”, yelled Greg.

  “You’re wrong, you killed me; not physically, but mentally, emotionally, you stole the only thing important to me. You stole my love, and you didn’t even love her like I did.”

  “This is about Lacey? What the hell? It was one girl in high school; you got to move on, bro”, snarled Greg.

  “You see? That is the attitude that killed me. To you, she was a trophy, a quick fuck, and on to the next girl. To me, she was my life; when I was with her, I felt at home. I felt safe. She felt the same way, but, for some reason, couldn’t stand to be in a relationship with me. So she went for the jock boy toy, Greg Simons, and left me in the dust. After I came back from the war, she wanted to be with me, finally; only to leave me again, because of the scars on my face. That was the day I died.”

  “So, you’re still alive?” asked Greg.

  “In a sense, I still exist, but am not awake; I am in a docile state, probably not to awaken ever again.”

  “And you’re saying I am the reason for this. Because of me, you are comatose somewhere in the middle of nowhere, only awake now, in this place, to torment me, and fill me with guilt?” asked Greg.

  “The Cerebronians do love to play with emotions, and, yes, YOU killed me Greg. How do you sleep at night? You caused me to lose my soul, made me do something I didn’t want to do, and now, I am lost, not able to find out how to wake up”, said Freddy.

  “This is ridiculous! What am I still doing here, talking to a ghost? Wait a minute. Friedrich, are you still here?”

  He turned around to see Friedr
ich a few feet away, on his knees, slinked over, looking up at what seemed to be a woman.

  “He cannot hear you. He, too, is facing his past, and has incomplete business that is being confronted here. Even the lord of evil can have a soul, and his is tormented. He felt love too, just as I did, and he lost it, just as I. Now he is talking to her once again for the first time since she died”, explained Freddy.

  Greg stood there, shocked. Friedrich von Richthofen, the bane of the galaxy has a soul, after all; but that would have to be explained later. Greg needed to get out of here, with or without Richthofen.

  “You cannot escape by yourself. You need him, and he needs you. You just don’t know it yet”, explained Freddy.

  Greg stood there, baffled, still unsure of what to do, or how to continue. He decided to bid the spirit farewell, even though it wasn’t real. It didn’t respond. Instead, it faded away with the wind, as though it was never there to begin with.

  He turned around, glaring at Richthofen from afar, seeing him begin to stand, as the woman in front of him faded away as well. He began to walk up to him. He put his hand on Friedrich’s shoulder, and motioned for him to follow, as they tried to find a way out. Friedrich jumped with surprise, as if he forgot that Greg was there. He then straightened his coat, and began to walk forward. Greg followed eagerly behind him.

  “Do you know where you’re going?” asked Greg.

  “I know of these beings; I have studied them before. The Cerebronians love to toy with minds, especially that of the most fascinating species of all. Human beings have such history, never siding with each other, always fighting, and always showing emotion. Our minds are so fascinating to study, that the Cerebronians have taken a keen interest in studying us, and our behaviours”, replied Friedrich.

  “Have you seen these things before?” asked Greg, hesitantly.

  “Pictures; not many humans have ever seen them face to face, without going completely insane, with the mind tricks they play upon them. Humans have such a weak mind; I am surprised you aren’t driven mad.”

  “What, you thought me weak minded? What about you; why aren’t you mad?” retorted Greg.

  “Oh, I’m already mad enough”, said Friedrich, snidely.

  Greg could not help but chuckle to himself, but the pleasantries had to end here. They had to figure out a way to get out of this place, and soon, before they truly lost their minds. Neither knew quite how to do it, but they both made off in a direction hoping to eventually escape somehow.

  “Do you have any suggestions on how the hell we are supposed to get out of here?” asked Greg.

  “You give up so easily. The Cerebronians like playing with minds, testing them almost. Perhaps we need to pass some sort of test in order to escape, or be released”, replied Richthofen.

  Friedrich brushed off his shoulders, fixed his officer’s hat once more, and walked towards a tree, what seemed to be the only tree in the place. It was a large tree, standing very high, with many branches spread around the trunk, making a very good ladder to climb to the top.

  Friedrich began to fiddle around in his pockets, checking his coat pockets, his pants pockets, patting his chest, and getting frustrated that he couldn’t find what he was looking for.

  Greg walked over, and gasped, “Ah, good idea; lets climb this tree; and see if we can see a town, or an exit, or something.”

  Friedrich finally exclaimed happily, as he found what he was looking for. He pulled out a lighter, opened it up, and flicked the flame on. He then turned, and looked at Greg.

  “What is that for? You cannot smoke through that mask, can you?”

  Richthofen chuckled lightly, before flicking his hand, releasing the lighter towards the tree. Without turning his head, he walked away from the tree, stood next to Greg, and watched as the tree ignited in a massive inferno, strangely quick for a tree and such a small lighter.

  As the tree blazed in the sunlight, Greg stood there, rather baffled, before finally having to ask, “What the hell was that for? Now we can’t climb, and see where we are!”

  “Patience, patience,” replied Friedrich.

  Before long, as Greg paced back and forth, a small figure began to emerge in the distance. It was approaching fast, growing as it neared. Friedrich took off his hat, brushed off the ash from the tree fire, and placed it back firmly on his head, and then put his hands behind his back.

  Greg began to brace himself for a fight; he didn’t know what to expect from this. The figure was very close, but was not large at all; it was rather small. It stopped running about three feet away from the two men.

  It looked at the remains of the tree, and began to throw its hands around, frazzled. It began mumbling to itself in a language unknown to either of them, until it stopped, and turned toward them. It was a very odd looking creature, probably three feet tall, purple skinned, with an extremely large head. Its face was normal sized, but its forehead and cranial shape were very large, most likely for a reason. It had two large beady eyes, and a long mouth, but, surprisingly, it had a rather small nose.

  It stared blankly at them, with a very angry expression pasted on its face; it stared for a few minutes, before it finally spoke human English.

  “If you are human, you will understand this expression; it is, how do you say? Pissed off? Yes, pissed off, that is it; I am extremely pissed off right now. Can you guess why?” it exclaimed.

  Both of the guys stood there, still in shock with their new visitor. They couldn’t find a way to answer, and just stared back.

  Friedrich finally spoke up, “Why we burnt the tree, you are thinking, and we passed your test, didn’t we?”

  “Passed? Well, if, by passed, you mean you were the first to shock us with your logic, then, yes, you passed beautifully. Idiot humans and your small brains! It’s amazing how complex you are, even though you don’t have the brain capacity to look into each other’s minds. Every subject we have had, all three hundred sixty two of them, all climbed the tree. We thought we had you humans figured out. We were teaching it to our students at the schools; we wrote it in every science book from here to Cerebronia. Mindmother, have mercy on your puny little selves”, it radically exclaimed.

  “Puny? I would have to say that is an ironic statement”, replied Greg.

  “Ironic? What is this ironic? I have not heard this human term. Very interesting; I see there is a lot to learn from your minds, that other humans have not been able to produce for us, no matter how hard we harvest”, said the small creature.

  “Harvest?” asked Greg.

  “Harvest? Um, probe, gather, extract. In case you’re still confused, we physically go into the human brain, and gather the information, but, as you can imagine, the process destroys a lot of the information, so we cannot fully understand you. That is why I am here.

  Since you destroyed the tree, you opened up many new questions that I think live subjects would be better for. If you cooperate, perhaps we can find a way to send you on your ways. Why did you burn the tree anyway, when it is such a nice vantage point? Where do you see the point in burning a tree for no reason?”

  “Some people just like the warm feeling of seeing life burn,” replied Friedrich sadistically.

  “What are you called?” asked the creature.

  “I am Chancellor Friedrich von Richthofen, of the Nazi Regime, and the Fourth Reich”, said Richthofen, proudly clapping his feet together.

  “I am Lieutenant Gregory Simons of the Imperium”, followed Greg.

  “Both military men, I see. Interesting. We have had subjects from your Imperium, and I must say… I am not impressed. Now this Nazi Regime intrigues me. I have not heard of your kind yet, but, regardless of this, we would like to speak with both of you”, said the creature, as he began to walk away, motioning them to follow.

  “What is your name?” asked Greg, as he j
ogged lightly to keep up.

  “Your human tongue could not possibly pronounce my name, but one of our first live subjects gave me a name that sort of stuck, even with my superiors. You can call me Bob.”

  “Bob? Well, that is easy to remember; where is this human that gave you this name now?” asked Greg.

  “Oh, Jonathan is being kept in cryostasis”, replied Bob.

  “You are keeping him sedated for further questioning?” asked Friedrich.

  “Heavens no. His brain is in a jar, in what you humans call a refrigerator We didn’t see it necessary to keep the body, so we fed it to the interns, to see if they had any reaction. So far, the only reaction is a few well satisfied hunger bugs.”

  Greg gulped, and held his stomach, at the sound of that. He then tried shaking his head, as if he were in a dream. One second, he was defending an Imperium space platform, and the next he was in a void illusion world, with the Nazi commander, and a small gremlin alien named Bob.

  Bob led them through an invisible doorway, which expanded into this massive facility that neither of the humans had ever seen before. It was a grand spectacle. It had hundreds of bridges, connecting a mass of rooms to each other; the place must have had thousands of rooms, and maybe hundreds of floors.

  They tried to get a glimpse of where they were, but Bob kept motioning them to hurry; he didn’t like to waste time.

  As they walked down the very short hallways, they passed many other Cerebronians who all paused to get a look at each of them. More were interested in Friedrich, because of his mask, and his very neat and interesting uniform. Bob slowly came to a stop in front of two rooms. He led each man into his own room, and sat them down at large white tables, with two chairs. This was most likely an interrogation room of sorts.