Incident 27 (8 page)

“What
do we do now?” Jaysin asked.

Shrugging,
she said, “Unless one of you wants to go looking for him, our only other option
is to wait for him to cool off. Unfortunately, he can fly, which means he

could
have gone anywhere in the world.”

“I
have an idea of where he might have gone. I’ll go after him,” Maya said.

“Are
you sure?” Freya said. “If he’s not there, who knows how long it will take? You
could end up missing a lot of class.”

Maya’s
resolution shown brightly in her eyes. “I’m sure. He came after me once. Now
it’s my turn to return the favor.”

“You
need any help?” Jaysin said.

“No.
It’s my fault this happened to him. It should be me who makes it right.”

Freya
smiled encouragingly. “Good luck, Maya.”

 * * *

He
knocked on the door. Anni Bannen answered. “Ev! I didn’t expect you to return
so soon.”

“Sorry,
Mom. Is this a bad time?” It was a little after noon in Morovia.

“No,
of course not. What happened?”

He
sat down on the couch and she pulled up a chair. He told her about his first
official mission and the resulting inner turmoil. When he was done, he said,
“And that’s when I decided to come home. I didn’t want to stay at the Academy
anymore, and I didn’t know where else to go.”

“Oh,
Ev. You’re always welcome here. This is your home, after all. I just wish you
would stop telling me stories that are hard to wrap my head around.” She
laughed.

“Sorry,”
he said.

“I
was kidding. Anyway, what you’re saying is, you went to exterminate some
monsters, and you met this guy, Arcturo—”

“Arcturus
Reich.”

“Right,
right. Arcturus Reich. And he said he’s the one who made you kill your father,
even though he wasn’t actually here.” In regard to Anni Bannen, you could say
one thing with absolute certainty: she was incredibly open-minded. Whether it
was about gods or spontaneous human combustion, she would listen to anything
you had to say and consider the possibility of it being true.

“He
was
here, sort of. Inside the Prayer Chamber, you can leave your body
and travel anywhere.”

“Oh!
Like a ghost.”

“Yeah,
that’s basically it. He came here to our house and pretty much whispered in my
ear to…you know…” He didn’t want to finish that sentence. The memory alone was
too painful.

“It’s
OK. You don’t have to say it. I think I understand. This man, he gave you a
nudge towards doing
it.
”

“I
always thought it was my inner voice. I thought I alone shouldered the
responsibility for doing it. Now I find out someone else made the decision for
me, and I don’t know how to feel about it.”

“Why
did he do it?” she said.

“From
what I understand, he went through the same thing at one point. He seems to
think we’re kindred spirits or something. But I really don’t know much about
him.”

She
nodded her head as she took this in. “So in other words, he understands what
it’s like to suffer at the hands of one’s father, and he wanted to save you
from that.”

“Yeah,
Ev said. “Maybe. I don’t know. He wants me to meet him at a certain place to
talk about creating a better world, whatever that means. I’m not sure I should
go.”

She
reclined back in her chair. “I’ll tell you what
I
know. This
man—Arcturus Reich—I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him. Yes, he influenced
you to do something horrible, but it was necessary. It’s my fault it was
necessary because I was weak, and we’re not sure why he did it. But still, I’m
alive today because of him and probably you are as well. Bethos only knows what
your father would have done to you had he lived. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to meet
with this Arcturus and see what he has to say.”

“Bethos
isn’t actually all-knowing,” Ev pointed out.

“Oh.
That’s too bad.”

“Anyway,”
Ev said. “You’re right. I need to find out more about Arcturus Reich, and the
only way to do that is to go meet him. Thanks, Mom.”

“You’re
welcome. Just be careful. Arcturus may be a good person, or he may be something
else.”

“I’ll
be careful. Don’t worry; I won’t commit to anything until I get a better
understanding of him.”

Ev
said good-bye to his mother and left the house. It wouldn’t be long before
someone from the Academy came looking for him, and he didn’t want to be found
just yet.

* * *

Maya
knocked on the door of the Bannen home. His mother answered. “Maya! It’s good
to see you again. Have you come looking for Ev?”

“Yes.
Has he been here?”

“He
was here a little while ago, but he left.”

Maya
balled a fist. “Dammit; I’m too late. Do you know where he went?”

“No,
I don’t know where. I just know he was going to meet a man named Arcturus
something.”

Maya
tsked
angrily. “Arcturus Reich.”

“Yes,
that’s him.” She didn’t seem too concerned about this situation. Maya needed to
change that.

“What
did Ev tell you?”

Anni
stared at her for a moment. “Everything.”

“Listen
to me. Arcturus Reich is a dangerous criminal. He’s already murdered one person
that we know of. He can’t be trusted.”

Anni’s
eyes went wide. “Are you serious?”

“
Dead
serious.”

“But,
I…oh no…”

“What
is it?”

She
looked at Maya with eyes full of shock and regret. “I told Ev it might not hurt
to listen to what Arcturus has to say.”

“That
was a huge mistake,” Maya said. “But I’ve committed some huge mistakes of my
own, so I won’t condemn you for it. But we have to find Ev. Didn’t he leave
some clue as to where he went?”

Anni
shook her head. “No. None. He wasn’t here for very long. I’m afraid I don’t
have the slightest idea where he went.”

Maya’s
hopes of finding Ev quickly had just been dashed against the giant rock of
reality. This was the only place she knew of to look for him, and was had been
too late. Now she had no choice but to return to the Academy and—

—wait!
She wasn’t out of leads. Arcturus Reich had been operating in the Tru Republic. Perhaps he was still there somewhere. And if he was there, Ev would be as
well.

She
thanked Anni Bannen and left immediately.

Chapter
VI

Ev
approached the strange monument that lie a few hundred miles west of Blasdow,
the very place Arcturus had instructed him to go to. This was Stonecroft.

Built
thousands of years ago, this collection of giant stone slabs standing upright
in a circle had long been a place of mystery for not only the citizens of the Tru Republic, but the entire world. What was its purpose? Who built it? Many scholars
believed it was a site for pagan rituals carried out by long-lost sect of
indigenous peoples, but no one knew for sure. Ev figured the gods at the
Academy probably knew, but so far they had not revealed the answer to him. How
they loved their secrets.

On
this day, there was a large group of tourists gathered around Stonecroft. They
pointed, they took pictures, and they marveled at the engineering feat before
them.

Ev
wasn’t here for them.

He
walked over to where one dark solitary figure stood a ways from the monument:
Arcturus Reich. “I knew you would come.”

“Have
you just been waiting here all this time?”

“Not
very long,” Arcturus said. “I figured you’d show up without too much delay.”

“Well,
I’m here. I hope you’ll make it worth my while.”

Arcturus
pointed at the circle of stone slabs. “What do you know about that monument?”

“Only
what’s in the history books,” Ev said, uncertain about where this conversation
was going.”

Arcturus
stared at it. “It was built to harness the power of the gods.”

“I
didn’t know that.”

“Zero
Grade is a bit more forthcoming with information than the Academy. Belial
taught me many things I’m sure Bethos wouldn’t want you to know. For instance,
he taught me that every universe has sites just like this. Primitive man
thought he could just build a monument and omnipotence would be his. Of course,
it’s never that simple. Gods don’t want their power falling into the hands of
mere mortals, so they take certain precautions.”

“Like
what?”

“We’ll
talk about that later. Isn’t there a more pressing question wanting to escape
your lips?”

“The
Ark of the Covenant,” Ev said. “What does it do?”

Arcturus
replied enigmatically, “Everything.”

“Everything?”

He
grinned at Ev. “
Everything
. It is the ultimate power—the power to birth
an entirely new world subject to your every whim. With it, you can literally
create man in your own image.”

Whoah.
“A new world?”

“That’s
right. Any kind of world you want. You decide the environments, the
inhabitants, even the laws of physics.”

“So,
it’s like a video game?”

“Sort
of,” Arcturus said. “Except it’s real. Down to the last detail.”

Ev
had to admit, that was tantalizing. “But what happens to
this
world, the
one that already exists?”

“It
gets rewritten, much like an old VCR tape.”

Ev
wasn’t sure he liked the sound of that. “So everyone dies?”

“Not
necessarily. We can transfer people between worlds. We could save every single
person alive today, if you wanted to.”

“Oh.
That’s a relief. I wouldn’t want to create a new world if it meant killing
people.” Was he actually contemplating this? He honestly couldn’t believe it.
Would Ev

Bannen
actually be involved in the creation of the ideal world? It was unbelievable,
yet undeniably exciting.

Arcturus
replied, “No, we don’t have to kill a single soul. But let’s think about this
for a moment. Aren’t there people the world would be better off without?”

“You
mean…gods?”

“That’s
right. Don’t you think we can do without Zero Grade? And do we really need
Bethos and his Academy?”

“Now
hold on a minute,” Ev said. “I agree we could probably get rid of Zero Grade
without any problems, but the Academy is another thing. I have friends there.”

“But
they lied to you, Ev. They kept the truth from you because they didn’t think
you had a right to know. Does the world really need people like that?”

But
this was a line Ev could not cross. “Look, if we do this, if we create a new
world, everyone gets to live. Everyone except Zero Grade.” Even the Asshole
Three deserved to survive, as much as Ev hated to admit it.

“Fair
enough. Everyone aside from Zero Grade will continue to exist in the new world.
Are we in agreement, then?”

He
extended his hand to Ev who stared at it for a moment, carefully considering
his options. Once he decided to embark on this venture, there might be no
turning back. Could he take Arcturus Reich at his word?

“What
the hell.” He shook his hand. Sometimes you just had to roll the dice. He just
hoped he wouldn’t live to regret it.

“Glad
to have you with me, Ev.”

“Let’s
go create us a new world. Where’s the Ark?”

But
Arcturus said, “All in good time, Ev. There are preparations we have to make.”

“Like
what?”

He
explained, “There’s a Zero Grade base not too far from here. They’re holding an
important object we need to activate the Ark.”

“That
makes sense,” Ev said. “Of course they would be keeping something like that to
themselves. Let me guess—it’s also heavily guarded.”

“Actually,
the security isn’t that tight. The Academy will never admit the Ark’s been stolen, so Zero Grade doesn’t know I have it. To them, the object we need is
just a curiosity.”

“What
exactly is this object?”

Arcturus
said, “It’s a crystal rod full of condensed god-energy. “Think of it as a
battery for the Ark.”

Ev
gave a sly grin. “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go get it.”

“I
like the way you think, Ev Bannen.”

* * *

Maya
returned to the village of Blasdow. The inhabitants greeted her warmly. She
exchanged pleasantries with them and made inquiries about the targets of her
search. They said they hadn’t seen either Ev or anyone fitting Arcturus’
description. That was disappointing, but she continued on to the O’Hare’s
house. Jenny answered the door.

“Well,
well! If’n it isn’t our savior. Well, one a’ them, anyway. What can this lass
do for you?”

“Hello
again. I’m looking for my friend Ev. Average height; short brown hair. I don’t
suppose he’s been back here.”

“Oh!
So it’s the plain one you be looking for.”

Maya
wasn’t sure how to respond to that. “Well, I wouldn’t exactly call him plain. I
think he’s good looking.”

“I’m
just havin’ a bit o’ fun with you. Think nothing o’ it. No, I haven’t seen your
friend. I woulda heard if’n he came back here. We’re a small village, you know.
Word gets around.”

“Oh.
OK.” Maya felt dejected. Still, her hopes were extinguished just yet. “I’m also
looking for another man. Tall; long black hair; tanned.”

“Ah!
Now
him
I did see. He showed up recently and inquired about the way to
Stonecroft.”

“Stonecroft?”

“Yes.
It’s the famous stone monument. I told him he was quite a ways off.”

Now
things were starting to look up. “Just where is this monument?”

Jenny
told her. Maya thanked her and headed off towards Stonecroft.

* * *

On
an island, in the middle of a lake in the northern area of the continent, sat
Zero Grade House #4—Tru Republic Branch, or House #4 for short. It was a
magnificent mansion situated on a well-maintained property. A huge lane made of
bricks extended out from the front of the mansion with a fabulous fountain on
top. On either side of the fountain were exquisitely-pruned hedges in the form
of various gods. Ev didn’t recognize any of them, but Arcturus said they were
the bosses of the organization. They called themselves the Flawless Few. They
were rumored to be unimaginably powerful. Ev hoped he would never meet them.

“Fortunately,
they never visit these minor branches. They always send their lackeys in their
place,” Arcturus said.

Ev
stared at the obscenely-huge building before him—it had to have at least a
hundred rooms—and wondered how this could be considered a “minor” branch. “Are
you sure they’re not here today?”

“Positive.
They’d never set foot in such a—let’s say ‘quaint’—place. It’s beneath them.”

“Then
where
do
they live?”

“I
don’t know. Belial was more open to me than he was to Maya, but even he
wouldn’t tell me. All I know is, the Flawless Few’s home puts this one to shame
in every way.”

Ev
tried to imagine such a place. Perhaps these gods of gods lived in a
fantastical realm he couldn’t even imagine. Like maybe an infinitely large
house in a dimension outside time and space. Wouldn’t that be something to see?

He
put those thoughts aside for the moment. There were more pressing matters to
think about as they approached the front door. “Strange. I don’t see any
security cameras.”

“CCTV
is for mortals,” Arcturus said. “Gods have no need of such things. There’s a whole
team in here that specialize in surveillance. They spend all day
astral-projecting around the property. They know we’re here. Count on it.”

The
door opened. Cautiously, Ev followed Arcturus inside. For about the hundredth
time, he considered the possibility the other man was luring him into a trap.
Nevertheless, for the sake of his dream he went anyway.

They
found themselves in the biggest, most lavish living room Ev had ever seen. His
entire house could have fit inside it. There was a beautiful marble floor, as
well as marble pillars spaced evenly throughout the almost cavernous room.
Chandeliers hung from the ceiling. And this place wasn’t good enough for the
bosses of Zero Grade?

Before
Ev knew it, they were surrounded by well-dressed thugs. Suits; ties; dark
sunglasses. They had the look of intimidation down.

Ev
whispered to Arcturus, “Who are these guys?”

“Zero
Grade foot soldiers. They handle all the grunt work. Think of them as pretend
gods.”

“Arcturus
Reich!” Coming down the stairs ahead was what Ev figured to be the alpha suit
with broad shoulders and expensive-looking hair cut. “What is the meaning of
this?”

“What
do you mean?” he asked innocently.

“I
mean,” the alpha suit said, pointing at Ev, “why have you brought an outsider
here?”

Arcturus
motioned nonchalantly to Ev. “Oh, him? He’s just a friend.”

The
alpha suit responded, “I can sense his god-energy from here, and it’s been
developing for a while now. He’s not one of us, so that can only mean you brought
a servant of Bethos here.”

Arcturus
threw up his hands in mock surrender. “Looks like they got us, Ev. I guess
these guys are just too clever.”

“Looks
like,” Ev said. He wasn’t sure where Arcturus’ confidence was coming from. From
what he could see, they had just walked into a trap and were seriously
outnumbered.