Christina smiled inside as she watched people leave. Others stayed in the office, although they moved to the windows to look onto the street. It was happening all over. People were just walking out on their jobs, their lives. She stayed, knowing that her place was at here for the moment. It won’t be for much longer, she thought. James had told the city that Elijah Vanguard was his father. How long would it take for them to figure out that James Alexander was the Hunter? She knew he’d planned for that, but it still worried her. She wondered how long it would take for them to connect him to her. She’d been told her records had been deleted from several of the city’s archives, but they couldn’t stop everything. Civic Protection keeps records of all the people in the city, and eventually they’ll start looking for the ones missing from public records that remain on their own.
She sat back down at her desk in the now half empty office. Now she just needed to wait.
44
Dante stood leaning against his parked car silently in Capitol District. His phone was on, and he held it to his ear. There was a dead dial tone. He kept it to his ear, waiting. The city was in a state of momentary chaos. It had only been about an hour since the Hunter had aired his message of discord. People were running all around him, going one direction or another on the streets. People avoided him, or other Civic Protection soldiers around them. The soldiers stood attentive, but did nothing. They were without orders, and in that situation they were to wait until they received word from their nearest ranking commander. Dante knew this chaos was only momentary, and that things would settle down. The Hunter had shaken things however, and it wouldn’t be the same.
Eventually Medea approached him. Her white and red hair stood out in the crowds of people moving quickly around them. Once again, people carefully avoided her as they raced home or to other areas they thought they might be safe or meet people. She let them go, carefully moving her slender figure towards Dante.
She was not only athletic, but she was unstoppable in combat. She was only bested by Wolfgang and Damaine. Medea was wearing some Civic Protection fatigues and a dark gray tank top. Her hair had been pulled back into a ponytail, although a few strands had escaped and were hanging across her forehead. He dark eyes betrayed the narrow slits of her pupils, which she didn’t bother to hide. She reached Dante with a sardonic grin on her face.
“The phones won’t be back for another few hours at least,” she said, “it was really quite amazing work. You should admire it. He definitely belonged with us. He is a careful and patient planner. His father’s been dead for weeks, and he just now enacts his revenge.”
“You mean other than when he’d rescued his sister?” Dante said.
“And disabled dozens of soldiers in the process,” Medea said, “which shows how much his abilities have accelerated. It took Wolfgang years to pull off that kind of focus from the mind’s eye realm to be able to have that kind of strength. Even with the xeno, the Hunter wouldn’t have been able to do that without its help. He probably didn’t even realize it at the time.” She paused for a moment.
“Do you know what I admire most about his plan?” she asked as she leaned on Dante’s car next to him.
“What's that?” Dante said as he turned off the phone and tossed it on the ground. He ran a hand carefully through his blond hair.
“His attack on the broadcast towers and the network didn’t kill anyone. The only people that were injured in this whole ordeal were the security guard that he knocked out, and those soldiers that were knocked off their feet in that small explosion he used to escape. Just a few concussions. Not even any broken bones.”
“I know father wouldn’t have approved of that,” Dante said with a cough.
“I know,” she said, “can’t you see the irony?”
“So,” he said, “what’s the plan now? Have you spoken to father?”
“No, but Ares has.” There was a pause. She knew Dante resented his brother for many reasons.
“What did father tell him?” Dante finally said. His voice hissed through his teeth as his thoughts turned to Ares.
“He wants the council to meet,” she said, “and make a plan to stop him. To kill the Hunter. Father doesn’t care if he’s family, even if he’s the son of Callista.”
“All of us together again,” Dante said with a sigh. “It's been years since I’ve seen the others. Can’t say I’ve missed their company. All except Lucien, but he was the youngest of us. The most naïve.”
“He still is,” she said as she leaned next to him on his car, “and some things are more important than our differences.” Dante raised his eyebrow at her expectantly as she continued, "Our survival and father’s plan are the most important thing in this city.”
“You still believe him, don’t you,” Dante said. She shook her head at him.
“Why, do you not?”
“Things aren’t as black and white as father made out to us originally,” Dante said, “that’s for sure. Especially spending time with the humans I can see them with a perspective that the rest of you all have lacked.” She chuckled.
“You’ve seen the evils they’re capable of, the darkness that they bring on themselves,” she said calmly. “You are still with us, brother.” Dante nodded slightly, looking away.
“I’m with the winning side,” he said, “but that doesn’t make us any less evil. We’re capable of everything they are. The only difference is that we’re hopeless. We know what’s coming.” He paused again.
“Yes, I’m with you sister. I don’t look forward to seeing them though.” She grinned out of the side of her mouth.
“Some of us will work well together,” she said, “but I’m not so sure about some of the others. I fear that the only way we can handle him is together. We’re still sure not exactly sure what we’re dealing with. We don’t know what the young Vanguard is capable of, truly. If he’s anything like his mother, then he could be a serious problem for us.”
“If the xeno project can be completed in time, then he will be no match for father," Dante said. His voice was grim.
“You’re right,” she said, “but don’t hold too closely to this darkness that’s settled in your mind. This anger in your heart.”
“I might as well,” Dante said, “I’ve got nothing left.”
45
They drove for almost three hours and they were on the other side of the city by the time they’d reached their destination. Dante had never liked Lower District, but it was much better than Old District. It was the more middle class section of the city, not looking nearly as dark and dilapidated as the other. It wasn’t even close in the grandness of Capital and East Districts, though. They were arriving at a Civic Protection warehouse that was empty at the moment. It was heavily guarded on the outside. Dante had his special detachment of soldiers following him in their own vehicles. Detective Garrett was with them as well. He had proven to be a valuable asset in the past.
Dante pulled his car next to a large group of soldiers. The men stood at attention for Dante as he and Medea exited the car. He looked over at the warehouse and then back at them.
“Wait out here,” he said to the soldiers, “I’ll be back. The council will convene here in a few moments. We’re the last ones here.” The men were surprised, and somewhat on edge. The council rarely met, and when it did it was for extremely important issues.
As Medea joined his side, they walked together to the small door on the side of the warehouse. It was quiet out, and the entire city seemed to be in a lull. Things had calmed down since the Hunter’s message had aired hours ago.
Dante closed and locked the door after they entered. It was dark in the warehouse, but lit enough that they could see the shadows of the others in the large room. They were all standing in a broken circle, Dante and Medea completing it. All anyone could see was several silhouettes in a darkened room. A man's voice came from one of them.
“You two are late,” the voice said. Dante could tell it was Wolfgang. Figures he’d be the one to point that out.
“Yeah,” Dante said, “well, it was a three hour drive thanks to how busy all the streets are. I wasn’t the one who decided to have our meetings in a warehouse at the edge of Lower District. We’re here now, so let’s get started.”
“Yes,” said Damaine, “let’s get this started. Where shall we begin?”
“First of all,” said Wolfgang, “I’d like to bring up what we’re all thinking. How did Civic Protection fail all those years ago when they were tasked with killing the young Alexander Vanguard? How did he escape our notice all of these years? Surely he would have awakened some time ago, and we would have detected his abilities long before he would have been exposed to the xeno.” His voice sounded strong, and calm at first.
“What about Civic Protection? In the last month we’ve lost a record amount of soldiers, and have had many more injured. What incompetence is driving what should be a relentless force of control on the city?” His voice began to betray fury.
“How has this child gone unseen for weeks, running around in a mask while calling himself the Hunter? Where were you when he attacked the network, and hijacked their transmissions?” The question was pointed at Dante. Even through the darkness Dante could make out Wolfgang’s menacing stare at him.
“Where was I? Where were you?" Dante asked. He had his own fury in his voice as he stepped forward. “Where were you when Father ordered the council take over Civic Protection from him, all those years ago? Where were you every time the order was made for someone to be taken from their home, to be silenced?” Dante sneered at him.
“You know very well where I was,” Wolfgang said, “and that I was under Father's orders to work outside the city.”
“Yes,” Dante said, “you were under Father's orders to be outside the city. Whatever issues Civic Protection has had, I know they would have been ten times worse if he’d entrusted them to you.”
Wolfgang started to speak, “Maybe he…”
“Maybe he what,” Medea interrupted, “maybe he was wrong? Are you questioning Father’s decision?” Wolfgang backed up slightly.
“No,” he said. He turned to Dante. "You are weak, and you were always the weakest of us. You were the most human, which in my opinion, was why Father chose you. You stand before us, and I barely see you through the mind’s eye. You’re barely a light in the darkness of this realm.”
“The Hunter is a beacon,” Medea said, “I saw glimpses of him when he attacked the soldiers. When he rescued his sister. He’s a prodigy, and I have no doubt that if he continues to scale this quickly then he’ll be as strong as both you and Damaine.” Medea said as she looked at Wolfgang sternly. There was a quiet pause.
“She’s right,” Ares said finally. His glasses could be seen giving off a slight reflection in the darkness of his silhouette. “We need to stop him sooner rather than later. I’m working on the xeno project, but it’s still taking time. Unfortunately, we’ve had to piece together some of our information since Dr. Shepherd’s death. He kept some things a little too close to the chest.”
“Was it worth it?” Dante asked, glaring at Ares.
“He was a weak man, and a traitor,” Ares said. “I made the decision, and Father agreed with it. You need to let go of your care of the humans, Dante. Their deaths are meaningless. You will not go down the same path as William.”
“William refused to pull the trigger,” Dante said, “and we all saw you take the gun from him. We all saw you do it. That wasn’t a human either. It was one of us you killed.”
“I was following orders,” Ares said, “which is all Father has asked of us. He’s given us the promise of the keys to the universe; all we need to do is follow him. Besides, you’re no better than me or any of the rest us.” He turned to Medea. "Good job by the way, killing Elijah Vanguard.”
“Just like you, I was following orders,” Medea said.
“Yes, as we must all do now,” Ares said. "Father has ordered a restructuring of our council. I’m to remain on the xeno project, but the rest of you are to work within the city and Civic Protection.” He turned to the one of them that hadn’t yet spoken up.
“Lucien,” Ares said.
“Yes?” Lucien answered, stepping forward.
“Your weapons, are they ready?”
“Yes,” Lucien said, “but I’m still producing the high impact rounds for the soldiers. That will take another day or so.”
“Dante,” Ares said, “Medea will be your partner in working with Civic Protection, but you both will answer to Wolfgang and Damaine. It’s important that we all utilize Civic Protection. They are our biggest strength against the humans.” Dante nodded his head, holding back what he had to say.
“If those are Father’s orders,” Dante said, “then I guess I have no choice. What about the xenos?”
“Those are a last resort,” Aries said, “for obvious reasons. Hopefully it won’t get to that. No need to repeat history.”
“From now on,” Damaine said, “the council will stay in communication daily. We must work together to defeat the Vanguard before this gets any worse. If he continues to evade us, he’ll be able to build a full resistance in no time at all.”
“I don’t understand,” said Lucien, “Why don’t we just travel with Civic Protection, each of us surveying the districts with our mind’s eye. We can root out any resistance by reading the auras that stand out.” He was the youngest of the council by a great deal.
“That would create an all-out war,” Ares said. "People fear Civic Protection more than they hate them. If you break that balance, and cause them to truly hate Civic Protection it will be all over. There will be an open war that will destroy all we’ve been trying to achieve if it’s too soon. It may reach that point though, so we have to be ready.”
“What about the scrambler?” Lucien asked. They turned to him, surprised.
“Lucien,” Wolfgang said, “none of us are strong enough to use that machine. If it will be used, it will be Father’s decision. He’s in no condition right now to use it anyway.”
“But,” Lucien said, “isn’t it why he built Dirge in the first place? He could activate it at any time, which would end any resistance.”
“It would end everything else as well,” Ares said, “that kind of thing is a last resort, just as the xenos are. Unfortunately, the scrambler has the side effect of an electromagnetic pulse as well. Father didn’t know that until he activated it the first time. All the data we have on the prototypes would be lost.”
“Just create backups,” Lucien said, “we can finish the project without the humans.”
“You’re smart, Lucien,” Ares said, “but you’ve forgotten Father. Do you remember where he is right now?” Lucien quietly looked down.
“Then,” Damaine said, “you understand what that the consequences of activating it would be.” After a quiet pause, everyone understood that the topic was now closed.
“It’s both your job to not only control Civic Protection,” Ares said, “and to locate the Vanguard who calls himself the Hunter. I’ve estimated that a new prototype should be completed by the end of the week. Then Father can join us once again in person. You two are to prepare the city for his arrival. His coming will signal the end of Dirge and the end of this conflict. Keep us posted.”
“Are you sure you can face him?” Dante asked as he looked to Wolfgang, “we haven’t really fought him head to head. We don’t know how powerful he actually is, or how resourceful for that matter.”
“It doesn’t matter...” Damaine said.
“He doesn’t know what true power is,” Wolfgang said, finishing his sister’s sentence.
46
When the meeting was over, Dante and Medea were the only ones to exit from the southern side of the warehouse. Dante was scow
ling, Medea walking next to him with a blank face. They walked up to the soldiers who’d been waiting for them quietly. It was dark, nearly midnight. Even though it had been cloudy all day, it hadn’t rained at all.
“Detective Garrett,” Dante said, “use all your resources. I want you to find out who the Hunter is. I don’t care what you have to do, but I need to know who he is as soon as possible. Remember the Hunter said himself that he was a Vanguard. He spoke the truth regarding that, I have no doubt. Base your investigation on that knowledge and try to discover his identity, and maybe we can find some way to get to him. Ideally, we could use someone he knew before he became the Hunter as leverage. You’re in charge of this investigation, and anything to do with the resistance that he is undoubtedly building.” Dante went to his car, opening the door. “You have your orders. Keep me posted. I’ll call you if there’s anything else.”
He reached into his jacket pocket, searching for his phone. He remembered he’d tossed his on the ground. Medea, who was watching him, casually handed him her phone. When he activated it, he was relieved to hear a dial tone.
“So the phones work again,” she said. She was walking around the car to the passenger side.
“Yeah,” Dante said, “what do you think of all the council being in Dirge together again like this?”
“Well,” Medea said, “I expected it, but I’m not happy about it. I’m used to working alone or with you. Also, I’m not used to the dark skies of Dirge.” Her face was still blank as she opened the passenger side door and sat down.
“You get used to it,” Dante said. She nodded silently as he started the car.
47
James arrived at the underground facility sometime after midnight. He had been watching Civic Protection all evening, but he couldn’t find Dante or that woman who traveled with him. He’d learned from Christina, who had overheard some people talking at the capital, that the woman’s name was Medea. It’s an unusual name, he thought, of course so is Dante.
City of Twilight Part II: The Fallen (The Vanguard Chronicles Book 2) Page 2
