[MT]
[ Mature ]
Define a Nation
SPARTAN Command, Wolf Mountain, Northern Province
Two Years AntebellumA SPARTAN is Gordonopia. How often that phrase, that cryptic phrase, had been used as a simple reason to fight. But what is Gordonopia? The people? The Republic? The multitude of dynasties long relegated to the annals of history? This moment would be one that would solve that ancient philosophical question; the loyalty of one man would be determined, and with it, the identity of a nation would be found.
Surrounded in his office by the cold gray rock of the mountain, Major General David Milan contemplated this question with a deep resolve. After today, there would be no turning back. Events set in motion by a single action would alter Gordonopia forever. All of it rested on one man: Ernst Meyer.
After nearly an hour, Milan finally felt his confidant decision was right. Very slowly, he rose from his simple desk and walked to the thick steel door. As he walked into the SPARTAN's command center, several heads turned to him. These few men knew the action itself that would soon take place, but unlike himself, they were oblivious to its repercussions. He found his way over to Operations Command, where a communications officer, a battle-hardened sergeant, passed him a headset. The man entered several commands into his computer, before looking up at Milan and giving a quick nod.
"Ernst, this is Milan." The aging general began calmly.
"Take the shot.""Acknowledged. Please confirm, sir." came a muffled reply.
"Major, take the shot. That is an order."General Milan held his breath. The moment was at hand.
-----
Pier 1184, Port of Teva, Coastal Province
Two Days PriorFrom the shadowy corner of the empty wooden warehouse, Major Ernst Meyer watched as a man cautiously entered through the structure's only door. The small, stocky figure ambled to the middle of the building before standing, waiting, hands deep in his pockets. Slowly, Meyer approached the man, being careful not to startle him. At about five meters away, the man turned and addressed him.
"You... you the SPARTAN?" The man stuttered.
"P...please tell me you're the guy."Meyer calmly nodded his head, confirming his identity.
Slightly reassured by Meyer's silent answer, the man continued.
"I have the information I told you guys about. Before I give it to you, I want full protection, though, from anything your people, and my people, are going to do."Expecting this, Meyer removed a piece of paper from one of the many pockets on his combat vest, and held it in front of the man.
"You give me what you know, and I give you this signed letter from the Prime Minister himself. Take this to the nearest police station, and you'll be safe.""It's all on this thumb-drive." The man replied.
"Every detail I could get. The guys involved that I knew, the equipment they're using, the shortlist of targets, all of it."Meyer motioned for the man to hand him the drive which, after a brief moment of hesitation, he did. Meyer then used the hand with the protection letter in it to pull a small device off of his belt. Plugging the flash drive in, several files were displayed on the small screen, and after a quick browse, Meyer nodded, and passed the piece of paper over to the man.
As the man glanced over the paper, Meyer said,
"Now, get out of here. The quicker you reach a station, the quicker you reach safety.""Yeah... yeah, you're right. Thank you for meeting me, I just couldn't go through with this.""You did the right thing. Innocent people are going live because of you."The man gave a quick smile, before hastily turning towards the door. As soon as he was gone, Meyer pulled out an earpiece and wrapped it around his right ear.
"Command, this is Alpha Solo." He stated softly.
"Exchange complete.""Roger that Alpha Solo. Report once analysis is complete. Over and out."Meyer waited for a few moments to ensure that the man he had just meet with was gone, before heading to the door himself. If what he had gathered from his quick scan of the flash drive's information was true, the next two days would last a hell of a long time.
-----
3782 Masthead Ave Apt. 4, Port of Teva, Coastal Province
Four Hours Later"Ernst, I've that last bit decrypted. You want it now, I assume?"Looking up from his computer monitor Ernst Meyer stared his subordinate, Captain Eric Hoffman, straight in the eye. Understanding this to be a yes, Hoffman quickly printed off a copy of the final data gleaned from the flash drive Meyer had returned to the SPARTAN safehouse only hours before.
"I think this is what we've been looking for, Major." Hoffman declared as he handed it over to his commander.
"It's got the target list you mentioned, plus a few more names. What's more, based on some of the date latent in the files, I think I may be able to find the location they were recovered at.""Get right on that Eric. I'll compare this to what we've already got, and we can figure out what we're dealing with here. Oh, and while you're at it, can you see if we have any files on a Marcus Novic? His name's popped up twice in the rest of the data, which certainly means he's involved more than tangentially.""Of course, sir." Hoffman replied, before returning to his own work station.
As he analyzed the newly decrypted information, Meyer began to realize what kind of threat had been leaked to him by his anonymous informant in the darkest hours of the morning. Several purchase and shipping orders contained the signature items used by a bomb-maker, whilst the list of possible targets indicated that this could potentially be a serious terrorist threat. Although none of the names immediately stood out at him, his suspicions about Novic were confirmed as soon as Hoffman delivered a personal profile several pages thick.
"Although there are a couple of Marcus Novic's in the system, this one stands out the most. He's a Teva native, plus he's a registered member, and a very senior one at that, of Blut und Krone. I'm sure you've heard of that."Meyer gave a grim smile as he heard the last part. Blut und Krone was notorious as being one of the most radical pro-monarchist groups in Gordonopia, and was suspected to have been behind at least three small-scale terrorist attacks, ranging from assassinations to a car-bomb, in the past four years. If BUK was involved, the threat was certainly one to take seriously.
"Should we pass this info on to Military Intelligence? Or even the local authorities Ernst?" Hoffman asked.
Silently deliberating for a brief moment, Meyer replied,
"No, no, there's something about this that I want to keep... in house. It's not just the fact that my informant worked damn hard to make sure a SPARTAN got this information, it's the whole nature of this attack. From what I'm gathering, a bomb is planned to be detonated in either Teva Tower, the Harbormaster's office, or one of a small number of city government buildings. Normally, an attack on a major target like this would take a lot of resources and manpower, but this one seems so... compact. Reading through our intel, there can't be more than a dozen men involved, probably less. The more of our people we bring in, the more likely these people are to find out. Let's at least wait until we've narrowed down the targets before we bring in help.""Understood." Hoffman quickly replied.
As Hoffman returned to his desk, Meyer sat for a minute in thought. It had been a long time since he'd been involved in a counter-terrorism op. He and Hoffman made up one of the SPARTAN's four dual-man teams which handled the most sensitive assignments. The simple fact that he had been in Teva wrapping up a previous mission was the only reason General Milan had given him the task of meeting a man who was supposedly a whistle blower for a terrorist plot, and then determining what to act with the information received. At the same time, however, it seemed to be a strange coincidence. It was no secret among the SPARTANs that Meyer had been raised a Monarchist; his mother had in fact died while committing an attack with the very same organization he would soon be investigating. Although he tried to brush it off as simple chance, he couldn't help but feel that something wasn't quite right, that somehow, this was all part of a bigger plan. He would have to find out if he was right.
-----
214 Norton Plaza, Port of Teva, Coastal Province
3 Hours LaterWith the late-morning sun overhead, Ernst Meyer had no trouble spotting his target through the window of the man's town home with the help of his a scope. After checking with the photograph that had been found of Marcus Novic one final time, to ensure that the operation wouldn't fail due to a simple mistaken identity, he placed the scope back in it's case, and set it down on the floor of his shiny black Tolten Axiom. As exiting the large SUV, he found his way to the trunk, where his weapons case was stashed. From the wide array of sniper and assault rifles, shotguns, and handguns, he selected his dependable SR-45 handgun. Whereas most of the SPARTANs, and the entirety of the regular military forces, had switched to the Lyran designed Hellhammer, he could never get over the combined reliability and personal feel of the SR-45, as well as the personal sentimentality behind this specific gun: it had been handed to him by Major General David Milan personally upon his induction into the SPARTANs, and he had used it on every operation since.
Holstering the gun, and pocketing two spare mags, Meyer headed over to the door of the house. He took a deep breath, before knocking on the door and waiting for someone to answer. After about fifteen seconds, he tried a second time, after which he took a step back. Raising his leg, he gave a solid kick just below the door knob, knocking the door in. Immediately, he pulled out his gun, checking each corner before moving further into the house. He knew that only minutes ago, Novic had been on the second floor, so he quickly found the staircase. Cautiously, he advanced up the somewhat creaky stairs, and soon found himself in a hallway with three doors running down it. The first, which was already open, lead to a small closet. Nothing there. The second was a bathroom, which, after a quick search, was found to have nothing in it either. The third, however, was a thick-looking door, with three locks running down it. Confident that this would be the one, he prepared for a kick, before delivering a punishing blow that managed to knock the door in.
"Drop the weapon! Drop it or I will shoot!" he yelled as he found himself face to face with Novic, who was holding a pistol of his own. The balding man before him seemed to hesitate for a moment, which was all the time needed for Meyer to lunge at him, knocking Novic to the ground and causing his weapon to fly to the corner of the room.
"Mr. Marcus Novic, you're under arrest," he said sternly.
Novic groaned deeply, before snapping back.
"What the hell is this!? Do you even have a warrent to kick my doors down and tackle me to the floor?""Mr. Novic, I'm a man who doesn't need a warrant. As of right now, you are our prime suspect in a terror..." before he could finish his sentence, a closet door behind Meyer burst open, and a man carrying a shotgun aimed it directly at him. Meyer's hair-trigger reaction time, however, proved invaluable as he whipped around and put a bullet directly between the assailant's eyebrows. Turning back to Novic, he continued.
"As I was saying before your friend there rudely interrupted, you're currently the prime suspect in a terror investigation. I'm going to have to take you in for interrogation, and, depending on your cooperation, you just might make it out of the next few days alive."With the last phrase, Novic's eyes widened.
"Who the fuck are you?!" He yelled.
"What do you mean make it out alive? I have rights! I'm a citizen of this country, doesn't that mean anything to you?!"As Meyer handcuffed Novic, and placed a blindfold around him, he replied.
"Not right now it doesn't Mr. Novic. You'll find out everything in due time."-----
3782 Masthead Ave Apt. 4, Port of Teva, Coastal Province
One Hour LaterInside the dark, improvised interrogation room at the SPARTAN's Teva safehouse, a prisoner would have no idea of the beautiful mid-day weather just outside. Marcus Novic was one such prisoner. Through his blindfold, he couldn't even see the room itself, with its cold, metal table and chairs in the middle, and near-bare walls with only a single camera in the corner to break the sense of emptiness. Additionally, he had no idea that Ernst Meyer sat directly in front of him, preparing for the right moment to begin his questioning.
After several minutes where he believed himself to be alone, Novic began to speak softly to himself. Although it wasn't audible to Meyer, it was enough for him to begin his procedure.
"Could you speak a little louder, Mr. Novic? I'm sure you're saying something very interesting. I'd very much like to know what it is."The man sat silent for a moment, before replying.
"I asked this once, I'm going to ask again. Who the fuck are you? If I'm under arrest, why don't I have a lawyer?"Smiling at the man's vain hope that he was still within the bounds of Gordonopia's justice system, Meyer responded casually.
"How about a deal. I tell you this, then you tell me something I want to know. I'm sure that is a fair bargain. Mr. Novic, I'm a SPARTAN. The minute I took you into custody, you ceased to exist. In essence, you died. Now, I'm the only man who can bring you back to the world of the living. Your cooperation goes a long way toward making that happen. Now, tell me what you know about a bomb that is to go off tomorrow in this city. Tell me where it will detonate."Silence once again settled over the room for nearly a minute, before it was broken by Novic's artificially calm voice.
"I don't know anything about a fucking bomb. I swear, every time you Republican's hear about some crazy-ass terrorist plot, it's either us Monarchists, or the Communists. Every damn time. Did you ever think that someone else might be behind it?""Don't play games Novic, I'm not a stupid man. I assume you aren't either. That means you'll know that if you don't cooperate with me here and now, this whole situation will get to be a hell of a lot worse, but only on your end. Mr. Novic, I've broken many men, more than I can count. Just looking at you tells me you won't last five minutes, but those five minutes will be the worst of your life, I promise.""Every time, I swear to god. What makes you even think I'm involved? Some fucking Republican bureaucrat tell you, his loyal canine, to bring me in? I'm innocent, I have nothing to tell.""You still think I'm a Republican? Let me ask you something. Have you ever heard of a women named Lisa Meyer?" At the mention of that name, Novic perked up slightly.
"Of course you have, she's your groups biggest martyr. How many women would ever sacrifice their life like she did? Mr. Novic, Lisa Meyer was my mother. I can tell you this, though, I couldn't give a rat's ass about your little political cause. I'm in this to save innocent Gordonopians. If your bomb goes off, how many orphans will you create? How many widows, widowers? Hell, how many Monarchists will you kill? Four in fifty Gordonopians are known to be Monarchists, if this plot is as big as I think it is, you're going to kill two of three. Are they going to be unwilling martyrs for your organization?"At the last part, Novic gulped, before answering.
"If we were to set off a bomb, and this is no confession, my fellow Monarchists would be honored more than they ever would have in life. Now, let me ask you something, SPARTAN. If you're arresting me, an innocent man, you must be dangerously low on leads. If that's the case, what can you do to me? I know you aren't going to kill me, you'd never get the information that I don't have."Meyer quietly turned to the camera, and gave a quick nod, indicating to Eric Hoffman, who was watching in the next room, what his next move would be. Under the table, Meyer pulled out his SR-45, and fired a quick shot at Novic's knee. As the bullet ripped through the man's leg, he gave out a blood-curdling scream, to which Meyer exclaimed,
"There's a lot I can do to you, Mr. Novic! Remember what I said: you no longer exist. Now, all you need to do for me to bring in something for the pain is to tell me where the bomb is going to go off. Hell, I'll help you out. We've already narrowed down the target list to five options. Is it Teva Tower? Perhaps the Harbormaster's office? City Hall? Or is it Provincial Parliament building? Hell, maybe you just decided to go all out and picked Iron Harbor. Just tell me which one, and I'll see what I can do about letting you go."Novic took well over a minute to finally calm down from the gunshot, and after he had finally gained his voice back, he stammered,
"I... Iron Harbor. It's Iron Harbor. We... we wanted to..." Meyer interrupted him with a second gunshot to the same knee. He had suspected Novic would fall for the faint, and try to feed him the false target Meyer had determined ahead of time. Before the renewed screaming quieted down, Meyer began again.
"Mr. Novic, I need your cooperation. Like I said, I am not a stupid man. The chances of you getting a bomb to Iron Harbor Naval Base, the fucking headquarters of the Navy, are astronomically slim, especially with how small your operation is. All I want to know is where the target is, and I won't have to resort to much, much more painful methods that you are experiencing now. These methods, I should warn, may not be painful in the same way, however. You are divorced, I know that Mr. Novic. I also know that you have a son studying at the University of Teva. You haven't seen him in years have you? Perhaps I could bring him in, show him how daddy's doing. Maybe he could experience it hands on."A far more pained look came across Novic's face, one certainly not caused by the gunshot wounds. Finally, he whispered something, though all Meyer could make out was 'provincial'.
"Is it the Provincial Parliament, Mr. Novic. All I need is for you to nod, and this can all be over."Hesitating for a moment, Novic finally gave a single nod. Meyer tore off his blindfold, and a deep gaze into the man's eyes told him all he needed to know. He certainly been right about one thing: Novic had been an easy man to crack.
"Get this bastard some meds, Eric. I'm heading out again."-----
Teva Game Park, Port of Teva, Coastal Province
2 Hours LaterUnique to Teva among all of Gordonopia's metropolitan areas was the Teva Game Park. Well over nine-thousand acres of prime land kept in its natural state, and all of it open to licensed hunters. It was only a bonus that it was entirely contained within the city limits of Teva itself, rather than in the megalopolis' outskirts. Today, however, a small clearing would be used for a different purpose: a meeting of great importance.
Two men, old friends, stood facing each other across the space, attempting to read one another. On one side, Ernst Meyer, on the other, one of the highest ranking members of the BUK, David Kransky. Finally, the tension was broken when Kransky crossed the clearing, and spread out his long arms to give Meyer a bear-like embrace.
"Ernst you old son of a bitch. How the hell have you been?"Returning the gesture, Ernst replied quickly.
"Busy, Dave. Very, very busy. Let's cut to the chase though, if we wanted to re-connect, we'd have met at a coffee shop. You know I want information, and you're the only person who can give it to me."Suddenly, Kransky's face straightened, as he inquired as to what kind of information.
"Provincial Parliament. Dave, I know something is going down tomorrow, but I don't know how, and I don't know precisely when. I can say with a good amount of certainty, though, that it's a BUK operation."Other than a small crease on his forehead, Kransky's face remained unchanged.
"Ernst, BUK's changed a lot since your mother and I were young. We're a legitimate political organization. If you think I'd know about a plot like this and not tell someone like you, just hear me out. I'm a patriot, Ernst. I love my country. Just because I disagree with our government doesn't mean I'd let god knows how many innocents die just to make a statement."Meyer gave a sigh, before pressing further.
"Cut the bullshit, please Dave. Nothing's changed except what the public sees. You know as well as I do that what they don't see is still the same old crap."At this, a very chilling look came over Krasnky's face, causing Meyer to prepare his arm for a possible pistol-draw, just in case.
"Ernst, you're looking into things you really shouldn't be. If I were you, I'd drop this whole thing, and go back to the mountain. This doesn't concern you, no matter how much you'd like it to."Meyer began to reply, however just as he began speaking, Kransky let go with a powerful sweep to his leg, causing Meyer to fall quickly to the soft ground. With expert speed, Kransky drew his own pistol and fired several shots at Meyer, who barely managed to roll out of the way and behind a tree. Drawing his own weapon, Meyer stood with his back against his cover, waiting for the right moment to make his move.
"If you leave now, Ernst, we can forget about this whole mess!" Kransky yelled.
Just as he finished speaking, Meyer dove for the next tree, drawing three shots which barely missed. Peeking around the new tree drew another shot, however he had anticipated it, and was able to move back just in time. Carefully, he slid back down to the grass, and moved to a prone position behind the tree. The tall grass managed to hide his position, however it also made it impossible to see Kransky. What he could see, however, was a medium-sized rock several meters ahead, and he carefully crawled towards it, making sure to disturb as little grass as possible.
He counted down from three to himself, before swiftly popping up, acquiring the position of Kransky, and firing a dead-accurate shot to the man's arm. As he dropped the gun, Meyer darted towards him, and initiated a powerful take down with which he subdued his former friend. It was all over in a flash.
"It pains me to have to do this Dave, but it's the only way. I pray for your sake that you break quickly, though in my heart, I know that won't happen."As he was lead away, Kransky didn't say a word. Back at the safehouse, it would be Meyer's job to change that.
-----
3782 Masthead Ave Apt. 4, Port of Teva, Coastal Province
Early Evening"You know I don't want to do this Dave, but I'll do what I have to do. Make this easy for the both of us, and just end it now. When is the bomb going off tomorrow, and where is it going to be in the building?"David Kransky simply glared up at Meyer, cursing his old friend under his breath. He could do no more than that, however, as his arms and legs were securely restrained to his chair, preventing him from moving at all.
"Fine, it will have to be that way then." Meyer said with just a hint of remorse as he stood, and moved an IV next to Kransky. Inserting the needle into him, he added,
"This is 'Damitra', our newest interrogation drug. Chemically, it's shares properties with both Sodium Penotothal and Perogolide. Your discretion will be removed, essentially give it a 'truth serum' effect, however the more you try to physically resist its effects, the more the Perogolide's effect will kick in. In case you don't know, it slowly paralyzes your diaphragm, until eventually, you get a feeling of drowning and after awhile, death. I won't let that final effect happen, though, until I get what I need to know."Meyer injected several CC's of the drug into the IV, and then returned to his chair, leaning back casually.
"Now, are you going to tell me what I need to know, or am I going to have to go farther?"A tortured look came across Kransky, as it became apparent that he was trying to fight the drug. Sighing, Meyer stood, and knelt on one knee next to him.
"I can end this now, end everything now. If you won't do this for me, and you won't do this out of pain, then do it for my mother, do it for Lisa." Kransky's eyes widened as he turned, slightly blue-faced, to Meyer, who immediately continued.
"I know the last thing she told you before she died. She wanted you to take care of me, she didn't trust dad. Of course you accepted. It took me most of my life to figure out the fact that you loved her. Yes, you, her husband's best friend. Honor her memory, help me one last time. I know you believe in God, Dave, any true Monarchist would. You believe that Lisa is now with him. I finally understand what those long nights at your house were, the ones where you'd lock yourself in your room, and every once in awhile, I'd find a gun on the nightstand. You wanted to join her, but your beliefs kept you from suicide. Dave, let me reunite you."Kransky's face shook, as he attempted to form words. Meyer nodded in understanding, and injected a second needle into the IV. Within seconds, Kransky let out a huge breath, and then in a weak voice, began to speak.
"Tomorrow, at precisely 11:00, one of my young men will enter the Provincial Parliament building. I recruited him a few months ago for this specific purpose. He's a parliament page, which means security never feels the need to touch him. Their mistake, I guess. In his briefcase is bomb carefully crafted to appear as a laptop. At 11:30, he'll walk onto the Parliament floor, and detonate the bomb near several Liberal Party MP's. It'll only kill a few men, but obviously, the chaos it would cause would be huge.""Thank you Dave, that's all I needed to know." Experience had taught him to read a man's eyes, similar to how he had found Marcus Novic to be telling the truth. With those years of practice, he knew that Dave was not lying. As he raised his SR-45, however, Dave interrupted.
"Wait, there's one more thing I have to tell you. This isn't my operation, I was contacted in person by someone. I'm sure you're familiar with Frederick Jodl? Of course you are, I'm sure you're familiar with any Monarchist provincial governor, even if his term's been up for a year. Anyway, he talked to me in person exactly six months ago at Nautilus Park, and gave me this operation. I... I just thought you should know that."Meyer looked down for a moment, before looking Kransky straight in the face, to find that a single tear was running down the man's cheek. Meyer raised his gun directly to Kransky's temple, and pulled the trigger a single time. Instantly, the man's head went limp as read blood slowly covered the his tear.
With the plot hopefully uncovered, it seemed that it was time to deal with a more sensitive matter.
"Eric, get me Milan on a secure channel. I've got a very, very delicate piece of information that he needs to know."-----
Provincial Parliament Building
The Next DayAlthough he had been using it for months now, Ernst Meyer still hadn't gotten over how advanced the R2 was. The incredible versatility, accuracy, stopping power, and range of the R2 in all its variants where what had made it into the SPARTAN's primary firearm. Now, staring down the scope of the sniper variant, he would have to use it once again.
After successfully extracting Kransky's knowledge of the Parliament Page bomb plot the night before, he had coordinated with the Provincial Parliament Security to prevent it from happening. While the security guards in charge of screening guests were given explicit orders to search everyone including pages as thoroughly as possible, Meyer positioned himself in an office overlooking the lobby. With audio from the guards coming directly to him, he simply had to provide cover in case things got out of hand.
At 10:00, one of the guards looked up at him, and nodded; the signal that guests would now be entering the building. For the next hour, Meyer carefully watched over to ensure that nothing out of the ordinary happened. Then, at 10:59, a young man with the characteristic blue suit of a page entered carrying a black leather briefcase. Immediately, Meyer trained his gun on the man, and watched as he walked up to one of the security guards.
Switching the audio channel to that station, Meyer listened to the slightly crackled conversation.
"...orry Sam, we're under orders to check everyone today, some kind of security concern."Meyer watched as the young man seemed to grow slightly nervous, as he set his briefcase on the table.
"Rittman, can you get a scan of this case for me? And anything inside.""N...no, Mr. Davis, I don't think you'll need to do that. It's just my laptop.""Like I said Sam, a very thorough check. You'll get it back as soon as it's done."Meyer watched as Sam, the page, gulped, and pulled what looked to be a black device with a button on it, and hid it behind his back. Positive that this was the target, Meyer took a deep breath, and exhaled. The suppressed sound of the bullet didn't even reach the guards until after the round punched a clean hole through the page's skull.
A minor panic started up in response, however it was slowly calmed by the guards. Meanwhile, Meyer quickly received confirmation that the laptop had, in fact, been an explosive device, and that his suspicion about Sam holding a detonator was indeed correct. Relieved that the crisis had been averted, he quickly made his exit. Tonight, another target would be in his scope.
-----
SPARTAN Command, Wolf Mountain, Northern Province
That Night"General Milan, I just found something you might want to hear. It seems that Jodl wasn't even in the country the date our informant stated. Hell, he wasn't even in the region. He was on a business trip out in Tetrakon. How can we...""Lieutenant, we've already explored that possibility. I had Military Intelligence check up on that, and from what they found, that was a cover-up. The flight he supposedly left on had been canceled that morning, and no other flights were leaving that day. Don't worry, I don't order a hit like this unless it's absolutely necessary."Almost disappointed that he had been wrong, the SPARTAN logistics officer left General David Milan to his thoughts. Those thoughts consisted of meditation on a single phrase: a Spartan is Gordonopia.
Through his teeth, he had deceived the officer with one primary goal: testing the loyalty of Ernst Meyer. The man was known to be a Monarchist, something that many considered dangerous to have in the SPARTANs, and when he discovered that he had been ordered to kill an innocent man, a leader in his political community, Milan wanted to know what his reaction would be. However, there was a secondary intent: to answer his own philosophical conundrum. If a SPARTAN was Gordonopia, then Ernst Meyer's response to his orders after the fact would help Milan to define what Gordonopia was. If he were to stay loyal to the SPARTANs, and except the execution of a man who had been a thorn in the Republic's side for years, but was innocent of the main charges against him, than in Milan's mind, the Republic would truly be Gordonopia. However, if Meyer were to turn his back on the SPARTANs out of emotion, then Gordonopia was... something else. Something no man could understand.
He rose from his desk, and left his office, heading for Operations Command. As soon as he had a channel with Meyer, he gave his final command.
"Ernst, this is Milan. Take the shot.""Acknowledged. Please confirm, sir." Meyer replied.
"Major, take the shot. That is an order."-----
112 Federal Way, Port of Teva, Coastal ProvinceWith a crack, a bullet left the barrel of Ernst Meyer's rifle. Traveling at a tremendous velocity, Frederick Jodl would have no way to expect his incoming demise. As the bullet penetrated his flesh, his eyes widened, and instantly, he fell to the ground.
"Target eliminated. Returning to safehouse." Meyer whispered into his mic.
As Meyer retreated into the night from his rooftop post, however, a man in a black sedan just down the street pulled out a scrambled cell phone. Quickly dialing a number, he held it up to his ear and waited for the man on the other end to pick up. Finally, when he heard the noise of someone answering, he spoke quickly.
"Sir, events have been set in motion. Jodl is dead.""Good. We will have to watch the outcome very carefully. This operation may prove to be very valuable to our cause, Simon. I can't thank you enough.""Sir." The man said as he hung up the call.
The phone back in his pocket, Simon waited several minutes until he was sure that Meyer would be well on his way to wherever his safehouse was. As he reflected on the days events, the deep, jagged scar on his right cheek began burn. It had been years since he had received the wound, but the strange thing about it was that it pained him only when he thought deeply about his Monarchist beliefs, as if the SPARTAN who had given it to him was reaching out from the grave in as a feeble means of payback. Nevertheless, he was positive that what he had done was right. The sacrifice of Jodl certainly be justified if its intended outcome came to pass. For now, however, it would be a simple waiting game, one that could be played for years.
-----
SPARTAN Command, Wolf Mountain, Northern Province
One Month LaterGeneral Milan let out a sorrowful sigh as he handed a letter of honorable discharge to his longtime friend, Ernst Meyer. It would seem that his all-important question had yet to be answered.
"Ernst, this is your last chance. I know you see this act as a betrayal, but I assure you, there's much more to this than I can tell you. The minute you walk out that door, you're no longer a member of this organization. Are you sure this is your decision?"Coldly, Meyer gave his answer.
"Dave, I am absolutely positive. How could you use me like this? You knew Jodl wasn't behind the attack, you admitted it to me yourself. There is no excuse for ordering me to complete the operation. I can promise you this, though: I will see you again, but for now, I can't say whether it will be as friends... or something else entirely."As soon as he had finished his reply, Meyer turned, and left Milan's office. Alone, the general couldn't help but contemplate his friend's final words. He to felt that someday they would meet again, but like Meyer, he felt that the the circumstances of the meeting were unclear. For now, however, it would be back to life as usual, back to defending Gordonopia. If only he knew what that meant.