The Alliance Security Room, 16 Canford Street
The room fell silent. Even the machinery seemed oddly quiet. Someone coughed, and then spoke up. It was the Minister for Health and Human Services in the Legal Republic. "So what exactly is the mutation?" he asked, his voice small and croaking. The SecHes, sighed, and began speaking. "Well, from what I've just heard, is that a vaccinated person is recorded to have died. The doctors said that the virus appears to have become immune to the vaccine, but as a result it seems that at least appearance of symptoms and the actual fatality of the virus have become sporadic and greatly reduced. I'll have to get more reports, and this still is unconfirmed by Intelligence sources. We have to wait."
The room continued to be silent until PE Kingsley spoke up, his voice a little stronger than the rest. "Well, what do we have to do about these things that are popping up? First these two bursts of energy, then vander Veer, now the mutating virus? Any suggestions, or shall we sit on our hands a little while longer?" The room returned to it's previous silence, though much more awkwardly. General-of-the-Armed-Forces Myers spoke up, "Perhaps it's time we stopped messing around in the Legal Republic? Things are getting out of hand, the Anarchists are acquiring heavier and heavier weapons, able to threaten the troops we send in. I think we should declare them traitors and enemies of the Alliance, perhaps this time send in much more heavy fighting units. Crack down on anarchist meetings in other parts of the Allied States."
The PE mulled it over in his mind. "I agreed with everything up to that last point their, General Myers. Such a crackdown could be seen as a violation of the right to protest, and support for the Anarchists hasn't grown significantly enough in other parts of the Allied States. Now, what about the two men from the energy bursts?" Most of the rooms looked around rather cluelessly at each other. SecHes finally spoke up, and with a great mental shrug, suggested teh obvious, "I don't think there's anything we can do. I would talk to SecRet about how this kind of energy could produce two men, and I don't think we've got any pictures of them. They disappeared rather quickly into the crowds and I don't think we'll be able to do anything about them at all really. The plague, well, all we can do is wait for more test results and pray. As for vander Veer, the research is already underway, and soon the bureau will be on your desk."
Luthor's District, Sagdineo, Legal Republic
The room is which Lucas and his friend sat was part of a deep, and up until now hidden tunnel system which the original anarchist faction about eighty years ago in the Establishment of Order after the collapse of the Original Legalese. Several stories above him, sat the Court House of Sagdineo, which the original anarchists had used as their headquarters. This room however, lacked the grandeur of a judges office or courtroom of the Legal Republic. This room was small, dank, and grey, with no windows and just metal slab for a door and a vent for air. After escaping the water purification plant, he and his friend returned here, the base of the anarchist operations. The operation had begun almost a decade ago, with New Anarchist Order beginning as merely a historical club, to study the Establishment of Order, but soon became merely a front for a new anarchist faction, spreading it's philosophy and training eager new soldiers for the new conflict, which Lucas named the Ending of Order. The cells had spread across the Legal Republic, most without a clue of what was going to happen. They gave Lucas a strong base of support from which to draw, should the opportune time come. Lucas' organization did not advocate active overthrow of the system, and because of it avoided the eyes and ears the Department of Homeland Security, ASIS, and the Institute.
He built up this organization from nothing, and he demanded quite a bit of loyalty. So when someone betrayed him, they didn't like it. The fact that the Alliance found him at the water distribution facility was too unlikely to be a coincidence. After everything Lucas had seen and done, coincidence was another way for the enemy to sneak in and destroy his work. The enemy was sneaky that way. You had to be on your guard for such small incursions like that. The one man who knew he was in that plant pushed open the metal door and walked in. He was a portly man, who sweat excessively and was balding. "Lucas, what is this about?" he looked suspiciously at his companion, "Who is she exactly?" Lucas looked him in the eyes. He knew it immediately, that this man did not betray him. Interesting, but he saw the weakness in the man he hadn't seen before. Sometimes, it takes only one situation to bring out something in someone that they could never think of before that moment. Circumstances, it appeared, made the man in this case.
"I'm not happy George. They found me at the plant. You were the only one who knew where I was." She watched this interrogation with interest. Lucas appeared to not use any tactic she was aware of. His demeanor did not speak of someone who was trying to use disappointment as his tactic. His word carried much force, so much that he must keep his deals, good or bad. Such men were rare these days. Amazing for revolutionaries. Not that she had much taste for revolutionaries of any sort. She was amazed when Lucas' demeanor changed from neutral to well, almost bemused, then to neutral again. Not true neutral of course, but the ease and confidence that comes when one decided to take anothers life with complete conviction. She approved.
George was panicking. Lucas removed a gun from his desk, and set it on the metal desktop. The clang sounded exquisite, perhaps the greatest sound he had ever heard, the most comforting. After all, he was going to die, might as well be at his own time and choosing. Wait, where did that thought come from? He looked at Lucas in the eyes, who only stared back with a vague intensity and satisfaction, despite the blank face. George began to sweat, and he could feel his heart beating faster. He felt something well up in his chest, then the monster came. His heart fell, and deep sorrow came over him. Memories of time long thought forgotten came to the fore. He felt dirty all over, as if the sweat had dried instantly. His mind drifted to the man he had murdered in college. His brother, the way he had sold him out to the authorities. The man he protected. The child he had forsaken. The cries of the child grew louder. Nothing would bring him respite. The thoughts repeated over and over, like a bad film. His heart sank to his shoes, and there was nothing left. The monster was everywhere. He reached for the gun, placed it to his temple, and then thought, 'Ah, sweet resp-'
The portly man dropped to the floor as the gunshot echoed throughout the room. She was incredulous. This man, who had previously shown no sign of remorse at any of the crimes he committed, had suddenly recanted to every sin, and then killed himself. All with Lucas muttering just one phrase. She looked incredulously from him to the body, and back several times. Then, she decided to move on. "Lucas, there are things we must discuss. For the weapons we provide you, we will need something in return, there are many things that we will need from you once you have thrown out the Alliance from the Republic and assumed your place as leader of the entire Original Legalese Territories. In fact, there needs to be a great long discussion on how exactly this will be repaid to Star-" He stood, and she stopped talking. He looked into her eyes. She saw one thing, the monster. It chased her into her memories, which rose to the surface. That of her dieing mother, whom she could have saved. Those few seconds replayed over and over...until they changed to her coldly placing the gun to the chest of the one man she had ever loved, and pulling the trigger. The warmth of his embrace changed to his coldhearted rejection, his warm and responsive body changed to the dead cold hard corpse that she threw in the river near his home in Jhanna. The looked at the gun, an enticing escape from the monster, herself. She reached for it, and then stopped. The monster was gone.
The KERES agent looked at Lucas. He simply looked at her. He rose to his full height, and looked straight into her eyes. "I will honor our original agreement. I am a man of my word, and I will not be anyone's puppet. This weapon that I have built, is mine and mine alone. We may share the current desire to eliminate the Alliance. I will not be Starblaydia's puppet, and I think Viannor needs to be reminded of that fact. I suggest you return to communicate this quite clearly." The agent glared into his eyes with a fierce defiance, and then walked out of the room, stepping over the body while she went. He cursed both George and Starblaydia, Viannor and the Alliance all in one breath. His goal was to bring anarchy, to neutralize this realm and to create something much more to his liking. They were likely to catch up to him soon, he had been too active to go unnoticed for much longer. He had to act quickly, otherwise they would catch up to him and the battle would come too soon.
She walked out the of the room, trying to comprehend that feeling. She could remember the pain that came from those memories, but what had driven her to pick up the gun was beyond. Those she had felt no sorrow before. She felt a weight on her shoulders unlike anything she had felt before, and she didn't think it was coming off anytime soon. It was like he had given her a conscience and a heart. He reminded her of what it was like to feel again. But not good feelings, feelings of pain and sorrow. It was like he had blackened her heart to the point where she could no longer live with herself. It was like he had given her a soul and then made her the devil. She decided then that this was too dangerous a deal to go through. She would advise to Viannor to eliminate this Lucas before he could become a threat. |
