Vengeance of Sukesh: John Mason (Legend of John Mason)

by Barbara J Robertson

  JOHN MASON

  Vengeance of Sukesh

  BARBARA J. ROBERTSON

  JOHN MASON

  Copyright © 2017 by Barbara J. Robertson

  All rights reserved by the author. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author.

  DEDICATION

  The “Legend of John Mason” series is dedicated to the men and women of the United States Marines, Navy, Army, Air Force, and Coast Guard, whose hard work and sacrifice continues to provide us with the freedoms we enjoy, and hold so dear.

  Thank you for your service!

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  Many thanks are owed to my close friends, sisters, and advisors:

  To RMCM Marie Vellis, for her support for this project. Her leadership and dedication to duty during an exemplary 30-year career in the US Navy helped open the doors for women to achieve ranks and careers previously not available to them. Thank you for your friendship.

  To Bonnie Copeland for reading my works, and providing commentary and gentle criticism during the creation process. Thank you, thank you!

  To Denise Robertson, RN, and Debbie Hilst, RN, my sisters, for patiently providing medical advice during the creation of this book, and for reading the finished work. Love You!

  To Mara Kalcheim, for her encouragement, and for holding my feet to the fire. Thank you!

  To Roe Andersen, my proofreader, for her excellent skill and constructive criticism.

  To Bettina Moss, for helping drill down to the essence of our hero, John Mason. Time in conversation with you was priceless.

  To John Lenzi, for his encouragement, friendship, and humor. Thank you, always.

  To Rosalie Bruce, for your invaluable advice and assistance during the publishing process.

  To Darlene Lancer, for your guidance marketing my self-published series.

  To the many veterans who shared their memories of military service and battles with me. You are a priceless resource. As you requested, your names have not been disclosed. But your stories of victories and defeats in battle will stay alive.

  PROLOGUE

  In the 24th Century, all the peoples of the Earth and her colonies on the Moon, Mars, and various space stations are united under the one-world government of the United Republics of Earth (URE). The URE is governed by the High Council, a ruling body of eleven whose decisions are final.

  In the more than three hundred fifty years since World War III, the Earth recovered from the radiation poisoning and pollution of her farmlands and oceans. The first fifty years after the end of devastating war were fraught with radiation sickness, diseases and mass starvation affecting millions of the survivors. The destruction from WWIII was so great, Earth’s population was reduced from eight billion at the start of the war, to less than four billion.

  World War III was not begun by one country attacking another, as in the previous two world wars, but by acts of terrorism. Radical atheistic anarchists, called the Offenders, activated their long-held plans to overthrow all governments by using traditional weaponry and crudely-fashioned nuclear devices known as “dirty bombs,” to blow up government buildings, churches, mosques, synagogues, and population centers, killing millions of citizens, and blaming religious zealots for the carnage. These previously unknown terrorists, seeking to overthrow all governments and abolish all religion, were highly organized and well-funded, living in many countries all over the world. Their goal was to coerce the most developed nations to destroy one another, then step in and take control of their governments, while eradicating all religions.

  The fighting continued on every land, on every sea, and in the air, for more than twelve years. On every continent, armies, militias, and common people fought the Offenders terrorists and their sympathizers, until they were driven out or killed. The Offenders claimed responsibility for the destruction of Vatican City, Jerusalem, Mecca and Medina; all were completely destroyed by dirty nuclear bombs. More than three billion lives were lost in World War III, and the peoples of the Earth decided there would never again be a war amongst themselves. The leaders of the greatest nations of Earth joined together and formed the United Republics of Earth. One nation, one government, one people, united in peace and equality for all citizens.

  By the dawning of the 22nd century, the life and death struggle to rebuild civilization under the banner of the URE bore fruit. Citizens were industrious, better educated, and healthier, looking forward to much brighter futures for their children. All health care was free, also basic education, job training, transportation to and from work, and basic housing. Advanced education was provided to those students with test results high enough to qualify for entrance into the universities. The URE government was the largest employer by far, but the surviving six corporations allowed to exist as publicly traded corporations employed workers in many locations world-wide: Sony General Electric; Aventis Lilly Bayer Pharmaceuticals; Coca Cola; Nestles; Toyota GM; and InBev. Company “towns” provided housing for their employees surrounding their campuses.

  Under the URE, every man and woman are equal, entitled to the four basic rights: the right to work, justice, protection, and fair treatment. The right to work is also the duty of every able-bodied man and woman until their retirement age of seventy-five, or later, if they chose. Society is very productive, with most citizens working for the URE government, one of the corporations, the ten trade unions, or in one of the five branches of the military. The Earth-bound branches of the URE military are the Army, Air Force, and Navy, to serve and protect citizens from any pirate, mercenary, or rebellious factions.

  Public transportation is the norm, with the total obliteration of the Middle Eastern oil fields from the war. Electric or mag-lev trams run twenty-four hours daily. Big transports fly between cities on Earth, while the much larger space transports provide inter-planetary movement of people and goods, all powered by hydrogen fuel cells. Private transportation is by bicycle, walking, or anti-gravity speedsters or shuttles, for those who could afford them.

  Banking is strictly controlled by the URE, managed by the Regional Finance Centers. The one currency is the freedom dollar. Each citizen owns their own mandatory bank account where their pay is deposited. Withdrawals are made by use of bio-plastic charge crystals, or “slices,” programmable encoded strips denominated from $5 to $10,000. No paper money or coins are in use. No credit is available to private individuals.

  Several laws were enacted to ensure fair and equal distribution of all resources to everyone. First and foremost is the requirement of a birthing license. A female can only bear two children, and is required to have her fallopian tubes tied after the second child. The URE government controls all fresh water, food production and distribution, and all natural resources.

  Colonization of the solar system by the URE was very successful in the last three centuries: four colonies on Mars, a very high-tech Moon Base, ten space stations, and a handful of research colonies on asteroids. The two off-Earth branches of the military controls these stations, bases and colonies: the Space Forces, and the Space Marines. A thriving system of merchant, private enterprise and franchise businesses offer entertainment, dining, and hotel facilities on the space stations, providing a better quality of life for those serving there. Regular patrols and inspections conducted by the Space Forces and Space Marines ensure safe transport and fair rules of commerce for all, with the Space Marines being the first responders to any crisis.

  The last ten years witnessed the emergence of an alien presence in our solar system: the “ONE,” a walking reptilian species, much fart
her advanced than humanity. They successfully incited rebellion among some of the citizens of the URE, causing thousands of human deaths and incarcerations, while not sacrificing their own reptiles. The ONE were particularly successful recruiting human “agents” and sympathizers in the off-Earth space stations, offering them advanced knowledge, easy wealth, and power. Their goal was to genetically create a new reptilian-human hybrid species, man and reptile, combined. Although they could have conquered Earth easily, they preferred to assimilate, and transform those humans judged “worthy” into reptilian hybrids.

  There have always been special elite units of highly trained personnel within the ranks of the military who exhibit superior ability, performing impossible tasks with excellence: the Praetorian Guard of Ancient Rome; former United States’ Green Berets, and Navy SEALS (still in existence today), to name a handful. The elite men and women of the URE military are the Space Marines, and only the best within the Space Marines qualify as a Prime Marine, the most highly trained personnel in the military. After successfully completing the harsh, extreme training successfully, the Prime Marines were bio-enhanced for superior strength and endurance, and their natural eyes replaced with bionic eyes to also see in the dark. They became masters of all forms of martial arts and every weapon in the URE arsenal. They number less than 1% of all members of the military, and are the most respected. They are also entrusted with the protection of the URE High Councilmen.

  These are the continuing adventures of one such superior warrior, Prime Marine Master Gunnery Sergeant John Mason, Space Marines.

  I

  The intense flash of the star cruiser’s eight engines igniting lit up the full view of his tiny cell window for an instant, as John Mason watched the Esmeralda prepare to depart space station Titan One. She was a beautiful ship with a gleaming titanium hull, once the pride of the Space Forces fleet. Her beauty belied the disappointment and embarrassment of her failed maiden voyage. The Esmeralda would be flown to Moon Base, renamed and refitted for her next mission, given another chance to redeem herself, and once again become the flagship for all the research vessels in the United Republics of Earth (URE) Space Forces fleet.

  Mason wondered if he would someday have the chance at redemption, as well. His position aboard that beautiful ship was Special Security Chief and Prime Marine to the Captain, Esther Hanson. He was the sworn protector of the Captain and the command officers of the bridge, engineering and the medical decks. Every ship’s captain asked for a Prime Marine and few requests were honored. He not only protected and guarded the bridge and the command officers, but acted as the escort to Captain Hanson upon her request. He was a Master Gunnery Sergeant, the top of the enlisted ranks, and a highly decorated Prime Marine, one of their champions. Mason entered the Space Marines at age seventeen, and qualified for the Prime Marine title, a highly coveted achievement, at age twenty.

  He was arrested immediately and taken to the auxiliary prison upon the Esmeralda’s docking at Titan One space station. No one ever explained to him why he was arrested or what charges were brought against him. He was beaten by the guards on a daily basis for the first three weeks while in electronic shackles and chains, suspended naked above the floor of his dark cell. He was stripped of his rank and all his possessions were confiscated. His bank account where his pay usually was credited was frozen, and he was promised life in prison if he refused to cooperate. The only things keeping him sane were his extensive martial arts training and meditation techniques, and his belief God would not permit him to be punished so unjustly for the rest of his life.

  Only eighteen months ago he was a hero, a Prime Marine Master Gunnery Sergeant, and recipient of the URE Medal of Honor, its highest award. Twice he was awarded the Bronze Star for bravery and saving his ship, the captain and officers of the Hesperia from mutiny. He also was recommended for Officer Candidate School (OCS) by the Commandant of the Space Marines himself, with additional endorsement from Admiral Worthington, the Chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for the URE. His career path was as bright as it could be when he boarded the Esmeralda as her Prime Marine, Special Security Chief. Now, he was dog meat; a big target for the guards to beat whenever they felt like hitting him with their electronic hot sticks, sending 10,000 volt shocks every time they drove the long stick into his body, usually into his groin. They had their fun.

  Mason cooperated every step of the way. Doing otherwise would not only cause him more pain, but would allow them to brand him as a prisoner of war. He did not want that on his record, too. He was subjected to interviews and interrogations by the thug guards for the first three weeks, and then turned over to the “Specialists.” They were the really sick interrogation men in white lab coats, masters of torture and pain. Their arsenal of psychotropic drugs and torture instruments were designed for the breaking of the will, spirit, and dignity of the prisoner.

  The psychedelic trips they sent Mason on were nightmarish and terrifying, bordering on depravity. He would be forcibly injected with a drug cocktail of psychotropic compounds and locked inside a chamber where holographic environments and projections bombarded his psyche and sanity. Then he would be interrogated again and again, while his body was tortured.

  Since he was a Prime Marine and had special implants for sensory enhancement, his implants were used against him for torture. His bionic ear implants were subjected to harsh screaming noises at decibel levels just below their threshold of tolerance, until his ears bled and he screamed in pain. He was smeared with foul smelling pastes and fluids to force him to retch violently for hours, his bionic sense of smell picking up every disgusting nuance of the smells to a much heightened degree. The specialists even put a “mask of lights” over his bionic eyes for days on end to deprive him of his vision and sleep. A Prime Marine’s natural eyes were replaced with bionic eyes for enhanced vision, and he possessed seventy-five percent vision at night. The mask of lights flashed to keep him awake and visually stimulated, even with his eyes closed.

  But the favorite tools of the specialists were the shock clips, which could be attached to any body part and allowed for varying degrees of electric current to shock their victim. Since Mason was two meters tall, and endowed with a very large penis, his sexual organ, nipples, and anus were frequently clipped and shocked by the specialists, as they asked him the same questions over and over, shocking him time and again. Mason wondered if he’d ever have any feeling in his penis again; they shocked him so often and with such strong currents his genitalia were totally numb now. They enjoyed using their hot sticks on him, shocking his mouth, anus, and base of his cerebral cortex.

  The Esmeralda undocked and used her impulse thrusters to move away from Titan One while Mason watched. Then, she rotated ninety degrees and took off towards Moon Base. Mason wondered if any other members of her crew were being held in the auxiliary prison like he was, and treated the same way. He never even saw an officer the entire two months of his incarceration. No one offered him any legal assistance, either, which he should have received the first day of his imprisonment. He told the same truth to all interrogators and his story never varied. He was innocent of any wrong doing, and performed his duty to Captain Hanson and the Esmeralda to the best of his considerable ability. He hung in his shackles and chains, naked, silently praying to the Man Upstairs for compassion and an end to his suffering.

  Suddenly, his cell door opened and the guards came in for his “Shower,” an ice cold blast of water from a large hose they sprayed him with, front and back. At least it got his own waste off his body. He was deprived of toileting along with other common comforts, like getting to stand up or lie down. The tallest guard shoved a food paste tube into his mouth and punched its pouch to deliver the entire green contents of the pouch into his mouth at once, trying to make him choke on his 300 calorie dinner. But Mason was ready for it, and managed to swallow it this time. He finally went to sleep a few hours later, hanging naked in his chains.

  The next day, the guards removed his chains and Mas
on stood on his own two feet for the first time in over a week, albeit shakily. The balls of his bare feet burned like fire from the pressure of his own weight. No one came to take him away for interrogation or torture that day. He even used the shit hole in the floor next to the wall, the first time in two months he’d been allowed to piss there. He felt like he was being set up for more torture after being given that modicum of freedom. Not that he could tell when he had to urinate until he was already leaking; his penis was completely numb still. He sat cross-legged on the floor of his cell, carefully folding his legs so as not to set off the electronic ankle shackles, meditated, and eventually went to sleep.

  He awoke later and stood to look out his tiny window, remembering his late wife Sherrie. He met her on the Hesperia, wooed her, married her, and lost her all in less than five years on the mining freighter. She stood tall and slender, with very shapely legs, deep blue eyes and blonde hair. She was his blonde goddess. She was passionately in love with him and devoted herself to him and his happiness. They managed to endure as a couple through the trauma of her sudden fear of him, after seeing him in battle for the first time, as he ruthlessly killed dozens of mutineers in front of her. She even tolerated his friendship with the senior female officer on board, the Head Nurse, Commander Cohen, a beautiful, highly intelligent woman.

  Mason never told his late wife the whole story about Commander Rachel Cohen. They were awakened early from cryonic hibernation, usually lasting seventeen months, along with the bridge officers and several others, only two months into the seven year voyage on an emergency alert. Mason was drugged while in his cryonic cocoon, an attempt to kill him; only his bio-enhanced lungs and plasma-enriched blood saved him. The first sounds he heard were her words, and the first sight he saw upon awakening was the beautiful face of the Head Nurse, Commander Cohen, and he fell in love with her at first sight. She was the first woman he ever loved. But she was a senior officer and he an enlisted man, and they could not be together as lovers. They became the very best of friends during that cruise. She was dangerously fond of him, and very attracted to him. She loved to tease him and always relished his company.