“Who is the fool? I have witnessed the attack upon our forces. How much of Phoenix is deployed against us? How much of the Phoenix forces stand here, within sight of The Fields? Do you think we do not realize the extent of your investment here?” Wethers asked pointedly. “What will be worse for you – rumor of your weakness, or the truth of it?”
“Your ashes will mark the resurrection of Phoenix,” Magnus’ howled.
“We shall see,” Wethers replied. Norm shivered.
“Magnus,” Norm began, “Perhaps we should pull back…”
Magnus gave Norm a questionable look, and was about to say something when all the engines of The Fields suddenly roared back to life. Wethers’ engineers had worked relentlessly through the past two days, battling exhaustion, jarring explosions, and low supplies to bring the engines back online.
“They try to flee.” Magnus said, under his breath.
Norm ran to the door, staring out through the rising Phoenix buildings at the gigantic fortress, “Magnus, there can hardly be anyone left inside,” he shouted. “If they flee, we’ll be able to redeploy our forces – they’ll be sitting ducks if we can deploy our Manticores.”
As the engines on the Fields trembled, it lurched forward, like an awakening giant.
“What is she doing?” Magnus shouted, in shock.
For once, Norm beat Magnus to the punch. He grabbed Magnus and started to run. There was only one thing that could be coming.
Chapter 10: Phoenix on Fire
And older Norm stared at the walls of Valhalla around him, and spoke softly, “She was a brave commander.”
The Praetor nodded, “Wethers? One of the best.”
The solemnity of their words gave Janus goosebumps. Something in the back of his mind scratched at him, telling him that he knew what happened. Something about Valhalla. The Elysium Fields of SHADE was an Avalon class fortress just like Valhalla, almost like an older sibling. They both had the same general traits, the same flight systems, the same core— Both had fusion cores. Janus suddenly had a flash of Colonel Keats teaching them how Valhalla stayed afloat.
“Fusion power – quite possibly the most incredible advancement in history. A nearly limitless energy source for every Corporation across the globe.
Originally created by Medusa, the development of fusion power resulted in a twenty-year war between all of the major Corporations. Phoenix Corporation secured the technology in a pivotal battle and restored the balance of power that had nearly precipitated another global collapse.
Fusion has never been miniaturized – the reactor chambers are large. In fact one of the smallest you will find is the massive core of this very Avalon. It is, however, both clean and incredibly safe. Unlike nuclear power, which lost favor long, long ago due to mass hysteria over a very remote, but real possibility of catastrophic failure, fusion reactors cannot overload or ‘meltdown’. The reaction would simply die out if the reaction destabilized - no fusion reactor is large enough to sustain itself naturally.”
Keats paused, making a motion to the cadets, “Of course there are always exceptions, and we, as a race, are very creative. Imagine that reactors are like a boulder in a valley. To one side is a hill that descends even deeper, once you crest it. Fusion reactors can be overloaded if another massive energy source is provided that gets it ‘over the hump’, so to speak. Once the reactor has passed this point, it rolls out of control, and destabilizes.
A destabilized reactor will do two things: First – Its energy level will spike. The boulder gains speed as it races downhill. Second – It explodes. The boulder hits a wall, and it can no longer keep itself together with the energy it possess. Since we are talking about a miniature sun, it explodes like a tiny star. Now, this varies somewhat based on the power of the reactor and the stimulus applied, but the resulting explosion is catastrophic.
Norm’s interjection dragged Janus from his reverie, “How many did SHADE have?”
The Praetor shrugged, “Nukes? Just one. Of the small tactical variety – left over from many years ago. It was a high yield, and very efficient, but probably wouldn’t have even destroyed a quarter-kilometer of Phoenix.”
“A drop in the bucket,” Norm nodded.
***
Norm dragged Magnus away as the Fields plowed into the landing platform, throwing metal and concrete into the city. Realization dawning, Magnus sprinted alongside Norm. At the battle line, the S.T.s and Inferni stopped firing, transfixed by the gigantic juggernaut.
Magnus steered Norm to a spitfire of Inferni. “You and you,” he pointed to two Inferni. “Get us out of here!” Magnus’ sudden appearance snapped them from their trance and they obeyed immediately, lifting the pair and leaping away.
“The rest of you follow,” Norm shouted to the remaining Inferni behind them.
Norm heard the engines of the Avalon screech a piercing wail, like the howl of the dead magnified to a hurricane. Suddenly, all of the S.T.s were fleeing for their very lives. The huge fortress leapt forward with incredible speed, as the engines whirred to an ear-splitting whine. Faster, faster… Norm willed his Infernus on.
Norm watched wide-eyed as S.T.s and Inferni fled the scene, struggling to escape the impending doom. The Mercs, however, did not run. Instead, they tackled, shot, and stopped as many S.T.s and Inferni as they could. Norm forced himself to look away.
Crashing into buildings, the Fields plowed onward. Phoenix structures toppled and fell, crushing parts of the Avalon, and yet still it pressed on– terrifying in its power. Norm covered his eyes, and shrunk his body to hide behind the towering armor, forming a litany of it in his mind. Faster, faster, fast- suddenly his vision filled with a glorious white light.
And hellfire came upon Phoenix, an explosion of heat and force sent those not consumed by its tongues of flame flying. Norm felt the Infernus let go as the world exploded around him, his eyes still closed as he fell.
Norm awoke to find an S.T. hovering over him.
“Sir, are you alright, sir?” the S.T. asked.
Norm stared at the S.T. with glazed eyes, holding his head. A gigantic slab of concrete balanced precariously overhead, propped up by a mangled steel beam. Carefully extracting himself from the wreckage, he nodded slowly to the S.T., “I think so.” Blood covered his arm from a long deep scratch that ran along his bicep, and he had a bump the size of a large egg growing from the back of his head. Above him, fiery debris still rained down upon the city.
The S.T. waved down the scattered forces around him. “I found him! Overlord Walden’s over here!”
Two more S.T.s hustled over, “Take him to Executor Delacroix immediately,” the rescuer commanded.
Norm was quickly ushered, despite his bleeding arm and dazed demeanor, to Magnus. A medic began to tend his wounds, bandaging his head and arm and carefully injecting him full of some concoction with a giant needle clearly intended to penetrate an S.T.’s armor, not an unarmored Overlord.
“Glad to see you made it, Norm,” Magnus nodded at the two escorting S.T.s. “Where did you find him?”
“About half a click back, Executor, buried underneath some rubble.”
“And the Infernus with him?" The S.T. shook his head. Magnus nodded.
Norm groaned as the medic tightened the bandage around his head and gave a thumbs up to Magnus. “The Overlord will make a full recovery, sir.”
“Good.” Magnus said in a slightly distracted tone, “Get back to work on the others.” Magnus eyed the scene around him, where S.T.s and Inferni were bringing in the few remaining Phoenix troops and civilians who had survived the blast.
There were hundreds upon hundreds, and only those that were still alive were being brought in - he wondered what that meant for the number of dead. And who was the luckier?
Norm surveyed the damage to the city. It was immense. Crumbling buildings, collapsed bridges, cracked machinery, and if one peered through the dust and debris, the realization that a good portion of the city was simply…gone. Just empty spac
e where just days before buildings had stood and people had thrived.
The Fields reactor must have been severely damaged during the fighting…that would explain why more of the city wasn’t destroyed, Norm thought reflectively.
Lines of the injured and maimed made it difficult for the medics. None were really qualified for anything other than basic battlefield medicine, and often, they simply shook their heads and moved on – saving their limited supplies for better candidates.
Magnus is still composed, though. Nothing seems to shake him for long, and his cold, calculating nature is already back… Norm paused at the thought. He had never before considered Magnus’ with such words. He felt detached, as if suddenly seeing the situation in a new light - watching as Magnus ordered Medics to focus upon the Troopers first, and then the civilians. He remained impassive, however fervently he organized the recovery. Where is the compassion? Is it really necessary? Norm was disturbed greatly by this thought and quickly pushed it from his mind. Magnus is doing what any good Executor would do – what is necessary to preserve Phoenix.
Magnus turned, noticing Norm's intense stare. Norm shook his head again, and Magnus stepped away from the survivors, motioning for Norm to follow. He kept his back to the men and women, whispering so only Norm could hear, “Phoenix is lost.”
Norm’s face reflected dazed surprise.
“You know it to be true, Norman. You know that the other Corporations cannot afford to miss this opportunity, no matter the cost. It was bad enough when the Executors were eliminated. That alone might have given the others enough incentive to strike. But now...” he raised a hand to the carnage and destruction surrounding him.
“It will only be a matter of days before the Corporations get word and band together to annihilate Phoenix. The Corporations may despise each other, but all of them fear and hate us more. The best are always the first to go…” Magnus angrily shook his head.
“The enemy of my enemy is my friend,” Norm added sadly.
“We must take steps to preserve what we can of Phoenix,” Magnus said.
Norm looked at him in confusion, “What can we possibly do?”
“We can preserve the army that lies dormant under Phoenix. We can preserve the weapons and the troops that Phoenix has spent so long amassing.”
“But how?”
“We will bury them, leaving only the survivors of Phoenix with the knowledge.”
“Bury the entirety of the factories and cryochambers? Magnus, we couldn’t manage that in a week with four times the troops we have at our disposal.”
Magnus smiled, “We have no need for troopers. We merely need to tap into Phoenix’s remaining nuclear stockpile.”
Norm’s eyes went wide, “Detonate a nuclear bomb in Phoenix? Surely you can’t be serious?”
Magnus looked at Norm sternly. “You just admitted that Phoenix was lost, did you not? Now we have a chance to preserve part of it. Why should the other Corporations be allowed to come destroy the entirety of the Phoenix legacy? Are you not loyal to Phoenix? A small nuke detonated above the entrances will collapse them, erasing all knowledge that they were even there. We may lose some of the complex, but it will be a small price to pay to preserve the bulk of the forces. And from the ashes, there may be time for Phoenix yet.”
Norm felt himself caught in the pull of some vortex, a force completely beyond his control. Norm thought deeply, All of Phoenix will be lost, there can be no doubt. Would the Executors not support the idea of preserving at least some of the Phoenix legacy? If Magnus or I can return someday, could we not use such a force to restore Phoenix to her former glory? Doubt gnawed at him.
“Perhaps there is still time to stop that Wraith pilot from getting the message out,” Norman said hopefully. Magnus’ eyes flashed angrily.
The walls were closing in around Norm. He had a duty to fulfill to Phoenix. The Executors would want Phoenix to live on – if only so that they would not be forgotten.
“Very well, we need to preserve Phoenix,” Norm agreed reluctantly.
Magnus smiled, “You’re doing the right thing. Let’s preserve our legacy.”
***
“You went along with Magnus’ plan?” Janus had a hard time meeting Norm’s eyes. Janus felt detached while he spoke of Magnus – there was no feeling of fellowship, of blood, with the man.
Norm nodded.
“But what about the people living at Phoenix?” Celes asked.
Norm shook his head, “Although Magnus would have been willing to sacrifice them, it was not necessary – the main entrances to the labs and factories were highly controlled. There was little to no population in those areas. Magnus’ goal was to detonate a small number of tactical nukes over the entrances, effectively sealing them. The idea was to create the illusion SHADE had destroyed everything of value in the area, and protect the network underneath. The Corporations are far too suspicious of one another to coordinate and search such a vast area. A cursory glance would be all they would need move on, loathe to waste time searching a destroyed lab while their competitors scoured the surviving areas, searching for our life extension formulas.”
“And because they couldn’t find it—,” Janus said.
“Correct,” Norm finished, “They would believe it destroyed.”
“So what happened?” Lyn asked eagerly.
“First, we sent one of our best pilots in a Siren to get word of Phoenix’s critical state to Middleton. Our direct relay to Cerberus was destroyed in the reactor explosion.”
“And you trusted her, even in your dire position?” Janus exclaimed.
“It was in her best interest to assist us. Even if she double crossed us, we were more valuable to her alive – but that was never going to be an issue anyway. Middleton is loyal to Magnus forevermore.”
“After we dispatched the pilot to our prearranged meeting place, we headed for the labs. The going was slow – the populace was in a state of panic, and becoming more hysterical. We avoided the higher levels, instead taking more roundabout paths through the factories. Magnus and I descended with only a few select and trusted S.T.s into the underground network of Phoenix, retrieving three tactical nukes. It was difficult and time consuming. And then we began setting the bombs.”
“No one objected?” Marcus asked.
Norm sighed, “Who would object? I know it may be difficult for you to understand, but Corporate citizens are raised to be loyal and trusting of their leaders. In Phoenix, with its dominant position, perhaps even more so. Magnus was known to be the sole surviving Executor. Not even in the best times would the S.T.s oppose an Executor, but during a crisis, and against the new Executor Ascendant? Impossible. Magnus could have ordered the S.T.s to hop around on one foot, and in their panicked state of mind, they probably would have done it.”
“So you succeeded?” Marcus said.
“Quite successfully,” Norm said with the chagrin of pride and regret. “With minimal damage to the surroundings. I made the calculations for the bomb and its placement myself. No reason to make the rest of the destruction of Phoenix any easier.”
“But you mentioned ‘entrances’,” Celes interjected.
“Yes, three specifically. The primary entrance below the life extension labs. A supply entrance, directly through the factory levels. That too was destroyed successfully, although at a higher cost. In order to make it a convincing target, we had to sacrifice a very valuable war factory that produced Manticores – the factory and its attached warehouses might have slightly improved the odds of Phoenix’s final stand.”
Keats interrupted, “Manticores?” Janus was glad he was not the only one who was unfamiliar with the term.
“Prototype weapons platform, never deployed due to expense,” Norm explained. He chuckled, “Even Phoenix had a limit to how many overpriced pursuits it could enjoy. The benefits of the platform were deemed insufficient for the cost.”
Keats nodded.
Norm sighed and continued, “There was also a third ent
rance, connected through the Executors’ bunker. I believe that is the entrance you discovered during your exploration of the Phoenix ruins, Janus.”
“Why was that not properly buried?” The Praetor asked.
“Your daughter,” Norm said with a genuine smile.
The Praetor cocked his head at Norm and a hint of delight curled around his lips, “She always was a troublemaker.”
Chapter 11: Angel of Death
Magnus watched anxiously as the six S.T.s carried the final of the three bombs into the Phoenix lift, the great golden wings that jutted from the lift station wrapping around them like a noose. Power was off in this whole section of the city.
Norm waited with the two Inferni they could spare, observing as Magnus directed the Troopers. Norm couldn’t see the doubt in their faces, but knew it was there. But while he and the S.T.s wondered about the wisdom of their task, Magnus’s concern was only over their speed and efficiency. The S.T.s moved in a funeral march, shuffling along like the dead, carrying a coffin. Norm shuddered, glad the S.T.s could not see him as they moved ahead.
The sooner this task could be finished the better. A more robust battle plan would need to be formulated. The other Overlords would be working on one, but Norm knew that whatever it was, it would need to be extraordinary to succeed. Magnus and Norm would need to find some way to ensure they were presumed dead. Without achieving that, the Corporations would pursue Norm and Magnus endlessly, and might even eventually stumble upon the underground network of Phoenix.
And as much as he was loathe to admit it, no matter how much he hated the woman, Middleton would likely be the perfect assistant to such a task. But she would have to be careful in her contact, she might not even be able to reach them until after the battle between Phoenix and the other Corporations started.
For the meantime, however, Norm could do nothing but sit on his hands and wait. It took him a moment to realize that Magnus had frozen, leaving the S.T.s to continue their mournful walk.
The Phoenix Fallacy_Book III_Magnus Page 6
