Peace Through Force: Chapter 3 – A Just Case of War

Chapter 3 – A Just Case of War

In my head, I see the faces of those kids. Their fear, hatred, and desperation lay on each of their faces, especially when they heard the beep in their vests that preceded them exploding. The boiling hot hatred for the leaders of Hammer and the parents who sacrificed and indoctrinated their children still burns through my veins, making me want to kill them over and over again.

“Idelle. Idelle!” I hear Kane’s voice say.

When I wake up, I see that I’m in one of the Guardian hideouts laying down on a couch on top of Kane.

“Huh? Is something going on?” I ask.

“You were shaking and sweating in your sleep. Were you having a nightmare about what happened?”

“I was.

“It’s okay. After this is over, we’ll take a nice, long vacation with the kids and family somewhere peaceful.”

Remembering what happened makes me glad that my parents are taking care of our children and are protected by the Dominion back in the Columbian Union, while we’re here, so their lives aren’t threatened. Kane kisses me on the forehead and lightly strokes the back of my head. It always amazes me how he’s fine with embracing me even after I fight and have blood all over me. It makes me jealous of Zandro, who can simply transform to his normal self, and all the blood and dirt on him is gone in an instant, whereas I need to clean the blood off my armor every time. He’s sitting across from us and seems to be in deep thought.

“I used to be a parent like both of you, so I know how you must feel,” Zandro says.

Nothing more needs to be said. We’re all feeling the same thing and on the same page, though some of us feel worse than others. I’ve gotten over the horrors I’ve done for those I still find it hard to consider my real parents, and all the killing I’ve done since then. I know I’m justified in what I’m doing, but that doesn’t make doing the dark work of the Lord any easier, especially when innocents get caught in the crossfire. Trying to take my attention off it, I look around the hideout to see that it’s gray and barren like the previous hideout, except for a few crosses and images of Mary, St. Michael, and other patron saints called on during battle. The TV is on, reporting the Castigators taking control of Hammer, and hardly ever taking prisoners or sparing anyone. If they only knew how bad it was.

Bolster steps in and watches the news with us. He comments, “These Western news outlets never really know what they’re talking about, do they?”

“Believe me. It isn’t any better back home,” Kane says.

“All they do is report on what sounds most appealing to their audience with little sprinklings of the truth here and there. I could swear their scripts are all written by the same people.”

“That’s probably true,” Zandro comments.

“Anyways, have you heard anything from the Dominion?”

“Nothing other than that we’re doing a good job, and they’re trying to handle the press and relations between our home nation and allies. Some are happy with what we’re doing, and some aren’t, but most agree that it was a good thing that my Castigators destroyed the weapons of mass destruction that Hammer had.”

“Do the opinions of world leaders matter to your organization?”

“It hasn’t before, and never will. Even if it did, the Castigators are used to rebelling against corrupt authority, so we’d just do what we think is right anyway. That’s the goal of the Castigators. To fix the law where it’s most broken and put our neck on the line for those for whom the law failed or was unjustly used against.”

“That’s why we in Guardian love you out of every subsidiary of the Dominion. When will we make our next move?”

“Soon. Why? What target do you have in mind next?”

“The country of Wall.”

“The stubborn heretical traditionalists who larp as true Christians? I wish that ideology were wiped out during the Crusades when it was in this area. Didn’t their religion used to be called Islam or something else?”

“All error is reused. The demons can’t come up with an original false ideal even if it would get them out of Hell.”

“Once my wife has her moment to rest, we’ll get right to them.”

I appreciate Kane’s words and knowing I need a minute to get my mind straight, but at the same time, I’m happy and comfortable where I am. Eventually, Bolster comes back in and asks if I’m okay and ready to go, and I give him a look, which makes him step back.

Bolster looks at Zandro, who says, “Don’t look at me to help. If I try to get her off him, she might beat the Hell out of me, and my superhuman powers don’t help much from a beating from her.”

“Thanks, guys. Really appreciate you having my back,” Kane jokes.

Kane then talks me out of cuddling him for the rest of the day like I want to, and we get moving. Unlike Hammer, Wall is a desert with marshes and jungles spread out here and there. All the towns and cities are spread out, and there are fewer here to worry about, but there are deadly predators in the wild, and if you’re not prepared, you can easily die of thirst or hunger out here. Bolster also tells of the rumors of hidden underground bases in the jungles and sands where the most dangerous predators reside and act as natural defenses against outsiders who don’t know their way around. Thankfully, the few allies we have in this country do know everything we need to know and are leading us through the jungle to one of the hidden bases.

We’re suddenly attacked by said wildlife we were told to watch out for, but we aren’t attacked by animals. Instead, the plants come to life and kill many of our allies from Guardian by chomping their heads off and swallowing them whole, before we’re able to save them. It’s times like these that make me wish I had some kind of ranged attack, but my strength is enough to tear these abominations to shreds, and my snakes are durable enough to push them back and block their attacks.

“Living killer plants? Are these native to this area?” Kane asks.

“Not at all,” one of our guides says. “These must be the experimental weapons that they made in conjunction with Hammer that we heard about. Seeing them now, the rumors of a weapon that can be hidden until it activates itself make sense. They were going to ship these over to the Columbian Union and its allies and let them wreak havoc wherever they ended up.”

“Tch. As if we need any more foreign infiltrators in our country trying to destroy it from the inside,” Kane says.

Our guides lead us to a series of tree one of which is actually a pole with a hidden keypad in it. After using a hacking device on it, a part of the ground separates, revealing a series of stairs down to a single door. Going through it, we find ourselves in a series of tunnels that are air-conditioned and feel much better than being on the surface. We explore the tunnels, finding caches of weapons, multiple kinds of foreign currency, quarters where their soldiers are resting, and places where they’re experimenting on plants, wildlife, and people. Seeing this reminds me of the experiments done on me by my own parents and country, especially since they’re trying to invoke the supernatural in some of their experiments. I look over at Zandro, who is winching at the sight of it all.

Kane gives us the go-ahead to attack. Zandro and I instinctively go after the researchers and their experiments, putting them out of their misery. The alarms in the facility start blaring as automatic turrets come out of the walls and ceiling to fend us off, but they are large and ineffective as my snakes intercept the shots as I charge at them and throw the turrets at other turrets and enemies attacking us. The lights start going out, and the walls start shifting in strange and confusing ways that separate us all from one another. I try breaking them down, but they’re tough, so it’s going to take a while to get through.

“Continue forward, and we’ll meet up, eventually. Be careful,” Kane says through a static connection.

I try talking to him and the others, but I don’t get a response. Our communication devices are jammed, so it looks like I’m on my own. I’ll be fine. I’ve done operations solo in foreign countries for the Columbian Union before, and yet, I feel nervous and rushed. I don’t know what could happen to Kane and the others, so I take the immediate path before me and charge ahead. Out of the darkness, turrets pop out along with robots who try to get me, while I’m off guard, but my snakes protect me, yet again, reacting to their attacks, before I’m able to, allowing me to be defended and quickly counterattack.

Next, superhumans, animals, and plants that were experimented on are sent after me. Changing up my tactics, I let them come to me and roll with the punches. I let my snakes handle the ones to my side, while focusing on the foe in front of me. Our fists collide, resulting in both of them breaking, and allowing me an opening to punch his head off. The next superhuman that I focus on throws a series of punches at me that I block before taking one of his arms, breaking it off, and shoving it through his chest, killing them. Shifting my attention to the animals and living plants, kill them easily since they have no form to their attacks and simply use their instinct and raw power.

Finally, the remaining superhuman tries to sneak up on me with a punch from behind. I dodge her attack and stick my hand into her throat. Since she isn’t dead, I throw her to the ground and unleash a flurry of punches until her face and body are nothing more than bits of gore and blood on the floor. With no other foe in sight, I collect myself for a second, shake the blood off my hands, and continue running. Further down the hallway, what feels like two hands gripping my brain overcomes me, making me slow down.

“Always the brutal killer,” a voice says with the sensation that feels like scratching my inner ears.

“You haven’t changed one bit, have you?”

“You call yourself a wife and a mother? You’re the furthest thing from it.”

“You’re nothing but a vicious animal who belongs in a cage.”

These temptations are nothing new to me, so I pray for help. Hoping that destroying the source of the temptations will make them cease, I continue pushing forward, offering up the pain of the temptation as penance, and even thanking God for it, since it proves that I’m still a good enough person to face temptation. My white snake pulls me in a certain direction and points its head at a wall, while my black snake tries to push me away. Given that my white snake is blessed and my black snake is cursed, I do as the white snake wants and start punching through the wall. I tear through the metal, wires, and concrete of the wall until I reach a room where a ritual is being conducted.

The objects and people here are vain imitations of true Christianity, and so are the prayers to their false Christ. Again, my white snake pulls me forward and hisses at the cultists in the room, who are praying louder for help. They don’t get any as I slaughter them and break apart everything in the room, and I must’ve broken more than I expected, as all the lights come on and the walls come up. With the walls lifted, I see Bolster, Zandro, and Kane, all of whom are finishing off their foes. Unfortunately, our other allies were killed in their fight, so we finish it for them by killing the remaining foes around us.

Now that no one is left to kill, I run to Kane to make sure he’s okay and hug him. I ask him, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Better than okay. This underground area was not only where they developed their weapons and kept their army, but their true leaders were down here as well. They lived in comfort with all this protection around them, and ways to get around the country of Wall, undetected,” Kane explains. “I’ve just killed them, so all that’s left is to clean up their remaining forces in the other parts of the tunnel and on the surface.”

“Let’s get our allies and the other Castigators to do it. It’s too much for the four of us to do,” Bolster says.

“Agreed. Let’s head back up and call for reinforcements.”

The four of us wander the tunnels, following the signs until we find a set of stairs that lead us up. When we arrive on the surface, we find ourselves in the capital of Wall. We’re in a seemingly normal restaurant, in particular, and find ourselves surrounded by Wall’s leaders, their guards, their supporters, and their families. They’re stunned by our sudden presence, and we use it to quickly kill most of them, and leave a few alive as Kane tells us to do. When the fight is finished, and the remaining people left alive are brought to Kane on their knees, he pulls up a chair and stares at them with a judgmental stare on his face.

“I think it’s clear to you what happened in the underground if we came out alive, so you have two choices, and little time to make it,” Kane says with his hands out and none of his guns in his hands. “So? What will it be?”

The people before him argue, cry, and yell at him in such a way that none of their words can be clearly heard. After a few seconds, two ebony pistols appear in Kane’s hands. He immediately stands up and guns them down. A group of law enforcers comes into the room and is stunned by the death around them. They look at us with their guns up, shaking in their boots, and slurring their words.

“Do you want some too? Get the Hell out of here if you know what’s good for you!” Kane says.

The law enforcers run away in fear, along with the crowd that formed around the restaurant. Kane calls in the Castigators for reinforcements and sits at the restaurant’s bar, putting his head in his hands.

“That was great, Kane. This’ll show them all our power and your compassion,” Bolster says as he finishes recording what happened and posts it.

“Do you have to record every execution of leaders that Kane does?” Zandro asks.

“I do, but I don’t do it for show. This is to instill fear into our enemies and to make them back down.”

“Tch. If you say so.”

Zandro goes to sit at the bar with Kane and pats him on the back.

Going over to Kane, I ask him, “There go the heads of another country. We’ve conquered yet another in one day, all thanks to you.”

“They had a choice,” Kane says.

“Huh?”

“My eyes went back and forth in telling me their fate, so I tried to give them mercy, but they screwed it up. They all did. It shouldn’t bother me at this point, but when someone is on the cusp of salvation, and they throw it away. That is nothing more than pure tragedy.”

I wrap my arms around Kane, hold him, kiss his forehead, and say, “It’s okay. You went out of your way to give them a way to save their lives, and, as you said, they made their choice. If anything, the fear you inspired in the fleeing crowd will make them rethink who they ally with and which God they worship. You’re a good and strong man, Kane. Never forget that.”

“Hehe, and you were the one who started the day upset. I can say the same thing about you, too, Idelle, and you, too, Zandro.”

“And me?” Bolster asks.

“Yes, you too, my friend. You too.”

We are all good people, despite the killing we do and the brutality of our work. It is necessary to punish evil, instill true peace, and inspire fear of God and of the virtuous in our enemies, so that even the furthest gone can be saved, a goal that seems closer than ever.