Outside President Aaron Knowles’ bunker, his two burly bodyguards patrolled the perimeter. Their guns were cocked and ready to be put to the test at any given moment if the opportunity arose. President Knowles himself stood at the entrance to the bunker, awaiting the return of Colonel Sheldon Banes. As he proudly surveyed his surroundings, a devious smile crossed his face. He knew that Colonel Banes had failed in his endeavors and punishing him accordingly was going to be a delight. Banes had always been one to test the limits and push his luck - and he was finally going to get what he deserved!

      “Sir! Come here!” the deep voice of one of the President’s bodyguards pierced the air. The familiar jingle of Sheldon’s swinging dog-tags could faintly be heard. Aaron’s smile grew even bigger as he composed himself and confidently stepped around to the side of the bunker to see Sheldon Banes emerging from the woods, empty-handed.

      “Colonel!” exclaimed the President with his arms sarcastically spread wide. “Welcome back!” Sheldon looked at the ground, resisting the urge to make hateful eye contact. President Knowles gently placed a hand on Sheldon’s shoulder. “Come,” he gestured. “We have much to discuss.” Sheldon briefly looked up at the President who moved his hand down onto Sheldon’s back and gave him a spiteful shove, forcing him in the direction of the bunker’s entrance. Sheldon resentfully moved forward, vanishing into the bunker with the President’s two bodyguards close on his tail. The President took one last look at the surrounding trees before disappearing into the darkness of the bunker as well…

*      *      *   

      POW!! Crimson blood flew from Sheldon’s mouth and splattered onto the cold concrete floor of the interrogation room. Panting heavily, he firmly gripped the sides of the metal chair he was sitting in and gritted his teeth behind his lips. His face was covered in sticky red blood and he could feel bruises starting to form. President Knowles had stripped him down to cargo pants and a filthy tank-top before asking him a series of rhetorical questions. The one question that Aaron kept asking was: “What happened to my men?” No false answer that Sheldon provided was enough for President Knowles - each lie had resulted in a strike to the face with one of President’s silver-knuckled fingerless gloves. 

      Weakly, Sheldon lifted his head, meeting the dark eyes of the President. He knew he couldn’t lie to Aaron Knowles - but it had been worth a shot. After taking a nonchalant swig from the glass of alcohol in his hand, the President hissed, “So, tell me again… What happened out there?” 

      “I’ve told you three times,” growled Sheldon. “Why do I have to keep telling you?!”

      “Because, all three of the times, you’ve lied to me,” chuckled the President, taking a threatening step towards Sheldon. “I want you to tell me the truth this time.” Sheldon remained silent. President Knowles took another swig of his drink. “You can’t lie to me, Sheldon. Why even try?”

      Sheldon swallowed hard, gripping the sides of the chair. “Because maybe you didn’t need to know some of the details!” he defiantly shouted. Filled with rage, President Knowles balled his hand up into a fist and delivered Sheldon with the hardest blow yet, sending him flying out of his chair! Sheldon hit the floor, groaning in pain and spitting blood. 

      President Knowles snapped his fingers, gaining the attention of the two bodyguards that lingered at the entrance to the interrogation chamber. They had eagerly been waiting for Sheldon to try and make a move towards the door so they could have an excuse to lay into him. The President pointed to Sheldon before taking another sip from his glass. With solemn expressions, the two bodyguards marched over to Sheldon, seizing him by either arm and forcing him back into the metal chair. As they marched back to the door and resumed their positions, President Knowles leaned down in Sheldon’s face and proudly snarled, “Wrong. I’m your President. You tell me everything.”

      “I told you already!” Sheldon clapped back, trying to avoid the inevitable. “We found some girl in the woods and we wanted to keep her for questioning. Then these guys showed up with gas bombs and stole her away from us!”

      President Knowles shook his head. “What happened to my three men?”

      Sheldon hesitated. “They’re dead.”

      “Who killed them?” demanded the President.

      “The same guys that stole the girl from us.” 

      President Knowles stopped, staring into his drink as if in deep thought. Sheldon could almost see the little cogs and gears turning inside of his head. The President turned, glaring at Sheldon inquisitively, “All three of them?”

      “Yes, I keep telling you!” Sheldon snapped, desperately trying to cover his tracks.

      The President lunged, seizing Sheldon by the face and screaming, “YOU LIED TO ME!!”

      Sheldon’s face was tightly pinched in President Knowles’ monster grip, but he managed to finally shout out the truth, “I killed one, alright?! I killed one!!”

      The President released Sheldon from his tight grip and took a few steps back. After a moment, he swirled the liquid in his glass and took a small swig. PPSSHHH! He turned and spat a shower of alcohol right into Sheldon’s face! “Ahh. Now, there’s the sweet, sweet truth I’m looking for.” Stepping forward, he antagonistically leaned down into Sheldon’s face again, “Why did you kill him?”

      Sheldon did his best to hide the rage that was welling up inside him. “It was Private Quinn. He was aggravating me and making sarcastic comments. I shot him. But the other two did not die by my hand,” 

      “I believe you, Colonel,” mused the President. “I just don’t know why you had to lie to me about the one.”

      “Because I knew you wouldn’t like it that I had killed one of our own men.”

      “Our men? I don’t think you understand, Colonel,” President Knowles laughed, mockingly. “They’re not our men. They’re my men. And you’re dead right - I’m not happy that you killed one of my own men in cold-blooded murder.” Straightening up, he stared into his glass again, shifting its weight in his blood-stained hand. “However…it was just one. So I’m not going to kill you.” Relief swept over Sheldon - those were the words he’d been needing to hear. But before he had time to say anything, President Knowles was in his face again, smiling, “But even though it was just one man…you must learn the consequences to ensure that it doesn’t happen again.” 

      President Knowles turned towards the door, snapping his fingers and pointing a finger back towards Sheldon. The bodyguards knowingly nodded and slowly began closing in on Sheldon. “Please understand,” the President chuckled. “It's nothing personal. I too couldn’t stand Private Quinn. But…” he downed the last of the alcohol in his glass. “...you have to learn sometime.” 

      The first bodyguard swung his weapon through the air, striking Sheldon in the face and throwing him to the floor. The second one landed a kick right in the center of his chest! They had waited a long time for this moment and they were finally getting to give Sheldon the beating of his life. 

      Sheldon’s pained screams and the sounds of a brutal beating echoed throughout the chamber as President Knowles smiled, turned his back, and walked away...