White

Written by Red, read more of his stuff here. http://www.writerscafe.org/Virak123

Winter had come to Berlin, soft and fluffy snow blanketing the old city. The white powder accentuated the building’s of Germany’s capital, clean modern buildings proclaiming the nation’s mastery as Europe’s economical and technological powerhouse; a title few could dispute. Citizens went about their day, some preparing for upcoming Christmas festivities while others simply enjoyed the sights. Amid all the hustle and bustle, a rather innocuous and non-descript drove through the city towards it’s destination. Not many would give such a vehicle a second look were it not for the now well-known and recognizable plates of Germany’s Ministry of Defence.

Two men rode in the car as it edged along the city’s main thoroughfare. One, the driver, carried the attire of the Ministry of Defence while the other, the passenger, sported the uniform of the German Armed Forces. To outsiders, such a pairing would not be at all unusual; however, to the passenger, one Captain Maik Walch, this was far from usual.

“So, mind telling me where we’re going?” Walch asked, both verbally and visibly irritated. He’d been dragged from his post and shoved in a staff car with virtually no explanation aside from being told it was important. Maik had made his displeasure known numerous times over the course of the trip and this inquiry was just one more insistence. 

The driver looked over to him, sunglasses covering what was obviously a glare much to Maik’s pleasure; he knew he might finally get somewhere.

“Tempelhof” the man sighed, focusing his attention back on the road. Now that hadn’t been what Maik was expecting. Tempelhof was Berlin’s old abandoned airport, only really known for the Berlin Airlift.Otherwise, the place held no importance. So why did Maik feel so apprehensive about their destination?

The staff car rolled along the remnants of the old airport’s runway, crushing a multitude of flora beneath it’s tires. The area was dulled in colour, courtesy of a overcast sky and the threat of rain on the horizon; this didn’t bother Maik much, he’d loved playing in the rain while growing up in his native Stuttgart. The car rolled into the farthest hanger, surprisingly well-kept for such an old building. The car was met by several hard-looking men holding MP-7s and wearing suits; Maik assumed they belonged to the ministry or one of the government’s intelligence services. One man walked ahead of the rest, presumably the leader.The man walked up to Maik, sharing the same expressionless face as his comrades and extended his hand; Maik happened to notice that his gun was angled slightly in his direction, probably in case he didn’t check out.

“Papers, please” the man said, his voice monotone. Withdrawing his standard military ID, Maik also handed over his civilian credentials as well just in case; these were waved off however. The man studied the documents for what seemed like an eternity before handing them back and thumbing towards a small office in the corner, guarded by two more suits.

“Come with me” the leader said, escorting Maik towards the small area.

The elevator slowly descended, much to Maik’s confusion. To his knowledge, Tempelhof had no underground level so where was the elevator going? He soon got his answer in the form of a sight that made his jaw drop.

“Holy s**t” he mumbled under his breath. The complex was massive, though to some that might have been an understatement. The area was filled with all sorts of high-tech machinery and scientists mulling about, doing God knows what. As the lift touched down, Maik was waved out by one of the suits. Only one accompanied him however, as all the others rode the elevator back up. The man wordlessly ordered Maik to follow him, both bobbing and weaving through the organized chaos that was the research base. Eventually, he was led to a rather sparse office, in which sat an older-looking man. His surprising silver hair was well-kept, accentuated by his icy blue eyes. He had an intimidating air around him; Maik wouldn’t have been surprised if the man had a military background.

“Sir” the suit announced, receiving a simple glance and hand wave in response. The guard left, leaving Maik in a rather awkward position. The inaction on part of the older man was an intimidation tactic Maik knew well, having been on both ends of the technique in the past.

“You are Captain Maik Walch of the 232nd Mountain Infantry Battalion, 23rd Mountain Brigade, 10th Armored Division, are you not?” Maik was surprised by how specific the man was, if only for the fact that he hadn’t seen the man with any sort of papers or files even on approach. The captain simply nodded, deciding it probably wasn’t the best time to speak.

“I am Director Maximilian Schnee, the commander of this facility” the man said matter-of-factly. With the identity of the man revealed, Maik answered the nagging sense of familiarity he’d gotten when he’d first laid eyes on the man. Maximilian Schnee was a legend in both German political and military circles. An old-school aristocrat, Schnee was at the head of several large and powerful companies; the influence gained from such a standing allowed him to be appointed Germany’s Minister Of Defence. From there, he’d made moves to modernize, expand, and elevate the military. It was well-known that Schnee was at the head of a group of old world traditionalists who still valued the old Imperial German views of iron and might. While not necessarily sharing some of the more radical views of some of his compatriots, Schee still shared such values. As a result, the German Army, Navy, and Air Force was one of, if not the best, military force on Continental Europe; many knew the nation could blitz most of the continent if it so desired. 

“I know who you are, sir. Every military soul is eternally grateful for what you’ve done” Maik said, offering the man a stiff salute, which to his relief was reciprocated.

“I’m sure you’re wondering why you’re here. Come, I’ll show you” Maximilian beckoned. Maik quickly followed, eager to see what lay in store. 

Maximilian led Maik through the massive underground facility, occasionally stopping to inspect one scientist’s work or another. Maik’s respect for the white-haired director continued to grow. The man exuded an aura of intimidation and invincibility, yet he still took time to check in and look out for his subordinates despite his status. No wonder Maximilian Schnee was so respected by the military.  

“Sir, if I may ask?”

“You may”

“Where are we going? This facility is massive” Maik had slowly become even more enamored with the complex as they’d continued. He simply couldn’t wrap his head around the fact that such a massive facility existed underneath an abandoned airport.

“We’re almost there, not too far” the director said, a slight hint of amusement at the experienced soldier’s child-like wonder evident in his voice.

Sure enough, the two men reached a pair of large double doors. Maximilian entered a code into a keypad beside them and performed a retinal scan, the doors answering his actions with a curt beep and a hiss as the doors slid open, Maximilian ushering Maik in. The room appeared to be a viewing area, with a raised platform filled with seats on one side and a massive floor-to-ceiling viewing window on the other.  Maik joined Director Schnee at the window, which overlooked some sort of arena; a second set of windows sat on the opposite side, likely a control room or something similar. The soldier had seen plenty of setups like these (although not as massive, of course); he wouldn’t be surprised if it was a test range of some sort.

“Tell me Captain, have you ever heard of Project Beacon?” asked Schnee, snapping Maik out of his observations. He frowned and shook his head.

“No sir, I can’t say I have”

Maximilian sighed. “I thought not. I had worries that word of it would leak outside the Ministry but it appears my worries are unfounded. Nevertheless, what I am about to tell you will not leave this room. Am I clear, Captain Walch?” The older man’s voice took on a hard edge; given who he was dealing with and the rumours surrounding the man, Maik didn’t have to think hard about what would happen if he let anything out.

“Crystal, sir” the captain said, hoping the director found his answer genuine. Schnee looked hard at Maik’s face before simply nodding and clearing his throat.

“I’m sure you’ve noticed, Captain, that this isn’t the world our forefathers grew up in. Conflict is flaring up around the world, and the corporations that almost completely control the latter are all too happy to fan the flames if it means turning a profit and expanding their control even by just a fraction. It doesn’t help matters much that one of the CEOs of said companies now sits at the helm of one of the world’s most militarily advanced nations” Maik nodded, remembering that day well, when the CEO of the world’s largest arms corporation, Atlesian Industries, became President of the United States. 

“It is difficult  nowadays to find allies when everyone has an agenda. Nevertheless, we must take it where we can get it” Maximilian explained, walking over to a platter laden with wine and glasses. Pouring a glass for both himself and Maik, the director took a sip before he continued.

“We have managed to enter an alliance with the Russians and Chinese in order to counteract the corporations and their activities. They are some of the last few nations that the corporations don’t have any overall influence over, not to mention that they are two of the strongest. I realize that Germany isn’t on the greatest terms with the Russian Federation but sometimes sacrifices must be made” Maximilian finished as he moved towards a small intercom beside the window.

“Professor, please start test preparations” the man said before moving back towards Maik.

“When we allied with Russia and China, the treaty included a shared co-operation on special projects. At the time, the Russian had one going concerning the mineral we now know as Dust. I’m sure you’re familiar with that?” Maik would be lying if he said he didn’t; everyone and anyone knew about Dust. No one really knew where the mineral had come from naturally; deposits of it had been found during a joint Peruvian-Russian mining expedition in the Andes. It had been tested in labs located in both countries and what had been found in the results was nothing short of astounding. Dust held near limitless power, with scientists and engineers predicting that a single reactor running on the substance could power a city the size of Los Angeles for decades, if not centuries. From there, the uses Dust could have expanded quickly. While using Dust in the ways predicted would take years given the world’s dependence on other, more conventional resources, many people could see that Dust would soon solve many of humanity’s problems when it came to things like energy and even environmental pollution.

“Of course, sir. But what were the Russians using it for? The only places I know of that it's been found in large quantities is Peru and deep under the Arctic” Maik had a feeling that this wasn’t going to be a upbeat conversation.

“Dust has plenty of applications but, given human nature, it didn’t take long for humans to try and weaponize it. That is what the Russians were trying to do. This may sound cliche, but Moscow was trying their hardest to create supersoldiers, of all things” Wait for it. “With a little help from the Chinese, they succeeded,” There we go. “Although, to my knowledge at least, they went through several test subjects before they got the formula right. I’ve been told that they’ve already deployed their new weapon in Chechnya to great effect. However, they are not the only ones with similar projects” Maik knew what Schnee meant by that.

“I’m assuming that both us and the Chinese are running similar projects as well, sir?” Maik asked, already knowing the answer. All he was trying to understand now was why he was here.

“You are correct in that assumption. However, we have also heard rumours that the corporations are running a similar program as well. Given the resources at their disposal, this is almost a certainty. As such, our three nations have chosen to escalate our programs. While my Russian and Chinese counterparts don’t necessarily share my views, I believe that we may soon be going to war, Captain. We need to prepare for every eventuality, including the deployment of enhanced soldiers by our enemies. It will only be a matter of time” Maik tried to take the implication of what Director Schnee was implying. Supersoldiers? Nations going to war with corporations? This seemed like something out of a sci-fi movie, not reality.

“Sir, why am I here? It doesn’t exactly sound like you need a soldier like me” Maik asked, his tone a little more demanding than he would have liked to admit. To him, this all seemed completely ridiculous. He wanted answers before anything else. 

To the captain’s surprise, Schnee simply chuckled at the man’s outburst; something Maik wasn’t expecting. “Captain, I’m sure you realize that we can’t just invade every country playing host to our enemies or attack their headquarters. These battles will rely on precision, speed, and intensity. We can’t have massive battles being waged on city streets unless absolutely necessary. As such, the governments of China, Russia, and Germany have enacted something we call the Beacon Initiative. Not only will our three candidates be attached to it but so will a team of men from each of the three nations. These teams will be the scalpel with which we will strike and the results of Project Beacon will be our hammer. Each subject will work with a team from their home nation” Maximilian walked over to the platter and poured himself another glass of wine.

“Captain, you are here because I have taken a look at your file. You are the man which I have chosen to lead the German contingent. You will choose your own team from a list of candidates I have gathered,” Schnee turned towards the window as the doors in the arena below slide open and a young woman walked out. “You are here to see the fruit of Germany’s scientific and engineering skill. Our contributions to this initiative will bring our nation back out on top. Germany will be truly strong once again” Maik realized what the German Minister of Defence was saying. The man truly lived up to what people said about him. Maximilian Schnee wanted the glory days of the German nation back; it seemed he’d do anything to reach that goal.

“Sir, who is our candidate?” Maik asked, watching the girl below begin combat drills against what seemed to be test drones with a strange looking sword. To the younger man’s surprise, Maximilian began walking towards the door, but not before he gave an answer that Maik wasn’t expecting.“Our candidate is one Weiss Schnee” The captain’s eyes widened as he realized what that name meant.

“Sir, you used your daughter as a test subject?!” Maik said, his voice raised as the previous respect for the Minister quickly disappeared at the revelation. Before the director left the room, he looked at the captain over his shoulder with a cold glare on his face.

“Sacrifices must be made” he said before leaving, leaving Captain Maik Walch to watch the director’s augmented daughter drill for war and wonder what the bleak-looking future would hold.   

Author's Note

Written by Red, read more of his stuff here. http://www.writerscafe.org/Virak123