Timothy Nugent Author
patreon
Interlude - Guilt
🕑 Added 2024-10-23 13:00:07 +0000 UTCCaptain Jeremy Jackson shifted impatiently at the kitchen table in their Pinetop rental while Captain Jacob Roberts led the debriefing. He only half paid attention to what was said as he absently fingered his new ring, consumed by self-reflection.
The jewelry was his reward for completing what the ‘Architect’ called a ‘scenario’. It was currently useless to him, as he had no access to spells, and only increased his Magic Power by one point. He was glad it was a plain gold band. So far, no one had noticed its presence.
Should I keep quiet?
He felt conflicted. For the first time in his career, he contemplated hiding the truth from his CO, and he hated the idea. If it were just Captain Roberts, he would have no problem sharing everything he knew. The man had his mouth firmly planted up Scott Peters’ rear, but he at least cared about the welfare of his men.
Their CIA dictator, however, did not. If Mister Peters found out he was initiated into the Collective, Jeremy would never see the light of day again.
How is he even getting away with it? There’s no way someone hasn’t blown the whistle on him.
Jeremy knew that eventually, the CIA man’s sociopathic behavior would get him investigated and thrown in jail. He just hoped that no one else died before that happened.
Luckily, every member of their team had escaped the most recent alien planet and returned home safely. Jeremy was the last to return. He was also the only one that had difficulty eliminating the alien bear creatures. The others had working rifles the entire time, with plenty of spare magazines.
“Captain Jackson, report.”
The order jolted him out of his introspection, and he hid his hands beneath the table. He began his account. “I arrived on the alien world in a rocky desert. Gravity seemed to be at least thirty percent higher, but I was able to compensate with effort. I scouted the area and came across a large bear-like creature. I eliminated the creature, but in the process, my rifle was damaged beyond repair.”
“Did you attempt communication with the alien before you eliminated it?” the Captain asked.
Jeremy shook his head. “No, sir. It was incredibly hostile and incapable of speech.”
“How did you know it was unable to speak if you did not attempt communication?”
Is he serious?
“Sir, there was no time. It attacked, and I had no choice but to defend myself.”
“Very well, continue.”
Jeremy sighed and shifted once more in his chair. “After my rifle was destroyed, I was left with only my grenades and my combat knife. In the next few encounters, I was able to heavily wound the enemy with a frag before I finished them off with my knife. Unfortunately, I had to kill the last creature with just my kay-bar.”
Jeremy heard a few whistles of appreciation around the table at the revelation.
“That’s impressive,” Captain Roberts admitted, and then moved on to the next question. “During your time on the alien world, did you encounter any other beings?”
“No, sir.”
“Did you attempt to leave the local area?”
“Yes, sir. I encountered what I think of as the ‘Invisible Fence’ multiple times. Each time, I was forced back.”
“Was there anything else of note?”
Jeremy swallowed at the question he had been contemplating since he learned of the Architect, but eventually answered, “No, sir.”
“Very well, the next order of business is…”
His commanding officer continued, but Jeremy heard none of it. The ring suddenly felt out of place on his hand. All he felt was guilt at his lie. Guilt, because he had discovered exactly why no one else had been inducted.
The proof was in the combat logs.
For hours after he had returned, Jeremy scored through the interface. It took him far longer than he expected to master it, as there was no tutorial or help menu that he could discover. The interface mostly reacted to his desires, but if he was unable to find something, there was no Selftube video to help him.
Eventually, he discovered the combat logs and poured over the information. The nanomachines that infused his body recorded every battle since he entered his first portal.
In every instance, he received very little nano for defeating his foes. If he had continued on in the same vein, it might have been months or years before he joined the Collective. It was only when he fought what it called the ‘Ursa’ with just his knife that he received millions as a reward.
The greater the risk, the greater the reward. I guess that’s what the little welcome speech meant.
Jeremy discovered that the nanomachines were a kind of currency that you could spend to upgrade yourself. Unfortunately, as long as they relied on firearms or grenades, they were essentially not rewarded for their efforts.
But, there was no way he would go to the alien planet unarmed. He would need something larger than his knife, like a spear, if he wanted to test the theory. For that to happen, he would have to inform his superior. He wanted to pass the information on to his team, but was afraid of the consequences.
Maybe I’ll just test the waters and see how they react.
After the meeting was over, Jeremy and his team members relaxed outside in the backyard of the vacation rental. It had a gazebo with a hot tub, grill, and plenty of lawn chairs.
Everyone celebrated their successful mission, the first with no casualties. Music blasted from the speakers, and they unwound in a half circle, drinks in hand. So far, no one had tested the water of the hot tub, despite the copious amount of alcohol they had consumed.
After Renner, one of his team members, finished retelling a story, Jeremy decided to see how they would react. He cleared his throat and cautiously asked, “What do you guys think happened to Miller?”
“Who?” Sergeant Godfrey asked.
“Justin Miller, the guy that told us about the portals,” Jeremy reminded them.
“Oh.” Godfrey shrugged and sipped his beer. “Hell if I know. He’s probably in some lab somewhere getting poked and prodded.”
“Yeah, poor dude’s probably been through the MRI so much he’s got cancer by now,” Sergeant Lee added.
Godfrey snorted and sprayed beer out of his mouth. “You don’t get irradiated from an MRI, dumbass.”
“Yeah? Then why don’t they send everyone through them all the time?” Lee asked.
“Because they’re expensive.”
While the conversation was slightly amusing, Jeremy decided to bring them back to the original topic. “What do you think would happen if we got an interface like Miller did?”
“Then, we’d be the poor bastards in the lab,” Godfrey responded. “If he even got an interface.”
“Ain’t gonna happen,” Renner said.
“How do you know?” asked Lee.
“Because it hasn’t happened yet,” Renner replied. “That dude went to another planet just one time and came back with a computer in his head. We’ve been, what, ten times now?”
“Yeah, something like that,” Godfrey agreed.
“Like I said, if it was gonna happen, it’d have happened by now,” Renner finished and took a gulp of beer.
“You think it’s a one time thing?” Jeremy prodded. “You think he’s the only one?”
“It’s all bullshit,” Godfrey interrupted. “He doesn’t have some magical interface.”
“Yeah, he does,” Renner insisted. “And I bet that fugitive kid has one, too. Only a matter of time before they catch him.”
“Why do you say that?” Jeremy asked.
Renner leaned in. “I overheard Davis talking about it.”
“Who the hell’s Davis?” Lee asked.
“He’s on the quarantine team,” Renner rolled his eyes. “Anyway, get this. Some high school kid got in a fight.”
“So? I was in tons of fights back in school.” Godfrey said.
“Same,” Renner agreed. “But this kid never showed back up to school afterward. The cops looked for him everywhere, and bugged his family like crazy, but there was still no sign.”
“Is this story going anywhere?” Lee asked, annoyed.
“Hold your horses,” Renner advised. “I’m getting to the interesting part. So, they get a judge to let them track his cell phone…”
“Wait!” Godfrey interrupted. “You’re telling me they got a warrant for truancy?”
Renner shook his head. “No, the kid’s technically an adult and sent a minor to the hospital. The poor guy was in critical condition for like a week. Messed him up like that with one hit. That, and the hurt kid was the Sheriff’s nephew or something, I’m sure that motivated the judge some.”
“Damn. That’s hardcore,” said Godfrey.
“Yeah,” Renner agreed. “The cops said they just wanted to scare him straight or something, but it ended up backfiring. They found him out in the middle of nowhere. Turns out, he had a tent, food, supplies, and everything. They tried to arrest him, especially with him being near the airport, but he broke the cuffs like they were paper, beat the crap out of them, and ran.”
“Holy shit!” Lee said. “Dude’s a beast!”
“Here's the best part,” Renner added. “The kid’s a skinny little thing who’s never been in a fight before in his life.”
“He couldn’t have been too skinny if he broke through handcuffs,” Godfrey disagreed.
“I’m telling you, they said he weighs like a buck fifty, soaking wet, and runs faster than Usain Bolt.”
Godfree snorted. “Cops are probably just overweight and out of shape.”
“Maybe,” Renner admitted, “But here’s the crazy part, he was wearing some kind of armor and had a sword strapped to his waist.”
Jeremy leaned forward and pushed his hands into his pockets, now far more interested in the tale. Not only did the kid show increased strength and speed, he had a strange weapon as well.
Is this kid killing aliens for nano? I need to find him and see what he knows.
“Kid’s got mental problems.” Lee shook his head.
“Oh, it’s not just the kid,” Renner informed them. “His whole family’s screwed up. They arrested his older brother for dealing drugs, and the judge put a super high bail on him.”
“Why?” Godfrey asked.
Renner shrugged. “They said he had priors, and they wanted to pressure the family to give up their other son. Didn’t work. The family somehow came up with the money. After a few weeks, they just kind of gave up on the whole thing, and moved on. That is, until they tried to arrest the older brother a second time. That idiot was dealing right in front of the grocery store.”
He paused and took a sip of his beer before he continued. “The druggy dropped his stash and ran. They said he had like a kilo on him, and they called in backup. Somehow, two cops went missing before backup arrived. Then, when backup does finally show up, they disappear too, right where the distortion is.”
“You think they ended up on the bear planet?” Godfrey asked.
Renner shrugged. “Who knows? But, at least one of them was killed here on Earth. They brought dogs in and found brain matter splattered all over the ground. That psycho family not only killed a cop, but tried to hide the evidence, too.”
“How?” Jeremy asked.
“They still haven’t found the five cops or their bodies. Someone in that crazy family drove one of the cop cars into a lake. Then, the parents withdrew over three hundred grand from the bank and went on the run.”
“Jesus,” Lee swore.
No wonder the cops are pissed and refuse to cooperate. They’re five men down, and we just took over their crime scene.
“They still haven’t found them?” Jeremy asked.
Renner shook his head, “Davis said they tracked their cell phones to a bus in California, but haven’t seen them since.”
“You think the whole family was dealing?” Godfrey asked.
“Had to be,” Renner said. “Who else has that kind of money sitting in the bank and is willing to take out the cops, too? The fact the brother was so eager to drop his stash, they had to be.”
“You said you think he has an interface. What makes you think that?”
Renner swallowed. “Oh yeah, sorry. I got sidetracked. They never found five of the bodies, right outside the fire tower, where the distortion is. The family obviously knew about it, and threw the bodies inside.”
“Bunch of psychopaths,” Lee muttered.
Jeremy nodded in agreement with the group.
Maybe I don’t want to find him.
“So?” Godfrey challenged. “That doesn’t mean they have computers in their heads.”
“No,” Renner agreed. “But, some skinny little kid somehow gets strong enough to break through cuffs, runs like an Olympic athlete, and wears a sword?” He shook his head. “If that doesn’t scream alien influence, I don’t know what does.”
“Influence?” Godfrey frowned. “You think the aliens are mind controlling them? You think that’s why they have Miller locked up?”
Renner shrugged. “Who the hell knows?”
Jeremy’s guilt resurfaced. He wanted to give his opinion, but in order to do that he would have to expose himself. If he did that, he would likely never see the light of day again.
If Godfrey thought the nanomachines could control the minds of those with the interface, it had to have crossed the minds of those in charge as well. He would never be released, and would never be trusted again.
Comments
Undead Writer
Thanks for the chapter! Need Jeremy and our MC to meet already!
Crapgeezer
Can't wait for Jeremy and Blake to meet!!!
John Doe
Thank You, Author. :-)
