RKMBs Forums .::Important::. Writer's Block The Left Hand: Song of the Sinister Heart

*late in the year 2002, the Mandelovian President-Prime Minister, General Colton D'Goon, struck a deal with the terrorist organization known as the Left Hand. More than just an army of rebels, the Left Hand was slowly making their way into political power in numerous smaller European countries.

I will be reprinting here my Mandelovian/Left Hand related epilogues and interludes, as well as interspersing them with new material. *

Quote:

---

Excerpted from a MetaTV news broadcast, dated late August, 2002.
Thanks, Bill. In other news, rumors continue to swirl around that the terrorist organization known as the Left Hand has made inroads into the governments of several smaller European countries.

One country which is currently rumored to have strong ties
to the Left Hand organization is that of Mandelovia, the dictatorship run by Gen. Colton D'Goon. Mandelovia, of course, is still enforcing a trade embargo on US imports, and
has recently come under fire in the U. N. for it's purported treatment of metahumans. . .

*************************

Mandelovia
The Office of Gen. Colton D'Goon
There is a knock at the front door.

"Enter."

"General? He's here, sir."

D'Goon stood up from behind his desk and attempted to straighten his uniform.

"Excellent, well what are you waiting for? Show him in, fool!"

"Yessir!" The short young female D'Goon had recently hired as his secretary quickly exited and her voice was heard outside.

"I must remember to better train her in her duties in the future," D'Goon thought as a lascivious smile briefly broke out on his face. It was soon gone, though to be replaced by a
warmer smile as a large man, around six foot six, entered the room. He wore a dark grey militaristic uniform, with dark, round glasses and had short dark hair which was slicked
back on his head. D'Goon noticed that he also wore a black glove on his left hand.

"Welcome, my friend. It is a pleasure to have you and your organization here in my country. I think we can be of mutual benefit to one another." D'Goon said, beginning to
extend his right hand.

"Yes, I think so as well." Baron Zero replied, putting forward his black gloved left hand. D'Goon quickly switched hands and the two men shook.

---

"You mean your father kicked you out of the palace?" Bernardo asked incredulously as his immense weight down the burro he rode on. Sweat streamed down his face as he wiped at it with his sleeve.

"My father is a traitor to the ideals of Mandelovia! Allowing all these. . .these foreigners into the country! All of these scientists with their foolish notions!" Adelberto Mandel D'Goon loudly proclaimed as he rode ahead of his friend on a magnificent white horse.

"But haven't the scientists improved our way of life? Mandelovia has things other countries only dream of." Bernardo protested. "I liked living in the palace. . .there were soft pillows and beautiful handmaidens. . ."

"You are losing focus, Bernardo!" Adelberto whacked Bernardo on the back of the head with the flat end of his cutlass.

"My father wants to ally with these treacherous non-Mandelovian terrorists. . .this Left Hand. . .he turns his back on tradition! On heritage! On. . .ME!" Adelberto was raving now, waving his hands wildly in the air, almost falling off of his horse.

"Good food, prepared by the best chefs in the world. . ." Bernardo continued beginning to drool, his burro straining under his weight.

"Today, Bernardo, today begins our quest. To take back Mandelovia for the Mandelovians! Today is the birth of the Mandelovian Heritage Movement!"

"So, no more food, handmaidens, or pillows?" Bernardo asked.

"We have higher ideals, now, Bernardo. We have no time for foolish nonsense."

"I do not think living like a bum is a higher ideal, Adelberto."

"Silence! Our path is set! Onward!" Adelberto Mandel D'goon whacked his horse on the backside with his blade and rode off, Bernardo and his burro reluctantly following. Bernardo sighed and followed, as he had done his whole life.

Months later


The large 20 foot tall concrete walls that construction crews were working on night and day were almost done. When finished, they would completely surround the land locked
side of Mandelovia. The only thing taller being some of the spires of the buildings of the nation's capital city New Mandelovia. Spires that resembled something out of the Fritz
Lang film, Metropolis. New Mandelovia resembled an art deco city of the future.

Huge war mastiffs patroled the perimeters on all sides of the country at oddly timed intervals. Oddly timed, so as to prevent any possible intruders from timing them and
sneaking into the country. In the country side, farm children briefly looked up from play to wave at the mastiff's controllers. The impassive controller's merely continued on their way.

Within the capital city itself, a large parade was taking place. Banners hung downward from buildings, bearing the image and sigil of the PPM of Mandelovia. A large, six-wheeled automobile with a white body, gold-painted trim, and a convertible top (which was down) slowly moved down the main street of the city. The PPM himself, sat on top of the back of the car, his trusted aide, Capt. Nemo, seated below him and to his right. The PPM was smiling and waving as streamers and confetti constantly rained down
on him and his entourage. Today was Colton D'Goon's birthday.

Nemo looked up at the PPM and spoke. "I do not like this, sir. We are too much in the open."

"Relax, my friend," D'Goon replied, between waves, "I have my best people located all around us, in vehicles, in the crowd, in buildings. . .No one will be able to get to us."

"I hope," Nemo answered, suspiciously scanning the crowd, "That you are right."

"You worry too much, Nemo." The PPM continued, "You are thinking perhaps of our new allies? Or my traitorous son?"

Nemo started to say something but fell quiet at the mention of D'Goon's son.

"Ah, that's it, isn't it? You worry over my son and his so-called rebel militia. Fear not, my friend. This "Heritage of Mandelovia" movement will fail. As have all that opposed us
before."

The motorcade continued on down main street. . .

That night, D'Goon celebrated with a massive party, culminating in a wild threesome in his bedroom with two Hollywood starlets.

"Phillipe, I do not think we should be taking Papa. He is very weak." Maria pleaded with her brother.

"Nonsense, girl, I want to hear what they have to say." Their father responded.

"Papa, I worry for you. General D'Goon says these men are terrorists."

"He should know, since he's one, himself. You are too young to remember, but not me. I remember when he was just another elite agent of the guard. He hasn't changed."

"Papa! you never used to say such things when Mama was around." The girl put her hands to her face, shocked.

"When Mama was around, I had reason not to say such things." The old man's eyes turned to the ground of his home. His mind remembered the days of his youth, the Mandelovia that used to be. Before D'Goon seated himself in the palace of the PPM. Life under the careful supervision of the elite guard was harsh and oftentimes cruel. In spite of all this, he had managed to marry, and raise children. The old man had done what he could and had been happy, in spite of things.

Life in Mandelovia, when you were not a member of the military or the science council, could be very unforgiving.

"It doesn't matter what either of you say," Phillipe finally stated. "I am going to this Left Hand rally and I will hear what they have to say. We deserve that much. Besides, have you ever heard of them attacking Mandelovians?"

**************************

"Are we ready to go?" Baron Zero strode into the backroom of the small amphitheater they had acquired for tonight's meeting.

"Nearly, Baron. The guards are stationed. The lookouts are ready to go." Paulo answered.

"And the tapes? They are ready?"

"Yes, Baron. We have a fresh batch to replace the lost or worn out recordings."

"Then we are ready. There is an hour left before the meeting. Gather all but the most needed for the saying of the oath."

"Yes, Baron." Paulo walked off, instructing others to gather for the oath, while Baron Zero stared at his gloved hand and smiled. Things were proceeding nicely. Nicely, indeed. The people were gathering quickly to the cause and he had made his way into D'Goon's trusted inner circle. The time of the Left Hand would be soon.

*******************

After the rally

"Where is Phillipe?" The old man asked.

"I do not know, Papa. He still has not returned home from the rally. I am worried."

"He is foolish, prideful. Like too many. He will do something stupid, I am sure of it."

*******************

"Are you ready to swear allegiance to the Left Hand?" Zero asked his new recruits.

"YES!" came the reply. Not many from this small area a few dozen perhaps, but they were enthusiastic. And that was just as important.

"Then raise your arms like this." Zero raised his left arm, his black gloved hand high in the air. The new recruits did the same in imitation.

As Zero spoke, the recruits followed his words with their own. Phillipe, standing in the front, was one of the loudest.

*Left hand!
Power of the pure!
The world will tremble at our command!
Left hand!
Power of the lords!

Builds upon our destiny!
Destiny, take this land!
Take this land by the death of man!
Left hand!
Triumph of the will!

We will change the face of this earth
As our lord commands!
In our holy quest for supremacy!

Left hand!
Power to take!
What was ours from the day of birth!
Left hand!
Is grasping strong!
It does not fear its destiny!


(*Lyrics from "Lords of the Left Hand by Samhain)

Gen. D'Goon's Palace
Just outside the futuristic capital city of Mandelovia, New Mandelovia.


General D'Goon's aides, Klaatu, Barada, and Nikto rushed down a hallway leading towards their leader's office. This was the day they had awaited since the unexpected
disappearance of D'Goon's right hand man, Col. Nemo. Today, D'Goon would pick his Minister of State. Each man had his eye on the prize, as it were. Each man believed himself most suited for the job. And each man, of course, had been plotting how to outdo the other two and grab for himself the role.

"I don't why the two of you even bothered coming here today." Klaatu hissed. "I'm the General's favored. Everyone knows that."

"Hmmph." Nikto sneered. "The General only tolerates you because it amuses him to watch you handle petty tasks like clean his private transport. I'm the one he gives important jobs to."

"You are both pathetic." Barada "I am a war hero. Col. Nemo himself was my commander. I crushed many foes for Nemo, as I have for the General afterward. When he appoints me Minister, you shall both be my servants."

"Silence, you fools. We're here." Klaatu hissed again, knocking on the General's office door.

"Who is there?" a loud, deep voice came from the inside.

"Klaatu, Barada, and Nikto, General D'Goon's aides. We are here for the appointment of the General's new Minister of State." Klaatu informed the voice.

"Come in!"

The heavy oak wood door openened and the three men entered D'Goon's office. Armed guards stood on either side of the door, one holding the door open for them. D'Goon
himself sat in a plush chair behind a large desk, in full uniform. A large man stood behind him, just to the right, slightly shadowed by the curtains of the windows behind D'Goon's desk.


"Ahh, my friends! Welcome! You are just in time to witness the appointment of my new Minister of State!" D'Goon exclaimed as he stood from his chair and held out his arms in
front of him.

"Yes, General, sir, we have been waiting for this most anxiously." Klaatu replied, holding his hands together.

"Well, then, let me keep you waiting no longer. Allow me to introduce you to him."

"Intro. . .duce. . .?!"

". . .us.. .to. . .?"

". . .him?!" the three aides spoke, completing the thought and looking at each other quizzically.

"Come, my friend, there is no need to be shy. You will soon know these three men very well." D'Goon motioned towards the man by the curtains and he stepped forth out of the
shadows.

The man was tall and broad shouldered. He wore a grey military uniform jacket with black boots and one black glove on his left hand. He wore dark glasses with round lenses. He
was caucasian, with dark hair, slicked back on his head.

"Gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to my new Minister of State. Baron Zero." D'Goon beamed as he wrapped one arm around Zero's broad shoulders.

"General, you cannot be serious?!" Nikto was outraged. "Making this. . .outsider. . ."

"A NON-Mandelovian!" Klaatu offered.

"Yes, thank you, non-Mandelovian, your Minister. It is unheard of!" Nikto finished.

Barada was silent, taking in the situation.

"Gentlemen, allow me to explain," D'Goon began.

"No, General, I can speak for myself." Baron Zero offered, moving forward to speak to the three men. "You see, friends, I AM a Mandelovian. I was born in Mandelovia and spent my early years here. My mother and I were forced to leave when I was young, due to some, unpleasant circumstances. I spent many, many years wandering through Europe, wanting only to return to my native land. I became a mercenary, with thoughts only to make enough money to get home. We are freedom fighters, my friends and I. No matter what some may call us, terrorists, cultists. You know how Europe, and especially the Americans, have always looked down upon Mandelovia and her sons."

The three men nodded in agreement at this.

"And now, I am here. The General has graciously accepted me and offered me this position in his time of need. I look forward to working with you all." Zero finished and
looked back towards D'Goon.

"Well said, my friend, well said. Now the Vanguards should be arriving soon, so let us plan. . ." as the men huddled around D'Goon. . .*

(*D'Goon's plans can be seen in HR # 14.)

"My friend, I want to show you something. . ." General D'Goon's shadow fell across Zero's face as he looked up from his new desk.

"Since Nemo's. . .disappearance. . .I have had very few aides that I could trust. But you, I sense that you are different." D'Goon was wobbling slightly as he walked, and beginning to slur his words.

Baron Zero took him by one arm and lifted him slightly, steadying the P/PM. "General, are you. . .well?"

"I am fine!" D'Goon shouted. "I need no help to stand. . ." He pulled his arm away from Zero's grasp. The two made their way to one of D'Goon's various secret passageways secreted around the Mandelovian palace. Pulling down a wall torch, D'Goon led his ally into one of the tunnels that stretched far below Mandelovia.

"What you are about to see, has only been known to a select few. The people who built it, were immediately put to death, so they could lead no one else here. This place is whispered of in rumor and legend. There are those, like my foolish son and his pathetic allies, I let them live more out of pity than anything. . ." D'Goon began rambling in his drunken state, then finally found his way again. "They think this thing can give them super powers. Like some comic book or something. Like those foolish Vanguardians who think themselves heroes! Hah! We of the Mandelovian Elite Guard were true heroes!" D'Goon was going full stop now and Zero merely watched and took everything in.

They arrived at a steel doorway as D'Goon punched in a code on a keypad. The doors slid open and the two men entered the room. Zero noticed the only light in the room seemed to be a bright blue glow emanating from somewhere before them.

D'Goon led him forward. Zero noticed various advanced devices all about him. "The secret laboratories of Mandelovia. . ." he marvelled.

"Yes," D'Goon answered. "Built and worked in by only the best scientists over the years. And this, their crowning achievement, the caged miniature sun that powers our country, the Heart of Mandelovia!" D'Goon gestured and Zero looked forward in awe at the incandescent blue sphere that sat half way from the floor locked inside of a massive containment unit.

Baron Zero stepped off of the platform to thunderous applause. It was another successful rally for the Left Hand movement, winning ever more followers to the cause within
Mandelovia. Since the invasion by the Strikeforce, many within Mandelovia had begun to feel unsafe and threatened by outside forces. Zero played off of these fears like a master,
gaining new converts at every rally.

As Zero walked backstage, he sat down in front of a monitor and turned it on. He removed his circular glasses and began to wipe his face down with a towel handed to him by his assistant. "Thank you, Paulo."

"Sit with me, we are about to witness history." Zero watched as images on the monitor screen began to take shape. General Colton D'Goon was on a stage of his own, delivering
a speech of his own, denouncing the UN for invading Mandelovia, the US for being the US, and anyone else he had a grudge against at the moment.

"How long have we known each other, Paulo?" Zero asked, staring at the screen intently.

"Seven years, Baron." Paulo answered, curious as to what was so important. Paulo had been a soldier, a mercenary. Drifting without purpose until this person had come into his
life, the guiding principles of the Left Hand movement filling him with new resolve: strength of will, triumph over adversity, the rightful rule of the strong.

But this new course, politics, Paulo was not comfortable with. He was a soldier, not a statesman. He felt out of his element. If the man called Baron Zero, felt out of place, however, he did not show it. "Seven years, a long time, eh?"

"A long time, as you say. I have fought beside you in many battles, Baron, but this political business, I am not comfortable with. It is not, my, what do they call it? Forte?"

"Paulo, we are on the cusp of the fruition of all those things I have set in motion over the last seven years, and even longer. Should we stay a small group, forever? On the run and
hounded by authorities? No, Paulo, we must grow large and strong. Strong enough to exert our will upon the world, and face down those who would oppose us. Growth, however, requires change. And we must change to meet the needs of our new enterprise." Zero grew silent again, watching the screen intently, as if waiting for something. "Turn up
the volume."

". . .announce my plan to bring forth a new defense against these metahuman lackeys of the US, this Strikeforce, and I want to make public, my first offer to the Vanguardians,
who have already shown their willingness to aid the downtrodden Mandelovian peoples. . ." D'Goon was in full effect.

"Did he not already claim once that the Vanguards had defected to Mandelovia?" A confused look crossed Paulo's face.

"A small detail, Paulo, one that will be overlooked by most in regards to the larger picture. D'Goon knows this and will have a response waiting by the time the sheep attempt to use
it against him."

"And I want to take this moment to denounce the UN, who are lackeys of the US and their president, George W. Bush, for allowing this incursion into Mandelovia! The Mandelovian people will not stand for these things any longer! And I serve the will of the Mandelovian-"

Just then, a small, dark form darted out of the audience and jumped the stage, holding a small handgun he fired several shots into D'Goon's head and body, before taking the
microphone and screaming "Mandelovia for Mandelovians! Death to traitors!" The man called Klaatu had just enough time to finish the second sentence before several armed
Mandelovian guards fired upon him with their weapons killing him.

Paulo sat in front of the screen transfixed as chaos unfolded in front of him. Baron Zero smiled with cunning satisfaction. "I don't understand, Baron. There have been many attempts on D'Goon's life. How do we know this isn't a double, or that he is even really dead?"


"DNA tests will confirm that it is D'Goon and not one of his many doubles, such as that Agent Zeta. I have a friend who has a very peculiar talent. He has what some call the
power of persuasion. Since I met D'Goon, he has spoken to him on the phone many times, including yesterday. D'Goon, strangely enough, forgot to wear the body armor he normally wore beneath his clothes. Klaatu, also, received a phone call yesterday. Tomorrow, D'Goon's will shall be discovered, naming me as his successor. Klaatu will be named as a sympathizer to the so called "Heritage" movement. Today is our day, Paulo. A new day dawning for the Left Hand and Mandelovia."

Two days after his death, General Colton D'Goon was buried with full Mandelovian military honors. Present at his funeral were Baron Zero, Paulo, Nikto, and General Barada, among others. Notable among the absent were General Nemo (now missing for several months), the late Klaatu, and D'Goon's son, Adelberto Mandel D'Goon, the leader of the Heritage terrorist cell.


The next day, Baron Zero was unanimously elected the new President-Prime Minister of Mandelovia. He celebrated with a full parade down the main street of New Mandelovia, the capitol city. During this parade, the new flag of Mandelovia was revealed. It contained the image of the old Mandelovian sigil, but now with one glaring difference. That sigil now bore the image of a Left Hand directly in the middle of it.


***********************
Across the country, Maria buried her father in a pauper's grave. She cried to herself, wondering what the future would bring now. Her brother was absent, consumed with being a part of Baron Zero's new military force. Off in the distance, a stranger watched. After a time, he walked down to the girl to offer her some words of comfort.

"There is an old legend," He began, startling the girl, his Mandelovian fluent and perfect. "that Mandelovia was once saved in her darkest time by a group of rogues and rapscallions."

He lifted the girl's head by the chin with his hand. "The legend says that another dark time will befall Mandelovia, and that in that time, the rogues will return and save her once more."

"I have never heard this. . ." Maria stopped and sniffed in mid sentence. "This legend of the rogues." She dabbed at her eyes.

"It is very old, and largely forgotten now. But your father heard it when he was young." He embraced the girl. She sensed that their was something familiar about this man, yet she could not put her finger on it.

"How do you know that? Who are you?" She pulled back from the man, attempting to see his face more clearly, as it was obscured by his low pulled hat.

He stepped back and pulled the hat lower over his face. "An old family friend. A stranger now, really."

"Sir, it is time to go to the plane. They will be closing the borders soon." Another, older looking man appeared behind the first.

"Very well. I must go now, but perhaps I will one day see you again." The two men turned and walked away.

"You took much longer than I expected, sir."

"It's very hard to watch your child being buried." The man frowned and remained silent until well after they left Mandelovian airspace.


Not the end. . .