2161 . . . Year of Crisis. The last remaining Spartan base wobbles on the edge of the abyss. Capital base gone. One base captured. Two others totally destroyed. The Usurper hordes still surging. And only a single militia unit to defend the base. Bodies of thousands of dead, both Usurper and Spartan, litter the countryside.
Spartan Command Authority: "Desperate times - desperate measures" said Sarah Santiago. "We must equip our few troops to defend the perimeter wire. Salvage the Creche to fully equip our last defenders. Take your stations. Die bravely."
Warden Master 1st Class Duzinsky heard the speech and was motivated to contribute to the apocalypse of victory . . . or doom. His means were limited. Most of his prisoners had already been released to participate in earlier counter-attacks, and had already perished. But he still had The Three.
The Three was a code name for prisoners whose very existence could threaten our necessary alliance with the Believers. The individual prisoners were only identified by sub-level, block, and cell number. Ironically, one was actually 6,6,6. And if you have to know, the other two were 6,6,4 and 6,6,5.
The security measures to contain these three were extraordinary. Each had a cell door that was actually a portcullis. Gravity alone would hold these heavy primitive iron gates in place. Key components to the motors that could lift them were stored in safes at the watch officer's station. These were taken out and re-installed on an as-needed basis. And then quickly removed again. Surveillance video and audio were filtered through a single standalone computer dedicated solely to that task. No direct communication was permitted.
WM1C Duzinsky was not a superstitious man. But he was a survivor. And a survivor does not ignore threats to his life whether direct from the prisoners or indirect from the command authority for letting his prisoners escape. He spoke into the computer to The Three and explained the situation. "So you wants our helps." The Three shrieked in unison. "We works better with a sacrifice. Its been such a long time without." Although not a superstitious man, WM1C Duzinsky had not allowed any living creature to be placed in their sub-level, let alone their cells, since he had taken custody of The Three. WM1C Duzinsky said, "I may be able to provide . . . " The Three immediately shrieked, "A young child?" Duzinsky's reply was harsh and immediate, "Jorgensen, spin-up the autoDoc and get three intubation kits. "NO, NO, we takes it back, we takes it back! We only meant a Believin' child, not a Spartan one" shrieked The Three. "Which one of you should I de-gender and seal up first" said Duzinsky. "NO, NO, we takes it all back, we takes it ALL back" shrieked The Three with a fake cry of misery at the end.
The terror expressed by The Three brought a smile to Duzinsky. His threat provided the leverage he needed over The Three. Their gender was a necessary component of their obscene and dark practices. Surgically removing external gender features would fatally cripple those practices. Sealing referring to permanently closing all orifices and feeding all nutrition and removing all waste through abdominally places tubes. It was a brutal threat but it was one Duzinsky would carry out if pushed far enough, and The Three knew it.
WM1C Duzinsky was not a superstitious man. But he did consider that The Three could have some telekinetic power. Hence, the heavy portcullis and lifting machinery component removal. They might have some hypnotic power which would explain the computerized filtering of all communication. Not knowing if they were all powerful or just for show, he took no chances in containing The Three.
The Three had been prisoners rescued from the Usurper's capital base. The After Action Report had expressed befuddlement of how these three had survived. Perhaps they had some measure of control over the Usurper guards. Gaian witchcraft said the report. Lesbian Gaian witchcraft was the actual quote. Duzinsky knew that for a fact.
WM1C Duzinsky was not a superstitious man. His staff constructed a platform just outside the perimeter defenses. "Sacrificial alter" said The Three. The High Command questioned its placement and existence. Duzinsky convinced them it would be a distraction to the Usurpers and an opportunity for the useful elimination of The Three. A nod was given and nothing more said except that Duzinsky and his guards now would solely be responsible for the defense of this sector. All other Spartan troops would be redeployed. "Just great!" said Duzinsky rolling his eyes.
The Three were placed on the platform and provided with musical instruments and lighting as requested. Microphones with narrow band streaming were provided. The narrow band would prevent any Believer intelligence collection from gaining the signal. The signals were directed both due south and east from the platform.
The 6-4-2 Usurper Dragon Rover unit was in the van of the attack. Rush built at exorbitant cost at the captured Spartan base, it had expended 1/3 of its movement to reach its attack station. Sub-commander Grock was reconnoitering with the Big Eye the sector to his front. He fatefully zoomed in visually while uploading the directed audio feed. Watching and hearing The Three profoundly disturbed him. "Something . . . seriously . . . wrong . . ." he gasped out.
The Dragon Rover unit veered the axis of the main attack to the northeast to avoid the platform. Feelings of nausea permeated the rovers. A depleted Usurper artillery unit panicked and brought Final Defensive Fire down upon the rovers. Over half the rovers lay twisted and destroyed on the battlefield but the effort was too great. Even though the defenders were too few to effectively continue the fight, the attackers could also do no more.
From the training command center, new troops poured out. The remaining rovers and their crews burned. The depleted artillery unit burned. The escorting infantry unit burned. The transports burned. The probe team burned. The attack former burned.
SPARTA . . . SPARTA . . . SPARTA . . . replaced the sound of The Three on the narrow beam communications.
WM1C Duzinsky was not a superstitious man. He was well read in classical Greek literature. Like Odysseus, his men could not hear the Sirens on the platform. Like Perseus and the Medusa, they only viewed The Three looking at their reflections in a mirror. The Three started to turn to the rear of the platform to demand their sacrifice. "Not going to happen" thought Duzinsky who suddenly took pity upon the young trembling Usurper who had drawn the short straw. Never again could anyone claim Duzinsky was without conscience or mercy. Duzinsky immediately gassed The Three with Knock-Out, a crowd control agent. The Three were returned to their original cells, unsatisfied and incomplete. "For emergency use . . . if necessary" thought SWM (Supreme Warden Master) Duzinsky. He still didn't know if The Three had any real power . . . or if the Usurpers were only equal in revulsion with the Spartans towards the Gaians.