“It’s always hard to gauge the conditions on a world as backwater as Earth, but recruitment numbers are often the best tool. From what we’ve gathered here at Unified News, most of our new soldiers are not coming from Earth, but from small worlds with high immigration numbers. We know they’re covering something up, but investigative journalists say there is little to find.” – From Unified News, The place for UHR news and updates.

  Metallic footsteps echoed down the hall as Benjamin Hargrave made his way along the familiar pathways of the research facility. Unlike other locations, this one was special in that it belonged only to the Unranked Officers.

  Of all the things his position afforded him, this was by far his favorite. The planetoid they’d found and terraformed so long ago was more than just a rock, more than a place to disappear from the insanity that was the UHR.

  It was home.

  He’d always hated politics, and he planned to hold on to that position as long as he lived. It didn’t matter what type of government was in power. Any time a faction put its own needs above those of the people it served always left a sour taste in his mouth.

  When he was in control, he never allowed such foolishness. Yes, he only held the throne of the human Empire for a few short years, but during that time, political corruption was at an all-time low. For perhaps the first time since the Aztec Empire, mankind had a ruling body that only wanted growth and prosperity.

  Sadly, it didn’t take long for the schemes of wicked men to return after the seven gave up their thrones in favor of democracy.

  Ahead, the hallway ended in a vault that he believed was more secure than anything ever before built by a sentient race. If it wasn’t, then he’d spent an incredible amount of time on what was basically a very well-guarded closet. Since the door looked intact and no sensors were tripped, he was reasonably certain testing its limits could wait for another day.

  “Benjamin Hargrave,” he said as he approached.

  Voice verification complete, the first door swung open with the barest whisper. Once inside, it closed itself and reengaged the first round of locks.

  In the center of the room, a pedestal with multiple scanners rose from the ground. The first was a handprint, basic security on a good day. In most cases, it was little more than a distraction. Second, the system conducted a full scan of his eyes. Being more machine than man, it was yet another pointless lock. If someone managed to kill him and retrieve his hands, they were most certainly capable of taking his eyes as well.

  The last test was the only one he was certain couldn’t be replicated easily. At the top of the pedestal, a small, glass Light Battery sat empty. He wrapped his hand around the cylinder and poured a constant stream of undiluted crimson energy into the container. If anyone other than one of the seven tried this, human or otherwise, it would kill them on the spot.

  To fill it properly, two tests needed to be passed. First, the incoming power had to fill the entire frequency range of the Corps associated with the person in the room. Next, they analyzed the purity and compression of the Light to identify any discrepancies. Once those two very simple tasks were completed, the locks would disengage and allow a person entrance.

  Unfortunately for anyone trying to intrude, those two feats were only possible if the person had taken a full dose of undiluted Serum. Since there were only seven such beings, it was easy to agree this was by far the most unbreachable vault in all of mankind’s empire.

  The sound of heavy locks echoed through the chamber just before the second door swung open. Inside, an observation room looked down on a prisoner that represented what was possibly the most threatening species in the universe.

  “How is it?” Benjamin asked, walking up to the current jailer on duty. Behind him, the locks re-engaged, and the room became perfectly sealed once more.

  “Depends,” Frederick Barca said, eyes never moving from his charge.

  “On?”

  “On what you want to hear. Is the creature in obvious pain from being bathed in Light constantly for the past six months? Yes. Has it screamed of our deaths several hundred times since being locked in here? No doubt. But if you’re asking if it finally cracked? No, not at all.”

  After Benjamin and Tobias captured what they believed to be an enemy officer, they’d promptly imprisoned it here, containing it in one of Tobias’s drones until they completed the construction of a cage specifically to hold a being that couldn’t interact with Light.

  That such intense exposure to Light actually burned the creature was nothing more than a happy accident.

  Inside the chamber, every surface shone with crafted Light. Layers and layers of Frederick’s barriers shaped the walls in patterns that only he understood. Not to be outdone, all objects and furniture inside glowed with Benjamin’s crimson power.

  Almost as impressive as the research station above, this chamber was a very clear representation of what the Unranked Officers could accomplish as a unit. But then again, wasn’t the Serum itself enough proof of that?

  “Restrain it,” Hargrave muttered, mentally pushing his weak alter ego out of the way.

  “Going to give it another go?”

  “Yes, but this time… it will break.”

  Stolen novel; please report.

  Frederick tapped out of a series of passwords on a virtual keyboard projected by his HUD. Inside the cell, ropes of yellow Light whipped out from under the bed, reaching for the imprisoned creature. It tried to fight them off, but even splitting into a mass of writhing tentacles did nothing to help it avoid the cords of power. Like a fish caught on a line, they yanked the creature back to the bed and thoroughly bound it there.

  Nodding to his colleague, Hargrave walked into another mantrap and let the doors close behind him. Much like before, this room required multiple levels of verification before the last door would open.

  “Fred, my side is complete.”

  Above, Frederick entered yet another series of commands, removing the last barrier needed for entry. Ben entered the room, worried the soulless monster controlling his body would go too far.

  It always did.

  “Creature, let’s get started with something easy,” Hargrave said, mechanical eyes burning with intensity as he approached the eldritch mass of limbs. “Can you understand me? A simple nod would suffice, although I would prefer it if you would respond in kind.”

  The lump that most often represented the creature’s head shifted slightly before shaping itself into a mockery of Benjamin’s face. It tried this scare tactic every time he attempted to communicate with it, but Hargrave was long past the fear of his own face. He wouldn’t allow the creature to force him to leave. The interrogation would happen, and they would finally have answers.

  “F-f-f-ooooooood,” it hissed through a too-wide mouth.

  Hargrave smiled. It seemed the creature did, in fact, remember him. After all, wouldn’t it be hard to forget the someone that peeled the skin from over a quarter of your body?

  “Dear friend, I know you’re hungry, but it seems I’ve misplaced the meal I was bringing. But if you play your cards right, I may be able to locate something to eat.”

  The creature growled in frustration. It had made a mistake, given away a secret; it could understand.

  “I want you to appreciate something. I’m sure it is very hard to track the passage of time here, especially considering the lack of anything significant to mark its. It’s been months. Do you know what those are? Almost a year according to the human calendar, if I’m being honest.” He leaned closer, allowing the creature to see the madness in his eyes, “In that time, I’ve hurt you, starved you, taken away anything that would exercise your mind enough to stave off madness. In return, you’ve pretended not to understand me. Don’t you see how this tiny revelation is a massive boon to our relationship?”

  It was impossible to truly understand the creature’s emotions, but to Frederick, it looked like undiluted fear.

  “Good, I see you understand,” the monster in Benjamin’s body said. “Now that I know you can understand me, what is your name?”

  The creature sat in silence, unwilling to give its captor anything else. However, after nearly two minutes of waiting, Hargrave’s impatience brought a terrifying crimson energy to his hand. It knew that Light; it was the predecessor to the pain it felt while imprisoned here.

  The Light solidified into a barber’s razor. Its single edge pressed against the creature’s skin, burning its flesh from contact alone.

  “Sacrament,” it croaked. The words not forming properly in its mouth. The voice—if it could even be called that—had a distinct dryness to it. Almost like words made from papers being rubbed together. Whether it was a product of the torture, or its normal voice, was yet to be determined.

  “Sacrament? That sounds… religious? Right… now that I have a name, care to tell me what you are?”

  “We are the Cleansing Horde. We are the force sent to wipe away the stain that is Light and free the cosmos from those who wield it. We serve Perpetual Night; God of the space between stars!” With more effort than Hargrave had ever seen from Sacrament, he tore at his bindings, trying to free himself, “Those who are not of The People have only one use: to serve and sustain the horde. But you, my metallic jailer, cannot serve. Your kind is a scourge, built by the ones of the stars as a curse upon the universe. You are an abomination!”

  Outwardly, Hargrave smiled wickedly to show just how much the creature revealed. But inside, Benjamin had taken control of their shared mind and was actively recording and compiling data at breakneck speeds. Every twitch, every inflection, even the smallest reference might let him dig deeper to find the answers to the rest of his questions.

  “A scourge? Why? Because we learned how to live and fight another day?”

  “Your soul did not live on, Beast. You are just too stupid to see it. You’ve joined the ranks of the machines and are thus damned. You are even worse than those who worship the cursed Light.”

  “Let me get this straight. You and yours search the entire universe for intelligent life, preferably the kind that lives on planets that orbit a star, and you kill them? No wait, you said we were to serve and sustain… So not only do you murder the planet’s defenders, but you enslave a portion and breed them for food? What’s the next part? Do you destroy the star as some symbolic cleansing ritual? Does that make them pure?”

  Sacrament fell silent, refusing to answer anything further. It would be nice if the creature continued expanding Benjamin’s understanding of this holy war, but this was far more information than he expected.

  This time, the creature did not flinch when the razor materialized in Hargrave’s hand, nor did it scream when the madman cut off yet another appendage with careless ease.

  “Frederick,” Hargrave called after ten minutes of merciless mutilation, “I don’t think our friend wants the feast we promised. In fact, I’m pretty certain it only wants enough to stay alive.”

  Dismissing the blade, the Unranked Officer strode through the first door of the mantrap. Part of him—an incredibly bloodthirsty part—wanted to walk back into the room and finish the job. Thankfully, that uncontrollable monster had stepped back and allowed Benjamin to reclaim the body. They both understood that killing Sacrament would mean losing the knowledge it potentially had.

  Keeping it alive was much more useful.

  And fun, Hargrave said in his mind.

  “So, this entire invasion is religious in nature?” Frederick asked once the second set of doors closed behind the Steel Cast officer. From the console, he released the prisoner’s restraints and watched as it crawled toward a small pool of Light infused water.

  “It appears so. Fred, I’m afraid we’ve stepped into a war far older than even the seven of us. For all we know, this grudge may be older than our species.”

  “But we don’t know that.”

  "No, but we know they consider us to be unclean worshipers of the Light and think we should be used as food, if possible."

  Frederick turned back to the creature inside. “His story, it almost reminds me of something I read once. I’m sure it’s a myth, but I can’t put my finger on which one. We can dig through the archives. Hopefully, we will come across a story based on truth instead of fiction, if we are lucky.”

  “You need to track it down. Meanwhile, I will work on a solution to help the average soldier kill them. A squad fought one recently and could not touch the beast until their optic forced the connection.”

  “So, why do our powers work against it?”

  “I wish I knew,” Benjamin replied, face screwed up in thought. “Whatever the reason, we need to figure it out fast. Otherwise, our people won’t live through what is coming.”

  “And what is coming?”

  Benjamin turned, looking back into the cell and at the tortured creature inside. The last time a holy war threatened mankind, it ended in more death than either side was prepared for. If these creatures were truly there to bring one to their doorstep… well, it wouldn’t be good.

  “If I’m wrong, nothing. But if I’m right… death.”