Illusion of victory

*Inside the Kremlin, Moscow.

A general entered the military meeting room and closed the steel door behind him. Putin and several other country leaders sat around a small table where a map of Moscow was displayed.

[General Winston] - "The enemy is currently advancing toward the Moscow district. Their 5th fleet has occupied Khimki, Mytishichi, Lyubertsy and Balashika, which means that we are trapped and on the tip of our toes. "

Said the general while drawing lines on the war map with his finger.

[Viktor Putin] - "Marshal Feliks and his 12th and 13th fleets will break through Podolsk from the South and together we will hold off Valentine's 5th fleet. "

Said Putin in a dismissal tone.

One of the Russian generals glanced at Winston who hesitated before reopening his mouth.

[Winston] - "Mister president... Marshal Feliks... "

Said the general in a trembling voice.

[General Vitaly] - "Marshal Feliks simply doesn't have enough force to counterattack. I've just been on a phone call with him and the attack didn't take place. "

Said the general in a firm voice.

The president slowly removed his glasses while trembling with rage.

[Viktor Putin] - "Marshal of the Russian Federation's defence Alyosha, Marshal Ivan, minister of defence Lev and marshal of the air force Maks shall stay. The rest, take your leave, please. "

Said the president in a calm manner.

The rest of the command staff immediately left the conference room in an orderly manner and when all of them were out of the room, the door was shut tight behind them.

[Viktor] - "What is the meaning of this? How dare Felix disobey my direct order? How dare that fucking traitor to disobey my order? "

Said Putin as he banged in rage at his table.

The people outside of Putin's office could clearly hear the screams inside.

[Viktor] - "This is the final outcome huh? The military, the general staff and all my troops have all been disloyal traitors to me and this country! I'm surrounded by cowards and traitors!

[Lev] - "I'm sorry mister president but I cannot allow you to insult our brave soldiers... "

[Viktor Putin] - "Then who is to blame? COWARDS! TRAITORS! INCOMPETENT IDIOTS! "

[Lev] - "Mister president, this is outrageous! "

[Viktor] - "The generals are the scum of the Russian people! "

Screamed Viktor before angrily throwing his pens on the table.

[Viktor Putin] - "No sense of honour! You call yourselves generals because you went to the academy but all you can do is use a fork and knife! All the years, the military has been holding me back! Since my grandfather's invasion of Ukraine, the military has been a torn on my family's side! I should just... "

Exhausted by his rant, Viktor Putin stopped to take a breath of air.

[Viktor Putin] - "I should just have all the high-ranking officers executed, as Stalin did! "

The room remained in dead silence for a few seconds while the ground shook due to the city's bombing by Valentine's army. Viktor took the moment to sit back down in exhaustion.

[Viktor Putin] - "I never went to an academy and still took the entirety of Ukraine after my old man failed. Traitors, I have been deceived from the start of this fourth world war! Such an enormous betrayal of the Russian people. But all those traitors will suffer, they will drown in their blood once the empire captures them! "

The men in the room stared nervously at Putin without a word.

[Viktor Putin] - "All my orders have been ignored. It's over. The war is lost. But if you think I'll leave Moscow to seek refuge in the USA, I'd rather die with a bullet to my head. "

Putin lowered his head in defeat.

[Viktor Putin] - "Do as you wish for I am no longer in command. "

Said Putin in a defeated tone.

As Valentine's aircraft carrier advanced toward the edge of Moscow, Mike looked down at the war-torn city from the hangar exit. The wind pushed the lower part of his coat into the air while wave after wave of jet fighters exited the mothership. Mike took a step forward and stood by the edge.

[Valentine] - "Rid me of the anti-ship batteries in the city centre, Mike. "

Said Valentine over the radio in Mike's helmet.

Without responding, Mike took another step and fell down toward the fiery mess down below. Before reaching the ground, Mike activated his crystals and flew across the streets like a lightning bolt. As he flew, Mike saw in his periphery numerous burning buildings and fleeing refugees before being stopped by a huge jet of flame.

When Mike opened his eyes, a hellish landscape presented itself in front of him. Houses lay in rubbles while dead civilians littered the area, cooked to a crisp by the intense heat. As the screams of burning people filled the air, Mike immediately backed off and put both of his hands around his head. Memories of the horrors of war Mike experienced flashed in his mind as he desperately tried to control his sanity.

[Valentine] - "Mike! Mike, you verdammter Idiot, you are going to get us killed if you don't take out the enemy anti-ship batteries! "

Screamed Valentine through the radio.

[Mike] - "Fuck you! "

Screamed Mike before taking a series of quick breaths.

Mike slowly stood up with difficulty before suddenly flying through the flame with an enraged expression on his face. In a flash, Mike dashed through the city before destroying the anti-ship batteries in a single punch. The ground shook with the power of a magnitude 10 earthquake before Mike suddenly stopped the ground from shaking.

The inside of the Kremlin shook violently and caused Putin to fall on the floor. When Putin slowly rose up from the ground, he was shocked to see that he was standing face-to-face with Valentine's battleships situated about a hundred metres away from his window. Aboard the ship, Valentine stared back at Putin from his bridge's panoramic window.

[Valentine] - "I never imagined we the Germans would be standing here, victorious in Moscow. How ironic! You may fire when ready. "

[Officer] - "But sir, we have already accepted their surrender. "

[Valentine] - "Oh, please. Remember the rape of Berlin in 1945? That was after the german surrender. It's time for a little payback since they never even apologized for that. "

The officer under Valentine nodded his head before ordering the crew to prepare the guns. As the massive cannons turned their aim toward the Kremlin, Viktor pulled out a cigarette and lit its tip with a trembling hand.

[Viktor Putin] - "Have they accepted our surrender? "

[Officer] - "Yes, sir! But it seems they aren't holding off their attacks. "

Putin exhaled a dense cloud of smoke.

[Viktor Putin] - "I haven't met a single man of honour in my life. Not a surprise I die in the hands of a dishonourable fool. "

Said Putin as he took another puff of his cigarette.

The guns suddenly started shooting massive beams of plasma at the Kremlin with the first wave destroying two of the cones from the central building. Upon seeing this, Mike immediately jumped into the path of the second wave of attack and used his crystal to create a barrier that redirected the blast into the nearby river.

[Officer] - "Sir, Mike is blocking our attack! "

[Valentine] - "Hold your fire! Give me the radio! "

The officer passed the radio to Valentine.

[Valentine] - "What the heck do you think are... "

Before Valentine could finish his sentence, Mike smashed through the bridge window and landed right in front of him. The broken shards of window flew for a while before stopping in mid-air, held by Mike's ability. Before Valentine could say a word, Mike grabbed him by the collar and lifted him off the ground. The guards quickly aimed their weapons at Mike.

[Mike] - "You fucking bat-shit insane piece of shit! They have already surrendered! What the actual fuck is wrong with you? "

Valentine showed Mike a defiant smile before being dropped on the floor by Mike.

[Valentine] - "They have lost the war, Mike. I can do the fuck I want and no one will be able to do anything about it. Who's going to punish me? The United Nations? Hahaha! "

Mike lifted his fist and grabbed Valentine by the collar once more.

[Mike] - "Well how about I become the judge, the jury and the executioner? "

Said Mike in a menacing voice.

[Valentine] - "My actions are those of justice. What gives Viktor Putin and his goons the right to receive fair treatment? After everything they have done, they deserve a fiery death. So kill me, Mike. Let lord Sniper know you are nothing but an impulsive little brat! "

In truth, Valentine's arms trembled behind his back but he forced himself to keep a straight face.

[Valentine] - "Is sinking your fist into my face really worth ruining your future? The world belongs to the empire. Even if you enacted your "justice" on me, what will it change? There are millions of men, with worse morals than me, waiting to take this position. How many imperial officers can you kill before it's your turn? "

Mike stared at Valentine with an expression of hatred but quickly realized how powerless he was against Valentine. Reluctantly, Mike decided to let him go. As Mike turned around, he showed a death stare at the guards who immediately withdrew their weapons.

[Valentine] - "I won't say I'm standing on higher moral grounds but the way I apply my power is far less worse than what others might do in my position. Your heart and honour are unclouded, I praise that. But if you want to stop me or anyone worse than me, I suggest you confront the problem from its root cause. "

Said Valentine as Mike walked away.

After making sure that Mike was well outside the range of the radars, the officer returned to Valentine's side.

[Officer] - "Are you alright, Admiral? "

[Valentine] - "It's really a unique feeling when being confronted by the human version of God. Makes you question a lot about yourself. "

Not knowing how to respond to that statement, the officer then asked:

[Officer] - "Well... what are your orders? "

Valentine raised a cigarette to his mouth with trembling fingers.

[Valentine] - "Raise a German flag on the Kremlin. Forget about the bombardment. "

Said Valentine in a composed voice.

[Officer] - "Of course, sir! "

The empire and the Cyberknights are founded on the principles of justice, virtue and progress.

Inside the imperial war archives, Mike looked at the videos and pictures of the different atrocities committed by imperial officers and Cyberknights. From ethnic cleansing to mass-scale massacres, the empire officers and their troops didn't hold back at all considering they were in a position of power where no one could judge their action. On the other hand, Karson wasn't the only Cyberknight who abused the power he was given. Although rogue Cyberknights were mostly hunted down and killed, others who killed in the name of the empire were not punished in any way. Considering their power, they were above laws and nature when they abused their power against the helpless.

Mike felt so powerless as the ideas he put so much faith into were squandered by Cyberknights and officers who abused their power without a thought. The empire has become a state without law for the strong to prey on the weak. Why is Sniper turning a blind eye to all this mess that has become his empire? What happened to the crusade that was meant to bring justice to a sick and corrupted world?

Mike inclined himself to the secretary as a sign of gratitude.

[The Judge] - "Your audience with our lord Sniper will be tomorrow at 4:00 Pm exactly. Do not waste his majesty's time. Use your words carefully. "

Said the Judge with a vindicating stare.

To be continued...