by Dave Hazel
“Can we interview them?” One reporter yelled out.
“No!”
“Why Myk? Freedom of the Press and all that,” One of the media group shouted.
“Because I said so. We’re not in America and these people aren’t even from our world. I want them left alone,” he said to finalize his position.
A slight murmuring complaint rose, but the roar of approval for Mykal’s stance drowned the whines of complaint.
“Myk, I would like you to reconsider. I personally think it would be good to show--”
“I don’t care what you think. I said no. That’s all there is to it. I’ve let you guys cover anything you wanted. This, I want left alone. ‘Nuff said, we’re moving on,” Mykal said and turned to Chick.
Chick nodded his approval and gave a quick wink. “We have some pressing matters at hand gentlemen, and the main focus of this briefing is preparation. I, rather we, believe we may be running out of time,” he said and nodded to several leaders including Towbar. Chick spoke slowly and continued tapping his fingertips together. “The Soso build up has been on-going and their size is enormous. Our best guess is that they out number us maybe three or four to one. The Sosos have allies that are unknown to us, meaning Towbar’s people.” He fanned his hand toward the giant.
“When are we leaving?” The fat, sweaty, man shouted while he raised his hand.
Before Chick spoke, Major Innes stopped Chick with a raised hand. “We would appreciate it if all the questions would be held to the end of this briefing. Thank you.” His voiced popped in and sounded crisp and direct like the sharp salute of a professional soldier.
“To touch on the question that was raised,” Chick continued. “We will not be leaving any time soon.” He paused to see what the response would be. Among the military personnel there wasn’t a complaint. Among the reporter group there were hushed grumblings. “Our mission hasn’t been completed. There are still people unaccounted for,” Chick lied for Mykal. “There are at least eight that are missing and one of those people is one of the VIPs. That doesn’t matter because if all eight were just simple civilians our mission and determination would be the same. We must find those people, or at least their bodies. Now that Mykal or rather Mister Graves has returned we can resume our search for the lost
“We will have a dual purpose while we are stationed here,” Chick said and looked to Mykal. The continued tapping of his fingertips together made him come off as nervous. “The Pass is the best location for us, but there is an obvious threat if we stay here. If we move the threat will be greater because it will enable the enemy to surround us. If we stay put in our present location the natural terrain will minimize and neutralize the majority of the threat, if and when they try to occupy the Pass.”
“What did you just say Sir?” The fat sweaty man asked. “I know we need to hold our questions to the end, but I didn’t fully take in what you said.”
Mykal took one step forward and touched Chick’s arm to let him know he would answer the reporter. “We’re safer in the Pass than if we move away from the Pass. Even if the Sosos had us outnumbered fifty to one, their numbers will not help them because they all have to come through the Pass. They will be bottle necked, forced to fight in a smaller area, and with our firepower and the army that Towbar and King Krago have put together we will be able to meet their reduced strength and cut them down to size.
“The Sosos can’t get behind us and they’ll not be able to just run us over. We have many large obstacles, the pits,” Mykal pointed to the numerous pits that have been dug. “The Sosos have to stop and climb out of them before they can continue, while Towbar’s and Krago’s armies will stop them. If things become difficult for us, meaning the people from our world, we will pull back and leave the scene. We’re not going to die here, but we will fight and help Towbar and Krago defeat the enemy while we are still looking to complete our mission of finding all those still missing.”
“Why don’t we just leave now while we have the chance?”
“Didn’t you hear what I just said?” Mykal asked the reporter and the look on Mykal’s face expressed his incredulity. “We’re not leaving anyone behind this time,” Mykal was swift to add. “When I was here the last time, sixteen people got left behind. Jake, Larry, Sam, Roy and Randy, will you step out?” He motioned to his friends. They eagerly stepped into the midst. “If anyone deserves to leave immediately, it would be these guys. These guys have been stuck here about six months. Do you guys wanna leave right now, possibly leaving people behind?”
“Sir, I’m Technical Sergeant Irwin, United States Air Force. We are three days shy of six months being lost. I want to be home one hundred eighty days ago. Meaning I want to be home before the day we got lost. Even though I’ve been out here all this time, and I miss my wife more than words can describe, I would never leave another person behind to go through what we have gone through. I can only imagine what our families have dealt with. Even if it means I have to miss Christmas with my wife, I’ll do it to help others. We can’t leave anyone behind. If I have any say in the matter, we won’t leave until all the missing are found or accounted for,” Jake said referring to finding dead bodies.
“I’m Sergeant Larry Weston. I agree with Jake, I mean Tech Sergeant Irwin. I want to go home right now. The food sucks, it’s better now that Mykal brought back the military and the food service people, sorry Towbar,” Larry waved to the giant and caused a laugh to break out. “But I miss my wife’s cooking. I miss my wife and kids. I even miss that damn cat that I hate,” he added to get another laugh. “But I wouldn’t leave someone else to go through what I’m going through. I say stay until we find them.”
“Well, I’m Senior Airman Samuel Washington,” Sam spoke nervously. “I agree with them and I would like to add, after Mykal came back and told me about when he was finally allowed to let our loved ones know what happened to us, it made my day that they knew I was still alive. I would hate to think what the not knowing would be like for any family member. It’d be devastating. I would want someone to let my family know if I died so they wouldn’t have to keep guessing and worrying about it. If we leave people behind, dead or alive, we’re leaving their loved ones in the dark. They’d never really have closure. As much as I wanna go home, I’d say we wait.”
“I went home with Mykal,” Roy Jr. said. “My daddy and my brother were stuck here. My baby brother died here. For my momma and sister it was easier to accept, after time, knowing my baby brother was killed. But going through the unknown of daddy and my other brother was torture for them. If there are others here we need to find them whether they are dead or alive. Their loved ones and family members deserve that.”
Major Innes stepped forward with a snap to his step, and a crack of the whip in his voice. “For the record Sir, we, as United States Mah-reens, do not leave our folk behind. Dead or alive, none get left behind. Is that clear? We have a mission to find all the missing. We’re not going to stop.”
“Ooh-rah,” thundered all the Marines present as if on cue.
“And might I add,” Gunnery Sergeant Ratner picked up when his Marines calmed down. “Even if it were your scuzzy civilian ass out there, Sir,” he added respectfully though he inserted his personal dig. “We would wait and not leave your sorry ass behind. Do I make myself clear?” His voice changed to that of a Drill Instructor. “The people missing are United States Americans. Though they do not wear my eagle, globe and anchor,” he pointed to the Marine Corps emblem on his shirt, “we will not leave anyone behind.”
“Ooh-rah!” Marines thundered again, causing many nearby to take notice of their enthusiasm.
“Scuzzy civilian is a term of endearment we in the Corps have for those not in uniform,” Ratner clarified. “Some never choose to voluntarily join any branch of service to help protect our great nation. Others just don’t have the gonads to make it into my Corps. Either way, we in the Corps don’t hold that against scuzzy civilians. We will lay down our life to help fi
nd fellow Mah-reens, brothers and sisters in other branches of services, and we will even lay our lives on the line to help scuzzy civilians,” Ratner snarled with his hands on his hips and slightly bent at the waist which generated another comical roar from the military presence on hand.
The sweaty, fat reporter did not have the opportunity to reply, or his words were drowned out. He slunk back into his crowd.
Chick waved his hands to silence the roar of his men. He bore a smug smile of pride. “Let’s talk about what we’re facing at the moment. The Sosos have moved closer. We have a couple of OPs out there. That is Observation Posts,” he turned to those who might not know. “The Sosos are within a couple of miles from our OPs. The threat of the Sosos attacking is real. From what we have learned, the Sosos never attack at night and they never attack in foul weather, am I correct?”
“That is correct Sir,” Mykal answered.
“Their reason is strange, but great for us,” Chick replied. “We are going to use that to our advantage. Before they strike, we hope to go on the offensive. We are going to conduct some night raids. We are not going to conduct a full assault because they will respond and fight in defense. We have many of our soldiers trained to kill with silence and stealth. The Silent Killers as they were called had great success and rescued most of the prisoners. The only problem that occurred was a partial group of Silent Killers had been transported by the green fog before the helicopters returned to retrieve them from behind enemy lines,” he said before the reporters could object to their success and try to argue against his plan.
“Let me add here,” Mykal spoke up. “Towbar’s people have never gone on the offensive. They have only fought from a defensive position. So the Sosos would never expect it. Don’t take us wrong, we can’t possibly defeat them, there are far too many of them. We just want to use guerilla tactics, inflict fear and terror and give them something to think about. And hopefully scare some of them into turning back.”
“I would like to know how that would have an impact on such ruthless killers as we know the Sosos to be,” a voice called from the reporter group, though none of them raised a hand to take credit for the question.
“It will mess with their heads,” Chick answered. “You may not like what I’m going to say next, but I will have my Silent Killers kill them in their sleep and do horrific things that will terrify the survivors when they discover what has happened to their people in the dark because of their religious beliefs. I will have my men, my warriors,” Chick spoke with pride. “Spill their guts out on the ground and do things that cannot be described while it is dark out and that will surely put the fear of Towbar One into them. My point being that when those lucky enough, not to have encountered my Silent Killers, wake up and see what happened to their comrades during the night, they will know they are going to face the meanest, nastiest, bastards in all the land,” Chick said with an excitement that belied his friendly demeanor. He drew a roar of excitement among the men.
“How dare we do such a thing?” One of the reporters asked with a disturbingly shocked expression.
“The Sosos have a superstitious fear that if they die during the night their soul will be lost. We need to use every advantage we can gain from them. It is psychological warfare at its basest. They out number us four or five to one, and maybe more,” Chick explained while the media group mumbled among themselves. “We need to use every trick in the book to keep them back and hopefully turn them away from us.”
“Trick Sir? If that is a trick it is a vile and dirty trick,” one of the reporters said and stepped forward. “Isn’t that going overboard? Has anyone ever tried to communicate with them and tried to understand where their hostility comes from?”
“Oh brother, here we go,” Mykal whispered to Towbar. “I wish the dumb ass would ask me where my hostility comes from,” he chuckled which caused Towbar to laugh out. All heads turned to the giant as they thought he laughed at the reporter’s suggestion.
“There is no reasoning with the Sosos,” Major Chick answered. “They are barbaric to put it kindly.”
“Wouldn’t our actions make us as barbaric as they are? I mean, Sir please, isn’t all that you have suggested crossing the line?”
“The line of what?” Mykal raised his voice as anger started to creep through him. “They can’t be won over and they won’t compromise. They won’t meet in the middle. They only understand defeat. They need to be crushed. Understand this, Sosos enjoy inflicting misery, pain and suffering and death. They don’t care about others and how they feel. They actually believe that the more suffering they inflict and the more people they kill, they will get a greater position in the afterlife. They don’t even fear death because they believe if they die in battle they will earn a greater spot in paradise, but they fear dying in the dark. And if they were to wake up to some of the horrors they inflict on innocent people, knowing that their buddies died in the dark that would shake them up and mess with their heads. They really believe if they die in the dark their soul will be lost in limbo and that will spook them big time.
“Instead of fighting fire with fire, we’re gonna fight fire with flame throwers,” Mykal continued and the crowd came alive. The hoots and hollers drowned the area with joyful noise. “If they wanna have a boxing match, we’re gonna bring a baseball bat. If they wanna have a knife fight, we’re gonna bring a machine gun. The only way to make them crazy bastards listen to you is by whacking them upside the head with a lead pipe,” Mykal declared while the crowd continued its roar of enthusiasm.
Once silence resumed one of the reporters addressed Mykal’s response. “The line my colleague is referring to is the line of decency,” he said.
“Decency?” Mykal scoffed with clenched teeth. “Are you friggin kiddin me? The Sosos don’t know and don’t give a damn about your sense of decency. I dare you to go out there and show them how decent you are. As a matter of fact, why don’t a handful of you go out there with a white flag, show them how decent you are and then have ‘talks’ with them? I know you guys in the friggin media love it when our leaders have ‘talks’ with the leaders of the communist countries. Like that ever accomplishes anything other than the weakening of the United States. Seriously, why don’t some of you go communicate your ideas to the Sosos and see if you can find out why they’re so angry all the time? Make them a nice little breakfast, make them some pancakes and eggs and take them out there to show how nice you are,” Mykal mocked angrily. “Seriously, go talk to them and see what Towbar’s people have to give up for them not to be angry any more. Let’s really find out about your decency.”
A roar of laughter filled the air. Major Chick raised his hand for the men to stop.
“Well, if we behave as they do, it’s just sick. And as Americans, we’re not like that,” the reporter said and his group seemed to rally to him.
“You really are a damn moron,” Mykal snarled with hatred. “We’re not in America. It’s kill or be killed out here. Death is never pretty. Death is death whether quick and painless or slow and gory. If you think this is too sick then you need to go spend a day with the Sosos. As a matter of fact, since you won’t go and try to convince the Sosos to stop being evil and mean, then why don’t you go talk to those we rescued from the Sosos and ask them from firsthand experience what the Sosos are like and what their chances are of ever giving way to any kind of sense of decency?”
“I’ve already heard their stories,” a skinny little man with blonde hair replied. His long blonde hair had been pulled back into a pony tail to keep it from falling in his face. “I don’t feel that justifies us stooping to their level. We should be bigger than that and allow them to see we’re different.”
“What’s your name?”
“Julian Ashland. Most people call me Jules.”
“Well Jules, go out there with your nice guy act and see if you’re lucky enough to just get a spear shoved up your ass. They will rip you to pieces and do it slowly.”
“Does that mean that
we should be like them?” Jules asked. He seemed somewhat irritated by the laughter he received.
“Jules how do you stop a bully? How do you stop a bully from picking on smaller kids? How do you stop a bully from picking on pencil neck little geeks?” Mykal asked and those who knew him knew Mykal had Jules and his friends in mind when he said that.
“Get authorities involved and threaten to take action and if--”
“See that’s where you’re wrong,” Mykal scoffed. “A bully ain’t gonna stop until you beat his ass. If a bully knows you’re terrified of him he will never stop, but once you bust his face open he ain’t gonna pick on you anymore. Even if the bully beats your ass, if you bust his face open he won’t pick on you anymore. He’ll find someone else to pick on. The Sosos ain’t gonna stop until they’re all dead or until they see they are whooped for good. Jules, why are you even here? Seriously?”
“To cover the story. To bring back news of what is taking place in a world that didn’t exist a year ago. To us I mean.”
“Then cover the story and shut your mouth,” Mykal retorted and had to hold back to keep the venom from flowing. “You’re not fighting. You don’t have to deal with them. It sounds to me like you wanna kiss up to them savage bastards.”
“Mykal, why do you dislike us so?” Jules asked and turned to his compatriots for approval.
“Why? Because you friggin people make me sick. You won’t lift a damn finger to help, but all you do is whine like a bunch of little friggin sissies. You damn people are the same back home. Most of you self-righteous bastards hate the military and you’re always looking to screw someone over. But it’s the military that you despise so much that keeps you free to carry on your miserable existence. You’re in a shit racket and I wish I could make you spineless bastards go interview the Sosos to get their perspective and see how they’re the poor little victims here, cuz I know that’s how most of you bleeding hearts see this nonsense. I’ll bet some of you are thinking they’re the way they are cuz of their environment they were raised in. They’re the victims and we’re the bad guys. They were the friggin bad guys way before we ever got here.”