Starlight Gleaming Ch. 20

Around her and in the background moved priests in regalia. Priests of Mictlantecuhtli. I even recognized one of the them from the police photos.

"Do you know why you're here?" a man off-camera demanded.

"Because you're a sick fuck?" Yalcamara snapped. "I am an Air Security officer in the Imperial Air Service, and you nutjobs are under arrest. Where's Sergeant Stimmi? What have you done with him?"

"Ah, yes. Let's show her, shall we?" One of the priests pulled a cooler from near the stone's base, then placed it on her belly. "I understand you two were lovers. Young hearts in love. We shouldn't keep them separated too long."

One priest reached into the cooler and lifted, while a second removed the cooler. Holding it in his hands, he placed the grisly organ onto Yalcamara's belly.

"What is that? What did you do!?"

"Why, it's his heart, my dear."

"You dirty, filthy, piece of shit!" she screamed. "You won't get away with this!"

As she continued swearing at him, the man off-camera coldly ordered, "Break her jaw."

A third priest grabbed her hair, while a fourth produced an ornate golden mace. The second priest scooped up the heart and carried it off. The weapon swung back and then smacked into her cheek at the jawline. I winced as it connected with an audible pop, and Yalcamara's tearful rage was reduced to whimpers of frustration, anger, and pain.

"Get the grill ready," the man said. "When she's done, I want them both of their hearts cooked together."

"Yes, Master," the priest answered.

"Before you die, little bitch," the disembodied voice coldly said, "I want you and those of your friends who will watch this little drama to know that I didn't appreciate your little impersonation, which I consider treasonous. Nor did I appreciate the fact that you killed a valuable ally of mine."

The screen shifted focus, and briefly zoomed in on heads sitting on a stone pedestal.

"Freeze it!" I snapped out, and Pen paused the video. Glancing back at Itznacoco, I said, "Now we know how he found out. That's Captain Abet Korreem, Imperial Security Station Chief of Copán War Base. Those other two are his bodyguards."

Itznacoco nodded grimly, but said nothing.

"All right, Pen. Resume play."

"Commander Orchid is dead!" the narrator announced. "I made her and I killed her. You, little whore, you are no officer. You were born common, and that Vedan prick gave you something he had no right to give! Being common-born filth, you are incapable of ever being a real Warrior. Commoners are the cattle by which the nobility live. Worse, you had the gall, the gall to put on the rank which you did not earn and you impersonated an Imperial Security officer. Ranji Kandikan killed you both, just as sure as if he used the knife himself. He did this! All right, I'm done. She wanted to act the part of that slut Orchid, well, let her experience the cost of treason. You may begin."

While four priests sang the praises of their unholy god, two of them took turns impaling her body with large gauge needles. As they lodged into her upper body, the steel cylinders began to ooze blood out the ends. One held her head again, and another priest, using a tool designed for that purpose, scooped in and ripped out her eyes.

Seeing it was grisly cruelty. Hearing her whimpers of pain was horrific.

I wanted to kill them and wade in their blood. I saw tears falling down Pen's cheeks, and he wiped at his eyes. I wiped at my own. Doyya echoed the whimpers of her friend, raging at the pain she suffered.

Hanami suddenly burst out sobbing. Chita held her, burying her face into her chest while murmuring comfort, even as she wept her own tears.

Then the priests loosened her legs and spread them. One by one, all nine priests raped her in turn, punishing her for being female in the age-old way of cowards and sociopaths. As they rammed into her, violating her body, the pain of her broken jaw no doubt made the ordeal doubly excruciating.

While the last one was still impaled within her, the head priest moved in. He produced an obsidian knife and stabbed her in the chest, then rapidly cut away under the ribs, digging away and removing her still beating heart. Once he was done, the priest between her legs removed himself and stepped aside. While they held aloft her bloody heart, they praised their damned god.

The one with her heart carried it over toward the camera -- and while Doyya let out a strangled sob of her own -- the man who'd ordered Yalcamara's death coldly said, "Put them both on the grill now. It's long past lunch time."

Suddenly the accountant, Commander Papatswee, pulled over the trash bin and noisily heaved into it.

While one priest set to removing the instruments of pain from her dead body, another took a silver cup and dipped it into the catch-basin where her blood had collected.

The priest stepped toward the camera with his cup of blood, but the man snapped out, "No. I drink the blood of my enemies, but I will not pollute myself with the blood of whores! Yes, they seared nicely. Excellent. Take them off the grill now."

There was the sound of cutlery slicing into flesh, and we all knew it could only be their hearts being cut into pieces.

The priest approached the camera. "Shall we let in your pets, Master?"

"Yes," he answered. "They are still hungry and need to eat. Best if you and the others weren't here. They don't like strangers."

The priests filed off in front of the camera. Then the sound of heavy doors opening and closing. Then a pause, and another set of doors opening from a different direction. Barking and panting could be heard.

"Heel!" the narrator bellowed, and the noises quieted. "There is your meal! I cooked it especially for you, my lovely pets." And a hand with a finger pointed at Yalcamara's body. "Feed!"

I was prepared for dogs, or maybe even dire wolves, and I think everyone else was, too.

What we saw instead was some feral mix of human and canine.

Here and there, we began to make out words from their misshapen mouths. "Hungry" and "meat" were the most discernible.

"Holy gods," muttered the Air Marshal.

They had long, pointed ears that sat higher than normal on the skull. Canine snouts with long incisors. Light fur covered their naked bodies. Human hands with deadly, long claws and thick animal pads on the palms. Knees that were backward, designed for four-footed movement. Fully-bushed tails. Yet with blatantly human hallmarks, too, such as the wider shoulders of a human -- and for a few of the females, a single pair of breasts. Smaller than a dire wolf, they were human-sized. Judging from their anatomy, they wouldn't be as fast as either a dog or a wolf, but with their human shoulders that bulged with muscle and their sharp talons, they would be formidable in any melee fight.

Minister Supay, in violation of both Imperial and international law, had used nano-tech to create animal-human hybrids.

At his command, the dog-men reached up to the altar and pulled Yalcamara's mutilated body down to the floor. Then snarling and snapping at each other, they set to ravaging her corpse, tearing her to pieces, their snouts soon covered with blood. All of us who knew Yalcamara openly wept, and I realized that I, too, had tears running down my cheeks.

When the carnage settled down, the man stepped before the camera, holding a plate with chopped meat in one hand and holding a fork in the other. Hearing the fork on the plate, the feral, bloodied dog-men scampered around in excitement, yipping and whining at him. And the word "master" was uttered over and over.

"There, there. Here's a treat for all of you. Cooked meat from my enemies." And he upended the plate, scattering the grisly contents among them. His harsh face softened somewhat as he crooned at them, saying things like, "Good dog," and "That's a good boy."

Then, his face suddenly enraged, he threw the plate and fork against the wall. The plate shattered, and the fork clattered away. Turning to the camera, he stepped closer. "I am the Minister of Imperial Security," he growled out. "No one opposes me. No one! You understand me, you Vedan trash? Any who dare cross me and my interests soon learns that I practice scorched earth! You are in my sights now, Kandikan. You and all who follow you. I will destroy your family and then I will end you. None of you are safe from my wrath. Count on it!"

Then the video ended.

End of murder scene.

* * * * *

The Air Marshal said, "I want a copy of that file. Bernim? I think we need to have a conference call with Lords Paritchul and Wanitsl right away. Do you think he will make an attempt on Arjun Kandikan and the research teams at Tohingo?"

"Yes, I do," Itznacoco replied.

"So do I," the Air Marshal admitted. "I've seen their progress at Tohingo Research. Their work is vital, absolutely vital to the Empire, especially as Atlantis and their alien allies have stepped up their attacks on our aircraft. We also have credible reports the Greys have shared more of their technology, and a new generation of fighters are being built. We will present a united front and stress to the Emperor that he must intervene. Supay must be ordered to give his word to take no further action against House Kandikan or to anyone at High Guard. We will also need to explain that Supay has been doing illegal experiments on humans.

"Commander Papatswee, I think it's time to wrap up your examination and present the summary you already shared with me. What's the status of this war base?"

Pen handed the commander a napkin and a bottle of water, which he gratefully accepted. Several of us wiped our eyes, and took a moment to steady ourselves as the commander answered. The general and commander weren't as emotional as the rest of us, yet they too had been disturbed by what they had witnessed.

"Wait a moment, Marshal, if I may? What about these dog-men? They are capable of speech. What does High Command intend to do about them? We know nothing of their life-cycle. Do they reproduce a new litter yearly or more frequently? Do they age as humans? What if a breeding pair gets out into the wild? He's taught them to feast on human flesh. There is a real danger here."

"Those are good points, Commander Kandikan. We will present all this to the Emperor. It's up to him to decide. Commander Papatswee, are you ready to proceed?"

Papatswee took a steadying breath, then began. "Yes, my lord. Morale at High Guard War Base is actually quite high. It's higher than it's been in more than thirty years. Central Command is reporting an increase in the number of transfers to actually post at High Guard, rather than transfer out. There have been no major scuffles between the Air Service and the Ground Service, nor between the Air Service and the Naval and Marine Services since Commander Kandikan's arrival. The strength of the 602 Air Security Regiment is at ninety-seven percent, and projected to be fully trained by the end of the year. It's not part of the official assessment, but Commander Kandikan is well known across the war base, and in general, most everyone holds him in high regard."

The Air Marshal nodded, then turned his attention to me. "It's hard to watch your friends die. That never gets easy, Commander, and it's worse when it appears to have been an empty death--"

"No, sir!" Doyya said. "With all due respect, Air Marshal, their deaths were not empty. They freed nine Imperial citizens wrongfully kidnapped and enslaved. Both of them were proud to be Air Security troopers. They died doing their duty to the Empire."

He stared at her for a moment, then nodded. "I stand corrected. Thank you, Captain Lovyanchiti. My condolences to each of you. The measure of your reactions -- and those of the rest of you tell me a great deal about the woman I saw. She knew she was going to die and yet she remained defiant to him. She was a real Warrior. I wish I could have met her.

"As for you and the project I assigned to you, Commander Kandikan, I was told by others that you were up to the task. It seems their faith was justified. General Rikoletsi, do you have any comments you'd like to make?"

"Lord Kandikan's green yet, but he's learning fast. I am satisfied with his efforts and that of his people." The general smiled briefly. "He's even convinced us to start training our own sniffer dogs! Three platoons of his troopers are training with two of our companies. Finding the right dogs is an issue, but we are on-board with their importance. And, we're working out greater coordination between Air and Ground Security."

The Air Marshal stood, and the general and both commanders rose with him. The rest of us stood as well. He looked at me as he spoke. "I'm hereby confirm you in your post as commanding officer of the 602 Air Security regiment. Congratulations, Commander. I will send written confirmation later on. As for the Minister's threat, I and the others, once I explain what's happened here, will do our best to stop Supay from attacking you and your family and from destroying this war base. Hopefully we can get the Emperor to intervene. I'll leave Bernim here to discuss some important information in that regard."

Turning to Doyya, he gave a slight bow. "It was a pleasure to see you again, Captain, though I wish it had been under more pleasant circumstances. Your promotion is well-deserved. You have my personal gratitude, as do you, Sergeant Sowitwee. I will light a candle to Huizilopochtli for your lost friends."

Nodding, she said, "Thank you, sir."

"Some will say that what she did, putting on Orchid's uniform earned her the death she received," the Air Marshal said. "Supay may have created the idea of Commander Orchid, but the fact remains is that some cities are re-running old episodes because the common citizenry are requesting it. The commoners were afraid of her, but they also revere her as the Vengeful Hand of the Emperor, and the stories of her bringing justice across the Empire are actually gaining traction rather than fading away. While I don't approve of wearing rank that isn't earned, Imperial Security often deceives in its mission to gain the necessary intelligence to protect the Empire, and their operation was sanctioned by their commanding officer. I'd say that Lieutenant Tchanoonka acted in the spirit of Commander Orchid. Both of them died as real Warriors, and I'll see that their official records will reflect that bravery. You have my word on it."

Struggling, Doyya nodded. "Thank you, sir. You're right -- about Commander Orchid, I mean. I debriefed them both on their return here. The people they rescued? Lieutenant Tchanoonka never told them who she was, but they knew, sir. They knew. She said some of them wept, but all of them thanked Commander Orchid for saving them, and they thanked the Emperor for sending her."

The Air Marshal paused, then said, "Thank you, Captain. I'll pass that along."

Tears spilling unabashedly down her cheeks, Doyya saluted and he returned it.

Pen handed a flash drive to the Air Marshal, and a second one to Itznacoco.

Doyya's laptop suddenly started to grind loudly. Itznacoco darted over and after closing the lid, dumped it into the trash bin. Then he turned on the jammer. The laptop began to fizzle and smoke.

Commander Barankoshto opened the door, and called out, "I need a fire extinguisher! Now!"

An office worker hurried to comply. Taking it from him, the commander moved to the noisy device as it slowly died, and liberally hosed down the bin and smoking electronic ruin with fire suppressant.

Doyya was furious. "That dirty bastard! It's not enough that he murdered my friends but he has to kill my laptop, too? What am I supposed to do for tonight?"

"Marshal, the file contained a virus," Pen said. "That means you should have the flash drive cleaned before you try to watch the film again."

The Marshal nodded thoughtfully, dropping the memory stick into his right breast pocket. "I'll remember. Thank you, Lieutenant."

I turned to Doyya. "Captain Lovyanchiti, you should take Yalcamara's laptop for your own. I think she'd be pleased that you inherited her machine."

She just nodded.

As the commotion died down and the smoke and suppressant were dispersed by ventilation, the Air Marshal, his aide, two bodyguards, and the two Ground Service officers departed from my office.

Pointedly, Itznacoco sat back down.

Hanami still sobbed quietly in Chita's arms.

"Empty your cups," I ordered. Going to my desk, I unlocked the bottom right drawer, pulling out a bottle of blue metl juice. I don't normally drink the stuff, but I kept it there, just in case Janetta ever showed up. Now I was glad I had it.

Sowitwee dumped the remaining cahault from the urn into the bin with the dying laptop, and it gurgled into silence. They brought cups over and I gave them two shots worth each. Without ado, everyone drank it down, including Itznacoco.

"Air Service," Itznacoco said.

"Air Service," we echoed.

I looked at Doyya. "Do you need a hug?"

She shook her head. "I'd love one, sir, but I'm all right for the moment. Later tonight I'll break down and begin to mourn them, but for the moment, I have work to do."

"Weeping for the fallen is not wrong or weak, Doyya. After you make the duty assignments, you tell your XO he's in command for the night. Then I want you to go home. Chita, you go with her. Hanami? You have someone to look after you?"

My admin looked shattered by what she had witnessed. I was still processing it myself.

"We'll make sure she gets home, Commander," Chita promised.

"Good. Why don't you notify Lieutenant Minhawee on the captain's behalf that he's acting Shift Commander for tonight's shift, and that he's responsible for doing the shift report."

"Yes, sir." Chita lead Hanami out of the office, closing the door behind her.

It was just the four of us now, with the jammer humming quietly on my desk, creating a field of white noise for all electronics.

I looked at Itznacoco. "Do you want another shot?"

"No, I'm good. But I appreciate the gesture."

Sealing up the bottle, I secured it back in my drawer. "I assume you have things to say to me or to all of us?"

"I do. First off, the general doesn't know it, but his command of this war base is becoming permanent. Orders of the War Minister, and both the Marshals agreed to it. Rikoletsi gets his second sun at the parade ceremony tomorrow. Barankoshto is getting promoted to general, and being given command of the division."

"Holy gods. That means she--"

"Yes, she's the first woman, aside from an Empress, to ever hold the rank of general. If anyone was going to get it, it was going to be her. Kandikan!"

"Yes?"

"You are not going to Copán in a fit of vengeance. I absolutely forbid it."

"Most of my staff already informed me of that same decision. Though, may I ask, why hasn't someone put a bullet into that maniac's head?"

Itznacoco made a noise half-way between irritation and exasperation. "Supay is first cousin to the Emperor, that's why."

Seven hells! All three hot, all three cold, and the one in between!

Doyya looked like she'd just been punched in the gut -- just after seeing her good friend murdered on video.

At my astonished face, he added, "Yes, Supay's mother is the younger sister to the Emperor. The Emperor and Supay grew up together and were good friends. Supay wasn't always like he is now. At one time, he was an admirable man. Loyal to the Empire and the Emperor, and so the Emperor made him Minister of Imperial Security. It was during this time that he came up with the idea of Commander Orchid. For all his many faults, he remains openly respectful of the Emperor, and I think in his own twisted heart, it's still genuine.