Chapter 5 – "I have to do it all!" The Menace of Cossack the Terrible.
Six years ago
"Juvenile court is now in session. After examining the evidence against Mr. Tong, I am prepared to make a verdict. Mr. Tong, do you understand?"
The young Chinese boy looked up, but said nothing to the judge, who then turned to his attorney. The courtroom itself was empty save the judge, the bailiff, a few key witnesses including a stenographer, as well as Daniel and his attorney.
"My client is aware of the need for respect to the judge. We also believe that the punishment offered in lieu of time spent in juvenile hall is preferable to the aforementioned."
"Anything to say on your behalf young man?"
With a look of barely hidden contempt, the young boy looked up and merely muttered "No sir."
"Very well then young man," the judge replied. "Daniel Tong, you are sentenced to transfer to Northwestern Military Academy. Subsequent offenses will be handled throughout the military system. And trust me, the military courts are not as lenient as I am."
Present Day
The look on his face was a full-blown scowl, ever present even as he swirled the wine in his glass by the stem. For the Viceroy to be scowling this much meant that he had gone past even regular disappointment and was now raging. Maahox, seeing this, attempted to tackle the situation as diplomatically as he could.
"You know, this is all part of the long-term strategy against Earth. We've seen what Voltron can do against our battlecruisers, and we only have five of them, so…"
"So you send down Robeasts, one at a time, see them get destroyed, and waste my precious resources on your pointless experiments?"
"They are not pointless!" Maahox shouted. "Only by experimentation can we defeat Voltron! My first two designs may have failed, but that just means I have that much more data to work with in defeating them!"
"We don't have unlimited supplies Maahox!" Throk shot back, pointedly placing the glass on the table in anger. "I can't devote all our resources to sending down a Robeast every few days until the right one does its job! We'll run out of supplies before we even have land in this backwater swamp!"
Maahox sighed, feeling the frustration take hold. He was all set to say something when the door opened, revealing a grinning Galran with a horned helmet.
"W…who are you?" the green-skinned Maahox asked.
"Forgive me," the man replied in a rather high-pitched voice for this thick frame. The emblems on his armor identified him as a commander within the Galran military. "My name is Cossack. You've heard of my exploits, haven't you?"
"Can't say I have," Throk interrupted. "What I want to know is under whose authority do you dare barge into this room?!"
"Commander Hazar sent me," the man replied, "saying your expeditionary fleet was too slow in capturing the planet which the Emperor himself has marked as a place of interest."
"Hazar," groaned Throk. "Well then Cossack, what is your plan?"
"Not do what you did," the smug commander answered. "I've read your reports and frankly, your tactics are idiotic. We need to stop trying to focus on one robot, and cripple the areas around it. Luckily for you, I bought in just the men for the job."
Behind Cossack were five Galran soldiers with red berets, their expressions neutral the entire time. The commander smiled.
"May I introduce you to the Death Commandos, AKA Red Beret forces, the greatest soldiers in the entire Galra Empire." Maahox sneered.
"Five men can do what my Robeasts couldn't?"
"They can if applied correctly, and I'll prove it to you."
"It's amazing that you actually got some time away from those meetings. So why are you spending it with us?"
Looking outside the window of the small boat, Vince answered, "I like learning. I joined Galaxy Garrison because I wanted to be an explorer. I just ended up becoming a soldier by accident I guess."
"I can relate," Cric answered. "I've always wanted to see other worlds. Even the ocean on Earth has so much we can't see. So many things to discover."
"That and I'll be honest," Vince added, "it's nice not being joined at the hip with Daniel and Larmina."
"Needed to get away from what, the couple?"
"Who knows?" Vince answered, before adding "Really, who cares? It feels like ever since Dan and Larmina became part of my study group that we've been getting into all sorts of weird crap. This is just the latest."
"You upset?" Cric asked even as he looked on at a screen showing numerous undersea probes the ship had sent out.
"No, it's just that I joined Galaxy Garrison to be an explorer. I never thought I'd have to pilot a giant robot and save the world."
"That's why I joined to," Cric answered. "It's why Cliff and Jeff joined too. But I think Jeff ended up becoming really gung-ho about the whole save the world thing."
"So did Dan," Vince answered while looking at the probe. "They really do have a lot in common, huh?"
"Small wonder they don't get along," Cric jokes, causing Vince to stifle a laugh.
"Do you really need me for this? I should be patrolling the city with Larmina."
"Yes," Commander Hawkins answered as they walked down the halls of the monolithic building, "we do. You pilot Voltron, and the others claimed you wanted this job. So you're with me, and Larmina is doing patrols over the building. I don't see the problem."
"I'm not sure what use I am here though, just standing still in New York," Daniel answered, adjusting the dress uniform he had been made to wear for the meeting. Sighing heavily, the pair walked into the large conference room, looking up at the dozens of representatives of various nations. Already on the floor was Marshall Graham, holding a stack of papers.
"Just remember, keep quiet and look dignified," Hawkins whispered.
"This meeting of the Security Council will be called to order", began a man situated on a podium. "Commander Hawkins, you are the Galaxy Garrison's commander concerning the weapon known as 'Voltron', correct?"
"I am," Hawkins replied. "Next to me is the field commander of the Voltron Force, Lt. Daniel Tong."
"So far, Voltron has seen no less than three engagements against literal alien forces. What do you say to this?"
"I say that without Voltron and the men and women who piloted it, the entire United States may have fallen under alien control by now. Possibly Canada and Mexico as well."
"Then our next question is this. Why have you not shared the technology with other nations? If one Voltron can hold the Galra at bay, why not let every nation create one?"
"Out of the question!" Hawkins yelled. "We barely understand the alien technology used to create Voltron. Asking us to give it to other nations would be the same as planting the seeds for a new arms race! We don't know what that kind of power could do! We could end up destroying ourselves!"
"Nonsense!" shouted a representative from three floors ahead. "You hoard that technology and automatically you wield power over humanity's future! Galaxy Garrison cannot take the place of individual…"
"And what guarantee do we have that you wouldn't use the technology to ensure your dominion over the world?" asked another.
"How dare you!"
As the various representatives argued over the technology being used against the Galra, five pairs of prying eyes looked on from a hidden space. Watching the feed of a small camera in the vent, the group waited patiently in an unused supply room, their only companions several boxes, and several dead bodies.
"Commander Cossack, are you getting all this?" one asked.
These humans are either extremely stupid, extremely lucky, or both, Cossack answered. They're primitives trying to replicate something far more advanced than they should be able to, and it's the equivalent of a barely sapient sea amoeba having the power of Quintessence! You can go ahead and move onto Phase 2.
"Understood sir," the Galra soldier responded before opening a case, placing several metallic items in the room.
"And if the major nation-states each control an equivalent of this "Voltron", would it not be acting as an effective deterrent?"
"The bottle has been opened Commander Hawkins! We can't stuff the genie back into it! You have a weapon of unspeakable power! Let the world be given the choice to use it against the invaders!"
"And then what? Use it against your own people? Or against us? I refuse to let Galaxy Garrison give you that kind of power!"
The arguing continued among the delegates for a minute, an endless stream of noise that Daniel tried to force himself to care about. He, inadvertently or not, was at the center of the controversy.
A massive explosion ripping through the hallways, but leaving the delegate room unscathed soon interrupted his attempts to listen to the conversation. However, the distraction was but a prelude to the carnage to come.
Five humanoids, purple skinned with large ears, burst into the room wielding bizarre weapons that resembled futuristic rifles. Immediately they began firing into the crowd.
"Commander! Get down!"
A forceful tackle drove Commander Hawkins behind a table even as it was riddled with energy blasts. Looking around, Daniel bit back a curse, realizing he was unarmed.
"I need a weapon! Screw it!"
"What are you doing?" Commander Hawkins shouted even as Daniel dove behind another felled table, picking it up and using it as a shield as he ran towards the group firing into the crowd. They were so focused on gunning down the representatives that they charging man with the table took them by surprise, if just for a moment. The moment was all Daniel needed, slamming it into one of the men, causing him to drop the weapon. Immediately, the others ran away.
"He's taken the bait. Begin Phase 3!"
Excellent. I'll be waiting!
"Daniel!" Commander Hawkins yelled, but it was too late, the hot-headed pilot was already in firm pursuit of his target, having grabbed the rifle that the Galran soldier had dropped.
"These findings are amazing," Cric began, looking at the results from the probe. "It's amazing how deep the ocean is around here, not to mention given the results of the cleaner bacteria around it as well. You can hardly tell that any pollution was present here. Wait a minute…Vince, look at this!"
Looking over at the monitor, Vince appeared stunned at the presence of a massive cave. "Is something in there?"
"This formation shouldn't be here!" Cric exclaimed. "We found a new underwater formation! We have to see what's in it!"
Vince nodded, observing the monitor as the probe approached the cave. He stared at the monitor for a few moments when suddenly, movement went across the screen, destroying the probe.
"Cric! Did you see that?"
"What happened?"
Their question was soon answered as the ship began to shake and contort, with a creature rising from the waves.
"Uh, Cric," Vince began, looking at the massive beast, a combination of smooth skin and endless tentacles akin to a jellyfish, "I think we found what was down there!"
The assailants fled from the parking lot in motorcycles past a side road into the otherwise full streets of Manhattan, the vehicles the only things small enough to twist and turn through pedestrians and larger vehicles stuck in gridlock. Taking the hint, Daniel found a police motorcycle and quickly began giving chase, following the Galran soldiers. All the while, the intercom he wore on his wrist bleeped.
Lt. Tong! Daniel! What are you doing? You're a pilot! Leave the chase to the police!
"They just murdered the delegates of what, twenty countries?" Daniel shot back. "I'm the only one close enough to catch them! By the time the WHOA!"
Whoa?
"Sorry, car on East 49th nearly blindsided me! It looks like the Galran are heading uptown! I think they're going to try to take the Queensboro out of the city!"
Queens? What's in Queens?
"There's no toll booths in Queens. That's probably where they planned on making their escape!"
Sure enough, the five bikes made their way up several blocks onto a side road that led to the Queensboro Bridge. Daniel followed in hot pursuit as police attempted to keep up with the motorbikes, even as they careened through narrow alleys and went to places cars could not.
The sounds of crashing vehicles echoed in Daniel's ears as the bikes drove off the bridge through crowded neighborhoods. People yelled and dove out of the way, but neither the Galrans nor their pursuer paid them any mind, except to avoid them.
Finally, however, Daniel smiled, seeing the group backing into an alley of a long abandoned warehouse close to LaGuardia airport. Whatever had occurred there had been forgotten long ago, but the group of Galrans abandoned their bikes and ran inside. Wasting no time, Daniel gave chase inside.
"Alright, hold it right URRK!"
Without warning, something snaked around his neck and lifted him off the ground, the young pilot doing all he could to keep the whip from strangling him or snapping his neck.
"You really are an idiot, aren't you human?" a man responded from behind the shadows of an office. Emerging, Daniel saw the 'man,' a fairly tall Galran wearing a horned helmet and armor with a cape.
"You…speak English?!"
"I speak the universal tongue," the Galran answered. "Machines let us listen to the words spoken by anyone which are then translated into the universal tongue for us, and vice versa. The fact that humans still haven't found the common route of all language but go around making giant robots shows just how skewed your priorities are! It's honestly why you should let us take charge."
"You understand English, huh? Well then understand the words 'Go to hell!'"
"We have one of those," the Galran smiled. "And when you go there, tell them Cossack the Terrible sent you!"
The echo of a plane flying overhead drowned out the cackles of the Galran commander.
The tentacles of the immense creature began to wrap themselves around the boat, threatening to drag it to the sea. Inside, Cric panicked and reached for the radio.
"Mayday! Mayday! There's a…thing here and it's about to take us under! We need help immediately!"
In another minute the creature would have torn the ship completely asunder and dragged the wreckage to the bottom of the sea. Instead, a barrage of missiles struck the beast dead center as a group of jets flew overhead.
"Larmina!" Vince shouted.
"Don't give her all the credit!"
"Jeff?"
"Yeah, we were running recon for the security detail and got your SOS. Come on Cric, you didn't think I would leave you alone, did you?"
"We'll talk later boys!" a third voice interrupted. "Keep the boat steady! We're going to go for another pass!"
"Got it Ginger!" Rushing to the helm, both Cric and Vince held the wheel steady even as the creature, seemingly enraged by the unwelcome barrage, began to thrash with twice the ferocity of prior.
"Target in sight!" Larmina announced.
"OK then team, FIRE!"
A second barrage of missiles on the creature caused it to screech in agony, where it fell into the sea and did not rise again, letting its grip on the vessel go.
"Was that Galra?" Vince asked, now confident that the danger had passed.
Why would the Galra send out a sea monster out here? Larmina asked over the radio. It makes no sense!
"Not if it was the primary target!" Cric reasoned. "We've been duped!"
One of the commandos, wearing a red cap, looked on as Cossack handed him a knife. He smiled at his prey, hung out to dry, struggling mightily to escape.
"It's amazing how much fight humans have. But your kind will break, Voltron or no Voltron. They always break. I've seen dozens of species like yours break. It's a fun sight to see. We managed to do this much damage with six ships. Imagine an armada of thousands of battlecruisers raining death on Earth. Only thing left will be some insects!"
Again, Daniel growled, grimacing that he had dropped his rifle. "You'll have to kill every last human before we ever break!"
"Perfectly doable. A few human Paladins won't stop it."
The red beret clad soldier raised a knife and threw it at Daniel, who quickly began looking for an escape. With none present, he did the only thing he could. He raised his legs in a desperate attempt to catch the knife.
CLANG!
"Very impressive human," Cossack taunted even as the knife dropped to the ground. "It's no wonder you were chosen as a Voltron Paladin. Now, let's see if you can do that trick when five are thrown at you!" This time, all five of the commandos drew knives, preparing to throw them.
BANG! BANG!
A gunshot echoed through the chamber as the one of the soldiers ran for cover. A second cut the whip holding Daniel aloft, causing him to fall to the ground relatively unharmed.
"W…wha?"
"You picked a heck of a place to hide in, mate."
Raising their weapons, Cliff and the other members of the land team grinned, surrounding the Galrans. "Cops have this place completely surrounded. So kindly throw down your weapons and surrender."
"Maybe another day human."
A bright flash of light shone and when it cleared, the Galrans were gone. Soon a small craft, hidden in the abandoned office, flew off even as small arms from the police attempted to bring it down. The craft moved far too quickly for the police to bring down and soon took to the skies, leaving for the stars.
"How did you know where I was?" was all Daniel could ask even as he checked his throat for injury.
"Easy mate. The brass knew you were following and had both us and New York's finest in pursuit. We were hoping to box them in, but it looks like they had other plans."
"All I got from them was one of their space rifles."
"Not a total loss then, eh? Come on, I bet the Commander is worried sick about you."
"We've been played for fools!"
"What?" Daniel asked, looking on at the maps, followed by several pictures. "Oh no…"
"Wait, how were we supposed to know about this?" Larmina asked. Along with Daniel, Larmina, Vince, and the members of the Land, Sea, and Air teams, the group stood inside a large room in Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn. Commander Hawkins grimaced even as he looked on at the photos.
"The UN attack, the sea monster, it was all a ruse to keep Voltron Force occupied. While we were dealing with that, Galran battlecruisers descended halfway across the world in Singapore. They've made landfall and began rounding up the local populace."
"Why Singapore?" Rocky asked, even as Jeff looked on.
"Because it provides them a place to launch attacks on Asia, Australia, and parts of Europe without being forced to deal with orbital defenses. That and who knows what else."
"Then we have to go to Singapore, don't we?" Daniel asked.
"Listen you hot-headed idiot!" Hawkins shot back. "We have no idea what they have there, not to mention the civilians in the way! We need to formulate a battle plan before running in guns blazing, or did your attempt to apprehend those assassins not teach you that?"
"I'm not gonna sit here and let them go into other countries when we have a weapon to stop them!"
"I have to agree with the little idiot," Jeff answered, causing Daniel to grimace snidely. "We can't stay still!"
"We won't. Once we have a plan, we're going to launch a full-scale counterattack! SED forces, be prepared to move out at 0800 tomorrow!"
"ROGER!"
"See what happens when I'm left in charge of things?" Cossack grinned, looking at the Galran robots setting up critical facilities for the occupying forces. "From here, it should be easy to take over the rest of the world!"
"I have to admit," Throk answered, drinking from his glass next to Cossack as the group stood on the bridge of his landed battlecruiser, "you've made me a believer. But what about Voltron?"
"Leave that to me," Cossack answered. "Haggar herself supplied us the Robeasts for my Death Commandos. Not even the human's Voltron knockoff will be able to defeat five of them! And even if they do, I'm going to have a few more surprises in store for these humans!"
I couldn't keep the whole setup being "monster of the day" forever, especially with how many chapters I did plan. Hopefully the next arc works the way I intend.
For those of you wondering, Cossack was a character from the original Voltron, rather the US exclusive season meant to continue the story past GoLion's ending. He also makes a brief cameo in the Fleet of Doom movie where he receives a medal and then runs off to do...something or other.
As always, enjoy and please review.