Aegis League series Boxed Set

by S. S. Segran

  “Taking my break in my room,” he said, patting her hand.

  “This is so exciting!” she gushed. “We’re finally going to hear from the Paterfamilias! I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time!”

  “You sound like we’ve been here for years, Ren.”

  She laughed. “Sixteen months. It does feel like it’s been ages, though. It’s been an incredible ride, hasn’t it? Eye-opening, even. Thank goodness we were found—we’ve been given a new chance.”

  Kenzo patted her hand again and forced a laugh. Found? New chance? We were kidnapped, Ren. And now we’re nothing but slaves. He could never understand how it was that he was the only one, or so it seemed to him, who was able to resist Dr. Nate’s cerebral reprogramming. For over a year and a half he’d had to pretend that he was one of the youths who’d been inducted into the organization.

  A twinge of sadness pierced his heart as he gazed at Ren. She had been transformed into a drone for the cause and was completely unaware of the chain that had been wrapped around her soul.

  She pulled him into the amassing crowd and he found himself at the center, staring at a massive screen that had been erected. Most of the lights in the cavern had been turned off with the exception of a few at the outer edges of the work area, and those were dimmed.

  Kenzo saw Dr. Nate sitting up front with Vladimir Ajajdif, facing the crowd and looking proud of himself.

  Mind warper, he thought disgustedly. He’d trained himself to plaster on a neutral expression to blend in with the others who seemed so keen in their cause. For the billionth time, he found himself wondering if there were any others who’d managed to fool Dr. Nate and were playing possum, pretending to be one of the masses to save their neck.

  Everyone knew the consequences of trying to escape the Sanctuary. They’d seen it. When Kenzo and his cousin were first plunked into the Sanctuary with a batch of other kids, a few had tried to escape but were taken down by the Marauders and ripped apart. Gruesome photos of their remnants were circulated and videos depicting the attacks were on loop for weeks. Kenzo had heard what the other youths had to say about the would-be escapees—stupid, idiots, why would anyone even want to go back to the atrocious world they’d been saved from?

  His thoughts meandered to the two girls who’d escaped a few days ago. They weren’t part of the youths residing in the Sanctuary, that was for sure. He hoped they’d managed to survive the beasts that had been unleashed on them, and wished he could have done more than just stepping aside and letting them past him.

  A crackle from the speakers behind the big screen quieted the crowd. The screen flickered for a few seconds before an image appeared of a figure with a golden hood pulled down over its face. A ripple of whispers traveled through the ranks.

  “Greetings.” The voice was digitally distorted and pitched low. “I’m pleased to speak to all of you tonight. Thank you for joining me from different time zones across the planet. This is my first address to you since we began building our future together. As such, not only is this moment special—it is historic.”

  Kenzo risked a quick glance around him. Every other youth present had their attention fixed on the Paterfamilias.

  “As you have learned in the time you’ve been at your respective Sanctuaries, the cause we stand for is nothing short of the salvation of our planet. Your unwavering commitment to our purpose is the foundation for a new world, a new future. You are the precious pioneers who will lead the way.

  “Since the dawn of our species, humanity has possessed the freedom of choice—the choice to live in accord with the planet or not.

  “But the choices that were made over the last few centuries have led us down a path of destruction fed by greed, corruption and arrogance. Mankind has taken the planet and all that she has to offer for granted, and this has led us to where we are today.

  “Soulless corporations and spineless politicians have duped the mindless masses to voraciously consume resources without a thought to what their self-indulgence can lead to. Sadly, this abuse is not the sole domain of the rich nations of the world. This greed and venality is prevalent across the globe, driven by a sense of entitlement.” The metallic voice grew coarse with disgust. “Popular culture and its vile disregard for human decency. Its obscene self-obsession and exploitation of young minds. You have all seen this. The garbage that pollutes human consciousness.

  “With haughtiness they have trampled under their feet the values that have been the safeguard of our species and the planet. This breakdown of society began long before you and I came into the picture. Day by day, it worsens.”

  Whispers broke through the crowd again before being subdued.

  “As the world outside collapses into a heap of dust, the world you have begun to build will rise in its stead. The Sanctuaries you are constructing are in anticipation of the coming downfall and the evisceration of humanity.

  “The end for the old world is close at hand, my friends, and what I am doing in hastening its demise is simply a matter of mercy. Soon enough, we will replace it with a new order.

  “Though we may be confined here for a time, we will patiently wait for the day where we can return to the surface. That day will mark the birth of a new Earth and a new race of man, shorn of the imperfections of our forefathers.”

  A rousing cheer shot up from the massed youths. Kenzo joined in, howling and clapping, but he wanted to smite them all. Hastening humanity’s demise? No sane person would follow a leader who’s bent on burning the world. Why won’t these guys wake up?

  When the cheering died down, the Paterfamilias continued, abstractedly rolling a small violet sphere in one hand. “Stewards of New Earth. Most of you have grown up being told that the way to govern ourselves is through self-determination and a government that serves its people through the separation of powers between law of the state and the law of morality. How has that worked out?”

  The crowd jeered and catcalled.

  “When you learn to be in tune with your new purpose, you will free yourselves from the strangling grip of the old ways. In the coming weeks, I will be revealing to you how we’ll organize ourselves as curators of the new future. With that, I call upon each and every one of you to redouble your efforts in building what must be built right here, right now, for the world that we will soon hail. To you, and to New Earth.”

  The crowd roared as the screen went blank. “New Earth! New Earth! New Earth!”

  * * *

  Tegan and Aari were dumbstruck at what they’d just witnessed on Tony’s tablet.

  Tony grinned broadly as he pulled the device away from them. “Hope you enjoyed that crash course on our cause,” he said reverently. “And I know what you’re thinking. However, what we’re doing to speed up the end of the old world is not for you to be concerned with.” As he walked out of the room, he added, “I’m looking forward to possibly welcoming the five of you into our fold. You will help create a new and lasting future for the betterment of both mankind and the planet.”

  59

  With a population of thirteen million, Mumbai is by far the largest city in India and probably its most westernized. It amalgamates flavors from the bygone British Era with twenty-first century trappings—lavish hotels and a booming film industry. Yet this is a place where one can find wealth and extreme poverty co-existing; it isn’t uncommon to find tin-roofed shacks erected haphazardly beside opulent mansions.

  A Sentry was perched at the top of a radio tower, granting him an ample view of the bustling city below. He’d been restless since the night before. It was as if his spirit sensed an impending disturbance. Listening to his intuition, he’d let his feet guide him to a street with closely-packed shops on either side and scaled the communication tower at its center. Strange looks were initially thrown his way but people soon moved on, busy as they were with their own problems and trying to make a living. The chatter of Hindi and occasional English fell away as the disconcerted Sentry waited for a sign that, in spite of hi
m wishing otherwise, might prove his hunch right. With his heightened senses, he began scanning below for potential trouble.

  At a large grocery store nearby, dozens of customers stood restlessly in a long line under the sweltering heat of the midday sun. Several other stores that sold food had similar lines of shoppers waiting impatiently to get their hands on essential items like rice and wheat.

  Security guards were posted at the doors of the shops and policemen patrolled the neighborhood, watching for signs of unrest. Imposing green military trucks chugged along their designated routes, belching black smoke into the already polluted air. It appeared that the presence of police and armed troops was succeeding at keeping potential troublemakers at bay.

  A thought crossed the Sentry’s mind: What if the agitators have it all planned? What if all they’re waiting for is a distraction—

  No sooner had the notion cropped up than a loud explosion rocked the city. The Sentry held onto the tower as he turned to see a home appliance store consumed by flames. Shockwaves from the explosion shook the tower, forcing the observer to tighten his hold on its steel frame. There was a brief moment of stunned silence followed by a flood of screams from the multitude below. The Sentry hurriedly surveyed the scene.

  Fire shot through the roof of the ruined store and bodies of shoppers lay sprawled at its entrance. Many survivors huddled, bloodied and weeping, while others, obviously in shock, wandered around, seemingly lost. Police and troops ran toward the devastated shop, shouting into their radios for assistance. Even the guards posted at the grocery stores nearby ran to help.

  And that opened the floodgates.

  The people who’d been in long lines outside the stores grabbed the opportunity and rushed in to seize what they needed. They jostled one another away and ganged upon those who managed to obtain the products they wanted. Men and women flew from the shop with looted food only to have them snatched away by other desperate and hungry people.

  Even though his intuition had turned out to be dead right, the Sentry wished it hadn’t been so. Riots like these tore at the very fabric of society and it hurt to see his fellow citizens reduced to such a state. He watched the enraged, frantic people below for a while longer until additional police arrived on the scene. He then vaulted from the radio tower and landed on the ground like a cat. Perfectly unharmed, he slunk away. He knew the time had come to inform the League of the darkness that was descending on his country.

  * * *

  Standing at the top of a knoll overlooking the district of Tongshan in the southern part of Hubei Province, China, a tall young woman with lustrous black hair gazed out at the scenery of rolling hills interspersed with expansive stretches of rice fields.

  The place was famous for its beautiful mountains that attracted tourists in large numbers from all over the world. On a normal day it would be a serene sight to behold, a vista little changed from the time Chinese farmers began cultivating rice in paddies nearly four thousand years ago. Today, though, the countryside was a scene of devastation. Pillars of dusky smoke rose into dark clouds that hung over the fields. From a distance, the landscape could have been mistaken for a tableau of quietude blackened by menacing tornadoes.

  The rice fields had been hit with the same scourge that was sweeping much of the world. Overseen by government troops, farmers were clearing their fields and burning their dead paddies.

  Reports that Australia, one of the country’s major suppliers of wheat, had also been hit by crop failure caused major concerns for the government. It was especially troubling since the United States and Canada were not in a position to fill in the vacuum as they too had been badly affected by crop losses.

  The young woman was a third-generation Chinese Sentry who’d driven to the countryside to escape the pain of having to witness the growing number of riots breaking out in the cities. And then I see this out here, she thought bitterly.

  Rice was the staple diet for more than half of the nearly one-and-a-half billion citizens of the country. It was considered a part of China’s cultural heritage—comparable to the Irish and their potatoes. In fact, the word for ‘rice’ in Chinese meant food. The devastation of this crop could tear down the entire country, especially with rumors that the grain reserve figures the government had touted all these years were grossly inflated.

  But what worried her just as much, if not more, was the information she’d received earlier in the day through her contact in the government. China had mobilized its military forces along its border with Russia and its operatives were preparing to hack into the Russian power grid system to take it down. That could only mean one thing: an invasion.

  Russia, as it turned out, was the only country to have been mostly spared by the scourge. There was even speculation that the Russians were behind the attack on global grain production. Of course, there was no evidence of it but that didn’t stop the hardliners in the government from using it as justification for their desperate maneuver. The informant had also told the Sentry that China had covertly established a pact with India to secure Russian grain supplies following the invasion.

  Turning her back on the burning crops, she thought, Nothing like a calamity and fear of the loss of power to bring former enemies together . . . time to reach out to the League.

  60

  Aari was being prodded awake. He opened his eyes and raised his head from the ground where he’d half-slumped off his chair. Tegan stood over him, a thin layer of amusement beneath her morose stare.

  “So,” she said, “I woke up and found you in a weird yoga position in your sleep. How’d you even fall off like that?”

  With Tegan’s help, Aari pushed himself back into the chair and shook off his grogginess. “Beats me.”

  Tegan paced from one corner of the room to the other and back again, head down. “Well, I’ve been trying to reach Jag.”

  “Did you get him?”

  “Not yet. It’s hard. The first time I did it was completely by accident.”

  “You still managed to do it. Keep trying.”

  “I am. That thing we saw last night, though . . . that’s bothering me.”

  Aari shuddered. “At least now we know what this is all about.”

  “That can’t be the full picture. What reason would they have for wanting us to join them?”

  “We were in Dema-Ki for a while, and we were trained by the Elders. It’s like, if you had the opportunity to take someone who’s been on the other side and have them under your control, wouldn’t that be valuable?”

  “There has to be more to it. I don’t believe they’d go through all this trouble just to secure a few pawns.”

  “I’m just shooting in the dark. But you may be right. It makes me shudder to think what they’ve got in mind for us.”

  Tegan joined him back at the table. “Did you see the way they cheered last night after the speech? It . . . it was mob mentality, wasn’t it? How can anyone be so thrilled about tearing down the world?”

  “It’s a cult, that’s what it is.”

  “I’m gonna try contacting Jag again. I want no part of this.” She slouched down and closed her eyes.

  Aari respectfully gave her silence. His thoughts wandered as he reflected on all that had happened to the friends. Never in a hundred lifetimes would I have thought we’d be involved in something like this. This is surreal. What the Elders said about the prophecy’s warning . . . It’s happening. How are we going to tell our parents about all this when we get out of here—if we get out of here?

  Tegan knocked on the table rapidly. Aari shook away his thoughts and saw her staring at him. “Did you get him?” he questioned softly.

  She put a finger to her lips and nodded. Then she startled Aari by pounding on the table. “Shoot! Lost the link. I’ll try again.”

  Aari tapped his shoes together as he waited. The room was quiet for several minutes until Tegan said, “It’s done. I told him all I could and he’s calling Marshall as we speak. He’ll keep me updated on Marshall
’s progress.”

  “Nice, Teegs! Didn’t I say you could do it?”

  “Yes, Brainiac, you did.”

  “What’s it like, by the way? Conversing through thoughts?”

  “It’s . . . well, if the connection’s strong, you can kind of feel their presence in your mind, like a gentle hand. Or a hug. I don’t know how else to explain it. Other than that, it’s really no different than thinking to yourself.”

  Will I ever be able to do that? Aari wondered. It would be pretty cool to communicate with the others without needing to speak. We could probably achieve a lot more, too.

  “What are you thinking about?” Tegan asked.

  “Eh, nothing,” Aari said. “I just hope we get out of here soon.”

  “Marshall will find us. It’s just a matter of time.”

  * * *

  It was midday when Marshall parked near an industrial complex consisting of four linked buildings. According to a discreet sign, the facility belonged to Quest Defense. Marshall surmised that Quest Defense and Quest Mining, which ran the mining site that had held Mariah and Tegan, were part of the same operation. The complex was surrounded by a tall fence topped with razor wire and the Sentry wouldn’t have been surprised if it was electrified, except there were no warning signs to indicate so. The site was flanked by streets on two sides and by an empty plot of land on the third.

  Through the fence he could see a large parking lot in front of a two-story glass structure that he assumed housed offices. To his right, at the center of a wide double-lane entrance was a security post. The road split, with one branch presumably leading to the back of the complex for warehouse deliveries and the other ending at the parking lot at the front. A small traffic circle was located near the guard post just outside the fence.

  He noticed a few security personnel patrolling the area. Though he couldn’t tell the exact number, he guessed that there were at least six men on duty with two at the post at all times. The Sentry thought it odd that a couple of guards wore black uniforms while the rest were in blue. He also noted a building about twice the size of the security post, tucked away to the left of the entrance, and wondered what it was.