Ifrailian Tales

The Announcement

A cascade of white powder, temperatures below freezing, and an empty yet vast landscape expanding in all directions. Artemis slowly roused from his slumber, bearing witness to the unfamiliar landscape. The frozen water coated his entire body, with only a bit of the upper body and face untouched. It was relaxing, so much so Artemis never even thought of questioning his surroundings.

"It’s cold,” a smooth female voice remarked. He sat himself up, frantically scanning the desolate scenery. But there was no one, not a soul. He waited, only to be rewarded with stunning silence. Artemis sighed, he began to drop his body back into the welcoming blanket of snow. Only to be interrupted by the same disembodied voice.

“Yet you don’t seem to mind,” she interjected.

He sprung to his feet, “Who’s there!”

“Frozen over and empty,”

“What…are you talking about?” without a physical presence to focus on, Artemis found himself glancing up at the sky above. For some unknown reason, he found the voice, soothing. If he were to compare it to anything, only the loving embrace of a mother could come close to the emotions she unleashed within him. Soon enough the adrenaline faded and their conversation, as unusual as it was, felt perfectly normal.

The voice returned, “Life cannot flourish buried beneath ice. Only after basking in the warmth of the sun’s glow can living beings bloom.”

“Maybe for most,” Artemis said, reaching out and letting the snow touch his palm. “But some adapt and make a home for themselves under the ice. While few in numbers compared to the majority, they are fine with the cold.”

“Intriguing response Artemis.”

“How did you know-”

A yellow butterfly flew high above the clouds with a soft trail of light following it, “Even those who call the barren tundra home surround themselves with members of their species. So why are you alone?”

“Alone,” Artemis glanced up at the sky, spotting the butterfly before it ducked away behind a cloud. When he turned back to his hand, the accumulated snow had melted. Leaving behind nothing but a lukewarm puddle. “The snow… stopped falling?”

In an instant everything was gone.

"A dream,” a strange one at that.

The morning sun had barely surfaced, painting the horizon a mellow orange. Other than himself, none of his fellow soldiers were woken. Walking on the tips of his toes, Artemis slapped on his utility belt and saw himself out. He stepped into the courtyard of their military base. As predicted it was deserted, training weapons and various other pieces of equipment were strewn about. Sloppy, he thought while walking through the yard. He believed his soldiers were above this, looks like he was wrong.

Dawn started to settle in, the shy shifted from a distinct orange to a more neutral yellow. A short ways away from the military base rested a small town. Which was slowly coming to life as townsfolk started their daily routines. The hustle and bustle of an everyday citizen was something Artemis missed more than he could have possibly imagined. After a short walk, the budding soldier was standing before the massive, twenty meter high wall.

Erected just before the start of the Federation war. This wall served as the literal and figurative last hope for those back at home. If this towering shield of metal fell, it would signal the beginning of the end. Of course not literally, this town was nowhere near the size of the cities closer to the capital. Explaining the lack of resources funneled into this community's defense. A total contradiction, at least in Artemis’s eyes. He yawned, stretching out his fatigued limbs before stepping onto the magnetically powered lift.

Artemis tapped the button at the control panel’s center. The sound of the lift powering up resembled a gentle hum. It started to raise, scaling the hulking wall at a moderate pace. As it neared the summit, he found himself unable to look away from the stunningly beautiful view of the countryside. The rolling hills of green, fields of flowers, he could see it all from atop the wall.

The defensive wall was built in between two gray, rocky mountains. These massive landmasses carried on for kilometers to the left or right. Thanks to nature, trying to avoid the mountain range was considered incredibly inconvenient. Especially if you were attempting to transport a large military force. The trip would prove to be a logistical nightmare. Forcing anyone interested in entering Alexandrian territory to pass through the wall.

Once the lift reached its destination Artemis was reminded of something truly fascinating. The inventiveness and adaptive nature humanity had been blessed with. Two heavy machine gun turrets were connected to the wall’s foundation. Poking out from an elevated position on opposite ends of the structure. Currently they were inactive, only to be activated in dire situations.

He passed the rightmost turret whilst aimlessly wandering the apex. His hand lightly clutched the protective railings, the metal’s surface chilled his skin. Unbeknownst to Artemis, the clock had struck seven o’clock. Cuing in the monotonous day of busy work ahead. Not that it was a bad thing, the mundane was a result of peace. Still, it’d be a lie to say the days weren’t melding together. In fact, while he would never mention this to another living soul. Somewhere, buried deep within his subconscious, he craved excitement.

“Another day,” he sighed and slumped forward against the railing. Down below, the grumblings of young, lazy soldiers rang out clear as day.

Millions of lives snuffed out in such a short amount of time. And how did the government respond to the tragedy? By Sending out a mandatory draft, demanding all physically capable men and women enlist into the military's ranks. The latest batch of men sent are almost completely composed of teenagers, seventeen to eighteen. They should be learning math, not weapon management.

A damn shame, he groaned and shook his head. But once he opened his eyes, something was off. Artemis noticed something out of place, at the edge of the canyon’s entrance. He strained himself, pushing his sight to it’s limit. Narrowly making out a humanoid figure walking towards the barrier. There was something else, actually not something… someone behind him!

Artemis yanked the flare gun from his belt and fired off a red smoke signal into the air. As the commanding officer of this encampment, he’d recognize the beige and red coloration of their uniform anywhere. Following this mysterious stranger was a fellow Alexandrian, and if their limp was anything to go by. She was subjected to the Federation’s infamous interrogation techniques. And through a simple process of elimination, Artemis determined that the mysterious figure must be aligned with the rival nation. Odd, for such an oppressive government this man was allowed to deviate quite drastically from Federation standard colors.

Red smoke signals were only used in extreme situations. As such, all combatants were required to address the source of the flare as soon as possible. Ten of the more skilled men and women used grappling hooks to quickly scale the wall. While the majority of warriors piled into one of the many lifts spread across the ground. Those who had already reached the top immediately fell in line. Weapons drawn and sights locked onto the Federation soldier.

“Here you go sir,” Artemis's second in command, Daniel said while passing him a magnum. Artemis nodded in approval, gripping the sidearm’s wooden handle. He turned the gun from side to side examining the engravings carved into the barrel. Then he ejected the magazine, fully loaded, overall this weapon was in mint condition. Typical of Daniel, he never was one to skip the small things. Everything was in order, although all he needed was a single bullet in the chamber.

The Federation troop continued his lackadaisical stroll through the grassy canyon. Only stopping when a bullet struck the ground directly in front of him. The man made it halfway through the canyon before he stopped. There was a stunning silence afterwards. No one atop the wall spoke, hell if anyone so much as breathed he couldn’t hear it. Making matters worse, the Federation soldier finally glanced up from the ground. With an ear to ear smile, the tension was palpable.

“Good evening my Alexandrian friends,” he shouted for all to hear. Somehow his message was perfectly audible despite the distance. His voice was unpleasant in almost every way. High pitched, whiney, and worst of all his words were backed by an undeniable confidence. If someone could approach a heavily fortified enemy position with absolutely no fear. They’ve either experienced hell, or they’re just insane. And Artemis’s gut was leaning towards the ladder.

“I’ve come here, on this fine morning. In the aspiration of creating an unforgettable experience comes nightfall!” the stranger paused, and motioned for his prisoner to move forward. She obliged, taking four steps forward. The poor girl was covered from head to toe with scrapes and bruises. There was a collective wave of emotions that washed over the Alexandrians. Some cursed the Federation, others looked away from the beaten woman, and a few started to bark out threats of violence. Differing reactions, but there was a continuity between them, they all stemmed from an overwhelming sense of fear.

“Friends, friends come on now,” the man started up again, “There is no need for such vulgar insults. After all death is nothing to be afraid of.”

A young man with spiked, brown hair spoke up, “What are you here for Federation dog? You here to gloat about your torture methods, you sick fuck.”

“Dog. My name is Razaza, my good sir. And in a manner of speaking, that is precisely why I’m here!” Razaza placed his left arm around the woman’s shoulder, “Our mutual contact here was personally trained by yours truly. And she has realized the futility of this war.”

Razaza clicked his tongue, in response the female soldier dropped to her knees. Time seemed to freeze for a moment, everyone knew what was going to happen. But no one wanted to believe it. The Federation trooper smirked, plucking a six inch rod off his hip. Razaza held the hilt high in the air, everyone watched as the item ignited. Extending from the metal rod was a sharp, glowing crimson blade. He started to laugh, perhaps he found the stunning silence from his opponents amusing. He brought the blade to his side, pressing the side of the superheated weapon against his hostage’s cheek.

“Oh my god.”

“Federation savages!”

“I… I can’t watch…”

For the second time today, Artemis’s ranks were in a panic. Certainly not helped by the arrival of the troops who rode the lifts. They were scared, only adding to the who could blame them. The Federation’s archangel was threatening to execute an unarmed combatant.

Honestly, Artemis was at a loss for words. A violent torrent of contradictory thoughts splashed inside his head. Razaza, could be assumed to be a member of the Federation’s elite force. That of course, is an assumption based entirely on his choice of weapon. Those swords were used by the Federation’s shock trooper division. Known for being unpredictable, fast and efficient killing machines, the A.C.G gave them the designation Spector's.

That was only one issue however. This town and by extension the wall were built right in the center of Alexandrian territory. While the Federation have been relentless with their invasions, there were still two massive cities between them and the wall. If a spector managed to knock right on their doorstep, what happened to the others?

Daniel brought Artemis back to reality with a bump on the shoulder, “Commander, what are your orders?”

“...He’s clearly trying to provoke us.”

“Yes but with all do respect sir. We can’t just sit back and do nothing-”

“Take a look at the tree line,” Artemis waved his hand, then pointed to the end of the canyon, Daniel pulled up his binoculars, in a moment of confused obedience. At first glance, everything was in order. The entrance to the valley was peppered with tall pine trees. Entirely lacking in anything abnormal. He thought, Maybe, for the first time since deployment, the commander had let the pressure get to him.

That is until Daniel spotted a shrub, an ordinary, flower covered bush. But upon further inspection, the bush seemed to ripple and distort. Alarmed he amplified the image, the cloud of distortion curved and bent at the right angles, vaguely creating a human form. Daniel’s stomach churned, he dropped the binoculars and turned to his commanding officer.

Artemis acknowledged his comrade, “More Federation Spectors, we have no way of knowing what other tricks he might have up his sleeve.”

“So what do we do sir?”

“The only thing we can do, watch.”

Razaza swept his gaze across the entire fortified peek, “See, unlike you wretched souls, who insist on prolonging this conflict. My assistant here is more than willing to embrace death.”

In less than a second, Razaza flicked his wrist, and decapitated the woman. Instantly, Artemis’s ranks were thrown into chaos. More than a third erupted into a hellish fury, there was no more room for restraint. Out of the twenty men, nine leaned over the railing and opened fire. The roar of gunfire drowned out the panicked cries of the more weak willed.

The accumulated rifle fire created a mask of gray smog. This didn’t deter them, they continued until the entire clip had been emptied.

The fog started to fade.

“Commander!” Daniel shouted.

Artemis looked over his shoulder to Daniel, who pointed back at what should have been a bullet ridden corpse. Instead, the commander saw a purple devil and a cluster of bullets hovering in midair. Razaza’s laughter cut deeper than any blade could have, striking fear into the hearts of all present. Behind the Federation devil, came four Specters, all of which pushed their arms forward. Streams of vivid white light were emanating from their palms.

“Well this isn’t exactly a warm welcome,” Razaza said, retracting his blade and returning it to his hip, “All we wanted was an audience but instead we were met with primitive weaponry! You insult me and as such, we can only respond in force.”

“Everyone down,” Artemis exclaimed.

In sync the four Spector’s clapped their hands, which propelled the gathered rounds of ammunition back at the Alexandrians. Artemis immediately dropped to the floor, followed by Daniel, and a few others. Blood spurted, and chunks of flesh flew. Those who didn’t plummet down the wall, hit the floor. Splashing their crimson liquid onto their still living comrades.

It was over in the blink of an eye. More than half of the Alexandrian forces were gunned down. And all their leader could do was duck for cover. Artemis cursed himself, fifteen young lives snuffed out just like that. Reduced to nothing but another name slapped onto a casualties report. He hated himself, he wanted to lash out against the Federation. He wanted to ram his fist down that cocky Spector’s throat.

He slammed his fist into the metal plating. For now it was critical that he maintained a leveled head. As long as a single member of his unit remained, he’d do his damndest to ensure they survive. Shortly after the initial explosion, all was silent. An undetermined amount of time went by, then the brown haired man poked his head above cover. They were gone, all except the slumped remains of an unfortunate victim.

“And you are certain of this?”

“That is correct sir. According to our data, Specters are used for various tasks, assassinations, espionage, and scouting.”

“...How much time do we have?”

“The squad leader said he’d make tonight an unforgettable experience. So I’d assume nightfall.”

“Damn,” the voice coming from the speakers paused, “Artemis you know the reinforcements couldn’t possibly arrive by then.”

“I know sir, I’d just like to know our next course of action.”

The commander on the display cursed under his breath, then he sighed and resumed the conversation, “Our next course of action…?”

Artemis nodded.

“Defend the wall, by any means necessary,” and with that the display shut off. A simple order, even the most simple minded would fail to misinterpret. All was quiet, not even the machierary seemed to create sound. Silence, an eternal void which nothing can escape. Was this what death was like, would all of his soldiers march into this unnerving quiet if he ordered it? More importantly, could he live with all this blood on his hands…

Knock, knock, knock.

“Protect the wall at all costs huh?”

Artemis snapped back to the entrance, the brown haired man from earlier was standing in the doorway, “Eavesdropping on me could get you court marshaled.”

He couldn’t tell if the man was ignoring him on purpose or not. Regardless he hocked a loogy onto the floor, “What a load of s**t. They just expect us to die like a bunch of cannon fodder.”

Artemis knew this boy was right, but he had a responsibility as captain to maintain order within his unit, “Not true, we only need to hold them back until reinforcements arrive from the capital.”

“We’re a decent way away from Apelina. If I had to guess, I’d say it takes about a day or two to travel there. And your telling me the cavalry’s going to swoop in and bail us out by seven PM? Sorry if I’m not exactly enamored with the idea.”

“You swore an oath to the kingdom when you enlisted. These doubts shouldn’t have even popped into your head.”

“Oh really,” the soldier leaned up against the door frame and chuckled, “News flash sir, not all of us were patriotic citizens ready to die for our king. Most of us are conscripts. In short, we don’t wanna die captain.”

“You won’t, as long as you follow my orders.”

“Uh huh,” he rolled his eyes and started to walk away from the comm room. But he stopped in the middle of the hall, “Dante.”

“What?” Artemis replied, taking a step out the doorway.

“My name, it’s Dante. If you're gonna send me to my death, the least you could do is learn my name.”

Dante, with a strange sense of satisfaction continued down the hall. Artemis let out a drawn out sigh. Something warm, yet cold at the same time dribbled down his forehead. When wiped away, it was a bead of sweat. For a youngster, Dante sure knew how to stress someone out. He was impressed, not often one of the newer recruits showed any backbone. Even so that conversation didn’t just unveil a strange respect for Dante, it revealed one of Artemis’s deepest fears.

“I… I don’t want their deaths on my hands…”

There was a shocking lack of communication from the captain. Which lasted throughout the entire morning, and the early hours of the afternoon. Razaza’s threat had cast an eerie sense of dread that enveloped the entire encampment. Thankfully the townsfolk had been spared of such grim news. What in reality was a bloodbath, to the civilians it was dressed up as a training mishap.

And so the citizens were able to continue their day to day activities. Blissfully unaware of the dire circumstances awaiting them. Yet for the Alexandrian forces stationed at the wall, it was anything but. They knew what fate had in store for them, and it was frightening. The passage of time did little to ease they’re anxieties. So perhaps the sudden announcement of a strategy meeting was a light in the dark. Finally, something was being done, and anything was better than wallowing in fear.

One by one the soldiers all filed into the cafeteria. Each one anxiously awaiting their orders. Luckily Artemis wasn’t going to leave them hanging for much longer. He’d left them alone, leaderless for far too long as is. Eventually the entire room was filled to capacity with men and women. Daniel pushed through the crowd until he reached the table his captain stood on.

“Everyone’s present,” Daniel said, “Sorry if I’m speaking out of line sir, but this isn’t exactly proper protocol-”

“To hell with protocol,” Artemis turned away from his stunned second in command and did one last scan of the audience. Among the sea of faces, he was able to pick out Dante’s head of spiked hair. Great, after all the conversation they had, acted as the catalyst for this new plan.

“I’m only going to explain this once,” everyone was listening, soaking up his every word. “A few hours ago I received our orders from command. According to the A.C.G, I’m supposed to fight to the last man for this wall's defense.”

The crowd fired up, their collective questions all piling together into an unintelligible cacophony of sound. Though it took some time, Daniel was successfully able to quell the majority of them, lowering the volume enough for the commander to be heard.

“You all took an oath when you enlisted. Therefore, you are all expected to lay down your life for this land,” Artemis raised his voice, fighting over the other voices, a battle which he won. For the second time all eyes were on him.

“Is what I should be telling you,” there was an obvious drop in intensity and drive in the man’s tone. “But honestly, I can’t stomach it…”

Everyone glanced at one another amidst the confusion. Unsure of how they should be interpreting his words. Before anyone else could speak up, Artemis carried on, “So here’s what I’m doing instead. I only need four of you, two for each of the turret towers. The rest of you will act as security for the evacuating civilians.”

A timid sounding man spoke up, “Sir.. are you allowed to make that call?”

“No,” Artemis replied, “If command had their way, the citizens would be evacuated and every soldier here would fight till their last breath to buy the townsfolk more time to escape. But you know what, I’m doing it anyway.”

“I just need four, four men or women who’ll stay behind and fight the Federation.”

Another unnerving silence crashed into the room like a silent wave. Who, who would be the one man or woman to knowingly march headfirst into their own demise. Artemis wouldn’t expect anyone to agree to such a task, but it doesn’t change the fact that he needed them. Without the heavy gunner towers, the wall would be swarmed in a manner of minutes. And the evacuees, massacred alongside them.

“I’ve got a question,” A voice Artemis recognized rang out. Dante pushed his way to the very front of the circle, standing a meter or two away from the table Artemis stood on, “This is a nice gesture, really. But no one’s gonna follow you into hell if you aren’t gonna lead the charge old man.”

“You clearly don’t understand. I’m not going anywhere, soldier.”

“Is that so,” Dante scoffed, but shockingly he moved next to the left side of the table, and stood by Artemis's side, “Guess I’m staying then.”

Artemis didn’t question Dante’s reasoning, it didn’t matter. He still needed three more people. Almost in response to his superior's thoughts, Daniel stepped up to the plate, “I’ll follow you sir.”

“Alright, I just need two more.”

The silence remained.

Artemis sighed, “Listen, I’m not going to lie to all of you. If you stay, you will die, it’s an undeniable fact. But I want you all to think about what you’ve lost. Family members, friends, lovers, the Federation took all of them from us in their conquest. Now they’re knocking on our doorstep. So for those of you who have someone you’d like to protect, if we let those monster’s get past this outpost they’ll share our fate. And if you’ve already lost everything to this war, well, I’m sure putting a bullet through a federation trooper’s face will help ease the pain.”

The speech did very little to motivate. No one else volunteered, they all just stood there like deer in headlights. Was there nothing else he could do to inspire these young men and women. No, no of course there wasn’t. Death wasn’t just a possibility, it was a cold fact of reality. For all he knew, maybe the ones who stayed behind were abnormal.

Artemis understood, “For those of you not defending the wall. Head for town and rally up the townsfolk for immediate evacuation. You don’t have time to pack your things, and neither do the civillations. Time is already running low…”

The middle aged man shut his eyes and took in a breath. He didn’t need to see, to know what was happening. These soldiers, no, humans didn’t hesitate to get out of harm's reach. Footsteps bounced off the walls, as they flocked out the doors, and headed towards the town. The presence of others started to grow fainter, and fainter, until finally all the footsteps became distant, then gone entirely.

He opened his eyes, and was left speechless by what he saw. Two males, and two females stood in the center of the cafeteria.

“You four… why?” He couldn’t help but ask, no one would volunteer, no one spoke up, so why were they here now?

“For the same reason all of us are here captain,” Dante said without even looking his way, “They got nothing to go back to. No future left, so better to die getting some revenge as opposed to living like a husk. Even if they don’t know it, that’s why they’re here.” The opinionated man looked the way of the other soldiers, who in turn avoided looking at him directly.

“Whatever the reason we’re all here now,” The captain returned to the floor, “And we’ve got to get ready, it’s almost time.”

The clock had just passed 5:59, now it was 6’oclock. The sun began its slow descent, downward on the horizon. There was a single hour left at most...

Sixty minutes until the Federation wipes this town off the map...