Hero Falls Kingdom Rises

by Farhat Kidwai

  “It was close to a couple of small towns. It is too early to tell surface damage. We will have to send a team to the area to access the damage. There is the possibility that the area will be exposed to radiation. They may need help to evacuate the area.” The commander provided his best assessment based on his understanding of the situation.

  “That can wait. We are at war. We need to get ready for retaliation from Omega. If he knows that the attack came from your ship he might already be on his way. Be ready to defend yourself and evacuate if needed.” US Secretary of Defense Wolf was concerned about the safety of his men.

  “Understood, Sir. We are ready to defend the USS Freedom II,” the commander responded. As he looked around the room he did not see that same sentiment in the room. They seemed like they had seen a ghost. They had already witnessed what Omega did to the ships and the crew last time Mersin was attacked. They knew it was their turn and there was absolutely nothing they could do to defend themselves.

  “I knew this would happen. You can call him God or the Devil. The fact is that he is angry now and will be coming for us. We need to abandon this ship. We can’t let him get our crew,” the second in command angrily told his commander. It was completely out of line of a subordinate to speak to a commanding officer this way.

  “We are not abandoning the ship. We took an oath to defend our Nation. We don’t run. We fight even if it means sacrificing our lives for the cause. Don’t ever undermine my authority again,” the commander pushed back.

  “You fucking old man. There will not be an America after today. So, who the fuck do you think you are defending? We just lost. Wake the fuck up to the new reality. There is the new world order and Omega is in-charge. We are sitting ducks on this ship. I am not going to sit here and wait for Omega to burn us alive,” insisted the second in command.

  “Step back son. I am still in command.” The commander asserted himself.

  “You are no longer fit to be our commander. Who here wants to stay on the ship with the commander and die? Raise your hand.” The second in command asked the crew in the room.

  Not a single hand went up.

  “You heard them. I am relieving you of your duties. I hope you leave the ship with us but if you decide to stay we will respect your wishes.” The second in command was now in-charge.

  “I am disappointed in all of you but I understand your decision. I have never run and I never will.” The commander was disappointed in their decision but also understood he had no right to sacrifice their lives specially because it will not serve any purpose.

  “For your sake I hope you are right about your God,” the second in command said his final goodbye.

  “Sound the alarm to abandon ship. Instruct the crew to get as far away from the ship as possible. Also, tell them to get rid of their uniforms.” The second in command figured that the best way to hide from Omega would be to get away from the ship and pretend that they are not American soldiers.

  Meanwhile at GSRC in Mersin there was a mini celebration after Adam stopped the nuclear attack. There were plenty of cheers and high fives all around the room.

  “That son of a bitch. That was so SICK!!” Sol was amazed at Adam’s abilities.

  “Now what? How do you want to retaliate?” Helm asked Omega and Sol.

  “First, we need to take out the ship that attacked us. I already have the location. While Omega does that we can track all the rest of the Alliance ships in the area capable of nuclear attack. We will provide you the targets and you do what you do best.” Sol provided the strategy for the team to respond.

  “That still leaves... Oh like most of the nuclear launch sites intact.” Helm was skeptical of the strategy.

  “One step at a time buddy. We still have Adam. Nothing is getting through to the city,” Sol added.

  “Let me take care of the immediate problem in front of us and then we can strategize how to win this war. They are not going to surrender that easily.” Omega settled the debate. “Get me the coordinates of the first ship.”

  “Can you do your thing and make it extra barbaric on this one. Really send a strong message. Need them to think twice before they attack our city again.” Sol did not want Omega to hold back.

  “Ugh... I hate this part. Do we have to be this brutal? I’m sure they were just following orders,” Kat chimed in.

  “Fear is the only language we humans understand. The barbaric part is the deterrent that might save lives of other soldiers. That is why the best conquerors throughout history would leave a trail of dead bodies as a warning. Genghis Khan was famous for doing that. As the news of his barbarism reached other towns they would just surrender without putting up a fight. You may not like it but this strategy saves lives in the long run.” Elliot explained the true human nature.

  “Fine! If it saves lives. I just don’t need to see it,” Kat gave in on Elliot’s reasoning.

  “Just focus on the big picture. Remember why we are doing this. You have to break a few eggs to make an omelet.” Elliot tried to help Kat be at peace with what had to be done.

  “Yep!! Focus on the omelet. Let Omega break the eggs. I can do that,” Kat agreed.

  At the USS Freedom II

  The commander was all alone on the ship. Everyone had abandoned the ship and had been picked up by coast guard boats and taken to the shore.

  The commander went to his office and poured himself a glass of whiskey. He made it a double knowing this was going to be his final drink.

  He called his family to say his final goodbye, “Hi.”

  His wife could hear the pain in his voice, “You didn’t win did you?”

  “No. Our mission failed. I wanted to hear your voice one last time,” the commander tried to hold back his tears.

  His wife however could not, “NO!! Don’t say that. Maybe he will show mercy.”

  “I don’t deserve his mercy. I am ok with what is coming. Give my love to the kids and tell them I died with honor. I gave my life protecting my country and serving my Lord.” The commander tried to get the words out as he voice started to crack.

  “I love you. We love you. We are proud of you. God has a plan for all of us. I will see you in heaven soon my love.” His wife replied with tears running down her eyes. She was saying goodbye to the only man she had ever loved.

  “I love….” The call dropped off in mid-sentence by what sounded like an explosion on the ship.

  The commander walked out of his office and on to the deck of the ship. He could see a hole a few meters wide right through the middle of the ship. He looked up in the sky saw something coming down towards the ship.

  “Where is the rest of the crew?” The voice asked as landed on the deck of the ship.

  “They all abandoned the ship. Traitors!! I am the commander who gave the orders to attack your city. They didn’t seem to agree with my decision.” The commander knew he was going to die but still wanted to protect the crew from Omega’s wrath. It was his final good deed before he would meet his maker.

  “I respect that you are still trying to protect your crew. Maybe humans still have some redeeming qualities. You will come to the shore with me.” Omega picked up the commander by one of his legs and he flew to a nearby town along the shore.

  On his way to the shore Omega pointed his other arm towards the ship and blasted an energy bolt towards the ship that went right through the ship splitting it into two pieces.

  Omega landed in the town square and tossed the commander across the square. The commander slid through the concrete pavement scraping and bruising all over his body.

  “Gather in the town square to witness his punishment.” Omega’s voice echoed all across the town. Omega wanted the Alliance to witness this event.

  Some town folks showed up to the square and the rest hid in fear.

  “I said... come out to the town square and witness his fate… NOW!!” Omega was not messing around and the rest town folks got the message. The town square was filled with people within the ne
xt few minutes.

  “Take your cameras out so that the rest of the world can witness this too.” Omega instructed the crowd as he walked over to the Commander who was sitting on the ground covered in blood.

  He ripped the commander’s shirt off and put both his hands on the commander’s head. The commander started to scream in pain and started gouge his own eyes out.

  “Do not look away!! Give him a knife.” Omega instructed the crowd.

  People slid knives towards their feet. The commander reached for one of the knives and to everyones surprise proceeded to cut off his ears while screaming in agony. He slowly filed one ear at a time and then proceeded to do the same with his nose and tongue. He seemed to have no control over his actions.

  “I am just getting started. You wanted a war. Now you will get one. You want to continue to defy me? This is what you have to look forward to.” Omega put his hand on top of Commander’s head. The skin on the commander’s body started to scrape off as he screamed and flailed his arms around. Finally, the deafening screams were over as the commander took his last breath. The silence was broken by the thud of his skinless carcass falling on the ground.

  Omega left the body there flew off to the next target. He did not hold back. By the end of the night all the nearby ships with nuclear capabilities were destroyed and their crews massacred. The Alliance had received the message loud and clear. It was time for them to regroup and figure out their next move.

  Chapter 14

  An Alliance leadership meeting was called at the United Nations Building in New York City to determine next steps. As they looked around the table for representatives from member nations some chairs were still empty.

  “Where are the rest of the leaders?” British Prime Minister Kate Longfellow inquired.

  “I am not surprised. Omega’s actions were intentional. He wanted to scare the Alliance members. He got the message across.” Canadian Minister of National Defense Michelle May added.

  “I won’t be surprised if they are in discussions right now to switch sides. Those foolish cowards!!” US President Bosworth seemed unhappy with the nations who skipped the meeting.

  “Only time will tell if they are foolish ones.” President of France Jacques Philippe reflected.

  “We still have all the key members on board. The ones that really matter anyway. Let’s begin.” US President Bosworth suggested. “I would like to start the meeting by requesting a moment of silence for the brave fallen soldiers of the Alliance.”

  The members stood up and spent a moment acknowledging the thousands of lives lost at the hands of Omega.

  “I don’t know about you all but I am angry. I want revenge for our brave soldiers. I will not let their sacrifice go in vain. Omega must pay for his actions!” US President Bosworth added.

  “And how do you propose we do that? We already tried a nuclear attack we didn’t even get close. All that did was get our soldiers killed in the most horrific, barbaric way possible. You want to attack him again? Do you have a secret weapon that we don’t know about?” Canadian Minister of National Defense May was perplexed by the stubbornness to continue with military action.

  “So, what is our other option? Surrender and get massacred?” British Prime Minister Longfellow asked.

  The tension in the room was palpable and building.

  “We need to keep our heads. Fighting with each other will not solve anything. I agree that we need to have a solid strategy before we can attack him again. I am not in favor of sending more of our soldiers in there to die.” President of France Philippe tried to calm the room.

  “Well here is a strategy. Instead of holding back and using a targeted strike we launch an all-out assault. His spaceship stopped one missile but it can’t stop 50 all at the same time. We go all in. Ships, fighter jets, tanks, soldiers. Throw the kitchen sink at them. Let’s see if they can hold up on all fronts.” US President Bosworth laid out the strategy.

  “Well that is not a terrible plan. It might actually work. But once we commit to this there is no turning back.” British Prime Minister Longfellow acknowledged.

  “Hold on. Let’s not rush this decision. Let’s let our military experts come up with a good strategy and present it to the leadership and we can put it to a vote.” Canadian Minister of National Defense May cautioned against a haste response.

  “Agree. We can adjourn the meeting and regroup in a couple of days. Time is of the essence so I would encourage the members to stay in town till our next meeting,” US President Bosworth suggested.

  Meanwhile in Mersin, Omega and his confidants were working on their own strategy.

  “Your little display did scare some of the Alliance members. A few of them have already reached out to us talk.” Elliot updated Omega on the impact of his attack on Alliance ships.

  “I can’t get those images out of my head. That poor commander. Remind me to never piss you off,” Kat was horrified.

  “The commander was a brave and honorable man,” Omega added.

  “Really? And you still did that to him? What would you have done to dishonorable man?” Kat asked.

  “The same thing. It had nothing to do with his character. I did it to avoid future bloodshed,” Omega explained.

  “I keep forgetting you don’t feel the same way as us. I guess you can separate your emotions from what needs to be done a lot better than we can. You are far more evolved than us after all.” Helm reflected on the key difference with Omega.

  “Not always.” Omega remembered how he acted after the death of Roman.

  “So how do we avoid more bloodshed and World War III?” Helm asked the group.

  “We can’t avoid all of it but we can try to limit it,” Elliot responded.

  “How do you propose we do that?” Sol asked.

  “Do you understand how pack animals behave? They follow the strongest amongst them. The pack leader. The Alpha of the group. You want to take over a pack you take out the leader. Rest of the pack will follow the new leader,” Elliot explained.

  “OK!! What do you mean exactly?” Sol asked.

  “America. You make America surrender and the Alliance will fall. Take out the Alpha and the Alliance will fall.” Helm understood where Elliot was going with the pack example.

  “All right then. So, we go to war with the biggest super power in the world. I thought the plan was to avoid a World War.” Stan jumped in.

  “Well we don’t go to war with the United States military. We take out all their key leadership. They have a missile defense system to protect attacks but it cannot stop Omega. There will be casualties but it will be the price of stopping the World War,” Elliot explained.

  “Kind of like when America dropped nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. They justify it as something that had to be done to end the war and save lives,” Sol added. “Stan, what’s the term they like to use?”

  “Collateral Damage!” Stan shook his head knowing that they were about to do what they hated most about war. Killing innocent people and calling it collateral damage. “Well if this is the only way to stop an all-out war then so be it.” Stan accepted the reality.

  “You will need a bigger weapon. Does Adam have something bigger?” Helm asked Omega. Based on what they had seen on the ship it was more of a rhetorical question.

  At the UN Headquarters in New York City military leaders of the Alliance were deep in strategy sessions to plan an all-out assault on Mersin. The door to the room flies open as an officer from the US army runs in. The discussion comes to an abrupt halt due to this disturbance. The officer runs right to US Defense Secretary Wolf.

  “What is so important that you had to barge in like this?” US Defense Secretary Wolf inquired.

  “Sir, sorry for the interruption but can I have a moment of your time. This is important,” the officer replied.

  “Ok. Go on. You have my attention.” US Defense Secretary Wolf stopped the meeting.

  “Can we speak in private outside?” The officer insist
ed.

  “Fine. Please continue the discussion. I will be back in a moment.” As Secretary Wolf walked out of the room with the officer. “This better be important son.”

  “It is, Sir. Omega just flew out of the Mersin,” the officer explained.

  “Where is he heading?” US Defense Secretary Wolf asked.

  “We can’t be certain but based on our assessment of his flight pattern he seems to be heading to the United States. More specifically North East. His two potential targets could be New York City or Washington DC,” the officer explained.

  “That’s not good. That’s really not good. Get the President and Chief of Staff on the phone.” US Defense Secretary Wolf ordered the officer. “And find me a secure room.”

  “Mr. President, Omega is in the air heading towards Washington DC or New York City. We believe we are about to be under attack.” US Defense Secretary Wolf informed the gathering in the Situation room. “Our Missile defense system is ready to stop him from getting close. We have fighters heading to the coast to intercept Omega. We are fully prepared to defend the country, Sir.”

  “Be honest with me. Will any of this matter? Can any of this really stop him?” President Bosworth inquired even though he already knew the answer.

  “Sir, we will give him everything we’ve got. We have been perfecting our defenses for decades.” US Defense Secretary Wolf answered in a round-about way.

  President Bosworth smiled sarcastically, “You would have made a great politician.”

  “We should still evacuate the White House and get all of the key personnel out of the city immediately.” US Defense Secretary Wolf suggested. “We have an emergency base set up just for these types of situations. Our team will be there shortly to escort you out of Washington immediately. I will see you guys there in a few hours.”

  President Bosworth and the Key Cabinet members were immediately evacuated to an undisclosed secure location near Knoxville in Kentucky.

  “How far is he?” President Bosworth asked US Defense Secretary Wolf from inside the make-shift situation room in the facility.

  “Less than five minutes before he is in the range of our missiles.” US Defense Secretary Wolf replied