Interstellar Age

Chapter 64 The Order Of The Black Sun

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It took Erich some time to overcome the grief he felt in his heart after losing S'aleth. After all, he had briefly thought there was hope for her survival, but instead she had chosen to die with him. There was only one problem: the Empire had other plans for Erich and had through extensive effort had brought him back from the void. 

And while Erich cried alone in the dark, he made sure that this would be the last time he did so. After all, he would have to move forward with his life the moment after he stepped out of this room. Thus, he made sure to properly say his goodbyes to a woman who had been there for him when nobody else was. Before finally getting up from his medical bed and leaving the past behind him. 

The moment he opened the doors and stepped outside of the room, Erich was shocked to see that the entire hallway was littered with officers of the Germanic Military lined up on both sides. These men saluted Erich in the fashion which the Empire was renowned for while giving their greatest war hero the complete and total respect that he deserved. 

Erich followed this hallway filled with men who were saluting him, and did not dare look any of them in the eyes until he finally stepped foot in the Grand Admiral's office. Once the door was shut firmly behind him, Emrys smiled and held out a luxurious container, which he handed to Erich with a grateful look in his eyes. 

And while Emrys motioned towards Erich to open the container with his facial expression, he began to speak in an almost heroic tone as he announced what was inside. 

"Commander Erich "Silber" Jaeger, for your heroic actions in defense of the Empire, I, Supreme Leader Alaric au Emrys hereby, award you with our Empire's highest honor. The Order of the Black Sun. From this day forth, whenever you are wearing your dress uniform, I expect you to adorn this sash, and breast star with pride!" 

Inside the container was a long crimson silk sash, which had a solid golden Maltese cross hanging from the tied portion at the bottom. This solid gold Maltese cross had the flames of war jutting out from its corners while also having two golden swords crossed at its top, which were hanging from a golden oak leaf. And in the center of the cross was a red enamel circle, with the infamous Black Sun symbol contained within it.

Aside from the sash, there was also a large golden breast star, which contained the same cross in its center, along with the two cross swords above it. These two items were the most prestigious symbols of military valor, which few men in the history of the Empire had ever been awarded. 

Erich could hardly believe his eyes when he saw these awards. Had his suicidal act truly earned himself such an honor? If Erich doubted the Grand Admiral's, or should he say the new Supreme Leader's sincerity before, then it was hard to argue against it now. 

Perhaps because of these thoughts, Erich remained completely and utterly silent, as Emrys pinned the star to his stone grey dress uniform's right breast, before adorning the sash diagonally from his left shoulder to his right hip. After which the Supreme Leader saluted Erich, which the man returned immediately after snapping back to reality. 

Though Erich did not know it, this brief, and private ceremony was actually being displayed across the entire Empire, or what was left of it, as a propaganda piece to show that the Empire's greatest Hero was alive once more, and being rewarded properly for his efforts which had saved the Empire. 

After which, Emrys made a shocking announcement, both to Erich and those trillions of citizens who tuned into the broadcast. 

"Commander Erich "Silber" Jaeger, it is with my great honor, that I hereby announce I shall be repealing the previous laws that once restricted genetic aberrants such as yourself from marrying, and having families of their own.

Though there will be some strict monitoring of your bloodline to ensure that no further genetic abnormalities occur, you and the rest of your kind can rest easy knowing that in this new era, the discrimination which you have all faced throughout your lives will finally come to an end. 

Because of this, I would like to introduce you to the woman, which the Empire believes is most genetically compatible with being your wife. Please, do not keep us waiting dear...."

Erich's heart had begun to palpitate, as he waited for the woman who would be his wife from this day forth to enter the room and reveal herself. He desperately hoped that she was a woman whose beauty was on par with those he had already slept with. 

However, his heart immediately sank when he saw the distinctive pink hair and the forced smile upon the young pop sensation's face. As she entered the room, and bowed her head humbly, but begrudgingly before her new husband. 

Erika Krieger had had been selected to be Erich's wife, and though she tried to fight it at first, simply because she did not wish to marry a mutant like herself, she was ultimately forced to do so. After all, she was held in significant regard among the surviving Germanic population, who attributed the military aid of the Great Oni Empire to her diplomatic efforts, and those of the other girls in her pop group. 

It was Emrys's belief that for propaganda purposes the two mutants who saved the Empire should be wed together, and thus, Erich's hopes for a kind, loving, and submissive wife had suddenly come crashing down around him, as he was now forced to marry the woman who had previously caused him to be disowned by his parents. 

Erika, however, wore a pretty smile, which Erich knew was clearly being forced, as she approached her new husband while dressed in a pretty white wedding dress, one which showed off a bit too much cleavage for Erich's tastes. Before grabbing hold of his face and saying something which shocked him. 

"Everyone is watching, so kiss me, you damned fool!"

Erich glanced over at the Supreme Leader, who gave him a slight nod of approval, before sighing heavily in his heart. He knew that Emrys's offer was too good to be true, but even then, he had gotten his hopes up, which had proven in this moment to have been a bad idea. 

Still, Erich did not dare disobey the Supreme Leader's orders, especially not after everything they had been through, and thus he kissed Erika, in a public display of passion, even though he felt absolutely nothing but hatred for the pink-haired bimbo in his heart. 

After he kissed the woman, the Supreme Leader smiled and spoke up for the cameras, with a haughty tone in his voice. 

"I now pronounce the two of you to be husband and Wife.... I look forward to the family that the two of you produce together." 

After saying this, the hidden cameras shut off, and Erika immediately forced herself out of Erich's arms, no longer bothering to look at the man who was responsible for the death of her career. But as she looked away, there was something else in her electric blue eyes, a bit of longing, regret, and confusion, as if she immediately felt bad for snubbing the man so quickly after they had been married. 

Naturally Erich did not see this expression in the girl's beautiful eyes, and thus he could only sigh, believing that he was about to embark on a loveless marriage, one that was completely devoid of the possibility of romance. 

Emrys, however, seemed to believe the newlywed couple were quite compatible with one another, and was quick to give voice to this thought. 

"I am glad to see the two of you are finally getting along... Don't worry, Erich, I have prepared a wonderful villa for you and Erika in the world of Teutonia. You can take as much time as you need to become properly acquainted with your new wife.

After all, it will be another few years before we will be able to train a new crop of pilots who are worthy of being in the Black Sun Squadron, so for now enjoy a much needed leave of absence, and when the time comes for you to take up arms once more, I will be in touch with you then."

After saying this, Emrys booted Erich and Erika out of his office, where the two of them were whisked off to the tropical paradise that was the world of Teutonia. Despite having everything he had always dreamed of, Erich could not help but feel sick to his stomach, knowing that his new home was in a world which his now deceased friend Fredrik had once served upon. 

Of course Erika was wholly inexperienced with men, and because of this she could not understand that beneath Erich's stony expression was a severe depression which would compel a lesser man to attempt suicide. Thus, she continued to act standoffish with her new husband, who she had various conflicted feelings about. 

On the one hand, Erich had saved her homeworld, and had even been her first crush. But knowing the man had actually betrayed his race by sleeping with the Great Oni Emperor's aunt, on top of being the reason that Erika herself was forced to retire from the job she loved more than anything, and at such a young age no less, she could not tell if she wanted to kiss the man, or smack the shit out of him, and thus Erika kept her distance from Erich, despite the fact that they had just been married. Something which only further added to Erich's depression.