Iron Will

Mark Kelo or Marcus Kelo?

Roy lead Marcus through the base to where they were to meet the Order's leader. Marcus had Tic form an exit strategy just in case things go south. They entered a Japanese style room made with wood and it had paper walls. At a small table in the room sat a man with snow white hair sipping on tea. His face was worn over the years as he seemed to be reaching the age of fifty.

"You must be Marcus," The man said putting his tea on the table. "Please sit."

There were no chairs in the room so Marcus sat on the floor like the white haired man. Roy just bowed and left the two of them alone. Marcus looked around to see a Katana like his Grandfather's that he saw in the Holo tape the other night.

"Tea?" The man asked.

"No," Marcus said. "But thank you."

"My name is Noah," The man said. "I was your Grandfather's friend. I take it you want answers?"

"I do." Marcus said waiting patiently for the truth.

"Very well," Noah sighed. "How much do you know about your Grandfather?"

"He's lived for thousands of years by transferring his mind and soul to clones." Marcus said. "He got tired of living like that and wanted it to stop. After learn I was made to force his to live forever he took me and ran to the outer planets. He thought the confederacy would help him but instead the killed him after he finished the Iron Will Project."

"I see you've uncovered a lot." Noah said. "Let me fill in any gaps you have, but to do so we must start at the beginning."

"Very well." Marcus said letting the man begin his story.

"In the final war on earth your Grandfather and I lost are parents to the conflict." Noah said. "We we're both orphan's from America who were raised in Japan once the fighting stopped. It was after this war the earth came together under one flag." Noah paused to make sure Marcus was still with him and continued. "Your Grandfather and I joined the Military shortly after are Eighteenth Birthday to be the first batch of Golem pilot. When we made it in we could wait for the order to explore the frontier, space."

"What happened?" Marcus asked.

"We were the best pilots the military could ask for so we were put on the first star ship to explore the vast void of space." Noah told Marcus. "It was a ten year trip to graph and explore planets we found. While on this voyage your grandfather fell for a girl from the states who was placed on are team, Mary. Are team explored many planets, but one we found changed us forever."

"The planet Biotry was first founded on," Marcus said. "Yon VI"

"Correct," Noah said. "Your Grandfather and I lead the team down into the planet's crust. Alone the way are team of five got split up. Are two other members returned to the ship to get help after the crust caved in on Me, your Grandfather, and Mary. We keep going in hopes to find and exit but instead we found Biotry and a large fortress. There we met the Creator who told us how to use Biotry and how to use it to live forever."

"That leads into how I was born." Marcus nodded.

"Right," Noah said. "We agreed to do as he said to thank him for the knowledge. When we returned to earth he remained behind the shadows using his promises of never end life to control the Earth Union, which would one day become the Galactic Union. It took me and your father many years to find out he was planning something big."

"What do you mean?" Marcus asked.

Noah took a drink of his tea and stopped talking. Bad memories came flooding back to him as he brought this all up, but he pushed on.

"During the Flagon Uprising your Grandfather and I fought on the front lines." Noah said. "In one attack on the capital of the Union your Grandfather lost all his clones that he had stored away. He didn't want any more saying this fight was his last. We tracked down Flagon and after beating him he told us what the Creator was doing."

"Wait," Marcus said confused. "Flagon was working for the Creator?"

"Yes," Noah said. "The Creator wanted his to start a civil war. His uprising is what lead to the way things are now. After learn about you and the civil war Mark took you and joined the Confederacy. The Creator believed Mark didn't know about how he was the one who started the civil war so he let him raise you and finish the Iron Will project he had your Grandfather working on."

"What did the Creator want with the Iron Will project?" Marcus asked.

"He wanted obedient Soldiers that were almost impossible to destroy." Noah told him. "Only Mark knew all this and made the prototype fitted only for you. Your the only one who can wear it."

"I see," Marcus said beginning to understand more about everything. "But why did the Creator start the civil war?"

"He found a way to live forever without clones. He used this knowledge to persuade people to help him like the confederate Generals." Noah said. "It involves a ritual that requires many sacrifices at key points in the galaxy. Thanks to this war he only needs one more place to finish the ritual."

"Where?" Marcus asked with concern.

"The planet Ula." Noah said. "He needs to sacrifice two million people  in four locations in the galaxy, and that's the last one."

"That's were locks is fighting." Marcus spat with hate.

"My forces are moving out in two days to Ula to stop the Creator." Noah said. "We will end the war and kill the Creator. He will be there to finish the ritual."

"I want to help." Marcus said standing up. 

"Very well," Noah said. "Roy will take you to get your Golem and then you will go with him to Ula. Only before you go Marcus, I have a felling you had another question to ask me."

Marcus looked at the man and nodded. He had come here to ask him the question that has been on his mind all day.

"Am I truly Marcus Kelo?" Marcus asked. "Is everything I want, really what I want, or is it was Mark Kelo wants?"

"It's what you want." Noah smiled. "I have been friends with your Grandfather sense we were children so many years ago. Just by looking at you I can tell you are your own man, not just his clone. You have your own likes and dislikes. You may look the same, and you may even have a few of his memories, but your not him."

Marcus smiled at the man and turned to the door. His questions were answered and know it was time to head to war.