by Dave Hazel
“Don’t worry about it. I think we can scare them into speaking,” Mykal chuckled as an idea just hit him. “First of all we have to be very careful not to torture them cuz of the media that is here even though they don’t have a clue what these scumbags would do if we left them alone with the media for ten minutes. But I was just thinking, if after what they do doesn’t work we can go in there and threaten to use magic on them. We could turn one of them into a small creature and say that is what they are going to die as, and at night,” Mykal laughed and clapped his hands together because of their superstitious fear that their soul will be lost in limbo if they are murdered at night. “Plus, I could turn myself invisible and make them believe I’m gonna kill them while it’s still dark out.”
“That is a very good idea my friend.”
“Another idea I have that would really freak them out is this. First of all is there any kind of animal that you and Sosos normally butcher for food? Something both sides would recognize as an animal to be used for food?”
“Yes. Goats, cows, pigs and Sosos will eat anything including horses and dogs. Why do you ask my friend?”
“Cuz if we can find out which of them is really gung ho about their superstitious fear of dying in the dark, what we’ll do is take one of them and have you use that magic wand to turn him into a goat or a pig and we’ll lead him out of the tent. Have one of your people nearby with a goat or a pig that is ready to be slaughtered for food. Kill the real animal and prepare it and then we’ll go inside the tent and eat it. The other two will think we’re eating their friend and we’ll say that eating him like that will enable us to absorb his powers but his soul will be lost in limbo for all eternity cuz he died at night and then we’ll say we’re getting ready to turn them into an animal so we can eat them too,” Mykal added and couldn’t keep from laughing. “It’ll scare the hell outta them. I know it will,” he added and continued to laugh.
Towbar gave a large smile as he thought it through. “That may work my friend, though that would still not surpass the cruelty of the Sosos. Let me tell you my friend, during one of the battles long ago. Many, many years ago, there was a town to the west of the Pass. As you know, there are no longer any towns or villages to the west. The Sosos raided the town and killed most of the people there. The others they took as prisoners. They tortured and abused those who survived. There was a family of seven that the Sosos did not kill. They raped the three women repeatedly and two of the young boys were raped and beaten repeatedly as well. They starved the family and worked them as slaves until they almost died of exhaustion and abuse. The Sosos told the people they were going to show them an act of kindness and then release them so they could return to the Pass and get word to the king of the Soso generosity. They set a great feast before the mother and children and when they asked where the father was they were informed when he finished his task he would join them. They all feared he may have died prior since all were kept separate and not allowed to see one another until the feast set before them.
“Obviously the family who had been starved gorged themselves on the food and ate as if they hadn’t had food for weeks. The oldest son asked the Sosos what kind of meat was in the stew, and what type of meat was cut onto their plates before them. One of the Sosos brought a tray and lifted the lid to reveal the head of their father. ‘This is the kind of animal you are feasting on,’ the Soso said and then they all laughed exposing another depth of cruelty and horror of the Sosos. When the family wailed and cried because they had been tricked into feasting on their own father whom the Sosos had just killed, the Sosos took offense saying the prisoners were unappreciative to their act of kindness. ‘We even kept feeding your father so he would be fattened up for your feast,’ the Soso leader said,” Towbar explained and sadly looked to the ground. “Because of their lack of gratitude, they were all killed slowly except for the oldest son. When the Sosos revealed they ate their own father, the eldest son was so shocked he couldn’t say anything. Because of his silence, he was the only one to survive and they did in fact allow him to leave. He returned to the Pass and then to Beramus to share what he knew of the Soso atrocities.”
“Damn it. That is so friggin sick,” Mykal sighed.
“He is still alive today and lives in the Great Walled City of Beramus,” Towbar said. “He is an old man who can still recall every detail of terror and horror that he lived through when he was only eighteen years old.”
“Wow, I don’t even know what the hell to say to that. I literally wanna go in there and torture the hell outta them friggin scumbags. I wanna see them suffer cuz all Sosos are the same. That’s how they’re brought up and the only way to change that is to nuke their friggin nation and let them start all over. If I could I would turn their friggin countries into one big ass parking lot. Damn it, I know you don’t know what that means, but it pisses me off to no end that I gotta be careful what I do,” Mykal spat angrily. “Cuz of our friggin media that’s here. They don’t have a damn clue what these bastards are like, but as far as they’re concerned the Sosos have rights. I wish I could force them, the media, to spend a couple weeks with the Sosos. With the rage I feel pulsating through me, I guess what you feel must be a hundred times more hatred and anger than I could imagine. Am I right?”
“I have a life time of hatred built up because of them. They have never changed. They have never tried to come to an agreement. They have never tried to coexist,” Towbar answered. “My entire life has known nothing of the Sosos other than savage butchery and cruelty. Their evil god requires human sacrifices and human sufferings at the hands of the Sosos. You are right my friend. It will never end until the last Soso takes his final foul breath.”
“Well, if I can do anything about that with my military, I will.”
The tent opened and out stepped two army captains with one of Towbar’s officers who worked as a translator. “Hey Mykal. We’re glad to see you here,” Captain Cullum said. “We were just going to have someone send for you. I wanted to make sure we briefed you first hand. Major Chick said this was pretty important.”
“Oh, it sure is. Were you guys able to find out anything?”
“A little bit, but first let me explain,” Cullum said and reached out his hand to shake hands with both Mykal and Towbar. “Myself and Captain Ronson here are company commanders of some of the new arrivals.”
“Nice to meet you guys,” Mykal said and shook their hands. He noticed they had the newer Towbar One patch that had the date of 1984 as opposed to the 1983 team and their patch had the two red stars. He also observed their uniforms seemed to be cleaner and still had starch in them to make them appear crisp and sharp.
“But both of us have some background in intelligence and we’ve had similar training in interrogations and such. The three Sosos think they haven’t said anything,” Cullum snickered and gave a victorious wink. “But we did gather some Intel from their silence and refusal to co-operate. The one in the middle cell is the leader and I believe he is a higher ranked Soso. Though I know they don’t carry rank like we do. And he knows something of what we’re trying to gather information on. He does know something of the Princess Doninka, though he didn’t know her name.”
“And Mykal, when you question them,” Captain Ronson joined in. “They’re not too bright. You can easily outwit them. To give you an example, we kind of assumed the middle one probably out ranked the other two just because of the way he carried himself. We asked if either of them we leaders of any sort. We thought he might be something equivalent to a squad leader, a lower ranked leader of some kind. So we turned to the weakest of the three and treated him like he was probably a high ranking officer.”
“It infuriated the other two,” Cullum added. “We said that the other two probably wouldn’t have the intelligence to come close to his, and the middle one spouted off that he is actually in charge of a group that numbers in the tens of thousands. So the middle man knows more and actually carries some rank.”
“Oh great.
That’s good to know,” Mykal laughed. “Now we know who we gotta scare the hell out of.”
“They didn’t give up much info, but the middle one is the leader,” Captain Ronson said. “He does know about the girl and when we tried to ask where she was, he basically said he’s not telling us anything and smirked. He knows something, but how much he truly knows we couldn’t tell you. I’m confident Myk, that over time we could break him and get him to spill his guts, but I know time is not a luxury we have pertaining to the info you need.”
“Thanks guys. You don’t know what a big help you have been,” Mykal said and gave them thumbs up.
“Let us know if there is anything else you would like us to do,” Captain Cullum offered as they turned away.
“I sure will,” Mykal said and then turned to the two Marines guarding the entrance. “Do not let anyone near here,” Mykal said which caused them to snap to attention. “Especially the friggin media people. You got that?”
“Yes Sir. No problem Sir,” Sergeant Vincent replied. “Would you like us to go get some of our fellow Marines so they can widen our area of coverage?”
“I don’t think we’ll need it. Thanks though, and make sure you let us know if the media comes this way, but keep their asses away from us,” Mykal said firmly.
“Not a problem Sir,” Sergeant Vincent said with a smile. “We’re from Captain Diaz’s Alpha Company Sir. We know what we’re dealing with in these lousy Sosos.”
“Good,” Mykal said and started for the tent opening.
“And just so you know Sir, there are two more Marines on the other side of the tent should they try to escape.”
“Thanks,” Mykal said and his stomach tightened when he and Towbar walked into the tent. Mykal realized these three prisoners might be able to give up information on the whereabouts of Doninka. He desperately wanted to rescue her and keep her from harm and would do whatever he had to do to get that information.
The tent was larger than an eight man tent. There was no rear tent wall. Those who built the structure formed the tent around three steel transportation trailers set side by side to act as prison cells. Iron bars were hastily welded onto the front of each trailer and it impressed Mykal how quickly the task had been completed and how efficient the workmanship had been. The three men were handcuffed to a large chain that had been attached to the iron gate of the holding cell.
In front of the cells sat a table with chairs around it for those doing the questioning. Two of Towbar’s officers and two Army soldiers sat at the table. The Green Beret lieutenant wrote his notes quickly into his notebook. The Army Staff Sergeant got the lieutenant’s attention after he saw Mykal and Towbar enter. They both looked like they were going to stand at attention, but Mykal stopped them with a wave of his hand.
“Good evening Sir,” the sergeant greeted them.
“Anything new?” Mykal asked and noticed as soon as Towbar entered the tent the three prisoners all had a quick attitude change. They suddenly seemed fearful because they obviously knew who Towbar was.
“No Sir, they’re not saying anything,” Staff Sergeant Glenn said and winked. “The lieutenant is finishing up his report Sir, and with the findings of the two captains we should be able to brief you with in the next half hour.”
“No, that’s fine,” Mykal said. “We’ll talk to them and then we’ll get with you guys afterward and compare notes.”
“Sorry about that Mykal,” Lieutenant Solan said and set down his pen. “I had to get my thoughts down so I wouldn’t lose them. Would you like us to leave?”
“Yes please. Me and Towbar are gonna take a crack at them,” Mykal said and he felt the urge to turn invisible and go on a rampage. ‘These friggin scumbags know where Doninka is and they’re keeping it from us,’ he seethed in thought the more he dwelled on it though he presented a friendly smile to the two Army personnel.
“We will leave,” Lieutenant Solan said while he gathered up his note pads and pens. “But to fill you in Myk,” he whispered so the prisoners wouldn’t hear him, “the one in the center cage is a leader and he’s not some low level grunt. He is actually a leader of a sizable force.”
“Yes my Lord,” one of Towbar’s men spoke to the giant. “He normally commands a group numbered twenty-five thousand or more. “He was surprised that he had been taken captive my Lord. He said he didn’t fully understand what happened to them. They would always fight to the death. He spoke of a fireball that killed two of his aids after metal monsters landed on the ground. I am not sure what he was speaking of unless he spoke of the flying crafts Mykal’s people brought here.”
“Gimme the keys for the cages,” Mykal said while he adjusted the lighting to point more directly on the three prisoners. “We’re gonna get some answers before the night is over,” he said loudly. “Because if I don’t get answers that I want then they will die at night and their soul will be lost in limbo for eternity,” Mykal said and watched their facial expressions. They heard him and they understood what he said.
The four got up to depart. “Hey Myk, back here on this table in the back are their belongings,” Lieutenant Solan said and pointed. “There are their weapons, personal effects, some food items, but one of the three had this leather pouch and we weren’t sure which one it was taken from and they won’t own up to it.”
“What’s the big deal? What was in the leather pouch?”
“There are seventeen human index fingers, all bones,” Solan answered. “The disgusting little creeps don’t even have the nerve to own up to their gruesome handiwork.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Mykal said with a disgusted scoff. “They’re all the same. Those bones belong to all of them as far as I’m concerned.”
“They would be wise not to anger my friend,” Towbar said and gave a slight smile as he folded his massive arms across his chest.
“We’ll see you guys later,” Mykal said as a hint for them to leave faster. “So do you three speak the common tongue?” He asked the three who took a couple of steps back into their cages when Towbar walked into the tent.
They looked at Mykal but neither of them spoke.
“I asked a simple question,” Mykal said as he neared the three cages. “Do you speak the common tongue? Look, you can do this the easy way or the painfully hard way. I want you to understand something. When Towbar walked into this tent, I saw how scared all three of you were of him,” he said and pointed back to the giant. “Let me tell you something, you’re gonna be more afraid of me if we start this off on the wrong foot. I’m telling you, you don’t wanna friggin piss me off. I’m not playing games with you. I’m gonna ask one more time and then I’m not gonna ask anymore,” he snarled while he pulled his magical sword from its scabbard. “Do you speak the common tongue?” Mykal asked and swung the sword which caused it to ignite in a bright red flame.
“Yes, yes. We speak the common tongue,” the leader said though his expression was one of hateful defiance.
“Okay. Great. Now that wasn’t so hard was it?” Mykal said and sheathed his sword. “I’m going to ask questions and you’re going to answer my questions. If not, you’re going to suffer horribly before I kill you and I promise to kill you with magic and while it is night time, cuz then I know your soul will be lost in limbo for all eternity. If you make me angry then I may tie you down and bring a woman in here to kill you. We all know what happens to those who die a fool’s death right?” Mykal spoke in a calm friendly manner with smiles that belied the ghastly threats he just made to them.
The three just looked at Mykal as if he had cursed them to their face. The two looked toward the leader to see if he was going to respond, though they couldn’t see each other from inside their cells. They seemed shocked that the smaller person, Mykal, was making the bigger threats and not the giant Towbar.
“First question I have for you three. Would you rather I treat you like you treat prisoners or would you rather I kill you quickly?”
“We would rather die swiftly,” the le
ader said without hesitation.
“So you just admitted you treat prisoners badly,” Mykal said and snickered at the confused expressions they gave. “Do you want to go free to join your army?”
The three just looked at Mykal as if he asked a foolish question.
“I asked you a friggin question,” Mykal yelled and pulled his Glock 17 from his waistband. He pulled the silencer from his pocket and attached it to the end of the weapon. He casually chambered a round and pointed at the foot of the Soso on the left side of the leader. He squeezed the trigger which barely made a noise. He shot the Soso in the foot and there was a momentary pause. The Soso suddenly felt as if his foot had been crushed. He dropped to the floor and yelled out his excruciating pain that seemed to come from nowhere. The Soso cried out in terror and didn’t know what to do to make the pain cease. He stared at Mykal, his face pleading to understand what just happened to him. Mykal wasn’t close enough to strike him so the devastating pain was a mystery. Blood appeared and added to the terror etched on the Soso’s face when it flowed freely.
The leader tried to look over to the cell with the injured man but couldn’t see him. The injured man’s yells and cries sounded genuine. The leader spoke to the man in the Soso language which the man replied between fierce yells of pain.
Mykal believed the leader asked if he was truly hurt and the man replied he was. The suffering man hopped onto one foot and forced himself to the cage. He stuck his blood covered hand through the bars so his leader could see he really had been wounded.
“Shut up,” Mykal yelled. “I could have killed you with that magic,” Mykal laughed. “Now, the next time I ask a question I expect a damn answer. Do you understand me?”
“Yes. We understand you,” the leader answered.
“Understand me when I tell you I’m not gonna asked questions more than once. This doesn’t have to be painful. Don’t be a damned idiot. Hey you,” Mykal yelled to the injured Soso. “Put your foot through the bars so he can see what I did to your foot.”