Dimensional Travels: World at War-Chapter 102: Danger

Justin looked around. He noticed the soldiers encircling him and Erica. He sighed as he held his hands up. "Hold your hands up Erica." Justin mumbled to her. He then turned to Eric.

"Master Sergeant. My name is First Lieutenant Justin Hewitt. I understand your concern, and I am sure you know of what has transpired in the last two weeks. But, I assure you Master Sergeant: the loss of your men has not been in line with my will. I wasn’t making the decisions that cost them their lives. But that is not the reason I am here. You need to run your aircraft on Esponia as soon as possible. There are as many as ten Brios cannons up there. And they are planning on targeting Austin."

Eric paused as he heard Justin’s words. He radioed up to HQ. "I need ISR to confirm presence of Brios cannons in Esponia. We have recieved intel that there may be as many as ten cannons on the mountain passes."

Eric then turned to Erica. "And who are you?"

She trembled slightly at the older man’s stare, but met his gaze. "My name is Erica Carthenon. I have been the assistant to heroes such as Justin for the last five years."

Eric nodded. "I am sure we have much to discuss. You will be detained for the time being. Follow us."

Eric had the Hero and his assistant searched for weapons, all their belongings were taken and bagged.

"Alpha actual, The Hero and his companion have been detained. We are taking them to HQ for further questioning."

Back at HQ, Eric and Mia sat with Justin and Erica. No one spoke.

A soldier brought documents into the room, setting them in front of Eric before stepping back near the two-way glass. Eric looked up at Justin.

"We have lost fifty soldiers, two Abrams, and four bradleys since the siege began. As a soldier of the United States Army, you assisted an enemy in incurring those damages. You came here even after knowing all the damage caused. Do you take responsibility for your actions?"

Justin sighed. He leaned forward in his chair as he looked at Eric. His body shifted to sit up straight.

"Master Sergeant, I was brought to this world to advise the Lord of Cartharic in military tactics and doctrine. For the last two weeks before my defection, I have been assisting the Cartharic Generals in understanding modern technology and its limitations. It was not me, however, that decided on the operations pushing towards your men. After the first week, I was merely relegated to an advisor and trainer."

Eric looked at Mia, and she nodded.

He’s telling the truth.

"That is not to say that I do not misunderstand the ramifications of my part. I worked for an enemy, and will accept any punishment 6-8 deems fitting for me. Any loss of life due to my part in this war is an unbearable weight I will have to live with."

"What caused you to resort to treason in the first place?" Mia asked, looking up from one of the reports she was reading.

"There were villages on the other side of the Esponia mountains. They were all burned down, with the corpses of children still laying fresh outside some of the houses." The hero shuddered at the memory. "The generals told us that it was 6-8 who had done that. It was only later that I found out the hero Mickey was responsible."

Eric’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Mia. She squeezed his leg under the table while he took a deep breath. "You found out about the villages after your defection, so what lead to your actual defection?" 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Justin looked down. "My best friend betrayed me. After the most recent engagement where 6-8 forces pushed back against those of Cartharic, Josh wanted to use the Brios on Austin. I told him not to. If we target innocent civilians simply to send a message, are we still the good guys? Over the next few days, the arguments got worse. Josh became so indoctrinated that he viewed me as a threat. He had me detained. From there, I realized that they probably will target Austin."

Mia crossed her legs and turned the page in her notebook. She looked at Erica. "You were the personal assistant to the Heroes. Why would someone of your authority defect?"

Erica looked down at her hands. "The Empire took everything from me. My family became so indoctrinated under Prince Heith they overlooked the atrocities his policies created. I watched as my father bought demihumans for pleasure after the passing of my mother. He died in the war. I have always wondered why we even needed to pursue Riemskin territory. When I asked that question to General Hoaz, he treated me like a traitor. When Janea died... it broke me. I lost all loyalty to the Empire. They took children from other worlds and used them as tools."

The room was silent at the admission of Erica. Justin’s eyes widened at the ramifications her words held. Eric and Mia both took notes. Tears ran down Erica’s face.

"The Empire will overlook the suffering of it’s people in order to pursue the goals Mithrael has. I saw too many die for the sake of this five hundred year war. I am done being the spear for suffering, so if I can help, I will."

Eric looked at Mia. "We will be right back. Do not move. Keep your hands visible."

Erica and Justin nodded, placing their hands flat on the table while the soldiers standing guard clicked their safeties off. Eric left the room with Mia, entering the room on the other side of the two way mirror. Milano was waiting for them. He had his arms crossed as he looked at the couple.

"Can we trust them?"

Mia nodded. "Everything they have said so far is the truth. Their stories match up with what has been known from intel reports, and they seem genuinely sorrowful for the actions they have taken."

Eric pulled out his notebook and referred to his notes. "I think it is worth noting that Justin had been lied to. The Empire seems to be blaming us for their atrocities. When we begin to push back into their lines, we may have to deal with that same sort of information warfare."

Milano nodded. "I want locations down to the specific areas where troops are, where the Brios cannons are located, and where the launchers are being held. If their information checks out, we can trust them a little."

The couple nodded. Eric grabbed a map and they headed back into the room. Erica and Justin had remained still until they returned.

Eric sat down, and placed the map in front of Justin. "We need the locations of each Brios. What kinds of units are supporting the cannons, and where are the launchers. You will be allowed to live for now, but do not mistake our kindness for weakness. If there are any traps or if any of my men are killed needlessly, you will be executed for treason."

Justin nodded.

"I can do one better. If you go to my belongings, there is a map. On that map I marked all the locations of Cartharic troop locations as of a week ago. I also marked where the Brios staging areas are, and where the launchers would operate out of."

Eric nodded to the guard standing by the door. "Bring me their belongings."

Papers ruffled as they waited for the guard to return. Mia was comparing her notes with Eric’s. She looked at Erica.

"Do you know why Mithrael decided to descend himself? Owersky informed us that even he didn’t know. The last day that Owersky was in Cartharic, Mithrael reformed the Empire, but we have heard little since then."

Erica nodded. "One night after the heroes had gone back to their quarters, Mithrael pulled myself and the other aide aside. He wanted to make sure we hadn’t been touched in our service to the Empire. Before he took over, women aides and maids were used as pleasure tools. He wished to know if we shared that fate. Thankfully, that hadn’t come to fruition for either of us. After we informed him that we hadn’t done that service, he explained that his desire for us was to be of use to the heroes. The more faith the people have in the heroes, the more his divine sea would grow. He continued by telling us that the atrocities Prince Heith had been authorizing lead to the loss of faith throughout the empire."

Their belongings were brought in.

"And he told me that it was his sole responsibility as the God of the empire to rebuild it. The Empire has lost too many soldiers to 6-8. That is why he summoned Josh and Justin."

Eric looked up from the map he had retrieved from Justin’s pack, looking at Erica with his eyes narrowed. "What other atrocities happened under Heith?"