Curse of the Fallen - 5. Chapter Five: Fake

Chapter Five: Fake

Greg grinded his teeth as he read over the latest report from his company’s intelligence division. So, Landon is finally making his move. Let’s just hope those things don’t get out of control and bite him in the ass. After reading the entire report he let out a deep sigh. Soon Greg wouldn’t have access to the vital data he had been collecting on the Master and his Chosens. Not with Landon moving in to seize his company.

The takeover of SecCon was his own fault. For some time he had been downloading data from the research mainframe from the secret Coven lab. From that data his people had been able to develop new drugs and vaccines, not just for the use of the Elected, but also for the general population of Untalented. Landon could not allow acts of industrial espionage continue forever however.

It was a shame that neither he nor Harvard’s researchers had been able to develop a counter agent to the Taint or a vaccine for the Coven Virus. The risk that they might have was probably the main motive for Landon seeking control of all SecCon’s research. With Harvard’s data, the resources of Landon’s BioSign and SecCon research divisions with the unlimited funding from the investment conglomerate InterVest, Landon would have everything he would need to advance development of the Coven virus and the Taint drug without having to share the results with third parties.

Greg didn’t know if it would work but as he was a member of House Balthazar and the former future Grandmaster of the Order, he had a duty to report his theories to his father, but he wouldn’t. Over the last seven years Landon had claimed his love, loyalty and devotion, body and soul. There was nothing Greg would do to oppose him. In the same turn he was the only person Landon saw worthy of being his future husband and partner.

As for Greg’s former lover, Ryan, Landon had claimed him for the Coven. While at times Greg tried to remember how much the two of them had loved each other, Landon had left no room for others in Greg’s heart. Not that it bothered his former lover. Landon had given Ryan something he wanted more than Greg’s love. He had given him the gift of Talent. Ryan now follow Landon’s orders and Landon made sure that Ryan had little time to spend with his lost flame.

Catching a train for DC Greg would be at the rendezvous spot in time for the meeting. He had questions that needed to be answered.

Once at Union Station he caught the Metro line for the Commerce Department. Along the way he picked up the Washington Post and the New York Times. He didn’t think there would be anything about what happened in Vermont in the papers but there might be word of InterVest’s hostile takeover of SecCon. So far there was no information on either subject.

Once at the Herbert Hoover Commerce Building he went inside and picked up the waiting guest pass. Feeling hungry and with a half hour before the meeting he went to the basement cafeteria and bought a couple breakfast tacos. After eating he went to a third floor conference room where waiting for him was a Coven Prefect and two of his goons. “Where’s Landon?” Greg demanded.

The prefect took off his glasses and gazed at Greg with his deep blue eyes. Like any high ranking member of the Coven his flawless skin was deeply tanned and hair as gold as the sun. “You’ll see him soon enough. First we need to make sure the meeting will be private. Strip.”

One of the two goon’s, a heavily built bald man ordered. Between the man’s thumb and forefinger was the strange lidless eye tattoo that marked him as a Coven Prefect.

Surprised by the order Greg wasn’t’ sure if he head the man correctly. “Strip?”

“You heard me… take off those fancy clothes of your and put on these.” One of the goons dropped a gray maintenance uniform at his feet.

After Greg was stripped down to his boxers the leader took out a scanner and checked him for bugs. Around the right nipple it began to beep. “Hey nothing I can do about that one.” Greg’s father had the homing chip implanted on the day of his son’s christening. Power through body heat it had never needed replacing.

“We could do this.” A guard drew out a hunting knife and handed it to his boss.

“You wouldn’t dare.” Greg wrapped his arms around his chest protectively. Noticing how foolish he looked, he quickly dropped his arm back to his side.

The Prefect closed his eyes as he debated their options. “True. We’ll have to hope the clothes do their trick. Now hurry up and get dressed.

Picking up the overalls Greg noticed how heavy they were. It was as if the fabric was lined with flexible metal fibers. “Jammers?”

“You might say that.” It’s a GPS signal delayer. If that homing device works like intel says it does, it will detect the signal where this device will mimic it.” He pointed to the black box on the table.”

“The signal is encrypted and reports my physical stats.”

“We know. But since you asked… ever since you entered this room, our little friend here…” He patted the black box. “Has been recording your all the medical information we need. Now, unless you have any further questions you should hurry up before missing your appointment.” There was a knock on the door. The Prefect nodded to one of his men. “Open it.” A man who looked like he could be Greg’s twin brother entered and bowed. The man was even dressed a suit identical to the one Greg had put on that morning before leaving Aaron’s place.

“Good, you’re right on time.” He turned his attention back on Greg. “You will find a janitor’s cart waiting for you outside. There is a GPS device in the trash container. Take it and follow its instructions to the letter. If you divert from the path or make any attempt to make contact with anyone the meeting is off. Given the subject I would not recommend you being late.” The Prefect said before pushing Greg towards the door.

At the door the guard stopped him. “Don’t forget to take this.” He handed him a trash bag.

Greg took it. He found the cart right where the Coven Prefect said it would be. Dropping the bag into the trash container he found the GPS map device taped inside it. He pulled the device free, gave it a glance and pocketed it. It had him going back to Union Station. On the back of the device was a first class train ticket to New York. Leaving through a service entrance he caught the Metro back to the station. He arrived just as the train reached the platform. When he was inside the relative safety of a secluded private cabin he took out the map again. It showed him heading to going to Grand Central Station but not where he would go from there.

Not knowing what else to do he flipped between the news stations. There was still no news of the takeover or unexplained deaths in Vermont. There were reports about a Taliban resurgence threatening to overthrow the elected Afghanistan government but that was no surprise to him. Without NATO to back the government up it could not stand on its own. Rumors had it that the Pakistani intelligence service, ISI, had a secret agreement with the Afghanistan Taliban that they would provide them with support if the terrorists turned against their Pakistani counterparts.

Also in the news was a special report on the disappearance of children from foster care group homes in Chicago area. So far 23 kids had gone missing, all from different homes. There was a $15,000 reward for information that led to the children being found. Greg suspected, no, knew his kind were behind it. Whether it was the Coven or the Order, it didn’t matter, the children would be brainwashed to live and die for whatever faction had taken them.

It seemed ever since Aaron’s friends Trey and Tracy had been put in a coma due to Fred and Frank’s attempt to kill Aaron that the number of kidnappings of twins had skyrocketed. Even the bodies of the Trey and Tracy had been taken away for research and not given a proper burial. Greg had no proof but he suspected the Coven was behind the pair’s disappearance.

Greg had never talked to Aaron about how the loss of Tracy and Trey had affected him. At the time Greg feared that the mere mention of it would destroy Aaron’s still fragile emotional state. He had left the job of keeping Aaron’s sanity together to Sam, Jon, and Andrew. They never said how they did it but after a few months Aaron’s mood had stabilized.

After Aaron had won the North America Dueling Championship Greg’s fear for him lessened. Even so he suspected Aaron’s emotional endurance, while appearing to be iron hard, remained as thin as eggshells. He was sure that if hit by a strong enough blow, he would revert to the terrified despondent child he had been but ten years ago.

Suddenly, and without warning. The train came to a halt. Having not bothered to put on a seatbelt he went flying into the opposite wall. The cabin’s lights went dark. In the television screen were the words. “LEAVE THE TRAIN”.

Taking out the GPS map he saw that the train was in the middle of the North River Tunnel. Landon was taking keeping this meet secret all too seriously.

Outside the cabin he found the train was completely dark. Feeling around he found the exit and stepped off the train.

Almost as soon as he stepped off the train began moving again. So much for combing his hair this morning. When the tunnel was clear he looked at the map. It took him back a hundred yards to a service tunnel. Just as he reached the door, another train came racing through.

Greg’s stomach dropped. Landon was taking things too far this time. At the speed it was moving it would catch up with the first train and ram into it. Hundreds would die and the tunnel wrecked. Even if he wanted to there was nothing he could do. The survival of the Elected outweighed all other considerations. What were the lives of a few hundred Untalented to the survival of one with Talent? In that sense he could be just as cold and brutal as any member of the Coven.

From the service tunnel he entered a utility room, followed by another tunnel. This one was longer than the others… probably longer than the river tunnel itself. When he reached the end he found himself in unfinished tunnels of the canceled Hudson River Project. It was there that he found Landon waiting for him.

The Chosen went over to Greg and embraced him. “Glad you could make it.”

“Glad I survived long enough to make it. Want to tell me what the hell this is all about?” Greg demanded.

“Just covering our tracks.” Landon replied as if the deaths of those on the trains mattered little to him.

“Tracks? How does killing all those people help you?” Greg asked.

“Killing them didn’t help me as much as it helps you. I needed to make it appear that you might have died.”

“Might have died?”

“You might have been on the train or you might not have. We’re leaving the option open that you might one day return.”

“Why do you need people to believe I’m dead in the first place?”

“To keep you safe my love.” To bring the point home Landon kissed Greg. “Come… walk with me.”

Greg let himself be led deeper into the tunnel. “What is going on Landon? First you set those zombies loose. Then I heard you are planning to steal my company. Now you are trying to make it appear I’m dead.”

“Hear me out… Yes I let loose those cannibals. You probably think you know why I did that.”

“Because you want to take over Harvard’s and SecCon’s research. You wanted their data.”

“And now I have both. You knew I wanted it but not why I needed it done.” Landon silenced Greg before he could interrupt. “I won’t tell you the real reason why I did it. The reason was personal. As is my vendetta against the Master.

“While you have been playing CEO I have been consolidating my hold over the North American Covens. Most will still give their lives for the Master but enough are loyal only to me to give me full control of the North America leadership. I have firm control over the territory I’ve taken over. Lately though I have found that there are those who are working against me. I do not know if they are acting on the behalf of the Master or another faction. God I hope not. But they are planting the seeds of our downfall.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m referring to the Taint. It took a great deal of digging but I eventually found out how Tom Mays came into possession of so much of the drug.”

“I thought he stole it?”

“He thought he did as well. The idea to do so was implanted in him by an unknown mentalist. Tom was actually part of a greater experiment dealing with Taint. His personal vendetta against his mother was not part of it which is why the experiment was aborted. The true purpose was to see what would happen if Taint was distributed into the general population. When the experiment failed whoever was pulling Tom’s strings sent him to Harvard. A person named Dr. Peels let his research spin out of control and began experimenting on further uses of Taint that I had not first considered. I can only suspect that the data will show who on his team was tampering with the tanks. Whatever they did they took the Taint drug and the plans on how to weaponize it. It is now five times as potent and that many times as deadly. It will only take a dozen doses, not the near fifty it used to take to do permanent damage. As you now know, without the drug the body will begin consuming itself. The only way to prevent that is for them to consume meat… in particular human flesh.”

“Zombies?” Greg asked, aghast.

“I know it sounds like one of those old horror flicks the kids at school used to obsess over, but yes, zombies. They will only eat uninfected flesh. As a result those they eat usually survive.”

“But won’t they bleed to death?”

“Not if they continue to eat. The Taint has been altered so that as the creature eats its body will regenerate. Fed enough at regular intervals they will appear normal. Worse they will also have Talent. What I am trying to describe is the total annihilation of mankind.”

“And you released it on humanity?”

“You know I’m not that stupid. After leaving the party I went to the bunker. I went there for two reasons. First I needed the raw data that was being kept secret from me. Second I wanted to make sure Peels could not continue his work. As you know I have a twisted sense of justice. What better justice can there be than for him to become a part of him damnable experiments. Don’t worry. My people cleaned the mess up. But it is a hint of what may come if we do nothing to stop the more potent Taint from being released on the general population. Who knows… it might already be too late.”

Greg nodded in agreement. He could understand why Landon wouldn’t want the Taint spread to the Untalented population. Landon had only managed to obtain his present position through bring an end to the chaotic infighting between his rivals. The spread of Taint would result in a situation of total chaos. Landon, a man of order and discipline, would not be able to survive long in that kind of environment. “I see… but why do you want people to think I’m dead?”

“You are one of the most resourceful members of the Order I’ve come upon. The only thing that’s holding you back is your disgust for their tactics. Since I do not know who is behind the Taint I need someone I can trust to find the source and destroy it.”

“And I need to be dead?”

“As I said… I don’t know who is behind this endeavor. For all I know it could be someone in the Order.” Seeing Greg’s disbelieving smirk Landon almost snapped. You can’t swear to me that there is no chance the Order is not involved. To be honest I suspect members of my organization and yours are in league with each other.”

Greg had to agree. While war between the Coven and the Order was drawing closer with each passing month, it would not be all that surprising to learn that a third faction was trying to take advantage of both organizations to fulfill their own ambitions. “I fear you might be right. So let’s say I’m dead… then what?”

“You go underground… sniff around, follow the trail of the drug, find those behind it and deal with them.”

“You are expecting me to do a lot on my own.”

“You’ll have help.” Thirteen young men and women walked out of the darkness. “I’ve gathered a small group of people you might be able to trust. Consider them your personal Coven. I hope you will be able to expand the group into a true resistance.”

“Wait a minute…” Greg thought he recognized two in the crowd. “This is impossible… you two are supposed to be dead.”

The two figures he pointed at stepped forward. “Dr. Balthazar… you should know nothing is impossible to those with Talent.”

Once Greg heard their voices he knew there was no point denying the truth. “Trey… Tracy? How can this be?”

Seeing Greg’s baffled expression, Landon laughed. “Oh you’re not wrong. They did die… just not permanently.”

“Care to explain?” Greg demanded, using the same tone he had used with his students back when he had been headmaster at the Lakes School.

“Cybernetic implants.” Trey scratched his head as if he could feel the wires inside his skull. “The Engineers technology is amazing. No?” The Engineers were the ones who first gave the Elected their Talent and had access to technology the Elected had yet to understand

“And a more benign cousin of the Taint. It help restored much of the damaged nerve tissue,” Landon explained.

“But why?” Greg asked.

“Aaron.” That was all Landon needed to say. Later Greg would ask the twins what he meant and only get the same answer.

In addition to his team he was handed an iPad. On encoded files there were lists of resources, contacts and a detailed description of his new identity. He was then handed a new passport… a British one.”

“Uhmmm I don’t look anything like this.” He held out the page showing his photo.

Landon could not hold back the laugh that exploded from his lungs. “But you will.” From behind Tracy injected a sleeping drug into Greg’s neck. Before he noticed the sting Greg was out cold.

As Landon left the tunnel he was met by Andrew. The young man didn’t look pleased. “Are you sure this is a good idea?” Andrew asked.

“Out of all the options available he is the only one who might succeed.”

Andrew still didn’t like what Landon was doing to his brother. “You didn’t tell him about the Grand Council meeting like you said you would.”

“No I didn’t… What can I say? You were right. I couldn’t let him stop me.”

“Does that mean I can proceed with the plan?”

Landon arched an eyebrow. “You really are too eager to do this.”

“You said it yourself. If they had waited a year or two…”

Andrew was cut off by Landon. “But they don’t want to wait,” Landon snapped. “Both sides are so eager for war they don’t give a damn about the cost.”

“Jon’s dad and the other neutral families will fight against this,” Andrew pointed out.

“They will fight and be slaughtered. Both the Coven and the Order are tired of the neutrals holding the balance of power. By forcing them to choose sides, both societies will know where they truly stand. When there is no one left who can be reasoned with there will be nothing left to stop the coming war.”

“That is why we have to stop them. If we kill enough of their leaders they might think twice before taking on the neutral families,” Andrew insisted.

“Andrew… are you really that eager to kill your own father.”

“If it is for the greater good.”

“Is it for the greater good for your sister Talia to lead the Order?”

Andrew let out a snort. “The Order won’t let her be in charge.” Over three thousand years of history a woman had never been allowed to lead the Order. A few had tried… and all were made to regret it.”

“Not all will refuse to follower her,” Landon insisted. “She might not be a man but some will see her as the last member of House Balthazar as their rightful leader. Still many will not which means we’re looking at civil war.”

“Which will buy us more time. The Order won’t throw the gauntlet to the neutrals while they’re fighting among themselves. Anyway… don’t you want to be the Chosen of Europe, second only to the Master himself?” Andrew said, bringing up the other man Landon had marked for assassination.

“I find the opportunity tempting. But no… it would mean leaving my powerbase in America. I would rather solidify my control of the territory I have than have to struggle taking over a more powerful one. The European families are eccentric and ill-disciplined bunch compared to those in the other territories. As all the original families originated from Europe they see themselves as superior to those outside their territory. As I am a member of no known family, they would not be pleased to have me in control of their Covens. If I became their Chosen I would have to constantly worry about being stabbed in the back. The same will be true for anyone the Master picks to lead them.

“But…” Andrew was cut off before he could say more.

“What I am trying to say is that it serves the bigger picture for the second in power be led by a weak Chosen. It will keep the other Chosens focused on him, leaving me free to do what needs to be done.”

“And if the Master insists?”

“He might offer me the position but I doubt he will force it on me. I have served him well in America and while leading the European Covens carries more prestige I do not think he would be all that disappointed by me continuing to serve him where I am.”

“Fine… I have a plane waiting to take me to London from J.F.K.”

“Why bother… The Graft can plant the bomb on your father’s plane and you have your people in Slovenia that need to be take care of our other target. Is it all that important for you to push the button yourself?”

“It is… you weren’t there the last time I saw my father. You didn’t hear the things he said to me. I think I have the right to kill him. I’ve earned that much, haven’t I?

“Yes… but if Aaron ever asks you tell him I tried to stop you. He already blames me enough for your fallen state.”

On mention of Aaron’s name the anger melted from Andrew face. “Will Aaron be safe with you?”

“As safe as he can be. I’ve done all I can think of to get people to forget about his victory in the arena. As far as I know everyone assumes he won only because of the help he got from his more powerful teammates. Though he is technically a member to the Omicron family everyone knows it will be Jon who will lead the neutrals. By now Lord Oliver Balthazar has given up any hope that Aaron would marry your sister, but from what my spies tell me he blames Lord Berg for putting an end to that family alliance, not Aaron. To the world Aaron is a smart lad of mediocre Talent. I do not want anyone to think otherwise.”

“I will hold you to that.” Andrew said a little too coldly then he meant to. “You know I still love him.”

“I do. You can also hold me to my word if you want but you know that is not a promise I can keep. As you learned last night Aaron is my brother. By that very fact you know he’s more than mediocre. The true strength of his Talent has remained secret so far but that will not always be the case. At some point he will have to reveal his true nature and when that moment comes both the Coven and the Order will either want him to join them or have him eliminated.”

“After what he went through as a child it will have to be the Order,” Andrew guessed.

“As a member of the Coven I will want him to join me,” Landon replied.

“You two would make a powerful combination,” Andrew agreed.

“Maybe but I pray to the god who granted us our Talents that will not happen anytime soon. May god go with you?”

“And you as well.”