Ballad of Demise

by Joshua Landeros

  “How long has he been like this? Will told me he’d signed up for a procedure, but this…I…” Julissa stammered. Her sudden urge to talk threw Thorton off, but Kane was there to pick up the slack.

  “After the battery of tests, he finally underwent the procedure February 6th. He was one of fifty test subjects, and only a handful have suffered the side effects that he has” the Commander explained.

  “And when will he wake up, Commander?”

  At that Zaneta stopped looking at her mother and stared at Kane as well.

  “We can’t be entirely sure, ma’am.”

  “Oh, my God” Julissa muttered. In that dark blue dress of sheer elegance, her shoulders slumped and she put a hand on her face, “Oh, my God.”

  “But we will be monitoring his progress. We will notify of any changes in condition no matter the hour” Thorton added.

  He saw the promise had no effect on the woman.

  “For your husband’s service and volunteering for the program, you’ll still be compensated hundreds of thousands no matter his condition. And that is monthly compensation. You’ll never have to work another day in your life” the doctor continued.

  There was still no reaction, at least not first. Slowly, Julissa looked up at the enormous telescreen behind Thorton and Kane. On it was the skeletal layout of what her husband had become. The bones were no longer white, but silver. Oh, God. Will, why? Why did you sign up for this?

  Kane realized where she was staring and acted on it, “Ma’am, would you like me to turn that off?”

  Julissa shook her head, “No, general, it’s fine.”

  The tall woman now stood up out of her seat. Zaneta was slow to follow suit, but did so. She too was gazing at the new framework of what used to be her father.

  “We’ll be leaving now” Julissa said as she struggled not to choke up, “Baby, get your coat.”

  “But, Mommy, I think we should stay with Daddy. Just for a little longer.”

  “Zaneta, it’s time to go. We have a long flight home.”

  “Mommy, we can’t leave him.”

  “Zaneta, enough!”

  The child no longer fought her mother on the matter. She began to put on her white coat, tears in her eyes. Kane was astonished at the strength of the little girl. With everything around her, she still wasn’t breaking down.

  Thorton stood to see them out, but Kane spoke before anybody could leave.

  “Mrs. Marconi, there’s no need to rush. You can spend all the time you need with your husband. Venloran will pay for a new plane ticket and even a hotel if you like.”

  Julissa shied away from Kane’s face, not sure if she could go down there again and see Will lying there so…still. She saw her daughter’s eyes on her, begging in silence.

  “Okay, okay. Thank you. We really appreciate it.”

  Kane saluted her, “No need to thank me. You and your husband both served this country and now it’s our own turn to give back to you. We owe it to you.”

  Julissa wasn’t ready to say anything more, but the gratitude was in her eyes.

  “I’ll have the interns escort you down and then we’ll give you your privacy” Thorton said as the door opened up. A young man in a lab coat was already waiting.

  “Whenever you’re ready, Mrs. Marconi” he invited.

  Julissa took Zaneta’s hand with one of hers. Before departing, she looked back at Kane and Thorton.

  “Thank you again. For everything.”

  The second the door shut, Thorton went to his computer to watch the cameras in the Cyborg Treatment Center. Kane instead switched the telescreen to a news broadcast. He’d set it to record any coverage on the war, and sure enough there was plenty of footage. Hazy skies, streets blown apart, and fallen buildings were the backdrop to a news anchor reporting the U.S. losses for the day. Those images tore Kane apart, especially as the names of soldiers scrolled up the screen. Like credits in a movie. That’s all they get.

  “’As long as you need’ was a bit much don’t you think, general?” Thorton said as he watched the two humans with the cyborg, “By March, Unit 21 will be deployed just like the rest.”

  “Venloran said to say whatever needed to be said. I did” Kane said back.

  “Yeah, all that only to disappoint her when she comes back and he’s not here. What am I supposed to tell her since I know you won’t be here either?”

  “You simply tell us when she wants to visit and we’ll stall by saying he’s been moved to another facility for further examination. If she digs further we’ll handle it.”

  Thorton looked away from his monitor.

  “So, he’s really that bad?”

  “Last time he was activated he didn’t even know his own name.”

  “But he can fight I see.”

  The Commander glared at Thorton. He quickly realized he needed to cool down his tone.

  “I’m just saying having Neeson be the lead surgeon on all those operations was a bad idea. He’s only human. He was bound to mess up eventually.”

  “He’s the best, Thorton. It had nothing to do with him. We’re still not sure what went wrong.”

  Thorton was mildly insulted, but he saw Kane had no intention of acknowledging it and let it go. He said no more and sipped his coffee.

  On the telescreen, Kane watched as a trio of jets turned an entire block into hell itself.

  “Don’t you worry, Doctor. If these fifty do as well they’re predicted to, Venloran wants another two hundred candidates selected by July. You and your team, as well as others around this country, will be lucky if you get to home for Christmas.”

  Thorton almost spat up his drink.

  “I didn’t know WP-II was going to be this big of a project” he said. Kane still focused on the news. Thorton wasn’t sure if the man had even blinked.

  “It’s going to be bigger than any of us imagined. It’s been over ten years since the Sons of Saladin have rampaged across the Middle East. We’ve been humiliated so many times it’s now called the Hollow Wars., but the Super Soldier Forces will change all that. They’ll change everything.”

  ***

  April 4, 2045 - “City of Peace”

  The men ran for their lives. All around them were piles of what used to be tall buildings. On this dark night, the only light was the glow of flames. These mounds of rubble were too jagged to hide within and attempting to climb them was guaranteed death if the heavy chunks shifted and caused an avalanche. So they ran, hearts pounding and skin sweating. The guns in their hands were no comfort. They didn’t attempt to point them at their pursuer.

  As they fled, one man tripped over a piece of loosened asphalt. He went down to the ground, scraping his face badly. His gun hit the ground alongside him, but when he stood he didn’t waste the extra second it would have taken to pick it up. Ahead of him, his allies were already far away. They turned down an alley without giving him another look.

  The second he arose to his feet a bullet blew his head wide open. The contents spilled onto the street in a splatter. The crimson seeped down into the cracks and around the gun as well.

  At the end of the alley, the three remaining troops ran into an obstacle: the opening to the other street was blocked by a wall of debris. The wall of desecration was at the very least fifteen feet tall. They cursed and shouted, considering their options. After a few seconds of deliberation, two of them slung their weapons on their backs and began to climb.

  The last one wanted to join them, but he saw the rubble already shifting. A few dangerous sized pieces came loose and nearly hit the straggler. Regardless, they went on. In fact, one of them was almost at the top. He cut his hands on glass and rough concrete, but by God he was almost there.

  Two shots rang out, followed by yells of agony. The pair of soldiers both lost their grip and hit the pavement. The sound they made upon impact was not a pleasant one.

  To the straggler’s horror, he saw his compatriots had been shot through the stomach. Even with only the moonlight
to help him, it was plain to see the fall was what had killed them.

  Then he finally saw him at the mouth of the alley. The monster stepped forward slowly, his coat flowing in the night breeze. The sole survivor got down on his knees, positioned between the two dead men. He tossed his gun away.

  “P-please” he stuttered, “Please, Wolf. Please!”

  Those black boots came to a stop. His coat came to a rest as the wind died down for a moment. All that could be heard was the crackle of raging fire. The blood of the fallen began to stain the straggler’s knees. The monster did nothing but smile.

  “Please, I beg you.”

  The man screamed as The Wolf aimed his gun and put him down a second later.

  ***

  April 4, 2045 - Elsa, Texas

  Zaneta laid in her bed looking up at the glowing stars stuck all over her ceiling. She wasn’t under the covers and she was far from dozing off. The child remembered watching her father stick each one up there when she was six. Wow, baby girl, I think we have enough to cover up the whole room! Sure you’ll be able to go to bed?

  In the beginning they actually had helped her to sleep. Trying to count them all was a feat she had yet to accomplish. Her eyes would fight to stay open, but she could never win that game. Tonight, after long ago giving up, she would try again. One, two, three-

  There it was again. The sound of her mother sobbing was only two doors down. It was only growing louder, leaving Zaneta helpless. Is there someone I can call? Julissa’s crying was joined by the crying of another. Damien.

  Zaneta left her room and entered the hallway. She waited to see if her mother would open up her door to go comfort the baby, but it never happened. The little girl walked into her brother’s room, reached down into his crib, and then sat down in the rocking chair in the corner of the room. He quieted quickly in her presence, staring up at her with sweet eyes and a goofy grin. Even though Zaneta was tired, exhausted really, she found comfort in this. She put on a smile for him, what she considered the duty of a big sister no matter what. She went on rocking him till his eyes fought to stay open.

  On the nightstand, by the door, sat a bag of unopened glow-in-the-dark stars.

  The series continues January 2018! Subscribe to the mailing list for updates!