When Flesh Becomes a Prison: Chapter 2 – The Violence of Lust made Manifest

Chapter 2 – The Violence of Lust made Manifest

Chaos and the red mist overtake the once quiet streets of the town as people run for safety.

“Is…is anyone else feeling really weird because of this mist?” Ro asks.

“Yeah, try not to breathe it in or let it bother you,” Colina says.

I’m feeling really strange, too. My body feels hot, I feel a need to take off my body suit, and do something…regrettable to someone.

“Let your lust overtake you,” I hear a voice whisper in my ear.

“Huh?” I say aloud and look around for the source of the voice, only to see no one else besides Ro and Colina.

“Great, now I’m hearing voices.”

“Focus, Ro! We’re just a few more blocks away,” Colina says, just as a fleshy meteor lands in front of us, blocking the street.

The meteor looks to have various faces in it that are all contorted in agony, that moan and scream as if they were voices of the damned. It convulses before a multitude of distorted bodies come out of them with faces on them and many sharp spider, bone-like limbs protruding out of them.

“Give yourselves to pleasure. Our god Lavinia will ensure you live in happiness forever,” that voice whispers again.

The creatures leap at us, and Ro, Colina, and I transform our cybernetic arms into canons to blast them apart. Even in pieces, the creatures convulse and crawl their way towards us, while also trying to form into one another to regenerate. More creatures form themselves from the fleshy meteor, so we run back, looking for an alternative route, while blasting back the creatures that come for us.

“Give in. You’ve been leading such a dull life, and this is the time to treat yourself to something truly pleasurable and fulfilling,” the voice says.

Continuing ahead, we see the creatures attacking the law enforcement and civilians, watching them kill them, and melding their bodies with theirs. Just what the hell are these horrific creatures?

“Become one with us, and you’ll feel the never-ending satisfaction that we’ve been feeling for centuries,” the voice says.

“Clear a path ahead! We have to rush through them. We can’t stay here!” I say as I lead my squad forward.

Ro covers one side of our advance, Colina covers the other, and I push us ahead, switching between my arm cannon and blades that come out of my other arm and legs. By the time we get to the car, I’m covered in the blood and living flesh of the creatures, and I have to clean the flesh off me as it tries to enter my skin. Ro is driving the car, while Colina sits with me in the back, and he speeds off, driving from the streets and pavement to try to get us away from the creatures and town as fast as possible.

“You love these people, don’t you? Why don’t you share your feelings for them with physical contact?” the voice asks.

The effects of the red mist are making me feel lightheaded and not myself.

“…stop…no…” I say out loud as I fight the suggestions of the voice.

“Griselda-Griselda!” Colina says, grabbing my hands and restraining me.

“What’s going on? What are you doing?”

“What am I doing? What are you doing? You were touching yourself weirdly.”

“I was?”

“This red mist seems to prey upon people’s lustful desires,” Ro says. “The creatures also moan and convulse with dead bodies sexually.”

“Of all the kinds of humanoid aliens to face, I didn’t expect to get the horny ones,” Colina jokes.

“I’m sorry…I’m sorry,” I say.

“Sorry about what?” Ro asks.

“Sorry for not saving your town and commanding you to run away.”

“It’s okay. It’s not like we could’ve done anything while we were there. Hopefully, its defenders can hold out by the time we come back with our mechs.”

Ro drives out of the town and continues to dodge incoming flesh meteors and tendrils coming from the invading planet. By the time we make it back to base, everyone is on high alert, and everyone across the planet is deployed to face this threat. I’m told by command that they’ve been having trouble communicating with others because of interference coming from the planet, so my squad and I immediately get in our mechs, where we have better communication devices and weaponry, and go back to the town to cleanse it from infection. With seemingly everyone inside, we use our shoulder-mounted miniguns to slaughter the hordes of fleshy creatures, use the laser rifles to blow the meteors apart, and the canons to blow the tendrils from the planet away. Once the area is clear, I look around to check for survivors, but don’t see any.

Seeming to know what I’m looking for, Colina says, “The townspeople are probably still hiding.”

“They should stay inside until that planet is dealt with,” Ro adds.

“You’re right,” I admit. “How should we handle this? I’m assuming we’ll have to use our mech’s overdrive function to destroy it.”

“The overdrive function is still in beta and could turn our mechs into self-destructing nukes. That’d have to be our last resort,” Ro says.

“How about we fly up there first, tear it apart, and see what happens before turning to options like that, huh?” Colina asks.

“Agreed,” I say.

My squad and I activate the space function of our jets so they can shoot us at high speeds into space. As we ascend upward, we link up with other squads of mechs, superhumans, heroes, and vigilantes, who are going to support us. This relief is quickly taken away as more meteors descend from the fleshy planet, most of which break apart in the atmosphere, so that their flying flesh creatures can meet us in the air. We try to fight them and help clear the way for our allies, but more and more enemies keep coming, forcing us to fight through the incoming hordes so that we don’t run out of jet fuel.

“With us, you can finally feel complete. With us, you can feel satisfied for the first time. With us, you can feel like you matter,” the voice says.

“I do matter,” I accidentally say out loud.

“What was that, Griselda?” Colina asks.

“Don’t worry about it. Those voices are bothering me again.”

“Pray and focus on the task. There’s a supernatural aspect to this foe. I can feel it,” Ro says.

“The happiness they’ll give you is temporary. The happiness we’ll give you is eternal,” the voice says.

Shut up, shut up, shut up!

“Become one with our flesh. Together, you’ll feel more loved than you ever had, than you deserve.”

Hail Mary, full of grace…

“Your family and coworkers have used you ever since you were born. Have you ever made a decision that was truly yours? Have you ever done something for your own pleasure?”

Guardian angel, guardian dear…

“We have unlocked the secret of unending worldly happiness through our god and her angels. Your skin cries out for it. We can feel it. Give in.”

I scream out, activate the laser sword function of my rifle, and plunge it into the large eyes on the surface, and an eruption of blood comes out. I keep yelling and screaming until I feel one of my mech’s arms being pulled away.

“Griselda!” Ro says.

“Don’t let it get to you!” Colina says.

Stopping what I’m doing, I say, “I know I’m not supposed to. I know I’m supposed to be stronger than this as the child of a Mundr and Emundation, but I’m not! I can’t stop this voice from digging into my head and making me act out!”

“Depend on us then.”

“That’s why we’re here. You’re not alone.”

“Right…right…still, we have to destroy this place. At least my rage did something productive.”

“Sort of. Look.”

The eye that I was stabbing closes its wound, and blood stops pouring out of it. It then eerily looks at me, and whispers start crawling into my ears.

“There has to be a faster way of killing this thing,” Ro says.

“Let’s do it together and quickly,” Colina adds. “The voices are getting to me, too.”

As we move, we feel the ground shake until large creatures comprised of faces and limbs are formed out of it and swarm us from every direction. God, I’m going to need your help more than ever.

When Flesh Becomes a Prison: Chapter 1 – Attack from Living Flesh

Chapter 1 – Attack from Living Flesh

Work, relax, sleep, repeat. Work, relax, sleep, repeat. Work, relax, sleep, repeat. This four-phase cycle is common among most people, but my family placed extra emphasis on it, making it their mantra. You dedicate your life to God, and you relax and sleep so you can do it again tomorrow, the day after, and the rest of your life as an eternal prayer. My family especially needs to be on our best behavior because of who we are. My mother is a Mundr, a member of the Castigators, and my father is an Emundatio, a member of the Compassionate. Our families control, keep peace in the world, and guide it to Heaven.

My name is Griselda Emundatio, and I am another pillar of society, just as my siblings, parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents before me, and I must be the best. Every part of my life, from my childhood to my current adult life, has been optimized to make me this way. My education, my extracurricular activities, and even the things I do to relax or the places I go on vacation are each chosen by my parents and teachers to shape me into what I am now. That’s not to say it all feels like work and routine, that there isn’t any fun to be had, or that I don’t have any freedom, but I’ve always felt like my life was one long hallway with impenetrable windows, where I could see the lives of others, who seemed to have limitless possibilities, while I only had one destination. Even though that destination is being a great protector of humanity, it still feels unearned, not something I fully want, and just another part of the cycle.

Then, again, what do I want? What would I want that would make me happier? I’m part of the richest, most influential, and powerful family in the world, and yet, part of me wants more. I’ve been told by my parents and teachers that this feeling is something all people of all levels of wealth, age, and experience feel, and that I should simply pray, appreciate what I have, and not let the temptations make me unappreciative or do something sinful, so I do as they say and focus on my work. Some humans are born with powers as gifted by God, as the blessed sciences say, and others must be given them through the same sciences, and I am one of them, a cybernetically enhanced human. It’s the calling I’ve chosen after going through my studies, praying, and talking to my parents and spiritual advisors.

At the cost of my limbs, I can attach any number of weapons to them, and can also interface with the new mechs that act as Earth’s defense force, which I’m a part of. A hundred years ago, a technologically advanced planet nearly wiped out humanity, but a single member of the supernatural Council of Punishment saved us, destroyed the planet with the help of his guardian angel, gave us a USB with information from the AI civilization, and vanished into obscurity. With the information on the USB, we discovered the secret to making mechs, new advanced weapons, and ships to sail the stars, and with them, we should be able to defend ourselves if another threat arrives. Currently, I’m leading a squad of mechs against villains who are committing common crimes, such as robbery and murder. Our mechs have jetpacks to fly at jet speeds, miniguns on their shoulders, precision laser rifles on their right arms, and a shield with a cannon. Mine is colored shades of dark red, like my bodysuit and eyes, and is nimble despite looking like a futuristic, heavily armored knight.

I’ve grown used to being strapped into this claustrophobic, which also has many amenities, like a bathroom, a supply of a week’s worth of food and water, and the ability to connect to the internet. The squad with me today has the designation, Section E 20:14, and the squad numbers are R:13:14 and C 3:5. I call them together and tell them to spread out to handle the minions of the villains, while I head for the leaders.

“I prefer not to be called R 13:14.”

“Why not?” I ask.

“It’s not like you have to call us that. We’re not on a secret mission or anything where we have to use code names. Just call me Ro.”

“While we’re at it, call me Colina, not C 3:5.”

“If you say so. This assignment is temporary, so I don’t really care what I call either of you.”

“Would you care if I called you by designation, PS 119:37?” Ro asks.

“Not at all.”

“You’ll come to remember and love us, Griselda.”

“We’ll show you around the best parts of the town after we’re done. How does that sound?” Colina asks.

“Sure.”

Every squad I’ve worked with has tried to get on my good side because of my connections. A lot of them I’ve forgotten about, many just want favors, and a few just wanted to be friends. What I know of Ro is that his family was once homeless before he rose the ranks of law enforcement and won a great fortune through his efforts, and Colina is a reformed villain who repented and nearly sacrificed her life to save others; neither person is particularly special or has a memorable background. Our mechs arrive at the town, and we fly to our particular targets. The bosses I go after think that having the townspeople around them means that they’re shielded by my massive weapons, but they’re mistaken.

My laser rifle switches into precision mode and fires a volley of small, thin beams that hit the villains, turning them to ash, while leaving the hostages unharmed. As I’m about to call Ro and Colina over the radio, I see them rushing to me through my mech’s cameras.

“Oh. So, you finished handling the minions?” I ask.

“Yes, ma’am,” they say.

“We want to show you around town,” Colina says.

“And get to know you better,” Ro adds.

“Alright, then. Let’s head back to base to drop off the mechs first.”

After we drop the mechs off at base, Ro and Colina run up to me. This is my first time seeing out of the mech since I first arrived. Ro looks like a typical soldier boy with a buzz cut and an army green body suit, while Colina has a scarred face and a pink body suit.

“Wow, you really are the spitting image of your ancestor, St. Idelle, with your grey hair and all,” Colina says.

“Could we have your autograph to remember you by?” Ro asks.

“Sure. Now, are we going to head out? I still have some reading and exercise I’d like to get done, if I can,” I say.

Ro and Colina hurry me along in a car that Ro drives.

In the car, Ro asks, “How long are you going to be hanging around the area?”

“Until my parents or superiors tell me to go somewhere else,” I say.

“What was your last assignment?” Colina asks.

“Quelling riots in a city that didn’t want all the research and development being used for military purposes, and handling the villains and criminals that tried stealing and turning our mechs against us. They want me to spend time out here to relax after that whole ordeal.”

“I heard that was a big mess. Sorry you got caught up in it. Those people are stupid. Don’t they know there could be other threats in the galaxy? We were almost wiped out in a day, the last time another civilization showed up.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I love the mech and get the argument, but God only knows if there are other hostile human or AI civilizations out there,” Ro says.

“What kind of recommendation would you guys like?”

Ro and Colina look confused at me.

“What do you mean?” Colina asks.

“People usually ask me to recommend them so they can get promotions to go to other places or for raises. What would you two like so we can get that out of the way?”

The two of them laugh. Ro says, “We’re fine where we are.”

“You don’t need to do anything for us. Did you think that was why we’re doing this for you?” Colina asks.

“Uh…yes?”

“This is just some country hospitality,” Ro says. “Colina and I are where God wants us to be, and that’s all that matters to us.”

“Don’t worry about giving us anything, Griselda. We just want you to be friends with us while you’re here, okay?”

“…okay.”

I breathe a sigh of relief that I didn’t know I was holding in. Guess I don’t need to do any more work and can just focus on relaxing. Ro and Colina take me to a restaurant on a farm with various farm animals. Part of me feels like a child doing this, especially with all the children around, but at the same time, I’ve never seen farm animals this close up or petted them. It almost makes me wish my hands weren’t cybernetic so I could feel them.

Inside the restaurant, the food is good, and I get attention from some admirers. Hearing that I’m here, the owner comes out and offers our meal for free, but I deny it, saying that this place deserves payment for its services and a charitable tip for its warm and friendly atmosphere. The owner is thankful and gives us free desserts to take back to base anyway. Ro and Colina then take me to the shopping district and have me try on various outfits. They and the owner of the shop call me beautiful in the colorful dresses.

“St. Idelle was known to wear colorful dresses made by her mother, St. Josephine. Why don’t you wear them?” Colina asks.

“I never have a reason to,” I say.

“Well, you should. Let’s get a couple, so we can wear something more casual when we go out next time. Maybe we’ll even snag a few numbers while we’re out.”

“What? Am I not interesting to either of you girls?” Ro asks.

Colina and I laugh. We buy the dresses and head out to the next place. Ro sees some of his friends who are playing soccer in a field. They invite us to play. Colina and I are on one team, while Ro and his friends are on the other.

“Come on, Griselda. Let’s show these boys whose better than them,” Colina says.

We do exactly that and don’t let Ro’s team score a single goal on us. They jokingly complain that it was an unfair match with me on the opposing side and then say they have to take us out for drinks. Colina and I go along with them to a bar on a hill that overlooks the town. From here, I can also see the clear, star-filled sky and get a real whiff of the fresh country air. Ro and Colina walk up to me by the view with smiles on their face.

“What?” I ask.

“You look really happy,” Ro says.

I start touching my face, not realizing that I was smiling.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a picture with you with that big of a smile on your face. Is your life always business?” Colina asks.

“No, I can relax from time to time. This is what my time here is supposed to be. I don’t even need to be doing anything in particular back at base or the area.”

“Yeah? I’ve heard that you turn everything into another phase of work. Hopefully, nothing else like today will pop up so you can fully enjoy your break. Maybe you’ll even come away with memories you’ll keep forever.”

“Maybe…”

As Ro and Colina talk to the others and enjoy the sunset, star-filled sky, I notice the orange hue turns crimson.

“Does the sky always do that here?” I ask.

Ro looks concerned and says, “No.”

Looking closer at the sky, I see a red light flash before an object with tendrils comes out of it. The object quickly arrives above the Earth, and it’s a planet with what looks to be a face on it. Its surface is a pale flesh color, has red tendrils coming out of it, and what look like teeth on its surface. Its tendrils bury themselves into the ground as it sends out fleshy meteors to the surface, and the mouth breathes a red mist on the surface, as people start to scream and run for safety.

“We have to get back to base!” I say.

“Yes, ma’am!” Ro and Colina say as they run with me back to our car.

I don’t know why, but I’m furious, and I hope to get this over with to protect the people here who were so nice to me and helped me feel fully relaxed for the first time in a while.

The next and last phase of the Power and Those Who Use It is starting with the first story being out today!

Download for free at various online retailers - https://books2read.com/b/m0ypVY?fbclid=IwdGRjcARxLmVjbGNrBHEuX2V4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHqqDT4i87TONMDZItWOqXMmqVwI6eDm-OFO4iIdBAXm3HS02JFz_0vcUm1O4_aem_VN2Dakn7am2Ebb_JTPRtCQ

Over a hundred years have passed since the Dominion conquered the world. Everything seems to be relatively peaceful, until a mechanical green planet appears above the Earth to tell its inhabitants that the year is not 2200, but 22,000, that they've discovered the secret to immortality, and that they're going to share it with everyone whether they want to or not. In this chaos, a single strange man named Cassiel is trying to enjoy his ice cream and beer, and has to leap into action with the help of his guardian angel to save humanity from this mechanical threat.

Artificial Unity: Chapter 3 – Artificial Immortality

Chapter 3 – Artificial Immortality

I said that I’d finish this fight alone, but I didn’t expect that to occur so quickly. Everyone else who crashed on the Ascendant's mechanical planet is being quickly killed by their so-called soul-saving green electricity. I’m trying to save them, but I can only protect them for so long until we’re overwhelmed and they die. My guardian angel only allows me to produce so many clones of myself and so many fireballs for some reason. Why don’t you allow me to protect them all? I know the potential for what I can do is nearly infinite because of the grace of God, so why limit me like this?

Why allow everyone else to die? No, my faith isn’t waning, God forbid if it does. Let me find a way to end this battle more quickly so that no more people will die. Huh? The servers? Yes, I’ve been destroying them at every opportunity. Oh, you want me to jump in them. Won’t that be dangerous? No, I don’t think my soul will seriously be trapped in them. Okay, I’ll do it. Ow! You didn’t say to jump in that specific spot-whatever.

Huh. It looks a lot different from what I imagined. Well, I imagined it to be a digitized city, a paradise, like the voices were talking about. Everything I see here is nothing but a green and black void with a bunch of ones and zeroes floating all over the place. Guardian angel, I’m going to need your guidance more than ever, because I have no clue where to go or start blowing this all up. My guardian angel pulls me through the seemingly never-ending void of information and numbers to a place where the ones and zeroes form a video from a camera in some sort of research room.

“Experiments have proven to hit a standstill. The machine can replicate a person’s thought patterns, but not their entire personality exactly as it was. It also results in the subject’s death, which is not exactly unplanned,” a researcher says.

Another researcher says, “We’re not trying to replicate people. We’re trying to put their souls in our immortal machine. Come on, we can’t give up now. We’ve drawn up plans to expand our machine and the accompanying maintenance for it.”

“What’s the point of it all if it doesn’t capture our souls?”

“Our so-called souls are nothing but patterns of behavior in our being. The machine works fine. It just doesn’t get the whole person’s personality in it. We’re on the verge of complete success. We’ve already obtained the secret to immortality. It just needs a few adjustments.”

The video ends, and my guardian angel pulls me over to another. This one shows me people being strapped in, being hit by green electricity, and a robot coming to life, pretending to be a person. Some of the robots rip the skin off the person they’re supposed to be and wear it.

“See? We’re getting closer to perfection,” a researcher’s voice says off-screen.

“They’re ripping the skin of their former selves and wearing it,” another researcher says.

“Wouldn’t you want your original face after you died? Then again, if I were you, I wouldn’t want my old face. I’d want another. I think it’s time we made a production of faces so the subjects can make a face they’ll wear after they die and enter the system.”

“It seems like a vain pursuit in comparison to what we’re trying to do.”

“It’s either that or having them rip the skin of their old bodies to wear.”

“Okay, okay. We’ll do it, and I have no problem with wearing my old face again.”

This video ends, and I’m brought to yet another video that shows the two previous researchers talking in a crowded room with two groups behind them.

“We shouldn’t force people to use our technology to save themselves. It’s their choice to make, and not everyone believes that they’ll live through the servers,” one researcher argues.

“What better choice do we have to permanently end world hunger, wars, and to save ourselves from death itself? This is our only shot at it, and to not save one person is to say that the rest of us don’t deserve it,” the other researcher says.

“This isn’t salvation. You know what it is. It is a flawed replication. The green electricity transfers an approximation of a person’s personality into the system to create an AI of them. They don’t come back to life in the servers. Their behavior is merely mimicked in artificial life. It isn’t true immortality.”

“Believe what you want. I already have the government, and the majority’s okay on this. Humanity will live eternally.”

The video fast forwards to a later date where the researcher and others are banging on the doors of the facility as green electricity lights up the sky before striking down everyone. It again fast forwards, showing mechanical people building up the servers, and fast forwards one last time to show them building the planet into what it is now. Okay? What do you want me to do with this information? I figured that something had to happen on this planet that made it so mechanical, and there’s no one that human souls can be captured within machines. My guardian angel teleports a USB into my hands, and the ones and zeroes around me are sucked into it. Alright, I see now. I’ll show this to everyone on Earth so they can learn from the mistakes made by the people on this planet.

I still need to destroy this place, though. There’s no reason to hold back whatsoever. All that’s here are the echoes of past sins and machines pretending to be the ghosts of men damned long ago. Agreeing, my guardian angel lights up my body and allows me to spew fire from my hands. I fly out of the servers and into what looks like the planet’s core and start blasting everything in sight.

Through the speakers, I hear a mechanical, distorted voice say, “Stop! This is humanity’s only hope for immortality!”

I don’t say anything to it. What’s the use of talking to a machine? It can’t feel. It can’t come up with new ideas within its established parameters. It can only do what it was programmed to do and nothing more.

The machine continues to beg me to stop, using its automated defense turrets and sending out its robotic defenders against me, all of which are destroyed by my never-ending firestorm. My guardian angel gives me the go-ahead to start leaving, so I do so, while continuing to burn and blow up machines on my way out. Outside of the planet’s core, I see the planet blowing up from the inside and the mechanical men turning off. Seeing that the planet is so close to Earth, I put both my hands out, and a large blast of fire comes out of them to push the planet into space, so that it explodes far away from it.

Well! Job’s done. That was a fun way to spend the day. I go back down to Earth, giving the USB to the world leaders of the Dominion, and just as quickly leave to go to the nearest bar café for some well-deserved beer and ice cream. Usually, there’s something to learn from every conflict, but what was there to learn from this? Nothing, besides, the reminder that men are more than flesh and blood, and superior to whatever artificial intelligence that we make, like how God is superior to men. Now that I’m looking at my meal in front of me, I realize something else. That I have to have double the dessert for what I’ve done! I will be getting a fat paycheck for it, so why not?

The End

Artifiical Unity: Chapter 2 – Carelessly Facing an Insurmountable Threat

Chapter 2 – Carelessly Facing an Insurmountable Threat

Disappointingly, my guardian angel has led me to a high-rise and stopped me from going to the mechanical planet that floats high above the city. I’ve tried to fly to the planet and have only managed to fall from the building, only to be flown back up to the top of the high-rise by my guardian angel. Well, at least they have beer here and TVs, so I can watch my planet’s many leaders deal with the mechanical threat. The Castigators of the East fight back against them, and the only words spoken to the mechanical men are, “Get off our planet.” The Compassionate of the West are trying to talk to the Ascendant, saying that the people of the two planets can live peacefully and independently from one another, but the Ascendant doesn’t want to listen. They only want submission.

The mechanical man on TV says, “What we offer is freedom from death and suffering. We offer a way for everyone to be united in one mind, to establish everlasting peace. As protectors of the planet, you must understand the value in this. The history of humanity is nothing more than the domination of one belief over others. You are the latest leaders of the world, trying to make everyone serve one God and one truth. We are the same in this aspect, but unlike the Ascendant, you are new to this, children, compared to us elders, and we will win if you choose to go to war.”

It’s a good thing I’m drinking because hearing this back and forth reminds me why I never get into politics, and thank God that the Council of Punishment doesn’t require me to, unlike the Castigators and Compassionate.

“Will you be okay, sir? Should a man like you drink this much?” a waiter asks.

“The name’s Cassiel. You don’t have to call me sir, and I know I’ve drunk eight bottles of beer, but beer to a superhuman like me is like soda with a slight kick. Trust me, I’m fine. Oh! I see that those people have root beer floats and chocolate milkshakes. Could I have one of each?” I ask.

The waiter does what I ask, and I continue to drink while watching TV, and waiting for my guardian angel to…Really? You couldn’t have told me before or after I started drinking my root beer float and milkshake. Fine. I wave my hand around, and the shield of fire is removed from the city. The mechanical men of the Ascendents come down, many of whom come directly for me.

“Cassiel. This is the last time we will offer you an easy way to join us,” the mechanical men say in unison.

“You know the worst thing about being in your condition is that you can’t taste desserts like this,” I say as I try to eat as fast as possible.

“Beyond that, why do you fight against us? Your record shows that you’re a drifter, glutton, and drunkard. Wouldn’t you want to do more with your life?”

“I eat and drink within my limits, and wander the earth according to my guardian angel’s advice. I’m exactly where I need to be, working for a higher purpose, more than you’ll ever know.”

Turning around, I spew flames from my mouth to burn the mechanical men to ashes. On the TV, I overhear things getting heated, so I manifest three flaming versions of myself to defend this area, as I head into the TV and teleport to the courtroom where the Compassionate are talking to the Ascendant. In the courtroom, I make finger guns that shoot fireballs at the mechanical men before they’re able to draw their weapons.

With everyone’s eyes on me, I say, “This is why I don’t get involved in politics. You can’t talk to people who have already made up their mind on the violence they’re going to do to you.”

I walk back through the camera I came out of and am teleported back into the high-rise bar I was in. Going to the patio, I see that more of the Ascendant are attacking the city and its defenders, superhuman and regular people, are fighting back, while the civilians are running for cover.

“The time for talk is over. Soon, all of humanity will be one with the Ascendant, whether you consent to it or not. The future is now, and the salvation of the human race through technology is at hand,” I hear broadcast all over the city.

This is what I was waiting for. More flaming copies of myself are manifested from my body and help the defenders of the city. I jump off the high-rise, and this time, my guardian angel carries me throughout it to save civilians and its defenders by throwing homing fireballs at our attackers. When it seems like the city’s defenders can handle the rest, I turn my attention upward, where another wave of attackers is coming. My guardian angel points me upward and allows me to run at superspeed on thin air, leaving a trail of fire behind me as I run upward into the sky.

Meeting the impending force head-on, my body heats up and lets out an explosion once I get into the middle of the group. I hold out my hands to the side and manifest hundreds of fireballs that fly around me, acting as a shield to counter incoming projectiles and homing in on enemies. Another wave of mechanical men is coming in, but this time, I have flying superhumans backing me up from behind, robots, and people in mechanical suits and flying ships. I manifest multiple copies of myself to help out my allies as I push past my enemies like a speeding bullet and enter space. Huh. I thought it’d be harder to breathe up here. Yes, I know you’d be helping me with that, but I didn’t think it would be this easy.

Now that I’m closer to the mechanical green planet, I see that what I thought were buildings are actually tall servers. I see dozens of huge robotic arms moving things around, and some kind of green electricity flowing from the energy plants on the surface. I see what looks like large eyes and mouths opening all across the planet, surging with green electricity, until it shoots out from the planet. In a split second, my guardian angel manifests a flaming shield to protect me. Turning around in space, I see the green electricity hitting various areas all over the Earth, over and over again. I try to stop the assault by throwing fireballs at the eyes, mouths, and energy plants, but that doesn’t do much to stop it, and only stops the electricity from surging from the places it emanates.

By the time I reach the planet, the assault stops, and I see many of my allies who were fighting with me crash land on the planet. What the hell was that? What did they just do?

An answer to my question quickly broadcasts itself as the Ascendant says, “People of Earth. That electricity was the mechanism that transfers souls into the servers of our planet. You didn’t want our immortality, but we are charitable enough to force it on you. Hear the voices of your loved ones who are now one with us and are happy with their fate.”

I hear these voices broadcast, every one of them saying things such as, “This isn’t as bad as I thought!”

“The pain plaguing my body is gone! I haven’t felt this free and good in years!”

“I know so much more now. What was I afraid of before?”

“Everyone should experience this!”

“Stop fighting the Ascendant and join us!”

“Join us, mommy and daddy! It’s so much fun in here!”

Something about this smells like BS. I don’t think they captured the souls of anyone. The sick bastards have even killed kids and are using the voices of kids to lure parents into giving up.

“To those few stragglers who have landed on our planet, know this. If you do any damage to our servers, you’ll be killing happy civilians, families, children, and your people, who you may know are with us. Give up and embrace paradise in circuitry.”

Like that’s going to happen. I’m going to finish this fight, even if I have to do it by myself. Yes, I know you’ll be with me, my guardian angel. You know what I meant.

Artificial Unity: Chapter 1 – An Interstellar Wakeup Call

Chapter 1 – An Interstellar Wakeup Call

“Is that guy really a member of the Council of Punishment?”

“I think so. Do you see that badge on his hoodie? The one with the blue angel wings, with red fire, and green lighting?”

“Yeah, but what’s he doing here?”

“I don’t know, and it’s better not to ask.”

I don’t know why two people are whispering about me behind my back in this bar café, but I don’t care too much about it, unless God makes me. Here I thought this orange hoodie, black jeans, white t-shirt, and boots were an anonymous outfit, but the badge that I have to wear easily gives away my job.

“Sir, here’s your ice cream and your beer,” the waiter says to me.

“Thank you,” I say as I put down money for my favorite meal.

“Sir, this is twice the amount of both of those combined.”

“Oh, is it? Keep it. It’s not like I have bills to pay or anything.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“You don’t need to keep calling me sir. Cassiel is my name.”

“Yes, Cassiel. Thank you again.”

As I enjoy my favorite meal, I can’t help but feel as if I’m being watched. Looking over my shoulder, I see a young teenage boy and a girl.

“What’s up?” I ask.

“Is it true that you’re a member of the Council of Punishment?”

“Can you use fire powers?”

“Can you see and talk to your guardian angel?”

“Do you fight demons?”

“Hold on. One question at a time. Yes, I’m a member of the council, and I can sometimes use fire powers. I can only vaguely see my guardian angel and see what he wants me to do without hearing his voice. I’ve also fought demons before.”

“Wow! What are you doing here then?”

“My guardian angel showed me here. As for what reason, I’ve yet to figure it out.”

“Is it cool being a member of the Council of Punishment? I heard that for every member of the council, there are a thousand members of another branch of the government.”

“Yes, you have to go through rigorous spiritual testing to prove that you can talk to your guardian angel and are dedicated to God. It’s why I’m allowed to be out here without any direct orders from the council. In fact, they don’t really give us orders. They mostly trust us to do what God wants.”

“Cool. I’d like to be a member! How do I sign up?”

“They ask you to be one when they notice you. There’s no real signing up. You’d probably have a better chance at being a Castigator or a member of the Compassionate.”

“The Castigators are amazing! They’re executors of justice and show no mercy to those who deserve it, even if you’re in the government,” the boy says.

“The Compassionate are also great! They’re defenders of the weak and protectors of peace,” the girl argues.

“Protecting can also mean attacking those who are attacking you.”

“But it also means refusing to start a fight when you don’t need to.”

The young teenage boy and girl go back and forth on who they think is better as I finish up my ice cream and beer. I consider having seconds, so I do, and after finishing that, I have thirds. By the time the boy and girl finish arguing and ask my opinion, I’ve had five glasses of ice cream and five bottles of beer.

“What do I think? I think I can go for another ice cream and beer,” I joke, while also thinking if I should really have another.

I then pay for whatever the two want from the menu and mention my favorite ice creams, such as the ever classic vanilla, chocolate, and rainbow jimmies. Huh? What’s that? Turn the TV on to Dominion International News? I tell the waiter to do as the silent voice of my guardian angel says, and the news shows A dark green planet with mechanical arms and buildings appearing above this very city I’m in. Oh, so that’s what the fuss outside is about. Here, I thought it was the usual excitement over seeing superhuman heroes.

The TV screen turns staticky, and people start to panic, while I continue to eat my ice cream and attentively watch. On the TV, a series of floating heads with machinery in them that are connected by a mess of green wires appears on screen.

In one voice, they say, “People of humanity’s homeworld. We are the Ascendant. We have accessed your records and see that you have no idea your true history and how much time has passed. You think it is the year two-thousand, two-hundred, when it is actually the year twenty-two thousand. Humanity was at war with itself thousands of years ago when it conquered the stars. It separated itself from one another, and we are the first to arrive back home, and the greatest of them all.”

Looking outside, I see that people are panicking more as robots with the same human faces as machinery and wires in them fly down from the planet. Outside, I hear the continued message that’s being broadcast on TVs and everyone’s phones.

“Unlike other societies, we have discovered how to cheat death itself. The people of Ascendant all live within the systems of the planet, immortal, undying, never needing to eat, drink, or sleep. We are immune to all diseases and pain, and are all of one mind, one belief. We see that your technology is the most ancient of the societies we have encountered, as well as your beliefs. We know that you need convincing that we are right. Therefore, we will not immediately force you to join us, but we are not merciful, because if you resist us, we will force you to be united with our systems and our minds.”

People are really panicking now and running away from the mechanical foreigners. As for me? I feel compelled by my guardian angel to approach them, and now see why I was brought here. No? Shouldn’t I start fighting them? I don’t see why I shouldn’t, but I’ll hold back for now, like you say God wants.

“You. Cassiel is your name, according to the records of the Dominion of Mercy and Justice, the ruling body of this world,” the floating robotic man in tattered green robes says.

The man’s face looks more like rubber and is in tatters as if it were a rotten Halloween mask.

“Yes, that’s true,” I say.

“Perhaps you can help us. The rest of your Council of Punishment is uncooperative, the Castigators of the East are being violent, and the Compassionate of the West are holding back their charitable ears.”

“I don’t think I can help you.”

“Ah, but you can. According to our records, you’re an outcast of your council. The child of two powerful, deceased members of the council never does as the Dominion asks. You’re quite the rebel, aren’t you?”

“Not at all. It’s what most members of the council do. I’m not that special.”

“You can help the peaceful joining of the people of Earth with the Ascendant by helping to convince your coworkers to stand down.”

“We won’t stand down unless God tells us to.”

“Oh, that’s right. The majority belief of this world is Catholicism. Surely, you still must understand reason. We have conquered many worlds and may be the last one that’s leagues ahead of yours in terms of technology and ideology. For the betterment of humanity, you must join us.”

“Really? Well, it’s about time.”

“Have you changed your mind?”

“Huh? My bad. I was thinking out loud. My guardian angel was speaking to me, saying that I now have permission to kick your ass.”

I point a finger at the robotic man, and an explosion comes out of it, blowing him into pieces. More of his friends fly toward me, so I spread my arms and bring my feet together, and flaming copies shoot out of me to meet them in the sky and blow them up as well. Seeing more coming from a distance, I hold out my hands and let fire lasers erupt from them, homing in on their targets. Afterward, I manifest a fireball in my hand and throw it into the air so a shield of fire forms over the city, keeping any more reinforcements from coming in. The people who were hiding come out and clap for me.

The two young teenagers from before come out to me. The boy asks, “That was amazing! I didn’t know a member of the Council of Punishment had so many different powers.”

“I didn’t know either. I was just following my guardian angel’s guidance. That’s how I use my powers,” I admit.

Going back into the bar café, I ask for another ice cream, which the waiter says is on the house. I give them money for the ice cream anyway, as I look to see what’s happening on TV.

The floating mechanical heads are on again and say that, “We will not mind the violence shown to us by lesser members of your society. As we said, we feel no pain and loss is nothing to us as we are information stored in our servers. We can quickly build new bodies and overwhelm you with numbers. Now, to show that we are merciful, we will try one more time to be peaceful in getting you to join us. Those who refuse will be forced to. Those who don’t will meet a more pleasant transition into immortality. This will be your last chance.”

People are starting to panic again and bombard me with requests to help them.

The young teenage girl asks, “Can you protect us from an entire planet of those people?”

As I finish my ice cream, I listen to my guardian angel.

“My guardian angel seems to think so, so I will as well,” I say to the relief of the crowd. “But I have to figure out how, so you all should find someplace safe to hide in the meantime.”

The crowd clears out to do as I said. Looking up to the floating green mechanized planet, I wonder how I’m going to destroy it. Yes, I know I shouldn’t be worried or concerned. Tell God He owes me an eternity of alcohol and sweets in addition to being by His side in Heaven if I don’t make it out of this alive.

A collection of my latest stories is out today!

Paperback ($9.99) - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GZDZRGCF

Kindle ($4.99) - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GX2WV4H1

Everyone has power in their life. Only those who know how to use it can make a difference.

Each story in this collection follows a person with the power to change their life and achieve their goals. From a mother who seeks vengeance on those who made her enslave herself to lustful desires to an ancient man pivotal in the crucifixion of Jesus Christ to a penitent fool with little time to live.

Whether or not they live to make a difference will depend on their virtue and willingness to sacrifice themselves for something greater.
This collection includes: Like Glass in the Skin, Ora Et Labora: An Acceptance of Life, Shame in Shades, The Question, The Answer, The Lies, The Truth, Least in Heaven, and God's Fool: Player of the Divine Heart, along with Behind the Story trivia for each story.