Friday, May 20, 2022

Heroes Rising Fiction: Strange Allies part 5


 Delta smiled as he watched the news on the screens in the meeting room. Some screens showed World Corps agents handing out the crystals while others were news services.

“Today, a woman of eighty-two in Toronto, Canada, attacked people in a park near a small farmers’ market. A local unidentified super human helped the police stop her before she did any serious harm. This is the ninth incident in the past two days of reported super humans appearing in public locations and randomly attacking. Authorities are currently not hypothesizing on the reason behind this, however, the UN will make a statement at noon on the situation. This has led people to believe this has something to do with BADGE’s illegal hero activity. We turn to...” the screen went to mute quickly.

Alpha stood behind the table, her hands on her hips. “Care to explain?”

Delta turned in his seat and smiled at her. “Everything is going well, wouldn’t you say?”

“We’re in the middle of a plan that has taken years to perfect. Now, you set off this new scheme right in the middle of it. Why?”

“We need the people to turn against BADGE...”

“And we have done beautifully so far. This development is unnecessary.” She narrowed her eyes at him. “We have to all remain on the same page at all times, no secrets.”

Delta stood from his seat and cracked a smile. “Secrets. Our entire operation is built on layers of secrets.”

Alpha came around the table and typed into the computer, shutting off the news and accessing the communications network. “We may hold secrets the world will not know, but we must be truthful with one another. I’m shutting down this crystal operation of yours. We have to focus on the next phase of the plan.”

Delta pulled her away from the terminal and held her close to him, his fingers pressing into her arms so hard she winced in pain. An honest look of fear filled her eyes. He brought her close to his face. “Never forget who put you in power. Never forget who created the World Corps and crafted this plan. You may be in charge according to the paperwork, but I can bury you in the ocean in a heartbeat and no one will even care. You’ll do what I say when I say it. My plans are not all open and exposed to you or the others. My plans will be fulfilled and in the end, the goal of global control will be achieved. Now, sit down, shut up, and do what I say. Is that understood?” He let go of her.

She backed up and fell into a chair. With a shaky nod, she agreed.

“Good. Now, sit here and monitor the media. I want every station on this planet covering what Beta is about to announce from the U.N. I’m going down to the labs to make sure we’re ready for the roll-out.”

Without letting her respond to him, he left the room.

***

Delta pushed aside a door and entered a nightmare. The room was filled with alcoves that each held a gray-skinned person. The men and women were all hooked up to tubes and nodules. Thousands of these specimens lined the walls, stacked high up, and along massive corridors.

Gamma walked by a row of the people and checked off from a list while Dr. Osteen examined data on two computer screens in the corner.

“Are they ready?” Delta asked.

Gamma turned with a sharp motion. “Oh, Delta, I didn’t see you come in.”

“Are they ready?” He repeated.

“They’re inactive, but ready. At a moment’s notice, we can activate them and they fulfill their programming.”

“Good. Dr. Osteen,” Delta turned to the scientist, “is the harmonic process ready?”

Osteen called up a screen that showed a large crystal and then a flurry of numbers flying by. “As with the first test subjects, the powering worked perfectly. Each of these people are low-grade morphonic conduits. But the crystal energy has made them superb.”

Gamma walked over and frowned at the computer screen. “Crystals?”

Delta said, “yes. We’re harnessing the crystal energy to create the augmentation process.”

“I don’t understand.”

Osteen gleefully answered, “Six years ago, I stumbled across something about morphonic energy. In my study on the anti-morphon weapons, I learned morphons have different frequencies. People who used morphons were aligned with one, sometimes two, of the six different types. It was a breakthrough, but it hardly proved useful until I could study the avatars.” He called up an image from a different lab, six containers each held extremely bright lights floating in them, each a different color.

Delta said, “Dr. Osteen’s work was more groundbreaking than he’ll ever know. Even Legion didn’t know the varied frequency of morphons. Extracting the purest form of them from each of those avatars has given us what we needed.”

Osteen turned to Delta with a curious frown. “How did you know what Legion knew?”

“I know a lot you don’t.” Delta coolly replied and then leaned in, peering at those six cores. “Sadly, these six avatar cores are almost useless to us now. They’re incorruptible. Keeping them simply prevents those avatars from living.”

Gamma asked, “so, what about the crystals?”

Delta smiled, “they give us the power to use morphons, even corrupted morphons. Without them, the whole augmentation process would be impossible.”

Osteen said, “the only problem is that corrupted morphons cause the user to exhibit the worst in his or her personality. They become uncontrollably evil, such as when Arx went mad and destroyed Hollywood.”

Gamma said, “what are you saying? Our army has a limited time usage?”

“Precisely.” Osteen answered.

Delta said, “don’t worry, Gamma. This army is not a permanent source of power, just the last tool before ultimate domination. Everything is going according to plan.”

“No, the plan was to put these people in place and then we use them to control the nations. I was to lead the augment army.”

“And you will, while that part of the plan is enacted.” Delta answered.

“No, it was supposed to be permanent.”

Delta calmly said, “don’t panic, Gamma. Everything will work out perfectly in the end for all of us. Trust me.”

Gamma quietly said, “I will trust the plan.”

“Good.” Delta walked toward the door.

Osteen stopped him. “Sir, one last question, if I may.”

“What?”

“You asked me to program in that special resonance. I did. Every augment contains that special energy signature. However, I have yet to find a reason for it. Care to explain?”

“No.” With no further words, Delta walked out of the room.

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