The army reached the very edges of the desert. Reginald looked over the mountain ahead, a natural barrier between them and the more forested areas further ahead. Going around would take them an extra two weeks since the nearest passage was almost sixty miles away and full of annoying hillsides that made it difficult for vehicles. And traveling via the ocean was a big no as they still had the data from near a decade ago. They stopped all ships from traveling on those waters cause of that damn mutant. So what other way was it then right trough the mountain?

A giant drill was currently carving a nice, wide passage trough the rock easily large enough for tanks and transports. The engineer assured him that they would be all the way trough in just two days and after that they just had to secure the walls and roofs to keep it from collapsing, after that the Empire would have a quick, easy route to the north. Finally they had the means to properly secure north lands without having to sacrifice ships or rely on the air force alone.

He just wandered why the Empress wanted the land so badly, for a near decade she didn’t seem to care and now, clearly something had happened and she wanted those lands conquered immediately.

He turned around and looked trough his binoculars, seeing the small dust clouds and movement in the distance. These brand new machines appeared to work perfectly much to his surprise. They flattened the ground in front of them, crushing any rocks and hills, blasting the powder to the sides. Giant robotic arms laid down and welded long steel railways connecting their northern main station just outside the border of the Dead city to this mountain. Once finished it would go trough the new tunnel and transport any troops and machines they wanted in a fraction of the time they took getting here. Normally Reginald would never rely on engineers outside their own faction but whoever the patrols captured last month seemed to know what he was doing. Not even the robot department of the science agency thought of this, he had to question what kind of people they really trained back home.

‘General.’ he turned to the soldier,saluting him.

‘What is it soldier?’

‘Dimaryp wants a update sir.’

‘Very well then. Tell them we’re progressing according to schedule.’

‘Yes sir.’

After this though, that’s when the hard part came..

*

‘So you really lost all traces of them?’ the little boy asked the nervous looking man.

‘Yes sir, they somehow wiped out the raiders and then vanished. We aren’t equipped to track a flying target.’

‘They will appear again I assure you.’ the boy turned his chair back to the large screen and started typing some numbers.

In the mean time it seems the Empire is making a strange move, they’re pushing far north.’

‘North? What’s north?’

‘Empty forest land, followed by tundras and then a long, cold ocean before you reach the pole. Now why would she wanna go there?’

‘She?’

‘Nevermind that. I have new orders for you.’ a paper was printed out that he handed to the raider commander.

It was a map of the desert, several locations were marked.

‘There is a list of items you’ll need, if any of these camps are discovered everything is to be destroyed, no witnesses.’

‘Understood.’

*

Nightfall came, shrouding the town in total darkness. Juan headed out back to the cult site. As expected most were asleep in small tents made out of rags tied to tree branches.

Some were still awake, patrolling the camp. They were few in numbers and easy to sneak by. He kept moving until he found the large carving. Now he had a better view of it and it sent a shiver down his spine, just how did they make it so accurate? It looked just like that giant thing, his mind flashed back to that encounter. To that giant fucking in ocean. How did they know what it looked like?

He kept sneaking further in to that hidden area, right off to the side of carving, completely consumed in darkness.

At first it looked like nothing, just a tight gathering of trees and bushes with a very narrow path. Then he reached a clearing, a small one. A piece of rain proof material was hung above him, tied in between several trees to a makeshift roof. On the ground stood a chair, rusted metal, and a table with a old radio on it. Behind it was some kind of shrine, lit candles stood on a rock and a small carving of a woman in between them. The radio was switched on, its power came from a small battery laying nearby.

Now this was certainly interesting, a radio of all things... clearly this Roberto was talking to someone, whenever he believed it was a god or not was irrelevant. There was no sign of a card tough so he must carry it on his person. Now he could sneak back and look for him but risk getting caught or wait for him here, perhaps for hours or days, he had no idea how often he spook to his so called god.

He was about to go for the first option when he heard some rustling of leaves and swiftly ducked behind a tree. He could make out Roberto, sitting down on the chair and speaking into the microphone.

‘My lady I have troubling news. The outsiders are being more problematic than I thought. We just discovered the body of one the followers outside the lab, they’re clearly investigating and poses a threat to your plan. How do you want me to proceed?’

Many seconds of silence followed, he just sat there...listening to what was only light static.

Perhaps he really was jus ‘!rotanidro eht em gnirb dna meht lliK !suoregnad ot gnimoceb era yehT’

Juan almost jumped out of his skin! That voice...that horrible distorted voice. It was like a mix between a broken radio and machine, not to mention there was a eerie coldness about it. Not to mention that language...what kind of language was that?

‘My lady how are we supposed to do so? They are armed with weapons rivaling even Matilda. If we charge the ship we’ll be slaughtered.’

Juan stopped something in his pocked, it had opened up a bit as he sat down and something stuck out. He slowly crawled over, hoping for dear life that they kept talking.

‘.tser eht rof ton erac I noitisop ruoy sretne rotanidro eht sa gnol oS

!pihs eht dna snopaew rieht reh reffo ,werc eht etamile ot stnaw ehs gnihtyna reh reffo ,adlitaM fo esu ekam nehT’

‘Yes of course. That might just work, I know she always likes being the most heavily armed in town. She might just feel a bit restless with this dangerous outsiders staying in town.’

Slowly he reached his hand over and his fingers grazed a plastic object.

‘.eruliaf etarelot t'nod I .otreboR em liaf dluohs uoy fi sneppah tahw rebmemeR’

‘I’ll not fail you goddess. The intruders will be dealt with as you command.’

Slowly he lifted it out of the pocket and backed away.

‘.nac ohw enoemos dnif lliw I rO .od uoy taht eeS’

Roberto walked off, leaving the radio still on. Juan sat there not making a noise. He moved his head to the radio once Roberto was out of sight and listened for any breathing or background noise. Nothing...just light static, whoever he was talking to was not there anymore yet why leave the radio on? He didn’t really want to find out but just scribbled down the frequency it stood on and snuck out.

He doubted this was any god, or goddess, but clearly whoever, or whatever, he was talking to wasn’t normal.

*

Juan made it back to the ship in one piece, greeting Rock by the ramp.

‘You got the card?’ Jack asked him as she let put a puff of smoke from her cigar, sitting rather comfortably on their living room couch.

‘I did but there’s more. Where’s the others?’

‘Asleep, we have barely got any since we landed here.’ she dragged herself off the couch and put the cigar, pushing it onto the ashtray.

‘What else did you find?’

‘The whole crew better hear of it.’ Jack took the card and inspected it.

It was old but enough to make out everything important. It a bar code, some kind of number, and a picture of a elderly man. Beard, balding head and round glasses.

‘So this is Greenwall huh? Alright crew meeting tomorrow. Get some sleep, Rock’s on night watch.’

Juan got very little sleep that night, somehow that distorted voice kept replaying in his head, in its strange mix of screaming and talking.

The next morning he related everything the crew. Upon hearing the radio part Caleb’s face went ghostly white, fingers gave a slight tremble and eyes shooting open.

‘So this god...whatever is actually real? And somehow he Roberto can understand that load gibberish?’

‘Seems so. He’s definitely talking to someone, and they know who we are.’

Kel turned to Caleb. ‘You alright man? You look like you just saw a fucking ghost or something.’ he didn’t answer, he just stood there, his mind somewhere else.

‘Caleb??’ he then snapped out of it, noticing everyone looking at him.

‘Well....alright this is going to sound strange but... A few weeks back, right after we killed the raider warlord, I woke up on the middle of the night. There was a woman in my room...or at least I think it was a woman. She had glowing eyes and spoke in a strange weird language to me. Her voice was...distorted just like you described. I thought it was just another nightmare but your entire description gave me...whats it called? Deju va?’

‘Deja vu.’

‘That’s the one..’

‘Her eyes didn’t glow blue did they?’

‘No, orange. Very bright orange, like staring into headlights.’

Jack crossed her arms as all this new information sunk into her.

‘Somethings going on, something big. And we’re walking right into it. That dream of yours is no coincidence.’

‘How can you know that captain? I mean we all have seen strange things but this is starting to sound like ghosts.’

‘Its not, its something else. During my time with the Empire I was sometimes posted as a bodyguard for some higher ups. Government workers within the Dymarip itself. Although I never entered myself some of those old geezers used to talk about dreams a lot. That they saw a woman in those dreams and how she creeped them out. They were so casual about it, like sharing the very same person in their dreams was normal to them.

I knew there was something strange about that but never asked, it wasn’t my place to know.’

‘And all of this started with that cube yes?’ Doc asked rather curiously.

‘Well it started after I joined you...which is right after I got that cube.’

‘This is to fucking bizarre! Why don’t we just fucking destroy that thing??’

‘Because it can be of value Kel! If the Empire is looking for it then its possibly something we can use against them.’

‘You’re still pissed about that aren’t you?’

‘I’ll never be able to let it go Juan, you know that.’

Caleb then had an idea and went into the workshop, coming out with the cube a few seconds after.

‘65, do you recognize this cube?’

‘Negative. Object unknown.’

‘Well shit, who on the planet besides the fucking Empire knows what that thing is really?’

‘Javelin knows but I don’t think we’ll have much better luck there.’

‘For now we continue investigating here, we got the pass card so we can return to the lab any time. First things first tough we should deal with the cult.’

‘Roberto seemed to speak about getting help, and the name Matilda came up.’

‘Now she could be a bigger problem.. but what does the cult have that she wants?’

‘Besides free labour?’

‘We lost all night so no point in trying to beat them there. They’re probably negotiating as we speak.’

‘So how do we proceed?’

‘Hmmm....’

*

Matilda sat on her couch, her feet being massaged by one of her servants while she sipped in her whiskey, listening to the cultist deal.

‘Well as much as I’d love to get my hands on their guns I’m just not sure if sacrificing my boys is worth it. I can’t just replace them like that you know.’

‘We have people you’d want, servants willing to do your every bidding.’

‘Is that so?’

The cultist stepped aside and motioned for his companions to come forward. Three stood before the crime boss looking nervous and uncomfortable. Hesitantly they undid their robes and let them fall to the floor. Two males, one female. All young, barely adults, stood before here in nothing more then then garments. The most attractive cultists they could offer..

‘Interesting indeed...’ Matilda’s predatory glare seemed to burn right trough them, especially the guy in the middle.

‘Well I’m a bit bored of my current toys, I suppose I could take you up on your deal? What is it about their ship you want tough?’

‘Its not the ship, they have something on. We just one need that one item, everything else is yours.’

Matilda’s eyes seemed to light up like fireworks on the idea of owning that flying ship herself. A movable base, a way to expand beyond this pathetic town.

‘Tell Roberto I’ll accept your offer, but I’ll only attack once I’m ready. It would be unwise to just charge them head on.’

‘I’ll go tell him straight aw’ ‘I hope I’m not late.’

Everyone turned to see Jack bursting in trough the door.

‘Jack, you know its rude to burst in on meetings right?

‘I hadn’t noticed.’ she pushed the cultist aside, standing right in the middle of the room like she owned the place.

‘I’ll cut the chase. I want you to take out the entire cult.’

‘Is that so?’

‘Yes, and you’re going to do it for free.’ the thugs around the room snickered and laughed at her ridiculous statement.

‘Well there’s no lacking in confidence, I like that...however you seem to forget where you are and who you’re dealing with. Why in the world would do I do any of that?’

‘Because I know the cult wants me and my crew dead but they lack the means to do it. In fact you’re the only one in town who’s capable so of course they sent someone here, trying to get you to do their dirty work.’

‘Well they did make me a deal I can’t refuse. I get three new lovely playthings and your ship, along with everything else on board. What do you have to possibly match that?’

‘Your life.’ the laugh and snickering died down, tense silence hung in the air. To threaten Matilda in her own home, surrounded by her thugs..

‘You are quite arrogant you know. What makes you think I’ll let you live after threatening me like that?’

‘Cause you’re not as dangerous as you think you are. You have been stuck here for two decades, cut off from the rest of the world. Beyond this town you have no presence, no influence or power.

You’re barely past the level of a local street gang leader, or a raider gang hammering together huts of junk. The real mafia back south would eat you all alive.’

Everyone stood completely still, staring wide eyed and holding their breaths. Several seconds of deadly silence seemed to freeze time itself around them, until Matilda put her whiskey down and stood. Her eyes glaring at this at this intruder with sheer malice. How dear this bitch just walk in here and disrespect her like that? In her own house?

‘You have a death wish then, coming in here with filthy, low life mouth of yours and spouting nonsense.’ she walked right up and Jack, stopping her face mere centimeters in front.

‘I rule this entire landscape while you crawl trough the dirt. You eat of scraps on the ground while I feast on whine and steak. You are nothing more than street garbage who hasn’t learned her fucking place.’

‘Did I hurt your feelings princess?’

‘I think I’ll let you suffer some before I kill you. Let my boys “rough” you up several days until I burn you alive!’

‘You are not going to do any of that.’

‘Why not?’

‘Cause I have this entire building surrounded, you are all my hostages and with a snap of my fingers I can end you all right here.’

A mix of confusion and humor settled on Matilda’s face.

Jack finally took her hand out of her coat pocket, moved it up in the air so everyone could see. Then, with a face of perfect calm, she snapped.

Their ears nearly shattered upon the sounds of sudden thundering, glass shards flew everywhere and people fell to the floor. They didn’t even realize what was going on until everyone but Jack, Matilda and the final cultist was left standing, surrounded by corpses. More shooting came from both other rooms and outside.

‘Your little gang is finished Matilda.’

‘You fucking bitch! Coming in here and wrecking MY crew!! Who the fuck do you you are??!!’

‘Someone who has been doing this for a long time. Now I guess this nice house is mine.’

Jack acted with lighting quick reflexes when Matilda reached for her pocket, her hand slamming into the gangsters face and knocking her out.

‘You! Tell your owner that if he wants us dead, he has come and do the job himself. We’ll be waiting for him by our ship.’ the cultist ran in utter terror, sprinting out the door and towards the town.

Kel came in soon and handed Jack her gun. ‘Now lets clean this place up and start looting any ammo we can carry. They’ll move against us soon.’

*

‘Are you sure?? Every last one??’

‘Yes master! The entire gang was just wiped out completely! Somehow the outsiders knew! They planned it perfectly!’

‘This is getting out of hand already! The creator wants them all dead and the ones to do it was killed off. We need to do it ourselves!’

‘But master you said yourself tha’ ‘I KNOW WHAT I SAID!! But the creator doesn’t tolerate failure, she NEEDS that object they have!!’

Roberto passed back and forth, scratching his head nervously.

‘Alright we still outnumber them ten to one. Some of will die but there is no other way.’

‘YOU CAN’T BE SERIOUS!!’ one of the acolytes screamed.

‘Linn do you remember the fifth lesson we taught you?’

‘There is no death....only the mothers embrace.’

‘Yes, we need not fear it. What we should fear is what will happen to us if we fail her, if she denies us her embrace! Grab the knives and sticks. Most of us will charge from one side, a few others will attack from the side and ambush them. By the end of it we will have avenged our brethren.’

*

The crew stood ready for battle. After the clearing out Matilda’s house they hurried back with some more ammo, leaving the majority for the town to take. There wasn’t time to loot it completely.

Rock stood outside, facing the cultist camp, the rest stood by piles of iron boxes and its balcony for some minor cover. They wouldn’t need a lot for this one. Just as predicted they came out of the woods, dressed in those rags, carrying knives, wood chopping axes and even sticks.

They may be outnumbered greatly but this would be short battle.

The cultists screamed and charged them, the crew waited for them. Not firing a single shot but keeping their weapons aimed. Then, when enough had emerged out of the trees into the open did Jack fire the first shot. The instant the loud bang was heard Rock lifted his minigun, together with Caleb aiming the stationary one on the balcony, did they open fire. A hellish volley of bullets was unleashed on the cult, they fell to the ground in swarms, blood bursting out and falling on anyone nearby. The cults charge was broken, in a instant they panicked and started running in every direction. Others simply fell to the ground, clutching their ears screaming in utter terror, consumed by shock and dread. The field was quickly littered with their bodies, blood coloring the grass. The smaller squad did try go in the opposite direction but that to failed. Jack had prepared for almost every single scenario, as soon as they reached the ramp they were only greeted by Kel and doc. Armed with shotgun shells and acid. Three of them were killed near instantly and the other four ran, abandoning the plan and their fellow members.

And just like that, the battle was over. The field littered with dead cultists. The townsfolk came running, armed and fearing mutants but stopped dead in tracks when they saw the bodies of humans, brutally gunned down. Sera was in near shock as she stared at the bloody carnage, the few dozen survivors that was on their knees, clutching their heads. Screaming and crying, whoever they used to be was now broken and gone.

As the crew stepped outside to inspect the damage Sera was the first to ask ‘What the hell happened??’

‘We dealt with a problem.’ Jack coldly replied.

‘First Matilda and now them, just why are you shooting up the town?? should we all be scared of you now!?’ one of the townsfolk yelled.

‘They planned to kill us, we struck first. That’s how you survive out there, in real world. Go back to your homes everyone! Its over now.’

Reluctantly the crowd scattered, Sera giving one last look of disbelief and confusion.

‘Now where’s that leader of theirs?’

They searched the area, turning the bodies and yet Roberto was nowhere to be seen. After about an hour they went to the cult camp site and indeed he was there, arguing with a fellow member.

‘YOU LEFT US THERE! YOU LET US ALL DIE INSTEAD OF YOU!!’

‘I DID WHAT I TO! I’M THE CREATORS CHOSEN NOT YOU! IF I DIE THEN ALL IS LOST!’

‘YOU’RE A SELFISH COWARD WHO ONLY CARES ABOUT YOURSELF. I BET THERE IS NO GOD! YOU LIED TO US FROM THE BEGINING CAUSE YOU WANTED FOLLOWERS! YOU WANTED TO FEEL IMPORTANT!’

They grabbed each other and started to tumble, trying to throw each other on the ground.

Kel grabbed Roberto from behind and threw him over her shoulder, sending him facedown in the dirt.

‘You! Get out!’ The other cultist obeyed and sprinted away as fast as he could. Kel grabbed him the wrist and twisted it until he couldn’t move his arm anymore, and grabbed him also by the hair and held his head up, facing the crew.

‘Time to talk Roberto, we have questions that you’ll answer.’ Jack told the terrified man.

‘We know you’re talking to someone over the radio, who is it?’

‘Its the goddess. The creator of all AAAH!’ Kel twisted a little more, causing a sharp pain to scream over his entire arm.

‘I’ll ask again, who is it!?’

‘Its my god! I swear to you its true! Its the creator on the other line.’

‘I perhaps should have mentioned cap that he did kinda talk to her like he worshiped.’

‘I see...how did you get in contact?’

‘It was a few years ago, just a months after the first Leviathan attacks started. The Empire pulled their troops out and we tried radioing someone else for help. After days I finally got a signal. It was a sign from above, the voice on the other side....she spoke in a alien language yet I somehow understood, like she wanted me to. That’s how it started, I have served her ever since.’

‘Where did you find this?’ she took out the key card.

‘Where did you get that?’

‘Never mind that! Answer the question!’

‘She..guided me...told me to go to the lab in the forest. Somehow she knew it was there when everyone else didn’t. Told me how to use it...’

‘And so the mutants really are your fault are they?’

‘Its her will....what was I supposed to do??’

‘Not assume the freak on the other side isn’t some god just cause they it?’

‘How dare you insult the lady you ignorant worthless little AAGHHH!!’

‘The picture is pretty clear now cap, do we really need him?’

‘No...we don’t.’ she nodded to Kel and she moved her arms around his neck. With a snap the life suddenly vanished from his eyes and body slumped dead on the ground.

‘Now we finish what we started back there, shutting down these annoying mutants.’

‘What about the radio?’

‘We’ll take a quick look first.’

Juan showed them the small clearing, the radio was still there. Still tuned in on the frequency.

It was just a radio, giving some static noise. Yet it was unnerving, knowing that whoever was on the other side was someone dangerous. Extremely so, and had ample knowledge relating to old world labs.

Juan looked especially nervous, standing behind everyone.

Jack placed the recorder on the table and was about try it when Caleb put his hand on her shoulder.

‘Let me do it...please..’ she stepped aside and Caleb sat on the chair.

Taking a couple of deep breaths, he gently moved closer to the microphone and softly spoke into it.

‘Hello?’ they all stood still with baited breaths, complete silence over all of them. No answer came, just dead static.

‘Is...is anyone there?’ no answer, just dead static.

‘Well they’re probably not there so’ ‘??uoy era ohW’

Everyone froze in place, hearts jumping up to their throats!

Caleb also noticed that the cube started glow in his bag again, it hummed louder than ever before and even vibrated. Its heat was so intense he could feel it trough the layers.

‘Umm ya...we kinda killed Roberto and your cult.’

‘.yawyna kaew erew yeht ,esirprus oN ?did uoY’

‘Who are you anyway?’

‘.ylluferac tuo no ereh morf drow yreve ruoy hctaw lliw uoy ,esiw er'uoy fi dnA .dog ruoy ,relur ruoy m'I ,uoy niatretne it tuB .langis ym gnisu dna ytreporp ym gnillik ,emas eht uoy ksa dluoc I’

‘What do you want?’

‘?uoy yllaer taht sI .uoy htiw evah uoy gniht tahT .tiaw.....tnaw I .slaog ym llifluf oT

!tnaw I tahw evah uoY ?gniseretni siht t'nsi lliW’

He couldn’t understand a single word she said, but he knew one thing. This was her, the woman from the nightmare. The memories of that night when he saw her flooded back to him. This was her! She was real!!

He then only asked the one question left he could think of.

‘What is your name?’

‘.dlrow eht fo dne eht ta ruoy rof tiaw lliw I .yenruoj eht fo pets lanif eht ,siht fo lla ot yek eht stI....?eman yM’

The signal then cut, only louder static indicated a dead frequency was left now.