The Cross of Mithras Vol. 1: EOD Operation Welcome to Hell (15 page)

  “Hey, what was the name of their fllaistl?”

  “It was Nany’skl (na-knee school). She always stayed at home and took care of the kids. She was one of those strong, wise, mother types of a woman. She was like a mother to me when I needed one the most. And that’s how I treated her...” She smiled and said, “... even though I was older than she was by forty seven years.

  Tsk’llk, Llyysta and Nany’skl forgave me for all that I did to them and their people. Their people came around, before I did, and forgave me as well. Nany’skl tried to get me to let go of, not only the pain, but also of the grief of everything that I did to their people. But letting go was just so hard. How can I forget that evil that I did?

  The three of them were pagan and their people were a mixture of both pagan and monotheists. I guess in some ways it was like ancient Rome. Because I didn’t socialize with the people, I never really got the chance to know if the monotheists would have forgiven me or not. I guess I was afraid of what they might say. Or I was afraid that they might turn out to be like Natas and his wife. Even though deep down inside I knew that not to be true. But at the time, I strongly felt that they would have said that I deserved all that happened to me. I think that each of the denominations of the religion would have agreed with them. But I’m not certain. So all of my life I never had a good rapport with monotheism, just paganism. And that is one reason why I would never practice any monotheist religion. Tsk’llk, Llyysta, and Nany’skl, is the other reason.”

  “Do you practice any of the pagan rituals?”

  “Nope.”

  “How come?”

  “When I did practice that monotheist religion, I had to get used to different rituals. With me being an intellectual, and practicing that religion, it gave me the opportunity to look at those pagan rituals in a rational way. After I went back to being a pagan, I figure that after all that I’ve been through, why bother? You can’t curse what already have been cursed. So what’s the worst thing that could happen to me for not practicing those pagan rituals? Nothing. Because that’s exacting what happened. No… that’s not true. My life got better. First, I got back what I lost. Then I came to the Earth. So why bother practicing them?

  So there I was, in Tsk’llk and Llyysta palace with Natas being his typical ol’ self. With him being nothing more than a damn curse in my life. Trying to take away all of my happiness for God only knows why. He came and threatened my friends with war and total annihilation if they don’t turn me over to his twisted plans, whatever they may be. Upsetting me to the point where I can’t even think straight. Even when it should have been obvious that they were planning to end the struggle with Natas once and for all.

  My friends tried in vain to reason with me, but I wouldn’t listen. I told them that I would kill anyone who try and take me back to him. Or better yet, run away and disappear forever. So they put me in chains and led me away causing me to feel betrayed.

  Along the way we had to stop at some Iomiyyan city to pick up some supplies for the rest of the trip. The Iomiyyans had several major trading port cities like that of Hong Kong, Singapore or even New York City. And just like New York City, we had people from all over bringing their cultures, their languages, et cetera. We stop at one of those types of port cities, but I don’t know which one. My friends wouldn’t let me come ashore.

  I ask Tsk’llk if somebody could pick up some stuff for me. I asked him to pick up some flower seeds, tree roots, some fish, as well as some meats. Something that would last for the rest of our trip. I also ask if he could pick up a bottle of two different type of whiskey. He agreed.

  One of the items that I had on me was a special container that was made by joining two turtle shells together. The turtle container could keep its contents dry in wet conditions, or even if it was submerge under water. It could also help to keep the fish fresh longer when they are covered in salt. I put all the fish in it because I had no intention of eating them.”

  “Why? Wouldn’t you be hungry later on?”

  “I just wanted to save them for when I finally got to his palace. The way I figured it was that I was probably going to die when I get there. So I wanted to be buried with things that reminded me of home. That’s why I asked for the things that I did. It was the only way that I could have some piece of mind when I got to his palace. Besides... I was going to eat the meats anyway.

  When we finally got to his palace it was dark. I started to feel tightness in my chest. I lost my will and my strength to fight back. I could feel it the air… I could sense it all around me… I knew… I just knew… I knew that it would be the last night that I spend upon my planet. I asked for my stuff and… and… “

  “And what?”

  “Tsk’llk and Llyysta came bringing my stuff to me. I knew that it was a pretty dumb of a thing for them to do. I was 277 years old, Tsk’llk was 243, and Llyysta was 238. Neither one of us seen combat for decades. And I was afraid that Natas might have learned about their weakness. Whenever one of them was in danger, the other one could sense it. They would then rush in to save them. Typically by diving in on the one who was in danger. The problem was… they would just lie there for several moments. They where just so much in love with each other. So I guess you can imagine what they where saying to each other. Pretty dumb, right?”

  “Yep. That is pretty dumb… especially in the combat zone.”

  “You got it. And they would lie there… laughing. Dumb asses. And I could have killed them on more than one occasion, back when we where enemies. Imagine that.”

  “So why didn’t you?”

  “Natas and his wife kept on giving me mixed signals about what to do with them. So I didn’t know if I should kill them, captured them, or what. So one day I just got tired of his mixed signals and decided to bring them back to him, even if he told me to kill them.

  When I saw that Tsk’llk and Llyysta were coming to give me my stuff, I was going to ask them ‘Why did they come?’ But at the time, I was just too depressed to say anything… so I didn’t. After they gave me my things, Llyysta did the strangest thing. She gave the guard, who was guarding me, her sword to take with us. That sword meant everything to her. The only way that she would ever give it up, is when somebody pry it out of her cold dead hands. When I was living in their palace, she told me the story of why that sword meant so much to her.

  When she was being trained as a warrior, somebody wanted her trainer arrested for a crime that he didn’t commit. All the children where sent to other trainers. Llyysta and one of her fllustl friends stayed behind. They believed that he was innocent and they wanted to prove it. Both of them decided to keep up on their training. It was the beginner one where it was mostly physical, the learning of weapons, and so on. What made it a lot harder upon them was that they had to survive on their own. And the fact that they didn’t have a trainer. After a few years he came back. He was so impressed by their loyalty that he made both of them a sword. And he continued on with their training. Until his past caught up with him again, and he died from it. Both of them avenged his death. Killing all those who were responsible for his death. And then they went to another trainer, and finished up with their training. And the rest is history. So you can see why that sword meant so much to her.”

  “Yeah.”

  “And she gave… that sword… to that guard. So that he… and I… can go into Natas palace… where I am supposed to be delivered into Natas custody. By the time when I got to the Earth and I had to the chance to sleep on it, instead of being in cryo-sleep that is, is when I figured it out. She wanted me to bring it back to her. That they never betrayed me. I was just overreacting.”

  Vaistll had the look on her that she wanted to say something to Ramirez, but didn’t. She knew that he knew what she already knows and suspected. What would have happen to her, Tsk’llk and Llyysta had Vaistll stayed upon her planet. Vaistll couldn’t bring herself to mention it, and Ramirez didn’t say anything.

  “I remember asking the guard if ‘Llyysta had lost her mind or what.’ He didn’t say anything and then we left. Both of us went down a road that went through a forest. Somewhere along that road we heard this strange sound, and we saw this light coming through the forest. Both of us stood there for a brief moment perplexed by what we saw. We just had to go and investigate it to see what it was. And that’s when we encountered that space-slash-time traveler. Whoever he was.

  Because of my training, I didn’t get lost in the moment, unlike the guard who did. Seizing upon that opportunity, I got the better of him and killed him. I told that space-time traveler that if he helps me… then I’ll help him out. He agreed and then he freed me. I took him back to his spaceship and asked him if he had any medicine for his injuries and he said no. I told him to stay there while I go get some. That meant that I had to go inside the palace to get some. Lucky for me, I knew my way around the palace and I knew some people who should still be there. So I guess it didn’t matter.

  So, I left him to get that medicine. I went into the palace feeling like I’m going into combat for the very first time. With bad feelings and bad memories coming back to me. I started to feel like shit. But I knew that I had to help him. It was not because it was the right thing to do or anything like that. I just felt like that I had to. It was like; helping him was something that the gods wanted me to do. It was like I didn’t have a choice.

  So... I went into the palace and found the medicine without incidence. Thank God for that. I don’t think anybody knew that I was there. While I was about to leave I heard a commotion down the hall from where I was. As I approached I heard some voices. I recognized one of the voices. It was Llyysta, she was disgusted about something. She was out of earshot when I got to where she was. It was the entrance to Natas’ bedroom. There was a guard at the entrance, and Natas was sitting down on his bed looking like some teenage boy who just got in trouble with his father. He looked up at me and said nothing. Neither did the guard. I asked the guard what was all the commotion about, and he didn’t say anything. The guard had the look like he was both disturbed, and confused about something. I really wanted to find out what it was, since it had something to do with Natas. Maybe it could answer some of my questions, like why did he do the things that he did to me. So I had to do a mind-meld with the guard in order to find out.

  What I learned was this: when the guard was a boy, and Llyysta was a young adult fresh out of her warrior training, both of them where standing outside of Natas’ mansion. I don’t know why Llyysta was there. She never talked about that time period in her life, and I never ask. I also don’t know if this was the time period in which his palace was being built. As both of them where standing there, Natas’ son, who must have been a pre-teen, came running out and ran to where Llyysta was. He bent over and started to throw up. He looked up at her and said something. To which Natas thought that he said, ‘He is a faggot.’ But what his son actually said was, ‘I don’t wanna go back to him.’ Natas got pissed off and yelled at him and said, ‘How dare you say that! Get back in here.’ And then his son turned around and went back inside. As he did, Llyysta looked at Natas, and then she looked at his son and said, ‘Poor kid.’ But Natas incorrectly thought that she looked at his son first, than him, and called him a pervert. Llyysta then walked over to a crowd of people and started to talk to them. They all looked at Natas, and shook their heads. I don’t know what she said to them because the guard didn’t go with her, but Natas gave them all that look of, if-looks-could-kill. So I guess you can imagine what transpired between father and son.”

  “Yeah. That he is a sick sonofabitch to do that to his own son. So is that the reason why he did ALL that he did to you, Tsk’llk and Llyysta?”

  “Not by a long shot. I once told him about something that I heard about him that made that seemed trivial in comparison. All he said was, ‘Absolute power demands absolute control over oneself. For the way in which you handle slander, no matter how vicious it may be, will always reflect upon your leadership. Much more so when your word is law.

  Deep down inside people do not care about all the most vicious, vile, deplorable things that they hear about you. Sure they’ll joke about it, but it would never go any further than that. But what they care about more than anything else is: how you use your power that you wield over them. And thus, if you can’t control yourself just because somebody said something negative about you, than you never deserved what power you DO have.’ So he never really cared about what anybody thought, or said about him.

  So there I was, standing there after I did that mind-meld with that guard. I just didn’t care anymore. I’ve been through a lot, way too much for anybody to go through. So why should I care what type of a man Natas is? My attitude at that moment was: it’s not my problem, so I’m outta here. So then I left and never looked back.

  Before I got out of the palace this seven-foot, four-inch tall, gorilla of a guard, who must have been somewhere between 50 to 100 years old, with the look of being physically arrogant, was blocking my exit. He knew who I was and that I had to be taken into custody. And here I am, this woman who is the equivalent of a 107 year old human, who’s way passed her prime and haven’t seen combat in decades. And I was having serious heart problems on top of that. I was a woman who is only trying to get by him to find her freedom from the evil in my life. But I had this very interesting way in which I got by him though.” With that Vaistll started to laugh.