Nathan stepped through the rubble-littered streets. The century-old apartment buildings had all caved in, but Nathan couldn't tell whether it was from three years neglect, one of the orbital bombardments, or both. One way or another, it made the going slow, and Nathan was glad to finally arrive at the outpost. It was on the second story of one of the ruined apartment buildings, one that had three stories left to it. As Nathan walked past the entrance, he noticed a pair of guards manning turrets that were all but invisible from the other side of the wall of rubble that guarded the building. The rubble itself looked natural, though Nathan knew it to be carefully arranged. Nathan climbed up to the second story of the ruined building where a make-shift outpost had been set up. There was a radio set on a table with one chair, and several computers, as well as a solar generator, not currently in use, to power the electronics. A man, whose worn uniform designated him as an officer, was sitting in the chair, surrounded by five other men. Two of them appeared to be junior officers, and the other three looked to be guards.
"Welcome to New England, Lieutenant Christiansen." one of the junior officers said. Now that Nathan drew closer, he could tell that the officer speaking to him was a Lieutenant, just like him. The other officer was a Captain. The commanding officer was a Lieutenant Colonel, which meant that the flag officer commanding the entire battle wasn't present. Most likely he'd be in a more secure location. "I trust you've found the accommodations we provided you and your men sufficient?"
"Yes. Better than the ones we had in Florida, at least. I'm told Miami was practically a swamp at the time of the invasion. Apparently three years neglect was enough time to finish the job." Nathan responded.
The Lieutenant chuckled. "At least it doesn't have a crime problem anymore, not if you don't count privateers. I'll be taking your report for the Colonel. He's busy, as you can probably tell." Nathan handed him the report. The Lieutenant gave him back some orders from the General running NATO operations in New York. He scanned the list. All standing orders, all pointing to just how grim the situation was. The New England front had been slipping for months now. The Maethorians had, it seemed, finally determined to purge the area of NATO resistance once and for all.
The Colonel was talking into a phone, presumably to the general."We need reinforcements if we're going to keep up our operations on their logistics, sir. It's bad enough our Lunar support got compromised, we can't operate much longer if we can't replenish our losses!" A moment of silence as the general spoke from the other end. "We can withstand purges for another year, but it's no good if we aren't fighting back!" Another pause. "Listen, sir, what about all those extra troops in China? Can't you pull some strings and get them fighting over here? I know our logistics chain can get them here undetected." Pause. "You mean I'm going to be denied the troops I need to fight because of beauracracy?" Pause. "Yes sir...I understand..." The Colonel put the phone down. "Michaels, you'll have to keep up your sabotage operations with the troops you have." The Captain nodded and left the building.
The Colonel turned to Nathan and said "You've arrived with all your troops intact, Lieutenant?"
"Yes, sir." Nathan responded.
"Good," the Colonel said, "Because I need you to be our diversion force."
"Yes, sir." Nathan responded, and left. Great, Nathan thought, He may as well have assigned us to a suicide squad.
----------------------------
A shrill, piercing noise woke Mason from his sleep. His eyes shot open and he immediately rolled off the cold metal sheet that served as his bed, clutching his forehead in pain. The shrill noise gave Mason a severe headache, not only because it was a bad frequency for him, but also because of the location of its source. The noise came from inside his head.
Turn it off, I'm up! Mason thought, which was all it took to communicate with Xenos, the AI program that had been plugged into his brain stem three years ago. The noise ceased immediately. Turn the lights on. The lights turned on, one of them flickering so much it seemed it might die. It kept on flickering. Broken, Mason thought, Not exactly proper accommodations for someone as valuable as me.
If you're so concerned about being valuable, why don't you just put away your ethics and get a bit more savage? I know you've got the creativity to think up some vicious finishers. Xenos was speaking in his head. It had once unnerved Mason that there was a soulless AI program that knew his every thought, could probe his every memory, even knew his original name, Kyle Tenor. But Xenos kept his thoughts confidential unless directly ordered otherwise, and what Maethorian cared what a slave thought so long as he did what he was supposed too?
Why can't I be treated like I'm worth more than dirt just for winning my company a lot of bouts? I haven't lost a match in a solid two years. That's over a hundred bouts, a fifth of them one-on-one. I must have made GenTech a hundred thousand Jin, and I don't get anything for it. Mason thought.
You've made GenTech ninety-eight thousand, five hundred and twenty five Jin, and you would've made three times that much at least if you'd earned the savage reputation you're capable of. Think of the top money-makers in the Arena. The ones with cells bigger than most Maethorians houses, unrestricted access to the nets, and more annual spending money than an inspector makes doing a real job. The ones like Seraphim, Juggernaut, Ash, what have they all got in common? Xenos asked.
Really cool names? Mason offered.
No, they're savage and vicious. They reduce their opponents to so much bloody pulp after they've been incapacitated, and they do it with style. And you can do it too. I know, Mason, I know every thought you've got. All that stuff you'd like to do to your GenTech masters? Do it to your opponents in the Arenas and you'll get everything you want. Half the time you don't even take the kill!
The first match I fought, I lost. If I hadn't been spared, my life would've ended after a solid week of pain, confusion, and fear. I respect that. I'm willing to give that to others. Mason thought.
I think you're just scared to be cruel. Your society teaches that it is a sin. But your society is dead. Cruelty is how the Maethorian Empire is run. You experience that daily. Xenos thought.
I'm not scared. I give mercy out of strength, not weakness. Mason thought.
If that was true, than you wouldn't give a thirty percent higher mercy rate to Terran females. Xenos responded.
That's just coincidence, Mason thought, I've only had, what, three matches with a Teran female?
Five, and you spared four of them. And the fifth was about to kill Dal. Xenos said. Mason forced his mind to go blank. He didn't think for a while, not about anything. He had figured out a while ago that Xenos' need for efficiency would drive him to a different subject if Mason stopped thinking for a while.
You've got a match today with a Lexian, one-on-one. You can maul a bug, can't you? Xenos said after about thirty seconds.
Just give me his stats.