Imperiam Monarch Military Command Center – 0725 hrs

The General poured himself another glass of whisky. He downed the alcohol in one gulp just as he'd regarding his last two fillings. He'd hardly slept over the last few days and the smooth, sleek liquid gave the illusion of renewed life to his worn out body.

"Ahhh, good stuff, maybe just a little more" he stated, looking down at the old bottle. It was a homemade concoction but seemed to do the trick just fine.

Cade had done well covering his tracks. The military piece of the debacle was blamed solely on Colonel Brewster and he was waiting for word on the final part of the plan. Once that task was complete, no fingers would be pointing. The ape had wealth, influence, power, and a clandestine network of connections that stretched to every dark corner of the Kingdom. He hadn't gotten his position by chance and he hadn't maintained his power through some kind of dumb luck. All of his 'critics' had a nasty way of having the rug pulled out from under them and he was constantly in; self-preservation mode. He'd learned that lesson early in his career and it had kept him alive ever since.

The gorilla straightened his uniform and brushed at the sleeves. His guest was due to arrive shortly and the man was always prompt. He opened the curtains and let the rising sun brighten the dark room.

"Let's hope it's good news", he thought gazing through the pane. Otherwise an execution squad would be showing up in the man's place. The anticipated visitor had served Cade's needs in the past and he was the perfect choice for this particular undertaking. As an Intelligence officer the man had a top security clearance. It gave him access to just about anything and everything in the Empire. It was not only his job to poke around, it was also expected.

Cade finally sat at his desk and started to tackle the back log of work. "Computer, list agenda" he said as he scrolled through the schedule. A senior staff meeting, lunch with Senator Lorus; He let out a long deep breath of air through his nostrils, knowing that meal would never take place. He scrolled a bit more …a briefing on troop discipline and morale, a readiness inspection with the 234th Armor Brigade…the list went on and on.

"Cripes! It will take a week and half just to get through the list, let alone attend each of these functions. Computer, play logged messages" he said deciding to ignore the lengthy list of mundane tasks. There were update reports on the riot and the actions taken for reconstruction, a causality list, personal replies, and more. It bored him almost as much as the agenda did. He finally determined to disregard it all and went back to sipping on the intoxicating elixir.

Minutes later Lieutenant Colonel Parks opened the door to his commander's office as he simultaneously knocked. "Sir?" he said. "I hope I'm not interrupting."

General Cade looked up, waved him in, and, as always, he offered the man a drink. And, as always, Parks politely declined. The gorilla smiled and used it as an excuse to top off his already half filled glass once again.

"It isn't even oh-eight hundred and he's already hitting that stuff" Parks thought to himself. He'd smelled the stale stench as soon as he'd entered the area. The man maintained a steady appearance but inside he felt a loathing disdain. That was the one area where he had no respect for the ape.

The whisky helped calm the General's nerves, as he prepared to step into character. Over the years he'd become quite the functional drunk. And it was now time to act. The walls had ears and Cade often used that to his advantage. He took a sip, cleared his throat, and said "Good morning Colonel. What can I do for you today? Has there been a change in the situation to the east?"

"No Sir. I'm not here to report on the eastern kingdoms we've been monitoring. I have some rather tragic news" Parks replied, sounding utterly sincere. "Last night, Senator Lorus committed suicide. Evidently, the news of the escape and destruction of the R and D center was too humiliating."

"She what?" Cade replied sounding just as convincing.

"She's dead, Sir." Parks went on "There was an e-note. She took full accountability for the last minute change to the mission and its disastrous results. Letting the two gorillas die was one thing but allowing the two men from the ship to get killed in the crossfire was inexcusable. Rather than disgrace his Excellency and dishonor her family name, she took her life."

"Surely, the Emperor would have shown her some sort of mercy." Cade stating, knowing that, it was exactly what he would not have done.

The man took a natural pause and added, "The news outlets are reporting she died in her sleep due to heart failure. Her lands and family nobility will remain intact since she did the honorable thing. I'm told that the Cabinet and governmental authorities feel it's the best course to take at this time. This way the Empire won't look weak"

"Of course there will be an investigation, Sir and I've been ordered to head it up." Parks stated. That too had been arranged by Cade, behind the scenes. A bribe here, a promise there and everything was set.

"…Anyone and everyone involved will be held accountable. I can assure you of that." The Lt Colonel falsely promised.

Cade raised a paw, signaling for the man to remain quiet for a moment. He opened his desk drawer and removed the digital pad. He handed it to Parks as he babbled on in an attempt to maintain the charade.

Parks casually babbled back as he silently read the words written on the device's face. "The two escapees are chipped. The vehicle they seized has a tracking beacon. Send two RS7s and bring them back; alive and unharmed. Tell them they're retrieving two deserters from last night's riots. And bring them directly to me, once captured."

Parks looked up gave a nod.

The two then finished their empty discussion and Parks went on his way. Cade looked at himself in the window's reflection and raised his glass in his own honor. If the Imperiam ever started given out academy awards, he would certainly be the first actor nominated. This was the beauty in it all. Cade had arranged her death. Parks had carried out the murder and now that same assassin would investigate her so-called suicide. Oh sure, he'd poke about, interrogate a few people and put on a good show, but with no one around to dispute Cade's story the incident would simply fade away.

Cade would then see that Parks got a promotion to full Colonel, replacing the late Hank Brewster. Parks was an Intelligence officer, not part of the Medical or Science corps, but Cade would make an argument that having a quasi-civilian officer in command is what caused the whole mess in the first place. And who would dare argue with the Monarch's Senior General? In reality, who would even care? Someone had to replace the dead Colonel Brewster and why not Parks? It was a true, win-win.

OOO

Several miles away, the very much alive, Colonel Brewster wiped the tears from his eyes as he looked at what had once been his home. His wife, his daughters, all of them dead. Imperiam Intelligence took no time at all seizing his lands. They'd stripped his name from nobility and as it was accustomed, they purged the bloodline.

"I'm too late. They're gone" Brewster muttered looking at the scorched house. He'd lay unconscious and buried for almost seven hours. His mind played the 'what-if' game but that didn't matter. It wouldn't bring any of them back.

"Savage vampires …butchering children in cold blood…" he blindly said choking on the words. He, himself had killed hundreds in the name of science and in service to his supreme sovereign, but this seemed different.

Cade had done this, he'd concluded. And he was right. There were logged conversations in his home that could incriminate and contradict the perceptions the General had set into play. The man's rage almost got the better of him as he confronted the realizations that he'd never hold his twin girls again. He swallowed a couple of pills to help with the intense headache pounding in his skull.

Before heading home, Brewster had accessed the lab and shorted out his internal biochip. It was imperative if he was to stay 'dead'. The man knocked on the thin body armor. He knew Cade well and it had saved his life. A few broken ribs were a small price to pay for being alive. But what had it cost him. In mere hours his whole life had been turned inside out.

"Don't push it Henry" the man lectured himself. His anger frustrations began to surface and he pounded his fist against the steering wheel of his transport vehicle.

"You stay focused …for them." He thought.

Deactivating one's chip was not an easy task. In fact it was next to impossible. But since he was the leading scientist, as well as, the chief medial official he had the method, means, and know-how to get around it. Shorting the gadget out was a precise delicate procedure. If not done with unique accuracy the brain could hemorrhage or become severely damage. The patient could die or worse spend the rest of their life as a thoughtless vegetable.

However, if the process was successful, it accompanied a series of sever headaches and required strong bio-mech medication before the body fully adjusted and returned full motor control back to the host. Anxiety released chemicals that were counter productive to the bio-meds, so stress was something he could not afford. However the man wasn't a robot. He couldn't flip off his emotion at will. So along with the meds went some mild tranquilizers.

The one bit of happiness and joy he possessed was now a heap of ashes. Brewster had nothing much to live for and considered putting a bullet in his head, ending it right here. But that would have given Cade exactly what he wanted. Vengeance was the only thing motivating the man.

To Cade, he was nothing; just an insignificant man who crunched numbers, talked nonsense, and oversaw the troop physicals. But Brewster was much, much more. Unlike the General, he'd achieved his position through accomplishment and an unmatched outcome. He wasn't an opportunist like the Gorilla and he hadn't manipulated fate in his favor. Colonel Brewster was the best man for his job. He was beyond brilliant. His scientific know-how and medial capabilities were truly exceptional. Few, in the Empire, if any were his intellectual equal.

"I need to get out of here. I couldn't take seeing their bodies" he said quietly. "I swear you'll pay for this General. I'm going to make you regret the day you were born. …and I know just how to do that."

The Colonel throttled his vehicle into FWD and headed back towards his lab.

Northeastern Colorado, the following day – Old United States

The high intensity sonic eruption shook the ground like a tremor. A concoction of mixed dirt, clay, and rock peppered the stolen Imperiam Sand Quad. Hayes cussed as dried, sun beaten, grunge sprayed his body. The vibrations from the small discharge made him feel lightheaded. Seconds later another shot impacted off their starboard. March forced as much muscle out of the vehicle as he could muster but the power reserves were running low. He felt an odd feeling of unsteadiness and blurred vision but he was too close to his destination to give up now. The man weaved the vehicle back and forth but the ATVs following were much more maneuverable. They easily matched any and all attempts to evade.

Fortunately for the escaping astronauts, their pursuers were simply interested in capture. Otherwise, they'd have been long dead. The Quad was no match for the pursuing Rip-Saw-700s. An Imperiam Sand Quad was, in essence, a glorified dune-buggy. Used for short range patrols between the buffer zones and immediate desert. They had little armor, no tactical weaponry, and served only as a means to get a soldier, quickly, from point A to point B.

On the other hand, the RS7, as it was nicknamed, was the Imperiam's latest assault ATV. Each vehicle was equipped with twin 'jackhammer' mini-guns, a compliment of HEAP (High-Explosive Armor-Piercing) self-guiding missiles, EM disruptors, and it possessed short range sonic mortar capabilities. Its ion compressed micro-fission engine required only nanometers of antiprotons to make the trek east. These machines could run for a lifetime and would never use more than twenty five percent of their nuclear fuel.

"Stop your vehicle and surrender and no one will be hurt", the voice broadcasted loudly. "This is your last warning"

"There it is Jonny." March shouted. The ruined city and once capital of the long forgotten State were the only standing ruins the two men had seen since moving east.

"We'll ditch the vehicle, separate, and try and lose them in the cities remains. Hopefully we won't run into anything like we did back in Buffalo" March said.

They reached the edge of what had once been Denver, Colorado but a little too late. The lead RS7 had flanked the Quad and fired a precision shot in to the vehicle's rear axle. A wheel broke loose causing it to whirl out of control. It flipped several times. The two men were jostled around but the safety bars and overall design were built with troop protection in mind. When it all stopped, the vehicle was upright and the men inside were shaky but nothing more.

"Get the hell out there, now!" one of their pursuers stated. He had huge knife and cut the straps that were holding the two securely to their seats. They fell forward with an uncomfortable thud.

"The rest of you secure those bags and prepare to return. The sooner we get out of these inhospitable surroundings the better" the Sergeant stated.

He immediately turned his attention back to the escapees. Without hesitation he barked, "I said get out of there."

This time he didn't wait for the men to comply. He grabbed Hayes by the arm and yanked him free of the wrecked vehicle. Before the man could react, he shoved him to the dirt. "Sit there and don't move", he ordered. To add effect he pointed a pistol at the man.

"And you..." He went on looking at March. "Get a move on it, pops. I'm not getting any younger".

The words, "Hey Sergeant", came crackling through NCOs com-link. "We have a second Quad coming up on our six. He claims he's a Colonel with R and D and he's ordering us to stand down until he arrives. His auth-codes are valid. So what do we do?"

"We stand down, you idiot. What do you think we do?" The Sergeant snapped back. "Secure the prisoners. I'll deal with the brass once he arrives. You two must be pretty important for them to send a full-bird all the way out here".

The Quad didn't reach the group until almost thirty minutes later. In the dry hot conditions of the desert, that seemed like an eternity. The NCO in charge rose to his feet as the vehicle finally came to a halt. He closed his almost empty canteen and placed back in the case.

"It's about damn time." He muttered wiping the seat from his brow. He walked towards the officer, saluted, and asked; "What's this all about, Sir? I was instructed to capture two deserters and return them directly to General Cade. Why are you here, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Ah, I see, Sergeant. No, I don't mind you asking one bit. This should clear everything up just fine." Brewster stated. He pressed the button on the small electronic apparatus in his hand and watched as everyone, including March and Hayes, convulsed in agony. Each of them grasped at their temples until the pain became so intense they all blacked out.

Old Northeastern US / Canadian border – Detroit side of the river

The Imperiam agent longed for home. She'd been on her assignment for almost a year and she was sick of scavenging for food and supplies. Her original orders were to infiltrate the Human Coalition and download all data from their ODN mainframe. She'd had moderate success but was compromised before she could fully complete the download. She'd been forced to pull up stakes and head west. However, her superiors hadn't ordered her home. Instead they'd issued new orders. They moved her back through what was once West Virginia. From there they sent her into the old State of Ohio and then finally up into Michigan.

Her new assignment was to monitor radio traffic and report on all tactical deployments. She was now shadowing the company of troops from Argos. And she'd served her Emperor well. Destroying the bridge had halted these Neanderthals dead in their tracks. They'd spent the last day and a half trying to forge the river. Two of their vehicles had blown a track and a third was stuck in the river bed. It was covered in so much mud they'd been forced to abandon it. Traveling through the brush wasn't an option either. The trees were tall and broad and the rocks and rubble we just as massive and just as bulky. It would have taken a full battalion of their engineers, with a complete compliment of explosives and equipment, a week just to move twenty paces.

Things were going relatively well up until now. Because the vegetation was so thick and because she wanted to verify exactly where they planned to cross, she'd unknowingly exposed herself. The woman moved too close to the rushing Detroit, river and was spotted.

The position was unique to her plan. The enemy was attempting to salvage cabling and materials from what was left of the bridge at their end. She'd also noticed they were using this material to construct a crude makeshift overpass. If she didn't intervene, they might just make it across. It would mean exposing herself but what could they do once she'd completed her task? There was a wall of raging water between her and them.

The woman secured her footing and picked up the equipment she'd dropped. Next she slowly crawled up the massive stone and began talking to herself. "If I can just figure out the exact angle, I can take out what's left of the bridge and destroy those vehicles as well."

She unlatched the LTL (Land To Land) short range rocket and carefully sighted in on her objective. She pressed a button and the auto-locking software began calculating distance and speed. The missile was her only real tactical advantage. She was miles from home and some of the metropolitan remains were inhabited with wild animals and these mutated monstrosities. This was her only defense against a large force and part of her wished there was another alternative.

Soldiering in the field was not her strong point. She was young, shapely, and attractive. Those were her best qualities and she'd used them often in DC. But this wasn't DC. Lugging equipment around that weighed as much as an elephant and planning sabotage missions was not her strong suit. She was well trained and reasonably decent in the field but, in this case, her lack of proficiency was going to cost her, her life.

The echo of the gunshot startled her almost as much as the flock of wild birds that scattered in every direction from the deafening sound. The slug ripped through her side and took out a sizable chunk of flesh. The woman spun around and fell back first to the ground.

Half dazed and half in shock she groped for the LTL. The woman reached towards the small guided projectile and slapped at the launch button. She clumsily pressed it and died. The missile recalculated its guidance protocols and fired.

Old Northeastern US / Canadian border – Windsor side of the river

"…I say again, there's movement on the far side of the canal, over" Corporal Price declared, speaking softly into com-link.

Captain Berger was about a klick away when the message from Price came through. The man was searching an old structure he'd found. It was small and other than the one missing wall it was still intact. He didn't know why but the interruption irritated him slightly. "Never a moment's peace" he muttered.

The man dropped the crate he was searching through and asked; "What kind of movement, Price? An animal, human, ape, both. Over"

"Unclear," Price answered. "Without binoculars, it's hard to tell. But there are shadows and someone or something knocked debris down the riverside. Over"

"Alright" Berger replied. "Stay put, I'll be there in a sec, Berger out."

Moments later, the man crawled up to where Price was perched. "What's the situation? Have they seen us?" Berger asked.

"Something's there, Sir and I don't think it's an animal. Sounds like they dropped equipment; Metallic equipment." Price alleged.

Berger looked through the binoculars. Price was right. Someone was there. The shadow was definitely human and he could vaguely see the outline of a rucksack. Just at that moment a face peered from around large rock.

"Well, I'll be damned" the officer declared not really believing his eyes. "I know her." He went on to whisper.

"Know her? …Sir?" The confused Price replied.

"That's not face you'd forget. She was in New Washington. She hacked our mainframe and then drugged me after I caught her in the act." Berger explained. "She got out of New Washington Scott-free, too"

Price began asking more questions but Berger wasn't listening. He'd noticed the relic. "I don't believe it. She's got some kind of RPG and she's going to fire it."

Without hesitation he adjusted the site and got into position. He relaxed and gently squeezed the trigger. The slug raced out of the barrel and ripped into midsection, It sent her, along with blood and tissue into the hard ground.

What he witnessed next was a flash of light and trail of smoke. The small projectile shot into the air and struck the half standing bridge. A series of explosions, accompanied by huge mushroom clouds of fire rose high into the air.

Kawaka

What would have been a two week trip by horseback took only half that time in the human's tracked vehicle. Its speed and ability to map a direct route, through the terrain, gave it quite an advantage. They'd stuck to the wilderness as much as possible but several times they'd had to travel directly through some of the small farming settlements. It was bad enough that the metal personnel carrier utterly terrified the on looking ape citizens, but seeing humans pop out of it nearly sent them into hysteria.

Only the military and civilians who worked the Great Fish pond were allowed to carry weapons. Nevertheless, many of the farmers in the remote townships possessed self-made muskets. A Coalition soldier made the mistake of wandering off too far into the woods and discovered that fact the hard way. The half frightened ape missed the man by a mile but from that point on he never left the vehicle again.

Sullen fidgeted over the communications equipment. It was becoming quite a different world for him and his nation. His apes were not used to machines with such complexity. In fact, they weren't used to any machines at all, regardless of the complexity.

What concerned the Lord Prefect most was how the military had reacted to these new 'toys'. He'd reluctantly approved a nation wide initiative to replace every musket with a standard repeater. Many of the gorillas displayed the same insane lust he'd witnessed in General Grazot; especially the elite units who were being equipped with the A1X rifles. The genie was certainly out of the bottle now.

The ape felt forced to grab every bit of the old world technology he could unearth. Though Polk was currently an ally, the past burned brightly in his head. The chimp was responsible for killing an entire Contingent and torturing him, as well. He thought of it every time his knee throbbed.

Sullen wasn't blind to the fact that they coveted his prosperity either. His nation was rich with food, game, fertile land, and plenty of water. Despite the civil disturbance and the loss of his military, his apes out numbered both the human and southern ape population by almost two to one. They'd thrived through the abundance of nature's provisions. His simians were healthier and better-off but when it came to civil defense, they were seriously lacking.

St James was the other side of his proverbial coin. It was ironic how the man was more trustworthy than Polk but in the end he was still a man. Humans were just a blight; a disease with no cure, weren't they? They'd bloodied this planet for centuries. Yet now they were the only salvation his country had. Habits and perceptions were very hard to change. Sullen struggled with his double-minded opinions. The man had saved Sigma Twelve and his engineers were helping to rebuild his nation, but he was always acting in his own self interest. What would happen once his simians reached a militaristic equality that rivaled his? He preached peace and Sullen knew he meant it, but what would they preaching fifty or a hundred years from now? What would the world look like with a secure, advanced, militant human nation on this planet once again?

"I'm sorry Lord Prefect. I don't understand what I'm doing wrong" The troop Sergeant stated.

The Prefect brought his attention back to the present. He waved off the ape's apology with a pat on the shoulder. "Don't fret yourself over it, Troop Sergeant. It's not you. It's working just fine. We've lost contact, that's all."

General Grazot hadn't reported in, in over seventeen hours. Something was wrong. Their whole existence was teetering on his success. Sullen turned the two General's in the room with him. "What do you make of this?" he asked.

Mikos looked at St James who motioned for him to him to respond first.

"Something's wrong, Sir. General Grazot would not simply forget to report in." Mikos declared.

"I have to agree, Prefect" St James added. "Could it be equipment failure? Sure. Why not? The machinery is pieced together and old. But we don't have the luxury to guess here. In fact, we must assume the worst and plan for it accordingly."

"I have to agree with the human, Lord Prefect. His reasoning is sound. Too much is at stake." General Mikos concurred.

"Ok, we meet with The Council at noon." Sullen stated. "General St James, I'd like you to work with Mikos and his staff and help them devise some kind of contingency plan. They're fine tacticians but not as …familiar… with these devices as your people are. Maybe between the two of you, you can come up with something practical."