Read The Cross of Mithras Vol. 1: EOD Operation Welcome to Hell Online
Authors: Douglas Howell
Medusa Pandora’s power made her the ultimate genetic assassin. She had the genetic makeup of all known intelligent life forms, and the diseases that can kill them, in data form, inside of her. Although that may not seem like much, she also had the base pairs of those life form’s DNA. Having the base pair of all of those DNA allowed her to create any DNA of her choosing. To make matters worse, she had the capability to combine the DNA in any format. In effect, she was nothing more than a walking bio-weapon laboratory. Is it any wonder why Sayaka felt the way that she did?
Sayaka knew that there is no way that Joseph would let anybody let Medusa Pandora out. She knows that there is nothing that she could say to convince him otherwise. And yet her intuition tells her that it is going to happen. Unfortunately her intuition is right. Somebody will come and let out the monster, but not for several decades. Because of everything that was going on that godforsaken world, Sayaka was starting to get deeply spiritually frustrated. It was not enough to cause her to question her beliefs. But it was enough to cause her to do a lot of soul searching. She was looking for a higher reason and knowing full well that the answer never comes in the present, only from the future. Her soul searching would eventually change the course of history forever.
(4)
While en route to the lab complex the pilots bearing reinforcements and supplies saw the army of demons approaching the lab complex. None of the pilots could find a safe place to land. They didn’t have the time or the opportunity. All they could do was to circle overhead watching the horror that was going on below them. It was quite demoralizing. The pilots, because of their training, knew that they had to find another place to land to prevent the further demoralization of the crew. But the damage was already done. The crew lost full faith and confidence and started to realize that they were on a suicide mission. They weren’t the only one.
“Oh my god! I thought I heard an emergency beacon!” 2
nd
Lieutenant Sinclair mentioned over the intercom. Nobody heard it.
“What the hell are you talking about? What emergency beacon?” One of the pilots responded.
“I could have sworn that I… There it goes again! I think it’s coming north of my position” Sinclair mentioned. Before Sinclair’s co-pilot could say anything, she heard it too.
“Then how come I haven’t heard it?” One of the pilots asked Sinclair.
“Because you’re south of my position! I’m going to go and check it out.” Sinclair snapped back.
“No you’re not! You’re the one carry our supplies!” One of the reinforcement personnel mentioned.
“Well… there’s a problem.” Sinclair responded.
“What?” The personnel asked.
“I outrank you, and I’m going.” Sinclair responded.
As Sinclair headed to where he thought the signal was coming from it started to get louder. But not by that much. Eventually he found the source and to everybody’s surprise, it was coming from a previous unknown entrance to the tunnel that Mad Dawg met his demons. Since no one wanted to go into the tunnel (afraid of the demons down there) Sinclair and his co-pilot went down there and discovered the lone survivor - 1
st
Lieutenant Illes.
Everybody, including the defenders at the lab complex, couldn’t believe the miracle that was Illes. It was the one thing that everybody needed to lift their spirits. If the lieutenant could survive an army of demons, then surely they could as well. But for Illes, he was still trapped in his nightmare. It was only Sinclair’s co-pilot who managed to get out of Illes how he managed to escape. Illes used his good left leg to push him into the waste duct. When he landed in the bio waste, he waited for the nanoprobes to heal his broken left arm and wrist. As for his right leg one of the Demon X’s snapped it off at the knee. When his body was well enough he climb out of the waste and crawled to where the supplies were. He then noticed that there was an emergency beacon there so he activated it.
After the medic helicopter came and took Illes to the nearby hospital, Sinclair and his co-pilot return to their duties and waited for the attack upon the lab complex to come to an end. In the meantime, both of them lied about Illes’ state of mind. He would at times laugh hysterically and say, “You’re not going to eat me! I would rather drown!” It was clear to the doctors that Illes would forever need psychiatric counseling for the rest of his life. Through his momentary lapse of sanity, he made it absolutely clear how much he hated Captain Dawson. Illes called him a coward and a traitor for deserting him and his personnel. The news media was there to record him saying that, and Dawson would later hear it being repeated over and over again by the media.
At Omori’s request, and when Illes was well enough to make the journey, he was transported back to The Hammer of Doom. She saw the most pitiful sight, a man who survived the most incredible odds, sitting up in his bed with the look of shear terror in his eyes, crying. (Lenkov and Maxwell came by earlier to meet him, and out of pity, gave him a promotion.) She didn’t know what to say to him. What could she say? Things will get better. At least he is alive. She stood there trying to find the right words to say until the doctor noticed her.
“Omori, what are you doing here?” Deveau, the doctor on duty, asked her.
“I was wondering that myself. I was doing soul searching earlier and thought…” She responded. She couldn’t bring herself to finish her thought.
“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.