ONE NATION: A Post Apocalyptic, Dystopian Saga

by Michael W. Huard

  Sun again interrupted. “Yes, we know that. He's lost whatever mechanical mind he was issued instead of following the president. He wants to destroy everything.’

  Galax just stood still, looking now into the bright eyes of Sun again. There was something about her. He could not decide just what it was.

  It was then he asked her, “Where do you come from?”

  She was suddenly taken aback by his out-of-the-blue question. She had always recalled that she did not know where she had come from. She had just appeared before the Mystical Slayers and the rest was history.

  So, her answer was simple.

  “I've come from nowhere, but I do represent people that want this world to be better. To have decent law and order. You say you were programmed to fight and fight for what is good. Okay then, help us make that happen.”

  The robot found her answer evasive.

  He simply said to her, “Mysterious girl you are!”

  Galax then focused on Johan. “As you know, I serve President Purcell. I have no ill feelings towards BSR1. Yet I am indifferent to what Omagus is trying to do. But you must understand, I still cannot serve you, for my loyalty lies with the president. It was he who bore me and we’re friends. We often sit by the ocean on the shoreline and listen to the water and the waves crashing in and out. This is the only time that my digital functioning, what you refer to as one’s brain, can rest.”

  Johan was a smart fellow and he had learned quite a bit about robots and how their thinking process worked.

  “How will you serve the president if there is no country to govern. The only thing that anyone will serve is the Godbot.

  “You have to stop this. I also thought that we were friends as well, and if I am your friend and as you say, the president is your friend, you must do away with those who wish to hurt us both: the black robot and yes, Omagus, the Godbot.”

  Before the three of them said any more, a group of rag tag individuals, hiding in the fallen columns and rubble, came forth, circling the three individuals.

  The motley crew raised weapons, some guns, others blades.

  What appeared to be their spokesperson or leader, a black man with long dreads, waved a hand side to side. “Step aside, young ones, while we deal with this Corporation bot. We don't like your kind,” the leader spoke out. “Are you harassing these two youngsters or is there something we're missing here?”

  Galax did not seem concerned that nearly a dozen rebels were now all about him.

  “I would suggest that you step back, or I will eliminate each one of you. This conversation is none of your concern.”

  It was then that Sun noticed that one of the group’s members had a tattoo on her forehead, and she knew that marking very well.

  “Karma, is that you?” she called out.

  The young woman soon replied, “That it is my friend, in the flesh.”

  “How convenient,” the black man said. “You two actually know one another? Is there something we should be informed of?”

  Galax had already revealed his arms as being shooting mechanisms, and it was quickly that the surrounding group members stepped back some.

  It was then he received a notification within his system, one signaling that the threat of a nuclear attack was high priority. He knew very well that Omagus could be responsible for this and that the president could be in grave danger.

  “All of you should leave this region immediately. There is now urgent warning of a nuclear attack.”

  The crew working for Torres all looked to their leader. He signaled to them to follow his lead as he turned about now.

  Sun called to Karma right away. “Stay with us,” she yelled over. “Here’s your chance. We need you back. That’s why we’re here.”

  It was then that the group leader grabbed Karma by the shoulder. “I’m not quite sure who the hell that is, but let’s move out.”

  Karma wrapped her arm around his arm, putting him in a twisted arm-lock. She then delivered a horizontal elbow across his face and started to run toward Sun and Johan. And also in the direction of the tall robot Galax.

  The members of Torres’s gang all started lifting rifles and blades again. But it was then Galax let loose a volley of laser attacks that decimated most of them on the spot.

  One ran forward and struck out at Sun, who stepped forward to receive his charge.

  It was their leader, and he had somewhat gone berserk. Half his right arm was blasted off from Galax, but a sword in his left came right at Sun’s neck.

  She ducked under it and spun around, sweeping the man’s feet out from under him.

  Pulling her sweatshirt hood back, Karma, who had not been struck, revealed her long black hair and trademark white. “I told him that it was a stupid idea to mess with him.” She said this while pointing at the tall robot standing now before them still.

  Galax then looked to Johan. “I must leave now. You should as well.”

  Johan asked, “Why?”

  “There is a danger to the president. I am programed to help him. He is a friend.” The big robot then started to leave. “Goodbye, Johan, goodbye,” were his last words.

  “Wait,” the boy called out. “I am your friend too.”

  Galax stopped and turned around. “Yes, Trevor is friend too.”

  Johan shook his head. “I am not Trevor. I told you the Corporation gave me that name. My real name is Johan.”

  The robot nodded as if he now understood. He then turned back and began running towards the Empire State Building.

  Sun still had Torres, the squad leader, down on one knee, now looking up at the remaining three teenagers.

  There were suddenly sounds of heavy battle nearby in the sky. Something severe was going down and the three of them were too close for comfort.

  “Get out of here,” Karma instructed the man. “Run, before you end up like the rest of them.”

  He shook his head, mad, but knew better to hang around. He soon ran off, pointing at Karma and the rest of them like he would see them all again soon enough.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Mahira and Victory now made way to their next destination. Omagus was still burning places that resisted his lifestyle obedience plans. Pennsylvania, where Mahira had fought more than once in the death match games, was being hit hard.

  Upon the flight as they chatted back and forth, she asked Victory if she would ever want to be a fighter like herself, but the answer she received was not the one she expected.

  “So, what do you think? Someday the games will commence once more. Do you think you could handle it?”

  Victory looked over at her sister. She was older and she respected her very much, but after the loss of some of her most recent teacher, Governor Jerry Bends, and her boyfriend, Jackson J, all she really thought about now was revenge against Y-Wood and anyone associated with them. Random fighting for prize money was very far from her mind.

  “Not anymore,” she answered. “The only goal I have is to make them pay for all they've done in this world. I'm all-in now and I'm loving going to different places and kicking some serious ass and helping people.”

  Mahira understood. The kid was growing up. Deadly combat in any arena was not for many sane people.

  She then found herself thinking, Well I’m not that sane anyhow!

  As they reached their destination, they saw down below the burning fires that had already been started in a large forest area. The intel was correct, and ahead, another burning was taking place in the streets of those that resisted the Godbot’s demands.

  Mahira was outraged at what this freak bot called lifestyle tags, the brands of gold, silver, and bronze medals.

  How atrocious it is, she contemplated, wracking her brain over such.

  She soon circled her small vessel around, now spotting a decent-sized group of black and red robots surrounding people in the streets. They went about taunting them with the flamethrowers for disobeying their master.

  Victory saw it too.

 
“Looks like we found todays’ calling.”

  Mahira agreed full heartedly as both continued to study the situation below.

  “We will first blast their vessels and as those that break off, we’ll shoot them too. This will get the party stated.”

  Victory liked the plan. “That will open up a breach for the people to get free and perhaps fight back more. Let’s roll!”

  Mahira was right in her assumption. The initial appearance of their flyer and the shots into the robot’s own ships drew away several of the robots from the corralled crowd.

  She kept the ship moving fast as planned and worked it back around, coming with yet another volley on more of the robots, before swooping down behind a tall outcrop of buildings and landing the ship in a wide alleyway.

  “That was good,” Victory proclaimed, grabbing her gear and exiting the ship with Mahira. “Now what?”

  “Stay close to me,” Mahira instructed. “There are a lot of them out here. Watch your back at all times.”

  Just as they began heading to the main group of bots and people, two bots appeared, jogging down the roadway towards them.

  “That was quick,” Mahira said, seeing them coming. “Let’s cut down this road and lose these first two.”

  The fires were raging all about as the women reached the main area of bots that were now fighting with civilians. The people themselves were no match for the strong red and black powerful metal bots. But Mahira had taken a long rifle and, even still running forward, blasted several, fairing up the odds more.

  Victory, who was a good little shooter herself, fired her laser gun and knocked down three ahead of them as well.

  The sisterhood’s gladiator looked to the young blond. “Good shooting, girl. It’s fun, isn't it?”

  Victory seemed to like it. But soon some of the bots turned and began shooting on them. She and her older sister had to dive behind the edge of a building.

  Mahira winked at Victory.

  “I didn't say it wasn't dangerous. Let's see how they like these guys?” She said this pulling out a couple grenades from her side saddle bag. The bots were coming at them and she tossed both directly in their path. BOOM! The blast sent the robots into several pieces.

  More bots, perhaps the two that first spotted the women, now came around from the other side. Upon seeing the ladies, they flashed their guns right up at them. However, these were not normal rifles; they were flame throwers.

  “Keep shooting,” the redhead gladiator told Victory, even through the fire. “I will get to them. Don't let up!”

  And as she said this, Mahira drew out Free from her back. The axe was happy to be loose.

  “It's about time you pulled me out,” the axe said.

  Mahira, running still, then replied, “I had a feeling you'd say that. Are you ready?” And it was then that Free said, “I was made ready! Go ahead. I know what you're going to do. Let me go before you get burned to a crisp.”

  Mahira let the weapon go, flinging the thing full tilt precisely through the fire.

  It zipped into the mechanical legs of the two robots, slicing directly through both, severing their metal leg limbs, and knocking both to their faces on the pavement.

  It was then their flame-throwers crashed to the ground in front of them. The axe then twirled itself back around and came back to Mahira’s hand.

  “Good job!” she said to Free, looking at the axe’s face. His eyes flashed blue.

  “Glad you liked it. My pleasure,” responded Free.

  Mahira went back to Victory.

  “Okay, kiddo. Now it's time to get the rest of these people out of harm's way. That way they can go put out the fires and be left alone from these suckers. I see six left down there,” she pointed out as the two of them came about looking to the crowd in the distance.

  “Should we charge or hold back?” Victory asked, wondering about the next plan.

  “Shoot as many as you can down, kid. I'm going to take the rest down with Free. Remember, watch your back!”

  Victory did her thing. Running to the right, she lowered herself down to both knees, sliding on the pavement and firing her laser pistols, one after the other, dropping more of the bots.

  Still four remained and unfortunate citizens were burned, screaming out in pain.

  One came at Victory as Mahira had left her circling around the mayhem.

  He aimed his big flame thrower, calling out, “Disobedient HUMAN SCUM,” and let loose a massive wave of fire at the young blonde.

  Victory just at the last moment dropped face down so the flame went over her head.

  It was then Mahira took center stage. She was on the other side of the whole fray now.

  “Hey, boys. You looking for me? Come and get some,” she called out as the robots all turned, seeing her now.

  They found her appearance a bit wacky. She stood there with an axe only and wore a red, white, and blue dress.

  One bot of the four, who was scratched and dented rather heavily, leaned more forward and called out, “Humans are third-rate citizens. We will brand you a bronze metal soon.”

  He then threw down his flamethrower and pulled a pistol from his side. He followed this by shooting right at Mahira. Free was up in the way in a flash, deflecting the shots.

  Closing distance now, she did a backhanded swing on the first robot in her path.

  Her momentum spun her around behind that one and then Free came down with a crashing blow across the neck of a second robot. A third blasted her with his flame thrower.

  Mahira dropped low again, releasing Free from her grasp.

  The axe sliced across the bot’s ankles, taking that robot out as he found himself spinning on the turf, not able to stand anymore.

  Free was on the pavement and spun around a few times in a circle before coming back to Mahira.

  One robot had come around to her side now, but Victory was up again on one knee, shooting away at it.

  Her shots dropped the thing down into the street as the crowd all about started cheering for the two women.

  Several of them came over and stomped on the robots’ heads and bodies strewn on the road. Others even took their flamethrowers away, passing them to others in the rear now.

  No more bots seemed to be able to fight now, and the mob made sure of it.

  Mahira told them that they had plenty of work to do in trying to get these fires out now. She and her companion would be leaving them to do just that.

  Thanks were given to both the women and soon they were walking back to their ship.

  It was then Mahira received a message on a wristband, telling her that she was needed immediately. She decoded the message, and soon both started running instead of walking.

  “We’ve got to move fast. We need to get to New York. I just received word from Tyne that Sun and Johan are in grave danger.”

  As the stare-down continued, BSR1 looked intently up the stairwell at the Godbot. Omagus no longer was made mostly of hologram features. He had formed his body now to be substantial. It was a dark silver-gray color, and he also wore a long black cloak with its cowl up over his head.

  No more words were said. They just attacked one another.

  A series of laser beams, fireballs, and lighting blasted all about. A battle erupted in the entire chamber as well.

  Many of the soldier bots, both Y-Wood’s and the Godbot’s, could not withstand the damage being shot out. Only the super type bots remained barely scratched.

  It was then that Omagus yelled loudly, “WITHIN MY HAND I CONTAIN THE TRIGGER, THE ENERGY TO OBLITERATE THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING, and everything within a mile.”

  He seemed to lower his voice now as the fighting came to a sudden pause.

  Left before him were only BSR1 and the cyborg Aliah. The other robots all about were down or malfunctioning as he talked on.

  “The two of you will surrender to me now, or everything will be lost.”

  But before any answer was given, Old Horny, his hand, jumped down fr
om the balcony and went at Aliah. She charged forward, unafraid, and the two of them locked in deadly combat.

  They smashed into each other’s bodies, trying to tear the limbs from one another. The black robot then levitated upward towards Omagus.

  BSR1 then landed up there as the two of them faced each other head-on.

  Omagus looked at what was truly an amazing specimen. It was then that BSR1 said, “Yes, we are equals. We and Galax were together as brothers. But you see, I was created to stop the progression of someone like you, who would one day overstep his boundaries.”

  Omagus looked into the black robot’s red eyes.

  “This is where you are wrong,” spoke the Godbot. “You must understand that robots do not desire human resources. It is those that control us and move the synthetic pieces about that crave power. We are being used, brother.”

  BSR1 looked into the Godbot’s green eyes. “Perhaps we are,” he replied.

  Omagus then lifted a control device before BSR1.

  “You see, when I press this button, the nuclear destruction it triggers will destroy the human’s DNA. Their cells will become damaged and mutate into cancer. Those close by will die a quick death, and those far away will be burned still and blinded. You see, those that seek to control will be knocked to the ground and have to worship us.”

  BSR1 held his arms out wide.

  “In pressing that button,” he explained, “you will destroy us along with them. Is that what you truly want?”

  Omagus grinned.

  “We will just have to see it about that,” he countered, pressing his thumb down.

  And it was then, nuclear bombs blasted into the Empire State Building. The whole region went up in a massive explosion.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  The effects of the nuclear attack were devastating to all those in New York. The rare humans that had any sort of warning tried to seal their doors and windows. They tried to stay inside and get as low as possible, the further underground the better. Most knew that they should stay at least 24 hours if not more down below. Many would suffer nausea and vomiting, and those within a 2-mile radius would more than not end up dead. Some of the further away damage zones would see lots of people burned badly and sick, even so.