“That is very interesting!” General Deschner asked, “How is he intelligent?”
“His demeanor, General. How he spoke, what he said…it was almost as if he wasn’t born that way, but yet learned it from somewhere.” Major General Solbrig noted.
“Yes General, J’uhleesa told us about this liquid stuff here on Snakardekus, which he calls the Azuard.” Major General Reingle continued. “He kept talking about how the Azuard will help him win the war.”
“Well, J’uhleesa was holding what he calls the Azuard. Which he noted that is what will help him win the war.”
General Deschner nodded and asked. “What war is he talking about?”
“Well, J’uhleesa mentioned that throughout Snakardekus’ lifetime, the Snargde have always been at war with one another, and this time the soon-to-be leaders are himself and a Snargde named M’leezenah.”
“An ongoing civil war, huh?” General Deschner inquired, “That’s different. Tell me about this Azuard, does it do anything?”
“Well...” Major General Solbrig started to speak. “He demonstrated to us that the Azuard changes body temperature. He said that he no longer feels the sun’s heat.”
“Wait, he is wearing this Azuard?” General Deschner asked, “How?”
“Well, yes, he is. Apparently, the Azuard turned his skin blue along with his Snargde followers.” Major General Solbrig stated.
“Blue, huh? What color was he before, and how much of this Azuard does he have left?” General Deschner asked.
“You know, I don’t think he mentioned what color they were before the Azuard…” Major General Reingle trailed off.
“J’uhleesa showed us a cube of it, small enough to fit in the palms of his hands.” Major General Solbrig admitted.
“Did you two by chance happen to scan it?” General Deschner asked in anticipation. “How much more did you find?”
“Yes, General, I scanned the Azuard without the Snargde noticing.” Major General Reingle answered.
“Good job Major General! Would you kindly send the scan to me so I can check it out? I’m very interested in this Azuard.” General Deschner asked. “Is the cube that J’uhleesa is holding what is left of the Azuard?”
Major General Reingle looked at Major General Solbrig and did as he was told and swiped open his INH and send the Azuard scan to General Deschner as they continued to talk.
“Well, we found more of the Azuard in the same cave that the Snargde was located in.” Major General Solbrig admitted.
“You found more?”
“Well, it was almost like a pool of Azuard. We don’t know how much Azuard is in it exactly, but it is now ready for extraction, according to J’uhleesa.”
“Really, what happened?” General Deschner inquired.
“I sent the scan, General.” Major General Reingle replied.
“Ah, yes I see it now, good thank you.” General Deschner spoke as he opened it and swiped slowly, looking at pictures of the Azuard.
Major General Solbrig talked quietly. “Well... we kind of sort of helped the Snargde blow up the cave...”
General Deschner’s eyes moved from looking at the scan of the Azuard to back at the Major Generals. “I didn’t hear you, what did you say?” he asked.
“Well… we helped J’uhleesa blow the cave up.”
“Uh...” General Deschner blinked three times and tried not to lose his temper while he sounded angry. “What! How did you do that?”
“J’uhleesa wanted us to help.” Major General Reingle admitted. “We used the HPD’s to shoot at it, and well, the cave exploded.”
“That wasn’t your order.” General Deschner pointed at them through the monitor. “Now you’ve probably contaminated Snakardekus’ ecosystem by bringing in an unknown chemical to their environment. You do realize that it is probably miles away from you by now contaminating all of Snakardekus as we speak.”
“We know that, General.”
“Then why did you disobey orders?”
Major General Solbrig raised his voice and spoke. “J’uhleesa asked if we could help him, and we weren’t about to deny his request when we were surrounded by hundreds of Snargde. I doubt you would if you were in our situation!”
“I’d most likely shoot the Snargde if any of them told me what to do. I wouldn’t take orders from them!”
“But General...Snakardekus isn’t Nuwurth, and if you shoot them, wouldn’t you also unleash unknown matter in Snakardekus’ ecosystem as well?” Major General Reingle spoke, “Also, we didn’t disobey any orders, we didn’t shoot a creature we just shot the Azurad.”
General Deschner leaned back in his chair and scratched his neck and thought for a moment before speaking. “You know, Major General, you’re right. I guess there’s no other way around it. Either way, we are going to have to pollute unknown matter into Snakardekus’ environment.”
Major General Reingle’s face changed, and he shook his head slightly. “Wait, what?”
“We’re going to take over Snakardekus, Major Generals. That’s our plan. In fact, that’s an order!” He slammed his fist down on the table in front of him. “If this so-called Azuard can cool these Snargde’s bodies down, I wonder what it can do for us transhumans? We will need to heavily research it and put it to use!
“Uh...yes General!” Major General Solbrig agreed.
“You mentioned that you two blew up a cave full of this Azuard... Where is it at?” General Deschner inquired.
“It’s in front of us, General.”
“What do you mean?” General Deschner asked.
“Well, it’s a bit of distance from us, but we can look at it from where the Drakdel is stationed.” Major General Solbrig noted.
“That’s...wonderful news!”
“And why is that, General?” Major General Reingle asked nervously.
“Well, you may not be aware, but Lieutenant Generals Armitage and dee Veyra are working on the Emergence Transit Device, or the ETD” General Deschner explained. “The ETD can be used to teleport objects near and far. Soon we will be able to teleport more transhumans with extraction tools to get the Azuard and teleport back. After we have extracted it all, we can then take over Snakardekus.”
“Oh...that sounds like you have it all planned out, General.” Major General Solbrig stated.
“Of course! A plan has to be immaculate in each step. Unfortunately, they aren’t done with the ETD yet, so continue to gain J’uhleesa’s trust. We will need it later.” General Deschner explained.
The Major Generals nodded in agreement.
“Remember, the supply drop should be there soon, and hopefully it doesn’t take a long time to open.”
“Yes, General, thank you.” Major General Solbrig replied.
“Keep me updated on the Azuard, won’t you, Major General Reingle?”
“Yes, General... will do.” Major General Reingle looked down after he spoke. He appeared as if he was upset about something.
“Good to hear, Major Generals. You two are doing a wonderful job for the Syndicate. When all goes according to plan, and you two are back here on the USV Valkanaut, we will hold a medal ceremony for the both of you.”
“Oh, no General, that’s quite alright.” Major General Solbrig stated.
“Oh no, Major General, I insist.” General Deschner smiled with his sinister grin. “Remember, if you need anything at all, feel free to contact me.”
“Yes, General will do.”
“Oh, before I go, have you two heard from Major Generals Brentari and Lokhorst? I tried calling them, but I didn’t get a response.”
Major General Reingle looked as if he was worried. “What? Are they okay?”
“I’m sure they are alright, must be the communication signal. Maybe some interference, perhaps?” General Deschner asked, “You two had the same sort of thing happen earlier, right?”
“Yeah, that’s right. It seems as if these unknown planets are not friendly to technology, General.”
&nbs
p; General Deschner smiled and stated. “We will change that, won’t we?”
“Yes, General!” Major General Solbrig agreed.
“Well, I’m going to log off, Major General Solbrig, look after Major General Reingle he isn’t looking so good. Until next time, goodbye!”
“Goodbye, General.”
CALL ENDED WITH GENERAL DESCHNER
Major General Solbrig turned and looked at Major General Reingle. “Hey, you okay?” He lifted his head up and looked at him.
“Yeah, I’m okay. I’m wondering why General Deschner wants to take over Snakardekus.”
“What do you mean?”
“What I mean Solbrig is that General Deschner is telling us to lie to J’uhleesa so we can take the Azuard from him. Who knows what he is going to do with the Snargde when he transports all of the transhumans here.” Major General Reingle shook his head and stood up, then he walked towards the window and looked out at the cave with the Azuard. “J’uhleesa found the Azuard, he needs it to win the Snargde war against M’leezenah.”
“And how exactly is he going to do that?”
“I don’t know, but I am sure J’uhleesa has an idea.”
“Reingle, we can’t interfere with foreign cultures.” Major General Solbrig reminded him.
Major General Reingle turned around and held out his arms. “But we can take what we want from them, is that right?”
“I didn’t say that was right.”
“I know you didn’t Solbrig, but it makes me upset that General Deschner finds something new and wants it for the transhumans…I wonder what his plans are with it.”
“Your guess is as good as mine.”
“Don't you see it this way too? This seems like that coming here was his plan all along.”
“I do see it that way, too. You’re not the only one. You think a lot, and that’s a good thing, Reingle. I’m sure General Deschner only wants what is best for us and the rest of the transhumans.”
“Do you think so? What exactly is best for us, Solbrig?”
Major General Solbrig stood up from his chair and leaned on the desk. “I’m not sure what is best for us, but it isn’t our job to find out what is best for us. I learned when I was younger that there is no use in arguing against the General in charge. Life is easier when you listen and obey.”
“Is that so?” Major General Reingle asked. “Has the Syndicate always been this way?”
“For as long as I can remember. I had to work with other generals for years before you were sworn into the Syndicate… What do you think happened to those that didn’t obey General Deschner? Trust me, it is better to listen than to cause trouble.”
“You’re saying that generals have been kicked out before for not following orders?” Major General Reingle asked.
“Of course they were kicked out, what do you think happened to them?” Major General Solbrig continued, “I may not agree with everything General Deschner says or does, but I know it is better to obey and stay a general in the Syndicate than somewhere else.”
“I guess I never thought about what happened to them…but is that the truth, Solbrig?”
“Absolutely. Why do you think I am the longest-serving general right now?”
“Since you put it that way, it never clicked to me.”
“Well, I mean, I don’t agree with his principles one hundred percent of the time...but look at what we have accomplished since he has been General.” Major General Solbrig walked over to the window to look out as he continued to speak. “There’s a pretty long list of feats that he overcame and implemented. I mean look Reingle, ten…fifteen years ago we only just heard about what was on Snakardekus now look you’re standing here on that foreign planet.”
“You’re saying the good that General Deschner does outweighs the bad?” Major General Reingle asked.
“You could say that.”
“Even with his lies? For instance, we saw pictures of this place where we were standing two hundred plus years ago! General Deschner had to know about that!” Major General Reingle demanded.
Major General Solbrig moved his hands and placed them on the window and looked out and didn’t speak for a moment. “You know, you have a point there, Reingle. Why didn’t he tell us that before the mission?” He removed his hands and crossed his arms. “Do you think that maybe that was part of the mission?”
“I have no clue. It is no wonder General Deschner gave us a month to explore. I wonder if Brentari and Lokhorst did research about Varenok before they arrived?”
“I’m sure they did, Reingle. They’re smart women.”
“You’re right about that.” Major General Reingle shook his head and looked out the window. “What are we going to do?”
“We are going to act like everything is normal and see-through that General Deschner’s plan works. Right now, he is our lifeline out of Snakardekus, so either we obey and get back to safety, or we get banished here.”
“Banished... really?”
Major General Solbrig turned to look and him and shrugged. “You never know.”
“Right.” Major General Reingle leaned closer to the window and squinted his eyes. “Do you see that over there?”
“Where? I don’t see anything?”
“Over there,” Major General Reingle pointed. “Behind the Azuard, that… looks like a lot of sand moving.”
“I’m not sure I can’t make out what it is.”
They peered through the glass and continued watching until they got a better view of what it was. As it got closer, the sand settled to the ground. There were hundreds of brown Snargde standing up and looking at the cave.
“That’s not J’uhleesa,” Major General Solbrig hesitantly asked. “Is that…?”
“M’leezenah!” Major General Reingle finished his sentence. “It has to be! How do you think she found this area?”
“Well, the cave exploding last night wasn’t the quietest thing we have ever heard. I’m sure the soundwaves traveled for miles, most likely.”
“Is that even possible?”
“Your guess is as good as mine.” Major General Solbrig continued. “I think it is, especially with the lack of vegetation or buildings to keep the sound contained.”
“That’s a good point. Where is J’uhleesa and the other Snargde?” Major General Reingle asked. “It appears as if M’leezenah is going to investigate the Azuard.”
“I’m not sure, last we saw was them burrowing into the sand, remember?”
“Right. Maybe the Snargde are still down there?”
“Let’s hope so. I’m sure they felt the vibrations from that group of Snargde running this way.
“That’s likely.” Major General Reingle replied. “What’s that near the mouth of the cave?”
The sand was moving back and forth almost as if an earthquake was happening, in a moment, a blue Snargde jumped from out of the sand and landed on its feet. They knew it was J’uhleesa, his followers quickly joined him above the sand.
Major General Reingle shouted in excitement. “Look, Solbrig, its J’uhleesa!”
“Yes, I see that. I knew the Snargde were still in the sand.”
“Sure, you did.”
“Eh, it was a lucky guess.” He chuckled. “What do you think is going to happen?”
“I’m not sure, but I don’t want to stay here and find out.”
“Wait, you’re not going to go out there, are you?”
“Of course! I have to help our new friend. Plus, he knows that we’re up here anyway.”
“But we shouldn’t interfere with their lives, Reingle.”
“Maybe we shouldn’t, but if they start fighting and J’uhleesa loses, we don’t get the Azuard, and if we don’t get the Azuard, then General Deschner is going to be furious with us, and we don’t want that to happen, right?”
“Wow, you learn fast, Reingle.”
“Eh, I try.” Major General Reingle looked out the window and exhaled, then he looked down. “This is hard, Solbrig.�
��
“What’s that?”
“Feeling like you have to lie to please people.”
“Remember what I told you, listen to General Deschner. He’s our ticket out of here.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
Major General Solbrig pointed out the window. “Hey, uh Reingle... what are they doing now?”
The Syndicate's Journey Page 31