The Cross of Mithras Vol. 1: EOD Operation Welcome to Hell

by Douglas Howell

“And thought what?” He asked her.

  “That he, and that self-aware robot brain of mine held the key.”

  “The key to what?”

  “That’s what I was wondering.”

  “Oh please dear god no!” Illes cried out.

  “He’s been doing that off-and-on. Look… if you were thinking that maybe you could hook that robot brain…” Deveau was saying.

  “I’m too concern about rather it would work or not. No sense in losing both.” Sayaka mentioned.

  “I know that. Both of us are highly educated and very smart, especially you. We could easily put our brains together and work out a solution.”

  “I don’t know. I mean…” Sayaka, trailed off, was saying.

  “What were you going to do with the robot brain anyway?” Deveau asked her. Sayaka didn’t respond because she didn’t know herself. She never gave it much thought until now. But what really got to her is when she could hear Illes pray for salvation.

  “Alright. Let’s figure out a solution.” Sayaka mentioned.

  Both of them went back and forth over how to proceed. They knew that there was the possibility that Illes consciousness and the robot’s consciousness could merge. Their biggest concern was the sanity of both Illes and the robot. After they figured out how to protect Illes and the robot sanity, they made the decision to wait before they make any other changes. With Lenkov’s approval they proceeded to save the sanity of Illes, not knowing what would come out of the surgery.

  When Illes came out of surgery he laid in bed staring at the ceiling. He never responded to anyone, accept when Omori and Deveau came in. He then looked up and stared at them. It was like he was in a trance. He never said a word while Omori and Deveau explained what they did to him. He just stared at them. When they were finished Illes spoke in a trance like voice saying, “I understand. I will sleep now.” He slept for two days.

  Illes was a changed man after he woke up. He was more machine than man. He admitted that both his and the robot conscious did merge. Although he remembers the events that led to his trauma, it didn’t bother him anymore. No nightmares, no cold sweats, nothing. He never responded when he was asked if he still possessed any emotions. The only request that he ever made was that the robot brain (which was connected to his brain, but outside his body), and his brain, could be merged. He said that he knew that once that is done it is irreversible, but he didn’t care. One mind, two brains… as he put it.

  Illes became so much a machine that he no longer wanted his human body. When Omori and Deveau protested, Illes became angry and demanding. It was at that point that both Omori and Deveau finally understood why Illes was more machine than man – it was the salvation of his sanity. They told him that they need to figure out what type of body to give him. He then told them that he didn’t care he just wanted to destroy evil. When Deveau asked him how would he destroy evil, Illes stated that he would consume it. When Omori heard Illes say that it gave her the idea that she was looking for. To turn him into the inquisitor of evil. To use him to consume the Founder of EOD, the uber bitch Medusa Pandora and the Tylkuoply hive. But before he could “consume” Medusa Pandora, The Hammer of Doom was well on it’s way back home. The situation of Golden Hyperion was resolved and everyone forgot about the uber bitch. Illes first target, however, was Dark Serpent 109T.

  (5)

  Captain Dawson was standing outside the airbase, at the end of the runway, and laughing in a guffaw manner as the army of demons was heading to their target. He had his arms raised in the air feeling like a god. In his mind, Golden Hyperion will suffer forever under this new “god.” This new so-called god has the unfortunate ability to survive despite the odds. Yes he will survive despite everything that will occur over the next several days. In the end it is he, the only one who is insane enough to do it, who will let out Medusa Pandora and as a consequence, die for the evil act. But it won’t be Medusa Pandora who will kill him, but Illes in search of Dark Serpent 109T.

  After the army of demons was out of sight Dawson went back inside. Although he was alone, he was talking to himself. It was clear from what he was saying to himself that he was suffering from delusion of grandeur. Out of boredom he decided to look at Castillo’s computer so that he could read Castillo’s emails. Most of them was unimportant and uninteresting, at least to Dawson that is. Only a few of the emails caught Dawson’s eye. As he read them he started to come to the conclusion that Castillo must be a traitor. He then realized that Castillo was involved in a conspiracy to unleashed a new weapon (it was Medusa Pandora) on EOD forces that was loyal to the Founder and the Council. There was also circumstantial evidence within those emails that suggested that there could be automated EOD as well as Necro-Mystic’s warships in those core tunnels. One email that Dawson read over more thoroughly suggested that a few of those tunnels had it’s own version of the LMPG in them, although far weaker. The last email that Dawson read was between Castillo and the mayor of Raspberry. Shackley never left the city when his duties told him to do so.

  When Dawson finished reading those emails he laughed and laughed because he realized that it was not necessary to hunt down Shackley. There are no explosives in those tunnels. Just one massive ugly conspiracy to create a civil war within the EOD. And the conspiracy against Lenkov? Apparently it was the fault on the conspirators part to keep him there and deny him any promotion. Why? Because if he were die at the supposed hands of the Necro-Mystics than the EOD would have no other choice but to declare war on them. Man and wife feuding over control of the EOD empire. That was the massive conspiracy going on there. It would also explain Infernus (Dawson didn’t know that it existed). But who was responsible for the liquidation of the EOD High Command? The emails didn’t provide any answers, only questions. Neither side was responsible.

  Dawson was beside himself. He could do whatever he wanted upon that world and nobody could say a thing. Both sides in the EOD civil war would use Lenkov’s death against one another. Dawson would win no matter which side he joins. There’s just two problems. He has got to find a way to kill Lenkov, and Rymer copied all of Castillo’s emails.

  (6)

  When the pilots bringing the reinforcements and supplies noticed the approaching army of demons it caused the defenders morale to sink to the lowest level since they got there. Dawson will win, he will overcome the defenders, he will win by overwhelming brute force. Or so he thinks. Without a miracle none of the defenders will survive. They must wait for that miracle. Some of them won’t make it. But no matter what, all of them want to win more so for the team, then for themselves.

  Those defenders who could see them, not only saw all of those Demon Cy-Xs coming at them, but noticed the vehicles and the airplanes coming as well, and then they saw it – the EOD Dominator. The EOD Dominator is what the EOD uses to protect the flanks of it’s armies. They don’t always use them, but when they do, they use them in pairs. And because of that, there are only two of them on Golden Hyperion. The EOD Dominator, like the airplanes coming at the lab complex, is strictly robotic. They are 500 feet long (mostly because of it’s power supply) and has three types of weapons: EMP cannon, plasma cannon, and nano-disruptor. The only times when a EOD Dominator is vulnerable is when it is flying to it’s target and right before it lands. Nevertheless, it has shields to give it some protection. All other vulnerabilities are based upon rumors and not fact.

  “Focus all plasma cannons on the Dominator on the right!” Taylor ordered them. Thirty seconds later it was shot down.

  Taylor knew that the only way to shoot one down was to do as he said. If he were to let them attempt to shoot both down, not only is it that they wouldn’t have enough time, but it would also fail to shoot either down. When the Dominator crashed to the ground, not only did it created a small earthquake, but the explosion killed and/or wounded a unknown number of Demon Cy-Xs. Taylor had no idea on how to destroy the other Dominator. But it didn’t matter since Sanchez did.

  “Hoffneisten, Kaminski, Capa
rzo! Get over here!” Sanchez ordered them.

  “You wanted to see us ma’am?” Hoffneisten nervously asked her. Scared because of what’s coming at them and nearly getting killed earlier.

  “I know how to destroy that damn thing. So Hoffneisten, I need you as a driver. Kaminski, you’re my gunner.” Sanchez ordered them.

  “What do you need me for ma’am?” Caparzo asked after she’d paused.

  “I want you to man that plasma cannon and keep it off of us. Got it?”

  “Yes ma’am.” Caparzo responded. He knew like the others that it was a suicide mission, but someone has to do it. He also knew that she picked him because of his marksmanship.

  Caparzo, using the plasma cannon targeting acquisition data, scanned the terrain in front of the EOD Dominator and sent the data to two APCs with a small plasma cannon. Both of the APCs were in front of the main entrance to the lab complex. Sanchez, Hoffneisten and Kaminski ran and got into one of the APCs and took off. The pathway that Hoffneisten took was angular to that of the lab complex and to a dirt road that ran through a forest on the right side of the Dominator. Ten seconds after Hoffneisten made it to the dirt road, Caparzo was able shoot down all EOD robotic planes.

  “Get some you little bitches!” Kaminski yelled out to the Demon Cy-Xs.

  Kaminski, because of his skill at handling the plasma cannon, was fully able to make all of his shots count. Which is why Sanchez picked him. At one point he shot the engine of a APC causing the engine to explode killing the driver. He then shot at the Demon Cy-Xs who came out of the APC killing a few of them. He then shot a tree down causing a APC to hit it and flip end over end. He then shot the fuel tank causing the APC to explode.

  “Aw come on! It’s more fun shooting them!” Kaminski yelled at Hoffneisten. Hoffneisten ran over a couple of Demon Cy-Xs. He then swerve in order to use the back end of the APC to hit a Demon Cy-X causing it to fly. Kaminski then shot and killed it. Nineteen seconds later a nano-shot went through the APC almost killing Sanchez. It passed in front of her face causing her to piss her pants. Seven seconds later the APC was hit by something putting a fist-size hole in it.

  “I’m unstoppable!” Kaminski yelled out. He then saw a Demon Cy-X in a APC pointing it’s gun at him. Both of them fire their guns at one another at the same time killing each other.

  Sanchez hesitated before she’d manned the plasma gun. As she was looking up at the gun she noticed a plasma shot came over. If she didn’t hesitated she would have been killed herself. Her marksmanship was not as good as Kaminski, but nevertheless it got the job done. Sanchez started to feel the internal struggle between emotions and duty. Everything was becoming surreal to her. It was like she was in some type of a dream. No, a nightmare. Shooting away at those Demon Cy-Xs and seeing them shoot back. Feeling the lifeless body of Kaminski hitting her legs when the APC went over a bump in the road. She knew that without Kaminski neither her nor Hoffneisten would make it back.

  “Good god! We’ve finally made it!” Hoffneisten cried out.

  “Keep them off of me by any means necessary!” Sanchez ordered Hoffneisten. She then grabbed the explosives and ran to the base of the Dominator.

  Sanchez knew what to do because she learned it from her husband. Although she told her superiors what she learned, nobody was able to put it into practice. New tactics had to been thought up, no one ever got that close to one to try it, and of course nobody was really certain if it would work. For some unknown reason at regular intervals a vent would open up three feet from the ground and let out some type of nanoprobes. Twenty seconds later those same nanoprobes would return. If there were blockage in the vent those nanoprobes would “push” it deeper into the Dominator. It is not known what would happen to the blockage.

  “Shit.” Sanchez said when she noticed that the nanoprobes was entering the Dominator. She had no idea on how long it would take for them to leave. She then heard a noise deep within the Dominator which cause her to look up. She then noticed that Caparzo shot it near the Dominator’s right side. It look like he’d hit one of the Dominator’s weapons. She then noticed that the nanoprobes were leaving the Dominator telling her its true weakness.

  “Got ya.” Sanchez said as she noticed the nanoprobes were leaving. After the rest of the nanoprobes left she immediately placed the explosive in the vent. She then calculated how long it would take the nanoprobes to “push” the explosive up inside the beast. After she set the timer on the explosive, she waited for the nanoprobes to return.

  “Come on, come on, come on.” Sanchez said as the nanoprobes returned. She was waiting for them to detect the blockage so that she could activate the explosive.

  “Ma’am.” Hoffneisten cried out weakly.

  “What?” Sanchez responded. She then turned to look when he didn’t respond and noticed that he was coughing up blood.

  In that brief moment of time when Sanchez noticed that Hoffneisten was dying from his wounds and the nanoprobes finally detected the blockage, she realized that there was no way for her to be able to get inside the APC, turn it around and head back in enough time. Nor was there anyway for her to reset the timer. The explosive was well on its way up inside the Dominator. When she saw Hoffneisten she felt the tug on the explosives and she automatically pushed the button.

  “Goooooo! Get out of here ma’am!” Hoffneisten yelled at Sanchez. He then started to shoot at any of the Demon Cy-Xs that he saw.

  Sanchez turned and ran for her dear life. Within several seconds she heard the Demon Cy-Xs overrun Hoffneisten and then she heard the first of several explosions coming from the EOD Dominator. She then took her rifle and started to shoot any Demon Cy-Xs that got in her way. A couple of times she heard Caparzo shoot at some Demon Cy-Xs that was near her. He didn’t know where she was, but on two occasions he came close in killing her. Through shear luck and will she made it back.

  When Sanchez made it back she had to run up the hill since there were some Demon Cy-Xs chasing her. Those Demon Cy-Xs were quickly killed by the Dragon Clones who were stationed in some gun turrets. When Sanchez got up the hill to where Caparzo was, she immediately dropped to her knees out of exhaustion. Caparzo, who was standing by Sanchez, offered her his half canteen of water. He did it out of a sign of respect at what she’d done. She acknowledged it, took the canteen, drank from it and gave it back to him. She then took her canteen, which was full of water, and poured it over her head. Caparzo then helped her up and walked back to the plasma cannon.

  Hundreds of Demon Cy-Xs were trying to overrun Blue Team’s position. Caparzo kept on firing at them until a robotic tank destroyed his plasma cannon. Caparzo was alright, but he was thrown back. The robotic tank kept on firing until one of the Dragon Clones in the gun turrets was able to destroy it. Sanchez, Caparzo and Van Hoven held their ground constantly firing at all of those Demon Cy-Xs that kept on coming. And then it happened. The gun turret on their right, that was at the bottom of the hill, was finally overrun and all five Dragon Clones were killed.

  “Oh shit! One of the gun turrets is lost!” Van Hoven yelled out. She then killed all of the Demon Cy-Xs that came from it.

  “I’m out!” Sanchez yelled out. A robotic Johnny-on-the-spot then came over to drop off all of it’s ammo. When it turned and headed back to the lab complex for more ammo, it was destroyed.

  “Too bad we don’t have those robotic JOTS on our side.” Caparzo said out loud.

  “Ask Omori for them. She created them.” Sanchez responded when she was able to.

  “Goddamn it! Not again!” Van Hoven cried out, out of anger and frustration when she saw the other gun turret was overrun. The gun turret was on their lower left side and halfway up the hill. Sanchez and Caparzo killed each of the Demon Cy-Xs that came from the turret. Five more Dragon Clones were killed and that part of the hill was now defended by what was left of Blue Team.

  “Try your best to hold them off. We’re coming down.” A Dragon Clone said through the helmet-com to Blue Team. There were seventeen Dr
agon Clones in the lab complex who was providing sniper fire for Blue Team. The building took several hits earlier from a robotic tank as it tried to kill those Dragon Clones. Only two of the Dragon Clones were killed.

  Blue Team came within an ace of being overrun when those fifteen Dragon Clones finally got to their position. The Dragon Clones ran to the weakest spot in the line of defense to hold off repeated attempts by the Demon Cy-Xs to get a foothold on top of the hill. Three times the Demon Cy-Xs got to the top and three times they were thrown back. But on the fourth attempt they finally made it and started to fight the Dragon Clones in hand-to-hand combat.

  “Take up secondary defensive positions! We’re fixing to be overrun!” Sanchez ordered Caparzo and Van Hoven when she saw the Dragon Clones fight the Demon Cy-Xs. Although their new defensive position allowed them to be in a much stronger position to deal with a “hole” in their defenses, it gave the hill below their position to the Demon Cy-Xs.

  “Grenade!” Van Hoven yelled out. One of the Demon Cy-Xs threw it blindly over the wall and the grenade landed near the three of them. Van Hoven threw herself on the grenade before it went off. Neither Sanchez nor Caparzo had any reaction to the death of Van Hoven. They were too busy killing the Demon Cy-Xs that were coming over the wall. The Demon Cy-Xs then stopped trying to come over the wall in favor of the hole in the defenses.

  “Last group!” One of the Dragon Clones yelled out. At that time there were only three Dragon Clones left. Eight Demon Cy-Xs were trying to come through the hole. When the last Dragon Clone was killed there was only three Demon Cy-Xs left.

  “Shit!” Caparzo said out loud when he pointed his rifle at a Demon Cy-X and he’d heard a click from his rifle. While he was reloading Sanchez shot and killed one Demon Cy-X and was shot by another. Caparzo then shot and killed the Demon Cy-X who shot Sanchez while the last one shot him. Sanchez then shot and killed the last one.

  “Hey ma’am… how ‘bout a blow job before I die?” Caparzo asked her with his dying breath.